Chapter 719: An Abrupt Turn of Events

Right in the center of the pile of corpses, a hunched figure was crouched on the ground. It still emanated a powerful Spiritual Pressure. Its blood-soaked hands, like an eagle’s talons, were greedily shoving something into its mouth, producing a series of unsettling crunches as it lost itself in its meal.

‘Soul Loss Syndrome?’

Lü Zhong was surprised by the sight.

He had never expected that the Red Earth Guardian Envoy, appointed by the Immortal Sect, would actually be afflicted by Soul Loss Syndrome and reduced to a Walking Dead.

Logically, aside from when Hei Ming Daoist ascended and drew a vast amount of power from the Nai River, causing cultivators in Central Earth to suffer a backlash from the river’s power that even High-level cultivators couldn’t escape, the cultivators of the other Four Domains shouldn’t have been greatly affected.

And yet, now…

To be cautious, Lü Zhong began to investigate Mingzhi Cave using the Gray Mist Space.

Soon, he made a discovery.

‘Just a false alarm.’

It turned out this Red Earth Guardian Envoy had been sent by the Mysterious Dao Sect. He was lucky enough to land the position of Guardian Envoy, allowing him to escape the cataclysm of Hei Ming Daoist’s Ascension, which had sacrificed the entire Western Sect. His luck ran out, however. While stranded at the Celestial Origin Immortal Palace preparing to set out to sea, he unfortunately contracted Soul Loss Syndrome.

By the time it was discovered, it was already too late to do anything.

After a struggle, he eventually became a Walking Dead.

If not for the results of the scene regression, Lü Zhong would have found this fact hard to believe.

Fortunately, in a world as vast as the Cultivation Realm, things even more bizarre than this had occurred. Although he found it incredible, it wasn’t entirely unbelievable.

This was, admittedly, good news.

At the same time, good news also arrived from Central Earth.

According to the information provided by his Incarnation, Central Earth had recently benefited from the Taichu Soul Revival Array. The process of restarting the Nai River had begun, and the rampant Soul Loss Syndrome was finally being brought under control. However, the situation did not ease as a result; instead, it suddenly grew tense.

The surviving families and Sects were fighting for “living space,” vying for the territories and resources of the fallen families and Sects, and the conflicts had already reached a fever pitch.

As of their last contact, Central Earth had already descended into a massive brawl.

‘Besides fighting for living space, next they’ll be carving up the Western Sect Land and the wealth left behind. I’m afraid the Immortal Sects won’t have time to worry about this place for a while…’ Thinking this, Lü Zhong didn’t know if this was a stroke of luck for him or a blessing for the long-suffering Red Earth People.

In any case, he wouldn’t have to worry too much for the time being.

He could just focus on developing his own strength and breaking through in his cultivation.

…

「The next day.」

The people of Red Earth woke up as usual. Some rushed out the door, afraid of being late for work and having their wages docked. Others prepared the relief rations they had just received, getting ready to endure another day of hunger.

Just then, an emergency broadcast interrupted the television programs.

The Red Earth Alliance was holding an emergency meeting!

In less than half an hour, the meeting concluded with a unanimous vote, announcing that the Alliance would officially begin its restructuring process starting today.

This sudden news shocked nearly all of the Red Earth People.

Was this still the same corrupt, degenerate Red Earth Alliance they knew—the one that had remained standing despite constant turmoil?

As the populace reeled in disbelief, the second day of the new era arrived.

The Alliance council announced to the public once again that they had successfully overcome the Heartless Disease.

Following that was a series of reform and construction plans.

Among them, the plan to expand the production of “Red Earth Steel” was particularly conspicuous.

Not only the high-ranking members of the Alliance, but even its mid-level officials knew that the purpose of expanding production of the new steel was to build a fortress that would transcend the era.

A Floating Fortress!

…

「Time flew.」

In the blink of an eye, a sixty-year cycle had passed.

Inside the Quiet Chamber, Lü Zhong slowly exhaled a turbid breath.

Looking at the jade bottles scattered all over the floor before him, he couldn’t help but give a bitter smile.

‘I’m out of Pills. Looks like I have to come out of seclusion.’

Due to the lack of Pills, this session of seclusion could only be described as yielding meager results.

But there was nothing to be done about it. Thanks to the growth of the Kongsang Divine Wood, the space within the Mountain and River Map was still expanding and had now spanned seventeen hundred li. However, the supply of Spirit Medicine couldn’t keep up, as establishing a Spirit Medicine Garden took time.

