Chapter 781 - 776: Sharing the Golden Branch
With the wide-ranging mental scan, Bai Pu quickly found the location of Rein and the others.
Leia, who was supposed to be on a mission, was surprisingly here as well.
Upon meeting, Rein hastily said:
"Brother, did you suggest killing the Demon General Mo Hou because you suspected that the Mo Hou chasing us was fake? Leia was attacked by the real Mo Hou at the Miasma Spring and almost lost her life!"
There was a hint of resentment in Rein’s words, as if blaming Bai Pu for not informing them in advance.
Bai Pu shook his head and said, "If I were certain it was fake, why would I let Leia take the risk? I just found the process of luring Mo Hou too smooth, which made me slightly suspicious.
"As for suggesting you kill it, it’s because there was a great battle at the Palace of Roots... This Dongbo Cheng behind me single-handedly held back the Demon Generals and all the Fallen Samurai (Awakened) from the Palace of Roots. Even if you killed the real Mo Hou, Emperor Qing wouldn’t be able to send stronger demons to support the Miasma Spring any time soon."
Bai Pu’s words were reasonable, and Rein couldn’t help but nod.
He actually felt that if he couldn’t tell Mo Hou was a fake, how could Bai Pu have?
Instead, it was Dongbo Cheng, whom Bai Pu carried, that made Rein a bit envious, so he secretly communicated,
"Brother Bai, this Dongbo Cheng you mentioned is really that formidable?"
"He is the Young Master of the Dongbo Clan. With the old Patriarch in retirement, Dongbo Cheng is practically the Controller of the Cyan Dragon Oath. From my observation, he is undoubtedly the World Protagonist."
These words instantly made Rein even more envious, "Then you saved Dongbo Cheng, which is a significant achievement... aren’t there countless benefits?"
Bai Pu smiled faintly, "Rein, you’ve already grasped the True Intent Prototype and are about to enter the Ascension Plane, so why care about the benefits of the Awakened Plane?"
"Well, as I’m about to enter the Ascension Plane, I need to prepare adequately." Rein communicated, "The Ascension Plane is extremely perilous, one can never be too prepared."
For someone like Rein, a ’Quasi-Ascension’ level Awakened, the drop rate for treasures was incredibly low, and he didn’t need guidance from the Natives after grasping the True Intent Prototype himself.
The only way for him to gain benefits from the Spirit Realm was through mission rewards by amassing precious equipment and rare scrolls, enhancing his chances in the Ascension Plane.
Why did Rein devote himself to helping his teammate Leia ascend to Major General? It was to boost Leia’s strength so she could help him in the Ascension Plane.
"Well, here’s an opportunity for you to connect with Dongbo Cheng, the World Protagonist."
Bai Pu mentioned the "World Protagonist" to Rein, obviously with a plan in mind.
He was merely fishing!
"What opportunity?" Rein was slightly taken aback, and then a side task notification appeared before him.
[The Awakened Bai Yujing (alias) shares a Golden Side Task with you: Dragon’s Fang. Do you accept?]
Golden Side Task?!
Rein felt a surge of excitement, with no doubts left regarding Dongbo Cheng as the World Protagonist.
However, being a battle-hardened Quasi-Ascension Awakened, Rein knew well that there were no free lunches, so he quickly added,
"Brother, our main goal with the Furnace Blade is to help Leia ascend to Major General! As soon as she ascends, she can immediately don a critical piece of equipment, significantly boosting our squad’s strength... I can’t divert my focus for another goal."
Rein didn’t take the bait.
But Bai Pu smiled slightly; he had devised four plans to make Rein willingly work for him!
Since the first plan failed, Bai Pu immediately moved to the second plan:
"I am talking precisely about Leia’s ascension to Major General... with the pursuers closing in, let’s talk while we move!"
Rein’s curiosity was piqued as he watched Bai Pu quickly flee northward, and he had no choice but to follow closely. Behind him, Leia and Muro followed suit.
Meanwhile, Salacia had somehow convinced "Uncle Heig" to have his team assist her in this world—Salacia and the Heig Team had now become allies, ready to follow suit.
However, Bai Pu transmitted to Salacia: "The Heig Team is too large to keep up with our escape pace. You should lead them like so..."
Salacia nodded, leading the Heig Team according to Bai Pu’s instructions.
...
As Bai Pu and his group dashed along, they faintly saw an entrance to a Demon Bone Dao.
This wasn’t the Bone Dao they had previously used but rather another branch. Bai Pu knew of this Demon Bone Dao thanks to the detailed Corruption Forest map provided by Dongbo Cheng.
No one in the Human Camp was more familiar with the geographical details of the Corruption Forest, particularly the distribution of key routes like the Demon Bone Dao, than Dongbo Cheng, who had been in the Underworld for over half a year with a complete Cyan Dragon Oath Expedition Team alongside.
Charging into the Demon Bone Dao, the path ahead was smooth, unlike the outer labyrinth of dark caves and rivers.
Bai Pu summoned the Winged Tooth Beast King Da Fei, and the group stood on Da Fei’s broad back, leveraging its flight.
"Brother Bai, you mentioned Leia’s ascension to Major General earlier... care to elaborate?" Rein couldn’t resist asking eventually.
"The key to Leia’s ascension is the Demon General Mo Hou stationed at the Miasma Spring, right?" Bai Pu asked.
"Correct, the real body of Mo Hou is a gigantic Centipede Demon, it has always remained within the vicinity of the Miasma Spring."
Rein felt somewhat frustrated. The Furnace Blade squad feared no ordinary Mo Hou, but Leia’s trial required a speed task without any aid.
If Rein and others rushed into the Miasma Spring and killed Mo Hou before withdrawing, letting Leia go for the task... the Spirit Realm Will would rule that Leia wasn’t completing it independently.
The Spirit Realm Will’s baseline for ’independent’ completion required the Guardian Demon to ’voluntarily’ leave the Miasma Spring, which was borderline acceptable. Killing it outrightly was crossing the line.
Bai Pu smiled gently, "Mo Hou guards the Miasma Spring under orders from Emperor Qing, so it won’t dare leave recklessly. Getting it to move requires a new command from Emperor Qing, right?"
"Yes."
Seeing Bai Pu state a seemingly blatant "fact," Rein wasn’t impatient as he knew Bai Pu must have a follow-up.
Bai Pu smiled and pointed at himself and then at Dongbo Cheng, "I’ve killed a Demon Emperor in the Mid-level Plane, which has made me a thorn in Emperor Qing’s side... and this Dongbo Cheng as the World Protagonist is equally disliked and feared by Emperor Qing. The fact we are being chased by two Guardian Demon Generals from the Palace of Roots is proof enough."
Rein understood instantly and perked up:
"Are you saying that the Guardian Demon General Mo Hou at the Miasma Spring might also be commanded by Emperor Qing to hunt you down?"