A World Worth Protecting

Zhuo Yixian dared not hide anything from Long Nanzi. He had no way of knowing whom this Long Nanzi of the Ice Phoenix Legion was, but the way his former master had transacted with Long Nanzi and the way the other female cultivators had treated him told Zhuo Yixian that this man must be quite well known in the Divine Sovereign Justice Sect.

Besides, what he was asking wasn’t some important secret. Zhuo Yixian’s soul had been searched when he had first been captured. His former master, the person who had performed the soul search, had a relatively high level of cultivation. That was why his mind hadn’t been affected adversely, though he had suffered slight damage during the process. Any secret he had been harboring would have been made known to the world then.

The memories made Zhuo Yixian sigh again. He shared his background and everything he knew with Wang Baole honestly, telling the latter his name, his family clan, as well as his home. The Federation, Earth, and the Solar System. Even the Vast Expanse Dao Palace on the Ancient Sword. Everything that he could say and shouldn’t have said… he told Wang Baole all of it.

The expression on Wang Baole’s face appeared unchanged. In reality, thoughts were churning inside his head. Zhuo Yixian hadn’t been the only one who had gone missing. Zhuo Yifan had vanished as well. But from Zhuo Yixian’s account, it appeared that he had been alone when he was captured. In order to keep his identity a secret, Wang Baole made a well-timed interruption during Zhuo Yixian’s recounting and began questioning him in detail about the Solar System’s coordinates as well as the strange Ancient Sword. As Zhuo Yixian’s elaboration confirmed his guesses, Wang Baole intentionally allowed surprise and greed to flash across his eyes. Zhuo Yixian’s heart grew heavier with bitterness when he caught the look in Wang Baole’s eyes.

He got over it quickly, though. His former master was aware of all of this as well. Besides, he wasn’t in the position to worry about anything other than himself.

Wang Baole was assessing the possibility of the Divine Eye civilization ever finding out about the Solar System as well. The possibility of that happening existed. The Solar System wasn’t all that far away from the Divine Eye civilization. But the universe was a vast place. A slight error in navigation would find them miles away from their destination. Trying to pinpoint the exact location of the Solar System would require time and exploration.

This served as a warning to Wang Baole. He knew that the Divine Eye civilization would come lunging after the Solar System like a pack of wolves, hungry for treasures and the kill, should it ever discover the existence of the Solar System and the Federation.

Zhuo Yixian had also shared in detail how he had appeared in the Divine Eye civilization. He had been in the Vast Expanse Dao Palace on the Ancient Sword, running an underwater search through the ruins, when he had been abruptly teleported away. When he finally realized what had happened, he had reappeared in an unfamiliar place.

It had been a black desert that went on forever, completely deserted, and barren of all life. He didn’t know how long he had walked in the desert. It was as if time moved differently there.

It had been a month ago, after he had struggled for so long in the black desert and had given up all hope, that he finally saw a beam of light. It had surrounded him and teleported him away again. This time… he had been teleported to a cave!

He had stepped out of the teleportation portal, found himself inside a cave, and met… his former master, the tall female cultivator of the Ice Phoenix Legion!

She had captured him, searched his soul, and then brought him back to the Ice Phoenix Legion as her new pet.

Wang Baole’s eyes widened as he listened to Zhuo Yixian’s story. He had been in disbelief at first, but after looking at Zhuo Yixian and examining the logic in his story, he concluded that the likelihood of the latter lying to him was low. After all… it would be easy to find out if he was lying by performing a soul search.

This sparked Wang Baole’s interest in the black desert. He questioned Zhuo Yixian in detail about the desert, but the latter didn’t seem to know much about the place either. He had no idea what it was and where it could be, though he did share his guesses about the place…

“Master, in my opinion… this black desert isn’t completely absent of everything. It seems to be a world that is capable of teleportation…”

“A world that can teleport?” Wang Baole narrowed his eyes. Then, after some thought, he asked a few more questions. He focused on the cave where Zhuo Yixian had been captured. Based on Zhuo Yixian’s recounting of events, he eventually realized that the cave wasn’t located in the Divine Eye civilization but on a meteorite that was yet undiscovered by civilization.

Zhuo Yixian couldn’t provide the exact location of the meteorite. He was unfamiliar with the Divine Eye civilization and the surrounding cosmic region. Wang Baole wasn’t bothered by that at all. He drew a map and got Zhuo Yixian to look at it, and they finally locked down the meteorite’s approximate location. The thought of finding a chance to land on the meteorite and take a look rose in his head.

He set the idea aside for the moment. Having ended his interrogation, he eyed Zhuo Yixian, then said coolly, “That’s enough. From today onwards, your duty will be to guard my gates. You may leave me now.”

He removed the rope binding Zhuo Yixian. They were in the Ice Phoenix Legion’s headquarters now. If Zhuo Yixian had half a brain, he would know not to wander around.

