Chapter 661: Huangfu Lin
Translator:EndlessFantasy Translation
Editor:EndlessFantasy Translation
After hanging up the call with Yao Lan, Lin Huang returned to his hotel and logged in to the Genius Union again.
On the Stairway Tree, the notice from the Emperor's Heart had become the focus of the public, and a majority of them believed the investigation result of the Emperor's Heart as it had never made a false judgment. Therefore, the discussion shifted from how Lin Xie cheated yesterday to how Lin Xie managed to gather 8 million points in a day.
Lin Huang did not pay much attention to it. As soon as he returned to the Stairway Tree, he summoned the Mighty Ape and began another round of climbing up the stairway.
The difficulty was much higher for him to get from the 31st checkpoint to the 40th checkpoint as he was attacked by immortal-level rank-5 worm monsters. Lin Huang took about 50 minutes to pass through each checkpoint. Once he reached the 40th checkpoint, he spent exactly an hour and a half to complete it. Upon reaching the 41st checkpoint, it was already 6 p.m. so Lin Huang did not continue, and logged out of virtual reality.
"The difficulty level is getting higher. My Mighty Ape is no longer effective from the 36th checkpoint onward. Fortunately, I still have Tyrant and I should be able to handle it…" As he exited the virtual reality, he looked rather flustered.
He had encountered various extreme conditions on the Stairway Tree. Each level felt difficult for him, and the difficulty was comparable to the training given by Mr. Fu.
"The difficulty level from the 31st checkpoint to the 39th checkpoint is designed for those at immortal-level rank-6 while for the 40th checkpoint required one to possess the ability of someone at immortal-level rank-7. Due to the increasing difficulty, it might be difficult for me to get to the 50th checkpoint…" Lin Huang knew himself quite well. Although he had well-rounded abilities, his physique was much weaker compared to others on immortal-level rank-7 or rank-8. The Stairway Tree did not only assess one's abilities but took stock of every aspect.
Most people get stuck on the 63rd checkpoint because the use of Life Power was prohibited. It was simply a test of one's physique, and cheating would not be possible. Naturally, this information was gleaned from Zhao San. He did not ask for the exact information but he knew that if his Life Power was restrained, it would be impossible for him to get through that.
After having his dinner, Lin Huang did not slack. Instead, he continued practicing Army Attack Tactics until it was slightly after 11 p.m. before he went to bed.
The next morning, he logged into Genius Union and continued climbing the Stairway Tree.
There was a rapid increase in the difficulty beginning from the 41st checkpoint. It took Lin Huang an hour and fifty minutes to get through the 41st checkpoint. From the 42nd to the 44th checkpoint, he took about two hours to get through each checkpoint, and only barely managed to get past the 45th checkpoint after two and a half hours.
There was a branch on the Stairway Tree's 46th checkpoint. It was the third gathering point after the 21st and 34th checkpoint.
After passing through the 45th checkpoint, Lin Huang did not continue. He had originally planned to ascend from a random point on the 46th checkpoint. However, Yao Lan sent him a message telling him that Huangfu Lin had arrived at the Sweep City so he logged out of virtual reality through a crack in the bark in the Stairway Tree.
Since a notice had been issued by the Emperor's Heart to address Lin Huang's matter, the others had been putting less focus on him. However, there was still a number of people who checked on Lin Huang's status every day.
The news about Lin Huang being on the 46th checkpoint already to most of the people at the gathering point.
Many of them wanted to challenge him. Since he was now a popular person, anyone who managed to kill him would obtain more than four million points.
Many of them had thought about this earlier when they were on the 33rd checkpoint. However, Lin Huang did not even stay at the 33rd checkpoint yesterday as he managed to get to the 41st checkpoint. At this moment, he was taking a break on the 46th checkpoint. To many of the other people, it was a good chance to rob him.
Since he was logged out of virtual reality, Lin Huang had no idea that he had caught the attention of so many people. After changing his clothes, he went to the Sweep Gourmet.
After sitting in room No.301 for about three minutes, Yao Lan, Huangfu Hao, and a tall lady in a white top and black pants came in.
The lady had waist-length black hair and she looked pretty yet cool. Although she managed to restrain her aura well, Lin Huang could still vaguely feel that she was intimidating.
Lin Huang knew that she must be the Sweep Alliance's chief, Huangfu Lin.
Just as he was checking her out, she was checking him out as well.
"Ms. Lin, he's Lin Xie." Yao Lan introduced with a smile, "Lin Xie, the pretty girl standing next to me is the chief of Sweep Alliance, Huangfu Lin."
"Hello, nice to meet you." Lin Huang stood up and shook hands with her.
After greeting each other, all three sat down.
As usual, Yao Lan was the one who ordered the dishes. It seemed like Huangfu Hao was rather reserved since he remained silent when he met his sister.
Lin Huang was not close with Huangfu Lin so he kept quiet as well.
Instead, Huangfu Lin started a conversation with Lin Huang, "I actually wanted to talk to you two days ago but you didn't answer my call."
"Two days ago?" Lin Huang was stunned and immediately recalled what happened back then. "Is that your number? I thought someone called the wrong number so I didn't call back."
"It's okay. Sometimes it's better to talk face to face." Huangfu Lin nodded her head and immediately said, "I heard it from Xiao Lan that you didn't ask for the strategy of the Stairway Tree?"
"Yes." Lin Huang nodded. "It's more interesting to pass through each checkpoint on my own."
"Does it mean that you're now on the 46th checkpoint but you knew nothing about each checkpoint while you were going through them?" Huangfu Lin asked.
"When I was on the 21st checkpoint, I overheard the strategy for several checkpoints but I didn't ask for a more detailed description of the checkpoints." Lin Huang nodded his head and admitted.
"Why do you want to do so? Isn't it much easier if you know how each checkpoint is supposed to be?" Huangfu Lin frowned.
"Climbing the stairway is like practice to me. It depends on how well-trained we are. That, will determine how far we'll be able to go. It's a natural thing. Don't take completing each checkpoint as a goal and attempt to achieve checkpoints that are beyond one's ability." Lin Huang explained.
After listening to what Lin Huang said, Huangfu Lin, Huangfu Hao, and Yao Lan remained silent.
"I believe that you didn't cheat." Huangfu Lin sized him up and said. "A person who says this will definitely not cheat for the sake of getting more points."
"Thank you." Lin Huang did not thank her for the compliment. Instead, it was because she could understand him.
"What do you feel about Sweep Alliance?" What Huangfu Lin asked had caught Yao Lan and Huangfu Hao's attention, shifting their focus to Lin Huang.
"It's good." Lin Huang had nothing to comment on since he had just joined the Sweep Alliance for a few days. Aside from Yao Lan and Huangfu Hao, he was not close with the rest of them.
"I'm a straightforward person. To be frank, the Sweep Alliance is not for you." Huangfu Hao and Yao Lan were stunned as they heard what Huangfu Lin just said. This also caused Lin Huang to frown.
"Sis Lin, you..." Huangfu Lin immediately interrupted, "The Sweep Alliance resembles a fish pond in the Genius Union. However, you aren't a small fish. You're a fish that has grown up. You can only become successful by living in a big ocean where the likes of the Heaven Alliance, Hong Alliance, and Tang Alliance are at."
"You're not strong enough now so the Sweep Alliance can indeed be helpful to you. However, as your combat strength gradually grows, the Sweep Alliance will slowly become your burden. I hope that you can leave. I'll help you to contact the top alliances in Division 3. I believe they'll accept you."
Lin Huang stared at Huangfu Lin and kept quiet for a moment. It seemed like he could discern something from her eyes. It sounded like she was talking about herself… She was supposed to have a bright future. However, the Sweep Alliance became a burden to her due to its limited resources. She did not want Lin Huang to repeat the same mistake.
"Since you're being honest with me, I'll accept your suggestion and leave the Sweep Alliance." Still, Lin Huang nodded his head and said, "However, there's no need for you to find another alliance for me. I know where to go."
They then kept quiet during the dinner.
After dinner, Lin Huang returned the Sweep Alliance token to her. On the Genius Union's page, he tapped the "leave" button and left.
The other three of them were still sitting in the room.
"Let's go." Huangfu Hao told Yao Lan. It seemed like he was angry at Huangfu Lin and was reluctant to talk to her.
"You may leave first. I have something to talk to Sister Lin."
"What are you going to tell her? It's not easy to find a talented person but she asked him to leave." Huangfu Hao could no longer bear it and said what he wanted to say.
"Go home first. I have something to talk to Sister Lin."
After sending him away, Yao Lan sat in front of Huangfu Lin.
"Sis Lin, did you regret joining Sweep Alliance?"
Huangfu Lin kept quiet and did not answer her question.
"Thank you, I know the answer." Yao Lan knew very well that silence was the best answer to her question. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been so reckless…"
"Don't feel sorry for me. You and Xiao Hao are victims too." Huangfu Lin shook her head helplessly and lamented, "Sweep Alliance is like a sinking ship. Regardless of how good the captain and the sailor are, they won't be able to stop the ship from sinking. It's enough to have only three of us on the ship. We shouldn't drag the others with us into this."
