Chapter 45: Numerical Ranking

Wei Huo halted his steps. The raging flames could not hurt him even a tiny bit as he was protected by the inner Qi emitting from his body. The flames on his body died out as the gasoline was burnt out. However, the Demonic Ants were not as lucky. They turned into ant-shaped torches, and were scorched into ashes in seconds.

The Empress was still bellowing at that moment, “This is the evil human’s firebending skills. He was the one who released the flames. Demonic Ant God, please rescue us!”

The Old Demonic Ant Warlock suddenly shouted at the Empress of another colony, “Why did you guys provoke him? Why did you guys provoke a human? Don’t you know that humans like to kill us Demonic Ants the most?”

When the Demonic Ant armies were surging towards Wei Huo, the wise Old Demonic Ant Warlock chose to stay in the city gate. It refused to attack Wei Huo with its army. Its age was older than all the ants on the scene, and it had wealthier knowledge and experience as compared to the others. That was why it did not want to be enemies with Wei Huo. It even advised the Empress to stop.

However, the Empress did not listen to its advice. The Empress believed that the Ant Wave Attack could bury one to death no matter how powerful the enemy was!

“Human, the Demonic Ant God will not let you off!” Numerous Demonic Ants were cursing Wei Huo with the most vicious language before they died.

The Empress roared furiously on her deathbed. “Human, I have already sent a message to the other Empresses through telepathy. The Demonic Ants are now aware of your existence. They will summon warriors to fight against you!”

Wei Huo’s heart felt heavy as he looked at the scene silently. It was a kind of heaviness that normal people would not understand. Wei Huo originally thought that he only had to struggle to increase his lifespan while waiting for the time halt to end. However, only now it dawned on him that there was still a long path ahead.

The sky turned clear after the gasoline rain with a rainbow arched across the horizons.

The gasoline smell still pervaded the air. The ground was filled with charred coke, and the fresh blood had long dried up. Only countless Demonic Ant towers were still standing upright with thick black smoke curling out from it.

At this moment, Wei Huo realized how naïve he was.

Mortals could never guess God’s intentions. That was why people always said ‘Man Plans and God Laughs[1]’? Ants judged humans just like how humans judged creatures who were more powerful than them from their own perspectives. Both viewpoints were simply incongruous.

Wei Huo arrived in front of the Old Demonic Ant Warlock. It was still alive as it could resist the raging flames with its Qi energy and firebending skills.

The Old Demonic Ant Warlock had broken through his Qi Cultivation level and obtained an extra 100 years of lifespan during this raging inferno. It was devastated as it smelt Wei Huo’s scent.

Wei Huo ignored it and walked straight into the Demonic Anthill. He realized the anthill was filled with coke. The whole anthill was shrouded in gasoline rain, and none of the Demonic Ants in the anthill could escape from the fire.

Wei Huo thought it was odd. ‘Am I the legendary Grim Reaper’s substitute? I carried death with me wherever I went.’

Of course, it was only self-ridicule. After all, the tiger died of old age, the panda died of disease, and Lu Qiqi was recalled by God. It was God who wanted to exterminate the Demonic Ants.

Wei Huo arrived at the deepest part of the anthill. That place was very well protected. It seemed to be the Empress’s palace. Unfortunately, the Empress went out and God’s punishment had befallen upon her.

However, Wei Huo found three eggs in the palace. The eggs were hung up high and were protected by cocoons, which were why they managed to escape the fire. However, Wei Huo was unsure whether they were still alive.

Wei Huo plucked the eggs down and stroked it attentively. He realized pulsating sounds were coming out from the eggs. It sounded as though a heart was beating.

The three Demonic Ants inside the eggs were still alive!

Since they were found in the Empress’s palace, were these eggs the Empress’s heir?

“Human! Hand over the Empress’s heir!” The Old Demonic Ant Warlock followed Wei Huo into the palace, and started to attack Wei Huo.

However, God’s voice suddenly appeared at this moment.

“New event added, Instances. Instances will be refreshed once a week. Players can only attack once a week.

“New menu ‘Equipment Enhancement’ added. Equipment can now be enhanced by using different items.

“New attributes ‘Attack’ and ‘Intelligence’ added.

“New occupations ‘Warrior’, ‘Archer’, ‘Qigong Master’, and ‘Sorcerer’ added.”

The long lost God’s voice had spoken again. At this moment, the Old Demonic Ant Warlock who was trying to attack Wei Huo disappeared. Wei Huo was also sent back to the entrance of the Demonic Anthill. A black tunnel that looked like a portal appeared at the entrance, rotating slowly. It looked extremely weird.

Wei Huo walked up to it and immediately, words appeared on it. It read ‘Demonic Ant Cave’.

Below it was a description that read. ‘Demonic Ant Cave. Players level five and above are allowed to enter the Demonic Ant Cave. Difficulty Level Selection: Easy, Normal, Hard, Hell.’

‘Players level five and above can enter? Could this be…a newbie instance?’

Wei Huo looked at his own attributes and realized that he did not have any Level or EXP displayed, but his attack bar was at 367 points.

Wei Huo arrived at the entrance of the instance and immediately, a faint light emitted from the instance’s tunnel entrance. An option ‘Do You Want To Enter?’ appeared.

‘I can enter without any Level?’

Wei Huo chose ‘Yes’, and it activated. A bright light flashed at the tunnel entrance and before he knew it, Wei Huo was in the Demonic Anthill.

Wei huo understood immediately. It was another BUG! The numerical Leveling System and EXP had not been created yet. Hence, he could enter any instances without needing to follow their Level limits!

Wei Huo went in. The Demonic Anthill was similar to the previous one, but the burnt black Demonic Ants’ corpses disappeared and were replaced by living Demonic Ants.

However, they were ants without intelligence. Those Demonic Ants were similar to normal game mobs. They rushed towards Wei Huo as soon as they laid eyes on him. Their Attack bar was at 13.

Wei Huo’s Attack bar on the other hand was at 367. The difference between their Attack bars was tremendous. Wei Huo kept killing as he advanced further in. However, he did not obtain any EXP since the EXP System was not created yet.

With 367 points in his Attack bar, Wei Huo defeated the Demonic Ants in a seckill[2]. Soon after, Wei Huo had arrived at the Demonic Ant’s Palace. He then saw the gigantic yet rigid Empress.

‘Demonic Ant Empress. Rank: Rare. Attack Bar: 45.’

She was stronger than the other Demonic Ants. However, she was not even close to Wei Huo’s battle strength!

Wei Huo already attacked before the Empress even took action. He finished her off with one punch. Wei Huo then looked at his Magical Stones reserve in the Item Mall.

Indeed, there was nothing!

He clearly killed a Rare creature, but he had not obtained any Magical Stone. That was because the Empress did not have a soul!

Wei Huo cleared the instance and was sent back to the anthill entrance. However, he did not obtain any EXP or item rewards because those elements were not created yet. Hence, clearing instances currently had no meaning to Wei Huo.

However, it was still a rewarding trip. Although the Old Demonic Ant Warlock disappeared, Wei Huo still had the three eggs he obtained previously.

‘Empress Candidate Insect Eggs. State: Dormant. Note: Pet System has not been unlocked. Egg Hatching is currently unavailable.’

[1] A phrase that criticizes people’s tendency to make plans, as there is no guarantee that plans will work out. https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/our-emotional-footprint/201602/man-plans-and-god-laughs

[2] The word “seckill” (秒杀) originated from the online game Legends and relates to the strength of a warrior who can kill his enemies within seconds. http://wiki.china.org.cn/wiki/index.php/Seckill