Bi Mo Zhi Jian

Chapter 370 How Did You Get Here?

The mythic awakenings of several individuals did not go as planned.

San Jin Er.

Old Master Wang was the unlucky one who failed to advance.

However, it wasn't entirely unexpected. Old Master Wang's overall stats were already significantly lower than top-tier powerhouses like Hei Dao and An Jian You. Even with the use of 'Root Water' and possessing legendary talent, Master Wang's talent wasn't combat-oriented, and he rarely trained. His cultivation, willpower, and overall accumulation were far from comparable to top-tier powerhouses.

Another crucial reason was that Master Wang lacked a legendary skill.

This was what put him slightly behind Liu Shang… ah, Liu Shang's first attempt at mythic awakening also seemed to have failed.

Fang You pondered.

He glanced at his accumulated destiny points, which had reached three to four million, and a thought of giving Old Master Wang and the others a boost emerged.

Currently, only Master Wang, Yin Ling, and Pei Hong Jing were without legendary skills. They rarely went to the battlefield anymore. Pei Hong Jing, in particular, had gradually shifted his focus to management and logistics, currently holding a core position within the Blue Star Alliance.

But he couldn't show favoritism.

All three were veteran members who joined at the organization's inception. With the current abundance of funds, Fang You felt it was appropriate to give them an advantage.

Of course, the advantage could be given, but contribution points would still need to be paid.

All he did was add the option to learn legendary skills to the most prominent position on their exchange lists.

"Hmm, can't forget Little Huan. If I don't fuse skills for her, she might start whining again… A few months have passed, and her accumulation is certainly enough now."

As for a certain black cat, uh…?

Lost in thought, Fang You shifted his gaze to the black-eyed cat and immediately fell silent.

Even after advancing to mythic, this cat was still as lethargic as ever. It was currently lying on a soft blanket, being fed by one female assassin, while another was grooming it.

Good heavens! Even his mentor didn't enjoy such luxury!

But how did this creature reach seven awakenings so easily? It hardly trained or fought monsters either!

Hei Tong could learn skills, but it simply didn't want to. From blade slashes to meditation and furnace tempering, it would glance at them and then look away.

Too lazy!

He couldn't force it to learn if it didn't want to – he couldn't force a cat that was content to lie flat.

In comparison, Yin Ling disliked combat and was too lazy to go out, constantly procrastinating on uninteresting missions. However, she had at least cultivated many skills and was a regular at the gravity field and lotus pond, far superior to a certain black cat that had never trained.

Yet, this very black cat not only advanced rapidly but also possessed considerable combat power.

Before its mythic advancement, Fang You witnessed Hei Tong easily dispatching an mutated, disaster-level anomaly.

"Illusion Breaking can dispel various invisibility and shapeshifting abilities, and also break enemy buffs."

"Giant Spirit Transformation allows Hei Tong to instantly expand its size to be comparable to disaster-level anomalies. This ability is both offensive and defensive, with no weaknesses."

"Spirit Cat Avatar builds upon this, allowing it to perform many tricky maneuvers… although it never actually does them."

With these three abilities, Hei Tong's tactical system could be considered quite perfect. If it didn't want to learn additional skills, then so be it.

Moreover, with this mythic advancement, Hei Tong had also awakened a new ability: 'Night Eye'!

As for its specific effects, the lazy cat wouldn't even try it, so Fang You had no choice but to 'freely acquire' Hei Tong's abilities and test them himself.

He went to his personal training ground, traced the faint, unfamiliar switch for the ability, and extended his hand…

Instantly,

Hum—

An invisible force spread out, and the entire training ground was plunged into darkness so deep that one couldn't see their hand in front of their face. Even though the surrounding lamps were doing their utmost to emit light, not a sliver of darkness could be dispelled.

Only when a pair of enormous, cold, vertically slit pupils slowly appeared in the darkness did the inky black space gain a hint of illumination.

