harleyscars Chapter 414 The True Path of Legends: The Simple Expedition Against Calamity!
Chapter 414 The True Path of Legends: The Simple Expedition Against Calamity!
Chapter 414 The True Path of Legends: The Simple Expedition Against Calamity! (14/36)
three days later.
In a corner of the southern district 1 of the Padiya region, by the sea.
"This must be the place, the Shrine of Rotten Wood—"
Riding Milerton, Qingyu dismounted, took out his phone from his pocket, opened the detailed map sent by Yeci, gestured with his finger in the lower right corner for a while, and occasionally observed the surrounding scenery before finally confirming that he had found the right location.
"Speaking of which, not only the location of the ancestral hall, but even those few stakes are much more eerie than the hidden locations in the game. No wonder we're not worried about students accidentally wandering in."
When building the ancestral hall and determining the anchor point, the ancient tamer must have considered that it should not be easily discovered by ordinary people, which is why the location is so remote.
However, looking back on the cleanup work she had done along the way, Qingyu suddenly felt a bit of admiration for these energetic students.
To be able to find most of them, how bored do you have to be to run around in this desolate wilderness? Even if you wander around a few times, you won't spawn rare Pokémon like in a game!
Following the map's directions, Qingyu quickly climbed a small hill and discovered the inconspicuous Shrine of Rotten Wood near a ravine not far below.
On the green circular seal, several unidentified light purple lines faintly emitted a glow, and hanging outside was a chain emitting black smoke. Even from a distance, it was clear that something extraordinary was hidden inside.
There should have been four chains securing it, but after Qingyu removed seven stakes along the way, the outer seal became shaky and almost ineffective.
If you listen carefully, you can even hear a faint roar coming from inside.
"The last one, it seems, is not far away?"
Qingyu glanced around, confirmed the direction, looked back at Millerton, and pointed to a hillside.
"Please, Milton~"
"Kah!"
Seemingly dissatisfied with his assigned work, Millardon let out an unhappy sigh.
However, its body moved quite honestly, and in a few moments it climbed up to the spot Qingyu pointed to, and kicked the last anchor post away with its foot.
Watching Millerton gradually become more energetic and his physical functions return to their peak, Qingyu suddenly felt a sense of relief, as if "the child has finally grown up."
As Milton moved, Qingyu soon heard a few crisp "crack" sounds behind him. When he looked back, the last chain wrapped around the seal had broken and disappeared.
With the chains that had blocked his way out gone, he could even sense a subtle aura emanating from the ancestral hall, as if inviting him inside.
"The treasure of calamity—no, it should be called the ancient snail."
Qingyu muttered to herself, quickly anticipating the battle that was likely to take place next.
Besides defeating and subduing them, it is even more important that you also completely purify them.
Before touching the seal, Qingyu recalled the system screen that suddenly "came back to life" in front of him three days ago after he hung up the phone with Yeci.
[Hidden quest triggered - The True Legendary Path]
As a gym leader, battling the treasure master is not difficult for you; however, during the battle, you gradually realize one thing—
If there's only the owner of the treasure, how can it possibly live up to the name of a legend?
[By chance, you come across a centuries-old legend in Parthia about a treasure of calamity, and your curiosity is piqued.]
[These four treasures from the mysterious East—a tripod, a sword, a bamboo slip, and jade—feel strangely familiar.]
Perhaps only by achieving feats that no one has accomplished in a thousand years can it truly be called the "Road of Legends."
With this in mind, you quickly make a decision—
[Mission: Defeat and purify the four Cursed Treasures to reveal the true nature of the mysterious artifacts from the East.]
(Current progress 0/4)
[Note: This task requires the delivery of a special item.]
[Reward: 1 designated item (4 times total), "The Guide to Becoming a Home Cook: Easily Learn 100 Home-Style Dishes!"]
Qingyu wasn't particularly surprised that the system, which hadn't been around for a long time, had suddenly come back to life. He was just amazed that there were still hidden achievements that hadn't been put on the table yet.
After all, the system is only temporarily unusable; it's not dead. It will naturally reappear when it needs to be used again.
—I think so?
Since the goal aligns with my expectations, it wouldn't be a bad idea to complete this special mission as well.
If I can complete the mission, with this reliable cooking recipe from the system, I might even be able to reclaim half the kitchen from the caretaker!
O hearth fire, I have returned!
I'm so tired of Western food, it's time to let my Pokémon have some delicious, wok-fried food!
Looking forward to the future, with everyone praising her rapidly improving culinary skills, Qingyu was filled with confidence.
