200: Chapter 200 Wang Zhuo's Covetousness

However, while it was true that the depths of the Space-Time Rift in the northwest harbored a vast number of Gold Rank Vicious Beasts, why was it that neither the major powers nor those capable small teams and solo hunters went to hunt there after obtaining the keys to the God-level Ruins?

Qin Ce hovered in mid-air, looking at the mist-shrouded wasteland ahead, repeatedly pondering this question in his mind.

The answer was actually not hard to guess.

During the month he spent doing missions for the Wuji Army, he had observed the direction of the Space-Time Rift from afar more than once.

The distribution of Vicious Beasts in that area was completely different from that of Beimang Mountain.

The Gold Rank Vicious Beasts in Beimang Mountain basically acted alone, ruling over their own mountains.

A single Gold Rank Vicious Beast would occupy a mountain peak, and there wouldn't be a second entity of the same rank within a radius of dozens of miles.

They had clear territorial boundaries and minded their own business.

But it was different around the Space-Time Rift.

The density of Vicious Beasts there was terrifyingly high, with Gold Rank auras clustered together; the distance between them was so close that they would have long since started fighting if they were in Beimang Mountain.

But they didn't fight; they even coexisted peacefully.

This could only mean one thing—the Vicious Beasts around the Space-Time Rift had formed a structure similar to an "autonomous society."

There was order, there were rules, and there was a mutual understanding between them.

If you attacked one, the surrounding Vicious Beasts would not stand idly by.

It wasn't because they were particularly united, but because they shared a common interest—maintaining the stability of the region.

Any act that broke the balance would be viewed as a provocation to the entire "society."

Therefore, killing a Vicious Beast there would trigger a chain reaction.

The larger the team and the more people involved, the greater the range of influence, the more Vicious Beasts would be drawn in, and the higher the probability of a chain reaction.

That was why the major powers didn't dare to enter.

Those medium and small teams and solo hunters dared even less.

Qin Ce had an advantage in this regard.

He was currently riding solo; he was a small target that made little noise, so the probability of triggering a chain reaction was also low.

However, if things got out of control and he fell into a siege by a swarm of Vicious Beasts, the crisis would be fatal.

He needed to further and cautiously evaluate and test the Vicious Beast environment in the depths of the Space-Time Rift.

He had to see if he could safely harvest Gold Rank Vicious Beasts inside.

Just then.

The rhomboid crystal in Qin Ce's pocket suddenly lit up.

It wasn't the faint, breath-like flickering from before, but a more hurried and piercing light.

Like someone had pressed a camera flash in the distance, it was brief yet striking.

Qin Ce frowned and reached out to pull the crystal out.

The jade-white crystal lay in his palm; the golden liquid at the bottom was still a thin layer, almost unchanged.

But inside the crystal, something was surging. It wasn't energy; it was information.

Before he could carefully sense it, the crystal's light went out.

Qin Ce stared at the crystal for two seconds, but he couldn't figure out anything more, his brow furrowing slightly.

...

At the same time, hundreds of miles away.

Wang Zhuo had just killed a Gold Rank Vicious Beast.

Then, the energy in the rhomboid crystal in his hand rose another notch.

This was the result of the Wang Family Huben Battalion's high-intensity hunting for half a month.

To the east of Beimang Mountain, any Gold Rank Vicious Beast that was alone or easy to deal with had been wiped out by the people he led.

Every time one fell, a golden pillar of light would rise from the corpse, pass through the clouds, and inject itself into the rhomboid phantom in the sky.

And the golden liquid at the bottom of his crystal would also rise accordingly.

At this moment, that pool of golden liquid had just passed the halfway mark.

Wang Zhuo stared at the crystal, the corners of his mouth curling slightly.

At this rate, in another month, he would be able to fill the key.

When the time came and the God-level Ruins opened, he would be among the first group to enter. The Opportunities, treasures, and Legacies inside would all be his.

He reached out, preparing to put the crystal back into his robes.

But, just then, the crystal began to vibrate.

Buzz!

The crystal suddenly flared up.

