Swarm Deterrence

As she spoke, Xu Xiao's face flushed ever so slightly.

Before Lu Li could react, she hurriedly explained,

"I'm the class monitor. It's my duty to look after every student in the class!"

"Oh... so saintly? That won't keep you alive long in the apocalypse..." Lu Li teased, then immediately reminded her,

"Have Ma Han try attacking the Queen Bug's neck."

"What?!" Xu Xiao had just been about to argue, but upon hearing Lu Li's reminder, she immediately gave the order,

"Wang Chao, try to restrict the Queen Bug's movements!"

"I'll do my best!"

With an angry roar, Wang Chao charged fiercely at the Queen Bug.

"Ma Han, attack the Queen Bug's neck with everything you've got!"

"Damn it, fatty, stop moving! I can't get a clear shot!"

Ma Han cried out anxiously, but the arrow in his hand remained undrawn.

Seeing the Queen Bug about to turn the tide, Lu Li frowned slightly and secretly activated his ability.

[Swarm Deterrence:

Intimidates insect-type creatures, causing a stiffness effect. Duration depends on the level gap and talent rank.]

Although Lv.0 Lu Li was a full six levels below the Lv.6 Mantis Queen,

the Gold Rank [Swarm Deterrence] had automatically been raised to Platinum Rank under the influence of Xu Xiao's ability!

So even the Queen Bug

stiffened for a brief moment!

"Perfect chance!"

Ma Han cried out in delight. The arrow in his hand flew out and struck the Queen Bug squarely in the neck.

Its vital point pierced, the frenzied Queen Bug's head tilted to one side. It immediately collapsed, dead beyond doubt.

"It died just like that?"

Wang Chao and Ma Han were both dumbfounded.

The Queen Bug before them was clearly a Lv.6 Lord Creature, yet the three Lv.0 Players had actually killed it?

Was an Overlevel Kill really this easy?!

Xu Xiao stared at the fallen Queen Bug, then looked at Lu Li in astonishment.

"How did you know its neck was its weak point?"

Lu Li shrugged. "I have a Scout ability. As long as the target isn't more than ten levels above me, I can find its weak point."

The three of them immediately understood.

It seemed Black Iron Grade abilities weren't entirely useless. As long as they were used properly, they could still have an enormous effect.

Ignoring the three stunned people, Lu Li walked over to the Queen Bug's corpse and activated Soul Devour.

[Devoured the soul of a Lv.6 monster. Soul Points +15]

[Plundered ability—Blade Arm (Gold)]

[Plundered ability—Swarm Deterrence (Gold)]

[Detected that the ability "Blade Arm" can undergo a second advancement. It will automatically rise to Platinum Rank upon completion of the advancement mission.]

[Detected that the ability "Swarm Deterrence" can advance. Trigger advancement mission? Yes/No]

Looking at the options before him, Lu Li sank into thought.

The advancement mission for [Swarm Deterrence] couldn't possibly require him to kill a hundred Queen Bugs within twenty-four hours, could it?

After all, [Swarm Deterrence] was quite useful against insect-type creatures. If he failed the Promotion and lost the ability, Lu Li would really hate to part with it.

Just as Lu Li was struggling with the decision, Xu Xiao suddenly asked,

"Lu Li, can your [Scout] ability see where Origin Crystals are located?"

Lu Li answered instinctively, "Yes."

That answer directly triggered the mission interface, which he had not yet closed!

[Ding! Ability advancement mission triggered!]

[Mission: Perform an Overlevel Kill on 1 Player within twenty-four hours!]

[Mission Reward: Challenger's Chest ×3. The ability "Swarm Deterrence" advances to Platinum Rank!]

[Players killed: 0/1.]

"Fuck..."

Seeing Lu Li curse under his breath and his expression shift unpredictably, Xu Xiao assumed he was unwilling to point out the Origin Crystal's location. She could not help complaining inwardly,

Lu Li really is stingy.

Outwardly, however, she put on a businesslike expression.

"Don't worry. Although we killed the Queen Bug together, you were the one who found it first, and you pointed out its weak point. We'll split the Origin Crystal fifty-fifty."

