While a leader meandered through Water Marsh Base City like a passerby, the envoy from Wavecrest City-State was not with them.
After a brief tour of his own, when he had seen all he wanted to see, the Wavecrest envoy entered the restaurant in the rest area. He savored the lingering exquisite food, contemplating his next move.
Gazing at the brightly lit, bustling yet orderly base city under the night sky,
The envoy felt a touch of bewilderment.
He had already established a degree of cooperation with the Blue Eagles of the Star Continent on behalf of Wavecrest City-State. Many plans for further cooperation were finalized, reviewed by the city-state's higher-ups, and approved, awaiting future execution.
However,
Water Marsh Base City had been established on the ruins of a defeated city-assaulting wave.
These were things he had only heard about. Lacking his own intelligence network, he knew little and didn't quite believe it until today, when he witnessed the prosperity and stability of Water Marsh Base City firsthand. The blue-robed envoy had an epiphany.
"Continue cooperating with the Blue Eagles Federation?"
"Only a fool would cooperate!"
He had done so previously because, through various means, he had learned that the Blue Eagles were the strongest nation before the mysterious descent.
But times had changed.
The Blue Eagle nation was not adapted to the mysterious.
"No, not entirely."
"For instance, Area 51 alone has seven or eight, possibly more, Triple Awakened individuals, and their self-made awakened weapons are not weak."
From his perspective, the Blue Eagles Federation was quite strong.
But Dong Huang was stronger, overwhelmingly so.
Or rather, Dong Huang's supporters were unreasonably powerful.
The Wavecrest envoy was unaware of deeper secrets; he was just one person with no subordinates. Yet, he had made a special trip to the outer defense line and had been observing the clear sky that enveloped the base city.
He didn't understand the reasons, only felt awestruck.
If Dong Huang were only slightly stronger than the Blue Eagles, he would still have chosen to cooperate with the black-clad leader. But Dong Huang was far too strong; the Dawn District, the resistance against super waves, and so on—they had created one miracle after another.
The gap was too immense!
"Our Wavecrest City-State came to these new worlds merely to conduct business, to cooperate and earn money, not to cultivate proxies to conquer the world."
For conquest was futile; the world would eventually be destroyed.
In such circumstances, continuing to invest in Area 51 was not appropriate.
Fortunately, their current investment was not substantial. They could withdraw in time. What they needed to do next was to cooperate with Dong Huang, or with that mysterious Spark Organization. Even if their Wavecrest City-State joined too late to get the prime cuts, drinking the soup would suffice.
No further investment was needed, and at least they wouldn't lose money.
The Wavecrest envoy mused, "If this were just an ordinary world, this sip of soup wouldn't be worth much. But this Blue Star is clearly extraordinary. Whether it's supported by a high-ranking being behind the scenes, or if Blue Star is brimming with its own destiny, timely cooperation will bring significant returns to our Wavecrest City-State."
"However, our Wavecrest City-State has come too late, and we know too little about the Spark. If we don't want to just sip soup but also eat meat..."
His authority alone was insufficient.
The Wavecrest envoy had the idea of reporting to the higher-ups, but he still needed to investigate further.
During this Blue Star conference...
...
...
On the eve of the Blue Star World Conference, as envoys from various oases were preparing or had already contacted their superiors,
In the Ghost Realm, in a certain area of the Fallen Star Cavern region.
Gray mist swirled, dark clouds shrouded the sky, and amidst the vast, interconnected cavern passages, a hidden paradise existed.
Although the sun was not visible here, strands of light cascaded down.
They fell upon the dense structures.
On the outskirts of the city stood a magnificent white giant wall. Within a recessed area outside the wall, several tiers of steps led to a ritual altar. Upon it were carved intricate azure patterns, forming a profound diagram.
At the eight corners of the high platform, small lamps were erected, burning with faint blue flames that seemed inextinguishable.
On this section of the city wall stood several well-equipped elites from Sword Flower City. They were not city guards but were responsible for monitoring the altar, keeping a constant watch.
Suddenly,
Wisps of gray mist appeared on the octagonal platform, churning incessantly.
In the distance, in the gray mist area hundreds of meters from the city wall, the mist also began to stir, drifting out in strands.
The faint blue flames on the high platform burned brighter, intensely consuming energy.
"The descent altar is showing signs of activity. It must be an envoy returning. Quickly, notify all academies."
The curly-haired youth, who appeared to be the captain, commanded.
He simultaneously drew his personal sword, its silver blade glinting in the sunlight, his eyes fixed on the ritual altar where gray mist was rising.
The descent altar was an indispensable facility for their Sword Flower City to search for new worlds and for envoys to descend and return.
However, it carried risks.
An envoy had once met with an accident during their return, dying midway but bringing back a disaster-level ghost, causing considerable losses.
This was also one of the reasons why the ritual altar was placed outside the city wall...
...one of them.
"Which envoy do you think is returning this time?"
"Which one? There are only two, aren't there? Envoy Allen departed over a year ago and returned once in between, but that was a few months ago. Envoy Methysa only left recently."
