Chapter 292: Sifengjiade's True Goal (Combined)

The real world.

Zefeina slowly opened her eyes, sat up from the bed, and a black light flashed in the depths of her azure eyes.

Sifengjiade's voice resounded again, as if directly echoing beside Zefeina's ear.

"The second epic-level player has already appeared."

"If this continues, trying to catch up to your goal will only become more difficult."

"So, have you made a decision?"

"I've already decided." Zefeina said calmly, "I will try to open the dungeon passage to obtain the power you mentioned."

"Oh?" Sifengjiade's voice carried a hint of pleasure, "This is truly good news."

It was not in vain that he paid a considerable price, letting the other party in the Dream World subtly and continuously receive spiritual cleansing.

Clearly, yesterday the other party was still resistant to opening the dungeon passage, but today they are already willing to initiate it.

Thus, this tough bone can be considered gnawed by him, and the key step of the Great Ominous Descent now has a clue.

"What level of dungeon descending into reality would allow my strength to catch up to Luo?" Zefeina asked slowly, "A-level?"

"No." Sifengjiade smiled, "After an A-level dungeon descends, it becomes an S-level passage, with the limit being the Legendary Stage, which is still too low."

"What we need is a dungeon that, upon descent, immediately reaches the Mythic Stage—that is, an S-level dungeon."

"So we need to let an S-level dungeon descend?" Zefeina's tone lacked much emotional fluctuation, "With my strength, surviving in an S-level dungeon would be difficult."

"What you said is correct." Sifengjiade acknowledged, "With your current strength, surviving in an S-level dungeon is indeed difficult."

"However, this problem can be solved."

"You have a saying here that I agree with: food must be eaten bite by bite."

"At present, the number of S-level dungeons is still too low; if you make even a slight move, you'll easily be noticed by others and fall into danger."

"Child, I have taken notice of your qualities and am willing to help you grow stronger; naturally I will not harm you, nor let you fall into danger."

Sifengjiade's voice was gentle and intimate, causing Zefeina's gaze to become somewhat dazed.

"Then what should we do?" Zefeina blurted out.

"At present, you only need to, when other dungeon passages descend, arrive at the scene immediately and enter the passage; I will guide you to absorb the power within the passage and grow stronger."

"When an SS-level dungeon appears, it means the number of S-level secret realms will keep increasing; when your strength is sufficient to remain in an S-level dungeon for a long time, that will be the time for us to act."

"Alright." Zefeina said slowly.

Only after feeling Sifengjiade's power recede like a tide did a hint of solemnity flash in the depths of her eyes.

Somewhere in the Everlasting Day Nation, a woman wearing revealing clothes sat in an underground chamber.

She had an alluring figure and appearance, but her whole body emanated a discordant, eerie aura, leaving observers no spare attention to note her looks.

Around her, dozens of figures stood silently, male and female alike, all with wooden expressions.

"Let's begin today's strategy, my children." The woman spoke slowly, her voice low and hoarse, like that of an elder, "Having absorbed yesterday's power, your strength has increased; today you can remain in higher-level dungeons."

"Your target is an A-level dungeon." Her gaze fell on two of them.

Compared to the others here, these two's eyes were more lively, yet their attitude toward the woman had to be more respectful.

"Yes, milady." The two spoke respectfully.

"As for you…" the woman's gaze swept over the others, "your target is a B-level dungeon."

"Yes." The others responded in unison.

In the next instant, each chose their corresponding dungeon and vanished from the spot.

"Hehe..." After no one else remained in the underground chamber, the woman cracked her mouth, revealing a slightly ferocious smile, "Everything is proceeding according to plan."

"Human race..."

"In a few days, opening the SSS-level passage will bring everything to a complete end."

If Zefeina were here, she would be surprised to discover that this woman's speaking voice is exactly the same as the voice in her mind.

This is a body completely occupied by the Sleepless One·Sifengjiade.

Moreover, Sifengjiade did not tell the truth when facing Zefeina.

His goal is not an S-level dungeon, but an SS-level dungeon.

If Qin Chuan had read the complete Maxisuo Territory Secret History, he would probably find a more complete description of Sifengjiade therein.

"You can never hear the truth from the Sleepless One's mouth; even for those already bewitched and controlled by him, his words still leave room for maneuver."

"He is a true conspirator, a calm madman, trusting only himself."

