Chapter 453: A Chinese Ghost Story: The Betrayal
[Congratulations to players [Orochimaru], [Sakazuki], [Borsalino], [Smoker], [Garp]… for successfully clearing the Tier 2 Dark-Gold map (A Chinese Ghost Story: The Scholar)!]
[Unlocked purchase rights for the A Chinese Ghost Story series dark-gold items!]
[Awarded 2,000,000 reward points and 1,000,000 experience points...]
[Obtained Dark-Gold Title [Wraith Hunter]. While equipped, ghost-type pet growth potential +5, unlocks additional pet slot, allows extra contract with one ghost-type pet.]
A series of system announcements sent the entire Samsara Game space into an uproar.
Before discussions could even begin,
The Navy Alliance suddenly issued a global announcement.
"The Navy Alliance, in defense of order and safety within the Samsara Game, hereby places a bounty on player [Orochimaru]…"
When players saw the bulletin, their expressions turned strange.
"The Navy Alliance is actually hunting down Orochimaru? Are cross-world conflicts starting to break out?"
"Going by the announcement, it looks like Orochimaru and the Navy generals cleared a dark-gold map together. I'm guessing a loot dispute broke out at the end."
"This is gonna be good. The Fire Empire from the ninja world was already a target. Now with the Navy bounty, Orochimaru is completely isolated."
"Says who? Orochimaru is still the strongest player. Who's gonna take down the Fire Empire?"
"I'm more curious about those dark-gold items…"
Players buzzed with speculation, their attention turning to the conflict between the game's strongest player and strongest faction.
Marine Headquarters, Conference Room
Sengoku wore a grim expression as he looked around the table at the Navy Admirals. His voice was hoarse. "Tell me exactly what happened. Every detail."
Clearing the dark-gold map first should've been a cause for celebration. But at the last moment, the despicable Orochimaru launched a sneak attack—resulting in the deaths of Admirals Smoker and Akainu.
"It all started smoothly,"
Borsalino was uncharacteristically serious. "We unsealed [Yan Chixia], the Taoist swordsman. His combat strength matched the Tree Demon Matriarch. He dispelled the illusions created by the Demonic Robe Scholar and helped us defeat the Matriarch."
The Navy team had entered a special realm—an illusion forged from the memories of the [Demonic Robe Scholar].
The River of Fate had been thrown into chaos, allowing the corrupted storyline of A Chinese Ghost Story to run rampant.
The scholar consuming the Tree Demon Matriarch's heart and becoming the [Demonic Robe Scholar] was just one of its many branching fates.
The final boss, the Tree Demon Matriarch, had been seeking to break through to Tier 3 by devouring other fate-line creatures. Ning Laoye, partially sealed by one of her peach tree branches, had manipulated the Navy players into breaking his seal so he could backstab her.
But they turned the tables, killed him, and freed Yan Chixia from an underground prison.
"There was that much going on?"
Sengoku's face darkened. He hadn't expected the new season's dark-gold maps to be this convoluted.
Fate rivers, branching timelines, rogue storylines…
"Those 'storylines' must refer to the original course of the River of Fate…"
Since becoming a Samsara Game player, Sengoku had studied some of this lore.
From what he knew, the so-called fate of the One Piece world was originally the Straw Hat Pirates' journey to upend the world.
"So that's why our world is called the 'Pirate World'?"
Listening to Borsalino's explanation, Sengoku was stunned. A dangerous thought crossed his mind:
"If that's the case, could the Pirate World one day be invaded by a fate branch—maybe a version where the Navy or World Government or even one of the Four Emperors devours our timeline?"
If the Tree Demon Matriarch could devour a fate-branch version of the Demonic Robe Scholar, then such a thing wasn't impossible.
But then again,
Those other fate streams weren't part of the Samsara Game.
Right now, Navy Headquarters was dozens of times stronger than before—there was no need to worry about being consumed.
He forced those tangled thoughts aside and gestured for Borsalino to continue.
Borsalino took a breath. "After the Tree Demon Matriarch died, Yan Chixia vanished. Before we could react, Orochimaru ambushed and killed Admiral Akainu."
"Akainu had exhausted his Hellfire energy. He couldn't defend himself. Orochimaru took him out instantly."
"Then Smoker—he was already drained from the final fight. We tried to take Orochimaru down together, but failed to stop him."
Orochimaru defeated four admirals alone?
Sengoku's eyes narrowed, unconvinced.
Sensing this, Kizaru quickly added, "Orochimaru is strong, but not that strong. At most, he's equal to two admirals combined."
"It was his cunning that made the difference."
Kizaru sighed. "During the fight, Akainu and Smoker used everything they had. Their potion reserves were depleted."
"But Orochimaru... he held back. At the very end, he quietly drank a potion, fully recovered, and launched his attack."
Because they had signed a team contract, none of them had suspected him.
Sengoku frowned. "But how did Orochimaru bypass the contract backlash?"
The rules of the Samsara Game were ironclad. No one could break them—not even Orochimaru.
Kizaru shook his head. "He didn't escape the backlash. The moment he broke the contract and attacked Akainu, he died."
"But he left behind a snake egg."
"Then he used a revival coin to skip the Yomi Quest and respawned directly at the Tree Demon Matriarch's location using the egg's coordinates."
Attack, break contract, die, revive, teleport…
It all flowed perfectly.
It was likely that Orochimaru had planned the entire betrayal from the moment he signed the team contract—intent on murdering the Navy generals and monopolizing the dark-gold loot.
Sengoku's forehead throbbed. He massaged his temples, eyes stinging.
Tsuru, the Chief Strategist, looked pale. "This was my misjudgment. I'll take full responsibility."
She had proposed the alliance with Orochimaru.
But honestly, her logic had been sound.
The Fire Empire was a target in the ninja world. If Orochimaru offended too many factions, he'd be surrounded and destroyed.
She'd assumed he wouldn't risk making more enemies.
But she underestimated his cold-blooded nature.
Orochimaru didn't care if the Fire Empire was destroyed.
Tsuru had researched his history. He had once abandoned the Sound Village without hesitation.
But Sound Village was weak—unlike the Fire Empire, which was a mid-tier faction in the game's grand scheme.
She'd known he could abandon allies. She hadn't expected him to do it so decisively.
"Cold-blooded. Venomous. Cunning. Powerful…"
Sengoku rubbed his brow, easing his migraine. "No wonder he destroyed Konoha and turned the ninja world upside down. The Navy misjudged him."
"Send a formal letter to the ninja factions. We'll destroy the Fire Empire together."
Justice cannot be tarnished.
Even Orochimaru must pay the price for crossing the line.
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