Chapter 61: Thorns
The battle on the scorched earth subsided. Su Xiao took the chest handed over by Baha. This Holy Spirit chest dropped by Emperor Taiyatu was of high value, demonstrating the strength of Emperor Taiyatu.
Compared to the chest obtained, Su Xiao was more interested in an amber. This amber was oval in shape, a few sizes smaller than an egg, emitting a pale yellow and warm luster. At the center of this amber was a black threadworm.
This threadworm had dense scales all over its body. Each ring of scales protruded slightly, and when connected together, they resembled a dorsal fin.
This item was named [Dark Erosion Worm: Emperor's Hatred]. Su Xiao had seen many threadworms in the Western Continent, but never one that looked like the individual inside this amber. Other threadworms made people feel very uncomfortable and unwilling to touch them much.
But the threadworm inside this amber was like a bizarre, grotesque work of art. Although it looked ominous, it didn't evoke rejection.
The information on this thing was simple: 'A worm born in darkness, yearning for light,' and that was it.
[Dark Erosion Worm: Emperor's Hatred] could not be taken out of this world. Its usage method was unknown. The only valuable information was that this thing was still alive, but if it were activated, its existence cycle would be very short.
Su Xiao put away the [Dark Erosion Worm: Emperor's Hatred] and ordered the battlefield to be cleaned up. Gunfire could still be heard in the distance, indicating there were still stragglers. Given the current battle situation, those stragglers were no longer a threat.
The stars filled the sky. The weather was exceptionally sultry tonight. Su Xiao looked toward the ruins of the ancient royal city... no, there were no ruins anymore. Where the royal city once stood was now a large pit.
The Abyss Hole was not on Emperor Taiyatu. The dark ring on his chest that Su Xiao had seen earlier was a projection of the Abyss Hole.
The pit ahead was glowing red hot. The soil had been baked into a hard crust, covered with sparks.
Su Xiao leaped into the huge pit. A crisp cracking sound came from under his feet as he stepped on the hard crust, which split open. A semi-fluid resembling magma flowed out from the cracks, carrying high temperatures.
From the ordinary parasitic insect warriors killed by artillery bombardment, Su Xiao had gained a fair amount of World Source, but not too much. However, from the highly aberrant parasitic insect warriors killed by Apollo, he gained no World Source at all but obtained a massive amount of Soul Coins.
Su Xiao wasn't sure how many highly aberrant parasitic insect warriors he had blown up. Calculating it, he had gained a total of 13,429 Soul Coins and 8 [Aberrant Crystals].
After returning to Reincarnation Paradise, [Aberrant Crystals] could be sold to Reincarnation Paradise for 510 Soul Coins each, or they could be used to strengthen equipment.
Using this item to strengthen equipment wouldn't increase the enhancement level. Instead, it would cause the equipment to undergo aberration. The effects of aberration were twofold: first, it would change the equipment's characteristics, granting it extremely special traits; second, it would cause the transformed equipment to resonate with each other, mutually enhancing one another, with a maximum resonance count of 3.
To put it simply, if there were enough [Aberrant Crystals], three pieces of Holy Spirit equipment could all be strengthened with [Aberrant Crystals]. The bonuses of these three Holy Spirit equipment pieces would transform toward the 'Insect System,' and when worn simultaneously, the three pieces would resonate with each other, each receiving a stat boost.
This was somewhat similar to a set, but the strength of a set lay in its set effects, whereas aberrant equipment resonated to boost each other without set effects.
For contractors with insect-type abilities, aberrating three pieces of equipment was an excellent choice. There were actually quite a few contractors with insect-type abilities, mostly female. Don't think that the insect type was like the threadworms of the Western Continent; that was just one branch of the insect system. The insect system had another major branch, whose various abilities could only be described as aesthetically pleasing. It involved the mutual bonding and growth between humans and spirit insects.
Clearly, the insect system in this world belonged to the most horrifying type, with strong combat power. It had taken several days of bombing to clean them up.
Su Xiao arrived at the center of the huge pit. He still hadn't found the 8 dropped [Aberrant Crystals]. The item prompt indicated that the [Aberrant Crystals] were in the cave below.