Fortunately, Lü Zhong had long been mentally prepared for this.

Composing himself, he flipped his hand and produced an object, a smile appearing on his face.

‘The Jade Water Fan!’

This item was what the Spirit Treasure Embryo obtained from the Jade Water Abyss had transformed into.

It was shaped like a folding fan. The fan’s ribs seemed to be condensed from jade-green water, shimmering with a faint, deep-blue light. Illusory strands of Spiritual Light connected them. The entire fan was shrouded in a hazy cyan glow. Vague cyan shadows could be seen swimming within it, sometimes like a dragon, sometimes like a fish, at times joyful and at others serene. This was the Jade Water Fan Spirit.

At this moment, the Artifact Spirit seemed to have grown tired of staying inside the fan and poked its small head out.

Only after enjoying enough of his caresses did it retreat back inside, satisfied.

Gazing at the Jade Water Fan in his hand, Lü Zhong’s heart surged with an excitement he could hardly contain.

To be fair, he already possessed one Spirit Treasure, the Giant Spirit Mask, and two Magical Treasures undergoing Metamorphosis into Spirit Treasures—the Thunder-Attracting Needle and the Star Mirror. Each was a formidable treasure in its own right, but even the three combined were no match for the Jade Water Fan.

The Jade Water Fan possessed the Water Manipulation Ability.

The one who wielded this fan could control the waters of a hundred converging rivers.

If one refined the Jade Water Fan’s Spirit Communication Mantra to a deep enough level, one could even move a corner of the Boundless Sea. That would be trillions upon trillions of pounds of seawater, enough to create a display of heaven-shaking might, trigger massive tsunamis, and bring endless despair and death to one’s enemies.

“So this is an Innate Spiritual Treasure?” Lü Zhong murmured.

There’s no comparison without contrast. Although the Giant Spirit Mask was also an Innate Spiritual Treasure, it had once been parasitized by an Artifact Spirit and had endured the long passage of time. In terms of power, it could no longer compare to the Jade Water Fan.

‘This treasure will definitely be my future trump card!’

Satisfied, he put it away. Lü Zhong planned to nurture it further to advance his Spirit Communication Mantra, thereby increasing his ability to wield it and give his enemies a surprise in the future.

…

Sixty years is enough time for an era to end.

Both the once-corrupt Alliance and the deadly Heartless Disease had faded away with the times, replaced by the “Fortress Construction Era.”

Building the Floating Fortress was a systematic undertaking. It not only required massive quantities of Red Earth Steel but also the coordination of tens of thousands of factories and the joint efforts of over a thousand design institutes.

Between upstream and downstream industries, it affected the jobs of one-tenth of the Red Earth People.

Yet no one knew why the Alliance wanted to build such a Floating Fortress. With current technology, even if it were filled to the brim with Energy Furnaces, it would be impossible to make the “big guy” lift off. Moreover, due to the immense amount of Red Earth Steel used, it couldn’t even float on the sea.

No matter how you looked at it, it was a failed project.

Until this day, when Lü Zhong arrived at the fortress’s core. He took out the refined Gravity Silver and installed it onto its designated base.

As Spiritual Qi was continuously injected, the Gravity Silver was activated, sending out ripples of brilliant light. Through the connections of a complex Array, it immediately affected the fortress’s main body, with the effect conducted to every part via circuits of Silver Essence.

Before the utterly astonished eyes of the Red Earth People, the thousand-zhang-class fortress, which resembled an Inverted Giant Peak, slowly began to float into the air.

“This… how is this possible!”

“Heavens!”

“What am I seeing!”

The onlookers were shocked beyond words.

Aboard the Floating Fortress, the five Patriarchs were gathered once again. Watching the fortress rise beneath their feet, their feelings were complex beyond description.

As the ones who had overseen the fortress’s construction, they naturally knew just how many weapons it was equipped with. It could almost be said that they had emptied the Alliance’s entire arsenal.

From the armories and shipyards to even the secret weapons depots.

With such a massive amount of weaponry, combined with the giant fortress shell made of Red Earth Steel, let alone destroying the Red Earth Alliance, there would be no possibility of failure even against a double-digit number of Nascent Soul cultivators.

‘What does he want to do?’

‘What is he waiting for?’

As if sharing the same thought, the Patriarchs all turned to look at the black-haired young man who was gazing into the distance.

Suddenly, a staggering Spiritual Pressure descended.

Just like sixty years ago!

“They’re here, as expected,” Lü Zhong said with a faint smile.