Chapter 389 - 361: The Fourth Traversal
He never would have thought that, with the map so close to ending, a Level 2 hunting target would deliver itself right to his doorstep.
Judging by the point value, this Megalodon was even better than the Mosasaurus.
But it had run into Mogu, which had just been strengthened by two waves of upgrades from the Abyssal Ruins and the Eternal Hunting Tomb.
’To think we’d get such a great parting gift delivered right to us before leaving.’
He used the newly acquired Function Card immediately.
[Function Activated: Level 7 Insight]
[Authority has been upgraded. Current Authority: Level 4 Authority (13/16)]
[Level 7 Insight: Can be used on any target to perceive its fundamental operational principles and deeper rules.]
Qin Ziwen thought for a moment, then looked at the Bow in his hands and used Insight.
[Item: Bow]
[Weight: 3.4kg]
[Materials: Purple Fir Wood, Elm Wood, Fish Swim Bladder Glue... (Expandable)]
[Effective Accurate Range: 100 meters]
[Effective Lethal Range: 300 meters]
[Maximum Extreme Range: 600 meters]
[Special Rule: Cannot be carried away from the Home. Incurs no wear and tear when used naturally within the Arrow Gallery.]
A flash of amazement crossed Qin Ziwen’s eyes. The information revealed by Insight was far more detailed than before.
He tried it on many other things and found that the results from Insight were indeed much more detailed than before.
"This is something else," Qin Ziwen said, putting the Bow away.
After practicing with the Bow for a while longer, Qin Ziwen went to check on the Megalodon carcass that had been brought back.
On the pier next to the Ghost Ship Dock within the Home, the Megalodon’s massive corpse lay on the ground.
It gave off a faint, fishy smell, a bit like having a public toilet nearby.
The stench was quite pungent.
Qin Ziwen pinched his nose.
"A Megalodon, alright. Even its smell is stronger than a normal shark’s."
’Probably not many people would be willing to eat this meat.’
’It must taste terrible.’
’But just because they won’t eat it doesn’t mean others won’t.’
’If it tastes bad, you can just add more seasoning and cook it a bit longer.’
Black ran over, wagging its tail excitedly. It glanced left and right, then lowered its head, stuck out its tongue, and licked the bloodstains on the ground.
This funky-smelling shark meat seemed to hold a special attraction for it.
’A Tyrannosaurus likes to eat Megalodon?’
Qin Ziwen found this rather novel. He had someone cut off a large chunk of shark meat and toss it aside. Black furtively snatched the meat and ran off to a corner to eat in secret.
’It’s just, with a body that size, how did it manage to look so guilty about sneaking food?’
After the Megalodon incident, the Island fell into a period of calm.
Qin Ziwen had high hopes for the Dragon King Whale from the Level 2 Hunting Celestial List.
’The Megalodon already showed up. Aren’t you going to come and offer yourself up too?’
But it never came, not even on the final day.
The day before the transmigration countdown. Midnight.
[You have successfully survived for six weeks on the Gobi Desert and Island maps. Current day on the Island map: Day 44. Completed the Level 2 Task on the Hunting Celestial List, obtained some Cards... Composite Score: 2051]
[Rewards Obtained: [Function Card] Level 1 Settlement x1, [Advanced Building Card] Random Level 3 Advanced Building x1, [Breakthrough Card] Extreme Breakthrough Card x2]
Constructing buildings doesn’t factor into the composite score, because a score settlement was already received when the Cards were obtained.
’The rewards this time are rather simple. But from the looks of it, getting Level 5 Authority on this map is probably going to be difficult.’
’I’ll have to think about it on the next map.’
’As for the reward, although it’s one random Advanced Building Card, it’s a random Level 3 Advanced Building. That’s actually equivalent to four Level 1 Advanced Building Cards.’
After putting away the Cards, Qin Ziwen quietly waited for dawn.
