Chapter 384

Chapter 385: Voyage Planning Means No Planning

Hearing Zheng Zhi, Yu Sheng said nothing at first and looked toward where the Rift lay.

He couldn’t see any “Rift,” but through the faint blood link he had forged with Zheng Zhi, he could sense that something was there. Huge, strange, without end, the part of the Rift his senses could “see” felt like a tiny branch of a much larger structure.

[What in the world is that thing?]

Irene poked Yu Sheng’s head as she asked: “Hey, Yu Sheng, do you think this has anything to do with the Sovereign’s Legacy?”

Yu Sheng raised an eyebrow as he asked: “Why do you think that?”

Irene answered like it was obvious as she said: “Because everything is happening together. Last time our nephew suddenly ‘fell’ into the Otherworld right on the main peak path of Thousand Peak Spirit Mountain. This time the Great Rift also showed up near the main peak. There’s no way that’s a coincidence.”

Foxy, who had wandered over, nodded and said: “I agree. From statistics and probability, when two very unusual events happen in the same place within a short time, the chance they are connected is high.”

Irene listened with wide eyes, then poked Yu Sheng’s head again as she asked: “What does the silly fox mean?”

Yu Sheng gave the illiterate Doll on his shoulder a look, then rubbed his chin and said: “The same as you. If this Rift really was caused by the Sovereign’s Legacy, that’s even more worrying.”

Irene asked: “Why?”

Yu Sheng said casually: “Because the Sovereign’s Legacy has always been there, but the Grand Void Spiritual Axis has been peaceful for years. That means it used to be in a dormant state. Now a Rift suddenly appears, which can only mean the Legacy has started ‘moving.’ Whatever the reason behind that, it means one thing: today’s mess is just the beginning.”

Irene’s eyes went round, and she didn’t speak for a while.

Foxy thought hard, her furry ears twitching as she asked: “Then why did it suddenly start moving?”

Before Yu Sheng could answer, everyone pictured those masked Black Robed Cultivators in their minds.

Yu Sheng spread his hands as he said: “Two possibilities. Either the Legacy decided to wake up on its own after all these years, or someone is pushing to ‘activate’ it. Which one do you think it is?”

Irene stood up on Yu Sheng’s shoulder as she shouted: “Do we even need to ask? Someone is making trouble! I said before the batch of black clothed people we caught in the Otherworld wasn’t the only group acting. There must be many more hiding in every corner doing things…”

Yu Sheng pressed the wobbling Doll back down as he said: “We have to leave for that planet called ‘Sentinel Silence’ as soon as possible. We need to find the ‘Yun Qing Zi’ hiding behind the scenes. Stop wobbling or you’ll fall.”

Just then, Immortal Yuan Ling finished talking with the “Dire Omen, Youth Form” and walked over. Hearing their discussion, the old man’s face grew grave as he said: “The Earth Veins here are still unstable. Perhaps, like you said, this is only the beginning. Unless we find that senior Yun Qing Zi and resolve the problem of the Sovereign’s Legacy, trouble will return sooner or later.”

He paused, thought for a moment, and said: “There’s no time to waste. I will arrange a long-range Celestial Ship to carry you to Sentinel Silence.”

Yu Sheng waved with a smile, like he had been waiting for that line, as he said: “No need. Our Hotel has a starship. Just prepare the travel permits and navigation coordinates for me.”

Irene popped up on his shoulder again as she shouted: “Our ship can fly now?!”

Yu Sheng had to press the little Doll back down again as he said: “Of course it could always fly. We waited because the ship was built by Holy Revere Hermitage and needed refits, and the main control system had to be reinstalled. The refit isn’t all done yet, but the hull and paint are finished. Part of the main control still needs tuning, but the star chart and navigation already work. That’s enough for me.”

Irene blinked as she asked: “Then what about the unfinished parts?”

Yu Sheng said casually: “We’ll keep working while we fly. All the outside work that needed a dock is done. What’s left is internal work like subsystem adjustments. The Special Affairs Bureau’s tech team is living on the ship right now. I even opened a Door on board that leads to the Special Affairs Bureau. If they switch shifts, they can go through the D-2 Passage Door straight back to Boundary City. Where the ship is won’t affect them.”

