Meeting The Blood-Fiend (I)  

 Nehar opened his eyes slowly.

 'I saw a message that my consciousness is being pulled into some domain, is that it?'

 [System Alert: You've arrived in the 'Blood Domain' – A domain created by the Blood-Fiend himself.]

 [System Alert: Please act with caution!]

 Nehar looked around.

 'This place is different…There is no sun or moon in the sky, Only a blood-red Sphere releasing energy pulses, the amount of energy is so much that it can even be seen with the naked eye. The surrounding world is also kind of ethereal type…And most importantly my own body is in ethereal form here and I'm standing amid an ocean…a red ocean.

 Is this ocean completely made up of blood?'

 Nehar questioned himself in amusement.

 He never had seen something like this even with all of his experience.

 Even when he released the seals of various cursed objects in the past, many of them pulled his consciousness into their worlds to test his strength…but nothing can be compared to this.

 If a normal person is here to stay for longer and observe the energy pulse being released from that huge red sphere or this blood-red ocean, that person will surely lose his/her sanity.

 There's no doubt about it.

 'So, this place is created to examine someone's Mental Strength.'

 While Nehar was still looking around, he felt someone was observing him… but he couldn't tell where the person actually was.

 [System Alert: Two of your previous Passive Stats, <Will Power> and <Mental Strength> have been merged into one. A new Stat has been created in your Profile!!]

 [System Alert: You've obtained a new Stat --> Mental Fortitude (Passive): 23]

 [System: Your Reward for unlocking and fulfilling the Criteria for a Hidden Condition is currently on hold. You can receive the Reward after returning to the outside world.]

 Nehar looked over those messages calmly.

 'So, I've finally unlocked Mental Fortitude.'

 'It'll help me a lot in the future…but now is not the time to think about those matters…first I need to get out of here…'

 "I think you have observed me enough. Now, why don't you come out and we talk about why did you bring me here? Or to be specific why did you pull my consciousness here?"

 Nehar asked calmly while looking at the endless ocean in front of him.

 He looked around and received no response at all.

 Meanwhile, continuous System notifications rang out in his ears.

 [System Alert: Your Passive Stat, <Mental Fortitude> is resisting the adverse effects of the Environment on your mind.]

 [System Alert: Your <Mental Fortitude> has increased by 1.]

 [System Alert: Your <Mental Fortitude> is resisting…]

 [System Alert: Your <Mental Fortitude> has increased by…]

 Nehar understood the situation he is currently in not looking that much good for him.

 Although this place is ideal to increase someone's Mental Strength or Mental Fortitude forcibly which couldn't be increased via adding Stat Points into it, Nehar also understood he needed to get out of this place as fast as he could.

 There must be a limit till which he can resist the surrounding environment's effect with his Mental Fortitude alone.

 After that, it would be troublesome to keep his sanity intact.

 Thus Nehar lashed out at the unknown observer again.

 "Are you really not going to come out? Come on, I've a damn Quest to finish in the outside world. I know very well that you're a remnant spirit and you can't force me to stay here forever. So, come out and state your terms. What do you want from me?"

 Nehar was somewhat agitated.

 He knew the dagger would try to devour him with curses the moment he equipped it.

 But he was unaware that even after preventing the curses, he would be pulled into some strange dimension.

 And he wasn't able to resist at all.

 Whoever the bastard Blood-Fiend was before, the domain he made was extremely powerful enough to pull in someone without a single bit of resistance.

 It was out of Nehar's expectations.

 He didn't wish to spend a long time here and ultimately fail the Quest.

 Although he had guessed something about the Quest and its Failure Condition, he wasn't able to test his theory out. 

 "Hehe…hehe…ahhehe…."

 A weird maniacal laughter could be heard in the whole dimension.

 [System Alert: Warning!!! A powerful entity has been detected!!]

 [System Alert: Warning!!! Try to keep your mental conditions intact…]

 Nehar looked at the System notifications with a baffled face.

 'The System is warning me?'

 'Is that person that strong for the System to issue a warning like that?...'

 Nehar tried to look for the source of the sound, but he failed to find anything.

 'I'm just too fucking weak….If it was before, I would've ripped this place apart and freed myself.'

 Nehar thought to himself.

 "Well, it looks like I have been found."

 A figure emerged in front of him.

