Chapter 231: Handing In the Quest
Chapter 231: Handing In the Quest
Kui Bao looked utterly ragged.
The leather armor he wore was mostly torn and close to falling off. His arms, chest, abdomen, and thighs were covered in long, raked claw marks, with flesh torn open and wounds everywhere.
The eyepatch over his face was gone, revealing a raw, empty socket covered in sweat and blood.
This warrior had clearly been through a brutal fight.
But his wide-eyed, dumbfounded look seemed kind of ridiculous.
Kui Bao couldn’t believe his eyes. Back then, the situation was so dangerous. He had fought desperately for his life, barely escaping death only by relying on his years of adventure experience and a good dose of luck.
How could Gao Jing, who was just a rookie adventurer, be standing here perfectly fine?
In response to his question, Gao Jing gave a cold nod. “Yes.”
When they first met, Gao Jing had actually liked this one-eyed warrior, which is why he joined his team.
Who would have thought that at the critical moment, Kui Bao showed his true colors, ditching his teammates to save himself.
He had shown no courage or sense of responsibility as a captain!
Now, Gao Jing only saw Kui Bao alone; the other companions were nowhere in sight, likely already met a grim fate.
How could Gao Jing feel even a shred of goodwill towards him now?
Frankly, not turning hostile immediately was already Gao Jing being very polite!
“Gao Jing, I honestly didn’t expect things to turn out like this.”
Kui Bao looked awkward and flustered. A flash of shame and annoyance crossed his one eye as he explained hastily. “Don’t blame me. This quest was way too hard for someone at our rank. We should be demanding answers from Iron Furnace Abyssal City and the Yuancheng Alliance.”
Gao Jing, however, completely ignored him. He walked straight up to a Yuancheng Alliance clerk and asked, “When will the Spirit-Powered Railcar back to Blackwater City arrive?”
The clerk was busy handling complaints from several adventurers, looking thoroughly overwhelmed.
Hearing Gao Jing, he replied without turning his head. “Probably around forty to fifty minutes still.”
One “moment” in the Great World was about ten minutes.
That meant the next railcar wouldn’t come for nearly an hour.
Thinking it over, Gao Jing asked another question. “So, for the Ruined City exploration quest, do I hand it in at the Alliance Branch back in Blackwater City?”
He was new to being an adventurer and had never taken a quest before, so he wasn’t sure how things worked.
Seeing the Alliance staff were here, he figured he’d ask.
The clerk looked astonished. “You completed it?”
He forgot about the other adventurers instantly, turning to stare at Gao Jing. “The exploration quest for Ruined City requires at least ten low-grade Tears of the Undead. You gathered enough?”
Unexpected trouble had happened in the Senluo Ruins City today. Many adventurers on the quest ended up trapped inside. Getting out alive was already lucky; very few actually completed the quest.
Gao Jing only wore a third-level insignia and really looked like a novice.
The clerk found it hard to believe Gao Jing had succeeded.
But he still said, “If you have enough, you can hand it in right here.”
For big quests like these, to make things easier, the Yuancheng Alliance often set up outposts near the quest sites. They provided supplies, healing, and quest-handling services.
This was basically a temporary service area, which was why Alliance staff were present.
“Alright then.”
Gao Jing pulled out a leather pouch packed with Tears of the Undead and handed it over. “I’m handing in my quest.”
“This much?” The clerk gasped in surprise.
He quickly took the pouch and addressed the annoyed adventurers beside him. “I need to handle this member’s quest submission now. I’ll make sure to pass all your complaints up faithfully.”
The adventurers exchanged uncertain looks.
Even though they were bursting with complaints, they couldn’t interrupt someone turning in a quest without breaking serious rules.
After all, they were all fellow members of the Yuancheng Alliance.
The clerk sighed inwardly with relief, then poured the contents of the pouch onto the table.
Whoosh—
Hundreds of faintly glowing crystals spilled out, covering nearly half the tabletop.
Instantly, many eyes turned towards them from the surroundings.
Many adventurers who had been arguing with the nearby guards suddenly went quiet, staring in shock at the Tears of the Undead on the table.
Not only had they gained nothing inside the Senluo Ruins City, they’d nearly lost their lives.
Their hearts were filled with frustration.
Now, seeing this single fellow adventurer produce such a huge pile of loot, they were all completely speechless!
These Tears of the Undead resembled pumpkin seeds, varying slightly in size. Most were grayish-white, with some milky-white ones too.
The milky-white tears were one grade higher than the grayish-white and could be traded for more contribution points.
Everyone was stunned. How could a mere third-level adventurer have gathered so many Tears of the Undead?
Surprise, doubt, envy, jealousy…
A myriad of strange glances flickered between Gao Jing and the gleaming stones on the table.
Watching from behind the crowd, Kui Bao felt his heart bleed with envy and was utterly sick with regret.
If only he’d known Gao Jing had such ability!
Why did he have to play the foolish villain?
Meanwhile, the Yuancheng Alliance clerk felt a hidden sense of satisfaction. Look at him!
They themselves weren’t strong enough, yet they pushed all the blame onto the Yuancheng Alliance. See? Now they have nothing more to say?
He finished counting the Tears of the Undead on the table. “267 First-Grade Tears of the Undead, 39 Second-Grade. Would you like compensation in silver coin or Alliance contribution points?”
Gao Jing answered without hesitation. “Convert it all into contribution points.”
Contribution points could be exchanged at the Alliance for potion ingredients, weapons, armor, Totem Combat Arts, and more.
He didn’t lack money, so points were the obvious choice.
The clerk picked up a rune-inscribed stone slab. “Please hand me your insignia.”
Gao Jing took off the Alliance insignia hanging on his chest and gave it over.
The clerk pressed the insignia onto the stone slab. A bright radiance shone out from within the runes.
After a few moments, the light faded. He returned the insignia to Gao Jing. “A total of 3,550 contribution points. There’s also a task reward of one hundred silver coins. You’ll need to claim those at an Alliance Branch. The points are recorded now though.”
One First-Grade Tear of the Undead was worth ten points. A Second-Grade was worth twenty. Adding the hundred-point quest completion bonus, 3,550 was correct.
Gao Jing nodded. “Thanks.”
After speaking, he turned and walked away without another word.
Seeing Gao Jing leave, Kui Bao ducked his head and hid deeper in the crowd.
As the adventuring party’s former captain, technically he could have stepped forward demanding a share of Gao Jing’s quest rewards.
But doing so wouldn’t just anger Gao Jing completely – it would lay bare his cowardly act of abandoning his teammates.
The consequences wouldn’t be worth it at all.
Kui Bao now fervently hoped Gao Jing wouldn’t speak out about what happened. If this got known, his reputation within the Yuancheng Alliance would be trash. No one would ever team up with him again.
The more Kui Bao thought about it, the deeper his regret welled. He felt like gouging out his remaining eye out of sheer frustration!
But right now, it was far, far too late for regrets.