Chapter 29 The Coffin Altar is being upgraded!
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Lifting the lid, two dark red crystals lay quietly on the mat, their surfaces gleaming with a lustrous sheen.
Two elemental cores of the "Dizziness" level! One is the advance payment for the transaction, and the other is a thank you to Du Yu for helping to deal with the black corpse oil, plus an apology for the delayed delivery of supplies.
Clearly, Cat Beard was a very sensible person. Although Du Yu said that disposing of corpse oil did not count as a number of times she had to use her hands, she still very spiritually offered two pieces after she had freed her hands.
The three elemental cores, ten believers, and five C-grade materials—all the materials needed to upgrade the altar—were collected. Du Yu put the cores into his backpack and selected "Yes" from the pop-up options.
[Ding-dong~ The special building [Altar] is upgrading, estimated to take 1 hour. Use points to speed it up.]
[Beep! Building requirements unlocked. The special building [Coffin] (unique) has been unlocked. Click to view building requirements.]
Du Yu's gaze fell on the newly unlocked building, and he clicked on it out of curiosity.
[Architecture: Coffin]
[Level: Dull (Upgrade path not unlocked)]
[Construction Materials: Tier 1 Core, Grade A Wood, Grade A Any Metal, Zealot]
[Note: This device is designed to house a divine body and is used in conjunction with the special building [Altar - Twilight] and the divine kingdom building [Temple - Twilight]. A god lingering in the mortal realm? That's not a good choice. Before ascending, please give your body a home~]
[Note: The scales of fate constantly sway and weigh; to gain something, you must first lose something. Fortunately, you are luckier than others, gaining far more than you lose.]
Divine body?
Du Yu spread her hands. Even though the system had given her the title of a god, she was certain that this was just the body of an ordinary A-level ability user, and had nothing to do with "god".
His gaze lingered on the statement, "It's not a good choice for gods to remain in the human world." Du Yu stared intently for a long time, rubbing his thumb and forefinger together, before turning to the white dove, who had been silent for some reason.
How much time do I have left?
The words seemed abrupt, but the white dove's gray eyes stared intently at Du Yu for three seconds before giving its answer: "Before the altar is upgraded to [Lamp]."
There are six levels of corrupted creatures: Twilight, Candle, Lamp, and the third level collectively known as "Catastrophe"...
Du Yu twitched the corner of his mouth. "Is it necessary to abandon the body before becoming the [Lamp], or can one become the [Lamp] only after abandoning the body?"
The white dove cooed and looked away, but sometimes no answer is an answer in itself.
It seems that to become a god, one must first cease to be human.
Du Yu exhaled a breath of stale air, the complex emotions in her eyes slowly fading. She asked the system in her mind:
Will you force me to make a choice?
【Won't. 】
Two repeated voices rang out simultaneously, and a six-winged white dove spread its wings and flew to Du Yu's shoulder, nuzzling her cheek. "The only purpose of a game is to make players happy. 166 will always support players."
Du Yu stared at the pigeon's gray eyes for a long time, then chuckled and reached out to smooth its ruffled feathers.
"Have you two eaten yet?"
"I'm full!"
Tian Yinuo had exhausted her mental energy several times while grilling meat, and upon hearing this, she raised her hand with a sigh of relief, her face covered in soot.
"Very good, let's go."
Du Yu cheerfully ignored the weak "No," rubbed the pigeon's head, and assigned today's work tasks to the two employees currently employed by the Church of Listening, one of the top 100 organizations in the divine realm:
"Let's go! Our goal is to ensure there's no litter around the temple!"
Tian Yinuo clapped very politely, and Xiao Yi, who knew that she would only be able to eat meat in the afternoon, paused for a while and then joined in the clapping.
Du Yu paused amidst the enthusiastic applause, looking at the two people below the stage, and for some reason did not feel the excitement of being a boss exploiting people.
Soon, she found out why—
Tian Yinuo is alright. Although she works a little slowly and always manages to find some strange things—such as "an old keyboard that doesn't want to work anymore" and "a wooden doll that likes to sing"—she is still very enthusiastic about her work.
As for Xiao Yi—
Du Yu skillfully combined three pieces of wood into one unit of E-grade wood, numbly watching Xiao Yi pick up stones until she started to space out, then sleepwalked and fell flat on her face. Each time, she accurately fell into the spatial ripples, and after falling to the ground, she stared at the unfamiliar mutated creature. In the end, she turned the creature into food before it could reach her.
This series of short combos is incredibly smooth.
Du Yu was shocked at first glance, then surprised, and finally speechless. Until he saw him trip and fall flat on his face again, Du Yu was utterly helpless. "Are you cursed by Lady Luck? How can you be so unlucky?"
Du Yu put away the wood and looked at Xiao Yi speechlessly. He seemed stunned by the fall, supporting himself on his hands, looking down at the ground, and didn't get up for a long time.
Du Yu sighed, just as he was about to enter the spatial ripples to help him, when his expression suddenly changed.
The space within the Mist Rift is extremely unstable, making orientation meaningless. Temporary passages connecting two areas often appear, which Mist Hunters call "spatial ripples."
Generally speaking, the duration of spatial ripples is uncertain, but they can support at least two passages. The spaces on either side of the ripples are relatively fragile and cannot support powerful creatures. Generally, only creatures below level B can live in the spaces on either side of the ripples.