Zhuo Yixian accepted his duties hastily. He left the cave abode and, once outside, got down on his knees and secretly released a sigh of relief. His current master appeared friendlier than his previous one, though Zhuo Yixian couldn’t explain the vague dislike he felt towards him amidst the anxiety and fear he was experiencing…

Wang Baole sank into deep thought after watching Zhuo Yixian leave the cave abode. He could tell that Zhuo Yixian had no idea what happened to Zhuo Yifan. After a long bout of contemplation, Wang Baole finally sighed.

Then, he remembered his donkey. Zhuo Yixian should have seen the donkey when they had been in the Federation. However, this shouldn’t be a problem, as the donkey had grown up quite a bit and now looked very different. Besides, they might be in a different civilization, but that didn’t mean that similar creatures couldn’t exist in both civilizations. That fact alone should prevent his true identity from being exposed.

Regardless, Wang Baole still sent a voice transmission to the donkey and warned it to exercise greater caution. Then, he set everything aside and sank down onto the floor in meditation. Having cleared his mind, he took out the third level Heaven Shaking Divine Justice Shield, took a deep breath, and continued upgrading the artifact.

He had all the necessary materials now, including the Spirit Tempering Leaf. In addition, Wang Baole had also completed his research into the fourth level of the Heaven Shaking Divine Justice Shield. Therefore, he only took a day to upgrade the Heaven Shaking Divine Justice Shield to its fourth level!

Wang Baole replicated what he had done before with the new runes that appeared after the upgrade. After fusing them with the original runes, the Heaven Shaking Divine Justice Shield looked as if the runes branded within the artifact numbered slightly over a thousand. In reality… there were nearly five thousand runes in the artifact!

The number of new runes was multiplied numerous times with each upgrade. One might even see a five-times increase in the number of new runes in a single upgrade. The true strength of the artifact was currently concealed, but in reality, it could now repel twenty percent of the enemy’s attack!

The next upgrade to the fifth level was akin to an upgrade from a Soul Conduit realm artifact to a Spirit Immortal realm artifact. It was going to be extremely difficult. Wang Baole was stumped by it for numerous days. Ultimately, his skill at artifact refinement ensured his success. He upgraded the Heaven Shaking Divine Justice Shield to its fifth level and subsequently upgraded it to its sixth level!

Repelling thirty percent of the enemy’s original attack. That meant when he received a blow from his opponent and counterattacked, he would get a thirty percent boost in power. The extent of the increase in strength was extraordinary. If he were to use it well, he would be able to turn an evenly matched fight into one where the odds were overwhelmingly skewed in his favor!

The upgrade to the sixth level brought Wang Baole a new problem, though. The number of runes took a sudden hike, reaching two hundred thousand runes!

The number of original runes appeared almost pitiful next to the new additions. Their thickness became increasingly obvious with the repeated fusion of new runes with the old. This wasn’t something Wang Baole had expected. He had no choice but to keep more runes. The original thousand runes increased by multi-fold, and the problem was resolved with Wang Baole spreading the newer runes across the increased number of runes.

Now, this Heaven Shaking Divine Justice Shield looks as if it’s at the second level… It won’t be as effective a trap, but it’ll serve its purpose. Wang Baole sighed with some regret. He had half a mind to continue the upgrade to the seventh level, but the next upgrade required a considerable quantity of Spirit Tempering Leaves. He was at a loss for words after calculating what the upgrade would cost him.

I wonder if I can use Armament Sand as a substitute… Wang Baole wondered. It would be a challenge trying to get so many Spirit Tempering Leaves with his current level of access rights. Even if he were to purchase them in batches, he would still find himself with an inadequate supply. The limit to the number of Spirit Tempering Leaves one could purchase differed according to the level of one’s access rights.

Wang Baole eventually gave up on the idea of using Armament Sand as a substitute material. That should be his last resort. He still had a few Dharmic Armaments that acted bizarrely hidden in his storage bag. There was the rope that vanished for days after releasing it into the air, and the seal that only attacked when the enemy was gravely injured. Both gave Wang Baole a headache. He was worried that the same thing might happen to a Heaven Shaking Divine Justice Shield that mutated under the influence of Armament Sand. The shield might not protect him and instead protect his enemy.

It seems like I have no choice but to look for the icy woman again. The artifact isn’t at the eighth level, though. It’s embarrassing to take it out… Wang Baole remembered how the woman had treated him during his last visit, so he decided not to make a trip to her halls. Instead, he pulled out his voice transmission jade slip and sent Fairy Ling You a voice transmission.

“Commander, I’m Long Nanzi… erm… I’ve had a breakthrough in refining the Heaven Shaking Divine Justice Shield. Could you upgrade my access rights again?”

A breakthrough? Fairy Ling You had been listening to her subordinates report on the status of their army’s preparation for advancement in the halls when she had received Wang Baole’s voice transmission. She pulled out her jade slip, heard the contents of his message, and was momentarily stunned.