Read Novel Full Chapter 871: Arriving at the Sixth Island
Chapter 871: Arriving at the Sixth Island
Upon hearing Old Zheng's explanation, Lin Yu still harbored doubts in his heart.
"But it wasn't like that back on the Thirty-Seventh Island... 'Robin' was considered quite strong even among 'Third Tier' players. Even setting aside that dungeon's mechanics, she still fell into a grueling, prolonged fight with those 'Summoned Creatures' of yours."
Old Zheng said helplessly, "After all, I am 'Third Tier', so it's impossible for me to have zero 'combat capability'... But boss, those were all things I'd saved up for a very long time. And didn't you notice? Those aberrant monsters from the Thirty-Seventh Island wouldn't have been something I could bring into the [Item Space] anyway, even if I were still a 'Player'."
"In other words, if I go to a new [dungeon], I have to start from scratch building them up again. Even in reality... I rarely have opportunities to create those monsters, since the tracking of corpse disposal in our world is very strict."
"Although I can buy some [materials] collected by 'Second Tier' players... instances where intact corpses show up among the [materials] are far too rare."
At this point, Old Zheng's tone turned somewhat mournful again: "Boss, you witnessed the battles between renowned 'Third Tier' players in the 'Land of Certain Death'. Now imagine throwing me into an arena, or any other kind of unexpected encounter. If I were to face 'Prisoner' or 'Mountaineer' from the 'Free Alliance', 'Nicholas' from 'Order', or 'Snowy Owl' from the 'Night Watchmen' without adequate preparation... relying on my spiritual power or my [items] that have virtually no offensive capability and focus purely on information gathering and self-concealment, what do you think the outcome would be?"
Lin Yu thought about it and could already picture Old Zheng's miserable state.
He sighed. "I understand... I suppose I wronged you."
"That's just how it is. Otherwise, how would I have ended up dying at my own subordinate's hands... But you see, what I sacrificed in direct combat capability, I made up for with top-tier scheming ability. The Misty Islands Master was purely outmaneuvered to death by me," Old Zheng said proudly. "That idiot thought he could scheme against me, wanted to use me to seize the Authorities of other worlds and help him truly ascend to godhood... Then I used the art of alliance-building to collude with his two confidants and ten Island Masters. When he went to the Sixteenth Island's winery to inspect his aged vintage, we destroyed his airship, and under the siege of the Abyssal Spawns, we cornered and killed him."
"And before that, I deceived him with a false Authority, making him strip away his own life soul."
As Old Zheng spoke, he was indirectly revealing the details of what happened back then to Lin Yu.
Lin Yu nodded slightly.
"So that's how it was..."
Among the Misty Islands, besides the islands themselves, there was also the fog-shrouded Abyssal Sea, which was home to many monsters.
The monsters on the islands were called "Islanders", while the monsters in the sea were called "Sea Spawns". The island's residents and monsters were cunning and treacherous, while the Sea Spawns in the ocean were eerie and deranged.
In short, most beings on the islands possessed intelligence, while those in the sea did not. Though neither rule was absolute.
From Old Zheng's brief account, Lin Yu roughly understood what had happened back then.
The unsuspecting Misty Islands Master went out on a routine trip, only to have his itinerary leaked by the betrayal of his two confidants. Old Zheng and the ten Island Masters joined forces to shoot down his vehicle, calculating the crash point so that the Misty Islands Master would land precisely in the most dangerous sea region, where he fell under siege and met his end.
It sounded like just a few casually spoken sentences, but the peril involved was still easy to imagine.
After all, the Misty Islands Master was a genuine demigod, and was even planning to ascend to the Rank of godhood.
And Old Zheng had managed to scheme him to death...
Suffice it to say, what he lacked as a 'Third Tier' player in direct combat, he had more than compensated for in "scheming".
Old Zheng was indeed not strong enough in surprise encounters, but once he was given time to prepare and lay his plans, the result was obvious. Even a demigod could die.
And this hidden truth, which probably only his former "partners" back on the Misty Islands knew about, once again became another "information advantage" in Lin Yu's hands.
Just by using the truth of the Misty Islands Master's downfall, Lin Yu could already think of many ways to set up schemes.
Of course...
There was no rush to make moves in these areas yet. The immediate priority was still the scheming and maneuvering against the players on this airship.
And after Lin Yu had quietly dealt with the "Soul-Draining Vine" parasitizing that military otaku, there were no more troubles on the airship.
Although the lighting hadn't been restored, the rest of the airship continued functioning normally.
Soon, the airship passed through layers of dense fog and arrived at... even denser fog.
And as Lin Yu watched the fog outside the window change color, tinged with a faint pale yellow hue, Old Zheng spoke up in warning.
"We've entered the Sixth Island's territory now."
Shortly after Old Zheng's warning, Nineteen also spoke up.
"We should be arriving at the Sixth Island soon."
The airship then began to slowly descend, and the players couldn't help but grow somewhat tense.
The airships of the Misty Islands clearly possessed some kind of special technological enhancement, as they descended very quickly yet smoothly, reaching the ground in no time.
Then...
The main door of the airship slowly opened, and the boarding steps extended down onto the island.
Eight players. Or rather, seven players plus one monster, walked off the airship.
What came into view was the sight of the Sixth Island.
And the appearance of the Sixth Island was completely different from the Thirty-Seventh Island that Lin Yu had seen before, or the decayed and dilapidated image he had imagined.
A thin layer of mist wreathed the entire island, yet it possessed a refreshing, pristine beauty.
The airship had stopped on a flat stone platform at the edge of the Sixth Island. A straight road paved with white seashells and gravel extended deep into the island, with trees planted in elegant disarray along both sides of the road, blooming with pink and yellow flowers. From time to time, the chirping of birds came from within the woods.
This felt less like the Sixth Island of the Misty Islands and more like Lin Yu had somehow arrived in some peaceful, harmonious world filled with birdsong and floral fragrance.
"These aren't some kind of illusion, are they?"
Lin Yu asked in his mind.
"No, these are actually real. The Lord of the Sixth Island is someone with very refined aesthetic tastes," Old Zheng's voice sounded in his ear. "Perhaps because she's one of the few 'ancient people' among the Misty Islands residents."
"Though I have no evidence, I've always suspected that she completely avoided the great catastrophe that struck the Misty Islands, and crawled out of some kind of 'life-support pod' or similar facility not too long ago."
"So she's completely different from those cunning, utterly untrustworthy people of the Misty Islands. She's relatively normal as a whole. That's also the reason I chose to cooperate with her."
"Of course, because the current state of the Misty Islands is too abnormal and may have dealt her some psychological shock, although she herself is fine, her mental state isn't particularly good either."
"You should still be on your guard."