Qin Lun lifted the emerald-green seed from the wooden box. Instantly, he felt the immense life force pulsing within it. The rhythmic beat made the seed feel like a tiny heart.
Actually, among all living beings, plants possessed the most potent life force. Some ancient plants lived as long as angels, demons, and dragons – the higher beings. It seemed Lost had paid quite a cost this time to meet Qin Lun’s request, persuading the Moonlit Elves to part with this seed formed during the dryad molt.
Adeline gave one last deep look at Ayala transformed into a seed. “Things are settled here. I should leave too!” She stood and headed for the door.
As an elf close to Lord Fernand, she was one of the few privy to the inner workings of this deal. Fernand Dryad hadn’t agreed to hand over Ayala’s seed solely because of Lost.
This was Ayala’s own parting wish. Failing to advance to Legendary, her main consciousness had slipped into deep slumber. Usually, such slumber lasted at least a thousand years. Over this immense stretch of time, all Ayala’s memories would slowly fade. Eventually, she would become just an ordinary tree seed. This was the unavoidable cost of failure.
Yet, within the Shattered Starry Sky, dryads possessed one other way to preserve consciousness: becoming an Artifact Spirit, recognized by Shattered Starry Sky and bound by the abilities of an Apostle. Becoming an Artifact Spirit meant her spiritual essence would be anchored into a piece of Apostle gear. Her life and death would rest in the Apostle’s hands. However, the diverse, adventurous lives Apostles led also offered a chance at a whole new existence.
This choice demanded extreme caution, though. Typically, after an Apostle perished, Star Void reclaimed their gear, and the Artifact Spirit vanished. Only a tiny fraction of Apostle equipment was ever acquired by other Apostles or beings from other worlds.
Fernand Dryad had met Qin Lun before. Though he disliked the murderer’s aura about the man, he acknowledged Qin Lun was a formidable being. That’s why he agreed to give Ayala’s seed to Qin Lun.
The sound of Adeline rising snapped Qin Lun from his thoughts. He reluctantly looked up from the seed. “Oh, this… Adeline, is this war truly so dangerous for the Elven Race?”
“Father is going to war?” Surprise washed over Adeline’s face. She seemed unaware of this news.
Qin Lun, quick-witted as ever, instantly knew he’d misspoken based on her expression. “No! I meant the war itself – is it perilous?” He hastily corrected himself.
But Adeline ignored his cover-up. A hint of anger crossed her features. “No wonder he’s been acting strange lately! Suddenly assigning me more minders… muttering about visiting another floating city belonging to the elves… So, he is part of this campaign!”
“Adeline! Adeline!” Qin Lun called out, watching the young elf sprint away. He slapped his forehead in frustration. He’d just made a dumb move of epic proportions. Mafa would be furious. He’d unintentionally thrown Mafa under the carriage.
Qin Lun instinctively started up to chase her, hoping for damage control. But he saw Didi approaching, holding the projector.
“Master, you have a message!” Didi said, puzzled by the fleeing elf, handing the projector to Qin Lun.
Qin Lun glanced at the contact number displayed. His expression shifted. He dismissed the idea of chasing Adeline. It had just been instinct. Knowing Adeline and her understanding of Mafa, any explanation now was far too late.
He accepted the message. A clown’s face appeared on the projector screen. “Grant? What’s up?”
“Qin Lun,” Grant began without preamble, “For the next Otherworld Mission, team up with me.”
“Sure. Just the two of us?” Qin Lun agreed instantly. “What about Hill and Lili?”
“Well, the Shepherd… he’d already joined a decent squad before this mission.” A hint of frustration touched Grant’s lips. “He probably won’t abandon those usable sacrifices next time. Unlikely he’ll join us.”
“Lili doesn’t score Silver or Gold often,” Grant continued. “The Shattered Starry Sky probably won’t assign her to a Spatial War. She plans to go solo, not risk things with us.”
“Okay. Just you and me, that’s fine.” Qin Lun nodded slowly. Their fighting styles complemented each other well: one powerful attacker, one solid defender. That could handle most smaller engagements.
Thinking of something, Qin Lun asked as Grant looked ready to sign off, “Wait. What’s your Apostle rank now?”
“Second Order, Fourth Level. Why?” Grant sounded perplexed. “What’s up?” He answered readily; it wasn’t a secret.
“Fourth Level?” Qin Lun raised an eyebrow. The Joker’s rank was even higher than his. “How many Contribution Points?”
