Chapter 612 - Floor 20 - End
Chapter 612 – Floor 20 – End
Draco's mental energy easily enveloped the entire room and was about to send the equipment away when the White-Haired Duo felt the aura of the world tremble. Their faces changed as they felt a wave of imperceptible energy radiate from the thrashing Luck Sentinel.
Draco and Eva were very familiar with this kind of energy because their bloodlines had something similar.
This was reality-warping energy!
A set of commands backed by energy that would change the flow of the universe's rules within a certain area.
An example of such reality-warping abilities were Draco's Nine Hells and Eva's Seven Heavens. Once activated, the rules of the area around them changed and any souls that died would belong to either Draco or Eva depending on their alignment, rather than go to wherever else they were meant to.
That was exactly why those abilities drained so much energy that they couldn't keep them active for long, unlike Draco being able to turn into a bloody dragon.
After all, Dragon Transformation was an ability that only changed his biological self, not the world around him. If Black Dragons weren't so powerful, it would drain far less.
Loving Aunt 'only' had 25% bloodline purity, yet she could summon her Blue Water Adder out to fight for more than 10 minutes even in the real world. It didn't change the laws of reality, aside from summoning over an existence from another plane to this one.
This reality-bending power that the Luck Sentinel had released caused the base to suddenly go on high alert, despite Draco and Eva having done nothing of note. Their faces darkened as hundreds of machines and guns were suddenly aimed towards them by the orb itself.
"A 'Luck' Sentinel, huh… Seems like its name wasn't for fun…" Eva lamented with a sigh.
Draco cursed, but still dragged all the equipment into his Inner Universe. "It may have worked, but Luck can only take it so far. Against someone like me who has the ability to bring things into my Inner Universe, having the base on alert changes nothing."
Eva casually waved her hands and created a purple-colored dome around herself and Draco that absorbed all the bullets that were fired from the machine guns the moment the Luck Sentinel disappeared.
"Not having been properly born yet, its level of power is clearly far from its peak. Fortunately, both of us also have absurdly high Luck, so it cannot suppress us with too much bullshit."
Draco nodded to Eva and smirked as he watched the various weapons stop their firing as they were being reloaded audibly.
"This is the first time the tower has actually presented us with something that won't be immediately forgotten. Nothing more amusing than realizing that because were are severely overpowered compared to the average trial taker, the reality-bending power of the Luck Sentinel made a miscalculation."
Eva clapped her hand, allowing the dome-like portal around them to ripple as all the bullets that were absorbed were fired back with the very same speed, volume, and direction they came from.
"What I am curious about is whether it can mate. If so, we may finally have a use for the Homines I have purchased for you way back then."
Draco smacked his fist into his palm with an expression of realization. "That's right! I completely forgot about that weird race that looks like a mannequin without a face which can switch between male and female. If anyone of any races mates with them, they would give birth to a perfect bloodline descendant with no traits from the Homines since they're incomplete and only have a cloning genome!"
Draco intended to 'reward' Eva for her insidious plan properly once they got out. They could farm endless amounts of Luck Sentinels using various methods as long as they could reproduce. Then, each one would be thrown into Roma's pot to become resources.
It was genius!
"Sigh, Eva your IQ is truly too high. To think you could plan this far with only .01% of my own IQ, you have come far." Draco remarked with sincerity, as if he truly believed what he said.
Eva's lips twitched, but she refrained from speaking. She teleported them to the control center of the Guiding Orb, which was on serious lockdown.
However, against a Divine Skill, it was the same as a kindergarter kid trying to stop an MMA fighter. Even though it also blocked spatial transmissions – so the White-Haired Duo could not apport there – it was not infallible.
When they entered the room, the Guiding Orb seemed to sense the danger as it tried to disconnect from the world and focus all its resources on exterminating these pests.
However, once Draco and Eva entered such a fragile and crucial area, everything was already lost. Draco smashed a hand down, and from the area before him, a giant portal formed.
A huge dragon claw coated with Destruction Energy emerged and smashed into the control panel, ripping it to shreds with ease despite whatever technology or fancy metal had been used to make it.
Before Destruction Energy, all things were equal. One could say that Destruction Energy was a true advocate of equality, as it destroyed everything equally without prejudice and fear!
The dragon claw, coated with the black light, ripped everything apart, from screens, to servers, to control panels, as Draco made continuous swipes.
The Guiding Orb, which had retracted its fins from the hole in the earth, was about to take to the air when its center was destroyed.
As such, it began to shake and wobble in the air, like an egg that was about to hatch. Explosions occurred all over its exterior, and the interior was no better.
It was currently like a fancy scene from a 200 million dollar action flick where the macho hero needed to outrun the explosions in the corridor and jump through the glass as the great big explosion happened in the background, highlighting his muscular form.
(Un)Fortunately, this scene had Draco and Eva.
After causing such harm, they didn't even have the decency to stand there and perish together with the Guiding Orb. They simply teleported up and out, standing in the air a few kilometers away from the Guiding Orb as its structural integrity became worse and worse.
