The Gluttony Mask and a Suspicious Training Expedition

Yun Che brightened. At last, he had triggered Divine Fortune again.

This adorably clueless good girl actually has a high-grade Martial Root. But why is it restricted?

Yun Che examined the items one by one, pausing for a second on the Moonwater Garment, a close-fitting piece of protective clothing embroidered with a cute little rabbit.

He noticed that women in the world of Divine Martial seemed to prefer close-fitting protective clothing to armor.

Finally, Yun Che's gaze settled on the Gluttony Mask, one of the Seven Sins Treasures. The sight hit him like a bolt from the blue, and he nearly cried out in shock.

He seemed to have figured out why Ruan Caocao's Martial Root was restricted: it was because of this as-yet-unawakened Gluttony Mask.

Legend had it that seven masks of sin had existed on the Divine Martial Continent since ancient times. Every hundred years, these seven masks would randomly appear inside seven hosts. Once the masks fully awakened, their hosts would transform into the seven great demons, becoming enemies of all humanity and plunging the world into devastation.

For anyone chosen as a host by a mask, this was undoubtedly a tragic fate. Becoming a demon meant being hunted down by the strongest fighters across the continent until they died.

For everyone else, however, it was an opportunity to become the ruler of the world.

According to information released by Divine Martial's developers, killing a mask's master would yield one of the Seven Sins Emperor Hearts.

Once all seven of the Seven Sins Emperor Hearts were gathered, something unexpected would happen.

The developers had never revealed what that something was, and even as a closed-beta player, Yun Che had never played far enough to witness the awakening of the Seven Sins Masks.

Should I take this damned thing or not?

Yun Che faced a difficult choice. Choosing the Gluttony Mask meant he would eventually become a demon, but it would also grant him terrifying combat power.

If he were still a player, he would not have needed to think so hard. As long as it increased his combat power, who cared about the drawbacks or who his enemies were? He would just slaughter them all with gleeful abandon.

But now, he was a living, breathing person on the Divine Martial Continent. Once he became the enemy of all humanity, even breathing would be a crime.

Fuck! What am I scared of? I don't care if you're one of the Seven Sins. If I'm strong enough, how could you possibly control me?

Yun Che made up his mind and used his sole chance to choose on the Gluttony Mask.

Ding! Acquisition successful. Congratulations on obtaining one of the Seven Sins Treasures: the Gluttony Mask.

Ding! Congratulations on becoming the master of the Gluttony Mask.

Ding! Congratulations on the Gluttony Mask's initial awakening. You have gained stat bonuses, effective while wearing it.

Yun Che froze in astonishment. It had already undergone its initial awakening? Had his interference caused the storyline to unfold ahead of schedule?

Forcing down his unease, Yun Che found the Gluttony Mask in his inventory. Black and red intertwined across its surface, forming a hideous ghostly face locked in wild laughter.

Even as it lay motionless in his game inventory, it seemed to radiate an evil, powerful aura, as though it would devour his will.

Yun Che hurriedly looked away. After staring at it for only a few seconds, he had felt as though he were being sucked into a black hole.

What an eerie mask. It looks like I'll need to take every possible precaution before using it, or I might never come back.

[Gluttony Mask (initial awakening): Feeding it fresh blood can accelerate its awakening. While worn, strength +200, agility +200. Note: While wearing it, there is a chance of descending into madness, suffering a collapse of will, losing your humanity, and becoming a demon prematurely. Use with caution.]

Just as I thought. The stat bonuses are powerful, but the side effects are terrifying!

Yun Che closed the stat panel. He had already decided that he would never use the Gluttony Mask unless he had absolutely no other choice.

As for feeding it fresh blood to accelerate its awakening, he would leave that alone for now. He was not even confident he could control the Gluttony Mask in its initial awakening state, so why the hell would he feed it?

Just then, the bell in the academy's great bell tower began to ring.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

"Three rings in a row. That's the signal for a meeting of all instructors!"

Yun Che frowned slightly. He clearly remembered no such meeting taking place. What had triggered this storyline?

With a measure of unease, Yun Che hurried toward the meeting building.

When he entered the building, the meeting room was already packed. Most of the instructors looked puzzled.

Yun Che found an empty seat and sat down. He heard an instructor beside him whisper, "I heard this is about the disappearances that have been happening so frequently near the academy lately. The academy's leadership plans to organize a training expedition so the students can improve their vigilance and ability to protect themselves through actual combat."

"I heard that too. Apparently, an academic instructor from Class Seven also went missing. There's still been no word about him. I'm afraid the odds aren't good."

"Alas, bandits have been running rampant in recent years. Our Great Yuan Empire has already lost several valiant generals. Even some of the older princes went to war, only to never return alive. The situation looks grim!"

"Exactly. And His Majesty has already decided to appoint Li Xuanfeng as crown prince. Although Li Xuanfeng is of legitimate imperial blood, he's an ignorant layabout. He can't compare to those elder brothers of his who died on the battlefield. Great Yuan is in peril!"

"Shh! Watch what you say. Do you really think the imperial family has no eyes and ears here? If word reaches His Majesty, you could lose your head!"

Yun Che's frown deepened as he listened. He did not remember Falling Moon Academy holding any training expeditions during this period. Events were already developing beyond his expectations.

Just then, Vice Dean Zhao Cang walked in. Sweeping his gaze around the room, he said gravely, "Everyone, you are all aware of the recent situation around the academy. To ensure our students' safety, the academy has decided to organize a training expedition. The destination will be the Wuxia Mountains. Bandits are plentiful there, making it an ideal place for students to hone their practical combat skills."

As soon as Zhao Cang finished speaking, a murmur rose from the audience. Clearly, quite a few instructors had reservations about the arrangements for this expedition.

"The training expedition will last one week. Each class must select twelve outstanding students to participate, accompanied by two instructors. We will depart after lunch today."

After a brief pause, Zhao Cang continued, "The three best-performing students will receive the opportunity to study high-grade cultivation methods and combat techniques. The next three will receive the opportunity to study mid-grade cultivation methods and combat techniques. Every other student will receive a reward of 100-1,000 points, depending on their individual performance."

Hearing how generous the rewards were, even the instructors who had expressed reservations relaxed considerably. After all, the chance to learn high-grade cultivation methods or combat techniques was a rare opportunity for the students.

Yun Che, however, could not feel pleased at all. He kept sensing something unusual about this affair. The training expedition had been announced far too abruptly.

Besides, disappearances were occurring frequently, and the students of Falling Moon Academy had little ability to handle unexpected emergencies. Organizing an expedition at a time like this was extremely dangerous.

"Vice Dean, isn't this training expedition a little too dangerous? I don't agree with sending the students out for training at a time like this," an instructor could not help saying.