Chapter 149

Bai Jun and Jing Yuan were startled, wondering if something had happened.

"Quick, quick, someone come and help! This guy's about to break free!"

"What's wrong with this guy?! I tied him up with the latest rope developed by the Artisanship Commission!"

"What terrifying power! This is terrible! I mustn't let this happen! Quickly, go and inform the General and Mr. Bai Jun!!!"

Numerous Vanguard formed a human wall, making it difficult to squeeze through. A cacophony of voices could be heard from all sides. Just then, Bai Jun and Jing Yuan finally arrived. Jing Yuan, as a general, gave an order that silenced the chaotic scene.

"Don't panic, what happened?"

"General, Mr. Bai Jun, you've finally arrived! Quickly, control this guy, we can't keep him under control any longer!"

Upon hearing Jing Yuan's voice, the Vanguard present immediately straightened up and made way to the left and right, completely exposing the culprit who had caused the chaos to Jing Yuan —Ren, who had already awakened, struggled to break free of the ropes binding his body. Noticing Jing Yuan's gaze, Ren surprisingly became quiet.

"I never expected our reunions to always happen in such awkward situations. If you truly value our friendship, you should have informed me sooner. It's been so long... old friend."

"..."

Jing Yuan spoke first with a gentle smile, as if addressing an old friend with a nostalgic tone. In response to Jing Yuan's greeting, Ren remained deathly silent. He lowered his head, his white hair, unlike the white hair in his Remembrance, had returned to black, obscuring his eyes. He remained completely silent throughout.

Looking down at his old friend, whose face was weary and whose body was covered in wounds, showing no trace of his former vigor, Jing Yuan couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow. Now, one of them was a high-ranking general of the Xianzhou, while the other had become a criminal bound hand and foot. Even if he wanted to look him in the eye as an equal, Jing Yuan couldn't do it.

It was for Luofu's sake, and also to live up to the promise they Five Valiants of the Clouds.

Jing Yuan bypassed the blade that had given up struggling, picked up the Shard Sword from the ground, and gently stroked the lacquered blade with his fingertips. With a sigh of disbelief, he said, "I never expected you would abandon the anvil to learn swordsmanship... Alas, it's a pity that a broken sword cannot be mended, and the path of cultivation cannot be reversed."

"You weren't always so nosy, Jing Yuan."

Finally, the blade, who had remained silent, spoke these words.

"So you can still speak after all. Considering our past friendship, and having lived up to the trust we placed in Luofu, may I ask you the purpose of your visit?"

"Purpose? If I said it was to Destruction Luofu, how would you react? Heh heh heh, stop with the hypocritical pretense, Jing Yuan. I know, I know you've always been... always the one among us who understands the 'price' best, but you didn't say anything, you didn't do anything back then... I won't hate you, but I also have nothing to say to you."

The shoulders of the man who shook his head and sneered were trembling slightly. Then he raised his face and showed Jing Yuan a mocking smile for the first time. However, beneath that mocking expression, there was also a hint of sadness. After speaking, the man fell silent and looked down at the ground.

With a soft sigh, her pale hair fluttered in the wind.

Jing Yuan wasn't too surprised. He remained calm and gave the next instruction:

"...Guards! Take him to the 'Matrix of Prescience' of the Divination Bureau. Inform Lady Fu to interrogate him about the personnel and purpose of the Stellaron Hunters' mission. We must obtain information about the Stellaron from him."

"Understood!"

The Vanguard, following Jing Yuan's orders, sprang into action, escorting Ren away from the Shence Mansion.

The somber black hair brushed past the silent pale hair. A gust of wind swept by again, ruffling the hair on Jing Yuan's forehead. As the wind fell, it also obscured his eyes. No one knew what Jing Yuan was thinking at that moment. However, the long, tied-up, pale silver hair continued to sway gently in the wind.

"Wait a moment."

However, a voice stopped Blade's feet from stepping forward.

He looked behind him and saw that Jing Yuan hadn't turned around, his back was directly facing the direction of the blade. He heard a voice say, "Hold it for him first," and the lacquered, Shard Sword fell from the sky and embedded itself in the floor at the feet of a Vanguard.

Vanguard dared not delay, picked up the Shard Sword from the floor, and urged the dazed Ren to leave the training ground.

As he listened to the receding footsteps disappear into the Shence Mansion, Jing Yuan's eyes trembled with pain. He even forgot that Bai Jun was still beside him. Under the clear sky, his gaze fell on the ground.

"Jing Yuan."

"..."

"Are you really not bothered?"

"... Um."

"I'll go investigate the remaining Stellaron Hunters hiding in Luofu first. They're not like Stellaron, those ethereal little things that wander around randomly. It's much easier to pinpoint their location. I estimate I can find them completely in less than two days."

"... Thank you."

Why are you thanking me?

Having witnessed the entire incident, Bai Jun left without saying a word. He was simply relieved that Old Master Huai Yan had just left Luofu; otherwise, seeing Ren now would have undoubtedly caused him immense heartache.

When Jingmi visited the Shence Mansion again, she left Jing Yuan alone in the same spot.