At this moment, Fang You felt an indescribable sense of wonder.

He seemed to have entered a god's-eye view, possessing an incredibly clear grasp of everything around him. Moreover, the veil of night protected him and propelled him forward.

This experience was too incredible. Even though he was already a mythic, he couldn't comprehend the intricacies within.

It was normal, though.

After all, it wasn't his own ability, but merely 'freely acquired'. Fang You was like looking at flowers through fog, unable to see clearly.

But he could use it!

Mentor Fang explored a bit and understood the wonder of this ability.

"It encompasses domain creation, crowd control, stealth, and spatial teleportation, truly… profoundly mysterious!"

It was a pity that in this cat's hands, it was used less than a few times a month.

As for himself? The Apostle's Heart could only 'freely acquire' three skills/abilities at a time, and his priority remained 'Tree of Life', 'Gate of Infinity', and 'Nirvana Holy Fire'.

After Wang Chui, Pei Hong Jing, and the others successively 'discovered' the legendary skill options in their exchange lists, Fang You began his turn.

Fusion!

He was already quite skilled at it and didn't hold too much expectation – after all, even if Master Wang and the other two fused a sky-shattering skill, its effect wouldn't be that significant. They weren't fighting.

Rather, it was worth a slight anticipation to see if a skill that Fang You himself could use could be fused.

"Ding!"

"Notification: Unique legendary skill 'Heavenly Craftsmanship' for Wang Chui has been fused and created. The skill information description is as follows:..."

Fang You took a look.

This skill, as expected, inherited the characteristics of the main fusion materials, 'Skilled Craftsman' and 'Material Fusion', and was, as expected, a combat-oriented skill.

Its general ability was to fuse multiple anomalous artifacts and materials to create terrifying war weapons that only the user could wield, while completely ignoring the negative effects of these anomalous artifacts.

Master Wang's combat style always involved using various war weapons, and he would surely like this.

"Moreover, as 'Heavenly Craftsmanship' is cultivated, it can also be used to reduce or remove the negative effects of anomalous artifacts, which will be useful in Master Wang's daily work. Overall, it's not bad."

"Continue, continue."

Following the same pattern, Fang You fused Pei Hong Jing's skill.

"Ding!"

"Notification: ...Legendary skill 'Infinite Detonation Talisman' has been created, with the following specific effects:..."

Naturally, this was still a 'pay-to-win' offensive skill. As long as one detonation talisman hit the target, it could serve as an anchor point, extending into an endless stream of detonation talismans, and growing stronger with each explosion.

Simultaneously, the Infinite Detonation Talisman could convert between various elements.

Freezing, burning, lightning, corrosive, tearing, sealing, and so on, offering numerous applications waiting to be explored.

It could be said that this skill had a low floor but an extremely high ceiling.

If it missed, the Infinite Detonation Talisman would be useless, but if it hit, even beings much stronger than Pei Hong Jing could be instantly killed by surprise.

Mentor Fang's evaluation was… acceptable.

What was noteworthy was that this skill contained considerable 'talisman paper' crafting techniques. This technique was much superior to the 'Explosive Card' which had a shorter preservation time and couldn't be transferred.

Perhaps the organization could develop a talisman side-business.

Let's wait until Pei Hong Jing cultivates the Infinite Detonation Talisman.

Next were Yin Ling and Xiao Huan.

"Ding!"

"Notification: Unique skill 'Immortal Spirit Medicinal Body' for Yin Ling has been fused and created. The specific effects are as follows:..."

Individuals possessing this skill would have miraculous abilities in their bodies. Yin Ling could permanently enhance her dimensions by consuming medicinal ingredients. Simultaneously, through physical contact, she could alter certain properties of medicinal ingredients, for instance, turning poison into an antidote, or an antidote into poison.

However, there were limitations; she couldn't freely convert medicinal ingredients. Poison A could only be converted into medicinal ingredient A that could detoxify A's poison.

