CSMCDB - Chapter 173
Chapter 173
Grandpa Lin was both gratified and amused by Wen Yuncheng's behavior. His granddaughter stood by, saying nothing, but she too appeared nervous. Smiling, Grandpa Lin accepted the gift, signifying his approval of Wen Yuncheng.
After meeting the family, Wen Yuncheng got serious. She took out a map she had drawn, which outlined the Star Venerate's movements. "He was seriously injured in my and Lin Jinyu's surprise attack. He should be traveling and healing at the same time. These are the places he temporarily stopped. We rushed over to check them, but there was nothing unusual." Wen Yuncheng pointed to the marks on the map. "However, he seems to be heading straight north. I wonder what's in the north..."
"Duanya Sea." Chu Han reacted instantly, supplying the name as soon as Wen Yuncheng mentioned the north. "Duanya Sea has a unique magnetic field. The Empire's ancestors once suspected a secret realm passage was there, but investigations turned up nothing special. The Star Power in that area is chaotic. If Fu is really up to something there, it would indeed be difficult to detect."
"That place..." The Star Emperor from Xuancheng Academy stroked his stubble and mused, "Our academy has studied that area. The Star Power is chaotic, and the magnetic field is jumbled. Anyone with an unstable foundation who carelessly enters is especially prone to dying from their own Star Power exploding out of control."
Wen Yuncheng's eyes widened. Dying from your body exploding? How exciting. She poked 1947, worried that she might explode if she went there.
[?] 1947 thought, You don't even have Star Power, what the hell are you worried about? But it couldn't say that, so it organized its thoughts in its dad persona. [You don't have Star Power, so there's nothing to explode.]
Oh... What about Lin Jinyu?
[Her foundation is very stable. She'll be fine.] She was the Child of the Plane now; how could she fall so easily? The opportunity from that ball of light the Plane Consciousness gave her had solidified her foundation completely.
Wen Yuncheng was completely relieved and continued listening as the Star Emperors explained the various precautions for Duanya Sea.
"If it really is that place... as we approach the area, if either of you feels any discomfort, you must speak up immediately."
"Okay, we won't try to act tough." Wen Yuncheng replied obediently. With Lin Jinyu's grandfather present, Wen Yuncheng didn't dare to be mischievous or reckless, trying her best to show her well-behaved and steady side.
They followed the trail, rushing north. Along the way, Wen Yuncheng curiously asked if their sudden withdrawal wouldn't make Huanling and Fu suspect something was amiss.
"It's fine. If I'm not mistaken, you two killed quite a few dragons, didn't you?" Chu Han said with a smile. "Since we didn't show ourselves, they'll probably suspect we returned to our territory to slaughter dragons."
When they left, the dragons on the battlefield had been fighting them with bloodshot eyes, looking like they wanted to eat them alive. Such a display was truly laughable.
"Is that so... Hehe, to be honest with you, I really do have quite a few dragon corpses. I haven't extracted the essence blood, dragon bones, or anything, so they're very well-preserved. And look, I also blew up three fortresses. Does this mean..." Wen Yuncheng sounded a little embarrassed. "Could the Empire perhaps reward me with two Heaven-rank Spirit Treasures? I'd just like a defensive Heaven-rank Spirit Treasure, and then maybe a Heaven-rank sword for Jinyu?"
The Star Emperors all glanced at her. Mo Dingtian teased, "So that's why you never made any requests. You were waiting for this."
"Two Heaven-rank Spirit Treasures... based on your merits, you can exchange for them. It's just that the items you're asking for... we'll have to check the treasury when we get back to the Imperial Capital. If we don't have them, it might take some time to have a master craftsman customize them for you."
"Then I'll have to trouble you, Seniors!"
They continued their journey, and Wen Yuncheng watched the Star Venerate's position move until it finally reached the Duanya Sea region. Only when the person's location stabilized within a small area did Wen Yuncheng mark it on the map for the Star Emperors to see.
"This place... seems to be on the seabed."
"There must be a formation set up. Quite an extravagant move."
"It seems to be a major stronghold."
The Star Emperors exchanged a few words, and each of them grew more alert.
Before entering Duanya Sea, Chu Han exchanged information with the Empire. Although five Star Emperors could put up a fight even against a half-step Star Saint, it was better to be cautious and maintain constant contact with the Empire. If anything went wrong, reinforcements from the Empire could arrive faster.
"Are you feeling any discomfort?" After entering the Duanya Sea's range, Wen Yuncheng looked nervously at Lin Jinyu, only relaxing when she shook her head. Even with 1947's guarantee, Wen Yuncheng couldn't help but worry.
The Star Emperor from Xuancheng Academy quickly set up a small formation to conceal their auras, and the group slowly approached the marked location.
The most distinctive feature of Duanya Sea was its cliff, which was so sheer it looked as if it had been sliced by a knife. At its base were the ocean waves.
Wen Yuncheng and the others stood at the top; the marked location was clearly on the seabed.
"I'll go down in disguise first to scout things out," Wen Yuncheng decided, looking at the marker. "Attacking rashly will definitely alert the enemy. If possible... we should save the people if we can." Wen Yuncheng didn't know how far the blood sacrifice had progressed or how many survivors were there. But attacking directly was clearly not a wise move.
