Chapter 24: True Critical Damage from Charm
When Su Xiao returned to the underground space, the magma there had already cooled. Amu dug out two Scarlet Cards from the solidified lava layer.
With all the gains in hand, Su Xiao immediately withdrew. The commotion here was significant, and he needed to return to the Tiger Bee Zone. There were beehives there, and in the event of an unexpected incident, he could take shelter inside a hive to avoid danger.
Two hours later, Su Xiao returned to the semi-open-air cave and lay down on a large rock to rest. It was already afternoon; he would rest until the next morning, then wait for the material drop notification. As for the Life Dragon's Essence, he had to seize it no matter what.
"Um..."
Hibier hesitated, a hint of reluctance in her eyes.
"Speak."
"About the gains from the battle... can I pay less? I only have 50 Soul Coins left."
After saying this, Hibier took out 50 Soul Coins.
"What's this?"
"After wiping out the Rainhowl Tribe, I got 11 three-star titles. They trigger with Charm over 10 points. Don't you have any?"
"Of course... I do."
Su Xiao closed his eyes and meditated. As the saying goes, out of sight, out of mind; meditation calms the heart.
"These 11 titles, if appraised, would cost me over 390 Soul Coins, but I don't have that many..."
"Shut up and go cool off somewhere."
"Huh? Are you angry? Did I say something wrong?"
Hibier was a bit flustered and even a little aggrieved, but she didn't realize that in her most timid tone, she had just said the most heart-wrenching words.
"Sis, for your own safety, just go somewhere cool and stay put. Titles are all fleeting clouds. If you got them, they're yours. We just grabbed you as a tool. If you don't pull any tricks, we won't kill you, and we're not interested in your gains."
Baha's words made Hibier retreat to a corner, continuing to play the role of the downtrodden.
There's no harm without comparison. With 171 points of True Charm Attribute, after wiping out the Rainhowl Tribe, she got a full 11 three-star titles. If she had used negotiation methods, she could have triggered many achievement tasks in the Rainhowl Tribe, and the titles obtained would have been over 25.
"Obviously, so many titles..."
Hibier muttered in the corner, but the smile on her face was hard to hide. With so many titles, if she had enough Soul Coins, she could synthesize 2 four-star titles. Accumulating over a few more worlds, she could try synthesizing her main title, a six-star one, and push it to seven stars.
Or rather, if she clung to a big shot in this world, she might even be able to aim for a seven-star title by the end of this world. Thinking of this, Hibier decided to temporarily be a tool. It wasn't that she had surrendered, but the titles she got were just too many, and she had no choice.
With the Illusionist dealt with, Su Xiao felt much more relaxed. That guy's ability was too troublesome, able to detect his location at any time. This prevented Su Xiao from engaging in too intense battles; once he was severely injured in a fight, the Illusionist could bring people to surround him.
Su Xiao had even killed Feishi, so he naturally wasn't afraid of Huishenshi. Moreover, he felt that Huishenshi wasn't specifically targeting him. The other party likely had many "puppets" deployed across multiple worlds. Running into one of his puppets wasn't a coincidence.
That madhouse full of talents—Su Xiao even wanted to visit it after returning to the Real World, just to see what kind of place could produce talents like Mr. J, the Dean, the Mad Doctor, and Huishenshi.
In meditation, time passed quickly. Night fell, and the nighttime rainforest remained as lively as ever.
When the first rays of dawn rose from the horizon, Su Xiao opened his eyes. He had adjusted his state to the optimum. Today's melee would see no one backing down. Many had joined the survival trial specifically for the Life Dragon's Essence.
At exactly six o'clock, an announcement appeared.
[Announcement: The Life Dragon's Essence will break free from spatial blockade at nine o'clock. Location: Central Area (Coordinates:...).]
Su Xiao wiped the water stains off his face. He knew where the Central Area was. It was outside the Water Source Zone, in an area called the "Primordial Land." Entering there would trigger a prompt, but it wasn't a dangerous or hidden zone.
