The six of them traveled across Gobada's desolate wasteland. Fukaloss led the way, explaining the mission in a steady stream.
"This is a very common guard duty: a small resource point on the border that people from Azure Fire Royal City have been harassing lately. But the place is too small to be worth sending a large force of Godlevels to guard, so it's usually watched in rotation by a few Ice Blade Squads. The previous team has been stationed there for too long, so we're taking over."
Julia added, "This kind of mission is highly sought after. The elemental power at a resource point is much denser than out in the open, making it one of the few good cultivation spots in Gobada—though of course it can't compare to the Yulan Plane outside."
"Heh, that's exactly why we rotate every hundred years," Fukaloss said with a laugh. "If a few teams were allowed to monopolize it, there'd be an uproar before long."
Declan promptly seized the chance to flatter her. "Miss, you're truly formidable. You even managed to land such a cushy assignment!"
Barn, however, seemed distracted.
He had already bonded the Divine Artifact Chainmail to himself with a drop of blood and wore it close to his body. The armor was made of ordinary materials, with only a small amount of magical metal mixed in. It had barely reached Lowgod Artifact level thanks to being nourished by Divine Power, so to him it was better than nothing.
As for the Divine Artifact Mist Hidden in his hand, its power was concealed, leaving no trace of its aura. Fukaloss had examined it earlier, but without a blood bond she couldn't tell what it really was. She had taken it for an ordinary Lowgod Artifact and hadn't asked any questions.
But neither of those pieces of equipment was what truly concerned Barn now.
It was the faint, indistinct thread of gray energy deep in his mind.
He hadn't labeled it Primordial Chaos Qi without reason. Even now, he had no idea how to activate this power, yet it had never harmed his soul in the slightest.
Most importantly, not long ago, when he had gone to finish off a dying dark-element Godlevel, the soul-killing attack his opponent unleashed with his final breath had been effortlessly blocked by this wisp of gray energy. It hadn't even stirred.
After going through the entire original novel in his mind, he couldn't think of anything else like it besides Primordial Chaos Qi.
But even if it is, I can't use it... Barn sighed inwardly.
Primordial Chaos Qi was beyond precious, more heaven-defying than a Sovereign Spark or a Supreme Artifact. Yet it simply floated beside his soul, and he couldn't control even the tiniest bit of it.
"We're here!"
Fukaloss's voice abruptly pulled him out of his thoughts.
The five Sanctuary experts raised their eyes in unison and stared at the strange place before them.
Spatial Rifts, which should have appeared only a thousand meters above the ground, were flickering and tearing open in the low sky just a few dozen feet up. Dangerous light shimmered in the black cracks.
Yet right in the center of this chaos of rifts was an area a hundred meters across, completely clear of even a single crack.
"So this is the resource point?" Barn asked in surprise. "What a strange sight."
"Gobada is a prison plane, and it has plenty of strange rules, most of them meant to keep the prisoners trapped," Julia said softly. "It doesn't let us escape easily, but it also doesn't cut off every last chance of survival."
Gideon's massive bear face showed a trace of sadness. "That's truly cruel."
As they stepped into the safe zone, an old man slowly opened his eyes inside a crude earthen hut. His voice was flat. "You're late."
Barn looked around. There were several similar huts nearby, with a few figures faintly visible inside. They were all Sanctuary experts, evidently members of the other two guard teams.
The old man pointed toward a small orchard nearby. "My name is Atticus. I've been stationed at this orchard for years. Those are the fruit trees you're here to guard. The three teams will each watch one direction and help me keep out intruders. Remember—the underground needs watching, too."
"According to the usual rules, the orchard bears a hundred fruits each year. If it produces less than that, you'll be punished. Once your hundred-year term is over, your reward will be calculated based on the actual yield."
Barn looked toward the orchard. There were only about ten short trees. Even if the elemental power here was a little denser than outside, it was still pitifully thin compared to the Yulan Plane. The yield was easy to imagine.
Fukaloss led them to the area assigned to their team and immediately gave her orders. "Gideon, build a few earthen huts, then dig a tunnel underground. We'll take turns guarding above and below."
Gideon nodded. A powerful Earth Pulse spread out, and several crude but sturdy earthen huts sprang up from the ground.
Declan stared at the fruit trees in the distance and couldn't help licking his lips. "Miss, he said the mission counts as complete as long as we get at least a hundred fruits. So what if we could get the trees to bear a few more..."
Blair interrupted him at once, his cold, slit-pupil eyes flashing. "They're just ordinary apples, good for nothing but a snack. But if the yield is higher, we'll get a greater reward in the end—so you'd better hold back."
"You're a Beholder. Naturally, you don't need to eat or drink!" Declan muttered. But when he caught Fukaloss's look, he nodded obediently. "Fine. The mission reward matters more."
"The old man in the orchard is a Midgod," Fukaloss said. "Any fruits beyond the required amount belong to him."
"A Midgod? Why isn't he in the Royal City?" Blair asked in surprise.
Fukaloss seemed to know the Royal City well. "He's probably a Midgod who refined a Divine Spark. Some Godlevels get lucky, but Godlevels who refined Divine Sparks can't compete with Midgods who broke through on their own. They're still stronger than Lowgods, though, so they're assigned to staff resource points around the territory."
Julia seemed troubled. She exchanged a discreet glance with Fukaloss, and the two silently communicated through their souls for a few moments.
Fukaloss said nothing more. She went straight into the main hut and turned to assign the teams.
"My Death Clone will take Gideon, Declan, and Blair to guard underground. My Water Clone will guard the surface with Barn and Julia. We'll rotate every ten years."
"Yes, Miss!"
Life at the resource point was painfully dull, but it really was a rare cushy assignment.
In Gobada, apart from the Royal City itself, only resource points like this were continuously suffused with elemental power. They produced supplies and offered a safe place to cultivate.
Inside the earthen hut on the surface, Barn suddenly asked, "Miss, is there something wrong with the other two teams?"
Fukaloss didn't answer, but Julia let out a quiet sigh. "There's nothing wrong, it's just that I know one of the teams. They used to be a family from the Royal City, but about two hundred years ago, the family's pillar—a Midgod—was killed in battle."
"There's no room for sentiment in Gobada. Without a Midgod to protect them, only two Lowgods remained in their family. They no longer had the right to stay in the Royal City, and were driven out. That was when they formed their team."
"Still, Lord Ice Prison King remembered the deeds of the Midgod who died, and arranged some relatively easy missions for them, such as guarding this resource point."
Barn glanced at Julia without revealing what he was thinking.
She clearly came from the family of some powerful figure in the Royal City to know these details.
Even the fallen descendants of a Royal City family needed special consideration to get one of these scarce guard assignments, while Fukaloss had secured one with ease... Her background was probably far more extraordinary than they had imagined.
Only then did Fukaloss speak, her tone growing more serious.
"Enough about that. Azure Fire Royal City is the strongest of the Five Royal Cities, and this resource point lies right on the border. We have to be careful."
"You can cultivate, but you must never enter deep meditation. You need to keep part of your mind alert and stay on guard for any movement around us."
Before you continue