Chapter 662: Never Insult the Heaven Alliance!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Lin Huang did not know why Huangfu Lin suggested that he leave the Sweep Alliance. However, he knew very well that it was just an excuse as Huangfu Lin had told him that the Sweep Alliance was not a place for him to shine. There were some other reasons that she did not mention. Since she was reluctant to share, Lin Huang did not ask any further.
After the farewell dinner, Lin Huang returned to the hotel.
Sitting on the sofa in the living room, he opened the communication page and studied the invitation letter that the Heaven Alliance sent to him.
Joining the Heaven Alliance was actually a wise decision since he had to achieve imperial-level in three years time. He needed plenty of resources to support him. He would be going onto something big five years later. Therefore, he had to keep improving himself. If Huangfu Lin had not asked him to leave, he would have probably gone after achieving immortal-level to join a stronger alliance.
After thinking for a while, Lin Huang tapped the invitation letter open. He carefully read through the details of the letter twice. He did not hesitate after confirming that not many restrictions were imposed on him. He immediately signed the letter with a digital fingerprint and sent it back to the Heaven Alliance.
In less than ten seconds, a system message came from the Genius Union.
"Congratulations! You're now a member of the Heaven Alliance!"
The next second after Lin Huang received the message, a notification from an unknown number arrived.
"Welcome to the Heaven Alliance! I'm currently the chief of the Heaven Alliance. My name is Chan Dou. If you're free tomorrow morning, let's meet up to talk."
Lin Huang was surprised to see the sender of the message.
He was familiar with this name. It was not his first time coming across this name after coming to Division 3 because not only was he the current chief of the Heaven Alliance, he was also one of the five strongest geniuses in Division 1 (by the Genius Union's standard below 40 years old). He was only 28 years old and was now an immortal-level rank-9. It was said that he had killed a crimson gold-rank before.
"Alright. May I know the time and venue please?" Lin Huang gave a short reply.
"I'll see you at 8 a.m tomorrow at the Heaven Alliance's 46th checkpoint." Chan Dou soon sent him the place and time to meet.
Lin Huang was shocked as Chan Dou seemed to have paid attention to him. After closing the communication page, he snapped out of his thoughts and continued practicing his Army Attack Tactics.
The next morning, Lin Huang kept to his regular schedule and logged into the virtual reality after breakfast.
Through the cracks on the branch on the 46th checkpoint of the Stairway Tree, the location of the Heaven Alliance was displayed on Lin Huang's Emperor's Heart Ring. It was at one of the branches near to him. After confirming the location, Lin Huang quickly climbed towards the branch.
After more than ten minutes, Lin Huang finally reached the branch where the Heaven Alliance was at.
As he leaped forward from the tree branch, everyone recognized him.
"Are you Lin Xie?!" A squat man was stunned the moment he saw Lin Huang and exclaimed.
The people nearby who heard that immediately shifted their focus to Lin Huang.
The short man soon noticed that something was wrong. A flicker of fury flashed through his eyes, and soon, two daggers appeared in his hand. He immediately dashed towards Lin Huang. "Four million points are mine!"
Lin Huang was startled as he wondered why would they attack him the second they met him. However, when he heard what the man said, he instantly understood why the person was coming after him.
He did not bother replying with nonsense. Soon, a silver glow flashed through the air and pierced between the man's brows.
Just when he was about to pounce on Lin Huang, the short man's body became limp. He was shocked, and his intention to kill was unsatisfied. His body immediately turned into pieces and disappeared as he was sent to the first checkpoint of the Stairway Tree.
"Zhang Hui has been killed. You've obtained 123,181 points!"
Seeing the crowd coming after him, Lin Huang frowned.
He had to say that the man called Zhang Hui had acted recklessly as he attacked him without thinking twice. He did not even consider whether he, as an immortal-level rank-4, was capable of obtaining the four million points.
The abilities of the people who surrounded him now all surpassed him, and the weakest one was on immortal-level rank-5. The strongest one was on immortal-level rank-7.
Lin Huang would not worry if the assailants were just ordinary immortal-level rank-7s. However, most of the Genius Union members could cross three ranks to fight him.
Seeing four of them charging at him, if he did not use any unique skills, he definitely could not defeat them.
It seemed like the four of them were in a team as they did not fight among themselves.
"Are you Lin Xie? We aren't going to make things difficult for you. As long as you're willing to let go of half of the total points you've collected, we won't attack you," a muscular young man said, "I guess you don't want to start again from the first checkpoint since it's not been easy for you to reach here."
In the virtual reality, the transfer of points was like plunder. The most that they could transfer was only half of their total points. Moreover, only one transaction could be a day as the Emperor's Heart wanted to protect the weak.
"If I were to transfer half of my points to you, won't the others mind?" Lin Huang asked with a sardonic grin.
"There's no need to sow discord between us. The four of us have come to an agreement regarding the distribution of the points. As long as you're willing to transfer half of your points to me, you don't have to worry about the rest." The muscular man and the other three were approaching Lin Huang.
They did not act rashly. They were aware of Lin Huang's telekinetic throwing dagger as the immortal-level rank-4 man's head had exploded in an instant. They were unsure about Lin Huang's ability, so they were reluctant to risk their lives. However, they knew that Lin Huang was a psychic. If somebody attempted to approach a psychic, the psychic could activate less than 10% of his skills. This was the reason why they went closer to Lin Huang slowly.
After confirming that the four of them were in a team, Lin Huang scowled. He did not want to waste his Transformation Card to increase his combat strength at such a place. However, if he did not kill the four of them, he would have to give them half of his points.
Aware that the four of them were getting closer to him, the Transformation Card suddenly appeared in his hand. Right when he was about to crush it, a strong, intimidating aura suddenly appeared behind the quad.
They then turned around to see where the aura came from and saw a man in a white shirt who was gradually walking towards them.
In an instant, the white shirt man had surpassed them and immediately appeared in front of Lin Huang.
Lin Huang's eyes could not capture the man's movement at all as if he had teleported. However, Lin Huang knew very well that such a traveling skill was prohibited in the Stairway Tree.
"Hello, Lin Xie. I finally get to meet you." The white shirt man extended his hand.
"You're Chan Dou?" Lin Huang guessed.
Both of them shook hands. Chan Dou then turned back, glaring at the four of them who wanted to rob Lin Huang. "So, the four of you are attempting to rob a member of the Heaven Alliance?"
"Heaven Alliance?" They were stunned and soon, their facial expressions changed.
"He's the chief of the Heaven Alliance, Chan Dou!" A couple of them could finally recognize him.
"I'm sorry. It's just a misunderstanding. We'll leave immediately," the muscular young man apologized and was about to leave.
The rest of them begged for pardon as well and were about to flee.
"It's too late to leave now!" Chan Dou did not want to let them go. "I'll teach the four of you a lesson today! Never insult the Heaven Alliance!"
After uttering his words, a black shadow streaked through Chan Dou's eyes and in the next second, a black mist gradually emitted out of four of their bodies. Soon after, their bodies were shrouded in a black fog. They screamed in terror and completely disappeared.
Seeing that Chan Dou had killed the four of them within seconds, the people surrounding him immediately left as they were afraid that they might get into trouble.
After killing them, Chan Dou turned to look at Lin Huang contentedly as if nothing had happened. "Let's have some drinks and chat at the subdivision of the foothold."
Chapter 663: A Conversation with Chan Dou
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The 46th checkpoint of the Heaven Alliance was built on one of the thickest tree branches. The branch, including hundreds of leaves that grew at its tips that covered an area with a circumference that spanned thousands of kilometers. The entire area belonged to the Heaven Alliance.
Lin Huang followed after Chan Dou, but he realized that they rarely met any Heaven Alliance members on their way. Lin Huang felt strange as he remembered Yao Lan telling him before that there were thousands of Heaven Alliance members.
As they reached the end of the branch, Lin Huang could finally see the leaves of the Stairway Tree. It was somewhat different from what Lin Huang had imagined earlier as the leaves that grew on the Stairway Tree were of peculiar shapes. They were not of the ordinary leaf type. Instead, they looked more like islands of various forms. On top of the island, different hemispherical white bubbles enveloped the leaves in the front.
Before reaching the leaves that were wrapped in bubbles, Chan Dou pressed against the bubble, and soon, a small door that was about two meters high was activated. "This is the Heaven Alliance's territory. Most of the leaves are opened to the Heaven Alliance members. If you want to enter any of the dimensions through the leaves, you'll have to place your hand that you used to sign the agreement on top of the bubble. The bubble will activate the door. Of course, some of the places are restricted at the 63rd checkpoint, and only the chief and vice chief are allowed to enter."
After finishing his words, Chan Dou strode into the bubble. The opening of the bubble immediately closed right at that instant as he entered and Lin Huang was blocked.
Lin Huang did according to what Chan Dou told him, placing his right hand on the bubble. Soon, a small, black door was activated, and Lin Huang immediately entered.
Lin Huang then discovered that there was a looming building that looked like the Union Government's building upon entering.
"The leaf belongs to the Union Government. Therefore, the style of the buildings will somewhat look like the Union Government's office. We didn't bother renovating though, and these buildings are used as an office," Chan Dou explained. Soon, he guided Lin Huang to their office.
In the living hall, a tall man wearing a suit stood stiffly. He slightly nodded his head as he greeted Chan Dou and sized Lin Huang up.
