Evolution Begins with Elemental Domination

With this Authority’s enhancement, Ruoruo could now fire two Echo Arrows or Spiritual Arrows at once, greatly increasing her map-clearing vision and lethal threat.

After a day’s work, both of their strengths had leaped to a new level.

”Level 7 is a major bottleneck. The difficulty of leveling up is a world of difference compared to before,” Su Chen said.

Spiritual Materials could still be acquired quickly from humans killing each other.

But an item like a Soul Core was extremely rare.

Currently, he had only glimpsed an opportunity through the sacrificial channel. World quest rewards might also have a chance to drop them. Otherwise, he would have to search for them in the vast, boundless forest.

’The Trial Tower might drop them, but I don’t know if Dongfu City will even have that opportunity.’ Su Chen was somewhat hopeful.

Among the Lv7 Runes he had obtained, aside from the one he absorbed himself, he had a spare Lv7 Acceleration Skill.

It would be perfect for an Enchantment on his pistol when he got back.

Once his Rune Energy had recovered to about seventy percent, he decided it was time to leave.

「...」

Half an hour later, they arrived at Mist Gorge on the map.

The forest valley before them was no longer like an ordinary wood.

Towering ancient trees twisted like bones, their trunks covered in grayish-white moss, as if shrouded in aged burial clothes.

’Gives me real graveyard vibes.’

The Messenger Intelligence House hadn’t been able to get much information from Mist Gorge. All the Pigeons sent to investigate had vanished in this area.

From the looks of it, this wasn’t where Oran City had deployed a Teleportation Gate.

Su Chen tried to penetrate the area with his Perception, but it was like hitting a layer of viscous, ice-cold gel. A chilling sensation eroded his mind, making it difficult to pierce through and explore.

Strangely and frighteningly, a Night Owl tried to fly over the gorge. The moment its wings cut into the edge of the fog layer, it abruptly froze, as if seized by an invisible hand. It then sank into the gray mist and vanished without a trace.

’This place can’t be related to those flesh-and-blood creations, can it?’ Su Chen thought. Judging by the terrain, it was related to a rift.

However, when he activated his Elemental Resonance Perception, he could still feel a faint elemental fluctuation spreading from below, and a subtle sense of Resonance reached him.

’Is it another Elemental City ruin?’

Su Chen wasn’t sure yet, but the place was definitely dangerous. There could even be a trap below; he couldn’t let himself be easily lured in.

By using his Resonance Perception on the surrounding trees, he listened to the ”language of the forest” and learned that a large group of people had been here not long ago.

It must have been a large investigation team. They hadn’t rashly explored downward either. After confirming the intelligence, they immediately turned back to the northeast, presumably to encircle and destroy the enemy forces previously at Qingxi Stream.

The outcome of that operation was hard to say.

Fighting a positional war in the forest at night was one thing, but carrying out a long-distance pursuit in a forest region that even they hadn’t fully explored was extremely difficult. The results were unlikely to be impressive.

At the very least, super-experts like the Desert Beast Master and the Magnetic Element Warlock had a high chance of escaping, even if they were alone and isolated.

”Let’s go.”

Su Chen’s original intention had been to fight a sustained battle through the night, and he had even prepared to camp in the forest.

But the current situation was much better than he had imagined.

’First place on the contribution rankings should be in the bag.’

Besides, it was very inconvenient to keep carrying a one-ton Magic Guide Crystal Pillar, and it slowed down his flight speed somewhat.

With this huge, unexpected prize, it was time to take it back to camp and set it up.

「...」

Around midnight, Su Chen and Yan Ruoruo passed an advanced fortress and returned to the Rune Core, the heart of Dongfu City.

The night was as black as ink, but there wasn’t the slightest sign of laxity here.

The section of the city wall that had collapsed during the day was already repaired. A sixteen-meter-high Barrier stretched across his vision, its ends invisible no matter which way he looked.

’Earth Wall Skill, Strengthening Skill... this is all the work of Lv7s.’

The firepower deployed on the wall was also impressive, with a turret erected every fifty meters.

On the outer Barrier, they had even used a Lv7 Gold Touching Skill to permanently metalize the original rock and rammed earth, forming a dense, solid alloy coating.

On the periphery, not only were there numerous watchtowers, but the airspace above was also defended in layer upon layer to guard against any possible night raids.

Due to the special circumstances, as the two entered the city gate, they had to undergo a quick Anti-Invisibility and anti-disguise inspection. Only after they were cleared were they allowed to pass.

”Here’s a notice for you. Dongfu City needs everyone to watch over and help one another.”