 Nehar looked up in the sky to find now there was another ethereal figure, floating in front of him, over the ocean.

 He couldn't make out the appearance of the person before him quite clearly, but he was sure that this was the remnant spirit of the Blood-Fiend.

 Nehar felt an enormous amount of oppressive energy emanating from the figure.

 'He is strong…very strong….'

 Nehar instinctively felt the ethereal figure currently in front of him was the strongest being surpassing everyone he had met and fought in his two lifetimes.

 Nehar felt his grip tighten on the hilt of his sword, but he calmed himself down to not unsheathe it.

 He couldn't afford to make a mistake here.

 The ethereal figure looked at him in amusement.

 He opened wide both of his hands and said in a loud ringing voice, "Welcome to my Domain, mortal…Do you like it?"

 Nehar looked around.

 Then he spoke nonchalantly, "Do you think someone will like this place? An ocean of blood below, air filled with blood-mist in the middle and in the sky, a pulsing red sphere. Who will like it here other than its creator, which is you?"

 Nehar knew by talking to him in this tone, he was clearly crossing the line.

 If the being in front of him wanted to take offense because of that, he couldn't come out alive this time.

 Still, he replied in that manner.

 Sometimes you've to stand straight and talk to the Devil in a firm tone, else your fate will be sealed even before you can do anything.

 The figure started laughing manically once again after hearing Nehar's response.

 'I feel like my eardrums are gonna burst from the sounds of his laughter.'

 [System Alert: Warning!!! A dormant power that lies inside you has started awakening itself after it finds you in a precarious situation!!]

 [System Alert: You've unlocked a Hidden Stat ----> Soul Strength.]

 [System Alert: Your Current Soul Strength: ?? (Unknown).]

 [System Alert: Your Soul is trying to divert the malicious energy coming towards your Soul. Your Soul Strength is increasing rapidly…]

 [System Alert: Your Soul Strength is increasing…]

 Nehar looked at the messages flashed before his eyes with an incredulous look in his eyes.

 'Did it just say that I unlocked Soul Strength Stat?'

 Nehar didn't know what to say anymore.

 <Soul Strength> was one of the most important factors when someone takes a step towards the road of Celestials.

 Without sufficient <Soul Strength>….becoming a Celestial would be almost impossible.

 Nehar was quite taken aback this time at this sudden development.

 After a while, the figure stopped laughing and spoke in a clear voice, "Well you are right about that. No one will like this place other than me. But believe me, I didn't create this place so someone would come here and praise me for it. I created this place with two things in mind….First, I created it to test newcomers if they are worthy enough to wield my powers in the long run and Second, I made it to punish people whom I didn't like."

 The figure stopped for a second and then started speaking again, "Do you see this beautiful bloody ocean, mortal? I created it from the blood of the people I tortured here. How many of them were here before? I don't know, don't remember. Maybe millions were here, maybe more, who knows for certain? They helped me to create this ocean out of their generosity…Is it not beautiful? Hahaa….hahaaa…"

 Nehar looked at the ocean.

 The place where he was standing, kind of represented the shore region, so the water level was quite low.

 The water here only dipped his feet and it was enough to make him feel disgusted.

 As for the rest of the endless ocean of blood, he had no words for it.

 Cruelty, Viciousness, Madness…there were not enough words to describe the scene before him.

 Nehar didn't comment on anything.

 The ethereal figure looked at him with a smile on his face and spoke, "But you don't seem too much different than me, mortal. I can feel a heavy stench of death and destruction from you…at the same time, I can feel an equally great amount of purity from you…What are you exactly? Hmmm, let me observe you first."

 The figure swooped down from the above and started circling Nehar.

 Nehar stood straight and refrained from saying something.

 He could easily tell the figure in front of him was extremely powerful…so much so that he couldn't measure the amount of power this figure had even with all of his experiences.

 "Hmm…something is really wrong with you…an amalgamation of Evil and Holy? Are you perhaps a hybrid, a child between a Demon and a Celestial? No, let me look again…no, you can't be a hybrid or half-breed. I can sense it, it's coming from your Soul…such pure and enormous amount of Darkness…and your Soul Strength seems to rival that of a Star….Hohoho, I now get it…No wonder you kept your sanity even after coming here and observing the surroundings…"

 The ethereal figure continued to observe him from different angles and blurted out different comments here and there.

