SWNOVELXO Chapter 361 Promotion Task: Delicate Balance!
Chen Lun sat down joyfully on the wooden chair, browsing through the complete Supernatural Knowledge in his hands.
A moment later.
A prompt popped up—
[Detected "Destiny Faction Sequence Five - Juggler" Supernatural Knowledge (Complete)!]
[You have completed the prerequisites for promotion, do you wish to initiate the Promotion Task?]
"Yes."
Chen Lun gave a firm reply.
[Promotion Task Triggered: Delicate Balance!]
Task description: After enduring a lengthy period of training, you have temporarily reached a bottleneck on the Path of Destiny, and you attempt to transcend it to grasp stronger power. Simultaneously, you have realized that blind extremism is undesirable; only balance can lead to sublimation.
The stage of Destiny is unpredictable.
To tame, observe, deceive, and hide, incorporating the performance of a juggler into one, marks the master performer.
The master performer, with ease and self-balance, manipulates enemies and ultimately controls the situation.
Task requirements: Engage with at least two hostile targets simultaneously, maintain combat status for ten minutes, and ensure no casualties occur by the end. (Note: The combat power of hostile targets should not be lower than your own Sequence.)
'Finally, a somewhat normal Promotion Task…'
As Chen Lun read the description on the panel, he couldn't help but feel a bit sentimental.
The previous Promotion Tasks for "Magician" and "Aerial Acrobat" had been somewhat vague and very challenging, but this time was completely different. It clearly informed him of the requirements and the difficulty was not high.
It might even be said to be overly simple.
'But that's just for me personally... for a general Destiny Path Sequence Six Transcendent, it would actually be quite difficult.'
Having realized this point, he shook his head slightly.
Engaging with two or more enemies of Sequence Six is a challenging task in itself, yet the task also demands that the combat lasts ten minutes, one cannot win nor lose, and no one should get injured.
This does not just test one's Combat Power level, but the strategic control of the situation, and manipulation of both oneself and the opponents.
It requires restraining one's own urge to attack and simultaneously defending against the enemy's strikes, whether by controlling or dodging, as well as seizing opportunities to interrupt the enemy's actions to maintain balance in the combat.
Even if an opponent gets injured or attempts self-harm, it would lead to the failure of the Promotion Task; one must administer timely treatment to the enemies to meet the requirements.
'These are nothing to me...'
Chen Lun put away the manuscript and parchment, his face wearing a slight smile.
'I might as well use this opportunity to hunt down the remnants of the Rothfuss Family and knock out the Promotion Task along the way... Finding two Sequence Six Transcendents should be easy.'
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Chen Lun chose not to continue exploring the Crystal Mountain Range.
By killing the Lost Souls of Mage Ernie, he roughly figured out a pattern.
The entire mountain range has dozens of peaks, each probably inhabited by the Lost Soul of a mage. Perhaps they belong to the three major Schools, but using Mage Ernie's power as a benchmark, all of these mage souls could be considered elite monsters...
With their respective "statues" serving as amplifiers, their power in this type of terrain battle surpasses a typical Sequence Five and could even, for a short duration, go toe-to-toe with an Incarnation of the Saint.
Although Chen Lun was unafraid, killing them promptly would require him to enter the "Pale Knight" mode. Frequent overloading would cause significant side effects and consumption.
The most important reason, however, was the hidden threat in the Crystal Mountain Range—
The deranged Wall-Paintings God Clarence.
The faint warning premonition coming through his Spiritual Intuition was mostly from this Magic Angel.
Chen Lun did not yet know his location nor the extent of his influence over the Crystal Mountain Range, so he planned to finish his current tasks first and explore after the Promotion.
That would be safer.
Upon returning to the present world.
He began to divine the location of the Rothfuss Family remnants.
Inside the Generous Council, he was not familiar with the other three competitors and did not want to waste energy investigating... After all, this Preparation for Governing Officer Assessment was essentially a step set up by the Speaker just for him.
But the intrusion of four unfamiliar Governing Officers from the Senate had complicated the process.
Chen Lun felt that with his power, there was absolutely no need to resort to excessive schemes; he just needed to find the hiding place of the Rothfuss Family remnants, then directly descend upon them and obliterate them all in the most straightforward manner possible.
This method was the simplest, most direct, and most efficient.
It would leave no time for the other three Golden Cup legislators to react as he would complete the assessment himself.
It's good for me, good for you, good for everyone.
It also avoided conflicts and contradictions among members of the same camp.
Chen Lun was moved by his own kindness.
After several attempts and cross-verifying through various divination methods, he finally pinpointed their approximate location—a small town in the Gem State region!
Chen Lun sat on the sofa in his study, flicking his finger, a painting book titled "Map of the Tresor Empire" on the shelf to his right floated up and landed in his hands.
He opened it, found the Gem State region, and gently swept his finger across the painting book.
It finally stopped at a small town called "Cyan Town."
Chen Lun smiled.
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The following morning dawned.
The residents of Huacqin Town had not yet emerged from the revelry of the New Year celebration.
Thanks to Terence of the Sun Church, the Red Calamity in Gem State was effectively contained. This place, initially suffering from the Red Calamity, had now regained its former peace.
