Book 3: Chapter 31: Phantom Demon Rumors Record

After a brief conversation, Qin Lun learned roughly what Yoshida Junko and her two companions experienced inside the Undersea Temple. The Phantom Demon Rumors Record Matthew obtained did not exist in written form. Instead, its contents acted directly upon the mind.

This item was unique and couldn’t be copied by any other projection device. The only way to record it was by memorizing it manually. After entering the Phantom Demon World and preparing for a night, Junko and the others went straight into the Phantom Demon Maze when the demons descended, about half a day earlier than Qin Lun.

Knowing their own strength was low, Yoshida Junko’s trio relied on the area maps within the Phantom Demon Rumors Record. They tried their best to avoid the maze’s main areas, deliberately picking the paths with the fewest guards. Even so, they lost three new recruits in the maze.

However, compared to their gains in the maze, this loss seemed almost tiny. In fact, Qin Lun didn’t know yet that the room with the transport elevator contained more than one type of Gene Potion. Besides the defective potion Qin Lun gave to the Black Bear BEN, there was actually another, relatively complete low-level Gene Potion. It was the only one.

They had some other gains besides that potion. If just counting the gains up to this point, Matthew’s team of three was actually the group with the biggest haul in the entire maze and base complex.

Precisely because of their enormous gains, Matthew and the others were blinded by greed. They abandoned their original plan of just exploring the maze and not entering the Undersea Temple. Foolishly relying on the Phantom Demon Rumors Record, they planned to bypass the heavily guarded base areas controlled by the Phantom Demons to plunder more treasures.

This plan didn’t seem inherently flawed. Although they used up a lot of healing items in the outer maze, this Undersea Temple was vast, with many defensive blind spots. They could easily hide again after using up their recovery supplies until the seven-day stay period ended.

However, after a tough fight at the base entrance and finally entering the Undersea Temple, they discovered that a faction conflict mission had appeared on their task list. Though it wasn’t a Main Quest, it trapped them in a dilemma.

The reason was simple. While the Phantom Demon World was a kill-on-sight scenario, all-out fights specifically hunting enemy Reincarnators were rare. Mostly, everyone minded their own business: one side fought their Phantom Demons, the other fought their Oni Warriors. Keep it simple.

For High Rank Reincarnators, hunting low-rank ones often wasn’t worth the effort. The low-level gear they obtained was useless, and the recovery items consumed reduced their victory chances against bosses. Without an opposing mission, hunting enemy Reincarnators just for the Bloody Cube was foolish.

But with a faction conflict mission active now, things changed. Reincarnators from both sides would likely try every means to find and kill each other. This meant double rewards – the Bloody Cube and the mission bonus. The potential gain now outweighed the risk, far better than battling the Phantom Demon King to the death.

Because of this, Matthew’s plan fell apart. High Rank Reincarnators usually had their own scouting methods. The defensive blind spots the Phantom Demons had were nothing to Reincarnators. Hiding became very hard.

Cornered, the three of them only had two choices left. Either retreat all the way out of the Undersea Temple and the outer maze, or complete the second Main Quest, gain 1000 points of Faction Reputation with the Oni Clan, and return directly to the Superstring Space, without waiting for the seven-day stay to end.

Going back the way they came was impossible. That direction had been noisy for so long; enemy faction Reincarnators were surely there now. They could only advance, no retreat. They had to strive to get those 1000 faction reputation points before either using up their recovery items or encountering Phantom Demon faction Reincarnators.

“We have the Phantom Demon Rumors Record. Though we bypassed the main routes in the Undersea Temple, our progress definitely leads other Reincarnators by a good half day!” Junko said, blinking somewhat puzzled. “But you… you don’t happen to have other map intel about the Undersea Temple, do you?”

“No, no. I just used a clever trick!” Hearing Junko’s explanation, Qin Lun felt slightly less tense about the time pressure. He smiled and briefly explained his own situation.

“So you used summoned creatures to scout. That is a good method!” The Japanese girl nodded, her cool eyes moving thoughtfully. “So, what’s your plan now? Want to come with us?”

“Heh, whether I join you or not, we’ll see later. First, tell me where those two stone doors ahead lead?” Qin Lun chuckled lightly. This somewhat cold-natured Japanese girl wasn’t simple. She’d barely escaped life-threatening danger and was already thinking of how to use him.

“The left stone door leads to the Dragon’s Engine Room, the central control hub of the Undersea Temple. The right stone door leads to the Shipbuilding Room.” Yoshida Junko frowned as she recalled.

“The Shipbuilding Room?” Qin Lun asked curiously.

“Mhm. The Undersea Temple is actually where the Phantom Demons build warships. However, at this point in time when we entered the Phantom Demon World, the Shipbuilding Room might already be abandoned. The Phantom Demons lack the materials to build ships. One of their goals in attacking Paris was to plunder strategic supplies from that future time.” The Japanese girl explained calmly.

“Actually, the Undersea Temple’s central hub also connects to three other Phantom Demon bases. One is their biological research institute, where Guildenstern, the chief Phantom Demon scientist, resides. The other two are the Phantom Demon Fortress and the Engine City. The fortress is the Phantom Demons’ time-space research base, and the city is their armory base. The female Phantom Demon Capidana is stationed there.”

