Chapter 362
"Then I'll have to trouble Yukong, Captain Yu Kong," Jing Yuan nodded to Yukong, then looked at the silent boy behind him, "Yanqing, you will also travel with the guests."
"Yes, General," the young man replied in a slightly immature voice, then looked questioningly at him, "Is it someone by your side?"
"No need to worry. I do dislike weapons, but I am not afraid of them either." Jing Yuan smiled gently, yet the aura emanating from him made people want to bow down to him. "Once I finish dealing with the matters at hand, I will catch up with you."
"General Jing Yuan was so friendly just now, I almost forgot he was a general," March 7th couldn't help but mutter under his breath. "Hey Dan Heng, what kind of strength do you think the general possesses? Could he defeat the Great Extinguisher?"
"That... it's hard to say." Dan Heng hesitated for a moment, then shook his head slightly. "If it's the Great Extinguisher of the Solaris Clan, her overall strength should be inferior to the General's. But if she obtains the power of the Jianmu Tree, then we'll probably need to recalculate."
As they spoke, the group, led by Yukong, headed outside. But just then, Jing Yuan spoke up again, "I almost forgot, Mr. Dan Heng, could you please wait a moment?"
Dan Heng stopped in his tracks, and March 7th and the others also stood still, seemingly silently expressing the belief that "the nameless guests are united in their resolve."
"Don't worry, I'll catch up soon." Dan Heng advised everyone, "Even if the general wanted to use punishment as an excuse, he wouldn't choose this time."
"I'm not foolish enough to push my resources away at a crucial moment," Jing Yuan chimed in. "Don't worry, everyone, I have something else to discuss with Mr. Dan Heng."
With Jing Yuan's assurance, everyone left. Jing Yuan then ordered the guards to retreat, and soon only the two of them remained in the entire Divinity Manor.
Without the interference of others, the atmosphere suddenly became subtle. Jing Yuan remained silent for a long time. His gaze was clearly on Dan Heng, but it seemed very empty, as if he were looking at someone who did not exist.
"General, please speak plainly," Dan Heng finally broke the silence, "My comrades are still waiting for me."
"A partner, huh?" Jing Yuan nodded slightly, then suddenly said, as if he had just thought of something, "After this matter is over, the Luofu Xianzhou will lift the punishment on you."
"If it's because of Mr. Ai Yue, then there's no need for that." Dan Heng said with some doubt, "Mr. Ai Yue is a very easy-going person. This kind of thing won't affect his relationship with the Luofu Xianzhou, whether it's positive or negative."
"It has nothing to do with Mr. Ai Yue, it's just that there are too many... never mind, let's not talk about the past anymore." Jing Yuan said halfway, then suddenly shook his head, "In short, Mr. Dan Heng, you should still be hiding the power of your past life, that is, the Dragon Lord 'Lord of the Dragon 'Yin Yue'', right?"
"...Yes." Dan Heng was silent for a moment, then finally nodded. "I understand what you mean, I will use it."
Due to some unforeseen circumstances, Dan Heng's rebirth from his previous life was not complete, resulting in an incomplete rebirth. Therefore, he still has a lingering connection with his previous life, including a portion of the Dragon Lord's Power inherited from his past life.
Dan Heng was well aware that if the Star Core was indeed hidden in the Scale-Abyss Realm, it meant that there was a problem within the Luo Dragon-Scythe Clan. In that case, it would be difficult to rely on their strength to move within the Scale-Abyss Realm. Therefore, the part of the Dragon Lord's Power he possessed became the key to breaking the current predicament.
Without this power, their chances of winning against an envoy with the dual power of destruction and abundance would be pitifully low.
Of course, this calculation is based on the premise of excluding Ai Yue's influence.
Dan Heng could have rejected the general's suggestion and placed his hopes on Ai Yue. After all, in his opinion, a mere messenger could not pose any threat to Ai Yue. Not to mention that the other party possessed the power of dual destinies, even if it were three or four, he probably wouldn't be able to escape Ai Yue's grasp.
But what Ai Yue said to him before getting off the car remained fresh in Dan Heng's memory. Ever since he set foot on the land of the Luofu Xianzhou, he had repeatedly examined himself and finally realized that, just as his reincarnation was not complete, the cause and effect between him and the Luofu Xianzhou could not be completely severed. As a result, he felt a great responsibility to the Luofu Xianzhou.