String lights still adorned the streets and squares, adorned with flowers and ornaments, as the municipal department staff had not yet managed to clean them up. Around many snowmen, clusters of children gathered, playing and discussing their future plans.
On the busiest street, in a pub named "The Iron Pickaxe and Kerosene Lamp," sat many workers who had not yet started their shifts, drinking and resting.
The bartender wiped glasses behind the bar, responding listlessly to each shaggy man who came up for a drink, recommending the cheapest, low-quality beer for just one Copper Kro.
Then, amidst their laughter and swearing, he would turn the valve beside the wooden barrel and pour them a cup.
However, the bartender's gaze constantly roamed over to a table in the corner.
The sole reason being that in the two and half years he had worked at this bar, he had never seen such high-status individuals dressed so finely visit.
Two black-clothed gentlemen wearing top hats and a lady in a blue dress with a small tilted hat were seated in the corner, sipping on the bar's most expensive vintage wine, engaged in conversation.
Their demeanor was exceptional, and their every move exuded nobility, so much so that the surrounding workers, despite their curiosity, dared not come too close for fear of offending them and inviting trouble. Even the usual crude jokes and swear words were swallowed back.
"Gentlemen, it seems we have all received the hint from Governing Officer Ryan,"
Lady Ryan picked up her wine glass and repeatedly wiped the rim with a white handkerchief, speaking calmly.
A secretive shadow enveloped the trio, completely isolating their voices so that none in the bar could hear what they were saying.
"Yes, otherwise we wouldn't have met here,"
Mr. Gewas didn't care whether his glass was clean or not, picked it up, took a sip, and smacked his lips, pronouncing it trash.
"The hint from the Governing Officer gave us the location of the remnants of the Rothfuss family, thus giving us the upper hand... Speaker Jack is the toughest competition in this assessment; it would be best if we ally to take him down first,"
Tapiya manipulated his glass lightly as he spoke indifferently.
To his surprise, both Gewas and Ryan voiced their objections.
"Allying is fine, but there's no need to attack him,"
Lady Ryan shook her head.
"Governing Officer Randa has advised me to avoid conflict with Jack during the assessment as much as possible. His strength has already surpassed the normal implications of Sequence Five... even if we assault him together, we may not necessarily be his match,"
"Indeed, although a fellow Golden Cup member, he has twice slain incarnations of Saints... To be honest, if possible, I don't want to confront him,"
Gewas chuckled, glancing at Tapiya.
"Moreover, this is merely an internal assessment, not a murder contract like those we used to have in the club. Actually bringing a comrade to death might even lower the Senate and the Speaker's impression of us,"
He raised his glass to signal the other.
"Times have changed. We are now middle-to-senior members of the Righteous God Church. We should maintain our dignity in all matters."
Tapiya looked at them both, lifted his glass to clink with Gewas, and took a sip, saying:
"I think you misunderstand me... I don't mean killing Jack, but rather creating some obstacles or knocking him out of the game, which would be more beneficial for us to pass the assessment,"
He put down his glass and continued,
"Malek, Houston, Randa, and Mide, all four Governing Officers are from the same faction; you must have some guess as to their intentions. Whether we three can enter the Senate as future Governing Officers is secondary, the primary goal is to prevent Jack from succeeding,"
Gewas and Ryan fell silent for a few seconds.
"Yes, Senator Tapiya, you are right... Jack stands with the other five Governing Officers, naturally he will face our opposition,"
Ryan spoke softly.
"But how shall we knock him out of the game? The content of this assessment isn't simple; dealing with the Rothfuss family's mob is manageable, but among them are two damaged Saint incarnations, not something we can easily defeat,"
Tapiya smiled, pausing to ponder.
"Originally, I planned to use the Red Apple Church's vendetta against Jack to bring in an external enemy to deal with him... but unexpectedly, the Red Calamity in Huacqin Town and the surrounding cities has already been cleansed by the Sun Church. That Mr. Terence, with his miraculous creation 'Daytime Obelisk,' has covered the entire Gem State with incarnations. It's truly astonishing,"
He raised his head, looking slowly at the two,
"However, because of this, we now have some room to maneuver... Don't forget, one of the Saint incarnations that Jack slew was from Terence. We could simply reveal Jack's information to attract that incarnation,"
Tapiya poured wine for himself and the others.
"At that time, not only will Jack be occupied, but the remnants of the Rothfuss family will also be indiscriminately targeted... After all, as losers in the seat contest, they have lost their utility, and their past misconduct is sufficient to provoke Mr. Terence's intervention.
The content of this assessment requires us to eliminate the remnants of the Rothfuss family. The process is not important... The outcome is. We could take advantage of the chaos to kill and gather enough merits. Each to his own skill in the end, and it still depends on how the Senate's Governing Officers judge who passes,"
Gewas and Ryan, after hearing his words, looked thoughtful.
This member of their own faction, the Golden Cup member, was somewhat unexpected, especially skilled at plotting.
And what he proposed made sense, with not a low chance of success.
Ultimately, this assessment was also an opportunity given to them by their respective Governing Officer superiors. No one would refuse the chance to enter the Senate.
They each raised their glasses, clinking them gently.
"Ding!"
"I agree with your plan, Senator Tapiya,"
"So do I,"
Tapiya looked at the two provisional allies, smiling slightly.
"Then, here's to our success."