Chapter 82: A Trap You Can't Refuse
The blazing sun hung high, yet Su Xiao felt no warmth. There were few pedestrians on Center Street, and no one was seen dead in front of the gallery entrance.
Although there were no corpses on the street, several piles of pale ash lay before the gallery's main door. These were likely civilians who had strayed into the Death Domain, their souls shattered and bodies reduced to cinders.
Blood energy spread outward from Su Xiao as the center point, quickly enveloping the surrounding several hundred meters. Screams and the cries of infants came from all directions. Soon, many men carrying kitchen knives and women holding children fled in all directions, driven back by the blood energy.
Civilians could not be allowed nearby. When a living being perished within the Death Domain, the domain's area would expand. Its initial diameter was 10 meters, with no known upper limit.
A few civilians accidentally entering the Death Domain wasn't too serious; the increase in range would be minimal, at most a few meters. But if a transcendent died inside, the expansion could be hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of meters.
If that happened, everyone in Kodu would die, with no chance of escape. Once the Death Domain expanded to a certain range, the increase caused by civilian deaths became even more terrifying, simply due to their sheer numbers.
The ideal growth method for the Death Grail was: first kill a transcendent to expand the range to a kilometer, then instantly kill all civilians within that kilometer, and continue expanding. The larger the area, the faster the snowball effect.
Once, the Death Grail had engulfed an entire city in just 3.9 seconds. That city was named Enka, swallowed by volcanic lava.
In reality, the civilians there had been killed to the last by the Death Grail. The authorities later triggered a nearby volcanic eruption and, together with the Alliance, covered up the incident to prevent widespread panic.
If the Death Grail were allowed to grow, given Kodu's population, the Death Domain would engulf the entire city in just a few seconds. There would be no time to escape.
Su Xiao crouched down, pressing his index and middle fingers together against the ground. Closing his eyes, he released his perception, and everything within a 300-meter radius became clear to him.
There were no civilians within that range. The other buildings were unremarkable, except for the gallery ahead. Inside, there was a circular area 15 meters in diameter. Perceiving it was difficult; it appeared gray tinged with white, as if death itself was spreading.
Su Xiao attempted to perceive deeper. After a few seconds, he sensed that at the very center of that spherical domain was an ancient metal cup. It was undoubtedly the Death Grail.
At that moment, the Death Grail rested on a stone platform. The surrounding ground was studded with dozens of 3-meter-long iron pipes, each as thick as an arm.
These pipes were covered with hooks, from which hung many metal wires. These wires crisscrossed the gallery, encircling the Death Grail while all originating from a single metal chair.
The metal chair was heavy and sturdy, overall iron-black, with patches of rust and dried bloodstains visible.
A man covered in a translucent fluid, wearing only shorts, sat in the metal chair. His arms were fixed to the armrests with rivets, as were his legs. On his head was a strangely shaped metal helmet, resembling a modified animal trap. Around his neck was a ring of blades. If the mechanism was triggered, these blades would pierce diagonally into his skull, destroying his entire brain.
Behind the metal helmet, a metal wire was connected. On the other end of this wire was a spool. The main gear of this spool turned at a rate of one notch per second, gradually tightening the wire connected to the back of the helmet, about to be pulled taut.
The man in the metal chair was not dead. Logically, this was impossible, as he was inside the Death Domain.
Su Xiao speculated that the translucent fluid smeared on this man's body was blocking the Death Domain from killing him. But it wouldn't last long. The fluid was evaporating, and once there was a gap in the coverage, the Death Domain would be enough to kill him.
There was no doubt: this man was a transcendent, and someone had set all this up.
Su Xiao's first thought was to retreat, to leave Kodu immediately. But he couldn't be sure of one thing: whether the mechanism in the gallery would trigger immediately.
If it triggered instantly, turning back now would be a death sentence. After the transcendent in the gallery died, the Death Domain's range would expand to at least several hundred meters, even a kilometer. This was the prime Center District, with extremely high civilian population density.
Once the Death Domain began to spread, it would inevitably kill a large number of civilians. In just a few seconds, the Death Domain would engulf all of Kodu. The time was too short for Su Xiao to escape.
Su Xiao's first thought was that the Insect had set this up. Yet, for some reason, the style of this scene felt vaguely familiar.
After an initial observation, Su Xiao realized the mechanism in the gallery was a timed device. This relieved him somewhat. Compared to a manually triggered mechanism, a timed one was easier to deal with.
Su Xiao walked to the street in front of the gallery, stopping just half a meter from entering the Death Domain.
Ding, ding!
Banishment streaked through the air, and the gallery door was violently dismantled. Six meters directly ahead of Su Xiao sat the man in the metal chair.
Su Xiao carefully examined the metal helmet on the man's head. Based on his understanding of mechanisms and mechanics, this helmet had three layers of lethal measures.
Once the metal wire behind the helmet was pulled out, all three measures would activate simultaneously, killing the transcendent. If he died within the Death Domain, his soul energy would inevitably be absorbed by the domain, with disastrous consequences.
