A World Worth Protecting

1

The ancient Dark Sect had too many incredible and amazing mystic arts and techniques. The Dark Dream Mystic Art was one of them!

Expending one’s own Daosource to draw someone else into a dreamscape that had been specially created for said person, passing on a mystic art in this dreamscape and everything about the Dark Sect, and creating an environment where Wang Baole could reach a breakthrough in his cultivation. It was all done using Dark Qi… which was formed from Ming Kunzi’s Daosource!

That was why… even though Wang Baole had reached a breakthrough in his dream, when he returned to reality, sufficient Dark Qi would have accumulated inside his soul that would allow him to reach a breakthrough in real life. That was why the moment he had woken up, the Dark Fire inside his body had automatically multiplied to eighty-one Dark Fires, layered over one another, and spurred a transformation!

During the transformation, it was as if Wang Baole had replayed the exact scene when he had reached his breakthrough in his dream. The levels of his spirit energy climbed continuously, and his power repeatedly erupted as the Dark Core inside his body formed fully!

When the Dark Core was formed, an astonishing Dark Qi spread from inside, outward. It was like a vast ocean that surged through and flooded the meridians in Wang Baole’s entire body. Sounds of crackling echoed whenever the energy burst through, and his meridians developed at an astonishing rate!

Power more immense than he had felt in his dream grew and intensified inside his body. Thunderous booms sounded around in the abyss surrounding him. Wang Baole’s body shuddered as the sounds of crackling grew quickly to resemble the crashing of thunder. The physical transformation spurred by his breakthrough in cultivation became obvious at this moment. Black Qi exuded from his body as he sat cross-legged on the boat, creating a terrifying sight.

The black Qi continued to spread outward. It began to burn and transformed into an icy fire that surged outward. A whirlpool formed, with him in the eye of the storm. As it rumbled and spiraled, Wang Baole’s hair stirred without a breeze. At that moment, from afar, he looked like a demonic god!

His round chubby form seemed to have slimmed down slightly, and it began to exude a faint air of authority. The aura of authority and waves of spirit energy that exuded from his person vastly surpassed that of a Foundation Establishment realm cultivator. He knew clearly that he… was no longer at the Foundation Establishment realm, and that he had… stepped into the Core Formation realm!

He didn’t have to examine in detail. He could sense within his dantian, above the green lotus that had fused with his devouring seed, the appearance of… a flower bud!

It formed the same moment his Dark Core was formed, blossoming instantly and transforming into a lotus flower. Its petals began to fall, forming strong waves of Dark Qi. As the petals fell and drifted away, within the bud appeared…

A lotus!

The original green lotus only had a lotus seed head. The seed head was capable of bearing seeds and gave off waves of faint Spirit Qi. Now… a second lotus had appeared. It was clearly different from the first lotus. It was black in color and gave off waves of Dark Qi, and it was surrounded by an eerie glow. Upon closer examination, one could see… within this lotus head sat his Dark Core!

It was because of the Dark Core inside that this second lotus and the power it exuded gave one the feeling of it being like a sun. Its power clearly surpassed that of the first lotus!

It seemed to be of a different grade in terms of quality!

This wasn’t the end of it. The bizarre transformation hadn’t yet ended, and Wang Baole could clearly see the beginnings of a third lotus forming next to the second lotus. It was another flower bud!

Lightning shone and sparkled inside this lightning bud, but it seemed to lack certain nutrients that would allow it to flower. That was why it hadn’t yet blossomed. However, Wang Baole could imagine that once this bud blossomed, a third lotus would appear inside his body!

<em>One is a Dark Core, the other… a Lightning Core. If that’s the case, what exactly is inside the green lotus… </em>Wang Baole’s conscious mind was still in a slight blur. These questions surfaced instinctively after he had observed everything.

He didn’t continue with this line of thought for long. As his mind became clearer and more awake, everything that had happened within the Dark Dream surfaced before his eyes. He shuddered, and his breathing became uneven.

<em>The Dark Dream… the Dark Sect! </em>Wang Baole lowered his head. Complicated feelings unfurled within him as he thought about how he had witnessed the destruction of the Dark Sect just before he had left the sect. It had seemed like the compression of infinite time into a single moment, which had then passed. Wang Baole didn’t know what had happened after. He didn’t have enough information for him to know more. He remained silent as he sat on the solitary boat. Then, he pulled out the black mask without hesitation!

