Soul Mark

Ling Chu raised an eyebrow.

A Treasure Map?

That sounded rather tempting.

Brave the World watched Ling Chu's expression nervously. He was facing someone ranked first on three leaderboards, after all, and he had prepared for the possibility that his assassination attempt would fail.

The Treasure Map was the most valuable thing he owned. As soon as he had reached the island, he had hidden it somewhere secluded. If he succeeded in killing Ling Chu, he would dig it up and take it with him. If he failed, it would buy his life.

Ling Chu sneered inwardly. He was cunning enough to keep a fallback plan.

"You're not in a position to bargain with me. How do I know you haven't made this map up?"

"It's real, I swear! We can sign a delayed System Contract, but you have to let me go first!" Brave the World said.

System Contracts could only be used to barter goods. Ling Chu could offer any material in exchange for his Treasure Map, and they could set a deadline. If he failed to hand over the map by then, the system would automatically deduct the agreed-upon item from him and deposit it in Ling Chu's ship storage.

But the system couldn't enforce whether Ling Chu let him go. That was why Brave the World wanted a delayed contract. If she killed him before the deadline, she wouldn't get the Treasure Map.

"No need for all that trouble. I have a more convenient way."

Ling Chu activated her newly acquired Soul Mark skill. She had wanted to try it out, and he made a handy test subject.

As the skill activated, a Soul Thread visible only to Ling Chu emerged from her fingertip and connected to Brave the World's forehead, forming a faint Diamond Mark.

"Give me the Treasure Map," Ling Chu said.

But as soon as she spoke, the Diamond Mark vanished. The skill had failed.

The Skill Bar description said it established a "fair Soul Contract." Had the system judged it unfair because she had only demanded that Brave the World hand something over without stating what she would give in return?

Her little scheme had failed, so she activated the skill again.

"Give me the Treasure Map, and I'll let you leave."

"This is my class skill. Whoever breaks their word will have their soul dispersed immediately."

Brave the World couldn't see the Soul Thread, but a chill ran across his forehead. The Diamond Mark reappeared, then sank into both their foreheads.

The skill had succeeded.

Ling Chu released Brave the World. With her watching him, he wouldn't be able to pull any tricks.

Brave the World gave up on assassinating Ling Chu entirely. She could teleport, had all those Skeleton Henchmen, and even possessed a skill that could form Soul Contracts. He had to admit defeat.

Head hanging, Brave the World led Ling Chu to a bush he had marked. The mark was so well hidden that she would never have found it without him.

A Skeleton Henchman dug a couple of times with a shovel and quickly unearthed a small wooden box. Inside was a sheet of parchment.

The parchment appeared to depict a shipwreck, with a Treasure Chest in the middle of the broken hull. Coordinates were drawn in the upper right corner. It really was a Treasure Map.

"Can I go now?"

Brave the World asked, shrinking back.

"Mm."

Brave the World turned and hurried off, taking his limping lion with him.

Ling Chu watched in silence. She didn't warn him that he was running straight toward the Sulfur Giant Lizard's territory.

"Follow him. Don't let him spot you."

Only after he had run some distance did Ling Chu speak to Hemlock.

Hemlock obeyed and drifted silently behind Brave the World. When the man wasn't looking, Hemlock slipped into the Hand Crossbow tucked behind his waist.

Before long, a beast's roar sounded faintly from deep in the jungle, shaking the leaves.

Ling Chu had already returned to her Sailboat. She made do with a night's rest in the cabin to recover her strength.

When she woke the next day, the Gambler Coin's bad-luck debuff was gone. She also felt the Soul Mark on her forehead disappear.

There were two possibilities. Brave the World had died, causing the mark to vanish, or he had left the island, completing their contract.

Ling Chu thought the latter was more likely. Hemlock hadn't returned yet, and she shared a strange connection with her ghost servant. She could sense his approximate location, and he wasn't far away.

She seemed to have found a special use for her Ghost Servant...

Ling Chu began preparing to hunt the Giant Lizard. She was about to message National Server Little Luban when a message from him arrived first.

"Boss, your Dagger and bullets are done. What do you think?"

Ling Chu took the new Dagger Little Luban had sent from her ship storage. Its blade looked forged from ice, gleaming with a translucent pale-blue light in the sun. It was cool to the touch. She gripped it with both hands and swung it a few times. It felt good.

[Ice Crystal Dagger]

[Quality: Rare]

[A dagger forged from Rare Ice Crystal Ore. It freezes anything that touches its blade. Agility +1.]

"I'm very happy with the Dagger. Thanks for the effort."

National Server Little Luban: "Glad you like it. Staying up all night was worth it. Thanks to your rare material, I'm almost at Blacksmith Level 2."

It seemed advancement as a blacksmith depended on the number and quality of items forged.

After chatting with her briefly, National Server Little Luban went to catch up on sleep.

Ling Chu messaged Lingering Wind and Fading Moon: "Are you awake?"

Lingering Wind and Fading Moon was nearly at his wit's end. "You've already used up the five Mana Potions I gave you??"

Ling Chu: "No. I need Paralysis Potions this time. Have you made any?"

Without another word, Lingering Wind and Fading Moon sent her two Paralysis Potions. "I've only managed to make two. You can have them first."

"Two will be enough. Take your time with the rest. There's no rush," Ling Chu said.

Lingering Wind and Fading Moon stared at her words, "There's no rush," with disbelief. Had that really come from someone who had burned through ten Mana Potions in a single day?

Dark circles under his eyes from staying up all night brewing potions, Lingering Wind and Fading Moon couldn't help adding, "Use them sparingly."

"Mm."

Ling Chu closed the chat and summoned Round Head. She gave him the Shotgun and bullets. Titch had told her that, apart from himself, Round Head was the best shot among the Skeletons.

Her ship had not been upgraded yet, so space was tight. Ling Chu had slept alone in the cabin last night, while the Skeleton Henchmen stayed on the island and gathered quite a bit of Charcoal for her.

The Charcoal came from trees near the lava that had been carbonized by volcanic ash, and it burned for a long time. Her little Sailboat currently relied on wind power, but later upgrades would surely turn it into a steamship. She would need plenty of fuel then.

Ling Chu gathered all her Skeleton Henchmen. Before setting out, she checked her equipment once more, coated her Dagger and arrows with Paralysis Potion, and equipped the Desperado title, just in case.

After twenty minutes of walking toward the Sulfur Giant Lizard, they reached the area. Ling Chu could no longer hear the beast's roars from last night. She pushed aside the grass ahead, and a bloody scene came into view.

The Sulfur Giant Lizard crouched over Golden Lion's corpse, chewing mouthful after mouthful.