Chapter 1699: Chapter 1481: Treasure-Ridden Perilous Realm (Combined) – Part 2
“No way!”
“You have to understand, Thunder Bat is a class specialized in blood combat, with a whopping 4,300 hit points—gone in an instant, just like that?”
Even though Su Ran’s consciousness had returned to his body, he couldn’t believe this was real. This was the first ti he had encountered such a situation, and it left him unable to process the reality of it for a mont.
What kind of danger was lurking behind that black light gate, to be so terrifying to this extent!
That black light gate… no matter what, Su Ran wasn’t willing to try stepping through it a second ti. That sinister Taiji pattern gave him a sense of foreboding, as if commanding him to stay away. A voice from deep inside him whispered to give up.
“Spilt Water, what’s going on with you?”
Qing Qi noticed Su Ran behaving strangely. Feeling sothing was off, she asked with concern, “Where’s your Skeleton Bird? Why hasn’t it flown back yet?”
“It’s dead.”
Su Ran’s expression regained a hint of composure, but his voice harbored hesitation. After pausing briefly, he finally explained, “The terrain ahead is too dangerous. I suggest we give up.”
“Give up? Hearing those words co out of your mouth—that’s a rare occurrence. Spilt Water, didn’t you once say this is just a ga and there’s no need to fear death?”
Qing Qi was genuinely surprised. She hadn’t expected the fearless Spilt Water Can’t Be Regained to show such reluctance. Curious, she pressed further, “Did your pet fall into a trap?”
“Worse than a trap. It’s hard to explain right now. If you’re determined to see for yourself, go look and you’ll understand.”
Su Ran didn’t want to relive the instant-kill scene. He wanted to erase it from his mory, but alas, he couldn’t. He could only try his best not to dwell on it. “I’ve warned you already. The choice is yours.”
“Spilt Water, this is a once-in-a-lifeti treasure map! The treasure is practically within reach—how can you give up so easily?”
Qing Qi smiled and said teasingly, “I want to see just how terrifying a terrain has to be to scare a master like Spilt Water!”
“You said it. Don’t bla if I can’t help you, and don’t co crying to if you die.”
Su Ran had invincibility skills, so he could survive that fatal strike. As for whether Qing Qi could avoid her fate… that depended entirely on her luck.
The Taiji pattern emitted a powerful suction force, strong enough to forcibly pull players through the black light gate. Only by resisting that force could one hope to break free of what seed like an inevitable death!
Su Ran had hoped to discourage Qing Qi, but instead, her curiosity only deepened. Left without a choice, he decided to let her hit the taphorical wall herself to finally put the matter to rest.
“Spilt Water, at least tell what kind of danger you encountered earlier so I can be ntally prepared.”
As Qing Qi walked alongside Su Ran, she asked persistently. Su Ran’s somber expression didn’t deter her. “Don’t act all tight-lipped—just tell already!”
“You’ll find out soon enough.”
Su Ran didn’t say much. He didn’t even know how he had died—what was he supposed to explain? He couldn’t just make sothing up, could he?
“Tch, you’re always so annoying, keeping people in suspense! You’re no fun at all!”
Since she couldn’t get an answer out of him, Qing Qi craned her neck forward, eagerly trying to catch a glimpse of the treacherous terrain up ahead and at least satisfy her visual curiosity.
With Su Ran leading the way, Qing Qi finally saw the mystical Taiji pattern and the two black-and-white light gates, pulsating with a dazzling glow.
“Spilt Water, this is what you were afraid of? You’ve let down!”
Qing Qi’s disappointnt was palpable. She had imagined so ancient, hulking beast, but all she saw was this scene. “There’s not even a single monster here. Are you pretending just to ss with ?”
“What’s the point of that? If you don’t believe , walk into that Taiji pattern yourself, and you’ll understand.”
Once again facing the Taiji pattern, Su Ran felt like he was reliving a nightmare. He wasn’t ready to take the plunge again. Instead, he carefully surveyed the surroundings, trying to uncover any hidden chanisms.
