Chapter 4: Elemental Weapon
Effect: After mastering this ability, you can temporarily grant an elemental attribute to a weapon (initially only wind attribute can be granted).
Stock Quantity: 1.
Exchange Price: 100 Kill Merit Points.
……
[Tip: The above are all items available for exchange in this phase. When this Kill Competition enters the second phase, the items available for exchange in the World Store will be further upgraded.]
[Tip: The Greed Chapter (World-Class) is the highest-tier valuable item refreshed in this World Store. Subsequent refreshes of the World Store will not feature items of equal value.]
……
This Kill Competition had only released one supply crate so far, meaning it was still in the first phase. It was perfectly normal for the World Store to have only four items.
This World Store could be considered unconventional. Following the standard procedure, low-value items would be refreshed first, and as subsequent rounds of refreshes occurred, the value of the items would increase.
The World Store was the opposite; its first refresh brought out the highest-tier exchange item.
Su Xiao had previously obtained [The Greed Chapter] in Dead Silence City, but it now seemed that was just a part of [The Greed Chapter (Complete)].
Su Xiao could confirm that even if he spliced his current piece onto it, [The Greed Chapter (World-Class)] would still not be complete. There was actually no need to deliberately seek out the other parts in pursuit of completeness. This item was usable with just one piece; the larger it was, the higher the potential gains. As for collecting all the pieces, Su Xiao estimated he didn't have that kind of luck.
Seeing [The Greed Chapter (World-Class)], Su Xiao vaguely felt a pain in his neck. Inside the Greed Chapter he had obtained, he had been beheaded many times by the Old Saint Monk, while the Butcher of Life had decapitated him countless times.
The Third Soul Spirit Manifestation: Tenth Generation Tianba: Qin's Daughter, Su Xiao hadn't challenged yet, partly due to lack of time, and partly because Qin's Daughter's tactics were quite unsolvable.
Inside the Greed Chapter, the physical attributes of Su Xiao's spiritual body were definitely not higher than those of the Soul Spirit Manifestation he was challenging. This was a given, so he could only rely on his technique mastery to win.
The problem was that after the Soul Spirit Manifestation was generated, it wasn't a static 'program'; they also remembered Su Xiao's combat style.
Take Qin's Daughter, for example. This woman was a dual grandmaster in blade techniques and close-quarters combat. After sensing that her blade techniques were inferior to Su Xiao's, every time Su Xiao went there, Qin's Daughter would suddenly appear behind him and use close-quarters combat grappling techniques to firmly lock him down.
As it turned out, being hugged by a woman who had mastered the close-quarters combat grandmaster ability felt terrible, not to mention that her strength was higher than his.
Su Xiao hadn't challenged the Greed Chapter for a long time, partly because the feeling of being hugged to death was awful, and partly because the rewards after defeating the Soul Spirit Manifestation were unsatisfactory. The time spent and the deaths endured far outweighed the gains.
Now, it seemed this was normal. The [Greed Chapter] he held was just a small part of the complete entity, so the rewards after victory were naturally low.
Su Xiao was very interested in [The Greed Chapter (World-Class)], but unfortunately, its exchange price was as high as 1000 Kill Merit Points.
Su Xiao tried to consult the Void Tree to find out how many Golden Skill Points could be obtained in total by clearing [The Greed Chapter (World-Class)].
Due to his low reputation with the Void Tree, Su Xiao didn't get a specific number. He only learned that after defeating 10 Soul Spirit Manifestations, the total Golden Skill Points obtained would be no less than 45 points.
This was still because [The Greed Chapter (World-Class)] was incomplete. If combined with his current piece, Su Xiao estimated the Golden Skill Points gained would be around 50 points.
Even if he didn't already have a piece of the Greed Chapter, a gain of 45 Golden Skill Points was worth fighting for. This could upgrade several abilities to X rank.
The problem was the required Kill Merit Points were too high. Although he had caught Aido'er now, everyone had their temper, especially since Aido'er was an Eighth Rank Contractor. Forcing her to sign a contract would likely lead to her choosing death over submission.
Aido'er's current implicit meaning was that as long as Su Xiao could control her, she was willing to be a tool. But once Su Xiao showed any negligence, Aido'er would immediately slip away.
Aido'er wasn't stupid. This meant that when the situation became dangerous later, she would take the opportunity to escape. This was also why she was willing to pay 10,000 Soul Coins per day; it meant she wanted Su Xiao to give her some breathing room and hope for survival. When she became desperate, she would choose to end herself.
Su Xiao had been clear from the start that using Aido'er to farm Kill Merit Points wouldn't last long. But man proposes.
"You, come here."