Su Xiao took a harpoon-like launcher from his storage space, loaded it with a tranquilizer dart, and fired at the man in the chair. He wasn't trying to save a hostage; who knew if this man in the iron chair was in league with the mastermind behind the scheme.
Su Xiao was very interested in the translucent fluid smeared on this man. It could block the effects of the Death Domain, making it highly valuable for research.
The tranquilizer dart struck the man's chest, but he remained slumped. Seeing this, a blue light flickered in Su Xiao's pupils. Banishment floated before him. He raised his right hand, and an energy thread connected to Banishment.
Su Xiao controlled Banishment to fly into the Death Domain. As soon as it entered, it began to corrode. Fortunately, its surface was wrapped in Azure Steel Shadow energy. As an inanimate object, the corrosion would be gradual.
The energy thread connected to Su Xiao's arm emitted a faint glow. To protect Banishment inside the Death Domain, Su Xiao's Azure Steel Shadow ability was being consumed at a steady rate.
There were two options: rescue the man in the iron chair, or take the Death Grail. But Su Xiao chose neither.
In truth, Su Xiao didn't want to act personally. There were too many unknown factors, and the risk was too high. But there was no time to wait. If the man in the gallery died, Su Xiao would also perish as the Death Domain expanded. Every second of delay increased the risk.
Su Xiao directed Banishment to fly above the Death Grail. The blue light in his eyes intensified. Banishment suddenly turned into a blur, stabbing downward toward the Death Grail.
Whether rescuing the man or taking the Death Grail, both carried risks. Destroying the Death Grail was the best choice now. Even if it was destroyed, it would reappear somewhere else in time, but that didn't matter.
With a crack, the Death Grail was pierced by Banishment. The surrounding Death Domain vanished instantly. Seizing the opportunity, Su Xiao recalled Banishment.
The bottom of the Death Grail was punctured. After a few seconds of silence, a section of the Grail's wall caved in.
Thump~
Su Xiao's heart gave a heavy beat. This made him narrow his eyes and place his hand on his sword hilt. This time... he had been set up.
A suction force seemed to appear inside the Death Grail, pulling the entire cup into a sphere.
[Prompt: You have participated in the handling of Dangerous Object S-002 (Death Grail).]
[This event is led by: Violator, Gray Gentleman.]
[Because you are within a specially designated area and have participated in the handling of Dangerous Object S-002 (Death Grail), you have been automatically formed into a temporary team with Gray Gentleman. This team has been certified by the Void Tree.]
[Team members for this event: Gray Gentleman, Bai Ye.]
[You will bear the soul backlash from destroying the Death Grail.]
[Gray Gentleman will bear the mental backlash from destroying the Death Grail.]
[If either party fails this judgment, they will die immediately, and the other party's Stamina, Soul Strength, and Willpower attributes will be permanently reduced by 20%.]
[You have undergone the Soul Judgment.]
[Your Soul Strength is 500 points.]
[You have passed the Soul Judgment!]
...
[Gray Gentleman has undergone the Willpower Judgment.]
[Gray Gentleman's True Willpower attribute is 310 points.]
[Gray Gentleman has passed the Willpower Judgment!]
...
A series of judgments appeared. Inside the gallery, the man in the iron chair straightened up, his eyes opening. The tranquilizer, potent enough to anesthetize large transcendent creatures, had no effect on him.
"Long time no see, Bai Ye."
The man in the chair smiled. He raised his right hand, fixed to the armrest, tearing away flesh and skin. Using his skeletal hand, he grabbed the metal wire behind his head and yanked hard.
Ding~
A crisp sound of a pin being pulled came.
Pfft, pfft, pfft...
Blades retracted into the metal helmet, piercing through the man's skull. Blood streamed from his eye sockets as he stared at Su Xiao, still smiling. The next instant, Banishment pierced his head.
Su Xiao had already figured out what was happening. This was all set up by Gray Gentleman. At first glance, it seemed like an ambush to trap Su Xiao here forever. But in reality, there was a hidden agenda.
The plan had very few steps, but the simpler the plan, the harder it was to guard against, much like a machine with fewer parts is less prone to breaking.
[Prompt: Your team has completed the Soul and Willpower Judgments. This is a special event, certified by the Void Tree, and the rewards are also issued by the Void Tree.]
[You have passed the Soul Judgment and received the following rewards.]
[You have gained 10.7% World Source.]
[You have gained Soul Crystal (Complete) x100.]
[You have gained Soul Box (Chest-type item. Upon opening, you will obtain a Soul-type equipment).]
[You have gained Basic Passive: Soul Toughness (This is a Basic Passive skill scroll. The corresponding attribute is Soul Strength).]
...
[Gray Gentleman has passed the Willpower Judgment and, as the leader of this mission, has received the following rewards.]
[Gray Gentleman has obtained Dangerous Object S-002 (Death Grail). This dangerous object has been certified by the Void Tree and can be taken out of this world. After leaving this world, the strength of the Death Grail will be slightly reduced (minor).]