Chapter 57 Old man, you've finally come!

Dragonians, and petrified puppets—she had seen both of these. They were monsters that posed a severe headache for novice adventurers.

However, to a veteran adventurer like her, or even to an Awakened one like Vaughn, they were still somewhat unimpressive.

She had never seen a stone giant before, only hearing that they were colossal in size and as hard as iron, impervious to ordinary swords and blades. The strongest among them had even inflicted a few casualties on the Iron Wolf Knights.

Later on, she learned that Vaughn had not been with the specific squad that suffered those losses at the time. His strategy had been to divide the Iron Wolf Knights into small squads to conduct a thorough, carpet-style search of the Sky Tower.

Who would have thought there would be special lifeforms like stone giants that were unfazed by beatings, catching the Iron Wolf Knights completely off guard?

"Let's get back to the clothes. Did you buy this in Hendon Myre? I think I can even sense a faint trace of magic coming from it."

Isabella gently touched Yarin's sleeve. Unlike cloth armor, which was constrained by material limitations and rarely designed to look beautiful or elegant, this was different.

"Yes, that shop also has a mysterious set of Sky attire. When you wear the full set, it radiates a special glowing visual effect, making you look extraordinarily dazzling and noble."

"Quick, tell me about it. Clothes that glow?"

Isabella's interest spiked dramatically. Aside from adventures, she also loved collecting exquisite and rare items, with clothing and jewelry being her favorites.

"Your Highness, to be honest with you, those clothes are absurdly expensive. The shop owner holds back and won't sell them directly; you have to use a special item called an [Avatar Synthesizer] to fuse two magical garments together with just a chance of getting them. The probability is extremely low, and you still have to buy the base clothes yourself. It's wildly expensive."

A brilliant, dazzling light flickered in Isabella's eyes. Such a bizarre method of creation was precisely what matched her status as a princess—the rarer, the better; the more expensive, the better!

Gold coins? Weren't those just numbers?

Siat was amused yet helpless as she stood there acting like a clothes rack for him to show off. She and the princess, who should naturally be mortal enemies, unexpectedly found some common ground at this moment.

While Isabella chatted animatedly and to her heart's content, Vaughn, on the other side, wore a dark expression and walked with a slight limp.

Although the mysterious armor animated by magic was extraordinary, it was still far from being a match for him.

Yet who would have foreseen that an Exterminator, even after he had dismantled its helmet and legs, could still pick up a longsword and launch a sneak attack on him from the ground!

Caught off guard and careless, he suffered a heavy blow, receiving a bleeding slash on his lower leg. If not for his light armor boots, that strike probably would have shaved off a chunk of flesh.

That sudden explosion, coupled with the mysterious magical armor and the fact that he was injured, made his subconscious reaction to want to get out of this haunted place.

However, the sudden pain in his demon arm made him halt his steps, deciding to stay and investigate the matter to the end.

The most likely reason why the Ghost God's Binding—recently re-tuned by the [Calibration Tool]—was faintly failing was either the presence of Transfer Energy or magical turbulence.

Whichever it was, uncovering the cause would be a tremendous merit for the Empire.

He, Vaughn, craved power, and he craved status as well!

The Exterminators' unique life-like abilities put Vaughn through the wringer; you never knew if those shattered pieces of armor might suddenly strike from behind and stab you the next moment.

Yet the formidable sword intent of an Awakened one still prevailed. Vaughn's wild slaughter finally provoked someone deep within the Dark Corridor—a silvery-white knight, distinct from the multitude of ancient cyan armors, whose hollow eye sockets suddenly flashed with two points of crimson light.

Accompanied by its attendants and wielding a cyan glowing sword, it slowly moved in Vaughn's direction.

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"Once we finish with the Sky Tower, I must visit that shop and buy some things to take back to Delos."

"That's right, put on the Sky Avatar, and Your Highness, you'll be the flashiest person in all of Delos!"

Yarin naturally laid on the heavy flattery. The avatar shop was currently managed by Thana, meaning the money she earned was essentially money in his own pocket.

"By the way, do you know the history of the Sky Tower?"

Perhaps because chatting with Yarin felt quite comfortable and free of imperial pretense, she was happy to talk about other matters to pass the time while waiting for Vaughn to return from his descent—such as the Sky Tower.

"No, I don't."

He actually knew, but right now he had to act like he didn't. Isabella's mysterious demeanor clearly telegraphed: *Quick, play along, Her Highness is about to flex!*

"According to imperial ancient texts and the records of the Dark Elves, the Sky Tower is an incomplete tower that pierces the heavens!"

"Really?"

Yarin and Siat cooperated, letting out successive gasps of astonishment.

"Of course it's true. The Sky Tower used to be called the Tower of Wriggling, covered and distorted by Bakal's magic. Within a thousand meters, nothing could approach, and from afar it looked like a wriggling worm piercing the heavens."

Isabella squinted her eyes in utter contentment. As a person of imperial princess status, she was naturally never short of flatterers, but those formulaic, wearisome compliments always carried ulterior motives, all on account of her father, the Emperor of the Delos Empire!

Opportunities to discuss esoteric lore and bizarre knowledge with kindred spirits of adventurers were truly rare indeed.

At the same time, as Yarin listened, he silently rejoiced that "Hound" Cyrus hadn't tagged along with the princess this time. If Vaughn was someone who could weigh the pros and cons of certain actions, a meeting between Cyrus and Siat would undoubtedly result in them immediately drawing their swords against each other with zero room for reconciliation.

Siat's view was that the transference experiments ruined her life and altered her life's trajectory, and she could not swallow this grievance without taking revenge.

Cyrus, on the other hand, had a father who tragically died in the war against the rebels, and she viewed the rebels as irreconcilable enemies.

Unlike Siat, who practiced the forbidden swordsmanship of Weapon Mastery, Cyrus was a Blade Dancer who communicated with demonic entities and possessed a terrifyingly high compatibility with them.

Not long after the banter ended, four figures appeared on the staircase on the other side. The people who arrived this time pleasantly surprised Yarin beyond measure.

Luna and Mayrio were safe and sound, and they had brought along a graceful woman attired in a blue dress. The blooming blue rose atop her head and the charmingly mature eye shadow and lipstick unmistakably declared her identity—Sharan!

This poised, mature aura caused Mayrio and Luna, walking alongside her, to unconsciously lower their heads.

As for the person following behind Sharan, it almost brought hot tears to Yarin's eyes. Old man, you've finally arrived! Carry me through Dragon King's realm, let's beat the boss and restart, and by the way, hand over the weapon [G.S.D's Ultimate Wave Blade]!

A bald head, eyes covered by a crisscrossed cloth blindfold, a tattered cloak, five weapons strapped to his back with one at his waist, and a slight beer belly. Though aged, an aura of sharp, biting intensity radiated from his entire body.

A trace of wariness flashed across Isabella's eyes. The reason the Delos Empire had not yet completely annexed Hendon Myre—aside from the inconvenience of governance—was largely because this old man was an unstable variable.

He possessed a ghost hand, yet he was not a Soul Bender, nor did he ever wear a Ghost God's Binding. He made no effort to conceal his distorted ghost hand, and his formidable willpower completely overshadowed the ghost gods.

Despite clearly being blind, not the slightest movement could escape his notice, and he also mastered the "Wave Stones" capable of helping Asura professionals advance.

Kallia of Hendon Myre had a wild and erratic personality, yet she alone never dared to stir up trouble in front of G.S.D.