Apocalypse I Have One More Keyword Than Others
Chapter 352 - - 350 There’s not much time left for Duge_1
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Duge had settled Xiang Li in Linjiang and Ge Zong in Jiangbei, while his Earth Wisdom Army, together with Huangfu Yue, returned to Linyang City.
It was quite irresponsible to entrust two cities to two abnormal managers, but at this time, what Duge needed was the rapid growth of his subordinates, and there was no room to worry about much else.
Only by facilitating rapid growth among those around him could he help Luo Shuang sweep through the world at the fastest speed, clearing out the uncontrolled Alien Warriors, and ensuring that the people could truly live and work in peace and contentment.
After all, it was the Alien Warriors who were the greatest scourge; not everyone had a conscience like his.
Moreover, Lin Qing’s army of 300,000 would be able to head to Linyang in at the most half a month, leaving Duge with little time.
In half a month’s time, Xiang Li and Ge Zong wouldn’t have turned the population of the two cities into abnormals.
…
On the way back.
The State Preceptor, whose indestructible body was easily overcome by a Divine Skill that a Heavenly Demon had casually comprehended after twenty to thirty years of cultivation, wore a complicated expression.
Looking at Duge, he hesitated before asking, “Imperial Master, do all of you awaken to similar Divine Skills?”
Duge glanced at him, “Yes.”
“What is your Divine Skill?” the State Preceptor asked again.
Huangfu Yue also looked on curiously.
Duge turned back and glanced at them, saying, “I haven’t awakened any Divine Skills. The conditions for skill awakening are extremely stringent, and one must do something that aligns with one’s own attributes and that makes a profound impression on the world. I have not yet met the conditions…”
Inciting the disheartened princess to rebel, taking Yutang Pass, creating the culture of constellations, Sky Gang Land Killing, and single-handedly capturing Cao Lin…
In just one month, he had become famous throughout the world. What Heavenly Demon could achieve what you have?
The State Preceptor’s mind flashed through all the things Duge had done and snorted in his heart, No awakened skills, who would believe that?
Your skills must be too unspeakable, right?
Huangfu Yue asked, “Imperial Master, your attribute is torment, isn’t it?”
“Correct,” Duge nodded, “My attribute is torment, but I can’t bear to torment more people, so I haven’t been able to awaken any advanced skills yet.
When fighting Cao Lin, I had the opportunity to awaken a skill, but I pitied Cao Lin for his lifetime of wisdom and ultimately couldn’t bear to excessively torment him in front of both armies. But this was a good thing, as I had won over a great general for the princess. That’s far more useful to the world than me awakening a torment-related Divine Skill.”
That’s not excessive?
The State Preceptor commented to himself internally.
But he quickly became stunned. As a master of the Way of Nature, he could clearly sense the movement of water currents and knew what was happening beneath the surface.
But the forces on the bank didn’t know. At most, they saw Cao Lin stripped of his clothing, which hardly counted as torment on the battlefield; it was more of a humiliation…
Duge truly did show restraint!
Could it be that his attribute was really torment?
Huangfu Yue’s face flushed, she believed Duge’s words immediately. At Yutang Pass, the Imperial Master’s torment of her had been very subtle, with no one but her knowing about it.
That kind of covert torment wouldn’t awaken any skills, and compared to Xiang Li and Ge Zong, the Imperial Master truly was a kind person!
After a moment of silence, the State Preceptor changed the subject, “Imperial Master, aren’t you worried about nurturing a threat?”
Duge smiled, “Treat others with sincerity, and there is no need to worry about their betrayal.”
By giving Xiang Li and Ge Zong a city each, he had essentially granted them significant power and the opportunity to quickly enhance their attributes.
Power breeds ambition, and the State Preceptor’s concerns were not unreasonable.
But Duge wasn’t so petty as to suppress them simply for fear of being bitten in return.
He believed in his own personal charm.
Moreover, the grand situation was already set; by following him, they could still benefit. Should they betray him, he could just obliterate their native stars in minutes, turning them into experience treasures.
In the end, both of their skills had flaws, and as long as he grew faster than they did, they would never have the chance to bite back.
However.
Their two skills were both offensive, and it would be false to say he was not envious…
But Duge had no clue how to grind out a second keyword skill.
He had already done more than enough, but the second skill seemed to be stuck in difficult labor, impossible to grind out. The damned Pan-Universe Entertainment set the skill acquisition rate too low.
Huangfu Yue sighed, her face filled with worry as she said, “Imperial Master, will there be no place for us ordinary warriors in the future?”
“How could that be?” Duge turned to look at her, encouragingly smiling, “When Ge Zong used his skill, wasn’t it you who broke it? The skills of Heavenly Demons are indeed powerful, but as long as you find the weak points, they’re quite easy to counter.”
As the image of herself desperately sticking out her tongue to lick her nose flashed through her mind, Huangfu Yue’s face flushed red once more, “It’s easy to counter Ge Zong’s Divine Skills, but what about Xiang Li?”
“It’s also easy to break through, just be more twisted than her,” Duge said.
“…” Huangfu Yue.
