Chapter 534 - Five Hundred Thirty-One:

Chapter 534: Chapter Five Hundred Thirty-One: "They Entrusted Their Lives to .Su raised his head and gazed at the sky of the First Tribe.

By his side were Bei Wang and Angelica; they had already escaped from the First Tribe, quite far from the square.

Nevertheless, the sight, visible throughout the Qiongdi, was still staggering.

Toxic rain drifted, the world a blur—like countless terrifying creatures lurking within the blackness, roaring.

Wave-like black tentacles flowed below the sky, gloomy, nauseating, evil—just one glance could cause dizziness.

Like an isolated island, a white figure dotted the darkness, at any moment to be swallowed by the black tide.

"...It’s too exaggerated." Su murmured to himself.

He had thought this instance was merely a competitive one for the Silver Star. As for its plot, it seemed inconsequential, just a struggle between the faiths of two deities.

But now, the Number One Player had shown them with facts: if they didn’t engage in the plot, everyone would truly be annihilated.

Players, usually adept at steering the narrative, could now only stand by helplessly as the story unfolded.

"We need to help Su Ming’an." Angelica said, "This is a boss battle—if he dies, Qiongdi will be destroyed."

She turned her head and saw Bei Wang beginning to dry heave; even at such a distance, the negative effects of the tentacles were still severe.

"...We can’t help." Su’s face turned pale, "Even looking at it makes us dizzy."

"Then I’m leaving." Angelica stated bluntly, "I’ll just kill myself."

...She thought, if there was no chance of winning, it was better to leave early, to avoid being metamorphosed—their mental state was already very bad.

This Eighth World... was nothing but a deception, tricking lead players into a slaughter. Many had already suffered irreparable damage.

She didn’t know why the Number One Player insisted on continuing, even though failure wouldn’t erase his strength; it was better to preserve their condition for a later instance.

Didn’t he know, this was merely a futile act of prematurely exhausting energy?

"Right." Angelica suddenly said, "Su, that Peak Alliance of yours, can you take me with you?"

"You’re interested? I remember you’re with Noel; Number One Player is likely not to invite Noel into the alliance."

"Noel will convince him." Angelica said, "Without Lv Shu interfering, the misunderstandings between them...aren’t hard to resolve."

"Huff, huff..."

Mizushima Kawa Sora struggled to crawl out of the cave, witnessing the apocalyptic scene in the sky.

Her legs had been severed by Dian Si, making it very difficult to move; she dragged her charred leg stumps out, with the purification power of the Flame of Bai Shen beginning to destroy her nerves.

She frowned, her palm coated in a layer of black mist, neatly slicing through the leg flesh that remained charged with the Flame of Bai Shen’s energy.

She looked up at the sky.

The white tentacles, like a steadfast island in the flood, collided with the towering black tentacles.

"...Is he truly becoming a god? Bai Shen, the Judicator of Whites?" she murmured, "Hasn’t he realized his name has already disappeared?"

The tribespeople beneath the firmament looked up, watching the scene in the canopy.

—It was strikingly similar to the scene five years ago when Bai Shen blocked the Canopy Curse.

Five years earlier, their Bai Shen had also appeared in such a posture, blocking a disaster enough to destroy them.

"Mom, look, it’s getting light..." Ming’an, with an ax in hand, hid in the stone house at the edge of the square, his face bearing a childlike innocent smile.

His hand was pressed against the back of the old woman’s neck, transferring the power of the Curse through the blood tie into her gaunt body.

"Ming’an, don’t let go, let’s continue the game..." the old woman softly comforted him.

The Judicator Dian Si raised up blazing white flames, incinerating the torrential poison rain.

"You—hurry and pray to Lord Bai Shen!" he shouted at the panicked tribespeople.

He deeply understood the importance of faith, and now that Lord Bai Shen had returned, he wouldn’t let Him die again like a fleeting blossom.

Noel, her long dress already torn, rushed into the tunnel, running in one direction.

At the edge of the jungle, Teacher Fang, guiding a group of children, adjusted his glasses and quietly comforted them.

Similar scenes unfolded in every corner of Qiongdi.

Beyond the screen, billions of tense viewers watched this climactic scene unfold.

Some cheered, some brimmed with confidence, some were filled with anxiety, while others maliciously anticipated a total annihilation.

