Chapter 464: Chapter 464

It was inevitable for Sudden Death King to get a bit carried away. Anyone who suddenly gained immense power would feel the same. Although Lu Ran’s team had undergone rigorous training, they were all under five years old aside from Six-Path Flower. It was inevitable that they retained some childish tendencies.

Moreover, the temperament of animal species was inherently slow to develop. Even at the Legendary rank, aside from a few specific species, most wouldn’t change much. For them, solving problems with fangs and claws was far simpler than bothering to develop their brains.

Lu Ran chuckled. “You’re feeling pretty bold, huh? Since you’re so confident, I’ll take you to challenge a Mythical secret realm later and see if you can clear it. After you’re done, I’ll take Captain Doofus for his evolution. Who knows? Maybe the secret realm will drop some evolution materials suitable for him.”

Bring it on! Who’s scared?

Six-Path Flower couldn’t help but speak up about Lu Ran’s idea. “Are you sure? Although its combat power is indeed comparable to a Low Legendary, we don’t know if the kin can be deployed smoothly. Even if it can, the other 11 Legendaries are all at the same level as that Wind Dog God. A newly ascended Legendary won’t stand a chance.

“Legendary battles are far more complicated and troublesome than you think. Back then, I only won because I had 99 levels of experience and the opponent’s combat skills were capped at level 50.”

“Let’s just give it a try. We’ll start with one that has a lower danger level. I definitely won’t recklessly challenge a boss like the Thieving God Rat, which can steal items and memories. However, some bosses pose relatively minor threats. For example, I originally planned to have Captain Doofus challenge the Grass-attribute God of Abundance.

“That secret realm doesn’t seem too terrifying, and the penalty for defeat is minimal. We can let Sudden Death King test the waters first.”

The Goat Secret Realm had the Fengyuan Sheep species as the boss. It was also known as the God of Abundance. According to the intel provided by Manager Ying about the twelve Mythical secret realms, the Fengyuan Sheep excelled in planting and cultivation.

It could use the power of vegetation to cultivate plants with all sorts of unique abilities, then enhance those abilities to the Legendary rank, leveraging these peculiar plants in battle. For instance, Six-Path Flower’s Lucky Flower, the Time Fruit in Lu Ran’s backpack, and the hatched Silk Tree Albizia all counted as plants with unique abilities.

The Fengyuan Sheep specialized in researching these. It could grow many similar plants, and some unique fruits were often bestowed upon its believers as blessings. Because of this, facing Fengyuan Sheep meant dealing with extremely complex battles. Even Six-Path Flower couldn’t create or modify so many plants with unique abilities.

However, despite the complexity, the Goat Secret Realm was currently the only Mythical secret realm with zero recorded deaths. Even the seemingly harmless Thieving God Rat had instances of stealing lives and souls, resulting in participants’ deaths. On the other hand, the Goat Secret Realm only drove participants temporarily insane or turned them into psychotics at worst.

“Roar, roar, roar!” Sudden Death King gestured to switch to another one.

It felt like Captain Doofus wouldn’t need this secret realm anyway. That was, unless it could drop a Legendary-grade divine fruit that enhanced evolutionary potential. But the odds of that happening were too low. If it actually dropped something like that, it’d be blatant cheating.

“If we’re switching, how about the Rooster Secret Realm? The boss is a Metal-attribute divine beast, seemingly combined with the Rock attribute. Metal is somewhat related to swords, and if nothing else, you can use the Rock-attribute materials yourself. Either way, it’s a win.” Lu Ran pondered.

“Roar!” Sudden Death King’s eyes lit up.

It waved its shield eagerly as it sounded good.

“However, this secret realm is extremely dangerous. The boss has insane attack power. Among the first few beastmasters who challenged the Rooster Secret Realm, almost none returned alive. The sole survivor’s familiar was also killed. I think with your defensive capabilities, you might stand a chance.”

Sudden Death King was silent.

“I say, if you’re going to chat, can you do it somewhere else? The evolution is complete. If there’s nothing else, leave.” The Divine Turtle couldn’t help but interject.

