Alone and Infinite.

Chapter 204 Set! Advancement Battle
A deep purple light, carrying a mysterious aura, surged forth from the vortex formed by the bloody key.

However, this deep purple light had only just appeared.

The expectant faces of the person, the dragon, and the cat in the room immediately fell, and they all sighed softly.

"."

"Oh, it's only deep purple."

"Meow"

Awoo turned its head away in utter disgust:

"What level do you have to be ranked with His Highness? The highest value is only deep purple. Is this all the second-tier seed from a top guild is? Is this all?"

He's recently become obsessed with the internet, often surfing intensely with Blackie, and his speech is becoming increasingly modern.

Li Xia still remembers that when Aowu was first revived, he spoke in a very literary manner.

Furthermore, Li Xia discovered that Aowu had begun to dabble in Baidu Tieba (a Chinese online forum). He could only pray that it wouldn't learn how to use the forum's user-generated content, otherwise, its attack power would be too much.
Black Charcoal is an honest cat; it doesn't get involved in any messy stuff. It just likes watching anime.

I've subscribed to a premium membership on some website and am having a blast.

Pulling her scattered thoughts back, Li Xia was clearly somewhat disappointed.

He thought that the most valuable thing on this top-tier second-order supreme being was at least a purple-grade ultimate item.

I even had a small wishful thinking about the light orange color and the Destiny equipment.

Aren't these guilds collecting Destiny Chests?
It's also possible that Destiny equipment will appear.

He shook his head, suppressing his disappointment.

Fine, dark purple it is then.
Li Xia casually opened the item's information panel.

If nothing unexpected happens, it should be Baal's demon bloodline—

Ok?
Li Xia was taken aback and immediately became more attentive. Aowu and Heitan also stuck their heads over, looking at him curiously.

It's equipment?!

What equipment could be more valuable than the Demon Bloodline?

[Kyo Kusanagi's contaminated gloves (left)]

[Grade: Dark Purple (Tier 2)]

[Type: Soul Equipment (Contaminated)]

【Origin: The King of Fighters '97】

[Defense Tier: 6]

[Durability: 100/100]

Equipment Requirements: 15 points in Strength, 15 points in Constitution

[The Undying Glove: It can absorb energy to repair itself; the repair time depends on the extent of the damage.]

[Kyo Kusanagi - Ancient Martial Arts Style: Strength Bonus 20%]

[Fist of Flames: Equipped slot grants immunity to regular fire, spiritual fire, and soul fire; fire attack bonus is increased by 20%]

[Soul Defilement: A random, unannounced check will occur every 10 minutes to 1 hour. Failure to pass the check will result in a random negative status effect from Pride, Envy, Wrath, Sloth, Greed, Gluttony, and Lust.]

Set components: Kyo Kusanagi's Gloves (right), Kyo Kusanagi's Gloves (left)
Set bonus (2/2):
【Fire Purification: Increases fire control by 100%; produces different fire effects depending on the input energy】

【Ring of Sunfire: Allows you to condense flames into a spark and store it in a ring on the back of the glove, gaining the flame's properties. Each glove can hold a maximum of one spark.】

[Synopsis: Kyo Kusanagi's soul wails within the glove, the torment it endures tainting the equipment.]

Li Xia's gaze unconsciously drifted to another item, and sure enough!

[Kyo Kusanagi's contaminated gloves (right)]

[Fist of Flames: Equipped slot grants immunity to regular fire, spiritual fire, and soul fire; fire attack bonus is increased by 20%]

[Soul Defilement: Failing the judgment will result in receiving one of the following negative statuses: Pride, Envy, Wrath, Sloth, Greed, Gluttony, or Lust]

Set Components: Kyo Kusanagi's Gloves (Right)

Set bonus (2/2):
【Fire Purification: Increases fire control by 100%; produces different fire effects depending on the input energy】

【Ring of Sunfire: Allows you to condense flames into a spark and store it in a ring on the back of the glove, gaining the flame's properties. Each glove can hold a maximum of one spark.】

It's a set!
Li Xia looked at the two gloves with great surprise.

They are all black, the kind of short gloves that expose the five fingers. The material is strange; it feels very smooth, somewhat like silk, but it has excellent elasticity and toughness.

There is a golden ring on the back of the hand that resembles the sun.

"Your Highness, do you recognize this equipment?"

Seeing the expression on Li Xia's face, Aowu asked curiously.

"I've never seen the specific attributes, but I know the name."