Forums, discussion sections, and world chat zones were filled with heated debates, the immense information of this instance — a first-time-hosted Hundred-Person War — attracted the eyes of the world.

"After eight days, a comeback against the odds, could Number One Player truly be unbeatable?"

"——Peak competition enters the final phase! Top-ranked Players facing extermination??"

"Several surviving Players chose to quit by suicide; what does Metamorphosis really represent? With the emerging fangs of a World Replica, how can we maintain mental stability?"

"——How will the battle between the two gods end, can Qiongdi be saved? Number One Player who received the Bai Shen’s authority, will he transcend the boundaries of humanity?"

"——On the possibility of World Game Reincarnation theory!"

"——Era Transition Theory, is the World Game truly being hosted for the first time?"

Various theories circulated in public parks, taverns, and squares where people watched, each place bustling and extremely lively.

The Deity and faith discourse of Qiongdi, the Era Transition Theory, reminded people of high-dimensional beings of the World Game, alongside the current human condition.

Some experts and commentators believed that as the World Replica progressed gradually, some truths would also slowly unveil.

They firmly believed that, over time, with human Wisdom and creativity, they would one day unearth the secrets behind this game.

Outside the Canopy, the life Curse quieted down again after the stimulation from Jiu Shen ceased.

The tentacles that were slaughtering tribe members outside Stone Fortress were forcibly pulled back within the brilliant duo’s Shield.

High Tower Invitation prevented the Jiu Shen from slaughtering the tribespeople.

Beneath the barrier of the High Tower Invitation,

was the forced duel to the death between the black and white deities, arguing over the theory of Age.

In front of Su Ming’an, the black tentacles had grown into a giant tree touching the sky, each tentacle wrapping around to form layers of bark outside the main tree. Inside the heart of the tree, Jiu Shen watched him coldly.

Due to the High Tower Invitation’s compulsory duel effect, He could no longer attack the tribespeople; his only target within the barrier was Su Ming’an.

"At the end of every epoch, when I am about to destroy them, there is always someone like you who, not knowing whether they are alive or dead, wishes to stop me," Jiu Shen said.

"You underestimate the weight of a civilization," Su Ming’an said, "Civilizations have their origins, birth, development, and destruction dictated by fate. Even if the world perishes as a result, it is all part of the natural order. To start the next epoch at the cost of all beings from the previous epoch, disregarding the will of these beings, is merely a caprice of your position as a deity."

"Swoosh!"

Jiu Shen no longer spoke. His tentacles, like those of a python, lunged forward, and Su Ming’an propped up a barrier with one hand to protect himself.

"Clang——!"

The tentacles created several spider-web-like cracks, but his barrier was not shattered by a single blow.

With that strike, Su Ming’an confirmed that Jiu Shen’s strength had not fully recovered.

Even though Xiber provided Him with faith through the repeated reincarnations, after all, it was just the strength of one person. Jiu Shen had awakened in haste, also out of fear that Su Ming’an would become Bai Shen and wanting to eliminate a threat. He was not truly in his best state.

Facing the omnipresent tentacles, Su Ming’an clung to the barrier while counting down, starting to switch states.

The mobility in the Shadow State was too poor, and Spatial Displacement was hard to execute among the tentacles; Spatial Vibration could also not deal effective damage to Jiu Shen with a combat power of 4500. Thus, he decided it would be better to switch to the Bright State, which was sufficiently strong in physical strength and power, to focus on defense and look for an opportunity.

After the five seconds of countdown, he distinctly felt a significant enhancement in his physical attributes, and the boost from Swordsmanship Mastery was already in place.

He glanced below, and to his surprise, the tribespeople had not fled.

On the contrary, in striking uniformity, they kneeled on both knees, closed their eyes, and prayed softly, drawing the entire square into a solemn, dignified, and sacred atmosphere.

In the past, the emergence of the rules of faith broke the disparagement people had for daydreaming.

It seemed as though as long as one fantasized with enough conviction and with devout faith, people could actually realize their "fantasies."

Hence, the people of Qiongdi enjoyed themselves and even formed "daydreaming" as the ruling class, with praying rituals, shamanic methods, and tribal beliefs, taking pride in this.

Looking at it now, all of this was not without value.

—This was a world’s unique way of survival.

