Chapter 1172: Take a Photo as a Souvenir
For these C-level players of the Special Defense Department, Xu Huo was no longer just one of the best among his peers—he was the absolute pinnacle that they could never catch up to, that extremely rare, minuscule fraction of a fraction.
"Captain, do you think he could take on a B-level player?" someone in the team asked.
The captain's expression carried a hint of emotion. A B-level player? If they were holding ordinary B-level or even A-level items, they'd probably only be on the receiving end of a beating.
"He should be measured against top-tier B-level players."
Only when evolution rate had been raised to a certain level could one perceive the surrounding space without Super Evolution. Otherwise, if someone hid behind a Space Barrier or inside a Spiritual Realm, how could you even fight?
The bald man's companions all had grim expressions. Ignoring the dead, another gaunt-faced man stepped forward. "We have no grudge against you. It was Baldy who tried to stop you. We're all on the island, and there's still business to attend to. How about we each mind our own business?"
Xu Huo had no objection. He took Song Xiaohua and left.
With that, he stored the Cube Space into his Luggage Compartment.
Unsurprisingly, they soon ran into two more groups of players. Without the Cube Space's assistance, they seemed to be stuck in a certain ruined space—likely the same layer where the Special Defense Department and Player Organization members were.
However, without the alternation, the changes in this ruined world were relatively significant. First, the stone slab paths connecting the aerial structures began to repeat, and the buildings in the sky had scattered, as if a whole had been broken apart and dispersed everywhere, with some distance between each other. But the buildings themselves no longer repeated; instead, more different structures appeared than before.
Yet some of them were swallowed by darkness.
There were quite a few people in front of and behind the ruined space. Because once someone climbed onto an aerial building, that area would immediately fall into darkness, causing the visible portion to shrink gradually. So players stopped going up and instead observed from below.
As for those four completely black areas, they looked somewhat like rotten tooth cavities, hanging alone and inexplicably in the air.
"Could those dark places connect to other spaces?" Song Xiaohua said. "I noticed the flying buildings all have very unique shapes. Maybe they come from some bizarre game district. The two sides still seem to be interacting with each other. Perhaps the real good stuff is over there."
"Didn't they say some Special Defense Department people went in, got lost, and never came out?" Xu Huo looked up at the sky. "Besides, you can't even see what's inside."
Light couldn't penetrate it either.
"The risk is a bit high." Song Xiaohua looked around. "But the other places don't seem much different. Those patterns and texts are all pretty similar."
"If no one has found anything, then maybe there really isn't anything here." Xu Huo walked along, taking pictures of the buildings. "Such spaces do exist. They might be game districts that some Super Players smashed to pieces. It's normal for only ruins to remain."
Song Xiaohua nodded. "It's all a mess. If someone really made this, it must have been a Super Player. The gravity here isn't chaotic, yet the buildings can float. Probably some leftover effect from an item."
"But even Super Players are too cautious—not a single lost item left behind!"
Xu Huo smiled. "How do you know there aren't any? Maybe someone else already picked them up."
"I asked the Special Defense Department people earlier. They said no, and they probably weren't lying." Song Xiaohua said disappointedly. "Maybe players from other districts already scavenged everything. By the time the space drifted here, nothing was left."
Xu Huo took a photo of him. "You can take a picture as a souvenir."
Then he took a selfie as well.
Not far ahead, they ran into Wei Mang and his group again.
Guo Nan immediately came over to greet them, asking if they had found anything.
Players were everywhere here. Song Xiaohua said, "We did get something. A souvenir of our visit, of course. We have to take photos—it's like experiencing an exotic landscape."
The people around them lost interest.
Someone snorted coldly. Song Xiaohua immediately looked over. "What? Looks like you've made quite a haul?"
Sun Minqi, who had made the sound, deliberately said, "If you've found something, just say it outright. Why pretend to take photos to cover it up? I don't believe you're really here for souvenirs."
The others present were also curious, especially the Special Defense Department members. Sun Minqi might be trying to stir trouble, but that didn't stop them from hoping.
"You can take one too if you want." Xu Huo turned back to look at him. "Want me to help you?"
This was not a friendly remark. On the contrary, the flat tone carried an invisible pressure, so much so that Sun Minqi didn't dare meet his eyes. His limbs felt pinned down, unable to move or even use any items.
Guo Nan, Wei Mang, and the others present also felt this sharp, oppressive force, as if a blade were pressed against their throats. Forget resisting—even the slightest movement would have that blade take their lives instantly!
Only when Xu Huo looked away did the pressure disappear.
Guo Nan and the others were already sweating. They didn't press further but silently walked away.
Watching the man who moved through the ruins with an unhurried, leisurely gait, Sun Minqi privately asked Guo Nan and the others, "Who exactly is he?"
"Wang Xiaohui didn't tell you?" Guo Nan feigned surprise as he glanced at them. "His name is Xu Huo. He was even on the same train as Wang Xiaohui during the preliminary review."
The name Xu Huo was familiar to Wang Dafa and the others. He was most famous for cracking down on the underground market that imprisoned Evolvers. He had shown his face back then. Although he also had a reputation during the Black Rain incident, few knew the details. And while some suspected him of the attack on the Y Country Safe Zone, there was no solid evidence—some believed it, some didn't.
But all these things together were just minor skirmishes. Not to mention the Special Defense Department, even the clearance records of famous players on the rankings seemed more thrilling and exciting. It was hard to see where his strength lay. Why would the Special Defense Department's C-level players back down before him?
Sun Minqi and the others finally understood. Guo Nan, Yi Huijun, plus the two nearby Special Defense Department guide teams, and a Special Defense Department squad farther away—everyone from the Special Defense Department was very cautious around him.
Even though he was a C-level player. Just a C-level player.
But soon, they saw another Player Organization team run into Xu Huo, turn around without a word, and retreat, their expressions awkward and somewhat annoyed. Two C-level players in that team were recognized powerhouses, even if they didn't compete in the player rankings. Sun Minqi had fought one of them before—it was a draw.
"Maybe we should just admit defeat. Following Xu Huo might actually get us somewhere?" Wang Dafa pragmatically suggested.
Sichuan is really too hot. I've even gotten air conditioning sickness, o(╥﹏╥)o
(Chapter End)