There was a group of people entering the city ahead of them, and everyone was given an A4 flyer.

The front was printed with an announcement for a call to arms.

According to the Security Council’s notice, at ten o’clock tomorrow morning, the twelve Forward Bases and various hubs in the city would see a new round of mobilization.

”Go get some sleep. There’s no chance of a large-scale night raid. According to our inside intelligence, their Teleportation Gates won’t be able to handle a large-scale mobilization until at least noon. Save your energy for the big battle tomorrow,” the guard said.

This so-called ”inside intelligence” was undoubtedly from the Priests in Oran City.

’It’s true, there’s no trickery here,’ Su Chen sighed to himself.

A Teleportation Gate needed a 24-hour cooldown before it could be redeployed.

And before the world quest was announced this morning, the 32 Teleportation Gates of Oran City had already been more or less monopolized by the various major powers.

If they were really going to launch a large-scale war, it would have to be after ten o’clock tomorrow morning at the earliest.

In addition, the front and back of the flyer also listed the sixth batch of Rune Formulas, which had been released tonight.

There were 70 in total. Combined with the previous five batches, half of the one thousand Elemental Rune Formulas had finally been deciphered.

”You can read it slowly once you’re inside. Anyone who dares to enter the forest at this hour is a civilian expert. You can get a free portion of water and meat at the Supply Station. Consider it a small token of our care for you,” the guard said.

”Thanks.”

Su Chen didn’t delay any longer, leading Ruoruo straight to the mission hall.

At the same time, his eyes were scanning the newly released Rune Formulas.

The first one was a bombshell.

The flyer highlighted several important Runes needed for top-tier matchups.

Dark + Water + Water = Dark Wave;

The effect was quite impressive. This spreading shockwave didn’t cause any actual damage, but it could instantly shatter all buffs on anyone it hit.

Those hit by the ripple would be silenced, unable to cast any rune magic. If they were in the middle of casting, it would be forcibly interrupted, causing magical backlash.

’This is designed specifically to counter flyers.’

The uses of this Technique weren’t limited to anti-invisibility detection; any flyer caught in the Dark Wave would immediately fall from the sky.

Since the Flying Skill is a continuously active state, being forcibly interrupted by an external force would also cause one’s Sea of Consciousness to tremble violently.

The injuries from such a fall would be significant.

’Not bad at all.’

After learning this, Su Chen made a mental note to be on guard against it.

Light + Gold + Water = Radiant Chain;

Light + Water + Water = Order Prism.

The next two Light Element spells were also noteworthy.

The former could be seen as the Light Element version of Dark Chain. It fired a chain woven from pure Light Energy, and at a High Level, it unlocked a tracking feature, making it a terrifying single-target, hard-control Rune.

The latter made Su Chen’s heart race. It condensed a multifaceted prism that floated in the air. Besides being able to attack like a Floating Cannon, at Lv7 it could also release a spatial calibration wave that prohibited all unauthorized spatial jumps, phase shifts, and similar actions within a 60-meter radius.

’I need to make collecting this Order Prism a priority.’

Su Chen could see that this was likely the Light Element equivalent of Dark Gravity.

Never mind others, even he himself had no counter to spatial-jump abilities. He could only rely on his superior Perception and teleportation abilities to track enemies.

This was a disabling ability he needed to acquire.

Additionally, there were many other useful Runes.

The Water Element’s Dehydration Skill, also known as the Drying Skill, could instantly extract all moisture from a designated area. It was incredibly useful for preserving supplies in daily life, but it could also be used in combat.

After all, the human body is 60% water.

The Thunder Element’s Overload Pulse was a game-changer against all mechanical and electronic devices. Releasing it at this critical juncture was a major counter to the enemy’s modern weaponry.

Similarly, this Technique could also be used on people. At Lv7, it could subject a person to an unbearable neural overload. Even if they didn’t collapse, their movement speed would be drastically reduced, and they would find it difficult to use Runes.

It was both a tech-killer and a lethal threat to biological targets.

In the Wood Element, there was Fog Miasma Skill, a type of environment-shaping Rune. At a High Level, it was not only full of toxins but could also confuse an enemy’s Perception. When combined with fire-based Runes, it could create a terrifying chain explosion effect.

There was also Nerve Pollen, which invisibly released hallucinogenic pollen, causing anyone who inhaled it to confuse friend and foe. Their enemy-identification would fail, and they would attack their own allies. This pollen also had an anti-invisibility property.

”Not bad,” Su Chen sighed.

The quality of this batch of Runes was much higher than the previous five announcements.