“Senior apprentice-brother, Prince ‘Bolin’ has gone to the castle,” Qiu Yu murmured, standing amidst the crowd of Baihu Tower.
“Hmph.”
The small-statured man stared into the distance with his silver eyes, letting out a cold snort. “Bolin holds too much advantage. First, being the ninth prince, he gains support from the royal-controlled factions within the Holy Land ‘Heilongshan’. Second, his maternal grandfather holds an extremely high status in Heilongshan, and has his own followers. Among the 500,000 troops stationed in Heilongshan, 220,000 of them obey only his command.”
This time, nearly two million troops had gathered.
Each of the two Holy Lands, Heilongshan and Binghai Divine Kingdom, had dispatched 500,000 troops.
The four major organizations each contributed 200,000 troops.
The sixteen great clans each provided 10,000 troops.
Yet Prince Bolin, due to his special background and status, managed to command 220,000 troops—a united force of 220,000. Indeed, a tremendous advantage.
“He divided his force of over 220,000 into seven battalions, each consisting of 30,000 troops,” the small-statured man muttered. “Who can resist an army of 30,000 when they go on a rampage?”
…
The allied forces murmured amongst themselves. Although many elites felt resentment, in terms of status, they were merely young elites from their organizations—far beneath the rank of a ‘Cosmic-level expert’! Bolin, as the noble ninth prince with a powerful maternal lineage, held a vastly superior status.
If this were outside the Trial World,
Bolin could easily order the execution of a Cosmic-level expert. However, this was the ‘World Within a World’, where Bolin had to abide by the rules.
…
An ancient castle.
As Bolin entered the castle with his bodyguards, Luo Feng had already been guided by the castle’s intelligent life into one of the cold, ancient chambers.
The chamber was cold and dim, its faint light illuminating the room. However, the mottled marks on the walls spoke of its ancient history. Composed of dark bluish stone bricks, the walls faintly exuded a strange aura.
“What do you wish to exchange for, little one?” a deep voice echoed through the chamber.
Silence filled the room.
Luo Feng glanced around—there was no one in sight.
“Of course, treasures,” Luo Feng replied.
“Do you have Thunder Stones? Many have come here recently without any to exchange,” the deep voice continued.
“I do.”
Luo Feng waved his hand, and immediately a pile of Thunder Stones, tall enough to reach a man, appeared before him.
“Excellent.”
Faint footsteps echoed from the corridor outside, and soon a stout old man with a white beard entered. A faint glow surrounded his body. Luo Feng instantly recognized him as an intelligent lifeform, similar to Babata aboard the ‘Yunmo Star’, manifesting as an energy body.
“It’s rare to have someone come for an exchange,” the old man with the white beard smiled at Luo Feng.
“Greetings, elder. May I ask how I should address you…” Luo Feng politely inquired.
Regardless, the old man before him was an ‘intelligent lifeform’ who had once followed Master Kabu and lived in solitude for over ten million years. Such an existence deserved respect! Moreover, according to Babata, this old man, having lived in loneliness for so long, might have become mentally unstable—better not to provoke him.
“You may call me Lord Wu,” the old man with the white beard smiled, his body’s glow subtly shifting.
“Lord Wu?” Luo Feng was taken aback.
What an odd name.
“Lord Wu, I wish to exchange for treasures,” Luo Feng said.
“You don’t even want to chat with me a bit? So impatient,” the old man said with slight displeasure.
Luo Feng quickly replied, “Lord Wu, then…”
“Since you’re in such a hurry, let’s proceed with the exchange,” the old man’s expression changed swiftly, becoming suddenly indifferent. “What do you wish to exchange for?”
“The fifth-tier primal weapon ‘Ice Soul Blade,'” Luo Feng said. “And the fifth-tier mental weapon ‘Zhenkong Cauldron.'”
“Ah?” The old man was surprised.
“And one more—the Life Fruit,” Luo Feng slightly bowed. “Lord Wu, that’s all three.”
“That’s all three?” The old man’s glow intensified, his gaze filled with astonishment at the black-haired youth before him. “The fifth-tier primal weapon ‘Ice Soul Blade’ requires 130,000 Thunder Stones. The fifth-tier mental weapon ‘Zhenkong Cauldron’ requires 180,000 Thunder Stones. And a single Life Fruit requires no less than 800,000 Thunder Stones! The area within ten thousand kilometers around this castle is my surveillance range. From what I’ve seen, you don’t seem to hold much status among these adventurer forces. How did you manage to gather so many Thunder Stones?”
Luo Feng smiled.
Ten thousand kilometers of surveillance range?
Actually, Babata had already warned him about this. In terms of surveillance, although the old man’s range was vast—like Earth’s defense system, which covered the entire solar system—it was the precision of detection that varied.
“Lord Wu, must you even ask about that?” Luo Feng feigned surprise.
“Just asking for fun,” the old man winked casually. “Three treasures, no problem.”
Luo Feng’s heart swelled with anticipation.
Actually, it was Babata who had suggested exchanging for these three treasures. According to Babata, the treasure list was somewhat chaotic in pricing.
For instance, the ‘Complete Spatial Secret Art Inheritance Crystal Ball’ was an invaluable treasure! In terms of value, it could be worth ten thousand or even a hundred thousand times more than a fifth-tier primal weapon like the ‘Tianhuo Wheel’. Yet its price was merely 30,000,000 Thunder Stones—just three hundred times that of the Tianhuo Wheel.
