Chapter 2834: Chapter 2834: Rip Off

Zen's eyes filled with confusion, his gaze switching from the star rings to the nonhuman creatures stationed there.

The origin of the star ring was unknown to him. All he knew was that it served as a key item for a warrior's ascension to the upper stages.

According to what he had observed, one star ring was shared among all creatures of a particular race.

For instance, despite the existence of a large number of star rings in Stage One, the human race could only rely on one to ascend to the next stage.

This was the case for all the following stages. All the humans used the same rings to ascend.

All races had their own star rings, and the star ring that belonged to the human race would normally be surrounded by humans while those that belonged to the nonhuman races would likewise be surrounded by nonhuman creatures.

However, the scene in front of him right now was entirely different from what he initially thought.

For one, there were countless star rings piled high before him, and two, he was being ordered around by these nonhuman creatures as if they owned the place!

Dorothy pulled his sleeve and whispered to him. “Just do as they say.”

She knew significantly more about the Other Shore so Zen chose to follow her advice, albeit with a noticeable frown on his face.

He returned his gaze onto the star rings. They had been arranged in an orderly fashion. Meanwhile, hundreds of Souls of Light gathered nearby and were lining up in two, neat queues.

“The road on your left will lead you towards the upper stage while the one on your right will lead you to the temples. Choose one and line up!” a tall, nonhuman creature announced in a loud voice.

A collection of various creatures immediately followed: small Ear Mice, giant beasts, and others, all lined up to form orderly queues.

“What's going on?” Zen asked Dorothy in a low voice after they joined a long line. This Stage Eleven feels different from the previous stages."

“It's because the Ancestral Glory Stage is controlled by the Separate Abyss race,” she explained.

The Separate Abyss race was considered one of the strongest powerhouses in the Source World. Superior in terms of both soul and strength levels, they proved to be a force that the human race found difficulty in contending with.

Zen's eyes widened in shock upon hearing this piece of information. “A race can control an entire stage?”

“This is a special case. The Separate Abyss race is closely related to a race on the Other Shore so they got a bit of help from them in taking over this stage. Any super force that comes here would have to follow their rules,” Dorothy told him.

“What are the rules?” Zen asked.

“Well, anyone who wants to pass through this Ancestral Glory Stage and reach Stage Twelve has to pay ten thousand soul pills. And we need to line up for our turn,” she explained.

Zen turned to her with an intrigued look. “We have to pay? What if I leave Stage Twelve and go down through here? Would I still have to pay?”

Dorothy nodded. “Yeah.”

She definitely knew some stuff about Stage Eleven but this was actually her first time coming here.

As a matter of fact, paying ten thousand soul pills was only to gain entry into the stage. If one wanted to explore, then they would need to pay an additional amount.

Most Souls of Light would travel up and down in the Lust World and the Separate Abyss race would charge everyone who passed this stage ten thousand soul pills as the toll. ɽ𝔞Ɲo͍𝔟ΕȘ

“Isn't this robbery? What about the other large races in the Source World? Are they fine with this?” Zen asked with evident concern.

Ten thousand soul pills were nothing to an Indigo Soul, but that cost could pile up since it had to be paid every time they passed through here.

A nonhuman stranger snorted upon hearing his question. “The Separate Abyss race is really powerful and there's no way any other super force would be able to go against them. Besides, the cost is fairly reasonable so everyone just chooses to pay rather than causes conflict.”

The stranger had a similar appearance to that of humans except for the fact that he was much shorter and had several sharp thorns on his head. Zen had no idea which race he came from but it seemed that he spoke the human language fluently.

Dorothy nodded in agreement with the stranger's words. “That's basically it.”

“No wonder Emily told me that humans weren't powerful here in the Source World...”

Zen muttered to himself, feeling a bit bothered by this new information he had just learned.

To him, the Oneness Sky Palace, the Bearing race, and the Divine Farmer race were super powerful.

