Chapter 332: Discovered in the Middle of the City
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Translated by Frog in the Well
Read it only at Nineheavens.org
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***
A certain grand hall where clear spring water trickled despite being indoors.
In that place which could be called the deepest part of the Sacred Scale Alliance, a dozen or so Unity stage Dao Sovereigns gathered.
The pinnacle of the alliance composed of over one thousand races.
The leaders of several races that practically led the Sacred Scale Alliance looked at each other in a heavy silence.
How long did the silence last?
A woman with a snake-like appearance and flashy looks tilted her head slightly.
“Fellow Daoist Hyeon-baek. I heard the Crocodile Flood Dragon Race dispatched as many as five Dao Sovereigns to the Ancient Wilderness. May I ask the reason?”
A middle-aged man with sharp, prominent eyes scowled deeply.
“Why are you asking when you clearly know? A damn bastard dared to touch our Crocodile Flood Dragon Race, so we must make them pay the price.”
“A damn bastard… Have you figured out who the culprit is?”
The Crocodile Flood Dragon Race Patriarch, whose face crumpled violently, expressed irritation like someone whose pride was wounded.
“How could we have already figured out what happened in the middle of the Ancient Wilderness? We sent an investigation team because we need to find out what occurred.”
The place where news of Wi-ryeon was severed was so distant that an Unity stage Dao Sovereign would have to fly for over ten years to reach it.
It was a place where it was difficult for news to reach unless bases were built here and there.
“I see. But there is a rumor that the place where Fellow Daoist Wi-ryeon met with disaster is a ruin from the remote antiquity era.”
Around the time the Crocodile Flood Dragon Race Patriarch paused and narrowed his brow.
The woman wearing a friendly smile continued her words.
“One never knows what dangers might be hidden in ruins from the remote antiquity era. Just in case, our Tengshe Race will also lend our strength.”
“Haha. Then our Stone Bird Race will also lend a hand. Touching the Crocodile Flood Dragon Race is the same as trampling on the face of the Sacred Scale Alliance.”
As the two races possessing power as strong as the Crocodile Flood Dragon Race stepped forward, the Patriarch, silent for a moment, twisted his lips.
Did they really want to help purely?
There was no way. They coveted the remote antiquity era ruin.
“You are truly kind. Fine. There is no need to refuse when you say you will help. Do as you wish.”
“Mmm.”
“However, as you said, ruins from the remote antiquity era are extremely dangerous, so be careful.”
“Oh my, you are stating the obvious. Who knows what will happen in an unpioneered land.”
At the friendly tone delivered softly, the Crocodile Flood Dragon Race Patriarch, who let out a small snort, fell into thought.
Monopolizing the ruin had become difficult, but this was not necessarily a bad thing.
Although they were basically competitors, they were simultaneously a single alliance.
If someone had killed Wi-ryeon, they would naturally join forces to punish them.
Because touching the Sacred Scale Alliance was an act that harmed everyone’s interests.
If they did not retaliate even when their face was trampled, every Tom, Dick, and Harry would covet what the Sacred Scale Alliance possessed, which was an action that would cause even greater losses.
At any rate.
Since it was true that Wi-ryeon had died in the ruin, to ensure safety, the more power, the better.
‘Since the Tengshe Race and the Stone Bird Race have also stepped forward, there will be over ten Unity stage Dao Sovereigns.’
Ten Unity stage Dao Sovereigns.
It was a powerful force capable of wiping out average weak races in an instant.
Whatever was in that ruin, it was more than enough, even excessive.
***
Meanwhile.
The two Dao Sovereigns who had come to the ruin along with Wi-ryeon.
Myeong Cheon-ak, whose true form was a python, and Cheong-eung, the eagle with razor-sharp scales, gathered in one place.
“Is there still no contact?”
“Yes. It seems Fellow Daoist Wi-ryeon has run into some trouble.”
Myeong Cheon-ak, who took out a name plaque to examine it, narrowed his eyes.
It was a name plaque meant to share locations with Wi-ryeon, but it had stopped working from some point.
It meant the plaque on the other party’s side was broken.
Gazing at the unresponsive plaque, he muttered as if he could not understand.
“Strange. Although searching this ruin is tricky, there shouldn’t be anything that could pose a threat to us.”