It wasn't the soft golden light from the charging before, but a piercing, almost white glare.

The light gushed out from inside the crystal, condensing, rotating, and unfolding three feet in front of Wang Zhuo.

A three-dimensional, translucent 3D holographic map spread out before him.

Wang Zhuo's pupils constricted sharply.

The map encompassed the entire Beimang Mountain and even included most of the region north of Fengling City. Mountains, rivers, plains, and basins—every piece of terrain was marked clearly, with a precision higher than any military map he had ever seen.

This wasn't the first time he had seen this map.

A similar phantom had appeared once before when the crystal was first activated. But that time, the map was marked with thirteen pillars of light—the locations where the God-level Ruins keys had appeared.

This time was different.

There were no pillars of light on the map.

Instead, there were eleven spots of light.

They moved slowly in their respective positions; some were fast, some were slow, and some were almost stationary.

Like eleven fireflies, they drifted silently across the 3D map.

Wang Zhuo's eyes widened suddenly.

But when he looked down at his own position, he suddenly discovered that one light spot was right where he was currently located.

Wang Zhuo's heart skipped a beat.

He mounted his Pet Beast and flew one kilometer to the east.

The light spot on the map moved a corresponding distance.

His breathing began to quicken.

These light spots... are the keys to the God-level Ruins!

It's the current location of every single ruins key!

He looked down at the crystal in his hand again, then back at the light spot representing himself on the map.

The brightness of the light spot was almost directly proportional to the amount of golden liquid at the bottom of his crystal.

It was the brightest among all eleven light spots.

If that's the case...

Wang Zhuo's gaze began to roam over the map.

There were several other spots of light that were the next brightest, distributed in different locations.

Some were on the eastern side of Beimang Mountain—that was the territory designated by the City Lord.

Some were near Fengling City—that was the Zhou Family's position.

...

But what truly caught Wang Zhuo's attention wasn't those bright light spots.

It was the dimmest one.

That light spot was so faint it was almost invisible, like a lamp about to go out, wandering aimlessly in the area near the Wuji Army.

There was no pattern, no direction, like a headless fly.

Its brightness was the lowest among all the light spots.

This meant that its owner's key had the least amount of golden liquid.

Wang Zhuo's eyes narrowed slightly.

According to the intelligence gathered by the Wang Family during this period, all the ruins keys were gradually being charged.

All the major powers were hunting Gold Rank Vicious Beasts like crazy, and even the medium and small powers were finding ways to get their hands on one or two.

Only one key had remained stagnant.

And it was the very first one that had appeared above the Wuji Army.

That key had appeared the earliest; at the time, to find it, the Wang Family had practically scoured every inch of the Wuji Army's surroundings.

After learning that killing Gold Rank Vicious Beasts could charge the keys, the Wang Family specifically cross-referenced the intelligence on Gold Rank Vicious Beast deaths around the time the first key was being charged and came to a highly probable deduction—

The owner of the first key above the Wuji Army was Qin Ce.

Wang Zhuo's fingers tapped twice on the table.

Qin Ce.

The moment this name surfaced in his mind, his eyes began to turn red.

New grudges and old hatreds surged into his heart together.

During the beast tide, Qin Ce had snatched the glory that should have belonged to him.

That spotlight moment of killing the Raven King in front of everyone should have been his, Wang Zhuo's.

It was Qin Ce who had rushed up and stolen everything from him.

Afterward, Qin Ce had forced the Wang Family to give up control over most of the northern region.

Zhenhuang Pass, the outposts on the eastern side of Beimang Mountain, and the supply lines on the periphery of the Wuji Army—territories the Wang Family had managed for three generations had to be spat out because of a commoner.

Not to mention the losses from the smuggling routes, the disappearance of merchant caravans, and the attacks on officials.

Every single debt was recorded under Qin Ce's name.

They hadn't killed Qin Ce directly before because they had to consider the Federation's influence.

If a "hero" who had just been honored by the entire city suddenly died, everyone would suspect the Wang Family did it.

