NABC Chapter 78: The Plan Succeeds, and a Generous Reward
Chapter 78: The Plan Succeeds, and a Generous Reward
Inside the Ascension Platform, the six members of Class Zero formed a tight circle.
Yu Chen sat cross-legged in the center, his eyes slightly closed, his soul power fluctuating steadily and deeply as he guided the massive spiritual power surging into his body.
Tang Wulin and Xie Xie sat on either side of him, both focused on meditation, trying to recover the soul power and energy they had consumed in the fierce battle.
Zhang Yangzi, Wang Jinxi, and Gu Yue were positioned on the outer perimeter in a triangular formation, responsible for guarding the area.
Despite being on guard, the three of them were also seated cross-legged, circulating their soul power to regulate their breathing and recover, while also diverting some of their attention to sense the movements around them.
As for security issues?
This area is probably "safer" than most places on the Ascension Platform right now.
Under Yu Chen's deliberate guidance and "indulgence," within a radius of tens of meters centered on their location, a large number of highly venomous spider silks left behind by the human-faced demon spiders crisscrossed, forming a natural and deadly line of defense.
This line of defense is now playing an unexpected role with "diligence".
The riots greatly increased the density and activity of the soul beasts in the forest. The sounds of battle in the distance, the ferocious aura left by the human-faced demon spider, and the rich life energy gradually gathering in this place all acted like lighthouses in the night, attracting all kinds of soul beasts, whether they were curious, hungry, or irritable, to approach.
Not all spirit beasts possess keen senses or sufficient intelligence to recognize this invisible trap.
Some soul beasts rely on their sense of smell, some on vibration, and some are rather reckless.
And so, tragedy after tragedy unfolded.
A wind baboon with a century of cultivation swung through the treetops, trying to get closer to investigate, but its forelimbs accidentally touched an almost transparent yellowish-green spider silk.
"laugh--!"
A slight corrosive sound rang out, and before the wind baboon could even scream, its forelimbs instantly turned black and withered. The deadly poison spread along its limbs at an alarming speed, and in just two or three seconds, it fell from the tree, twitched a few times, and then fell silent.
A massive, thick-skinned, armored rhinoceros charged headlong into the road, crashing through saplings along its path, only to plunge headfirst into a web of intertwined spiderwebs.
The tough, sticky spider silk entangled it tightly, and the deadly venom began to erode its relatively fragile joints, eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.
The armored rhinoceros let out a painful growl and struggled frantically, but the more it was bound, the tighter it became, and finally collapsed to the ground from the effects of the poison and suffocation.
The terrifying venom of the Human-Faced Demon Spider was on full display at this moment. A ten-year-old soul beast would die instantly upon contact, while a hundred-year-old soul beast could only struggle for a few more moments.
Anything that comes into contact with the spider silk, regardless of size or defense, has almost no chance of survival. Soul beasts with keen senses will instinctively feel fear and avoid it once they get within a certain distance.
Those who were slow to perceive or too reckless added new "decorations" to this line of defense against death with their own lives.
The spiritual power of the dead soul beast naturally overflows from its corpse.
Normally, this spiritual energy would quickly dissipate in the simulated environment of the Ascension Platform.
However, this was a period of turmoil, which greatly slowed down the dissipation of spiritual energy. And this overflowing spiritual energy, under the influence of an invisible force, did not drift away, but rather, like iron filings attracted by a magnet, slowly converged towards the interior of the spider silk defense line—the location where the six members of Class Zero were meditating.
The six people were in a state of deep meditation or shallow recovery, their bodies and souls instinctively absorbing the energy around them.
These "delivered" spiritual energies were naturally absorbed into their bodies.
Initially, it was just a few weak soul beasts contributing meager amounts of spiritual energy.
But as time went on, the number of soul beasts dying from the poison net began to increase, and the types of them also diversified.
The gathering spiritual energy became increasingly considerable, like a stream flowing into a pool, gradually forming a visible, rich yellow halo around the six people's bodies, slowly swirling and seeping in.
Inside the Spirit Pagoda observation room.
"This...how is this possible?! Is there something wrong with the Ascension Platform's operating mechanism?!"
One of the staff members responsible for monitoring the energy flow pointed to the increasingly thick, almost solidified, yellow aura of spiritual energy surrounding the six people in Class Zero on the screen, his eyes wide open, and he even stuttered a little when he spoke.
From their God's-eye view, the six members of Class Zero were simply meditating and recovering after the battle when the surrounding soul beasts "rushed one after another" into the poisonous web left by the human-faced demon spiders, committing suicide and then "offering" their spiritual power to them...
This is practically like having a cheat program that automatically attracts monsters and picks up loot!
Can we say they cheated?
Strictly speaking, it seems not.
