ACSP: Chapter 212: The Manipulator in the Shadows, Secret Realm Faction Selection!
When Jiang Chen first extracted this information from Zhao Xuansu, he had already easily deduced which exact story arc from the [Naruto Dimension] this secret realm was replicating.
A rampaging Tailed Beast, a combatant wielding the rare [Wood Release Kekkei Genkai], and a masked mastermind whose solitary [Sharingan] could output absolute Kage-level devastation... This was undeniably the tragic crucible where Uchiha Obito first awakened his Mangekyo Sharingan. By that logic, the ill-fated Jinchuriki anchoring the instance's objective had to be none other than Rin Nohara.
Li Dala skillfully steered the clay bird downward, bringing Jiang Chen and Ronan directly into the staging area surrounding the instance vortex. Despite the punishing reputation of this high-tier secret realm, the perimeter was teeming with activity. The entrance opened up into a wide, grassy clearing where dozens of Contractors had set up camp.
The atmosphere was a chaotic mix of tension and ambition. Groups of two or three sat huddled together, aggressively debating mechanics with furrowed brows—clearly having hit a brick wall during their previous runs and desperately searching for a tactical workaround. Others were riding a high of adrenaline, tirelessly boasting about their mechanical outplays to anyone within earshot.
Closer to the shimmering portal, the clearing dissolved into a loud, frantic recruiting hub as leaders bellowed over the crowd to optimize their compositions:
"Speedrun group forming! Looking for two heavy hitters level 80 or above. Tokubetsu Jonin Contractors preferred, absolutely no unoptimized off-meta builds!"
"Average team level 76, looking for a dedicated support or healer Contractor of similar tier. Bonus points if you have a high-stat summoning beast!"
"Level 51 newbie looking for a carry group! I can fund the run with raw resources, please just get me through the gate!"
"Level 72 team looking for two high-output DPS dealers. We already have a sealing technique specialist locked in!"
"Item-heavy speedrun! Seeking a Contractor packing a minimum inventory of 10,000 explosive tags—don't apply if you're going to cheap out on the consumables!"
Filtering through the wall of voices, Jiang Chen and his companions seamlessly stepped off the clay bird, landing firmly amidst the bustling crowd.
High-level secret realms operated under a fundamentally different set of laws compared to intermediate or Novice instances. This advanced tier featured no artificial difficulty selector; once you crossed the threshold, there was only one static, unadulterated map. Survival and rewards were tied strictly to completing the narrative milestones embedded within the zone.
However, the simpler a map appeared on paper, the more deceptive its lethality usually proved to be. Anyone foolish enough to underestimate the environment based on a straightforward objective checklist would invariably pay for it in blood.
Furthermore, the scaling mechanics of a high-level instance were brutally cutthroat: the aggregate difficulty of the enemy NPCs and monsters was tied directly to the single highest character level present within the entering party. Simply put, if a team harbored a lone level 100 juggernaut, the system would automatically scale the entire instance's parameters to match a level 100 nightmare—even if the remaining four members were fragile level 51 rookies. This unforgiving scaling law was precisely why the Contractors in the clearing were so hyper-fixated on verifying exact character levels before locking in their rosters.
"Boss, initiating the sequence for this dungeon requires a hard minimum of a five-man party," Li Dala noted, quickly dispersing his clay creation back into his storage inventory. He turned to Jiang Chen, scanning the crowd. "We're sitting at three. Should we scout out a couple of solo players to pad the numbers?"
"Sure. Go ahead and fill the slots," Jiang Chen replied with a casual wave of his hand, delegating the tedious recruitment logistics straight to Li Dala.
In truth, he had originally considered bringing Zhao Bin and Zhao Shui along to let them leech some high-tier experience.
However, Zhao Bin had other urgent matters to handle within the pavilion and couldn't make it. As for Zhao Shui, though he was technically free, his character level was still stuck at a mere level 50. He simply hadn't met the hard system requirement to pass through a high-level instance gate yet.
Left with no other options, they had to recruit two temporary randoms right here on the staging grounds.
Fortunately, the clearing was practically crawling with solo players looking to fill a roster. It didn't take long after Li Dala sauntered into the crowd for him to wave over two prospects.
