Chapter 53: A Choice
The Demon Beast troops advanced. After testing, they could only stop at the edge of the Trial Grounds after passing through the Death Forest. Given their current numbers, moving further would trigger a warning.
All Worker Scorpions withdrew toward the Base Camp. Under normal circumstances, maintaining a count of 10,000 Worker Scorpions was sufficient; any more would be a waste of Bio Energy.
The defensive line formed by the Demon Beasts was dismantled. Most Demon Beasts returned to the Base Camp Hive Nest to garrison, leaving 54,900 to lie in ambush within the Death Forest. Aside from them, there were also 10 Demon Flame Dragons.
Su Xiao planned to bring 3 Demon Flame Dragons and 4,900 Demon Beasts into the Trial Grounds. This was a safer approach to avoid exceeding the numerical limit.
As soon as he entered the Trial Grounds, a warning appeared.
[Warning (Void Tree): The Hunter's overall combat power has severely exceeded the Trial Grounds' limit! Additionally, a large number of special summons are under control.]
[Verifying...]
[Verification complete. No penalty will be applied for the Hunter's actions.]
No penalty was triggered. Clearly, the warning issued by the Void Tree yesterday was both a caution and a fixed value.
Barbatos flapped his wings and flew into the Trial Grounds, heading straight for the Water Source Zone. Below were 4,900 Demon Beasts, while the other two Demon Flame Dragons headed for the Tiger Wasp Zone and the Swamp Zone.
In the dense forest of the Water Source Zone, three Contractors sat around a campfire. They were all shirtless, their muscles not exaggerated but well-defined.
"Three big brothers, I really don't need to be purified."
A petite figure was hanging upside down from a tree. Her steamed bun-like face showed a hint of despair. She wasn't too afraid of death, but facing these three, she felt genuinely uneasy.
"Little Bun, we didn't catch you last time. It's a special fate that we've met again. Listen to me, you absolutely cannot violate the rules. You're so cute; if I punch you and you start whimpering, it would be hard to bear."
The man by the fire spoke. His face was resolute, and his tone was earnest. As for his identity, he was the Big Brother of the National Football Team.
"You're the one whimpering! Your whole family whimpers! Waa—"
Little Bun nearly burst into tears as she spoke.
"Right, you still have a great life ahead of you. Keeping your sanity is your required course."
The Second Brother of the National Football Team also stood up, waving his hand to signal the Third Brother to step in.
"Third Brother, Little Bun is too deeply poisoned. Use talk therapy."
"Got it, Big Brother."
The Third Brother approached Little Bun, a kind and simple smile on his face. His specialty, 'talk therapy,' had made countless people tremble in fear.
"I was wrong! Please don't talk to me! I won't listen! I won't listen!"
The upside-down Little Bun twisted her body. If he just kept talking to her, she wouldn't care. But he first put a stethoscope on her, then held the other end to his mouth and spoke. The sound was deafening. What made her want to cry even more was that he occasionally played songs meant for soul-cleansing.
"You can't become a Violator..."
The deafening voice reached Little Bun's ears. She felt that aside from the first two sentences, the rest were completely disconnected.
Rumble!
A tremor came from the ground. The Second Brother of the National Football Team tensed up, pressing one hand into the air beside him.
"A large number, with carapaces on their bodies. There's also a flying boss-level unit."
The Second Brother's expression turned serious. The Big Brother beside him looked up; he didn't need the Second Brother's perception—he could already see the Demon Flame Dragon.
A large number of Demon Beasts appeared around them. The Three Brothers of the National Football Team exchanged glances.
"My life is over."
The Big Brother swung his arm, and a long-handled energy hammer formed in his hand, golden light flowing around it.
"Live and die together!"
"Of course."
The Three Brothers assumed combat stances. The Demon Beasts charged head-on. The Third Brother strode forward, raising his war hammer high and slamming it down.
"Eat my big hammer!"
The Third Brother's hammer struck, sending the first charging Demon Beast flying. The damage wasn't too high, but it directly caused Stun + Internal Shock + Paralysis + Energy Suppression—utterly shameless.
More Demon Beasts surged in, surrounding the Third Brother. Just as he puffed out his chest, ready to use a defensive ability to tank the hits, the Demon Beasts rushed past him on both sides.
"Roar."
The knocked-down Demon Beast lay for nearly three seconds before getting up. It roared at the Third Brother before charging past him.
The Three Brothers of the National Football Team stood in the torrent of Demon Beasts, like three dog-tail grass stalks in a gale, utterly bewildered.
"Huh?"
"Eh?"
"What?"
The Three Brothers were completely dumbfounded. The Third Brother slapped himself—it hurt, confirming he wasn't dreaming.
"Woof."
"Bubuteni?"
"The exit is over there. We've broken through the Death Forest. Once you're out, don't join the Tiger Wasp Faction or the Dia Tribe. We'll be at war with both sides."
Baha flew down from above. Seeing Bubu Wang and Baha, the Three Brothers roughly understood the situation.
"Brother Bai Ye joined the Insect Race faction? There are Insect Races in this world?"
The Big Brother's hanging heart finally settled.
"We are the Insect Race faction."
Baha left these words and flew away. For a moment, the Three Brothers couldn't grasp the meaning.
