Chapter 010
Chapter 10: The Wristguard
Feng Yu took a deep breath, her voice low as she spoke: “Ten years ago, the apocalypse descended. It wasn’t an accident—it was a trial, a trial from Armor One Sect…” She went on to explain everything she knew so far.
As captain, she had the right to know.
Currently, only the base’s chief captain, Hong Jian, and five other captains were aware of this. The rest of the personnel had no idea.
Wang Jie was the seventh to learn the truth.
Armor One Sect was a powerful cultivation sect from the vast expanse of the universe. Every so often, they selected disciples through a rather simple process—finding a trial ground. Unfortunately, Blue Star had been chosen as one of those trial grounds. In just ten years, Blue Star had transformed from a technological planet into one for cultivation. The strongest among its people now had the power of seven seals, exactly on par with the disciples of Armor One Sect.
“That Yan Si is one of Armor One Sect’s trial disciples. He came, defeated the beast tide, and saved Golden Hill Base. But, there were conditions—he took all the cataclysm materials from the base with him,” Feng Yu’s tone darkened. “The Three-Eyed Wolf King you’re after is one of the best cataclysm materials. It’s in his hands. How can I get it from him?”
Wang Jie hadn’t expected this. So, the youth he killed earlier was also a trial disciple? No wonder his strength seemed so out of place, and why he claimed to be a native. The fact that he even recognized Wang Jie’s martial technique made sense now.
Wang Jie slowly raised his gaze. So, this sky projection was Armor One Sect’s test for Blue Star—to train their disciples, turning Blue Star from a technological civilization into a cultivation one, all in the span of just ten years.
How could they do such a thing?
How many people had died in the past decade?
He remembered the peaceful days, the smiles that had now disappeared forever.
This was a time when people ate each other alive, and all of it had been set into motion by a trial.
They didn’t even consider the people of Blue Star as human beings.
Feng Yu continued, “And that’s not all. Once the trial ends, the cultivators of Blue Star will be turned into war slaves and sent to the interstellar battlefield. Every trial ground has this outcome. Yan Si said that the strength we’ve cultivated is meant to be used as strength for war slaves.”
“But, he said his backing could help us break free of the war slave status. The condition is that we help him complete his trial.”
Wang Jie looked at Feng Yu. “Has Hong Jian believed all of this?”
Feng Yu sighed bitterly. “Does it matter if he believes it? We have no choice. You’ve never experienced the difference in power between the Star Force of a trial disciple and our imprint force. Even if the chief captain hasn’t exhausted his energy, he still wouldn’t be his match. He can see through our techniques with a single glance. When we face him, we feel completely exposed.”
“You can’t understand that feeling.”
Wang Jie had experienced it, and he had even killed one of them. The trial disciples weren’t invincible. But, how many like him existed on Blue Star? Moreover, the one he had killed was only at the sixth seal level.
“You can tell the chief captain if you want,” Feng Yu said. “I don’t have the ability to get the Three-Eyed Wolf King.”
Wang Jie asked, “Where is Yan Si?”
“By the Mysterious Lake. He’s been guarding it in place of the chief captain.”
The Mysterious Lake was located within Golden Hill, and Hong Jian often stayed there because a powerful mutated beast resided at the lake’s bottom. If this beast ever emerged, it would appear directly within Golden Hill Base, so someone had to keep watch.
Now, after Hong Jian’s battle with the mutated eagle, Yan Si was the only one capable of watching over the Mysterious Lake.
Wang Jie hadn’t anticipated this situation, which had made everything even harder to control. Yan Si wanted the cataclysm materials, and other trial disciples would surely want them too.
Trouble.
He turned and left. There was no point in staying here and watching Feng Yu.
Once Feng Yu saw him leave, she let out a sigh of relief. The pressure Wang Jie placed on her was immense. And what Yan Si had revealed had cast a dark shadow over all of Golden Hill. The moment the trial began, they would have little time left. After all, how long did a trial last?
What awaited the people of Blue Star was the fate of becoming war slaves.
No, she didn’t want to be a war slave.
She hesitated for a moment, remembering how Yan Si had looked at her, then returned to her room.
The appearance of the trial disciples had instilled a sense of urgency in Wang Jie. He decided he needed to finish planting the Heaven and Earth Luo Xuan Finger technique first.
His original finger technique was already powerful; the Heaven and Earth Luo Xuan Finger would only be stronger.
He walked through the clean zone, familiar with the area, turning left and right with practiced ease. After about half an hour, he arrived at the restaurant.
This restaurant was one of the finer establishments in the clean zone, with soft music playing in the background. Wang Jie had never been here before, but he’d heard from Gray Claw that every night, young girls came here to cry their heartbreaks. He had decided to wait.
He stood in the shadow of the corner, watching the men and women strolling by, laughing and chatting. It was as if the apocalypse was nothing but a mirage. Many people locked themselves inside the clean zone, as if they could escape the end of the world by doing so.
They were on a completely different level from the people in the polluted zone, and even further removed from those outside the base.
After some time, a couple came out of the restaurant arguing. The woman’s eyes were red, and Wang Jie’s eyes lit up—this was it.
He grabbed his glass bottle, ready to rush forward and catch her tears.
But then the man pinned the woman against the wall and kissed her.
