Chapter 74: Reverse Determination
The sky was filled with stars, and in the empty darkness below, a river of light flowed. Su Xiao did not return directly to Reincarnation Paradise but arrived at the Starry Sky Transit Station.
The reason he arrived here was that the Legend Ranking had not yet finished its settlement. Some contractors were still within the Demon Sea World. When over 80% of the contractors were teleported to the Starry Sky Transit Station, the Legend Ranking would be forcibly settled.
The surrounding light was somewhat dim, and he could faintly see over a dozen figures not far away. These were other contractors waiting.
Su Xiao sat cross-legged on the transparent barrier beneath him. A faint white light clung to his wounds, and the continuous intense pain subsided. This was the Void Tree's life-support authority, which could not heal injuries but could stabilize them, preventing death from severe wounds.
Su Xiao's gains this time were substantial. Additionally, after passing the trial of the four-attribute barrier, his strength would skyrocket upon returning to Reincarnation Paradise. Of course, he was still a bit short of being able to explore Dead Silence City.
He would definitely visit Dead Silence City once. It was related to the final enhancement of the Black King Bracer. When certain conditions were met, his Willpower attribute would become a True Attribute.
Every time Su Xiao used Dead Silence Descent, a part of Dead Silence City would disappear. However, this Dead Silence City was not the real one but a derivative zone of Dead Silence City.
As Su Xiao's strength increased, his horizons broadened. The Dead Silence City he had entered in the Black Throne Continent was created by the spread of Dead Silence Force. He named it Newborn·Dead Silence City.
The Dead Silence Force originated from the real Dead Silence City, a place Su Xiao had never been. All the secrets lay there, such as the source of the Dead Silence Force, why this power eroded worlds, and how it could give rise to Newborn Dead Silence Cities.
The Black Throne World had been invaded by the Dead Silence Force. During this invasion, some people in the Black Throne Continent stepped forward to separate the eroded area, preventing the entire world from being affected.
Every time Su Xiao used the Dead Silence Descent ability, a portion of the Newborn·Dead Silence City within the Black Throne Continent would disappear. When that Newborn·Dead Silence City completely vanished, Su Xiao's Willpower attribute would transform into a True Attribute.
The real Dead Silence City would not be affected by Su Xiao's use of Dead Silence Descent. The real Dead Silence City was the main body, while the Newborn·Dead Silence City in the Black Throne Continent was a branch. There was only one main body, but how many branches existed was unknown. At this very moment, a Newborn·Dead Silence City might be gradually appearing.
Over such a long time, Su Xiao had used the Dead Silence Descent ability many times. The Newborn·Dead Silence City in the Black Throne Continent should have long since completely disappeared.
Although Su Xiao had not been there, every time he used Dead Silence Descent, he could sense that the Newborn·Dead Silence City had not completely vanished. In the remaining small area, there was a building called the Supreme Sanctuary. It would not easily disappear because it was connected to the real Dead Silence City.
The Newborn·Dead Silence City was already so hospitable; what level would the real Dead Silence City reach?
After obtaining the [Withering Greatsword], Su Xiao could already enter the real Dead Silence City. By inserting the [Withering Greatsword] into the Supreme Sanctuary of the Newborn·Dead Silence City, a door would appear, leading to the real Dead Silence City, the source of all Dead Silence Force.
The real Dead Silence City was extremely dangerous. The Dead Silence Force it emitted, once it seeped into other worlds, would cause catastrophic consequences.
Names like Black King and Ken Rahan were still fresh in Su Xiao's memory. He had a feeling that not going to the real Dead Silence City would be a huge loss for him. It was a fatal danger but also a unique opportunity.
Su Xiao was in no hurry to enter the real Dead Silence City because he felt that his current self might not even be able to defeat the gatekeeper.
Putting aside matters concerning Dead Silence City, Su Xiao checked the notification records. He had killed the Nameless One and gained many benefits.
[You have killed the Third Captain of the Doom Number, the Nameless One.]
[You have gained 19.35% World Source (since this World Child has completed the Path of Fate, the World Source gained from killing is significantly reduced).]
[You have gained 2900 Soul Coins.]
[You have gained an Immortal Chest (51%).]