Are they treating my shell as a discussion room?

Lu Ran laughed. “Sorry, sorry! Lord Divine Turtle, thank you so much for your time! If you ever need help in the future, just call us. We’ll go test the new abilities now!”

“Go ahead.” The Divine Turtle gave them the side eye.

Although Six-Path Flower wasn’t optimistic about Sudden Death King, the latter now possessed Low-Legendary combat power and had even acquired the rare Star attribute. If Lu Ran didn’t at least try challenging a boss, he wouldn’t be able to sleep at night.

Lu Ran opened the secret realm system.

[Name: Golden Rooster Mausoleum]

[Difficulty: Mythical]

[Secret Realm Introduction: In ancient times, there was a god known as the Centipede Elder. Its body was like steel, its form like iron, and it possessed an indestructible physique. It fed on Metal-attribute creatures. Over a hundred Metal-attribute species were devoured to extinction by the Centipede Elder.

[It went on until it encountered the golden rooster species. To avoid annihilation, a golden rooster of extraordinary talent gathered the faith of its entire species to break through. It eventually devoured the Centipede Elder in turn and ascended to Legendary status.

[The Golden Rooster God possesses a beak capable of pecking through any defense. For centuries, it has honed its beak against Legendary-grade iron, and is said to have even pierced the iron. Its skill power is immense, and few survive a direct hit. (Golden Rooster God, Metal attribute, Low-Legendary species. Level matches the participant’s.)]

“This boss loves pecking. If it hits you, it’ll leave a bloody hole. However, it shouldn’t be a problem with your defense, right?”

Before entering, Lu Ran rubbed his chin, feeling slightly nervous. Beside him, Sudden Death King pondered and concluded it shouldn’t be an issue. Both were Low Legendaries. There’s nothing to be scared of.

[Do you want to enter the Golden Rooster Mausoleum Secret Realm?]

[Please select your battle familiar. Once selected, your other familiars will be temporarily sealed. Familiar No. 5 does not meet the battle conditions and has been pre-sealed.]

[1: Sword Domain Dog; 2: Star Vortex Dragon; 3: Oracle Crow; 4: Nine-Tailed Cloud Cat; 5: Six-Path Reincarnation Flower; 6: Artificial Angel]

“2, the Star Vortex Dragon.”

[Selection complete. Teleporting...]

Like last time, a dazzling light enveloped Lu Ran and Sudden Death King. In an instant, a powerful spatial force transported them to an unknown space.

[Teleportation complete.]

[Current location: Golden Rooster Mausoleum]

[Difficulty: Mythical]

[Mission: Defeat the Golden Rooster God.]

As the announcements echoed in their ears, Lu Ran and Sudden Death King opened their eyes, sensing killing intent in the air. In the dim hills, a golden light shone from afar. A several-meter-tall divine rooster, with its body seemingly cast from molten gold, stood like a metallic statue. Its radiant, divine eyes were fixed on them.

“Roar!” Sudden Death King waved its shield again, feeling reassured.

Simultaneously, realizing kin could be deployed, Lu Ran immediately issued the attack order.

“The kin can be brought! Sudden Death King, charge!”

Sudden Death King raised its shield and flew low toward the Golden Rooster God. Mid-flight, it didn’t forget to cast a Defensive Halo on Lu Ran to prevent sneak attacks.

As it flew low, it was extremely cautious. It even activated its Drunken Dragon Mode to further unleash its physical potential. As it held the shield, it swung it towards the Golden Rooster God.

Due to Sudden Death King’s evolution, its physique had improved significantly, but its energy control hadn’t progressed much. Thus, it still couldn’t achieve a hundredfold energy compression, though the strain of ninetyfold was now more manageable.

However, Sudden Death King considered this a debuff. Its attack power scaled with the severity of its injuries.

The massive shield crashed down toward the Golden Rooster God like a meteor. The rooster responded fiercely, its beak glowing gold as it launched a peck-shaped energy projection, tearing through space toward Sudden Death King’s eyes.

