Chapter 31: Achievement
Upon seeing the attributes of this equipment, for some reason, Su Xiao felt that this thing was unspeakably sinister. This gave him a new understanding of the equipment system in the late game.
First was the traditional system, which currently ended abruptly at the [Immortal] rank. If the traditional equipment system of the Paradise faction truly ended there, there would be far too many things left unexplained.
This was no longer a problem. The ??? rank was above [Immortal]. As for why [Immortal] was the highest rank in the traditional equipment system, that depended on the situation with the ??? rank.
Beyond the traditional system were three major systems: Abyss rank, World rank, and Overlord rank.
Abyss rank equipment was rarely seen in the early to mid-game and felt lukewarm in the late game. But in the very late game, any Abyss-type equipment was either overwhelmingly powerful or extremely sinister.
Take [Mad Laughing Ghost Mask] for example. The moment he saw this equipment, Su Xiao felt as if he were vaguely facing the Wild Growth of Madness, the Lord of the Old Days, or the Candle Woman. But it was just a feeling.
This made him suspect that this thing was likely the remains of a top-tier Star Realm aberrant being from ancient times. It might even be a legacy left by one of the three: the Wild Growth of Madness, the Lord of the Old Days, or the Candle Woman.
Afterward, the head portion of this Star Realm aberrant being fell into the Abyss during that cataclysmic battle. After several eras of unchecked Abyss power amplification, it condensed into this pale gray face skin.
Moreover, its current strength was not the limit of [Mad Laughing Ghost Mask]. Deeply awakening it would inevitably increase its power.
Additionally, the characteristic of Abyss equipment was that the stronger it was, the greater the price to pay. For example, Kaiser's [Hand of Deceit] greatly increased greed upon acquisition, but Kaiser was immune to it. Don't think this debuff was trivial—it took effect upon acquisition, not upon equipping.
As long as you obtained this thing, the greed in your heart would continuously increase. Without exaggeration, in the very late game, this would raise the mortality rate by over 40%. For instance, Su Xiao, when facing the 6 million ounces of Space-Time Power bounty [Rune Secret], if greed surged and he thought he had the [Book of Original Sin] to resist the causal contamination...
The Second Era: Alchemical Civilization was destroyed exactly like this.
The side effects of [Mad Laughing Ghost Mask] were equally terrifying. No matter how high the Charm attribute, once subjected to the -200% Charm judgment, the Charm judgment would be negative. As for Su Xiao, cough~
Compared to Abyss rank equipment, World rank equipment was balanced and neutral. Its maximum boost was about 20% weaker than Abyss rank, but it had no debuffs.
As for Overlord equipment, it was another extreme. Overlord equipment above a certain ranking required its recognition. It was possible that the top five Overlord equipment pieces were a single Overlord equipment occupying all five Overlord equipment slots. Don't be surprised—such Overlord equipment was capable of that.
Putting away [Mad Laughing Ghost Mask], Su Xiao continued forward. At the deepest part of Coin Morber's laboratory was a massive golden metal door covered in various alchemical runes. There was only one way to open this door: Alchemy.
The problem was that this world had an absolute seal on Alchemy, yet opening this door required Alchemy. Su Xiao placed one hand on it, and his mana spread out, beginning to form [Alchemical Runes] within the rune grooves on the door. Just as the rune was about to take shape—
Boom!
The alchemical rune shattered, suppressed by the [Causal Lock Ring]. Seeing this, he placed his hand on the hilt of his blade.
'Extreme Blade: World.'
Clang!!
A sharp, metallic resonance rang out. Centered on Su Xiao, a spherical [Extreme Blade Domain] appeared for only an instant. It seemed as if the surrounding air had darkened slightly, with rice-grain-sized flickering points of slashes every dozen or so centimeters.
Before the surrounding sharp slashes faded—
'Extreme Blade: World.'
Crack, crack!
The surrounding world began to shatter. Su Xiao used [Extreme Blade: World] twice without changing expression and immediately used it a third time.
With a crack, the world in the surrounding area began to seep black viscous liquid. This clearly meant the world had been cut open, and Abyss power was seeping in.
'Extreme Blade: World!'