The Demon Beasts thundered past. Soon, only the Three Brothers and Little Bun remained in the dense forest.
"Hurry, let me down! Something big must have happened! Go grab the benefits!"
Little Bun seized the opportunity to speak. With her temperament, she had never feared anyone, but facing the Three Brothers now, she felt a bit intimidated.
"No, we haven't reformed you yet."
"I'm a Contractor, not a Violator! I'm only suspected of violating! Help!"
Little Bun's shouts echoed far through the forest. At this moment, the Three Brothers of the National Football Team weren't true Hunters in the strict sense. They had Hunter authority but were 'reserve' Hunters, specifically tasked with dealing with those who had once violated and were about to become Violators. 'Talk therapy,' 'reformation,' and 'earnest advice' were their methods.
By now, the only Contractors daring to stay in the Trial Grounds were the Three Brothers and their captive, Little Bun.
The cleanup within the Trial Grounds began. Su Xiao stood on the back of the Flame Dragon, overlooking the dense forest below. The 4,900 Demon Beasts had scattered upon entering the Trial Grounds, gradually spreading outward.
Bang!
A signal flare shot into the sky, leaving a large ф mark above. Then, not a single signal flare responded.
As the search continued, Su Xiao noticed that the number of Contractors in the Trial Grounds was smaller than expected. But soon, the Demon Beasts surrounded a lone Contractor.
Over a dozen minutes later, nearly 50 Demon Beasts returned. One of them had a Contractor covered in blood wrapped around its whip-like tail.
With a thud, the Contractor was thrown in front of Su Xiao.
"Cough, cough. Kukulin Bai Ye?"
The Contractor sat up, a cold smile on his face as he looked at Su Xiao.
"Yes."
"Give me a quick death. State your terms."
The smirking man cracked his neck. He was clearly the type who didn't fear death.
"Information."
"Naji Jia has a favor to me. As long as it doesn't involve betraying him, no problem. The life or death of others doesn't matter to me."
The smirking man took out a cigar and lit it, exhaling a large puff of smoke.
"Where are the survivors from Reincarnation Paradise?"
"Those lone wolves? They're too scattered. Two of our elite squads killed many of them. About a dozen or so are left, all fled outside the Trial Grounds. I don't know where they got the White Amber."
The smirking man was likely a Contractor from Death Paradise. His backbone wasn't inferior to Contractors from Reincarnation Paradise.
"You've already occupied the Trial Grounds?"
"Of course. The supply crates for the past three days have been evenly distributed. You should have come earlier. Today's supply crates were dropped at six in the morning. Damn Gourmet, he got the best of it in the end."
"Then you're useless."
As soon as Su Xiao finished speaking, the Demon Beasts engulfed the smirking man.
Naji Jia was troublesome—Su Xiao had known that before. The other party had occupied the Trial Grounds for three days, and that guy must have gained the most.
The situation now became simple: clear the Trial Grounds.
After continuous searches by the Demon Beasts, Su Xiao eventually cornered a team of Contractors in the Swamp Zone, totaling over thirty people.
Swamp Zone, within the territory of the Black-and-White Apes.
Over thirty Contractors were surrounded by Demon Beasts. No one dared to act rashly. Several layers of light shields enveloped them.
"Keep waiting. Stay steady. Let all the enemies come. There's only one chance."
"Relax, it's stable. The coordinates near the Death Forest were set long ago. The coordinates are very close to the Death Forest. We'll charge immediately and can't be surrounded."
"Naji Jia sold us out. He didn't share the intel with us. Once we're out of the Trial Grounds, we'll kill him."
The survivors spoke in low voices. Although surrounded by over a thousand Demon Beasts, they clearly had something to rely on.
At that moment, three Demon Flame Dragons flew over, accompanied by several thousand more Demon Beasts.
Su Xiao stood on the back of the Flame Dragon Barbatos, looking down at the Contractors below.
"Goodbye, idiots."
A seductively dressed female Contractor winked at Su Xiao. The next moment, a spatial fluctuation enveloped everyone present.
At the edge of the Trial Grounds, spatial fluctuations appeared. The 32 Contractors had just materialized when they sprinted at full speed toward the Death Forest.
As the survivors charged into the Death Forest, they all took out White Amber. But to their confusion, the White Amber seemed to have no effect.
After running a few hundred meters, the 32 Contractors slowed down. For some reason, the ground was trembling.
The survivors had chosen to use precious spatial items to teleport collectively to the front of the Death Forest. This was a teleportation coordinate they had set up long ago as a contingency. Although they wanted to set the coordinate outside the Trial Grounds, if leaving the Trial Grounds were that easy, someone would have done so on the first day.
Back in the Swamp Zone, Su Xiao hadn't actually planned to act. It would have been 4,900 Demon Beasts plus 3 Demon Flame Dragons against 32 survivors.
Unfortunately, the survivors refused and even taunted him before leaving. They chose to charge into the Death Forest, where 50,000 Demon Beasts and 7 Demon Flame Dragons awaited. Brave indeed.
On the back of the Flame Dragon, Su Xiao received intel from Jila. He temporarily ignored the situation in the Death Forest and prepared to 'talk' with the Bee Queen, Afra, mainly about the ancient elven books.