Unfortunately, what Qin Chuan saw in the Screaming Magic Lake dungeon was only a fragment.

——

"The situation, I already know."

On the other end of the phone, Feng Yin's voice was full of solemnity, "I had previously considered this aspect, but could not be completely certain."

"According to your words, Sifengjiade's threat level is extremely high."

"His own strength is secondary; this behavior of continually bewitching players to occupy dungeons, causing dungeon passages to descend, poses too great a danger to Blue Star."

"The location of dungeon passage descents is uncertain, leaving Blue Star's transcendent beings in a highly passive situation; even if they could detect it immediately, reaching the passage would still be half a step slow."

"Often, creatures from within the dungeon passages escape, requiring the deployment of strong individuals to hunt them down."

"At present, the number of dungeon descents has already caused transcendent beings worldwide a headache; if the number continues to increase, the consequences are easy to imagine."

"Yeah." Qin Chuan leaned against the handrail of the teaching building's corridor, couldn't help but sigh, "A Mythic Stage powerhouse intending to lurk is really hard to catch."

"At present we can only wait, waiting for Zefeina's side to continue contact with the enemy, then combine inside and outside to confirm the enemy's true location, and then swiftly strike to kill."

"I think we may not have much time to wait." Feng Yin's voice grew increasingly solemn, "Yesterday, more than twenty dungeons that originally should not have descended did descend."

"This indicates that the Sleepless One already has over twenty players under his bewitchment."

"If the opponent's ability can continue to bewitch more people, then the number of dungeon descents will increase at an extremely rapid pace."

"It's merely the increase in the number of dungeons; that's not what worries me most." His voice paused slightly, "The content of the sleepless ones' seduction of Zephina is that entering the dungeon passage allows one to directly obtain power and grow stronger from the Heavenly Stairway."

"According to your analysis, this is very likely an ominous power."

"Then the sleepless ones must have performed the same seduction on other players."

"Are those players who occupied the dungeons yesterday, causing the dungeon descent, still as strong as they were yesterday?"

"If not, can they next occupy higher-level dungeons?"

"This…" Qin Chuan's pupils contracted slightly.

Under Feng Yin's reminder, he likewise realized the seriousness of this problem.

Merely, the increasing number of low-level passage descents is already a headache.

If the level of the descent passages continues to rise, that will be a true desperate situation.

"The item you handed over has already reached the borders of the Everlasting Nation; we will try to deliver it to Zephina as soon as possible." Feng Yin's voice paused slightly.

"But in this regard, you also need to stay vigilant."

"Zephina can stay conscious now, but she may not be able to afterward."

"Avoiding illness is a golden talent, but golden talent isn't omnipotent."

"I understand." Qin Chuan spoke in a low voice.

"In short, if any abnormality occurs next, I…" On the other end of the phone, Feng Yin's words hadn't finished when some noisy sounds suddenly appeared.

After a moment, Feng Yin's voice, full of solemnity, came from the other end of the phone.

"The worst case scenario might occur earlier than I anticipated."

"Two A-level dungeons have been occupied by an unknown factor." Feng Yin spoke in a low voice, "The remaining strategy time for these two dungeons is nine hours and ten hours respectively."

"We have already identified the strategists and were preparing to launch an assault on these two dungeons, but now they have prematurely entered the 'under strategy' state."

"It can now be confirmed that the perpetrator is not someone from within the Strategy Group."

"Two A-level dungeons?" Qin Chuan's expression instantly turned grave.

Compared to lower-level dungeons, the number of players able to tackle A-level dungeons is relatively small, the difficulty is greater, and the catastrophe caused by an A-level dungeon descent is too severe.

Therefore, the Special Affairs Group took the lead, inviting strategy teams from around the world capable of tackling A-level dungeons, forming the A-level Dungeon Strategy Group.

Within the Strategy Group, each strategy team, before selecting an A-level dungeon to tackle, must file a report within the Group, informing other players of their dungeon objective.

This both prevents them from conflicting objectives and promotes some strategic cooperation.

But the most important point is to be able to respond immediately in case an A-level dungeon is occupied by an unknown cause.

If an A-level dungeon is under strategy but no Strategy Group member has filed a report, the Special Affairs Group will intensify its monitoring to determine whether a problem exists.

