Chapter 1017 - 523: Trapped Inside

Chapter 1017: Chapter 523: Trapped Inside

Could it really be this simple? The space channel is right in front of us.

But it’s precisely this sense of disparity that fills everyone’s hearts with doubt; not one person dares to approach easily.

The humanoid life form Etas, surging like mercury, shoots out a silver stream that falls on the door frame of the space channel.

After a moment, he exclaims with surprise, "The rigidity of this metal material is extremely high, merely in terms of hardness, it probably exceeds 2000X, and it has other traits. The comprehensive defense strength probably surpasses 2500X."

"If it were a complete portal, there’d be almost no way to break through it."

So, Anatoli was right?

The crowd instinctively thinks so, staring at the space channel ahead.

Perkins asks, "So, is the person inside? Should we go in?"

No one pays her any attention; who knows what’s inside, and no one wants to be the cannon fodder.

Gusta’s eyes flicker, "Let’s first set up a blockade to prevent any life forms from easily leaving."

The crowd nods unconsciously and begins to move quickly. The evolutionary paths of the various X Level life forms present differ, as do the blockage methods.

Once they start, the void begins to twist violently, like a giant canvas being crumpled with force.

Multiple strands of energy interweave, collide, and constantly expand their domain.

With an unstoppable momentum, they rapidly spread, covering the entire void, forming tight energy fields and sealing it from all dimensions.

......

Meanwhile, in the arena, Li Ming rubs his chin.

"...That’s roughly all I know..." says Green Forestket.

Li Ming’s eyes flicker; he learns more details about the Abyssal erosion from Green Forestket’s words.

Upon an Abyss Clan member’s death, their body secretes a special substance known as Abyss Fog.

This substance possesses strange traits, capable of permeating all materials, prioritizing life forms.

Before fully merging with the deeper layers of the main universe, Titans can collect it through special methods and throw it back into the Eternal Abyss.

That’s the kind of stones Li Ming has seen before.

After being eroded, Titans are divided into three stages: basic, intermediate, and advanced.

In the basic stage, where the Abyss Fog has just started erosion and the body is affected by no more than 30%, there is still hope for recovery by extracting the Abyss Fog using special methods.

The intermediate stage is the deterioration phase where the body starts converting to another plane, initially uncontrollable, with an influence not exceeding 60%.

In this stage, it is crucial to decisively cut off the eroded limbs to have a chance of survival, and the severed limbs will not have any chance of regeneration, being eroded from the existential root.

Once it exceeds 60%, the Abyss Fog begins to erode the consciousness, necessitating humane obliteration.

"As for your hypothesis, master seems to have mentioned as well that those Abyss Clan are actually the remnants of past civilized life forms after erosion." Green Forestket adds.

Li Ming’s expression changes; the Abyss Clan is indeed not purely destructive; expansion is an innate instinct of a race.

"As for the rest, I am unaware. I’m merely the arena’s manager." Green Forestket concludes.

"You’ve explained quite a lot to me." Li Ming nods, then asks, "Where’s your data core? I can take you with me."

"Take me away?" Green Forestket chuckles, finally shaking his head, "Thank you for your kindness, but unfortunately, I cannot leave, nor do I wish to leave. My data core is essentially the entire arena."

"If it exists, I do too. If it doesn’t, I have no need to exist."

Another one bound to perish together?

Li Ming remains silent; the loyalty of these AIs is indeed high.

Green Forestket sighs wistfully, then looks back at Li Ming and cannot help but say: "Actually, this is the first time I’ve seen someone able to win the King’s Trial and resist the erosion of Abyss Fog. I hope you can survive."

As Green Forestket speaks, green flames engulf him, and the metal debris floating in the void begins to rumble intensely.

"Well..." Li Ming can’t help but speak.

"Don’t mourn for me," Green Forestket smiles.

"What I mean is..." Before he can finish, Green Forestket interrupts: "The obliteration program has already started; no need to persuade me, it’s an honor to perish in the presence of a ’potential king.’

Li Ming’s face darkens: "Before you die, can you open a door for me?"

"A door?" Green Forestket is taken aback, then suddenly realizes, "Oh, sorry, with everything that’s been happening, I completely forgot..."

"I... I... I..." The flames consume his entire body, and the metal debris in mid-air completely collapses, its parts scattering.

"I... This... Just this... I..." Green Forestket’s phantom figure abruptly explodes into flowing light, not finishing his last sentence.

Li Ming stands expressionless, looking at where the other vanished, feeling an urge to pull the guy out of the grave and give him another beating.

Taking a deep breath, his heart moves slightly as he suddenly turns around and sees, not far off, a space portal standing there.

"It’s opened?" Li Ming is momentarily stunned, unconsciously shaking his head, "This guy..."

He has already pocketed Taigos’s corpse, and the silver chain seems to have been obliterated in the nest as well.

Scanning around, there doesn’t seem to be anything else, so he prepares to head towards the space portal.

However, after walking only a few steps, his expression changes slightly, seeing strands of dandelion-like energy flow drifting in from the space channel not far away, with eyeball-like things hanging at their ends.

Someone’s outside!

Li Ming’s heart is instantly alert, his body reacting before his mind, shooting out black light beams to obliterate those energy flows.

He then carefully conceals his figure, hiding to one side.

"Someone’s here..." he muses with a shifting expression, "Who could it be, the Star Alliance? Or Anatoli’s group, how coincidental to run into me now."

He doesn’t act hastily, only observing the main universe situation beyond the space portal from every angle.

Yet he sees no figures, the other side having hidden themselves very well.

"Quite troublesome, being blocked here, Green Forestket vanished too quickly." Li Ming’s brow furrows tightly.

Whether it’s the Star Alliance or Anatoli’s group, he’s tough to confront head-on.

"Need to figure it out..." he ponders over different tactics for dealing with the Star Alliance versus others.

Outside, the crowd watches a blurred virtual screen, their expressions wary and uncertain.

"My ’sphere stock’ was just annihilated the moment it went in." Sener says coldly, "It seems calm, but hidden dangers abound. Just not sure if it’s a star beast in action or the firstcomer."

Perkins comments, "If according to Anatoli, the star beast is extremely powerful, even Gusta isn’t its match; the person who went in earlier is likely already dead."

"Should we send someone to check it out?"

She proposes, making the group fall silent.

Sener looks over, "Why don’t you go?"

Perkins ponders momentarily but doesn’t hesitate and proceeds forward.

The group holds its breath, many secretly admiring her courage.

However, upon seeing Perkins engulfed in energy flames, walking up to the doorway, stand there for a moment, and then return calmly, saying, "I’m too big to fit in."

"Heh..." Sener chuckles, the others silently speechless.

"We can’t just remain in this stalemate," Anatoli interjects, seemingly with a mind to lead, appearing next to the space portal in one step.

Nevertheless, he doesn’t enter either; the yellow robe he wears billows as though blown by an invisible wind, intensely rippling and undulating.

Subsequently, energy symbols pour out steadily from his body, flicker with a strange light, rapidly coalescing and interweaving in the air, gradually forming into a complete figure.

Expressionless, yet exuding an overpowering lifeforce.