"This...?" Grandpa Lin frowned, clearly thinking it was too risky.
However, Chu Han, who was already familiar with Wen Yuncheng's abilities, had no objections. He directly took out a white jade bead. "This contains a clone's attack. If you're discovered, use it to save your life. Focus on escaping back here first."
Mo Dingtian then also took out a bead and handed it to Wen Yuncheng. "I prepared a few for my daughter, but she's only ever willing to carry one at a time. Sigh."
"Aren't you willing to give them to Mo Wensheng?" Chu Han raised an eyebrow slightly. He also made these clone beads to protect his son and daughter, so he usually carried one or two with him.
"What danger could that brat be in? What he lacks is experience." Mo Dingtian waved his hand dismissively, then took out another bead and handed it to Lin Jinyu. "One look at your grandfather and I can tell he's not the type to make backup clones. Take this for your protection."
Grandpa Lin looked like he wanted to say something but held back, ultimately just clearing his throat. "Thank you, Protector."
It wasn't just Grandpa Lin who didn't bother with these things; the Senior from Dream Haven Sect and the Star Emperor from Xuancheng Academy also looked embarrassed. Making clone beads wasn't exceedingly difficult, but it consumed a significant amount of Star Power and spiritual energy. It took a long time to recover after making just one. At most, they would make one for their direct descendants or other important individuals to carry. Who would carry several on their person?
As for Grandpa Lin... he barely even managed the Flowing Cloud Sect, so he was even less likely to make these.
With the protective talismans in hand, Wen Yuncheng summoned her three Mechanical Apostles. She then activated her camouflage and used her Floating Magnetic Disk to slowly descend into the sea. She directly activated the enhanced state of Illusion Dream (Modified), not bothering to feel the sting of the points cost, and sank toward the seabed.
Soon, she found the location of the formation. Relying on the fact that she fundamentally had no Star Power, Wen Yuncheng successfully tricked the formation and entered the underwater stronghold.
This detection formation, it turned out, had been set up by Fu at great expense. It was countless times more advanced than formations that could be entered with a simple token. They could sense it even if a Star Apostle touched the formation, allowing it to detect danger or enemy attacks instantly. Unfortunately... for Wen Yuncheng, this kind of formation was completely useless.
Wen Yuncheng had just snuck in and was cautiously making her way through a corridor when the space suddenly opened up.
A Star Emperor!
Wen Yuncheng carefully concealed her aura. The Star Emperor frowned and glanced around but didn't conduct a serious search. Wen Yuncheng slipped past him, placing a monitor on him just in case.
This seemed to be a rather large stronghold, even bigger than the one at the bottom of the lake. It was like a small living area. Wen Yuncheng almost got lost wandering around inside while her camouflage skill was active, but she did manage to locate the seclusion rooms and the dining hall. She followed a Star Venerate around for a bit and finally saw the injured one.
"I really don't know what happened. I was attacked before I even got close," the heavily injured Star Venerate said with a frustrated expression. "How were we exposed? I told them to keep a low profile, to not leave any traces. If they had to abduct people, they should have taken those who were already thinking of leaving, people whose disappearance wouldn't arouse suspicion."
"There are always people at the bottom who want to cut corners. But they're all dead now, not a single one left alive," the other Star Venerate comforted him. "How did you get so badly injured? Two Star Kings were able to wound you so severely? Are that Wen Yuncheng and Lin Jinyu really that formidable?"
"You don't believe me? If you ran into them, you might not even know how you died," the injured Star Venerate said sullenly. "With a batch of people gone, the Empire is definitely on alert now. How much blood does the Lord need, anyway? Before, the people from a single village were enough, but now..."
"Watch your words." The other Star Venerate quickly stopped him before continuing in a hushed voice, "This blood sacrifice is supposedly related to the plane... It's said that it will allow those from Huanling to display even greater strength and will make opening the planar passage much easier."
"If Huanling really does conquer this place, can we truly unify the continent? The Dragon Race isn't easy to fool... Forget it, I don't even know if I'll live to see that day." Many people in the organization had died, several Star Emperors had been captured by the Empire, and strongholds were being eliminated one by one. Many members were in a panic.
But once you're on this boat, you're all grasshoppers on the same rope; it's not so easy to get off. The Huanling Continent is already here. They have no choice but to see this through to the bitter end.
Wen Yuncheng listened in on the two Star Venerates' worries but didn't hear anything about the location of the blood sacrifice or where the people were being held. She grew a little frustrated. Seeing that her camouflage only had three minutes left, she didn't hesitate any longer. After placing a monitor on the other Star Venerate as well, she teleported back.
"The stronghold is huge. I saw a Star Emperor as soon as I got in. There are also two Star Venerates. I couldn't find where the residents are being held or the location of the blood sacrifice. I'll go back in a bit." Wen Yuncheng explained, taking out a brush and paper from her storage ring. During the cooldown period, she quickly sketched a simple map of the stronghold's interior. It was very rough, meant only for a basic analysis.
Once the cooldown was over, Wen Yuncheng activated her camouflage again and infiltrated the stronghold.
Comments
Post a Comment