At this critical moment, Sudden Death King didn’t dodge. Instead, its Star Vortex Wings lit up, and with the power of the stars, it formed Star Rock Goggles over its eyes.

Although the enemy’s attack was strong, Sudden Death King didn’t sense lethal danger and chose to trade blows. A deafening explosion erupted, and smoke billowed. The goggles cracked but protected its eyes from harm.

To Lu Ran’s surprise, the Golden Rooster God had mastered perfect hundredfold energy compression. This peck could pierce the void, but then again, the Wind Dog God had achieved ninetyfold compression at level 50. Now that the boss was level 60, its energy control had naturally improved.

Sudden Death was no Six-Path Flower. In energy control, it was at a disadvantage. However, the stellar defense granted by its Star attribute allowed it to tank the hit head-on, proving its defensive prowess.

What left Sudden Death King and Lu Ran speechless was that despite the solid defense, Sudden Death King’s brutally powerful strike stopped mid-air. It stopped just a fist’s distance from the rooster’s head. Between them, an immense energy was compressed infinitely. The rooster’s beak glowed, as did the Star Dragon Shield. The two forces were locked in a stalemate in mid-air.

Sudden Death King strained with all its might to push the shield down, but couldn’t advance it further. The next moment, an energy explosion erupted between the shield and the beak, unleashing a violent storm that sent both combatants flying. Tiny, almost imperceptible cracks appeared on the shield.

Sudden Death King’s body was also scarred by the energy hurricane. The shield’s smug expression shifted to a panicked one.

“Die, Die! Die, Die!”

Amid the smoke, both figures tumbled backward, using their wings to stabilize before landing.

“Injuries are too light. Attack power is insufficient! Watch for the follow-up!” Lu Ran assessed.

Upon seeing the first exchange end in a draw, Lu Ran’s heart raced. Although the level 60 Golden Rooster God with hundredfold energy compression was formidable, Sudden Death King’s defense held on.

Lu Ran didn’t use Flame Spirit, opting to let Sudden Death King accumulate injuries to boost its attack power. With three against one, even if the Golden Rooster God was strong, Lu Ran couldn’t see how they’d lose.

Meanwhile, Sudden Death King dramatically tossed aside its goggles, ready to go all out. However, just as Lu Ran thought they had a real shot, a sudden change happened. Perhaps realizing the battle would drag on, the Golden Rooster God turned its head slightly. The ground beneath them split open, revealing four cone-shaped, golden-glowing weapons.

Lu Ran’s Eye of Detection identified them.

[Introduction: Faith weapons. The Golden Rooster God crafted these four weapons by mimicking its beak with eternal energy projection and energy formation. Buried underground for decades, centuries, or even millennia, they absorbed the power of metal and faith. Whenever faced with a tough opponent, the rooster summoned them for assistance.]

“Damn it! Just like the Wind Dog God, it has a trump card! Ordinary participants would never uncover its full capabilities.” Lu Ran’s mind reeled.

All four Diamond Pecks shot toward Sudden Death King, who instantly transformed into a star to withstand the assault. However, the impact was devastating. The Star Dragon Shield Spirit’s face nearly split apart, its cracks worsening.

Sudden Death King’s abdomen, shoulder, and even a quarter of its head were severely wounded. A bloody hole pierced its belly, its shoulder was gone, and part of its skull vanished.

Sudden Death King was stunned. In a normal fight, the enemy couldn’t break its defense. However, when the rooster used these weapons, its resilience felt like paper.

Six-Path Flower suddenly spoke up, startling Lu Ran. “It’s no match. Lu Ran, unlike the Wind Dog God, which used faith for resurrection, the Golden Rooster God poured all its faith into amplifying these weapons. It might lack endurance, but its lethality is on another level.

“It’s essentially attacking with centuries of accumulated faith power. It’s similar to how I amplify skills with good and evil energy. Sudden Death King can’t win now. If fatal injuries occur, even your Legendary flames won’t heal it in time. Retreat.”