The fourth [Extreme Blade: World] left the surrounding world precarious. It could only be said that this was indeed the area where the [Causal Lock Ring] was located.
With Su Xiao's current [Extreme Blade: World] power, in a normal area of this world, a single use would leave black marks in the air. Two uses in the same location would inevitably shatter the world region, causing Abyss energy to flood in. If left untreated, it would naturally form an Abyss passage.
'Extreme Blade: World!'
With a rumble, the world around Su Xiao shattered into darkness. Abyss energy enveloped him and the golden door. He placed his hand on the golden door.
Immersed in the surging Abyss energy, even a powerhouse of the same strength tier as Su Xiao would be completely eroded by Abyss power within a dozen seconds. But his 213 points of Abyss resistance—consider that.
The first alchemical array on the golden door took shape. The [Causal Lock Ring] could indeed suppress Alchemy in this world, but the problem was that the area Su Xiao was in was no longer this world—it was the Abyss. He had used brute force to cut through, directly connecting to the Abyss passage.
The golden door had a total of twelve interlocking alchemical rune imprints. After forming the second rune, Su Xiao noticed that the surrounding Abyss-covered area began to shrink. The [Causal Lock Ring] behind the door was actually repairing this world fracture. Once repaired, this would again be part of this world, and the rune he had formed on the door would be immediately suppressed and shattered.
The dark area gradually shrank, and the alchemical runes on the door grew more numerous. Just as the eleventh alchemical rune was formed, the world fracture was forcibly healed.
Boom!
All the alchemical runes on the golden door shattered. Su Xiao had failed. He showed no disappointment or other emotions. Instead, he sat cross-legged on the platform before the door and began to meditate.
The alchemical maid, Vienia, waited quietly. She looked at the golden door with a hint of curiosity, but only a hint.
Twelve hours later, Su Xiao opened his eyes, stood up, and had the alchemical maid Vienia retreat far away. He stood before the golden door.
'Extreme Blade: World.'
The process was the same as before. After the fourth [Extreme Blade: World], the surrounding world region was on the verge of collapse. He used [Extreme Blade: World] a fifth time.
With a rumble, this world region shattered again, like an inverted black bowl.
'Extreme Blade: World!'
Clang!
The dark area where Su Xiao stood suddenly expanded by nearly a third. As a price, he pressed one hand on the golden door, drenched in sweat. This was caused by severe stamina depletion. Using [Extreme Blade: World] a sixth time was indeed too dangerous unless absolutely necessary.
Even so, this was Su Xiao's consistent style: if luck wasn't enough, make up for it with strength.
After a brief rest, he again placed his hand on the golden door. This time, when the dark area was reduced to one-fifth, twelve alchemical runes had already formed on the golden door.
A mechanical sound came from inside the door. Its central circular structure slowly rotated, finally converging into a vortex shape. The golden door rumbled open inward.
The moment the door opened, Su Xiao saw multicolored power flowing within the starry hall ahead. Yes, it was as if there were a starry sky inside this hall. Looking down, he could see distant stars flickering on and off.
Stepping onto the transparent floor, Su Xiao looked up. Ring-like chains interlocked above, rotating along a fixed trajectory. At the center of these chains was a rune emitting a faint white light—the [Causal Rune].
The moment he saw this rune, a thought surged in Su Xiao's mind: as long as he had it, he could soon stand before the Supreme Being and fight to the death. But as this thought appeared, his right hand began to sting.
Su Xiao raised his right hand. The [Book of Original Sin] in his hand extended a dozen root-like structures that pierced into his right forearm, bringing unbearable pain. This didn't come from any of the six Big Daddy-level Original Sin Objects—it came from the [Book of Original Sin] itself.
Don't forget, this [Book of Original Sin] was personally created by Su Xiao. Understand this principle: Su Xiao didn't rely entirely on the [Book of Original Sin] to seal the six Big Daddy-level Original Sin Objects. He created the [Book of Original Sin] to seal them.
This [Book of Original Sin], which had a certain living characteristic, despised any existence other than Su Xiao.