Furthermore, her voice could contain healing power or cause immediate poisoning, and so on.

"This skill seems quite extensive, and it's hard to fully grasp it all at once. Is this the difficulty faced in studying medicine?"

Fang You's head began to ache after studying it for a while.

He tried to change the properties of medicinal ingredients, but soon found he couldn't. No matter how he tried, he couldn't! Because using this skill required extensive professional knowledge reserves and a deep understanding of the target medicinal ingredient and the medicinal properties of the ingredient to be converted.

Fang You lacked all of these.

Not to mention, the strength of the 'Immortal Spirit Medicinal Body' ability, besides being related to skill level, was also related to the quantity of medicinal ingredients absorbed.

Too much to handle, too much to handle. Let Yin Ling develop it slowly.

Soon, amidst Xiao Huan's eager anticipation, Fang You fused the last legendary skill.

The result was that the fused skill was still called 'Virtual-Real Shuttle'.

Fang You: "???"

Xiao Huan: "o(╥﹏╥)o"

He had invested a considerable amount of skill materials, but likely because Xiao Huan's racial talent was inherently of high grade, or her abilities were too specialized, other skill characteristics were difficult to manifest, resulting in a somewhat inferior fusion effect.

There were changes, though.

Originally, this talent ability could only be used for spatial displacement and transitioning between virtual and real states. Now, it also added the ability to cut enemies using space.

"Don't be discouraged. This ability can also fill your shortcomings."

Fang You wasn't offering empty comfort.

The Spirit of the Virtual was a favorite of space, possessing an innate talent for roaming freely in space. However, perhaps due to her exceptionally strong spatial talent, Xiao Huan's effectiveness in learning and using other skills was mediocre.

Her tactical system remained somewhat scattered, and she was still a weak mythic. But with her charge and attack maximized, and without needing defense, her offensive capabilities had significantly increased, which was quite terrifying.

Fang You felt he would have to be extremely cautious facing Xiao Huan.

However, combat types like Xiao Huan, with high speed and high attack, required sufficient combat technique to support them, and Xiao Huan's combat intelligence and experience… it was better not to mention them.

Let her continue to be a secretary.

Xiao Huan was dejected, pouting, her head drooping, and she even drifted when she walked.

But Fang You was very satisfied.

The old version of 'Virtual-Real Shuttle' was Xiao Huan's innate talent, which Fang You couldn't borrow and could only use by dressing up as Xiao Huan. Now, the new version's nature had changed. Not only was it stronger, but Fang You could also 'freely acquire' and use it at any time.

So he did.

Instantly, his entire being seemed to merge with the surrounding space. This feeling was incredibly profound and difficult to describe in any language, completely different from the sensation of possessing Xiao Huan.

It was akin to piloting a mech versus becoming the mech yourself.

In this transparent and profound state, with a thought, Fang You's entire body turned ethereal and lightly passed through a piece of training equipment.

Phasing through walls! Invisibility! This skill possessed both characteristics!

With another thought, Fang You's entire body merged into space and disappeared. In a flash, he appeared on Blue Star, and in another flash, he arrived in the shallow layers of the spectral realm.

However, the moment he stepped onto the ground, Fang You stumbled as if he had been tumbling in a washing machine for several hours. The ground before him seemed to rise and fall like ocean waves. The spectral anomalies roaring and pouncing from afar appeared as multiple illusions in his eyes.

Not only that, but his tough body also sustained some tearing wounds.

With a little thought, Fang You understood what was happening.

"I am not a Spirit of the Virtual after all. Even though I can use Xiao Huan's skill for extremely long-distance spatial teleportation, my body can't quite withstand it."

"Overall evaluation: Suitable for short-distance teleportation, and should not be used for extended periods."

While it had considerable limitations for him, it remained a monstrously powerful skill.

Today, the Torch Organization had once again made a significant leap, and a brilliant tomorrow awaited them.

