Chapter 52
Chapter 52
“…”
Every player present froze.
Only the skeleton soldiers kept cackling as they charged into the city.
After witnessing the sheer power of the Gaibang Guild leader’s Talent, Zhouyou Shijie still dared to make such a wild declaration?
“Could Zhouyou Shijie still have a trump card he hasn’t used?” one of the Demon Gods watching from the sky wondered aloud.
Amy, the Ninth Demon God, frowned. “Come to think of it, no one knows what his SSS-Rank Talent actually does!”
“It looks like we’ll find out very soon!”
…
Unease stirred in Gaibang Laoda’s heart. “What do you mean by that?”
“Nothing much. Before I fight you one-on-one, I need to take care of some real business first!” Zhou Ming turned and called out, “Tingfeng Xiyu!”
“Right here!”
Tingfeng Xiyu raised a hand.
[You have used Sovereign’s Descent, successfully copying Tingfeng Xiyu’s Talent Extreme Shadow and raising its rank by 1!]
[Your Talent has transformed into Godspeed (SS Rank)!]
Zhou Ming waved him off. “That’s all. You can go now!”
Tingfeng Xiyu: “???”
At a moment this important, all he got to do was show his face?
“Qianying!”
Zhou Ming’s expression turned solemn.
Whoosh!
The moment he spoke, a silver-haired young woman appeared beside him.
Her delicate brows framed a flawless face, and her luminous skin seemed carved from ice. A simple white dress accentuated her slender figure. She looked like an immortal maiden stepped straight out of a painting, breathtaking beyond words.
“!!”
Countless players immediately stared like fools.
“You and I will continue our battle in a bit!” Zhou Ming said, gazing at the beauty beside him. “Let’s go!”
“All right!”
Qianying understood at once. She placed a hand on his shoulder, and the two vanished on the spot.
“Trying to run?”
The three Demon Gods’ expressions shifted. They immediately gave chase.
“No one escapes from me!” As the Seventh Demon God, Windwalker · Balen had an icy gaze. He tore through the sky at once, leaving a violent gale in his wake.
The Dark Faction had specifically sent him because speed was his greatest strength. Zhouyou Shijie would have no chance to escape.
[You have entered the map Fengyuan Town!]
In a single instant, Zhou Ming appeared at the location Qianying had marked.
“Kill them!”
At that very moment, every player in Fengyuan Town had their attention fixed on the walls. The streets were completely deserted.
“Let’s go!”
Qianying took Zhou Ming by the hand and hurried toward the mayor’s residence.
“A town like this has to have a treasury somewhere, right?” Zhou Ming asked.
That was right.
While everyone was busy defending the town and its guards were stretched thin, he intended to borrow some money from the Light Faction.
The two sides had already torn all pretenses of civility to shreds. Zhou Ming had no reason to hold back.
“It does!” Qianying said with certainty. “A town’s income and expenses don’t belong to the mayor personally, and the sum is too large to fit within a normal inventory’s weight limit. There must be somewhere they store it… Found it!”
She abruptly changed direction and reached an open stretch of ground. One stomp shattered the floor, and the two of them immediately dropped into a hidden chamber.
[You have entered the map Fengyuan Town Treasury!]
Light streamed in through the opening above, revealing mountains of glittering gold coins piled beyond counting.
Money!
So much money!
Zhou Ming’s breathing quickened. “Take it all. Every last coin!”
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Three figures sprang into action at the same time.
“Huh?”
Finding that odd, Zhou Ming turned to the side. Xuanniao, which had always refused to obey him, had actually left the pet space of its own accord. Its wings beat furiously as it stuffed gold coins into the pet inventory.
“Where was all this enthusiasm when I asked you to do something before?” Zhou Ming said, speechless.
“Chirp, chirp, chirp…”
Xuanniao called back with an aloof look, but its wings never slowed.
It was an honest, respectable bird. What honest, respectable bird would ever have a problem with money?
Boom!
Elsewhere, the tremendous noise from the mayor’s residence drew the attention of the mayor on the walls. “What happened?”
“Mayor, terrible news!”
A soldier rushed over several minutes later. “The treasury has been robbed!”
“What did you say?”
The mayor of Fengyuan Town looked as if lightning had struck him. “Did you catch the thieves?”
“There’s no sign of them!”
