Chapter Ninety-Seven: The Final Quest of the Nine Suns Divine Art

Ke Bei stood motionless in the empty grand hall, alone and silent for a long time before exhaling heavily.

“I never expected the old man to be Han Lingyue’s teacher.”

Ke Bei frowned slightly, his hidden secret pierced so effortlessly by the old man’s gaze. Even knowing the elder was Han Lingyue’s teacher, a faint unease lingered in Ke Bei’s heart. An ordinary elder, seemingly at the edge of old age, possessed such terrifying power! Ke Bei could not calm himself. Glancing at the vast, vacant hall, an inexplicable pressure surged within him, his breathing grew heavier, and without further hesitation, he lifted his weighted steps and slowly walked out.

Leaving the hall, he once again stood atop the blue stone stairs. Ke Bei let out another slow breath, gazing into the distance where ancient temples loomed, shrouded in dense white mist. He set off down the stairs.

Now, his mood was entirely different from when he had first ascended the mountain. He no longer cared to admire the intoxicating scenery. With a flowing step, his body drifted downwards, reaching the end of the blue stone steps in no time.

“The third linked quest of the Nine Suns Divine Art has begun. Within one month, destroy a zombie stronghold of the lowest rank!”

The moment Ke Bei stepped off the final stair, a clear system prompt sounded in his mind.

“The final quest for the Nine Suns Divine Art has finally arrived!”

At the prompt, Ke Bei was stunned, then excitement lit up his face.

“A lowest-rank stronghold? What does that mean?”

Ke Bei slowly closed his eyes, sinking his consciousness into the system disk deep within his mind. Upon seeing the golden ancient characters flashing on the disk, he paused, puzzled.

The sudden arrival of the final quest stirred him so much he instinctively spoke aloud. Only after his voice echoed did Ke Bei force a bitter smile and shake his head. He could have simply thought his question to the system; there was no need to speak.

“A stronghold without a Divine King is a lowest-rank stronghold.”

Just then, two people approached the blue stone staircase—a stunningly beautiful woman whose allure matched Luo Ling’s, regarded Ke Bei with curiosity. Her voice was light and graceful.

Upon hearing her, Ke Bei's eyes snapped open, his cheeks flushed with embarrassment as he looked at the man and woman before him.

Both wore silver uniforms. Ke Bei knew few in the Genius Training Camp at the Jiujiang Base, so despite their impressive presence, he did not recognize them.

“You’re quite an amusing fellow,”

The man smiled at Ke Bei’s awkward expression, then turned to speak to the beautiful woman beside him.

“Jiani, our teacher is still waiting. Let’s go.”

“Alright, I know,”

The woman named Jiani nodded gently, glanced at the shy Ke Bei, reached out her fair hand and patted the man’s head, then the two walked side by side up the stone stairs.

Ke Bei watched as their figures disappeared into the mist, shook his head with a smile, and wondered if those two would think him a fool. Standing there with eyes closed, muttering to himself, he truly looked the part.

Recalling his earlier appearance, Ke Bei gave a bitter smile and slowly headed to his dormitory.

Once inside, he shut the door tightly, entered the cultivation chamber, sat cross-legged, and closed his eyes, sinking his mind into the system disk.

There was much he didn’t understand about the final quest of the Nine Suns Divine Art—he had to clarify everything. Although the system often ignored his questions, sometimes it would offer a hint.

“What counts as destroying a stronghold?”

Ke Bei asked silently.

“Kill all the Divine Race within the stronghold. That completes the task.”

The system’s clear voice sounded in his mind.

“How many Divine Race are usually in a lowest-rank stronghold?”

Ke Bei asked again, but this time the system did not reply. He waited quietly, but there was only silence.

Ke Bei opened his eyes, sighed softly, realizing he would get no more information from the system. He frowned, stood up, and left the cultivation room, heading toward Luo Han’s dormitory.

The final quest of the Nine Suns Divine Art demanded caution—failure would mean all his efforts were wasted! The thought of failure’s punishment sent a chill through him.

Luo Han, ranked among the top ten on the Azure Dragon List and from a distinguished family, should know much about these lowest-rank strongholds. With this in mind, Ke Bei arrived at Luo Han’s door and knocked.

“Ke Bei? Is something wrong?”

Luo Han opened the door, his rugged face breaking into a smile as he asked.

“Yes, there’s something I’d like to ask, Brother Luo,” Ke Bei nodded slowly.

“Come in and talk.”

Luo Han stepped aside, letting Ke Bei enter.

“Brother Luo, do you know about lowest-rank zombie strongholds?”

Ke Bei wasted no time and asked directly.

“Lowest-rank zombie strongholds?”

Luo Han raised his brow, his tone heavy. He paused for a moment and then nodded.

“Ke Bei, do you think humanity’s strength compares to that of zombies and beasts?”

Luo Han asked gravely.

“Human strength should be roughly equal to zombies and beasts, right?”

Ke Bei was puzzled by the question. After thinking it over, he answered softly.

“Equal?”

Luo Han’s expression grew serious.

“Ke Bei, you’re mistaken. It’s not equal; the difference is enormous—vast!”

“The three major human bases together barely amount to fewer than two hundred cities. If you count carefully, humanity occupies less than one-tenth of the continent!”

“The remaining nine-tenths is almost entirely controlled by zombies and beasts!”

“The three bases, with their nearly two hundred cities, form a rough circle. Within this region, humanity holds absolute power, but as you’ve seen, even here there are wild zones, and plenty of zombies and beasts.”

“Outside this region, it’s all zombies and beasts.”

“A lowest-rank stronghold refers to the Divine Race gathering places outside this region—typically without Divine Kings. These areas are the main battlegrounds between humans and zombies or beasts.”

“Above the lowest-rank strongholds are high-rank strongholds, guarded by Divine Kings. The strongest humans have some secret agreement with the top zombies and beasts: humans won’t attack strongholds guarded by Divine Kings, and zombies and beasts won’t assault cities protected by Battle God-level warriors.”

As Luo Han spoke, Ke Bei drew a sharp breath. Humanity’s predicament was far worse than he’d imagined! If not for a few superhuman warriors, extinction would be imminent.

Overall, humanity’s strength was far inferior to that of zombies and beasts.

A mountain-like pressure crashed down upon him, Ke Bei’s heart tightened, his expression growing grim.

PS: Damn, history repeats itself—last time in the new book rankings, I was just a step away from the homepage, now it’s the same. Why does the author feel so helpless? Am I doomed to tragedy? Brothers, if you’re still reading, please log in and add a membership click, drop a recommendation. We’ve got over twenty thousand brothers—surely we can manage a few hundred clicks? Today there will be three chapters again. Brothers, requesting support!