Chapter 45: Spike Beast Gate
Over the past few hours, something had been weighing on Rohan’s mind that he’d been purposely avoiding until now.
What was the plan when they entered the Origin Realm again?
Going back was no problem at all, since all they had to do was will for that mysterious portal to form and it would do exactly that, sucking them back into the Origin Realm.
But once they were there? That was where the real issue presented itself.
"You’re right... How are we supposed to fight against an Elite E rank Beast?"
He brought this issue up to Elane, who expressed similar concerns.
Since neither of them died, they’d return back to their original location once they returned to the Origin Realm, which, for them, was a disaster waiting to take place.
They both forcibly exited while inside of the Elite E rank Ant’s chamber, which also happened to be the place where it stood to protect a valuable flower. Knowing their track record, they’d be turned to meat paste within seconds of appearing, being locked out from entering again for the next month afterwards.
"For now, all we can do is strengthen ourselves in hopes that we can make it out of that terrifying ant’s chamber and out of the beast nest entirely with our lives intact."
Rohan saw no value in trying to devise a complex plan of action, since there really wasn’t anything that could be done until they were stronger.
***
"This is it."
Rohan glanced at the looming crack in space, floating just fifty metres ahead of them. The Spike Beast gate was located on the outer edge of Primus where the population thinned massively. Out here, there were more Awakened on the streets than ordinary people.
In front of the gate, there were queues dozens of people long, all waiting for a chance to enter.
"I wasn’t expecting so many people to be willing to risk their lives in this place..."
Elane shrugged at Rohan’s remark.
"People come out here for all sorts of reasons, the higher chances of Genes and Genetic Armaments dropping being the most frequent of all."
During their journey on the subway over, Elane told Rohan all she knew about the gates, including information that he wasn’t able to find on the forums.
One of the most pertinent pieces of information that instantly caught his attention was the reason for the popularity surrounding gates — their higher loot drop rates. The reason for this was unknown, but it was widely accepted that the Origin Realm was just being fair.
This was the real universe, where death meant the real thing. There was no coming back if you perished inside a gate, so the risk-reward trade off was higher than taking on beasts in the Origin Realm.
Compared to the normal 1% chance of a Genetic Armament being dropped, in gates it was upped to 10%. Much more favourable odds, and a difference that many people were willing to risk their lives for.
Genes were the same, but the chances were lower just like in the Origin Realm.
"Let’s make our way over."
Rohan walked in front as he read the information piece on what to expect in the Spike Beast Gate.
Spike Beasts were bipedal creatures that looked like a grotesque fusion between a reptile and a porcupine.
Their bodies were lean and slightly hunched over, standing anywhere between five and seven feet tall depending on age and strength. They walked on their two powerful hind legs, with long clawed feet that let them dart across rough terrain at surprising speed for creatures with two legs, while their upper limbs hung lower and longer than a human’s arms, ending in sharp black talons that ended in rough talons.
However their most distinctive feature was the spread of thick, bony spikes growing from their backs, shoulders, forearms, and even the sides of their necks. This was exactly where their name came from.
"They can shoot these spikes out."
Elane explained as she read from the side.
"From what I hear, they are really annoying to fight head on."
It was precisely these Spike Beasts that dropped the Genetic Armament Elane wanted. It was a bow made of the same material as their sturdy spines, with the feature that made them so sought after.
By pouring some Origin Energy into it, you could conjure arrows out of thin air which gives an endless supply of ammo so long as you still had Origin Energy available to supply for it. This was a rare trait to find in an F rank Genetic Armament, and was typically something you’d only find in higher ranked equipment.
"A beast with ranged attacks is already annoying enough."
Rohan muttered.
"But one that will rush towards you right after firing them?"
If he didn’t have his Firestone Skin to protect him, Rohan would be hesitant to even enter this gate. He couldn’t quite understand where Elane found the courage to do so herself when she didn’t have anywhere near the level of protection he did.
"Oh by the way, I’ll reveal the surprise once we head inside."
Rohan smiled mischievously, knowing the wait would have Elane waiting in trepidation.
"Try not to be shocked when I do."
Elane gawked at him, but was ignored.
"Just the two of you?"
Their turn in the queue came at that timely moment, and the guard taking register looked at the two of them with concern. Their casual clothes did make them stand out a little, but they weren’t the only ones there wearing casual.
Instead, the guard was concerned that there were only two of them.
"Yes."
"Well... okay. You know the risks, so anything that happens is on you."
The guard waved them through after doing a simple identity check and taking their entrance fee.
"Make sure to maintain a point of contact with each other when passing through the gate. You’ll be separated and teleported to completely random locations inside the dimension on the other side if you don’t."
Rohan and Elane nodded and took a deep breath—
And entered.