CSMCDB - Chapter 144
Chapter 144
The Celestial Fox King did not stay long at the Flowing Cloud Sect. After confirming that Xiao Shi'er was not in any serious danger, he returned to the Demonic Beast Great Forest.
The Celestial Fox King made no moves nor issued any statements, calmly continuing his cultivation in the depths of the Demonic Beast Great Forest. However, the debt for Xiao Shi'er's injury was firmly placed on Fu's head. When the right opportunity arose… perhaps he would retaliate.
Accompanied by two Protectors of the Nation, Wen Yuncheng began what was possibly the most luxurious "Path of Invincibility" in history. After all, among the various prodigies recorded in the old annals who walked this path… it seemed not a single one had two Star Emperors as their guardians.
After the failed operation by the Star Emperor and Star Venerate from the Fu organization, the Star Venerate was severely reprimanded. The higher-ups within Fu were extremely disappointed in that Star Emperor. A Star Emperor and a Star Venerate, sent to capture a Star Spirit alive, had actually failed? It was a colossal joke. Not to mention, the leaders of Fu had even permitted the Star Emperor to kill Wen Yuncheng directly. Although they were eager to study that kid, given the current need to lay low and wait for reinforcements from the other world, they were unwilling to expend too much energy on a Star Spirit with a Star Power Mutation.
Valued by the Empire? Just kill her.
However, these two had failed to complete a single objective! They were more useless than trash! Even if they claimed Wen Yuncheng possessed treasures like a "random teleportation scroll," "a Chu Han clone," and "defensive scrolls"… these shouldn't have been a major problem for a Star Emperor. If not for that Star Emperor's overconfidence, Wen Yuncheng would never have escaped!
Wen Yuncheng… was clearly just a Star Spirit, yet she repeatedly caused them to suffer setbacks…
This person…
While the upper echelons of the Fu organization were fiercely debating whether to make another attempt to assassinate Wen Yuncheng, the base of the unsuccessful Star Emperor was attacked and utterly destroyed by a host of the Empire's Star Emperors!
It was fast, precise, and ruthless. Shortly after the higher-ups received the Star Emperor's call for help, news of the base's annihilation followed. As for that Star Emperor… he was captured alive!
Now, Fu's leadership was thoroughly enraged. "After being forced to retreat by a Protector while trying to capture a Star Spirit, didn't he know to remove the mark the Protector left on him?! He was asking for death, and he exposed the 'Secret-Five' base!"
"The existence of the Huanling Continent has been confirmed. The lords over there are willing to help us subvert the Empire and lend their aid. We just need to lay low, lay low, do you understand?! …Fortunately, Base Five only stored research related to the flesh and blood of the Dragon Race…"
"I know we need to lay low, but that Star Spirit is far too monstrous. If we let her continue to grow…"
"Monstrous? No matter how monstrous she is, can she advance to Star Emperor in two or three years? Our current objective is to fully support the research at 'Secret-One' to help the Huanling Continent open the planar passage and bring them over! That lord has temporarily entered a dormant period. We should go completely into hiding and stop attracting the Empire's attention! The time is not yet right!" A high-ranking member slammed the table and roared, his face flushed with agitation and the veins on his neck bulging. "I've long said we shouldn't bother with some young person with a Star Power Mutation! Hasn't every era had cultivators with Star Power Mutations? Even if you want to study her, the mission given by the lord should be the priority! This is a plan that can subvert history and change the entire continent!"
"Liu Bolong, calm down. After all, no one knew that kid with the Star Power Mutation would be so slippery. Otherwise… we would have sent a Star Emperor to kill her during the first bounty," another leader said in a deep voice. "We all want to change the continent, to subvert all this. We share a common goal. As for that little kid with the Star Power Mutation… we just wanted to capture her for research, like many operations before. You may not be interested in research, but you have to consider others…"
The one called Liu Bolong huffed and said no more.
"The organization has suffered heavy losses in this operation… Moreover, the latest news is that two Protectors have become Wen Yuncheng's guardians. If we want to act again, we'll need to dispatch at least four Star Emperors… And it's still unknown if this is a trap deliberately set by the Empire."
The meeting room fell silent.
After a long while, a leader spoke: "…Abandon the plan to capture or attack Wen Yuncheng."
"It won't be long. The reinforcements from the Huanling Continent… are coming soon."
"Seconded." "Seconded." …
The leaders pondered for a moment, then one by one stated their positions.
"The resolution is passed. Cancel the bounty on Wen Yuncheng. The entire organization will lay low. No more creating unnecessary trouble."
Wen Yuncheng was still unaware that the Fu organization had actually given up on killing her and chosen to lay low. However, with two Protectors as her guardians, she didn't think Fu would be willing to expend too great an effort to deal with her anyway. After all… Fu knew neither of her disguise ability nor that she was the one who had provided the locations of their bases.
Wen Yuncheng submitted all her information to the First Princess, who then passed it directly to a few high-ranking officials of the Empire and the Protectors. Clearly, Fu's infiltration did not run that deep.
With the two Protectors accompanying her, Wen Yuncheng's sect-challenging tour proceeded more smoothly than ever. With guardians, every time she arrived in a region, she would challenge all the nearby sects one after another. She had hoped this would save travel time, but unfortunately… most of the sects within the Empire were not located very close to each other. Even if it saved some time, it wasn't much.