Su Xiao looked at Aido'er. Aido'er, who was still a bit shaken from the previous Kill Merit Point farming, reluctantly walked over. The feeling was like a middle school student who hadn't done their homework being called to the podium by the teacher to share their thoughts; her steps were even slower than Kingsley's aunt.
Aido'er activated the World Store to check, but her expression was calm, and she even scratched her face with her index finger. Did she look down on the items inside? No, she was absolutely craving them. But what was the use? She didn't have a single Kill Merit Point; she could only watch.
Seeing this, Su Xiao asked, "Angel's Will, interested?"
"Of course, but that thing has nothing to do with me. A salted fish like me, mining is already a good income. What World Store, it's more like a divine store."
Aido'er couldn't help but complain. It was understandable; this competition was indeed a chaotic battle of gods. For example, in other Eighth Rank worlds, top-tier fighters like the Unicorn Dragon Alec, the God of Concealment, the Tyrant, and the Slime Butt-Picking Brother were only second-rate in this competition.
Su Xiao placed one hand on the World Store. After verification of his imprint, runes, etc., he began to exchange items.
[Tip: You have consumed 100 Kill Merit Points.]
[Tip: You have consumed 100 Kill Merit Points.]
[Tip: You have obtained Angel's Will (Class Bloodline Enhancement and Mutation Item).]
……
Su Xiao's Kill Merit Points were now only 47. [Angel's Will] appeared in his hand. It was an apple-sized, semi-transparent shell containing a miniature light angel made of energy, looking magnificent.
If Aido'er obtained this item, her current professional system, which she had developed to survive, would undergo a 'respec'-like transformation. If she survived this time and returned to Apocalypse Paradise, and used [Angel's Will], she would not only become an Eighth Rank top-tier healer but also possess matching combat power. The more she could heal, the more she could fight. Moreover, this wasn't developing two systems; it was specializing in one. Whether in terms of resource investment or ability growth, it was exceptionally pleasing.
"Do you want it?"
As Su Xiao spoke, he extended the hand holding [Angel's Will] slightly towards Aido'er in front of him.
Aido'er stared straight at [Angel's Will] and immediately nodded in reply:
"I want it!"
"You wish."
Baha spoke.
"??"
Struck by this critical blow, Aido'er felt utterly hopeless. Seeing her expression, Baha laughed heartlessly and said:
"It can be given to you, but you have to cooperate with our subsequent plan."
"Really?"
Aido'er's expression turned serious.
"…"
Su Xiao didn't speak. He wouldn't make any guarantees.
"Then… how do I get a guarantee? We are unequal; the power gap is too big. So I never thought I could cooperate with you on equal terms. It's just not realistic."
Aido'er showed the cleverness behind her flighty demeanor.
"Sign a contract."
Su Xiao spoke. Hearing this, Aido'er gradually put on a pained expression. Sign a contract with a Hunter from Reincarnation Paradise? Was she crazy?
"After it's done, [Angel's Will] is your payment. Think it over yourself. If you don't cooperate, after I leave this room, you can use the spatial item to escape."
Leaving these words, Su Xiao led Bubu Wang and Baha out of the Unseen Room and closed the large iron door, letting Aido'er think it over. His previous plan was that once he started exploring south, he would have to kill Aido'er. Taking a captive who was always thinking of escaping was too risky.
In Su Xiao's view, the most brilliant way to capture someone alive wasn't to intimidate or force them into submission, but to make the captive follow willingly, and even be afraid of getting left behind.
Just as he stepped out of the iron door into the alley, Su Xiao saw Caesar's anxious expression. Clearly, Caesar couldn't operate and couldn't enter the Unseen Room.
It could only be said that the Void Tree was still mighty. Su Xiao had never seen Caesar suffer such a setback. The World Store was right in front of him, but he couldn't touch it. This was more painful for Caesar than being stabbed a few times.
Su Xiao sat on the steps opposite. Half a minute later, Aido'er walked out of the Unseen Room. She said, "Big shot, you can't trick me. I've decided to gamble once. What if I turn things around this time?"
"…"
Su Xiao didn't speak. He just tossed a pill to Aido'er.
Aido'er caught the pill with a puzzled look. She sniffed the pill between her fingers and asked, "Big shot, what is this?"
"Antidote. You have 1 minute and 50 seconds before the poison takes effect. In 5 minutes, you'll die from cell lysis, like a rotten tomato."
Hearing this, Aido'er immediately recalled Su Xiao's earlier words: 'If you don't cooperate, after I leave this room, you can use the spatial item to escape.'
Aido'er muttered inwardly, 'This is the old yinbi of Reincarnation Paradise.' She tossed the pill into her mouth and chewed. The taste was unexpectedly good; after chewing, it was actually chocolate flavored.
