The Era of Gods

Chapter 389 The Arrival of the Three Big Shots

Fighting was definitely not an option, not to mention the Children of Nightmare watching eagerly from the sidelines, and fighting was not allowed near the Descending Array anyway.

The standoff didn’t last a minute before it was stopped by the upper-level guards, and they immediately backed down like a deflated balloon.

But the problem remained unsolved and was impossible to solve; the Spirit Realm side would definitely not let Lin Xiao leave easily, not because of pride, but simply due to faction hostility. Being able to kill one more enemy meant one less threat, there was no room for compromise.

Lin Xiao had anticipated this, so he wasn’t too disappointed.

“Brother Chao” patted his shoulder and said,

“They’re not going to let you go. I have a boat ticket here, and I’ll arrange for you to leave this area and go to other parts of the continent once everything is settled. They won’t be able to cross regions to catch you.”

As he spoke, he flipped his hand and pulled out a yellow metal card branded with an unknown pattern and handed it to him, saying,

“This is a boat ticket from the Galaxy Trade Association. They have gigantic airships that pass through many major schools and those few megacities every June and December, including the White Tower. You find a chance to get on the ship and leave this place when the time comes.”

Lin Xiao accepted the boat ticket with a grateful look and nodded vigorously,

“Thank you, Brother Chao!”

“Don’t mention it. We help each other out.”

Lin Xiao had heard of this boat ticket; the Galaxy Trade Association was a major power spanning multiple regions, with branches in every area, and their ships were very safe to travel on.

This was a big favor indeed, giving him such a precious thing for nothing…

He pondered for a while, turned around to take off his backpack, rummaged through it, and took out an exquisitely crafted long-necked crystal bottle and handed it over.

“Brother Chao” was discussing something with a few companions, he paused for a moment when he saw this, and smiled, waving his hand, saying,

“I didn’t give you the ticket to get something in return. If it makes you uneasy, just help others more when you have the chance.”

Lin Xiao handed the item over and said earnestly,

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“I will help others when I have the chance, but that doesn’t conflict with this. This is a new alchemic method I researched during a previous descent as an Incarnation. It can extract high-purity Blood-flesh Essence.”

“High-purity Blood-flesh Essence? Let me see.”

“Brother Chao” took the crystal bottle with renewed interest.

Blood-flesh Essence, or blood-flesh crystals, was essentially food for them. Totem Master Apprentices and those above rarely ate normal human food, and Official Totem Masters only consumed Blood-flesh Essence or special foods to replenish their energy and nutrients. The higher the purity of the Blood-flesh Essence, the richer the nutritional value and the more delicious the taste.

The bottle contained dozens of crystals the size of chicken eggs, utterly transparent and emitting a faint golden light. “Brother Chao” poured one into his palm, his eyebrows trembling slightly. He picked up the crystal, turned it in front of his eyes, and smelled it gently. His eyes immediately lit up,

“Good stuff, did you refine this?”

Lin Xiao nodded seriously,

“This was from a previous descent when I focused solely on alchemy. I combined the alchemical techniques of this world with the Main World’s alchemy and developed a very efficient method of extraction that specializes in refining high-purity Blood-flesh Essence.”

“Well, that’s impressive!”

“Brother Chao” flicked the pale gold crystal with his finger, and it flew into his mouth. He gently closed his eyes, showing a look of enjoyment. After a long while, he exhaled a breath which did not disperse but instead condensed into a ball of transparent white mist in front of him.

“Delicious. This is the highest purity I’ve ever tasted; I fear it’s over four nines.”

He opened his eyes, visibly pleased, and raised the crystal bottle,

“I’m very satisfied with this gift, haha, it looks like my boat ticket was well worthwhile.”

“As long as you like it, Brother Chao. I’ll make some more and send it to you before I leave.”

“Then I won’t hold back.”

He could tell that “Brother Chao” really enjoyed it, and this made Lin Xiao happy too, as he had repaid the favor.

Owing too much to others wasn’t good. Although “Brother Chao” didn’t mind and it was a trifle for him, it didn’t mean the favor didn’t exist.

Debts of gratitude are the most difficult to repay and must be repaid, otherwise, it would affect the Divine Enthronement in the future.

He wasn’t exactly sure why, but he remembered his teachers explaining during classes that one must repay significant debts of gratitude as soon as possible; otherwise, they would become increasingly more difficult to repay over time, and the cost of repayment would grow.

This was because the value of a favor could grow over time and would change with one’s strength and status.

For a simple analogy, if someone gave you a hundred bucks during the sixties or seventies when they were broke, and you repaid it fifty years later, do you think you’d only owe a hundred?

Or, if a high-ranking person gave you a meal when you were on the brink of starvation, was it merely a meal? No, it was a lifesaving grace.

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And for this meal, if you remain a nobody, you’ll have to pay with your life.

If you become successful in the future, this favor might not cost your life to repay, but you will still have to incur a huge cost.

The future is uncertain, so Lin Xiao took the opportunity to pay back the favor while he still could.

Normally, the bottle of Blood-flesh Essence he gave didn’t compare to the lifesaving ticket, as their values were quite unequal, but to Brother Chao, the repayment was satisfactory. In his eyes, as long as the value was equivalent, there was no need for him to go out of his way to return a ticket; besides, he didn’t need one.