“Did you forget? There is one dangerous existence, isn’t there?”
“…Are you talking about Baek Myo-hwa?”
“Yes.”
“Wi-ryeon was defeated by Baek Myo-hwa?”
Myeong Cheon-ak fell into thought.
If one weighed the possible and impossible, it was naturally possible.
Because Unity stage Dao Sovereigns were also divided in strength, Wi-ryeon could have been defeated by Baek Myo-hwa.
But that was merely a possibility. It was not clear at all.
Even if Baek Myo-hwa was stronger than Wi-ryeon, she couldn’t University kill him.
First, the difficulty was the issue.
If an Unity stage Dao Sovereign threw away their pride and focused solely on survival, killing them was near impossible.
To kill an Unity stage Dao Sovereign, one had to finish off their soul and physical body in a single blow at an unexpected moment, which was an exceptionally difficult task.
Furthermore…
“Baek Myo-hwa has an extremely rational personality. She is also the only remaining Unity stage Dao Sovereign in the Golden Rune Fox Clan. Would such a person kill Wi-ryeon? They would become sworn enemies with our Sacred Scale Alliance.”
“What if she had discovered a tremendous treasure and was about to take it, and Fellow Daoist Wi-ryeon tried to snatch it? It is not completely impossible.”
“Mmm.”
“Of course, I also think the possibility of Baek Myo-hwa killing him is low. Some other problem we didn’t anticipate might have occurred.”
“Could there be a danger in this ruin that we haven’t grasped?”
“Who knows.”
The two who continued the conversation mentioned various possibilities thereafter, but there was no mention of Jin So-myeong among them.
It was bound to be so…
because an Unity stage Dao Sovereign being defeated by a Void Refinement stage cultivator was a judgment near an entirely un-commonsensical delusion.
“Let’s go to Baek Myo-hwa first. She was doing something suspicious at the Rank 7 spiritual vein; we must see what she is up to.”
“Yes.”
The two Dao Sovereigns, who concealed their presences, flew soundlessly.
***
One month later.
Jin So-myeong, who was flying toward the center of the city, felt that the time was slowly drawing near.
Since his Supreme Great Ability was fully filled, it was time to do the work he had briefly postponed.
The Black Cloud Scripture .
The time had come to initiate into the spell that demanded as much as two trillion just to register in the proficiency system.
‘Let’s begin.’
Simultaneously with harboring the intent.
Two trillion.
An immense amount of Supreme Great Ability that he wouldn’t have dared to dream of in the past was consumed in an instant, and
【Spell】
Black Cloud Scripture (Entry 1 / 200B)
he mastered the spell recorded on the Profound Glyph Jade Slip in a single instant.
The proficiency required to pass from the entry to the master stage was two hundred billion.
‘Does it mean it is a spell superior to the Taixu Formless Robe?’
The proficiency required by the Taixu Formless Robe at the entry stage was one hundred billion, and this was twice as high.
After contemplating for a moment, he poured all two hundred billion of the Supreme Great Ability stored in Wuji.
Black Cloud Scripture (Master 1 / 2T)
He thoroughly scraped together even the Supreme Great Ability left for emergencies to raise his proficiency in the Black Cloud Scripture.
‘Ah.’
Millions of characters of spell texts that filled his mind scattered to pieces, mixed while drawing complex trajectories, and rearranged.
What had changed?
Ruminating on the newly comprehended spell texts, he snapped his fingers.
Swish!
All the fog within a nearby one-kilometer range gathered like a whirlwind and became a suit of clothing.
He had become capable of handling the Black Cloud so exquisitely as to make clothing by condensing the fog.
‘Oh.’
Touching the ink-colored robe floating in the air, it was smooth and soft as if woven from real silk.
Admiring the texture almost identical to actual silk, he took a step back.
Lowering his stance, he grabbed the hilt of his sword, and
Chang!
simultaneously with drawing his sword, he stabbed the ink-colored robe.
‘Indeed.’
Surprisingly, the ink-colored robe was perfectly intact even after being stabbed by the sword with his full strength.
Nodding his head in satisfaction, he draped the ink-colored robe over his body.
‘I finally have a decent dharma robe after a long time.’
As he cultivated body-tempering methods and came to possess a tough physical body,
he had not been able to obtain an outstanding defensive dharma treasure of actual significance, but finally a decent item was gained.
