Director Zhou and Zhao Huan brought out a small bundle at this timeâmysterious power stones. Theyâd discovered some as well.
Hao Lianchuan nodded, fully expecting their find. âThe old rules apply,â he said as he took the bundle. âYouâll receive a large sum of mysterious power for this or anything else you want to trade for.â
He took inventory of their gains; theyâd discovered quite a bit at twenty pieces. When combined with what heâd taken from Celestial, theyâd reaped fifty pieces on this expedition.
As for himself, the Solars really hadnât come across mysterious power stones. But it wasnât that they completely lacked any gainsâtheirs were significant, there was just no need to go into detail with the rest of his people.
âLetâs take another look in the outer city.â Hao Lianchuan rose after concluding his business. âAlthough we went through it quite a few times before and didnât see any houses with open doors, we might discover something else without the Black Armors around. If we can obtain some more stones, Night Watcher strength will increase as a whole after this expedition.â
Hao Lianchuan was in a very good mood as their losses hadnât been too severe and their gains significant. Meanwhile, Li Hao stared fixedly at the man, looking until he saw the bundle vanish.
There was definitely a storage treasure on him! Perhaps he could ask for one of those. He couldnât store Stellaris inside his body yet, so he had to keep it hidden on him. Thankfully, it was feasible due to its moderate size. But if he lost it... Li Hao would die of tears.
......
At the same time. Outside Rift Canyon.
Powerful presences swept the canyon. Numerous Night Watchers were stationed around the four corners and there was even a military blockade stopping anyone from entering.
Inside the blockade.
âTheyâre almost out, what are you in a rush for?â Hou Xiaochen coughed a few times and looked at the furious powerhouses outside. âWeâre not letting you in only because we donât wish for you to add to any chaos or trouble...
âHavenât we given you everything that is yours?â He smiled. âSee, which of the Red Moon, Celestial, or Yama finds have I kept instead of handing over to you?
âCut the bullshit, Hou Xiaochen!â snapped a red-haired hulk in the air. âWe want the ruins and Yuan Shuo! If not, give upLi Hao!â
âYou really... are a hasty one!â Hou Xiaochen chuckled ruefully. âYuan Shuoâs gone, where am I supposed to find him? As for Li Hao... heâs still inside the ruins. What are you in such a rush for? Maybe heâs died inside! Didnât you hear the survivors say how dangerous the ruins are?
âLook at how many went in and how many are left. Apparently thereâs only thirty alive inside. Added to those who came out, that makes for a maximum of fifty out of approximately two hundred... Are you sure Li Hao will come back out? Being so eager to kick up a fuss... you really donât think much of the Night Watchers!â
Red Hair snorted, âYouâre highly responsible for Yuan Shuo getting away!â
âNow now, how can you say that?â Hou Xiaochen shook his head with resignation. âSadly, those whoâve come down in the world must endure such treatment. After all, Iâm no longer a tenth of who I used to be after being injured for so many years. Youâre a luckier one, Red Hair, to have made it to Nova. Youâre a hot shot now, I wouldnât dare offend you.â
A variety of expressions flickered across Red Hairâs face. Damn it! The more this fellow was thus, the less he dared make a move. Ying Hongyue had personally summoned him before he left the central region to give one instructionâdo not break ties with Hou Xiaochen until the last possible moment.
That was the only thing the leader said! Despite Red Hair being a Nova and Hou Xiaochen just a sickly Solar, the man knew that Ying Hongyue wouldnât voice unfounded statements like these. Plainly, Hou Xiaochen was not a character to run afoul of.
The Silver Moon Night Watcher director might seem feeble and cough with every other sentence, but were the Novas maintaining order and silence out of fear of the Night Watchers?
Of course not, they were wary of Hou Xiaochen!
âThereâs only ten more hours.â Hou Xiaochen checked the time. âYouâve already waited three days, whatâs a little more? Also, conversation needs to be conducted properly when Li Hao emerges. What does a young man, an ordinary person know? Red Moon is likely the one with the most businessânone of the others look to have the same impatience.
âEveryone, itâs too tiring to constantly be in the air. Why donât you land and rest inside your tents?â
He didnât mind it when no one paid attention to him.
âThen Iâll go rest, Iâm not as strong as the rest of you. My body... ai, it weakens by the day!â Hou Xiaochen shook his head and entered one of the tents under Manager Yuâs support.
The group watched him go, strange expressions crossing the faces of some powerhouses from the younger generation. These younger members of the various factions didnât know Hou Xiaochen. While overawed by superiors from headquarters, all they saw were Novas who dominated the central region not daring to make a sound in Silver Moon and keeping to themselves.
It looked like the feeble man in front of them wasnât someone to consider offending! At the same time, they were shocked by the scale of this operation. The central region really had sent multiple Novas to a border province! Was it that important that Yuan Shuo had broken through?
Novas were a domineering, premier force in the central region. Even if an organization possessed that level of heavyweight, they wouldnât have many. The three great organizations had almost all sent representatives of this cultivation, but no one dared make a move. This was most stunning of all.