At the same time, within her high tower, Yi Yue Luxi's face was pale and grim.

She had attempted to break through to the sixth awakening, but she failed!

Although protected by the ritual, Yi Yue Luxi did not immediately degenerate into a spectral anomaly or die outright. She still suffered irreversible root damage.

Pollution had climbed onto her body, gnawing at her soul.

Her smooth sailing for so long had made her overlook the risks and difficulties of awakening, and she had forgotten that she was injured in a previous battle, her condition was not perfect, and her state of mind was not tranquil.

The combination of these factors made failure quite normal.

Recalling the events, Yi Yue Luxi couldn't help but regret, "If I had known, I shouldn't have attempted the sixth awakening at this time. Now, not only has my combat power not increased, but it has also significantly declined, becoming even worse!"

Yi Yue Luxi bit her lip tightly.

Her talent was very high, and she was the granddaughter of the First Tower Master. She had progressed very smoothly on the path of awakening. Even the awakening tribulation, which could be described as a life-or-death trial, she had passed without much difficulty.

These were also related to her innate talent.

Yi Yue Luxi's talent was very special, called 'Trinity'. From the day this talent awakened, she gained two additional bodies.

Unlike avatars, Yi Yue Luxi's other two bodies were both avatars and her true selves.

They not only possessed the same combat power as the main body but could also cultivate independently, with their training and learning effects being shared across all three bodies.

Body One, the avatar, had a cold and aloof personality, constantly cultivating within the high tower.

Body Two, the avatar, was lively and cheerful, often traveling to various places. The one who had previously gone to Blue Star was Yi Yue Luxi's second body.

Her main body's personality was somewhere between the first and second avatars. To put it another way, the personalities of the two avatars had split off from her main body.

Also, because the three avatars had different personalities, possessed independent autonomy, and shared consciousness, Yi Yue Luxi had a unique advantage in resisting the awakening tribulation. She could awaken herself or transfer part of the tribulation to her avatars, and then the main body would take over after passing the calamity.

Now, she had suffered severe injuries, but at the cost of one avatar becoming covered in pustules of pollution, her main body and the other avatar still retained considerable combat power.

However, Yi Yue Luxi's face was still full of darkness and exhaustion, filled with despair.

"Unless the disaster stops quickly, it will be difficult for us to endure in our current state."

"Damn it, if only we could get support from Falling Star City."

"After all, we don't have much of a relationship with Falling Star City. At this moment, it's understandable that they are unwilling to take on such great risks."

"What about Blue Star and the Burning Fire Merchant Association?"

"Blue Star powerhouses cannot enter the spectral realm. As for the Burning Fire Merchant Association, if even Falling Star City cannot provide support, how could a merchant association of such small scale have any surplus power?"

"But we have to try. This is our last hope!"

"That's what you say, but we can't contact the Burning Fire Merchant Association."

They did have a few permanent personnel at the Burning Fire Merchant Association, but the distance between the two locations was very far. The conventional communication method, 'carrier pigeons,' could not fly out of the oasis now, and more advanced communication methods required epic-grade communication anomalous artifacts.

Their alliance only possessed two or three such artifacts, and they had not given them to the permanent personnel stationed at the Burning Fire Merchant Association before.

Now, communication between the two locations had been cut off. Not only could they not contact the Burning Fire Merchant Association, but they also had no idea about the situation in the Burning Fire Oasis.

It was rumored that the closer one was to the inter-realm zone, the more severe the disasters faced.

Perhaps the Burning Fire Oasis was not in a better situation.

The conference room fell into a dead silence. Their mood was like the dim surroundings; no matter how the sunlight shone outside, it couldn't dispel even a bit of it.

Sitting at one of the seats, Yi Yue Luxi, with a pale face and having been silent all along, suddenly spoke.

"I'll go."

"I'll go to the Burning Fire Merchant Association to request aid!"

