I'm A Wasteland Giant

Chapter 356: 355: Encounter with a Local Powerhouse!

[The current mission world is: A Promotion Mission World. The number of competing teams: 10. The number of competing participants: 184.]

[Promotion Task 1: The team must attain a score of at least 20 (killing one Reincarnator equals one point).]

[Promotion Task 2: Kill a ‘king’ level powerhouse.]

[Promotion Task 3: Prove one’s path as a king.]

[Promotion Task 4: Kill the Heavenly Emperor.]

[Complete all promotion tasks to advance all members of the team.]

After reading this task introduction, Du Gang started, “This time, the first task requires us to kill at least 20 Reincarnators, while the second, third, and fourth tasks are all related to this world…”

Kou Yingwu expressed his surprise, “20 Reincarnators? These are all participants in the promotion tasks, and each one of them is a peak True God!”

The four of them were gathered at the top of a mountain peak, and around them was a shield of transparency, preventing their aura from leaking.

They were in the Promotion Mission World. Three months had passed since their separation, and everyone’s power had greatly increased. They were full of confidence.

Du Gang nodded, “Take a closer look at the number of people, a total of 184, and we are four, which means that there are ten teams in total, and apart from us, the other nine teams are all fully staffed with 20 members…”

“How does this work?”

Kou Yingwu was shocked, “So you’re saying we have to face 20 people at once if we want to kill Reincarnators?”

Du Gang laughed, “I am not worried about that. Wu Yang’s team has the numbers to try and kill me!”

He glanced at the surrounding transparent shield, “Hide your aura, don’t show any traces. Let’s see what this world is like first…”

Compared to Task 1, the other three tasks appeared to be more difficult.

“Task 2 requires killing a king. This implies that there are at least two kings, but we don’t know the exact count. If the number is too small and somebody else kills them, then we won’t have a chance!”

Du Gang continued his analysis, “Task 3, Prove one’s path as a king, does this involve certain restrictions, or is it something unique and scarce to this world?”

“Task 3 is also a trap, to kill the Heavenly Emperor. The instruction says ‘Heavenly Emperor’, there’s no plurality, which implies that there is only one Heavenly Emperor here!”

“Besides that, does ‘kill’ refer to the last strike, or does a tandem kill also count?”

“If it refers to the final blow, then if ten teams join forces, probably only one could survive…”

Upon reaching here, Du Gang paused for a moment before looking up to his companions, “What kind of tasks do you think the Heavenly Court will assign?”

The three exchanged glances. Tao Xuanzhu sighed, “Last time, from Divine spirit to True God, there were 400 of us, and in the end, only the four of us were promoted…”

“This time, even though the number is half of what it was last time, I feel that, at most, only one team will qualify. So the term ‘kill’ probably refers to the last strike!”

Du Gang nodded, “If we think this way, others may also think this way. So, this is good news. At least, it unlikely for Wu Yang’s team to have any form of alliance with other teams!”

“This implies that ten teams, each on their own, will all be either enemies or potential enemies!”

Kou Yingwu breathed a sigh of relief, “Thankfully, we don’t have to face nine teams all at once. I initially thought we would be up against everyone…”

With a smirk, Du Gang tilted his head and gazed at him, “Do you think we won’t face off against everyone?”

Upon hearing this, Kou Yingwu was visibly taken aback, “Brother, don’t scare me!”

Du Gang shook his head, “I’m not trying to scare you. The promotion mission leaves no room for ambiguity. The victor advances, the loser is eliminated. Undeniably, any failed team is bound to enter the Deity Ranking, permanently losing their freedom to become a True Spirit of the Heavenly Court…”

“Among the ten teams, we are the weakest on the surface now because there’s only four of us!”

Tao Xuanzhu added, “Therefore, other teams are very likely to attack us as soon as they encounter us, eliminating potential opponents!”

“Exactly!”

Du Gang nodded, “Under normal circumstances, all teams will face hostility on meeting each other. Though outright warfare may not necessarily happen, there are bound to be exploratory skirmishes. Teams of similar strength will not battle prematurely. After all, there are other teams out there, and depleting their numbers too early may jeopardize their chances in subsequent battles. In contrast, as we are only four, any other team encountering us would contemplate taking us down!”

