Chapter 578 - 468: The Most Treacherous Quest in History: The Cheating Youth’s Spring (Part 2)

Even though Qin Jianfei was known as a powerhouse among 9th-ranks, he was no match for an alien Strongest.

It was inevitable that the five of them would get injured.

However, they could still stall the Snow Demon and the Snow Elf for a little while.

And that little bit of time...

...was Gao Neng’s last chance to kill the Blood Marshal.

Netherworld Hell.

If it doesn’t kill its target, it harms the user.

An ordinary person would definitely panic in this situation because the Blood Marshal’s soul strength was, of course, far greater than Gao Neng’s.

But Gao Neng had never been an ordinary person.

So, he wasn’t panicking at all.

The reason was simple...

He was strong enough.

’Netherworld Hell can kill opponents of a higher rank. With my soul strength, it shouldn’t be a big problem to jump from the 7th rank to the 9th. If I add West White Tiger and convert all my Blood Qi into Mental Energy...’ Gao Neng glanced at the data on the Idiot System’s Attribute Panel.

Name: Gao Neng.

Age: 18.

Blood Qi: 3599/4299 (Rating: Epic).

Mental Energy: 2955/3488 (Rating: Epic).

’Scared?’

’Not a chance!’

’I’ll just add my Blood Qi to my Mental Energy.’

Gao Neng’s Mental Energy could reach a terrifying total of nearly eight thousand points.

’There’s absolutely no need to panic.’

Besides, the most important thing was that the Blood Marshal had split his soul once before. This was the perfect opportunity, while his soul was weakened. If he couldn’t win now, when could he?

"Die!" Gao Neng’s entire body was engulfed in flames.

The flames were a viscous, oily green.

However, Li Tiannan was scared out of his wits.

"You brat, stop! This Silver Horn King is a Strongest! His soul strength is more than you can handle! Are you trying to get yourself killed?!" Li Tiannan was genuinely frantic.

’This isn’t how you do things!’

’You obviously can’t win...’

’...so why the hell are you still trying to force it?’

’Aren’t you just asking to get yourself killed by him?’

There was no other way.

The only thing Li Tiannan could do was knock Gao Neng out with a single palm strike.

’As long as I knock Gao Neng unconscious...’

’...the flames will probably go out, right?’

This was what Li Tiannan thought. After all, in his mind, only Ghost knew how to extinguish the flames of Netherworld Hell.

"Gao Neng, I’m sorry!"

"Master, don’t come any closer! If you dare hit me, I’ll burn you to death!" Gao Neng shouted as he saw Li Tiannan’s palm flying toward his head.

"???" Li Tiannan was speechless.

’This is betrayal of one’s master and ancestors!’

’This kid has really gotten arrogant!’

’It was one thing to learn skills behind his and Ghost’s backs, but now he actually wants to use Ghost’s Netherworld Hell to burn him to death?’

’How the hell can I tolerate this?!’

Hmm...

Li Tiannan tolerated it.

Because he could tell that Gao Neng’s face wasn’t showing much pain.

On the contrary, beads of red sweat were constantly dripping from the Blood Grand Marshal’s body, one by one, only to be incinerated into mist by the Netherworld Hell.

’No way... Could it be? Is this kid’s soul actually stronger than this Silver Horn King’s? This is just... completely illogical!’ Li Tiannan felt like he’d been struck by lightning.

’This is too heaven-defying!’

’Even if you’re using cheats, you can’t cheat like this, can you?’

’You’re only 7th-rank!’

’Do you understand what 7th-rank means?’

’Trying to kill a Strongest at 7th-rank—does your mother know about this?!’

Li Tiannan’s jaw hung wide open.

In fact, it wasn’t just him. Luna, who was watching this scene from the crowd, also had her mouth agape, her chest heaving.

’Holy crap, that brat’s insane! He’s actually using Netherworld Hell on a Strongest?!’ Luna covered her mouth as she recalled what she had told Gao Neng.

’As long as it hits.’

’It ignores any rank!’