Li Xia sighed. Just as he had learned before, the derivative worlds of the palace were not static.

Derivative worlds are 'dungeon worlds' constructed based on the cluster influence of recruiting apostles.

Apostles from 4399 different dimensions influence the cycle and renewal of derivative worlds.

The King of Fighters world is one that has gradually disappeared and has almost vanished from the list of derivative worlds.

If we had come to the Hall of Fame twenty years earlier, the King of Fighters world and the Metal Slug world would have been very popular spin-off worlds.

Equipment and skills related to these two worlds are readily available.

But it's very difficult to see them now.

But this kind of world is what guilds like the most, because the long history of the world has made their strategies and information extremely rich.

The advantages of guilds have been maximized; as long as you can join, you can almost maximize your profits.

So, they went to the King of Fighters world before?
In fact, Hell's Recollections has been to the King of Fighters world more than once. As a top-tier guild, their guild authority is quite high.

It can provide some convenience and additional information, which may not directly bring benefits, but can be analyzed to make some arrangements.

For example, Hell Echoes learned through its access privileges that the King of Fighters spin-off world will be completely shut down soon.

He then used a global positioning device to repeatedly enter the King of Fighters world to extract profits.

Finally, by using a setup spanning three worlds, they successfully outmaneuvered the protagonist team and made a fortune before the King of Fighters world closed.

However, after the tormented Kyo Kusanagi died, his resentment was overwhelming, and his soul was extracted by Baal using his demonic powers and mixed into the glove.

Although the gloves were successfully transformed into a soul-enhancing item, they also gained negative buffs.

Baal was released unexpectedly before it even had a chance to warm up, so it's hard to say whether it's related to that negative buff.

Li Xia didn't understand these things; he simply wanted to try out the equipment.

After putting on the gloves, the pure black gloves covered all the way up to the wrists.

I tried moving around a bit, and it didn't affect my strength at all. On the contrary, when I exerted force, the gloves seemed to have a strange rhythm.

Even the force was a bit stronger.

To test things more thoroughly, Li Xia brought Aowu and Heitan to the training ground again.

He slowly channeled his true qi into his fists, and two white flames suddenly burst forth from them.

This is different from the 'qi' on the body surface when one usually activates true qi; that is merely light and shadow produced by the violent fluctuations of true qi and has no actual effect.

But the two balls of firework in his hands now are real flames!
"Let's test its power first—"

Teacher Ao had picked up a notepad at some point, holding a pen in her short paws, and was seriously preparing to take notes.

Li Xia shook his head and gently pressed his left hand, which was still burning with flames, onto the wooden figure's face.

Suddenly, with a 'whoosh', the entire wooden figure burst into white flames.

At the same time, damage statistics also appeared before my eyes.

You deal 40 + 16 (glove damage amplification) direct burning damage to the training dummy and reduce the training dummy's defense by approximately 10%.

Aowu carefully noted down the damage and then checked the consumption through the shared panel.

True Qi value: 939/940
"Huh, it only consumes a little?" Awoo asked after thinking for a moment.

"Your Highness, it seems similar to the Hole Hole Wave. Could we input more True Qi to create a burst of damage?"

"no--"

Li Xia shook his head. He had been trying to input more true qi, but the gloves did not react at all, only quietly maintaining the white flame.

"There are definitely ways to unleash it—"

I'm reminded of the special moves and super moves that every character in King of Fighters has, as well as their special attack mode.

"These gloves should have a corresponding skill to unleash their power; otherwise, they can only generate flames."

"Should we look for it?"

"There's no need. Trying to do too much at once will only lead to a waste of resources."

Li Xia looked at his fists and said seriously, "I already have enough skills. The Kusanagi Kyo Kobu Style and my style may not be suitable for me. It's more like a technique."

It could very well disrupt my current attack rhythm.

Moreover, this flame—which can reduce defenses—is already quite practical.

As they were talking, Li Xia felt a faint sense of malice spreading from the gloves. The sensation was so faint that it made him wonder if he was imagining things.

Is this a debuff from the gloves?

I simply sat down cross-legged, entered the cycle of Qi circulation, and carefully experienced my own state.

Skills are not just what is displayed on the panel; how to use them and how effective they are depends entirely on the individual.

Just like the circulation of Qi, the panel displays that you are restoring your true Qi, but once you enter the circulation, you will enter a very peaceful state.

At the same time, one's self-awareness will be greatly enhanced, and the Zhou Tian method is a very good way to stay calm when needed.

After a while, Li Xia slowly opened her eyes. She felt fine and there was nothing unusual about her.