All of this happened "naturally": they killed the Human-Faced Demon Spider, the Demon Spider left behind a venomous web, the venomous web killed other soul beasts, the soul beasts released their spiritual energy, and they absorbed it through meditation...
Each step seemed to conform to the underlying rules of the Ascension Platform, but the combined effect was incomprehensible.
Moreover, the efficiency of absorbing spiritual energy is even higher and "easier" than when Yu Chen used his "Peerless" powers alone before!
To most staff members, this was simply a stroke of incredible luck for shift zero, who stumbled upon a once-in-a-lifetime "BUG" opportunity by sheer chance.
But a hint of understanding flashed in Wu Changkong's dark green eyes.
He recalled Yu Chen's unusually "calm" and even somewhat "indulgent" attitude during the battle, not destroying the poison net immediately, but instead using it as a barrier...
All of this was probably already part of that kid's plan!
This ability to utilize the battlefield environment and the far-sighted planning made Wu Changkong secretly alarmed.
"Ms. Wu, I must report this situation to my superiors immediately!"
Another staff member, who appeared to be of a higher rank, spoke to Wu Changkong with a serious expression, his hand already on the communicator.
Wu Changkong's expression remained unchanged, his gaze still fixed on the screen, his tone calm yet carrying an undeniable force:
"My students, where have they violated the rules of the Ascension Platform? They defeated the powerful Hundred-Year-Old Human-Faced Demon Spider and are now merely meditating in the battlefield to recover."
Everything happening before our eyes is the result of the autonomous operation of the Ascension Platform's simulated environment.
As far as I know, you do not have the authority to forcibly interfere with the natural evolution of the Ascension Platform during its operation; at most, you can only make extremely limited adjustments.
The staff member's forehead was covered in cold sweat:
"Yes, in principle, one should not interfere with the ascending spiritual platform. But... Teacher Wu, if this continues, your students may also be in danger!"
Can their mental strength and physical resilience really withstand the impact of the rapid evolution of their souls in a short period of time? Especially those two children who only have one ring!
If a soul's advancement goes too far, exceeding their carrying capacity, it could result in mental damage at best, and in severe cases, endanger their vital signs in the simulated state!
What he said makes sense.
Soul evolution requires the Soul Master's own strength as a foundation, especially the support of mental power.
If too much spiritual energy is absorbed too quickly, the soul spirit will forcibly advance, while the soul master cannot keep up, which may indeed cause a backlash.
Wu Changkong was naturally aware of this. But he was even more aware of the "monster" level of his disciples.
Yu Chen and Gu Yue's spiritual power had already reached the Spirit Sea Realm, far surpassing their peers; Tang Wulin's physical strength and Golden Dragon King bloodline were even more unfathomable.
He estimated that Yu Chen might even be able to use this opportunity to push both of his spirit rings to the thousand-year level!
For this final exam, these kids not only completed the task, they exceeded it to an astonishing degree!
Seeing that Wu Changkong remained silent, the staff member hesitated for a moment, then picked up the soul communication device and went to the side to report in a low voice.
One of their responsibilities is to ensure that the Ascension Platform does not experience any major malfunctions.
……
Inside the Ascension Platform.
When Tang Wulin awoke from his deep meditation and his soul power was restored, he immediately felt a sense of fullness throughout his body, as if every inch of his muscles and every meridian was filled with gentle yet surging energy.
He opened his eyes, and the sight before him stunned him instantly.
Not only herself, but also Xie Xie and Yu Chen beside her, and Gu Yue, Zhang Yangzi and Wang Jinxi on the periphery, were all surrounded by a dense, almost tangible yellow aura!
That was pure spiritual energy from the soul beasts, which was being slowly and continuously absorbed by their bodies!
"This...this is...Brother Chen has lost control again and gone on a killing spree?"
Tang Wulin's first thought was that while they were meditating, Yu Chen had gone out again to "clean up" the surrounding soul beasts.
He looked into the distance and immediately gasped.
On the ground outside the spider silk defense line, at least twenty or thirty soul beast corpses lay scattered about!
Some of the corpses had been corroded beyond recognition by the deadly poison and were slowly dissolving; others, not yet completely dead, were making their final, feeble twitches.
The entire scene resembles a miniature graveyard for spirit beasts.
"No, it's not Brother Chen."
Xie Xie, who had been awake for a while, had a strange expression on his face, a mixture of shock, surprise, and disbelief, as he explained,
"This is all thanks to that 'spider web fence' outside... those soul beasts ran right into it and committed suicide."
Tang Wulin then noticed that although the yellow-green spider silk defense line around him was thinner than before, it still existed stubbornly, and there were many "new goods" hanging on it.
He opened his mouth, but for a moment he didn't know what to say.
"The 'legacy' left behind by this human-faced spider is truly an enormous surprise."
