this infinite world

"Assist in eliminating one novice saint, reward one S-level side quest, and 50,000 points."

"Huh? What's going on?"

When the cold, merciless voice of the main god rang in his ears, Zhang Heng, who had first activated twenty times the bullet time and then been struck by Ling Xin in his Bankai state, was finally brought back to consciousness after being blasted into the rock wall.

The young man first shook his incredibly dizzy head, and after confirming that he had indeed heard the God's score notification, he muttered to himself in confusion, "Destroy a novice saint? Reward: an S-rank side quest, 50,000 reward points? Am I still dreaming?"

As he spoke, Zhang Heng's head immediately lolled to the side, and he looked as if he was about to lose consciousness—

"Wake up, Zhang Heng! I just gave you your medicine, and Nian Xikong also used his true energy to heal you... If you keep sleeping, you might not wake up!"

Suddenly, Zhang Heng, whose consciousness was rapidly fading, heard Tom's anxious shouts in his ear. At the same time, a large hand was patting his face repeatedly, as if trying to prevent him from falling into a coma.

The incredibly clear sensation instantly jolted Zhang Heng awake, and he opened his eyes. But before Tomson could even utter a word, Zhang Heng, lying on the ground covered in bruises, suddenly leaped to his feet, his eyes wide, and angrily shouted, "Why did you have to hit me in the face? Don't you know the saying 'Don't hit someone in the face'?"

"If you break my handsome face, how are you going to compensate me... Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!"

Before Zhang Heng could say a few words, he felt pain all over his body, let out another wail, and collapsed onto a makeshift stretcher, convulsing like a fish out of water, looking quite comical.

"Alright, I told you this guy's tough skin and he won't die."

Seeing Zhang Heng put on a comedy routine for everyone the moment he woke up, Nian Xikong, who was squatting beside the stretcher, clapped his hands, stood up, took out a roast chicken from his storage item, and said while gnawing on it, "Good people don't live long, but evil people live a thousand years. A scourge like him is even harder to die for..."

"Who are you calling a troublemaker! Huh? Who are you calling a troublemaker!"

Hearing Nian Xikong's merciless words, Zhang Heng, despite wriggling like a maggot on the soft ground and sweating profusely, still retorted at a tremendous volume, as if "complaining" was more important than his life: "I'm just lucky! You flat-chested glutton who only knows how to eat, stop slandering me!"

"...Can I kill him and give him a release?"

Seeing Nian Xikong with a murderous look on his face, holding a roast chicken in one hand and actually pulling out the Jidu Sword in the other, Tom and Oqi, who were standing by, quickly stepped forward to stop him, thus preventing a tragedy from happening... And when the two of them helped Zhang Heng, who had been writhing on the ground for a long time, covered in cold sweat from the pain, but still insisted on maintaining his tough guy persona without asking for help, back onto the stretcher, the comical killer from the Arctic team finally heard from the two of them what had happened after he fell into a coma.

"What? Nian Xikong's sword strikes were like a dragon, and she captured that vampire hunter from the Celestial Team alive?"

"What? Chu Hao defeated his brother, Ling Xin, the captain of the Celestial Team, in a one-on-one match?"

"What? When you rescued me from the cliff, my Sagittarius Silver Cloth was shattered to pieces, beyond repair?"

"What? Am I the only one who got the short end of the stick?"

"I understand...it's a dream!"

Upon hearing this unbelievable news, Zhang Heng glanced at Ling Xin and Xiao Niaoren, who were severely injured and unconscious, lying side by side not far away, their equipment and storage items completely stripped from them, and couldn't help but rub his eyes. However, he seemed to have thought of something in an instant, and slapped his forehead, saying, "That's it! If all of this is a dream, and I'm actually still unconscious, then everything makes sense!"

"I knew it! What exactly is this 'assisting in killing a saint' nonsense? Chu Hao's strength is not even as good as mine, so how could he possibly unleash his full power and defeat the captain of the Celestial Team who beat me to a pulp in one-on-one? And most importantly, how could the Sagittarius Silver Saint Cloth that I just exchanged for be shattered like this!"

