She swallowed the blood that had lodged in her throat, lifted her head, and slowly spoke, “Shut up! I'm not an S-level player, so why would I be violating the rules by exploring and unlocking levels?”
Qin Mubai looked at the dense web of silk woven between himself and Ye Nianchu, his eyes filled with a chilling intensity.
He had no hesitation in ignoring the system's warnings.
As an S-level player, the pain he would endure from forcibly using his abilities would be far worse than what Ye Nianchu experienced.
---
The unlock level reached 49.
“[Please stop your violations immediately, or you will be...]”
Ye Nianchu pulled at the corners of her mouth. “System, are you kidding me? The game rules clearly state that S-level players are prohibited from using their abilities. What does that have to do with me, a non-standard F-level player?”
She hadn’t used any items, and she wasn’t an S-level player. The system had said she could explore and unlock levels on her own.
Before this, she hadn’t known that reaching an unlock level of 45 would involve special abilities.
After all, her powers had been taken by someone else.
The system's unfinished warning abruptly cut off.
[Player Unlock Level: 55.]
The temperature around them dropped sharply, a bone-chilling cold spreading outward, and the ground quickly formed a thin layer of ice.
The smaller face spiders were frozen in place, their legs unable to move. As the frost spread, the tough silk became incredibly fragile.
The pain in Ye Nianchu’s body gradually faded. Just as she was about to collapse from exhaustion, a pair of hands wrapped around her waist, holding her tightly.
Qin Mubai carefully avoided her wounds, perhaps not even realizing how frantic he felt inside.
This kind of emotion was unfamiliar to him.
The system's third warning sounded again, but he had no intention of stopping.
Ye Nianchu struggled to lift her hand, wiping the blood off his face. “Don’t force yourself to use your abilities; just listen.”
Qin Mubai paused for a moment, then lowered his head, his voice deep. “Okay.”
The frozen silk could no longer hold them back; with a gentle strike of the knife, it shattered. The face spiders, living in a humid environment, couldn’t withstand such cold and fell from the silk, their agility severely diminished.
Those with legs frozen in the ice had no power to resist, struggling at a tenth of their normal speed.
All the newly hatched spiders in the vicinity perished.
Qin Mubai wielded his knife, quickly eliminating the remaining face spiders with fierce and swift strikes, his cold demeanor more chilling than the surrounding ice.
Ye Nianchu felt her limbs weaken, completely out of strength, and stepped aside to rest.
This time, not only had she regained her abilities, but they had also been upgraded. The injuries she sustained were nothing compared to that.
Previously, when she became an S-level player, she had acquired water-based abilities.
[Congratulations, player Ye Nianchu, you have unlocked a special ability. You will be promoted to S-level after this round of the game. To maintain game balance, please do not use your abilities again in this round, or all points and rewards earned will be deducted.]
Ye Nianchu: ???
The lousy system seemed to be unable to handle its own bugs and had added a new rule for her.
---
With the last face spider killed, the game system's voice rang in her ears again:
[Player has cleared BOSS Den No. 1, earning 500 points. Killed BOSS for 155 points. Total: 655 points.]
With 655 points added to the previous 145 points, she was well within the top three for 800 points. The others wouldn’t be able to catch up unless they found the BOSS den and cleared it completely.
Qin Mubai put away his knife, and he also received a notification from the system.