Even Wang Jinxi, who is usually not very talkative, couldn't help but sigh with a strange expression.
"It truly was... 'devoted itself to the cause until its dying breath'."
After the battle just now and the gains he's made, the lingering psychological trauma he had about the human-faced spider has been completely washed away by this enormous benefit.
(The remnant soul of the human-faced spider: Thank you!)
(Xie Xie alerts: Huh? Does that sound like someone is calling me?)
(The remnant soul of the human-faced spider roars in fury: I'll teach you a lesson you big-headed devil! Take this Thousand-Year Kill Memories!)
(Xie Xie instinctively covered his buttocks: Ouch—!)
"If this continues, won't our souls have to jump several levels at once?"
Tang Wulin was both surprised and delighted.
Upon hearing this, Wang Jinxi shook his head with a wry smile:
"It's not that simple. Our bodies and souls have their limits."
For those like me and Yangzi who have two spirit rings, the absorbed spiritual energy will be evenly distributed across the two spirit rings.
I estimate that my mental strength cannot withstand two soul rings reaching a thousand years at the same time.
I feel that when each of my spirit rings reaches a cultivation level of nearly 500 years, I'll be nearing my limit, and absorbing more might cause discomfort or even danger.
Yangzi's situation is probably similar to mine; perhaps he'll be able to absorb a little more.
He paused, then looked at Tang Wulin and Gu Yue:
"Since you and Gu Yue haven't obtained your second soul rings yet, the spiritual energy you absorb will be concentrated on your current, unique soul spirit, which might actually push it directly to the thousand-year level. As for Brother Chen..."
Wang Jinxi looked at Yu Chen, who was still absorbing spiritual energy in the center, and shook his head. "I can't even imagine where his limit is."
Gu Yue also finished her meditation at this moment. Her purple eyes shone brightly as she sensed the surroundings and calmly analyzed the situation:
"Roughly estimated, each of us has absorbed about four to five hundred years' worth of spiritual energy. For those like Yangzi and Jinxi who have two rings, it's equivalent to each of their soul rings increasing by more than two hundred years."
This doesn't even include the residual spiritual energy around our bodies that hasn't been fully absorbed yet; I estimate we can absorb another one to two hundred years. But absorbing this residual spiritual energy will take even longer.
Her tone was slightly somber as she reminded him:
"However, after leaving this poisonous area, what we need to be wary of is probably no longer the soul beasts, but other soul master teams that are also hunting during the riot period."
"Possessing a treasure is a crime; the spiritual energy gathered around us might be seen as a walking treasure trove by others. Moreover, after this trip, we probably won't be able to enter the Spirit Ascension Platform again for a while; we'll need time to fully digest this surge of spiritual energy and stabilize our cultivation levels."
Just then, Yu Chen, who had been sitting quietly in the center, suddenly experienced a surge in the fluctuations of his soul power!
An invisible suction force suddenly arose from him, like a whale sucking in water, drawing all the dense yellow spiritual energy aura swirling around him that had not yet been absorbed by others, and quickly entering his body.
The whole process took only a few breaths; he devoured all the remaining spiritual energy and quickly refined it.
Yu Chen slowly opened his eyes, a flash of light seemingly disappearing in his bright golden pupils.
He exhaled a breath that carried a faint warmth, sensed the changes within his body, and calmly spoke:
"I've absorbed about seven hundred years of spiritual energy. It's still about two hundred years away from upgrading my soul ring to a thousand-year level."
His voice wasn't loud, but it exploded in their ears like thunder.
"Seven...seven hundred years?! Brother Chen, are you...are you even human?!"
Xie Xie was so shocked that he stammered, pointing at Yu Chen, unable to utter a complete sentence for a long time.
Zhang Yangzi and Wang Jinxi were also dumbfounded. Although they were mentally prepared, the number still exceeded their expectations.
Gu Yue's eyes gleamed with admiration, while Tang Wulin's face was filled with worship.
"You're making a fuss over nothing."
Yu Chen stood up, patted off non-existent dust from his body, and spoke in a calm tone, but the slight upturn of his lips still betrayed a hint of pleasure in his heart that he had "successfully faked" the situation.
He quickly composed himself, his gaze sweeping over the thinning poison net defenses and the faint commotion of soul beasts in the distance, before decisively issuing the order:
"The human-faced spider has used up a lot of its silk, greatly reducing its defense. Staying any longer increases the risk. We shouldn't linger here. Let's pack up and move on immediately!"
Despite still being immersed in immense shock and the joy of their gains, upon hearing Yu Chen's command, the remaining five members of Class Zero almost reflexively stood up, concealed their auras, and reformed their battle formation.
Their extensive practical experience made them realize that during the perilous period of riots at the Ascension Platform, any negligence could render all previous efforts futile.