An invasion from the Abyss? I, a demonic cultivator, laughed.

Chapter 118 The Night King's Countermeasures

Chu Xiu did not choose to hunt at night.

Although he is very strong now, both the infusion of demonic energy and the triple burst consume a great deal of mana.

Even using the Berserk Demon Hand alone is a considerable burden. After reaching the third level, even with his current astonishing energy level, he can only maintain it for two or three minutes.

Therefore, although he has never run out of mana, he always manages to replenish his mana before launching a hunting operation.

Compared to the ghouls that become stronger at night, hunting them during the day is not only more efficient but also less strenuous.

But when midnight comes, the tongue starts bouncing around again, wanting to speak.

Chu Xiu had already prepared a drop of [Perfect] quality blood, which he obtained by fusing Wei Shan's two-handed greatsword. Everyone knew that this weapon had been stolen by the Dark Night King, so he couldn't easily make a move.

"Freshly brewed blood wine!"

"Quick! Put it in my mouth!"

As soon as it released its tongue, it tasted the blood wine and began to chatter incessantly.

Chu Xiu placed the blood wine in front of it and said leisurely, "I've already obtained the legendary equipment. What do you plan to exchange for this time?"

"This city has seven hidden secrets. How about I tell you about a hidden military armory?"

"Are there any legendary items?" Chu Xiu asked.

"without"

"Then don't."

"I also know the location of a secret biological research lab that contains rare properties."

Chu Xiu shook his head again, no longer keeping him in suspense: "I need to know the whereabouts of the Bloody Arena."

"Bloody Arena?" The tongue was taken aback for a moment, then let out a mocking "ho ho ho" sound and started to wriggle back and forth.

"This kind of trash doesn't even deserve to exchange for information about the Bloody Arena?"

"The Bloodstained Arena is the most precious of the seven secrets, and the only one that allows direct access to the boundless blood pool!"

"Unless you can give me a [Legendary] quality blood wine, it's impossible to obtain all the information about it."

The words on the tongue made Chu Xiu look thoughtful.

He certainly wouldn't fuse the Vampire Earl's Wings to exchange for a vague and uncertain opportunity. Putting aside how precious legendary equipment is, this piece of equipment is just too perfect for him, and can greatly enhance his combat power.

After a moment's thought, Chu Xiu said, "You said you need the [Legend] to get all the information, so can't I just need a part of it?"

"It's up to you. Anyway, all the information I've given you is in accordance with the rules," Tongue snorted. "But I must warn you first, using only [Perfect] quality blood wine might disappoint you. You might as well use it to exchange for a regular secret."

"Give it a try," Chu Xiu simply said.

As a secret location specifically mentioned by the system, and one that allows direct access to the mysterious, boundless blood pool, Chu Xiu felt it was worthwhile for him to try investing in the Bloody Arena.

As for the other secrets, judging from the previous descriptions of Tongue, they don't seem to be of much help to him. Moreover, those secrets won't disappear, unlike the Blood Arena which has a time limit and will be gone once the world mission ends.

He felt it was necessary to take a gamble.

Seeing Chu Xiu's resolute attitude, Tongue stopped talking and, after absorbing the blood wine, slowly said, "The entrance to the Blood Arena will only open when the dead are resurrected."

After saying that, his tongue flipped over with a "snap" and then stopped moving.

Chu Xiu: "."

He knew the information he had gathered might be limited, but he never imagined it would just be a vague, unrelated statement.

This is even more outrageous than the previous "northwest side of the tower, under the giant's feet".

"What is 'resurrection of the dead'? Do I have to do some prerequisite quest to resurrect creatures?"

Chu Xiu had a bit of a headache.

But he quickly stopped thinking about it. The Bloody Arena was just a trial; if it worked, great, but if not, it wouldn't affect his progress.

He closed his eyes slightly and began to restore his magical power.

However, only fifteen minutes later, there was a knock on his door.

"Chen Ce, Miss wants you to attend a meeting."

The meeting Lin Wanyue invited Chu Xiu to attend was a strategic conference that brought together leaders of various major factions.

After the trade fair ended, they did not disperse immediately, but gathered together to discuss their next steps.

Almost all the awakened individuals and staff members of the rank of warrior or above came.

Chu Xiu sat in the middle of the group, listening to their discussion with some boredom.