“323. Not that much. Among us, Hansen has the highest rank. He’s already Second Order, Fifth Level. The rest are Fourth Level.” Grant shrugged. “Well… he was a soldier. Seems obsessive about rank. Every Quest World, he prioritizes Contribution Points over gear or items. Sacrifices loot without hesitation.”
After ending the projection, Qin Lun stayed silent. Kelly had told him before: ranks weren’t just access to better exchanges. They affected Star Void’s focus, and influenced the difficulty level of assigned worlds. Tougher worlds offered greater rewards. But ranks rising faster than strength was a recipe for disaster. That’s why Qin Lun had often given up Contribution Points in past worlds.
He’d assumed his two Gold evaluations meant he wouldn’t lag far behind the others in contribution. Discovering he was dozens of points behind even Grant came as a surprise. Compared to Hansen at Fifth Level? The gap was likely one or two hundred points.
According to Grant, though, Hansen had only just reached Fifth Level. His last mission, eliminating Reincarnators, had netted huge contributions. Each kill earned twenty to thirty Contribution Points, almost equalling what a normal Professional Apostle earned across a whole mission.
Qin Lun frowned. Acquiring ancient elven heritage and triggering his Second Order promotion mission made him think he’d be ahead by three or four missions. Now, seeing the difficulty levels the others tackled – worlds exceeding their strength… well, survival guaranteed substantial rewards. Opportunities might not match his, but the gap wouldn’t be huge. By the time he achieved Second Order, Hansen and the others might be breathing down his neck.
He pondered, setting the projector down. It suddenly buzzed again in his hand. Surprised, he checked. A wry smile touched his lips. Seemed like busy signals today. Another person he couldn’t refuse.
“Kelly? What’s up?” He accepted the call. A familiar figure appeared.
After weeks of rest, Kelly looked much better. Gone was that slightly faded look. The Female Martial Artist shot him a lazy glance, tilted her head thoughtfully, then blinked. “You know joining Lost’s outer circle carries specific obligations, right?”
“I know. But fulfilling them already?” Qin Lun asked, surprised. It had only been two weeks! Selling that Gold evaluation card had even covered his team fees. While his back-to-back missions meant he hadn’t entered a new world lately, for the average Apostle squad, Kelly’s timing felt abrupt.
Kelly hesitated, a flicker of embarrassment crossing her eyes. But she was thick-skinned. Her eyes darted craftily, then she smiled playfully. “Obligations are obligations! When they kick in doesn’t matter!”
“Alright, what do you need?” Qin Lun agreed reluctantly, feeling like he’d accidentally joined a pirate ship.
“Well…” Kelly beamed. “You know after Toril World… my batch of rookies got wiped out. Lace became the only Novice Apostle survivor.”
“This time,” Kelly continued, “Robin and I must operate with the main team. So I need Lace to temporarily join an outer circle squad.”
She added quickly, “Just for this mission! Next time she’ll link up with a newly formed sub-team!”
Qin Lun’s gaze sharpened slightly. “You know me well enough now. Aren’t you afraid she’ll become bait?”
“Lace is clever. She knows how to judge things.” Kelly waved it off casually. “She can protect herself… so long as you don’t deliberately discard her.”
“Hmph,” Qin Lun scoffed. “The Reincarnators in this war are elites. You really believe that?” He kept his tone neutral. “A Spatial War is no joke. She might be your favorite rookie, but I won’t provide special protection.”
“Hold on!” Kelly’s eyes narrowed. “You already know about the Spatial War?”
With their numbers, Lost naturally knew the signs long ago. Kelly and Robin were likely joining the main team precisely as part of Lost’s response – concentrating their High Rank strength.
The Female Martial Artist grew serious. “I’m not demanding you protect Lace. Just… don’t keep vital information from her during operations.” She paused. “I like her. But that doesn’t mean I’ll shield her forever. Newbies who can’t grow on their own inevitably fall. That’s useless to Lost.”
“Alright, since you put it that way,” Qin Lun agreed. “She can join me for the mission.” Flickers of concern crossed his mind. The fact Lost’s main team was deploying meant heavy involvement. News from Hansen and the others must be incomplete. Superstring Space’s invasion target this time couldn’t possibly be just Low Magic Worlds.
Ending the call, Qin Lun’s eyes hardened. “If Lost is mobilizing… other Devil’s Horn major teams won’t escape either!” This thought solidified. “Once the war ends… Devil’s Horn will be chaos! Maybe the whole Apostle structure… the whole pyramid could be reshuffled!”