Since that's the case, this matter cannot be entrusted to others.
"You..." Jing Yuan was somewhat surprised by Dan Heng's straightforward response, but he quickly smiled. "I'm glad you think that way, really."
"If that's all we have to say, then we should be going." Dan Heng put his concealing hat back on. "March and the others are still waiting for me."
After saying this, Dan Heng walked out of the mansion, leaving Jing Yuan with only his back view.
Jing Yuan subconsciously raised his hand, as if trying to hold onto something, but he ultimately withdrew it, though his lips moved as if he were saying something.
As for the content of his words, only he knew.
Chapter 45 Whom is he really helping?
Jing Yuan and Dan Heng were quick to act; not long after the others arrived at the Alchemy Commission on March 7th, they also arrived here.
But Jing Yuan was quickly stopped by Yukong, who was guarding the entrance. Her expression was serious and somewhat gloomy, as if she was forcibly suppressing her inner anger. "General, you cannot go in."
"What's wrong?" Jing Yuan frowned slightly, looking at the soldiers gathered outside the Alchemy Commission. He immediately had a bad feeling. "What's going on inside the Alchemy Commission? Didn't I order Fu Xuan to lead the Cloud Cavalry to attack the Alchemy Commission together with Miss Sanyue and the others? Why are they all here?"
"First of all, your previous guess was correct. The Alchemy Commission is indeed an ally of the Great Extinguisher, or rather, the Alchemy Commission is now under the control of the Medicine Master's Legacy," Yukong Kong said solemnly. "They not only used the familiar terrain to launch an ambush, but also used extremely despicable methods."
As he spoke, Yukong pointed to the Alchemy Commission Bureau) shrouded in mist not far away. "Within those mists generated by the operation of the alchemy furnaces, the Medicine Master's Legacy has mixed in pills that can induce Mara-struck. The vanguard and scouts, having ventured too deep, have already seen most of them transform into Mara-struck, and have instead become our enemies..."
Even though Yukong tried his best to control his emotions, Jing Yuan and Dan Heng could still hear the intense resentment in each other's tone. It should be noted that the Medicine Master's Legacy was also a member of the Immortal Ship, yet now he was using such vicious methods to deal with his own kin, which could be said to have completely lost his humanity.
As the Cloud Cavalry watched their former comrades suffer from the agonizing effects of these insidious tactics, and yet they themselves were forced to turn their weapons against them, it's easy to imagine the immense blow this must have dealt to their morale.
"Thanks to Lord Diviner for noticing something amiss beforehand, the main force of the Cloud Cavalry was unharmed. However, this means we can't go any further," Yukong composed himself before continuing, "Fortunately, the passengers on the Starry Stellar Train are all short-lived species, so this drug has no effect on them. Therefore, Lord Diviner entrusted them with shutting down the alchemy furnace. Once they complete their mission, the Cloud Cavalry can advance unimpeded and crush the Medicine Master's Legacy in one fell swoop!"
"Fortunately, we still have the passengers of the Stellar Train to help us, otherwise today's battle would have crippled the Cloud Cavalry." Jing Yuan shook his head slightly, but his gaze swept to a spot not far away, "Wait, is that the Mara-struck standing over there?"
Long-standing habits made Jing Yuan subconsciously gather information at all times, so he quickly noticed the Mara-struck standing not far away. They had not been defeated and were even gathered together in large numbers, which was obviously illogical.
"Oh, that's exactly what I wanted to report to you." Yukong quickly explained, "They were all transformed from the Cloud Cavalry, and they don't pose a threat for the time being—if you look closely, you should be able to see a faint white light on the surface of the Mara-struck, right?"
"It was Mr. Ai Yue's doing." Before Yukong, Dan Heng made his judgment. "In the entire Luofu Xianzhou, currently only he should be able to do such a thing, and since Mr. Ai Yue did this, it means... he may very well have a way to cure the Mara-struck!"
In Dan Heng's view, Ai Yue would never do anything meaningless. If the Mara-struck were irreversible in his opinion, then given Ai Yue's personality, the best way to deal with it would be to release them. But since the other party did not do that and instead controlled the Mara-struck, it means that there is still a chance for this matter to turn around.
"Really?" Upon hearing this, even Jing Yuan, who looked weary, couldn't help but widen his eyes, his voice trembling slightly.