Duge smiled, “General Huangfu, the best way to defeat the Heavenly Demon is to make yourself stronger. As long as you become a Grandmaster, even if you encounter a Heavenly Demon with Divine Skills, if you can’t beat them, you’ll still have a way to escape. Identify their skill weaknesses, and perhaps next time you’ll be able to kill them in one strike.”
Huangfu Yue pondered, “Grandmaster, huh?”
“Yes, Grandmaster,” Duge looked at her and said, “In Linyang City, I observed that your spear intent has been evolving towards something tricky. With the luck you’ve had these days, if you persist, you’ll definitely be able to advance to the Grandmaster Realm.”
Huangfu Yue sneakily glanced at Duge, her face reddening once again.
The spear technique of the Huangfu Family is a straightforward battle spear, but in recent days, every time she practiced her spear, the scenes from Yutang Pass and Duge’s battle with Cao Lin would involuntarily appear in her mind, lingering and causing her spear technique to become unpredictable without her realizing it, and she was unable to return to her old ways.
As a woman, after becoming a Grandmaster and targeting an opponent’s lower body with every thrust, Huangfu Yue felt too ashamed to face anyone every time she thought about it.
But on second thought, she would inevitably have to fight against the Heavenly Demon in the future, and without reaching the Grandmaster Realm, she might never have her day. Thus, Huangfu Yue nodded seriously and assured Duge, “Imperial Master, I will try my best.”
“You must try your best, not just will,” Duge said sternly, “General Huangfu, you have seen the character of Xiang Li and Ge Zong. We can use them to conquer the world, but we’ll certainly not use them to govern it. Once they rebel, it’ll be up to you to quell the rebellion. Without the Grandmaster Realm, if you encounter them on the battlefield, are you going to just surrender?”
He paused, “Last time, Cao Lin was defeated. Lin Qing must be preparing thoroughly this time. I think there will definitely be Heavenly Demons in Lin Qing’s army who, like Xiang Li and Ge Zong, have awakened to Divine Skills.
Once they appear on the battlefield, I’m afraid only those in the Grandmaster Realm will be able to contend with them! State Preceptor, General Huangfu, we have too few people we can rely on. What we are facing next is likely a tough battle…”
…
Duge’s concerns were not unfounded.
There are no secrets that time does not reveal.
The performance of Xiang Li and Ge Zong from Earth Tease Star on the battlefield spread, causing a crisis among all the surviving Alien Warriors.
First, using the name of ‘Sky Gang Land Killing,’ they gathered those from their own planets, and then in their own territories, they trained their abilities, honing their advanced skills.
Once Duge’s subordinates had gathered more than ten Alien Warriors and found two or three skill sets that worked well together, they would almost be able to sweep across the world.
Compared to the skills of Alien Warriors, armies are just numbers, with little impact on the battlefield.
…
The first to respond was Pei Maer, the Right Prime Minister of Chongming Country. He issued an emergency summons, explaining the gravity of the situation and expanded the scale of calling for companions.
But Chongming Country, after having been purged by Shi Pingchuan, could not attract more Alien Warriors for the time being.
After all.
Duge, who was so close to the border, had only attracted three companions in so many days.
However, Pei Maer wasn’t just waiting for others to join him. He immediately sent the three Alien Warriors who had joined him to Lin Qing’s army.
He instructed them to train their attributes at all costs, to awaken their respective Divine Skills.
Moreover, Pei Maer promised Lin Qing that he would continue to send more Alien Warriors to confront Duge.
The first three Alien Warriors sent by Pei Maer to Lin Qing’s army were one called Yu Zhang, keyword sleazy; one called Shen Yu, keyword precision; and an old woman in her sixties named Ren Shaorong, whose keyword was beauty.
The keywords of these three people didn’t actually fit the battlefield, but with the precedent set by Xiang Li and Ge Zong, Pei Maer couldn’t afford to be choosy and let them grow wildly on their own.
Lin Qing also had news from the frontlines.
He was greatly troubled by the Earth Tease Army and Earth Alien Army and did not know how to deal with them.
The three Alien Warriors sent by Pei Maer were a timely relief for him.
He didn’t dare to be negligent. On the very day the three arrived, he allocated 5,000 elite soldiers to each of them to refine their keywords.
…
Compared with the active Pei Maer, who was gradually gaining the trust of Emperor Chongming, Shi Pingchuan was keeping a much lower profile.
Realizing he couldn’t compete with Duge for people, he focused more on improving attributes.
He found a new partner—Fourth Prince Gu Shiming.
The background of Gu Shiming was leaked to Emperor Chongming by the State Preceptor.
These days, his life was not going well, even his most capable assistant Pei Maer had turned to Emperor Chongming.
Shi Pingchuan’s initiative to ally with him was exactly to his liking.
A Prime Minister and a Prince made for an awkward alliance, quickly consolidating their own forces in the corridors of Chongming Country’s government, beginning to plot for the throne amidst the chaos.
Shi Pingchuan’s struggle did indeed bring him considerable improvement.
But oddly enough, within a few days, not only did he fail to retain his second-place ranking, but he was also surpassed by Pei Maer, falling to third place.
The decline in ranking sent Shi Pingchuan into panic, and he had to consider a new issue: what exactly was Pei Maer’s keyword?
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