Chapter 1108: The Last Checkpoint
Lin Huang had no idea exactly how many checkpoints there were on the Stairway Tree before reading the notification about the last checkpoint challenge that the Stairway Tree system sent.
After all, throughout the centuries, the highest checkpoint on the Stairway Tree anyone had ever arrived on was the 72nd checkpoint.
However, now he knew that there were only a total of 81 checkpoints on the Stairway Tree and he had arrived at the last one now.
Although it had been two days since he last slept, Lin Huang accepted the assessment without hesitation.
Upon agreeing to the assessment, both of Lin Huang's God Figurine's Combat Souls and Bloody in his sleeve retreated into his body. Then, he shifted and appeared in the ruins.
He looked around to see building remnants everywhere. The land that he was standing on seemed to have been a bustling city back then. However, it was now a ruin where traces of war were left behind.
After taking a simple observation of his surroundings, Lin Huang summoned Bloody and Lancelot immediately.
"Lancelot, use your Territory skill to check if there're any living things around. Bloody, release your Leech Pods after confirming with Lancelot and construct a preliminary map."
Lancelot checked through the area with his Territory skill merely a moment later. "There's no living thing within my territory range. Not only are there no humans, but there aren't even any monsters around."
Just when Bloody was going to release its Leech Pods after hearing that, a crack appeared in the sky all of a sudden.
The human and the two imperial monsters lifted their heads to gaze up immediately.
"Is the Virtual Eye opening again? Is it the same trick as before?" Lin Huang was rather surprised.
However, a second, a third, and a fourth crack appeared in the sky just when he said that.
There were cracks almost everywhere in the sky. He was astounded to see at least hundreds of them. Furthermore, the cracks were expanding at an alarming rate that could be seen with the naked eye.
This reminded Lin Huang of the story when the gravel world was attacked 800 years ago. It was said that 3,000 Virtual Eyes opened all over the world when the gravel world was attacked back then.
Although that was way more than the number of Virtual Eyes he was looking at right now, the density of it then definitely could not compare with what was in front of his eyes.
"Alright then. I admit that I was wrong. This is a new set of tricks." Lin Huang felt like he had just received a resounding slap on his face having thought that this checkpoint was the same as the previous 80.
In the air, the cracks were expanding into the Virtual Eyes one after another at a speed that could be seen with the naked eye. They looked like hundreds of pupils of all colors and forms in the sky, staring at Lin Huang who was as tiny as an ant.
Lin Huang dared not be reckless this time. He recalled Lancelot and got Bloody to hide in his sleeve. He then summoned all ten of his God Figurine's Combat Souls, including the Destructive Divine Mammoth, the Ninetails Lynx, the Nightmare Tapir and the Divine Sun Tree that had elevated to virtual god-level.
A mission notification popped up on his Emperor's Heart Ring just when he summoned his God Figurine's Combat Souls.
"The 81st trial of the Stairway Tree has officially begun!
"Trial Mission: Survive.
"Mission Requirement: Survive the 24-hour monster horde.
"Remarks: The mission will be deemed to have failed if you die within the 24-hour monster horde!"
At the same time when Lin Huang finished reading the notification, a deep voice shook the entire sky. "The trial has begun!"
Gigantic bug monsters began flying out of the Virtual Eyes that looked like pupils in the air. The bugs looked like airships.
The bug monsters were over 10,000 meters in length but they came in all forms.
Some of them looked like enormous whales that had been enlarged by a thousand times with thick bio-armors covering them. Others seemed like deep-sea jellyfish that had been enlarged by 10,000 times with countless tentacles that looked like strands of hair, making it chilling to look at. Some had turtle-like shells that looked indestructible.
Those gigantic monsters exuded terrifying perfect-stage demigod-level aura, and there were over 300 of them in his field of vision.
Nonetheless, he found it weird that those huge monsters did not attack him directly. They just hovered in place after getting out of the Virtual Eyes and did not come any closer.
Just when Lin Huang thought it was strange, a sea of bug monsters streamed out of the gigantic monsters one after another. There were so many of them that they covered the entire sky.
"Sh*t! Are those Bug Tribe battleships?!" Lin Huang reacted right away and ordered immediately, "Fight!"
All of his ten God Figurine's Combat Souls joined the battlefield as soon as he issued the command.
The Divine Sun Tree went through a major change after elevating to virtual god-level combat strength. Initially, it was merely a little sapling that was approximately a meter tall. Now, it had transformed into a ten-meter-tall tree with lush leaves.
It stretched his branches one after another. Everywhere the branches passed would turn into a sea of fire. The hundreds of gigantic bug monsters that resembled airships were burned and turned into ashes immediately.
The Destructive Divine Mammoth also had a change in its form after elevating to virtual god-level. Its black armor was thicker now while there was even armor growing on its trunk. At ten meters tall, it lost all of its cuteness it had before this.
It charged into the monsters and clashed with them all the way. Wherever its metal legs passed, it crushed all of the monsters into mush.
Since the Ninetails Lynx elevated to virtual god-level, it grew from a little white cat which was the size of a palm to a little white cheetah with slender limbs and a body just slightly longer than a meter.
It was fearless as it stood among the monsters. All of the monsters were sliced into pieces wherever it sprinted.
The Nightmare Tapir that had elevated to god-level, on the other hand, did not experience many changes. Only the patterns on its body changed. It lifted his trunk and released soundless wave energy. The invisible wave spread out intensely at a speed that was 1,000 times faster than the speed of sound. All of the monsters were dragged into dreamland as the wave enveloped them. They fell into a deep sleep within a few seconds.
Those monsters that had yet to elevate to god-level were no less powerful.
All the monsters turned into ashes whenever the Death Butterfly flapped its wings.
Whenever the Withered Flower shook in the wind and spread its fragrance, the monsters grew old and turned into skeletons.
A gush of chillness spread out whenever the Enchanted Fairy waved her sleeve, and countless bug monsters transformed into ice sculptures.
The Creation Clock slowed down its second hand. Many of the monsters seemed like they had fallen into a swamp, whereby their movements were a hundred times slower now.
The Life Power in the monsters' bodies would stop working whenever the Shackle Serpent's eyes lit up, and they would fall from the sky.
The Undead Styx smothered the sea of monster carcasses with its body. Then, the monster carcasses stood up again with their eyes pitch-black.
The tens of thousands of terrifying monsters in the horde were blocked by the ten God Figurine's Combat Souls forcefully. The battle was one-sided, and almost none of the monsters survived for more than half a minute.