He's been sitting here for an hour, mainly discussing the details of the operation, including how to arrange kill missions, the progress of clearing the level, and so on.

Chu Xiu didn't care about these things. Fortunately, with his current physical condition, he could recover his energy without special rest, so it didn't have much of an impact.

However, just as he was feeling bored, the chief analyst from the government walked onto the podium with a serious expression.

"Gentlemen, you should all be familiar with the plan of action, right?"

"Now, we're going to discuss the most important question."

His words attracted everyone's attention.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, the chief analyst said, word by word:

"That is—how to deal with the Night King!"

"Oh?" Chu Xiu's eyes narrowed, and he became slightly interested.

The others also perked up and their expressions became serious.

The chief analyst continued, "According to the latest news, the Night King has begun hunting down ferocious-ranked monsters."

"Our original plan was to sweep away the ghouls in the central city, and after we had increased our level and combat strength, we would then consider the plan to encircle the Dark Night King."

"But judging from the current situation, its growth rate is far beyond all of our expectations!"

"If this continues, who knows what kind of terrifying monster will be born!"

His words caused the others below to frown.

Even before entering the abyss, the group had already held extensive discussions and prepared contingency plans for various unforeseen circumstances.

However, the appearance of the Night King still far exceeded their expectations, becoming a variable that no one could be certain of. "According to the latest assessment by the data analysis team, the Night King's power has grown to a critical value that is about to exceed our ability to cope."

"When I say 'responding to the limit,' I mean that all forces present use their trump cards without reservation and work together to hunt down the Dark Night King!"

After he finished speaking, the chief analyst sent a document to everyone, which detailed every sighting of the Night King and the evaluation of a large amount of data.

This includes the Night King's power level, skill estimates, number of subordinates, and power growth rate curve, among other things.

Chu Xiu flipped through it and couldn't help but look amazed.

The analysis above is accurate, although some data is outdated, given how fast Chu Xiu's upgrade speed is.

But he was still shocked that his opponent could roughly guess his strength from those few short battles.

A true professional.

After giving everyone ample time to browse, the chief analyst solemnly spoke up: "Therefore, we must make a decision tonight: whether to immediately use all our strength to nip the Dark King in the bud, or to let this variable continue to grow!"

As he finished speaking, everyone fell silent; the room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

This is a crucial decision that will directly determine the success or failure of this mission to conquer the world!
After a long silence, Ye Junlin raised his hand: "If we choose to kill the Dark Night King, what are the chances of success?"

"Based on the Dark Night King's latest performance, the success rate is very high. However, he has not yet gone all out. Conservatively speaking, the success rate would drop to around 70%," the analyst said.

"Is it really that tall?" Ye Junlin asked, his face full of doubt. "I've fought that thing myself, and I know how terrifying it is. Moreover, its power increases faster than that of us Awakened Ones!"

Wei Shan and Anya, who were standing beside him, also looked somber, clearly recalling some unpleasant suspicions.

Ye Junlin gently tapped the table: "The price that the weak pay when they try to kill the strong is usually far higher than they can calculate."

As the undisputed number one in Jiangcheng, Ye Junlin understands better than anyone the power of the strong to suppress the weak.

A person with three times the physical strength is definitely not someone that three ordinary people can fight against; even thirty ordinary people would probably struggle.

However, if the scope of the siege is expanded to a city, and the fear and anxiety that people may experience on the spot are taken into account, then even three hundred or three thousand people may not be able to succeed!

Faced with Ye Junlin's questioning, the chief analyst paused and said, "We know all of this. Let me reiterate, the success rate I'm referring to is based on all forces using their trump cards without reservation—including those you've hidden and haven't reported."

"Furthermore, the strength of the Night King cannot increase suddenly."

The analyst's words once again silenced everyone.

After a long silence, Zhang Qingshan broke the silence: "What's the estimated casualty rate?"

"That depends on whether the two young masters and ladies are willing to give it up," the analyst said, glancing at Ye Junlin and Lin Wanyue. "The Dark Night King's defense and survivability are estimated to be at the level of a normal level 6-9. If the two of you decisively activate your trump cards, there is a chance that you can kill him instantly."

"But if the first strike fails and alerts the enemy, leading to a protracted tug-of-war, the success rate will drop sharply, or even result in complete failure!"

You have already aroused my suspicion.
Chu Xiu couldn't help but complain in his heart.