 Nehar frowned deeply while listening to him.

 'This person can sense my Soul? This is something I hadn't expected at all…If this goes any longer, my secrets will be exposed here…I should try to divert his attention…'

 Before Nehar could say something to divert his mad rumbling, the ethereal figure stopped encircling him and stood straight in front of him.

 Squinting, he asked him in a deep serious voice, "So, tell me mortal, are you the Incarnation of Darkness itself? Or are you a Star who plummeted from the 'Sky' and lost his Divinity? There can be no other explanations for your immense Soul Strength and the Purest Form of Darkness, which resides in your Soul despite your pathetic Level and Skills."

 Nehar staggered.

 He never expected something like this would happen here.

 'It seems my lucky streak finally ended here…'

 Nehar looked at the figure once more and thought in his mind, 'If we're to fight here, my consciousness will be destroyed by him in a single move…I can't let that happen, not before I finished my job.'

 Though the figure guessed wrong about him being The Incarnation of Darkness or a Star who lost his Divinity, he deduced his element correctly.

 "I'm none of them", Nehar answered him in a flat tone.

 Being truthful is much better at such moments.

 "You are not?" the figure asked himself in doubt. "How can that be? You must be lying"…the figure pointed his finger at his face.

 Nehar didn't falter and answered him in the same tone as before, "I told you I'm none of those. I am just a Participant in a Tutorial and bought a dagger from the System shop, which transferred my consciousness here. Now, can you please tell me what should I do before I can go back? I told you I've got a Quest to finish and there are only 5-6 minutes left in its ending."

 The ethereal figure looked at him carefully.

 "You mean the Quest of Challenger?" he asked.

 Nehar was visibly shocked this time. 

 How could he know it?

 "H-how do you know about that?" Nehar asked him while trying to keep his voice steady, but still, it sounded different from his calm and composed voice before.

 "Because I can see it. All your Skills, Stats, Quests, and System screens, I can see it. They are literally floating around you. I just took a look and asked you… Why are you so shocked?"

 Nehar didn't know what to say anymore.

 Breaking the System's Restrictions and Protection Barrier was not easy, it's almost impossible.

 No one could obtain someone's private data without their permission.

 Not even those omnipotent Outer Gods and Evil Gods were capable of doing that.

 But this person, who is nothing but a remnant spirit can casually break the System's security and see his personal information?

 "Can I ask you something?" Nehar asked him in a shaky voice this time.

 Yes, his voice was shaking this time, with fear, amusement, and most importantly, excitement.

 Nehar felt excited, which he hadn't felt for more than 50 years.

 'It's been so long….haha…I can still feel getting excited….'

 "You can ask...but before that let me answer your question first. You don't have to worry about the timing of that Quest. My powers may be limited in this domain, but still, I'm 'The Absolute Being' here. Thus, the concept of Time is different here. When you return to the outside world, it'll be the same time when you came here. You'll not miss anything at all."

 The figure did explain smoothly.

 For the first time, Nehar felt the figure in front of him wasn't a mindless butcherer and a rational man.

 "Now, ask."

 With this question, Nehar suddenly felt the heavy pressure on him has become much lighter than before.

 Nehar thanked himself in his mind for choosing to converse with this being rather than pulling out his sword.

 "What was your final Level before you know...um…died?"

 Nehar was trying not to insult the figure even a bit by speaking something rude. He had to choose his words with much concern.

 "My Level? It was probably around 7250 last time I checked before my termination."

 Nehar felt his mind was going numb.

 7250 ??!!

 Level 7250?!

 Even in his past life, people with a Level more than 1500 were treasured.

 Only 2 people in his previous team reached God-hood, still, they were the weakest one among the Gods.

 Nehar himself reached Level 1050, the peak of the Emperor Rank Experts before his death, and still, he was able to kill Demi-Gods who were above Level 2100, mostly because of his overpowered element of Darkness and the tremendous amount of Soul Strength, other than his powerful equipments and Divine Essence, which kept him in the fight even in the brink of his death.

 In the last battle, he fought against an Outer Goddess, 'The Divine Being who Oversees Destruction and Rebirth' along with Eirvys and some other followers of him.

 He was only able to fatally wound her after utilizing his Life Force along with all of his Divine Essence and Faith Values that he accumulated over the years, despite not being a God himself.

