Chương 353: A New Name on the Board

Li Yu and Grand Elder Theron arrived back from the Alchemist's Ward, their entrance barely causing a ripple in the focused chaos. Theron immediately strode over to Sect Leader Lyra, who was directing the flow of troops on the massive, glowing tactical map.

"Lyra, the ring and the body are with Master Elix. He is confident he can derive countermeasures for Vespertine's poisons within the week. This is a major victory." Lyra's exhausted face broke into a small, relieved smile.

"That is the best news I have heard all month, Grand Elder. The 3rd regiment will be eternally grateful." Theron then turned to Li Yu.

"You have done more than enough for one day. Your contributions have been immense. Return to your quarters and rest. I will sort through the latest reports and find our next most critical pressure point. I will call for you when your strength is needed again." Li Yu nodded.

"Understood, Grand Elder." He gave a respectful bow to the other Sect Leaders and left the command center, the heavy stone door closing behind him, muffling the sounds of war. He walked through the bustling stone corridors back to the spartan room he had been assigned. But rest was the last thing on his mind. He sealed the door behind him and sat cross-legged on the simple stone bed.

The events of the last hour were replaying in his mind—the ambush, the battle, and most importantly, the revelation of his poison immunity. It was a powerful, hidden trump card. But there was another new tool at his disposal that he had yet to properly examine. He drew the dark, metallic merit token from his robes. It was cool to the touch, and as he channeled a wisp of his spiritual energy into it, the complex runes on its surface lit up with a soft, internal light.

A projection of shimmering light, about the size of a scroll, materialized in the air before him. The interface was simple, written in the common tongue of the continent. At the top, it read: Allied Forces Merit Ledger - Disciple Division. Below that was a line for his own information. It was mostly blank. Name: [Unknown] Affiliation: Abyssal Crab Cult Merit Points: [Undisclosed] Current Rank: 8 He frowned. An undisclosed number of merit points. That was… annoying.

How was he supposed to know how much he had earned or what he could afford? He scanned the interface, looking for a 'store' or 'exchange' button, but found nothing. It seemed the token was purely for tracking and ranking; the actual exchange would have to be done in person at a logistics hall. He would have to ask about that later. His eyes were drawn back to his rank. Eighth. To be ranked eighth on the entire continent—or at least this entire warfront—after just a week of fighting and one significant kill...

it spoke volumes about how valuable Vespertine truly was. He wondered where Jian was. He found a button labeled 'Rankings' and pressed it with his spiritual sense. The projection shifted, now displaying a long, scrolling list. Disciple Division Top 50 Rankings He scanned the list. His own entry was there, a simple line that read: 8. [Unknown] - Abyssal Crab Cult He couldn't find Jian Xuan's name anywhere in the top fifty. A separate list for elders, then. That made sense.

His gaze drifted upwards, to the names above his. Roric Heavystrike - Stone Binders Sect Evandra Vane - Ashen Blade Sect Faelan Nightwind - Forest of the Radiant Dawn Jarek Volkov - Skyfire Academy Serra Swiftwind - Silver Serpent Sect Bronwyn Steel - Forest of the Radiant Dawn Torin Stonehand - Stone Binders Sect [Unknown] - Abyssal Crab Cult Lysette Moreau - Verdant Guard Silas Croft - Ashen Blade Sect He scanned the names again. He didn't recognize a single one.

However, seeing two disciples from the Forest of the Radiant Dawn ranked third and sixth respectively showed their significant contribution and the high caliber of their younger generation. These names represented the most active and powerful disciples from all the allied sects, individuals who had clearly made significant contributions to the war effort. These were the names whispered with respect and awe among the younger generation, the benchmarks against which others measured themselves.

He was about to delve deeper when a loud, cheerful knock echoed on his door.

"Brother Li! Are you in there? I come bearing tales of my glorious final patrol and a profound theological question about the Crab God's third verse!" Li Yu sighed, dispelling the light projection just as the door swung open and Jian Xuan strode in, his white robes still immaculate, his face beaming.

"I have good news and better news," Jian announced.

"The good news is, I think my final chant made a few of the enemy soldiers actually faint from unadulterated awe. The better news is, I finally figured out how this merit token works!" He brandished his own.

"I was just looking at it myself," Li Yu said.

"I'm ranked eighth on the Disciple list." This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. Jian stopped, his grin faltering for a fraction of a second.

"Eighth? How in the... oh. Vespertine. That kill must have been worth a fortune." He quickly recovered, his grin returning.

"Excellent! A glorious ranking for the Cult! I, however, am not even on the board yet on my own list. Seems killing Foundation Establishment and Core Formation grunts isn't enough to make a dent."

"We did just get here, these rankings could be from who knows how long." Li Yu said. Jian Xuan projected his own token's interface. The header was different: Allied Forces Merit Ledger - Elder Division. The list of names was completely different. Theron was number one, followed by a list of other powerful experts Li Yu didn't recognize, including Sect Leader Kaelen, Sect Leader Lyra and Elder Corvus.

"Two separate lists," Li Yu deduced.

"Elders and up. It makes sense. We're not competing with each other."

"Exactly!" Jian said.

"But look here." He pointed to the Name: [Unknown] field on his token.

"We have to enter our names. I want the entire continent to know who is racking up kills in the name of the Crab God. I'm putting in 'Jian Xuan'." He did so and the 'Unknown' on his interface was replaced by his real name.

"What about you?" Jian asked.

