Sanctuary Paradise

Chapter 809 Squad Meeting
In an instant, as if someone had been startled awake from a beautiful dream, Xin Lailai looked down again at the "Eye of Truth" before her, her eyes filled with an unusually cold gaze.

What a coincidence.

If the Eye of Truth had simply met their needs, that would have been one thing. But now, the effect of its ultimate enhancement perfectly filled their biggest weakness. Xin Lailai didn't think it was just good luck.

Is there a problem with the Eye of Truth itself?

No, that can be ruled out first. If there really was something wrong with the Eye of Truth equipment, then Paradise should have warned them when they used the Overlord's Forge.

But the truth is that the reason they were able to obtain the Eye of Truth so easily was largely due to the Overlord's Forge that Paradise had placed in the Honor Shop. In other words, the fact that they were able to obtain the Eye of Truth, an overlord-level piece of equipment, was a result of Paradise's tacit approval.

This way, we can first rule out the possibility that the lord system or rule-breakers are behind this. And if we rule out both of these—

'A crimson regret... I shouldn't have died at your hands.'

In an instant, a somewhat distant conversation flashed through Xin Lailai's mind, and as she gazed at the Eye of Truth in her hand, she fell silent.

Thinking about it carefully, they were able to obtain the Eye of Truth because they happened to get the Overlord's Forge and the most crucial Lord's Eye from Paradise. They were able to obtain the Lord's Eye because they opened the Crimson Chest in the Dead Sea Ruins, which they had obtained after killing the outlaw 'Lord'. The reason they were able to open this item, which represents the inheritance of the Lord system, from the other party's Crimson Chest was because the 'Lord' at that time happened to enter the same world with them as an outlaw and inheritor of the Lord system.

So, what if we push it back a little further?

For example... In fact, the reason why the violator codenamed 'Lord' who they killed was able to inherit the Lord system was because someone was secretly pushing behind the scenes, or even just to make him die at the right time and place, so that the Lord's Eye could be delivered to a designated person in the form of a crimson treasure chest?
If all of this is not a simple coincidence, and considering that they entered the Paradise later than the 'Lord' became a violator, in Xin Lailai's memory, only one person could have orchestrated such a meticulously crafted and chilling 'coincidence' before they even appeared, as if by precognition, and even had the Paradise actively amplify it.

However, out of consideration for our shared background as fellow disciples, I'll still give you a heads-up...

"Be careful of that monster with the brow; that guy... is much more dangerous than you think."

The playwright's words flashed through Xin Lailai's mind. She stared at the Eye of Truth in her hand, her eyes lowered, and she subconsciously clenched her fist.

Without a doubt, the appearance of the Eye of Truth is absolutely related to the leader of their Lai Lai Cult.

While the existence of the Eye of Truth would undoubtedly be of immense help to their subsequent actions, however—

Is the opponent's plan really... that simple?

"Master Eyebrows..."

They are no longer the clueless new contractors they were when they first entered the park. Even if they can't see through the other party's true purpose, their pioneering intuition tells them that what they are experiencing now is definitely not as simple as it seems.

He even had a strong intuition that they might have just overlooked something extremely important, but whose truth was simply beyond their comprehension.

"What exactly is missing...?"

Xin Lailai murmured, involuntarily raising her head to gaze at the impenetrable barrier before her, a deep, unfathomable look flashing in her eyes.

[Notification: You have a new message to view, sent by: Yamu]

……

Yamu: "Hey, Captain Black, how much longer are you planning to make us sit here? It's been almost half an hour. Don't tell me you're still in your room with that tattered book, grinding away your skill levels?"

……

Damn, I almost forgot, when they upgraded the Eye of Truth to +14, they seemed to have told Amu and the Deathbringer that they would arrive in five minutes!

Seeing the message suddenly pop up on the communication channel, Xin Lailai, realizing that she had been too overjoyed that her True Eye had reached +15 and had inadvertently stood up the Deathbringer and Yamu, felt embarrassed and quickly replied:

……

Black Sword: "Ahem, sorry, the estimate was wrong, which caused a little delay. I'll be right there!"

……

After the reply landed, Xin Lailai hurriedly packed her things, not even bothering to tidy her appearance, and immediately opened the teleportation interface, disappearing from the spot in the teleportation beam that descended from the sky.

……

……

Meanwhile, in the void, in the border region.

The tranquil darkness slowly crept through the void, and the remnants of an ancient world drifted by in the distance, rising and falling in the darkness like planks floating on water, silently proclaiming the history that once unfolded here.

Desolate and silent—that's the general tone of the Astral Frontier region, but today…

"looks!!!"

"We're both fortune tellers, so why do you have to be so ruthless and ruthless?!"

An angry and alarmed voice suddenly spread from the void, based on the spirit realm layer. Among the world debris floating up and down, a seemingly inconspicuous world debris suddenly shattered, and a woman with a severed arm, her face full of terror, flew out from it, as if she were hiding from something, and frantically fled into the distance.

however……

boom! ! !
A dazzling galaxy descended, like a giant hand, crushing the one-armed woman and the surrounding space, spanning several light-years, into a single mass. She coughed up a mouthful of blood, her body creaking under the terrifying spatial pressure, her gaze fixed in despair in a certain direction.

