Chapter 79
Chapter 79
[Sin of Wrath]
Trial Requirement: Reach 100,000 Infamy. Those killed must not willingly allow themselves to die. (Current: 3,415/100,000)
Time Limit: 3 days
Trial Reward: ???
Failure Penalty: Level -30, All Attributes -1,000
Zhou Ming sucked in a sharp breath the moment he saw the requirement.
He had only accumulated a few thousand Infamy in total so far, yet the Sin of Wrath demanded one hundred thousand right from the start!
What did one hundred thousand Infamy even mean?
Since passive counterattacks did not increase Infamy, completing the requirement involved far more than merely killing one hundred thousand people.
Worse, the clause stating that those killed could not willingly allow themselves to die prevented him from cheating by paying players to feed him kills.
“I’ll have to kill at least a hundred and fifty thousand adventurers…”
Zhou Ming frowned deeply.
The number was horrifying!
Even if it were nothing more than mowing grass, cutting down that many targets would be no easy task. Players would run the moment they realized they could not win. Why would they stand still and wait for death?
“If Infamy is all you need, killing residents of your own faction will grant it too, and each kill will award far more,” Qianying suggested thoughtfully, having vaguely guessed what the next stage of his trial might require.
Killing adventurers increased Infamy because both sides belonged to the same faction. But because adventurers could resurrect, each one was worth only a single point.
“I see!”
Zhou Ming fell into thought, a possible solution beginning to form.
It was not that he lacked the ability to kill over a hundred thousand players. The hard part was gathering that many in one place for him to slaughter. It would be best to combine several sources of Infamy.
“There’ll be a way when the time comes. That’s enough for today!” Zhou Ming stopped dwelling on the problem and took a skill book from his inventory. “Xiaoyou, give this a tap!”
Xuanniao’s Super Lucky Star was undeniably powerful, but unfortunately, it could only be used once per day.
That meant Zhou Ming’s enhancement schedule was packed for a long time to come, with different items waiting their turn in orderly succession.
Xiaoyou understood. It lightly tapped the skill book with one wing.
“Ding!”
[Under the effect of your Celestial Spirit Beast · Xiaoyou’s Super Lucky Star, your item Command (Rare S Rank) has advanced to Rare SS Rank!]
[Command] (Command Skill) (Rare SS Rank)
Description: Those who obey my command shall sweep all before them and win the battle in a single stroke.
Effect 1: When issuing orders to allied forces, those who obey gain 20% All Attributes. (Exact effect depends on the difference in combat power between both sides.)
Effect 2: Gain All Attributes based on the number of allied units obeying the command, up to a maximum increase of 150%.
Effect 3: The command can be heard across the entire battlefield with no range limit.
Cooldown: None
Ridiculously powerful!
After advancing to Rare SS Rank, Command had grown significantly stronger and gained an extremely useful third effect.
Large-scale battles were deafening and chaotic, filled with the roar of combat. Even if a commander issued an order, troops too far away could not possibly hear it. The third effect eliminated that problem entirely, allowing Zhou Ming to enforce unified commands and coordinated action across his whole army.
Without hesitation, Zhou Ming slapped a hand against the skill book.
“Ding!”
[Congratulations! You have learned Command (Rare SS Rank)!]
After learning the skill, Zhou Ming said good night to Qianying and Xuanniao. He was about to open the system panel and log out when the undead wandering nearby suddenly erupted into a frenzy.
“Kekekeke…”
Every Undead Swordsman began rasping without pause, as though some unknown force were calling to them.
What was happening?
Zhou Ming’s heart tightened. He looked into the distance and faintly saw a dazzling, sinister red glow to the northwest. The light was far from the Blighted Swamp, yet still visible from here.
Whoosh!
The red light suddenly shot into the sky, becoming even more conspicuous.
As one, the Undead Swordsmen rushed toward it. They even broke free of the map’s boundaries and headed straight for the source.
“That’s… the direction of Juyan City!” Qianying said. “A powerful figure inside the city is summoning the undead creatures in the surrounding region to gather before them!”
“Juyan City?”
Zhou Ming raised an eyebrow, opened the Demon God Rankings, and immediately understood. “So one of the top three Demon Gods really did come!”
Not every Demon God could summon mindless undead. This was practically an open declaration that the one behind the phenomenon was the Dark Faction’s third Demon God, Undead Archmage · Eric!
And since Zhou Ming was about to lead an army against the city, this disturbance had clearly been created specifically to counter him.
Once he understood the truth, Zhou Ming was not particularly surprised. He calmly logged out.
If none of the top three Demon Gods had appeared, capturing Juyan City would truly have posed no challenge whatsoever.
Meanwhile, above Juyan City, a crimson pillar of light churned the clouds. Undead creatures poured in from every direction, awaiting orders.
Above the gate tower stood a creature in a black cloak, raising a staff with a withered, blackened skeletal hand. This was the one who had unleashed the pillar.
The gale generated by the energy swept back the top of the cloak, revealing a black skull with purple soul fire blazing inside.
[Undead Archmage · Eric] (God-Tier Boss)
With the ritual complete, Eric lowered the staff and said flatly, “Juyan City should have enough defenders now.”
“As expected of the third Demon God. Your powers are extraordinary!” A man in blue armor praised from behind. It was Lin Tao, who had brought a letter from his master to invite the Undead Archmage here.
Eric showed no emotion. “We have the numbers, but the quality is still lacking. They may not be enough to deal with Zhouyou Shijie.”
Quality?
Lin Tao froze. “Then what should we do?”
Eric considered the question for a moment, then silently turned toward Lin Tao. The soul fire inside the skull flickered, as if a wonderful idea had just occurred.
“Take off your clothes and let me have a look.”
Lin Tao experienced unprecedented terror. Trembling, he backed away again and again. “W-what are you planning to do?”
“Relax. Your master and I are acquainted. I won’t make things difficult for you. I merely intend to grant you a tremendous opportunity!”
“Lord Eric, please let me go!”
“…Do you prefer to be the active one, or the passive one?”
Zhou Ming knew nothing about what was happening in Juyan City. After logging out, he had a late-night snack, washed up, and went peacefully to sleep.
The following day was the day before the siege.
Zhou Ming filled his stomach with three steamed buns and a cup of soy milk, then logged back in to continue the grind.
White light scattered around him as he appeared in the now-empty Blighted Swamp.
Clearly, after the Undead Archmage summoned them all away, the Undead Swordsmen would not respawn here for some time.
Left with no choice, Zhou Ming quickly changed grinding spots and began hunting Level 85 Demonized Apes.
Compared to the Undead Swordsmen, Demonized Apes had much higher Defense. Although the level gap was even greater, his efficiency remained about the same.
Zhou Ming spent the entire day on monotonous grinding.
The results, however, were remarkable.
In little more than ten hours, he gained five levels and reached Level 57. His leveling speed had not slowed despite the rising EXP requirements. If anything, it had increased.
Beep, beep!
Near midnight, a notification sounded from Zhou Ming’s friends list. He opened it and found a message from Tingfeng Xiyu.
“Brother, check the forum!”
…