Chapter 4: Gods Battling
Within the painted world, on the first floor of the ancient castle, inside the reception hall.
The old, worn benches in the reception hall were arranged in a rough circle, enough to seat over a dozen people without feeling cramped, yet at this moment, only Su Xiao sat alone on one of the benches.
After reviewing a large number of prompts and past data on this type of competition, Su Xiao roughly understood the situation. According to convention, someone from the Void faction would bring an [Insight Eye]. That item was mysteriously expensive and was rented from the Void Tree. Once this world progress ended, the [Insight Eye] would be reclaimed.
Su Xiao wasn't concerned about being seen by the [Insight Eye]. It wasn't constant surveillance, and showing his face occasionally was fine. This situation was somewhat similar to the Strongest Warrior Tournament.
He had two [Scroll Fragments] in his storage space. The leaderboard hadn't opened yet, so there was no rush to act when the time came.
Moreover, even if the leaderboard opened, Su Xiao wouldn't be in a hurry to submit his [Scroll Fragments]. If participants killed each other, they could usurp the [Scroll Fragments] already submitted by their victims.
For example, if Participant A submitted 3 [Scroll Fragments] to the Young Miss, and then was killed by Participant B, Participant B's submitted [Scroll Fragments] count would increase by 3.
Finding as many [Scroll Fragments] as possible was one way to win, but in the later stages, killing and plundering each other was also a means of victory.
Strength, observation, action, and even lies and traps were all key to winning this time.
Su Xiao wasn't unfamiliar with this. In the last world, he had matched wits with a group of old schemers, including Kingsley, the Four Rulers of the Alliance, and Dean Victor.
After a moment of thought, Su Xiao took out a [Blazing Sun's Wrath: Apollo] from his storage space, intending to place it beneath the floorboards. The ancient castle was the entry point into the painting within a painting, the main painting, making it worth setting up here.
"You can't."
The Young Miss, who had been ignoring Su Xiao, spoke up. Hearing this, Su Xiao walked over to her and stuffed the [Blazing Sun's Wrath: Apollo] into her pocket.
A look of surprise appeared on the Young Miss's small face. She stared at Su Xiao intently for a moment before starting to draw a portrait of him.
Seeing this, Su Xiao retrieved the [Blazing Sun's Wrath: Apollo] from her loose pocket. This initial probe was enough. The Young Miss was a key figure, and physical negotiation was off the table for now.
The Young Miss stopped drawing and looked at Bubu Wang, deciding to paint him instead.
Su Xiao continued sitting on the bench, waiting. A few minutes later, spatial fluctuations appeared, and a figure gradually materialized.
This was a member of the Devil Clan, wearing a suit. His head was a skull, inlaid with rice-sized black gems, and deep, burning flames flickered in the eye sockets. This was a branch of the Devil Clan, extremely powerful, representing the clan's combat prowess.
Devil Clan: Wobo Wood, a notorious trickster in the Void. He had once used a contract to swindle the Feather Clan out of three large high-vibration steel mines.
Wobo Wood's skull seemed to smile as he adjusted his collar and spoke in a voice that inexplicably inspired goodwill: "Friend, are you from a Paradise faction?"
"..."
"Which Paradise?"
"Reincarnation Paradise."
"Cough~"
Devil Clan: Wobo Wood suddenly lost interest. The scroll of parchment that had been extending from his sleeve retracted. Both were experts in contracts, so probing was unnecessary.
"Too bad. If you were a friend from Apocalypse Paradise, we could have talked."
No sooner had Wobo Wood spoken than spatial fluctuations appeared again, and someone else arrived.
The newcomer wore a white clerical robe, with a cross covered in eyes hanging around his neck. On the backs of his hands, several blinking eyes could be seen, suggesting that his arms were likely implanted with many more.
Given this attire, appearance, and aura, Su Xiao didn't need to guess which faction this was: someone from Doom Star.
"Gentlemen, meeting is fate. I am Zuiyasi, from Doom Star."