Now, two A-level dungeons have been successively occupied by an unknown strong entity; the best case scenario is the emergence of a new extraordinary being capable of tackling A-level dungeons.

But at this critical juncture, neither Feng Yin nor Qin Chuan will face this extremely high-risk change with such optimism.

"Besides the two A-level dungeons, many B-level dungeons with a strategy deadline under twenty-four hours have also been occupied." Feng Yin spoke in a low voice, "Because B-level dungeons are more numerous and many players are capable of tackling them, we cannot determine which one is problematic."

"In this regard, follow the previously established early-warning rules."

As the number of dungeon descents increases, the Special Affairs Group now also has a complete set of alert and action rules.

Every dungeon will have dedicated monitors; once a dungeon's strategy time exceeds three hours, it enters the alert zone, and thereafter each additional hour raises the alert level by one, until exceeding six hours, when it enters a wartime readiness state.

Once a dungeon enters wartime readiness, the Special Affairs Group will, according to the dungeon's level, pre-deploy at least five points worldwide with extraordinary beings capable of resolving the crisis, so they can reach the scene immediately after the dungeon descent to destroy the dungeon passage.

"Good." Qin Chuan spoke in a low voice, "Call me when needed."

Not having said much on the phone, Feng Yin quickly hung up.

Qin Chuan put down his phone, turned his head toward the girl walking out of the classroom, smiled, and asked, "Finished asking?"

"Mm-hmm!" Lin Yue nodded, her eyes bright, "Many of the problems we encountered before have been solved, and we now have a clue regarding Xiao Hong's spirit descent."

"That's good." Qin Chuan nodded slightly.

The affection between Lin Yue and Xiao Hong has been maxed for a while; regarding the use of attributes and power, both have basically reached the standard of mastering the essence.

But Xiao Hong's spirit descent is stuck in an unexpected place.

Xiao Hong's main output is the large tail of condensed flame, but the human body lacks the corresponding structure.

By contrast, Shui Hua also has a tail, but does not use it as an output means, so Qin Chuan has not encountered a similar problem.

Now, Lin Yue's problem finally has a glimmer of a solution.

Not because of the fire-theory class, but because of the combat-theory class.

The study of biological structure gave her much inspiration.

In yesterday's class, Lin Yue already had some feelings; today, back-to-back, she had another combat-theory class, and happened to learn a very crucial knowledge point, instantly giving Lin Yue inspiration.

This is also why she stayed after class to discuss with the teacher.

"Your mood doesn't seem too good?" Lin Yue keenly sensed a hint of solemnity hidden beneath Qin Chuan's smile, stepped forward and took his hand, "Is it about the sleepless ones?"

"Hmm." Qin Chuan nodded slightly, "The sleepless ones are more troublesome than we imagined; he may already have the ability to influence the descent of A-level dungeons."

He conveyed Feng Yin's analysis and the recent mutation to Lin Yue.

"Has the item already been sent out?" After listening, Lin Yue suddenly spoke.

"Hmm." Qin Chuan nodded, "I handed it over to the Special Affairs Group; they will deliver it to Zephina as quickly as possible in the agreed-upon way, and even Sifenjiade won't notice."

"After all, I did consume a one-time red prop for this." Qin Chuan said this, his face inevitably showing a hint of heartache.

That was a special prop he obtained from clearing a certain S-level dungeon earlier; after acquiring it, Qin Chuan had been reluctant to use it.

——

"Zephina, let's go shopping!"

Aolierjia wore a tight-fitting long dress that accentuated her sexy figure, pushed open the gate to Zephina's private training ground, and with light steps walked toward Zephina, who was swinging her sword inside the training ground.

Shopping is something Aolierjia loves; almost every three days she tries to drag Zephina to the busiest commercial district in London to shop till she drops.

Although Zephina often coldly refuses, Aolierjia never tires of it.

"Stop practicing, you've practiced enough today." Oli Er Jia grabbed Zefina's hand, smiling, and said, "Victoria's Secret has released a super sexy new item, and you're fortunate to be the first to see me wear it."

Zefina returned her sword to the rack, expressionless, and said, "Okay."

"... Huh?" Oli Er Jia blinked.

How did things go so smoothly today?

None of the lines she had prepared beforehand were used.

Zefina walked out of the training field and turned her head to look at Oli Er Jia.

"Hurry up."

(End of chapter)