Another example: the Life Fruit cost 800,000 Thunder Stones, yet in the outside world, a single Life Fruit was worth as much as a Sovereign’s life, surpassing the value of hundreds of Tianhuo Wheels.
Therefore…
The discrepancy between value and price meant there was an art to purchasing.
The fifth-tier primal weapon ‘Ice Soul Blade’ was five to six times more expensive than the Tianhuo Wheel in the outside world, and the Zhenkong Cauldron was ten times more expensive! Yet here, the price difference wasn’t that significant.
…
In the silent ancient chamber,
The old man with the white beard, surrounded by a glowing aura, stood there.
“The total for the three treasures is 1,110,000 Thunder Stones,” the old man said.
“Lord Wu, please take this,” Luo Feng handed over an ordinary spatial ring. After much battle, Luo Feng had acquired quite a few spatial rings.
“Oh?”
With a wave of his hand, the spatial ring flew into the old man’s grasp, and a smile appeared on his face. “Mm, exactly 1,110,000 Thunder Stones.”
“This is the fifth-tier primal weapon ‘Ice Soul Blade’,” the old man flipped his hand, and instantly a peculiar weapon appeared—a silver-blue, double-layered curved blade with flowing arcs. Instantly, the temperature in the entire chamber dropped sharply, the moisture in the air began to condense, and the blade’s edge was incredibly sharp.
The Ice Soul Blade floated before Luo Feng…
He felt as if his very soul were being sliced. He quickly reached out and stored it in his spatial ring.
“This is the fifth-tier mental weapon ‘Zhenkong Cauldron’,” the old man flipped his hand again, and a small cauldron, about thirty centimeters tall, hovered before Luo Feng. It was a pure purple color, as if cast from purple bronze, with extremely complex and numerous secret patterns engraved upon it—millions of times more intricate than those on the Duntian Shuttle. It felt similar to the golden secret patterns on the Golden-Horned Great Beast.
The strange secret patterns…
Seemed to isolate the surrounding space. Though only thirty centimeters tall, it gave Luo Feng the sensation that the cauldron was infinitely expanding—like a mountain so vast it stretched beyond sight, so high it reached beyond any peak, leaving him breathless.
“Don’t just stare. The fundamental secret patterns inscribed on these fifth-tier primal and mental weapons are close to the Cosmic Laws themselves. Each one is immensely powerful. However, only a Sovereign, possessing Cosmic Power, can truly wield them,” Babata’s voice echoed in Luo Feng’s mind.
Luo Feng snapped back to reality and quickly stored the ‘Zhenkong Cauldron’ in his spatial ring.
Heaven!
Just two fifth-tier weapons alone had left him utterly powerless to resist. Legends spoke of Sovereigns reshaping the heavens and earth with a single move, capable of erasing all life on a planet. It was no exaggeration!
“Little one, those two were merely Sovereign-tier weapons. But now, what I’m giving you… is comparable to a Sovereign’s second life—a source of incredibly pure and miraculous vitality. It is a rare cosmic fruit known as the Life Fruit!” The old man’s expression turned solemn as he revealed a strange, semi-transparent stone box in his hand.
Inside the semi-transparent box, a faint greenish shadow could be seen.
“The Life Fruit—an extraordinary crystallization in the boundless cosmos, brimming with inconceivable vitality. Even a Sovereign, capable of annihilating a planet with a mere wave, can be completely restored no matter how much power they’ve expended or how grievous their injuries—by consuming just one!” The old man marveled. “Marvelous! This is the wonder of the universe!”
Luo Feng held his breath as he took the stone box. Click, the box opened.
…
In the silent ancient chamber,
Once the box opened, everything around it seemed to fade into darkness, except for the Life Fruit itself—its faint greenish surface glistening with droplets, radiating a dazzling glow!
Emerald-green light radiated in all directions.
A rich, intoxicating fragrance spread out, filling the entire chamber with vibrant energy. At the heart of this vitality was the greenish fruit—the Life Fruit! Just this single fruit was so precious that countless Sovereigns would trade an entire galaxy for it!
Invaluable!
Priceless!
“Inhale!” Luo Feng took a deep breath. As the fragrance entered his body, every cell in his body seemed to rejoice, as if feasting on a divine treasure. His genetic material naturally began to transform, his bones crackled, and his muscles began to evolve.
“Fool! Hurry up and close it! Once opened, the Life Fruit’s vitality will begin to dissipate!” Babata shouted angrily.
Luo Feng snapped back to his senses.
Click!
He quickly shut the box.
“Phew, incredible,” Luo Feng stared at the box, eyes wide. “I only breathed in a little, but I already feel like I’ve evolved a lot.”
“Fool! You only breathed in a little, but you’ve already lost hundreds of breaths’ worth of vitality!” Babata scolded.
Luo Feng happily stored the stone box away.
“Thank you, Lord Wu,” Luo Feng bowed deeply.
“Hahaha, keep striving. Bring more Thunder Stones, and I have plenty of treasures for you to exchange,” the old man with the white beard smiled at Luo Feng.
“I will.”
Luo Feng smiled, then turned and left.
He would definitely return—but only after evolving the Moyun Vine.
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