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Chapter 236 An Unyielding Opponent

"So, you've been guarding this treasure vault for as long as it's been built?" Chen Xuan probed. "In all these years, has the treasure vault really been burgled?"

“Of course, there are quite a few people who covet the angel’s property,” Liuli said cheerfully. “I warned them, but unfortunately, those people are not like you. They were completely blinded by the treasure and not only ignored my good intentions, but also opened fire on me.”

"Did you kill them?"

He adjusted his glasses as he spoke.

The ability slot is completely blank.

The other person has no abilities that can be read; even the ability shop doesn't consider her a living person.

“Of course. Those who draw their swords against each other will suffer the pain of swords.” Liuli patted the hilt of the sword at her waist. “Since they have the courage to kill, they should also be prepared to face death.”

She paused slightly at this point, "Actually... I was a little expectant just now, but that young lady kept trying to dissuade me and insisted on taking the treasure."

"Why?" Chen Xuan frowned.

"Because this gives me the need to kill you, and you will each use your own methods to resist to the death."

"If you really wanted to do that, why didn't you just draw your sword and attack from the start?"

"Sigh, but I also want to find someone to keep me company," she said without any hesitation. "Besides, you've only not taken anything yet, it doesn't mean you won't take anything later. After all, you can't go back empty-handed, right?"

This guy... his thought process is definitely abnormal.

Chen Xuan deliberately put on a cold face, "Isn't it better to be alive? If you decide to make a move, then you will die here, I guarantee it."

“Perhaps.” Unexpectedly, Liuli did not deny it. “I saw it long ago. You are not ordinary people, otherwise I would not have had such expectations. My duty is to guard, and my essence is a weapon. If I do not fight, the weapon will lose its meaning. Since I will die one day, why can’t it be today? Don’t worry, even if I die because of failure, it is the most natural thing in the world. I will not blame you.”

Now it was Chen Xuan's turn to not know how to start the conversation.

Those who draw their swords against each other will surely suffer the pain of swords—she wasn't just saying this casually, but truly took it as her belief.

The threat meant nothing to her.

Because she did not resist death.

At the same time, she cannot be bribed.

Because she doesn't get paid for this job.

This was the first time Chen Xuan had encountered such an unyielding opponent.

Just as Ruri said, he couldn't possibly leave empty-handed. Even if the other artifacts remained untouched, he would definitely take the Mother Lucy with him.

He searched through the inventory, pondering which ability he could use to subdue the person in front of him instantly.

The Mantra of Laws? It's questionable whether this ability would even be effective against non-humans.

Disintegration and remelting? He glanced at it discreetly; it would require 35 of his own power—an astronomical figure. This also proved that this guy was definitely not someone to be trifled with.

However, after defeating Gustav, his Seed of Flesh was recharged and upgraded to a green LV2. Assuming it's decimal, that's equivalent to a white LV20, a significant enhancement to his combat abilities.

Leaving aside the Heavenly Thunder Decree and the Demon-Slaying True Sword, these spells, which are specifically designed to target demons, would be much less effective against non-demon opponents.

Theoretically speaking, when facing an opponent of unknown strength who may be beyond imagination, the ability to forcibly level the playing field by flipping a coin is the tactic with the highest chance of winning. Unfortunately, it has been swallowed up by the Disintegration and Remelting, so it can't be used even if we wanted to.

If Chen Xuan could only rely on the Thousand Thoughts Sword and the Divine Eye Technique to fight this eccentric person hand-to-hand, he would still feel a little apprehensive.

"Chen Xuan, come here for a moment." Lin Qing suddenly called out into the earpiece.

Chen Xuan looked at Liu Li, who seemed to have guessed his wariness and nodded with a smile, indicating that he could do whatever he wanted.

He jumped down from the glass pillar and came to a corner of the room. There, in front of Lin Qing and Elori, stood a large steel door, somewhat out of place with the surrounding wooden decorations. A sign on the door read "Warehouse Number Nine."

