20: Chapter 20 Killing the Spider King

[God Speed] was fully activated. While his attributes soared, his already astonishing speed increased by another sixty to seventy percent. He twisted his body in mid-air and threw his battle saber, not at the Spider King, but at the mass of venom!

"Sizzle—!"

The blade accurately struck the venom mass, changing its splash direction. The venom flew past the veteran's body, corroding the tree trunk behind him.

The Spider King was furious, all eight of its compound eyes locking onto Lin Mo.

"Screech—!!!"

It abandoned Wu Feng, its eight walking legs suddenly kicking off the ground, its massive body crashing toward Lin Mo like a cannonball!

"Lin Mo, get out of the way!" Wu Feng's eyes nearly split from strain.

Lin Mo's feet lightly tapped the ground as he activated Lingyan Steps. After a few flickers, he had moved over ten meters away, giving the Spider King no chance to strike.

This beast was a genuine late-stage Rank 2 fierce beast. Although it wasn't known for its physical brute force, even a casual attack was more than a Rank 1, Level 5 Awakener like Lin Mo could withstand.

If he were even grazed, it would surely result in a severed arm or leg.

"Clang~~"

Lin Mo reached back and pulled the battle saber from the tree trunk, his gaze once again locking onto the enraged Spider King.

"Excellent movement technique!"

Wu Feng breathed a sigh of relief, a look of approval appearing in his eyes.

He hadn't expected that such a master was hidden in his assault team. Lin Mo's evasion just now was perfect; while full of explosive power, the timing of the dodge was also flawless.

As expected, everyone who could enter the Mobile Bait Post was extraordinary.

With Lin Mo as a helper, Wu Feng's pressure was now greatly reduced.

In terms of direct combat power, he was on par with this Ghost-faced Spider King. He had been pushed to this point mainly because the others could hardly help, as the Ghost-faced Spider King was too fast for them to keep up.

But Lin Mo was different. The speed he had just displayed had almost reached the threshold of mid-stage Rank 2, and he could definitely keep up with his commands.

Between himself and Lin Mo, there was a great chance of killing this late-stage Rank 2 Spider King.

"Lin Mo, you assist me. Follow my lead, and kill this beast when you find an opening!"

Wu Feng gripped his saber with both hands and charged again at the Ghost-faced Spider King over ten meters away.

"Slash!!!"

Wu Feng leaped high into the air, the long saber in his hand swinging down vertically like a mountain-cleaving axe!

"Swish, swish, swish~~"

The Ghost-faced Spider King didn't dare take Wu Feng's move head-on and hurriedly dodged.

The corners of Wu Feng's mouth curled up slightly. This move was just a feint; his true purpose was to pin down the Ghost-faced Spider King, giving Lin Mo a chance to attack from the side.

"Swish, swish, swish!!!"

Wu Feng pulled several throwing knives from behind him and threw them ahead of time toward the spot where the Ghost-faced Spider King was dodging.

"Whiz, whiz, whiz!!"

The throwing knives let out sharp whistling sounds as they all embedded themselves into the Ghost-faced Spider King's legs.

However, that wasn't all.

Almost at the same time he threw the knives, Wu Feng charged toward the Ghost-faced Spider King again, wielding that uniquely shaped battle saber.

"Screech~~~"

The Ghost-faced Spider King let out a long shriek as its two pairs of barbed forelimbs stabbed fiercely at Wu Feng.

Wu Feng held his saber horizontally to block, enduring the strike head-on.

"Now!"

Wu Feng roared, lunging close to the Ghost-faced Spider, his battle saber dancing so fast it was impenetrable. In an instant, he clashed with the Ghost-faced Spider King's two pairs of forelimbs dozens of times.

However, Lin Mo's body had already moved in advance.

Without needing Wu Feng's reminder, Lin Mo had already activated God Speed again.

Several dark figures blurred together, rushing toward the Ghost-faced Spider King from the side at extreme speed; this was the afterimage effect of God Speed.

Wu Feng used himself as bait, attacking head-on and lunging into the range of the Ghost-faced Spider King's forelimbs, all to create an opportunity for Lin Mo.

Lin Mo naturally knew this opportunity was hard-won.

Wu Feng had created it by risking his life; he would definitely not waste it!

Aurora Flowing Cloud Slash!

Aurora Overlapping Blades, activated!

Flowing Cloud Continuous Slash, activated!

While lunging, Lin Mo had already activated both effects of the Aurora Flowing Cloud Slash, pushing his strength to its current limit.

There was only one chance!

He absolutely could not fail!

Everyone held their breath at this moment, their gazes all focused on Lin Mo.

At this moment, Lin Mo was the hope of everyone on the scene.

Boom!!!

A blinding saber light exploded in the dark, dense forest.

Lin Mo's figure and the Spider King's massive body crossed for an instant, then he slid forward for over ten meters under the influence of inertia.

"Did he hit it?!"

Wu Feng only noticed several afterimages flashing past; he didn't see how Lin Mo had struck with his saber.

The others nearby also hadn't seen clearly.

At this point, everyone was very nervous.

But they could only pray silently that Lin Mo's attack just now had caused some injuries to the Ghost-faced Spider King, helping to relieve some of Wu Feng's pressure.

However...

The next moment!

"Crack—!!!"

The Spider King's head burst open, and along with it, nearly half of its chest was split in two.

"Bang!!"

The massive body crashed to the ground, its eight walking legs twitching a few times before becoming completely still.

