411: Chapter 410 Mission: Pass Three Tests

Neither stars nor the moon were in the sky, but the peak of the mountain was brightly lit.

Looking up along the densely packed stone steps, a majestic old castle stood tall atop the mountain summit.

Chu Xuan was absolutely certain that this was definitely not the Qianchuan Mountains.

Evidently, they had either traveled to another location through the dark mist of The Gloom,

Or the environment here had been influenced by The Gloom and undergone a transformation, much like Yinshan Village in Haicheng.

Or perhaps, it was both.

Standing at the foot of the mountain, Chu Xuan looked around. Visibility was very low; at a distance of about ten meters to his sides and rear, there was only a pitch-black darkness like thick ink, making it impossible to see anything.

This made the castle on the mountain peak appear exceptionally eye-catching.

“From the looks of it, this mission should be related to the castle on the summit...” As Chu Xuan pondered, he discovered an invisible barrier at the steps blocking the path.

Furthermore, behind them, another barrier stood tall, sealing off the ink-like darkness.

At this moment, at the foot of the mountain,

Chu Xuan noticed that besides Lin Liguo, Wu Wanqiu, and the other Night Watchers, Li Na and the Double Cannon Brothers were also not far away.

Several Night Watchers, sharing the same thought as Chu Xuan, tried to step forward directly, only to be bounced back by the barrier, falling to the ground in a rather pathetic state.

“Don't waste your energy. The mission hasn't started yet; you can't go up.” Not far away, Li Na showed a look of disdain. “And these are official Transcendents? They don't even understand this basic common sense?”

“These people are different from us; they haven't experienced many System missions, so it's normal they don't know. I still remember when you were a newcomer and encountered a similar barrier; you were also bounced back and even cried about it.”

A slightly shrill voice rang out.

At some point, Cai Hou and Fat Pig had appeared out of thin air.

Cai Hou was still sitting on Fat Pig's shoulder, chuckling. “Li Na, are you mocking these Night Watchers because you found out you placed your faith in the wrong [Revelation], so your mindset is unbalanced and you're looking for someone to take it out on?”

A flash of ferocity suddenly crossed Li Na's eyes, but she quickly returned to normal, a cold sneer on her face. “The results aren't out yet. Isn't it a bit too early for you to be so smug?”

“Still deceiving yourself.” Cai Hou clicked his tongue and shook his head, then looked around for a while, murmuring, “The mission hasn't started. Is there anyone else who hasn't arrived?”

As soon as he finished speaking, a flash of light suddenly appeared in the surroundings.

In an instant, seven figures appeared.

These seven were a mix of men and women, all dressed in black suits.

Leading them was a middle-aged man with a crew cut, wearing an overcoat over his black suit. There was a scar on his face, and a ruthlessness that couldn't be hidden between his brows.

“Longshan Squad?”

Seeing the appearance of these seven, Cai Hou's expression immediately tightened slightly. “Longshan, you guys were actually nearby?”

“Hah! What a coincidence. To think I'd bump into you here. I guess enemies truly are destined to meet on a narrow path. This time, you'll have nowhere to hide, right? I haven't settled the score for this scar on my face yet... Eh? There's even a mummy here.”

Longshan smoothed back his hair as he glanced at Chu Xuan, then shifted his gaze to Lin Liguo and the others. A cruel smile immediately surfaced on his lips. “So it's people from the official side. Excellent...”

“Who are you?” Lin Liguo asked with a frown.

“I'm nobody special, just a small fry who was once wanted and hunted everywhere by you official Night Watchers.”

Longshan tilted his neck. “That Captain from Rongcheng who relentlessly hunted me and made my life a living hell has already been killed by me. But I still feel like I haven't vented enough. I need to kill at least three more official personnel of Captain Rank or higher to quench the hatred in my heart.”

Longshan craned his neck and licked his lips, grinning. “I just don't know if you have what it takes...”

“So you were the one who killed Captain Zhao Yukun of Rongcheng!” Lin Liguo's expression instantly turned cold.