"Big shot, am I really going to be okay?"
"…"
"Big shot, I'm still worried. Look at me, beautiful as a flower and fair as the moon. If I dissolve into a blob, that would be the end!"
Su Xiao narrowed his eyes. He found that Aido'er was a bit of a chatterbox. Baha beside him said, "I was just tricking you. You're not poisoned, and you won't undergo cell lysis."
"Phew~, you scared me to death."
"But the pill you just ate is indeed a slow-acting lethal poison. It will take effect in about 3 days."
Hearing Baha's words, Aido'er froze, accompanied by a sense of existential crisis.
Aido'er would never know that she had never been poisoned from start to finish, including now. What she had just eaten was just one of Bubu Wang's chocolate beans.
The hardest slow-acting lethal poison to solve in this world was a poison that didn't exist. No matter what method was used, it couldn't be detected, leaving people in constant anxiety, afraid of the poison taking effect. This was the poison of the heart.
As for why he didn't give Aido'er a slow-acting lethal poison, slow-acting lethal poisons were very expensive, hundreds of times more expensive than fast-acting poisons, especially the type that took several days to take effect.
Aido'er, now 'afflicted with a strange poison,' wasn't so flighty anymore. Having been subjected to both kindness and intimidation, she strengthened her resolve to gamble once.
Leaving the alley, Su Xiao and his group arrived at an inn. For 1 Soul Coin, they rented the entire second and third floors. The Teng tribe owner was very enthusiastic and immediately closed the shop, going to the kitchen with his wife to prepare food, so as not to neglect the big client.
Three hours later, in a guest room on the third floor, Aido'er was soaking in a large wooden tub, a folded towel on her forehead. She took a sip of the juice beside her and asked, "How much longer? I'm getting dizzy from soaking."
"Almost there, hang in there."
Baha, who was in charge of adding firewood, yawned. This was repeating the previous operation to give Aido'er a special Overlord identity.
……
At 9 AM the next day, Su Xiao sat up from the bed. A good night's sleep made him feel refreshed again. The reason for the delay was that Caesar needed to prepare more materials from this world to save time for the subsequent Kill Merit Point farming.
Regarding the Kill Merit Point gains, Su Xiao wouldn't forget to give Caesar a share. Since many of the gains during the period couldn't be divided, he negotiated with Caesar to compensate with other resources.
Having cooperated for so long, Caesar agreed without much hesitation. In the end, Su Xiao offered 100 ounces of Space-Time Power as Caesar's reward. Of course, this would only be paid if everything went smoothly and after returning to Reincarnation Paradise.
Everything was ready. Su Xiao headed towards the predetermined rendezvous point. After leaving Ring Tree City, he traveled towards the south side of the Ancient Capital.
Su Xiao was about to set off for the Great Ruins. Before that, he needed to rendezvous with two good teammates.
Among the four good teammates, Caesar was responsible for maximizing gains, Su Xiao was the combat power, Wood was in charge of dealing with those strange enemies, and Zuiyasi walked at the very front of the team. His immortality could prevent the team's combat power from declining during exploration.
It could be said that the four good teammates were quite formidable when cooperating. But there were also drawbacks. In times of crisis, it was easy to first kick a 'good teammate' into a pit and then turn around and retreat.
They were all 'good teammates' who would stab each other in the back, but who exactly was doing the stabbing? It certainly wasn't the enemy. Better not to dig too deep.
During the journey, Aido'er started to get close to Bubu Wang. Her little scheme was to ride Bubu Wang later. When encountering danger, this big dog, as the servant of the decapitating night, would definitely run fast.
After paying many snacks unique to Apocalypse Paradise and trading 200 Soul Coins to Bubu Wang, Aido'er climbed onto Bubu's back with a smile on her face.
Five minutes later, Aido'er, with a band-aid on her nose bridge and a red mark in the center of her forehead, sniffled back bloody snot and trudged on foot behind Su Xiao.
Bubu Wang used to be Su Xiao's land mount. Why did he stop riding him? Riding him too much gave him a headache, especially a forehead ache.
When Su Xiao arrived at the gap in the southern fog wall, he saw Zuiyasi and Wood waiting from afar.
Aido'er also saw these two. Although they were still some distance away, she felt a chill in her heart. Just then, she felt a weight on her head; it was Baha landing on it.
Baha looked in the direction of Wood and Zuiyasi and said to Aido'er:
"Let me tell you some precautions so you don't die suddenly. See that Devil tribe member over there? That's Wood. The other one is Zuiyasi. When dealing with these two, there are three things you need to pay attention to.