Chapter 79

Thirty minutes later,

Fang Senyan had showered, bandaged his wounds, and emerged to find his teammates gathered around the dining table. They weren't actually hungry or intending to eat.

The reason they were there was the Pandora's Box, which Fang Senyan had obtained after killing Loki.

With less than twenty minutes remaining to complete the mission, and Loki unlikely to return, the team had some downtime. Zi had taken the Pandora's Box and noticed it was strangely absorbing her magic. With her teammates protecting her, she allowed it to continue.

After absorbing about a third of Zi's magic, a small hourglass illusion appeared above the box, near the miniature black hole where sacrifices were placed. The hourglass displayed a percentage, currently at 79%.

Fang Senyan, after paying a fee for information, confirmed that the percentage represented the intensity of the sacrifice. The more offerings, the greater the intensity, and the more extreme the surprise (or disaster) upon opening the box.

After some deliberation, Fang Senyan began sacrificing less important items. However, his attempts backfired. Some items were clearly not to the Pandora's Box's liking, and were even rejected by the miniature black hole, causing the percentage to drop to 78%.

Finally, Fang Senyan gritted his teeth, considered his options, and sacrificed the Caribbean gold pearl, the Twisted Soul Vessel, and the Sorting Hat from Hogwarts, finally raising the intensity to 80%. Strangely, 80% seemed to be the limit, unable to be surpassed.

This highlighted the immense cost Steel File had incurred to raise the sacrifice percentage from 0% to 78% after obtaining the Pandora's Box. It had unexpectedly benefited Fang Senyan.

At that moment, Fang Senyan noticed the Pandora's Egg, acquired in the hidden world of Resident Evil: Origins, emitting an eerie light. An idea struck him: Pandora's Box, Pandora's Egg! Could there be a special connection between them?

So, Fang Senyan sacrificed the egg as well, resulting in an immediate and intense phenomenon!

First came an indescribable fragrance, likely the scent that drove men mad, bestowed upon Pandora by Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty.

Then came a kaleidoscope of colors, undoubtedly the beautiful fabrics and nimble intelligence given to Pandora by Athena, the goddess of wisdom and crafts.

Next, an illusion of a delicate headband floated up, a creation of Hephaestus, the god of fire and metalworking…

Simultaneously, the intensity of the sacrifice finally broke through the 80% barrier and climbed rapidly to 100%!

The illusions around the Pandora's Box became clearer once more. The air filled with a rich aroma, white dove phantoms fluttered around, and silver-leaved apple trees sprouted, their golden fruit-laden branches bending to the ground. Long-haired white ewes and rams, and white bulls with gilded horns, strolled peacefully...

"It has to be opened now!" Fang Senyan felt the energy inside the box reach its peak. If they missed this opportunity, the energy would gradually decline and fall back to 80%.

Although the energy was at its highest, the nature of Pandora's Box was unpredictable. Opening it could still yield bad results, or good ones, and because of the peak energy, the outcome was likely to be extreme.

The best candidates to open the box were undoubtedly Fang Senyan or Reef. These two could ensure they wouldn't die even if the worst occurred. However, Sanzi suddenly placed his hand on the Pandora's Box, looked at Fang Senyan earnestly, and said:

"Brother Yan, opening a box like this is all about luck. It should definitely be me."

Sanzi was right; a Chosen One would undoubtedly have superior luck. Fang Senyan hesitated.

"But..."

Sanzi said:

"Have Brother Reef prepare God's Hand. I'll open it when I count down to zero, and then Brother Reef can grab me half a second later."

The outcome wasn't entirely unexpected. Sanzi reached out, grasped the Pandora's Box, and opened it abruptly! At the moment of opening, the illusions around the box were all absorbed into it.

Then, the most dangerous and ridiculous scene unfolded. Reef used God's Hand to pull Sanzi thirty meters away. Sanzi was pulled away, but… for some reason, Sanzi was clutching Pandora's Box, and didn't let go, pulling the box along with him.

The group exchanged bewildered glances, realizing it was a spectacularly failed maneuver. Fortunately, the box was open, and whatever was going to happen had already begun; there was no escape. They gathered around and saw that the Pandora's Box had become transparent, then rapidly collapsed into light points towards the center. What appeared before Fang Senyan was an incredibly peculiar scroll.

The scroll had a heavy feel and texture. From the back, it looked much like ordinary parchment. But when flipped over, the front rippled like water and reflected like a mirror. However, from any angle, the image reflected was that of the person holding it!

The scroll bore a cruelly named title: The Scalp of a Cretan God.

Fang Senyan took the scroll in his hands, and a series of attributes appeared:

The Scalp of a Cretan God

Grade: Legendary item.

Description: "I hear the desires in your hearts, the yearning to become even stronger. Given the richness of your sacrifices, I grant you this scroll filled with blood and power. Only the scalp of a Cretan god from ancient times can bear the power of Aphrodite, goddess of beauty and desire, in her full glory."

Use: Aphrodite's power will hear your heart's desires and create a tailor-made S-rank Legendary ability for the holder.

Hint: The more powerful the holder's personal attributes, the more potent the resulting S-rank Legendary ability will be. Once the ability is obtained, this item will vanish. Therefore, use it when you are in your best condition.

Warning: The majesty of the gods is inviolable. The gifts of the gods can be claimed by those who have earned victory, but cannot be treated as merchandise for profane transfer. Therefore, only those truly worthy can open the scroll; otherwise, they will suffer divine punishment.

*

Reading the last sentence, Fang Senyan couldn't help but sigh. In the short term, he already possessed considerable assets:

For prolonged battles: The Virus Monarch

For explosive power: Judgment, Corrosion Wound, Final Impact, Annihilation.

Therefore, for him, the priority was to strengthen his existing abilities, such as developing the high-level disease as soon as possible. Secondly, items like Chris Redfield's Lucky Bracelet needed to be unsealed. Not to mention the Bloody Armor of a Major General that awaited him after his rank was raised.

Fang Senyan understood the principle of not biting off more than he could chew.

Therefore, Fang Senyan had originally intended to give the scroll to Zi. Zi's Awakening skill had never appeared, so while her Force attacks were ever-changing, she lacked a decisive, explosive skill. Unfortunately, it seemed that wasn't possible; the scroll had to be used by him.

Fang Senyan wasn't planning to use the scroll immediately, as many of the additional buff potions had been used up. He could only achieve his best condition by returning to the space, where he could also receive timely treatment to prevent any accidents.

*

After a while of discussion, the excited voice of Major Li came from outside:

"Finally, we've succeeded!"

Fang Senyan stood up, exhaled a long breath, and saw a group of medical personnel slowly pushing Dr. W in. Dr. W was lying completely on the bed, his eyes peacefully closed, an aura of age and death emanating from his body, yet he smiled at Fang Senyan and said:

"Thank you for your help. You allowed me to complete the research with my own hands. Now, I don't need this anymore. It's time to return it to its rightful owner."

Dr. W handed the Endless Vodka to Fang Senyan, then closed his eyes with a smile and began to snore softly. He was simply too tired. Although this sleep might be eternal, the expression on Dr. W's face was one of happiness. At the same time, Fang Senyan and the others received a clear mission prompt:

Hidden Follow-Up Timed Mission: The Real Trump Card

Mission Objective: Protect Mr. W for 24 hours to ensure his survival.

Mission Reward: All your attributes permanently +5!