Still, that was not the end of it. While Draco and Eva may have avoided the heroic scene of fleeing while explosions occurred all around, this left two fellows who had been farting about before this happened.
Right now, Clarent and Qiong Qi were rushing through the corridors while sweating, explosions occurring milliseconds behind them with each step. If they paused for even a picosecond, they would be blown to smithereens!
"Arrrghh, why is this happening? I was about to take a dump down that Strength Sentinel's mouth! I could have gotten an instant kill!" Qiong Qi roared with frustration and fear.
"Don't ask me, I was just about to loot some Mountain Dew from their fridge! Just when I was about to open the door, it got destroyed when the explosions started!" Clarent wailed with lament, flapping his wings furiously as he dove forward.
The duo turned many corners and used their senses to guide them towards the exit. However, the explosions were catching up, even signaling the tails of the two severely.
"Aoow, it's cooking me! IT'S COOKING ME!!" Qiong Qi screeched in pain as he tucked his tail in.
"My tail! It's on fire! I don't want to burn to death!!" Clarent added from the side, unfortunately, unable to tuck in his own tail due to his body structure.
Qiong Qi was about to scream one more time, when he suddenly became silent with a confused expression. Gazing at Clarent with skepticism, he asked:
"Hey, aren't you totally immune to all fire and flames? So why are you even running away?!"
Clarent's pained expression froze as he realized that the fire was indeed not harming him, rather barely tickling him. He realized that Qiong Qi was right, he didn't need to flee, because he would come out unscathed.
Clarent noticed that Qiong Qi was gazing at him with growing suspicion, so he quickly wore a valiant face and spoke deeply.
"I have always known this… but even if I know I can survive, how can I leave my homie behind to suffer alone? We must share the fear, pain, and experience together, this is what it means to have nakama!"
Clarent spouted whatever bullshit came to mind, but Qiong Qi on the side gobbled it all up. His expression changed as he displayed severe shame.
"Brother Clarent, I am sorry for doubting you! I should have known a valiant and handsome fellow like you would never be that stupid! I am truly ashamed for not realizing that I was rolling with an OG!"
Qiong Qi's words were heartfelt, feeling like it was his luck of 10,000 years to meet this fellow. Clarent simply waved it away magnanimously, but was cursing Qiong Qi in his heart.
Qiong Qi then became serious and faced the endless corridors before him. Hyping himself up, he roared: "BRUCE WILLIS, JOHN CENA, AND BETTY WHITE, GRANT ME THE POWER OF THE ANCIENT ONES!"
Immediately, Qiong Qi picked up speed like a bullet, making Clarent exclaim in shock. Qiong Qi's legs were like a blur, his fear providing him endless amounts of motivation and fuel.
The self-proclaimed Lion King's eyes gleamed with heroic valor as a wall before him exploded, revealing the outside of the Guiding Orb. With endless flair, Qiong Qi burst out of the hole, gliding through the air majestically as his mane swirled in the wind.
He solemnly gazed at the sky, where he saw the mirages of Bruce Willis, John Cena and Betty White smiling down upon him. Qiong Qi's heart at the moment was filled with joy and peace, satisfied with life and his accomplishments.
At the moment, the Guiding Orb exploded massively, creating an area of death surrounding almost 500 kilometers. Draco and Eva who were up above created shields to block out the heat and shockwave with ease.
They casually watched as the King and whatever forces he had were vaporized as they couldn't get away in time. They had also infiltrated the orb with them, but they had taken far too long to go anywhere.
While Draco's side had been able to successfully retreat outward since they had been close enough, it still had been quite the distance.
From the flames, Draco saw Clarent burst out, his entire body alight, yet adding to his charm. He seemed unbothered by the fire, even feeling a bit comfortable as he swam through the flames.
Then, he suddenly remembered something. "Oh no!"
He dove towards the ground, searching through the air carefully until he found a small patch of blackened earth that was lumpy. He then landed near it with eyes that were watery, his heart thumping.
He flicked the lump slowly, whispering: "Brother Qiong… is that… you…?"
The mound shook slightly, but was unable to move again. Clarent's heart felt like it was ripped apart as he knelt beside the black mound and wailed.
"NNNNNNOOOOOOOO!!!"
"Brother Qiong, how could this happen?! How could you die?! You were just flying through the air with your pint-sized donger flapper about, how could you turn into this?!" Clarent moaned with despair.
The black lump moved a bit, this time more violently as if it was agitated by something.
"Sigh, it seems like I will have to take care of Sis-in-law Sheera from now on. Even though she is such a beauty, I have never coveted her. I will make sure to fulfill your wish to have a happy and large family, by inseminating her every 3 seconds!" Clarent promised he pounded his chest with honor.
The black lump trembled again, shaking off some soot, but not enough.
"As for Nemea and Sphea, those two lovely little lasses, I will love them on your behalf and let them call me Daddykins every day. When they grow up into fine ladies, I will still be in the prime of my youth, so that Daddykins will be shortened to just Daddy, hehehe." Clarent snickered, slapping his face back to sadness the next moment as he lost himself.