The new recruits were twin sisters belonging to a minor, low-tier family based here in the Magic City. The older sister, Nangong Fei, was a level 69 Special Contractor, while the younger, Nangong Hong, stood at level 68 with a Chunin classification. While their combat stats within the competitive Magic City ecosystem were strictly average, their physical appearances were striking enough to turn heads across the clearing.
Nangong Fei was exceptionally tall, with flawless, snow-white skin and vibrant, spirited eyes that seemed to capture the ambient light. But what truly drew immediate attention was her incredibly voluptuous figure—her chest was so prominently developed it practically strained the fabric of her combat gear.
By Jiang Chen's passive calculation, she easily possessed a staggering F-cup silhouette, completely eclipsing even the impressive proportions of President Xia Qianning back at the Kang City General Chamber of Commerce. It was, by all tactical metrics, a devastating pair of "lethal weapons."
Her younger sister, Nangong Hong, was certainly blessed in her own right, though standing next to her twin, the sheer difference in scale made her look modest by comparison. To someone like Li Dala, who lacked any subtle filter, the older sister's presence was just an absolute, jaw-dropping spectacle.
"Damn it, Li Dala! We told you to go grab a couple of temporary teammates, so how the hell did you end up bringing over two giant... assets?!"
The moment Li Dala proudly marched the Nangong sisters into their camp, Ronan, who had been casually taking a drink from his water flask, nearly choked and sprayed it all over the grass.
He stared wide-eyed at the Nangong sisters, his face a perfect mask of utter shock, the water in his throat nearly slipping down his windpipe. He hacked and coughed a few times in a frantic panic, only then managing to force his breathing back under control.
Damn it, he thought, stealing another glance. Are those things even anatomically possible? Did she get some serious plastic surgery or what?
"Don't go looking down on these two young ladies; they're both high-tier Contractors closing in on level 70," Li Dala declared solemnly, his expression deadpan and entirely devoid of a smirk, as if he were simply reporting cold, hard facts. "Furthermore, they happen to be massive fans of the Boss, so you'd better keep your mind out of the gutter, Ronan. I strictly recruited them because of their loyalty to the Boss, not because they're... exceptionally well-endowed."
However, before he could even finish his noble defense, the Nangong sisters had already locked their burning, rapturous gazes directly onto Jiang Chen.
"Wow! It really is Jiang Chen! I've watched his combat footage online so many times—this is absolutely the real deal!" Nangong Fei squealed excitedly. Her large, watery eyes sparkled with pure adoration, a faint, rosy flush creeping up her cheeks until she looked like a perfectly ripe apple.
"Big sister, wasn't Jiang Chen supposed to be holding down the fort in Jinghai City? What is he doing here in our Magic City?" Nangong Hong murmured, covering her small mouth in sheer disbelief, her eyes swimming with a mixture of profound admiration and shock as she stared at him.
Hearing the twin sisters' reactions, Jiang Chen was quietly caught off guard. He hadn't quite realized that his reputation had already preceded him to this extent within the competitive Magic City ecosystem. Initially, he had shared Ronan's cynical view, assuming Li Dala had simply let his baser instincts guide him toward the most visually striking women in the clearing. It seemed he had done his explosive teammate a minor injustice.
"Hold on a second. How exactly did you know they were fans of the Boss the moment you walked up?" Ronan asked, still smelling a rat. He narrowed his eyes, probing Li Dala for the actual origin story of this sudden recruitment.
"What's there to interrogate? When I strolled over there, I just happened to overhear the two of them passionately discussing the Boss's latest exploits. That's how I knew. What else did your dirty mind think happened?" Li Dala countered righteously.
Of course, he was taking that secret to his grave. He was absolutely never going to admit to Ronan that he had originally sprinted over there for the sole purpose of getting a closer, tactical angle on Nangong Fei's breathtaking, snow-white cleavage, only to accidentally stumble into their conversation.
Now that the five-man party requirement was officially satisfied, Jiang Chen didn't waste another single second. Stepping forward to the vanguard as the designated team leader, he approached the shimmering vortex of the instance gate.
He extended his consciousness, seamlessly linking his system interface to the dungeon's core logic.
[System Notification: High-Level Dungeon unlocked — The Manipulator in the Shadows]
[Faction Selection Available: Konoha (Hidden Leaf) / Kirigakure (Hidden Mist)]
[Dungeon Directive: Upon confirming your faction alignment, the party will materialize within the instance space under that banner and receive your corresponding primary missions!]
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