Of course, that's what they say.
Actually, he still hadn't figured out what the special props he needed were.
We can only take it one step at a time.
Qingyu took a deep breath, and after bringing Milton back into the ball, he immediately reached out and touched the outer seal of the Shrine of Decaying Wood.
According to Ye Ci, this step is the real difficulty in accessing the treasure of calamity.
If one is not a person with a pure and flawless heart, one will be overwhelmed by a large amount of negative emotions the moment the seal is touched, and will subconsciously let go.
Once this one and only opportunity is wasted, there will be no chance to enter again.
but----
When Qingyu closed her eyes and touched the cold seal, only one thought arose in her mind:
To be honest, with Gu Jianwo's trash attributes, can you even play without paying Taijing?
Even he was startled by his own subconscious thought.
The next moment, his body felt an incredibly powerful attraction.
When I opened my eyes again, I was already inside the ancestral hall.
The vast, empty space was dimly lit, and the ground was covered with withered, decaying leaves. In the distance, a strange snail-like creature, about 1.5 meters long and made entirely of withered leaves and blackened wooden blocks, was silently watching him.
Qingyu subconsciously met the other's gaze and immediately felt its pure malice.
Along with it came decay and resentment that quickly spread through the air.
Although this is the first time I've seen it in real life, it's definitely not wrong.
The creature before me is none other than the Calamity Pokémon named Ancient Snail, one of the four great calamities that caused the destruction of the Padia Kingdom a thousand years ago!
(Ancient Simplified Snail)
Qingyu narrowed her eyes slightly, instinctively becoming alert.
It's best to be as cautious as possible when battling legendary Pokémon unless absolutely necessary.
Moreover, based on existing intelligence, it is speculated that—
The body made of wooden slips and withered leaves in front of me is merely a collection of thoughts formed by the treasure of calamity after absorbing desires for a long time. Therefore, even if I defeat it temporarily, it will not be of much use.
So from the very beginning, what I need to do is find out its true form as soon as possible and find a way to purify it!
Following the previously established battle strategy, Qingyu immediately pulled the trigger.
"Anyway, good luck, Sylveon!"
The four calamities are all very troublesome creatures. They possess incredibly powerful characteristics, similar to auras, and can indiscriminately affect other creatures around them.
As for the "Calamity Simplified" characteristic corresponding to the Ancient Simplified Snail, its effect is to reduce the attack power of all creatures on the field except itself.
Unsure whether close contact with the opponent would lead to any unforeseen circumstances, Qingyu decided to be on the safe side and first send out Sylveon to negotiate with the opponent.
"Buyi————"
When Sylveon appeared, it was immediately startled by the almost materialized hatred around it, so much so that its voice began to tremble.
How terrifying! This opponent is truly terrifying!
However, even though she was afraid, Sylveon did not take a step back. Instead, she arched her back and nervously watched the giant snail in the distance.
Because the opponent is so strong, it is all the more important to protect the trainer!
We must not let our trainers down!
On the other side, the ancient snare, formed from pure malice, was also staring at the human in front of it and the pink beast blocking its way with its orange-green eyes that looked like tentacles on the sides of its head.
Soon, an invisible wave surged outward from the ground, centered on it, instantly stirring up countless fallen leaves on the ground to scatter in the wind, while the ancient wooden slips on the back of the snail gradually emitted an eerie green light.
Under the influence of a mysterious force, the withered leaves that were swept up by the fluctuations began to wither and decay rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye, and eventually turned into ashes and disappeared.
"Sylveon, Protect!"
Even though Qingyu had prepared in advance, he couldn't help but be surprised when he witnessed the destructive power of this move.
However, he immediately realized what was happening and quickly commanded Sylveon to block the opponent's invisible attack.
Catastrophe is a unique move that all four Calamity Pokémon can learn. In the game, it reduces the opponent's HP by half, similar to Angry Fang.
In actual combat, the manifestations of major disasters are certainly far more extensive than this.
When the ancient shrew uses this move, the life force of all living things around it will dissipate at a terrifying speed.
As for the Padiya capital a thousand years ago, it might have been destroyed by the "Great Catastrophe" unleashed by the combined attacks of the four great calamities.
"Bu-bu-ee!"
Sylveon immediately erected a transparent barrier, blocking the indiscriminate attack from the Ancient Snail.
At the same time, Qingyu, who was holding the Poké Ball behind it, also glanced behind him out of the corner of his eye.
The seal, emitting a faint glow, was about ten meters away.
If we can't win, we should be able to escape the incredibly dangerous Shrine of Decay safely by using a Poké Ball to recall Sylveon and avoid damage.