"He's the person in charge of the 46th checkpoint, Wang Zhong." Chan Dou gave a brief introduction and told Wang Zhong, "I'll talk to him. You may come later."
Wang Zhong nodded and guided the both of them to the meeting room. He then left.
"Please take your seats."
On the table in the meeting room, Wang Zhong had already prepared two cups of tea. Chan Dou did not sit at the head of the table. Instead, he merely pulled a chair out and sat down.
Lin Huang sat opposite him. He thought that it would be Chan Dou's clone who would meet him today. However, after he witnessed him killing the four men who attempted to rob him within seconds, he knew that this was his real body.
"Firstly, I'd like to welcome you on behalf of the Heaven Alliance members. To be honest, I was mentally prepared for the rejection when I sent you the invitation yesterday." Chan Dou laughed.
"I originally had no intention of accepting the invitation. However, there was a sudden change." Lin Huang did not tell him the exact reason.
"It seems like I'm quite lucky." Chan Dou did not ask any further. "Since you're already our member, I'll briefly introduce the Heaven Alliance to you."
"The Heaven Alliance was established 783 years ago. It's the first organization that exists in the virtual reality during the new epoch. It's also the only genius organization. As Division 1 expanded, the number of geniuses increased. We were then divided into different alliances. As Division 2, Division 3, and the safe zones were being developed, the rest of the organizations started to join in. Some of the sub-alliances gained independence due to specific reasons, and they are now called the Hong Alliance, the Tang Alliance.
"Over the past 700 years, the Heaven Alliance has been the leader among all the alliances in the Genius Union. Privileges are granted to members of the Heaven Alliance. For instance, we use points to exchange items in the Genius Union. All the items are offered at 30% off. As for the chief and the vice chief, they are eligible to enjoy a 40% discount on all items. On the other hand, the chief and the vice chief of Hong Alliance enjoy only 30% discount off. Moreover, many rewards are given to the members each month which are twice of what is awarded to the Hong Alliance members that rank second in the Genius Union. In reality, priority such as choosing the new ruins and gaining access to the ruins is given to us by the Emperor's Heart.
"Of course, because we're the leader, our actions are often monitored by the people. Some of the vice chiefs opposed my suggestion and the main reason is that during this period, there've been too many comments about you."
Before Chan Dou finished his last sentence, Lin Huang already knew that many of the Heaven Alliance members did not want a cheat to join them as it would ruin their reputation.
"Why did you choose to stand by my side?" Lin Huang doubted.
"It's because you're really a strong person. Although I've no idea how you managed to do it, it would've been impossible for me to earn eight million points at the 21st checkpoint when I was still a blue flame-level. I won't even be able to do that when I'm a gold flame-level. Moreover, for a blue flame-level to get to the 46th checkpoint, even if I have the strategy, it's less likely for me to achieve this." Chan Dou admitted that he would be weaker than Lin Huang if they were of the same level. He did not want to mention that he might have cheated.
"If you don't die young, when you achieve immortal-level rank-9, your abilities can be compared to mine or be even stronger. I don't wish to see such a young plant being dumped to grow in the wilderness and end up dying together with the rank grasses. You'll only be able to grow into a massive tree in rich soil. I hope that the Heaven Alliance will be the one to help you instead of the other organizations."
"Thank you for your compliment. I'm just a blue flame-level…"
"This is just your temporary combat strength. I believe that you'll grow up soon and prove to everyone that I'm right. You must show them that they are wrong!
"To be honest, over the past 20 to 30 years, we usually recruit those who are higher than immortal-level rank-6 or rank-7. It's less likely that we'll recruit those who are weaker than immortal-level rank-3. Most of the talented immortal-level rank-1 to rank-3s will typically be recruited by the Hong Alliance, the Tang Alliance, and the rest. They've been expanding all these years as the immortal-level of low ranks have leveled up to higher levels. However, those with strong combat strength in our alliance have left, and the number of people is decreasing.
"I realize that this is the downside since I took over the Heaven Alliance. However, I've no idea how to solve this issue. I hope that you can do something good for the Heaven Alliance. When the seniors see that the newbie is growing, we can then bring in new blood into the Heaven Alliance, so that the alliance can grow stronger…"
After having chatted with Lin Huang for more than half an hour, he was the one who ended up talking most of the time whereas Lin Huang listened to him. He had told him about many of their glorious achievements in the past, and about the challenge that they were facing right now as well as the Heaven Alliance's vision. They even talked about the disasters that could probably happen in five years and some topics that were not related to the Heaven Alliance.
"I wanted to meet you as I'd like to know what kind of person you were. Now, I got to see you in the flesh. Despite being different from what I imagined, I'm satisfied with you." More than half an hour later, Chan Dou finally got up from his seat. "I wish that you can build a sense of belonging in the Heaven Alliance and treat it like your home.
"As for the new member reception, I'll pass it to Wang Zhong. If you've any doubts, you may ask him." Chan Dou patted Lin Huang's shoulder and said, "If you encounter any problems that you can't solve, you may directly contact me since you already have my contact number."
Chapter 664: Betting
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Wang Zhong was a muscular man, and he was at least 1.95 meters tall. There was a green shadow on his face after shaving, and he had a serious look on his face. His combat strength was on immortal-level rank-7, and he was the person in charge of the 46th checkpoint of the Heaven Alliance subdivision.
"Most of the Heaven Alliance members are at the foothold of the 55th checkpoint. Only a small number of us are on the 46th checkpoint. Including you and I, there're a total of 28 people." Wang Zhong pretty much explained why the area was so quiet.
"Considering that you might stay at the 46th checkpoint for a long period of time, I'll bring you around so that you can familiarize yourself with the environment." Wang Zhong did not despise Lin Huang though. He was just straightforward as he felt that it was less likely that Lin Huang could make a breakthrough to the 55th checkpoint in a short span of time.
Lin Huang knew himself very well. With his current ability, getting to the 50th checkpoint was a challenge to him, let alone reaching the 55th checkpoint. As for any levels below the 55th checkpoint, the nearest gathering point for the humans was the 46th checkpoint.
Despite Lin Huang not being able to understand his facial expressions, he was somehow a responsible man. He spent the entire morning bringing him around so that he could familiarize himself with the environment. He answered all of Lin Huang's questions when they were on their way, and he explained everything in detail. It seemed like he had nothing to hide.
"On the 46th checkpoint, the strongest alliance is the Hong Alliance, followed by the Tang Alliance. Our overall ability is on par with the Divine Alliance. We are ranked third, and it's a fierce fight."
While they were having their lunch, Wang Zhong roughly told him the situation of their competitors.
"Under normal circumstances, the majority of them in the checkpoints below the 55th checkpoint won't get the Heaven Alliance members into trouble. However, there's an exclusion. Also, your condition is rather special. The people from the Hong Alliance and Tang Alliance might probably challenge you and make use of you to achieve their goals. The Divine Alliance members are more evil as they'll deliberately trigger you so that you'll bet on a fight. They can then get points from you. Don't get cheated if this happens to you. Just contact me in the first place. I'll get it done."
"I know that you're a supreme genius and you aren't weak. However, everyone on the Stairway Tree is geniuses. Those who are on immortal-level rank-6 are on par with immortal-level rank-9s. Moreover, there are quite a number of immortal-level rank-6s at the 46th checkpoint." Wang Zhong looked at Lin Huang with a serious expression and advised, "I'd suggest using the points as soon as possible. Otherwise, wherever you go, you'll look like a tasty lamb on the grilling rack releasing the fragrance of meat. A majority of them won't be able to obtain more than four million points in a year at that checkpoint. If I weren't a member of the Heaven Alliance, I might've attacked you. If you can't think of anything to buy, you can choose to buy some ancient relics or convert the points to Life Crystals."
"I'll use it within a day or two." Lin Huang nodded. He knew that the number of points he had would definitely get him into trouble. Therefore, he had to spend some time listing out the items that he needed and use up whatever points he had.
One thing that Lin Huang was not aware of because he was on the 46th checkpoint the whole morning was that almost everyone in the Genius Union knew that he had joined the Heaven Alliance.
It was because somebody had taken a video of Chan Dao killing the four robbers this morning and posted it in the Genius Union forum. Many of the passersby became Chan Dou's fans after he said, "Never insult the Heaven Alliance!"
"He's so powerful! Chan Dou is my idol from today onwards!"
"Idol, I want a baby with you!"
"Damn, why doesn't the chief of the Hong Alliance have such an ability to show off in public?"
"Bro Chan V587, I want a baby with you too. @Chan Dou." The person who sent this message was the chief of Hong Alliance, Zhu Hong. Aside from posting a comment, she even mentioned Chan Dou in her comment and attracted many people's attention.
"The goddess is here. Let's switch our focus to our goddess!"
In just a short while, Chan Dou replied: "Sis Hong, are you serious? (Drooling)"
His message had caught many people's attention as well, stirring up the crowd.
"It's a gone case. Love is blind!"
"Are the Heaven Alliance and the Hong Alliance going to consolidate?!"
However, Zhu Hong's reply soon threw cold water on the hot topic: "I'm just kidding. (Face with stuck-out tongue)"
Chan Dou replied promptly, and there were no words in the message. There was only an emoji: "(Frown)".