’So, this is my fault?!’

But at the time, she was just trying to brag about how strong her killing technique was. She never imagined that Gao Neng would immediately run into a Strongest and actually manage to land a hit.

’Oh, my dear Senior Sister...’

’I really didn’t do it on purpose!’

...

If one day...

...an alien Strongest was about to die at your hands, what would you do?

Gao Neng didn’t know what other people would do.

But he would do one thing.

Issue a mission to calm his nerves.

"Idiot System, issue a mission!"

’Mission objective: kill an alien Strongest... Target locked (Blood Marshal)!’ Gao Neng had originally thought just issuing a mission to kill a Strongest would be enough.

But after thinking about it, he decided it was better to be more specific.

’What’s that saying again?’

’Better safe than sorry.’

’Mission reward: System random (with a guaranteed opportunity to upgrade one skill).’

This was another very clever setup.

He let the Idiot System decide the reward itself.

This way, the Idiot System could grant a reward appropriate to the mission’s difficulty. Most importantly, Gao Neng had cleverly specified a guaranteed minimum reward.

With this, it was foolproof.

It had been several months.

Issuing a mission again, Gao Neng was already a mature man.

Until the very last moment...

...he absolutely would not commit.

"DING! Mission issued successfully."

"Mission: A Cheater’s Springtime (Hidden)."

"Mission Description: 1. Less talk, more killing! 2. Spring is the season of revival. In this season, if you sow a seed, you can reap a basket of fruit. Please cherish this opportunity."

"Mission Objective: Kill an alien Strongest... Target locked (Blood Marshal)!"

"Mission Reward: Complete Phase 1 (Reward: one skill upgrade opportunity). Complete Phase 2 hidden mission (Reward: one Epic-grade skill)."

"Mission Failure Penalty: Deduct one Epic-grade skill and randomly downgrade one skill."

"..."

"What... the actual fuck?!"

Gao Neng’s eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.

’What a fucking top-tier "perk" this is.’

Not only did it give a skill upgrade opportunity, but it also threw in a hidden mission. And the hidden mission came with a super-sized perk: a direct reward of an Epic-grade skill.

’A total jackpot, right?’

’But the problem is...’

’I only wanted to gamble for a skill upgrade opportunity, why are you forcing me to gamble with an Epic-grade skill?’

’Why are you such an idiot!’

’Do you know how rare an Epic-grade skill is?’

’Do you know how much blood, sweat, and tears I poured into upgrading a basic skill to Epic?’

’I only have a grand total of two fucking Epic-grade skills right now.’

’And you want me to bet one of them?’

’NO!’

’Absolutely not!’

’Can I just not do the hidden mission? Idiot System!!!! Be a person for once, give me a straight answer! Can I or can’t I?!’ Gao Neng roared in his mind.

"Cannot." The mechanical voice was devoid of emotion.

"Gan Liniang!" Gao Neng no longer hid his emotions. He was just that willful; if he felt like cursing, he would let it out, no longer holding back.

But the problem was, this fucking mission was such a scam, wasn’t it?

"Spring is the season of revival. In this season, if you sow a seed, you can reap a basket of fruit. Please cherish this opportunity."

’What kind of hint is this for a hidden mission?’ Gao Neng glanced at the ground, where countless gazes were fixed on him.

’So, where am I supposed to go bury a seed?’

’Forget it!’

’Who cares!’

’Killing him comes first!’

No matter what, he had to secure that skill upgrade opportunity first.

Gao Neng was furious.

So, he unleashed his pent-up rage on the Blood Marshal. He would use Netherworld Hell to show this Strongest what a "cheater’s springtime" truly meant.

"Die!" Gao Neng struck again, appearing like a shadow behind the Blood Marshal before thrusting forward with all his might.

BOOM!

The Blood Marshal’s body seemed to have been pierced through.

Flames erupted from within his body, burning wildly.

"AHHHH~~!" A pained screech escaped the Blood Marshal’s throat. Never before had he endured such agony.