 All of his followers, including Eirvys had to sacrifice themselves to give him that final chance, where he plunged his sword into her chest and at the same moment, The Goddess had struck him with a palm attack, which shattered his body's fundamental structure and the remaining Divine Essence.

 He can still vividly remember that epic battle between them and the overwhelming power level that the Goddess had shown there even after he severed her left hand, 'The Hand of Destruction'.

 That Goddess was only at Level 2607 when she had almost suppressed Nehar with her overwhelming power and Skills.

 If not for Eirvys…

 Nehar's thoughts trailed off. 

 If he didn't have Divinity at that time, he would've been simply obliterated from existence by her attacks.

 Nehar chuckled dryly.

 But now the person in front of him said he was at Level 7250 or even more before his death.

 Nehar didn't know what to think anymore.

 No wonder he casually bypassed the System's security with a single glance.

 Even after his death, his remnant spirit is more powerful than any other beings outside.

 And this thing was inside that dagger?

 Nehar finally understood why the Evil Gods at first and then those Outer Gods coveted this dagger so much that they went to two Great Wars against everyone.

 In the past, if they had received the power of this being for themselves, the power balance between the realms would have been toppled almost instantly.

 At that moment, Nehar remembered something.

 'Wait a minute…Didn't this person tell me before that he was terminated? And not killed?'

 Nehar asked him to confirm his suspicion. 

 The ethereal figure once again laughed manically and Nehar had to withstand that with all of his strength, gritting his teeth hard.

 "Hah, do you think there was someone who could kill me?"

 He paused for a moment and then started talking again, "There was no one who could kill me at that time. You can say my existence was simply deleted or erased, which is kind of similar to yours. I can feel the same sensation from you, the sensation of being erased from existence."

 Nehar gulped.

 'This man had guessed it or sensed it correctly this time.'

 "But that doesn't mean I can't reborn or get out of this place."

 Nehar looked at him incredulously when he uttered that sentence.

 'Of course, you can. You can always be reborn by taking over someone's body…I had already seen it before.'

 Nehar cursed in his mind.

 "Then why didn't you do so? You could've taken over anyone using your curse, including me and you know that, right? I don't think my Soul Strength is enough powerful to stop you if you really intended."

 Nehar replied to him nonchalantly, without showing an expression of worry even when he talked about his body being taken by some Devilish Fiend.

 "Yes, I could. But I didn't do that. Do you want to know why? Are you finally curious?" 

 The ethereal figure asked Nehar while showing a curious glint in his void eyes.

 Nehar looked at his eyes and felt it was really deep, like an ocean or better, an Abyss.

 He didn't talk and only nodded his head in confirmation.

 The ethereal slowly nodded his head and started speaking, "Before you came here, I was sleeping soundly in my abode. Then, I felt someone had intruded into my domain. Well, even before you, many came here when I lived here as a remnant spirit of my former self. And it was always the same. Either they would've killed themselves after going mad or I would've killed them before kicking them out of this place. And then, you came."

 The figure stopped for a while and took a glance over the blood-red ocean.

 "When you came here, I was rather disturbed to find someone had come here again. But then, my instincts warned me it wouldn't be the same as before. Thus, I thought of taking a look and came here to observe you. I saw you were trying to resist the effects of the surroundings with your Mental Fortitude alone…then you suddenly noticed my presence. I was surprised to see that particular development. When I came out and met you, I found that you were quite shaken at my presence, which meant you clearly understood the huge power difference between us; but still, you answered me in a way that even I felt for a moment that we're were talking while standing at the even stands of power.

 I observed you more carefully to find you are nothing but a puny mortal who had just started his journey in this vast world but your Soul told me a different story altogether. I became more and more intrigued as I continued to talk with you.

 You've entertained me quite well Nehar.

 After all these years, you're probably the first one who is conversing with me directly without losing his sanity.

 You have something to finish…a larger goal…I can see that in your eyes."

 The figure stopped talking suddenly.

 He quietly looked at the ocean in front of him.

 Nehar also looked that way…while contemplating his words silently.

 "You lied to me when you came here, Nehar. You knew very well about this Dagger and its curse. You still bought it, because you want to become stronger…probably stronger than anyone else…Am I right?"

 The ethereal figure asked him in a caring tone.