He gazed up at the clear blue sky, and his lips moved almost imperceptibly:

"The wind is picking up..."

The flowers and plants planted in the courtyard of the Shence Mansion seemed to sway mournfully in the wind.

Chapter 185 Why did Kafka surrender first?

The sound of water.

The feel of water.

The tides of the Ancient Sea flow ceaselessly, their surging sound never ceasing, and the hazy Sun can be seen swaying with the waves.

This is the underwater Scalegorge Waterscape of Lin Yuan, once covered by the waters of the Ancient Sea by a certain High Elder, which is the sacred land of the Vidyadhara.

Amidst the ever-forming and disappearing bubbles, two figures, like swordfish, swiftly darted through the azure depths, passing through a collapsed ruin within the Ancient Sea, resembling numerous temples and dwellings, and encountering countless towering and sprawling Ambrosial Arbor roots, finally stopping before an exceptionally magnificent and spacious hall.

"That concludes today's patrol duties. The rest can be handed over to other staff."

"That's true, let's rest for a bit. I've already notified the person taking over the shift. Let's rest in the Dragon Exaltation Hall until they arrive."

Holding long spears, the two men Vidyadhara monks, found a nearby high platform to rest and began to chat.

They are the guardians responsible for patrolling the underwater Scalegorge Waterscape, observing and recording the roots of the Ambrosial Arbor, and Vidyadhara eggs. Today, as usual, they are inspecting the Jianmu Ambrosial Arbor Scalegorge Waterscape to prevent its emerging Ambrosial Arbor from affecting the Vidyadhara's settlement.

"Sigh, this is really strange. Wasn't that Ambrosial Arbor supposed to have died long ago? What kind of trouble has it been causing all this time that it's grown back? I don't know about other places, but we unlucky guys guarding this 'Survival Plague Site' are really suffering."

"Who knows? But the workload during this period has been immense. We've been observing and recording the roots of the Ambrosial Arbor, inspecting buildings damaged by its roots, and relocating the Vidyadhara eggs to a safe place... I just hope this disaster will pass soon."

The impact of the plague was profound.

This can be seen from all the grotto-heavens that were affected by the disaster. Among them, the one most deeply affected by the resurrection of Ambrosial Arbor was not Alchemy Commission, which is located at the foot of Ambrosial Arbor as the public imagines, but Lin Yuan Scalegorge Waterscape, which sealed the mysterious root of Ambrosial Arbor.

That's the current situation. Underwater roots and vines are everywhere, covering the ground like ivy, making people's scalp tingle at the sight.

This caused great hardship for the Vidyadhara in Scalegorge Waterscape. They could not relocate the masses like the Alchemy Commission did, because the dragon eggs, which symbolized the new life of the next generation, could only hatch within Scalegorge Waterscape. Therefore, they had no choice but to move all the dragon eggs to a new location and assign elite guardians to watch over them in shifts.

The usual task of those who protect the pearl is like these two, quietly inspecting the Ambrosial Arbor underwater in the Scalegorge Waterscape.

The two complained about the recent bad situation while waiting for the other guardians to arrive and take over their duties.

Achoo!

Suddenly, the person protecting the bead sneezed, and their companion next to them seemed to feel a strange chill and hunched their neck.

They seemed to sense a presence and turned to look towards the main hall.

However, the surroundings were peaceful, nothing happened, and the magnificent and sacred hall still stood there all alone.

There was no one there, which was to be expected. Scalegorge Waterscape was the sacred land of Luofu Vidyadhara. Even if villains forced their way in, once the dragon eggs within its territory suffered a large-scale disaster, all the Vidyadhara of the Xianzhou would not let it go. Among them, the most powerful force was the "Fang Xianzhou" Immortal Fanghu, which was governed by Vidyadhara.

All the Vidyadhara broke down their differences and united to hunt down these sinners to the ends of the earth, which evolved into a major event of the century.

For this reason, the entire Xianzhou Alliance is paying unprecedented attention to this matter, because for the Vidyadhara, who are unable to reproduce normally and can only rely on the method of transforming into eggs, the Scalegorge Waterscape is such a lofty and important existence.

Am I overthinking it?

There was clearly no one there, and clearly nothing had happened.

However, they could still sense that presence.

That's strange. Could it be that they've been overly stressed lately?

But even so, how should I put it? Deep in my chest, I felt a restless, uneasy throbbing.

Did you just notice something?

"N-I don't know, I just have this weird feeling..."

Just as the two were exchanging information in a tense atmosphere, a change occurred deep within the main hall.

"----"

It sounded like a cry, high-pitched and sharp, initially reminiscent of the bleating of a goat, but upon closer listening, it seemed more like the cry of a newborn baby.

Upon hearing that voice, the two guardians of the pearl seemed to freeze, their breaths seemingly stopping in their throats.

Feeling of uneasiness.

Feeling of uneasiness.

Feeling of uneasiness.

An extremely unsettling feeling washed over them; their biological instincts repeatedly warned of danger, yet their sacred duty compelled them to cast their gaze into the depths of the hall. They didn't know what had happened, but they could sense that something had been altered.