Interrupted by Chan Dou and Zhu Hong, the people had no further concern about Lin Huang's issue. However, from the video, everybody knew that 'Lin Xie' had joined the Heaven Alliance.
Following this bold statement, aside from few of the top alliances, the rest of the alliances no longer attempted to steal his points. Chan Dou's stance was evident as he welcomed Lin Xie at the 46th checkpoint. He indicated that Lin Xie was important to him.
Since Chan Dou had shown up to attack them, even some of the influential members had no guts to assault him with a sneak attack. They only dared to fight him face to face because even if the sneak attack were successful, the extra four million points would earn them a higher ranking on the leaderboard. Then, Chan Dou could easily find out who had attacked, and nobody dared to offend him.
However, if they were to fight him face to face, as long as Lin Xie accepted the battle, he would lose all the points to them in public. Chan Dou could then not do anything to them.
After lunch, Wang Zhong intentionally reminded him, "Don't accept any challenges." Lin Huang then left the Heaven Alliance territory and headed towards the Stairway Tree to prepare to continue climbing the Stairway Tree.
On the tree branches, no one attempted to attack Lin Huang as when they had first met him. Apparently, Chan Dou's attack intimidated many people.
Many of them purposely avoided Lin Huang. Although four million points meant a lot to them, they did not want Chan Dou to send them to the first checkpoint.
However, as expected by Wang Zhong, not all of them were afraid of Chan Dou.
A slovenly immortal-level rank-6 soon blocked Lin Huang's way. He knew nothing about aesthetics as he was dressed like a gangster. He seemed older than 40 years old (although he was actually below 40). Not only was he wearing earrings, but he also had nose rings as well. Nobody knew if there were other rings beneath his clothes.
"Aren't you the well-known Lin Xie who ranks second on the leaderboard?" The man cackled evilly.
"What's wrong? Please get out of the way." Lin Huang knew that trouble was here.
"I'd like to play a game with you…"
Lin Huang did not wait for him to continue and interrupted, "I'm sorry. I'm not interested in men. Please look for someone else."
"I mean let's make a bet!" The man with the piercings got angry and immediately revealed his actual intention.
"Oh, you want to make a bet. Can't you say it clearly? You said that you want to play a game with me. How the f*ck would I know what game you want to play?" Lin Huang acted like he was shocked.
"Do you have the guts to accept?!"
"No, I'm not interested," Lin Huang rejected.
Seeing he was about to swear at him again, he said, "I have more than 8.3 million points now. If you want to place a bet, collect eight million points first. I don't count odd points. Once you've collected enough points, I'll give you a chance to have a life-and-death fight with me. Anyone who loses the fight will have to start again from the first checkpoint and surrender half of their total points. If you don't have enough points, I'll give you the time to collect them. At 6 p.m., I'll accept your challenge here. If you fail to collect the points by 6 p.m., there's no need for you to come here. Otherwise, I'd have to look for our chief to get the remaining points from you."
"Lin Xie, I've just recorded what you said. Please keep your promise. Otherwise, you're not the only one who'll feel embarrassed, but the entire Heaven Alliance will be humiliated," the man with the piercings said with a wry smile.
"Don't worry. I'll be here at 6 p.m. sharp. After this, don't ever attempt to challenge me because I'll use up all the points tonight. Collect the points if you want to challenge me!"
Chapter 665: The Person Who Wears Earrings on His Nose
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
In the afternoon, Lin Huang made a breakthrough from the 46th to the 48th checkpoint at the Stairway Tree five and a half hour ago. Soon, he returned to the human foothold on the 46th checkpoint.
The rule of the Stairway Tree was that the checkpoints that they had cleared would not be reset as long as one did not die and leave the Stairway Tree. Therefore, he would not be able to go through the checkpoints he had already cleared again regardless of whether he was climbing up or down the tree.
Lin Huang only found out about this after he heard about it from Zhao San so his plan to return to the previous checkpoints to practice Army Attack Tactics under extreme conditions would not work. He would only be able to restart his progress from the first checkpoint if he was killed or if he exited the Stairway Tree so it did not take him too long to return to the 46th checkpoint.
At 5.45p.m., Lin Huang appeared where to promised to be at this afternoon.
His appearance caught the attention of many people because the crowd thought he would not have the guts to show up.
There were quite a number of immortal-level rank-6 people on the 46th checkpoint. Those who were at immortal-level rank-6 in the Genius Union were capable of going against ordinary immortal-level rank-9 monsters. Some of them even managed to kill the immortal-level rank-9 monsters they went up against.
Lin Huang's combat strength was only on the blue flame-level but many of them doubted it since he dared to provoke those at immortal-level rank-6. Most of the people present figured that he had a trump card but nobody knew what it was.
The people discussed this among themselves. "Lin Xie actually had the guts to show up. I wonder what he has on hand."
"I've heard that he's taken control of a powerful demigod relic though I'm unsure if it's true."
"Even if he's able to control it, he can probably only use it to attack once. To control a demigod relic is difficult, even for those on the imperial-level. With his combat strength as a blue flame-level, the fact that he could even use it a single time was amazing. If he managed to kill the first challenger with his demigod relic, what about the rest of the challengers? Wouldn't it be beneficial to them? I don't think he has a demigod relic as a trump card. Perhaps it's a skill he can use repeatedly."
Despite there being people who disagreed with it, most of them who were present felt that Lin Huang had a demigod relic up his sleeves.
When it was almost six in the evening, the man with piercings from the Divine Alliance and the rest of the challengers arrived.
The few of them finally managed to collect eight million points after putting in quite a large amount of effort.
They knew very well that Lin Huang probably had something up his sleeves since he had the guts to show up so they prepared themselves well before they came.
Lin Huang's invitation to fight them attracted everybody's attention, not just those on the 46th checkpoint. Many of the people in different checkpoints knew about this battle because those who were present did not only post it in the Genius Union's forum, they even started a live video of the battle.
Wang Zhong had logged out after entertaining Lin Huang in the afternoon, and it was already 6.p.m when he found out about this. He immediately logged in to Genius Union and rushed to the battle.
"Lin Xie, I've told you this morning specifically not to accept anyone's challenge. Why can't you control yourself?" Wang Zhong frowned. There were a few live videos now but he had no choice but to stop the fight since he promised Chan Dou that he would take good care of Lin Xie.
He turned back and looked at the man with piercings. "Punk, how dare you! An immortal-level rank-6 group teaming up to bully someone at the blue flame-level? Doesn't the Divine Alliance feel embarrassed? If you actually want to fight him, I'll entertain you instead!"
The man with piercings did not bother with Wang Zhong at all. Instead, he smiled at Lin Huang. "I didn't know that this was your intention. You pretend to invite us and then ask this guy named Wang to stop us."
"You're thinking too much. Since I've accepted your challenge, I'm naturally capable of sending you back to the first checkpoint." After uttering those words, Lin Huang looked at Wang Zhong and said, "Brother Wang, avoiding them is not the way to solve this problem. Killing them is the only way I know of that can solve this matter. The chief once said to never insult the Heaven Alliance. Anybody who dares to extend their claws and attack the Heaven Alliance will have to face us as we chop off their claws to teach them a lesson."
After listening to what Lin Huang had to say, utter shock flashed through Wang Zhong's eyes. Then, as his face turned serious, he asked, "How confident are you to win this fight?"
"I'm 100% confident!" Lin Huang grinned.
"I know that they're prepared for this." Wang Zhong was still worried.
"I know they are." Lin Huang nodded. "Brother Wang, please do me a favor and be the judge."
"Hey! Isn't it unfair to let someone from the Heaven Alliance be the judge?" The man with piercings shouted when he overheard their conversation.
"There are so many people here, and there are live videos as well. Moreover, it's a battle to the death. Won't the one who survivor and the one who dies be clear?" Lin Huang laughed. "I asked Brother Wang to be the judge so that he can verify your strength to see if you're qualified to challenge me. Also, he can be a witness to the signing of the agreement for our battle to the death."
"I've said this before, anyone who has eight million points can challenge me. Brother Wang, please check if these few challengers have enough points. Otherwise, send them right back to the first checkpoint." After listening to Lin Huang, two men standing behind the man with piercings immediately walked back to the crowd.
Wang Zhong glanced at the two of them but held his tongue. He began checking the points for the remaining four challengers. The page where their points were recorded popped up in front of him. They had more than eight million points and their four names were indeed on the leaderboard. They were ranked from the third to sixth place respectively.
After the check was complete, Wang Zhong nodded his head at Lin Huang and said, "There's no problem with their points."
"Let's start signing the agreement then."
Wang Zhong projected the agreement in front of them. It contained within it the basic provisions of the Stairway Tree's agreement for a fight to the death. There were no additional rules. After showing both parties the provisions and confirming that there were no other problems, both parties signed their name and put down their fingerprints.
"Who's going to be the first one to challenge me?" After signing the agreement, Lin Huang looked at the four of them with a smile.
Four of them exchanged glances with each other. All of them looked hesitant.
The first one to challenge him would be exposed to a higher risk since nobody knew what Lin Huang had up his sleeves. Despite the fact that the four of them had prepared themselves earlier, they were still unwilling to be the first one to challenge him. However, they knew that if the first person won the fight, the rest of the challengers would have no chance of challenging him since Lin Xie would be sent back to the first checkpoint after his death. As this thought ran through their heads, the four of them struggled with making a choice.