While Wen Yuncheng was diligently grinding for experience, two weeks later, she suddenly heard that Lin Jinyu had begun to constantly challenge first-tier sects.
Lin Jinyu… what was she up to? Wen Yuncheng was a little confused. She had called her Little Ice Mountain, who only said that she was preparing for the future.
As for the specifics, she wouldn't say.
Lin Jinyu's idea was actually quite simple. She wanted to use these challenges to build her influence among the younger generation of the sects. Since she wanted to form an alliance in the future, she needed fame and power, and challenging sects was an excellent way to accumulate both.
If she could defeat all the young disciples of the first-tier sects, then… when she took over the Flowing Cloud Sect, its influence would expand accordingly.
But Lin Jinyu had no intention of explaining these intricacies to Wen Yuncheng.
One month later.
Host: Wen Yuncheng
Race: Human
Age: 21
Class: Mechanical Overlord
Level: 59
Experience: 26935/71000
Points: 16408
After challenging seventeen second-tier sects, Wen Yuncheng shot up to level 59. However, just as she was on the verge of breaking through to level 60 with a little more effort, she suddenly hesitated: for her to break through to level 60 at her age… would be far too conspicuous.
She needed a Spirit Treasure that could conceal her cultivation level.
Wen Yuncheng looked at the list of second-tier sects. If she challenged every single one on the list, she could absolutely step into the Star King rank. But that would be too eye-catching… She wanted the Star King rank skills and blueprints, but… she did not want the title of a "twenty-one-year-old Star King."
This matter… she would clearly have to ask the Empire for help. And not too many people could know about it.
"You're saying… you feel you're close to the Star King rank?" Even Chu Han, who had seen his fair share of incredible things, was shocked to hear Wen Yuncheng, who had only just reached the 3rd Layer of Star Spirit not long ago, tell him that she seemed to be on the verge of becoming a Star King.
Di Feng looked her up and down. "You… why don't you sleep on it a little longer?"
Wen Yuncheng was speechless.
She had to repeatedly insist that she was not joking before the two Protectors reluctantly believed her.
Chu Han pondered for a moment, earnestly trying to recall the Spirit Treasures currently in the Imperial treasury. Concealing one's rank? There should be some, but… to fool a Star Emperor, it would need to be at least a Heaven-rank Spirit Treasure, right? As far as he could remember, the Empire didn't seem to possess such an item.
"We'll need to return to the Imperial Capital to take stock of the treasury," Chu Han said.
Di Feng also thought hard for a while. Hearing Chu Han's words, he nodded. "I'm not familiar with concealment-type Spirit Treasures, and I don't know if there are any in the treasury. We can go back and look for you. You can also go to the auction house and ask that Yan lass."
It took Wen Yuncheng a second to realize that the "Yan lass" Di Feng mentioned was Yan Ling. She nodded in agreement and returned to the Imperial Capital with the Protectors, temporarily pausing her sect-challenging tour.
The sects that had yet to be challenged waited for several days without any news of Wen Yuncheng. They grew quite anxious, wondering who the next victim would be. The young disciples within the sects were on pins and needles, feeling that Wen Yuncheng's delay… was simply torturing them!
Wen Yuncheng temporarily returned to the Imperial Capital to await news. She was still about forty-five thousand experience points away from level 60, so she wasn't in a great hurry. In the past, forty-five thousand EXP would have been a major headache for her, but now, it was just a matter of challenging six more sects.
The year passed by in a flash, and before she knew it, another had begun. Wen Yuncheng couldn't help but sigh at how leveling up (cultivating) made it difficult to notice the passage of time. It was no wonder the Starry Sky Continent had little concept of a "New Year." People didn't even pay much attention to birthdays…
Wen Yuncheng felt a bit nostalgic for her life at the academy. Back then, she didn't have to rush around like this, and there was no danger. Every day was fulfilling. She could see her Little Ice Mountain whenever she wanted, and the two of them even had their annual autumn outing (the Beast Tide).
With nothing to do, Wen Yuncheng took a stroll around Star Academy before going to find Yan Ling to ask if she knew of any Spirit Treasures that could hide one's cultivation level.
"…There are some, but this type of Spirit Treasure is very niche, so they're extremely rare." Yan Ling glanced at Wen Yuncheng. This kid's promotions were as easy as drinking water; she was already a 3rd Layer Star Spirit. Meanwhile, she, the teacher, was still stuck at the 3rd Layer of Star King, with no idea how long it would be until she reached Star Venerate. Was fighting and killing really that conducive to advancement and gaining enlightenment? "Not only does the Spirit Treasure become ineffective the moment you use Star Power, but even if you don't use any Star Power, people with a higher rank than you can see through it. If you want to deceive high-ranking cultivators, even Star Venerates and Star Emperors, the Spirit Treasure would have to be at least Earth-rank or higher."
…Generally speaking, no forger would be willing to expend so much effort to create such a niche item. If they could forge Earth-rank or Heaven-rank Spirit Treasures, wouldn't it be better to make offensive or defensive ones?
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