novelraw Chapter 119: The Gamble with Amos
Chapter 119: The Gamble with Amos
[You swing the Ancient Dragonfang Greatclub in your hand, unleashing a terrifying blast of wind pressure as it crashes down toward the tiny speck of white light before you…]
[Like smashing a delicate cherry tomato, crimson juice splatters everywhere…]
[You have defeated Apostle Pale Dirge of Sorrow! You gained 810 Spirit Essence.]
[Due to your upgraded invasion privilege, you may claim one additional item from the defeated Apostle.]
[The Lucky Gold Coin in your inventory emits a soft glow…]
[You obtained Longbow of Windchant and Moonsong +5 (Rare+ Weapon)!]
[Due to the special power of the Soul-Annihilation Bookmark, the Apostle’s soul strength has been reduced to zero!]
[You have completely killed Apostle Pale Dirge of Sorrow!]
[Returning to your chapter…]
Lin Xun raised an eyebrow.He hadn’t expected the Lucky Gold Coin to suddenly take effect and drop the opponent’s weapon.
Back in the hell-difficulty chapter, he opened his inventory to examine the newly acquired loot.
[Longbow of Windchant and Moonsong +5 (Rare+ Weapon): Crafted from Sacred Birch Bark and the Horn of a Gale Demon for the bow body, with bowstring tanned from Whispering Elk Tendons and Drifting Sands of the Pale Moon.]
[The full-length bow is nearly as tall as a standard shell. When drawn, it forms a perfect moon arc; when loosed, the arrow flies like a meteor with immense power. Requires extremely refined archery skills to wield this weapon effectively.]
Lin Xun still had three crossbow bolts in his inventory, loot from farming with the military-grade crossbow.
In-game, bolts and arrows were not interchangeable. This wasn’t due to lazy design, it was because the game was oppressively realistic.
Bolts were usually short and thick, while longbows had extensive draw lengths. There was simply no way to nock a crossbow bolt on a bowstring.
He tried equipping the longbow to a few shells. It worked, but the game text indicated none of the shells possessed refined archery skills and couldn’t wield the weapon properly.
In plain terms, they couldn’t shoot straight…
Lin Xun stashed the longbow away for now. He would either wait until he found a suitable shell or sell it when he needed money.
After organizing his gear, he clicked Resting Page and teleported to the Disciple Sanctum!
He proceeded straight through the castle to Council Chamber No. 13.
[You arrive at Council Chamber No. 13 and step inside…]
[The chamber is empty. Tiered seats surround the host platform.]
[Will you take a seat using your seat pass, or approach the host platform to leave a message?]
[You walk up to the host platform and see a stack of ‘Note for Recording Information’ laid atop it.]
[Would you like to leave a message?]
These notes couldn’t be stored in the inventory?
Their function seemed somewhat special. Lin Xun had originally considered pocketing a few of them for future use.
He clicked ‘Yes,’ and just as the text box appeared…
The chatroom feature suddenly reactivated.
[A black-robed figure had silently appeared before you…]
[Amos: You’re quick. Mission complete?]
So Amos was still in the council chamber, waiting for him, or perhaps waiting for Transmitter?
Lin Xun narrowed his eyes and quickly typed.
[Blood King: The mission is complete, my Lord. I dared not neglect your command!]
Amos didn’t respond immediately, probably checking whether Horseback Samurai was dead.
[Amos: Interesting. I didn’t expect you to kill Horseback Samurai before Transmitter did.]
[Amos: I had high hopes for Transmitter, but it seems you’re the more capable one.]
[Blood King: Your praise is too generous, my Lord.]
[Amos: So Transmitter didn’t manage to kill Horseback Samurai? How did you get ahead of him?]
Then Amos paused again, likely investigating Transmitter’s status.
[Amos: Transmitter is dead?]
Lin Xun had anticipated this and replied calmly.
[Blood King: My Lord, I’m not sure. Perhaps Transmitter was no match for Horseback Samurai and fell in battle.]
[Blood King: I wasn’t his match either. I had to burn a precious item just to barely scrape out a victory.]
The subtext being: My Lord, I tried my best for you, how about reimbursing me for that rare item?
He was about to add something cheeky like forget about Transmitter, the job’s done, reward please, but decided that didn’t sound subordinate enough and deleted it. He waited instead.
[Amos: The Soul-Annihilation Bookmark doesn’t destroy the invader’s soul, only the invaded target dies.]
[Amos: Was Transmitter killed by you?]
???
So the Soul-Annihilation Bookmark wasn’t mutual destruction?
It was one-sided? Win and the enemy dies, lose and you walk away?
This completely disrupted Lin Xun’s plan.
[Blood King: My Lord, I don’t understand what you mean.]
[Amos: Only two people knew Transmitter’s soul imprint, me and you. If it wasn’t me, who else could’ve killed him?]
Lin Xun’s mind raced, thinking of how to respond.
[Blood King: My Lord, perhaps Transmitter failed in his first invasion, Horseback Samurai learned his imprint, and just happened to have a Soul-Annihilation Bookmark to counterattack.]
[Blood King: I am absolutely loyal to you, my Lord. I would never do such a thing.]
A weak excuse, but it was the best he could manage under pressure.
He waited in silence for Amos’s reply.
[Amos: Heh. That excuse might work on anyone else. But I have a way to check combat logs. And the last person Transmitter fought was you.]
[Amos: Speak. Why did you kill Transmitter? If you can’t give me a satisfying answer, I won’t hesitate to end you with my own Soul-Annihilation Bookmark.]
Lin Xun was momentarily silent.
He wasn’t worried about being invaded, his soul imprint was masked. Unless Amos obtained his real one, he couldn’t be touched.
But if he didn’t offer a convincing explanation, everything he’d gained, the seat pass, his infiltration into the New World, would all be for nothing.
Narrowing his eyes, Lin Xun decisively typed:
[Blood King: My Lord, wasn’t this something we both tacitly understood?]
[Amos: ?]
[Blood King: My Lord… sigh. I only kept silent because I feared I’d share Transmitter’s fate if I spoke.]
[Amos: ???]
[Blood King: My Lord, I know how much you value your reputation. So of course you couldn’t dirty your own hands. I took care of the dirty work for you, without complaint.]
[Amos: Interesting. Now I really want to hear what tacit understanding we supposedly had.]
[Blood King: Since this was your command, my Lord, I’ll speak the truth. I only ask that you, remembering my loyalty and efforts on your behalf, let me die quickly and painlessly.]
[Amos: Let’s hear it, then.]