Chapter 17: Quick-Witted
The second ring of the mission was successfully activated. Although Su Xiao's goal was to break the seal and kill the Ancient God, he did not act recklessly by killing the Light King directly to forcefully break the seal.
According to the Light King, the three of them who wrapped the Soul Chains around the container had a specific order. The Light King was on the innermost layer, followed by the Grand Sage, and the Wolf Spider Queen was on the outermost layer.
If the Light King were killed now, the entire system would collapse, the container would shatter instantly, and the Ancient God would break free from the seal.
This would be an extremely dire situation. The Ancient God had been accumulating power within the seal. If the seal suddenly shattered, within a certain period, the Ancient God's energy it could wield would be the accumulation of centuries. How powerful would that be?
Unsealing layer by layer was different. The several layers of seals were all closely connected to the Ancient God. Peeling them off layer by layer would release massive amounts of Ancient God energy with each layer opened, while ensuring the Ancient God couldn't rush out directly. In the end, not only would the accumulated Ancient God energy be released in various places, but it would also leave the sealed Ancient God weakened for a period.
[Main Mission: Qualification (Second Ring)]
Difficulty Level: Lv.75
Mission Info: Kill the Wolf Spider Queen.
Mission Brief: The Wolf Spider Queen is located in the Underground Kingdom (Insect Kingdom).
Time Limit: 6 natural days.
Mission Reward: Soul Crystal (Complete) ×10.
Mission Penalty: Immediately leave this world, forcibly teleported to the 'Hellforge Mine' to mine resources for 10 natural days (no income state).
Warning: The Hellforge Mine is extremely hot, with a chance of being attacked by Flame Spirits.
...
Seeing this mission penalty, Su Xiao understood one thing: why combat-type contractors from the Apocalypse Paradise also had to mine. It wasn't because they wanted to, but because they had no choice—the main mission had such penalties.
Su Xiao suspected that Yueshitu, Molei, the Nameless Saint, and others had all experienced main mission failures before, then went to mine in the mines, and it was unpaid labor.
This mission absolutely could not fail. Su Xiao didn't want to go mining, not because he had any prejudice against it, but because he didn't know how. In his understanding, mining meant holding a mining pick and constantly digging. To extract high-grade resources, that definitely wouldn't work.
Su Xiao walked out of the palace. At the entrance, he saw Yueling standing upright there.
"Sis, don't stand here. Let's go."
Baha showed a smile to Yueling, a smile that contained the harshness and complexity of the world.
"I must continue guarding the King..."
Before Yueling could finish, a translucent light token appeared in Su Xiao's hand.
"Is it the King's order? Already... no longer need my guard?"
Yueling was very sad, her eyes reddening.
"Guard my ass. Even the current Light King can fight better than you."
"That's not true. It's, it's..."
Yueling held back for a long time but couldn't come up with anything. She couldn't say that the Light King wasn't as strong as her current self.
Yueling glared at Baha. Baha's favorability with Yueling was plummeting. Baha didn't care at all about this. Not only that, but it also wanted to test if Yueling was helpful in combat.
"Yueling, if you encounter a seriously injured person, what would you do?"
"Of course, I'd help him."
Yueling answered without thinking. Please don't misunderstand—her 'help' was a bit peculiar.
"If he has malicious intent?"
"Immediately stab him to death, or chop off his head? Stab him first, then chop off his head. Yes, that's it."
Yueling was very satisfied with her answer, silently praising her own quick-wittedness in her heart.
Baha thought for a moment and continued, "If you're carrying out an order and encounter a seriously injured person, what would you do?"
"I would comfort him briefly, then walk away, or help him end his pain? Dying should stop the pain. Oh, right, I'd stab him with my spear as I pass by."
Yueling smiled as she spoke. The Light King's assessment of her kindness was somewhat inaccurate.
"Hypothetically, if killing the Light King could kill the Ancient God, what would you do?"
"I would cry, then do it. This is the mission of all of us, above guarding the King. This is what the King taught me."
Yueling looked at Baha very puzzled, not knowing why Baha was asking such simple questions.
Su Xiao walked ahead. He didn't pay attention to Baha and Yueling's Q&A but was checking Yueling's information.
Name: King's Guard · Yueling
Category: Human
Health: 100%
Radiance Power: 26300/26300 points
Strength: 203 (True Attribute)
Agility: 220 (True Attribute)
Endurance: 201 (True Attribute)
Intelligence: 92
Charm: 152 (True Attribute)
Luck: 52 (Increases or decreases based on environment)
Skill 1, Steadfast Mind (Passive, LV.70): Negates part of mental control effects of Eighth Rank or below, Willpower +42 points.
Skill 2, Radiance · Royal Spear Technique (Technique Class Passive, Lv.56): Spear-type weapon attack power increased by 745%, Base Neural Reflex Speed +35 points, Base Dynamic Vision +35 points...
Skill 3...
...
Skill 8, Bee Spirit Sting (Ultimate Ability, Lv.38): Yueling bursts the Radiance Power within her body, shuttling at ultra-high speed between one or more enemies, simultaneously using her blade-spear to pierce through the enemy's body, each time dealing 270 base damage + Agility attribute × 2.1 defense-ignoring damage + 52 Radiance damage.