 Nehar was astonished…he never expected his lies to be clear to the other party from the beginning.

 Nehar nodded his head firmly.

 "Well…then you have chosen well. I can make you stronger, without taking over your body…but it will require you to do something for me, my last work in this mundane world. Are you willing to suffer for me to become stronger than anyone else?"

 Nehar looked at the figure for a moment and then said without any hesitation in his voice, "I am willing."

 "Good then. I'll remove the First Seal on the Dagger in your hand temporarily, but the rest will depend on you. Let me help you become stronger…in exchange for your help to this remnant spirit of mine."

 -------*****------- 

 [System Alert: A Special Quest has been created.]

 [Special Quest 01: 'Path Of The Fiend God']

 [Quest Description]: The forgotten Fiend God of the Legend, whose existence had been erased by the System thousands of years ago, and the only thing was left behind to carry his Legacy, a Remnant Spirit, has finally found a suitable candidate to carry out his will. The Remnant Spirit of Fiend God has decided to test you and if he finds you as the perfect candidate, he will help you to reach the path beyond the Immortals to keep his promise to you.

 [Quest Status]: Active.

 [Quest Type]: Chain Quest (Part - I).

 [Quest Rank]: B

 [Quest Completion Criteria]: Remove the First Seal of Bloodkin's Dagger completely which is now temporarily unsealed, by providing a sufficient amount of Energy (in Units) by killing your enemies in the path of your growth (0/10000 Units).

 [Quest Duration]: 168:00:00 (7 Days).

 [Quest Completion Reward]: Complete Removal of the First Seal on Bloodkin's Dagger.

 [Other Rewards]: Unknown.

 [Quest Failure Penalty]: You'll be devoured by the Curse of Blood-Fiend completely.

 -------*****------- 

 Nehar looked at the Quest description in the System panel and finally understood why the previous owner of this Dagger had to go on a rampage and took part in constant bloodbaths.

 But this time it will not be the same as before.

 He had many enemies and moreover, he had an entire Tutorial to finish.

 He will not lack enemies in his path, so there will be no need for him to kill innocent people and other Players.

 Nehar also checked on the updated description of the Bloodkin's Dagger and a System notification rang out.

 [System Alert: The First Seal on the Cursed Object, Bloodkin's Dagger has been removed temporarily due to some unknown reason.]

 [System Alert: The Bloodkin's Dagger can now show its Special Effect.]

 [System: Bloodkin's Dagger, Special Effect: Bloodsucking.

 Effects: Health Recovery, Stamina Recovery, Mana Recovery, Permanent Stat Increase.]

 [System: Time left for the First Seal on Bloodkin's Dagger to remain as unsealed: 168:00:00]

 Nehar was overjoyed. 

 'I finally did it.'

 In the past, when they performed extremely detailed research on this weapon, they found this Special Effect: Bloodsucking.

 This Special Effect could only become active when the First Seal on the Bloodkin's Dagger becomes undone, either temporarily or permanently. 

 Of course, in case of permanent removal of the First Seal on this dagger, its power will increase tremendously.

 But even with the temporary unsealing, it would be a Godly weapon at the beginning stages.

 Nehar had chosen to buy this weapon not only to keep the previous owner of this dagger from his past life in check but also to solve the major ongoing problem with his continuous level-ups.

 Increasing the Stats to become more powerful with each level up.

 The Special Effect of this dagger had solved this problem for him finally.

 Nehar had already prepared himself to unseal the First Seal on this dagger by a different method even before returning to the past.

 He had learned the unsealing methods for the Runic Seals and Array Seals in great detail.

 He knew the seals on this dagger were of Array Seal type; to be specific it was the Five Great Sealing Array of the 'Hyagnon Family' from the Middle Heavens.

 A family, which was once famous for their Array Sealing Methods.

 They had sealed many Great Demons, Devils and even one Arch-Demon using their famous and equally powerful Array Sealing Methods.

 But one day, they had to face the wrath of the Demons for continuously meddling in their affairs.

 Although Nehar had no idea what actually happened after that, The Hyagnon Family became a relic of the past.

 Their ancestral grand family house became ruins and all their methods were lost.

 Some said the Demons had taken those Sealing methods to destroy them thoroughly…while some assured the others that the Hyagnon Family had already prepared for contingencies and sent their last heir to an arduous journey along with all the knowledge of their family so that one day that person can return and reestablish their lost glory and hunt those Demons to the very last of their existences.