“So that’s it.” Qin Lun nodded slowly. Compared to the game intel Lü Kuang provided, Matthew’s trio, possessing the Phantom Demon Rumors Record, truly grasped valuable information about this world.

“Do these places… all hold many hidden Plot Missions?” A light flashed in Qin Lun’s eyes as he asked with a smile.

“Heh, you really shouldn’t try going to those three Phantom Demon bases. Just an abandoned Undersea Temple is this dangerous; imagine those three bases. Besides, those locations are guarded by Phantom Demon bosses. I’d bet most High Rank Reincarnators from the Phantom Demon faction are there.” Junko said coldly, “With our strength, going there is suicide!”

Qin Lun nodded noncommittally and casually asked, “Which door did Matthew and Jote go through?”

“They’re on their way to the Shipbuilding Room right now!” A slight smile touched Junko’s stern face. “If you’re willing to join us, the four of us would have a good chance of clearing the Shipbuilding Room.”

“Heh, I think I’ll pass on the Shipbuilding Room. I plan to rest and recover here first. Then I’ll head to the Dragon’s Engine Room,” Qin Lun stated plainly.

“You don’t trust us?” Yoshida Junko’s gaze flickered as she spoke slowly.

Having escaped the life-threatening crisis, the Japanese girl gradually recovered from her initial panic, reverting to her cold beauty demeanor.

“How you treated those three newbie Reincarnators doesn’t inspire much trust,” Qin Lun said without flinching, narrowing his eyes slightly.

“Surviving alone here will be difficult!” Junko frowned slightly, trying to persuade patiently.

“Let me be honest. My recovery supplies are also running low. Even if I fought alongside you, I wouldn’t share them.” Qin Lun’s tone was meaningful.

Yoshida Junko paused, a trace of awkwardness appearing on her face. She had already contacted Matthew and Jote through the Team Channel. Matthew told her to bring Qin Lun along. Their own recovery items were insufficient; the reason for recruiting Qin Lun was precisely for his supplies. After all, if they fought together, he couldn’t very well hoard the recovery food just for himself.

Matthew’s choice to go to the Shipbuilding Room was born of necessity. Their best hope was to gather the 1000 points of faction reputation and return directly to the space. If that proved impossible, they intended to bypass the Shipbuilding Room entirely and re-enter the outer maze from the other side. Hide if possible; if hiding failed, they would use the Time-Space Nodes within the maze to return to Paris.

Of course, returning to Paris was the last resort. Unlike yesterday, Paris’s Time-Space Nodes would surely be heavily guarded by Phantom Demons now. This option was only slightly better than going to the Dragon’s Engine Room and teleporting to the other three Phantom Demon bases.

However, if Qin Lun also had few recovery items left, then the value of recruiting him diminished significantly. They weren’t keen on having an outsider share combat spoils either.

“Then… take care of yourself,” Junko said after a moment of silence, sounding a bit awkward.

“Wait a moment!” Seeing the Japanese girl turn to leave, Qin Lun suddenly called out. He took out a final box of Moonlight Recovery Ointment from his Storage Space and said with a smile, “Beyond basic recovery items, you definitely need medicine that heals external wounds more urgently. This thing… I can sell half a box to you.”

Junko’s eyes lit up when she saw the ointment, then she frowned tightly. “Let me state upfront, exchanging gear or items is impossible. We can only offer Credit Points.”

They did still have a little recovery food, but medicine for stopping bleeding and healing wounds? They had none left. Otherwise, she needn’t have been sitting there earlier, awaiting death. Half a box of Moonlight Recovery Ointment, used sparingly, could offer each of them one chance to stop bleeding and begin healing. Provided the wound wasn’t too large, of course.

“I don’t want Credit Points, nor do I need you to exchange gear or items,” Qin Lun lowered his head slightly, masking the cunning glint in his eyes. “I want to see the other Phantom Demon bases. I hope you’ll exchange the Phantom Demon Rumors Record with me.”

“You want the Phantom Demon Rumors Record?” Yoshida Junko was momentarily stunned, a look of surprise flashing across her handsome, cold face.

The Phantom Demon Rumors Record contained a wealth of Phantom Demon intel and area maps, and it was unique. However, as time passed, even if the Phantom Demon intel remained exclusive, area maps would gradually be hand-drawn by other Reincarnators.

Its value would only keep decreasing, especially for someone like Matthew and the others. They weren’t high-ranking Reincarnators who could freely choose Quest Worlds. Who knew when they would next enter the Phantom Demon World? And this world adventure was nearing its conclusion. Even if they sold the Record back in the space, 5000 Credit Points would likely be its maximum worth.

Trading roughly 5000 Credit Points for half a box of life-saving medicine? Regardless of Qin Lun’s motives, they had no reason to refuse.

“Alright, deal!” The moment Yoshida Junko brought it up in the Team Channel, Matthew and Jote agreed immediately. They directly transferred the Phantom Demon Rumors Record to the Japanese girl via the Team Warehouse.

“I warn you one last time, don’t go to the Dragon’s Engine Room!” After the trade was completed, Junko couldn’t help but warn the young man again, a trace of complicated emotion finally showing on her cool face.

“Thanks.” Qin Lun smiled, waving to the departing girl.