Clearwind University's science and engineering building, Great Sun Ruins Laboratory.
A dark sky, clouds thick with radioactive dust, enormous glassy craters, and sword scars still steeped in sword intent, some cleaving dozens of kilometers of ground.
This was a section taken from the Great Sun Sword Pavilion's former headquarters. It bore witness to the brutal war of that year.
Jiang Ding walked through it, stopping now and then before a sword scar to ponder for a long time before moving on to the next.
From now on, he might be living at the Great Sun Ruins Laboratory for several years.
He had plenty to do: train the program's master's and doctoral students, lead the urgent excavation and research work, and continue until Wu Mengsha or someone else reached Nascent Soul and took over as professor of the Great Sun Ruins Program.
"Advisor,"
"Professor, what should we do next..."
At some point, more than a hundred Golden Core cultivators and several thousand Foundation Establishment cultivators appeared before Jiang Ding. They bowed and waited for his instructions.
These were the students and staff of the Immortal Sect's Great Sun Ruins Program.
And they were only a small fraction. At the Great Sun Sword Pavilion's former headquarters, at research bases, and across the logistics offices, the Golden Core, Foundation Establishment, and Qi Refining cultivators numbered in the hundreds of thousands. In strength, they rivaled or surpassed a top Nascent Soul sect.
"Keep following True Lord Chengyang's research plan and carry out each task steadily."
Jiang Ding looked up at them, his gaze lingering especially on a dozen or so bewildered Foundation Establishment undergraduates.
These recent graduates were outstanding young people, mostly from the Immortal Sect's top institutions, such as Clearwind University, Big Dipper University, and Magnolia University.
After so many years of development