“Since the mission situation is unclear, everyone had better not cause trouble here. Otherwise, if the mission is delayed, you might end up getting yourself killed.”

Cai Hou acted out of character, refraining from any mocking trash talk. Instead, he said solemnly, “Perhaps the upcoming mission will even require everyone's cooperation.”

At this point, Cai Hou paused slightly and said to the still cold-faced Lin Liguo and the others, “I advise you not to go looking for trouble. Due to the world rules, although Longshan hasn't advanced in Rank yet, he once solo-killed an S-rank Specter in the Dark Place. The other six have also jointly killed an S-Rank once.”

When these words were spoken, the expressions of Lin Liguo and the others changed drastically. Their first thought was that it was impossible.

Since when were S-Ranks so cheap?

However, noticing Cai Hou's serious face and the fact that Fat Pig, who always had a silly grin, was now solemn,

Everyone couldn't help but feel a sense of trepidation.

“Your knowledge is still too shallow. But that's fair; due to confidentiality regulations, few people knew of the existence of Guardian before today.”

Cai Hou reminded them, “A tiny minority of people, through various strokes of luck, become Guardian chosen to sign a contract to handle dark incidents everywhere in the form of completing System missions. We are all Guardian chosen to sign such contracts. And among Guardian squads, the Longshan Squad is capable of ranking in the top three.”

To Cai Hou's words, Lin Liguo and the others all wore expressions of disbelief.

Chu Xuan, however, looked as calm as ever. He had already encountered such a squad once in the War Dragon World; their combat power indeed far exceeded that of Transcendents of the same Rank.

However, even among S-Ranks, the lethality was worlds apart, mainly reflected in the killing rules they possessed.

Some possessed large-scale killing rules, like the Night Demon who had just entered S-Rank. Through Domain rules, it could massacre an entire city, comparable to a natural disaster for ordinary people.

For instance, King Seth's power was reflected in his individual combat strength.

And for the Debt-Collecting Ghost, due to rule changes, although it didn't display a Forbidden Domain, once locked onto by the opponent, there was almost nowhere to run.

If there was no way to neutralize the certain-death rule, there was only the path to the grave.

While Cai Hou was speaking, the seven members of the Longshan Squad stood with their arms crossed, surveying everyone present with playful looks.

Cai Hou looked around and changed the subject. “But having said that, the mission hasn't started. Could there be more people?”

At that moment, another figure suddenly flashed into the area.

A Long-haired youth with an evilly handsome appearance appeared in the clearing.

The moment this youth appeared, except for the group of Night Watchers who didn't recognize him, everyone else's expression changed violently.

“Shen Ba!”

Li Na blurted out subconsciously, a look of fear appearing on her face for the first time.

The seven members of the Longshan Squad also looked full of wariness.

“Heh, so it's you bunch of trash. I hope you don't get in the way during the upcoming mission.” Shen Ba glanced indifferently at the crowd.

Longshan's face immediately turned ugly as he clenched his fists. “Shen Ba, aren't you being a bit overconfident?”

“What, are you not trash?” The corner of Shen Ba's mouth curled into an evil arc.

Longshan narrowed his dangerous eyes, then suddenly smiled. “I hope you can keep that confidence going.”

Shen Ba put his hands in his pockets, ignored Longshan, and pointed at Lin Liguo and the others, his tone icy. “A word of warning: you official people had better not try to act high and mighty in front of me. If you annoy me, I don't mind killing all of you first.”

Such arrogant words immediately caused fury to erupt in the eyes of Lin Liguo and the others.

“Don't offend him. This person is extremely powerful, and if he goes crazy, he doesn't even value his own life. He is far above Li Na.”

Cai Hou reminded them once more.

Just then, the System notification rang in everyone's ears.

[Mission Name: Passing Three Passes]

[Mission Introduction: The mountain steps of the brave, the mysterious castle, the pitch-black night. Every trial is a test of life and death; only those who pass can survive.]

[Difficulty Rank: 8~?]

[Base Reward: 100 Contribution Points]

[Failure Penalty: None]

[Time Limit: None]

[First Trial: Mountain Road, Begin!]