Volume 5 Chapter 3: Discussion

“It was that purple tower shield!” Hill laughed. “After the lock skill triggered, there were actually no traps left on the purple tower shield. But among our spoils, both this purple tower shield and that green parrot staff were too conspicuous. We couldn’t offload them at the auction house and had to sell them off cheaply to Mr. and Mrs. Sas!”

“Those two pigs of Esmira probably thought we were using those two pieces of equipment to win them over, so they’d help us get through the next Quest World!” Hansen scoffed scornfully. “They completely failed to realize that if we had the strength to get equipment of this level, why would we sacrifice gains just to win them over?”

“Haha! We stipulated in the contract that the transaction would be completed only after entering the Quest World. So they had no choice but to follow us in!” Hill sighed with a hint of regret. “To avoid attracting bidders, they had to keep the deal a secret. They also helped eliminate a risk for us!”

“I still have a question. Since they locked onto your Apostle Soul Mark, why didn’t they strike while we were in Shattered Starry Sky?” Qin Lun inquired, puzzled.

“Haha! It’s not that they didn’t want to, they couldn’t!” Hill shook his head, explaining. “We looked into intelligence on that kind of lock skill. All skills that directly lock onto an Apostle Soul Mark are suppressed by the Shattered Starry Sky until they surpass S-rank. Only under special conditions can the user gain their target’s precise location.”

“Could it be… during the space-time transfer?” A thought struck Qin Lun.

“Hmm, during space-time transfer, the Shattered Laws experience a brief relaxation. The Apostle using the lock skill then gets the enemy’s transfer coordinates. By paying some cost, they can then use those coordinates to enter the hostile Apostle’s Quest World.” Hill explained seriously.

“If they locked onto your Apostle Soul Mark, wouldn’t giving the purple shield to the Sases be rather useless?” Qin Lun cautiously probed.

“No, it did work. Space-time transfer annihilates most of the lock effect’s efficiency. They get only a rough area, not a specific individual. Moreover, once we return successfully and undergo another transfer, this lock will be completely removed!” Hansen added with a detached air.

“If that’s true, to conceal yourselves, you probably didn’t deliberately seek information on the enemy either, should you?” Qin Lun rubbed his eyelids, asking calmly.

“Well, we…” Hill started to answer but suddenly looked alert. “Qin Lun, have you discovered something? We’re all in this together now. Even if those enemies mistake Mr. and Mrs. Sas for the culprits, they definitely won’t spare anyone else in the team. Speak plainly if you have thoughts!”

“You two idiots, if you weren’t so fixated on harming others, you’d have noticed this ages ago!” Qin Lun mocked mercilessly. “Think carefully about the information Shattered Starry Sky gave. Nals World is a Mid-Magic World! Our team consists of only three untransformed Junior Apostles and two aspiring Professional Apostles. Such strength, even combined with the enemy team, resulted in Shattered Starry Sky calculating the Apostles’ average power as fitting a Mid-Magic World. What do you think that tells us about our opponents?”

The black SUV fell silent. Hill and Hansen’s expressions shifted violently; momentarily lost for words, the atmosphere turned heavy. Human power has its limits. Even the sharpest mind and fiercest spirit will be crushed into nothingness by an overwhelming gap in strength.

“…No wonder I felt something was off. Previously, our very first trial Quest World didn’t even weaken the pain sensation or enhance the Law Body. Yet this time…” Hansen’s expression turned grim. “That suggests our opponents are at least a mid-level team. There might even appear second-tier high-grade or third-tier early stage High-Rank Apostles!”

“That’s one possibility. Of course, there’s another. High-ranking Apostles might not all be among our mortal enemies!” An inexplicable gleam suddenly flashed in Hill’s eye. “Our world scenario underwent a mode change. Originally a Kill Mode, meaning Nals World would have two opposing factions. After the change, it’s now Team Competition Mode, suggesting that one faction or all factions will have competing teams…”

“Different factions’ Apostle teams, competing teams within the same faction… In other words, there will be at least three teams, possibly more, in this Quest World!” Qin Lun narrowed his eyes slightly.

“This is exhilarating!” Hansen licked his lips, gripping the steering wheel tightly as a bloody glint faded from his eyes.

As the three conversed, the silver sedan and black SUV moved from the city outskirts into the heart of the town. Vehicles and pedestrians began to increase on the roads.

“Such a beautiful world!” Hill sincerely admired, looking out at the colorful shops and various-looking pedestrians lining the streets.

“Hill, don’t you find Earth Federation’s towering vertical cities and the expansive aerial roadways far more spectacular?” Qin Lun heard him and curiously asked.

“Earth Federation? Hmph!” Hill seemed emotional as he sneered coldly. “Qin Lun, have you ever experienced long stretches without a single ray of sunlight?”

