Novel Full Chapter 1238: Mission, Please!
Chapter 1238: Mission, Please!
After Xu Qing took the medallion, he then handed over the ringsource. Then they left the red giant and disappeared into the starry sky.
After they were gone, the huge red sun continued to emit both mist and bright light. Inside of the sun, in the ancient, pitch-black palace, a sigh drifted out.
“I never imagined the pawns would actually manage to cross the river. And they’re ascendees. Now that I’ve seen them personally, I guess it’s not too surprising they made it this far. The question is whether or not any of them have the potential to become true dao seeds. Or… are they just pale imitations.[1]
“It’s the same with us, after all. With the exception of the esteemed general, all of us are ascendees, and we’re still finding our path. It’s been many years since the Immortal Paragon’s decree, and though immortals like us have proliferated, there has yet to be any new Immortal Lord.”
More sighs could be heard in the palace hall. As time passed, none of the immortals there said anything.
Eventually, the lieutenant general spoke in a hoarse voice. “It’s easy to start a new endeavor. But it’s not as easy to keep it going. That’s how things work in the mortal world, and it’s the same with cultivators in the Fifth Star Ring.”
The immortals present all understood that truth. In fact, they understood it better than most.
It was especially true in the Fifth Star Ring. In the past, the star ring had been controlled by gods, and ruled by a God Paragon. Eventually, the Immortal Paragon struggled into prominence, leading humans from a minor world to carve out a path for cultivators and a dao for immortals. They advanced step by step through countless hardships and tribulations, slaughtering minor worlds and gods along the way.
Ultimately, they crushed the God Paragon, imprisoned the God Lords, and severed the origins of all gods. They enslaved countless members of the Godfolk, and hewed out twelve heavens beyond heaven in the Fifth Star Ring.
Then, in the very middle of it all, they enshrined the Immortal Capital with its crucial mission. And that mission was to eventually turn all of the thirty-six higher star rings into places like the Fifth, in other words, places that belonged to humans and cultivators!
There was no way a task like that could be described as easy. No, it was something extremely difficult! And even more difficult than starting such a task was to continue working on it long-term.
And that was especially true… considering that the person who was originally supposed to be the second Immortal Paragon had perished. Immortal Lord Aurora. When he died, it cast doubt on the future of the entire Fifth Star Ring. After all… with the exception of the Fifth Star Ring and a couple of other very special star rings, all star rings were the home of gods. And though the Fifth Star Ring seemed like a place bursting with life and activity, the reality was that it was already past its zenith and on the decline.
The only way to change that was for a second Immortal Paragon to rise up in the Fifth Star Ring! Before another Immortal Paragon could rise up, there needed to be another Immortal Lord. And that was the reason for all the rigorous training the ascendees went through over all the years.
It was a brutal arrangement. Fostering cultivators who eventually ascended from the Immortal Capital was a process similar to raising venomous bugs in a jar. It didn’t matter what fate or karma had in store, those who died were considered nothing but imitations. Those who lived were the true dao seeds! And those who continued on to the end would be kindred spirits in philosophy!
“I just hope the day will come soon. It doesn’t matter which generation that person comes from, as long as they’re human and as long as they’re a cultivator.”
***
Time passed as Xu Qing and the others remained on the front lines of the eastern theater.
In a flash, three months went by. During that time, the grindstone of flesh and blood continued to turn, casting red light onto all of the battlefields in the eastern theater. Xu Qing and the others didn’t know how the war was faring overall. However, the ebb and flow of events on the front lines gave them an idea of how things were going.
The action in the staging areas was reaching a critical point. That much was clear because of the lack of movement among the military forces on the front lines.
On a snowy mountain full of immortal energy on Planet Spirit Restoration, Xu Qing and the rest were gathered around a fire pit.
Snow drifted down calmly from above as Zhou Zhengli said, “It indicates the event is almost complete. Based on the information I’ve been able to gather, there are more small-scale clashes with gods on the true front lines. It seems likely that we’ll be getting our mission soon. That’s the extent of what I’ve been able to learn.”
The snow brought cold with it. However, the heat from the fire pit melted the snow, creating a mist that filled the area.
They were surrounded by snowy mountains in all directions. In fact, if one took in Planet Spirit Restoration as a whole, they would see that it was full of numerous snowy mountains. There were a lot of them. Atop every single mountain, there was a fire pit blazing with red fire. The flames danced, letting out both heat as well as something else very mysterious. Whatever that mysterious power was, it helped cultivators to recover from injuries and rebuild strength.
After spending three months on the planet, Xu Qing and the others had long since recovered. In fact, they had only stayed atop the mountain for the first month. After that, they had scattered, and had spent two months in other places, only returning at specific times to touch bases. Today was their third time meeting up again.
After Zhou Zhengli was done speaking, Li Mengtu took a turn. “The information I got led me in a different direction than Zhou Zhengli. I wanted to find out if anyone else made it through the staging areas in the last few months. None did.”
Li Mengtu knew he wasn’t very good at digging for information, so he had chosen a much simpler task. When he was done with his report, he looked around at the others. Whenever they regrouped, they would share any information they had uncovered, then come up with a new plan before parting ways again. In that way, they were able to gain an understanding of the front lines much more quickly.