In other words, the judgment just now has been passed.

Li Xia frowned, her joy at receiving the set somewhat diminished.

The main problem is that I don't know which factor to use. If it's willpower, that's fine, since I'm pretty good at it.

But what if it were something else?
Aowu keenly sensed Li Xia's doubts and spoke up:
"Your Highness, there's no need to worry too much about this. The Eight-Nine Arcane Arts are no joke; they're all about achieving physical immortality, with resistances that are ridiculously strong."

Even if it's just a guide to adjust the body, it still has the effect of increasing resistance.

I think even if it doesn't pass the judgment, the impact will be minimal after the reduction through 'unified primordial chaos'.

Li Xia nodded, "That's true."

However, it is still a potential problem, and it would be best to find a way to remove the debuff.

My gaze swept over the equipment's description.

Hmm. Kyo Kusanagi's resentful spirit.
I don't know if performing a religious ceremony will be effective.

The last two days were unusually uneventful.
Everything that needed to be done has been done, and everything that could be improved has been improved.

I've used up all the resources I have.

The only annoying thing was the constantly ringing communicator; the change of the top spot in the arena was causing a great stir in the small circle.

But there was no ripple throughout the second order, just like how many people don't pay attention to people they have no connection with in games or in life.

Ordinary apostles are not interested in being ranked first in the second-tier arena.

Their only concern is how to survive and become stronger in the world to come.

On the contrary, many guilds contacted me, offering extremely favorable conditions.

Li Xia was so annoyed that she finally shut down communication with strangers and only kept her contacts.

Even so, people often subtly hint at their intention to solicit business.

For example, the second-tier leader of the Nightingale Guild not only sends photos all the time, but also sends short videos of himself taking a shower.

Yes, uploading to cloud storage might be considered a violation.

In other words, Li Xia has an extremely strong will and a firm desire to pursue martial arts.

That's how they resisted the temptation.

I gave myself a two-day break.

For the past two days, Li Xia has been trying not to think about the future, not to think about boxing, not to think about anything at all.

I simply spent two days playing with Aowu and Heitan.

Let's play games together online and watch TV series and anime together.

With his addition, the Monster Hunter progressed extremely quickly, and it only took about a day before they were able to go and bully Nergigante.

It wasn't until Li Xia was watching anime that she discovered that Kurotan was actually a big fan of action anime.

When Deidara appeared in Naruto, Kuroko's eyes widened in amazement.

It seems they strongly agree with the idea that 'art is an explosion'.

Two days passed quickly.

Li Xia put down the controller and watched the game's ending CG with Heitan and Aowu.

"Let's go, it's almost time."

The huge square was packed with people and seemed unusually noisy.

The workers seized the last opportunity, standing by the circular plaza and shouting enthusiastically:

"Last five minutes! Last five minutes! Clearance sale!"

"A single choice, a single opportunity, a single thought—it could be a matter of life and death! Buying this could change your destiny!"

"Buy a bottle! Buy a bottle of my potion! Otherwise, you'll be forcibly executed!"

"We have all kinds of supplies and emergency items! Bullets, ammunition, water, bulletproof vests, rocket launchers, gas masks, and more!"

Some apostles were genuinely moved by this sentiment and couldn't help but walk over.

Even though they had made ample preparations before coming, they still exchanged their already meager Hall Points for supplies.

This anxiety stems from unease, from an innate fear of death.

But most people remained silent or whispered to their teammates.

Waiting for the moment when fate will pronounce its verdict.

"Why are there so many people?"

Awoo stretched out its head and said strangely, "I remember there were only a little over a thousand people here last time."

But this time it will be at least four or five thousand.

"That's normal. The Temple of Light is used to fine-tuning time by accelerating or decelerating time in derivative worlds."

"It seems like it would be easier to gather the apostles who are about to be promoted together."

Li Xia's conversations with those guild leaders weren't for nothing.

Occasionally, they also obtain information they were unaware of.

The central floor of the circular plaza slowly unfolds to both sides, and a huge door rises gently from the bottom.

The atmosphere suddenly became tense.

[Executioner, the maximum time allotted in the hall has been reached.]

[The battle for advancement is about to begin]

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1. Monthly pass 2. Recommendation vote

Luckily, I didn't boast yesterday about taking Blackie to be spayed/neutered. I didn't expect it to eat a cat treat this morning.
There was no other way but to wait at the pet hospital for 7 hours.

It's a black eunuch now~
(End of this chapter)