It's not fair to blame him for being composure; it's simply because Dan Heng's conclusion was far too astonishing. If everything were true, it would not only shake the Luofu Xianzhou, but also create a tremendous upheaval within the entire Xianzhou Alliance.
"At least that's what Miss March and the others said." Yukong nodded, confirming Dan Heng's point of view. "That Miss A Xing also said that Mr. Ai Yue might be able to directly eliminate the Mara-struck."
Upon hearing this, Jing Yuan's breathing became somewhat heavy.
It should be understood that, as the price for the Xianzhou Alliance to receive the Blessing of Abundance, the Mara-struck can be said to be an unavoidable calamity for every member of the Immortal Ship Alliance. It is not like death, which stands at the end of life, but rather a dull and short knife that will appear at every unpleasant moment in your life, quietly leaving scars on your heart.
These scars will not disappear, but will gradually seep into the bone marrow as life goes on, until one day, the soul can no longer bear such a burden, and will completely collapse, turning into a puppet without consciousness or self.
Since the Xianzhou Alliance resolved to regain humanity and continue to exist as humans, the "Mara-struck" has been a persistent problem to be solved. However, as time has passed, the people of the Immortal Ship have tried countless methods, but they can only delay the appearance of the Mara-struck. Not to mention eliminating the Mara-struck, even maintaining consciousness as much as possible after becoming Mara-struck is difficult.
But there's nothing we can do about it, since the source of the Blessing of Abundance comes directly from a Star God, so breaking this blessing obviously requires the power of a Star God as well.
Even though the Xianzhou Alliance has also given birth to Lan, who is the Hunt star god... everyone has their own expertise. Putting aside Lan's strength as a newly born star god, judging from the power of the Hunt destiny, a star god born in the name of revenge is obviously not suited to abundance.
If Mr. Ai Yue could truly accomplish something so extraordinary, comparable to turning the world upside down, then the entire Xianzhou Alliance would regard him as their most honored guest.
As the first immortal ship to make contact with the other party, the Luofu Xianzhou will inevitably reap some benefits from it...
Jing Yuan, as expected of a general who had commanded the Luofu Xianzhou for hundreds of years, was triggered by Dan Heng's single sentence, triggering his professional instincts. He began to make countless connections and plans based on this, until finally Yukong's voice brought him back to reality. "What's wrong?"
"The mist in the Tai Zhen Dan Chamber has dissipated," Yukong, pointing to the gradually dissipating mist in the distance, a hint of joy finally appearing on his face. "What should we do next?"
"Order the Cloud Cavalry to take over the Alchemy Commission, eliminate the troublemakers, and suppress the remnants of the Medicine Master's Legacy," Jing Yuan commanded without hesitation. Then he looked at Dan Heng, "As for other matters, I'm afraid that's beyond the Cloud Cavalry's ability to handle."
"...I understand." Yukong hesitated, clearly wanting to say something more, but ultimately chose to give up. "Please be careful, General."
"Don't worry, Yukong Master." Jing Yuan smiled slightly, revealing his usual lazy demeanor. "Even Fu Qing indeed qualified to be a general, he'll have to work his way up a bit before he can inherit my position. I won't give up easily until then."
After giving a few brief instructions, Jing Yuan and Dan Heng headed towards the dock leading from Alchemy Commission to the Scale-Abyss Realm.
Here, they finally caught up with the nameless group, or perhaps they were also waiting for them here.
Besides the original group of March 7th, there were two more people present.
One was a girl dressed in pink. She looked petite but had an impressive presence. She was speaking and was clearly someone of high status. The other was a tall, adult Homo sapiens male with long, dark blue hair. Like Jing Yuan, one of his eyes was covered by his bangs. He stood there silently.
However, upon closer inspection, it becomes clear that the other party's silence is not genuine—a faint white light flows across his body, identical to that of the controlled Mara-struck, clearly the work of Mr. Ai Yue.
The pink-clad girl is Fu Xuan, the current head of the Divination Department powerful organization), while the tall man is Fu Xuan, a wanted criminal who infiltrated the Immortal Ship and is known as the Stellaron Hunters.
It wasn't until he saw the blade that Jing Yuan finally remembered that he had completely forgotten about the Stellaron Hunters —he had been preoccupied with their schemes, but after hearing about Mr. Ai Yue's deeds, he had put those matters aside.
However, it seems unlikely that the Stellaron Hunters can cause any significant trouble at the moment.
