Infinity, The Arcade Age

Chapter 438 - 438: The Miserable Top-Tier Adventurers

No one really knew how many years the Nightmare Space had been operating, nor how many worlds it had connected to.

All that was certain was that every so often, it would throw in a massive batch of new people.

This meant that even within the Nightmare Space, adventurers could be divided into veterans and newcomers.

The previous batch either died or leveled up.

Then a new batch would replace them, continuing the deadly cycle of life-and-death adventures.

Under such a system, as time passed, the number of skilled individuals naturally grew, and the number of high-level adventurers increased accordingly.

That was exactly the situation now—there were indeed many powerful individuals in the Nightmare Space. Monstrously talented freaks could be found practically everywhere.

But compared to the sheer number of high-level adventurers, the number of top-tier adventurers in the Nightmare Space was pathetically low.

Because those who tried to ascend to the top tier... almost always ended up dead or crippled!

Just like Overlord and Iron Man sitting here now!

Seated across from Qin Ming, both Overlord and Iron Man wore expressionless faces. Overlord didn't want to smile, while Iron Man simply couldn't even if he tried.

Staring at Qin Ming, Iron Man spoke in a deep voice.

"I have three S-rank skills in my body, plus one double SS-rank. The conflicts aren't too severe—at most, I lose control of my body and can't manage my facial expressions. Oh, and my strength often goes haywire too. I don't know my own power anymore."

Just as he finished speaking, Overlord followed up immediately.

"I have six power sources in me—four S-rank and two SS-rank. Every single one of them is extremely strong. As for the cost... well, you can see for yourself."

"And me, I've got five S-ranks."

"I've got three S-ranks and one double SS."

"My boss didn't come. He's got six SS-ranks. As for why he didn't show up—uh, well, you can guess."

One after another, the group started chiming in.

And watching this unfold like some kind of support group for chronic patients, Qin Ming was utterly dumbfounded.

From what they were saying, he finally understood the current situation—and why the exposure of his synthesis ability had alarmed so many bigshots.

They really were here because of his innate talent skill! Because they needed something from him!

These guys were all injured! Crippled by the backlash from the overwhelming power in their own bodies—top-tier adventurers turned three-star invalids!

And the stronger they were, the worse they'd been hurt.

You think Overlord was the strongest among the top-tier adventurers? Not even close! According to them, there were even more ancient monsters hiding within the Nightmare Space. Some of them might've been alive for who knows how many years!

Compared to them, Overlord's power didn't even make the top ranks.

The reason those even older monsters hadn't shown up wasn't because they didn't want to—it was because they physically couldn't!

Most of them were close to being paralyzed. Walking just a few steps might trigger a power rampage. How the hell were they supposed to show up?

If they had come, and sat next to Qin Ming, there was a real chance he'd have gotten killed by stray blows!

Talking about their own situations, these top-tier adventurers all looked like they'd just swallowed bitter melon, their faces longer than a donkey's.

Well—except for one.

There was still someone wearing a cheerful expression: the Solar Deity, that former big boss who'd once clashed with Qin Ming.

The reason he was so cheerful? Simple—he hadn't suffered any power backlash.

Because the energy in his body was extremely pure! It was purely the Orochi Power from the King of Fighters world! He hadn't enhanced himself with any other random or chaotic powers.

No power conflict meant no side effects. No side effects meant he was in great shape. Of course he was happy.

Even though he only had one SS-rank bloodline and one SS-rank skill, he still ranked at the very bottom among top-tier adventurers—he couldn't beat anyone, and that wasn't going to change.

Could fight? So what if you can fight? Try getting out of that wheelchair first before bragging!

Rubbing his chin and listening to the conversations around him, Qin Ming furrowed his brows.

"So basically, you all want me to help synthesize your skills?"

"Yes. Especially those skills that can balance power. Skills capable of balancing conflicting forces are far too rare, and even if we find some, they may not suit us."

"If you can't find suitable skills to stabilize your powers, didn't you ever consider just cleansing the conflicting ones?"

"...If you're programming and find a bug, and then delete that bug, can you really be sure the code is now completely bug-free? That it won't just spawn a whole bunch of new bugs?"

Overlord's response left Qin Ming momentarily stunned. Iron Man beside him sighed.

"When you start feeling that something's wrong with your body—but you're still alive—that means your internal powers have somehow reached a delicate balance. If you try removing one, you'll disrupt that balance. The rest of the powers will go berserk, and you'll end up dying even faster. It's not that we don't want to save ourselves. It's that we can't be saved."

"Sigh... You want to get stronger, you have to gain more power. But when you do, the powers you already have get 'jealous,' and they start clashing. It's a vicious cycle."

"Kid, in the Nightmare Space, high-level adventurers are as numerous as stars in the sky. But top-tier adventurers? There are terrifyingly few. Know why? Because taking that next step usually means death."

"So here are your two options. First, become a high-level adventurer. From now on, enjoy luxury and status. Just do a job for the Nightmare Space now and then, maybe fight a bit. Even if you die, the Space will revive you. Second, try to go even further—fuse powers, take a big risk. But mess up, and you die. Even if you don't, you could be permanently crippled. Which would you choose?"

The Nightmare Space's benefits rose in a straight line with rank.

Low-level newbie adventurers were basically temps—no benefits, totally disposable. Whether they lived or died, the Space didn't care.

Mid-level adventurers were regular employees. They started getting some benefits, but the work was still dangerous.

High-level adventurers were like senior staff. They got serious perks. After a mission, they could rest for up to a year, had the right to refuse tasks, and could buy return scrolls at discount prices.

If you wanted to go beyond that, you had two choices: become a top-tier adventurer—which was like becoming a shareholder. You'd get actual influence, could negotiate with the Nightmare Space, and even build your own team.

But the cost was extreme. Fusing powers recklessly could easily kill you. And the worst part? Once you died from power conflict, you couldn't even be revived.

Because you died from your own internal power backlash—even if the Nightmare Space brought you back, your powers would still clash. You'd still die. There was no saving you!

The second option was to become a Transcendent—an upgraded version of a high-level adventurer, also known as a retired employee.

You could still be revived after death. You chose your own mission times. Benefits were top-tier. It was essentially retirement mode. You could even pick any world to visit and mess around in from time to time.

Nobody wanted to die—especially not after becoming strong—just to end up dying confused by their own strength.

That's why the vast majority of Nightmare Space adventurers eventually chose to become Transcendents, giving up on further advancement.

Even though the Nightmare Space had stood for countless years, the total number of battle teams was only about a thousand. Top-tier adventurers? Also around a thousand at most. But the number of Transcendents? Too many to count.

And among those thousand or so top-tier adventurers, over eighty percent had physical issues.

Because everyone wanted to be an all-rounder. No one wanted any weaknesses. With their terrifying talents, each of their abilities was incredibly comprehensive.

But the more comprehensive the powers, the more chaotic the internal energy became—and the more chaos, the more likely things would go wrong.

Only someone like the Solar Deity, who entered not long ago and was quickly discovered and mentored by existing top-tier adventurers due to his insane talent, managed to luck out and avoid the danger zone.

By the time most adventurers realized the danger, it was already too late to cleanse their powers.

(End of Chapter)