A World Worth Protecting

1

The fact that they were able to become a Federation Seedling indicated a level of mental and emotional resilience that surpassed that of an ordinary person. There was no uproar over Fang Mu’s death. Everyone had been mentally prepared prior to their journey. Fang Mu’s death simply made everyone more cautious.

Even Wang Baole himself didn’t experience any true sorrow. He hadn’t known Fang Mu very well. In addition, he had seen too much death. He might not be numb to it all, but he knew that death was inevitable in the path of cultivation.

The path of cultivation was one that was long and winded. Death couldn’t be avoided. Since he had chosen it, he had to learn to let go as well.

Of course, what was most important was still the fact that they hadn’t known each other very well.

If the person who had died were Zhuo Yifan, Zhao Yameng, or even Kong Dao, Wang Baole would be experiencing more intense feelings over it. That was why he separately sent a transmission to the three of them, cautioning them to be careful. Zhuo Yifan and Zhao Yameng seemed to be all right. They hadn’t left the islands they had been assigned to. Kong Dao, on the other hand, had been out on a mission with a few other cultivators from the Vast Expanse Dao Palace whom he had befriended when he received Wang Baole’s transmission. He raised his guard and became more cautious after he saw Wang Baole’s message.

Wang Baole wasn’t particularly worried about Kong Dao though. He had been born in the sea of beasts and had gone to Mars when he had been just a weak, young child, and survived on the planet on his own. There was no doubt that he had something special hidden up his sleeve. Besides, Kong Dao was a vicious and brutal character. His violent streak was only obscured when Wang Baole was around.

In fact, based on Wang Baole’s assessment, the second Core Formation realm cultivator to emerge from the Federation Seedlings would likely be either Kong Dao or Zhao Yameng!

Wang Baole was finally able to ease his mind after he had informed the Federation Seedlings of Fang Mu’s death. He tidied up his gains from his trip. He couldn’t help but think about the purple identity token that he had seen before he had escaped.

<em>A core disciple’s identity token. That’s twenty thousand battle credits! </em>Desire and greed surged within Wang Baole once again. He thought long and hard about it. He counted the near-eight thousand battle credits he had now, and determination began to shine in his eyes.

<em>I have to make another trip. I can’t just give up. I’ll have to prepare loads of healing pills for the trip! </em>At that thought, Wang Baole pulled out the identity tokens that he had collected. His eyes flashed, and he pulled out his voice transmission jade slip and contacted Xie Haiyang. He inquired about the prices of healing pills. Then, he casually asked about the exchanges for identity tokens.

“An identity token? One from a core disciple would definitely attract attention from the sect. No one cares about identity tokens belonging to outer sect disciples though. I remember the highest number of identity tokens that someone submitted exceeded eighty.

“Of course, the sect would also be alerted if someone submits more than ten identity tokens belonging to inner sect disciples. That is why many people make multiple submissions instead. After all… everyone has their own secrets, secrets that they wish to keep hidden from others.”

Xie Haiyang was a businessman that had a god-like prescience. He immediately had his guesses when he heard Wang Baole’s seemingly casual inquiries. He thought about the many times he had worked together with Wang Baole and decided to share what he knew with him.

Finally, he laughed and provided options for Wang Baole to exchange identity tokens for pills and other items of equal value. He told Wang Baole that he could make such exchanges anytime.

Upon hearing that, Wang Baole placed his jade slip down. After some thought, he contacted Yun Piaozi. The latter felt he still owed Wang Baole a favor. That was why when Wang Baole came asking questions, he shared what Xie Haiyang had told Wang Baole as well.

Wang Baole finally set his heart at ease. He got to his feet and left the cave abode. He headed towards the Vast Expanse Dao Palace once again, to the mission stone slab where he could exchange battle credits.

The place was filled with people when he arrived. The Vast Expanse Dao Palace had designed the exchange area for maximum privacy. Unless one had certain access rights, one would find it difficult to find out how many battle credits someone else had exchanged.

Wang Baole waited for a while. While no one was paying too much attention to him, he exchanged fifteen outer sect disciples’ identity tokens for a thousand and five hundred battle credits. After a short while, he pulled out another fifteen tokens. He got a total of three thousand battle credits. He didn’t continue but instead left. He contacted Xie Haiyang to thank him. Then, he exchanged the remaining tokens, including the one belonging to an inner sect disciple, for large quantities of healing pills.

The deal cost Wang Baole approximately two thousand battle credits. This was quite a big transaction for Xie Haiyang. That was why Xie Haiyang was extremely friendly towards Wang Baole. He even gave Wang Baole a discount.

Wang Baole was left with more than ten thousand battle credits after the transaction. He still had quite a few items he hadn’t yet sold. He also had his Spirit Boats up for sale. Yun Piaozi had informed him that he was in the midst of finalizing a deal. He would come back with results soon.