Kou Yingwu was speechless. His feelings kept fluctuating, good one moment, bad the next.

Du Gang laughed, “But there’s no need to worry too much. We are well-prepared this time. At least, no one will come knocking at our door, and our small team is good for hiding…”

At this point, the surrounding shield dissipated and the four of them were completely exposed to the outside air.

This was a world brimming with energy. Even a casual breath could bring in a strong surge of energy.

Even Du Gang paused for a while, taking a few breaths of energy-filled air.

Only then did he speak, “Next, we split into two groups and act separately. Use the Message Jade Talisman to communicate when there’s no one around…”

“I’ll pair up with Zhang Xinyi, while you, Tao Xuanzhu, pair up with Kou Yingwu…”

Although Tao Xuanzhu wanted to be paired with Zhang Xinyi, she could only agree with Du Gang’s plan, understanding that the two were a real couple.

She mulled over it for a moment, then turned to Kou Yingwu, “We two are siblings, mind your parlance…”

“Got it, got it!!!”

Kou Yingwu quickly agreed, appearing quite pleased.

Meanwhile, he sneakily gestured towards Du Gang, as if saying, “Good brother, create chances for me.”

Du Gang rolled his eyes at him. He hadn’t seen this side of him before, realizing now that the guy was not serious at all. Despite the current situation, he still found the time for flirting.

Before they split, he once again issued a reminder, “Remember, make sure your identities remain hidden first, then gather information. It’s best to use the Dream Entry Technique…”

“Specifically, gather information about the king, the Heavenly Emperor, and how to prove one’s path as a king. Of course, we also need to investigate the situation of this world.”

“Understood!”

And so, the four of them split into two teams, each heading in a different direction.

Du Gang and Zhang Xinyi skulked along the ground, not because they couldn’t fly but because they were worried that other Reincarnators were nearby and might detect them.

Soon enough, the two arrived at a city.

From afar, they saw a deserted city with a huge crack at the city gate, testifying to its collapse under a powerhouse’s blow.

His Divine Thought quickly probed the city’s interior, scanning it back and forth before he finally shook his head.

“No one is here. This place has been abandoned!”

“Let’s keep searching!”

Without pausing, the two continued their journey.

Thereafter, they traversed hundreds of kilometers and passed several cities along the way, all of which had been abandoned.

“Du Gang, what’s going on?!”

Zhang Xinyi was somewhat confused, not quite understanding why they hadn’t encountered a single living being on their journey.

Du Gang shook his head, staying silent.

As he didn’t fully understand this world yet, he was not clear about what was happening either.

“Anyway, let’s move on and see what else we can find!”

He had just privately inquired about the situation on Tao Xuanzhu’s side, and they had not made any discoveries either, also passing by several abandoned cities in their journey.

The two continued to move forward, crossing hundreds of kilometers once more, and this time, they finally came across an individual.

This person was also skulking in the shadows, as if planning some mischief, his entire body emanating a shifty aura.

“Who goes there?!”

The man discovered Du Gang the same moment Du Gang discovered him, and after bellowing out loud, to Du Gang’s surprise, he initiated a fight.

“Kill!”

A long knife with an exaggerated appearance was swung at Du Gang.

Honestly, it was the first time Du Gang met someone who initiates a fight upon meeting He, especially when they’re complete strangers.

However, he wasn’t vague about it either. He always bullied others; when did it become his turn to be bullied?

Without summoning a weapon, he thrust with his right hand, gold light shimmering, and a palm struck towards the blade.

“Hm?”

The man opposite gave a start, somewhat doubtful if he had seen incorrectly, but he didn’t stop, he even increased his output of power.

“Dare to extend your hand, I’ll cut it off!”

“Clang!”

A sound of metal collision echoed promptly.

“Ah?!”

The man stopped in his tracks, staring at the scene before him, somewhat stunned.

“Blocked it with his hand…”

He soon realized what happened and cried out in shock: “You’re a martial artist, a ninth rank breaker!”

After shouting this, he quickly retreated, and ran off without looking back.

This time it was Du Gang’s turn to be taken aback. What did this person mean, running away after mistaking him for a martial artist?!