"Hey! The person with earrings on his nose. Aren't you're the one who was shouting in excitement this morning? Don't you have the guts to go first?" Lin Huang teased. "Just admit defeat if you don't want to fight. I'll just take four million points and you won't be sent back to the first checkpoint. Isn't it a win-win situation?" Lin Huang insulted, causing the crowd to burst into laughter.
'Damn it! It's not a win-win situation, and these aren't earrings!' The man with piercings thought to himself.
Since Lin Huang insulted him, he had no choice but to stand out from the rest since the battle was broadcast live. The people in the Genius Union would definitely laugh at him if he was afraid of Lin Huang at this moment.
"Hmph, sharp-tongued boy! I'm interested to see if your abilities are as strong as your mouth!"
Chapter 666: Brother Lin Has No Mercy but Many Cannons!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Standing on the 46th checkpoint branch of the Stairway Tree, Lin Huang and the man with piercings stood to face each other. Both of them were standing about 30 meters away from each other while the rest of the people, including the three challengers stood aside.
In an area that was thousands of meters in circumference, only Lin Huang, the man with piercings, and Wang Zhong who was the judge stood there.
"Are you ready?" Wang Zhong frowned and asked Lin Huang after the man with piercings took out two one-handed axes while he did nothing.
"Please wait a moment." After uttering those words, Lin Huang gazed upon the man with piercings, the three other challengers, and the rest of the people. He grinned. "Aren't you guys curious about what's my trump card is? I'll reveal it now…"
As he said that, a black door that was about three meters high with intricate golden patterns carved into it gradually appeared before Lin Huang. As if controlled by Telekinesis, something appeared and lingered in mid-air, and the muzzle of the cannon pointed directly at the man with piercings.
Most of the people could recognize the item at first glance.
"I-is that a God Crasher?!"
"How could Lin Xie get a God Crasher? That's a demigod-level item!"
"I think Zhou Huai is in trouble. He'll definitely be sent back to the first checkpoint if he's attacked by the God Crasher."
"It's uncertain. Though the God Crasher is powerful, nobody knows if he can even hit his target."
Zhou Huai was the punk's real name. Since he dressed in a slovenly manner, the people called him a punk. Then, as his nickname spread beyond the Divine Alliance, everybody thought it matched him well so people began addressing him this way. Only a few of them would call his by his real name.
Seeing Lin Huang take out the God Crasher, Zhou Huai's expression changed. Soon, a sinister laugh was heard as he said to Lin Huang, "I thought you'd have something incredible. It's just a God Crasher. You're doomed if your first hit misses your target!"
"Now, whoever told you that I only have one?" Lin Huang smirked as he took out taking out his second God Crasher.
"Two God Crashers…" Zhou Huai's face turned serious.
"Nobody knows who the winner is now," many of them who were watching the live video said.
However, after taking out the second God Crasher, he still did not signal Wang Zhong that he was ready. Instead, he sniggered and took out a third God Crasher…
Seeing the appearance of the third God Crasher, Zhou Huai's face turned grave.
The crowd who were watching the livestream no longer had faith in him. If the three God Crashers failed to hit Zhou Huai even once, Lin Xie would be fated to lose the fight.
As the judge, Wang Zhong seemed to be quite relaxed.
Lin Huang smiled as he looked at Zhou Huai and teased, "You can still give up now."
"Even if you have three God Crashers, it doesn't mean you'll win the fight!" Zhuo Huai was being stubborn.
"Is that so?" Lin Huang frowned. "What if I have a fourth one?"
After saying that, another God Crasher appeared in front of Lin Huang.
"Damn, four God Crashers! Lin Xie must be the Union Government Armed Forces leader's son!"
Zhou Huai's lips were twitching. He hated himself for being stubborn. Otherwise, Lin Xie might not have taken out the fourth God Crasher.
"It seems like four God Crashers are still not enough for you…" Naturally, Lin Huang knew that Zhou Huai was dying inside but he still continued piling the stress on him. "What if I have... Five God Crashers?"
The crowd no longer knew what to say. Was he trying to show off his wealth or his background?
"If five isn't enough... I still have a sixth one!" Just as he said that, he took out his final God Crasher. "I think six should be enough since you're just immortal-level rank-6. If you were someone at immortal-level rank-9, I don't mind taking out another three God Crashers."
Seeing Lin Huang continuously take out six God Crashers, the screens showing the livestream was about to explode.
"Brother Lin has no mercy but many cannons!"
"It's a group of idiots! They actually thought that Lin Xie was weak but he's actually the king of cannons. He'll shoot you in the face!"
"I'd like to bet five credit points! The head of the second artillery corps must be the one backing him!"
…
At the 63rd checkpoint of the Stairway Tree, a few of the seniors were paying attention to the fight as well.
Since it was a battle between the Heaven Alliance and Divine Alliance that even involved Lin Xie who was previously the focus of the entire Genius Union, they were curious about his performance.
"He's doing pretty well. Looks like me when I was younger." Seeing Lin Huang take out six God Crashers, Chan Dou gave him a thumbs up in front of the screen.
Zhu Hong, Hong Meng's chief paid close attention to the battle as well. She fixed her gaze on Lin Huang as if something had dawned on her. "Too bad I won't be able to witness his true abilities… I somehow feel that he's intentionally using the God Crashers to hide his true abilities?"
Zhong Liyan, the Divine Alliance's chief's face turned grave as he stared at the video. He thought that they would definitely win the battle and finally show off to the Heaven Alliance. However, after seeing the six God Crashers, he knew that the situation had changed. Instead, it was as if he was sending his face out for others to slap.
…
In the live video, six God Crashers appeared before Lin Huang, and they were arranged in a circle measuring about one meter. The black cannon muzzles all took aim at Zhou Huai who had now already lost his fighting spirit.
"I'm ready." Lin Huang nodded his head at Wang Zhong. He then looked at Zhou Huai and said, "Before it begins, you still have time to give up."
Zhou Huai shot Lin Huang a deadly stare and nodded his head at Wang Zhong. "Let's begin."
"Counting down. 3, 2, 1, start!"
The moment Wang Zhong's voice was heard, Zhou Huai immediately rushed toward him like a phantom.
Lin Huang remained calm. He immediately shifted the direction of one of the muzzles and soon, red flares could be seen shooting out of it, completely shrouding Zhou Huai in it.
At the next moment, the second God Crasher's muzzle behind Lin Huang suddenly shifted its aim and red flares flew past his body.
When that happened, Lin Huang frowned as he willed the third God Crasher to move to the left and shot red flares into the sky, flying at lightning speed.
As the flames flickered, a groan that lasted less than a second was heard.
"Zhou Huai is killed. You've obtained 4,135,186 points!"
The battle lasted for less than two seconds. Many of them could not even see Zhou Huai's movement at all. They could only see Lin Huang launched the three attacks before Zhou Huai lost.
Only Wang Zhong and a few of them knew what had really just happened.
Humans were not allowed to fly or teleport at the Stairway Tree, and Zhou Huai spent many of his points in exchange for the two dimensional relics he had with him. However, the relics were consumed when Lin Huang made his first two attacks. Only the third attack struck him.
Wang Zhong was puzzled that Lin Huang actually managed to sense Zhou Huai's position faster than him before accurately launching a rapid attack.
Naturally, Chan Dou and the rest noticed something strange. However, nobody had expected Lin Huang to use his territory before the battle. They only thought that Lin Huang had extraordinary sensory abilities.
Once Zhou Huai was killed in that split second, Lin Huang glanced at the remaining three challengers. He did not request to continue. Instead, he requested, "I want to take a 20 minutes break before moving on to the second battle."
Many of them were puzzled when they heard Lin Huang's request.
However, Lin Huang did not explain anything as he walked toward Wang Zhong. He then took out several molten crystals to recharge the energy used by the three God Crashers.
"Isn't it against the rules to do so?" one of the challengers asked. "If Lin Xie recharged the God Crashers after every battle, we would have no way to win the fight."
"Didn't you read the agreement for our battle to the death that you just signed? If it's a continuous fight, the person who's challenged is allowed to take a break after every fight. They're allowed to have an hour for their break at most." Lin Huang frowned. "It's not an additional rule. It exists in the Stairway Tree's basic provisions."
The challengers then immediately tapped on their letter of challenge to fact-check this information. Soon, they saw the rule that Lin Huang had just mentioned, and their face instantly turned grave.
After about 15 minutes, the three drained God Crashers were filled to the brim once more.
Lin Huang returned to the open space and gazing at the remaining three challengers who had signed the agreement before he asked, "Who's up for round two?"
Chapter 667: Buy Buy Buy!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The three challengers from the Divine Alliance panicked.
After watching Lin Huang's previous battle, they knew that they had no chance of winning. Not only would they be sent back to the first checkpoint, even the points that they got from the rest of the Divine Alliance members would also have to be surrendered to Lin Huang.
Because the battle was being streamed live, it would be embarrassing to admit defeat now. However, they would feel ashamed as well if they were killed and had to give their points to him. The three of them discussed secretly and soon, they made up their minds.
"Lin Xie, it's our fault as we attempted to steal your points. We admit that we're weak," a skinny, young man said, "Since you've killed Zhou Huai and obtained more than four million points, please stop here. If you can act as if nothing has happened, we guarantee that we won't trouble you any longer. We can still be friends when we meet in the future."
