Chapter 47: The Lithic Giant Spectre

Chapter 47: The Lithic Giant Spectre

100% Fusion Success Rate?

Ji Xinghuo was astonished. According to the pattern he had deduced, a higher fusion success rate indicated a better match, which could be interpreted as a recommendation from the Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil.

So far, the highest rate he had seen was 99% for the Rotating Magnetic Field.

After fusing with it, he found that it indeed suited him perfectly.

So, what would a 100% fusion success rate mean? Could Ether Sensitivity be even more powerful than the rotating magnetic field? It was just a rare ability.

Ji Xinghuo was a bit perplexed.

Then he thought, perhaps there was something special about this Ether Sensitivity ability? Its most notable feature was that it was naturally born, but on Earth, various countries, organizations, and ability research institutes had never mentioned any differences between abilities based on their sources.

Ji Xinghuo noticed the last line on the interface.

[Upgradeable: Yes]



He suddenly understood—this Ether Sensitivity ability could be upgraded!

As far as he knew, the effects of Ether Sensitivity had always been fixed, and no one had discovered how to train it. The only way to improve it was through a rare mutation triggered by stimulation during life evolution, which would result in a slight chance of advancing to a higher-grade ability.

Not just Ether Sensitivity, but many other abilities could also undergo advancement during life evolution.

However, these were all low-probability events.

The ability one level higher than Ether Sensitivity was "Ether Affinity," an ultra-limit-level ability.

Above Ether Affinity was "Ether Resonance," a star-fall-level ability!

"Maybe I should try fusing with this Ether Sensitivity?" Ji Xinghuo's thoughts took a sudden turn, but his expression remained unchanged. He handed the exotic ability to Jiang Nancai, who carefully placed it into a specially made container. "I'm quite interested in Ether Sensitivity. Don't sell it for now. Perhaps this will be the next ability I fuse with."

Ren Mian found this a bit odd. "Why do you want to fuse with Ether Sensitivity?"

She recalled that neither the Ranger nor the Magnetic Maniac class templates included Ether Sensitivity.

"Just a thought," Ji Xinghuo explained casually. "I want to increase my strength quickly. If I can get an expansion artifact and fuse with Ether Sensitivity at the beginner level, it would be a pretty good choice."

Piscis, who had just climbed up, suddenly laughed. "In that case, you'll be like me—a jobless ability user."

Ji Xinghuo was taken aback. "I guess so."

If he truly fused with Ether Sensitivity, then with his three abilities coming from different class templates, he would become a standard jobless ability user.

"Being jobless is great!"

Piscis affectionately draped his arm around Ji Xinghuo's shoulder. "Free from the constraints of class templates, we can fuse with any ability we want. Let's explore the path of life evolution together, brother. Who knows, maybe we'll create a brand-new class template in the future."

Ji Xinghuo was at a loss for words. He certainly didn't have such ambitious plans.

The four of them thoroughly searched the cave twice to ensure they hadn't missed anything.

Ren Mian walked to the cave entrance and looked outside for a few moments before turning back. "It's almost nightfall. Let's camp here tonight and head back to Olympus tomorrow."

The cave's ground was dry, with only dirt and grass, much cleaner than the environment outside in the Absolute Peak Valley. It was also well-hidden and safe.

The team members readily agreed.

Taking advantage of the time while the others were setting up tents and arranging plant protection, Ji Xinghuo climbed back up to the mountaintop. He shot down several large birds perched on the trees, skillfully plucked their feathers and removed their internal organs, and also gathered a few bundles of firewood before returning to the cave to hand them over to Jiang Nancai for cooking.

After a hearty barbecue dinner, the night had fallen outside.

It was still early in the evening, so Ji Xinghuo climbed up to the mountaintop to admire the starry night and enjoy the cool breeze.

The radiance of the Silver Star showered down.

As far as the eye could see, the majestic and gorgeous peaks were bathed in a faint silver glow, tinged with a hint of azure, as if immersed in the river of stars. Every star in the sky seemed to be winking at him, and this fantastical experience would be unforgettable for a lifetime.

Ji Xinghuo lay on his side on a patch of grass, hands tucked behind his head, legs casually crossed, humming a tune: "Twinkle, twinkle, little pulse star, how I wonder what you are..."

Piscis, who had just climbed up, was speechless upon hearing the lyrics.

He had come up to take pictures.

However, after taking two shots, he realized it wasn't suitable. The film camera was too sensitive to exposure, and the visibility during the starry night was not as good as during the day, so he couldn't capture the effect he wanted.

Using a disposable flashbulb would be like shouting to the monsters within a few kilometers: I'm here!

"Forget it," Piscis muttered to himself.

He walked around the mountaintop but didn't discover anything interesting.

Finally, he returned to Ji Xinghuo's side and lay down, gazing at the countless stars and the Milky Way. Suddenly, he sighed, "If only the starry realm were a safe place..."

