Chapter 20: Hide
Su Xiao was inside the sperm whale's belly, holding the World Coordinate in his hand. He kept this item on his person at all times, never letting it leave his side.
Through the screen, he observed the battlefield. The contractors were standing back-to-back in a tight cluster. Their goal had unified: survive.
Seeing this, Su Xiao let out a long breath. If the contractors collectively fled, he would face a penalty of -10 to all attributes.
This situation clearly couldn't continue. Once the contractors couldn't hold out, large-scale desertions would occur. What worried Su Xiao even more was that Flash Silver had already reached the edge of the battlefield.
If this leader was about to flee, then the members of her adventure group wouldn't stay long either. An entire adventure group's mass desertion, while not reaching 50% of the total survivors, would drastically increase the risk.
Su Xiao still had a few chances to indirectly influence the battlefield, and these three opportunities were now crucial.
He didn't need these contractors to fight the Kala Star People; he just needed them not to flee. He began editing a message in the war channel, the content as follows:
[Battlefield Mandatory Order: Final Battle]
Description: All contractors must not leave the thirty-kilometer radius of the coordinates. If the war is treated passively, they will be forever abandoned in the Parasite World, suffering the rejection of the World Consciousness.
Maximum Participants: 113 people.
Time Limit: 7 hours.
Objective: Survive.
Note: The World Coordinate has been placed in the deep sea. Contractors do not need to defend the World Coordinate. Do your utmost to ensure your own survival. You may hide within the ice layers or fly to high altitudes.
Issuer: Arbiter!
...
Su Xiao didn't choose to have the contractors hold back the Kala Star People; these contractors simply couldn't do it.
The contractors weren't fools. If Su Xiao issued an order for them to go to their deaths, they would flee immediately.
Su Xiao decided not to make them fight. If they couldn't win, couldn't they at least hide?
The Kala Star People's target was the World Coordinate, not killing the contractors. Besides, as long as the contractors didn't flee, Su Xiao didn't care even if they all died.
He only needed to ensure that the contractors didn't have a desertion rate exceeding 50%, not guarantee their safety.
This message was posted in the war channel. God King and Adam were overjoyed; they saw a glimmer of hope for survival.
Flash Silver, who had already reached the edge of the battlefield, stopped in her tracks. She also knew that deserting before battle would leave her forever stranded in the Parasite World, and she would also face punishment from Reincarnation Paradise.
"God King, Adam, what do you two think?"
Flash Silver spoke in the war channel, her voice extremely weary.
"Do you even need to think about it? Of course, find a place to hide. Flash Silver, bring your people back; they're all following you in retreat," God King replied weakly.
"If I'm not mistaken, this is a turning point. The Kala Star People's target isn't us, but the World Coordinate. As long as we hide well, we can definitely survive this calamity."
Adam's hoarse voice sounded. Lie's death had hit him hard.
Hearing their words, Flash Silver stood still, lost in thought.
"Gold Ghost, how much longer can you hold on?"
Flash Silver looked at Gold Ghost, whom she was holding.
Gold Ghost hung his head, the light in his pupils beginning to dim. He spoke intermittently, "Sev... seven hours, absolutely... no problem."
"Then we'll hide."
Flash Silver made up her mind and spoke in the war channel.
"Our three adventure groups will each hide in one location. From now on, it's every man for himself. Any objections?"
"Agreed."
"Fine."
God King and Adam spoke respectively. As for the surviving independent contractors, none of the three considered them. The independents' performance in the war was truly unimpressive.
...
In the deep sea beneath the ice layer, Su Xiao, after understanding the contractors' situation through the screen and war channel, nodded in satisfaction.
He didn't intend to let these contractors flee, nor did he intend to let them live! The reason was simple.
Back when boarding the spaceship, Adam had recognized Su Xiao. Through Adam's introduction, God King and Flash Silver also came to know Su Xiao.
In the Giant World, Su Xiao's performance was eye-catching. Single-handedly taking on the Spider Lily Adventure Group, holding off dozens of contractors—all of this exposed his strength.
But after entering the war world, Su Xiao had never shown his face. Adam and the others couldn't help but be suspicious.
Su Xiao had two choices: first, disguise his appearance from now on and abandon the alias Bai Ye; second, annihilate all the contractors to silence them.
When the war ended, Su Xiao's identity as an Arbiter would disappear. If there was an opportunity then, he would kill them all to silence them. Dealing with contractors was his specialty.
These matters would have to be handled after the war. Reincarnation Paradise wouldn't allow him to massacre contractors on a large scale right now.
Besides, even if he failed, he would just need to change his 'identity.'
Moreover, if the Arbiter's identity were so easily exposed, then Reincarnation Paradise's so-called protective measures would be too low.
The contractors each used their own methods. Some drilled holes in the ice layer, some flew to high altitudes, and if they had no other choice, they could hide in snowdrifts.
The war began to take on an unexpectedly comical tone. The contractors collectively hid, creating a lively scene—truly a case of 'eight immortals crossing the sea, each showing their divine power.'
Compared to these contractors, Su Xiao's hiding spot was far more impressive. He hid in the deep sea, a position that would make the Kala Star People furious.
The coordinate still had six and a half hours to complete, and the Parasite World would also end in six and a half hours.
Just as the World Coordinate had six hours left to complete, the Kala Star People arrived.
A pitch-black 'spaceship' floated above the ice field. The ship was entirely black, its shape very irregular, as if piled up from black coral, somewhat resembling a sea urchin.
The Kala Star People's spaceship stopped several dozen meters above the ice layer. The dark substance at the bottom of the ship surged, and an opening appeared below.
Countless Kala Star People jumped out of the spaceship, their numbers incalculable. Their bodies were charred black, covered in rough scales, humanoid in form with lizard-like heads.
"Guraqima, sasabatasen... (Unknown Language)"
A roar came from within the spaceship. A Kala Star Person with silver scales appeared, actually floating in mid-air.
This Kala Star Person looked extremely similar to Tuka, only taller and more robust. His name, translated into human language, was Dika, Tuka's grandfather.
The high bloodline of the Kala Star People wasn't passed down through every generation; it often skipped generations. Tuka's birth had made the entire Kala clan rejoice; they had their next king.
High-ranking Kala Star People had absolute control over ordinary ones, not because of power, but due to genetics.
Even if a high-ranking Kala Star Person ordered ordinary ones to die, those ordinary ones couldn't disobey. This was very similar to the Insect Race.
The silver-scaled Kala Star Person was somewhat like an insect queen or insect king, extremely important to the entire clan.
The current king of the Kala Star People, 'Dika,' floated in mid-air, his feet hanging empty. This wasn't flight, but more like stepping on air.
At this moment, Dika's eyes were filled with hatred. He could already feel the death of his descendant, Tuka.