......
Inside the tent.
Manager Yu frowned and whispered, âDirector... With so many Novas exerting pressure, Li Hao...â
The young man was in a great deal of trouble!
âWhat are you in a rush for? The Inspectorate and Military Justice havenât sent people yet, but Novas from the other side have arrived. Our people will come, unless theyâve decided to give up Silver Moon and no longer wish to administer it! Weâre just Night Watchers of a border region. Itâs naturally the central region who needs to take care of central region affairs!â
Manager Yu fell silent with thought. Was that so? Or was it more that the government wanted nothing more than these newcomers to plumb the depths of Hou Xiaochen for them?
âCough cough cough...â Hou Xiaochen was wracked by a hacking cough. âDonât worry, if those people stay out of it, Iâll announce that Silver Moon is no longer under the dynastyâs purview. Itâs fine if that leads to chaosâthe dynasty will be worried once Silver Moon secedes. Theyâll be afraid that it leads to a chain reaction!â
If Silver Moon seceded due to the central government remaining unmoved when Novas invaded, the end result would be that numerous parties with their own ambitions would swiftly leave the dynasty after the news spread.
When that situation developed, it wouldnât be long until Skystar Dynasty collapsed. Thus, Hou Xiaochen judged that if he didnât make a move or involve himself in this affair, those fellows from the government would have to get involved.
The director said no more; he contemplated silently. I wonder how things are on the inside. Theyâve gone into the inner city... Thatâs not an easy place to tread in!
......
Inside the ancient city.
Li Hao and the others searched for a while. There were only nine streets, so it was easy to discover whether or not there were open ancient houses.
Reality proved that theyâd been too hopeful. There were no houses they could enter!
No one knew why this city had been abandoned, if its denizens had all died or migrated elsewhere. There was no way to find out now. No one dared enter the houses with closed doors to see what was inside either.
According to Director Zhou and Zhao Huan, some of the open houses were empty. There were only antique furniture and other trappings to be found. In the absence of treasure, their furnishings were no different from regular houses.
After searching for a few hours, the remaining expedition team members didnât want to waste further time. They sat down to cultivate and digest their gains. There were only fourteen living souls in the entire outer city. The silence was so deafening that it was a bit terrifying.
Hao Lianchuan and Hu Dingfang had both suffered some small injuries, so they focused on rest and recovery.
......
At a spot a little removed from the Night Watcher contingent.
Li Hao and Hong Yitang had struck up a conversation. Perhaps due to the fact that they were fellow martial masters or that the swordsman was a martial senior who didnât seem to share a deep grudge with his teacher... the young man was very willing to chat with the leader of the Sword Sect.
âMartial uncle Hong, are there many surviving powerhouses from the martial world of yesteryear?â
Hong Yitang had nothing better to do at the moment, so he took a walk down memory lane. âAlthough there were no Dominators forthcoming from the Silver Moon martial world, it was still a peak martial faction in the ninety-nine provinces! We had too many half step Dominators, to say nothing of anything else!
âAnd many left Silver Moon to become the best and brightest of the martial worlds in other provinces!â Hong Yitang declared with gusto. âThe supernatural world had yet to appear then, so Silver Moonâs martial masters could be found throughout Skystar Dynasty. They defined the era! Everyone knew that if they wanted to truly forge a path in blood, they should go to Silver Moon!
âIf they wanted to witness the true blood and gore of the martial world, go to Silver Moon!
âThe supernatural didnât make much of a splash when it first appeared twenty years ago. Silver Monoâs martial world was so strong that the initial supernaturalsâStarlight, Darkmoon, and even those who swiftly made it into Sunflareâfound nothing but doom awaiting them. They were rookies pitting themselves against half step Dominators!â
Being a Sunflare twenty years ago made one a Heaven Favored. Those who survived those times were either Solar at the very least, or Nova at the most in present day. But in that age, they couldnât survive in Silver Moon because there were too many martial masters!
It wasnât until later that martial daoâs slow pace of development that they were overtaken by the supernaturals. By the time Solars appeared, martial masters found it hard to withstand their counterparts.
Li Hao nodded.
âMartial masters are partially responsible for Silver Moonâs supernatural domain not being that strong,â Hong Yitang chuckled. âWe killed too many of them! A portion of Heaven Favored visited the province back in the day, and we also had a lot of homegrown ones. But too many of them died here. It wasnât just your teacher, I killed my fair share too. What a pity... those guys would be Solars and Novas now if theyâd survived to this day.â
Li Hao nodded thoughtfully and whispered, âWas Director Hou a martial master?â
âHim?â
It was no wonder that Li Hao asked as Hou Xiaochen wasnât that old, but said to be very strong. Was he a martial master back in the day? No one had ever heard of such rumors. If he had been, surely he wouldâve bore a great reputation.
âMaybe... maybe not?â
Li Hao blinked. How was that an answer? He was a martial master if he was one!