The Oracle Paths

Chapter 1163  The Fourth Rank 17 Player

”By the way, Iʼve got some more bad news thatʼs not about Jake, but it directly affects our Mirror Universeʼs odds of winning.” Nathan blurted out of nowhere.

The solemn and oddly cautious tone he suddenly adopted was a stark contrast to his usual bug-like inexpressiveness. Cho Min Ho and Kang Jun had their doubts, but their faces froze as they thought of something.

”Did you find out whatʼs causing our Oracle System to fail?!” The two Koreans exclaimed excitedly. If they could fix this issue, their Ordeal Rating would shoot up.

Unfortunately, they seemed to have already forgotten that if this were good news, Nathan wouldnʼt have delivered it so grimly. After a brief, deadly silence that dampened the humansʼ spirits, the insect man explained,

”Not only did I find the cause, but I also know how to end the problem. As we suspected, itʼs indeed an enemy Player with the Oracle Hacker Soul Class.”

”So itʼs real!” Kang Jun could hardly believe their least likely hypothesis had turned out to be correct.

”I bet even Jake has no clue about the truth,” Cho Min Ho admitted gravely. ”Great job on this discovery.”

The insect man nodded impassively, hardly moved by the compliment. As for Jake, it wasnʼt that he hadnʼt considered this possibility, but he had deemed it nearly impossible.

For starters, Oracle Hackers had a terrible reputation in the Mirror Universe. The Oracle System tended to track them relentlessly, and no authorized Aurae Stele would issue them such a Soul Class.

Regardless of the Soul Class, knowledge about the Oracle Systemʼs engineering and its various devices was highly confidential. Not the kind of information that Fifth Ordeal Players like them could access.

Moreover, even if they managed to acquire these theoretical insights, whether through their background, sheer talent, or perseverance, as long as they wore their bracelet, the Oracle would be immediately informed.

If their deepest intentions contained even a shadow of malice, the liquid alloy permeating their bodies would ignite, blowing up their brains and souls. The Oracle System was meticulous in these situations.

But despite all its meticulousness, Oracle Hackers still thrived, and in all Mirror Universes. Thatʼs because the first thing such a hacker would do upon developing such a taboo ability would be to tamper with or get rid of their Oracle Device.

In theory, it was supposed to be impossible to plan such a thing without the Oracle System noticing, but the existence of Jake and the Digestor Trojans was proof that the System was not invincible. As long as something or someone interfered to hide their true intentions and actions, nothing was off-limits.

And because the Oracle was almost blind when it concerned Corrupted Players and Digestor Trojans, it had no choice but to accept their existence and make the best use of them before they spiraled and betrayed their Mirror Universe completely.

Ultimately, the Oracle System did not eliminate all Oracle Hackers. Among them were Players who had developed these abilities out of curiosity, passion, and sometimes even to perform better in the Ordeals.

Such a Player was an extremely valuable resource for each Mirror Universe. That the opposing Players had one in their ranks was absolutely stunning, and very bad news for them.

”In that case, what are we waiting for to take him down?” Kang Jun blurted out, clenching his fists with a carnivorous smile. ”Boss, let me handle this. I wonʼt let you down.”

Nathanʼs expression remained impassive but intensely disdainful after his declaration.

”Did I say something you donʼt like?” The former special forces bodyguard spat out dryly, frowning. ”Donʼt think I donʼt know what youʼre up to. I donʼt know why Boss trusts you so much, but I sure as hell donʼt. You come and go, pulling off all sorts of feats, but no one knows how you do it or when youʼve been away. Itʼs almost like you donʼt care about our rules.”

In response to Kang Junʼs venom, Nathanʼs mouth opened in a slash of crimson, revealing rows of serrated, pearly teeth. Simultaneously, the curved stinger of his tail pointed menacingly at his throat. One wrong move, and he would be pierced.

Ignoring the stinger, just the inside of his hideous jaw was enough to deflate the Koreanʼs courage.

ʼDamn it, I canʼt even tell if heʼs pissed or laughing!ʼ He cursed in his head, regretting his outburst.

But just when he thought Nathan would devour him, the insect man nonchalantly retracted his stinger and said emotionlessly,

”I am but the loyal slave of my master. Even if I wanted to betray him, I couldnʼt.”

Cho Min Ho, who had witnessed the entire scene with his arms crossed, confirmed with a slight smile, not at all annoyed,

”An Oracle Slave cannot disobey the orders of his master. Nathan has my absolute trust.”

The incident closed, Cho Min Ho turned back to his slave and asked with furrowed brows,

”What exactly bothers you about Kang Junʼs plan, though?”

The Korean had flown off the handle upon learning of Jakeʼs policy change, but he was far from stupid. On the contrary, he was very calculating and cunning, paying attention to every detail.

If his bodyguard wasnʼt sure what the insect man thought, he had a small idea. Nathanʼs disdain was real.

”Heʼs too weak,” the latter clarified calmly, ignoring Kang Junʼs dark look. ”You didnʼt let me finish earlier. The Oracle Hacker weʼre talking about is also a Rank 17 Player.”

”What?!”

The two Koreans exclaimed in unison. This changed everything! Not because it was a tougher Oracle Hacker than expected, but because each camp of Players was supposed to be equal.

For the moment, counting Shadrex, Weiss, and Kaelum, the opposing camp already had three Rank 17s. In contrast, their own camp had only revealed two, namely Jake and himself. The identity of the third remained a mystery to almost everyone, but now they learned there was a fourth.

His focus shifting back to the fact that the Ordeal was supposed to be balanced, and the fact that their Oracle System was the only one that had been hacked, Cho Min Ho then came to a terrible hypothesis.

”Donʼt tell me…”

”You guessed right,” Nathan nodded, sketching what could only be described as a bitter grimace with his mouth. ”We also had a Rank 17 Oracle Hacker in our camp.”

”Had?” Kang Jun finally reacted, though he was a bit slow on the uptake.

”Indeed,” the insect man shrugged before giving them a cold stare. ”Donʼt bother looking for him. He died at the start of the Ordeal... Killed by the Myrtharian Nerds.”