Seeing the surprised gazes of several Tower Masters, Yi Yue Luxi took a deep breath, her resolve firming. "I have that treasure. Only I have the chance to reach the Burning Fire Oasis. This is our only hope now!"

"Are you sure? Going out now is not as simple as your previous trips to the outer world. A single misstep could lead to a desperate situation. Soon, there will be at least half a great domain between our Black Stone Alliance and the Burning Fire Oasis."

Second Tower Master Bernie Gen's face showed surprise.

The old woman sitting at the head seat opened her mouth, but in the end, said nothing, sighing silently.

Time was pressing, and they didn't know when the next large-scale wave would arrive. Yi Yue Luxi dared not waste any time. After taking a few healing and purifying potions, she stepped out of the oasis and onto the path of seeking hope.

She did not travel on foot or use any vehicle but summoned a black high tower.

This was the treasure she relied on to enter the shallow layers of various spectral realms. Yi Yue Luxi had obtained it by chance during a journey, and it had already bonded with her.

She named it the 'Tower of Infinity'.

At this moment, controlling this high tower, Yi Yue Luxi officially set off. The high tower, standing outside the Black Stone Alliance oasis, gradually faded, and in the next moment, it teleported thousands of kilometers away, into a spectral realm shrouded in a vast gray fog.

The Tower of Infinity itself possessed the ability to dispel gray fog, ten times more effective than the Bright Light Lantern.

At this moment, it was also effective.

However, even though the surrounding gray fog was thin, the moment the tower appeared, it attracted quite a few spectral anomalies. Seeing grotesque faces approaching from afar, a Yi Yue Luxi appeared, standing at the entrance of the tower, wielding two dual blades, and unleashing blade beams as bright as the clear moonlight.

But the spectral anomalies' recovery speed was also not slow.

Yi Yue Luxi simply remained silent, continuously swinging her blades, while another Yi Yue Luxi stood in the core of the tower, her hands clasped, with faint silver particles dancing at her fingertips.

After a while,

The black stone tower faded and disappeared, leaving only a few clawing spectral anomalies with bewildered eyes.

Xie Yu was a 'new member of the organization' who had recently passed the internal competition and obtained official membership qualification, possessing the strength of a third awakening.

However, his luck was good. Not long after officially joining, he managed to secure a qualification to be stationed at an 'outer oasis'.

He sincerely marveled at how awesome the organization was, having already built a city in the outer regions, and marveled at his own good luck, actually getting this precious outer mission qualification on his first try.

He had heard from the organization's seniors that the benefits of guarding an outer oasis were incredibly good. Not only could one quickly accumulate mystery, but they could also receive considerable contribution point rewards.

As for the danger? There was danger, of course, but before swearing his oath of membership, Xie Yu already had the resolve of a Torch member to burn himself. He had never feared danger and believed many of his comrades felt the same.

After drawing the qualification, Xie Yu was assigned to defense at Oasis Number Two, and his defense period would last for one month. However, he was not on duty all the time during this month. Instead, he rotated with another team, with rotations every three days. During rest periods, he would return to Blue Star to recover his condition.

On the surface, the Burning Fire soldiers seemed inhuman, more resilient than spectral anomalies, fighting for over two months without fatigue. In reality, except for a few well-known figures at the squadron leader and captain level, most ordinary soldiers did not even work 996 hours. Although, they were quite willing to work 996.

Xie Yu had been stationed in the eastern defense sector of the Burning Fire Merchant Association for over two weeks. He had initially felt immense pressure and suffered several serious injuries, but after dozens of major battles, he had become very mature, his face showing slight weariness, his sharp gaze scanning the surroundings, not overly tensing his nerves, yet always maintaining awareness of his surroundings.

As long as spectral anomalies appeared, he could detect them immediately.

Hmm?

Xie Yu noticed a slight ripple in the gray fog in the distance, and a dark figure rushed out of the mist.

