Infinity, The Arcade Age
Chapter 533: Letter of Resignation

Chapter 533: Chapter 533: Letter of Resignation

Qin Ming’s furious outburst made the massive eye above pause. It remained silent for a long moment before it finally spoke again. This time, however, the voice was no longer angry—it had become calm and composed.

It reverted to that cold, synthetic electronic tone.

"Qin Ming."

"What is it?"

"Hand it over to me."

"On what grounds?"

"Because I’m stronger. What future do you think you’ll have following it? Equals? Superior status? Starting a business together? Don’t be naïve. It can barely sustain itself. What can it even offer you? The moment it loses a fight, the worst that’ll happen is it gets sealed again—but you? You’ll actually die!"

Its eye narrowed slightly, and the enormous eyeball hanging in the sky now spoke in a gentle voice.

"We see great potential in you. Enormous potential. If you join us, you’ll become one of the top-tier adventurers. You’ll help us manage the many worlds we’ve conquered. You can become a true master of those planes. All we need is for you to drive out the adventurers from the other invading spaces. Beyond that, you’ll be free to do whatever you please."

By this point, the giant eye’s voice was laced with unmistakable allure.

"How many planes do you want? Ten? Twenty? Thirty? Qin Ming, your abilities are unique. No matter how many planes you want, the Nightmare Space can give them to you—because you’re worth investing in. You’re worth drawing in."

Truthfully, the Nightmare Space was feeling both frustrated and anxious at the moment.

Because Qin Ming’s ability was genuinely rare and extraordinarily valuable.

It wasn’t lying—Qin Ming had indeed been placed on the list for elite cultivation. All that was left was to complete a few formalities.

Who could’ve expected that even those simple steps would lead to such a mess? That he’d actually get stolen away halfway through? And by someone he’d already defeated no less!

At this point, whether or not they could capture the Fantasy Space no longer mattered to the Nightmare Space. But what it couldn’t accept was Qin Ming leaving.

His power was too exceptional. He had the potential to significantly boost the strength of the troops within the Space.

If he ran off now, who knew when—or if—another one like him would ever appear again?

That was why the eye of the Nightmare Space, locked tightly on Qin Ming, continued offering olive branches without pause.

"If you go with it, you’ll die. It can’t compete with the other Spaces. It can’t even defeat the local powers of the large planes or the minor ones. But we’re different. Nightmare Space is different. With us protecting you, you’ll never die, Qin Ming. Immortality! Sovereignty over worlds! Absolute freedom! Isn’t that enough? Are you really going to throw away all of that to go start some scrappy venture with a second-rate failure?"

As it spoke, the rift in the sky gradually widened, revealing the vast, boundless black sphere beyond—countless eyes covering its surface.

"So, Qin Ming, hand it over. Even if you keep cooperating with it, the most you’ll gain is what I’m offering now. Come back. Be one of us. Become a sovereign—an eternal, undying master of the planes!"

As it spoke, the Nightmare Space began to condense energy, forming an enormous, towering hand that reached slowly toward Qin Ming.

Staring at the colossal palm unfurling before him, vast enough to block out the sky itself, Qin Ming fell silent.

A few seconds later, Qin Ming looked up and grinned, his smile radiant.

"Boss, you’re still as generous as ever. But unfortunately, I’m tired of all the games inside your place. And since you won’t let me enter other Spaces to try out something new, I’m afraid I’ll have to pass."

He reached up to adjust his cap, bowed slightly, and narrowed his eyes into crescents.

"I don’t care about immortality. I just want to play games I’ve never played, go to places I’ve never been. That’s all. Even if it means dying because of it. So... Boss Nightmare! I’m submitting my resignation!"

Boom!

Just as his words fell, the enormous hand reaching down from the sky suddenly flipped and crashed down—it intended to seize him right then and there.

Unfortunately for Nightmare Space, Qin Ming had already prepared for this. The instant that massive palm descended, he stepped back into Fantasy Space, avoiding the grab entirely.

Each Space or plane’s internal world was akin to its territory—under absolute control.

No matter how powerful an outsider was, unless they broke through that control, they couldn’t interfere with its interior.

With the KOF plane, Nightmare Space had already locked onto its spatial coordinates, allowing it to send subordinates in to assault the will of the world and suppress it, eventually descending by force.

But Fantasy Space’s coordinates were mutable. It wasn’t fixed in place like a static plane. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have been able to run around with its crew looting and plundering like bandits.

When faced with a similar kind of Space, Nightmare Space had no quick solution.

Its grasp missed entirely, and the Nightmare Space let out a furious roar.

Inside his own Space, Qin Ming calmly reached to his chest. With Fantasy Space’s assistance, he pulled out a black eye-shaped insignia from within his body.

This was the locator Nightmare Space had planted inside him—a spatial beacon and the anchor of its power.

He opened a rift, tossed the beacon out, and then firmly pressed the glowing white orb—Fantasy Space’s core—back into his chest.

Having merged with his Space, Qin Ming stood at the rift’s edge, bowed deeply toward Nightmare Space one last time, then turned without hesitation.

"Farewell, Boss Nightmare!"

With a buzz, the fine crack in space sealed shut, and both Qin Ming and Fantasy Space vanished without a trace.

Seeing this, the countless eyes in the sky trembled and darted about furiously before abruptly withdrawing into the darkness.

The enormous tear in the sky slowly mended itself and finally disappeared completely.

At that same moment, every adventurer under Nightmare Space’s command—newbies and veterans alike—heard a strange voice in their ears and saw a special mission appear before them:

[Ding! Special Mission Triggered: Capture the Traitor!]

[Mission Grade: SSS-Level]

[Mission Requirement: If you encounter an adventurer named Qin Ming, capable of traveling freely between worlds, immediately report to Nightmare Space and attempt to capture him. If successful, you will be rewarded with an SSS-level skill book and a piece of myth-grade equipment!]

[Mission Brief: Find him! Catch him! Bring him back! He will be judged by Nightmare Space!]

Even now, Nightmare Space refused to give up on Qin Ming’s exceptional talent. It still harbored hope that one of its underlings might run into him by chance and manage to bring him back.

At the same time, every seed-level adventurer—those marked for special cultivation due to unique skills but who hadn’t yet completed the process—was abruptly upgraded to top-tier adventurers or Transcenders.

Having learned its lesson the hard way, Nightmare Space no longer cared about maintaining its so-called rules.

Hearing the new order and seeing the absurdly high rewards offered, all the adventurers in Nightmare Space exchanged bewildered looks.

What? Who the hell was this Qin Ming? Most of them had never even heard the name!

Catch him on sight? Any Qin Ming would do? What the hell had gotten into Nightmare Space today?

(End of Chapter)