However, he was also somewhat curious.

I'm already this strong, and you still have a 70% success rate?

Are the Ye and Lin families' trump cards truly so incredibly powerful?
However, the analyst's estimate was based on Chu Xiu's data before the upgrade. After unlocking the Demonic Qi Infusion and upgrading the Heavenly Demon Hand to the third level, both his offensive and defensive capabilities have been greatly improved.

Moreover, even in the past, the analysts underestimated his defensive capabilities, since the only time he witnessed being attacked was before the Bone Armor reached the [Supreme] quality.

"So you'd better not mess with me. I'm not a serial killer," Chu Xiu thought to himself.

As if sensing Chu Xiu's thoughts, almost as soon as Chu Xiu had this idea, Zhang Qingshan spoke up: "I prefer to cooperate with the Dark Night King."

"From the current perspective, the other party does not seem to have strong malice towards us. On the contrary, there are quite a few reports of awakened individuals being let go. To be honest, I once had close contact with the Dark Night King, and even though he discovered me, he did not launch an attack."

"Our main task is still to kill the Corpse King. If we use up all our prepared trump cards in advance, what good will it do even if we eliminate the variables? The mission will still fail."

"I don't think the equipment dropped by the Night King can make up for our losses."

Lin Wanyue and Ye Junlin both surprisingly agreed with his words.

However, their reasons differed greatly from Zhang Qingshan's.

Lin Wanyue said, "The Dark Night King is not in a hurry. Once we obtain the [Location Anchor Point], we can invite high-level Awakened Ones to enter. The Dark Night King will be nothing more than a turtle in a jar. We will be able to eat this piece of fat meat sooner or later."

Ye Junlin, however, spoke from the perspective of completing the mission: "The danger in the central city has far exceeded our previous expectations. Due to the troublesome nature of the blood symbiosis, our progress in clearing the city is now far behind. If we clear it slowly, even if the time is doubled, it won't be enough!"

“In this situation, the resources consumed by the Dark Night King are completely insignificant. We didn’t have time to consume them anyway. If they can help us kill the Corpse King, then we’ve made a huge profit.”

"Moreover, after the Dark Night King kills the fierce-ranked ones, the low-ranked corpses that are left behind will become our meal. To some extent, it may even speed up our leveling up."

The three of them represented the three largest forces, and seeing that they had all expressed their opinions, the others naturally did not object.

Finally, the group decided to send a few people to try to make contact with the Night King, while the others would avoid the Night King's hunting grounds and continue to develop their strength.

Furthermore, the three major forces will formally cooperate, gather numerous S-class forces, and attempt to hunt down ferocious-class enemies.

It's worth mentioning that each of the three major factions has discovered a hidden mission and is currently working hard to complete it. If they can do so, their overall strength will likely increase significantly.

"Alright, that concludes today's operational meeting."

"However, there are two more things I would like to ask you to pay attention to at the end."

"First, I hope that while you are clearing out the ghouls, you can try to find out as much information as possible about the elite members of the Ferocious Rank."

"We have discovered three elite Ferocious-ranked individuals so far. Each of them leads a large number of followers. When we officially begin the siege of the ghouls, these elite Ferocious-ranked individuals will cause us a lot of trouble. We must eliminate them as soon as possible."

The analyst's words made Chu Xiu stroke his chin. The fierce-level elites were indeed troublesome. The most obvious example was the group of strange birds circling above the central platform. Not only were the leaders strong, but their numbers were also extremely large. When they encountered powerful enemies, they would fight as a group. Even with his current strength, he dared not challenge them easily.

"The second thing is that I would like to ask everyone to keep an eye out for clues about the 'Yakuza'."

“These perverts are hiding among us and need to be eradicated as soon as possible.”

This was also a very important matter for Chu Xiu, and he understood the dangers of the Extreme Path better than anyone else present.

He still remembered what the murderer had said: that one of his superiors was mixed in with the crowd.

"Looks like I'll be attending a lot more of these boring meetings in the future."

"Whether it's intelligence on elite members of the Fierce Rank or clues from the Extreme Path, they are all very useful."

After saying all that, the meeting officially ended, and Chu Xiu returned to his room to rest.

Six hours later, as sunlight rose from the edge of the city, Chu Xiu opened his eyes.

He stretched his limbs and stood up.

The time for slaughter has come.

(End of this chapter)