Chapter 22: Taboo
Rona searched the battlefield through her telescope, quickly locating Su Xiao.
Scorpion limbs flew through the air, splattering dark green blood.
A man wielding a long blade was slaughtering across the battlefield. Though surrounded by enemies, his expression remained relaxed as he dodged attacks while delivering fatal counterstrikes.
The long blade flickered with purple light, seemingly capable of cutting through anything. Rona instantly recognized the special glow emanating from the blade—it was a unique radiance only present on equipment enhanced to +7 or higher.
Suddenly, the man on the battlefield stopped, as if gathering something.
*Clang.*
A blade aura burst forth! Large numbers of scorpions fell dead. Rona swore she had never seen a contractor unleash attacks like sword energy or blade aura.
Rona was stunned. She quickly assessed the situation. If she were to fight that man...
Rona shook her head. That situation must never happen. Absolutely not. Otherwise, she was dead.
"Is this our enemy?"
Rona glanced at the few people around her, her expression seemingly saying, "Are you f*cking kidding me?"
"Yes, this is our enemy. He wasn't this ridiculously strong before."
The scheming woman bit her thumbnail, her mind racing.
Beside her, Candy spoke up: "Captain, do we really have to seek revenge? Can't we just let it go..."
Though Candy was a timid girl, she had a fairly resilient heart. After nearly being wiped out, she hadn't quit the Red Spider Lily Adventure Group.
"No."
"No."
The answers came in unison from the scheming woman and Bee.
Bee's master, Black and White, had been killed by Su Xiao. Her grudge against him was irreconcilable. As for the scheming woman, she had other considerations.
Among the Red Spider Lily Adventure Group, the scheming woman could be considered the one who understood Su Xiao best.
After some deliberation, the scheming woman spoke: "Rona, you can choose to quit the group now."
"Are you f*cking kidding me?"
Rona glanced at the scheming woman, then turned to Leng Yue.
Memories surged back. A long time ago, in a Lv.2 world, Rona lay battered and bloodied on the street, her face covered in blood.
"Candy, someone's injured here. Not a hostile contractor. Heal her."
"Okay."
"Leng Yue, we don't need to bother with her, right? We don't even know her."
"Survival isn't easy."
...
The memory ended there. With Rona's strength, she could join a large adventure group and be valued. If not for a special reason, why would she join the five-member Red Spider Lily Adventure Group?
She had searched for the names Leng Yue and Candy for a long time. Leng Yue still didn't know she was that dying contractor.
"Then consider me full of sh*t."
The scheming woman pushed up her glasses, a smile curling at the corners of her mouth. She had never trusted Rona before, but now it seemed Rona was temporarily reliable.
"Here's the thing. Let's recall our grudge with the knife man."
The scheming woman picked up a stick and marked three points on the ground.
"This is Queen, Leaf, and Black and White. They used exemption scrolls to enter a low-level world, their strength was reduced, and then they fought the knife man and died.
We don't need to investigate the details anymore. That's meaningless."
The scheming woman smoothed out the three points on the ground. Bee curled her lip.
"In the Giant World, we sensed the blood mark on the knife man and started fighting. We were losing, and an ordinary member suddenly activated something and teleported us away.
Leng Yue, can you still not reveal that ordinary member's identity?"
The scheming woman looked at Leng Yue.
Leng Yue shook her head.
"No. Reincarnation Paradise warned me before. The consequences of revealing it would be severe."
The scheming woman drew lines on the ground with the stick.
"Is that so? Then let me ask you all a question. Why did the knife man approach our group back then? During the offense-defense mission, he didn't need to get close to us, and the group blood mark isn't classified information. Did he want to fight us proactively?"
The scheming woman looked at the others. Her IQ was 156. Though not outstanding in combat, her deductive abilities were strong.
Hearing her words, the women were puzzled.
"Why did the knife man approach us in the Giant World? Not sure."
Blood Rose's IQ was clearly below 120, and she looked completely confused.
"The knife man's target might have been that ordinary member. Otherwise, he wouldn't have approached us. Given Queen's personality, she would definitely have mentioned the Red Spider Lily name.
So, knowing our identity and knowing a blood mark might appear, the knife man still chose to approach us. That's baffling. Combined with that ordinary member's abnormality... Yes, that's it."
The scheming woman gnawed hard on her thumbnail.
"I'm just guessing. Could the knife man be different from us? Every time he enters a derivative world, he has special tasks—like killing certain special contractors. Everyone saw it back then. That ordinary member's ability was very abnormal, and Reincarnation Paradise blocked what she said. That's never happened before.
Special tasks every time, rapidly growing strength, powerful abilities against contractors..."
The scheming woman began rambling. She didn't notice five pairs of eyes staring at her in terror.
Leng Yue's scalp tingled. As the scheming woman spoke, her voice suddenly vanished. Reincarnation Paradise had blocked her words!
"Stop talking, Xiao Hei."
Leng Yue shouted sharply. The scheming woman froze.
"What's wrong?"
"Just now... Reincarnation Paradise blocked what you said."
Only then did the scheming woman notice the terrified looks. Her heartbeat accelerated. The fear and thrill made her unconsciously clench her legs.
"It seems I guessed right. Huh..."
The scheming woman's expression changed.
"What is it?" the others quickly asked.
The scheming woman lowered her eyelids. She had thought of something. Su Xiao's identity might be extremely special—so special that if exposed, he would be hunted by other contractors.
"Maybe we don't need to actively deal with him."
The scheming woman smiled coldly. She had thought of a method.
"Xiao Hei, what's that on your hand?"
Candy reached out her slender finger and rubbed the back of the scheming woman's hand.
"What are you doing?"
"What's that blue dot on your hand?"
The scheming woman looked at the back of her hand. She saw a small blue dot appearing there. The dot expanded at an invisible speed, as if forming a mark.
The scheming woman's expression shifted rapidly.
"Xiao Hei, what was the method you mentioned earlier?"
Hearing Leng Yue's question, the scheming woman shook her head.
"Nothing. I might have been wrong in my deduction."
The scheming woman's expression returned to normal, as if weighing pros and cons.
"Give up on revenge. My earlier deduction was wrong. There's a clue I just can't figure out, so those deductions might not hold."
Some taboos must not be touched. Even Su Xiao would try his utmost to avoid violating those taboos. The scheming woman had stumbled into violating a taboo!
The reason the scheming woman had insisted on revenge earlier was because she knew that after the battle with Su Xiao, a death feud had been established between them. Even if they unilaterally dropped the matter, it wouldn't work. No one would ignore an adventure group that could come for revenge at any time.
...
On the battlefield, Su Xiao wiped the Dragon-Slaying Flash clean. The battle between the red-skinned natives and the insect race had temporarily ended, with both sides pulling back some distance.
Dozens of red-skinned natives stood not far away, seemingly waiting for someone.
An elderly native stepped forward. He wore a feather ornament on his head, and the other natives bowed and retreated.
"Foreign strong one, the Yasenman tribe welcomes you to the Red Earth Region."
The elderly native smiled warmly, showing no hostility. He held food and fresh water, seemingly preparing to offer them to Su Xiao.
[Tip: The hunter's heroic performance on the battlefield has earned favor from the 'Yasenman Tribe.' Favor Level: Friendly (21/500).]
Su Xiao's eyes gleamed. These red-skinned natives were different from the tribes he had encountered before. Moreover, the elderly native spoke a language he could understand.
The theme of the survival trial was survival. What would happen if one explored this world on the basis of survival? The answer was enormous benefits.