In the melee, Hibier would be useful, but her chances of being ambushed were also high. Su Xiao decided to have Amu and Baha team up with her. For snatching the Life Dragon's Essence, he and Bubu Wang were more suited.
Su Xiao headed toward the Water Source Zone. After crossing the entire zone, he and his group exited the forest.
Here, the grass on the ground began to wither. The further forward they went, the more desolate it became. The Primordial Land was at the center of the Wild Thicket Forest, but as they delved deeper, the ground became barren, with several-meter-tall strange rocks standing in clusters.
After traveling over twenty kilometers, a stone pillar nearly a hundred meters thick appeared ahead. Its surface resembled tree bark, and its overall height exceeded 120 meters.
Approaching this giant stone pillar, Su Xiao realized it wasn't rock but a tree stump nearly a hundred meters thick, with raised roots below.
The stump was grayish-white all over, looking like rock from a distance. The break was uneven. The scene when this giant tree fell must have been spectacular. Given its hundred-meter diameter, before it fell, it should have been several thousand meters tall.
No other tree stump could be as magnificent as this—the giant tree that nurtured civilization and was eventually burned down by the Ancient Elves.
Arriving at the center of the Primordial Land, Su Xiao saw many Contractors already present. Some sat on the giant stump, others stood on semi-weathered boulders.
"You took care of the Illusionist?"
A voice came from behind. It was the Gourmet, wearing a smile.
"Yeah."
"Yesterday evening, I took explosives to the Rainhowl Tribe's settlement, but I was too late."
The Gourmet had clearly sensed something was off and had planned to deal with the Illusionist.
"The Illusion was abnormal. Not only was his behavior pattern erratic, sometimes he did stupid things, and other times he was troublesome. It was like... he was being controlled? Can't figure it out."
The Gourmet walked past Su Xiao toward the giant stump, clearly not intending to cooperate for now. There was only one Life Dragon's Essence.
Rumble...
The sky darkened. Clouds formed a phantom image, roaring downward.
"Roar!!"
Layers of airwaves spread from above. A faint light appeared mid-air, slowly descending.
[Announcement: The Life Dragon's Essence has broken free from spatial blockade. All trial participants may freely compete. Holding the Life Dragon's Essence for 24 hours will grant ownership (originally 48 hours, reduced due to trial time constraints).]
With a whoosh, a blur streaked across the sky. The Life Dragon's Essence suddenly vanished. The next moment, "fireworks" erupted in the sky.
Flames and various energy fluctuations spread. Contractors hidden everywhere all emerged. The Contractor with flight ability fell from above like a bird with broken wings.
Seeing this, Baha's eye twitched. It had also been about to make a move.
"Everyone, let the revelry begin."
Little Bun stood on the giant stump, her small face flushed, arms spread wide.
The Life Dragon's Essence fell from the smoke, trailing a wisp of vapor, and landed on a half-meter-tall stone pillar.
With a boom, the stone pillar shattered as if hit by a tank. Amid the rubble, Tank Man held the Life Dragon's Essence in one hand. Just as everyone was about to focus fire on him, he threw the Life Dragon's Essence.
A blur flew past. The Gourmet caught the Life Dragon's Essence. These two weren't cooperating; Tank Man was trying to screw over the Gourmet.
The Gourmet wasn't stupid. Realizing the Life Dragon's Essence couldn't be stored in his inventory, he immediately tossed it to Gask of Death Paradise. Now was the time to settle scores, old and new.
Gask's pale face twitched. The moment he caught the Life Dragon's Essence, he threw it toward Su Xiao, thinking, "If I'm going down, I'm taking someone with me." He wanted to use the Contractors' focus fire to eliminate Su Xiao first.
Dark blue smoke coiled around Su Xiao's left arm. He grabbed the Life Dragon's Essence, and in the next instant, the dark blue smoke enveloped his entire body. Gask had made a wrong decision—he shouldn't have thrown the Life Dragon's Essence to Su Xiao.