What did I just hear?
Ling Tong had already taken off her battle armor and changed out of her combat suit. She was back in her favorite tight jeans and a short-sleeved shirt, her ponytail still smelling fresh from shampoo.
Ling Tong described it accurately: “Just some short, dreamlike mumblings.”
“Just dream mumblings, if you heard anything,” Wang Jixuan's gaze fell on the small notebook in Ling Tong's hand. “I like reading novels, you know.”
“Just found out.”
Ling Tong said softly, “Dream mumblings have no real effect. I won’t include them in my report about you.”
“That’s good…”
Wang Daoist hesitated, carefully sensing his own condition.
There were no major issues, just a bunch of minor ones. A bit of meditation later would help replenish his energy. His spiritual awareness had actually improved a bit, and he was just a small step away from the Gathering Spirit stage.
Using demonic techniques sometimes slightly improved his cultivation. This time he used the Soul Control technique, which left him with some concerns, but it also boosted his soul power a bit.
As for the crystal core he got…
There was a small metal box under his pillow, and he could feel the energy fluctuations of the demon-restraining talisman inside.
It was clearly organized by Ling Tong.
Ling Tong closed the novel and stood up, saying, “Get some good rest. Don’t worry about anything else; I’ve already taken care of it.”
“No problem,” Wang Jixuan immediately agreed, but then hesitated again.
Ling Tong slightly pouted, muttering calmly as she left…
“Don’t, Junior Sister.”
“Senior Sister taught me.”
Wang Jixuan raised a hand to cover his eyes, feeling a bit uncomfortable.
He knew the side effects of using demonic techniques were significant!
But there was no choice for survival; living was the top priority.
He picked up the text exchange device from the other side of the pillow. It had a brief conversation between Ling Tong and Zhou Zhengde. Wang Jixuan raised an eyebrow; this saved him the trouble of arranging things.
Would the Thirteen Institutes discover the crystal core?
That was bound to happen sooner or later.
So what should he do next? Was he really going to rely on the military and spend his days with Ling Tong? It wasn’t impossible…
Wang Daoist kept thinking.
His thoughts opened up a bit. Although he couldn’t pass on his techniques and couldn’t reveal his skills, there was nothing wrong with developing some crystal core weapons.
‘Right, weapons.’
Weapons were different from magical tools, but many were still considered magical tools. For example, the prized sword of Wang Jixuan's sect, known as the “Second Best Sword in the Cultivation World,” was sharp enough without needing spiritual energy to activate it. A cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage could easily unleash a hundred-foot sword light with it and could absorb spiritual energy to recover their own.
‘Human soldiers are using daggers that can’t even break through the outer shells of the blade beasts. How can that work?’
‘Using a dagger is already a last-ditch effort, and ordinary firearms are also hard to penetrate. Heavy firepower is the only option.’
‘I can’t pass on my techniques without permission, but I can create some weapons embedded with crystal cores. That would be a way to repay Zhou for covering for me.’
Wang Jixuan’s thoughts became more active.
He absolutely couldn’t reveal his cultivation secrets, at least not until he had the ability to protect himself. But he could introduce some new technology.
Cultivation civilization technology!
As for the future, there were really only three paths to choose from.
First, rely on the Thirteen Institutes.
That was definitely not an option. The Thirteen Institutes had major problems, and the crystal cores contained the souls of blade beasts. This needed to be reported to the military.
Second, his last resort, was to leave human territory and survive in the wilderness.
The chances of not surviving were quite high.
Third, cooperate with the military to a limited extent, especially with Zhou Zhengde’s grandfather, the Devil Commander, the first pilot of the terrifying mecha, and the last hero of the Fortress Era.
Wang Daoist was quite interested in befriending such a person.
Especially since… he and Zhou Zhengde’s grandfather could be considered peers; they might have common topics to discuss.
