As Kailun recounted what had happened, Qin Cang pieced together the whole story. And if things had happened as described, there was a good chance the Pyramid was still there. After all, nine hundred years was nothing in the Star Sea Region—not even enough time for all the Peak Marquises to be replaced.
"Then the treasure should still be there. The Machine Race must have used some sort of secret technique to merge it with the surrounding space. Without having witnessed that battle firsthand, it would be hard to spot.
"And since even the probes couldn't detect it, the Pyramid must have had an extremely advanced probe inside that had been running all this time, blocking the signals of other probes. That would explain why it could only be seen with the naked eye." Qin Cang quickly put together most of what had happened.
"Exactly. There must be at least one extremely advanced probe inside the Pyramid to block our scans. And it belonged to the Machine Race—their technology was indisputably the best in the universe.
"Just think how valuable a probe used by a Peak Marquis of the Machine Race would be. And if there's anything else in there..." Kailun seemed to picture piles of Hunyuan Units waving at him, and the corners of his mouth curled up.
Kuin and the others didn't interrupt. They simply listened quietly to Kailun and Qin Cang talk. They didn't really understand how strong a Marquis or a King was.
They'd always known that powerful warriors of those ranks existed, but had never met any. Still, they understood one thing: the owner of this treasure had been powerful and rich, and had left behind plenty of good things. That was enough for them.
The richer the owner, the happier they were. It meant they might end up with an even bigger payday. As for danger, every hunt for the Alien Race carried risks. Those who came to the Outer-Region Battlefield had long since put their lives second.
"Captain, there's something I think we should be careful about. When we blast open the passage later, wait for my signal. Don't set off the charges until I say so.
"And before we enter the Pyramid, have Lie Feng and the others go into our Space Rings. If there's danger at the entrance, I'm worried they won't be able to react in time." Qin Cang cautioned him. He wasn't worried about himself, but he had to be careful with his teammates. It would only be a little more trouble.
"Sure. We'll do as you say. Whatever you want us to do, we'll do it." Lan Ying and Lie Feng spoke at the same time. They had already agreed that they would follow Qin Cang and Kailun's lead on this trip. They'd be satisfied just to get a small share.
"Good. We'll adapt as things come. If we run into danger, don't try to be a hero. Your safety comes first. No matter how much wealth you earn, you need to be alive to spend it. We all want to become undying, so let's make sure we stay alive first. We can talk about becoming undying after that." Kailun warned them as well.
Warriors on the Outer-Region Battlefield weren't afraid of death, but they absolutely couldn't throw their lives away for money. There was no need for pointless deaths.
"Yes, Captain!" everyone answered in unison.
After nearly five months of travel, the Yingyin Ship finally left the Dark Universe and reached the outer reaches of the Star Sea Region.
The ship's panoramic simulation was on. Qin Cang gazed out at the Star Sea Region and couldn't help marveling at the wonders of the universe. To think that such a spectacular place could exist inside a secret realm.
"Everyone, look. This is the star map. We're here." Kailun pointed to a map, where a tiny white dot marked their location.
Qin Cang stared at the star map, quietly calculating things in his head.
The Human Race provided this star map through the Outer-Region Battlefield System. It was extremely detailed, and having one during battle gave them a huge advantage. The Human Race made it available to all soldiers on the Outer-Region Battlefield for free, and continually updated it with information supplied by powerful warriors from all sides.
According to the star map and the information Qin Cang had found, the Star Sea Region was more than three light-years across at its widest point, with countless islands scattered throughout.
The largest island was more than ten million kilometers in diameter. Deep beneath the seawater, there were all sorts of strange plants and aquatic creatures, as well as unusual terrain.
Under normal circumstances, a place like the Star Sea Region would have been enough to support exploration by Kings. But the Ancient Wood Abyss lay nearby, turning this place into a paradise for Marquises.
After all, the Ancient Wood Abyss had richer resources and covered a much larger area. It even held more precious treasures, drawing countless Kings to explore it.
Rumor had it that whenever a unique treasure from the Ancient Wood Abyss appeared, Kings from countless races would come to fight over it. It was a famous battlefield on a par with the Star Tower, and it produced a greater variety of treasures. The Star Tower, by contrast, only yielded one kind: Sealing Stars.
In terms of the number of Kings alone, the Ancient Wood Abyss might have even more. Some especially confident Marquises dared to explore it for treasure, too. But in terms of Peak Kings and limit-level Kings, the two places were about evenly matched.
As for danger, the Ancient Wood Abyss was a little safer than the Star Tower. The Star Tower was dangerous not only because of the Kings roaming around, but also because of the Machine Puppets within it. The dangers of the Ancient Wood Abyss came entirely from powerful warriors.
Generally speaking, unless they were fighting over a treasure or were mortal enemies, Kings rarely fought to the death. And even if they couldn't win, they could always run. In the Star Tower, however, there were times when running wasn't even an option.
Qin Cang was quite curious about the Ancient Wood Abyss. Once he was strong enough, he would definitely go and explore it.
For now, though, it was better to explore the Star Sea Region. If he couldn't even dominate this place, there was no point talking about going to the Ancient Wood Abyss.
"Captain, where's the place you mentioned?" Qin Cang asked. Now that they had reached the Star Sea Region, they should make their plans soon. The sooner they got the treasure, the sooner he could sleep soundly.
"Come with me," Kailun said. "The ship can't get in there. There's only a very narrow passage, which I found after a long time exploring. It leads to the place where the Pyramid is."
From Kailun's explanation, Qin Cang understood that there was no point using the ship for the rest of the journey. They would have to go on foot.
"Captain, lead the way," Qin Cang said.
"Make sure you keep up," Kailun said with a smile. "The passage is just over two million kilometers from here, beneath a small island. I don't know how the island survived the battle without being destroyed by the shock waves."
Following Kailun's lead, Qin Cang and the others soon arrived at the small island he had mentioned.
"So this is the island, Captain. It doesn't look special at all. Are you sure this is where the Machine Race left its treasure?" Kuin asked curiously. He couldn't imagine how this place could possibly be where a treasure was hidden.
"What are you in such a hurry for? Places like this are often the strangest." Gu Shi put his blunt, honest way of needling people to use.
But Qin Cang still felt that something was wrong. This place was too normal—so normal that it didn't seem like somewhere left behind after a great battle. Just as the captain had said, how had it survived the battle?
Two Peak Marquises had fought here. How had such a small island survived?
Strange. It was just too strange.
Still, Qin Cang was confident. This was only the legacy of a Marquis—how many tricks could there be?
He had the Crowned Python Clone and the Thousand-Vine Star-Eating Grass. No matter what happened, he should be able to stay alive. If all else failed, he could only seek help from his teacher. That was the last thing he wanted, but if there was no other choice, he would have to do it.
"Pato, turn both probes up to maximum power and keep an eye on everything around us. This place... isn't right!"
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