“…Zhang Heng, I know it’s hard for you to believe.”

Seeing that Zhang Heng seemed to be stuck in some kind of strange loop, Ochi, who was still trying to explain, said with a wry smile, "Although we don't know exactly how Chu Hao won, that's the fact, so..."

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

Hearing Ochi's words, Zhang Heng shook his head vigorously, determined not to accept the reality before him: "This is all a dream, an illusion, something false. Didn't you all sleep for two whole days and nights in Rivendell without waking up? I never thought it would happen to me this time!"

Without waiting for Ochi's bewildered expression, Zhang Heng stood up straight and roared at the rock wall above him, "I'm telling you, Lord of Dreams! I've seen through your scheme. If you know what's good for you, release me right now, or else... Ouch ouch ouch ouch!!!"

Before Zhang Heng could finish shouting, he jumped three feet high, clutching his buttocks, then fell back to the ground as if he had just been airborne, clutching his buttocks and crying out in pain.

"Alright, you're welcome. I've put up with him for a long time."

On the other side, Nian Xikong, who had already finished a whole roast chicken, was gnawing on a bear paw she had just taken out of her storage bag, her mouth full of oil, and mumbled indistinctly, "No need to thank me." It was she who had just formed a sword with her fingers and unleashed a sword aura that accurately hit Zhang Heng's buttocks: "No need to thank me."

"...Never mind, it's not the first time. I guess he'll be back to normal after a while once he figures it out."

Tom, who entered the Main God Space at the same time as Zhang Heng and had spent a long time with him, knew the young man's true nature. He shrugged and said with a wry smile.

The veteran of the Arctic Continent team first glanced at Chu Hao, who had taken the Ice Condensation Pill and was breathing steadily, as if he had simply fallen into a coma due to overexertion. Then he sighed and said to Nian Xikong, "Fortunately, Chu Hao is not in mortal danger. He should just have overexertion. He can be fully healed once he returns to the Main God Space to recover... But more importantly, what exactly was that notification from the Main God just now?"

Yes, this wasn't just the question Zhang Heng wanted to ask, but also the question Tom, Ochi, and Sterry and the others on the other side wanted to ask. This sudden notification from the main god not only woke Zhang Heng from his slumber but also greatly shocked the other members of the Arctic team… Yes, this S-level side quest and the reward of 50,000 reward points were actually a team reward—everyone on the Arctic team got one!

"Oh, I guess Yang Yun did something."

Unlike Tom and Ochi's anxious expressions, Nian Xikong simply waved her oily hand casually before resuming her attack on the bear paw: "It's alright, don't worry, after all, that man can do anything." "No, we can probably guess a thing or two about that..."

Even though Nian Xikong, the strongest member of the Arctic team, had said so, Tom and Ochi's unease deepened. They exchanged a glance, and finally Tom spoke first: "But the real question is, although the Main God said it was 'assisting in the elimination,' did we actually do anything in the process?"

"...To be honest, I suspect that these 50,000 reward points are hush money from the main god, to make us quickly escape back to reality and forget everything, as if nothing ever happened."

Although Tom and Ochi are not very strong, it is precisely because they are so-called "small people" that they are able to feel the changes in the team during this period of time... Anyone who has met Yang Yun once will know that the seemingly ordinary young man is actually someone that no one can mess with.

When the names "Yang Yun" and "Arctic Continent Team" are linked, it's beyond what the phrase "pretending to be weak while actually being strong" can describe. To be honest, Tom genuinely worries that one day this formidable figure will clash with that lofty, luminous sphere, and they, his ilk, will be crushed like ants in the Main God Space…

"Oh, that's what you're worried about."

Upon hearing this, Nian Xikong finally looked enlightened, but she simply waved her hand casually and said, "My master once told me, 'Since you're here, make the best of it.' That saying still applies today."

"If you really feel that you can't handle this windfall and feel burdened, then wait until Chu Hao wakes up and ask him. After all, he's a pretty good person."

"Sigh, that's all we can do." Tom sighed, glancing unconsciously at Chu Hao lying on the ground once more. "If it were the captain, he would definitely be able to—"

"Why worry about these things? We should think about how to spend this large sum of reward points after we return to the Main God Space!"