...
Apart from the Immortal Chest with a suffix, this Immortal Chest was the highest-quality chest Su Xiao had ever obtained. The Nameless One had completed the Path of Fate, meaning he had fulfilled his responsibility as a World Child, so he did not drop a Fate Chest.
The quality of a chest had a significant threshold at 50%. Chests with over 50% quality had a high chance of yielding Immortal-grade equipment or gems.
If the quality reached 100%, as long as one was not extremely unlucky, they could obtain a full-scoring piece of equipment corresponding to the chest's grade. However, there was still a low chance of not getting it. As for why Su Xiao knew this, he had tested it.
"Bai Ye, how did the sale of the Primordial Water go?"
Black Rose walked over, accompanied by two others walking beside her, Guang Mu and Alec.
At this moment, Alec had his eyes lowered, seemingly troubled.
"Alec, if something's bothering you, share it so everyone can have a laugh."
Baha spoke. Upon hearing this, the corner of Black Rose's mouth lifted.
"Not at all. My gains this time far exceeded expectations."
Alec sat down on the ground, took out a bottle of wine, and drank it in gulps.
"Second place, are you drinking because you're unhappy?"
Guang Mu looked at Alec with a smile. Alec narrowed his eyes, and dragon scales grew on his hands.
Ignoring the few people chatting nearby, Su Xiao took two pieces of equipment out of his storage space. They were [Wood Spirit] and the [Endless Darkness] collar. Both pieces of equipment had undergone curse purification.
Using the Demon Box of the Doom Number for curse purification carried some risk. [Extreme Freeze Stone] had shattered during purification, and the resulting gem fragments were worthless.
Apart from these three, Su Xiao had also purified a bone staff called [Death's Weeping]. The attributes of this bone staff were yet to be identified and could not be viewed for now.
Among the three successfully purified pieces of equipment, the [Endless Darkness] collar had the greatest improvement. This equipment had a high compatibility with curse force, both symbolizing pain, darkness, etc. As for [Wood Spirit], the purification had been too thorough, elevating it from Legendary to Holy Spirit rank.
[Wood Spirit]
Origin: Naruto World
Quality: Holy Spirit
Category: Adaptive
Durability: 155/155 points
Equipment Requirements: Adaptive
Equipment Effect: No traits
Rating: 930 points (Holy Spirit equipment rating 700~1000 points)
Introduction: This equipment has extremely strong ductility, can develop towards multiple directions such as darkness, life, and curse. Once the trait is selected, it cannot be changed.
Selling Price: Soul-bound upon wearing.
...
Through the washing of curse force, the current Wood Spirit had no attributes, but its supernatural traits had reached the Holy Spirit rank, completely saturated. Simply put, this equipment had strong adaptability and could be crafted in multiple directions.
For most contractors, Wood Spirit was a decent piece of equipment, but that was all. For Su Xiao, who had mastered Alchemy, Wood Spirit was a rare treasure.
Putting away Wood Spirit, this equipment would be very useful later. Compared to Wood Spirit, the ability of the Endless Darkness collar was much clearer.
[Endless Darkness]
Origin: Demon Sea World·Doom Number (due to this equipment's high compatibility with curse force, this purification has nearly re-forged it, resulting in a change of origin)
Quality: Holy Spirit
Category: Special Equipment
Durability: 85/85
Equipment Requirements: Charm attribute below 3 points, True Intelligence attribute above 180 points.
Equipment Effect 1: Curse of Lies (Passive) - If the enemy has lost the ability to resist, this collar can be equipped on the enemy's neck, triggering a Charm attribute reverse determination.
Tip: The Charm attribute reverse determination means that if the enemy's Charm attribute is higher than the equipment holder's, the enemy will fail the determination, forcibly entering a severe weakened state and suffering the "Curse of Lies" effect.
Curse of Lies: The dark curse within the Endless Darkness collar will spread into the enemy's body and make a determination based on the enemy's mental fluctuations. If the enemy speaks the truth, this determination is invalid. If the enemy speaks a lie, the dark curse will erode the enemy's consciousness, causing their Willpower attribute to decrease by 10 points.
