As long as you have the courage, fierce ghosts go on maternity leave.

"The Ghost King is participating in the instance? What exactly is this ’Mist Instance’? Have you ever taken part in it?" With a mix of curiosity and confusion, Alexander asked.

After all, he was scheduled to join the Mist Instance in a week.

"Why are you asking?" Edward waved his hand dismissively, signaling the short old man in the driver’s seat to drive.

He then leaned back in his seat and said with a hint of indifference, "This Mist Instance is exclusive to kings! Mr. Alexander, don’t think that your status can get you everything. Some things depend on strength! Knowing too much with your current strength might not be beneficial for you."

Edward acted superior, exuding an air of nonchalance. For him, there was no greater joy than showing off. But showing off in front of ordinary ghosts was nothing compared to doing it in front of someone powerful.

While Alexander might not be considered an expert, his status was significant. He was the younger brother of Fierce Ghost Association’s King Tony and Louis. Even the Flame King addressed him as "brother."

So, flaunting in front of someone of such stature made Edward very pleased.

"The Mist Instance? Of course, I know about it," Alexander said, nodding.

"You do?" Edward scoffed with disbelief. After all, this was an instance only kings were qualified to enter. How could Alexander, a Fierce-level chosen one, possibly know? It must be just a show of face.

But before Edward could continue, his words trailed off in shock as his eyes fixed on a notification in Alexander’s hand.

"Mist Instance? I told you I knew. What’s so surprising? Do you want one?" Alexander said casually, producing another notification from a psychiatric hospital.

Another one! How did Alexander have access to something only meant for kings?

"Can we talk about the Mist Instance now? What’s it all about?" Seeing Edward’s shocked expression, Alexander pressed.

"The Mist Instance, as the name suggests, exists in the Mist Region, something you probably don’t know, right?" Edward, never one to miss a chance to show off, expected Alexander to be ignorant about it.

"What’s the Mist Region? I have no idea," Alexander replied, thinking of the mist-covered area he’d glimpsed in his ghostly vision. It seemed like the world’s end, enveloped in thick mist. Though his Ghostly Piercing Vision couldn’t penetrate the mist, he could still discern moving figures within.

"That’s expected. It’s a secret among ghosts below the king level," Edward explained, relishing the chance to have some information Alexander lacked.

"In the world of horror, there are six ghost realms in total. The dark hell we reside in is the third ghost realm, and there are thirty-six ghost cities within it!"

"The origins of the horror world are lost to time. Legend has it, there were originally twelve ghost realms, and our third realm had a hundred ghost cities!"

"A millennium ago, a mysterious fog suddenly appeared, enveloping the entire horror world and slowly began to consume the entire ghost realm."

"Ghosts emperors ventured into the mist and discovered that areas covered by the fog became ’dead zones’, where evil ghosts seemed to be trapped in a fixed cycle of reincarnation, until they completely dissipated."

"This incident caused extreme panic in the horror world. Just then, an instance from the world of horror arrived! It guided us to discover Earth and also led us into the fog to participate in the fog instance."

"A century ago, dozens of ghost emperors entered the fog together, took part in the fog instance, and successfully cracked a cycle. The reward was a deep abyss ghost crystal, which greatly enhanced the ghost energy! One emperor-level ghost crystal was fed by a ghost emperor to his descendant, resulting in the birth of a new ghost emperor!"

"Is there no usage limit to the deep abyss ghost crystal?" Alexander frowned and asked.If so, it seems a bit unscientific."

Though the horror instance itself is not exactly scientific, everything should still follow some logic. This ghost crystal, like the forbidden power, doesn’t seem to make sense.

"There isn’t! Even the lowest-level ghosts, if they can consume the corresponding ghost crystal, can instantly elevate to the corresponding strength without any side effects. However..."

Edward said, looking at Alexander and shaking his head,

"For the chosen ones like you, it might not work. We are inherently ghosts, and the ghost energy from the crystal is the same as ours, so there’s no rejection. But living humans like you have the limitation of the physical body. Unless you can first strengthen your physical body, the deep abyss ghost crystal might not be very effective for you."

A limitation of the physical body...

Alexander couldn’t help but smile. For other chosen ones, this is an insurmountable gap. But he possesses the ability of the ghost chef!

His current physical strength is almost at the peak soldier level. With the deep abyss ghost crystal, he can easily reach that peak.

No wonder both Isabella and Selena are eager to get him into the fog instance. The bottle of red wine, if he guessed right, must have been their doing.

He wondered if the presence of the duplicate card was also part of their plan since he now had nine bottles in his storage.

"Lord Ghost King, we’ve arrived at the city lord’s mansion!"

As Alexander was pondering, the old man in front stopped the car.

"Remember what I told you. Stay low-key and don’t attract the attention of the two young masters and the young lady. If anything happens, hold back until the afternoon when Mr. Louis returns," Edward reminded Alexander.

"Don’t worry," Alexander nodded, stepping out of the car.

The mansion was indeed more magnificent than the ghost apartment. Standing in front of it, he couldn’t even see where the walls extended to. The huge gate looked almost like the palaces on Earth from his past life. The signboard in front read ’City Lord’s Mansion’.

As soon as he stepped in, the prompt from the horror instance rang in his ears. But when he saw the reward listed in the prompt, Alexander knew that keeping a low profile might no longer be an option!

...........

"The instance selection has ended. Honorable chosen one, Mr. Alexander, congratulations on entering the City Lord Mansion Instance. The number of selected participants for this instance is 30!"