But this time—
A powerful pressure emanated from the link, and Du Yu suddenly realized that Xiao Yi wasn't staring blankly at the ground, but was looking at the powerful creature beneath her feet!
Du Yu had never seen anyone so unlucky, falling flat on his face and landing right on top of the monster's head!
"Xiao Yi, can you solve this?"
At this distance, Du Yu could directly transmit information to her followers. Although Xiao Yi's strength was a mystery, having even dealt with A-level mutated creatures, this creature before her was exceptionally different in her perception.
She didn't even dare to speak directly, for fear of startling the monster.
"..."
A mental wave surged through him, and Du Yu strangely understood Xiao Yi's meaning. He was speechless for a moment, then used his mental power to send a message to him: "Don't worry, if you can deal with this monster, there will be plenty of food."
Xiao Yi slowly stood up, her golden eyes calm and still. Her overly long bangs were tied into a comical updo by Du Yu, and she was still wearing that oversized prison uniform. Although she looked very inconspicuous, something seemed to appear in her eyes after hearing Du Yu's promise.
Du Yu raised an eyebrow in slight surprise; she was very familiar with this kind of thing—killing intent.
How could Xiao Yi, who just throws a piece of meat at a dog and leaves like a fool, possibly have this?
The monster seemed to finally realize the uninvited guest had appeared. The ground beneath Xiao Yi's feet shook violently, one end rising and the other falling, as if the land within a radius of one thousand square meters was about to be flipped over!
The mud and rocks on its back poured down like a waterfall, and with the strength of its four limbs, three heads popped out, revealing itself to be a giant three-headed tortoise!
Not only was that turtle large, but its three pairs of eyes also revealed a shrewdness and cruelty unlike that of beasts!
Sensing the aura emanating from the other end of the spatial ripples, a hint of seriousness appeared in Du Yu's eyes. 166, hiding behind Du Yu, peeked out from behind her neck and confirmed Du Yu's guess: "Goo, it's a Fallen Species of the Twilight Level!"
The biggest difference between Fallen Ones and ordinary mutated or aberrant creatures lies in whether they have comprehended the [Elements]. Without mastering the Elements, a mutated creature is at best a slightly stronger animal; although strong, it can still be killed with firearms.
However, comprehending the [Elements] means that animals, like humans, have entered the realm of the extraordinary! Although it is much more difficult for animals to glimpse the extraordinary than for humans, once they step through that door, they can become powerful extraordinary beings capable of rivaling A-level ability users!
While humans can easily comprehend the awakening traits of [Elements], the starting point of the path to transcendence is often a low-level E-rank, who may not even be able to defeat ordinary beasts.
Du Yu pieced together the information about the Fallen from the original body and the original work, and couldn't help but complain to 166, "Isn't it said that the smarter the ability user, the faster their strength improves? Why is it the other way around for animals?"
"Gulp~ It's not necessarily the other way around."
166 watched the giant tortoise's movements and shrank further behind Du Yu. "For 'Fallen' creatures, low sanity is actually easier. The brains of most mutated creatures don't allow them to understand [elements], so the elements they master often belong to the same superior element."
Du Yu recalled the first black icon lit up in the encyclopedia and seemed to realize something: "Is it an element of [Erosion]?"
"That's right, Gu! There are other elements under the command of [□□]. For these kinds of elements, there is no need to master them. You only need to follow the most primal desires, because depravity is the instinct of living beings."
"So, the term 'Fallen Species' is used as a general term for this type of creature?"
166 nodded, startled by the giant tortoise's sudden movement, and shrank back behind Du Yu.
Before Du Yu could even complain about its cowardice, his attention shifted to the battle between Xiao Yi and the giant tortoise.
The three heads of the giant three-headed turtle stretched to their limit like springs, biting at Xiao Yi from different directions!
The giant tortoise's shell swayed back and forth like a seesaw, making it difficult to stand on as if in an earthquake. Little Yi, however, seemed to be permanently attached to it, remaining motionless as the giant tortoise's sharp jaws snapped shut, about to bite him in two!
Xiao Yi's golden eyes seemed to dim slightly, and her figure became ethereal. She was completely unharmed by the giant tortoise's attack!
"Waaah—"
The wind howled, its mournful sound like the cries of demons worshipping the moon and a hundred ghosts wailing on an ancient battlefield, and the light on the other side of the ripples suddenly dimmed.
Three shadows trailed behind Xiao Yi, lengthening in the increasingly mournful wind. The three golden figures gradually focused, as if they were about to break through the shadows and emerge into the world in the next second!
Du Yu frowned slightly. Judging from Xiao Yi's current aura alone, it was already comparable to the top-tier A-level ability users she had seen in her previous life. 166 had said that Xiao Yi's current state was not right, as if she was in a seal.
How strong would Xiao Yi be if she were at her peak?
Du Yu's eyes lit up: She was too conservative! With such a capable subordinate, she should assign him more challenging tasks to maximize his benefits!
166 glanced at Du Yu's current expression, then silently shrank back. He had a feeling that the player's current state was even more terrifying than that monster...
"No, no, no, stop fighting! I give up!"
Even through the spatial ripples, Du Yu could feel the power of Xiao Yi's attack. The three giant turtles could feel it even more clearly. The three heads that had reached out to bite Xiao Yi retracted with a "whoosh," and their shells crashed to the ground with a "boom," pleading for mercy in human language:
"Don't kill me! Don't kill me! Old turtle meat doesn't taste good either!"
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