“There’s more than one storage room here, and some of the items are stored in different ways.” She briefly explained her findings. “I’ve done the statistics, and stability should be the standard for distinguishing these rare items. Most of the ones in the exhibition hall are above 90, while those in other storage rooms are only 7 or 80.”

"Does it sound like the higher the better?" Chen Xuan thought to himself.

The arrangement of items in the Angel Alliance confirms this claim. Since over 90% of the artifacts are safe, they can be displayed directly in glass cabinets for people to admire. However, the less safe artifacts must be isolated separately, with steel plates and concrete walls used for protection.

“I think so too.” Lin Qing took out another drawing. “I also found a map that is used to guide emergency evacuation.”

There's even a map.

Chen Xuan took a look and realized that their location should be Vault Number One, with eight smaller vaults connected to it on the left and right. However, Vault Number Nine was clearly different; the area behind the door was no longer a straight line, but rather resembled a pitted cave. Such an evacuation map couldn't have been drawn randomly, so the Temple Vaults were actually divided into two parts: naturally formed and man-made?
He turned to look at the gate, where a prominent warning sign read: "No Unauthorized Personnel Allowed." Below the sign was an electronic display screen with a string of red text that stood out conspicuously.

Stability: 9.

"That's a whole order of magnitude difference," Chen Xuan muttered. Moreover, the fact that this stability value wasn't engraved on the nameplate meant it was likely a fluctuating value, not always 9.

“We’ve searched all the other rooms, but we didn’t find anything that looked like flesh or blood,” Elori said. “This is the only place we haven’t checked.”

“This door is different from the other warehouses. It doesn’t use an electronic lock, and the door is also incredibly thick, conservatively estimated to be a meter thick.” Lin Qing patted the back of the door. “What’s hidden behind it is definitely extraordinary.”

"Can't you open it?" Chen Xuan asked.

“How could that be?” she retorted immediately. “There’s no door that a plasma blade can’t cut through, but I need some time. That guy is also a threat. Have you found any weaknesses in her? If the Matrix Lucy is in Vault Nine, we’ll have to turn against her.”

"...Not yet." He scratched his head. "Neither coercion nor bribery has worked on her for now."

"What's invalid?" a curious voice asked.

Liuli actually followed us.

Chen Xuan silently rolled his eyes, then turned around with his usual welcoming smile. "You've come at the right time. If we were to break down this door, would you stop us?"

"No, my duty is to prevent artifacts from being lost or damaged; base facilities are not included in that." Ruri stood with her hands behind her back, seemingly completely unsuspecting. "Could it be that you're after the Mother Lucy? Oh no, I thought you were just ordinary thieves, but I didn't expect you to be so audacious."

"Is Lucy inside?"

"Hmm." She nodded.

The three exchanged glances. Now that's good, they no longer need to worry about wasting their time chiseling at the door.

Liuli paused for a second and then said, "But I suggest you don't go in. Wouldn't it be better to steal some treasures from outside?"

Chen Xuan wondered if he had misheard. "Didn't you say you weren't allowed to take it?"

“I won’t allow it, so at most you’ll fight me, either I’ll kill you, or you’ll kill me and leave with the spoils. At least it’s not a certain death situation,” she sighed. “But if you go in, it’s a sure death, and you’ll never come out alive.”

Lin Qing had already taken out the ion knife and was holding it against the door when she heard this, and her hands trembled slightly.

"Really?" Chen Xuan asked skeptically. "What capabilities does it possess that make you think we have absolutely no chance of winning?"

“Because you are a living human being,” Liuli said earnestly. “And the Mother Lucy is the source of all humanity. The reason you are created from flesh and blood is all thanks to her. From this perspective, she is your god, and her will is your destiny.”

“Gods?” Elori retorted. “Don’t be ridiculous, I’m educated! Humans are children sent from the sky, the embodiment of stars! The cosmos is our origin, not some deformed flesh and blood!”

Chen Xuan and Lin Qing looked at the angel in shock.

"What's wrong?" the latter asked, puzzled. "Was there... a problem with what I said?"

(End of this chapter)