After Qiao Xing finished speaking, the rich Holy Radiance on his body began to gradually fade. Clear traces of Dark Energy appeared on him, which was obviously abnormal. For those who cultivate Holy Radiance, any approaching Dark Energy should automatically transform into Holy Radiance.

"Initiate overclocking mode!"

[Qiao Xing, Seventh Tier Transcendent, unknown exotic variant, abilities unknown, sequence unknown.

Attributes: Strength 430, Agility 450, Constitution 361.

Although he has opened his heart to you as much as possible, some force is still blocking the Observer's vision.]

So strong! Lu Luo frowned slightly. Although many details were still invisible, the information revealed is already enough! It's my first time seeing the attributes of a Seventh Tier master.

To Lu Luo's surprise, Qiao Xing's attributes seemed to surpass Yang Liya's, and not by just a little bit. Qiao Xing possessed well-rounded attributes, and he was a Seventh Tier Believer of Light, a Sword Saint of the Dawn Church. With multiple abilities combined, his strength would reach an unimaginable level.

However, Lu Luo suspected the true reason Qiao Xing could ignore the Dawn Disc's effects lay in the words 'unknown exotic variant.'

"Did you make a deal with Noah, Teacher?"

"Sort of."

Lu Luo nodded. In his view, Qiao Xing's choice was entirely correct. The Fourth Ring needed combat power that truly belonged to it. Although the Nightmare Demon also counted as combat power for the East Fourth Ring, her fundamental identity was that of an Exotic Species. This fact wouldn't change, no matter how human-like she became. The only true combat power belonging to the Fourth Ring had been Ludie and Qiao Xing. Now that Ludie was dead, Qiao Xing was the last guardian of the East Fourth Ring.

Therefore, regardless of Qiao Xing's choices, Lu Luo would support and trust him. But trust was one thing; questions remained.

"Why did you choose Noah and not the Nightmare Demon?"

"Because Ludie had already chosen the Nightmare Demon, and the Nightmare Demon chose you. It's about diversifying investments," Qiao Xing explained. "Exotic Species are not human; they have their own thoughts and goals. Of course, so do I, and so do you! I have never trusted them. I only trust my own choices."

"Is that so?"

"That's right. Have I answered your question?"

"Barely!"

Lu Luo really wanted to understand Qiao Xing's abilities more deeply, but after some thought, he decided against asking.

Qiao Xing, as if reading Lu Luo's mind, said, "No need to guess. My strongest ability is swordsmanship. My other abilities are basically negligible!"

"Ah, got it."

"Alright, it's late, Lu Luo! I have something for you."

"Something for me?"

Lu Luo took a metal shard from Qiao Xing's hand.

[Ashes of Holy Light]

Grade: Legendary

Effect: Unknown.

Description: Might be a relic from some legend.

[Fancy stuff, no idea what it's actually for.]

"What is this?"

"This is an inheritance!"

"An inheritance?"

"Yes, an inheritance!"

"How do I use this thing?"

"When the time comes, you'll know!"

Okay! Another riddle routine, Lu Luo thought.

"Heh!" Qiao Xing chuckled.

Qiao Xing's behavior was a bit strange, but Lu Luo didn't press further. After exchanging some pleasantries, Lu Luo said goodbye to Qiao Xing, Qiao Xiao Mi, and Li Lan. He didn't stay in the ecclesiastical district, heading straight back to the base instead.

That night, Lu Luo didn't sneak into Qi Xinzhu's room. Instead, he stood alone on the outskirts of the slums, gazing at the red pillars on the high wall, silent.

[Do you really want to become the new king?] the Observer asked.

Who knows! Lu Luo thought. He truly didn't know. Did becoming the new king of the Wasteland really matter?

「Early the next morning.」

Lu Luo, Gu Fangyi, and Qi Xinzhu were already at the Fourth Ring's high wall. The Wall Guardians there had been completely replaced by Fourth Ring Hunters, meaning the bribes and informants Lu Luo had previously arranged were all gone. However, the upside was that he no longer needed an exit permit as before. This was undoubtedly good news for Lu Luo.

Unfortunately, he couldn't stay out for very long this time. Otherwise, with their trio's current strength, even living outside the wall for an extended period wouldn't be an issue.

"Lu Luo, what's our main objective this time? Still hunting?" Gu Fangyi asked.

"Of course, the main objective is still hunting Exotic Species; that won't change," Lu Luo replied. "But we have some other goals this time."

"Other goals?" Qi Xinzhu inquired.

"We're looking for Exotic Species similar to Witch Rolin."