But the voice never rang out again. They stared wide-eyed into the depths of the hall, but there was no sound of wind coming from within, as if what had just happened was nothing but a dream, a terrible dream.

However, the gun, still trembling, told the two that this was not a dream.

"You... you said... was that sound just now the sound of a dragon egg hatching somewhere?"

One of the guardians forced a smile that looked more like a grimace, barely suppressing his fear. But this guess was immediately and vehemently denied by the other guardian.

"The dragon eggs have all been moved long ago, and are being guarded at designated locations by elite guardians. There are no dragon eggs in the Dragon Exaltation Hall, so how can—"

Before the words could be finished, an inexplicable fear choked the guardian of the pearl back into their throats.

He suddenly remembered something, something very important, something that had even alarmed "Fanghu"—that was, a dragon egg had been stolen from the sacred ground of Scalegorge Waterscape some time ago, and the whereabouts of the lost dragon egg were still unknown.

The moment this terrifying thought crossed his mind, a chill ran down his spine, and his scalp tingled. Trembling, he said to his companion beside him:

"Do you... do you remember the dragon egg we lost last time?"

His companion's expression froze immediately. Clearly, what he had just said was merely a baseless guess, but now it seemed to have become reality.

This is terrible. If that's really the case, then this is terrible. The two of them swallowed hard, overwhelmed with fear. They wanted to take out their communication devices to inform others of this, but another cry completely robbed them of their consciousness.

After an unknown amount of time, the two guardians who were to take over swam to the Dragon Exaltation Hall. Looking at the empty surroundings, they looked at each other in confusion.

"Strange? Where are they?"

I don't know, they've probably already left.

*

"Lord Bai Jun, all the Cloud Knights troops we can muster are here. Although there are only thirty-odd men, they are the elite of the elite, and their strength is no less than that of our Vanguard."

"Okay, I understand."

Bai Jun nodded in response to Vanguard's whisper. Ahead of them, a large group of people stood straight and tall in the square, each face etched with a solemn aura like stone statues, their imposing presence evoking the word "elite."

The location is the square in Exalting Sanctum. This is the most suitable meeting place near the Shence Mansion, with a spacious area and a wide view, making it the most open location in the vicinity.

In the center of the square, a pair of huge stone pillars stood side by side like twins. Since the cataclysm of Ambrosial Arbor, the flow of people in Luofu has dropped sharply, and the idlers who came to watch the fun in the vicinity have also been cleared out, leaving only a solemn and elite Cloud Knights and Shence Mansion Vanguard.

All the Vanguard and Cloud Cavalry gathered in the deserted square. Bai Jun stood on the platform in the square, looking down at the people participating in the search.

The objective is simple: to search for the Stellaron Hunters lurking in Luofu.

Before issuing the search order, Bai Jun remained silent, stroking his chin as he recalled something.

I remember when I confronted those three Stellaron Hunters on the space station, the woman in the purple coat used Spirit Whisper on Blade. At that time, Blade looked exactly like Alchemy Commission just now, as if he had fallen into some kind of controlled state.

No, there are still differences.

The difference lies in the fact that when Kafka was by Blade's side, the aura of Spirit Whisper emanating from Blade's body was much stronger, unlike the faint aura he exuded at the Alchemy Commission just now.

The key point is this: that mind-manipulation-like Spirit Whisper must have a range of effectiveness, like the threads that control a puppet. The closer you are, the stronger the effect, and vice versa. In other words, as the user who controls the threads, Kafka's location would definitely not be too far from Blade.

Alchemy Commission can be ruled out first, as Bai Jun had already searched it. So, we should directly consider other grotto-heavens near Alchemy Commission: Artisanship Commission, Exalting Sanctum, and Divination Bureau.

Putting themselves in the shoes of the Stellaron Hunters, would they choose the sparsely populated and heavily guarded Artisanship Commission and the Divination Bureau, or the bustling and chaotic Exalting Sanctum region?

The conclusion is obvious, so the search area can be narrowed down to the vicinity of Exalting Sanctum.

Bai Jun reached a conclusion in his mind, waved his left hand, and immediately gave an order to the Cloud Cavalry in front of him:

"All soldiers, listen to my command! Seal off all passages from Exalting Sanctum to other grotto-heavens, and thoroughly search all areas of Exalting Sanctum. Remember to travel in groups of three to avoid being alone. If you discover any disturbance, be sure to notify the others and report the situation before you act."

"Understood!"

Bai Jun had personally informed the Vanguard about the other Stellaron Hunters. Everyone also learned that a terrorist, whose strength was comparable to that Blade and who possessed the ability to hypnotize and brainwash, was lurking somewhere in Luofu. It was only natural to avoid him acting alone.

After he finished speaking, the Vanguard present all echoed his sentiments and immediately set off towards their target.

Bai Jun fully unleashed the range of his perception while tracking the aura of Kafka 'Spirit Whisper.

Meanwhile, two Stellaron Hunters hiding in the low alleys of Exalting Sanctum were also discussing their next move.