Chapter 476

Chapter 476: Chapter 473: "Try to Be a Gentleman."Number One Player, what are you doing here? Is there anything special about this place?"

Isabella’s tone was calm as if she hadn’t noticed the current situation.

Su Ming’an approached her step by step.

"What are you trying to say?"

"I am the only person who knows that your strength hasn’t been increased fivefold," Isabella said.

Su Ming’an continued to close in on her.

"...I am a member of the Peak Alliance," she said. "We are not enemies, Su Ming’an."

As she spoke, she actually sat down on the spot, took out scattered parts from her bosom, and began to quickly piece them together.

"Click, click." Her mechanical arm made sounds as items such as rulers, magnifying glasses, and hammers emerged from it, helping her to rapidly create what was in her hands.

Su Ming’an stopped in his tracks, looking at this player who was likely to become one of the Nine Thrones of the alliance.

Before the game began, Isabella was a scientist, or rather, it would be more appropriate to call her a researcher. Though she appeared to be a young woman, her real age was over fifty. Her experience and wisdom were far richer than his.

After a series of "clicks," Isabella raised her hand, and on her palm, she supported a silver mechanical orb.

"For you," Isabella smiled, that smile unfurling on her face like a cream-white blossom, "a gift for our first meeting."

Su Ming’an didn’t move; he suspected it was a touch-activated bomb.

"The gift you have for me isn’t just this orb, is it?" Su Ming’an said.

"Hmm." Isabella’s eyes curved up slightly, combining their pure pupils and upturned shape into a strange allure. "Did you like the people I brought you?"

She had already noticed something unusual about the farm. After all, the rules this time were spoken by the boss rabbit and didn’t appear on the system panel, so there was a possibility they were made up.

After discovering the traces left by JingXue Chunzi, she had an epiphany and took the initiative to send a group of players destined to die right to Su Ming’an’s doorstep.

And sure enough, he did not fall but successfully killed them. She watched from afar, on the second floor of the foundry, as he perfectly executed the attack using Fengchang.

The Number One Player does not lose.

Although people say this opinion is blind, she believed it. She could see the confidence in the young man before her, a hidden confidence, not easily detected, but she could feel his ever-present ease of control, as if he was always effortlessly in charge.

She had seen this feeling in her students before.

Her former students had all been young talents celebrated for their early achievements, graduates of the Ivy League, full of vigor and promise, yet now they could only struggle as mid-tier Players in the instances.

Yet this seemingly ordinary youth, with an academic background, had suddenly become the top player in the world.

It was wonderful.

Her inherently curious nature drove her to explore the unknown, and her seemingly disheveled appearance was a pure expression of her spirit to seek out the unknown at all costs.

Su Ming’an kicked the mechanical orb on the ground; there were no signs of explosion. He picked it up.

[Patrol Orb (White Level): You can release the Patrol Orb to explore the area ahead of you. It automatically breaks down after its Durability is exhausted.

Durability: 100/100

Maker: Isabella

Note: A special prop produced by Isabella’s unique Occupation, can be repaired by her once Durability runs out.]

While he examined the orb, Isabella’s hand never stopped working, and after a moment, several white orbs rolled across the ground like marbles, touching the tips of his feet.

Explosion Orb (White Level): You can release the Explosion Orb to cause an explosion within a certain range, capable of destroying structures.]

Solidification Orb (White Level): You can release the Solidification Orb to combine some areas’ cracks, creating a small platform for you to stand on.]

Laser Orb (White Level): Once activated, the orb will emit laser beams towards enemies around you with you as the center, inflicting 50 fixed damage.]

A pile of mechanical orbs lay scattered on the ground, like the balls in a play area. After creating this batch, Isabella’s complexion became even paler. A lock of golden hair fell over her forehead, and her deep, Heavenly Sea-like eyes held an enchanting profundity.

Watching Su Ming’an observe the mechanical orbs, she smiled and said, "Do you like this welcome gift?"