Now that we've found a way out, let's try to see if we can cause any damage to it.
"Sylveon, try attacking your opponent with Blood Moon."
Having just escaped the attack of the Ancient Snail unscathed, Sylveon had no time to be nervous or afraid. She instinctively gathered her power according to Qingyu's command.
I'll fight you to the death!
"Buee! (#`)/"
As Sylveon closed its eyes, a strange pink energy suddenly began to emerge from the previously dark shrine, which was filled with hatred, and rapidly expanded outward from Sylveon as the center.
Inside the dark and gloomy ancestral hall, a full moon inexplicably appeared overhead and immediately began to shine its light down.
The pink aura emanating from the Blood Moon attack quickly pushed away the surrounding hatred, allowing Qingyu and Sylveon to breathe a sigh of relief.
Not far away, the ancient snail's swaying tentacles stared unblinkingly, as if trying to understand what was happening.
It wasn't until the pink moonlight descended upon its head that an invisible pressure finally made the ancient shrew feel panicked.
Its body immediately dissipated upon first collision with the moonlight, splitting into countless withered leaves and a dozen wooden slips, which fell to the ground one after another.
"Bu-i?!"
When Sylveon opened its eyes and saw its opponent's "corpse," it instinctively let out a gasp.
Huh? How did I get instantly killed by my opponent?
However, it quickly accepted the reality before it and proudly raised its chin.
That's so true to me, you're amazing!
"Be careful, the battle isn't over yet."
Just as Sylveon was praising itself in its heart and its tail was practically wagging in the air, Qingyu's calm voice suddenly came from behind.
Qingyu's attention was now entirely focused on the ground where the ancient scissor had disappeared.
From his perspective, the wooden slips on the ground gradually began to shake, and soon gathered into a ball under the influence of an invisible force.
"Bu-bu-ee?! ∑(°△°)"
Sylveon, who was originally feeling smug, was suddenly dumbfounded. A terrifying thought immediately flashed through her mind: This...this...this...this...could this guy be an unkillable monster?!
How am I supposed to fight this?!
After a gust of wind blew up the remaining dead leaves on the ground, they quickly gathered together with the wooden tablet to form the shape of the ancient snail. Tentacles extending from the roots of the dead leaves formed another pair of yellow-green eyes, which looked at Sylveon with a mocking gaze.
It's as if it's saying: That's all?
It wasn't that simple after all.
Qingyu sighed inwardly.
Ye Ci's information was completely accurate; it seems there's no way to resolve the four great calamities through combat.
But thinking about it, it makes sense. If brute force could have solved the problem, the Parthian Empire would never have chosen to use all its resources to seal them away, thus indirectly leading to the empire's decline.
What a troublesome opponent.
Of course, Sylveon's attack wasn't entirely useless.
At least Qingyu can be certain of one thing from this: the true form of the Ancient Slipper Snail must be among the bamboo slips scattered on the ground just now!
"Sylveon, attack again with the power of the moon."
Qingyu made a decision immediately.
This time, as Sylveon began to charge up and unleash its attack, the Ancient Snail in front of it made the same move.
Clearly, while Qingyu was figuring out the other party's "mechanism," Gu Jianwo was also observing their behavior and quickly came to the correct conclusion.
He could accept trading injury for injury, but this human and his Pokémon might not be so willing.
So, as Sylveon condensed a ball of fairy energy and blasted it towards the Ancient Snail, it also extracted countless purple poison powders from the withered leaves and unhesitatingly scattered them in the direction of Sylveon.
If this move hits the opponent, the rest of the time will be on your side.
The ancient snail, possessing a certain level of wisdom, thought to itself, and before being reverted to its original form by the Moon Power unleashed by Sylveon, it looked at its opponent with a mocking gaze.
However----
Its once confident gaze suddenly turned ferocious after Qingyu made his move.
What is that human doing?
In fact, Qingyu's attention had been focused on Gu Jianwo from the start of the battle, so the moment his opponent made his move, he immediately realized what move it was going to use.
He paused in his motion to throw the Poké Ball, and immediately reached into his pocket with his other hand, taking out a Peach Berry.
After making preparations, Qingyu immediately picked up Sylveon and held it protectively in his arms, while stuffing a Peach Berry into his mouth before the poison powder arrived.
Although doing this would be absolutely a foul in any official match except those between Kanto and Johto, but—
Our opponent is a legendary Pokémon that we cannot afford to underestimate; now is not the time to be frivolous!
