Free Web NovelChapter 308: Chapter 161: Shadow Scale Transformation, Perfect Imitation
Lin Ye strode toward the entrance of the massive canyon.
As he drew closer, Lin Ye’s gaze fell upon the two blood-red banners flanking the canyon entrance.
The banners were dozens of meters tall, snapping sharply in the wind that blew from the canyon’s depths.
Painted on the war banners with some unknown pigment was the image of a valiant, muscle-bound War God with twelve arms.
The dozens of sentries guarding the entrance looked confused when they saw Lin Ye return alone.
One of the six-armed elites stepped forward, blocking Lin Ye’s path. He interrogated him harshly in the language of the Eight-armed Race, demanding to know where the others were and why he was the only one to return.
Lin Ye forcibly suppressed his nervousness.
He wasn’t attacked immediately, only questioned.
This meant his disguise was successful.
But Lin Ye’s heart was still pounding much faster than usual.
It wasn’t death he feared, but exposure.
If the mission failed, this entire infiltration would have been for nothing.
The six-armed elite’s booming voice echoed in his ears like a string of meaningless syllables.
’What in the world is he babbling about?’
Of course, Lin Ye couldn’t understand him.
Even if Silk Puppet allowed him to read memories, it couldn’t make him instantly master a complex foreign language.
Fortunately, he had come prepared.
Lin Ye raised his head, waving four of his arms around in a seemingly urgent manner.
At the same time, he put on a foolish, dimwitted expression. A trickle of glistening saliva, simulated by his Shadow Scale, even dripped from the corner of his mouth.
"Aba... aba aba!"
He opened his mouth and mumbled incoherently.
The six-armed elite’s brow furrowed even deeper, a flash of impatience and disgust in his eyes.
Just then, another guard on duty sidled over and whispered something to the elite leader.
After listening, the elite leader glanced at Lin Ye again, no longer bothering to hide the contempt in his eyes.
He waved four of his six arms impatiently, as if shooing away a fly. freeweɓnøvel.com
The taut string in Lin Ye’s mind finally loosened.
He was secretly glad that the patrol he had eliminated earlier happened to include such a peculiar individual.
The member of the Eight-armed Race he was impersonating was a congenitally mentally disabled individual who wasn’t very bright.
However, he was known throughout the tribe as a big, dumb workhorse—unquestioningly obedient and possessing incredible stamina.
Otherwise, the language barrier alone would have stopped him dead at the entrance.
Given passage, Lin Ye maintained his foolish persona and walked into the canyon with heavy, slightly clumsy steps.
A searing wave of heat rushed to meet him, carrying the thick stench of sulfur.
The canyon walls were not natural formations. Instead, they resembled a cluster of volcanic lava caves.
Countless man-made caves dotted the steep cliffs like a honeycomb, with able-bodied members of the Eight-armed Race occasionally entering and exiting.
At the bottom of the canyon, a dark-red river of lava flowed slowly, radiating an unsettling heat and casting a crimson glow over the entire gorge.
And in the very center of the canyon stood an enormous altar.
Behind the altar was an even more magnificent honeycomb-like fortress built entirely of solidified black Basalt Pillars. It was connected to the cave systems on the cliffs, clearly serving as the residence for the tribe’s upper echelons.
In the center of the altar, carved from the rock face itself, was a divine statue dozens of meters tall.
The statue had three heads and twelve arms. Its body was wreathed in fiery red patterns, and its three faces—one filled with rage, the others with hatred—had eyes wide with fury and were terrifyingly lifelike.
Six of the statue’s arms on one side were formed into different hand seals, while the six arms on the other side held a battle-ax, a long spear, and a chain mace, all poised in a ready-to-strike stance.
Lin Ye only glanced at it for a moment, but he felt a powerful spiritual assault wash over him. It was as if the three pairs of eyes on the statue were staring straight at him, scrutinizing his very soul.
’This feeling... It’s surprisingly similar to a Visualization Image, achieving the same effect of tempering one’s Spirit.’
A question formed in Lin Ye’s mind.
As far as he knew, the Eight-armed Race had at most eight arms, and certainly not three heads.
This statue before him seemed less like an ancestor or a War God and more like a deity from another race with whom they shared some kind of connection.
As he was lost in thought, a harsh shout came from behind him.
Lin Ye turned to see a six-armed elite striding purposefully toward him. His face was a mask of unconcealed anger, and his target was clearly Lin Ye.
He roared something unintelligible at Lin Ye as he approached.
Lin Ye’s heart skipped a beat.
’I’m screwed.’
He was once again in a state of utter confusion, unable to understand a word. But judging from the other’s aggressive demeanor, this was definitely not a friendly greeting.
This elite clearly recognized the big oaf he was disguised as and had sought him out specifically.
Lin Ye sighed internally. He knew his disguise was done for.
Fortunately, he had already successfully slipped into the canyon. His goal of getting past the guards had been achieved.
He quickly scanned his surroundings. No other members of the Eight-armed Race nearby had noticed what was happening.
Before him was only this single, enraged elite of the Eight-armed Race.
The window of opportunity would only last an instant.
PSH!
In the instant Lin Ye’s Shadow Scale faded away and his disguise dissolved,
a crystal spear, glinting with an eerie purple light, materialized out of thin air without any warning.
It then precisely pierced through the back of the Eight-armed Race elite’s neck and exited through his throat, drawing a stream of hot blood.
The elite’s roar died abruptly, replaced by a gurgling, gasping sound.
He looked down, staring in disbelief at the purple crystal tip protruding from his throat. Terror and understanding finally dawned in his eyes.
He wanted to scream, to sound an alarm, but his perforated vocal cords couldn’t produce the slightest sound.
The next second, the crystal spear lodged in his cervical spine suddenly extended another, thinner, sharper spike upward from within, instantly piercing his brainstem.
The tall body of the Eight-armed Race elite shuddered violently. The light in his eyes faded completely, and he crumpled forward.
Almost at the same moment he hit the ground, Lin Ye had already switched his active temporary skill from Crystalization back to Shadow Scale.
His figure rapidly faded amid a distortion of light and shadow, becoming a nearly invisible, transparent outline that blended into the scorching air.
Continuing to disguise himself as a member of the Eight-armed Race would only lead to more awkward encounters with those who knew the person he was impersonating.
Now that he had successfully infiltrated their base, hiding his presence was the best strategy.
With a thought, Lin Ye called up his mission panel.
As expected, the requirements for the challenge mission had changed.
[You have been discovered by 1 member of the Eight-armed Race. If you are discovered by 9 or more additional members, the mission will fail!]
Lin Ye’s heart sank.
Just as he thought. Even though he had instantly killed the one who spotted him, the system still counted the exposure.
He would have to be even more careful.
The remaining nine chances were his entire margin for error to complete the assassination mission.