The black lump was now shuddering continuously, shaking off endless soot but not enough to stand up or open its eyes. Clarent saw the lump moving and raised a claw to thwack it roughly.
"This fellow here, can't you be quiet? I am trying to mourn the passing of my friend whose wife and daughters I will thoroughly enjoy! Can't you see I am in a terrible mood?!"
Satisfied, Clarent once again began to prepare to speak, but he noticed that Draco and Eva had landed nearby. With a howl, Clarent rolled over and clutched Draco's legs.
"Brother Draco, it's terrible! Brother Qiong has been turned into ashes right here! I was just about to gather what was left of him so we bury him properly!" Clarent wailed with sorrow.
This made the White-Haired Duo share a strange look. Draco then spoke slowly. "Qiong Qi is alive."
Clarent was still wailing when his voice was cut in his throat. He then gazed at Draco with disbelief as he looked around. "Where? How can that be possible?!"
With an amused smile, Eva pointed towards the shuddering black lump which had become stronger. Seeing where she was pointing, Clarent was filled with horror and began trembling himself.
"No! It can't be?! If that's the case… wouldn't it mean…" Clarent muttered as his face greatly changed.
Draco fired a healing spell at the black lump which entered within and reinvigorated it. Immediately, two bloodshot eyes snapped open, and the shuddering body rose up with full force, shattering the cracks and the caked soot of his body.
With a simple shake Qiong Qi, rose to prominence once more! And after coming from the valley of the shadow of death, his first words were naturally;
"VILE BEAST CLARENT, HAND ME YOUR DOG LIFE THIS INSTANT!" Qiong Qi roared with madness, rushing towards Clarent.
Clarent squealed like a pig and began running, screaming for help. Qiong Qi did not let up as he continued roaring towards the giant lizard.
"STOP RIGHT THERE! NEITHER ONE OF US CAN EXIST UNDER THE SAME SKY! I CHALLENGE YOU TO A LIFE AND DEATH FIGHT!"
"Brother Qiong, it was just a joke, just a joke! I only wanted to use anger to rouse you from your eternal slumber!" Clarent screeched as Qiong Qi began gaining on him.
"THEN WHY ARE YOU RUNNING?!"
Draco and Eva were left speechless by this development, but noticed that the floor began to decompose. With a shake of their head, they saw the floor results screen.
｢Congratulations on completing: Tower of Babylon Twentieth Floor
Time elapsed: 0:12:19
Objectives complete: All
Assessment: EX+
Reward:
24,000 Score Points
1 Treasure Selection Reward – Peak Bronze Grade｣
Draco folded his arms, not surprised. Even though the King and his ilk got evaporated, that had nothing to do with them. The floor's goal was to destroy the Guiding Orb, and it specially detailed that any means necessary should be used.
Since they had achieved that and more, it stood to reason that they would score the full points. Not that Draco and Eva cared about the epilogue of that story, which should focus on rebuilding.
Draco now had 276,850 score points on the leaderboard and 661,937 overall.
Draco noticed that Qiong Qi and Clarent were still running around. He then grabbed the two and tossed them into the Inner Universe so that they could finish their squabble there.
As for the White-Haired Duo, rather than continuing on, they left the castle and hit the streets of the Safe Zone. By now, not even a few hours had passed since the last time Draco came around, so he was not in a rush to check his shop.
Instead, he walked through the Safe Zone with Eva, the White-Haired Duo seemingly exploring the area in silence. However, at strange intervals, Draco would drop some black orbs, while Eva dropped some light ones.
It was frequent enough that one covered a single building, sometimes more if one of the plots was particularly large. With that done, they returned to the shop district.
Draco still saw a crowd in front of it that were heavily contesting the items, and surprisingly, about 10% of the stock had been taken away. This was faster than he expected for sure, but he still frowned.
He decided to change things up. After all, the 21st to 30th floor had a troublesome requirement that would have been fine had he possessed all his babes, but three of them were banned until he himself reached Rank 4, something that solely depended on the AI.
That was why he even came here. His plan was to increase Eva's Inner Sun to the next tier while also increasing his Inner Universe as much as he could.
The resources for this could be exchanged with ease using his score points or tokens if he so wished, but he was still keeping onto those just in case the 71st-99th floors actually posed a challenge beyond what he could fathom.
Not to mention, he needed some resources for his various Tradeskills, especially for Refinement. However, seeing the slow movement of the goods, he teleported into the booth, shocking everyone.
Before anyone could speak, Draco folded his arms behind his back and announced imperiously.
"I will personally be hosting an auction for all the Legendary Items. No more dallying and wasting time over petty amounts. Either you get the item, or I'll keep it, so make sure to bring out all you can bear to trade."
The faces of all those gathered changed greatly, horror suffusing their eyes as they realized that their slowness was going to cost them. Now that Draco was here, the kind of price he would call out would be far more exorbitant than what he put there originally due to demand.
Draco casually took up a spear that glowed in an aqua blue color and placed it on the counter for all to see.
"This Navy Spear is going for either a Legendary Sun Core or a Pure Magma Source. You may begin bidding for it!"