The root-like extensions on the [Book of Original Sin] retracted. Su Xiao's right hand and forearm were unharmed. This wasn't physical damage—it was stinging his soul, helping him break free from the contamination of the [Causal Rune].
The [Book of Original Sin] in his hand opened, flipping to the ninth page. Dark golden, iron-sand-like tendrils extended from the page, wrapping around the [Causal Rune] a dozen meters away. Clearly, temporarily collecting the [Causal Rune] satisfied the collector's hoarding habit.
As the [Causal Rune] was gradually dragged out of the chain range, Su Xiao felt the ground beneath his feet tremble. No, the entire world was trembling.
At this moment, whether within the Empire, the Goru Kingdom, the Seven Seas Alliance, or the island nations, all living beings in this world felt a deep-seated fear from within their hearts. It was as if the entire world would shatter in the next second, plunging them into bottomless darkness.
The Sea of Life around the Secret Island nearly went berserk, with towering waves rising.
Royal Capital: Star Radiance City: Inseton.
Sitting on the throne, listening to the low murmur of Vice Prime Minister Enmu, the new king, Belaise Saint Adez, suddenly felt the royal hall shake. Just as he was about to ask what was happening, his pupils contracted to the extreme, then slightly dilated, and his gaze became steady and dignified.
"Enmu, it's time. Go find Litavig and tell him that today is the opportunity we've been waiting for."
The new king Belaise Saint Adez's words made Vice Prime Minister Enmu's body stiffen, and his heart rate uncontrollably quickened. Yes, this tone, this demeanor—it was the same as the Empire's emperor he had followed for decades!
"Yes!"
Vice Prime Minister Enmu replied, ignoring the bewildered ministers, and stood up to leave.
The new king Belaise Saint Adez was confused for a moment before returning to normal. Watching Vice Prime Minister Enmu walk away quickly, he spoke:
"Enmu, where are you going?"
Hearing the new king's words, Vice Prime Minister Enmu only stopped, didn't turn around, and said in a deep voice:
"To fulfill my most important duty."
With that, Vice Prime Minister Enmu walked out of the royal hall. Sunlight shone down. He looked up at the sun in the sky. He wanted to return home now, to see his family one last time. Unfortunately, he couldn't.
...
On the second floor of the royal hall, in the old king's bedroom.
The wall clock began to dissolve, forming a face. It looked at the empty bed, its gaze complex for a moment. When the Empire's emperor had awakened it back then, it thought the other was an arrogant fool. But it never expected that the other had achieved this much.
The door was pushed open. Vice Prime Minister Enmu and Grand Commander Litavig entered the bedroom. The Grand Commander looked at the metal face on the wall and said:
"Mr. Harota, you need to leave here. The Ancestral God will soon return."
Grand Commander Litavig spoke, but strangely, he seemed to defer to Vice Prime Minister Enmu beside him.
"You really succeeded, Roald."
The metal face on the wall looked at Vice Prime Minister Enmu, but spoke the old king's name.
The metal face on the wall was actually none other than the true Primordial Origin Harota. It should have perished under its teacher's consciousness assault, but the gods were known for their strong vitality.
Primordial Origin Harota survived, but with only a small amount of divine blood left. Like a masterless ghost, it could only survive by parasitizing other beings.
It often fell into slumber because of this, until one of the old king's former right-hand men, the former head of the [Imperial Special Affairs Department], discovered the god's predicament.
"Roald, what do we do next?"
The metal-faced Harota spoke.
The old king sat down on his former sickbed. Although he had revived, it was only temporary. He had indeed died; otherwise, how could he have deceived those few powerful enemies.
"Wait."
The old king felt the earth tremble. Just then, a well-dressed goblin entered the room. He wore a conspicuous gold watch, and his beard was meticulously trimmed.
This was the goblin merchant guild chairman who had been repeatedly victimized by Kaiser, most severely when Kaiser swindled him down to his underwear. As a result, he was dismissed by the goblin merchant guild's shareholders' meeting—former goblin merchant guild chairman, Mr. Berji Gold Crown!
In his prime, the old king had once tried to change the Empire's passive situation. The result was that he couldn't shake the three giants at all and paid with the lives of nearly all his children.