Strictly speaking, it was a spell rather than an item, but it was good anyway.
And also.
It was something he learned as the Black Cloud Scripture rose to the master stage, but the Black Cloud possessed a peculiar characteristic.
Should he say it reacted sensitively to intent or will?
If made into a sword, it spewed sharp energy, and if compressed like a wall, it was absurdly sturdy.
If made into clothing like just now, it was soft yet extremely tough, leaving nothing to be desired as defensive gear.
‘It is a spell with an absurdly outstanding versatility.’
From soft silk to solid steel.
Since its texture and characteristics changed at will, whatever he made was highly useful.
Jin So-myeong, who smiled in satisfaction, dispersed the surrounding fog.
As the fog spanning several kilometers cleared and his vision opened wide, he was able to grasp what was around at a single glance.
‘It will finally be a bit easier now.’
Kicking off the void, he dispersed the fog blocking his path.
He flew toward the center of the city at a speed incomparable to before he mastered the Black Cloud Scripture.
How many months had passed?
Passing through the building ruins collapsed like a wasteland, he arrived at the center, and
had no choice but to pause at the unexpected scenery unfolding before his eyes.
Slosh.
Lowering his gaze at the sound of waves, he saw a gently undulating water surface.
‘A lake? No, is it a sea?’
From some point, the ground was filled with water instead of sand, and strangely, it was ink-black, showing no end no matter how far he flew.
A vast ocean in the middle of a city.
It was truly a bizarre thing.
Splash!
He swung his sword to try cleaving the sea, but it was deep enough that the bottom was hard to gauge, and no living creatures resided.
Thinking that perhaps something was hidden beneath the surface, he searched the bottom, but there was nothing.
‘It is strangely flat.’
There was not a single bend in the bottom.
Normally in water, various terrains should form according to the water currents, but let alone large or small hills, there wasn’t even a common stone.
It was flat like a bathtub made of marble.
‘Is it an artificially created place? They went out of their way to make a sea in the center of the city?’
It was puzzling, but there was nothing in particular that looked dangerous.
‘Let’s keep going.’
The closer he got to the center, the thicker the fog became.
Before he knew it, he could not see a single inch ahead, to the point where exploration was impossible unless he dispersed the fog with the Black Cloud Scripture.
Thick fog, a gently undulating water surface, and water pitch-black like a shadow.
How long did he wander the vast ocean where the identical scenery repeated?
He felt the flow of air brushing past his cheeks.
‘Wind?’
The direction was the center of the city. All the atmosphere existing in the surroundings was flowing into the center.
At the unusual change, he slowed his speed and tensed.
Around the time the faint wind gradually grew wilder and turned like a storm.
Whoosh!
He was able to discover a stone monument fragment that was sucking in the surrounding air. No, the black fog.
A monument completely smashed with only its base remaining.
Complex patterns were engraved on it, but it was hard to grasp the meaning.
‘It seems this is the middle of the city.’
It was clearly a special place at a glance, but it was doubtful whether an Integration spiritual object would be in such a place.
He unfolded the Lightning Insight Spell-Breaking Eye to the extreme.
He thoroughly examined the surroundings, but except for the monument with only its base left, there was nothing particularly special.
Although a feeling of disappointment naturally arose, he did not rashly jump to conclusions and give up.
Splash!
He dived beneath the monument just like that, going down to the very bottom of the sea where not a single speck of light entered.
How many days had passed?
He thoroughly scanned the pitch-dark sea.
Around the time such doubt arose, wondering if there was truly nothing.
he was able to discover the unique environment he had searched for so much.
‘It is mud!’
Unlike other bottoms that were flat like marble, it was uneven.
Hurriedly examining the surroundings of an environment perfect for life to sprout…
his gaze locked onto a strangely vivid black lotus flower, clearly visible even in the pitch-dark water.
It was blacker than charred pitch-black ashes, shadow which was the absence of light, and the night sky where all stars kept silent.
A black color as if born from swallowing all the light existing in the world.
It was darker than anything else, but rather because of that, it caught the eye.
‘Ah.’
His fingertips trembled slightly.
Because he had not neglected his research, he was able to recognize it.
‘Ink Lotus Flower .’
An Unity stage spiritual object had been discovered.