Wang Jie… continued to wait.
Another couple came out, but it was the man being rejected this time.
More waiting.
Wang Jie glanced at the sky. The projection in the night was as clear as ever. Whenever he had the time, he watched it, searching for a suitable technique. Was he waiting too long?
The restaurant had already closed.
The hotel had turned off its lights.
No, this was too passive. He decided to take action. In the distance, a couple walked hand in hand, whispering sweet things to each other. Wang Jie took a deep breath. It was a little malicious, but he had no choice.
In an instant, he knocked the couple unconscious, dragged them into a small alley, and woke the man up.
The man was terrified, unable to see clearly in the dark, only seeing the outline of Wang Jie. “What do you want? My older cousin is a cultivator under Big Beard Captain’s command…!” Wang Jie interrupted him, raising his knife, the cold gleam making the man’s face go pale.
“Break up with her.”
The man thought he had heard wrong. “What did you say?”
“Break up with her,” Wang Jie repeated, taking out the glass bottle and handing it to the man. “Let her cry. Catch her tears.”
The man looked at Wang Jie as if he were a freak. Thinking that Wang Jie was a suitor for his girlfriend, he was about to lash out, but then, realizing what was happening, he hesitated.
“Just… like this?”
“Yes.”
“So… with Xin’er?”
“I don’t care. I only want the tears.”
The man swallowed hard. “Understood.”
Wang Jie stuck the knife into the wall, threatening with a pointed finger, then disappeared into the shadows. The man, looking at his still unconscious girlfriend, had no choice but to wake her and break up with her.
The girl was furious, turning and walking off. “Fine, break up. I’m a fiery woman, I don’t need you, wretch.”
A gust of wind blew past.
The man stood there, stunned. He had just experienced heartbreak.
Wang Jie watched him in silence. Was it really that hard?
He gave the man a sympathetic glance and moved on to find the next couple. He wouldn’t believe that it wouldn’t work.
Time passed, and eventually, in the middle of the night, Wang Jie returned to base with the glass bottle. He had finally gotten what he needed. This had been even harder than fighting.
Holding his hard-won prize, he went to the fields and dropped the tears.
The third green sprout closed up.
Immediately, the three sprouts bloomed, and three beams of light converged in the center, where a figure appeared and pointed at Wang Jie.
At the same time, a new patch of land opened up beside his original field, and another green sprout began to grow taller.
Wang Jie stood still, watching. The pointing figure vanished into his mind. After a long while, he came to his senses.
He looked at his fingers.
So this was the Heaven and Earth Luo Xuan Finger. It was indeed formidable.
The technique didn’t need to be learned—it was simply implanted directly.
Wang Jie raised his hand, pointing forward, and slowly made the first motion.
A slight frown crossed his face. Something wasn’t right. While he could do it, the blood from his fingertips dripped, and his body couldn’t bear the strain.
He lowered his hand. His old injuries were still there, and he lacked the strength to execute it fully.
The first patch of field returned to normal. He glanced at the second field, watching the green sprout grow to the height of a person, then bloom. It revealed… a wristguard?
The wristguard was dark gold, with strange carvings, and inside the carvings was a faint liquid, resembling flowing water.
Wang Jie held the wristguard, feeling its hardness. He tried to squeeze it but couldn’t budge it.
He placed it on his left wrist. It was slightly too large for his wrist, but once he put it on, it shrank to fit.
Just then, a voice sounded in his ear: “Now begin the eighth set of basic fitness exercises.”
What the heck?
“Prepare.”
Wang Jie stood still, but suddenly, the wristguard became unbearably hot. He was startled and quickly tried to remove it, but realized he couldn’t.
The heat flowed from the wristguard into his body, and in an instant, it spread throughout him. A sequence of movements appeared naturally in his mind.
“Begin.”
Wang Jie tried to remove the wristguard again, but his entire body felt like it was being submerged in magma.
Sweat beaded on his forehead as he gritted his teeth. Unable to remove it, the temperature kept rising, forcing him to follow the movements.
“One, two, three, four. Two, two, three, four…”
Each movement seemed simple, but one was completely disconnected from the next. Yet he had to perform them seamlessly, or the actions would continue to heat up, and he feared he might melt.
His body felt as though it was being torn apart.
The bizarre, exhausting exercises made him sweat profusely. Each part of his body heated up, forcing him to make each movement correctly.
He didn’t know how much time passed before the voice stopped.
The intense heat from the wristguard also disappeared.
Wang Jie collapsed on the ground, breathing heavily. Sweat soaked his body. He stared blankly at the hazy sky, his body completely numb, unable to move his fingers.
What was this strange thing?
Turning his head to look at the wristguard, Wang Jie struggled to push himself up. He tried once more to remove it, but to no avail.
It was impossible to take off.
What now?
Should he try Four-Eyes?
With that thought in mind, he stood up and prepared to leave, but then suddenly remembered something. He placed his hand over his chest and squeezed his arm. A comforting sensation spread through him. Though the searing heat had tortured him, and the movements had nearly torn him apart, why did his old injuries feel somewhat better?
Wang Jie thought it might just be a numb sensation, but after a while, once his strength was fully restored, he checked again.
Sure enough, there had been some recovery.
He looked at the wristguard. Could this set of fitness exercises really help heal his injuries?