The figure was not large; was it a rare type of spectral anomaly? He thought, his hand resting on his sword hilt as he peered closer, only to find it was a figure clad in a black robe.

The black robe worn by the figure was tattered, revealing mottled leather armor underneath, with faint traces of dried bloodstains.

"Is it human?"

"Are these humans who foolishly tried to cross the gray fog zone?"

After more than two months, such foolish awakened individuals were not many, but they occasionally encountered them, and their patrol team had cleaned up quite a few messes.

Xie Yu had always disliked these foolish awakened individuals, but as a patrol member of the Burning Fire Merchant Association, he had responsibilities and obligations.

Calling two comrades, he quickly descended from the city wall and ran towards the direction of the black-robed figure.

As he got closer, he realized the black-robed figure was in very poor condition, constantly coughing blood, staggering as she walked, and was alone. Could it be that her companions had all perished in the mouths of spectral anomalies?

He offered a silent prayer and cautiously approached.

"Miss, do you need any help?"

"Cough, cough, cough, I... I want to see... the person in charge of your Burning Fire Merchant Association. I... I represent the Black Stone Alliance."

See Elder Yiloxi?

To be honest, many people wanted to see that elder, with some even boldly stating, "I want to be the Empress's dog."

But you're so injured, and you still want to see Elder Yiloxi? Besides, that elder... a paramount figure, is not someone you can easily meet.

Wait, Xie Yu suddenly caught a keyword – Black Stone Alliance!

Before he officially joined, he had worked at the Water Marsh office for a period, and he remembered that the Black Stone Alliance was… a major partner of their Torch Organization!

This, this must be reported immediately.

In a daze, Yi Yue Luxi couldn't clearly hear what the patrolling members in front of her were saying. She only repeated the mumbled words with sheer willpower.

Until a physician in a white coat, of a plump build, arrived and waved a gentle stream of water and soothing music that enveloped her. Yi Yue Luxi felt as if she were soaking in warm water, feeling warm and comfortable. Her tightly strung nerves could no longer hold on. Her eyelids drooped a few times, and she collapsed to the ground with a thud.

When she woke up again, the first thing she saw was a white ceiling and a crystal lamp emitting soft light.

This seemed to be a clinic, and she was lying in bed.

Yi Yue Luxi's head was still a bit groggy, her thoughts slow. After staring blankly for a moment, she gradually regained consciousness. She remembered, "Right! I've arrived at the Burning Fire Oasis. I was probably rescued by people from the Burning Fire Merchant Association."

She glanced at her current appearance. She was bandaged in many places, and many wounds had healed. However, the contamination and erosion wounds caused by spectral anomalies still remained. Her condition was much worse than before. Incessant, fluctuating mad ramblings echoed in her ears, and it felt as if a worm was wriggling beneath her skin.

But she couldn't care anymore. She had to... had to see the person in charge of the Burning Fire Merchant Association, otherwise...

Struggling to sit up from the bed, she saw no one looking around. Yi Yue Luxi then leaned on the bed frame and shelves around her, walking unsteadily towards the door.

Suddenly, with a click, the doorknob turned, and the white door was slowly pushed open.

'Is it a physician from the Burning Fire Merchant Association? I wonder if I can see the person in charge of the association. I wonder if I can request reinforcements.'

Yi Yue Luxi was extremely anxious. Under the impact of ramblings and hallucinations, countless chaotic thoughts uncontrollably popped into her mind, so many that her head began to ache.

But suddenly, she froze.

The figure who pushed the door open and walked in, the more she looked, the more familiar she became.

Her black hair spilled over her shoulders, and her eyes, with a faint blue glow... this… this looks like An Jian You!

Is it a hallucination?

She was suddenly hugged, feeling a real, soft touch, and a familiar fragrance filled her nostrils.

Yi Yue Luxi was completely stunned.

"Youyou, why are you here?"