[Killed late-stage Rank 2 fierce beast Ghost-faced Spider King. slaughter value +400 (Extra +100% for killing a higher-ranked enemy). Achievement completed: Gang Operation. Achievement Points +1.]

[Aurora Flowing Cloud Slash Proficiency +8]

[Lingyan Steps Proficiency +12]

"Swish!"

"Clang!!"

Lin Mo flicked the green blood off his battle saber and sheathed it in one smooth motion.

A deathly silence filled the Black Needle Forest.

After the Spider King's death, the remaining dozen or so ordinary Ghost-faced Spiders didn't continue attacking. Instead, they quickly retreated into the depths of the gray fog and vanished.

Wu Feng leaned on his saber, his chest heaving violently; he seemed to have exhausted quite a bit of energy.

He looked at Lin Mo, his eyes filled with amazement.

The other three veterans also stared at Lin Mo as if they were looking at a monster.

They had thought it would be hard enough for Lin Mo to just cause some damage to the Ghost-faced Spider King.

But who would have thought that Lin Mo would actually kill this despairingly strong Ghost-faced Spider King with a single strike...

This was fucking ridiculous!

What exactly was his cultivation level?

Rank 2?

Or Rank 3?

Meanwhile, Zhao Fansheng was standing next to a spider corpse, his face as pale as paper, his hand holding the saber trembling.

He had seen it with his own eyes.

He saw Lin Mo's ghost-like movement technique as he moved freely through the spider swarm, the terrifying explosion of power that instantly killed over a dozen mid-stage Rank 1 fierce beasts, and finally, that saber technique that could directly slay even a late-stage Rank 2 Spider King.

White trait? Rank 1, Level 2?

What a load of fucking bullshit!

This Lin Mo... had definitely hidden his strength! And he had hidden more than just a little!

Zhao Fansheng felt a chill rush from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head.

He suddenly realized that he might have... provoked someone he absolutely shouldn't have.

"Clear the battlefield and treat the wounded."

Wu Feng's voice broke the silence; he was the first to regain his composure.

"Rest for a bit, then we continue our journey."

He walked up to Lin Mo and spoke in a voice only the two of them could hear:

"That saber technique just now..."

Wu Feng asked in a low voice, his eyes flashing with sharp light.

"It's a family heirloom."

"I only know that one move, and I'm exhausted after using it."

Lin Mo grinned.

Wu Feng stared at him for a few seconds, then finally nodded and didn't press further.

He obviously didn't believe it, but since Lin Mo was unwilling to say, he could only pretend to believe Lin Mo's nonsense.

Others might not be able to tell, thinking Lin Mo could kill the late-stage Rank 2 Ghost-faced Spider King because he had hidden his cultivation.

But Wu Feng was different. He was a Rank 2, Level 7 Awakener; he knew that Lin Mo's cultivation wasn't high, it was just that his speed was astonishing.

Because he noticed that the power Lin Mo displayed when swinging his saber wasn't that great—it was roughly equivalent to Rank 1, Level 7 or 8, barely considered late-stage Rank 1.

To be able to kill the Ghost-faced Spider King in one strike, Lin Mo hadn't relied on strength!

But rather on that incredibly powerful saber technique.

Wu Feng asked himself, could he have done it?!

Most likely not.

His strength was only on par with the Spider King. Even if the battle saber in his hand was better than Lin Mo's C-grade standard-issue battle saber, it would still be impossible!

But... Lin Mo had done it.

A fatal blow in one strike!

While the head was split in two, half of the chest was also cut open.

This instantaneous explosive power was ridiculously high!

...

Lin Mo gave a few perfunctory words, then walked over to a tree trunk and checked the system notifications from earlier.

"That shouldn't be right!"

"Is there a bug?"

"System?"

"Did you miss an achievement for me? This time, I killed a late-stage Rank 2 fierce beast while being four sub-realms lower. Shouldn't there be an 'Undefeated Against Higher Ranks' achievement?"

Lin Mo wondered to himself.

Previously, when he killed the Rotten Wolf leader while being two sub-realms lower, he had completed two achievements at once: Undefeated Against Higher Ranks (I) and Undefeated Against Higher Ranks (II), gaining a total of three achievement points.

This time, he killed the late-stage Rank 2 Ghost-faced Spider King while being four sub-realms lower. Logically, he should have completed the subsequent Undefeated Against Higher Ranks (III) and Undefeated Against Higher Ranks (IV). But strangely, there was only a 'Gang Operation' achievement, which was just a common achievement worth one point.

[Ding~ The 'Higher Rank' series achievements are restricted to solo kills. The system has determined that this kill of the Ghost-faced Spider King was a team effort, so it does not count toward the 'Higher Rank' series achievements.]

"Fuck! So many restrictions, all that work for nothing!"

Lin Mo's face immediately fell.

He was now only three achievement points away from a ten-pull. If it weren't for the system's nonsensical restrictions, he would have gotten two achievements from the Undefeated series, worth a full seven points.

"Whatever, let's look at the other rewards first. The slaughter value should be several hundred by now!"

Lin Mo shook his head and looked at his attribute panel.

[Name: Lin Mo]

[Class: Awakener]

[trait: God Speed (high-grade purple)]

[Cultivation: Rank 1, Level 5]

[Strength: 39]

[Agility: 49]

[Physique: 37]

[Spirit: 40]

[Techniques: Flowing Cloud Aurora Slash LV2 (8/100), Basic Saber Technique LV9 (27/100), Lingyan Steps LV1 (12/100)]

[slaughter value: 938]

[Achievement Points: 7]