Cultivating for a hundred lifetimes to ascension Chapter 1399: 752: The Void Fortress Beneath the Dead Star's Core
Previously on Cultivating for a hundred lifetimes to ascension...
“To me, this turns out to be a positive development. The path forward holds endless dangers and uncertainties. Having additional Returning to Void Realm cultivators on board will undoubtedly make things safer for us. Should the mission go awry, escaping would prove much simpler!”
The Hundred Birds Taoist’s statement appeared designed to jog the memories of the pair.
“Provided we stay united and proceed with caution, finishing the bounty task ought to pose no real challenge. What worries me is that rivals might snatch the prize before us, leaving our hard work for naught,” Zhao Sheng responded.
“Spot on, Taoist Yan! United as we are, failure holds no terror for us. Moreover, I’ve got a little surprise ready in advance, which I’m eager to pass along to you both.”
With a grin, Ji Tiandu concluded his words, then pulled two small bronze compasses from his robes and offered them to Zhao Sheng and his companion.
“Oh, a Heavenly Mechanism Sensing Plate?! Who would’ve thought Daoist Ji carried such a rare gem.” As the Hundred Birds Taoist inspected the device in his grasp, he burst out in wonder.
A hint of astonishment crossed Zhao Sheng’s face as he stared at the golden needle atop the compass.
Everyone knows the Heavenly Mechanism Sensing Plate serves as a prized artifact unique to the Taiyi Spirit Palace, typically reserved for their True Disciples and seldom seen beyond their walls.
This particular treasure falls into the detection category of magical artifacts, able to pinpoint a target from up to ten million li distant.
Though ten million li might sound insignificant amid the immense expanse of space-time, it eclipses the perceptual reach of any Returning to Void Realm cultivator by seven or eight hundredfold.
Ji Tiandu chuckled unexpectedly and explained, “I managed to borrow these two Heavenly Mechanism Compasses just for now. They’ll need returning once we’re done.”
“Ah, got it—why don’t I have ties like that? Tiandu’s sibling truly boasts a wide network!” Enlightenment dawned on the Hundred Birds Taoist, prompting him to voice his admiration.
“Indeed, this Heavenly Mechanism Compass equips us like a tiger sprouting wings. Daoist Ji, you’ve planned ahead brilliantly!” Zhao Sheng added his own commendation.
Ji Tiandu absorbed the praise with a faint smile before turning solemn and declaring, “No point in delaying—let’s depart at once!”
“Agreed!”
“That matches my thinking precisely!”
Ji Tiandu gave a subtle nod at their readiness, his form then shifting into a streak of gray radiance that shot toward the heart of the Dark Sky.
Exchanging a quick look, Zhao Sheng and the Hundred Birds Taoist morphed into streams of tunneling light and trailed right behind.
Moments later, the trio’s tunneling lights had streaked far off, vanishing into the endless void of darkness.
…
After four hours, the group reached the western line’s edge, arriving at the final vanishing point of the B2 Virtual Realm Fortress.
A scan of the surroundings revealed a desolate void, where fierce time-space storms churned wildly, whipping up massive turbulent surges.
“Oh!”
Zhao Sheng’s eyes sharpened abruptly, and a soft gasp escaped him.
Now that they’d entered this zone, he noticed his divine sense undergoing interference from some mysterious power, growing hazy and warped, with its scanning scope shrinking noticeably.
“This feels off! Lingering devilish thought fog clings heavily here. It looks like the alien demons staked their claim on the B2 Fortress ages ago, ramping up the difficulty of our mission,” the Hundred Birds Taoist voiced his concern gravely.
“The demon fog’s concentration remains quite dilute around these parts and won’t hinder us greatly. What troubles me more is figuring out where the alien demons hauled the B2 Fortress,” Ji Tiandu remarked, eyes fixed on the unmoving needle of the compass in his hand.
His forehead creased faintly at the sight.
“This Empty Domain nearby stretches across nearly ten Constant Years. Such an enormous space makes locating the B2 Fortress akin to seeking a needle in a haystack. For now, our sole option is to split up, each choosing a path to scour the Empty Domain swiftly. The first to spot it signals the rest via the Nine Divine Gu.”
With that, Ji Tiandu produced two fat white silkworms and passed them over to Zhao Sheng and his ally.
His foresight in preparations left one in awe!
Yet upon reflection, Zhao Sheng deemed it fitting. Unlike him as a fresh face, Ji Tiandu and his peers had roamed the Demon Suppression Star Domain and Vermilion Bird Star System for years, so essentials such as the Nine Divine Gu would already be at hand.
Ji Tiandu referred to the “Nine Divine Gu” as a unique breed of demon gu, meticulously raised by the Spirit-controlling Immortal Sect.
From a single egg, the Nine Divine Gu produces nine young, enabling instant message relay across any space-time barrier.
Though raising the Nine Divine Gu proves arduous, its wondrous capabilities have made it a staple among elite cultivators for short-term battlefield comms in the clashes between the two races.
The Hundred Birds Taoist saluted the duo with clasped hands and declared, “I’ll head out first. Stay safe, both of you!”
His words barely ended when he dissolved into light and vanished from view.
Intentionally or not, the Hundred Birds Taoist picked the sector thickest with demon fog.
Zhao Sheng pierced the subtle ploy in an instant but paid it no heed.
Ji Tiandu soon selected his search route, exchanged goodbyes with Zhao Sheng, and sped off in haste.
Once his companions had departed, Zhao Sheng lingered briefly before vanishing in a teleport.
Armed with the Time-Space Great Teleportation Divine Power, Zhao Sheng indulged in outright “cheating.”
Within the time it took to brew half a cup of tea, he’d teleported hundreds of times, covering the nearby ten Constant Year Empty Domain and brushing every corner.
To his dismay, though, the B2 Fortress eluded him entirely in that Empty Domain.
Given a Void Fortress’s travel pace, escaping ten Constant Years in a single day lay beyond possibility.
With every other option ruled out, just one conclusion remained!
The B2 Virtual Realm Fortress had already exited the Dark Sky, reentering the current Star Domain.
“This spells… real trouble!” Perched above a swirling space-time vortex, Zhao Sheng murmured to himself, his face etched with concern.