The Doomsday Lord: Starting as a Insect Queen-Chapter 96 - 12: Special Abnormal Object: Divine Fragment
Chapter 96: Chapter 12: Special Abnormal Object: Divine Fragment
"Of course, you don’t have to answer me right now, as this will be a life-changing decision for you.
But I must remind you that the world has already begun to descend into chaos.
Even if you are reluctant, you will inevitably encounter various Transcendents in the future, both actively and passively. Without equivalent power, it’s difficult to contend with them.
But if you are willing, I can promise that Zhuchen will protect your safety and prepare everything needed for the ritual.
I can also promise on behalf of His Majesty that as long as you advance to my level, you will obtain the same status as me."
A standard tactic of using both carrot and stick, and I felt no mental influence.
Does he, or rather Zhuchen, trust me like this?
Just presenting it to me like this?
What kind of philanthropist is this?
Even if he’s willing to trust me, Zhuchen wouldn’t possibly leave such an important matter to something as unreliable as trust.
"Lord Yin trusts me so much? Aren’t you afraid that I’ll run away with the items?"
Bai Yi probed.
Yin Hai hadn’t expected Bai Yi to bring up this issue so directly; it seems Bai Yi isn’t as naive as those psychologists say...
To say he really trusts is certainly false.
If there were a choice, Zhuchen definitely wouldn’t want to take this gamble; but the reality is, Zhuchen can no longer wait.
Now, Zhuchen’s Transcendent profession is barely able to demonstrate much combat power at the low-tier.
Although it’s been able to support the largest organization in the current world, Zhuchen Court, allowing Zhuchen’s technology to lead far ahead in the Seven Countries.
But on the frontal battleground, these technologies cannot bring a truly overwhelming advantage.
On the contrary, low-tier Transcendents from the other six countries, with their ferocious combat power, have been slaughtering them mercilessly.
And although the combat power has been replenished by the middle-tier professionals, the mere 20 of them are Zhuchen’s real treasures; they are the limited edition that accommodated Divine Fragments!
To send them to the front line, even if it means trading them for hundreds or thousands of the opponent’s, that would still be a loss.
Although he believes that given another three years, no, one year, he could bring weapons to Zhuchen that could change the course of the war.
But the situation no longer affords time, obtaining a new Transcendent profession and rapidly advancing a group of Transcendents with powerful combat capabilities via a ritual that doesn’t require Divine Fragments is the only hope.
"Of course not, while I personally am willing to trust you, Zhuchen cannot take that risk.
If you are willing to agree, you will need to sign this Contract.
My professional name is Scribe, and I can cast a Spell that ensures the Contract is bound by Transcendent constraints.
Although it can only restrain up to level 5 Transcendents, you also need to start advancing from level 1 after obtaining the fragment; this will suffice as a limitation.
And when you advance to my level, the Contract will naturally become void."
Yin Hai took out a Contract that was already prepared, and with the back of his middle finger, he gently tapped it, causing Bai Yi to feel a familiar force appearing on the Contract. frёeωebɳovel.com
That was the power of the just balance.
Although compared to the just balance, this force was considerably weaker.
Bai Yi walked over and took the Contract, which did not contain much text, only three clauses in total.
Zhuchen would provide her with that Divine Fragment and the corresponding protection and treatment; in return, she must hand over the results of the rituals in full and cannot leave Taian City.
At the bottom of the Contract, Yin Hai’s name was already signed.
It looked very fair, and the terms were very lenient; besides limiting her freedom to some extent, it was acceptable.
After all, her main strength had already begun to be developed outside of Zhuchen, and communication could entirely rely on the orange cat, at most only making communication a bit cumbersome.
However...
The Contract didn’t restrict her from harming Zhuchen?
Is it confidence borne out of strength?
Right, the previous probe showed that he had not discovered Ju’s uniqueness, and the Contract also restricts me from leaving this city.
If I really were the original Bai Yi, with his strength, no matter what tricks I played, he could suppress.
Ha, then Zhuchen is probably going to miscalculate.
"I want to confirm one last time, the protection and treatment include my daily needs and the ritual materials mentioned by Lord Yin, right?"
"Of course, if Miss Bai is not at ease, I can make some modifications to supplement these terms into the Contract."
After saying that, Yin Hai picked up a pen next to him, added explanations after the Contract clauses, and cast the spell again to make it just.
He then pushed the Contract with a smile towards Bai Yi.