 However, it was all in the past.

 Nehar learned the unsealing methods from various books and via actual practice in his past life.

 Though in that process it would've been a bit later to unseal the First Seal on the Bloodkin's Dagger, Nehar was sure that he would be able to do it before the 4th or 5th Tutorial.

 But something unexpected happened and he gained immensely from it.

 [System Alert: Your Stat <Mental Fortitude> has increased by a great amount. Your Current Mental Fortitude: 30 (60)]

 [System Alert: Your Hidden Stat <Soul Strength> has also increased by a large amount. Your Current Soul Strength: ?? (Unknown).]

 Nehar saw those two notifications while checking on the Special Quest details. 

 'My <Mental Fortitude> Stat has reached the peak value for Level 4 and still it has increased further to the peak of Level 10.'

 'It's quite good news as from now on I'll be much less affected by any mental attacks or debuffs.'

 'And as for the <Soul Strength> Stat, I don't know what to say.

 'It has unlocked itself, working as a Self-Defence mechanism to protect me...Uh, let's save it for later.'

 Nehar thought he had seen everything and was about to ask the ethereal figure again about the help he had asked for when another System notification rang out.

 Nehar looked over the screen panel to discover there was a new Quest, with a different kind of description this time. 

 -------*****------- 

 [System Alert: Another Special Quest has been generated.]

 [Special Quest 02: 'Fiend's Request']

 [Quest Description]: The Remnant Spirit of the forgotten Fiend God still has something to do in this mundane world. He couldn't leave this world before he had confirmed his work was finally done here.

 [Quest Status]: Active.

 [Quest Type]: Search and Discover.

 [Quest Rank]: ?? (Unknown)

 [Quest Completion Criteria]: Find the Last Descendant of the Fiend God (0/1) and return.

 [Quest Duration]: 43830:00:00 (5 Years).

 [Quest Completion Reward]: Unknown.

 [Other Rewards]: Unknown.

 [Quest Failure Penalty]: Death. The Remnant Spirit of Blood-Fiend will kill you most horribly if you fail to complete the Quest.

 -------*****------- 

 Nehar looked over the Quest Failure Penalty and chucked dryly.

 This remnant spirit is sure vicious.

 But it didn't matter to him anyway.

 Though he had never heard of some relative of the Blood-Fiend, he had enough time on his hands to search for that person.

 Even if he was not successful in the search, he had other plans to succeed in the Quest.

 Right now, the only thing that mattered to him was to become Stronger than anyone else and reach Level 100 as fast as possible.

 He had to become a Ranker before getting out of the Tutorial.

 The ethereal figure looked at Nehar with a face full of emotion.

 Nehar had not seen this as he was still busy checking out the Quests and notifications from the System.

 "I guess, it's time for you to return", the figure said calmly.

 Nehar stopped looking at the System screens and closed them.

 "Yes, I think so. And I thank you for unsealing the First Seal on it", Nehar pointed his finger towards the Dagger in his right hand.

 "It's nothing. You still have to complete the Quest to unseal it completely; otherwise, all of these will be for naught. And more importantly, if you fail in the Second Quest, don't try to hide and run away from me. Just come here obediently and receive your punishment for failing my Request."

 Nehar chuckled at his response.

 "I don't think I'll fail it. I will find your descendant and deliver that person to you."

 The ethereal figure nodded his head and tried to not show him the overflow of emotions inside him.

 "I will look forward to it."

 As he said those words, the air around him changed.

 It became violent, like a raging tornado, which would sweep everything in its path if left unchecked.

 "I'll return you to the outside world now…you'll be pulled in here when it'll be the time for us to meet again. Till then, become a Slaughterer, become the next Blood-Fiend."

 Nehar closed his eyes and felt the violent mana surging around him and taking him away from this place.

 He heard System notifications before his consciousness faded away.

 [System: You're returning back to the Outside World from the Blood Domain.]

 [System: The Domain is closing…]

 [5…]

 [4…]

 [3…]

 Nehar felt a blinding white light enveloping him…he tried to look at the ethereal figure for the last time.

 [2…]

 [1…]

 All he felt was the figure was smiling while looking at him.

 [0…]

 Nehar closed his eyes…

 [System: Returning successful...]