Chapter 1254
Chapter 1254 - 1240: A Small Test of Skill
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The journey recommenced, much faster than everyone else.
Leaving behind some personnel to guard and others awaiting to rendezvous, the makeshift ship embarked once again.
"...After all, fragments are always limited."
In his dealings with Elder Liu, the most valuable thing Lu Ping’an obtained was likely an assortment of "high-level intelligence" along with various public announcements from the church.
Although most of the news about the fragments was true and false, and generally had lost its timeliness, Lu Ping’an, due to the existence of "The Eye of Truth," was better able to verify the authenticity of various pieces of intelligence than others.
The falling fragments varied, and many had strong anti-reconnaissance abilities; even if they were genuinely acquired, one could only "open the box" and take a chance... Sometimes, encountering a boss that counters you might lead directly to a total wipeout.
"This time, our target is a parasitic object..."
In the Big Shot’s summary, the "danger" of fragments was clearly classified.
The most dangerous were the Personality Fragments; no matter what they inhabited, their "wisdom" was the most dangerous weapon, especially when It could skillfully wield its own authority.
The strength of Personality Fragments varied, but more than one Big Shot had suffered greatly, often requiring a group effort to besiege, mostly ending in a hard-fought battle.
The next most dangerous were "Parasites," usually fragments that had fallen into some powerful being that could utilize or even absorb some of it... Most notably, various Divine Beasts and ancient heroes who, toward humans, often displayed aggression, and should not be approached without significant power.
It is said that many high-tier creatures who consumed fragments went mad, posing countless times more danger than they did previously without their sanity.
Next were pure fragments, which might affect local conditions causing a regional "radiation" effect, but since they lacked a stable medium to exert their power, they were generally easier to deal with... The Fragment of Wisdom Lu Ping’an obtained should be of this type; the monster, though tough, was not fatal and lacked the ability to properly wield authority.
"This time, our target is the easiest kind to obtain, a Parasitic Object where authority is embedded within an object, yet can still be steadily used by outsiders. Such a state is similar to Taboo items, but its ’stability’ itself implies Order and rules..."
Such cases typically come from relatively weaker and stable "fragments," but their danger is lower, allowing weaker ones to try their luck.
Yet, the trouble is, precisely because they are too stable, they usually don’t cause "big incidents" in a short period, making them harder to find.
Moreover, because of their stability, their ability to block reconnaissance methods is the strongest, making them the hardest to find... However, in a sense, if one has some special abilities, this paradoxically becomes a track to follow.
"...Kulin City, there have been recent serial killings, the victims died miserably, like dried up mummies drained of life force, yet also like normal aging deaths..."
Among similar "cases," Lu Ping’an prioritized this one as his top target because it likely possesses the trait he needs.
"...Death, either drawing life or aging, are all acceptable options."
Lu Ping’an’s demands are not high; he is willing to consider any of the above possibilities.
And because the area has many from the "life system," competition for this obviously "death"-linked fragment is somewhat lower.
After all, although "life and death" is the understanding of many high-tier life systems, those who dare to touch fragments related to death remain few.
And with the return of past team members, the courtyard became much livelier.
At this moment, someone was again sweating blood in the gym...
"Haha, you’re just a little bit off compared to me..."
Looking at Eve’s Fingertip Universe, Yuge, in pain, sighed helplessly; she knew it was pointless to quibble with this girl.
Both Eve and Yuge, if only judging by tier, might be considered Quasi-rules, and both are combat-oriented, but in actual combat, Eve could easily defeat Yuge.
Apart from compatibility issues, there was also a clear gap in their foundations.
These days, Yuge was busy challenging the strong within her group, constantly verifying what she learned, sometimes winning inexplicably, and losing even more incomprehensibly.
Everyone could see she was aiming to reach the true Rule-level, now testing her abilities against "Rule-level combat power."
Her "rainwater" could transform at will into various forms, which could be described as ever-changing, but in the face of Eve’s "direct transformation" ability, she was somewhat countered.
If she couldn’t overcome Eve, there was naturally no need to think about Fei’er...
"An internal ranking battle? Why didn’t you call me?"
𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮
Miss Rou, who had just rejoined the team, seemed quite interested.
After all, she was a true Rule-level... Although she came from a Magic Alchemist background, most professions at high-tier generally do possess combat power. Since no one dies in gymnasium death matches, Miss Rou, who usually had no opportunity to display her skills, was now somewhat tempted.
So, she entered the arena.
Then, in less than half a minute, she "died."
"Don’t challenge others’ professions with your own hobbies."
"Exactly. To use Lu’s words, your strength is insufficient, your reaction sluggish, your senses dull, your thinking slow, your actions hesitant. From top to bottom, there isn’t a single decent aspect, yet you still think to compete with us."
"Go eat at the next table, or go home and play with Decree Kitty."
The two of them, with their remarks and retorts, truly flustered Miss Rou, who had prepared to show off.
Lu Ping’an could see that she wasn’t as weak as she appeared... It seemed she sealed many things inside alchemy bottles and then threw them out for use, a common combat strategy among Magic Alchemists.
Strong or not, spending money by smashing Magic Potions was top-notch.
As a Rule-level genius Magic Alchemist, her potions were definitely fierce and strong... but if the bottles were confiscated or smashed midway, all attacks seen through, once closed in, she’d clumsily throw about like tossing trash—then her combat power could hardly be expected.
Miss Rou’s idea of showing off in front of her "old classmates" completely backfired, yet it might not be a bad thing.
After all, losing face was merely an internal matter, but for Lu Ping’an, the spectator, confirming her as a "Rubbish Rule-Level" also naturally meant he would protect her.
Of course, her joining had obvious benefits for the entire team.
"... Is this ’Brain Gold’ No. 1? Why use such a name...?"
"It’s easy to remember and useful. Earthlings understand the gist with just a glance, and it’s already a proven effective marketing strategy and trademark, suitable for promotion in otherworldly places."
The small golden bottle in front of Lu Ping’an was a new product that Miss Rou had just pitched, made using "Wisdom Spring Water" as its base ingredient.
"Besides enhancing spiritual power, does it have any traits I need?"
"It does... but I really don’t recommend drinking too much of it, it can kill."
The Magic Potion made from Wisdom Spring Water essentially boosts spiritual power, but with Miss Rou’s ability, it could guide the development of new traits.
Lu Ping’an gently drank it, then his vision blurred, dizziness hit him, nearly making him collapse.
"The effects... too strong?"
He was somewhat surprised, and then instantly applied a deferred payment to himself, but the result didn’t change.
This wasn’t uncontrolled contamination but simply...
"Spiritual power leaking... Uh, it seems like it’s a success, and yet a failure."
Releasing spiritual power was a compulsory course for high-level Gardeners, and even if one didn’t follow this path, many universal high-tier Gardener abilities required this capability.
Initially, Lu Ping’an could only progress slowly, but now with a high-level alchemist and such upscale material at hand, he naturally wanted to find a shortcut.
"Calm down..."
Lu Ping’an refocused his mind. His spiritual power had indeed successfully released outside and the effect was unexpectedly good, but letting spiritual power flow indefinitely was akin to courting death.
This moment, due to the remarkable effects of the Magic Potion, Lu Ping’an’s spiritual power not only enveloped his own ship but also stretched down into the water...
"Enemy attack. There’s a big thing below!" Consequently, he "joyfully" discovered that the attack of the Giant Beast had reached beneath the ship.
— End of Chapter 1254 —