His last remaining child, as a king, was less than a tenth of his chosen successor. Unfortunately, his most satisfactory eldest daughter had died. She would have been the Empress to take the Empire further.
Primordial Origin Harota was ambushed by its teacher and nearly completely annihilated.
Former goblin merchant guild chairman Berji Gold Crown was even worse off. He had suffered similarly. But long ago, he had gone alone to the Secret Island. This was puzzling, leading some to mistakenly think he wanted to use some treasure on the Secret Island to regain a position in the goblin merchant guild.
Now, it seemed otherwise. This was clearly part of a three-person collaboration.
Yes, these three were the former losers. Now, they were preparing to reclaim everything taken from them, and even more.
Deep within the Secret Island's First Sanctuary, in the starry-roofed hall.
The world region here was twisted to distortion. The [Causal Rune] had long devoured this world's [World Core]. As a result, this world's World Consciousness had gradually gone mad under the contamination of the [Causal Rune].
Now, Su Xiao attempted to seal and trap the [Causal Rune], causing this world's extreme malice toward him. After Coin Morber's death, all alchemical creatures on the island became masterless and were now frantically attacking the outer defenses of the [First Sanctuary].
Not only that, all aquatic life in the Sea of Life, except for a few particularly powerful ones that could resist the mad World Consciousness's control, from small aquatic worms to sky-covering deep-sea behemoths, all swarmed toward the Secret Island. The scene was terrifying.
But all this was too late. In the starry hall, under the collector's pull, the [Causal Rune] slowly but resolutely approached the [Book of Original Sin]. Once within a certain distance, it was immediately sealed within the [Book of Original Sin].
As the [Book of Original Sin] closed, the causal lock rings in the hall suddenly stopped rotating. The surrounding starry sky gradually shattered, and the floor was no longer transparent.
Crack, crack, crack~
The coreless causal lock rings began to crack like broken glass, shattering piece by piece.
With a boom, the causal lock rings completely shattered. Almost simultaneously, Su Xiao felt a sense of relief. The gloom that had weighed on his heart since entering this world was finally cleared.
The moment the causal lock rings shattered, the mad World Consciousness that had hung overhead abruptly ceased, dying without any warning.
Almost simultaneously, all the alchemical creatures it had forcibly controlled, as well as nearly all aquatic life in the Sea of Life, died instantly. The scene was spectacular and terrifying.
The [Eye of Darkness] in the sea gradually faded. The shattering of the causal lock rings meant that its contract with the alchemists was over.
An invisible but truly existing causal force quietly retracted into this world. This was the causal force that had spread across the entire Star Realm through various causal links.
If anyone's Alchemy reached a certain level and they didn't have unbreakable protection like Paradise certification, this spreading slender causal force would transform into a causal curse, causing those who dared to master Alchemy to die from this extremely tragic causal curse.
Now, this causal curse on Alchemy was rapidly retracting, condensing, and finally withering in the starry hall. In contrast, the [Causal Rune]'s boost to the concept of Alchemy also disappeared.
[Announcement (Void Tree): The [Causal Rune]'s continuous boost to Alchemy has expired.]
This announcement was made to all high-rank Contractors/Hunters/Battle Angels, but 90% of them were confused and immediately closed it.
[Prompt: The [Causal Rune]'s continuous boost to Alchemy has expired. Your basic Alchemy level will permanently decrease to a certain extent.]
[Current Alchemy Level: Lv.94.]
[Your Alchemy has decreased to Lv.80.]
[Your Alchemy Mechanics level is too low to decrease as a result.]
[Your Alchemy Biology level is too low to decrease as a result.]
[Your Alchemy Pharmacy level is Lv.99, which exceeds the derivation of basic Alchemy and will not decrease.]
[Because your Alchemy Pharmacy is Lv.99, it has fed back to the basic Alchemy that dropped to Lv.80.]
[Your final basic Alchemy level is: Lv.90.]
...
Su Xiao felt a stabbing pain in his brain. Some of the basic Alchemy runes he had mastered, which were previously feasible, could no longer be realized after losing the [Causal Rune]'s boost to the concept of Alchemy.