"eyebrow…!"

"If only I had known this would happen, I wouldn't have done it in the first place."

Bang——! !

As the indifferent announcement fell, the one-armed woman's figure was instantly crushed into a cloud of blood mist by the pressure of the starry sky. At the same time, all the storage items she carried shattered, gushing out like a fountain. The white-robed scholar, who was far away, nodded slightly and, with a thought, gathered all the valuables in front of him.

Originally, he planned to continue using the one-armed woman to lure those Abyss races, but the deadline for the Academic Sect to pay its dues was approaching, so he had to temporarily harvest some of the less profitable 'bait' ahead of time.

"Hmm... about three million ounces of spacetime power in total? Heh, that's quite good."

After briefly appraising the loot 'discovered' by the one-armed woman using his authority to sell at fair prices, the white-robed scholar let out a sneer, whether with satisfaction or sarcasm, and then retrieved all the resources—more than half of which were intended for transforming himself into an Abyss race—back into his storage space. Just as he was about to turn and leave—

"Ok?"

As if suddenly sensing something, the white-robed scholar's gaze shifted slightly, moving to his contact list. After lingering on a particular name for a moment, he chuckled softly.
"You've already noticed something's wrong? You've become much more alert."

The scholar in white robes smiled, but the gaze in his deep, star-like eyes remained unchanged, as calm and indifferent as when he erased the woman with the severed arm.

"But this is fine..."

A soft chuckle rang out, and the white-robed scholar slowly shifted his gaze to a certain direction, the gray and white colors in his pupils constantly shifting.

That's right, even if the other party notices it, it won't have any impact at all.

Whether one doubts or believes, it doesn't matter what attitude one has towards all of this.

Because what awaits the other at the end this time is neither a test nor a trial, but a seed that was planted long ago and nurtured by the other's own hands along their path...

This time, both he and that guy only need to stand aside and observe the natural unfolding of events.

Yes, that's it.

……

……

On the other side, at the Sanctuary Paradise, the Sun Hotel.

"Hey? Isn't this our busy big guy? You've finally deigned to grace our humble little gathering with your presence?"

"Ahem, sorry, I miscalculated the time. I've kept you waiting!"

Inside the already familiar private room, a slightly awkward cough broke the silence. Xin Lailai stood at the door, apologizing to the two people seated inside. Yamu, upon hearing this, gave them a suspicious look and said:

"Let me ask you first, Captain Hei, you're not really going to be making a killing while we're waiting here, are you?" "No, I just miscalculated the timing for upgrading my equipment."

Faced with Yamu's questioning, Xin Lailai answered calmly. Upon hearing this, Yamu first nodded slightly, but then suddenly realized something was amiss. He narrowed his eyes and looked at Xin Lailai again as if interrogating her:
"Like this... Hmm? Wait, given how stingy you are with time, Captain Hei, you would miscalculate something like this..."

"Overlord-level equipment?"

Before Yamu could finish speaking, the Death Keeper, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up, looking at Xin Lailai and directly stating the key point. Xin Lailai's eyes twitched slightly. Knowing that she would likely not be let off if she didn't explain clearly, she silently nodded.

"+13?"

"Uh, well... let's add two more levels." *Pfft!!!*

Inside the private room, Xin Lailai tilted her head and spoke, her eyes darting around. Yamu, who was drinking tea to moisten his throat, suddenly spat out a mouthful of tea and widened his eyes upon hearing her words.

"Holy crap! A +15 Overlord-level item? BYD Black Captain, where did you get this time?!"

"Ahem, calm down. I just happened to reforge the Lord's Eye that you saw before, and I just happened to pick up a bit of the true essence. Little Kai, Little Kai."

Xin Lailai coughed lightly, deliberately speaking in a nonchalant tone, but the slight upturn of her lips revealed her true thoughts without reservation.

"???"

"..."

"Is it too late for me to beat you up now?"

"No."

"Tsk, sometimes BYD really wonders who's the true heir between us. I haven't even seen a couple of +10 Overlord-level equipment yet, and you, Captain Black, have already gone straight to +15?"

"Well, to be honest, things aren't all that clean behind the scenes. If you want to hear about it, Brother Yamu, I can tell you directly."

"Get lost! Don't touch me. Do you really think I can't guess that what you just mentioned is probably related to your cult leader again? The Dead Sea Ruins last time was already troublesome enough. I don't want to be thrown into the Abyss Erosion Zone with you, Captain Black, again."

"What a pity. I thought you were really going to help me out, Brother Yamu. By the way, what about you, Death Bearer..."

"I'm not interested. As for the effects, we'll know for sure after the expedition."

"Uh... okay then."

