Share the Same Robe.
As long as the distance between Qi Yuan and Xiao Jia was not too vast, even if they were apart and out of sight, activating this major skill allowed them to fuse together.
While using this skill, Qi Yuan could share Xiao Jia's authority.
Robe Rend.
Qi Yuan's attacks would inherently possess an armor-piercing property against clothing and armor.
Both skills were quite impressive.
After all, Qi Yuan realized that when he leveled up normally to Level 90, he would still gain two more skills of his own.
This meant he had essentially scored two skills for free.
Xiao Jia detached from his body. For some reason, Qi Yuan felt an unseen bond had formed between him and this robe monster.
He looked at Xiao Jia, studying her intently.
He wanted to see her eyes, but there were none to be seen.
"Are you sure you don't want a divorce?" Qi Yuan asked. "Once I finish clearing this map, I might leave this place."
In myth and folklore, there were stories of mortals falling in love with supernatural beings: Xu Xian and the snake demon, Dong Yong and the Seventh Fairy, or the Gibbon Monkey and the Sparrow Fairy with whom he shared deep affection.
Yet no one had ever heard of a human dating an NPC.
To make matters worse, an NPC made of clothing.
Hearing Qi Yuan's words, Xiao Jia's form trembled slightly, and a wooden plaque dropped to the ground. On it was a crude drawing of a man, alongside two characters: *Husband*.
Qi Yuan picked up the plaque and thought for a moment. "Fine, then for now you're just my in-game partner. Consider us in a divorce cooling-off period."
Once he cleared the game, that would be the end of it.
Another wooden plaque slipped from Xiao Jia's sleeve.
*Cuddle.*
If the little creature had eyes, she would definitely be gazing at Qi Yuan with eager anticipation.
"No cuddling!"
What was the point of cuddling?
Fusing was far better.
Qi Yuan looked at Xiao Jia and said slowly, "Let's fuse."
Seeing that Xiao Jia did not object, Qi Yuan activated the skill Share the Same Robe.
Share the Same Robe was different from when Xiao Jia initiated the fusion herself.
He wanted to see the difference between the two.
In an instant, Xiao Jia imprinted onto his chest once more.
A suit of blood-red armor materialized around Qi Yuan's body.
Unlike when Xiao Jia possessed him on her own, this suit of armor was covered with blood-red barbs, appearing far more dangerous and menacing. Its crimson hue was also noticeably more vibrant, rather than the dark, blackened red from before.
If the armor from Xiao Jia's voluntary possession emphasized defense and protection, the fusion initiated by Qi Yuan's Share the Same Robe clearly focused on offense.
The five-level boost remained active.
Such an increase was terrifyingly potent.
"If I charge into the robe monsters clad in this armor, who could possibly stop me except the Lord of the Forbidden Zone?"
Qi Yuan felt his grinding progress had just sped up considerably.
"What about the shared authority?"
Qi Yuan focused his senses.
"Huh? One-third control over the Robe and Crown Forbidden Ground?"
Qi Yuan was stunned. He had not anticipated this at all.
However, Xiao Jia's form of control was clearly different from the command Qi Yuan had previously held over the Xuanyuan Forbidden Ground.
In gaming terms, Xiao Jia's was soft control, whereas Qi Yuan's had been hard, absolute control.
Lowering his head, his gaze penetrated the crimson armor and rested on Xiao Jia imprinted upon his chest.
"Seems she really is one of the big bosses of the robe monster forbidden grounds.
"Since we can share authority, does that mean I don't have to kill her?"
He fell into thought.
To obtain the Heavenly Dao fragments and achieve Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment, he had to clear the Robe and Crown Forbidden Ground, which probably meant beating the entire game.
Though Qi Yuan often seemed utterly unreliable, he never dropped the ball when it truly mattered.
"Authority."
Qi Yuan narrowed his eyes.
His figure flickered.
This time, he reappeared directly in the graveyard from before.
Standing ten meters tall, he resembled a giant in this desolate place.
Fixing his eyes on a particular grave, he shrank his body back down to normal human size.
The burial mound looked ordinary, complete with a burrowing hole where white centipedes could be seen crawling.
Qi Yuan squeezed straight through the hole.
Having gained the authority shared by Xiao Jia, Qi Yuan knew that an underground palace lay beneath that mound.