"Jing Yuan, you've finally arrived!"
Fu Xuan was the first to notice Jing Yuan and the other girl approaching. Seeing that lazy fellow who made her grit her teeth, the girl was furious. "I've heard everything. You didn't tell me anything before sending me here?"
Fu Xuan was completely forced into this situation. Logically speaking, as the Grand Diviner of the Divination Department, she shouldn't have been at the forefront of the battle. However, she was persuaded by Jing Yuan with just a few words to lead her troops to the Alchemy Commission, and only then did she learn what had happened from the people of March 7th and others.
Fu Xuan was already overwhelmed by her inability to determine the location of the star core, and now she was bombarded with a series of dizzying pieces of information. Even though she believed she was capable of taking over the general's position, she couldn't help but feel overwhelmed. Jing Yuan's appearance finally brought her a sense of relief.
To be honest, this was one of the few times she felt a sense of security from Jing Yuan.
"Thank you for your trouble Fu Qing." Jing Yuan approached with a smile, thus completing the "handover" of the key figure and becoming the highest decision-maker on site. "So, who can tell us what happened here?"
"It's nothing, we just stopped the alchemy furnaces and waited here." March 7th said in a light tone, "It's now confirmed that the Great Extinguisher did indeed escape into the Scale-Abyss Realm."
"That's a very simple situation," Jing Yuan nodded. "I saw you two seemed to be arguing just now. What happened?"
"Speaking of this, Jing Yuan, you be the judge," Fu Xuan immediately spoke up upon hearing Jing Yuan's question. "Now that we can confirm that the Great Extinguisher of the Antimatter Legion is in the same room as the Star Core and the Jianmu Tree, shouldn't we take advantage of the situation and launch a surprise attack before they are fully prepared? Instead, we're staying here because of the words of some random person. Isn't that a very unreasonable thing to do?"
"Brother Yue isn't someone who makes decisions randomly!" March 7th immediately retorted. "His advice is far more valuable than you think; it's definitely not wrong!"
"Oh?" Upon hearing the key words, Jing Yuan immediately perked up. "Does Miss March mean that Mr. Ai Yue has also been here?"
"Yes, he saw us and then disappeared after saying a bunch of nonsensical things," Fu Xuan nodded, clearly having already met Ai Yue. "I admit that gentleman is indeed unfathomable, and I also acknowledge that everyone on the Stellar Train played a crucial role in this matter, but this is still the Luofu Xianzhou after all. Shouldn't we be the ones to call the shots here, right, Jing Yuan?"
As she finished speaking, Fu Xuan subconsciously turned to look at Jing Yuan, only to find him with a thoughtful expression. The girl, familiar with his mannerisms, was taken aback. "Hey, Jing Yuan, you're not going to listen to him too, are you?"
"Fu Qing should have already heard about Mr. Ai Yue from the guests," Jing Yuan said, coming back to his senses. Instead of giving his answer, he asked Fu Xuan, "What is your opinion of him?"
"My opinion? As I said, he is indeed unfathomable, and my divination has no effect on him," Fu Xuan paused for a moment before continuing, "But regarding those deeds of his... well, I won't believe them until I see them with my own eyes."
At this point, she couldn't help but give Jing Yuan a subtle look. "But you, you shouldn't have met him, right? Why do you seem to trust him so much? Are you really getting senile and your judgment has declined?"
In Fu Xuan's view, no matter how much the world praises someone, their words have no credibility until he has witnessed their true strength.
"Fu Qing is young and impetuous, and it's normal for him to view the world with skepticism," Jing Yuan said with a smile, shaking his head. "However, in this matter, I still trust my own judgment more—so, what exactly did Mr. Ai Yue say?"
"Brother Yue said that if we want things to be resolved satisfactorily, we'd better wait for his signal before we set off." March 7th scratched his head and repeated what the other party had left behind. "But what kind of signal is it? Brother Yue didn't say—oh right, this strange uncle was also sent over by Brother Yue from somewhere."
"I understand signals," Xing raised her hand to speak, "As the saying goes, a single arrow piercing the clouds travels a thousand miles..."
She didn't get to finish her sentence because a deafening sound drowned out all other sounds.
Everyone looked up in the direction from which the sound came—at the edge of the boundless water, a beam of light containing terrifying energy was rising into the sky, piercing through the clouds and seemingly extending beyond the celestial ship.
