Chapter 273: Merits
[3000 PSS Bonus]
Sylas escaped into the forest, going deeper and deeper until he was entering a true wilderness. During normal times, this region was a popular hunting area, so it was a true forest. However, by extension, that also meant that the likelihood Sylas would run into some mutated beasts was high.
At the moment, hanging from his shoulder, there was a grieving and half-unconscious Alex. Luckily, Alex hadn't managed to escape the fate of being caught by Sylas. More unfortunately, there were other problems.
He had really lost too much in this battle.
He lost his ballista, his wind javelin, his hero shield... he used up his trump card venom sack, and that didn't even mention the sheer number of cobra corpses that he had lost out on.
It could be said that though he had escaped with his life, it wasn't without its consequences. And even worse than that, he knew that there was worse to come.
He knew that the moment he expelled his Fusion state, the backlash his body would face would be enough to make the strongest of men cry. That didn't mention the sheer number of Elixirs that he had swallowed during that battle, so it was bound to make the backlash even
worse.
As though that wasn't bad enough, he was no doubt still being hunted and tracked. He didn't have the time to rest as soon there was likely to be a blanket over this region. He didn't even have the luxury of checking his notifications to see if what he had gained could manage to offset the losses or not.
He couldn't afford to pass out, but he also didn't know if his body could even hold on any longer. No matter how he looked at it, he was truly stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Sylas coughed up a mouthful of blood again, but he grit his teeth, continuing to run.
He soared through the trees, ignoring the durability of his kunai. He couldn't afford to leave footprints on the ground, and he was hoping that no one would notice the faint cuts he left in the trees.
He changed directions several times, leaving dummy cuts in the trees several times as he raced further and further away.
When he felt that he had traveled quite far, he fell down from above and summoned the Dire Wolf. With his current stats, the Dire Wolf instantly hit its maximum of 200 Speed and Dexterity before surging forward.
Sylas coughed up a mouthful of blood once more and realized that it was simply impossible for him to continue holding on like this.
He pulled the Basilisk King into the Hibernation Zone and the Fusion came to an end.
The moment it did, it was as though millions of needles were pricking him from countless angles.
He bit down on his tongue, doing his best not to scream out in horror. He barely managed to keep his grip, stopping Alex from falling away and keeping himself on the back of the Dire Wolf.
The first thing he did when his mind was semi-clear was check on the Basilisk King. He was pleasantly surprised to see that the Basilisk King was just fine, but that much should have been expected.
Their injuries hadn't even come from their opponents, but rather their Fusion itself. Or, more accurately, Sylas' injuries.
The Basilisk King was just fine and the brunt of the pressure was withstood by Sylas alone.
It could be said that because his own stats were too weak, even though his Paths said that he could bring out 100% of the Basilisk King's stats, it was probably more like 50 or 60% in practice.
Of course, he still had access to all of those stats, but he could only functionally bring it out from time to time. If not for <Madness Control>, it would be even worse.
However, this still made Sylas breathe out a sigh of relief.
"Protect me..." he said weakly.
Sylas only had the strength to summon the Basilisk King one more time before he passed out.
...
Sylas had no idea what happened while he was out, but it could be said that in those days, this region of the world was lit on fire, and quite quickly after that, so too was the rest of the world.
The appearance of the Quicktime Event wasn't the problem, but it was the value.
This was the first time a challenge rated for a Level 20 had appeared, and not only had it been triggered by a single person, but the Contribution Leaderboard was pretty much monopolized by Sylas alone.
That much would be enough for quite an uproar... but it was made even worse when a new leaderboard appeared in the Nexus the next hour.
[Merit Leaderboard]
[1. Sylas Grimblade - ✩]
It was a leaderboard with just one person's name on it and with an even more ambiguous description.
[The Hall of Merit]
[A list reserved for those that contribute to the prosperity of Earth]
No one knew what this was supposed to mean... except for those at the truest, upper echelons. This list had appeared before; it was just that this list was only supposed to appear in the distant future, when they were likely already years into the Summoning. For a Merit to have been gained so early on...
It could only be said to mean that Sylas had truly done something unprecedented.
But while it was the case that most didn't know or understand what the list meant, what they did understand were the rewards that came with it. And compared to the other lists... they couldn't even be compared.
[First Place > 10000 coins a day; 1 three-day Flexible Elixir a month]
[Second Place > 9000 coins a day; 1 two-day Flexible Elixir a month] [Third Place > 8000 coins a day; 1 one-day Flexible Elixir a month] [Fourth Place > 5000 coins a day; 1 three-day Soft Elixir a month] [Fifth Place > 4000 coins a day; 1 two-day Soft Elixir a month] [Sixth Place > 3000 coins a day; 1 one-day Soft Elixir a month] [Seventh Place > 1500 coins a day; 1 three-day Brittle Elixir a month] [Eighth Place> 1000 coins a day; 1 two-day Brittle Elixir a month]
[Ninth Place > 500 coins a day; 1 one-day Brittle Elixir a month]
[Tenth Place > 250 coins a day; 1 three-use Brittle Elixir a month]
This reward list set the world on fire. ---Vol 2 End---