Su Xiao looked down into the cave. Inside, the firelight was dazzling. Using the firelight, Su Xiao saw the darkness below. That darkness was very deep, as if leading to the depths of the underworld.
Grabbing onto Baha's eagle talons, Su Xiao began to descend. A scorching sensation surrounded him. After descending for a few minutes, the high heat receded, and he landed in black mist.
The surroundings were pitch black, with a visibility distance of no more than two meters. Closing his eyes to sense the surroundings, Su Xiao moved to the right. He hadn't gone far before he picked up a radial crystal from the ground. This thing was like a sea urchin, emitting a very faint blood-red color from within, as if condensed from blood and some kind of power. This was an [Aberrant Crystal].
"Baha, you're in charge of collecting these."
Su Xiao tossed the [Aberrant Crystal] in his hand to Baha and walked forward. The Abyss Hole was right there; no need to sense it.
The black mist around him grew denser. The further he went, the more Su Xiao felt an overall comfort. This was Abyss Force. This energy had no concept of good or evil, or good versus evil. Absorbed by someone with malicious intent, it became darkness; absorbed by a kind person, it became the brilliant light of hope. This was a power that reflected the mind and soul.
Under normal circumstances, Abyss Force would nourish the world and its creatures. However, the Abyss Force entering this world through the Abyss Hole had, for some unknown reason, become twisted. Absorbing too much of it would cause problems. Even the Moon Wolf had been eroded by this twisted Abyss Force, demonstrating its powerful influence.
Su Xiao stopped in the darkness. Ahead of him, faint cyan moonlight shone in. It was a disc condensed from moonlight, covered with dense patterns. At the center of the moonlight disc was a dark ring about half a meter in diameter. The twisted Abyss Force was emanating from this dark ring.
Emperor Taiyatu had never possessed the ability to suppress the Abyss Hole. Even to this day, it was still relying on the Moon Wolf's legacy to suppress it.
Su Xiao raised his right arm. One by one, blood-red chains as thick as little fingers appeared out of thin air behind him. This was a blessing from Reincarnation Paradise. With Su Xiao's current means, he indeed couldn't destroy the Abyss Hole; it was a phenomenon related to the Abyss.
Su Xiao pressed his single hand toward the Abyss Hole. The blood-red chains rushed into the Abyss Hole. The surrounding space cracked with a snapping sound, and the entire Western Continent trembled.
Dark clouds gathered in the sky. A huge blood-red ф mark appeared in the sky. Except for workers, contractors, and hunters, outsiders couldn't see this mark.
In the darkness underground, Su Xiao felt that with his grip, the Abyss Hole was breaking apart, and a passage leading to the unknown was also collapsing.
Boom!
The Abyss Hole shattered. A wave of darkness spread across the center of the Western Continent, swept across the entire Western Continent, and then extended far into the surrounding seas.
...
Eastern Continent, Kodu.
Kodu in the Eastern Continent held a status equivalent to Gaman City in the Southern Continent. This was the capital of arts and literature. Many famous writers, painters, musicians, and scholars had settled here. Generations of artistic sedimentation had given this place a profound cultural heritage. The three most famous universities in the Alliance were all located in Kodu.
Dong, dong, dong~
The Great Clock Tower emitted a melodious chime. This antique building should have been demolished long ago, but it had been preserved to this day due to public opinion.
In a gallery near the Great Clock Tower, the gallery was somewhat dim at night. It seemed unremarkable, but two world-famous masterpieces, 'Portrait of a Woman' and 'Thorns,' were stored here.
Below the painting 'Thorns,' an aged figure stood there, looking at the masterpiece 'Thorns' on the wall. Everything was like yesterday. He recalled his night-time conversation with the copyist of 'Thorns.' That was over two hundred years ago. Weixi Roe had lost his son early in life and his wife in middle age. He had lived a life of poverty and hardship, truly like a path of thorns. But who would have thought that after his death, his painting 'Thorns' would be hailed as one of the two masterpieces of this century?
A subtle wave passed by. A gleam of spirit appeared in the old man's cloudy eyes. His name was Atos Baiken.
The moonlight outside the window shone on Atos Baiken's face, making it appear deathly pale. In his pupils, it seemed as if a golden threadworm was swimming in a circular pattern.