As soon as Lu Luo spoke, Gu Fangyi and Qi Xinzhu immediately understood. Witch Rolin could create witch candies; such alchemic Exotic Species were incredibly valuable to Lu Luo. Besides witches, could there be other types of alchemic Exotic Species? Qi Xinzhu and Gu Fangyi hadn't encountered any, but Lu Luo vividly remembered one particular Exotic Species: Ling Jia, who called itself the Wise.

"Let's go. This time, we're heading to a more distant place."

Lu Luo led Qi Xinzhu and Gu Fangyi to the Exile Jungles beyond the East Ring wall. When they arrived at the familiar dilapidated streets, Lu Luo suddenly stopped.

"Why didn't the Ringwall rotate at the beginning of this year?" Lu Luo mused aloud.

"Huh? It seems it really didn't," Gu Fangyi realized.

"Brother Luo, look over there..." Qi Xinzhu pointed.

There weren't many people outside the wall, but many seemed to have noticed the lack of rotation. Unlike Lu Luo, who had focused on the Inner Ring for the past couple of months, some of these Outer Ring dwellers had actually been living here permanently. This had led to small strongholds appearing in the abandoned buildings along these streets.

Lu Luo stopped one man. "Hello, are you stationed here?"

"Don't bother me, I'm busy..." the man said, initially impatient. But when Lu Luo produced a small Dark Spirit Stone, his attitude instantly changed.

"Yes! C13 has become no-man's-land now!"

"C13? Shouldn't it be S13?" Lu Luo asked.

"The Nightmare Demon is dead! What S13 are you talking about?"

"Can you explain in more detail?"

Since Lu Luo had paid and looked formidable, the man was obliged to provide information before leaving. "After the Dark Energy Mutation, the world outside the wall stopped turning. We don't know if it's just for this year or if it will never turn again. But with an opportunity like this, of course, it's worth a gamble! C13 is currently ownerless land. If we occupy this territory, and the outer wall truly stops turning permanently, that's a huge fortune! Don't you think?"

This man's words are crude, but his reasoning is sound, Lu Luo thought, nodding slightly. If the area outside the wall—the potential Fifth Ring—really stopped turning, then acquiring land now could indeed bring immense benefits. It was similar to how real estate prices in the area between the Fourth Ring and the Third High Wall had always been the highest in the entire Fourth Ring. If a Fifth Ring were truly established, this region would become its most valuable part.

"Thanks a lot, bro," Lu Luo said.

"Hey, no worries, we're all friends here," the man replied cheerfully.

[People here are certainly direct. Give them some cash and you're 'bro.' I bet if you gave more, he'd call you 'Dad.']

Lu Luo led Gu Fangyi and Qi Xinzhu away, stopping in a deserted area.

"Lu Luo, what's your take on this?" Qi Xinzhu asked. She and Gu Fangyi had naturally heard the man's words. However, no one could be sure if this place would become part of a Fifth Ring.

"It's a risky but logically sound gamble," Lu Luo said. "If this place really stops turning, those who have claimed land here will likely become rich overnight."

"Should we station some of our people here then?" Gu Fangyi suggested. His thinking was straightforward: if there was profit to be made, why not take control?

Lu Luo, however, had a different perspective. "Brother Gu, there's something you're not quite getting."

"What do you mean?"

"Whether the Fifth Ring will rotate or not is still unknown. If it truly stops, then everyone who claimed land is happy. But what if it starts turning again next year? All those who invested resources and effort here would suffer a devastating loss, wouldn't they?"

Gu Fangyi nodded slowly. "Yes, that seems true."

"And Brother Gu," Lu Luo continued, "you seem to have forgotten something else."

"What's that?"

"If this area becomes the Fifth Ring, it will most likely become the new Outer Ring. If this is the Outer Ring, what does that make our current territory?"

Lu Luo's hint immediately made Gu Fangyi's and Qi Xinzhu's eyes light up.

"If this becomes the Outer Ring, then the Fourth Ring would become the new Inner Ring!" Qi Xinzhu exclaimed.

"Exactly," Lu Luo confirmed. "If the land beyond the walls becomes the Fifth Ring, the Fourth Ring will indeed become the new Inner Ring. Our Circular already controls a large part of the Slum District and has various industrial extensions. With such vast territory already, why should we bother competing with these people for this new land?"

With Lu Luo's explanation, Gu Fangyi and Qi Xinzhu quickly understood. If the Fifth Ring truly didn't rotate next year, it would likely become the Outer Ring. And they, as part of the Circular, would become major landowners in the new Inner Ring! How did we suddenly become so influential? Being landlords… that sounds amazing! they thought, exhilarated.

"Whether this place becomes the Fifth Ring or not is a matter for next year," Lu Luo stated, bringing them back to the present. "We still have a lot to do. There are only twenty days left before our three-month deadline. In this time, we need to kill as many Exotic Species as possible to gather enough energy. Alright, let's go."

