Chapter 287: Being Deeply Annoying
Right after Jack finished the battle and crushed the projection stone, the Sage, Shol, and Dordok appeared by his side. Lets go! he said. The Sage fished out his dark sphere, and they teleported right back to the underwater cave, not needing to swim down this time as he was more familiar with the place.
Amazing! Dordok exclaimed. That deacon stood no chance!
Of course he didnt, Shol replied, filled with pride. Thats my disciple were talking about! My star disciple! How could he be stopped by a mere deacon?
Your disciple? You mean my crew member!
Jumping seventy levels to fight is no small feat, the Sage added, smiling gently. Congratulations are in order, Jack.
Thanks, everyone. I couldnt have done it without you, the man of the hour replied. He then smiled wryly. And I didnt even have time to reveal my full strength Whats the plan now? Sage?
My artifact needs three days to recharge, the Sage replied, shaking the sphere like a rattleball. It clanged. Lets hide here and wait. I bet everyone will be going crazy outside.
Alright. So, wine?
Wine, everyone agreed at once. Thanks to their feeling of triumph, they could ignore the looming threat of death for a little while. Shol grabbed one of the remaining tankardscourtesy of the Sageand raised it high. To Jack! he shouted, to which everyone else replied, To Jack!
Jack simply laughed as he cheered and smashed his cup against them. To victory, he retorted, and everyone downed their drinks.
***
Maximus smashed his fist on a table, shattering its surface and sending cutlery flying everywhere. Jack Rust! he growled. The oval stone in front of him projected a scene into the air: Jack annihilating the gyrofolk deacon. Right as the deacons head exploded, Jack laughed, said, Im coming for you! and punched at the projection stone. The projection disappeared.
A second smash of the fist. What remained of the table went flying against the wall. Everyone! Maximus roared, flying out the window. With me! He must not escape!
Of course, he was too late. Jack had already escaped.
***
Sapasun, the canine head disciple of the Warden, was out searching with his team. Not that he minded, cause flying around and chatting all day was fun, but hed had more interesting days. Suddenly, the projection stone in his pocket pulsed and glowed. He took it out, seeing a scene out of his wildest dreams.
Geoff Marshon, a deacon, was getting his ass handed to him. His head, actually, but it was a long-ass head. Well, it wasnt the head that was long-ass, it was
Sir! one of his subordinates, a late D-Grade lycan, spoke in shock. Is that Jack Rust!?
Damn right it is, Sapasun replied. As they watched Geoffs body tumble towards the ground and Jack turn to punch at the camera, the projection disappeared. Sapasun rubbed the back of his head. Damn, he said. That guy is a beast. I should have torn out his limbs instead of breaking themmaybe then he wouldnt have healed so quickly.
How did he get so strong so fast? his other subordinate asked.
No idea, Sapasun replied, but this cant be good. Do you know how many people can see this image, my dear subordinates?
Everyone? the lycan tried.
Exactly. Everyone. And news spread. I guess what Im trying to say is, if Jack Rust somehow manages to survive this and starts hunting againour proud Kingdom will become the entire galaxys laughingstock. We must find and destroy him. He clicked his tongue. I should have killed him when I had the chance. Guess I fucked up.
***
Artus Emberheart also had a projection stone. The moment it activated, he lost no time. He shot out of his private rooms and into the sky, crossing the planet at unfathomable speed. Unfortunately, even C-Grades needed time to travel. By the time he arrived at the site of battle, there was no sign of Jack Rust.
Artus snorted. His Dao perception flared out, expanding for dozens of miles in every direction, but all he sensed was beasts and trees. There was faint spatial residue at a spot mid-air, but he couldnt trace it to its destination. He couldnt even decipher the direction they teleported towards.
Damn it, he said, frowning.
The air beside him pulsed. Two figures stepped out, one man and one woman wearing clean white robes.
We lost him, he said. Scan the area for three hundred miles in every direction. When the D-Grades show up, have them fly next to the ground. I refuse to believe whatever artifact theyre using has a longer range than that.
We do not take orders from you, the man said.
But well do as you say, the woman completed his sentence. The two of them shot out in opposite directions, dragging their perception against the ground like long curtains. Artus realized their auras were nearly identical, but he didnt have time to bother with that now.
They had to find Jack Rust. If nothe could only hope that man was arrogant enough to try the same trick twice.
***
Three days passed in a blink. Nobody discovered their hidden underwater cave, though they were doubtlessly searching as hard as they possibly could.
