Chapter 320

Chapter 320: Revival

After hearing his answer, Bai Li Qing studied Yu Sheng for a long moment.

He looked earnest, but it was obvious he didn’t have any long-term plan. As always, he’d had a thought and wanted to try it.

With no solid reason at all, Bai Li Qing suddenly felt a strong premonition settle in her gut—Holy Revere Hermitage was going to make trouble.

She turned it over for a while before saying, “You know the Special Operations Bureau’s duty is to protect the Borderland. Even though we’ve been cracking down on cult groups like Holy Revere Hermitage, every operation rests on one premise: the Borderland’s interests are being threatened.”

Yu Sheng nodded. “I understand. I wasn’t expecting you to send a fleet to help me hit the Hermitage Order’s lair anyway—assuming we could even find it.”

“As you said, with the Bureau’s authority alone, we can’t just dispatch a fleet,” Bai Li Qing continued. “But think about it. This time, they’ve already threatened the Borderland, haven’t they?”

Yu Sheng lifted an eyebrow.

Bai Li Qing spoke calmly. “Mistbound City didn’t appear by accident. There has to be a cult plot behind that otherworld. And if they could hide an elite ship right under the Councilor Council’s nose, that means they have both the motive and the capability to cause even more damage—enough that the Councilor Council won’t be able to sit still.

“On our side, for years our biggest problem with striking Holy Revere Hermitage has been that we couldn’t find their nest. Or we found it and still failed to catch them.

“You’re the first person in history to infiltrate their main warship and come out intact—while taking one of their ships as a prize. So if you find any ‘clues’ in the future… as long as you can give clear coordinates and conditions allow, I can send you the maximum support under the name of ‘defending the Borderland’s safety and eliminating potential threats.’”

Yu Sheng mulled it over, then tested the waters. “…So, higher-level backup-calling authority?”

Bai Li Qing froze at the phrasing. Then something that looked suspiciously like a smile rose at the corner of her mouth. “That’s one way to put it. Yes—higher-level backup-calling authority. As for what level of support that authority can request, I’ll draft a detailed plan and rules we can both agree on, and I’ll send it to you as soon as possible.”

Yu Sheng smiled and shifted in his chair. “Good. That’s all I needed to hear. But none of that happens overnight. Let’s talk about what’s right in front of us.”

Bai Li Qing blinked, thrown by the sudden turn. “Right in front of us?”

Yu Sheng’s smile strained. With a suffering look, he pointed at the pile of books on the table—taller than Irene. “These. I have to read all of this?

“I’m not questioning the professionalism here, but does a newbie captain really have to learn this much?”

Bai Li Qing’s eyelid twitched. Maybe it was his imagination. “That’s a starship, not an electric scooter. At least you don’t need to learn basic driving skills. Under normal circumstances, a space crew member takes at least twenty years of training and experience to become the ‘captain’ of a large ship like that, and they still need a full crew. It’s not as simple as reading a few manuals.”

She paused, then added, “I’ll find a way to issue your ship a navigation license endorsed by the Borderland, along with a complete set of identification documents for you. That will let you fly that ship along eighty percent of the legal routes in the known universe without trouble.

“Don’t forget—you’re flying a ‘heretic warship’ built by Holy Revere Hermitage. Without high-priority ID codes, the moment you enter another civilization’s sphere, the local garrison will probably give you a ‘warm welcome.’ And you may not even be able to get near most legal stargates.

“One more thing: you need to modify the ship’s exterior, not just the interior. At the very least, scrape off every Hermitage Order emblem on the hull. Otherwise, docking at any legal port will be a nightmare.”

Yu Sheng could tell she genuinely meant well, and these were real-world problems he hadn’t even considered. He dropped the miserable face and nodded with sudden solemnity. “No problem. No problem…”

…

At the same time, somewhere in Boundary City, inside a hotel open specifically to “outsiders,” Xuan Che sat cross-legged on the bed, deep in meditation.

A quaint spirit mirror floated beside him. A faint glow rippled across its surface, and within it was the image of a stick of incense slowly burning down.

No one knew how long passed.

When the incense finally burned out, a crisp chime rang from the mirror like a shaken golden bell. Only then did Xuan Che open his eyes, steady his breathing, and rise.

He put the mirror away and glanced up at the smoke detector on the ceiling, a trace of regret on his face.

Almost at the same moment, the mirror in his hand began to hum.

Xuan Che lowered his gaze, quickly smoothed his expression and clothes, then carefully set the mirror on the table. He brushed his hand across its surface and bowed. “Master.”

Light shimmered inside the mirror, and Immortal Yuan Ling appeared—white hair, youthful face, the aura of a refined sage. The old man smiled. “Good, good, Xuan Che. How did the task I assigned you go?

“Have you met the Expert?”

“I have,” Xuan Che said at once, head lowered. “Everything was done as Master instructed. I presented the gifts and delivered the message. And since the Expert dislikes excessive ceremony, I did not act overly stiff or formal.

“Your disciple believes I left a good impression.”

“Mm. Good.” Immortal Yuan Ling nodded in satisfaction—then noticed something off in his disciple’s expression, as if Xuan Che had more to say. “Did you run into a problem?”

There were plenty of problems.