"I say," someone asked in the silence, "Could this be the so-called signal?"
No one responded to her; everyone's eyes were fixed on the light.
Amidst the dazzling light, something enormous was quietly stretching its long-dormant body.
The Jianmu tree has been revived.
Chapter 46 These are the amazing tools we'll be using later.
Even after venturing into the Scale-Abyss Realm and deeply fusing with the Jianmu's Mystic Root, Phantylia still hadn't recovered from this sudden turn of events.
Suddenly, the star core, suppressed by an unknown force, erupts; Tingyun is resurrected; an unnamed guest appears here; and there's that eerie cat-woman girl who clings to her like a ghost, even after she's degraded herself to the point of hiding in a trash can, she can't shake her off; and the utterly useless Medicine Master's Legacy...
All of this shattered what she thought was a flawless plan!
How could this be?
As she sensed the power of the Jianmu's Mystic Root gradually reviving through the absorption of the Star Core's power, Phantylia calmed down. She composed herself and carefully reviewed where her plan had gone wrong.
However, Phantylia quickly gave up on this meaningless behavior. After all, neither Tingyun's resurrection nor the appearance of the Stellar Train were things that could be predicted. There must be some key factors in this matter that he had overlooked, but in any case, now was not the time to dwell on these things.
Phantylia wasn't sure how long the Medicine Master's Legacy could last, but these guys, who were suppressed by the Cloud Cavalry and could only act as rats in the gutter on the Immortal Ship, probably didn't have much strength to speak of. He had to seize as much of the Jianmu's power as possible before the Cloud Cavalry discovered him.
Unfortunately, everything happened too hastily. If it weren't for the unexpected interference of this uninvited guest, his plan would have unfolded much more smoothly, quietly eroding the entire Luofu Xianzhou, and ultimately...
Phantylia snapped out of her reverie and couldn't help but let out a self-deprecating laugh.
It seems I am indeed somewhat resentful of this sudden defeat, otherwise I wouldn't have had such fantasies.
As he pondered, Phantylia turned his gaze back to the star core and couldn't help but sigh.
The Jianmu's Mystic Root has not yet broken through the critical threshold to regrow. If it were to be swallowed up in the current situation, let alone destroy the Luofu Xianzhou, it would probably be difficult to even escape from those people.
But it's too late...
What's there to be conflicted about?
Just then, a voice suddenly interrupted her thoughts. The voice was gentle and calm, sounding like the greeting between acquaintances, but to Phantylia's ears, it was like a thunderclap.
This is the deepest part of the Jianmu Jianmu's Mystic Root in the Scale-Abyss Realm. Not only is there a seal set up by the Vidargraha outside, but there is also the Ancient Sea that swallowed the entire Dragon Palace. If it weren't for the characteristics of Solaris, I probably wouldn't have been able to get here. How could there be a second person here?
The opponent was even able to evade her senses and appear at such close range. If he had a weapon specifically designed to target Solaris, he could have easily inflicted serious damage on her just now!
This is only based on the premise that "the opponent is weaker than oneself." If the opponent's strength is far superior to one's own...
Amidst a whirlwind of thoughts, Phantylia pinpointed the other person's location. Seeing a young man dressed in white standing before her, she couldn't help but become wary. "Who are you? Why are you here?"
In her perception, the other party was completely harmless, appearing to be just an ordinary adult male. But the more this seemed to be the case, the more terrified she became.
How could an ordinary person appear here? So there's only one possibility: the other party's strength far surpasses hers, allowing them to easily manipulate her senses and disguise themselves as an ordinary person.
"Don't be nervous, at least for now I'm here to help you." Facing Phantylia's wary gaze, the young man smiled slightly, "You want to absorb the power of the Jianmu, but the timing isn't right, the Jianmu hasn't revived yet, right?"
As he spoke, he lightly touched the star core with his hand. Then, to Phantylia's astonishment, the energy within the star core suddenly erupted, but was controlled by an invisible hand and steadily transported to the surrounding mystic roots.
The ease with which he manipulated the star core left Phantylia speechless.
She knew that the higher the energy output of the star core, the shorter the time required for the Jianmu tree to revive. However, knowing and being able to do are two different things. The previous output power of the star core was already the limit that Phantylia could control. If it continued to increase, there was a risk of explosion at any time.
But this man in front of me...
Phantylia was still reeling from the shock when he was startled awake by the sounds coming from all around him.