Tip: Yueling will shuttle at high speed 7 to 12 times. If used against a single target, each subsequent piercing damage will continuously decrease.
Tip: During the piercing process, Yueling will burst out with nearly uncatchable speed, and due to her body becoming radiant, the damage she takes is greatly reduced.
Skill 9, Final Bloom (Ultimate Ability, Lv.50): After Yueling absorbs all the power of the Light King, Grand Sage, and Wolf Spider Queen, her consciousness will be instantly erased, thereby gaining extremely powerful strength.
Tip: After entering this state, Yueling can exist for 30 seconds.
Tip: This ability was bestowed by the Mother Goddess and has been permanently sealed by the Light King.
...
Yueling's combat power was quite good. Her last ability, in Su Xiao's view, had no use. This kind of sudden gain in power had strong burst, but it had many weaknesses. Not to mention anything else, only 30 seconds—could that kill the Ancient God? It was simply wishful thinking.
This was an ability bestowed by the Mother Goddess. The Light King also judged that this ability was completely useless and sealed it. Being instantly erased from consciousness meant what? It meant being unable to distinguish friend from foe.
Closing Yueling's information, Su Xiao walked towards his residence. The next destination was the Insect Kingdom. Coincidentally, Su Xiao had obtained 10 pieces of Crystal Resin accessories on Gem Street, which he could trade with the insects, prioritizing obtaining Immortal Rank gems.
Returning to the first floor of the residence, Su Xiao took out a [Directional Coordinate], used it. A golden mark appeared on the worn carpet, deeply imprinted into the stone slab below. The initial coordinate was successfully set.
"What is this?"
Yueling looked at the 'Initial Coordinate' on the ground, curious about everything.
"You'll find out later. It will definitely leave a deep impression on you."
Baha spoke as it flew towards the Insect Tower. It was time to leave White Town.
Su Xiao walked into the Insect Tower and began studying the map on the wall. This was a map of the entire continent, marked with numerous scales. After searching, he found over a dozen Insect Tower scales located within the Insect Kingdom. He finally chose 'Anlu' in the middle layer of the underground city, the most prosperous area of the Underground Kingdom. After adjusting for a moment, the Insect Tower activated.
Squeak, squeak, squeak...
All the Echo Bugs in the Insect Tower began to chirp. The surroundings became blurry. When everything faded, Su Xiao was already standing inside a strange Insect Tower.
"Welcome to 'Anlu'. Friends from the Human Race and Beast Clan, enjoy the delicacies of 'Anlu' to your heart's content. Just be careful of the Flea Thieves; they are all very cunning fellows."
A slightly teasing voice came from behind. Su Xiao looked and saw a large ant sitting on an iron chair. This ant was about 1.2 meters tall. Unlike normal insects, the two legs on the upper side of its torso—no, these should be considered arms—these two arms were holding a... newspaper?
"The prices are too unstable lately. When will you humans stop your infighting? Steam and machinery are the future. I shared them with you, and you didn't even look. These are all good things that can bring convenience to life."
The large ant sighed. At this moment, its four legs were actually crossed in a double cross-legged posture, shaking slightly.
"Woof~?"
Bubu Wang had been to many worlds, but this was the first time seeing such a spectacle. This was a branch of the insects, called the Walker Ant Clan, skilled in digging and transporting, with good business talent, belonging to very trustworthy merchants.
Su Xiao walked out of the Insect Tower. As soon as he stepped out, warm light greeted his eyes. Although underground, there was no cold or dampness. A single-carriage train spewing steam passed through the center of the street. Inside the carriage sat many Walker Ants, most holding a newspaper.
A large moth was also inside the train. Because of the powder drifting around it, the nearby Walker Ants didn't get close. This large moth was highly poisonous.
On both sides of the street were small shops. Due to trade with humans and beasts, these shops were very spacious. Even those over three meters tall wouldn't feel cramped inside. Beside each shop's door hung a wooden sign with different patterns drawn on it.
The single-carriage train passed by. Steam engines on the street hissed hot air. Iron-black pipes were distributed on the outer walls, the lines intricate and complex.
A mosquito the size of an egg flew past Bubu Wang's eyes. As it passed, it even asked Bubu Wang if he wanted to buy a newspaper.
"What the... hell? This place is really amazing."
Baha looked around, feeling that this time they had come to an interesting place. Or rather, this was one of the pleasures of exploring various mission worlds—being able to see different civilizations and customs.
[Tip: The Hunter has arrived at the Underground Kingdom (Insect Kingdom). Current location: Anlu.]
[Underground Kingdom reputation has been activated.]
[Your follower · Bubuteni's initial faction reputation is: Friendly (4700/5000 points).]
[Your assistant · Yueling's initial faction reputation is: Friendly (920/5000 points).]
[Due to the Hunter's Charm attribute being -3 points,]
[Your initial faction favorability is: Cold, Mildly Hostile (-9830/-10000 points).]
[This is faction favorability. Once it exceeds 0 points, it can be converted to faction reputation.]