Unlike modern people who advocate scientific concepts, the people of Qiongdi regarded faith as something as ordinary as eating and drinking. It was inseparable from their spirit and an integral part of their humanity.

Perhaps they would be controlled, used by those with intentions, and be branded as ignorant, but compared to other worlds’ ways of survival, it had no superiority or inferiority.

Simply survival.

—It had more legitimacy than any so-called ideology.

At that moment, standing high in the sky, Su Ming’an could very clearly sense the faith power coming from all directions.

There were old people, middle-aged folks, wives worried about their husbands, and mothers longing for their children.

Praying for the future of Qiongdi, for the missing loved ones, for the distant mighty deity, for vanquishing curses and disasters...

They turned into emotion value, merging into his own value, becoming a power at his disposal—allowing him to wield this faith-forged scepter and slash at the deity intent on destroying Qiongdi.

It seemed as though all of Qiongdi was sharing his destiny. The desires in the tribespeople’s hearts, the prayer words from their mouths, rang in his ears like the pealing of bells and drums.

Due to the indoctrination of faith and sect, their ideologies and willpower at this moment were more firm, more unified, and more powerful than those of any other world.

No one chose to flee, no one chose to evade disaster. Not a single person, unlike a Player scurrying away while clutching their head, kneeled in devotion, bowed their spines, offered their wholehearted enthusiasm, and turned a deaf ear to the danger around.

—They entrusted their lives to their .

"Crack," a bone-snapping sound echoed as Su Ming’an’s sword-wielding right hand was shattered by a tentacle.

He had been maintaining a defensive position, shrinking at the very edge of the barrier. Restricted from attacking his target, the impatient Jiu Shen sought only to destroy him, unleashing countless attacks like whips made of vines, forcing him to block only those tentacles aiming for his vital points.

With his palm fractured and his sword shattered, he stepped back, exposing his chest.

"Swoosh!"

An exceptionally sharp tentacle thrust forward violently, and he did not dodge, allowing it to pierce through his chest.

The next moment, a golden radiance shone, withdrawing the tentacle; it repaired Su Ming’an’s wound and, with a particularly fierce thrust, lunged at Jiu Shen.

Lasting Radiance, Damage Transfer.

The tentacle-formed black tree trembled violently as if it had been gravely injured, but Su Ming’an was not too pleased.

For above it, there was still a full line of health.

A potentially fatal blow to the chest could only inflict one-twentieth of Jiu Shen’s health in damage, and further attacks were even less likely.

Su Ming’an had run out of moves.

fighting 4500 was almost an impossible victory to achieve; he wasn’t like the protagonist in an action anime who could burst through such a large gap in strength. With so many layers of tentacles, it was impossible to strike effectively; he couldn’t defeat the opponent.

Moreover, his SAN value had already dropped from healthy to a perilous 50 points, continuing to decrease with such close contact with the tentacles.

He glanced at his Emotion Value.

The faith of the entire Qiongdi provided him with a rapid increase in Emotion Value.

In this moment, he knew it was time to take a gamble.

Far from retreating, he surged forward, using Spatial Displacement to reach the surface of the tentacle.

Covering his still-mobile left hand with Erasure, he plunged it deep into the layers of tentacles, reaching for the heart of the tree—

He didn’t believe this entity was invincible; Jiu Shen was too heavily guarded with tentacles, and something crucial had to be inside.

"Puff, puff, puff!" Several tentacles pierced his body, but they didn’t reduce his health; he was already using the Otherworldly Notes of the Knight of Light, granting him ten seconds of invincibility.

Jiu Shen immediately tried to push him away, but the tentacles were severed by a sudden appearance of a black blade light.

Three minutes had passed, the High Tower Invitation concluded automatically, allowing others to join the battle.

The young shaman dressed in a pale, stern-looking ritual garb stepped into the barrier, cutting through the numerous tentacles trying to push Su Ming’an away.

Now that he had surrendered the Black Python Authority, his strength was greatly reduced; even swinging his blade was somewhat strenuous.

The invincible Su Ming’an was untouchable by the tentacles, which then turned their attack towards him, shooting towards him like a storm, intending to impale him like a hedgehog.

"What are you doing here!" Su Ming’an immediately recognized the sudden appearance of Fengchang. Now in the midst of gods battling, Fengchang’s arrival was akin to marching to his death.

"...Give it to me." Fengchang extended his hand towards Su Ming’an.