"In that case, it must be Envoy Allen returning this time."
"The world Envoy Allen went to is probably nearing its end. With his return, he might be preparing to attempt the Fourth Awakening."
Upon hearing this, the Sword Flower elites displayed envy.
They were all skilled in the Third Awakening, even touching the threshold of the Fourth. Occasionally, they would experience 'awakening premonitions.'
However, they dared not attempt the awakening.
Without the academies' ritual arrangements, without those spirit-calming treasures and potions, the probability of surviving the tribulation of the Fourth Awakening was extremely low.
At the slightest mistake... no, in most cases, self-awakening would lead to immediate death.
They were afraid.
Even though Fourth Awakened Non-Humans held a much higher status in Sword Flower City than Third Awakened elites like themselves, they were considered high-ranking officials in the Great Oasis.
They still dared not attempt it.
They could live quite comfortably in the Third Awakening, so why risk their lives for a near-certain death?
To achieve the Fourth Awakening, one needed to continuously accumulate merit, or have their family provide the means, to request an academy dean to arrange a ritual, supplemented by various treasures. Only then would there be a higher probability of success, which was the correct method for the Fourth Awakening.
Envoys, who usually returned successfully, had accumulated enough merit.
"After all, envoys are selected from the top graduates of various academies, naturally possessing a considerable hope for the Fourth Awakening. It's normal for them to enter the Fourth Awakening in the future."
"Yes, brothers, pay attention to etiquette and welcome the future Fourth Awakened dignitary."
At this moment, the gray mist churned, gathering more and more.
Unseen by the city guards, in a space of immeasurable distance, the gray mist enveloped the top and sides, so dense it resembled a mist wall... no, a gray passage.
Within this gray mist passage, about ten to twenty meters wide, dried branches occasionally floated by, and at other times, the wreckage of half-built structures flashed past.
Bizarre and surreal.
It was like looking out a window from a moving vehicle, with scenery rushing past.
Within the mist-shrouded passage, strands of gray mist also drifted. Methysa, holding a lamp in one hand and a sword in the other, walked neither fast nor slow in this 'reverse descent ritual passage.'
Compared to 'normal descent,' 'reverse descent' was much more troublesome and time-consuming.
"I've probably been walking for a day or two?"
"I should be there by now."
Methysa murmured.
In the desolate environment, she could only talk to herself, maintaining a degree of mental focus. She continued forward, not daring to take a wrong step, especially into the dense, wall-like gray mist.
Once she stepped into it, the reverse descent ritual would be disrupted, and she would be lost in the Ghost Realm.
At that point, let alone her Non-Human status, even if she were Fifth or Sixth Awakened, without finding an exit, she would only have exhaustion and death as her fate.
However,
She was already a Non-Human, so traversing this reverse descent passage was relatively easy. Occasionally...
Gray mist surged to her front left, and a three-star ghost lunged out. But before it seemed to have clearly identified its prey, a brilliant silver sword light flashed, exquisitely slicing its body.
*Bang—*
The ghost fell to the ground.
Methysa cut open the monster's corpse with her sword, picked out a useful material, and placed it in her backpack before continuing on her way as if nothing had happened.
Ghosts were not generally numerous, and three-star ones were even rarer. It was just that in such an environment, one could not relax and had to remain vigilant at all times.
Methysa ran, stepping over ground covered in gray rubble, stepping over land with glowing small blue grass, passing through narrow tunnels...
The surrounding environment changed layer by layer.
Suddenly, it gradually slowed. In the distance, at the end of the mist-shrouded passage, clusters of blue flames appeared, flickering like signposts.
"Almost there!"
She felt invigorated and abruptly quickened her pace, passing through layer after layer of shifting veils.
In a moment, the gray mist in front became sparser until it completely dissipated, and her vision suddenly opened up, with strands of sunlight falling before her.
The familiar altar, the familiar white giant wall.
She was back!
"Congratulations to Envoy Allen for successfully returning... Huh?"
The captain uttered the prepared lines, but paused halfway through.
He rubbed his eyes, leaned forward, and looked at the ritual altar beneath the giant wall.
The captain was not familiar with Envoy Allen or Envoy Methysa, but at least, he could not mistake a man for a woman!
So, the one returning is...
"Envoy Methysa?"
"It is I. Here are my identification and communication imprint."
After a series of validations using Sword Flower City's unique methods, the captain placed his hand on his chest and performed a Sword Flower salute. "Envoy Methysa, please wait a moment. I'll have someone lower the climbing ladder."
The voice came from the giant wall.
Methysa tilted her head, gazing up at the dozens of meters high giant wall, which had once seemed insurmountable in her eyes. She waved her hand, "No need, I'll do it myself."
With that, Methysa retreated slightly, suddenly exerted force, and leaped up. Relying on the two perpendicular walls of the recessed city wall, she used her legs to push off several times for leverage. In the blink of an eye, she landed gracefully on the towering city wall with an elegant roll.
She brushed the dust off her clothes.
"That's right, I am already a Non-Human."