The Abyssal Sage King was wary and dared not send him overly powerful subordinates into the Douluo plane.
The fact that the energy of dead Abyssal creatures could not return was a fatal blow to him.
Coupled with the support of the Douluo God Realm on the other side, he had no choice but to be cautious.
Precisely because of this, the Douluo Legion actually found things a bit easier. Following the combat strategy issued by Su Ming, they proceeded in an orderly manner.
Despite the battlefield just being opened and this being the first direct confrontation between the two great planes, it was surprisingly calm, with losses on both sides within a controllable range.
Soon, three days passed in the blink of an eye.
For three days, the war never ceased.
Within the channel, both sides were constantly engaged. Batches of Abyssal creatures died, and batches of Spirit Masters on Douluo's side also fell.
On the battlefield plain, countless thick, large roots twisted upward from the ground, converging at a single point to cover the entire area above the plain like an inverted bowl. Inside this bowl was a pitch-black portal, its surface etched with runic marks woven from various elements.
"Su Ming, Sect Master, we have compiled statistics on the common Abyssal creatures encountered so far. They can be preliminarily entered into the Contribution Points system," reported a Spirit Engineer from Mingde Hall beside Su Ming.
Su Ming took the data from the other's hand, glanced at it, and pointed.
"War has just erupted, so Contribution Points are being allocated based on average distribution. I don't want it to be like this in the future."
More work, more reward.
This was a basic principle. If even this couldn't be ensured, this planar war would be too much of a joke. No Spirit Master would fight desperately to hunt Abyssal creatures.
Why shouldn't stronger individuals who kill significantly tougher enemies receive greater benefits?
The Spirit Engineer gave a wry smile. "Our system is quite backward. We cannot monitor the performance of so many Spirit Masters on the battlefield in real-time."
Su Ming waved his hand.
"That's not difficult. I will grant you the authority. The more energy within an Abyssal creature, the stronger it is. Even if there are discrepancies, they are due to differences between races. Essentially, there is a ratio. You just need to list the corresponding ratios for different races. I will publicly disclose the amount of energy devored by the Tree of Life."
Su Ming's words made the Spirit Engineer ponder thoughtfully.
"Within the legion, equip each person with an Abyss Bracelet. Use branches of the Tree of Life to make the core. Here is the core formation. It can roughly communicate with the Tree of Life to ascertain how much Abyssal energy has been devoured."
"Yes, sir!"
The Spirit Engineer accepted the order.
He hadn't expected Su Ming to permit them to use branches of the Tree of Life as material for crafting Spirit Tools.
Su Ming stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze fixed on the portal before him, on the enemies within the Abyssal army.
He still had to wait.
This Abyssal Sage King was really too timid.
Su Ming was also genuinely experiencing the deterrent power of the Douluo God Realm. So, with the God Realm watching, the Abyssal Sage King would react like this.
However, this deterrence also left Su Ming somewhat frustrated.
"Send out an Abyssal Monarch... even one at the Titled Douluo level would be good."
Although the energy provided by an Abyssal creature at the Titled Douluo level would be limited'ertainly not enough for Su Ming to directly leap from level 70 to level 80'ut if it were a Monarch, that would be a different story.
The strength of Abyssal creatures was related to the amount of Abyssal energy within them.
But this wasn't absolute.
For example, the Monarch of each layer contained Abyssal energy far beyond what ordinary Abyssal creatures possessed.
A Monarch at the Titled Douluo level contained energy at least a hundred times that of an Abyssal creature of the same level.
"Send one out..."
Su Ming continued his silent plea.
However, the Abyssal Sage King was just too cautious. He didn't send a single Monarch into battle, even when the opposing side deployed Titled Douluos and Super Douluos. Instead, he selected some powerful Abyssal creatures to resist.
As long as the Monarchs remained, the Abyss's foundation remained intact; it wouldn't collapse.
Once a Monarch died and was devoured by the opposing Life Core, the Abyss would also experience turmoil.
The collapse of a single layer would be a significant loss for the Abyss.
Time flew by. In the blink of an eye, the war had lasted a month.
In one month, the Douluo Legion had been equipped with the so-called Abyss Bracelets.
Contribution Points from the initial period before the Contribution Points system was established had also been calculated.