"What do you mean?" Lin Huang frowned. "You've already signed the agreement, but now you're telling me now to act as if nothing has happened. Are you trying to break the contract? Why didn't you consider the consequences before robbing me? You can't fight me now, so you say that you're weak. If I'm the one who loses the fight, do I deserve to give you all the points? Do I deserve to get bullied just because I'm weaker than you guys?!"
What he said struck the trio dumb.
"You signed the agreement along with your fingerprints at your own will. Nobody forced you to do so. Everyone here and the people who are watching the live stream video witnessed this. Rules are rules. If you were to break the contract, I suppose that the audience won't agree to it, let alone me. You only have two choices if you want to leave. The first choice is to admit defeat and give half of your points to me whereas the second choice is to let me send you back to the first checkpoint of the Stairway Tree!"
Apparently, Lin Huang was not going to accept the three of them merely admitting that they were weak.
"Lin Xie, don't be so mean to us," whined the skinny young man gloomily.
"Don't lecture me." Lin Huang knew that he sounded intimidating. "Also, if you were to get me into trouble in the future, just come to me. Even if you're an immortal-level rank-9, I'll still send you back to the first checkpoint of the Stairway Tree."
The audience's eyes flew open wide, and comments could be seen flooding the screen.
"I hope that the chief of the Heaven Alliance can keep me with him. I know how to do household chores."
"When I was still a blue flame-level, I froze to death for many times on the second checkpoint of the Stairway Tree. Look at the blue flame-levels nowadays. Tsk, tsk, why's there such a huge difference?"
"If I have more than ten God Crashers, I can also… Alright, I'll stop bullshitting. I can't even afford to use the God Crasher…"
…
"Fight or admit defeat? Make your choice." Lin Huang did not give them a third choice.
Since it had already come so far, the three challengers knew that they had no way out.
As they thought of the live video that was capturing them and the fact that their boss would probably be watching them, the three of them had no choice but to fight.
They did not have any hope left in the next three battles.
Although the three of them also had dimensional relics, Lin Huang managed to capture their movements with his Territory skill. His God Crashers killed them after a few teleport attempts. None of them managed to survive his attacks for more than two seconds.
After killing Zhou Huai and the rest, Lin Huang's points exceeded 24 million and were double that of Chan Dou's, who was previously ranked first. He now topped the chart.
Many of them were eyeing his points. However, whoever watched the live video basically had no means of grabbing his points at all. Six God Crashers were no joke, and nobody knew how many he had in total.
After the four battles ended, it was about 6.40p.m. As the sky turned dark, he followed Wang Zhong and returned to the Heaven Alliance subdivision.
"Little brat, you make me feel relieved. Fortunately, you won the fight and didn't embarrass the Heaven Alliance." Wang Zhong was impressed.
"If we try to avoid them all the time, they'll ask for more. What they say to me will get harsher every time we meet." Lin Huang decided to fight them only after careful consideration. He did not act rashly. "Even if they're here in the future, I guess they'll be humble. As for the rest who saw the God Crashers, I guess they won't want to fight me anymore."
"Although the third generation God Crasher is powerful, the number of usages is restricted. It's helpful in emergencies. Try not to use it so often in the future." Wang Zhong could identify that it was a third generation God Crasher.
"I know. I wouldn't have used the God Crasher if there weren't so many points for me to grab. I have an additional 16 million now, which I can exchange for many amazing items." Lin Huang grinned.
"One Stairway point equals to 1,000 Life Crystals. 24 million points equal to 24 billion Life Crystals. It's enough to buy two demigod relics!" Wang Zhong exclaimed. "However, I'd suggest you not to buy the demigod relic. Try to buy whatever you can use now or in the near future. What you should do now is to enhance your ability as the God Crasher is just an external support."
"Got it. Don't worry." Lin Huang already knew how he was going to use the points.
After saying goodbye to Wang Zhong, Lin Huang logged out of the Genius Union. At the hotel, he visited the Genius Union Stairway Mall in browsing mode.
The first item he checked out was the telekinetic throwing daggers.
Under normal circumstances, ancient relics could only be activated when Lin Huang achieved immortal-level. Nevertheless, he bought it now because he could use it when he used the Transformation Card. Moreover, he was now on blue flame-level. As soon as he found a suitable Life Fire monster, he could get on gold flame-level in two to three months, at the most. Perhaps it would take him about half a year to level up to immortal-level. Therefore, it was not too early to prepare.
Six types of telekinetic throwing daggers were found in the Stairway Mall. Lin Huang was interested in the strongest weapon at first glance. The name of the Life Power throwing dagger was the Ink Feather. A triple mutated Dark Angel had dropped the item. Despite the fact that the combat strength of the Dark Angels being on purple gold-rank, their abilities were comparable to a demigod's. Killing those rare creatures was tough.
There were only three sets of Ink Feathers in the Stairway Mall. 3,600 dark jade-like throwing daggers formed each set and were being sold at a price of 1.8 million points, which could be converted to 1.8 billion Life Crystals.
"It's expensive, but it's worth it! It's on par with a demigod relic, and it's the best telekinetic weapon." Lin Huang then ordered the daggers without hesitation.
Each set would cost him 1.8 million points, so three sets would cost 5.4 million points. The members of the Heaven Alliance enjoyed a discount of 30%. Therefore, the price ended up to be 3.78 million.
"The 30% discount is awesome! I can save more than 1.6 million points then." He paid without hesitating and soon, he started looking for sword skills.
His Sword Dao was stuck at level-4 as he only had a few transcendent sword skills.
The transcendent sword skills ranked from Illumination, Oblivion, and Void Breaker. They were on level-3, level-4, and level-5 Sword Dao respectively.
According to Xiao Hei, the epic-level sword skills incorporated two levels, which were Illumination and Oblivion. The corresponding level of the legendary-level sword skills would be the Void Breaker.
When he was at the Martial Hunter College, he had learned almost all the sword skills below transcendent level in Divison 7. However, the transcendent sword skills were possessed by different organizations and were not publicly available.
He had learned less than ten types of epic-level sword skills, including the two skills he had picked up at the Martial Hunter College and a few that he had already learned on his own. As for the legendary-level sword skills, the only one he had discovered was the Star Dome.
In the Stairway Mall, there was a variety of Illumination skills; there was a total of 1,300 of them. The skills were relatively cheap as he could buy them at a price of just about 10 points. The most expensive skill cost about 80 points, and none of them cost more than 100 points.
Lin Huang then spent more than 40,000 points to download more than 1,300 types of Illumination sword skills.
He then started checking on the Oblivion and Void Breaker sword skills.
The Oblivion sword skill was rather expensive as it cost at least 300 points per skill. Some of them even required 5,000 to 6,000 points. There were 700 of them. Lin Huang spent 1.2 million points to buy all of them.
As for the Void Breaker sword skill, each of them was sold at a price of more than 10,000 points. Many of them cost about 100,000 points. Also, the price of seven of the sword skills cost more than a million. However, there were only about 80 types of Void Breaker sword skills.
All in all, Lin Huang had spent about 18 million points to buy seven of the most expensive sword skills and the remaining 78 sword skills.
After purchasing all the items, Lin Huang had almost used up all the 24 million points he initially had.
Chapter 668: Which Checkpoint of the Stairway Tree Were You At When You Were a Blue Flame-Level?
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Seeing his remaining 780,000 points, he forced a smile. "The points can be used up terribly easily."
After buying all the stuff he wanted, it was about 8 p.m. He started checking the sword skills that he had just acquired.
The sword skills were encrypted and had been sent to him through his Emperor's Heart Ring after payment had been made.
The Illumination sword skill was the first set projected. Lin Huang spent about 15 minutes watching its tutorial.
Since his Sword Dao was already on level-4, he basically managed to learn the level-3 sword skills after watching the practical part of the sword skill and its tutorial.
It was like a person who had mastered advanced mathematics and was looking back at the syllabus of high school mathematics. They would understand it after studying it once.
It took him another five to six minutes to watch the practicing of the sword skill thrice. However, he did not watch the detailed tutorial.
After about 20 minutes, he started practicing the sword skill in the hotel living room. He practiced thrice after a few minutes. Each time after finishing the practice of his sword skill, he obtained thousands of card pieces. After three rounds, the Skill Card of the first sword skill was formed.
Soon after, a Skill Card was formed in his body after every 20 minutes.
By midnight, Lin Huang had already learned 11 Illumination sword skills. He could sense that there was a slight improvement in his Sword Dao. Obviously, his way of practicing was correct.
The next day, Lin Huang got out of bed early in the morning and logged into the Genius Union world. He started climbing again.
After more than two hours, he finally managed to get through the 49th checkpoint. However, after more than two hours, Lin Huang was stuck on the 50th checkpoint.
He was completely wrapped in a sticky resin at the 50th checkpoint, and he could not get rid of it at all. Attacking was the only way to free himself. He had to slash it by force and make his way through the ditch.
However, the resin was immune to almost all types of energy including Life Power, elemental energy, telekinetic energy, and some of the unusual energies. Only physical attacks could destroy it. Moreover, the resin could move and recover on its own. If the attack were not launched fast enough, the damaged section would recover on its own swiftly.
