Chapter 2395: Soon to Be a Super Player
Xu Huo had yet to react to the fish that suddenly appeared to save him, but the middle-aged man trying to kill him changed expression drastically. He stepped back, and a transparent sphere appeared in his hand. A barrier released from the sphere immediately enveloped him entirely, and that wasn't all—his other hand produced a silver quadrangular pyramid!
A quadrangular pyramid!
This slender quadrangular pyramid was the same as the ones he had obtained from those experimental personnel in Zone 017. The pyramid was called "Distant Homeland." Once released, it would float in the air, its tip occasionally changing direction. At the time, he had judged that this should be a special positioning item. From the item's behavior, the orientation of that space could be changing, involving some spatial changes at advanced wormhole points, or perhaps it was a method of concealment used by those who had occupied positions in the game early on. Therefore, he hadn't gone around investigating, only collecting bits and pieces of information from Under Dimension. However, where the quadrangular pyramid ultimately pointed could only be determined by traversing through space. The specific method of use was likely known only to the holder.
Or, it might simply be an instrument requiring biological authentication—useless in anyone else's hands.
Now, the middle-aged man in front of him curled his index finger and lightly tapped the quadrangular pyramid. With a crisp chime, the pyramid began to disintegrate, automatically breaking into square fragments that scattered in a small area before reassembling—just as the pyramid was about to close, the elusive item fish swam over again. Where its head emerged, a larger spatial fluctuation appeared. A hand reached out from within, just like how the middle-aged man had dealt with Xu Huo, using only an index finger to casually press downward. The middle-aged man's defensive barrier, including himself, instantly shrank by half!
The immense pressure forced the middle-aged man to kneel. Though the pressure didn't shatter the defensive barrier, it could penetrate it, forcing him to raise both hands to resist the force, completely unable to focus. The quadrangular pyramid remained in its scattered state, falling to the ground, with some fragments embedded in the floor.
Then, the man from behind the space stepped out. That fast-talking Master Shi walked up to the kneeling man, flicked his finger to shatter the defensive barrier, and reached out to grab the quadrangular pyramid fragments.
"Ah!" The middle-aged man let out a short cry, but the next second, he was pressed directly into the floor. The floor space that Xu Huo had been unable to break no matter how he attacked now showed cracks starting from his position.
"You people are so sneaky. I've been wandering around this building for ages without finding anything. Finally, someone walks right into the trap—how could I let you escape?" The quadrangular pyramid reassembled in Master Shi's hand. After a brief spatial fluctuation, a spatial portal appeared in front of the pyramid.
"Hmm, looks like this one works." He smiled with satisfaction, then completely crushed the middle-aged man into the floor. Bones breaking, internal organs shattering, and skin tearing, accompanied by splattering blood, all happened simultaneously. A top-tier A-level player was crushed into a pile of flesh without any resistance!
The middle-aged man was at least an A-level player. Judging by the degree of his Super Evolution, he was among the higher-tier A-level players—definitely not someone who had just coasted through walkthroughs, but a genuine player from an advanced wormhole point with real skill. The gap in strength had left Xu Huo with little room to resist, yet now he died so easily!
Looking at Master Shi, the oppressive aura he exuded made even Xu Huo, who wasn't the target, unconsciously tense up!
However, this aura quickly disappeared. The man raised his hand to touch the item fish, which had shrunk back to palm-sized, and said with a grin, "You've done a great deed this time. Soon, you'll be famous throughout the game with me! Wherever we go, we'll have prestige!"
"Pop pop pop!" The item fish slapped him with its tail and swam away.
"Are you really a Super Player?" The Painting Woman approached, curiously examining the man and his fish.
Master Shi was in a good mood, scratching his cheek where the fish tail had hit him, and chuckled, "A Super Player? Not yet, but soon."
He waved the quadrangular pyramid in his hand, looking at Xu Huo and the Painting Woman. "I'm not lying. Once I go to an A-level wormhole point and snatch a Super Instance, I'll be a proper Super Player."
Xu Huo glanced at the fish swimming past him. "The certification condition for a Super Player is holding a Super Instance?"
For most players, the difference between the top-tier A-level players and Super Players wasn't that significant. For example, the Eerie Sound Knights could also fight Super Players. It made sense that obtaining Super Player status required more than just strength, but he hadn't expected it to involve holding an Instance.
"Does every Super Player have to hold an Instance?" he couldn't help but ask further.
"Right, right," Master Shi nodded. "So if you want to become a Super Player, you'd better prepare early. Don't end up like me, running around trying to find a way into A-level wormhole points."
Seeing how quick and careless his answer was, Xu Huo seriously doubted its authenticity. "Are you sure? Some Super Players I've seen don't carry Super Instances."
"As an old-timer, would I lie to you?" Master Shi walked over and put his arm around Xu Huo's shoulder. "The best stuff is definitely hidden in A-level wormhole points. If you can't find an Instance later, just grab a locator and go to an A-level wormhole point to search. If you really can't get one, come find me, and I'll take you... For now, you're still too weak. If you were an A-level player, I'd take you to broaden your horizons."
Xu Huo wasn't interested in broadening his horizons for now and let himself be pulled along. "I've heard that some A-level tickets can't reach certain places, which must also limit players' items and traits. Players, even Super Players, probably wouldn't have an advantage going in."
The technique he had used to deal with the middle-aged man didn't seem like Super Evolution.
Master Shi, however, grinned slyly. "Young man, don't be so narrow-minded. Besides Super Evolution, there are other paths."
Vaguely understanding his implication, Xu Huo blurted out, "Can evolving traits to the end break free from the game's control? And what about Super Items?"
He was referring to this space fish.
Master Shi rubbed his chin. "Break free from the game? I just told you not to be narrow-minded, and here you are jumping to conclusions. Breaking free from the game is impossible. Any place you set foot in is within the game's control. Only in dimensions that are unstable might the game be unstable."
"Don't demonize the game. It's just a game, a tool. It's actually quite generous to Super Evolvers and items that have evolved intelligence. Otherwise, how could my fish move freely here?"
Xu Huo wasn't comforted. "So you're saying that even in places without Instances, if someone artificially cuts off the game's channel, they haven't truly separated from the game?"