Ji Xinghuo didn't turn his head, but after a while, he replied, "Then we would miss out on a lot of fun."

"Xinghuo, how many siblings do you have?" Chi Zhong asked.

"Four," replied Xinghuo.

"I have one more than you," Chi Zhong said. "We have six siblings in total, three brothers, and three sisters. We had a lot of fun when we were young, but now that we're all grown up, things have changed. We're not as carefree as we used to be, and we've all started our own lives and careers, so our relationships have gradually become more distant."

Xinghuo turned to look at him, "You can stay in touch with your family more."

"It's useless," Chi Zhong sighed, "In fact, aside from me, the rest of my siblings get along well with each other."

"Because you're an Outsider?" Xinghuo guessed.

"Yes." Chi Zhong's eyes showed his powerlessness, "At first, they were happy for me when I became an Outsider, but as my power grew stronger, we gradually grew apart."

"Our social circles are different, the people and things we come in contact with are different, and our experiences are different. Even when I'm with them, I have to be extremely careful, afraid that I might accidentally hurt them. Although they don't say it, I can still feel their fear and the pressure they feel around me..."

He gently clenched his fist, crushing the air in his palm with a muffled sound.

"It's like the difference between a hunter and its prey."

"The greater the power gap between Outsiders and ordinary people, the harder it is to maintain that equal relationship."

"After all, we only need to use one finger, or even just a thought, to take away their lives."

"This stark contrast between the strong and the weak overshadows any other social relationship, even transcending the gap between species."

"Even if we try to suppress our powers and be reserved, the psychological pressure alone is enough to make ordinary people subconsciously avoid Outsiders."

Chi Zhong looked at Xinghuo, "You'll understand this feeling soon enough."

Xinghuo fell into deep thought.

These words enlightened him. His second eldest brother, Zhong Ming, was the first to become an Outsider. After joining a league club, he had indeed grown somewhat distant from his siblings. Xinghuo had assumed it was because of his busy training and competition schedule, but now it seemed there was more to it.

They were all still young, having just graduated or not yet graduated, and their social statuses were similar, so there weren't any issues for now.

However, in a few years, there might be problems similar to Chi Zhong's.

"Is there a solution?" Xinghuo asked.

"None." Chi Zhong spread his hands, "We can only let nature take its course, unless you can find a way to turn your entire family into Outsiders. Otherwise, people naturally strive for higher grounds, making new friends and entering new circles. It might be difficult at first, as people tend to hold on to the past, but time heals all wounds."

Xinghuo nodded, no longer dwelling on the issue.

"Wooo..."

Suddenly, a long howl echoed from the distance.

"What was that?" Xinghuo sat up straight, looking in the direction of the howl.

"It sounds like a Stone Scythe Fiend," Chi Zhong said, gazing into the distance, "That howl is a bit strange, though, it carried so far."

They had often heard the Stone Scythe Fiends' howls in recent days, and the creatures were also active during the starry nights, occasionally letting out a few cries, seemingly to mark their territory.

But this howl was clearly different.

The two exchanged glances, sharing the same guess.

Ren Mian and Jiang Nancai climbed out of the cave, having also heard the howl, and asked about the situation.

Xinghuo walked to the edge of the floating mountain, where the view was unobstructed. Even with the reduced visibility of the starry night, his Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil could still clearly see what was happening five kilometers away.

His gaze swept back and forth.

Finally, about four kilometers to the left, he spotted something unusual.

It was a large group of Stone Scythe Fiends, so numerous that he couldn't count them all at once. They were running rapidly among the mountains, covering the hills and plains as if chasing some prey. Despite the chaos, they moved in an orderly fashion, forming a massive encirclement.

Rumble, rumble, rumble...

The ground below shook as the Stone Scythe Fiends drew closer.

"Wooooo!"

The howls of the Stone Scythe Fiends rose and fell.

Soon after, hundreds of different beasts were herded into a valley—zebras, ferocious wild boars, fearsome wolves, giant mountain sheep, steel-maned beasts, and more. All were large beasts, now squeezed together in a frantic escape.

However, the other end of the valley was a cliff with a drop of over a hundred meters.

The Stone Scythe Fiends blocked the valley's exit, and more fiends on the cliffs above were throwing rocks down.

"Wooo..."

A loud howl sounded like a command.

Immediately, dozens of ordinary monster-level Stone Scythe Fiends formed a line and charged into the valley, brandishing their scythe-like claws to slaughter the beasts. The beasts at the back pushed forward, reducing the space available, until finally, they were forced off the cliff to their deaths.

It seemed like they were waiting for something.

That valley was about three kilometers away from the floating mountain, and Ji Xinghuo witnessed the entire scene clearly.