Some of them teamed up and attempted to attack it. However, as long as there was more than one person who attacked the same part, the defense strength of the resin would be 10 to 100 times stronger.
Lin Huang was most fearful of checkpoints like this. Since he was just a blue flame-level, his physique was incomparable to an immortal-level's.
As the resin was immune to his telekinetic power, the power of the telekinetic weapon would be suppressed when it reached a particular area. Its power would be even weaker than 1/10,000 of its standard power. In fact, it would not affect the resin at all.
After several attempts, not even a crack could be seen on the resin. He had tried many ways such as removing his telekinetic power as he approached the resin, relying on the throwing dagger to attack, and grouping the throwing daggers into a drill to bore a hole in it. He had even summoned the Mighty Ape.
Since there was an audience, Lin Huang did not summon Tyrant or attempt to attack with his sword skills. He then returned to the 46th checkpoint.
Just as he returned to the 46th checkpoint, somebody had started a new thread in the Genius Union forum. The post was about Lin Huang failing the 50th checkpoint.
The people started commenting rapidly, saying that Lin Xie could only rely on the God Crasher. Without the God Crasher, he was trash.
Once the people started criticizing him, many of them followed the trend and commented on him. They commented that it was useless to rely on external support. Only those who were weak would depend on external forces.
Only a few of them supported him as he had gained some new fans since the incident that happened yesterday.
What ended this commotion was Chan Dou's comment.
"For those who say that Lin Xie is weak, I'd like to ask, which checkpoint of the Stairway Tree were you on when you were a blue flame-level?"
The comment struck everybody dumb.
Lin Xie was only on blue flame-level, yet he had already reached the 49th checkpoint. Nobody had ever achieved this in the past. He indeed had the God Crasher. However, could someone get into the 49th checkpoint solely by relying on the God Crashers? Even idiots would know that it was impossible. Aside from some of the checkpoints where the God Crasher would be useful to him when there were the monster attacks, the God Crasher could not assist him at all at the rest of the checkpoints.
By the time Lin Huang knew that people were commenting on him, the issue had already subsided. He did not care so much about it though. After returning to the Heaven Alliance subdivision, he logged out of the Genius Union.
Since he was stuck and could no longer continue climbing up the Stairway Tree, Lin Huang decided to focus on practicing his sword skills. He did not log into the Genius Union for ten consecutive days.
Under normal circumstances, Lin Huang could master one set of sword skills in about 20 minutes. However, sometimes when the swords skills were somewhat tricky, it would take him twice as long to master the skill. Over the past ten days, Lin Huang had learned about 450 Illumination sword skills, which was about a third of the Illumination sword skills that he had bought.
Lin Huang's sword realm was improving rapidly in the past ten days. At first, he was initially at the beginning stage of Oblivion. He had now proceeded to the middle stage.
Lin Huang planned to practice for 20 consecutive days so that he could learn all the Illumination sword skills. However, he received a video call from Chan Dou early in the morning.
As soon as the video call was answered, Chan Dou asked with a smile, "You haven't logged into the Genius Union for 13 days. What are you up to?"
"Recently, I've been busy practicing my sword skills. I didn't know that it's the end of the month already," Lin Huang replied.
"I'm calling you because it's near the end of the month. A few days later, the Stairway Tree will summarize the rewards to be given out in May. If you're capable of breaking through the 50th checkpoint, try your best to do so. Rewards given to you after you reach the 50th checkpoint or higher are completely different from what you obtain from the 40th to the 49th checkpoint. However, if you can't do so, just ignore what I've said since 90% of them who stay on the 46th checkpoint failed to reach the 50th checkpoint anyway. There aren't any useful strategies for this checkpoint."
"I'll try again when I'm free." Lin Huang nodded. He did not notice that it was now the end of May.
After hanging up, he took a look at the date. It was already May 29. There were two days left until the monthly rewards would be given to them on the first of June.
He hesitated for a moment and soon, he logged into the Genius Union again.
It was still early in the morning at about 7 a.m. Not many people were online.
He then rode on the Mighty Ape and directly climbed up to the 50th checkpoint.
After observing the surroundings and making sure that there was no one else around him, he then took out his ink-tainted battle sword. His sword realm had been fully activated. Even without the use of Life Power, he sliced his sword forward and cut through the resin.
Lin Huang did not expect that a big ditch would form as he attacked. He managed to cut through the resin without any obstacle.
"It's my sword realm!"
Lin Huang could clearly sense that the change because of his sword realm. As his sword penetrated through the resin layer, he felt that it was as easy as cutting through tofu. The resin that was tainted by his sword realm resembled plastic that was being melted by a high temperature as it shriveled up on its own and shrank, creating a path. He knew that not all of the sword realms would work. The effect of his sword realm was apparent because it was incredibly strong.
Since there was a shortcut, Lin Huang did not bother staying there any longer. He thrust his sword forward and formed ditches, paving a route on the resin. In less than five minutes, he had broken through the 50th checkpoint that had been a barrier to more than 10,000 people.
As he reached the 51st checkpoint, he immediately put his battle sword away and summoned Tyrant to get through this checkpoint.
The difficulty level from the 50th checkpoint onwards was much higher. Lin Huang spent precisely five hours to complete the 51st checkpoint. He broke through the 52nd checkpoint just when the sky was turning dark.
Lin Huang spent exactly two days getting through four checkpoints, from the 51st checkpoint to the 54th checkpoint.
Nobody expected that he would reach the humans' foothold on the 55th checkpoint. Even he himself did not expect that to happen.
At every checkpoint above the 50th checkpoint, each level was very challenging, and Lin Huang even felt like giving up. Fortunately, there were no people there, and he could perform his strongest sword realm, summoning Bai and the rest to help him out without any qualms. Even then, he only managed to reach the 55th checkpoint before the sky turned dark.
As he stepped into the 55th checkpoint, Lin Huang immediately looked for a crack on the bark and logged out of the virtual reality.
Chapter 669: The Bizarre Seed
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Since any expenditure on the Stairway Mall would not affect their ranking, Lin Xie's name was still ranked first on the leaderboard. Many people paid close attention to the changes in Lin Huang's achievement these few days.
In the beginning, everybody was shocked when Lin Huang managed to break through the 50th checkpoint as the majority of them were stuck at the 46th checkpoint, having failed to get to the 50th checkpoint.
Lin Huang then only managed to break through two checkpoints in a day. Everyone could feel that his climb was getting tougher.
At the 51st checkpoint, he did not complete the level even after several hours, so they expected him to stop there. However, after more than 5 hours, he finally managed to get through it.
The next few checkpoints were tough for him, and it took him a long time to pass through each checkpoint.
Still, Lin Huang managed to reach the 55th checkpoint.
The 55th checkpoint was the fourth gathering point of the humans at the Stairway Tree. Anyone who was capable of reaching this checkpoint was primarily on immortal-level rank-7.
Everybody in the Genius Union did not expect Lin Xie, who was only on blue flame-level, to reach this checkpoint. Even Lin Huang himself did not expect this achievement.
This had to be recorded in the history as a mind-blowing feat because nobody who was on holy fire-level could ever climb to the 55th checkpoint in the past. Lin Huang was the first and only one.
After Lin Huang had broken the record, the Emperor's Heart even blasted an announcement to all the Genius Union's current members.
"Congratulations to Lin Xie, who's a blue flame-level! He has reached the 55th checkpoint! It's the highest checkpoint that a holy fire-level can reach so far!"
The announcement from the Emperor's Heart was pinned at the top of the Genius Union's forum.
Many of them who had not paid attention to Lin Huang's achievement were shocked when they received the announcement.
Some of them even started a topic under the pinned post in the forum.
#When you were a blue flame-level, which checkpoint of the Stairway Tree were you on?#
Soon, many people started commenting on this topic.
"The… The first checkpoint… (Covers face)"
"I've been frozen to death 11 times at the second checkpoint. I've no choice but to go back to the first checkpoint! (Nose picking)"
"I've been frozen to death 13 times…"
"Hey, I didn't say anything though I've been frozen to death 28 times! (Shrugs)"
"When I was a blue flame-level, I think I was at the 29th checkpoint." This was Chan Dou.
"Oh my god. A pro has appeared. Allow me, the noob, to leech on you."
"I only saw a noob being sucked dry by a pro instead."
…
After logging out, Lin Huang was immediately pinged by the Emperor's Heart because he had broken a record.
Along with the announcement, a notice about a reward was sent to him as well.
"Due to your outstanding performance in the Genius Union, a bizarre seed is rewarded to you."
Aside from the notice, there was also an attachment, which Lin Huang opened. He found a black seed.
Feeling curious, he immediately downloaded it. After a short while, the download was completed. The virtual black seed appeared in his hand unexpectedly.
"What's happening?" Lin Huang was shocked. He knew that many of the items from the Genius Union could be brought to reality. However, that would only happen when the item was stored in the Emperor's Heart Ring, and one would have to take it out from there. However, the black seed had become a tangible item and had appeared in his hand right after he downloaded it.
Staring at the seed with careful observation, he noticed that the black seed was only the size of his pinky finger. He could not figure out if there was anything special about it.
Lin Huang then wanted to store it in his Emperor's Heart Ring, but he failed to do so. He had no other choice but to put it in his pocket.