Yuanshan Su, Sir Vilespirit, Hordeslayer, Rampart, and everyone else took turns sharing what they had learned.
Finally it was Sir Star Ring’s turn. He looked at Xu Qing. “I looked into those people you mentioned last time we met up, and I learned a thing or two.”
Xu Qing turned to look at Sir Star Ring.
Of course, Xu Qing had gone out just like the rest of them, and had used his own methods of getting information on the front lines. At a certain point, he had noticed some cultivators who seemed to belong to a special army organization. They seemed similar to the Department of Acquisitions, but were very secretive and had very few dealings with anyone outside of their organization.
As a result, Xu Qing wasn’t able to interact with them much. However, he was very curious about them, and had let everyone else know they should pay attention and try to get information if they could.
“They form an auxiliary force in the army, made up of fifty squadrons. They operate on the front lines, specifically, in locations where battles are fought with the gods. They’re called… the Corpsedrainer Division! Their mission is simple. They clear battlefields. They go to front line positions where the bodies of dead gods are located, and they collect ringsource and other loot.
“Similar to Acquisitioners, they can keep a bit for themselves. The more battles are fought, the more active they are. That’s been especially true over the last month, as there have been a lot of skirmishes with the Fourth Star Ring forces. Virtually all of their forces have been sent in that direction.” Looking closely at Xu Qing, Sir Star Ring said, “Why exactly did you want us to pay attention to them?”
Xu Qing looked around thoughtfully at the small group. They had gone through a lot together, so he was very familiar with them at this point.
“It’s been three months since we handed in our ringsource and got sent here to rest and recover,” he said. “During that time, the lieutenant general hasn’t made any arrangements for us…. So I was thinking that, instead of waiting for an assignment, we could take the initiative and find something to do…. Maybe we could even apply for a specific position.
“I’ve almost run out of ringsource to use for cultivation. I’m guessing you’re all in similar positions, right? If we don’t replenish our stock, it’ll affect our cultivation progress.”
In response, Sir Star Ring’s eyes glittered, Zhou Zhengli smiled faintly, Sir Vilespirit licked his lips, and the brothers Hordeslayer and Rampart emitted faint sounds like the humming of swords. Even the normally reserved Yuanshan Su seemed excited. The other ascendees reacted similarly. Their baleful auras pulsed, causing the snowflakes in the sky to turn black.
Li Mengtu was the first to speak. “That’s exactly what I’ve been wanting to do!”
He seemed to have given voice to what everyone was thinking, as their eyes glowed like wolves in a wolf pack. All of these people had fought tooth and nail to ascend from the Immortal Capital. They had gone through all sorts of deadly training, and were like blood fiends who were ruthless to the core. In the three months that had passed, they had been hard-pressed to remain patient. It was only natural that they responded enthusiastically to Xu Qing’s suggestion.
Seeing their reaction prompted a nod from Xu Qing. Not wanting to waste any time, he stood and solemnly took out the command medallion from the lieutenant general. Then his immortal embryo glittered as he sent some immortal will into the medallion. It became a dao voice that caused the medallion to tremble.
“This is Xu Qing, leader of the former Acquisitioner squadron and now Transporter squadron. I would like to submit a petition to the lieutenant general. My squadron is fully recovered and well-rested. We’re in peak condition now. We have been emboldened by seeing our fellow soldiers slaying gods on the front lines, and would thus like to submit an application for a new mission….
“We are willing to go to the battlefields of the front line as a Corpsedrainer squadron. We… would like to continue our previous mission of acquiring ringsource!”
Everyone else stood in anticipation.
However, there was no response from the command medallion. Xu Qing’s immortal will disappeared like a stone ox thrown into the ocean. Everyone, including Xu Qing, stood there waiting patiently.
About an hour passed…. Then the medallion vibrated. Red light shot out from it, surrounding them, and along with it came a stream of majestic immortal will.
“Approved!”
“Yes, sir, Lieutenant General!” Xu Qing said loudly.
Everyone else voiced the same words. The red light shone into the wind and snow like the rising sun!
1. The pawns/river is a reference to Chinese chess. Note: Chinese chess, transliterated xiangqi, translated “elephant chess,” is NOT the game of Go! Go is transliterated weiqi and is directly translated as “encirclement chess,” and it has simple black and white stones that you use to carve out territory on the board. In contrast, Chinese chess (xiangqi) has pieces that correlate to members of an army, similar to international chess. One big difference in Chinese chess is that there’s a ‘river’ in the middle of the board. When a pawn crosses the river, it usually signifies a big change in the game. For one thing, the pawn gains additional abilities when it crosses the river. Beyond that, crossing the river usually signifies an advancement beyond the opening or middlegame. Incidentally, nowadays Chinese chess is much more popular and common than Go. You will see people (usually old guys) playing the game on the street or in the park. Even in overseas Chinese communities, the game is popular. Back when I lived in Chinatown in Manhattan, I remember seeing old dudes playing the game in the park all the time. In fact, here’s a picture I took in a Chinatown park in around 2009 of a bunch of guys gathered around a Chinese chess game. ☜