Chapter 35: Helpers (Fifth Update)
In the water source area, on a towering sky-gazing tree, Su Xiao sat on a branch dozens of meters high, as a fine drizzle fell.
"This damn place, why does it have to start raining now?"
A short figure approached, barely over a meter tall.
"Gourmet, how did you turn into a little kid? Not gonna lie, you look kinda cute as a kid."
Baha crouched on the branch, spouting nonsense.
"My legs got a lot shorter. It'll take at least two days to recover. How's your progress here?"
The Gourmet held a skinned beast leg in his hand, taking a big bite. Heaven knows what insane trick he pulled off—when he "died," the kill notification, Scarlet Card drop, and everything else appeared perfectly. Even Naji Jia was almost convinced he was really dead.
"Got the 'entry ticket.' There's a forest on the edge of the swamp zone."
"I know all that. How much white amber did you get?"
The Gourmet leaped up and sat on the branch beside Su Xiao. Seeing him like this, Su Xiao frowned. Dealing with a precocious little kid felt strange, especially when tentacles occasionally flickered on the guy's body.
"I'll give you 140 grams."
"20 grams is enough to pass safely. What do you want me to do with the extra?"
"Behave. I'm busy. I don't have time to hunt you down."
"Hahahaha, don't say that. I'm only half a violator now, reforming myself. The higher the rank, the more I feel like the violator path is a trap. At least that's my take. Lucky I kept it low-key in the mid-to-low ranks."
The Gourmet laughed, as if the hunter sitting beside him wasn't a threat at all.
"See you outside the Death Forest. I'll join the 'Dia Tribe' by then. I'll come back in three days to grab that purple supply crate. What's your plan?"
"Something similar."
"See you then."
The Gourmet leaped down from the branch. Everyone in the Survivor Alliance thought he was dead. When he reappeared, he was definitely going to stir up big trouble.
Soon, the Gourmet disappeared into the dense forest. Once he was sure the Gourmet was gone, Su Xiao set off toward the swamp zone. In the trial zone, aside from the Bee Queen's mission and grabbing supply crates, other ways to gain benefits were too inefficient.
Ordinary supply crates weren't worth the risk. Su Xiao chose a different path. Looking at the current situation, the Survivor Alliance, led by Naji Jia, had the strongest advantage.
Su Xiao had never underestimated the Survivor Alliance, especially with a leader like Naji Jia. Half an hour ago, he got word from Hibier that the Tank Guy was dead—killed by 52 contractors in a siege.
The Survivor Alliance had four squads total. Two were filled with slackers, just padding the numbers. The remaining two were tough, with average contractor strength at the upper-mid to upper levels of the seventh rank.
Shenfu went up against one of those squads and almost had a breakdown. After that, the two squads joined forces to take on the Death Frenzy Beast, Gask.
No clear winner. The Survivor Alliance retreated. Gask was now the top-tier boss of the seventh rank. According to Hibier, Gask had over 120,000 health points. When injured, his health recovery was percentage-based per second. Mid-fight, Gask's health would just bounce back to 100%.
Naji Jia didn't go head-to-head with Gask because he sensed something was off. Gask was in his final frenzy. Whether he'd survive this trial world was uncertain. His hunt mission should have been completed long ago, but he hadn't chosen to return. He probably didn't even know what "return" meant anymore. He could only wait until the trial ended and be forced back.
Su Xiao wanted the purple supply crate and the Holy Spirit set. The former might hold surprises, and the latter could be traded for a huge pile of resources.
The Survivor Alliance was a roadblock. Either snatch the prize from the tiger's mouth, or just stomp the roadblock flat.
As he hurried along, the scenery blurred past. Su Xiao's squad regrouped. The only thing puzzling him was where Beini had gone. Normally, she couldn't leave the trial zone, but there was no word from her.
After a fast march, Su Xiao reached the swamp zone. Here, Bubu Wang, blending into the environment, took point. The muggy rainforest had been making Bubu act goofy lately. During breaks, he'd either dream of jumping off a cliff or watching horror movies, his hind legs trembling. Now that it was raining, Bubu Wang was much more alert.
At the very edge of the swamp zone, Su Xiao stopped, waiting for Bubu Wang's reconnaissance results.
The Survivor Alliance hadn't set up an ambush here. They couldn't block it anyway. A large area inside the swamp zone was Death Forest. There was no way they could seal off such a vast region.
Following the muddy swamp, Su Xiao reached a stretch of gray-white land. The lush rainforest abruptly ended here. Ahead stood tall but withered pine trees.
He took out a large chunk of white amber, split it into four pieces, and kept one in his hand. He gave the other three to Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha.
After just a dozen steps, an overwhelming sense of crisis hit him. It felt like death was spreading all around.
Hiss—
A faint sizzling sound came from his hand. The white amber in Su Xiao's grip was slowly dissipating, forming a pale mist that clung to his entire body.
Seeing this, Su Xiao quickened his pace. Without white amber, entering this Death Forest was suicide.
Caw, caw, caw.
A few crows flew over. They were completely gray-white, landing on the withered pine trees and staring intently at Su Xiao.
[Warning: You are being subjected to Death Gaze. Spirit Amber consumption rate increased by 300%.]
[Warning: Do not attack the 'Gray Crows' within the Death Forest. This action will lead to severe consequences.]
Ignoring the gray crows, Su Xiao strode forward. The Death Forest wasn't wide horizontally. After a few minutes of walking, green plants appeared ahead.
Leaving the Death Forest and passing through a sparse patch of woods, a vast plain opened up before him. The moss grass grew flat and even.
[Prompt: You have arrived at the Tiger Bee Faction territory.]
[You are being watched by the Tiger Bee Clan.]
Su Xiao scanned the surroundings but saw no bee-like creatures.
Whoosh—
A needle-like stinger flew past Su Xiao's ear. He tilted his head, looking toward a low earthen hill.
[Warning: Due to the influence of Bee Queen Afra, your reputation with the Tiger Bee Faction has decreased by 3,185 points. It is now at -275/500 (Neutral). You may enter a hostile state at any time.]
Afra's reputation among the Tiger Bee Faction was no joke. With Su Xiao's 0.2 Charm attribute, even in the chaotic-evil Tiger Bee Faction, his reputation had slipped to neutral.
Su Xiao's expression didn't change much. He had a backup plan. He hadn't wanted to use it at first, because doing so had a certain chance of triggering Void Tree punishment. Though the probability of triggering the penalty was low, it still carried risk.
"Amu, go deal with that Tiger Bee. Baha, find an area surrounded by hills on three sides with enough open space in the center."
Su Xiao took out a pulsating black fleshy sphere. He was preparing to summon a helper. If this were a world within Reincarnation Paradise, doing so would be problematic—it would greatly impact the world. But from the current situation, this place was perfect for summoning a helper. The key question was: how far had that helper developed?