Full of doubts, he opened the Heart Network to search for more information regarding the bizarre seed. However, he could find no information regarding it.
In the Genius Union, as he searched for the keywords "bizarre seed", the result screen showed that he had no authority to access it.
Lin Huang was even more curious now, and he sent Chan Dou a message. "What is a bizarre seed?"
After sending the message for less than two seconds, he received a video call from Chan Dou.
Lin Huang answered the video call, feeling odd.
"Did you obtain the bizarre seed as a reward?" Chan Dou exclaimed in surprise.
"Hmmm… I'm just asking." Lin Huang did not answer him directly.
"I see." Chan Dou realized that he was being dramatic. After calming himself down, he replied, "The bizarre seed is an exclusive reward given by the Genius Union to those with outstanding performance. It's the best reward in the Genius Union. Its level even surpasses a demigod relic.
"Although I've never seen it before, I've heard from the seniors that the bizarre seed is actually a God's item. Its value may possibly be higher than a God's relic. When the seed is inserted into your body, each bizarre seed will grow into different fruits. Some of the fruits will allow you to have supernatural powers whereas some of them will turn into a God's item or a God's relic. What it'll grow into varies in different bodies. It's said that its breeding time varies according to different bodies as well. Some of them take only a day to grow into fruits whereas some of them can't germinate into fruits even after a hundred years.
"The seed can be activated easily. As long as you insert your Life Power into it continuously until it has been completely filled, it'll be automatically activated. The activated seed will enter the body of the person who inserted Life Power into it. You don't need to bother it after that." Chan Dou shared the method of activation with him. Obviously, he guessed that Lin Huang had obtained the bizarre seed as a reward.
"Thank you." Lin Huang did not bother denying that he had received the bizarre seed.
Chan Dou looked at him enviously and did not say anything else. He then hung up.
After the conversation with Chan Dou ended, Lin Huang took out the black seed from his pocket. Without a moment of hesitation, he started inserting Life Power as Chan Dou had taught him.
He was practicing his Army Attack Tactics while inserting his Life Power into the seed.
Soon, the first Life Wheel had been drained, followed by the second, the third, and the fourth… Eventually, ten of his Life Wheels had been depleted, but nothing happened to the seed. The seed resembled an abyss as it engulfed all the Life Power in ten of his Life Wheels without being activated.
Lin Huang immediately used a Life Power Refill Card since his Life Power had been drained. After restoring the Life Power in ten of his Life Wheels, he began inserting Life Power into the black seed for the second time.
After half an hour, the Life Power in ten of his Life Wheels had been used up again. Still, there was no response from the seed.
Lin Huang then took out the second and the third Life Power Refill Cards and inserted Life Power into the seed yet again.
An hour had passed, and the amount of Life Power from 40 Life Wheels had been inserted. The little pinky-sized black seed showed no response though.
"It seems like it's hard to activate it in a short period of time."
Lin Huang forced a smile. He was exhausted, so he kept the seed in his pocket. He then started practicing his Army Attack Tactics to restore the Life Power in his body.
Chapter 670: The Fourth Life Fire Monster
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Lin Huang did not sleep at night as he spent the whole night training his Army Attack Tactics. By about noon, it had taken him about 15 hours to fill up the Life Power in ten of his Life Wheels. At the same time, he had restored the Life Power in three of the Life Power Refill Cards.
After lunch, Lin Huang did not log into the Genius Union. It was meaningless if he were to log into the virtual reality as there were quite a number of them at the 55th checkpoint. If he continued climbing, he would catch the people's attention again. He did not want to reveal that he had mastered Sword Dao and owned a monster troop. Even if he were to use his trump card, the possibility of breaking through level 55 was low. Therefore, he did not want to waste his time and effort on such an attempt.
In the afternoon, Lin Huang started practicing his sword skills.
At about 11 p.m., he had learned 31 of the Illumination sword skills.
Before he slept, he took out the black seed again. He inserted the Life Power from nine out of ten of his Life Wheels. He then put his bizarre seed away.
Knowing that the seed could not be activated in a short period of time, he did not intend to spend much time on it. Even if it was activated, he was unsure of how long it would need to grow.
After retaining the Life Power in one of his Life Wheels in case he would need to use it, Lin Huang took a shower and slept.
Just after 6 a.m., upon waking up, ten of the Life Wheels in his body had been recharged. Of course, it would be slower for the Army Attack Tactics skill to rotate itself compared to when it was activated. Nevertheless, it would not be a problem for it to fill up ten Life Wheels overnight.
After breakfast, he started training his sword skills again.
At about 8 a.m., he received the monthly rewards for the month of May from the Genius Union.
From the first to the 10th checkpoint of the Stairway Tree, he obtained one point for every checkpoint he broke through. From the 11th to the 20th checkpoint, 10 points would be awarded to him for each checkpoint. From the 21st to the 30th checkpoint, 100 points would be given and so on… From the 51st to the 60th checkpoint, he would obtain 100,000 points for each checkpoint.
Lin Huang had got to the 54th checkpoint. Therefore, he would obtain 400,000 points each year. These points would be distributed ten times from January to October, and each time, only 40,000 points would be awarded. As for November and December, there would be no rewards. However, within these two months, the points would be recalculated. For those who had new achievements, the points could be redeemed retroactively.
For example, if somebody managed to reach the 50th checkpoint the previous month, their points would total up to 100,000. However, if they could break through the 60th checkpoint this month, their points would rise to one million. They would then be rewarded 100,000 points each month. Therefore, in November and December, after the points had been recalculated, the remaining points for the past few months would be given to them.
After December, the Emperor's Heart would file an annual settlement. According to the personal points accumulated on an annual basis and the annual ranking of the organizations, the rewards would be assigned. This was the reason why many geniuses joined the Genius Union.
Monthly rewards meant nothing to them as only points or relics would be rewarded.
For those who managed to get to checkpoints above the 50th checkpoint, some of the rewards could be Void Breaker skills whereas some of them were the ancient relics. They were much more valuable than the items rewarded below the 50th checkpoint.
However, the monthly rewards seemed unappealing to Lin Huang because for checkpoints below the 60th checkpoint, the rewards from the Emperor's Heart could only be Void Breaker skills or low-grade ancient relics. They only cost tens of millions of Life Crystals.
He had ensured that the transaction for the 40,000 points had been done. Lin Huang then took a look at the item he received. It was an ancient sword relic.
Similar to the three sets of Ink Feathers that Lin Huang had just bought a few days ago, the combat sword was directly stored in his storage space.
He took it out and studied it. Its quality was apparently incomparable to the Air Slicer. He supposed that the sword was obtained from a black gold-level monster. He wanted to sell it at the auction when he was free. Since ancient relics were rare, the sword could possibly be sold at a price of more than 10 million Life Crystals at the auction.
After storing his combat sword, Lin Huang did not pay close attention to the monthly reward. Again, he switched his focus back to his Sword Dao training.
When it was slightly after 11 at night, he inserted his Life Power into the black seed again. He then took a shower and went to bed.
Lin Huang repeated this process for the next 21 days.
Every morning, he started training his sword skills at about 7 a.m. At about 11 p.m., he spent about half an hour inserting his Life Power into the black seed and went to bed at around midnight.
Still, the black seed was not activated.
However, Lin Huang finally completed the training of 1,368 Illumination Sword Skills. His level-4 Sword Dao had improved from the beginning stage to the peak of Oblivion.
He knew that with his sword realm, he was about to achieve level-5 Sword Dao.
However, he did not force himself to train his Oblivion sword skills in order to make a breakthrough. Instead, he chose to settle down, waiting for the chance to come.
When Liu Ming was an immortal-level rank-9, he was stuck at this checkpoint for tens of years because he was too eager to achieve it, but things turned out differently for him.
Liu Ming had explicitly emphasized this when they talked about Sword Dao. Each level of Sword Dao could not be achieved by force. He had to let nature take its course. Otherwise, he might get on the wrong path.
Since there was a substantial improvement in his Sword Dao in addition to his blue flame-level Life Power becoming stable after more than a month, Lin Huang was finally leaving Sweep City.
He had gotten an update from the black market a week ago regarding the triple mutated monster.
One of them was a triple mutated humanoid monster which possessed a sword heart in its body. The monster's tinder would definitely inherit its sword heart.
Lin Huang was eager to obtain the ability of a sword heart a long time ago. However, he could not find a suitable Life Fire monster all the while. He now finally had the chance to hunt this monster.
If the practice of his Sword Dao could not be completed in the nick of time, Lin Huang would have left to hunt down the monster a week ago.
According to the information he got from the black market, it was a Whitesword Supreme with an immortal-level rank-6 combat strength.
The Whitesword Supreme was not a new monster to Lin Huang as he had seen it before in the monster guide. However, he had never had a chance of encountering such a monster.
The triple mutated monster was relatively strong as it could fight an immortal-level rank-8.
If he were to kill it on its own, Lin Huang was not confident of defeating it. Fortunately, he was not alone as he had his monster troop.
The place where the Whitesword Supreme had appeared was not easy to access. It had been discovered on an island in the Peaceful Ocean.
"It seems like I've to go to the Peaceful Ocean…" Lin Huang fixed his gaze on the map provided by the black market.