"Ding! Seal complete, host may proceed to the Heavenly Bright Realm after the Sacred God Realm. Your origin ability will be unlocked."
Chen Tian asked, "System, what is the Heavenly Bright Realm? Isn't the Sacred God Realm just the Sacred God Realm?"
"Ding! Host's strength is insufficient, unauthorized to disclose!"
Chen Tian's expression soured. Insufficient strength? Was his current power still not enough? It seemed the Sacred God Realm was more complex than he imagined. Chen Tian grew more eager for it, determined to step into the Sacred God Realm one day and begin his journey.
"Chen Tian, let's go in and take a look! There should be good things inside."
"Mm."
Chen Tian and Wu Que Nan entered the ocean palace before them, the former boss's domain. Chen Tian hoped to find clues about the Heart of the Ocean here, though he held little expectation. After all, the Upper Spiritual Evil General had been here before, assimilating the boss. Resources would surely have been consumed. He wondered how much remained.
As Chen Tian and Wu Que Nan entered the palace, Chen Tian said, "Let's split up. This palace is quite large."
"Alright."
Wu Que Nan nodded. Such a grand palace was bound to contain treasures. If he found anything, it would be a huge boon, greatly aiding his strength. He wasn't willing to give up.
Splitting up was the best approach for rapid exploration. Chen Tian and Wu Que Nan flew off in opposite directions. The palace was spacious, with a blue roof illuminated by a soft glow, making the entire structure feel like a dreamlike ocean. Chen Tian explored, looking left and right, sighing, "There used to be so many resources here, all absorbed and digested by the Upper Spiritual Evil General."
Chen Tian could sense residual energy within the palace, indicating the presence of former treasures and resources. It seemed they had all been devoured by the Upper Spiritual Evil General to break the seal.
Chen Tian pressed onward, deciding to search slowly. Who knew what the Upper Spiritual Evil General might have left behind?
Chen Tian also needed resources to upgrade his subordinates. Both Snowfield Dragon and Bing Tian Ning required metallic resources.
"Honestly, System, can Bing Tian Ning be summoned back?"
"Yes, host. As long as you initiate the summon, she will descend from another world, a higher layer, according to game rules."
"Her strength will be suppressed to the restricted level."
"System, display Bing Tian Ning's status panel for me to see."
Chen Tian was curious about Bing Tian Ning's current strength. According to the system, since her metallic body was made of materials from the Divine Origin Continent, she wouldn't be expelled and could move freely in that world. When Chen Tian left that world, it had been integrated into the game by the system.
Chen Tian only needed to enter the correct layer to continue his quest, a quest he was unwilling to abandon. Another benefit was that time was frozen for Bing Tian Ning, unlike other restrictions. He wondered how powerful she had become.
Mechanical Lifeform: Bing Tian Ning
Level: Blue Ling Tier 39
Health: 100 Blue Points / 100 Blue Points
Strength: 225 Blue Points
Speed: 210 Blue Points
Constitution: ?????
Luck: 50
Weapon Mastery: 1235 Blue Points
Skill Mastery: 2500 Blue Points
Energy Source: Divine Fire Seed
Will: Human Consciousness
Weapons: All abilities of a mechanical being.
Skills: Mechanical Light Wave, Mechanical Light Sword, Mechanical Wings, Mechanical Pierce Wave, Mechanical Light Shield, Energy Shield...!
Abilities: Mechanical Body
Traits: Power of Metal
Abilities: Mechanical Body. Her entire being is constructed from machinery. The stronger the mechanical materials, the more powerful her mechanical weapons and skills become.
Traits: Power of Metal. Her body, forged from mechanical materials, possesses the same resilience as the materials. Higher-grade materials result in a more formidable physique.
Chen Tian was slightly surprised. Only a few days had passed, and she was already so much stronger than him, her master. This was primarily because he hadn't broken through yet. According to the stored experience, upon breaking the upper limit, her level would rise to Blue Ling Tier 40-50.
Chen Tian had planned to complete this quest and head to the fifth layer to break through. Continuously undertaking two breakthrough quests meant accumulated experience was not ideal. Chen Tian sensed the ambient energy around him, scanning half the palace in his mind, finding only residual energy.
"That Upper Spiritual Evil General, he didn't leave a single resource. No wonder he could break the seal's power."
Chen Tian felt a surge of anger. The entire palace was devoid of resources and treasures. He couldn't contain his frustration; what a bandit!
Suddenly, a light flashed in Chen Tian's mind. He rejoiced; there was something the Upper Spiritual Evil General hadn't taken. Chen Tian's figure flickered, and he appeared in a sealed space. Divine fire ignited, illuminating the room. A wooden box made of fir lay on a stone platform.
Chen Tian recognized the wood as a valuable material, sensing the energy emanating from it. He used his divine eyes to observe, and information appeared in his mind.
"Firwood. A material that enhances weapon quality. Excellent, just what my Hundred Transformations Orb needs for an upgrade."
"But what is inside this wooden box? It must be extraordinary."
Chen Tian slowly opened the box. A scroll appeared before him. He unfurled it, revealing a partial map, with the rest of the area in black and white.