"The format for this instance is: Faction Mode!"

"Main quest activated: Undercurrents are swirling within the City Lord Mansion. Louis has given up the fight for the City Lord’s inheritance and left under an excuse. At this moment, the battles for succession between the eldest son, third son, and the young lady of the mansion will begin. Choose a faction to join and assist them in securing the position of the heir."

"Honorable chosen one, Mr. Alexander, as someone who achieved an EX rating in the large-scale instance, you receive a special hint from the Thrilling Instance! Choose your faction wisely, for the victor will be rewarded with an Abyssal Ghost Crystal (Soldier Rank). Use your City Lord Mansion invitation at the right time, and you will unlock the fourth faction."

"There is no time limit for this instance. Once the heir is chosen or the mission fails, participants will exit automatically with no penalties."

It seemed too much of a coincidence. They had just discussed the ghost crystal, and now, the reward for this instance was exactly that - a ghost crystal.

How could Alexander remain low-profile with such stakes?

In the Thrilling World, leveling up typically requires ten times the amount of ghost energy. For instance, to achieve the ’Ferocious’ ghost rank, one needs 1,000 units of ghost energy. 10,000 units would earn you the ’Fierce’ rank. 100,000 units are ’Soldier Rank’, and so on.

The Abyssal Ghost Crystal can elevate the lowest rank ghost to the level of the crystal itself. This means a Soldier Rank crystal would contain at least 100,000 units of ghost energy.

Owning a crystal containing 100,000 units of ghost energy was simply too tempting. Who could resist?

If one were to gather this energy by grinding through instances or purchasing minor boosters that only offer tens to hundreds of units and require a digestion period, it would take a significant amount of time.

But now, all that energy was merely a reward for one instance.

Selector: Alexander

ID: xjbxd44011

Strength: 160

Speed: 165

Stamina: 161

Ghost Energy: 71,100 (Fierce Rank)

The reward from the Fierce Ghost Street Domination Instance was 50,000 units of ghost energy. With all the loot from the Undead Street instances he’d taken in the last few days, Alexander had just over 71,000 units of ghost energy.

A single mission was offering a reward of 100,000 units!

However, after the Fierce Ghost Street Domination instance, Alexander’s status had been elevated to VIP level, granting him early insight into the instance rewards.

After quickly reviewing the instance’s details, Alexander observed his surroundings while contemplating the challenge ahead.

This instance was indeed not a simple one. The battle for the City Lord’s inheritance seemed beyond what the current group of chosen ones should be involved in.

According to the clues from the instance, Louis had voluntarily given up his right to inheritance.

The supposed attack on Blood Moon Town by the Hell Warrior might just be a pretext.

After all, Hell Warriors wouldn’t bother those ghost houses and instances that have an affiliation and are recognized by the Thrilling World.

This just got a lot more interesting!

The ones eligible for inheritance are nothing but the Lord’s three adopted sons and an adopted daughter.

Since Louis has withdrawn from the fight for inheritance, and the hints from the Thrilling Instance wouldn’t lie, the current contenders are two adopted sons and one adopted daughter.

So, who’s the fourth faction mentioned in the instance hint?Could it be the City Lord himself?

What then is the purpose of this instance?

This instance has no time limit, meaning either one of the three contenders wins, or the fourth faction does.

If it’s the latter, and the fourth faction truly is the City Lord as Alexander suspects, the consequences of failure are predictable.No wonder Louis pulled out of the inheritance fight.

Upon entering the City Lord Mansion, there’s a vast front yard. The spacious courtyard has just a few bonsai, but none of the eeriness typically associated with the Thrilling World.

Behind the main gate of the courtyard, a group of thirty chosen ones seems somewhat bewildered.

"Hello, friend!"

A man with a somewhat stiff tone extends his hand towards Alexander, "I am Rexas! May I know your name?"

Alexander shakes the man’s hand without any hesitation, "I’m Alexander."

"Alexander? That name sounds familiar! I’m Sarufar." Another person approached, introducing himself.

In an entirely unfamiliar instance, chosen ones are at a clear disadvantage. It makes sense to form alliances.Alexander quickly shook hands with him.

"Hello, Mr. Alexander, I am Arthas!" A wheat-skinned man with wax-yellow hair extends his hand towards Alexander.

Alexander nods with a faint smile and shakes hands.

"Alexander, you’re the selector with ID 44011, right? I’ve heard about your legendary feats!"

Just then, a voice exclaimed, and a blond-haired, green-eyed, curvaceous woman rushed forward, hugging Alexander tightly: "I’m Mebana Carvenla, a big fan! I’ve collected stories of all your adventures in the Thrilling World. You’re incredible, it’s unbelievable!" 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Mebana Carvenla was overly enthusiastic.Alexander was a bit overwhelmed by her warmth. Among the women Alexander had seen, other than Anne, only Dolly had assets comparable to Mebana.

Mebana’s voluptuous figure is rare, and her Soldier Rank strength is even rarer. She should have been the center of attention.But now, Alexander’s fame overshadowed them all.

Though official forces suppressed investigations into Alexander’s real identity, the name "Alexander" and ID 44011 had become globally recognized.

"Tha... Thank you for your admiration!"

Managing to free himself from the almost smothering embrace, Alexander quickly surveyed his surroundings.

The person he was looking for wasn’t Mebana or her group, but the Soldier Rank, Selina!