After that, Lin Xiao returned to his original team and continued to wait in line for teleportation.

Almost half an hour later, it was finally their turn. The group lined up to ascend to the top layer where the Descending Array was located, and as the array activated, countless white streams of energy flowed along the engraved patterns toward the center. Brother Chao took out a black jade figurine and placed it in the heart of the array. Energy poured into the figurine, and an invisible fluctuation spread out.

“Buzz!”

A dazzling aura exploded, warping the void instantaneously as boundless light shot into the sky.

Familiar sensations of weightlessness and spatial distortion came over them; they were breaking through the void and beginning to descend.

Compared to their previous descent from the Totem Main World to the base, this time the descent to the target plane was much faster, took less time, and had a fixed coordinate, allowing them to directly teleport to a predetermined location.

Some time passed, and Lin Xiao felt the space around him start to change. The distortion and pressure began to fade, signaling that the teleportation was nearing completion.

About ten minutes or so later, the sensations of distortion and pressure suddenly vanished, and he felt solid ground beneath his feet as he appeared on a metallic platform about the size of a soccer field.

He quickly stepped down from the central teleportation platform. Surrounding him were metal structures divided into roughly three areas, with a thick metal wall on the platform’s edge and a layer of light screen around it. Outside the light screen was the chaotic void energy.

On one side was the chaotic void, on the other a pale yellow light screen—The Plane Crystal Wall.

This platform was fixed atop the Plane Crystal Wall, and could be considered a small outpost fortress.

Inside the fortress was a small contingent of elite troops, who appeared to be natives rather than Descenders. However, there were indeed a few Descenders who station there year-round, and surprisingly, among these Descenders were Humans, Children of Nightmare, and those from the Spirit Realm. Contrary to expectations, these three forces did not engage in combat.

Once everyone had arrived through teleportation, without further delay, Brother Chao gathered everyone and spoke loudly,

“This outpost is jointly owned by three factions. No disputes are allowed here. Once the other two parties arrive, I will teleport you one by one to your destinations. The placement will be random, so the initial landing spots will be down to luck. This descent has no time limit; the event will end only when two of the three factions have all thirty-three of their Descenders eliminated.”

As he spoke, the central array of the outpost lit up again, the twisted energy brilliance shot into the sky, and dozens of Children of Nightmare were teleported in.

Led by a powerful Child of Nightmare, they gathered on another side of the platform, similarly beginning to mobilize for battle.

“As for the descent, there’s not much to say, just remember to work with your teammates. Don’t fight among yourselves until you have eliminated the opponents. You can sort out any disagreements after all opponents are defeated. Get ready now; I will activate the Descending Array in thirty minutes.”

Thirty minutes passed quickly. As soon as the time came, Brother Chao adjusted the array once more before reactivating it. Thirty-three individuals, each one after another, were teleported away individually.

Soon it was Lin Xiao’s turn. He stood on the array with his pack on his back and gave a thumbs-up. Brother Chao responded with a gesture and activated the array. A sky full of brilliance engulfed him.

At the foot of a nameless small mountain, a gentle breeze rustled the leaves.

Entwined around a crooked tree was a yellowish-brown, triangular-headed venomous snake as thick as an arm. The snake gently flicked its tongue, slid down the trunk, and approached a man with closed eyes leaning against the tree.

The venomous snake inched closer, wrapped around the tree, hovered in front of the man’s face, slowly opened its mouth, coiled its body, and lunged forward to bite.

“Ouch!”

The sleeping man awoke abruptly, grabbing the snake biting his nose and throwing it with a fierce pull.

“Damn, this poison is pretty fierce!”

Lin Xiao felt a numb itch at his nose. When he touched it, he noticed the blood turning black and immediately rolled over to rummage through his pack for a box marked with a red cross. Opening it, he took out a small vial, uncorked it, and swallowed an Antidote Pill.

The Antidote Pill, used by Totem Masters, could neutralize the poison of supernatural creatures; the venom of an ordinary snake was hardly a concern. In less than ten seconds, he felt a cooling sensation, and the numbness disappeared.

He stood up, took a turn to survey his surroundings, then looked up at the sky, bright with sunshine and a cloudless clear blue.

Turning around, he took a set of exquisitely-crafted leather armor from his pack, including boots, gloves, and a helmet—all made from the hide of powerful beasts and providing better defense than standard plate armor.

Next, he strapped a longbow and a quiver of arrows to his back, hung a hand crossbow with a small quiver of bolts at his waist along with a sharp dagger, a long-handled Horse Chopping Knife, and a Large Round Shield of refined steel.

With all this gear, the large pack diminished to a smaller one which he secured on his back. Carving a small tree into a stick for support, he prepared to descend the mountain.

He didn’t know his exact location; all he saw was a desolate landscape devoid of human civilization. He chose a random direction and began walking.

Meanwhile, Son of Human Divine Realm, Children of Nightmare, and Child of the Spirit Realm were being teleported one after another. Soon, ninety-nine Descenders were positioned, and the Outpost Platform’s leaders of the three factions simultaneously sealed the Descending Array to ensure fairness and prevent anyone from descending secretly and disrupting the balance.

It took Lin Xiao nearly four days to emerge from the forest. On the third day,

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