After traversing nearly a thousand kilometers, they finally encountered a person. Although he seemed to be not quite right in the head, they should at least ask about the situation in this world, right?

Du Gang called out, and together with Zhang Xinyi, they quickly gave chase.

He had sensed long ago that the fleeing man was only average in strength; converting to their system, he was barely at the beginning stages of True God Level.

Now that he himself was at the ninth rank of True God, at 999 meters of the Original Way, equating to a combat power of 99,990,000, just short of breaking 100 million, naturally, he wasn’t worried about a fledgling True God Level character.

Moreover, that was merely his cultivation level in terms of divine power. Ever since he received “Ancient God Power” from the Ancient City, after three months of cultivation, Du Gang’s most formidable aspect wasn’t his divine power cultivation, but his physical strength.

“Swoosh!”

Just as Du Gang was about to catch up with his opponent, the man’s speed surged once more, quickly widening the gap between them.

“Are you the Holy Martial God? You’re so shameless, trying to assassinate me stealthily…”

The man in front kept running, all the while cursing non-stop.

In a short while, his constant ranting was like rapid-fire from a machine gun.

Du Gang was left speechless at the man’s antics. They’d barely met, hadn’t said a word to each other, and yet here was the man initiating a fight, giving no opportunity for clarification but instead just labeling him.

“Friend, I think there’s a misunderstanding here. I’m not the Holy Martial God you speak of. Let’s stop and talk it out!”

After several failed attempts to catch up, Du Gang tried to clear up the misunderstanding through his words.

“Bullshit! I have an innate sensitivity to hostility. You’re definitely up to no good!”

Du Gang paused, so that was it?

Indeed, his intention from the beginning was to seize the man and interrogate him about the world. But who knew that as soon as they met, the man sensed his intent.

“Such sharp intuition!”

Since his plans had been exposed, he made no further attempts at feigning innocence.

He shook his head and laughed: “To tell you the truth, I just wanted to ask you some questions. But since you’re not cooperating, I guess I’ll have to get serious!”

Saying this, his Ancient God body emitted a burst of golden light, and a great aura surged forth.

“Boom!”

In that instant, his form rapidly changed, covering the distance between them in a blink of an eye and appearing beside the man.

“Damn it!”

Upon seeing this, the man yelled, and immediately, his entire figure started to blur. At the same time, he confidently declared:

“Holy Martial God, mark my words, this is a vendetta. I, Fang Ping, swear to kill you in the Original Martial Continent. Just wait and see!”

Hearing this, Du Gang’s heart gradually sank. However, he didn’t stop his movement, quickly reaching out to grab hold of the man.

“Pop!”

He didn’t feel any substance in his grasp…he had just grabbed air. The man was still visible in front of him, but his real body had clearly escaped.

This was the first time Du Gang saw this technique, clearly a Divine Skill unique to this world.

However, as he reached out, the apparition also disappeared.

“This is truly a world designed for a True God Level promotion quest; the upper limit of this world is indeed high. To think that a mere True God Level being could escape from me!”

Du Gang sighed, his main attention was still on the technique that the self-proclaimed Fang Ping had just displayed.

As for the man’s threats, he didn’t care at all. He wasn’t the Holy Martial God, nor was he from whatever the hell Original Martial Continent. What was there to be afraid of?

Zhang Xinyi quickly caught up, frowning as she said: “That guy got away, we still don’t know anything about this world…”

“That’s not entirely true.”

Du Gang laughed: “That guy just now revealed a lot through his genuine reactions!”

“Firstly, this world should involve the confrontation of two or more major powers. That man’s immediate decision to fight us reflects this.”

“Secondly, the number of strong figures in this world is limited, and they have names. In his eyes, someone with strong physical strength like me is considered a martial artist, belonging to the Original Martial Continent.”

He nodded to himself, “In that case, the fact that the cities we’ve come across on our journey have all been deserted makes sense. This suggests that the people of different forces in various places might have all gathered together…”

He sighed and said: “If that’s the case, our chances of finding people will either be like just now, encountering formidable figures venturing out alone, or we’ll directly end up in the gathering place of a major power…”

“Let’s just hope we encounter more individuals like that guy!”