That old fox Jiang Tianzong was just looking for an excuse to suppress the Wang Family; they couldn't hand him a knife.

But now, things were different.

The north had already turned into a mess, with major powers struggling against each other; strife and killing were everywhere.

If Qin Ce died "accidentally" at a time like this, there would be too many excuses to shift the blame.

Killed by a Vicious Beast, caught in a conflict between powers, assassinated by some unknown solo hunter—any excuse would do to gloss it over.

More importantly, the losses Qin Ce had caused the Wang Family this month far outweighed the potential losses if Jiang Tianzong got his hands on some evidence.

They couldn't let this menace run wild anymore.

Wang Zhuo squeezed a sentence out of his throat: "Qin Ce must die."

He looked at the 3D virtual map before him, his finger pointing at the area near the Wuji Army.

He heard that Qin Ce had already leveled up to Silver Rank.

Unfortunately, he was only Silver Rank.

The corners of Wang Zhuo's mouth curled into a cold arc.

The advantage is mine.

He turned around, picked up the communicator on the table, and dialed Han Zhang's number.

"Assemble the Huben Battalion, pick the most elite. Not many, ten people will be enough. Bring the best stealth equipment and don't alert anyone."

Han Zhang paused on the other end of the line: "Young Master, the target is?"

"Qin Ce." Wang Zhuo's voice was very calm, as calm as if he were discussing what to eat today. "I have a way to find his location. You just follow me."

After hanging up, Wang Zhuo looked down at the light spot on the map again.

That dim light spot was still wandering near the Wuji Army, moving slowly and in an erratic direction.

The arc of Wang Zhuo's mouth deepened further.

"This time, no one can save you."

...

To the northwest, at the edge of the Space-Time Rift's Vicious Beast zone.

Qin Ce was riding the Qingluan, slowly flying closer.

He followed his original plan, cautiously advancing toward the depths of the Space-Time Rift.

Nine-Star Insight was running at full power; the auras of Vicious Beasts in his vision were like lamps, densely covering the entire wasteland.

There were quite a few Gold Rank auras, but every single one had neighbors nearby, so he couldn't easily make a move.

"Today is just reconnaissance," Qin Ce told himself again.

He had the Qingluan lower its altitude, preparing to observe the terrain ahead more closely.

At that moment, a sudden sense of trepidation came from the bottom of his heart.

It was as if something had locked onto him.

And at the same time.

Tianlu, in his arms, suddenly moved.

Tianlu poked its head out from Qin Ce's robes, the nine-colored light on its antlers glowing brightly. Its golden eyes first glanced toward Beimang Mountain, then turned to stare toward the Space-Time Rift in the northwest.

Its body was tensed up, its small claws gripping Qin Ce's collar as its whole body leaned forward.

Then, it touched Qin Ce's hand with its antlers and let out a short, urgent cry.

"Miu!"

Qin Ce sensed Tianlu's meaning through the Soul Bond, and his pupils constricted slightly.

Tianlu said—the heart has a premonition; the northwest is auspicious. Quick Joy!

Quick Joy?

Hurrying to the northwest would be lucky.

Qin Ce did not hesitate.

Tianlu's sense of fortune and misfortune had never been wrong.

At the Yuntai Town military base, it was Tianlu that reminded him to evacuate in time, avoiding that rampaging Star-Glow Rank Vicious Beast.

At Yinpinglu, only it had avoided the pterosaur's pursuit in advance.

"Xiaoqing, northwest, full speed."

The Qingluan flapped its wings and shot toward the northwest with Qin Ce on its back.

The silver-green figure drew an arc in the thin mist, its speed so fast that it pulled a long wake through the fog.

The scenery on the ground retreated rapidly.

Wastelands, hills, and dried-up riverbeds passed under them one after another.

Then, a layer of thin mist appeared ahead.

Beyond this point would be the true territory of the Space-Time Rift's Vicious Beasts.

Further northwest, the mist would get thicker and thicker.

Qin Ce could feel the energy concentration in the air rising sharply.