Lu Li, who was still considering how to complete the advancement mission, had not heard a word Xu Xiao said. He merely nodded absentmindedly.

"The Origin Crystal is in the Queen Bug's head."

Upon hearing that, Wang Chao raised his fist and began smashing the Queen Bug's head wildly.

In less than half a cigarette's time, an orange Origin Crystal fell out.

"It's actually a Third-Order Mana Crystal. Absorbing this whole thing would probably give a hundred experience points..."

Ma Han smacked his lips, his face full of excitement.

No Player had reached Lv.1 yet.

After all, the apocalypse had only just begun. There were many people but few monsters, and killing monsters did not grant experience. Experience had to be obtained by absorbing Origin Crystals.

Most Players had an innate fear of monsters.

Even the braver ones who happened to kill one or two monsters only obtained First-Order Mana Crystals, which provided just one experience point—nowhere near enough to reach Lv.1.

As for the military,

they could obtain enough Origin Crystals to level up, but because everything was centrally allocated, no one would reach Lv.1 anytime soon either.

"Lv.0 to Lv.1 requires ten experience points, and Lv.1 to Lv.2 requires twenty... If we absorb this Origin Crystal, we can probably jump straight to Lv.3!"

Wang Chao's eyes burned with desire, but in the end, he took the Origin Crystal from Ma Han and handed it to Xu Xiao.

"Class monitor, you're the boss. You decide how to distribute it!"

Before he had even finished speaking, Lu Li, who had remained silent, suddenly said,

"If you don't want to die, you'd better not touch that Origin Crystal."

"What do you mean by that?!"

Xu Xiao looked at Lu Li, confusion filling her eyes.

Could Lu Li be planning to repay kindness with hostility and take the Third-Order Mana Crystal for himself?

"I mean exactly what I said."

Lu Li had no interest in explaining further to Xu Xiao. He lifted his legs and headed toward the Bug Nest.

The secret that he had been reborn could not be known by a second person. Explaining any further would only waste time.

With two advancement missions triggered one after another, Lu Li was very busy!

Xu Xiao had never expected Lu Li's attitude to become so cold. Her fingers tightened around the Origin Crystal until her knuckles turned white.

She was already the class monitor, and after the apocalypse descended, she had awakened a rare Amplify-type ability.

Even though she was not someone who craved vanity or enjoyed being flattered, Lu Li's icy attitude still made her feel terrible.

"What are you acting so cocky for? You only awakened a Scout ability! If I didn't like you, you'd have been eaten by that Queen Bug already!"

After seeing Lu Li walk away, Wang Chao and Ma Han looked at Xu Xiao.

"Class monitor, are we still splitting this Origin Crystal?"

"Keep it for now. Follow Lu Li and see what he's planning to do."

Xu Xiao tucked the Origin Crystal close to her body and strode after Lu Li.

After only a few steps, the three of them saw the entrance to a Bug Nest resembling a small hill in the distance, along with another Queen Bug's corpse lying at the entrance.

Although this Queen Bug was smaller, it clearly wasn't some Lv.1 or Lv.2 cannon fodder.

"There's another Queen Bug? Could Lu Li have killed it?"

Surprise flashed repeatedly through Xu Xiao's eyes, but when her gaze fell upon the neat cut on the Queen Bug's head, she unconsciously dismissed the idea.

"Lu Li's ability is Scout, while this Queen Bug was clearly killed by a sharp weapon. It probably wasn't Lu Li's doing."

"Maybe the two Lord Creatures fought each other. The bigger one killed the smaller one, and Lu Li just happened to pass by and pick up the leftovers."

Ma Han stroked his chin as he spun his theory.

"That makes sense. Old Ma, you're really clever!"

Wang Chao gave Ma Han a thumbs-up.

While they were talking, Lu Li was already preparing to enter the Bug Nest.

Seeing this, Xu Xiao immediately called out, "Lu Li, what are you doing?"

"Ugh, why is this woman still following me..." Lu Li looked at Xu Xiao speechlessly. "Use that clever brain of yours and think, Class Monitor."

With that, he ignored Xu Xiao completely and plunged headfirst into the Bug Nest.