Chapter 162: Ambushed

Stepping out of Shan Ming's tent, Song Qi flickered away. First, he went to the tribal warehouse to retrieve some paper and a brush, and then he soared out of the tribe, heading toward a distant mountain peak.

This was the highest point in the entire divine kingdom region.

Consequently, the temperature at the summit was extremely low.

The entire peak was covered in a thin layer of ice.

Standing at the very highest point and looking down, Song Qi saw the sea of clouds swirling below, accompanied by verdant forests—tranquil and magnificent!

The cloud layer barely reached the mountain's waist.

He turned his head to look.

The Mountain Tiger Tribe, home to over one hundred thousand people and covering an area of two hundred thousand mu—equivalent to the size of a county town from his previous life—looked smaller than a thumb from his perspective right now.

A sight like this was enough to instantly stir up a sense of heroic pride.

It made him yearn to recite a poem.

Song Qi took a deep breath, abruptly opened his arms, and parted his lips.

"The mountain..."

"Well..."

"Hmm..."

"Is a mountain not about its height?"

"No, wait, this mountain is actually quite high."

"Ssss~~~"

"Forget it, I won't recite anything."

He discovered with great depression that he had almost completely forgotten the classical poetry he had learned.

If he were still in middle school, he could have fittingly recited a poem full of heroic spirit.

If he were in high school, he could have added an extra prose passage, cleverly blending the poetry into it while using objects to express human sentiments, conveying a sense of homesickness or melancholic frustration.

Right now, however, all he could say was, "Damn, looking down from this mountaintop is really fucking awesome!"

"Let's get down to business first."

Song Qi shook his head, took out the paper and brush, and began drawing a map by hand.

From here, he could see the distant regions far beyond the divine kingdom.

He wouldn't set off until tomorrow, so he could take advantage of this time to sketch a rough map.

This would prevent him from losing track of where he was later on.

And ensure he could find his way back to the Mountain Tiger Tribe.

Half an hour later...

A rather hasty, crude map that only Song Qi could understand was finished.

Putting the map away, Song Qi was about to leave when he suddenly turned back.

"By the way... since this place is so high, perhaps metaphysically speaking, it could bring me better luck?"

"Let's give it a try. It doesn't cost anything anyway."

Song Qi halted his steps and opened the system panel.

"System, initiate the draw!"

[Ding! Preparing prizes for the host...]

A huge gacha wheel emerged.

"I won't count on a summoning ticket, an epic-tier equipment will do!"

Without fussing, Song Qi tapped directly on it.

Beep, beep, beep...

Five consecutive draws, and then he directly chose to skip the animation.

Five rays of light in different colors flew into his inventory.

[Congratulations! You have obtained 3x EXP Card! *5]

[Congratulations! You have obtained 5x EXP Card!]

[Congratulations! You have obtained Transcendental-tier equipment, Magic Longsword!]

...

Unsurprisingly, no surprises occurred.

Epic-tier equipment? Forget about that, even legendary-tier equipment didn't show up.

"The only thing that can barely be considered good news is that 5x EXP card."

Song Qi sighed, turned around, and vanished from the mountaintop.

Early the next morning.

Song Qi went to find Shan Ming to replenish the seal energy on his forehead.

The flame mark, which was originally only half a thumb in size, expanded several times over, increasing its inner energy by nearly tenfold!

Even the high-tier monsters outside the divine kingdom were just like the divine beasts inside the divine kingdom.

Their bodies all contained a certain type of seal that would trigger upon death.

With the energy currently in the mark, it would be enough for Song Qi to kill at least ten high-tier monsters without worrying about being exposed.

"Brother Song, you must be careful on your trip out!"

"I heard you encountered a deity previously? You must be going out to level up this time."

"If that's the case, you don't need to worry about the Mountain Tiger Tribe at all. Even if those so-called deities discover us and slaughter us all, please bear with it temporarily."

"As long as you avenge us in the future, I will be completely satisfied!"

Chu Shaojiang's gaze burned brightly as he spoke with utmost sincerity!

Song Qi nodded.

"Rest assured, before I have absolute certainty, I guarantee I won't make a move."

"Ah?"

Chu Shaojiang froze.

This wasn't quite how the script was supposed to go.

You already promised to make me the vice city lord, shouldn't you try to save us a little bit?

"Uh... actually, if I have the ability to save you guys, I wouldn't mind too much."

Ignoring him, Song Qi turned around and waved a hand.

"Well then, I'm off."

With that, his figure disappeared on the spot.

The Mountain Tiger Tribe was located not far from the border of the divine kingdom.

Thus, it took Song Qi only a few minutes to reach the borderline.

At the edge of the divine kingdom, there was a straight, massive fissure artificially created by someone!

Although they called themselves deities, they were actually nothing more than a bunch of monsters.

Therefore, the deities of the divine kingdom and other rule-tier monsters delineated the borders of their respective territories using this simple and direct method.

Song Qi merely glanced at it and prepared to teleport right across.

But the next moment...

Bang!

A pale blue translucent film materialized.

Song Qi crashed right into it, shattering a patch of icy coldness.

"There is a rule-tier barrier blocking the divine kingdom's border?"

He couldn't help but frown.

Although [Directional Teleportation] had evolved into a rule-tier skill, it after all only contained a sliver of origin power.

It was too easily sealed.

He reached out and touched it.

He discovered that the barrier blocking the border wasn't some formation at all, but a sheet of completely transparent thin ice!

Realizing the true nature of this thin film, Song Qi pondered for a moment, then turned around and let out a helpless sigh.

"May I ask, how on earth did you guys know I would be leaving from this side?"

"Hehehe..."

A slightly lazy female laugh drifted down from above.

Then, three figures appeared before Song Qi.

Leading them was an exquisitely beautiful, slender-waisted woman draped in sheer gauze.

Only, the corners of her eyes were slightly upturned, and her gaze was exceptionally cold, resembling a highly venomous and lethal green snake.

The other two were both males; one had a streak of white hair on his forehead with a well-proportioned and robust build.

The other wore a ponytail, but possessed four arms!

Even though they had taken human form, their bodily structures were bizarre in the extreme.

The imposing aura emanating from all three of them made Song Qi feel a faint sense of shock!

Without a doubt, all three of them were monsters who had mastered rules!

"How did we know you would leave from here?"

"It's very simple..."

"This is the west side of the divine kingdom."

The alluring lead woman stretched out a slender finger and pointed into the distance.

"Yesterday, while patrolling the divine kingdom's territory, I discovered traces of a fierce battle over there. Several massive mountains were burned to ash, and almost the entire mountainous region was turned upside down."

"Furthermore, the offspring of my second brother who died previously all happened to live in the west."

"The east side of the divine kingdom is the ocean."

"Therefore, I guessed that you most likely set up your temporary lair somewhere around here."

"So I set up an ambush, and I never expected to guess right."

Song Qi's mouth twitched.

That was the destruction caused when he was transported over by the spatial turbulence and fought that high-tier demon.

"Then your luck is truly incredible."

"Luck? This isn't luck."

She chuckled lightly, but her gaze remained as cold as ice that hadn't melted in ten thousand years—alluring yet dangerous.

"And..."

"If I guessed correctly, you must be a human from another continent, right?"