Wang Baole was shocked by the amount of wealth he had after he did his calculations.

<em>I’ve actually become so wealthy without even knowing it! </em>Wang Baole smacked his tummy with a look of satisfaction. His mood soared. He didn’t intend to send over any cultivation techniques yet, though. He planned to accumulate more wealth, then send them all in one go. That would create an impact in the Federation.

The impact would prove useful and convenient when he returned and took over as the new president of the Federation.

<em>Seems like I have to visit the sword body again. That’s the only way to strike it rich! </em>Wang Baole reaffirmed his decision. He pulled out his voice transmission jade slip, intent on finding someone to make the trip with him.

He knew that alone, he wouldn’t be powerful enough. Only by teaming up with friends who were trustworthy and reliable could he reap the most rewards in the dangerous region that was the sword body!

Wang Baole didn’t have to think who he considered trustworthy and reliable. He immediately contacted Zhao Yameng first.

Zhao Yameng had become more distant towards Wang Baole. However, she was no match against Wang Baole’s relentless enthusiasm. Wang Baole shared with her the immense treasures to be found in the sword body and his discovery of the cave abode on the mountain peak. Despite her cool personality, her breathing did quicken slightly upon hearing that.

“A core disciple’s cave abode that has never been excavated before?” Zhao Yameng wouldn’t have believed this if someone else had told her this, but this was Wang Baole. After a moment of contemplation, she made up her mind. She agreed to form a party with him.

<em>A hex is actually a kind of array formation. With Zhao Yameng’s talents in array formations, she’ll be able to provide great help. I still need someone to watch my back… </em>At that thought, Wang Baole immediately contacted Zhuo Yifan. Even though Zhuo Yifan’s level of cultivation wasn’t powerful enough, Wang Baole believed that trustworthiness was much more important than one’s level of cultivation.

Zhuo Yifan didn’t hesitate after receiving the voice transmission and hearing Wang Baole’s proposal. He agreed immediately. They agreed on a time. After some thought, Wang Baole contacted Kong Dao as well.

Unfortunately, he didn’t manage to reach him. This meant that Kong Dao’s location was beyond the regional Spirit Internet’s communication radius. His location and Wang Baole’s were separated by a vast distance.

<em>Fine. The three of us is enough! </em>Wang Baole placed his jade slip aside. After some thought, he transferred two thousand battle credits to Zhao Yameng.

“Yameng, we have to solve the problem of the array formation. Find out what you need and make the necessary preparations.”

Zhao Yameng wasn’t shy with spending the battle credits after she received them. She immediately began her preparations. Wang Baole didn’t send any battle credits to Zhuo Yifan. He sent over some pills he had gotten instead. He informed Zhuo Yifan the properties the pills had, then returned to Green Fire Island. There, he waited for the day when they would gather.

Time flew by, five days soon passed, and the agreed-upon date approached. During those five days, Wang Baole continued his cultivation to ensure he remained at top form. He also calculated the credits he had spent on the upcoming trip.

<em>Two thousand credits worth of pills, and another two thousand credits for Zhao Yameng’s preparations. There’s also the three thousand battle credits required for teleportation. The expenditure for this trip is seven thousand credits!</em>

<em>It’s worth it, though. After all, an identity token of a core disciple is worth twenty thousand credits, and we haven’t counted the other items in the cave. Let’s just hope… the mountain peak is still where it was and hasn’t moved away. </em>Wang Baole thought anxiously. He had been digging up considerable information during this period. He knew that each shift in the sword body could happen as soon as three to five days apart. There was a possibility that it might occur after months as well.

Despite feeling anxious, Wang Baole knew that there was no point feeling anxious over certain things. He waited patiently. The next morning, Zhao Yameng and Zhuo Yifan arrived separately and gathered at Green Fire Island. They didn’t waste any time and immediately transformed into rainbows and raced towards the nearest teleportation array formation.

Wang Baole knew exactly where to go. He sped up. During the journey, he shared what he had encountered with Zhao Yameng and Zhuo Yifan. They were both alarmed when they heard about his encounter. They gained a deeper understanding of Wang Baole’s courage and brazenness. They also had a greater understanding of the sword body, which they had never been to before.

The conversation continued throughout the journey. After five rounds of teleportation, they finally arrived… at the border separating the sword handle and the sword body!

“This is it. We can enter from here. The mountain peak is about a dozen or so miles away. Let’s hope no one finds us here, and that the land hasn’t transformed and moved away. Else, we’ll have to hunt for it elsewhere!” Wang Baole said in a low voice as he stared at the defensive barrier separating the two regions.

The border looked like a vast ravine from afar. It unfurled at either end, stretching endlessly into the horizon. The defensive barrier stood over the ravine, and one could enter the other side from any point in the barrier. That was why Wang Baole wasn’t as concerned that someone might discover they had entered the sword body.