“Of course. Before the Handan Prison… compromise, I spent nearly a year locked alone in a pitch-black solitary confinement cell.” Qin Lun arched an eyebrow and replied impassively.

“Then what about never seeing sunlight in your lifetime? Living eternally like rats in messy garbage piles?” Hansen, who was driving, flashed a sharp glance, grinning wickedly as he asked. “In those vertical metropolises, the skyscrapers are hundreds of floors high. The lower hundred floors is the slum zone, forever devoid of sunlight. Dark heaps of garbage, illuminated only by neon lights, blanket everything, trapping the city’s filthiest, most foul air!”

“The average lifespan for Federation citizens reaches two hundred. In the slums? Barely forty! Know why Federation special officers never catch guys like Hansen? Because down in those lower hundred floors, even the most advanced laser cameras can’t clearly capture anything beyond a hundred meters!” Hill stated flatly.

“The Federation special agency files logged only forty-six murder cases tied to me. The actual number exceeds two hundred.” Hansen said calmly. “Qin Lun, do you know why? Because targets in the slums? I never charge a fee. To special officers, in the slums, they find only corpses. No bank transfers, no trace of suspects.”

Hansen cast a flat look at Shepherd Hill in the back seat. “Everyone knows the Shepherd is an old cannibal freak. But does anyone remember that Hill is the only Catholic priest to have opened a church below level one hundred?”

“Hansen, you’ve said enough!” Hill’s gaze flickered for a moment. “I opened that church down there just to hide from God’s watchful eye. Made sneaking around easier, that’s all.”

“Heh heh, right, right! How did those wealthy sheep wandering down to the slums taste now and then? Special flavor, wasn’t it?” Hansen leered maliciously at Hill, cracking a cruel jest.

The three occupants in the vehicle gradually lost interest in conversation, turning silently to look out at the peaceful, bustling street scenes passing by the window.

Just then, the silver sedan leading the way suddenly swerved, driving into an underground parking lot.

“Mr. Sas, we’re not heading straight to the police station?” Hill stepped out of the SUV, smiling as he asked.

“No, the owner of that villa might return anytime. We cannot drive vehicles like these straight to the station!” Sas frowned, his tone impatient. “We’ll find somewhere to stay first and make some preparations.”

Cora glanced at her husband and explained, “Shattered Starry Sky registered our identities in Massay State. While flawless, it’s safer to contact the Massay State authorities before going to the Louis State police station! Otherwise, failing to get the Crystal Lake files might end with us trapped inside the police station.”

Qin Lun and the other two exchanged looks. Letting Mr. and Mrs. Sas lead was indeed correct. No matter their intelligence, they couldn’t deeply grasp the police force’s standard procedures like the Sases.

After settling in at a hotel in Crystal Lake City, Cora took Qin Lun and Hill to the police station. The identities Shattered Starry Sky provided weren’t all Massay State detectives. Only Cora and Qin Lun had detective status; Hill was given a consultant profile.

As for the tall, imposing Sas and Hansen, they were assigned roles as friends and relatives of the missing John family. They spent their time surfing the Web for Crystal Lake area news reports while the others visited the station.

Crystal Lake City was the capital of Louis State, though it wasn’t large, only slightly bigger than a town. In fact, Louis State had no major cities at all, being primarily a scenic tourist area. Crystal Lake itself was a vast freshwater lake, the core of this scenic region, taking up 45% of Louis State’s territory. The entire lake area was encircled by forest and marshland.

The John couple’s disappearance site – the Crystal Lake Campground – was merely a small part of the scenic area and, crucially, a forbidden zone. Over the years, multiple bizarre murders had occurred there. The Louis State government eventually shut it down, erecting warning waymarks and barbed wire fencing.

As time passed, groups of skeptical young people inevitably ventured in to explore. Some came out unscathed; others, like the Johns, met grisly deaths or vanished inexplicably.

“Excuse me, is Chief Marov in? I’m Detective Castro from Massay State. This is my partner Detective Rowling and Consultant Hans.” Qin Lun walked up to the reception desk at the Crystal Lake City police station, pulling out his credentials.

“Oh, Detective Castro!” The older officer at the desk took the documents, scanning them briefly with a thoughtful expression. “Chief Marov just stepped out on a call. He might not be back for a while. If you don’t mind, you could wait at your place? We’ll notify you immediately when he returns!”

“No. Tell him we’ll go directly to the site where Chief Marov is responding. Request that he send someone to guide us there!” Cora instantly instructed Qin Lun via the Team Channel.

“No, sir. I feel we must see the Chief immediately,” Qin Lun insisted, locking eyes with the receptionist cop.

“Okay then!” A hint of shadow flickered in the old policeman’s eyes before he finally turned and called out, “Michelle! Come here! Guide these officers from Massay State to Chief Marov!”