“Little Missy…” Wang Baole held onto the mask and whispered. There was sorrow in his voice.

“Are you able to tell me everything that you know about the Dark Art and the Dark Sect…” Wang Baole said in a low voice. The black mask glimmered. A long moment later, Little Missy’s voice appeared in his mind.

“After you fell into a deep sleep, and your consciousness disappeared…”

“I went back to the Dark Sect…” Wang Baole muttered. What he said drove Little Missy into silence. Another long moment later, Little Missy’s voice, tinged with exhaustion, rang out in Wang Baole’s mind.

“There is a break in the historical records of our sect, the Dark Sect, following a calamity in the past. With the disappearance of the Dark Sect, the subsequent descendants could only draw conclusions of what had happened from the traces of evidence left behind. It appears that its destruction… has something to do with the Never-Ending Clan!”

“I am but an indirect descendant of the Dark Sect. I don’t know the truth, but according to the little evidence left behind, the fall of the Dark Sect seemed to be related to the appearance of a traitor in the sect’s midst…” At that point, the Little Missy seemed unable to continue. She spoke more and more slowly. It was as if she was remembering the past, or as if she was deliberating how to continue the story.

Before she could recall her memories, Wang Baole raised his head suddenly, his breathing stilled.

“I knew that must be it! I understand now! The Never-Ending Clan controls the power of life, while the Dark Sect controls the power of rebirth and wanders the universe on behalf of the Heavenly Dao. This battle between the respective Dao of life and death ended with the destruction and fall of the Dark Sect. That was why my master said… the Heavenly Dao fell… As for the traitor, I’m not sure of the situation in the rest of the other Dark Sects under the other Grand Elders, but if it’s the sect under my master, the traitor… might be… Senior Brother.”

“Ah?” Little Missy froze. If she had shown herself, the expression on her face would be one of bewilderment. A moment later, she coughed. She didn’t continue to speak.

At present, as he continued to mutter to himself, Wang Baole merged what he already knew with what Little Missy had said in his mind. A picture of what had happened gradually formed. After a long time, he took a deep breath and buried his thoughts deep in his heart. Then, he got to his feet and stared at the abyss around him. Silently, he bent at his waist and bowed deeply.

When he straightened his back again, he shut his eyes. After a dozen or so breaths, he opened his eyes again. There was an icy glint in his eyes.

<em>The Artifact Spirits… and the extraterrestrial cultivators! </em>Wang Baole narrowed his eyes. He lowered his head and stared at the boat beneath his feet. The Dark Core shook inside his body, and a startling Dark Qi erupted from his person. It rolled outward in waves as he barked!

“Boat Spirit!”

His voice carried the power of Wang Baole’s Dark Core cultivation. It also contained a power that had been formed while he had been dreaming… it was an overpowering aura that belonged to the Dark Sect… one that enabled one to wander the universe and reign over the multitude of souls in this universe!

His voice echoed in the abyss, and there was no place within the abyss that wasn’t affected by the Dark Qi. The air rumbled and thundered as a huge whirlpool formed before him. It rumbled as it spun. The silhouette of a towering man formed rapidly. Within a span of a few breaths, it went from a blurry outline to a clear image of a person!

Wang Baole knew this man. He was the soul of the pervert whom Wang Baole had purified in his Dark Dream!

At the moment, however, the man’s eyes were shut. The more distinct his form became, the clearer one could see the various missing and damaged parts on his form. His spirit energy was weak. The beckoning that was exuding from his body made Wang Baole realize that the one who had called out for him to enter this place was this soul!

<em>Master said that the one who called for me was him and yet not him. Maybe what he means is that… he summoned me through this soul. </em>Wang Baole stared at the large man’s soul and pondered. His eyes turned soft. However, he had to do what he had to do. With a series of hand seals, the Dark Core inside his body was activated. One of the Dark Seals that Ming Kunzi had given him in his Dark Dream vanished instantly. It appeared before Wang Baole and raced towards the large man. It seared itself onto the man’s forehead and infused itself with the soul. It seemed to have replaced the man’s original memories with… the memories Ming Kunzi had created in the Dark Dream!

Only by completing this could the Boat Spirit truly belong to Wang Baole!

Everything in his dreams became reality!

The large man shuddered, and his shut eyes opened suddenly. There was a fierce fervor in his eyes when he stared at Wang Baole, and he immediately lowered his head and cupped his fists, bowing deeply.

“Greetings, Master!”