However, not even these three super forces combined could dream of monopolizing an entire stage. Zen couldn't help but begin to fathom just how powerful the Separate Abyss race was to have been able to do such a feat.

Zen and Dorothy waited for nearly an hour. Their turn was just about to come up when they heard a bit of a commotion up ahead. It seemed someone was begging for entrance.

“I only have eight thousand soul pills, sir. Could you please make an exception and let me pass?” The voice belonged to a human woman, very young judging from her childish tone.

“A human, eh? Don't you know the rules around here? Ten thousand pills isn't that much. If you don't have enough then you can go ahead and work over there,” a Separate Abyss member guarding the place answered in spite, pointing towards the west.

The Separate Abyss race had fully occupied Stage Eleven. They had already staked their claim, erected their temples, and were actually in the process of building a grand home for them to stay in.

Construction on the Other Shore was laborious. Zen remembered the Bearing race's temple he destroyed and figured that repairing it was going to be extremely difficult and would definitely take a long time.

Since the Separate Abyss race wanted to build, then they would definitely need a lot of labourers.

The girl's lips trembled in fear when she saw the direction the guard had pointed to. Everyone knew that working under the Separate Abyss race entailed certain dangers, one of them death. There was no way she would willingly go there if she valued her life.

“I...I give up. I won't go up... I'll just go back to Stage Ten!” she exclaimed, tears brimming her eyes from disappointment.

“Of course you can go back to Stage Ten! But you'll still have to pay ten thousand soul pills if you want to leave!” The guard laughed cruelly, relishing in the devastated look that flashed upon the human girl's face.

“It's ten thousand to go up, and another ten thousand to go down. That's the rule here.”

“Hahaha...”

Several more Separate Abyss members joined in, laughing at the human girl and her suffering.

Faced with such a hopeless situation, the human girl could only turn to others for help. She immediately began asking those lined up if they had two thousand soul pills to spare. She'd pay them back when she reached Stage Twelve. She promised! Unfortunately, the ones around her were all nonhuman creatures. Why in the world would they help her? In the end, she was left all alone.

“Then... Can I leave first and pay the debt later when I earn enough soul pills?” she asked in a soft, timid tone.

“Either pay ten thousand soul pills or go over there to work for it, girl!” the guard snapped.

With no more options left, the human girl stood there for a while before eventually walking towards the west.

It was at this time that Zen decided to step out of his spot in line. He went towards her and nodded to the Separate Abyss guard up front. “It's only two thousand soul pills. I'll pay for her.”

His words shocked the human girl. She couldn't believe some stranger would be kind enough to help her out of this hopeless situation. It was a miracle! “Thank you! When I reach Stage Twelve, I promise I'll pay you back!”

Zen, however, shook his head. “No need.”

He took out two thousand soul pills from his space ring and was about to give them to the guard. However, the guard merely laughed at Zen. “Boy, if you really want to help her then it'll cost you more than two thousand!”

Zen frowned. “How much would it cost?”

“One hundred thousand soul pills!” the guard declared.

Zen's face immediately darkened. These Separate Abyss members were truly determined to rip him off.

True, he had managed to acquire a lot of soul crystal from the Bearing race which made him very rich. A finger-size chunk of soul crystal could be sold for a massive amount of soul pills and a mere one hundred thousand wasn't going to cause a dent in his fortune.

What he didn't like though, was how thick-skinned the Separate Abyss race were in their dealings.

“Isn't it that everyone only has to pay ten thousand soul pills?” Zen asked in a clipped tone.

“Haha!” the guard laughed, clearly mocking Zen. “This is our place and you have to give whatever amount we ask! You want to stand up for your fellow human, then I say that both of you now have to pay one hundred thousand soul pills!”

The bystanders waiting in line could only shake their heads. This was the exact reason why nobody was willing to help the human girl earlier. Dealing with the domineering Separate Abyss race was incredibly complicated and could end up biting them in the rear if they ever so much as offended them.