Scourge Messenger

Chapter 118 Settlement of Case Two

Legendary Second Job Advancement!

Seeing the grade of the Heaven-Slaying Sword, the Pharmacist became even more convinced of his guess.

There are countless secret realms in the world, but they all follow the rule of "you reap what you sow". There are never any big prizes in the first-level secret realm, nor are there any trash rewards in the fourth-level secret realm. It is as if there is a supreme god who coldly and fairly puts a price on everything and bestows rewards and trials upon all living beings.

The fact that Thieves' Den rewards a second-tier legendary token indicates that they acknowledge the increased difficulty of this quest. It also suggests that Thieves' Den will indeed adjust quest difficulty, meaning future quests will only become more challenging, and the rewards will naturally become more generous. The Pharmacist had never heard of a dungeon with dynamically adjusted difficulty, especially one that was bound to a messenger, where only failure and death could exit this endless trial.

The four of them were like passengers on a ship sailing into a turbulent sea, or a carriage rushing towards the underworld. Some might leave, some might perish, but as long as there were still people, the Thieves' House would lead the survivors to the pinnacle, or towards death.

Not only the pharmacist realized this, but others also noticed the peculiarity of the Thieves' Den from the changes in rewards. Shang Xinlei couldn't help but say, "This time it's the second rank, so the next mission will reward a third rank legendary character? And the one after that, a fourth rank legendary character? Could it be that the rewards from the Thieves' Den will keep increasing, with fourth, fifth, and even sixth rank rewards being possible?"

"I don't know whether to look forward to it or to be afraid," Ying Ru said with a wry smile. "Black Wolf and I have already given our all to get this Heaven-Slaying Sword. If the Thieves' House really intends to reward us with a third-tier legendary token for the next mission, it will probably be a real test for the four of us. As for the fourth-tier legendary token... perhaps I can only say goodbye to everyone and leave the Thieves' House on my own initiative. After all, no matter how powerful the token is, you have to be alive to get it."

“White Fox is right. If nothing unexpected happens, the difficulty of the Thieves’ House missions will gradually increase.” Yan Qing agreed, but then changed the subject: “But we don’t need to overestimate the difficulty of the missions. The Thieves’ House is not a combat dungeon, and we are not warriors, but thieves.”

Yan Qing greatly admired Ying Rushi. Whether in terms of temperament, character, vision, or strength, Ying Rushi was undoubtedly the most outstanding thief in terms of overall qualities. Before tonight, if only one teammate could be chosen from the four, Ying Rushi would definitely be Yan Qing's first choice. Therefore, Yan Qing, as the level planner, didn't mind saying a few more words to appease her.

“Our routes for these two missions weren’t the best. Although we didn’t manage a perfect infiltration of Anguo Temple, at least we didn’t cause too much of a commotion. But this time in Jiangnan City, we went from ‘stealing’ to ‘robbing.’” Yan Qing said, sounding a bit frustrated. The Rat Monk was hardly of any help. “If it weren’t for the frequent accidents tonight, we could have stolen the Yitian Sword without anyone noticing, instead of causing a city-wide uproar and almost going to war with the Liang Kingdom’s messenger.”

"If a more difficult mission arises in the future, we can completely abandon the battle and focus on devising a theft plan. If things really don't work out, then we can abandon the mission."

Thinking about it carefully, their thefts almost led to a battle with the capital's imperial guards. Anyone who didn't know better would think they were stealing the country. Even a coup might not have been as big a commotion as theirs.

Ying Rushi pondered for a moment, then slowly nodded: "Huang Quan, what you said makes sense. Moreover, our strength will not stagnate. If a mission related to Foundation Establishment Messenger really comes up in the future, we may already have the strength to face the fourth stage directly."

Perhaps because Wolf Fox took the initiative to return to save Snake Dog, the relationship between the four of them broke the ice for the first time, and the atmosphere in the Thieves' House was better than ever before. However, Shang Xinlei looked at Yan Qing taking the initiative to talk to Ying Rushi, and rested her chin on her hand, seemingly lost in thought.

Having foreseen even greater challenges ahead, their gazes towards the Heaven-Slaying Sword naturally burned even brighter. There are many ways for a messenger to become stronger, such as learning martial arts techniques, mastering secret arts, or changing professions, but none of these can compare to the improvement one gains from acquiring a powerful token!
As a legendary token, the Heaven Sword held an unparalleled attraction for each of them.

The "Governance Domain" not only enhances the Sword Master's own strength but also affects others significantly. Ten points in Health, Spirit, and Dexterity are enough to transform a coward into a warrior king, or a sickly person into a strong one. Even for a messenger, it's equivalent to an extra class advancement. If used properly, it's an incredibly powerful weapon for winning people's hearts.

The Chaotic Power is simple and brutal, yet it has immense potential. Although the damage stacking has a time limit, as long as the messenger is paired with a token that increases attack speed, the damage of the Chaotic Power can be stacked to an unimaginable level, making it incredibly easy to kill enemies of higher levels.

Although the domineering attack comes at a high price, one can't care about that when it's time to unleash it. It can even temporarily absorb damage and delay the burst, which might save your life in an emergency.

Not to mention the three of them, even Yan Qing was tempted.

Although Bingzi Jiaolin is not bad either, he is more inclined to teamwork. His skill set is very stable and the combination of skills is very stable. However, he is a lone wolf and usually just helps the lower-level characters with weapon enchantments.