The good news was that some Pharmacy runes could be used to replace these invalidated runes. Although the processes differed, the results were the same, like 1+4=5 and 2+3=5.
Looking around, the hall had returned to normal, as if the [Causal Lock Rings] had never existed. He turned to look at Kaiser.
"My dear friend, it's already succeeded."
A sly smile appeared on Kaiser's face. Kaiser had been here since Su Xiao entered, but he was responsible for another matter.
"..."
Su Xiao took out a large bag of [Space-Time Stone Fragments], totaling 3,000 pieces, worth 30,000 ounces of Space-Time Power. This was the payment to Kaiser. Handing it to Kaiser, he said:
"Don't let it leave this world."
"Don't worry, my friend. It just awakened, and with the causal lock rings shattered, it won't leave this world. It's even planning to take this world for itself."
"Good."
Su Xiao walked out of the First Sanctuary. The causal curse on him gradually dissipated. If he had directly touched the lock rings and the [Causal Rune], he would have surely died here.
Golden particles drifted from him—this was the protection of fate power. No need to guess, it was from the old lady's help.
Leaving the First Sanctuary, Su Xiao summoned Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha, preparing to leave this island as quickly as possible.
"Boss, this way!"
Baha flew over, his expression serious. Seeing this, Su Xiao led Bubu Wang and Amu, sprinting at full speed in the direction Baha was flying.
A few minutes later, he reached the seaside. The area was littered with half-melted aquatic creature corpses. Under a huge rock sat a burly figure. Under the dim red sunset on the horizon, this figure, covered in dark red bloodstains, leaning against the rock, exuded a sense of desolation.
"Cough, cough, cough! You're here, Law Destroyer."
Ancient Ancestor Hatu spoke, coughing violently and spitting blood. To be precise, he should be called [Exile Hatu]. The Luen family had seven members in total, and Hatu was the only exile.
Exile Hatu sat leaning against the rock in a dying state. Under the sunset, there was an indescribable sense of desolation. Logically, as an Abyss descendant, he didn't fear death. On the contrary, death was one of their ways to escape danger.
The reason Exile Hatu was like this was that this was his state upon just reviving. His existence had been devoured. If not for being an Abyss descendant, his end would have been eternal disappearance.
But even as an Abyss descendant capable of revival, Exile Hatu's initial state after revival was severe near-death, and it couldn't be recovered. This was the best state he could achieve without [existence].
Furthermore, the reason Hatu was exiled by the Luen family was that he had once lost to Ancestral God Yashimis. The Beast Clan didn't need losers, even if its members were only a few.
"This defeated appearance is too ugly."
Exile Hatu spoke, the blood pool under his legs continuously expanding.
Clang~!
The long blade was drawn. Su Xiao's intention was simple: since Exile Hatu didn't want to suffer this humiliation, he had a way to help the other escape this situation.
"It's useless. I'm an Abyss descendant. Even if I'm exiled by the family..."
As Exile Hatu spoke, the long blade in Su Xiao's hand was already covered in black mysterious patterns. Wisps of black demonic smoke rose from this demon blade.
[Demonic Spirit Awakening: Skill Effect 3: Causal Tear (Passive). After killing an [Abyss Descendant], you can choose to activate this trait. The [Blade Demon Spirit] in the killing state will forcibly tear the [Causal Life Source] of the killed Abyss descendant from its family's [Origin Clan Emblem], causing it to completely vanish due to this kill.]
[Uses per world: 2/2 times.]
Although Su Xiao remained silent, his attitude was clear: with this slash, he guaranteed death.
"Wait, wait."
The corner of Exile Hatu's eye twitched almost imperceptibly. After becoming a member of the Beast Clan in the First Era, death had completely eluded him. But today, death came face to face, which instead made him feel truly alive.
"As thanks for leaving me a shred of dignity, I'll give you some compensation."
Exile Hatu spoke, then coughed violently, spitting blood. After a moment, he improved slightly and continued:
"Be careful of the Empire's emperor and that old hag diviner. I don't know how the Empire's emperor convinced that old hag diviner, but one thing is certain: I deliberately released that [Star Heart] to lure you here. That old hag seemed very certain that as long as I took out the [Star Heart], you would come."