Buried inside were the ancient sovereigns of every generation of the Robe and Crown Forbidden Ground.
The pitch-black interior posed no obstacle to Qi Yuan.
He brandished his great sword, and fluid red metal flowed over the weapon, coating it as well.
The underground palace, which should have been fraught with peril, now stood wide open to Qi Yuan, likely due to Xiao Jia's fusion.
Walking through the underground corridors, Qi Yuan observed the surrounding structures with a trace of doubt. "The fact that they could build a palace like this proves robe monsters once possessed intelligence.
"Why is it that all the robe monsters I've seen are... bloodthirsty, frenzied, and mindless?"
In the game, even if Qi Yuan did not pull aggro, the mob NPCs would still attack him on sight.
It was as though those monsters wanted nothing more than to tear every living creature in the world to shreds.
Yet Xiao Jia was completely different from any NPC Qi Yuan had encountered.
He suddenly recalled the inspection details his eyes had gathered on the Ugly Robe Monster Sovereign.
"Lord of the Fallen Forbidden Zone?"
"Could it be that Xiao Jia is uncorrupted?"
Qi Yuan felt he had stumbled upon the truth.
Stepping into the deepest recesses of the underground palace, Qi Yuan suddenly froze.
"Did I just walk into the First Emperor's Mausoleum?"
As far as the eye could see stood rows upon rows of black armored robes.
Some held long spears, while others gripped dagger-axes.
Stationed inside the subterranean pits like an organized army division, they remained utterly motionless, yet Qi Yuan could still sense the chilling, grim intent of a battle-ready formation.
Stretching out into the distance, they numbered in the thousands upon thousands.
At this moment, they looked just like the Terracotta Army.
Yet Qi Yuan had an instinctive feeling that once awakened, they would form the mightiest army in this world, sweeping away all before them.
Qi Yuan's gaze was drawn to a massive stone stele.
Dense characters were inscribed across its face.
"'Of the Four Divisions of the Divine Court, the Robe Division is governed by the Bridal Gown Imperial Princess, wife of the Heavenly God.
"'Gather the world's battle robes to uphold the grand splendor of the Divine Court; strike terror into the demon horde, and clothe all under heaven!'"
He read on carefully.
The stele recorded a great deal, detailing an era of peerless glory.
In ancient times, the Heavenly God founded the Divine Court and commanded four divisions, shaking the world with his might and bringing peace across the realm.
The Robe Division was the most prominent of the four, overseeing slaughter and warfare.
The Imperial Guard of the Robe Division had once trampled the Hundred Thousand Mountains and the Endless Plains, driving the demon race into the icy wastelands.
The administrator of the Robe Division, the Bridal Gown Imperial Princess, was the wife of the Heavenly God.
Qi Yuan thought of Xiao Jia.
Could Xiao Jia be connected to this Bridal Gown Goddess?
He continued reading.
The Divine Court presided over the four seas and eight wildernesses, ushering in centuries of peace.
Commanding four divisions, the Divine Court was invincible across the world.
Yet when one becomes invincible under heaven, foes arrive from beyond the heavens.
One day, an enemy from beyond the realm invaded the Wangyue Continent.
The Lord of the Divine Court, that mighty Heavenly God, led his forces to meet the foe.
In the end, he never returned.
The four divisions gradually declined as a result.
The final remnant of the Robe Division's Imperial Guard was entombed within this underground palace, awaiting the day they would awaken to fight for the Heavenly God, to fight for the world.
"So that's the lore of this game?"
"The Four Great Forbidden Grounds must correspond to the four divisions of the Divine Court."
"The final boss is probably that otherworldly invader."
"My quest objective is to defeat the otherworldly enemy, protect the world, and receive the Heavenly Dao as my reward?"
"I knew it. The moment I put on the Emperor Armor, I was destined to become the great hero who saves the world!"
As an inexperienced gamer, this was the narrative Qi Yuan spun in his mind.
"And here I thought Jin Li's quest to defend a kingdom was tough—turns out mine is the real Hell difficulty!"
According to the inscriptions, the Divine Court had reigned supreme over nearly a hundred human nations.
"For my Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment, I've got to give it everything I have!"
"After all, I'm a man backed by Xiao Jia now!"
An instant five-level boost!
That was simply way too overpowered!
...
Somewhere on the Wangyue Continent, faint murmurs arose, sounding like hushed whispers.
Chapter 42