"You can't stay 'Unknown' forever. It's bad for the cult." Li Yu thought for a moment. He certainly wasn't going to use his real name. A pseudonym was necessary. His mind went back to his childhood, to a nickname given to him by his family.

"I was thinking...

'Little Fish'." Jian stroked his chin, considering it with the gravity of a theologian.

"Hmm.

'Little Fish'. It has a certain... humble charm. But it's off-brand." He snapped his fingers, his eyes lighting up.

"I've got it! You're the first disciple of the Prophet Khaos. You are a child of the Crab God! You can't be a fish! You must be... a crab!

'Little Crab'! It's perfect! It shows your connection to the faith, your humility before the Great One and it's thematically consistent!" Li Yu stared at him. The logic, as insane as it was, was flawless within the context of their ridiculous charade. He sighed. It seemed his fate was sealed.

"Fine.

'Little Crab' it is." He focused on his token and with a wisp of his spiritual sense, he entered the new name. On the glowing screen, the eighth rank on the Disciple Division leaderboard changed. Little Crab - Abyssal Crab Cult Somewhere on the Southern Front... Evandra Vane, the top-ranked disciple of the Ashen Blade Sect, grunted as she pulled her saber from the chest of a Beast Faction commander.

She was tired, her spiritual energy was low and she had just lost two members of her squad in this grueling, week-long battle to hold a critical mountain pass. As she cleaned her blade, she pulled out her merit token to check the rankings, a small ritual she did after every major engagement. She saw her own name still solidly at rank two, but her eyes were drawn to a new addition that had inserted itself into the top ten. A new name sat at the number eight spot: 'Little Crab'. She had never heard of him.

And his affiliation...

'Abyssal Crab Cult'? What in the blazes was that? A surge of hot, competitive anger rose in her chest. Who was this person who had just appeared out of nowhere? But the anger was quickly tempered by grudging respect. To jump into the top ten, you had to have done something significant. Something big. Then she remembered the priority-kill notification that had pinged on her token just hours ago. Vespertine. The Venom Lord. A monster even her own Sect Leader was wary of. Her eyes widened.

'This 'Little Crab'... could it be that he killed Vespertine?' The thought was staggering. Her anger dissolved, replaced by a burning curiosity and a renewed sense of determination.

"So," she muttered to herself, a grim smile touching her lips as she looked at the pass her squad had just secured.

"There's a new shark in the water. Good. It was getting boring." She sheathed her saber.

"Alright, everyone! Let's move! We're not done yet!" In the Aegis Command at Fort Torrent... Sect Leader Lyra was analyzing a flurry of reports from the front lines. She kept a projection of the Disciple Division rankings active on her desk, as it allowed her to track the most effective young talents. An aide brought her a new report.

"Sect Leader Lyra, an update from the Ironjaw Ravine. You probably already know from Theron but the region has been completely pacified. Allied patrols report zero enemy activity for the past twelve hours or more now." Lyra looked up, surprised.

"Completely? It took them one week? We projected it would take at least a month."

"It was the Abyssal Crab Cult, Sect Leader," the aide said, his voice filled with awe.

"Just the two of them and a third warrior they brought with them from somewhere. They... purged it." Lyra's sharp eyes flickered to the merit token on her desk. The name Little Crab - Abyssal Crab Cult at rank eight practically leaped off the screen.

"So that's him," she whispered. She remembered the calm, impossibly young man in the ridiculous white robe. She remembered Theron's stark, absolute warning.

"Do not make an enemy of him."

"He and Jian Xuan must have been racking up thousands of smaller kills all week. The Vespertine kill was just the final, massive bonus that pushed him into the top ten." She looked at the name again. Little Crab. It was a childish, almost laughable name. But there was nothing laughable about the results. A new, terrifyingly efficient powerhouse had just announced his presence on the continental stage. She also thought it was unfair, what was he doing on this list?

He was able to kill Vespertine, meaning he was stronger than she was! What a freak! What are they feeding him at the Cult she wondered. Impossibly young and impossibly strong, this was a piece she would need to watch very carefully. In a dimly lit library within a fortress to the west...

Jarek Volkov, a scholar-warrior from the Skyfire Academy ranked fourth, was cross-referencing battle reports with the merit rankings, a habit that had saved his life more than once by identifying rising threats and powerful new allies. He had already noted the appearance of the 'Abyssal Crab Cult' from the reports on the Battle of Aethelgard. When he saw the name 'Little Crab' shoot to rank eight, he immediately cross-referenced the time of the update with the priority-kill notification for Vespertine.

"A perfect match," he murmured, stroking his chin.

"So, 'Little Crab' is the one who took down the Venom Lord." He wasn't surprised or angry. He was intrigued. He began to compile a new dossier. Subject: Abyssal Crab Cult. Known Members: Jian Xuan (Soul Formation, Prophet?), Little Crab (Core Formation, Disciple?). Methods: Overwhelming force, high efficiency. Affiliation: Allied with Forest of the Radiant Dawn. Notes: Lunatics, Crazy, highly devoted, always chanting praises to their god. He looked at his own rank, then at the new name.

"Welcome to the board, Little Crab," he said to the empty room.

"Let's see how long you can hold that spot." A competitive fire lit in his eyes. He had been planning a raid on a Human Faction supply depot. Perhaps it was time to move up the schedule. He didn't want to be overtaken. The name 'Little Crab' was no longer unknown. In command tents, on lonely watchtowers and in hidden enemy camps across the entire southern front, a new legend was being born, a legend of a ridiculously named, white-robed disciple who had appeared from nowhere and sky rocketed in fame.