Killing an enemy of a certain strength was worth a reward of the corresponding level.
The standard here was Spirit Metal, a hard currency because it could be used to make Battle Armor.
Killing a Spirit King-level enemy allowed the Tree of Life to devour the corresponding amount of Abyssal energy.
The Contribution Points gained from this, of course, wouldn't be enough to obtain the Thousand Refined First Peak metal required for a set of One-Word Battle Armor. But if the accumulated energy reached the level equivalent to a Spirit Sage-level Abyssal creature, then the Contribution Points earned could be exchanged for the Thousand Refined First Peak metal needed for a set of One-Word Battle Armor.
These were all quantified values.
In truth, there were still significant differences compared to Douluo 3. But in this era, Su Ming also needed to first elevate the strength of the Douluo Spirit Master world.
Here, what was precious wasn't Spirit Metal, but rather the technology to craft Battle Armor.
In Douluo 3, obtaining suitable Spirit Metal was actually harder than crafting the Battle Armor itself.
With the Abyss Bracelets, quantified Contribution Points, and clear goals, the Spirit Masters were motivated, and their enthusiasm for hunting Abyssal creatures soared.
Unfortunately, even after becoming familiar with battling Abyssal creatures, it still often took two or three people working together to kill an Abyssal creature of the same level.
This also meant the speed at which many Spirit Masters obtained Battle Armor was unsatisfactory.
However, there were clever individuals who excelled in intellect.
Some Titled Douluos took action to help their juniors gather the Spirit Metal for a set of One-Word or Two-Word Battle Armor. Then they would find ways to accumulate enough Contribution Points to seek help from the Battle Armor Association for design and manufacturing.
Thus, a Spirit King equipped with One-Word Battle Armor could instantly become a Spirit Emperor-level combatant. Their speed of earning Contribution Points increased dramatically, allowing them to quickly repay their debts.
Initially, this was limited to Spirit Masters with close relationships, but it gradually spread. Titled Douluos began extensively helping Spirit Kings and Spirit Emperors without backgrounds to obtain One-Word Battle Armor. These Spirit Kings and Emperors, after gaining their Battle Armor, also had to bear debts.
The interest rates involved were extremely high. From what Su Ming understood, even the more reasonable rates were as high as one hundred percent.
There was no other way. The investment was significant. Obtaining the Spirit Metal corresponding to a set of Battle Armor, plus the design and manufacturing'hether design or manufacturing, the required Contribution Points were no less than, and often multiple times more than, obtaining the metal itself.
Moreover, the crafted Battle Armor was only quasi-Battle Armor. The Spirit Master still needed to fuse with it, adapt to it, and guide its spirituality to replicate the core formations engraved on the armor.
With high investment and the risk of the recipient dying in battle, of course, the interest rates had to be raised; otherwise, it would be difficult to even recoup the capital.
Su Ming stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze profound.
For improving the Spirit Master world, this was certainly a good thing. Starting from Spirit Kings, it would gradually sweep through Spirit Douluos and Titled Douluos, allowing the snowball to roll quickly.
But right now, what he urgently needed was to lure out an Abyssal Monarch.
He looked toward the Body Sect side.
Lei Zhen was fighting desperately, drenched in blood, having charged to a point forty percent into the channel, slaughtering madly among a swarm of Abyssal creatures.
On his wrist, the Abyss Bracelet glowed brilliantly, emanating a dazzling emerald-green radiance.
Many Spirit Masters in the Douluo Legion occasionally glanced at this fierce individual who had charged deep into the Abyssal army. Someone noticed this scene, and an exclamation drew the surrounding Spirit Masters to stare intently at Lei Zhen.
Lei Zhen was also surprised. Looking at his wrist, he found the bracelet beginning to sprout tendrils. The core branch within the bracelet was sprouting anew, the tendrils piercing his skin.
A surge of life force poured into his body.
Lei Zhen raised an eyebrow and instinctively glanced back at Su Ming outside the Abyssal Gate.
***
Dive deeper into the story with 50+ advance chapters, available now on Patreon!patreon.com/CNBLUE
If you're enjoying the novel, please consider leaving a review. Your support is crucial and helps the story grow immensely. Thank you!
(Chapter End)