After swallowing the peach, it immediately neutralized the poisoning effect of the poison powder that had touched the surface of her body, allowing Qingyu to breathe a sigh of relief.
Although doing this seems a bit strange, throwing a Peach Berry to Sylveon would have the same effect, but at least it gives him a greater sense of involvement.
Don't underestimate the physical abilities of humans in the Pokémon world!
Actually, he originally planned to throw out the Poké Ball he had prepared beforehand, so that the other Pokémon could use Protect to cover for Sylveon.
However, after confirming that Gu Jianwo's technique was poison powder, Qingyu immediately made a bold judgment.
It was precisely this unusual movement that gave him a brilliant opportunity to make a move.
"Now, Eden."
After turning around and confirming that the Ancient Slipper Snail had been hit by the power of the moon and had scattered withered leaves and wooden slips on the ground as before, Qingyu immediately spoke and threw out the Poké Ball in his hand.
The maidservant, who seemed to have gained weight, landed lightly, and at the same time, an invisible superpower field immediately emanated from her feet, quickly sweeping across the entire shrine ground.
"Use magic to swap the original body of the Ancient Slippery Snail!"
Qingyu immediately stretched out her hand and pointed in the direction where the ancient snail had disappeared.
From the seemingly casual changes in behavior just now, Qingyu had already discovered that the ancient sna possessed a certain degree of intelligence.
Therefore, just as planned in the previous arrangements, we must resolve the battle as soon as possible.
Otherwise, once Gu Jianwo drags him into a long tug-of-war, as the Pokémon's stamina depletes and his own trump cards are gradually revealed, Gu Jianwo will inevitably become familiar with his movements, and his chances of winning will become increasingly slim.
Therefore, Abbot can only launch one surprise attack, and once he appears, he will inevitably attract the attention of the opponent.
Of course, Qingyu's impromptu decision was somewhat of a gamble.
Because he couldn't tell which wooden slip was the original ancient snail.
But unlike herself, Esper is an extremely sensitive Pokémon, so she will definitely be able to do it!
Anyway, it doesn't matter if I fail. If I run out of opportunities, I can just run away.
"Um—"
Upon hearing Qingyu's command, Aiguan Shimei, who had just taken out a spirit seed from her pocket and was about to put it in her mouth, stopped what she was doing.
At the same time, he looked somewhat troubled at the scattered children's shoes not far away and immediately locked onto his target.
Such a strong aura of hatred—
What exactly happened to it that could produce such shockingly negative emotions?
If one's appetite were equal to that of a Kagu beast, then the concentration of hatred contained in the surrounding space would be roughly equivalent to the total volume of the entire Padiya Sea!
If things had gone according to the trainer's plan, I probably wouldn't have been able to absorb much negative emotion before getting an upset stomach.
The trainer must have realized this as well, which is why he only allowed himself to find its true form.
However, it's not difficult to do it like this.
"Mmm!"
Without hesitation, Ai Guanshi used his superpowers to lock onto a child with the strongest negative emotions and used the "Danmu" technique to remotely swap its position with the spiritual seed in his hand.
Suddenly losing the guidance of its main body, the movement of the other children gathering around it was also disrupted, and they fell back to the ground along with the withered leaves.
In the hands of Ai Guanshi's younger sister, there was also a strange bamboo slip that emitted eerie black energy and was covered with red blood characters.
The lover, who is extremely sensitive to negative emotions, would immediately have countless memories that did not belong to her flash through her mind as soon as she grasped them, and her face would turn pale instantly.
How terrifying!
Did human society really have so many dark things happen?!
Noticing the change in Aiguan's sister's expression, Qingyu immediately reached out and snatched the bamboo slip from her hand.
Qiu Ran realized that his initial idea was a bit hasty.
For the sake of the servant's health, it's best to keep it away from the treasure of disaster.
But strangely—
Why did Ai Guanshi react so strongly, but I didn't react at all when I held it in my hand?
While Qingyu was pondering, she immediately caught a glimpse of the pupa-like creatures, Erjian and Kuye, at her feet, and then looked at Aiguanshi beside her.
Still shaken, Ai Guan Shi's younger sister immediately understood and used her superpowers to unleash her ultimate move, Wide Area Combat Power, blasting all of them away.
Sylveon also waved its ribbon, continuously firing high-speed stars to clear the field.
However, despite being supposed to be extremely fragile, Jane remained unharmed after enduring a series of attacks and continued to slowly and persistently crawl towards Qingyu's direction.
After handing over the cleaning work to Sylveon and Azkaban, Qingyu's gaze gradually focused on the blood-red babe in his hand, which was emitting black smoke.