If the Heaven Sword were placed in a game, it wouldn't be as practical as imagined. The "Governance" skill requires ten hours to increase three-dimensional attributes by 10 points. Unless you're constantly in a team, what player would spend ten hours with you? While the "Chaos" skill has great potential and doesn't consume spiritual energy, players don't need to be stingy with their spiritual energy. There are plenty of high-consumption, high-output tokens. Others can kill mobs in five seconds, but the Heaven Sword takes ten seconds to reach its maximum output. As for the "Domination" skill, it's even worse. Without the "Governance" skill as a foundation, it's just a ten-second, lingering death.

Overall, the Heaven Sword, like the Bingzi Pepper Forest, is a toy that seems wonderful but is actually of little significance.

However, in reality, none of these issues matter. Improving attributes means a stronger body, while reducing spiritual energy consumption means longer combat endurance. Both are decisive factors in battles within secret realms. Compared to life and death, spending a little time is insignificant.

"Everyone," Yaoshi Yuan suddenly said with a smile, "I will accept the Heaven-Slaying Sword."

Although the results haven't been finalized yet, she already considers the Heaven-Slaying Sword hers for the taking. She can't help but be confident; she and Ying Ru were the two who won the sword together, and she contributed the most. Furthermore, she had the most Thief Points left after the last mission.

Therefore, the pharmacist harbored little resentment towards the snake and dog for ransacking the royal vault. She knew they had amassed a considerable fortune there, but the price was that they lost their eligibility to compete for legendary tokens. However, Ying Rushi did not give up; she was determined to obtain the Heaven-Slaying Sword: "Black Wolf, haven't you already reached the third rank? Besides, you don't even use a sword, so why not compete for the future third-rank legendary token?"

Shang Xinlei was somewhat surprised to hear this news, but Yan Qing had expected it. When they came out of the secret vault, Yaoshiyuan pulled him up with just one hand, effortlessly, even though he was carrying many bags and his internal energy was abundant, making him quite heavy. In contrast, Yan Qing had to use both hands and feet to pull Shang Xinlei up. Unless Shang Xinlei weighed twice as much as him, it could only mean that Yaoshiyuan's internal energy was at least twice as strong.

Thinking of this, Yan Qing glanced at Shang Xinlei. Shang Xinlei also noticed his gaze. She didn't know that Yan Qing was thinking something very impolite. She made a shushing gesture, indicating that they should watch the show quietly, looking like she was enjoying the spectacle.

"Time waits for no one," said the Pharmacist. "Although I do not use a sword, the Heaven-Slaying Sword's domain of governance is of great use to me. I will never give up. White Fox, you don't need to waste your breath."

She had considered saving her Thief Points to buy a future Legendary Token for the third job advancement, but after a moment's thought, she gave up. After all, the risk was too great. What if she couldn't steal it in the future? What if she failed to make a decisive contribution in the next mission? Although the Pharmacist was proud and self-assured, she also admitted that her teammates were not mediocre. If it weren't for the mistake made by Yellow Dog's inside man, Yellow Dog might have been the best in the entire mission again.

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. With the Heaven Sword's domain of governance, the Pharmacist is confident that she can greatly expand the power of her Embroidered Uniform Guard, bringing her one step closer to overthrowing her father and taking control of the court!
There's no point in arguing; let's keep quiet and see who's the better player from here on out. Even if her points are lower than Black Wolf's, if she can bid first, she might still have a chance!

At this point, the Thieves' House settlement was completed, and new text appeared on the screen:

The Theft of the Heaven Sword

"Task Difficulty: Easy"

"Task completion: A great effort (evaluation from low to high is not worth mentioning, beyond my ability, a great effort, extraordinary, and a great achievement)"

"Quest completion reward: 30 Thief Points"

"Thief points can be accumulated and can only be used at the Thieves' House. They cannot be traded. Once you lose the right to enter the Thieves' House, your thief points will be reset to zero."

As the chips clattered to the ground, the screen in front of everyone displayed different numbers: the remaining thief points from the previous mission plus the 30 points awarded for this mission.

Next is the individual settlement.

Yellow Dog's Mission Completion List

"A thief never leaves empty-handed: You visited a royal treasury and learned a great deal about history, 10 points."

"A Daring Escape: You successfully confronted and escaped the Foundation Establishment Messenger, 5 points."

"You gain an additional 15 thief points."

Yan Qing was somewhat surprised. He hadn't expected that activating the Royal Treasury side quest would actually earn him points, especially since he had only been attacked by the Foundation Establishment Messenger once, which still counted as him having fought the Foundation Establishment Messenger. So, next time before returning to the Thieves' Den, if he managed to throw a dart at the Foundation Establishment Messenger from 800 meters away, wouldn't that allow him to rack up Thieves' Points?

With a base score of 30 points, a bonus of 15 points, and the remaining 14 points, Yan Qing now has a total of 59 thief points. He glanced at Shang Xinlei's points, which were 56, indicating that Shang Xinlei's score for this mission was exactly the same as his, with only 45 thief points added.

"How can it be!?"

Suddenly, two loud bangs rang out. The Pharmacist slammed her fists against the stone table and turned to glare at Ying Rushi. Even though she was wearing a mask, everyone could imagine that her eyes were bloodshot and filled with rage. If the Thieves' House hadn't forced her to sit with her buttocks pressed against the chair, she would have rushed over and grabbed Ying Rushi right now.

Black Wolf, 80 Thief Points.

White Fox, 86 Thief Points.

(End of this chapter)