The Doom Fate Octopus wriggled, continuously approaching the two of them.
Qin Siyang wanted to move and attack but was held back by Li Tianming, who shook his head, signaling him not to act rashly.
"What do you mean?"
Li Tianming shook his head, "Don't attack. You can't kill it. Besides, it won't actively attack you either, so don't ask for trouble."
Qin Siyang chose to trust Li Tianming and put away his Blind Judge and God-Hunting Dagger.
The two of them stood still.
The Doom Fate Octopus's massive tentacles kept rolling and twisting on the ground, wriggling toward them.
A tentacle stopped two steps away from Qin Siyang, standing taller than him by half a head.
It was covered in mucus.
However, strangely, despite crawling all the way here, its tentacle had not picked up any dirt.
Qin Siyang looked up at the octopus's head, which was much larger than the Ghost Faced Heron.
A pair of massive eyes, constantly secreting mucus, stared at him.
The dark blue glow reflected in those eyes from the cave walls actually gave Qin Siyang a sense of cold arrogance.
Mucus dripped from the Doom Fate Octopus's eyes, and its body muscles pulsed irregularly, spreading the mucus over its entire body.
Plop—
A large drop of mucus fell onto Qin Siyang's shoulder.
Immediately, he smelled the scent mixed within the mucus.
He had originally thought this octopus had no smell, or at most, a faint fishy odor. Even when it reached them, he still hadn't smelled anything.
But the moment this drop of mucus landed on his shoulder, splattering some onto his mask and clogging his breathing vents—
A strong stench of decay instantly flooded his nostrils.
"Ugh…"
The smell made him extremely uncomfortable.
He wanted to vomit but was pinched on the back of his hand by Li Tianming, who shook his head slightly, signaling him not to react.
Qin Siyang had no choice but to endure it and reduce his breathing as much as possible.
The Doom Fate Octopus glanced at Li Tianming, then raised a tentacle, pointing at him before pointing at Qin Siyang.
Qin Siyang frowned, "What does that gesture mean?"
Li Tianming shook his head, "I don't know either. Let me ask."
Then, he looked up at the Doom Fate Octopus and asked, "Do you want me to do something to him?"
The giant octopus head slightly lowered forward, then shifted back.
"It's nodding?"
Qin Siyang was stunned.
'A human… can actually communicate with a god?'
He felt his worldview shattering.
'Aren't gods just bizarre beings that slaughter humans and exist independently?'
"I'm not sure either, but for now, its actions can be interpreted as a confirmation."
"This is ridiculous!"
Li Tianming continued asking, "What do you want me to do to him?"
The Doom Fate Octopus raised its tentacle and pointed at its own head.
Li Tianming frowned and pondered for a moment before asking, "You want me to introduce you to him? But I don't even know you… Are you asking me to explain information about the Doom Fate Octopus to him?"
The Doom Fate Octopus's head slightly lowered again.
Qin Siyang was completely dumbfounded.
"It… it… how does it know that you know about it while I don't?"
Li Tianming said, "It probably figured it out from our reactions. It sees me as an experienced veteran, while you're just a newbie."
"…But this is too unbelievable! Are gods really this smart?"
"Gods are different from humans. There's no such thing as a 'dumb brute' among them. The larger a god's body, the higher its intelligence and the harder it is to kill. However, the Doom Fate Octopus is an exception. Its intelligence far surpasses most mid-sized gods."
"Is there a reason for that?"
"Not sure. But back when we studied the Doom Fate Octopus, there was a theory. Before the apocalypse, octopuses were already anomalies among invertebrates—exceptionally intelligent creatures with intelligence comparable to human children."
"After the apocalypse, for some unknown reason, some octopuses grew into giant gods. Upon becoming gods, their brain structures further evolved, significantly enhancing their intelligence to an astonishing level."
Qin Siyang swallowed, "But… I still can't accept that it can understand our speech."
"There are plenty of unbelievable things in the apocalypse. You'll get used to it… if you survive today."
Qin Siyang took a deep breath, "Then how do we defeat it? Are we really going to discuss how to kill it right in front of it? Old Li, that's a bit arrogant, don't you think?"
"It's fine. It doesn't matter. As I said before, there's only one way to kill the Doom Fate Octopus—gambling with it."
Qin Siyang frowned, confused, "Can't I just stab my blade into its head and kill it?"
"Unfortunately, it's different from other gods. You can't kill it. If it suffers an attack from a sequence ability user, even just a bite, it will immediately split into two identical Doom Fate Octopuses, both just as powerful, and launch the most frenzied counterattack."
"Even biting it is forbidden?", Qin Siyang was shocked.
Li Tianming ignored him, "Once, a very powerful sequence user fought it and was ultimately surrounded and killed by dozens of Doom Fate Octopuses. You could say that the Doom Fate Octopus exists specifically to counter sequence users."
"That's why I stopped you earlier. If two Doom Fate Octopuses go berserk, we're definitely dead."
"This strong?"
The Ghost Faced Heron's terrifying regeneration had already given Qin Siyang a headache.
But now, this Doom Fate Octopus was even more bizarre. It duplicated itself upon attack?
'How the hell are we supposed to fight it?'
"Then what do you mean by gambling with it?"
"As I said, the Doom Fate Octopus is an extremely peculiar god. It's immensely intelligent, impossible to kill, yet seemingly cursed, forever bound by an unchangeable fate."
"Whenever a Doom Fate Octopus encounters a sequence user, it will choose to gamble with them. If it wins, it takes the sequence user's life. If the sequence user wins, even a newly awakened Level 1 sequence user can kill it with a single stab."
Li Tianming sighed, "Perhaps this is what they call the world's balance. It's powerful yet weak at the same time."
"So… how do I gamble with it?"
"Bet on the location of its heart."
"Normal octopuses have three hearts, but the Doom Fate Octopus has only one. It will hide its heart, and you must find it. If you do and stab it, you can kill it."
Qin Siyang licked his lips, "And if I fail, I die?"
"Exactly. Now that it's right in front of us, we have no way to escape. We can only play along."
Qin Siyang looked at Li Tianming, "Old Li, I still don't get it. Why don't you go first and let me observe? You're so skilled, you're definitely going to win."
"Old Li, even if you unfortunately fail, I will remember you forever."
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