‘If one doesn’t cut off the chaos, they will suffer from it. So it’s decided; I’ll help the military improve their daggers later.’
‘At least they can break through the basic outer shells of the blade beasts! Humans are fighting this war too frustratingly.’
Wang Jixuan picked up the text exchange device and sent a message to Zhou Zhengde.
[02: No need to reply. Please help me get all the ores you can as soon as possible. Just a sample will do; no alloys, just freshly dug ores. Also, secretly get me some outer shells and flesh of the blade beasts. I’ll do some research. If everything goes well, I’ll send you a small gift.]
Wang Daoist looked at the cabinet beside him, where two black polygonal outer shells were placed.
These were the “massage fees” Ling Tong had given him earlier.
Let’s make a formation plate first!
…
Two hours later.
Wang Jixuan’s energy had been fully restored.
‘Having low cultivation is good; the thin spiritual energy can quickly fill me up.’
Wang Daoist squeezed out a slight smile, bittersweet but a bit strong.
He took a piece of outer shell the size of a bowl and carved the Spirit Gathering formation into it. Then he carefully wrapped three carefully selected crystal cores with energy and placed them into this small Spirit Gathering formation.
The formation didn’t activate.
Wang Daoist took out a button battery and attached it to the back of the formation plate.
Several small rotating disks appeared on the formation plate, and the formation patterns connected together. A wisp of energy floated from the corner, and the formation patterns began to glow.
Pure spiritual energy surged out.
Wang Jixuan immediately absorbed this energy and removed the button battery.
It worked!
He didn’t need to worry about the formation plate not working without a battery; those disks could be turned manually.
Was this design a bit redundant?
Indeed.
But this was Wang Jixuan’s first active attempt. He was thinking about how to blend cultivation and modern machinery, and taking this step was very significant.
Now was not the time to break through his cultivation.
This breakthrough required him to condense his spiritual awareness, and he needed to avoid any disturbances. The whole process was expected to take three hours, and it would be better to do it at midnight.
With Ling Tong by his side and Zhou around, Wang Jixuan felt relatively safe.
He hid the formation plate under his pillow, stretched, and opened the door to go out.
Ling Tong was lying on the operating table in the middle, undergoing an examination. Her right mechanical arm had been removed, and Wan Jie was controlling two machines, checking various data from the arm.
Wan Xiaoqi was nearby, holding a notebook and constantly recording something. She was studying diligently.
Uncle Tai rushed into the men’s restroom, holding his stomach and shouting, “Little Wang! Are you okay? We need to talk about the damaged alloy box! Did you use it as a shield?”
Wang Jixuan smiled apologetically.
Ling Tong opened her eyes and looked at Wang Jixuan. Without her right mechanical arm, she had a different kind of beauty.
She said softly, “Has your spirit recovered? We need to talk.”
“Sure, do you want a massage?”
“Yeah.”
“Just a moment.”
Wang Daoist went back to his room, put on a clean pair of thin gloves, and raised his arm to smell it before going out to make sure there was no blood from the blade beasts on him.
He also wanted to discuss with Ling Tong about the military’s ‘sword forging’ matters.
Soon, Wang Jixuan gently pressed his fingers on Ling Tong’s head, surprised to feel a heavier sense of gloom in her mind…
What was going on?
Did her gloom increase just from fighting the blade beasts?
Wang Jixuan continued his massage, and images of battles with blade beasts surfaced in his mind.
Those basic blade beasts would roar and had a slight mental impact, and then…
He suddenly thought of a possibility.
“Is your headache getting worse?”
“Yeah,” Ling Tong asked softly, “How did you know?”
Wan Jie and Wan Xiaoqi looked over, and Wang Jixuan replied gently, “The mental impact has left a heavier mark.”
“Oh.”
Ling Tong replied softly and closed her eyes to rest.
Her delicate features were still charming even when viewed from this ‘death angle,’ especially her skin, which was fair, delicate, and seemed to be flawless.