Su Ming’an gathered all the orbs.

He realized, Isabella truly wanted to make his acquaintance. After all, she could have easily made his subsequent journey much more difficult by revealing he hadn’t been given a strength boost. But she didn’t. Instead, she took a risk to approach him proactively.

Even more so, she raised a hand high, transforming her previous action of drawing players to attack him into an "active move to present them to him," and offered a bunch of apparently valuable props as compensation. Although these mechanical orbs were all the lowest White Level, their functionality was quite practical, and making them must have also cost her.

She was using a gentle, non-objectionable method to raise his Favorability, with a level of skill that could almost rival Noel’s.

She looked at him, her eyes tender and warm, like an aged professor watching over a proud student, like an elder of a family caring for a yet-to-grow member. There was none of Mizushima Haru’s resentment in those eyes, none of the feigned Charm that Iris previously exhibited, only a lake-like calmness.

"I will use a special prop to leave this Sacrifice Field and withdraw from the competition," Isabella said. "I’ve realized that I won’t win. Don’t worry, my departure won’t affect the outcome of your victory."

"You have a lot of confidence in me?"

"Your eyes remind me of those students who made me proud," Isabella said softly. "I am willing to believe in your possibility, young Number One Player."

As she finished speaking, she smiled warmly at him, and the remote-control-like prop in her hand lit up with a white glow.

After the white light flashed, her figure disappeared, and Su Ming’an didn’t even get a chance to say an extra word to her.

Isabella was skilled at interpersonal relations, she gave him something and then left, not giving him any chance for follow-up actions, pushing the act of kindness directly into his hands.

Her attitude was neither obsequious nor servile, and she didn’t try to seduce on purpose; it was like interacting with a peer on an equal footing, like conducting a mutually beneficial trade. Even though her behavior sometimes might seem off-the-wall and her white coat looked like it hadn’t been washed for hundreds of years, the real her who manifested was independent and wise, making her hard to dislike.

Su Ming’an went to find Xiber, whom he had hidden inside a cabinet. It wasn’t until he returned to the second floor and opened the cabinet that he realized someone had covered her with a blanket and cushioned her head with a soft pillow, she was sleeping in a cordially arranged cabinet, as if she had sunk into a sweet, dark dream.

A piece of paper was laid next to her hand, bearing Isabella’s delicate handwriting.

Isabella didn’t take advantage of Xiber’s coma to harm her, instead, she added a blanket for her.

Su Ming’an glanced at the note and closed the cabinet door again, beginning to depict the altar on the second floor. seaʀᴄh thё Nôvelƒire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

Only one altar remained, and since these players were not drawing it, it was up to him, the pursuer, to personally complete it.

With the boost from Raven’s Blood, his movements were swift, and the progress of the altar was visibly increasing.

Finally, when he finished the last stroke, a brilliant red light lit up in front of him.

"Beep——" A particularly pleasant notification sound rang out.

This meant that all eight altars had been drawn. For an ordinary Ghost of Jiu Shen, this was a sign of heightened blood pressure, as the fivefold power boost was about to be ruthlessly wiped out. But for Su Ming’an... it was like the sound of heaven.

He had been waiting nearly seven hours for this sound.

Carrying Xiber on his back, he walked down the side staircase from the second floor. Not far from here was the farm’s entrance, where he could perfectly block the gate.

With his strength increased fivefold, standing at the doorway, the other players would have their pleas ignored by heaven and earth, and nobody could escape.

As he moved, he felt a surge in strength, as if the fivefold boost in his Shadow State were mainly focused on his spirit. His constantly declining sanity points immediately stabilized, and his surrounding vision brightened up in an instant. The tiniest specks of dust, small animals slowly crawling, and even ants in the soil could not escape his sight.

With his eyes open, he felt as if he saw a brand-new world, more detailed and meticulous. He had a premonition that if he, in this state, unleashed a Spatial Vibration, it would have a killing force close to that of Fengchang.