"Yes!"

Leaving the periphery of the high wall, Lu Luo and his two companions headed straight for the depths of C13. Their main goal for this trip was to kill Exotic Species and collect enough energy. Lu Luo currently faced a significant energy deficit. He needed to accumulate energy to raise all his attributes to 200, enhance the abilities of his Circular members, create special items, and build a reserve for his Summoner abilities. His requirement wasn't excessively high: simply to meet these energy demands as much as possible within the next twenty days.

This sounded quite difficult, but luckily, he had Gu Fangyi, an expert in ultra-long-range reconnaissance. Lu Luo planned to take Gu Fangyi high into the sky, allowing him to use his Hawk Eye ability for extensive observation to locate groups of Exotic Species. If they could find more swarms like the Red-Skinned Forest Demons they encountered previously, a few such encounters would be enough to cover his energy needs.

Lu Luo first led Gu Fangyi and Qi Xinzhu to an empty valley. Above it, Lu Luo and Gu Fangyi used their Jet Belts to ascend. With Lu Luo's current Qi He level, this wasn't too difficult.

"Brother Gu, are we high enough yet?" Lu Luo asked. They were already over 500 meters above the ground, but Gu Fangyi didn't seem satisfied.

"There's a swarm of insect-type Exotic Species about 12.4 kilometers to the southwest in the hills, but I can't make out the specific variety," Gu Fangyi reported. "There are also quite a few venomous newts wandering in the Maternal Marsh, though their numbers aren't very large. Red-Skinned Forest Demons are around in the forest too, but they aren't gathered in large numbers. Let's go higher!"

"Okay!"

With Hawk Eye's ultra-wide range and beyond-visual-range detection capabilities, finding Exotic Species swarms was incredibly efficient. In just about half an hour, they had identified the locations of thirteen such swarms.

"Observer, memorize all the Exotic Species locations Brother Gu has detected."

[All Exotic Species swarm locations have been recorded.]

"Excellent. Now, let's harvest them one by one!"

Based on distance and swarm size, Lu Luo planned a reasonably efficient route, their first target being the venomous newts in the Maternal Marsh.

「Maternal Marsh」

"HA!"

Qi Xinzhu wielded her dual swords, charging through a group of Third Tier venomous newts. As a Believer of Light who typically preferred elegant combat skills, she was experiencing Lu Luo's kind of battle joy for the first time—that exhilarating rush of charging indiscriminately, regardless of injury.

If Lu Luo's reckless charges were due to his incredibly high Constitution and the Unbeliever's effect, then Qi Xinzhu's were supported by her own similarly high Constitution and her Healer abilities.

Poisoned? I'm not afraid! I can heal! Injured? I'm not afraid! I can heal! Her battle devolved to two words: Slash! Heal!

Qi Xinzhu felt an unparalleled joy, swinging her dual swords freely amidst the tide of Exotic Species. Most of them couldn't harm her, and even if they did, her Healer abilities would quickly mend her wounds. She cut through swathes of Exotic Species, completely at her mercy.

Gu Fangyi watched Qi Xinzhu rampaging among the Exotic Species with a strange expression. A perfectly good Healer, her combat style completely warped from spending too much time with Lu Luo.

"Brother Luo, is it really okay to let her fight like this?" Gu Fangyi asked.

"What's wrong with it?"

"She's a Believer of Light, yet you have her fighting this way."

This time, Lu Luo wasn't joking; his expression was unexpectedly serious. "Brother Gu, you know, I'm actually a very cowardly person."

"Hmm? Why do you say that?"

"To be honest, I'm terrified of losing any of you."

This sudden emotional vulnerability from Lu Luo surprised Gu Fangyi. "How could that happen? Everyone's developing very well."

"It's precisely because everyone is doing so well that I'm scared something will happen to you!" Lu Luo explained. "Brother Gu, you have Hawk Eye and are highly vigilant. Even though you go out often, you manage your safety well. Brother Kane and Dumb Hair are more cautious and spend most of their time at the base. But Qi Xinzhu is different. Her personality and upbringing have left her with insufficient vigilance. That's why she was successfully ambushed by Lu Yu and captured by Qin Wanyu.

"Since I'm with her, I'll naturally protect her as much as I can, but I can't always be by her side. So, I want her to have the ability to protect herself. Improving her Constitution is the most effective way to do that! In my estimation, once Qi Xinzhu's Constitution exceeds 150, her defense will be strong enough to withstand a sniper's ambush even without activating her Holy Radiance. This is a qualitative leap—a very important one."

[Indeed, a Constitution of 150 would be the highest among the girls!]

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