Zuiyasi sat down, nodding with a smile to Su Xiao and Devil Clan: Wood. Suddenly, a writhing black tentacle sprouted from beneath his jaw.
"Excuse me."
Zuiyasi tore off the black tentacle from his jaw and tossed it into his mouth, chewing it slowly. The patch of flesh he had torn away healed at a visible rate.
"Boss, this guy is tough to deal with."
Baha muttered quietly, sensing a strong danger from Zuiyasi.
Zuiyasi maintained his seated posture, closed his eyes, and smiled as he prayed. Before long, black tentacles began sprouting all over his body, writhing incessantly.
Undoubtedly, Devil Clan: Wood was an old schemer. As for Zuiyasi, thriving in the ancient god stronghold of Doom Star meant he was definitely a faith-crazed fanatic and an old schemer.
Counting Su Xiao, only three factions had arrived in the main painting world, and the situation was already spiraling out of control. Four more factions were yet to come.
A faint glow of teleportation appeared again, and a female succubus gradually materialized. Upon seeing her face, Su Xiao realized it was the Demon Clan's Succubus: Lilim.
Su Xiao had never been sure of Lilim's strength. He had previously thought Succubus: Lilim's combat power was similar to the straightforward Mond, but now it seemed otherwise.
Lilim's gaze swept around, not lingering on Su Xiao, as if she didn't recognize him as she sat down. In truth, Lilim was in a good mood. Pretending not to know him was only natural, to avoid drawing others' suspicion. Clumping together before understanding the situation was a foolish move that would invite targeting.
The frequency of teleportation increased. A golden-haired Feather Clan member appeared, standing casually with a gentle expression. His presence perfectly embodied the term "sunshine nice guy."
In the current era, one of the Void's three greatest playboys, Feather Clan: Tianyu, had arrived. It could be said that Tianyu's playboy nature was baffling, a kind of playboy that defied understanding.
Generally, playboys target beautiful women. Tianyu was different; he specifically targeted non-humans. Humanoid races like the Star Clan, Feather Clan, and Demon Clan didn't interest him. He preferred bizarre forms, like lizard girls, slime girls, and so on.
It could be said that Tianyu's taste was quite unique. In his words, he grew up in the Feather Clan, where the average female beauty was undeniably the best in the Void. He had seen it all since childhood and was aesthetically fatigued. Only unconventional beauty could attract him.
That said, pursuing non-human girls wasn't just a test of patience; it was also dangerous. These non-human girls, due to their racial traits, were all formidable. To avoid being beaten to death, Tianyu's strength was... considerable.
Tianyu found a spot and sat down casually, looking around. Trickster: Wood, Law Destroyer: Bai Ye, Heart Charmer: Lilim, and Mad Believer: Zuiyasi. Seeing these people, Tianyu's head began to ache. He might be a playboy, but did he deserve to be punished by competing with these people on the same stage?
Spatial fluctuations appeared again, and two figures materialized. Seeing them, Su Xiao frowned. He had encountered acquaintances again. The two of them together made for an interesting combination.
"Is this the painted world? Molei, are you sure there won't be any problems?"
"No problem. If anyone dares to make a move in the main painting world, I'll give them a surprise. In the painted world, with our combined efforts, we're invincible!"
"Haha, not really. Anyway, let's find a place to hide first."
"You understand me."
Both sat down. They were Big Shot Molei and Yueshitu. In terms of abilities, they were a golden duo.
Molei's stealth ability was such that unless someone got very close, even a technique-type like Su Xiao couldn't detect her. Even more impressive, Molei could hide one or two targets along with herself. Her "Croak~" had saved her life many times.
As for Yueshitu, as long as she could lie low, she alone was an army.
Molei looked around. Suddenly, her gaze froze, and she went rigid. Her calves seemed to ache slightly, and judging by her expression, she was feeling somewhat withdrawn.
"What's wrong with you..."
Yueshitu stopped mid-sentence as she too spotted Su Xiao. Her pupils rapidly contracted, and she instinctively covered her neck with one hand, her gaze gradually turning distant.
The withdrawn sister duo had arrived.