Chapter 3: Two Queen Insects!
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Stealthily creeping up the hillside, Lu Li quickly located the mantis nest. Just as he had anticipated, the nest was still in its infancy, lacking even a single guard.
Lu Li picked up a random stone and tossed it toward the cave entrance. After a brief moment, a sharp, piercing screech emanated from within. A purple-hued mantis monster, roughly the size of an adult human, charged out of the nest, scanning its surroundings with a predatory gaze.
Its information instantly appeared on Lu Li’s interface:
【Name: Mantis Matriarch (Lord-level Creature)】
【Level: Lv.5】
【Warning: This creature’s level is far higher than the player’s. Immediate evacuation is advised!】
Lu Li completely ignored the final line of the warning, stepping out openly into the Matriarch’s field of vision. Although he was currently only Lv.0, in a one-on-one fight, this Lv.5 Mantis Matriarch was by no means his match. The true terror of a Lord-level creature lay in its endless supply of minions, but the Matriarch’s minions were currently nothing more than eggs lacking any offensive power.
With a flick of his will, Lu Li’s right arm rapidly morphed, transforming into a three-foot-long blade!
The innate ability of a Blade-Arm Mantis—【Blade Arm】.
As he slowly paced, he activated both 【Great Strength】 and 【Agility】 simultaneously, once again elevating his combat prowess. However, Lu Li was in no rush to attack; instead, he used stones to repeatedly taunt the Matriarch, acting with extreme provocation.
He was waiting for an opportunity—a moment for his opponent to reveal a flaw.
Finally, the Mantis Matriarch could no longer contain itself and lunged at Lu Li with a screech. At that exact moment, Lu Li shifted his footing and threw himself flat against the ground! The blade formed from his right arm thrust directly into the Matriarch’s abdomen, leveraging both momentum and the strength boost from 【Great Strength】 to carve out a massive gash.
The Matriarch, never expecting such prowess from a Level 0 player, immediately turned to flee back into its nest. But Lu Li would never grant it that chance. With a sudden burst of speed, he closed the distance and brought his blade down, severing the Matriarch’s head!
The first battle was a success!
A pleasant notification sounded in his mind:
【Player Lu Li detected as the first player globally to slay a Lord-level creature. Would you like to issue a global announcement? Yes/No.】
【Note: A First Kill Treasure Chest ×1 can be obtained after a global announcement.】
The unique nature of the apocalyptic game manifested for the first time. Once a player completed a pioneer achievement, the option for a global announcement would appear. If one opted out of the announcement, the pioneer reward could not be claimed.
Lu Li chose to defer the reward without hesitation. Before he had sufficient strength, standing in the limelight would only invite trouble.
He raised his hand to split open the Matriarch’s skull and retrieved a red Origin Crystal. It was a Tier 2 Origin Crystal, each capable of granting a player 10 experience points.
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However, Lu Li did not absorb it, placing it in his pocket instead. He then activated his Soul Devour ability on the Matriarch’s corpse.
【Devoured soul of a Lv.5 monster, Soul Points +10】
【Plundered Ability—Blade Arm (Silver)】
【Plundered Ability—Insect Swarm Deterrence (Gold)】
【Ability ‘Blade Arm’ detected as eligible for advancement. Trigger advancement quest? Yes/No.】
Lu Li raised an eyebrow and chose to trigger the quest immediately. Without the use of items, the grade of an ability could not normally be promoted. But Lu Li was different. His 【Soul Devour】 was extremely unique! Any ability plundered via 【Soul Devour】 would trigger an advancement quest whenever a duplicate ability was encountered. Completing the quest would allow the ability to advance smoothly. If the quest failed, the ability would simply vanish, with no negative impact on Lu Li himself.
【Ding! Ability advancement quest triggered!】
【Quest Content: Kill 100 Blade-Arm Mantises within twenty-four hours!】
【Quest Reward: Challenger’s Treasure Chest ×1, ability ‘Blade Arm’ advanced to Gold grade!】
【Kill count: 0/100.】
"The advancement quest is as unreasonable as ever..." Lu Li sighed. Killing 100 Blade-Arm Mantises on the first day of the apocalypse was essentially impossible. It seemed he would lose the 【Blade Arm】 ability before he even grew accustomed to it.
Still, Lu Li didn't mind. If nothing else, he could just devour another Blade-Arm Mantis soul and reclaim the ability. He still needed to clear out the nest; those unhatched mantis eggs were valuable. Although they didn't drop Origin Crystals, each egg provided a small amount of Soul Points. Accumulated together, it was quite a fortune.
Subconsciously, he cast a reconnaissance scan into the cave and lifted his leg to crawl inside. But at that moment, a dangerous aura suddenly radiated from the cave entrance.
There was still a monster inside the mantis nest!
Lu Li jerked backward as a gust of wind whistled past him, leaving a shallow scratch on his chest. A Matriarch, a size larger than the one he had just killed, scrambled out of the entrance, baring its fangs and lunging outward!
"Damn, there’s another Matriarch!"
Lu Li’s heart raced. He performed a desperate roll, immediately putting distance between himself and the beast. If not for the good habit he had cultivated in his previous life—casting a scan before entering—he would likely have been decapitated and dead by now!
Just as Lu Li was steadying his breathing, preparing to use the same tactics to kill this Matriarch, a cry of surprise came from behind him.
"Lu Li, run over here!"
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"Xu Xiao?!"
Lu Li was momentarily stunned, then immediately retreated, moving toward the direction of the voice. Three figures soon entered his field of vision. The girl in the lead, wearing a ponytail and possessing delicate features, was indeed Xu Xiao.
"Why is she here? Was she following me?" Lu Li frowned.
In his previous life, he hadn't had much interaction with Xu Xiao. After the initial phase of the apocalypse, he never saw her again after leaving the school. Later, he heard she had formed her own team, and eventually, the news came that she had died tragically in an insect tide. Lu Li only knew she was a formidable fighter, but he wasn't exactly sure what her specific abilities were.
"Lu Li, why did you come here all alone?"
Seeing Lu Li approach, Xu Xiao quickly asked, pressing her palms downward as glowing particles radiated from her body. Circles of light rippled out, making the girl look like a fairy.
"A buff-type ability?!"
Lu Li’s pupils constricted at the sight. He immediately understood why Xu Xiao had been able to build her own team in his previous life. Buff-type abilities could temporarily raise the grade of all players within range, a rarity highly coveted after the apocalypse began. A captain with such an ability could easily recruit suitable teammates.
"I thought there would be fewer people in the back hills, so I came to try my luck," Lu Li improvised a reason.
"You really are 'loyal to a fault.' Zhao Hui treats you the way he does, yet you’re still working your life away for him!" Xu Xiao said, sounding frustrated.
However, despite her words, she moved to shield Lu Li behind her. "Wang Chao, Ma Han, hurry and block that monster!"
"You got it, Squad Leader!"
A chubby boy and a thin boy responded in unison, manifesting their abilities. The chubby one, Wang Chao, had his skin harden into a texture resembling a tortoise shell! The thin one, Ma Han, pulled his arms apart, manifesting a flaming longbow!
Although their coordination was still a bit raw, the foundation of a team was already there. Naturally, this was all due to Xu Xiao’s command:
"Wang Chao, hold the line, don't take it head-on! Ma Han, shoot its head, keep moving while you fight!"
Lu Li, having retreated to Xu Xiao’s side, felt the changes within his own body and asked calmly: "And why did you come to the back hills?"
"Nonsense! It’s because I was worried something might happen to you!"
...
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