“No way I’m going!”
While observing the light gates, Qing Qi’s eyes suddenly lit up as if discovering new treasure. She exclaid excitedly, “Spilt Water, look quickly! There are two words on the gate!”
“Yeah, I see them. They read ‘Treasure.'”
Su Ran glanced at Qing Qi with a strange look in his eye. “Didn’t you once say that if this actually led to treasure, you’d take my last na?”
“When did I say that? Which ear of yours heard it?”
Qing Qi was visibly annoyed, muttering under her breath, “This system is so absurd! It actually labeled it as treasure in such big letters. If the treasure is this obvious, why even bother with a treasure map—it’s redundant!”
A treasure map?
That’s right—how could he have forgotten that detail!
As if awakened from a dream, Su Ran suddenly realized what he had been overlooking!
“Qing Qi, don’t think this way. This treasure map is the key to unlocking this terrain!”
His spirits lifted, Su Ran quickly took out the treasure map and examined it carefully. Sure enough, the coordinates had subtly shifted, now pointing to a patch of land near the edge of the Taiji pattern.
“Strange, could the treasure not be inside the light gate but rather a decoy to mislead us?”
With doubts swirling in his mind, Su Ran walked to the indicated coordinates. However, he didn’t dare touch the Taiji pattern again, worried he might get sucked in once more.
“What are you doing there?”
Qing Qi watched Su Ran pacing around curiously. “Did you find sothing?” she asked suspiciously.
“Watch closely, Qing Qi! You’re about to witness a miracle!”
Believing in the treasure map’s guidance, Su Ran began digging at the marked spot. Whatever would happen next could only be revealed through excavation.
“Bang! Bang!”
With Su Ran’s relentless digging, a hole quickly appeared in the ground. Before long, a peculiar potion bottle surfaced into view.
“A treasure appeared!”
Ecstatic, Su Ran snatched the bottle and eagerly inspected its attributes.
[Purification Potion] (Quest Item)
Has the ability to purify terrain. Single-use only and restricted to this space.
“Hahaha! I knew it!”
After unearthing the potion, the treasure map vanished, having fulfilled its purpose. The rest would depend on the light gates and their mysteries—everything now hinged on fate.
“Spilt Water, is this potion the so-called treasure? That’s it? What a ripoff!”
Qing Qi frowned in disdain at the potion. She had anticipated a serious payout from the treasure map. Instead, they got… a bottle. Who would she even complain to about this?
“What are you thinking? The treasure is inside the light gate. This potion is the key to breaking the Taiji pattern!”
Su Ran chuckled as he popped the cork and tossed the potion directly into the Taiji pattern.
“Crack.”
The bottle shattered, and its liquid splattered everywhere. At that mont, the Taiji pattern shrank rapidly, dissolving entirely into the liquid before seeping into the ground. What remained were the two standing light gates.
“Beautiful!”
At last, Su Ran felt relieved. With the Taiji pattern gone, there was no longer any suction force to fear.
“Spilt Water, there are two portals. Which one are you picking?”
Qing Qi eyed one, then the other, her indecision written all over her face.
“What do you think?”
Su Ran countered. He wanted to see if Qing Qi could avoid the 50% death chance without any clues.
“I say we pick the black portal. Even though the white portal has the word ‘Treasure’ on it, that has to be a trap set by the system to mislead us. If we trust it, we’ll fall for it!”
Qing Qi presented her reasoning with increasing confidence.
Well.
She still didn’t escape the 50% death chance.
The system had a keen understanding of human nature. Simply labeling the portal with “Treasure” was enough to lure players into their doom. This kind of psychological bait worked like a charm on cautious adults but was practically useless against naïve children.
“Qing Qi, I got instantly killed in the black portal earlier.”
Su Ran sighed. “Not to embarrass myself, but I didn’t even know how I died. If you want to try the black portal, go ahead. As for , I’m not going back.”
“What?”
Qing Qi was dumbfounded.
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