In the Ninth Abyss, the summer camp students, after a full eight hours of sleep, were jolted awake by a shrill whistle.
Assembly, physical checkups, food distribution…
Once the formalities were done, everyone received their standard-issue equipment: antidotes, burn cream, distress flares, emergency drones, short-range teleportation scrolls…
This was Mike’s first official Abyssal operation. Moving with the corps, he finally grasped the sheer expense of waging war in the Abyss. The equipment he held alone was worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
An army marched on its stomach, as they said. Besides manpower, war was fueled by money. Proper logistical support was crucial for maximizing individual combat effectiveness.
Glancing around, Mike noticed that the descendants of Chiefs and Lords barely reacted to the issued equipment, casually stashing it away in their storage rings. Their personal supplies were undoubtedly superior in both quality and quantity.
Inside the Tower of Truth, money bought power. On the Abyssal battlefield, it bought survival.
Power wasn’t strictly essential.
Survival, however, was non-negotiable.
After all, death meant losing everything.
Once the equipment distribution concluded, the instructor announced, “Lone Wolf faction members, upon receiving your equipment, Soldier tier individuals are free to roam within a 60-mile radius of the base. General tier individuals have a 300-mile radius!”
The first day’s permitted range wasn’t extensive. Three hundred miles was well within the monitoring capabilities of the Chiefs and Lords.
“General tier, huh?” Mike glanced at the badges in his hand.
For his disguise, he had acquired a variety of Lone Wolf badges: Star tier Soldier, Silver tier General, Bronze tier Chief, Bronze tier Lord…
He casually picked up the General tier badge. This would allow him greater freedom of movement within the 300-mile radius, enabling him to acclimate to the Ninth Abyss more quickly.
As Mike prepared to set off, a group approached him.
“Mike, want to team up?” Ethan asked, his eyes, along with those of the four individuals behind him, filled with anticipation.
Among them were individuals with S-rank talents, and three even possessed SS-rank talents, having already passed the General tier Combat Power Test.
They had heard tales of Mike’s exploits. Teaming up with him promised greater rewards.
“I appreciate the offer,” Mike declined politely, “but I prefer to work alone.”
Ethan persisted, lowering his voice. “There’s a heavily injured Chief tier demon beast near the base. We’re planning a hunting party. Think about it.”
The materials from a single Chief tier demon beast could fetch a hefty sum!
“Intel suggests it’s a One-Star Chief,” Ethan added. “There are six of us. If all goes well, you’d receive around 200,000 gold coins.”
Two hundred thousand gold coins were equivalent to 0.2 Lord merits.
“I’ll pass,” Mike said. “I’m just going for a walk. You guys go ahead.”
Disappointment flickered across their faces.
As rumored, money held no allure for Mike.
Refusing 200,000 gold coins at the General tier level was no small feat.
Despite the rejection, Ethan remained undeterred. He shared a set of map coordinates and a communication identifier with Mike.
“If you change your mind, just give us a shout.”
After completing the necessary procedures and undergoing a triple identity verification, Mike, escorted by two Magmafist Corps Generals, departed from the base.
“Mike, remember, you’re restricted to a 300-mile radius,” one of the Generals reminded him. “Stay safe, and don’t hesitate to call for reinforcements if anything happens.”
Statistics showed that the initial Abyssal explorations had the highest casualty rates among human students. However, those who survived this period tended to experience remarkable growth.
“Understood.”
Bidding them farewell, Mike officially embarked on his journey into the Ninth Abyss.
He hadn’t traveled far when a figure emerged from the shadows ahead.
“Took you long enough. You’re slow as always,” Ace grumbled, his tone laced with annoyance.
He couldn’t fathom why Mike still bothered hiding his identity.
In Ace’s mind, Mike should either go public or disappear completely, pretending he was dead
and living solely as Thor in the real world. He’d even earn more respect that way.
“You wouldn’t understand,” Mike retorted, rolling his eyes. “With all the pressure you deal with daily, staying in my comfort zone helps alleviate some of that stress.”
Ace had one word for Mike’s explanation: “Boring.”
To craft his current spear, Ace had racked up a substantial debt. And his creditor was none other than Mike.
Before embarking on this mission, Mike had struck a deal with Ace. “For the duration of our stay in the Ninth Abyss, you help draw aggro, and in exchange, I’ll waive 50% of your interest
payments.”
Ace took a deep breath, his voice tight with frustration. “I swear, one of these days, I’m going to rip your head off and hand it over to the enemy.”
“Yeah, right, like you could even land a hit.” Mike remained nonchalant. Even if he didn’t lift
a finger, he had Shadow Three, his all-powerful bodyguard and personal attack dog, by his side. What was there to fear?
With their reunion over, the duo set off, following the guidance of the Eyes of Truth
southwest.
Thirty minutes later, they arrived at a hillside, 1,260 miles from the base.
Lord tier demon creatures were already present in this area.
They had to slow their pace to avoid detection and triggering a large-scale beast wave.
“Whoosh!”
Ace’s spear flashed, leaving afterimages in its wake. A rat-like demon creature let out a squeal as it was pinned to the ground, dead before it hit the ground.
“Venomous Plague Rats,” Ace explained, retrieving his spear. “The larger they are, the
stronger they are.”
Flames erupted from his hand, incinerating the demon creature’s corpse and erasing any trace
of their presence.
“There’s a horde of them five miles ahead,” Mike reported, his gaze distant. “The leader is a Lord tier, accompanied by 162 Chiefs and over 100,000 General tier rats.”
“That’s… a lot,” Ace said, frowning. “Should we go around?”
Facing that many demon creatures, even if he survived, he’d be in rough shape.
“Hold on a sec.”
Mike dashed forward with incredible speed, stopping a short distance from the unsuspecting Lord tier rat. He raised his staff, a surge of energy crackling at its tip.
“Thunderclap Strike!”
The One-Star Lord tier rat was reduced to ash before it could even register what was
happening.
Mike reappeared beside Ace just as quickly. “Alright, let’s run!”
Behind them, over 100,000 enraged demon rats swarmed towards them.
As they fled, Ace couldn’t help but activate his passive skill.
“Thor! I fucking hate you, you absolute shit!”
…
Deep within the Ninth Abyss, in the Demon Emperor’s Hall, a presence stirred upon the
highest throne as it sensed the surge of lightning.
“I can feel the raw power within that lightning… It must be Thor…”
“What is he doing in the Ninth Abyss?”
*BOOM*
*BOOM*
Outside the Demon Emperor’s Hall, a giant drum reverberated with earth-shattering force.
The sound of the timpani echoed throughout the Ninth Abyss, reaching every corner. Upon hearing it, every Nine-Star Lord tier demon creature dropped whatever they were doing
and rushed towards the Demon Emperor’s Hall.
Their god had awakened.