Chapter 867 - 481: Treasure, Expedition Team No. 13_2

"Hmm, thank you..." The scarred man did not pick fault. He silently accepted the cup of black tea. Amidst this sea of flowers, he sat on a chair woven from the roots of the Divine Tree. They were right by the Divine Tree. The man gazed at the tree, gradually becoming dazed, and a smile appeared on his face.

Yi Shan was unsure why he ended up here. In his memory, he planted the Divine Tree into the ground, and after watching it gradually grow, the last bit of his strength faded, and it seemed he slipped into a long slumber.

A very long, long sleep, until now when he began to slowly awaken.

Simultaneously, Xue Dili realized that Yi Shan was not as formidable as he had imagined.

If he were to categorize it, Yi Shan would be Tier Zero, just like an ordinary person on Earth where Absolute Forbidden Magic reigns.

This is because, in the era he was from, the Demon Element was still highly toxic. In that age, any creature that came into contact with the Demon Element would uncontrollably become deformed and twisted. That Yi Shan endured to the end, and that Dominic could absorb the Demon Element, might all be miracles of the Cosmos.

Unlike now, where Demon Element has become the Spiritual Particle, existing everywhere in the Cosmos, forming the basis of Magic, living beings grow up as if soaked in vats of Demon Element, being absurdly adaptive to it.

Those who were not adaptable to Spiritual Particles all died out.

Yet Yi Shan still seemed to be incompatible with the Demon Element; perhaps every race of their era was like this. Hence, under today’s system, despite his exceptionally high status, his true strength...

Is doubtful...

Even because of his incompatibility with the Spiritual Particle, Yi Shan was unable to learn Magic. This dashed another plan of Xue Dili.

Just as Xue Dili was about to start venting and prepare to ask this veteran senior to help him during the war with the Lord of Mist, Yi Shan spoke first.

"Has it been 4 billion years already?" Yi Shan gazed at the Divine Tree. Perhaps, in this era, only the Divine Tree was an old friend he recognized, and it was a thing from his time.

"After 4 billion years, how is the United Front? Could it unite all races in the Cosmos, regardless of differences, working together, making every race and civilization friends, tending to the weak, helping each other, laboring hand in hand to make the world more beautiful?" Yi Shan asked again.

The last time, on the eve of the Venerable King’s birth, Yi Shan asked this question, to which Xue Dili replied, "It has been realized."

He had lied because Yi Shan was close to death, and Xue Dili decided to tell a benevolent lie.

But now, Xue Dili gave a completely different answer.

"I’m sorry, but no..." Xue Dili sipped some black tea and looked directly at this scarred man.

"After solving the Cosmic Void, the United Front instead fell apart, followed by a rebellion that spread across the Cosmos..."

"War between organic and inorganic life, war between different races... That great war completely shattered the United Front from the inside. Plus, with the Demon Element gradually spreading throughout the Kosmos, the United Front likely lasted less than a century before it perished. Survivors built new civilizations upon the ruins..."

"Also, due to the expansion of the Demon Element, the technology left from the United Front era no longer adapted to high-Demon Element environments. All scientific technology needed redevelopment, thus giving rise to the most common technology under high-Demon Element conditions in the Cosmos—Magic Guide."

Xue Dili explained.

When Yi Shan heard that the United Front disintegrated within barely a century, engaging in mutual destruction-like internal warfare, a hint of sadness appeared in his eyes.

Yet, seemingly still holding a glimmer of hope, he asked, "You know me, then you must know my daughter, right? How is she?"

Xue Dili: "..."

This question, rather, made him more uncomfortable.

After scratching his head for a long time, Xue Dili decided not to lie and instead turned to a system that the Great Sage once left him, extracting a part of his memory.

That was his memory of reliving Fuge’s life with the God of Order, a memory that, for Xue Dili, was like a fleeting overview.

Yi Shan silently looked through that memory.

Hours later, the eyes of the scarred man held nothing but sorrow.

He went to the Divine Tree, reaching out to touch it, unable to utter a word.

The Divine Tree seemed to respond, with the sea of flowers expanding further, almost covering the entire school.

Fuge spent her whole life creating a New God, and after her death, that obsession turned into a twisted mist, forming the "Mist Council," finding and twisting the "Thirteen Apostles" based on the concept of the 13th Expedition members.

Their mission was to devour the Venerable King’s favored, absorbing their power, to fulfill the distorted command "Make a New God, replace the Old Gods," thus commenced a cosmic catastrophe that lasted billions of years.

And perhaps, the source of all this tragedy lies within himself.

"I’m sorry..." Yi Shan said.

Xue Dili: "..."

"I’m sorry, if only we were a bit stronger back then, maybe there wouldn’t be such tragedies, no birth of mist and apostles..." Yi Shan seemed to keep apologizing, guilt and agony seeming to overwhelm the man’s face swiftly.

He’s always been like this, as if shouldering every blame himself, even when he was just a recorder for the United Front, documenting and selecting fallen pioneers, thinking it was his fault those pioneers died.

Later during the voyage against the sun, he believed every person’s death was due to his ineffectiveness.

He is a thorough pessimist.

"Don’t keep saying sorry, ’Mr. Sorry.’" Xue Dili placed a hand on him, saying, "I always believed each generation resolves their generation’s issues, unable to solve all problems for their successors."

"Your generation has sacrificed enough. Next, it’s our generation’s turn to address it."

Xue Dili smiled, and said, "But if you could help me in confronting the Lord of Mist, that would be great."

Yi Shan seemed comforted, nodding.

Despite being a pessimist, this man had a resilience, one where no matter how pessimistic he was, he would see things to the last step.

Just like the resilience of the Divine Tree.

"Then you should have a Treasure, even if you’re not from this era, your great deeds should constitute your own Treasure," said Xue Dili, like a teacher guiding a novice student into the world of Magic.

"Treasure?" Yi Shan was startled, then, following Xue Dili’s instruction, he indeed sensed a belonging to his own Treasure.

Simultaneously, Xue Dili was even more taken aback.

[Treasure: Voyage Against the Light (????-level Treasure): Emanating from the great deed of Expedition 13 journeying against the light, the highest rank of Treasure, summoning the last anti-light starship Fire Seed and its entire crew, bypassing all obstructions, attacks, curses, pains, distortions, to reach the destined endpoint.

Price: The Treasure can only be used once, and once activated, Yi Shan along with all members of Expedition 13 will return to the Void.]

Xue Dili inhaled sharply.