Before Tom could finish speaking, Zhang Heng's voice rang out again. This comedic assassin seemed to have accepted reality, completely emerging from the gloom of his Sagittarius Silver Cloth being destroyed: "I've already decided. First, I'll upgrade my Saint Seiya bloodline to the highest level, then I'll exchange for two Gold Cloths, one Sagittarius, and the other also Sagittarius..."

"...Can I ask you something?" Nian Xikong paused in her chewing and asked in confusion, "Why are both of the Gold Cloths you want to exchange for Sagittarius?"

"Are you stupid? Of course you eat one bowl and throw the rest away!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Heng stared wide-eyed in astonishment as if he had heard some utterly absurd question: "Look, my Sagittarius Silver Cloth was shattered this time, wasn't it? If something like this happens again, then I won't be without a Cloth to show off!"

"Hehe, Sagittarius Gold Cloth, my Sagittarius Gold Cloth!"

"...I shouldn't have had any expectations of your intelligence in that instant!"

Just as a "#" symbol popped out on Nian Xikong's forehead, and the two fingers of her right hand were already brought together again, ready to deliver another sword strike to Zhang Heng's buttocks as he laughed heartily and snot bubbles were almost dripping from his nose, a monster that looked a lot like a green slime from a game suddenly appeared stealthily at the edge of the battlefield.

It has to be said that no one expected that such a strange creature would appear after the team battle with the Celestials had ended. Firstly, this area had been turned into a wasteland by the battle between Chu Hao and Ling Xin, and there were no living creatures left. Secondly, the appearance of this green slime was too bizarre; even Ochi, who was a mental power controller, and Nian Xikong, the strongest among them, had not noticed its existence at all.

And so, without anyone noticing, this seemingly harmless green slime swaggered and wriggled on the ground. The slime seemed to be constantly emitting gurgling roars, appearing quite excited.

Of course, regardless of whether anyone noticed, or even if they did, no one would understand it—after all, even the supreme god couldn't translate slime language. Just as the Arctic team members were chatting, the green slime finally crawled closer to them, within about ten meters, and then…

"Now's the time! Behold my Master Ball, the ultimate stealing skill!"

Suddenly, the green slime contracted and expanded, spitting out a small, purple sphere with a white "M" engraved on its surface... and its target was none other than Nian Xikong, who was gnawing on a bear paw!

"……Um?"

To be fair, Green Slime's sneak attack was quite successful. Master Balls are inherently elusive, and this attack, launched from a distance of about ten meters, should have had no chance of failure.

But at this moment, Nian Xikong, a sword cultivator, displayed terrifying combat talent. In the nick of time, she subconsciously raised her hand and waved it, and the sword energy that was about to pierce Zhang Heng's buttocks changed direction, hitting the Master Ball thrown by the green slime...

But to everyone's surprise, including the green slime, the Master Ball that Nian Xikong had knocked away drew a strange arc and landed in Zhang Heng's direction.

At this very moment, Zhang Heng was grinning broadly, anticipating a bright future after returning to the Main God Space. His laughter was so exaggerated, almost comparable to Kogoro Mouri from Detective Conan, that the Master Ball landed squarely in his mouth and was swallowed whole!
"vomit!"

Upon swallowing the foreign object, Zhang Heng's face turned pale, he clutched his throat, foamed at the mouth, and collapsed backward.

"Zhang Heng!"

"Zhang Heng, are you alright?"

Everyone present witnessed the Master Ball falling into Zhang Heng's mouth. They disregarded everything else and frantically tried to save him, once again subconsciously ignoring the presence of the green slime. Strangely enough, the Master Ball, originally a solid object, vanished after entering Zhang Heng's mouth, as if it had all been an illusion…

"Holy crap! What's going on?! What on earth happened?! How did my Master Ball get swallowed?! If this is happening, if this is happening..."

"Wouldn't I end up being subdued by that member of the reincarnation team???"

For a moment, the green slime's angry yet helpless panting sounds echoed in the air... (End of Chapter)