Chapter Seventeen: The Feast

Standing before a bend in the labyrinth, Lin Lei had already sensed, through his Source Energy Perception, the strange beings lurking beyond it.

Among the numerous fluctuations of Source Energy, one was particularly pronounced.

It seemed that a host of second-order aberrations had gathered around a third-order aberration.

In a Calamity-level forbidden zone, aberrations as high as the sixth order could potentially appear.

Lin Lei had anticipated this long ago. As he advanced, he would undoubtedly encounter more aberrations, and aberrations of higher orders.

“Could that red wall be a special gate separating certain areas within the labyrinth? Only by passing through it can one enter the deeper regions and encounter higher-level aberrations...”

His eyes gleamed.

It had not been long since he passed through that wall, yet he had already encountered an aberration above the third order.

Naturally, he did not believe this was a mere coincidence.

He tilted his head slightly and stepped forward, swiftly crossing the bend.

On the other side stood a humanoid creature of alternating red and black. It held a crystal-like red blade in each hand, while countless smaller monsters crowded behind it...

This third-order aberration likewise possessed nothing resembling eyes.

Yet the moment Lin Lei arrived, it was already prepared to strike.

Whoosh!

Amid the sound of blades cutting through the air, the two red weapons swept toward Lin Lei like a whirlwind.

Already prepared, Lin Lei abruptly raised the bone sword in his hand.

Crack-crack!

The red crystal blades shattered.

Lin Lei’s sword continued its unstoppable descent, cleaving into the aberration’s body.

Clang!

Its body was as tough as steel.

Even so, Lin Lei’s blade split it cleanly in two.

His bone sword could cut through iron as though it were mud, and with his terrifying strength behind it, the force of his strikes was truly overwhelming.

The two halves of the corpse were hurled backward and crashed heavily onto the ground.

Lin Lei tilted his head slightly.

This aberration was not particularly powerful. Compared with the third-order aberration he had encountered during his previous mission, it was vastly inferior.

It could not even compare with the mythical species Sky-Soaring Mirage Lion from Hodge’s illusionary realm.

It was likely one of the weakest third-order aberrations.

Everything had happened in the blink of an eye. Only then did the densely packed lesser monsters behind it rush toward Lin Lei, one after another meeting their end.

To Lin Lei, these little creatures posed almost no threat.

At most, they could scratch his skin, inflicting barely perceptible wounds. Faced with them, he was not even willing to waste Source Energy by entering Demonization.

There was simply no need.

Once he had eliminated all the aberrations, Lin Lei stepped forward and arrived before the corpse of the third-order aberration.

Like the lesser monsters before it, this creature’s body seemed to be formed from a combination of red crystal and black metal.

The two creatures likely belonged to the same family of aberrations.

“I’ll call them Red Crystal Monsters.”

Since he did not know whether there would be many more of these aberrations later, and since he had sufficient Gluttony Energy, he decisively activated Plunder.

The cost was not high, nor was the increase particularly great.

Of course, being a third-order aberration, it still provided far more enhancement than the small first-order aberrations had.

...

He continued forward.

As he ventured deeper, the number of aberrations he encountered continued to increase.

The numbers of second- and third-order Red Crystal Monsters rose steadily as well.

With the appearance of more and more third-order aberrations, Lin Lei could no longer remain as composed as before.

His attacks were extraordinarily powerful. Even third-order Red Crystal Monsters could not withstand them. The problem was that once their numbers became sufficiently large, even the strongest warrior could be overwhelmed by sheer numbers.

Though Lin Lei possessed many methods, in the midst of fierce combat, he could not guarantee that he would remain completely unharmed.

He could not entirely disregard attacks from third-order Red Crystal Monsters.

“This is the weakness of a physical-path ability. One has no choice but to fight aberrations head-on...”

Fortunately, Lin Lei had plenty of techniques at his disposal. Once the number of third-order aberrations became sufficiently large, he stopped holding back and began using Demonization.

After transforming into a demon, he could stand motionless while the third-order aberrations failed even to break through his defenses. Even when they attacked with all their strength, they could do no more than leave marks across his body.

No matter how many third-order aberrations there were, they could not injure him in the slightest.

However, this consumed a considerable amount of Source Energy. Although he could clearly recover through natural regeneration alone, time was limited. Lin Lei therefore stopped being stingy and gradually began restoring his injuries by Plundering the Red Crystal Monsters.

Eight hours after entering the forbidden zone, he encountered the second red wall blocking his path.

By then, his Gluttony Energy had risen to three thousand units.

He had once again exceeded his personal limit.

“For an ordinary Third Realm Source Energy user, reaching this point would probably already be the limit... I wonder whether my current score is enough to place in the top ten...”

There was a certain possibility, but Lin Lei did not dare guarantee it.

Among aberrations of the same rank, second- and third-order Red Crystal Monsters were relatively weak. They were difficult to deal with only because of their numbers and their preference for ambushes.

For an ordinary Third Realm Source Energy user, reaching this point would indeed be difficult. But those who dared participate in the advancement examination were naturally not ordinary Third Realm users.

For Source Energy users possessing even a B-grade, let alone an A-grade, Gift, reaching this point was absolutely not difficult.

Lin Lei shook his head and slowly devoured the red wall before him.

Continuing onward, he reached the next bend. The scene before him caused even him to halt involuntarily.

“Have I reached the end of the labyrinth?”

The labyrinth corridor led directly into an incomparably vast expanse.

Lin Lei could sense turbulent, surging fluctuations of Source Energy rippling through the air. He advanced slowly, and from afar, he could already see a gigantic red crystal formation standing within the area, towering like a massive spire.

Around the “tower” were densely packed monsters.

Most of them were the second-order Red Crystal Monsters Lin Lei had encountered earlier, interspersed with a considerable number of third-order Red Crystal Monsters.

Between the two types of Red Crystal Monsters was another kind of aberration. Slightly larger in build, its entire body seemed to be formed from red crystal, and it possessed a tail resembling a spinal column.

This aberration likewise had no eyes. It did not even have legs, yet it possessed four arms, each wielding a strange weapon made of red crystal.

There had to be at least tens of thousands of aberrations surrounding the towering red crystal formation.

Within the monster horde, nearest to the crystal tower, stood a massive red crystal sphere that shimmered with an eerie radiance.

Lin Lei gazed at the densely packed aberrations. Though his face revealed shock, there was little fear or apprehension in his expression.

Instead, his eyes were filled with excitement and exhilaration.

“I’ve struck it rich!”

With so many aberrations, how much Gluttony Energy would he gain if he devoured them all?

Even without counting the higher-level aberrations, this many creatures could provide him with at least one hundred thousand units of Gluttony Energy.

Lin Lei wiped his mouth, which was nearly watering, but despite his momentary excitement, he did not immediately charge forward.