Tip: This effect can stack continuously until the enemy's Willpower drops below 3 points. After removing the Endless Darkness collar, this effect will be lifted within 1 to 5 natural days.
Equipment Effect 2: Black Prison (Active) - After activating this collar, the enemy's consciousness will be shrouded in absolute darkness, causing a disorientation of time perception. Each second in the absolute darkness can be extended to a maximum of 20 natural days (this is the time flow speed experienced by the enemy's consciousness).
Tip: This effect can be continuously activated, consuming equipment durability based on the duration.
Rating: 1000 points (Holy Spirit equipment rating 700~1000 points)
Introduction: Lies come at a cost.
Price: 105 Soul Coins.
...
The effect of the [Endless Darkness] collar was quite interesting. When intelligence was needed, capturing certain enemies alive was the best choice.
After putting the [Endless Darkness] collar on an enemy, a reverse Charm attribute determination would occur. Su Xiao was not worried about this at all. So far, he had never seen anyone with a lower Charm attribute than his own.
Once the enemy suffered the "Curse of Lies," every lie they told would temporarily reduce their Willpower attribute by 10 points, continuously accumulating. This was commonly known as continuously losing integrity. When the integrity was completely lost, obtaining intelligence became very simple, especially with the Black Prison.
First, make the enemy "lose integrity," then lock them in the "small dark room," and continue questioning afterward. Torture was too low-level; obtaining intelligence through the [Endless Darkness] collar was more effective.
Just as Su Xiao put away the [Endless Darkness] collar, several figures appeared in the Starry Sky Transit Station.
[Announcement (Void Tree): Over 80% of contractors have left the Demon Sea and arrived at the Starry Sky Transit Station. The Legend Ranking settlement begins.]
[Settling...]
[Settlement complete. The following is the final ranking of this Legend Ranking.]
First Place: Bai Ye (Reincarnation Paradise), has received the first-place reward: Baptism of the Demon Sea.
Second Place: Alec (Death Paradise), has received an Immortal-grade equipment chest.
Third Place: Nether Wolf (Reincarnation Paradise), has received the Angel Set (Holy Spirit-grade healing set).
Fourth Place: Black Rose (Reincarnation Paradise), has received 3500 Soul Coins.
Fifth Place: Guang Mu (Holy Light Paradise), has received 2500 Soul Coins.
Sixth Place: Sand Traveler (Apocalypse Paradise), has received 1600 Soul Coins.
Seventh Place: Star Dust (Apocalypse Paradise), has received 1400 Soul Coins.
Eighth Place: White Fire Bug (Apocalypse Paradise), has received 1200 Soul Coins.
Ninth Place: Miner No. 4 (Apocalypse Paradise), has received 1000 Soul Coins.
Tenth Place: Kur (Apocalypse Paradise), has received 800 Soul Coins.
...
Looking from top to bottom, there were no contractors from Apocalypse Paradise in the top five. However, from fifth to tenth place, contractors from Apocalypse Paradise had monopolized the spots.
The battle on Eternal Life Island had been too brutal, with too many powerhouses dying there. Contractors from Apocalypse Paradise had a strong ability: they were extremely good at surviving, leading to the current situation.
A scroll appeared in Su Xiao's hand. This was the Baptism of the Demon Sea, or rather, a kind of authority. Upon use, it would immediately transport him to the bottom of the Demon Sea to undergo the Demon Sea's baptism.
During the baptism process, the True Intelligence attribute would increase by 5 points, and mental strength would also be greatly enhanced. The level of magic-type and water-type talent abilities would increase, up to a maximum of SSS rank.
Su Xiao had suffered the curse of the Demon Sea before. He knew one thing clearly: it was best to stay away from anything related to the Demon Sea. Moreover, this baptism leaned towards magic and water types.
"The Demon Sea Baptism is quite valuable. We made a profit. Somehow ended up in first place."
Baha looked at the scroll in Su Xiao's hand. Originally, they had not intended to seize first place, but as events unfolded, they ended up there. Or rather, if not for the Doom Number, Alec's first place would have been secure.
Hearing Baha's words, Alec finished the wine in his bottle, silently stood up, and walked into the distance. His mood was somewhat complicated. He was in second place again.