Chapter 2550: Mr. Xu
The entrance to the chaos space had indeed closed, and for several hundred meters inward, the passage was once again occupied by chaotic space. Even if there were portals leading out of the portal space, they were completely buried.
Standing at the entrance for a few seconds, Xu Huo turned and left.
Although the passage had returned to chaos, the cracks between spaces had not disappeared. The flickering temporal-spatial forces gradually slowed down, and before long, the original passage began to reappear.
After another ten-plus minutes, someone cautiously poked their head out from the spatial passage. Confirming there was no danger, this person blew a whistle, and the rest came out from inside. Among them, the "Envoy" instructed the others, "Quickly send word to the others, and arrange for people to guard this passage..."
But before he could finish speaking, dozens of Space Ray Blades shot out from different directions, piercing through him and several other Holy Sword Society players simultaneously.
Xu Huo stepped out, counting heads, "Only eight people. I remember nine went in earlier."
As he spoke, he looked toward the chaos space passage and called out loudly, "Come out, Envoy."
A few seconds later, an ordinary-looking man emerged from the passage. He glared darkly at Xu Huo, "How did you see through my identity?"
"Maybe it was because of the rush, or maybe you thought everyone else was stupid, so you overlooked height when disguising yourself," Xu Huo said with a smile.
"As expected of an elite from District 001. Even with such similar height and build, you could spot the flaw." The Envoy didn't step out but stood his ground, saying, "Unfortunately, you've come to the wrong place. There's no exit here."
"Is that so?" Xu Huo took a step forward, and the other immediately called for him to stop while retreating a step. "No news has been sent out from the stronghold. Reinforcements will arrive soon. Staring at me is pointless. You can't kill me. You'd be better off taking this chance to escape."
"If you're so afraid of death and still haven't left, I believe you that this isn't the exit," Xu Huo said. "But I'm very curious about what's inside that keeps those who hide there safe."
As he spoke, he moved his fingers, and the spatial forces at the entrance to the chaos space shifted accordingly. "Why don't you go back in and try again? I want to see if you'll still be safe when the entire space goes into chaos."
The Envoy's face turned green. He shouted, "Don't mess around! If you destroy the chaos space, the people from District 001 won't be able to leave either!"
He was too close to the passage entrance. There was no way he could outrun the chaotic temporal-spatial forces. After a brief pause, he voluntarily brought it up, "You've always wanted to find the exit of the portal space, haven't you? There really is an entrance and exit inside, but only someone proficient in spatial power can get out. It's probably only usable by someone who has inherited a Super Instance. Finding it is useless to you."
"Oh? Then what were you doing inside?" Xu Huo said. "Surely not kindly helping to open the door?"
That was obviously impossible. The Envoy threatened, "Although the passage and the exit are independent, the portal space is within the chaos space, and the chaos spaces are connected. If you destroy this passage, it could affect other passages. Then no one will be able to leave!"
"Makes sense." Xu Huo seemed convinced and let go.
The Envoy breathed a sigh of relief and was about to say more, but the next second, his body froze in place. A terrified expression spread rapidly across his face as wrinkles grew at an alarming rate. Within a few breaths, the man was dead.
Xu Huo scattered his corpse and gathered all the instruments, items, and protective suits left behind by him and the other Holy Sword Society members. He bundled them all into a large package.
He didn't enter the passage to investigate. Since going in wouldn't allow him to leave the portal space, there was no need to take the risk. Besides, if the Holy Sword Society couldn't open the doors of the other passages left by the Super Players, it meant the original exits reserved for District 001 players hadn't been sealed off but were merely blocked by the Holy Sword Society.
The strongholds where the other passages were located served two purposes: half to occupy the training grounds, and half to draw fire, luring District 001 players there to relieve pressure on the real exit.
The training grounds were important, but once District 001 players realized the situation outside was more critical and that the Holy Sword Society couldn't benefit from the training grounds, they would focus all their efforts on finding the exit.
The situation was clear. As long as District 001 players concentrated on breaking through the original exit passage, getting out shouldn't be difficult. They might not even need Super Items.
On his way back, he encountered a few more Holy Sword Society members responsible for passing messages. He killed them as usual and packed them up. When he reached the foot of the stronghold's mountain, Chang Yu, who had stayed behind to pick him up, appeared first.
The twenty players who had gone into the mountain with him earlier were nowhere to be seen, but most of the District 001 players originally tasked with retaking this stronghold had returned. Xu Huo had run into a few on the way down and had already explained the situation.
"Give it to me, give it to me!" Painting Woman immediately came over to take his package.
Xu Huo handed it to her casually and said to Chang Yu, "It seems the only way out is still the one the Super Players reserved for you."
Chang Yu nodded, "We'll set off now."
Xu Huo didn't concern himself with their personnel arrangements. He followed the main group to another training ground in the portal space.
This time, the distance was much farther. Even with full-speed travel, it took them a full half-day. When they arrived, a large number of players who had gathered from other strongholds were already surrounding the area.
The sight of players clustered together, especially A-class players, was different from usual. These players, even if they hadn't undergone Secondary Evolution, had far superior physical and mental strength compared to ordinary players of the same level. The cream of the crop from District 001—the top talents selected from ten thousand or a hundred thousand—were mostly gathered here.
Only a few people knew Xu Huo's identity. Most just saw him as a stranger. When they noticed him arriving with Chang Yu, they glanced over and moved on.
Chang Yu took him to meet the captain of the First Squad.
The teams from District 001 came from different factions. The squads were independent of each other, but the overall command was under the First Squad. On the way, Chang Yu had explained that the First Squad members came from the military, the Enforcement Department, the District Government, and Player Organizations.
Xu Huo was surprised that Player Organization members could hold a position in such an important mission, but when he saw them in person, he understood why they had become First Squad members.
These people were already top-tier A-class players. Their evolution rate was likely at its peak. If they truly obtained a Super Instance, it wouldn't be surprising if they upgraded to Super Players.
"Mr. Xu." Yao Yuan, the player representing the military, was the first to greet him. This two-meter-tall, bear-like man spoke very politely. "Please, have a seat."
[When stuck writing, I don't want to type~ o(╥﹏╥)o]