Oh! My sphere is ready, the Sage suddenly said, breaking a long spell of silence.
Good. Jack opened his eyes. Should we head out again?
Let me check. The Sage closed his eyes, sinking into what looked suspiciously like sleep. Jack also slipped into meditation. Though he was in a terrible hurry, these three months of isolation had taught him patience. He could now go fast without rushingan excellent life skill.
A few minutes later, the Sage spoke again. I have good news and bad news, he said. Which do you want to hear first?
The good ones.
The B-Grade hasnt returned. She just told the Kingdom that if Jack isnt captured, they will pay greatly. I trust the C-Grades will also be hunting us now.
Great, Jack said. Was that supposed to be the good news?
It was. If the B-Grade was present, I couldnt evade her perception. Now, at least we have a chance.
Jack grumbled. And the bad news?
They arent going to let us pick them off anymore. The D-Grades are still searching for us, but theyre now working in teams of nine. Each team consists of three deacons and three mid or late D-Grades.
Shol, who was meditating close-by, also opened his eyes. I dont see the problem, he said. Well just join in. They cant handle the four of us.
The more people fighting, the more things that can go wrong, the Sage reminded him. Plus, battles will take longer, so the chances of a C-Grade arriving are greater now.
Not if we kill them fast enough.
Do we have a choice? Jack asked. Were trapped in a planet full of hostile immortals, without allies, reinforcements, or an actionable escape plan. Lets just go out there and punch people until theres nothing left.
Damn right! Dordok exclaimed from deeper in the cave, hoisting his steel greatclub. Lets give them hell.
Jack laughed. He then said, I was wondering, how does everyone outside Earth know about hell? I thought it was a religious thing.
Oh, religion exists alright, Shol said, standing up. Its just gods that dont.
Jack and the Sage exchanged a glance. Jack stood, too. Lets go, he said. Sage, find us the best victims.
This is the planet right now, the Sage said. Spreading his arms, he conjured an illusory image of the planet, like a transparent globe. Continents were green and oceans were blue, while red and black dots crawled along the surface. Each dot was surrounded by a faint circle of the same color.
Red dots are teams of D-Grades, black dots are C-Grades, the Sage explained. As you can see, the C-Grades arent actively searching, but theyre spread around for maximum coverage. No matter where on the planet we appear, a C-Grade can arrive within five minutes at the most.
Hmm. Jack leaned over the globe. Those are many black dots.
Theyre going all-out. The projection stones the inner disciples are carrying transmit their location, but they also project their battle across the planetand all it takes is one loose mouth for the news to spread farther. For the Animal Kingdom, this has gone on for far too long. Every immortal we kill is a slap to their face.
So we should keep doing it, Jack replied.
Not like we have a choice.
How can you do this? Shol asked, inspecting the globe carefully. Youre just a D-Grade, but youre monitoring an entire planet?
Its a combination of my specialized divination skills and the Churchs information network, the Sage explained. And, still, this map is only an approximation. It is not accurate. There could be any number of life-threatening mistakes.
Shol pursed his lips. Lovely.
Best we can do, brother. Dordok draped an arm over Shols shoulder. Look at the bright side; your death is nothing compared to the headache youre causing for these animals.
True. This is the greatest service Ive ever rendered to the Exploding Sun, Shol agreed. I dont fear death. Its just that I want Jack to survive. After seeing him grow at such unprecedented speed, Im really looking forward to the heights he will reach. Given a few decades, even the Animal Kingdom will need to take him seriously.
Hmm. Dordok smiled proudly. I share the feeling.
Theyre already taking him seriously, the Sage added. All of us. We may be pests to them, but were the annoying, persistent kind. Even the Grand Elder must be gnashing his teeth about us.
Jack laughed. I wouldnt have it any other way. Sage, of all these red dots on your map, which is the most opportune target? We can wait a little bit if it increases our survival chances.
Not too much though, Shol said. Your duel with Li Qian is supposed to happen in less than a month. We have to find a way back by then.
How about these ones? the Sage said. A new image appeared above the globe, magnifying one of the red dots close to their location into nine immortals flying in a loose formation, led by two sharkens and a feshkur.
I dont recognize any of them, Shol said. They cant be too strong.
Then, theyre perfect. Lets take them, Jack affirmed, shooting to his feet. Lead the way, Sage. Were right behind you. You have the map, so we can avoid all other search parties on the way there. He grinned. Lets cut loose a little.
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