The first step is complete, but the next step seems infinitely more difficult than the previous battle against Lan.
If the negative emotions contained in Cheng Mei'er's story are not completely cleared away, it would be meaningless to remove them entirely, and might even lead to a recurrence of the tragedy from a thousand years ago.
But—how should we do it?
When it comes to purification, several Pokémon images immediately flashed through Qingyu's mind.
The "Purify" move that Cuzzarella can learn, or the "Clear Smoke" and "Clear Haze" moves that many Pokémon can learn to remove boosts?
No, no, no, it's impossible for that to work!
Aside from some similar moves, all he could think of were some rather outrageous things.
The sacred fire that only Ho-Oh and Entei are qualified to use? Being burned by the flames of a legendary Pokémon, the malice of mere humans is utterly insignificant.
Is it a sign that matches one's major or represents the Three Sacred Mushrooms, symbolizing emotions?
Shemi, who can convey gratitude after awakening?
Darkrai, who absorbs nightmares and might have a lot in common with Jane?
Could it be possible to travel back in time and allow Jane to return to a time before the contamination occurred?
There are many options, of course, but the ones Qingyu can think of all have the same commonality: they are simply impractical at the moment.
I've seen or come into contact with quite a few legendary Pokémon, but I'm not familiar with any of the ones mentioned above.
As for the one most likely to be achieved in a short time, it is possible that Qiu will find Emperor Yan as soon as possible to help him by hiding in his shadow, Masado.
But since it hasn't appeared yet, it's highly likely we won't see the Three Holy Beasts for the time being.
After thinking it over, Qingyu seemed to have no other choice.
However, just as he was focusing on his thoughts and staring at the children's book in his hand—
Suddenly, a line of small print flashed before my eyes.
【Chaos Pokémon (???): A treasure passed down through generations in the East, it transformed into a Pokémon born with malice after being exposed to too much negative emotion from humans.】
Can the Chengwan system recognize even the smallest details?
Qingyu raised an eyebrow and immediately realized that she seemed to have fallen into some kind of misconception.
Although the system that suddenly appeared emphasized again the need to purify the treasure of disaster, it didn't seem to have really said that this matter was to be entrusted to me.
In other words—
Can't I just submit it directly?
For now, all we can do is try it boldly.
After some thought, Qingyu no longer hesitated. He immediately focused his mind on the system interface and submitted the Calamity Scroll in the task panel.
The next moment, the black aura emanating from the child's hand suddenly disappeared, and the system interface in front of them also underwent a new change.
[Quest item detected: Simple of Calamity.]
[Quest items successfully uploaded.]
The hidden quest "True Legendary Path" has been updated.
[Current Mission: Defeat and purify the four Cursed Treasures to reveal the true nature of the mysterious artifacts from the East. (Current Progress 1/4)]
[Reward: 1 specified item, currently being released]
[Reward: Calamity Simplified (Purified) *1]
Upon receiving the message, Qingyu immediately felt the intense, almost tangible malice surrounding him vanish instantly, and the once pitch-black ancestral hall was now filled with a faint light.
Even the little one, who had been blasted away by Sylveon and Assassin's sister, was quickly reduced to dust and disappeared in the sudden breeze, just like the withered leaves around it.
Then, a faint sensation came from her palm, causing Qingyu, who had been looking around, to turn her attention back to her surroundings.
The Calamity Scroll, identical in style to the previous one but without any trace of black energy emanating from it, was now in his hand.
Is that all the magistrate has to do?
Qingyu's heart skipped a beat, and she subconsciously frowned.
I have this feeling that Cheng's seemingly insignificant system is actually more powerful than I imagined?
The Jie Muli he had previously thought of, even if it was Feng Yu who could theoretically use the sacred fire that could burn everything at will, would at least have to be scorched by the flames to purify the Jian in his hands, right?
But nothing seemed to have happened just now. I simply submitted the item to the system, and the next second I had a cleaned and refurbished version of the Calamity Scroll in my hand.
The purification process felt more like a restoration of the factory's original setup.
However, now is not the time to think about that.
Under the curious gazes of Sylveon and Squire, Qingyu focused his attention on the brand-new Calamity Scroll in his hand for a few seconds before Qiu Ran once again flicked his brush to write two lines of small characters.
[The Cataclysmic Treasure (Purified): A priceless treasure from the East, dating back nearly three thousand years, recording a story lost to the dust of history.]
In the twenty-fifth year of Duke Xiang's reign, Cui Zhu murdered his lord.
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