Chapter 3: Tyrant of Fate: Kill the Old Hag (Pay 20,000 ounces of Space-Time Power to activate this bounty. Completing this bounty grants a 300x bounty multiplier).
...
Upon seeing the third bounty, Su Xiao suddenly felt a wave of malice wash over him. The total bounty amount reached 6,000,000 ounces of Space-Time Power. As they say, opportunities are for those who are prepared. Su Xiao decisively blocked this bounty. Whoever was ready could go for it. He didn't know who the Old Hag was, but he could fully grasp the weight of 6,000,000 ounces of Space-Time Power.
He decisively accepted Bounty 1 and Bounty 2. Including the World Bounty, a total of 15,050 ounces of Space-Time Power was paid out. Speaking of which, once the "Hunt List: Blood Pact" entered its formal stage, the returns were actually higher.
Now, these two Event Bounties corresponded to 70,000 ounces of Space-Time Power, with a net profit of 55,000 ounces.
In contrast, in the previous world's "Hunt List: Blood Pact," the total amount for Bounties 1 through 4 was 49,000 ounces, with a net profit of 39,200 ounces of Space-Time Power. That was only slightly more than this world's Bounty 1 alone.
The train left the range of "Infos City." As it passed nearby towns or villages, vast golden wheat fields broadened the mind. Compared to strange mountains and exotic scenery, this man-made sight, representing harvest and sustenance, was far more beautiful.
However, after the Lord's Train traveled for half an hour, the endless wheat fields began to show signs of withering. As they continued, large swaths of land became damp and rotten. This wasn't barren land, but fertile soil that had been over-enriched by a small amount of Abyss Energy, leading to excessive fertility and subsequent decay.
Excess caused blockage, blockage led to stagnation, stagnation triggered sedimentation, and sedimentation invited decay.
The world gradually grew dim. Looking into the distance, a pitch-black sky wall stood ahead. This wasn't the first time he had seen such a sky wall. Was it a barrier established by a major power in this world? Possibly. The problem was that many Abyss Sprawl zones had these black stone sky walls.
An iron fortress stood before the black stone sky wall, guarding its only entrance. Su Xiao manipulated the Lord's Train to stop. The Empire soldiers on the fortress walls immediately noticed them.
The train door opened, and Su Xiao stepped off. Since he didn't have suitable combat boots yet, he chose not to wear them before entering the Abyss Sprawl. He removed the long leather coat from his upper body, which hung down due to the restraint of his waist belt.
He preferred this when entering absolute darkness zones. It maximized the effectiveness of his "Perception Circle." Simply put, it allowed more skin to contact the darkness.
Su Xiao walked toward the only entrance of the pitch-black sky wall. A garrison unit drove a crystal-energy war chariot over. The chariot, like a steel beast, was equipped with a living sniper cannon on top. Imperial law dictated that, outside of wartime, this weapon could not be used to attack the world's native intelligent races.
Clearly, Abyss creatures were not natives of this world, so this was one of the main weapons of the Black Steel Fortress.
The war chariot stopped. The highest commander of the Black Steel Fortress, an honorary second lieutenant of the Imperial Legion, frowned at the approaching figure. A very dangerous aura hit him head-on.
"Sir, this is a restricted area. You'd better leave immediately."
The honorary second lieutenant was both firm enough to uphold the Empire's dignity and polite enough.
"That... is also a restricted area."
Su Xiao, one hand on his sword hilt, looked toward the entrance of the severe Abyss Sprawl. Hearing this, the honorary second lieutenant chuckled dryly:
"Of course not, but it's very dangerous there. I advise you to leave..."
"Oh, then I'm just passing through."
Su Xiao walked toward the only entrance of the pitch-black sky wall. Seeing this, the second lieutenant's adjutant looked worried and asked, "Sir, should we..."
"Leave it."
"But if he's also from the Abyss..."
Before he could finish, the adjutant laughed at himself. Given the man's demeanor, clearly ready to go on a killing spree, he was obviously not from the Abyss. In that case, whether he was friend or foe was already clear.
