Chapter 442 - 181: "Find a wife, do some farming, wouldn’t that be a pretty good life?

Chapter 442: Chapter 181: "Find a wife, do some farming, wouldn’t that be a pretty good life?

"Jiangbei Defense Line, Sector One, intact."

"Jiangbei Defense Line, Sector Two, intact."

"Jiangbei Defense Line..."

The supervisors from each sector were continuously reporting on the state of the Jiangbei Defense Line from the previous night. All this information would eventually be compiled by Wang Kui, who would then report it to Chen Fan.

...

Standing atop the City Wall of the Jiangbei Defense Line, Chen Fan gazed out at the crowd of people braving the heavy rain to collect Ghost Stones in the pale light of dawn. After listening to Wang Kui’s report, he paused for a moment before speaking.

"Immediately arrange for Mortal Realm Members to depart. They are to establish permanent stations at the No. 7 Defense Line and the Yellow Springs Entrance Defense Line, responsible for immediate information relay."

"Additionally, survey and map the areas beyond the No. 7 Defense Line and the Yellow Springs Entrance Defense Line."

"When we face a major enemy offensive, we must be able to immediately provide targeting data for precision strikes."

’Supporting the Yellow Springs Entrance Defense Line this time consumed a total of fifty-five Celestial Pillars. Over the last few years, the Mortal Realm had only accumulated ninety-eight in total. A single support mission used up more than half of them.’

’The main reason was that, at the outset, I had no idea what the battle situation at the Yellow Springs Entrance Defense Line was.’

’I didn’t know which specific areas to bombard either.’

’All I could do was order blind bombardment, a saturation strike.’

’It was an incredibly wasteful tactic. At first, I didn’t even know how long it would take the Ghost Tide to fill the cleared zones again, so I had to make my own estimate of sixty breaths.’

’Furthermore—’

’The Celestial Pillars are strategic weapons, not standard defensive armaments for the line. They aren’t meant for clearing the Ghost Tide; they are strategic assets meant for providing support at incredible speeds. Their purpose is to be a lifeline in a crisis.’

’This time, however, I used the Celestial Pillars as if they were standard armaments, all to help the Yellow Springs Entrance hold its defense line. Naturally, the consumption was immense.’

’When I’m defending my own line,’

’I would never use Celestial Pillars to do so.’

’Still, it was a good thing I had the Celestial Pillars.’

’Without the Celestial Pillars, I had no other way of reinforcing the Yellow Springs Entrance Defense Line within a matter of dozens of breaths. That is their true strategic significance. More than their destructive power, their ability to rapidly support a defense line is their primary function.’

The Signal Tower’s coverage was extremely broad.

On his way back, he had built another Signal Tower in the eastern Guanxi Plain. This time, it would ensure he could contact the Yellow Springs Entrance Defense Line directly, while also reaching even farther locations beyond it.

...

He silently turned to look toward the Port, where the number of Celestial Pillars was now noticeably smaller. The stockpile he had spent years accumulating had been halved in a single war.

’There’s no way I can recoup the cost.’

’Even though they’re collecting Ghost Stones and Exotic Treasures and have promised to send the batch to the Mortal Realm,’

’but...’

’the time cost is the greatest loss of all.’

’Even with Earth Gold Cables, it takes a full year to completely charge a Max Level Celestial Pillar. I need to build another batch; they can be lifesavers at critical moments.’

Then, his gaze shifted to the people running through the heavy rain along the Jiangbei Defense Line. It was mealtime again, and the crowd was bustling with activity.

「After a long while.」

He gazed blankly at the sky and murmured, "They’re too cautious..."

’The Ghost Race is more cautious than I ever imagined.’

’In the current state of the war on the Eternal Night Continent, the Ghost Race clearly has the upper hand. Barring any surprises, they will inevitably win as time goes on.’

’But...’

’the Ghost Race isn’t celebrating early. They show no hint of joy at their impending victory. Instead, they’re being excessively cautious.’

’All I did was reveal that I had the strength to build a single defense line, and the Ghost Race was willing to pay a heavy price just to snuff out that potential spark in Jiangbei.’

’To be this cautious...’

’it’s truly going too far.’

’Add to that the news I received: the Eternal Night Hall captured a Ghost Emperor, who revealed that the atmosphere within the Ghost Race is extremely tense. They feel like they’re fighting an uphill battle and don’t dare relax in the slightest.’

’This is enough to prove that the Ghost Race is on a war footing, as if preparing for a final, decisive battle.’

’An enemy that clearly has the advantage, yet believes they’re at a disadvantage, and is so incredibly cautious on top of it all.’

’They’re going to be incredibly difficult to deal with.’

It was once again time for the post-battle accounting.

Outside the Jiangbei Defense Line, the collected Ghost Stones were gathered and transported to the Mortal Realm Warehouse.

...

「Mortal Realm, Xiyang City.」

In a Level 10 Farmland, members of Medicine King Valley deftly stripped Tian Yi of all his clothes, tied him to a wooden pole, and stuck him into the soil.

Just like planting a rice seedling.

His calves were completely submerged in the rich soil of the Farmland.

Tian Yi, tied to the pole, was deathly pale and completely drained of color. His eyes were shut tight, and he was no longer even breathing. His body was covered in so many cracks that he resembled a slab of scored pork belly.

He was, for all intents and purposes, a corpse.

"The Mortal Realm has a reserve of Life Reviving Pills. Would they be of any use?" Qi Chong, who was standing guard nearby, asked hesitantly. "Should I go ask Wang Kui to requisition some?"

He had been a farmer his whole life, had planted seedlings his whole life.

This was the first time he had ever seen a person planted in a Farmland.

It felt more than a little bizarre.

"It’s useless."

The Medicine King Valley Master shook his head, his expression grim. "These aren’t injuries from a fight. He used a Secret Technique to forcibly unleash power that wasn’t his own, causing his blood vessels to rupture completely. He has no blood left in his body."

"As long as there’s a single breath left in a person, a Life Reviving Pill can save them."

"But he doesn’t even have that one breath left."

"If there really is a King Yama, then his name has already been written in the Book of Life and Death. The only thing left to do is close the book."

With that, he took a dagger from a nearby disciple and carefully sliced open Tian Yi’s abdomen. The organs within were clearly exposed, but not a single drop of blood flowed out.