Chapter 1673: Great Venerable
In the meeting hall atop the alchemy tower, the various heavenly sons, heavenly daughters, divine sons, and divine maidens of the ancient civilization faction fell into collective silence.
After a moment, the Imperial Ancestor’s Crown Prince quickly urged the Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden, “Celestial Maiden, you must not make such a vow and wrong yourself! Isn’t it just about obtaining the Divine Spring? This Crown Prince will do everything in his power to help you.”
Another divine son-level man also chimed in, “All of us ancient civilizations have always been united in spirit, sharing honor and disgrace. If we seize the Divine Spring, we will surely give you an extra share. You must take back what you just said.”
The sixty-three-meter-tall Golden Giant spoke up, “Luo Ji, just say the word, and I’ll blast Gu Feng to pieces right now. That bastard dares to threaten you—he’s clearly tired of living!”
Hearing this, Gu Feng, who had been emboldened until now, turned pale for the first time.
The Golden Giant was the heavenly son of the Giant Spirit Civilization and the strongest of the ancient civilization faction. His cultivation was profound, and his combat power was overwhelmingly mighty. Even ten Gu Fengs combined would be no match for him.
The Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden’s clear, beautiful voice rang out again, “It has nothing to do with him. This is my own decision.”
Zhang Ruochen gazed at the Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden and could feel the helplessness in her heart.
The beings present indeed belonged to the same faction. But this was merely a small group united by common interests, huddling together for warmth. Could they truly share life and death?
If they seized the Divine Spring, would they really give her an extra share?
Admittedly, some might be willing to part with a portion of the Divine Spring, but would other cultivators do the same?
Moreover, the Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden needed a vast amount of Divine Spring. If the quantity of Divine Spring in the palace complex atop Wind Dome was limited, how could everyone possibly give her one hundred thousand drops?
“It seems this Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden is well aware that when true crisis strikes, one must mainly rely on oneself. Those former friends who don’t come to trample on you or carve up the spoils are already good enough,” Zhang Ruochen thought to himself.
Apart from the closest of friends, who would be willing to go all out to help you in your most difficult times?
In a person’s life, how many true friends can one have?
In fact, another major reason Zhang Ruochen had agreed to the Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter’s invitation to storm Wind Dome was that he was quite tempted by the Divine Spring.
With his own strength alone, Zhang Ruochen could never break into the palace complex and seize the Divine Spring. But by leveraging the power of the Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter and the entire ancient civilization faction, his chances of success would be much greater.
Legend had it that the Divine Spring had boundless uses. For beings below the Saint realm who had just died, as long as their souls had not dissipated, a single drop of Divine Spring on their body could revive them.
For Saint realm beings with powerful physical bodies, several drops—or even more—were needed to bring them back from the dead.
If a single Sacred Pill was fused with a drop of Divine Spring, its medicinal properties would instantly increase significantly. Moreover, to refine Sacred Pills above the Heavenly Grade, Divine Spring was absolutely necessary.
There were even rumors that if a one-hundred-thousand-year ancient sacred herb was planted in Divine Spring, after absorbing enough of it, the herb could transform into a divine medicine.
In short, the Divine Spring had endless uses, and once it appeared, it would inevitably trigger a bloody storm.
Zhang Ruochen asked, “I’m curious—why must a space cultivator accompany the expedition to Wind Dome?”
The Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter smiled slightly. “I believe Great Venerable will soon tell you. You should know that among the strong who broke into that palace complex yesterday and successfully escaped, Great Venerable was one of them.”
“Great Venerable?” Zhang Ruochen said.
The Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter’s gaze fixed on the sixty-three-meter-tall Golden Giant. “The heavenly son of the Giant Spirit Civilization, named Da Zun, is also the strongest of our faction. You and Shang Zihong have already clashed several times, so you should have some understanding of his strength, right? Let me tell you, even Shang Zihong has to bow his head when he sees Great Venerable.”
“Of course, Great Venerable has been cultivating in the Truth Heaven Domain longer than Shang Zihong and is older. Shang Zihong’s talent is not inferior to Great Venerable’s, and he may surpass him in the future.”
Someone even more formidable than Shang Zihong?
Zhang Ruochen was moved and carefully observed the Giant Spirit Heavenly Son, Great Venerable.
The Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter continued, “Besides Great Venerable, there are a few others here you should be wary of. Not only are they terrifyingly strong, but their backgrounds are also extraordinary.”
After the Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter finished introducing them, the barefoot, cross-legged Great Venerable boomed, “All the space cultivators invited by the ancient civilizations, step forward and introduce yourselves.”
Immediately, aside from Gu Feng and Chou Gu, three more beings stepped out.
One wore a monk’s robe, named “Pu Shan.”
One was young and handsome with sharp, cold eyes, named “Li Qinghai.”
The last was a woman, only about fifteen or sixteen years old, named “Mo Xiaogu.”
In truth, none of the three were human. They had merely cultivated human forms and not revealed their true bodies, so no one knew what their original forms were.
Zhang Ruochen also walked over and gave a pseudonym he had used before, “Lin Yue,” then said no more.
