Chapter 72: The Power of Wealth, The Incantations of the Senior Cipherer

Song Qi’s hand trembled as he channeled his extraordinary power. The inscriptions on the five talismans, each worth a million credit points, immediately began to glow with a striking light!

“Weakness!”
“Slowness!”
“Cripple!”
“Annihilate!”
“Impact!”

His hand flicked, and the five talismans flew from his grasp!

“Go!”

The carriers burst into flame, burning away in an instant, as the crimson characters turned tangible and shot forward with blinding speed!

The shield warrior was caught off guard and struck directly in the torso.

Instantly, his body visibly shrank, and his responses grew sluggish.

This was the full force of an eighty-level Whisperer—its effect was astounding!

But Song Qi wasn’t done yet. With a swift motion, another five talismans appeared in his hand.

“Guard!”
“Inspire!”
“Agility!”
“Heal!”
“Sharpness!”

These talismans too ignited of their own accord, transforming into vivid scarlet words that surged into Lü Bu’s body.

Lü Bu’s eyes gleamed as he exhaled a deep breath. His body felt instantly lighter; the exhaustion from repeated battles vanished like mist. A blood-red sheen coated the Sky Piercer Halberd, and thunderous winds howled as he swung it. Vitality surged back into him—he was once again at his peak!

The shield warrior whipped his head around, following the path of the talismans to spot Song Qi, who was still alive.

“You dare return?! This time, I’ll smash you to a pulp!”

His eyes burned with rage as he charged forward.

But how could Lü Bu allow him his way?

“Don’t be mistaken. Your opponent is me!”

The Sky Piercer Halberd crashed down, forcing the shield warrior to turn and defend.

“Out of my way!”

Both shields roared upward, trying to bash Lü Bu aside.

But his strength had been drastically weakened.

Even at his best, against Lü Bu he held only a slight advantage.

Now, with five debuffs upon himself, and the opponent bolstered by five buffs, the gap between them had grown insurmountable.

Lü Bu wielded the halberd with one hand, easily brushing aside the double shield smash.

The shield warrior paused, disbelief writ large across his face.

“Impossible... This can’t be! I even drank the Cinder Elixir—I’m gambling with my life! How can I still lose to you?!”

“Damn it, I’ll crush you into meat paste!”

He roared, eyes bloodshot, twin shields raised as his momentum soared to a new height!

He stepped forward—

BOOM!

Dirt and stone exploded in all directions!

The ground split apart, cracks radiating for dozens of meters from where he landed.

“Die!”

Both shields hurtled toward Lü Bu with a shriek that cleaved the air, the force behind them enough to make the very wind razor-sharp.

If it had been before, Lü Bu would have been hard-pressed to withstand such a blow.

But now...

“That’s enough.”

The Sky Piercer Halberd slipped between the shields at an odd angle and, with the lightest twist—

THUD!

One shield was sent flying, as if this were nothing more than a game.

Lü Bu’s expression changed; the lust for battle faded from his eyes. He pulled on the reins, stepped back twice, and raised the halberd high.

Once again, the shadow of the Demon God loomed behind him.

With his strength fully restored, he was ready to unleash the Sacrificial Strike once more.

“You’re a worthy opponent, but alas... this victory is not entirely honorable.”

“Farewell!”

The halberd came crashing down, the spectral demon’s colossal weapon falling in tandem!

The shield warrior was dazed; his vision filled with the ever-approaching halberd.

The next moment—

BOOM!

When the dust cleared, all that remained was a pool of pitch-black blood.

The shield warrior was dead.

At the sight, the other warrior and the paladin panicked. The shield warrior had been the strongest among the five of them, not to mention he’d taken the Cinder Elixir, sacrificing his life for power.

And yet, he’d died—not from the elixir’s backlash, but by the enemy’s hand?

“Run!”

“Quick, we’re no match for them!”

The warrior made a snap decision to flee.

“Too late.”

A crimson bolt of lightning flashed by.

Red Hare snorted, and two heads flew skyward.

Lü Bu had appeared behind them at some point, the Sky Piercer Halberd still slick with fresh blood.

Without the shield warrior’s defense, they were utterly powerless before Lü Bu in his current state.

Thus fell all five senior members of the Demon-worshipping Sect.

At that moment, Song Qi walked over from a short distance away.

He approached the twelve mid-level professionals, who shook with terror, too afraid even to think of running, and produced a stone.

Thud, thud, thud...

Twelve strikes, and all twelve tumbled into a dreamless slumber.

Only then did Song Qi finally breathe a sigh of relief.

“Phew... That was tough, but it’s finally over.”

“Killing enemies over fifty levels higher is, as expected, still a bit much.”

He touched his chest, still feeling a faint sting.

If not for the generous gift from Old Liu, facing this squad alone would have been all but certain death.

Not to mention, he could never have managed to circle behind them. Rangers were the most sensitive to auras among all professions. Without Old Liu’s high-level Concealment Incantation, he’d never have gotten close to the female priest.

“But, despite the twists and turns, I pulled through in the end.”

“So next up...”

A look of anticipation flashed across Song Qi’s face as he licked his lips.

“It’s my favorite part—the loot!”

“Five level-seventy professionals—their equipment must be worth a fortune, right?”

“Don’t let me down, members of the Demon-worshipping Sect.”

...

Song Qi first headed above the hidden dungeon.

He quickly retrieved the treasure that had been corroding the seal.

It was a functional treasure of Heroic grade. Its stat bonuses were minimal, and its sole effect was corroding specific seals, with a chance of triggering an explosion. The higher the seal’s level, the longer the unsealing took.

Then he moved to the shield warrior’s remains—or rather, the pool of blood and pulp.

Two large shields and a storage ring lay quietly on the ground.

Song Qi picked up the golden shield and checked its information.

[Weapon: Sophia’s Shield]
[Grade: Legendary]
[Usable by: Shield Warriors, Warriors]
[Required Level: 60+]
[Required Attributes: 300 Strength, 300 Constitution]
[Strength: +1100]
[Agility: -100]
[Constitution: +800]
[Spirit: +50]
[Effect 1: Holder takes 15% less damage; if the shield successfully blocks the attack, the reduction increases to 30%.]
[Effect 2: When used as a main weapon, Constitution increases by 30%. When used as an off-hand, the shield shrinks to 50% of its original size, and both Strength and Constitution increase by 10%.]
[Assessment: The proudest work of Master Smith Gavros, named after his daughter Sophia. Its fame, however, led to Sophia being dubbed “Shield Maiden,” which cooled the father-daughter relationship for some time.]

“As expected—Legendary grade!”

Song Qi felt utterly reassured.

From the very first glance, he’d known this shield was something special.

And sure enough, it was a Legendary weapon!

A level-60 Legendary shield, usable by popular professions!

Song Qi estimated that it would fetch at least a hundred million credits at auction.

Of course, the final price would depend on how wealthy the bidders were.

“With just this one piece of gear, I’ve already covered all the items I just used!”

“In other words, everything else is pure profit!”

He chuckled as he stowed the shield in his system backpack.

“Ha, marvelous!”