Although there were still some things about this map he hadn’t figured out—like the difficulty of Level 4 hunting targets, where the Giant Beast that appeared on the sea during rainstorms lived, and what lay beyond the Island in the farther seas.
But he didn’t plan to explore any further. For one, there wasn’t enough time; for another, it wasn’t necessary.
The transmigration was scheduled for nine in the morning.
This time, everyone in the Gated Community stood on their balconies, in the common areas, or on their rooftops, looking up in anticipation.
Their anticipation was mixed with a hint of nervousness.
Having been through two conscious transmigrations already, many residents could face the fourth one with calm acceptance.
They had even made preparations in advance. Dry bonfires were piled up on many balconies and in the open spaces of the Gated Community, ready to be lit at the opportune moment after the transmigration.
"Mommy, Mommy, are we moving to a new place again?"
"That’s right, we’re going to a new place," a mother said, holding her child’s hand on a balcony as she lovingly stroked their head.
"Where’s the new place? Are we going home?"
"We’re not going home. We’re going into a cave."
"I’m scared of the dark. Will there be bats in the cave?"
"Don’t be scared. Mommy will be with you."
...
"So we have to part ways after all."
On a distant island, Yang Long and some members of the Urban Village stood on a beach facing the reef island. The sea breeze blew, and a few crabs scuttled through the sand at their feet.
"Brother Long, they’re really leaving," Erhu said, his voice tinged with reluctance.
"Yeah. Once they’re gone, this whole Island will be ours," Yang Long said after a moment of silence.
For some reason, Yang Long didn’t feel happy at all. Instead, he felt a sense of oppression.
Erhu said, "They left us a few small boats, and we’ve learned how to build them too. We can build more big boats later."
Yang Long shook his head. "Once you grasp the principles, building boats isn’t hard. The hard part is what’s in the sea. We had them before, but now we can only rely on ourselves."
It was clearly a beautiful day—clear skies, bright sunlight—but he felt a chill, as cold and vast as the ocean itself.
Finally, on the reef island ahead, the Gated Community was enveloped by a vast, continuous expanse of light. The school building next to it was also swallowed by the white glow.
It lasted for about two or three seconds. When the white light dissipated, only the empty reef island remained.
A flicker of bewilderment crossed Yang Long’s eyes. Behind him, someone hung their head and began to sob quietly. They didn’t know why they were crying, but they felt utterly abandoned.
"Stop your damn crying! They’re gone now, and all the islands they developed belong to us. This is a good thing!" Yang Long said impatiently.
After speaking, he turned and headed back to the Urban Village. After a few steps, he couldn’t help but look back at the empty reef island one more time.
"Let’s go! Their transmigrations get more dangerous each time. We might even live longer than them."
...
"Big Bro, is this the underground cavern? The area around us feels so vast."
Qin Ziwu surveyed his surroundings. Their Gated Community was now situated in a pitch-black environment.
「Time rewound to one minute earlier.」
The surrounding environment gradually faded, and then the sky above seemed to be covered by a mysterious, giant hand.
The light grew dimmer and dimmer.
The surroundings became darker and darker.
Until finally, the entire Gated Community was swallowed by a mysterious darkness.
Immediately after, a chorus of screams erupted from beside the Gated Community.
"AHHH—"
"What’s going on?!"
"I can’t see anything!"
"It’s so dark!"
"Is there a power outage?"
The overlapping voices echoed through the cavern, creating waves of reverberations.
Qin Ziwen’s attention, however, was drawn to the Home settlement notification.
[Home Settlement: Congratulations to the esteemed Level 4 Authority: Lord of the Homeland for successfully passing through three maps.]
[Current Map Type: Survival/Co-op]
[Now settling your performance from the previous stage: Combat SS+, Development SSS++, Wealth SSS++++]
[Composite Score: SSS++]
[Current Gated Community Ranking: 1]
[Rewards Obtained: Random Miracle Card x1, Random Level 1 Ultimate Building Card x1]