"Where the hell is this?!"

In the Grave Pasture, Song Fei gazed out at the vast, seemingly endless plains.

His Herd Spirit form was a crimson Ethereal Form, and he had been standing like this before a tombstone for a long time.

They said the Coliseum didn't allow freebies, but in the end, Xu Lang still managed to get one.

This newly erected tombstone was the best proof.

"Are you still unwilling to accept it?" Saladin drifted over silently. "If you maintain this attitude, your best outcome will be the same as Azeman's—having your spiritual intelligence ground away—or like your previous companions, being used as sacrificial offerings."

Song Fei remained silent for a long moment before replying, "Have you all already accepted your identities as 'Cattle and Sheep'?"

"The winner takes all, the loser loses everything, including loyalty," Saladin said plainly. "Besides, you can betray at any time, as long as you can bear the price..."

Coming back to life.

People cherish life more after dying.

Herd Spirits are no exception.

If there was a ticket that could let you be reborn as livestock after death, even the richest person would spend their entire fortune to buy it.

A dead emperor is worse off than a living rat.

The two stopped talking and simply gazed at the plains, as if waiting for something.

"After the Shepherd resurrected, I feel my power has grown stronger. Do you know why?" Saladin suddenly asked.

A flicker of surprise passed through Song Fei's eyes. He looked at Saladin seriously for a moment and said in a low voice,

"The power he possesses should be Sequence power. Dying and coming back to life allowed him to develop his Sequence power more deeply..."

"Suffering a heavy blow like death, his Sequence power didn't weaken at all; instead, it became stronger!"

"This indicates his Sequence is very strong, extremely strong! At least a top-tier C-grade, or a B-grade Sequence, and with a considerable degree of development!"

He grew more excited as he spoke, vaguely grasping something.

"Clap, clap, clap~ As expected of a veteran player, you figured out the reason so quickly."

Just then, a round of applause came from behind.

Song Fei whirled around and saw Xu Lang walking towards him. He then glared angrily at Saladin. "You did that on purpose?!"

Damn it!

This old geezer is truly despicable!

Now I can't even pretend anymore!

"Pay respects to the Shepherd!"

The Herd Spirits all manifested simultaneously, paying homage to Xu Lang, leaving Song Fei standing alone like a wooden post.

"Aren't you going to kneel?" Xu Lang looked at Song Fei and asked with a smile.

A sense of suffocation washed over him!

Seeing Xu Lang, Song Fei felt more burdened than a commoner seeing an emperor; it was like a mortal gazing upon a celestial god.

"Pay respects to the Shepherd!" Song Fei prostrated himself on the ground.

Xu Lang placed one hand behind his back and rested the other on his sword hilt, smiling as he said, "I have a few questions for you."

As he spoke, his gaze swept over Song Fei's tombstone.

[Song Fei's Tomb]

[Herd Spirit: Song Fei]

[Special Ability: Crimson Heart Remains Unchanged, tempered through countless hardships without regret, never lacking the courage to face death or the will to continue fighting]

[Introduction: Taleblade, you tormented me deeply... but in the end, the victor can only be me!]

Song Fei's Herd Spirit ability was somewhat peculiar.

With this ability, as long as Xu Lang desired to fight, courage would continuously bolster him. Even amidst overwhelming despair, he could firmly believe hope would arrive... Overall, not bad.

"I obtained the Gluttony Table Knife from your Loser's Gift Box. In your opinion, is it necessary for me to go and subdue the Gluttony Demon?" Xu Lang asked.

"No!" Song Fei actually outright rejected the suggestion. He kept his head lowered, only able to see the tip of Xu Lang's shoe, and explained, "The only method to subdue a tale creature is to integrate it into your body. To achieve this, you need to prepare the corresponding props and follow the system prompts to succeed."

Xu Lang's eyebrows jumped, his face full of surprise.

So, he had been indulging in wishful thinking before.

He wasn't a Taleblade Building player; he couldn't even be a socket if he tried.

Song Fei continued, "The props from the Taleblade Building, your Mad King Building probably can't obtain them. Moreover, your own dormitory building might not necessarily help you seal the tale creature."

"It must be a dormitory building?" Xu Lang asked casually.

"Taleblade Building players have conducted experiments before. Subduing a tale creature without using the Taleblade Building's power is possible, but the difficulty becomes abnormally high," Song Fei replied.

Xu Lang felt surprised again.

These veteran players were truly different; they were already trying to break free from and oppose their dormitory buildings.

"Tell me about the twelve Floor Leaders of your Taleblade Building, and also the three games you've experienced recently." Xu Lang leaned back. Blood Mist gathered, forming a throne.

The Soul-Herding Wolf was about to come over to act as a cushion but, seeing this scene, felt slightly disappointed.

Xu Lang's development as the Scarlet Shepherd was progressing deeper and deeper. This wasn't entirely his own intention; the Scarlet Shepherd itself was evolving.

If a player's growth speed couldn't keep up with the Sequence's evolution speed, they would be devoured.

But Xu Lang wasn't particularly panicked because he had always developed relatively quickly.

After listening to Song Fei's account, Xu Lang continued asking, "Now tell me about your experience subduing the Gluttony Demon... How much do you know about Chosen Ones?"

The group of Herd Spirits remained kneeling.

There was plenty of time tonight; everyone could listen to the story along with Xu Lang.

"The Gluttony Demon is a tale creature from Purgatory. Its potential baseline is King-grade, with an upper limit of Emperor-grade and Monarch-grade. I only obtained one-seventh of its power..."

"Purgatory is a large-scale plane, rumored to be located beneath all things. Many normal worlds also have traces of Purgatory's power..."

"The Blood Mist World is like a trash can; it consumes everything, so of course there are remnants of Purgatory's power..."

"For us veteran players, the Blood Mist World isn't actually that dangerous. Sir, you already possess the qualifications to survive in the Blood Mist World..."

"If you have the coordinates of a new student dormitory building, you could 'visit' as a wild BOSS. It's said that if you kill all the players in a dormitory building, you'll receive rewards from your own dormitory building. Of course, the difficulty is sky-high. The invaded dormitory building might directly nurture a God-grade player to kill you."

"Chosen Ones are similar to Sequence Holders... a very powerful group, but their origin traces back to Demon Gods at the apex of the world..."

"As for Demon Gods... just treat them as background elements. Their authenticity is questionable, only existing in fragments of text, and the descriptions are quite exaggerated..."

Song Fei truthfully disclosed all the information.

Before seeing Xu Lang, he had many thoughts, but after seeing Xu Lang, all those thoughts vanished.

Adam nearly wet himself stealing a forbidden fruit; how could he possibly raise a blade against God?

The increase in authority was also a manifestation of Xu Lang's deeper development of his Sequence power.