Realizing she couldn't drag her two good teammates into the mess, Xin Lailai sighed with feigned regret. She then composed herself, composed her expression, sat down in her seat, and said:

"In that case, let's get straight to the point of this meeting: how are your preparations for the expedition going?"

"Well~ I have the same three things here as always: 6 bottles of Boundary Lightning Potions, 3 Boundary Lightning Seeds, oh right~ and 10 Elemental Crystals and 1 Sub-Abyss Energy Conversion Array specially prepared for you, Captain Black!"

"One Nether Seed, 30,000 Nether Death Servants, 10 Nether Warriors, 3 Nether Commanders, and 1 Nether Grand Commander can be used as scouts or as consumables."

"...Good heavens, where did our ice queen go to engage in human trafficking?"

"It simply used its power to create a batch of summoned creatures."

The one who was holding the dead spoke calmly, glancing out of the corner of his eye at Fabu, who was trembling in the corner holding a tea tray, causing Fabu to shudder and instinctively stand even straighter.

After obtaining the inheritance of the Lord of the Underworld, the other party unlocked the Netherworld Space, which can be used to store Netherworld creatures. Although at its strongest it can only create some weak combat forces that are barely comparable to third-tier overlord units, it is a good choice in the eyes of the Deathbearers as scouts and consumables.

"And equipment repair, for equipment up to epic level, is now possible."

After a brief pause, the executioner glanced at the two people present and continued, while Xin Lailai's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and she said:

"Your forging skills have reached the master level?"

"Ah."

"Wow, really? Girl, you've unlocked a secondary profession too? You've only progressed three worlds and you're already a dual-degree master?"

"I traded my Medal of Honor for two Grandmaster-level Insights."

"Uh, the honor shop? Never mind then, that's just how our amusement park is."

"Well... Anyway, it's good news that you, Deathbringer, have improved your blacksmithing and sewing skills. This means we won't have to worry too much about equipment durability once we go in."

Xin Lailai spoke, a hint of joy in her eyes. Having a master craftsman with dual certifications in forging and sewing would undoubtedly be a huge guarantee for their equipment logistics.

"However, just in case, it's better to have more items that can directly repair equipment durability. Do you have any channels for that, Deathbringer?"

"The Blacksmith Guild sells them, but they are currently completely out of stock, and all the people who can make them have been transferred to Watchtower Park."

Oh, I almost forgot. Overwatch has a monopoly on these wartime resources. But that means that, according to the supply rules in the expedition regulations, they shouldn't have to worry too much about supplies in that area.

Realizing that the supply issue had already been subtly resolved by Watchtower Paradise, Xin Lailai nodded slightly, pondered for a moment, and then spoke:

"In that case, there shouldn't be any problems. As for my side, although I shouldn't lack supplies of medicine after we arrive at the fortress, just in case, I'll prepare about ten boxes of medicine in advance, as well as mechs specially designed for the abyss environment. I should bring about nine of them this time."

"Regarding alchemical creatures, I've recently found a new way to obtain body materials. If you're willing to try it, you can give me the materials you get, and I can transform them into spare limbs and organs that can be preserved for a long time."

How to obtain new body materials?

"Well, the specific steps are as follows..."

Inside the private room, Xin Lailai calmly recounted how to use the amusement park's healing techniques to extract body material, and the Death Seeker and Yamu listened to her description, falling silent as if a door to a new world had been opened for them.

"How about it? If you agree, I have two special alchemical puppets for surgery. You can use them to collect materials."

"...To be honest, I'm starting to admire Captain Black's thought process. I've seen so many people take advantage of Paradise, but Captain Black, you're definitely the first one to do it on healing."

"That's a pretty good idea."

Yamu complained, while the Death Bearer pondered for a moment before speaking calmly.

As a master tailor, Xin Lailai's words just now gave her some inspiration. If she had enough spare limbs, she could use her sewing skills to replace limbs and organs in battle. She could even actively transform discarded severed limbs into 'Nether Bombs' to play an unexpected role in battle.

"Well, you can decide for yourselves. I'll send over the alchemical materials for the surgery later."

"By the way, regarding team skills, I recently contacted a member of our order. He might have a way to introduce me to a pioneer who has opened an access shop. However, I don't have enough exploration points, so I'll probably have to borrow some from you guys."

"No problem." "I'll reserve 7,000 points."

"Okay, then the matter of supplies is settled."

"OK~ then let's adjourn the meeting for today?"

"Ahem, Brother Yamu, wait a moment, I have something else to say."

After confirming the details of the supplies, Yamu, who thought the meeting was over, casually asked a question. Just as he was about to get up and leave, Xin Lailai suddenly coughed and called out to him.

"Hmm? Captain Hei, is there anything else on your end?"

"It's nothing, I just recently got my hands on a really interesting little toy, so I thought Brother Rayamu would like to try it out."

As Xin Lailai spoke, she took the chessboard illusion from her storage space, and looking at the two people in front of her, a playful smile gradually appeared on her face:

"Brother Yamu, how about we relax in this illusion?"

……

(End of this chapter)