Wang Jixuan reminded her, “If something similar happens again, remember to wear the patches that protect against mental impacts.”
“That’s only useful for spiritual energy users,” Wan Jie said helplessly. “Is there a way to resolve it?”
“It will take at least two months, with a massage once a day,” Wang Jixuan said seriously. “My strength is still a bit low.”
Ling Tong said, “Then let’s set a time of three months and don’t put any pressure on yourself.”
“Provided it doesn’t continue to worsen,” Wang Jixuan murmured, “Why do I feel this blade beast attack is suspicious, like it’s specifically meant to worsen your injuries?”
Ling Tong pursed her lips and said nothing.
Wan Jie looked worried.
Wan Xiaoqi seemed to remember something: “There’s also something strange about these blade beasts; they don’t have tracking agents. They don’t know where they came from!”
Wan Jie said anxiously, “There must be a nest we haven’t discovered, or they came from the other side of the front line… On that side, the blade beasts are breeding like crazy; their numbers are just too many!”
Wang Jixuan added, “I feel this batch of blade beasts is targeting Ling Tong.”
“Targeting me?”
“Yeah, they’re organized… I saw a vertical pupil.”
A vertical pupil?
Ling Tong suddenly opened her eyes: “Let’s discuss this in detail later; don’t say too much now.”
Wan Jie immediately understood—this information was highly classified.
She quickly changed the subject: “Then let’s continue upgrading the firepower at this supply point.”
“Sure,” Ling Tong agreed and then closed her eyes to rest for a bit.
Creak—
A screeching sound of brakes came from outside.
Many scattered energy clusters appeared, with over a dozen spiritual energy users.
Wang Daoist felt a bit annoyed.
These spiritual energy users!
They weren’t around when fighting the blade beasts, but now they come looking for trouble?
The Daoist can endure, but the Daoist’s mother can’t!
But Wang Jixuan also suspected they had come looking for him because they were missing eight crystal cores.
Ling Tong opened her eyes and was about to sit up, but as soon as she moved, she felt two strong hands pressing down on her neck, pushing her back into the chair.
Following the principle of one person doing the work, one person takes responsibility, Wang Daoist said coldly:
“You rest.”
Wang Jixuan turned his back to the operating table, his energy quickly retracting into his dantian. The energy vortex in his dantian began to rotate slowly, while he activated the Returning to Ordinary and Turtle Breathing techniques.
“Xiao Qi, bring me a box of high-explosive grenades!”
“Got it! Wait… who are you directing, newbie?”
Half a minute later.
Wang Jixuan quickly put on a combat vest, stuffing his pockets full of high-explosive grenades. He grabbed an automatic rifle with a grenade launcher and rushed out of the supply station with Uncle Tai, who had just pulled up his pants.
Wan Xiaoqi sat steadily behind the control panel, quickly mobilizing weapons from all corners of the supply station, aiming them at the group of spiritual energy users at the door.
Ling Tong quietly watched, a serene smile on her face.
“It’s rare to see you smile,” Wan Jie said softly.
“Because I can take a break.”
Ling Tong replied softly, her left mechanical arm’s fingers gently swaying, activating several large alloy boxes in the corner of the workshop.
Ling Tong casually said, “Wan Jie, the vertical pupil is classified information; just pretend you didn’t hear it.”
“Okay,” Wan Jie agreed. “In that case, Little Wang is not to be underestimated.”
Ling Tong added, “Yeah, he’s not just good-looking…”
A gunshot rang out from outside.
Bang!
The sound of a rifle firing.
Then Wang Jixuan’s voice came: “Everyone, stop! Open fire immediately if you come within three meters!”
Wan Jie whispered in admiration, “He’s warning them after firing; he’s starting to integrate into our team.”
“Is there surveillance footage?” Ling Tong asked.
“Boss! Over here!”
Wan Xiaoqi came running.
(End of Chapter)