Irene stared, stunned. Even as a correspondence-kindergarten graduate who knew nothing about interstellar flight, she could hear the problem in his plan as she said: “That’s allowed?! I may not know what ‘subsystems’ are, but can we really take off with those not done? And fixing things while flying… that sounds so unsafe. Won’t it blow up halfway?”

Yu Sheng answered with full confidence as he said: “Relax. You know how I pilot. If the engine can still push forward, I can fly a rolling washing machine to the border of the star system. Subsystems make things easier, but if they aren’t ready, I can muscle it through.”

Irene gaped as she said: “That makes me even less relaxed!”

Foxy’s eyes lit up at the news that their ship could fly, her tail whipping so hard it kicked up dust as she said: “I think Benefactor is right!”

Luna didn’t react as strongly, but she nodded slightly and said in a slow voice: “Mm, yes.”

Irene looked from the confident Yu Sheng to Foxy and Luna, held it in for a long moment, then let out a long sigh as she said: “Fine. You did manage to fly it back the first time…”

Immortal Yuan Ling had stayed quiet because he had no idea how the inside of this “Hotel” worked and had never seen the ship Yu Sheng spoke of. Seeing the group reach agreement, he stroked his beard, stepped forward, and said: “Then I will arrange your permits and the coordinates to Sentinel Silence.”

Yu Sheng nodded as he said: “Great. Let’s head up and meet your Senior Brother and Immortal Qian Ji.”

Immortal Yuan Ling dipped his head, then waved his hand. The Floating Round Dais that had brought them down glided back without a sound.

At the same time, among the towering Demon-Suppressing Pillars and thick Runic Chains, the bound “Dire Omen, Youth Form” slowly turned its body. That ghastly face looked at Yuan Ling and Yu Sheng’s group as they stepped back onto the Floating Round Dais to leave.

Immortal Yuan Ling stood at the edge of the Floating Round Dais, glanced at the stone sphere, and said flatly: “Do not act rashly. If you do, you die.”

The stone sphere’s sharp “teeth” spread in a mocking smile as it said: “You’ve tried many times, but I won’t ‘die.’ But you can relax. I’m not going anywhere. The brief rise and fall of mortal civilizations mean nothing to eternity. You will disappear in the end. So will this poisonous planet. I can wait.”

It muttered like it was talking to itself as it added in a low voice: “All struggles in The End Web finish in extinction. The only truth in the world is this sad end.”

Before it finished, a strand of pitch black Spider Silk snapped across several dozen meters and slapped the sphere with a crack.

The “Dire Omen, Youth Form” went quiet at once.

Irene planted fists on her hips on Yu Sheng’s shoulder, drew back the Spider Silk, and glared at the sphere as she said: “What a pile of nonsense. Ugly and spouting weird lines. In a game you wouldn’t even survive the opening cutscene. You’d get deleted in the tutorial.”

The Floating Round Dais rose, sped up, and soon carried Yu Sheng’s group away.

The “Dire Omen, Youth Form” remained in place between the Demon-Suppressing Pillars. After Irene lashed it with the Spider Silk, it froze like a statue. The stone sphere often sat like a rock and didn’t move, so Immortal Yuan Ling didn’t notice it staying unusually still this time.

No one knew how long it was before the “Dire Omen, Youth Form” suddenly trembled in place, like it jolted awake from a temporary shutdown and restarted. Its massive body shuddered, and a shower of gray-white grit drifted from its surface. Where the black Spider Silk had struck, a black, hollow crack gaped like absolute nothing.

The terrible wounds vanished in moments. In a few breaths, the fallen grit floated back up and filled the gaps in the sphere’s surface.

The “Dire Omen, Youth Form” hesitated and began to ascend. The Runic Chains clattered. Tiny sparks jumped between the talismans on the chains. After a short, puzzled pause, a dreamy murmur rose from inside its dark mouth as it whispered: “… Dire Omen?”