Chapter 72: As Promised, We Can Only Look at It, Never Do Anything
Chapter 72: As Promised, We Can Only Look at It, Never Do Anything
A few days later,
Xu Yan and his team dragged their suitcases to the train station,
preparing to board the train bound for Baitan City to participate in their recruit assessment.
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An Urgent Call from District Chief Ding
Just before departure,
Xu Yan's phone rang.
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It was District Chief Ding.
His voice sounded serious and urgent.
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"Xu Yan! You guys, don't go!"
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Xu Yan frowned.
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"But District Chief Ding, we already bought our tickets."
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"Turn back!"
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"Why?"
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"I just got word—this recruit assessment is NOT suitable for you."
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Xu Yan's Suspicion
Hearing this,
Xu Yan was immediately unhappy.
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"Not suitable?
"What do you mean by 'not suitable'?
"Are you trying to delay giving me my ultimate rare defense set!?"
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District Chief Ding Explains the Situation
"Listen to me, Xu Yan.
"The reason why this recruit assessment is being held in Baitan City…
"is because Baitan City is in trouble.
"They need manpower."
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"The recruit assessment is just an excuse to bring in reinforcements."
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"Something happened? What happened there?"
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"Baitan City is under siege… by extreme disaster beasts."
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Xu Yan's Confusion
"Siege?
"But cities being attacked by disaster beasts isn't unusual.
"Why call this one 'extreme'?"
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"Because it's different.
"This isn't a normal beast tide caused by migration.
"It's man-made."
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"Man-made!?"
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A Half-Human Threat
"To be precise…
"It's only half-man-made."
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Xu Yan's eyes narrowed.
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"Half-human?"
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"What the hell is a half-human?"
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A Forgotten Species
Xu Yan had always thought there were only humans and disaster beasts in this world.
So where did 'half-humans' come from!?
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"District Chief Ding… what exactly ARE half-humans?"
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District Chief Ding's Explanation
"It's not surprising that you don't know.
"Half-humans are rare, even among soldiers."
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"But I'll explain.
"And after that, you need to turn back!"
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"Fine. Go ahead."
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"The beast tide in Baitan City was caused by wizards of the Voodoo Clan.
"They are classified as half-humans…
"Because they exist somewhere between disaster beasts and humans."
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The Evolution of Half-Humans
"Humans and disaster beasts have always fought for survival.
"The strongest warriors and the mightiest beasts each have their own territories.
"They rarely interfere with each other."
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"But in ancient times,
"some humans—weak, desperate humans—
"chose to abandon their humanity."
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"Instead of fighting disaster beasts…
"They WORSHIPED them."
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"They treated king-level disaster beasts as gods,
"offered sacrifices, and begged for protection."
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"Over many generations…
"these humans LOST their humanity."
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"They became monsters, serving the disaster beasts they once feared."
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Why Xu Yan Can't Go
"But that's not the main reason I want you to turn back!"
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"The real problem is that…
"the half-human wizard leading this siege specializes in POISON and CURSE magic!"
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Xu Yan's Weakness
"You're a control-type fighter, Xu Yan.
"You specialize in trapping and immobilizing enemies."
"But against curses and poison? You're completely defenseless!"
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"This recruit assessment is a BAD idea for you!"
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"If you go there, YOU WILL DIE!"
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"Do you understand now? Turn back!"
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Xu Yan's Secret Weapon
Xu Yan finally understood the situation.
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But…
did District Chief Ding just say he would die?
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Heh.
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Little did he know…
that in just a few hours,
Xu Yan's third Tree World skill would be unlocked.
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[Tree World Fruits]
Grants full immunity to curses and poison attacks.
Converts all curse/poison damage into healing.
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In short…
if he was "father" to melee and magic users before…
he was "grandfather" to poison users now.
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This recruit assessment wasn't a challenge…
It was free EXP!
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Xu Yan's Decision
"District Chief Ding, I understand the risks now."
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"But I'm still going."
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"Don't worry,
"we'll just watch.
"We won't get involved."
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"If the situation is bad, we'll quit immediately."
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"Besides…
"half-humans may be rare, but I'll definitely run into them in the future."
"If I don't study them now, I could be caught off guard later."
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District Chief Ding Reluctantly Agrees
District Chief Ding hesitated.
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Xu Yan had a point.
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He sighed heavily and said:
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"Fine. If you want to go, go."
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"But remember our agreement.
"You're only there to observe.
"You will NOT take action."
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"I don't want to have to send people to recover your bodies."
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"District Chief Ding, relax.
"I know my limits."
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Eavesdroppers Caught
As Xu Yan hung up,
he noticed something.
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Gao Yang, Bai Ding, and Wang Ke…
had their ears practically glued to him.
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"That's enough, don't come any closer."
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Gao Yang chuckled.
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"Xu Yan… what did District Chief Ding say just now?"
"Something about tides… semi-something… and poison?"
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Breaking the News
Xu Yan sighed and told them everything.
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"Baitan City is under siege by a beast tide.
"But it's not natural—it was started by half-human wizards."
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"These wizards serve disaster beasts.
"They specialize in poison and curses."
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"And if we go to Baitan City for the recruit assessment,
"we might run into them."
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Instant Regret
Gao Yang's entire body went limp.
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"Wizards? Curses? Poison?
"Xu Yan… isn't that your COMPLETE counter?"
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"Maybe we shouldn't go after all."
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"Dayan City is nice. I like it here.
"Let's just stay home!"
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End of Chapter.