“…”
…
[You have entered the map Zisha Town!]
With an entire crew working the job, the robbery went quickly.
Zhou Ming and Qianying soon arrived at the second marked location, then descended upon the town treasury like starving wolves.
One of his accomplices was a god-tier expert, so everything went remarkably smoothly.
“How much have we taken?” Zhou Ming asked.
Qianying gave him a rough estimate. “Three or four hundred thousand.”
Zhou Ming’s eyes lit up. “Then emptying three town treasuries will easily get us to a million gold coins!”
Cangxuan had been telling the truth. All the fertile land and abundant resources were controlled by the Light Faction. They were filthy rich.
…
High in the sky, the three Demon Gods were still giving chase with all their strength.
“Something’s wrong!”
Windwalker · Balen stopped dead, then turned and shot off in another direction. “You think changing locations will let you escape from my grasp?”
Halfway there, he stopped again. “Why does his location keep changing?”
“Don’t tell me he thinks running all over the place will actually shake us off,” Amy scoffed.
They had mobilized three Demon Gods for this operation. There was no chance they would end the siege before Zhouyou Shijie was dead.
…
Fengyuan Town!
Zisha Town!
Yunfeng Town!
Only after Zhou Ming had cleaned out all three town treasuries did a system chime sound in his ears.
[Because your one million gold coins were not obtained through your personal strength, they cannot be used to complete Trial of the Seven Sins: Sin of Envy!]
Zhou Ming: “…”
He knew it wouldn’t be that simple!
Good thing he had a backup plan!
Zhou Ming opened the Top-Up interface. It contained two buttons.
[Top Up] [Withdraw]
“Withdraw!”
Zhou Ming directly invoked the miraculous power that existed beyond the rules of this world.
[Your gold coins are temporarily bound and cannot be withdrawn!]
Bound?
Zhou Ming opened his inventory and checked the details.
[Gold Coins (Bound): The Light Faction is tracking the stolen gold coins. They cannot currently be withdrawn.]
“Did it fail?” Qianying asked.
“No!”
Zhou Ming narrowed his eyes. “This can work. Let’s head back first!”
“All right!”
The two quickly returned to Qingshui City.
At almost the same moment, the three Demon Gods pursuing them returned as well, none of them looking particularly pleased.
The bastard had dragged them on a wild chase, only to come right back!
Blazing Heaven Sword!
Zhou Ming brought his sword down, briefly clearing the skeleton grunts from outside the city lord’s residence before landing without trouble.
Gaibang Laoda immediately hurried over with his people.
“Sorry about that. Something came up, so I had to step out for a moment!” Zhou Ming said, positively beaming.
“Enough of your tricks!”
Gaibang Laoda charged in with his sword. “So what if you have a god-tier NPC beside you? You’re still going to die!”
MISS!
With his superior speed, Zhou Ming effortlessly evaded the attack. “I’ve seen your Talent. Now it’s time for you to see mine!”
“!!”
Gaibang Laoda’s heart tightened, and he raised his guard.
Even the gods turned their full attention toward them.
Was Zhouyou Shijie’s SSS-Rank Talent finally about to be revealed?
The amusement gradually faded from Zhou Ming’s face, leaving only cold indifference.
[You have used Sovereign’s Descent, successfully copying Gaibang Laoda’s Talent Harmony and raising its rank by 1!]
[Your Talent has transformed into King’s Way (SS Rank)!]
[King’s Way] (SS-Rank Talent): Request the blessing of living beings within a 2,000 × 2,000 area. If a living being agrees, you temporarily receive 3% of that unit’s HP, Attack, and Defense. Duration: 1 hour. Cooldown: 10 days. Note: Range increases with strength.
“King’s Way!” Zhou Ming said slowly.
Hum!
The next instant, dense, dazzling golden energy erupted from Zhou Ming and surged in every direction.
“!!!!!”
Gaibang Laoda’s pupils contracted. The sight hit him like a bolt of lightning.
He knew this move far too well!
This was…
[Zhouyou Shijie has used the Talent King’s Way to request power from all living beings within a 2,000 × 2,000 area. Will you provide assistance? Note: If you agree, he will temporarily receive a bonus equal to 3% of your All Attributes.]
Everyone: “…”
Silence!
Deathly silence!
It was as if the entire world had frozen in that instant.
…