Seeing that Zhang Ruochen was also a space cultivator, Gu Feng was first quite surprised, then sneered, “It seems anyone can claim to have mastered the Way of Space. Without even a modicum of skill, they dare to venture into Wind Dome—aren’t they afraid of dying there?”
Zhang Ruochen ignored him and stood there in silence.
But the Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter was a stickler for principle. She snorted coldly, “Lin Yue is someone I invited, Gu Feng. You’d better show him some respect. If you anger me, do you believe you’ll die a miserable death?”
The Thousand Star Civilization was one of the most powerful among the ancient civilization faction.
Although Gu Feng was strong and had a twisted personality, he was quite wary of the Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter. He withdrew the disdain and coldness from his eyes. What he was thinking at that moment, no one could know.
In the eyes of the ancient civilization faction, the Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter was also a mysterious and unfathomable existence. She was only close to a few cultivators, including the Heavenly Beginning Celestial Maiden, and was rarely seen at other times.
The Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter was too young, and her cultivation was far weaker than that of Great Venerable and others, but that did not affect her top-tier status in the faction.
The strength of the Thousand Star Civilization was undeniable—who would dare to defy it?
Since the Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter had invited this space cultivator, everyone naturally took notice and began sizing up Zhang Ruochen.
Unfortunately, Zhang Ruochen’s current appearance was too ordinary, and his cultivation was only at the Second-Step Saint King level, with nothing outstanding about him. The cultivators present all showed disappointed expressions.
Great Venerable spoke again, “Inviting you all here serves two main purposes.”
“First, the palace complex atop Wind Dome is a deadly place—easy to enter but hard to leave. Therefore, I hope you can set up a Space Teleportation Array so that when we face a desperate situation, we can ensure we retreat alive. Life is more important than the Divine Spring.”
“Among you, who can set up a Space Teleportation Array?”
Chou Gu immediately spoke up, “The most crucial inscription runes for carving a Space Teleportation Array have always been tightly controlled by the Space Divine Temple and never passed down. No one except disciples of the Space Divine Temple can set it up.”
Pu Shan and Li Qinghai nodded in agreement.
Among the six, the youngest, Mo Xiaogu, said softly, “I am a disciple of the Space Divine Temple, but… the Space Teleportation Array is extremely complex, and I haven’t fully mastered it yet. Unless someone can work with me, I can set it up.”
Gu Feng’s gaze fixed on Mo Xiaogu’s slightly raised chest, and he chuckled, “Hehe, I’m not unskilled. I’ve studied the Space Teleportation Array before. Though I can’t set one up alone, I’m more than capable of being your assistant.”
Mo Xiaogu was clearly afraid of Gu Feng. She looked timid and stepped back.
Great Venerable frowned. “The task of setting up the teleportation array is left to you two. Ming Yi, you will be responsible for protecting them and keeping an eye on Gu Feng, so this lecher doesn’t harm the girl.”
Behind Great Venerable, a slightly shorter Silver Giant wielding a massive battle-axe cupped his hands and said, “Understood.”
Great Venerable continued, “As for the second purpose of inviting you, you will learn it when we reach Wind Dome. That concludes tonight’s discussion. Tomorrow at noon, we will gather at Wind Dome and launch an all-out assault.”
Except for Mo Xiaogu and Gu Feng, who stayed behind to set up the Space Teleportation Array, the other cultivators all left the alchemy tower.
Zhang Ruochen and the big-bearded man followed the Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter out of the tower and saw a snow-white, magnificent strange bird pulling a carriage radiating starlight and sacred light, parked outside.
A withered, blind man stood by the carriage, bowing, “Your Highness, please board.”
The Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter, in her purple robes, gracefully stepped onto the ancient carriage. Just as she was about to lift the curtain and enter, she stopped, her starry eyes fixed on Zhang Ruochen, and smiled, “Would you like to ride inside as well?”
“No need,” Zhang Ruochen said.
“You should come aboard. There’s a question that has been lingering in my mind, and I want to ask you.” After a pause, the Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter added, “The sacred fruits and sacred herbs you wanted are already prepared in the carriage.”
With a slight smile, the Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter entered the carriage first, every movement graceful and elegant.
Zhang Ruochen boarded the carriage and lifted the curtain, only to find that inside was a vast space, like a resplendent hall, and it had more than one room.
It was a space treasure.
The interior was lavishly decorated, inlaid with various rare sacred jades, like a sky full of stars. At the very center of the room, hundreds of thousands of sacred stones were piled into a formation. As the formation operated, a massive amount of sacred energy dispersed, making the sacred energy concentration in the carriage space reach its peak.
The four walls were covered with various sacred art formulas, pill recipes, formation inscription runes, talisman patterns… the text was tiny and dense, as if there were billions of characters.
Seeing Zhang Ruochen examining the text on the walls, the Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter revealed a stunning smile. “As a master of the Way of Origin, I can easily grasp all kinds of side paths. Since I can remember, I have not only cultivated martial arts and spiritual power but also studied formations, alchemy, artifact refining, talisman arts, beast taming, witchcraft… Up to now, I have achieved considerable accomplishments in various fields.”
Given the Thousand Star Heavenly Daughter’s proud nature, claiming to have “considerable accomplishments” meant that her mastery in certain areas had reached extremely high levels.