He was about to say something when suddenly, a gigantic figure leaped into the sky, soaring over a hundred meters high and tracing a parabola as it landed heavily in the valley.

Boom!

The ground trembled, and the sound carried even from such a distance.

"Stone Scythe Giant!" Ji Xinghuo whispered, "It's here."

"We actually encountered a Stone Scythe Giant! I can't believe our luck!" Piscis exclaimed in delight.

However, Ren Mian's face was devoid of any happiness. Instead, she shook her head gravely and said, "This is probably not a good thing. That Stone Scythe Giant is not just a Super Beast-level monster. It has evolved again, and now it should be a 'Commander'-level monster."

"What?" Piscis's face drained of color at her words.

"Ren Jie is right," Ji Xinghuo nodded in agreement, "It has evolved."

He could see it very clearly.

The Stone Scythe Giant in the valley stood over five meters tall, its body massive yet agile. With a single leap, it soared to a height of a hundred meters. Its body was covered in a thick layer of rocky armor, and its four arms were so thick that it would take two people to encircle just one. The stone claws on its palms were nearly a meter long, resembling terrifying scythes.

Its tail resembled a gigantic python, and the tip of its tail was like a drilling head.

The Stone Scythe Giant merely sat in the valley, and the thousands of Stone Scythe Fiends surrounding it immediately bowed in submission, not daring to make a sound.

Even from such a distance, Ji Xinghuo felt his heart tremble.

This was definitely not a Super-tier monster.

It was a level higher than Super Horde-level, its strength at least ten times greater—a Calamity-level monster!

In the Star Realm, when a wild beast evolved, it became a monster. As their strength grew, ordinary monsters would give birth to elites, usually the leaders of their packs.

When elite monsters evolved again, they became Super-tier monsters, awakening more exotic abilities.

Furthermore, they could either fuse with or devour exotic species.

And when Super-tier monsters acquired new exotic abilities and successfully evolved for the third time, they had a certain probability of becoming 'Calamity'-level monsters!

Due to the differences in species and abilities, even among calamity-level monsters, there was a significant disparity in strength.

Thus, the various races further classified them into more specific levels based on the danger they posed.

Calamity-level monsters were categorized according to four types of natural disasters: floods, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and meteorite impacts, abbreviated as 'Hong, Can, Zhen, and Yin' by the APC.

The damage caused by a Hong-level monster was roughly equivalent to a county-level flood disaster;

The danger posed by a Can-level monster was yet another level higher;

A Zhen-level monster could threaten a medium-sized city;

And a Yin-level monster had the capability to completely destroy a large city and its surrounding areas, killing everyone within its range!

Even more terrifying than calamity-level monsters were the Lu Xing monsters.

In the early days of the Star Gate's opening, a Lu Xing monster had intruded into Earth, but fortunately, the various countries reacted in time and used intercontinental ballistic missiles carrying nuclear warheads to annihilate it.

Ji Xinghuo was too far away to accurately determine the level of this Stone Scythe Giant.

Just as Ren Jie had said, it was most likely Hong-level!

Monsters of this level would require at least a Legendary Alien to defeat. If it were Can-level, even a Legendary Alien would have a headache and dare not engage it lightly.

"Roar!"

The Stone Scythe Giant let out two roars, and only then did the Stone Scythe Fiends in the valley begin to tear into the wild beasts' corpses, using their stone claws to cut off chunks of meat and feed themselves. The scene was extremely bloody.

It selected two of the fattest ferocious wild boars for itself and began to relish its meal.

Ren Mian retracted her gaze and said, "Our plan remains unchanged. We'll head back to Olympus City tomorrow."

The other three had no objections.

If it had been a Super-level monster, they wouldn't have been afraid and would have definitely taken the opportunity to hunt it.

But faced with a Hong-level monster, they would become the prey.

"Damn it!"

Piscis cursed, "That person who released the information in Olympus is really damnable. They must have known that this Stone Scythe Giant was Hong-level, and since they didn't dare to take action themselves, they deliberately released the information to let others come and die. They're probably hiding in some corner nearby, waiting to reap the benefits."

"It's best that I don't find out who it is, or else they'll be in for a treat!"

He grumbled and ranted for a long time, clearly very displeased.

If the Stone Scythe Giant had been Super-tier, they might have been able to acquire the exotic species 'Terra Pulse' by killing it. Piscis had been looking forward to obtaining this ability for a long time.

This time, Ren Mian had also promised to give him the Earth Pulse first if they acquired it.

Now, all those hopes were dashed!

Over two hours later, the Stone Scythe Fiends had devoured most of the wild beast carcasses, and they followed their Hong-level leader out of the valley, disappearing amidst the endless sea of peaks.

Ji Xinghuo and his team returned to the cave to rest, and the night passed without incident.

The next day, they packed up their belongings and set off, leaving Absolute Peak Valley and beginning their journey back to Olympus.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end