"Ding! Congratulations, host, you have found a complete map of the Heart of the Ocean. Collect the remaining map fragments, and your quest reward will be: 50 billion White Points experience, all Heart of the Ocean fragments, and automatic completion of the breakthrough limit quest. Do you accept?"
"Yes!"
Chen Tian was astonished by this stroke of luck. If he could gather all the map fragments and complete the scroll, his quest would be over. This was far easier than searching for the Heart of the Ocean directly.
He never expected such a thing to be inside the wooden box; he was incredibly fortunate.
If Chen Tian had to find the Heart of the Ocean piece by piece, he had no idea how long it would take. But with map fragments, it was much simpler.
He could ask Wu Que Nan and the others to help him search later. Many hands make light work.
Chen Tian wanted to save time.
"Chen Tian, Chen Tian, where are you?"
Wu Que Nan's voice echoed in Chen Tian's ears. Chen Tian blinked and left the room.
"Chen Tian, you're here. It seems everything here was absorbed by the Upper Spiritual Evil General. I couldn't find a single thing, only residual energy."
Wu Que Nan and Chen Tian shared a similar grim expression. That Upper Spiritual Evil General was a bandit! He had left absolutely nothing from the entire palace, like a swarm of locusts passing through, leaving nothing behind, utterly bare.
If the Upper Spiritual Evil General could hear their thoughts, he would undoubtedly crawl out and fight them again.
"Let's go. There's nothing more for us to explore here."
Chen Tian remained himself, and Wu Que Nan remained himself. Though they had accepted the memories of their past selves from another world, they were still brothers. There was nothing between brothers, unlike in the Divine Realm where Chen Tian was master and Wu Que Nan was servant.
Wu Que Nan was still Wu Que Nan. Both Chen Tian and Wu Que Nan understood each other's thoughts. In Chen Tian's eyes, Wu Que Nan was a brother and friend, not a subordinate, much less a servant. In this life, he wanted to be himself, not the self from another world.
Wu Que Nan felt the same. He had fully awakened, and his feelings for Chen Tian remained unchanged from the depths of his heart.
Chen Tian and Wu Que Nan left the palace. A sapphire vortex appeared, and two beams of light emerged. Beyond the vortex lay the boundless underwater world. Chen Tian and Wu Que Nan took a deep breath. Wu Que Nan asked, "Chen Tian, have Shu Zi and the others awakened?"
"Shu Zi has awakened a little. I'm not sure about Ge Zi. I haven't encountered the others yet. It takes time!"
"If you have time, could you help Ge Zi? You know how Shu Zi teaches; he only has time during holidays. I don't know what you do, but if you could help, please do."
"Alright, I'll go in a few days when I have time. Those damn Evil Spirit race scumbags, just wait. In this life, I will slay them all."
"We swear to protect Earth!"
Chen Tian bid farewell to Wu Que Nan. As they parted, Chen Tian shared his quest fragments with Wu Que Nan, who didn't refuse. Having regained his memories, he understood Chen Tian's predicament. The higher the level, the stronger one became. Chen Tian might even surpass his past self in the Divine Realm. Wu Que Nan would not refuse to help.
Chen Tian arrived in a city, Hailong City. He had just completed a quest, and the system had switched to game mode. His constitution value was a bit low, and Chen Tian needed to rest and eat something.
In Hailong City, at the Hailong Tavern, Chen Tian sat at a table, observing his surroundings. He couldn't help but marvel, "What kind of warped mindset did my parents have! The architecture on the fourth layer is identical to reality, even the taverns are the same. Is this even a game?"
"If I didn't know the reason, I would think this was another China."
Chen Tian tapped on the table, and a menu appeared. His lips twitched. Looking at the familiar menu, he wondered if these were actually real-world delicacies that had been brought here.
Chen Tian made his selections. He wasn't lacking in Epoch Coins now, paying three hundred million Epoch Coins. A stream of dishes appeared on the table, over a dozen plates. There was no other way; Chen Tian's constitution value was far higher than normal players, requiring a substantial amount of energy replenishment.
As Chen Tian ate, he listened to the conversations around him, absorbing information with his keen ears.
"Did you hear? The Hailong Auction is about to start, tomorrow."
"What? The Hailong Auction? Then I absolutely must go!"
"Yes! The items auctioned there are all precious, rarely seen in the world."
"I heard from an inside contact that this time there are quite a few压轴 (yāzhòu - featured) items."
"But my friend is quite interested in a map fragment. He said it seems to be related to the Heart of the Ocean."
"Are you sure? The Heart of the Ocean! The support of the underwater world. Players who obtain it will see their levels skyrocket and become invincible in the underwater world."
"I'll go check it out tomorrow."
Chen Tian paused for a moment after hearing this. Just when he was about to rest, an opportunity presented itself. He decided to attend the Hailong Auction.
Chen Tian approached the table of players and asked, "Excuse me, friends, how does one enter the Hailong Auction?"
The group at the table looked at Chen Tian collectively, their expressions akin to looking at a fool.
In this day and age, who didn't know how to enter the Hailong Auction? Even rookies were aware.