Killing a strange creature increases the bloodline growth by about 0.05 Ma; a ghost, on the other hand, is roughly 1 Ma.
If the ghost level also follows the 1-2-4 combination, then the efficiency of killing ghosts for leveling up is about 20 times that of killing strange creatures. However, from the ninth grade to the eighth grade, the required bloodline concentration increases tenfold, and from the eighth grade to the seventh, it increases a hundredfold, so it's still not enough.
Yet, in the dream, after killing a ghost, what appeared next was not two ghosts but a dazzling golden portal...
"Very suspicious," commented Cheng Jinyang.
"What's suspicious about it?" Yang Wangshu scoffed. "Strange creatures are the grunts, ghosts are the leaders. After defeating the leaders, we move to the next map. Isn't that normal?"
"I've told you not to think of this as a game..."
"If it's not a game, then why are there rewards for killing monsters?"
"Forget it, I'm not arguing with you." Cheng Jinyang looked at Chu Qingqing. "Since she's not afraid, why not let Xiao Wangshu scout ahead?"
Yang Wangshu: ?
"Alright." Miss Qingqing agreed without objection.
"Wait!" Yang Wangshu wanted to protest, but Cheng Jinyang had already grabbed her shoulder and pushed her through the portal.
Then he pulled her back.
"Looks fine," Cheng Jinyang said.
"Wuwuwuwuwu!" Yang Wangshu didn't even bother to type; she just grabbed the keyboard and started hitting him.
"Shall we go?" Cheng Jinyang held down Xiao Wangshu's head with one hand (the latter was constantly trying to reach him with her claws and teeth).
"Let's go," Miss Qingqing nodded.
The three cautiously passed through the portal and saw the scenery had completely changed.
"Songjiang?" Cheng Jinyang looked at the nearby ruins in surprise.
"This is Songjiang?" Miss Qingqing asked curiously.
"Yes, but not the intact Songjiang we visited before. This is the ruins of Songjiang after being destroyed by demons," Cheng Jinyang said.
"Tsk tsk tsk," the two girls looked around. The buildings had peeling paint, the roads were cracked, wild grass grew in the greenery belts, and abandoned cars were scattered around, giving a desolate feel.
Last time they came here, Songjiang was a bustling commercial city, but now it had become a ghost town...
"What's that?" Chu Qingqing, with her sharp eyes, saw some staggering, aimless figures at a distant intersection.
"Puppets," Cheng Jinyang explained. Nowadays, Puppets are widely recognized as demons by the people of the northern continent. Compared to higher-ranking demons, they are very weak, and killing them only increases bloodline concentration by about one-twentieth of that of killing strange creatures.
But they have strength in numbers. In the ruins of Songjiang, Puppets are endless. At their highest density, a single street can be packed with seventy to eighty of them. In a few seconds of mowing them down, even if converted at a 20:1 ratio to killing strange creatures, the efficiency is still considerable.
"Then what are we waiting for?!" Chu Qingqing shouted in excitement. "Let's go massacre Songjiang!"
"Calm down," Cheng Jinyang said helplessly. "Don't say things that could be misunderstood."
"But there shouldn't be any living humans in the ruins of Songjiang, right?" Yang Wangshu corrected. "So it should be called 'purification.' Purifying Songjiang is more accurate."
Cheng Jinyang was speechless. Killing endlessly refreshing demons in a dream, how does that count as purifying Songjiang?
But it doesn't matter, anyway...
"Let's get moving," he said.
——————————
A giant metal blade swept through a large arc, cutting seven or eight Puppets in half at the waist.
More Puppets swarmed in. Despite their delicate looks and alluring figures, their eyes glowed fiercely and their faces twisted into snarls, as if beasts' souls were trapped in beautiful bodies.
Miss Qingqing had no pity for them.
More accurately, compared to the evenly matched duels with strange creatures, she preferred the thrill of mowing down dozens or hundreds in such a lopsided fight. The humanoid appearance of these Puppets gave her an even stronger sense of excitement and pleasure.
She was so thrilled she didn't even have time to laugh maniacally; she focused solely on slashing, slashing, slashing.
"Qingqing, Qingqing!" Cheng Jinyang and Yang Wangshu were chasing after her, gradually becoming breathless. "Have you killed enough? How about taking a break?"
Chu Qingqing pretended not to hear, slaughtering all the Puppets in this block before rushing to the next one.
"Qingqing!" Cheng Jinyang had no choice but to trap her upside down in a gravity well. "Calm down first!"
"Let me go!" Suspended in the air, Miss Qingqing struggled furiously, the metallic waves surrounding her whirling and fluctuating violently in response to her emotions.
"Can you listen to me now?" Cheng Jinyang asked with his arms crossed.
"Go ahead!" Chu Qingqing shouted.
"We need to kill monsters in an orderly and systematic manner, not act independently without following commands. Understand?" Cheng Jinyang said patiently.
"Okay, okay~" Realizing she couldn't break free, Miss Qingqing shifted from a furious expression to a sweet tone, giggling coquettishly. "Then, Brother Jinyang, please let me down, won't you?"
"Act normal," Cheng Jinyang said sternly, showing no interest in her flirtations.
"Fine," Miss Qingqing sighed.
With a snap of his fingers, Cheng Jinyang released the gravity well. Miss Qingqing deftly twisted in mid-air but instead of landing on the ground, she settled into his arms.
"What are you doing?" Cheng Jinyang frowned.
"Giving you a chance to catch the damsel," Chu Qingqing said, wrapping her arms around his neck.
Yang Wangshu, behind them, recoiled, as if her eyes had been burned by the sight.
"Get down," Cheng Jinyang said, setting her down before turning. "Wangshu!"
"Yes?" Yang Wangshu responded with a start.
"Don't mention this when we get back."
"What do you mean? I don't understand," Yang Wangshu feigned ignorance.
"The way you put it makes it sound like we're secretly having an affair behind Yuanzhi's back," Miss Qingqing said beside them.
"Zip it," Cheng Jinyang motioned a zipping gesture at her lips, then frowned, looking ahead. "Have you noticed? There seem to be fewer Puppets around."
"Huh?" Miss Qingqing followed his gaze and saw that the distant block was now completely clear of Puppets.
Strange, shouldn't they swarm towards any commotion?
"Wangshu, check it out."
"Got it!" Yang Wangshu joined her hands, sending out electromagnetic waves to scan the surroundings.
"High energy ahead!" she suddenly called out. "Eight strange creatures! At one, two, four, and eleven o'clock directions, 50 meters away!"
Cheng Jinyang immediately took to the air, while Miss Qingqing shouted, "Bring it on!" as the metallic waves surged around, encasing Xiao Wangshu protectively within.
Ascending to about ten meters, Cheng Jinyang saw several strange creatures rushing along the street. Some suddenly lifted their heads, raising their cannon-like arms.
In an instant, a warning surged in his mind, prompting him to drop down swiftly.
However, without his jetpack, gravity hadn't yet accelerated him enough when sharp pain erupted in both shoulders, his body staggering backward in mid-air.
Enduring the intense pain, Cheng Jinyang maintained his algorithm and spun into Miss Qingqing's metallic waves, realizing that his arms were now bleeding profusely from where they joined his shoulders.
The "shells" deeply embedded in his muscles and shoulder bones were, in fact, two short sword-sized bone blades.