While Lu Ran of Long Xia was happily clearing monsters and leveling up, Nanami of Sakura did not return to the Chitana Shrine after leaving the dungeon hall.
Instead, she went to the Shinto Council.
As the Divine Child of the Shinto Council, this not only meant Nanami was Sakura’s top Onmyoji, but it also indicated she possessed certain special privileges.
In the conference room, the high-ranking members of the Shinto Council had all gathered.
“Divine Child, have you truly considered this? With a Reverse Contract, your fate would be completely in the hands of the shikigami. While it wouldn’t affect your existing contract relationships with your current shikigami, as the Divine Child and Sakura’s top Onmyoji, if you were controlled by a shikigami… the outcome is hard to predict,” one senior member said with concern.
“Yes, a Reverse Contract is far too risky.”
“While it can greatly enhance your combat power, what if the shikigami is unwilling to cooperate?”
“After forming a Reverse Contract, you lose the ability to forcibly control the shikigami.”
“That Necromancer’s combat strength exceeded our expectations. Taking such a risk for him isn’t worth it.”
…
For a moment, opinions flew from all sides.
Nanami, however, remained silent throughout.
After a long pause, she took a deep breath and shook her head. “I know I cannot surpass that Necromancer. Even with a Reverse Contract, I might only achieve parity with him. My reason for pursuing the Reverse Contract isn’t for myself.”
Hmm?
The group was taken aback.
Nanami continued, “That Necromancer’s abilities are definitely different from those of an ordinary Necromancer. Such a terrifying existence will have a massive impact during the National Wars!”
The unique characteristics of Sakura’s Onmyoji class were originally quite advantageous in National Wars. But now, there was a variable.
“That Necromancer is the variable. If Long Xia suppresses us, given the history between Long Xia and Sakura before global digitization, what do you think our fate will be?”
Upon hearing this, the expressions of several senior members instantly turned extremely grim.
Unlike the time before global digitization, after global digitization, might makes right! Given the history between Long Xia and Sakura, if Long Xia gained the upper hand, Sakura’s fate was easy to imagine!
Seeing the looks on their faces, Nanami knew they understood her meaning.
She then continued, “With the National Wars imminent, to prevent unforeseen circumstances, we should first seal the cross-national teleportation. When the time comes, even if Long Xia wants to press forward with a massive force, the Forbidden Sea will be their biggest headache.”
Therefore, Nanami’s decision to form a Reverse Contract was set in stone!
Yet, some senior members still felt it was improper.
After a moment’s thought, one said, “I still urge you to reconsider carefully. After a Reverse Contract, if your shikigami is controlled by someone, you will be indirectly controlled as well!”
Hearing this, Nanami burst into laughter. “In this world, no one can control Yamata no Orochi!”
The being she intended to form a Reverse Contract with was none other than Yamata no Orochi!
If she succeeded, and if she could serve Yamata no Orochi and secure its willingness to fight, Sakura would dominate the globe during the National Wars!
Of course, this was merely their own perspective. After all, without understanding the Necromancer’s true capabilities, the existence of Yamata no Orochi far surpassed that of human professional of the same level by a tremendous margin!
What they didn’t know was that Yamata no Orochi belonged to the dark attribute, which was precisely to Lu Ran’s taste! With just a glance, Lu Ran could control Yamata no Orochi, and consequently, control Nanami as well.
Nanami’s move was not merely forming a Reverse Contract; in Lu Ran’s presence, it was a counterproductive enhancement! It was practically delivering herself on a silver platter!
“Enough, my words end here. Prepare the ritual. I must succeed in forming the Reverse Contract today. As the Divine Child, I have the authority and the qualification,” Nanami stated firmly.
Meanwhile, in the Forest of Ten Thousand Corpses, the number of walking corpses was decreasing at a frantic rate!
With a sweep of his gaze, Lu Ran controlled large swathes of the walking corpses, causing them to turn on and slaughter each other!
The skeletal storm intensified and raged, engulfing the entire Forest of Ten Thousand Corpses!
Lu Ran couldn’t even be bothered to use Corpse Explosion anymore.
The area was too vast, summoning skeleton soldiers two at a time was too tedious and not very effective.
After all, it’s a basic skill for necromancers. In the later stages of the game, very few necromancers still summon skeletons to fight.
As the walking corpses perished one after another, Lu Ran’s experience points soared!
Just twenty minutes later, Lu Ran leveled up! He reached level 31!
An hour later, he reached level 32!
Finally, when every last walking corpse in the Forest of Ten Thousand Corpses had been cleared, Lu Ran’s level settled at 33, with 26% progress towards the next level.
AA single sweep of the Forest of Ten Thousand Corpses gave Lu Ran the most experience he’d gained since awakening his class! He had gained three consecutive levels!
Even Ye Hongyi and the others hadn’t expected the Forest of Ten Thousand Corpses to be so incredibly effective at grinding!
“What’s the plan next? Back to the Misty Barrier Valley?” Wei Yingying asked.
“No, it’s time to head back. Lu Ran has surpassed level 30, and needs to start running team dungeons,” Liu Xinxin said.
Although the raid dungeon is low-level, it offers an experience bonus, and Lu Ran can freely farm the entire map. Overall, it might not be as good as the Forest of Ten Thousand Corpses, but it’s definitely much faster than the Valley of Obscured Mist!
On the way back, Lu Ran was still preoccupied with the elven sacred artifact.. He was also very curious about the races Liu Xinxin had mentioned.
“Sister Xinxin, after you awakened, are you considered human or elven?” Lu Ran asked.
Liu Xinxin’s current appearance was actually close to that of an elven. But this wasn’t how she was born; it was a transformation following her class awakening.
“”Both,” Liu Xinxin explained. “Although I have elven blood, because I evolved from a human after changing professions, I’m not fully recognized by the elves. However, when the elves encounter problems and need to summon their people for help, I also need to answer the call, and the rewards are calculated as racial quests.”
This further illustrates that the elves don’t particularly favor humans. Liu Xinxin even possessed elven blood, but the elves wouldn’t fully accept her; they still held prejudice against her.
“There’s a racial quest? How do you summon them?” Lu Ran asked curiously.
He had never even heard of such things!
“It’s bloodline summoning. It’s hard to describe. I’ve only been summoned three times. If I’m summoned, then…” Liu Xinxin tried to explain but struggled to find the right words.
But in the very next second…
Hum~
A three-meter-wide teleportation circle suddenly materialized beneath Liu Xinxin’s feet!
The circle pushed Lu Ran and the others beside her away.
“Just… like this…” Liu Xinxin stared in astonishment at the teleportation circle at her feet, exclaiming, “The elves are summoning their people!”
What an incredible coincidence! They had just been talking about it, and the elves had already summoned them?
“You all head back to the village first. I’ll go see what’s happening. Wait for me to retur—”
Before she could finish her sentence…
Whoosh~
A white light flashed from the teleportation array, and Liu Xinxin disappeared from her spot, directly teleported back to the elven territory.
Lu Ran and the others were completely dumbfounded.
Back in the elven territory, Liu Xinxin suddenly thought, “A clan-wide summons usually means the elves are facing a major problem. If Lu Ran can help solve it, wouldn’t he have a chance to gain the Elven Queen’s approval? A chance to obtain the Elven Wings!”
After all, an ordinary professional’s individual combat power often couldn’t stand out significantly in large-scale crises.
But Lu Ran could!