He ignited the Soul Stone of Xiber and placed it on the bracelet on his right wrist, its transparent glow illuminating his figure.

A shadow flitted through his field of view; because the other person was also holding a Soul Stone, in this Dark Forest-like farm, these two light sources were as conspicuous as pearls in the deep sea.

Su Ming’an looked up, and his visual focus instantly zoomed in, as effortlessly as through a telescope, he could see the person across a whole field. The person was clad in a tight combat suit, carrying a large gun on his back, with two daggers strapped to his leg—a player combining standard hot weapons and melee combat.

This was the former mercenary, Cyrus. Compared to the common hot weapon player, his strength was more than a notch above. Thanks to the characteristics of his occupation, he didn’t need to buy ammunition with points; mana points were enough to replenish.

Cyrus quickly took out a telescope. After confirming it was Su Ming’an, he immediately turned and fled.

He believed that even Su Ming’an, with the fivefold enhancement eliminated, was not someone he could contend with. His correct course of action should have been to unite with other Black Sheep Players and ambush Su Ming’an together.

He immediately used Remote Communication to contact other Players, while at the same moment, Su Ming’an activated the "Fixed Point Charge" Skill.

He targeted Cyrus and triggered the Skill.

The next moment, he felt as if an invisible force had violently yanked him forward, propelling him uncontrollably towards Cyrus.

Suspended in mid-air, his feet not touching the ground, he moved in a gliding motion. Due to his insufficient Agility Points, his movements were jerky, not as fast as a blink, reminiscent of a player experiencing lag and frame drops in a game, which looked somewhat comical.

Cyrus immediately turned and fired a shot, but Su Ming’an locked on to the direction of the bullet and reached out, blocking it in front of his throat.

A sensation of hot liquid melting arose in his palm as the force of the bullet was completely nullified. Under the fivefold strength bonus, even the usually underperforming nullification had reached a level that could almost destroy anything.

Cyrus found that his shot was ineffective. Su Ming’an, jerking forward in a slightly grotesque manner, kept moving towards him at a constant speed. His posture seemed laughable, but Cyrus only felt the Grim Reaper drawing near.

Just as the distance between them had shrunk to less than three meters, Cyrus heard a heavenly voice ring out.

"Don’t run! We’re here!"

His eyes lit up.

From the direction behind him, four figures were rushing over, their excited expressions clearly visible.

"Cyrus!" Cyrus suddenly burst into laughter, stopping in his tracks, "You’ve lost, Su Ming’an!"

Su Ming’an looked in their direction.

They must have just come from the direction of the Sacrifice Field, still with dark animal blood on them, all covered in grime, with no Soul Stones in hand, seeming to have had a less than pleasant night.

But at this moment, their expressions were jubilant, their footsteps swift as they walked, their figures brisk, as if they believed "the advantage is ours."

Cyrus stopped, and Leslie and Wang Chaoze, along with their three Guides, quickly gathered, surrounding Su Ming’an in an encirclement. Weapons in hand, they instantly sealed off Su Ming’an’s "retreat".

Besides the underground path, these three were the remaining Black Sheep Players.

They had labored hard, toiled away like workers to complete the Sacrifice Field, and now it was time for "harvest". Having spent the entire time drawing at the Sacrifice Field and with no time to explore the farm’s plot, they hadn’t noticed anything wrong with the Rules.

"I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time," Wang Chaoze said through gritted teeth. He still remembered the awkward moment dancing with pigs in the pigpen and had long wanted to have a word with Su Ming’an.

Now, his chance had finally arrived. He was determined to turn the tables and spare himself the humiliation from the audience that only knew how to mock.

Eight Sacrifice Fields lit up; it was the hour for the hunt!

"Ah," Su Ming’an, holding up a Soul Stone, smiled almost identically to the three men in the glow of the light.

"...I’ve been waiting for this moment, too."

He said.