"Tell the five squads stationed at the entrance. If possible, after this unknown friend is seriously injured, try to rescue him and bring him out. But only if the brothers' safety is guaranteed. If not, then it's his bad luck. Entering the Abyss Sprawl was ultimately his own choice."
With that, the Empire's honorary second lieutenant returned to the war chariot. The adjutant, with a serious expression, acknowledged the order and began relaying it downward.
Su Xiao entered the Abyss Sprawl a few minutes later. He looked around and saw many Abyss creature carcasses and mottled bloodstains on the ground. It was clear that the garrisoned legion had been engaged in a seesaw battle with the Abyss creatures.
Of course, this was mainly because the Abyss Passage here wasn't large—only small to medium scale. Unlike in the Ancient Dragon Kingdom, where many Abyss Passages were medium to large.
After walking for over ten minutes, Su Xiao reached the center of the Abyss Sprawl. He took out a device made by Bubu Wang. It was about the thickness of a water bucket, with a handle on one end and a metal suction cup structure at the bottom.
He pulled the ring in the middle of the device and threw it out. The strange device landed, its suction cup end expanded, and after a brief charge, it slammed heavily into the ground like a seismic strike.
*Thump~*
A wave of dark impact spread outward. The dark characteristic substance Su Xiao had specially formulated for Abyss creatures was shattered into fine particles and dispersed with the shockwave.
The surrounding darkness, which had been rustling, suddenly fell silent. Within seconds, Su Xiao was surrounded by countless blood-red eyes of various sizes, all filled with malice.
Su Xiao used a silver dagger to cut his palm. Moonlight burst forth, then clung to his longsword.
"Roar!"
A Drowning Shadow lunged ferociously. Its surging body formed a python-like extendable maw, and a dense aura of "Hatred" rushed toward him.
This Drowning Shadow broke the standoff, causing hundreds of nearby Abyss creatures to charge at once. In an instant, Su Xiao was about to be engulfed by darkness.
'Extreme Blade: Black Moon.'
A pitch-black moon appeared in the sky. Su Xiao slashed down.
*Boom!!!*
It was like a vast black barrier pressing down from above with terrifying force, vanishing in the next instant.
The charging Abyss creatures were instantly slashed and crushed into blood beads. Due to the terrifying force of the 'Extreme Blade: Black Moon,' these black blood beads all bounced up. For a moment, Su Xiao was surrounded by countless black beads of varying sizes.
Su Xiao raised his longsword, and the surrounding dark blood converged instantly. Don't forget, he was a Blood Spear Grandmaster, with powerful control over this ownerless blood.
'Extreme Blade: Blood Sea!'
A pitch-black blood sea surged outward from Su Xiao. This black blood sea was filled with dense slashing force. A giant Soul-Devouring Centipede that couldn't escape in time was instantly engulfed by the dark blood sea, which had spread over a dozen kilometers.
The moment it was submerged, it was shredded by the dense slashes within. Not only that, its black blood mixed into the blood sea, further enhancing its power and range.
Yes, this was the power of the ultimate technique "Heavenly Edge Severing Shadow." Neither "Black Moon" nor "Blood Sea" was used recklessly. They were based on the current environment and Su Xiao's mastered ability system.
"Black Moon" was the slashing might of the Blade Grandmaster combined with the moon-based ability of "Full Moon Blade."
"Blood Sea" needed no explanation—Blade Grandmaster + Blood Spear Grandmaster.
As the pitch-black blood sea killed more and more Abyss creatures, its range momentarily filled the entire Abyss Sprawl.
Meanwhile, at the only entrance of the sprawl—the breach in the black stone sky wall—the honorary second lieutenant received an urgent report from his subordinates. Just as he arrived, he saw black blood gushing out from the entrance. What shocked the garrison soldiers even more was that this dark blood was mixed with broken carapaces and bones of various Abyss creatures.
A dog-like but massive Abyss creature burst out of the spreading black blood sea. It struggled almost desperately, but within seconds, it was covered in fatal slash marks and swallowed by the blood sea.