Chapter 396: Useless Hint
The problem set in for Sylas instantly.
This notification wasn't helpful at all. If anything, it was just further confirming just how screwed he was.
This was the first time he had ever seen a Quest so highly rated. The closest he had come was a Silver Quest, but even that wasn't necessarily representative of much at all.
Sylas had already come to realize that Quest difficulty was set on a scale of relativity. A Silver Quest now might only be a Common or even Fragmented Quest in the future.
It wasn't just a relativity decided by power, but also by scope as well.
For example, a Profession Quest to refine a specific Elixir might be Silver, but it was incomparable to a combat Quest of the same level in terms of difficulty or danger. There were countless factors that might decide the Grade of a Quest.
However... a Legendary Quest, this might be a firm, unmovable standard. Although Sylas couldn't be sure, he felt his heart leap out of his chest.
His Luck was practically roaring at him to run the other direction, but... did he even have a choice in this matter? There was no eject button.
The apes were swift, too swift. Even with Sylas' current thinking speed, he hardly had time to finish these thoughts before the one he had failed to bind had already closed the distance by more than half. Had it not sent him flying so far, it would already be barreling down on him.
That was when Sylas felt another notification trigger.
[System Reward Activated]
[Quest Hint Detected]
Sylas felt that he couldn't read and react fast enough. He had gathered more System Rewards since the system first started watching him, but they had laid dormant without any movement. He assumed that they would have to trigger like they had the first time. For example, his first System Reward allowed him to awaken three Legendary Path Professions instead of just one. Now, a second System Reward had triggered, giving him a Quest Hint.
[Quest Hint Used]
[The Clandestine Ape is a special race of beasts cloaked in mystery. They are born with the bodies of warriors and increase in strength without much effort. For some unknown reason, their Aether Pathways are barren, and their intelligence is low, making it difficult for most of them to achieve anything.
[However, generations ago, a genius left his mark in history. They know him as the Clandestine Scholar, a man of unknown origins, but well-known merit.
[Since that day-]
Sylas cursed in a rare instant, forcing himself up through a combination of flexing his legs, torso, and telekinesis all at once. He couldn't push himself up with his broken arms and could only dive to the side.
He didn't even have the time to read this hint. On top of that, soon, the second ape was going to break free of <King's Bind> and his situation would become several times worse in an instant.
He grit his teeth, circulating his Aether and exploding forth with <Arctic King's Domain>. With a roar, he activated <Arctic Howl Mutant>, forcing it to expand wider and wider under the control of his Rune Soul Realm. He poured everything he had into it, no longer having the mind to care about his stamina.
The ape had already leapt past Sylas and its forward momentum was still in the complete other direction. The introduction about this race's stupidity was clearly to Sylas' advantage. It hadn't even considered that Sylas might dodge.
The creature was hit with a wave of pulsing light and it froze in place for a brief instant as Sylas continued to dash forward, splitting his mind in two, one to continue reading the seemingly useless hint, and the second to try and kill the second ape before it broke free of <King's Bind>.
[Since that day, the Clandestine Ape became known for something else, becoming the experimental subject that all powers pined after. They had strong, robust bodies, and were likewise the perfect blank slate, allowing countless paths to be etched onto them without resistance.]
'I'm not going to make it. I'm too slow.'
The thought sunk into Sylas' gut. There was no way for him to make it back to the second ape before it broke free of <King's Bind>. If he kept running, he would just be throwing himself to his death. To make matters worse, the second ape was still over 30 meters from him, so he couldn't even rely on his telekinesis.
The Stabilizing Bracelet had already used up its three charges, and though he could summon the Basilisk King to load more skills into it, it still took the Basilisk King too long to cast these Skills as its Mastery was too low. Sylas couldn't guarantee that he could protect himself, if he lost the Basilisk King, his chances of survival would plummet to zero.
He looked down at his mangled arms and the pain of trying to run at full speed while they swung made a dense sweat pour down his brow.
Unfortunately, he didn't even have the luxury.
The instant he changed directions, running toward a distance furthest from the two apes, the second ape broke free. Unleashing a howl, it lumbered after Sylas, using its long arms as levers as it bounded forward.
[The Clandestine Ape is the perfect experimental subject. It can be used to test Skills, Paths, Genes, and even Comprehensions. Of course, this will be limited by the Grade of the Clandestine Ape, but powers often breed their own powerful lines of Clandestine Apes to experiment with Unique Gene mutations they might want to implement into their bloodlines
in the future]
'That's all?'
That was it. There was nothing left in the Quest Hint.
At that moment, there was a sudden rush of Aether. From his right, the second ape was casting several icicles into existence. From his left, the first ape had cast <Arctic King's
Domain>.
The Domain clashed with his own and the icicles swiftly appeared to his side.