Chapter 414: Chapter 401: A Hard Task (3rd Update)

The next day, Biland Island, Divine Grace Town.

“I refuse. Forgive my bluntness, Agent, but I cannot accept this commission.”

Thorne decisively pushed the pile of… legendary armors and weapons that were in front of him back towards Jiang Qiao.

“The spirits won’t hold a grudge against you for this, trust me,” Jiang Qiao said to Thorne, looking rather helpless.

Jiang Qiao had learned about the general distribution of power in the star map from a Black Ash Knight, who had also divulged a critical piece of information to him.

That information was that a portion of the higher-ups in the Sanctuary of Creation were Eternals, and they were exceptionally wary of the Devouring God.

In the past, the descendants of the Devouring God had vanished from the star map, leaving only a few survivors like the Black Ash Knights. Consequently, the Eternals in the Sanctuary of Creation had not shown any outward hostility.

But what about now, when more than three hundred thousand descendants had suddenly appeared, and there would be an additional five hundred thousand to follow, spreading like the Void Swarm across the hills and valleys?

Could these Eternals remain calm and accepting of the existence of the spirits?

Jiang Qiao didn’t dare to bet on it and was not certain that every Eternal was as strong as Thorne.

Just like the first time Thorne had appeared before the spirits, Jiang Qiao needed to give the players a sense of crisis and frustration.

Ordinary players could feel this frustration in ladder PvP; after being dominated by stronger players, they would want to do everything possible to become stronger!

Upgrading the quality of their equipment, furiously leveling up, and rigorously practicing PvP skills were all things that players who pursued strength would do.

However, the sense of crisis among the top spirit players wasn’t very strong. Take Caramel for example, although he still dueled Thorne every day, he gradually stopped seeing Thorne as a target he must defeat.

Thorne had told this to Jiang Qiao himself. After Caramel had gained Thorne’s recognition and received his Shadowless Sword, he shifted his focus more to his current professional matchups.

Jiang Qiao didn’t think there was anything wrong with Caramel’s thoughts. After all, prioritizing one’s career over the game was quite normal.

But wasn’t it also fine for Jiang Qiao to have Thorne step in… to deflate those top players a bit?

So Jiang Qiao decided to have Thorne go to Queen Mei’s knighting ceremony and… publicly attempt to assassinate Queen Mei. Even if he couldn’t kill her, at least have Thorne rescue the poor old king.

“I know about the character Mei. Those spirits who watched from the sidelines at the arena always brought her up.” Thorne scratched his chin with a look that said ‘I’m not going to be tricked by you’. “For some spirits, she’s more like the cat kept at home by the spirit families than a queen.”

Cats… Jiang Qiao couldn’t help but admire the aptness of Thorne’s analogy, as most players’ impression of Queen Mei was indeed of a cat.

Madam Cat was one aspect, but another was how Queen Mei often came across as aloof yet adorably so, which was exactly what made players unable to stop loving her.

It was like your cat despised you, but you still wanted to hold and pet it regardless of its disdain.

“May I ask, Agent, if I killed your cat, would you forgive me?” Thorne asked seriously.

“Well… that would be a deep-seated vendetta,” Jiang Qiao replied.

“Therefore, I must decline this commission! Even if it’s a pretense, I cannot accept it.”

Having said this, Thorne lied down on his side, giving Jiang Qiao a look that clearly meant ‘Please, you might as well leave now!’

“Reason, Afraid?”

Jiang Qiao hadn’t expected the world’s number one swordsman, the Eternal who had thrashed countless professional experts on the stage, to feel fear.

“Afraid… I’m afraid that after accepting your commission, the Saint Spirits will band together to form a team to crusade against me, just like that idiot disciple of mine.” Thorne was referring to his disciple from the Obliterating Legion, Deris.

The reason he decided to strike a deal with Jiang Qiao was… he wanted to relish the thrill of a one-on-one duel with the Saint Spirits, not getting stuffed into a hundred-man instance by Jiang Qiao, facing a bombardment in rotation from a bunch of tanks, healers, DPS, and King of Trains!

“You’re not really going to assassinate Queen Mei. Queen Mei will cooperate with you to save the old king; besides, the players will regard you, the one who ‘assassinated’ the queen, and you, who are on the stage, as two different people.”

Jiang Qiao had no choice but to bring out the players’ unique logic to explain to Thorne that it’s normal for an NPC with the same model to appear in two different scenarios in a game!

“Two people… proxy, do you really hope to lead your Saint Spirits onto the path that transcends transcendence?” Thorne guessed the reason Jiang Qiao… had arranged this plot.

“Transcend transcendence? What kind of setting is that… uh, if you say so.”

Jiang Qiao remembered, in the words of the Black Ash Knight, that for the Saint Spirits, the leap from level 60 to 75 was like overcoming the gap between an ordinary creature and a near-godly one, so using the word ‘transcend’ was particularly apt.

If the Saint Spirits couldn’t find their own path to transcend, their levels would be stuck between 60 and 75; only by successfully breaking through could they continue to enhance their level.

Which is to say… the Second Awakening. Although the leap of fifteen levels is long, and the current server-wide level cap for players is only level 60.

But Jiang Qiao had to start preparing now.

“Alright, I’ll accept this commission, but afterwards, proxy, you have to agree to a request of mine.”

“Agreeable.”

In the end, Thorne picked up the large assortment of legendary equipment handed to him by Jiang Qiao. If he was heading to Lionheart City to ‘assassinate’ Queen Mei, it probably wouldn’t be a solo fight, he was going to face an entire server of Saint Spirits.

Confident as he was in his own abilities, Thorne also had to ensure that no accidents would occur.

After changing into the outfit provided by Jiang Qiao, Thorne’s appearance was strikingly similar to that of the… Swordsman player Second Awakening recorded in the Saint Spirit Library.

Upon donning this outfit, Thorne’s level instantly rose from 65 to 75.

The level system for monsters faced by Saint Spirits is different from that of the Saint Spirits themselves; for monsters, it’s a completely dynamic power display, adjusting based on actual strength. Thorne’s combat power with blank stats was at level 65, but with the new gear, it shot directly to 75.

The equipment crafted by Jiang Qiao for Thorne was merely level 60 Devouring God Equipment, costing just over 3,000 Creation Energy points. This increase in level was by no means the limit for Thorne.

“Will that disciple of mine show up in Lionheart City?” Thorne asked after changing outfits, choosing a modest and unadorned wooden sword as his weapon.

“You took that Saint Spirit as an apprentice?” Jiang Qiao was somewhat curious about Thorne’s recent relationship with the players.

“He seems to be called Caramel by you folks, gifted in swordsmanship, the most talented in my eyes, but that’s all,” Thorne said.

“Caramel? Don’t worry… he’s the top awardee of this knighthood ceremony, he’ll certainly be there… probably.”

If Jiang Qiao remembered correctly, today should be the day for the major clubs from Eagle Country. Whether Frenzy Cola was already on a plane and couldn’t make it, Jiang Qiao was unable to confirm.

“Top awardee… Youth is indeed wonderful,” Thorne replied.