Bai Yi picked it up and checked it again, ensuring there were no issues, before nodding and saying:
"Then I accept this term."
Yin Hai watched as Bai Yi signed her name, his smile growing even wider.
"Well, Miss Bai, we are colleagues now. Zhuchen Court will always be open to you, including the Royal Library, which you are free to enter and leave.
But for now, let’s handle the important matters first. Come, let’s take a look at that Divine Fragment."
Yin Hai turned and walked to the wall, pulling open a secret door and leading the way in.
Bai Yi gently rubbed the cat on her head and followed closely behind.
Instead of a corridor, there was a small room less than four square meters behind the secret door, with a small button on one side of the wall.
"Is this..."
An elevator?
Yin Hai pressed the button, and the secret door closed automatically, followed by a sudden sense of weightlessness.
"This is a cloud ladder, which can use steam power to vertically raise and lower this room. It is also a research achievement of Zhuchen Court.
We are now heading to the underground area of Zhuchen Court — the Sealing Zone. That’s where the Divine Fragment is."
After a while, the elevator doors opened again, revealing a long corridor beyond.
The corridor was plastered with cement on all sides, with an electric light every ten meters illuminating the space, and recessed doors intermittently on the walls, their purpose unclear.
It looked like the kind of dim corridor that often appeared in movies, where the seal would break in front, and there would be pursuers behind.
However, fortunately, such a melodramatic scenario did not play out.
Yin Hai led Bai Yi down the corridor for about a hundred meters, then pressed his hand against the wall, and the solid wall turned into a phantom, swallowing his hand.
"This is a special spell that normally has no effect, but it’s very useful for entering and exiting certain special rooms."
With one hand propped in the wall as if supporting an invisible door, Yin Hai gestured with the other hand to invite Bai Yi in.
The orange cat gently tapped Bai Yi’s head from an angle invisible to Yin Hai, signaling that it was safe to proceed, and Bai Yi confidently stepped inside.
Here, Bai Yi finally saw, placed on a stone table in the center of the room, the so-called Divine Fragment — a tree branch glowing with a cyan light.
[Divine Fragment — ??? (Red): A physical object formed from the fragments of a shattered creation that fell into reality; possesses a mild Life Authority. When unclaimed, randomly causes plants within a 500-meter radius to mutate, turning them into monsters under the influence of the Divine Fragment]
Bai Yi didn’t even bother to look at the message that popped up on the panel; the moment she saw the branch, an infinite longing arose in her heart.
She wanted to swallow it whole, to claim it for herself, and stood there, stunned for what seemed like an eternity until finally, her impulse reached a climax.
She instinctively wanted to move forward, to get closer to the fragment.
The orange cat was the first to notice something amiss. Fully displaying its Level 5 strength, it knocked Bai Yi on the head with a paw, using pain to snap Bai Yi out of her trance.
Hiss...
Bai Yi instantly inhaled sharply, the sounds of reality returning to her ears.
"... The fragment, just happened to be passing by your city at that time, so it just... Hm?
Miss Bai, what’s wrong?"
Yin Hai turned his head to see Bai Yi wincing, rubbing her forehead with both hands.
"Ah, it’s nothing! The cat suddenly hit me, it’s no big deal, no big deal..."
Bai Yi also realized that her behavior had been off and knew she couldn’t let Yin Hai find out, so she quickly made up an excuse.
However, to Bai Yi’s surprise, Yin Hai actually nodded and seriously said:
"This Divine Fragment has a certain effect on living beings; other animals are more sensitive to it than humans and it could indeed provoke their irritability.
Ha, this is also why there are no plants around Zhuchen Court.
There is no time to waste, Miss Bai. Let’s start now.
You just need to go up and touch it directly, I’ll be watching on the side."
Bai Yi stepped forward to the stone table and grasped the branch.
This time, the panel notification appeared before her eyes faster than ever.
[You have touched the special Abnormal Object, Divine Fragment. Based on your superpower, you have obtained the following information:]
[Gardener Transcendent profession ceremony: Draw the following Array on the altar, place three different types of plants at the three cores, sprinkle clean Water, and snip them one by one]
[Note: This profession system does not interconnect with the Level system. The panel will not be able to convert correctly. Choose cautiously.]
[Due to your compatibility, you have obtained the Divine Fragment — Forest Elf]
...
Discarded Blueprint (White/Plot): A discarded blueprint mixed among Yin Hai’s desk papers, depicting an armored vehicle powered by the latest fuel engines, but this design never left the blueprint stage...