Xuan Che’s facial muscles twitched. In the end, he chose the most urgent one—urgent, at least, for his own peace of mind.

“Master, that Expert… you have actually seen him with your own eyes.”

“Hm?” Immortal Yuan Ling’s brows lifted. “What do you mean?”

“Do you remember the head that appeared in your disciple’s pill furnace that day?”

Immortal Yuan Ling: “…?”

Master and disciple stared at each other through the spirit-link mirror, their silence stretching across the stars.

“It was him,” Xuan Che said with a bitter smile.

It was the first time Xuan Che had ever seen such shock, confusion, and disbelief on Master’s face.

A full half minute passed before Immortal Yuan Ling finally spoke. His first words carried unmistakable tension. “Xuan Che, when you met him… did you offend him in any way?”

“No,” Xuan Che answered instantly. Then he added, “Your disciple was, of course, startled. But I never forgot Master’s instructions.”

Only then did Immortal Yuan Ling seem to breathe easier. He gathered himself, then asked carefully, “Then… what is the Expert’s residence like?

“And what kind of person is he?”

Xuan Che opened his mouth—then didn’t speak. His expression grew even stranger.

Immortal Yuan Ling noticed at once. He rarely saw his steady disciple look like this, and his brow furrowed. “What’s the catch?”

“There is no catch,” Xuan Che said quickly. “Your disciple is simply… considering how to report this to Master.”

As he spoke, he forced his face into composure, while his mind flashed through keywords—

A house that contained its own world; the whole family living inside an otherworld; a noisy home with not a single normal “person” in it; an otherworld fox immortal who stewed elixir in a pressure cooker and had it greet people from inside a bowl; the fox immortal having two guardian spirit birds stronger than the celestial crane Master had raised for centuries; the fox immortal’s tail being detachable and launchable; the Expert keeping an Alice doll at his side, measured like “66.6 cm times four”; everyone teaming up to wipe out a den of demonic heretics; the Expert launching himself with a fox tail…

After running through that madness twice, Xuan Che felt his dao heart vibrating like it had been set to buzz. He even suspected that if he repeated it all to Master, Master’s dao heart would tremble too—and then that copper-headed belt would tear through space from Thousand Peak Spirit Mountain…

Then the voice from the mirror cut through his spiraling thoughts. “No need to worry. It isn’t strange for the Expert to have mysteries around him. I’m not an ignorant country bumpkin. Speak freely.”

Only then did Xuan Che steady himself. He drew a light breath. “It’s like this. First, the Expert’s residence is an otherworld. And he also has an additional cave abode, which is another otherworld…”

So Xuan Che recounted everything he had seen and heard around Yu Sheng—carefully leaving out Holy Revere Hermitage for now. That matter was too serious and required a separate report.

Halfway through, Immortal Yuan Ling’s expression had already grown unusually stern. He stroked his beard while watching his disciple’s face and condition. When Xuan Che finally finished, the old immortal broke the silence with a frown.

“Xuan Che. Come closer. Yes. Open your mouth—ah.”

Xuan Che didn’t understand, but obeyed on instinct. He heard his Master ask, “What elixir did you eat today?

“When you took immortal-grade spirit pills, did you remember to use spiritual power to assist refinement?

“And last night—before you left—did you eat something you shouldn’t have? There are ghost-fog mushrooms on the back mountain. Did you stir-fry them before eating?”

Only then did Xuan Che realize what was happening. He couldn’t help a bitter laugh. “Master, your disciple didn’t take the wrong medicine. What I just said…”

“Was all true?” Immortal Yuan Ling asked.

“It was all true.”

Immortal Yuan Ling continued stroking his beard, sinking into deep thought.

After a long while, under Xuan Che’s slightly worried gaze, the old immortal suddenly sucked in a cold breath and sighed. “The Expert… to be able to fight dark angels, he truly is extraordinary.

“Xuan Che, this trip of yours may bring you a great opportunity.”

Xuan Che bowed at once. “Speaking of great opportunities… your disciple did encounter something together with the Expert. It is no small matter, and it may even affect Thousand Peak Spirit Mountain.”

Immortal Yuan Ling’s expression turned grave in an instant. “Hm?”

“We ran into Holy Revere Hermitage…”

…

Deep within the Pillar of Order, inside the Holy Sarcophagus Chamber.

The dark iron coffin still stood at a forty-five-degree angle on the platform, connected to countless pipes and cables. It gave off a low, humming vibration. Dim red lights on the platform and lid pulsed slowly, like breathing.

Then the vibration stopped.

Even the other machines fell silent with it.

In an instant, the whole chamber went quiet.

That silence held for a few seconds. Then, with a faint hiss of venting pressure and the grind of moving machinery, the heavy lid of the holy coffin began to open…

A tall, slender figure rose from within.

The Artificial Saintess stepped out of the container, descended the platform, and stood in the empty chamber without moving—like a statue.

No extra motion. No change in expression. No words.

The steel doll was built only for slaughter. Even in this moment of “resurrection,” not the slightest emotion showed on her hollow, pale face.

She stood there for a long time.

Then, as if she had suddenly sensed something, she tilted her head.

In the next second, writhing darkness wrapped around her body. And in the blink of an eye, she vanished from the Holy Sarcophagus Chamber.