It wasn't wind element, nor was it lightning element, but a more ancient and primitive energy fluctuation that continuously surged out from the direction of the Space-Time Rift.

He had the Qingluan slow down slightly, with Nine-Star Insight running at full power.

Ahead was the true periphery of the Space-Time Rift.

That area shrouded in thin mist was an energy fog carrying the aura of another world.

The Vicious Beasts in this area were completely different from those outside.

Qin Ce took a deep breath.

"Enter."

The Qingluan folded its wings and carried him into the thick fog.

The mist hit his face, bringing a cold, refreshing power. However, in the next moment, even the detection range of Nine-Star Insight was suddenly compressed significantly.

But Qin Ce did not slow down.

Tianlu said the northwest was auspicious, so he would fly northwest.

No matter what was ahead, no matter what he would encounter.

The Qingluan traveled through the thin mist, its wind energy tearing openings in the fog.

Qin Ce's eyes narrowed as Nine-Star Insight worked at full capacity to capture the surrounding auras.

And then—

Whoosh!

A piercing bolt of lightning split out from the depths of the thick fog, booming straight toward Qin Ce's face!

The speed was too fast.

So fast that he didn't even have time to order the Qingluan to dodge.

The Qingluan instinctively tilted its body, and the lightning flew past its left wing; electric arcs exploded on the silver-green feathers. The Qingluan let out a cry of pain, its body swaying for a moment.

Before Qin Ce could stabilize himself, a second attack had already arrived.

A scorching fireball shot from another direction, trailing a long tail of flame; its temperature was so high that it instantly evaporated the surrounding mist.

The Qingluan flapped its wings vigorously, and nine Wind Cores were activated simultaneously.

The Wind Barrier expanded, with three wind walls stacked together, blocking the fireball's flight path.

Boom!

The fireball collided with the wind walls, exploding into a piercing blaze.

The wind walls vibrated violently, but they did not shatter.

Qin Ce's expression darkened.

He had just entered and was already under attack!

And it wasn't just these two attacks.

More attacks were surging from all directions.

Fireballs, lightning bolts, Wind Blades, ice spikes, and shadow arrows—they were as dense as a rainstorm, pouring out from different directions and covering a radius of hundreds of meters.

Qin Ce finally felt the intensity of the Vicious Beast zone under the Space-Time Rift.

Vicious Beasts.

Countless Vicious Beasts.

He had become a target as soon as he entered this area.

Qin Ce grit his teeth.

Forget about only scouting and not hunting; there was no point thinking about that now—he had to get out alive first.

"Xiaoqing, Wind Barrier fully open, Phoenix Dance Nine Turns, charge out!"

The Qingluan let out a clear, high-pitched cry, and its nine Wind Cores simultaneously lit up with a piercing silver light.

The Wind Barrier expanded in layers, blocking the incoming attacks one by one.

Phoenix Dance Nine Turns was activated, and its form flickered continuously between the nine Wind Cores, slipping through the gaps between the attacks.

A bolt of lightning flew past the top of Qin Ce's head, singeing a few strands of hair.

A fireball grazed past the Qingluan's tail feathers, scorching a few silver-green feathers.

An ice spike flew past Qin Ce's arm, cutting a hole in his sleeve.

Among these attacks, quite a few had actually reached the Gold Rank.

Cold sweat broke out on Qin Ce's forehead.

But he did not stop.

The Qingluan's speed was pushed to the limit; its silver-green figure darted left and right in the thick fog, like a fish navigating through a storm.

It drew an arc and flew out of the thin mist.

Behind them, the attacks continued.

But they were getting further and further away.

Qin Ce panted heavily, his heart pounding like a drum.

This was the depths of the Space-Time Rift.

He had almost died just as he entered.

He looked down at Tianlu in his arms.

Tianlu was curled up in his embrace, the nine-colored light on its antlers having dimmed considerably, its small body trembling slightly. But it rubbed its head against Qin Ce's chest and let out a soft "miu."

Qin Ce stared and said, "So you're the one who said this direction was auspicious?"

"How is this auspicious???"

...