Chapter 31: The Strange Stone That Seals Divine Crystals
As she lingered, Shi Hao smiled, lifted her into his arms, carried her to his room, and placed her on the bed.
“Let’s just chat then,” he said, pulling the covers over them. He didn’t make any further advances, simply talking with her.
The pale red light of dawn crept through the window, illuminating the room.
Leaving the girl, who had fallen asleep in his arms, on the bed, Shi Hao quietly got up and went outside to wash his face.
Daoist Lan Ke strolled over from the other side of the courtyard, glanced at him, and suddenly asked, “Is Yuejiao in your room?”
Knowing he couldn’t hide it, Shi Hao nodded slightly.
He hadn’t actually done anything, but Daoist Lan Ke didn’t know that.
Daoist Lan Ke sighed, “This child grew up in the Chongxian Sect. She doesn’t know much about the outside world and is quite innocent. You must treat her well.”
Shi Hao nodded slowly, “Rest assured, Senior.”
Soon, Du Yuejiao, awakened by the voices outside, also got up hurriedly.
…
Around mid-morning, Shi Hao, ready to leave, bid farewell to a reluctant Du Yuejiao.
After walking several li together, Shi Hao smiled, “If you keep following me, you’ll end up leaving with me. Go back now. Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon.”
Du Yuejiao looked up at him and whispered, “Come back soon, Brother Shi. I’ll be waiting.”
Shi Hao nodded, waved goodbye, and continued walking.
After rounding a bend in the mountain path, he suddenly heard the girl’s voice from above, “Brother Shi, come back soon! I’ll be waiting for you!”
He turned and saw her standing on the slope, waving at him. She must have climbed up while he wasn’t looking.
Shi Hao waved back. The girl, bathed in sunlight, smiled brightly.
He turned and continued towards Jin Prefecture, his expression resolute.
Entering the city, he changed his appearance using the Evil Shadow Disguise Technique and went to the secluded courtyard to meet with Old Qiu and Lu Tong.
Old Qiu said, “Righteous Hao, we’ve located the Shu Tiger Gang’s base in the northwest mountains.”
Lu Tong brought out a map and pointed to a marked intersection, “As you predicted, Brother Hao, last night’s sudden search disrupted the Shu Tiger Gang’s plans. Some of the children were sent here, but many were left behind. Tonight, they’ll transport all the children to this location and then send them away together.”
Shi Hao asked, “Where is the Vast Sea?”
Lu Tong pointed to the northwest corner of the map, “In this direction, but it’s much further. For the Shu Tiger Gang, this is a big deal, so they’ll definitely send a large number of men. Besides Cheng Kun, their leader, they have two other eighth-rank martial artists, Hong Youyi and Yuan Gang. If Cheng Kun isn’t personally leading the operation, then it must be one of these two.
“They’re both quite skilled, and with numerous ninth-rank martial artists as well, rescuing all those children won’t be easy.”
Shi Hao said calmly, “Don’t worry, we don’t need to do much. Just provide information. Thank you for your help. You can leave this matter to me now. Let’s talk about something else.”
Old Qiu and Lu Tong looked at him.
Shi Hao said solemnly, “I’ve found out what the God-Sealing Experiment is.”
Old Qiu and Lu Tong exchanged glances. Old Qiu said, “Please tell us, Righteous Hao.”
Shi Hao clasped his hands behind his back and paced back and forth, “It all started with Daoist Lan Ke. As you know, he’s one of the Twelve Perfected Ones of the Chongxian Sect, highly skilled in alchemy, crafting, and refining magical weapons. And all magical weapons require divine crystals.
“Divine crystals can’t be used directly. To use them, you either absorb them into your body, becoming a supernatural ability user, or you forge them into magical weapons. And when a supernatural ability user dies, or a magical weapon reaches its usage limit, a pure energy is released.
“The depleted divine crystal will then reappear within a hundred-mile radius. But even within that range, it could be hidden deep in the mountains or underground. And since divine crystals are small, finding them is like searching for a needle in a haystack.
“And as we know, no two supernatural abilities are the same. A depleted divine crystal will always reappear, it’s just a matter of whether it can be found quickly.”
Old Qiu and Lu Tong nodded… This was common knowledge.
Shi Hao continued, “But Daoist Lan Ke is truly extraordinary. He’s not interested in power or worldly affairs, only in his research. He believes that depleted divine crystals don’t just reappear randomly, but there must be a pattern.
“So, he studied the locations where divine crystals have reappeared, the characteristics of the soil and rocks, using feng shui, divination, and other methods. He thought, if he could identify these unique characteristics and replicate them, could he make depleted divine crystals reappear at a designated location?”
Old Qiu and Lu Tong were both stunned.
Lu Tong gasped, “He succeeded?”
Shi Hao said, “Abbot Song Cui of Ming Kun Monastery was also very interested in this. Since the process required a large amount of data and many rare materials, even Ming Kun Monastery couldn’t obtain everything, so they approached the Yue Ke Tai family.
“Finally, after much research and experimentation, they created something called a ‘God-Sealing Stone.’ Then, they deliberately depleted the power of a magical weapon near this stone.”
He looked around and said solemnly, “After the magical weapon was destroyed, the depleted divine crystal reappeared inside the God-Sealing Stone three days later.”
Old Qiu and Lu Tong’s expressions changed drastically.
Shi Hao continued, “Not only that, to further test their theory, the Yue Ke Tai family sent a death row inmate named Meng Zhen…”
Lu Tong gasped, “Brother Meng?”
Shi Hao looked at her, “You know him, Miss Lu?”
Lu Tong’s voice trembled, “Brother Meng is one of us. He killed a corrupt military official in Chang Prefecture who had slaughtered two villages and claimed the villagers were bandits. He was pursued by the barbarian court and captured. Although he’s a supernatural ability user, his divine crystal is the ‘Moon Shattering Star,’ which only works under the moonlight, a significant limitation.
“W-what did they do to him?”
Shi Hao lowered his voice, “They killed him in Ming Kun Monastery’s Golden Crucible Hall. Three days later, the divine crystal from his body also appeared inside the God-Sealing Stone.”
Lu Tong covered her face and wept, “Brother Meng…”
Old Qiu sighed, “As long as the barbarians rule, countless righteous martial artists and innocent people will suffer at their hands.”
He frowned, “So, the barbarian court and the Chongxian Sect now have a way to collect divine crystals?”
Shi Hao said, “Ming Kun Monastery created three God-Sealing Stones. They’re called ‘God-Sealing’ because they ‘seal’ divine crystals. As far as I know, these stones currently have limitations. First, the magical weapon must be destroyed, or the supernatural ability user must die, within ten zhang of the stone for the divine crystal to reappear inside it.
“And after numerous experiments, Ming Kun Monastery confirmed that as long as the death occurs within this range, even if the stone is moved afterwards, the divine crystal will still appear inside it.
“Second, the three God-Sealing Stones are currently too large, the size of millstones, making them difficult to carry. But these are just prototypes. According to Daoist Lan Ke’s research, they can be miniaturized.”
Lu Tong gasped, “If the barbarian court creates a large number of God-Sealing Stones and eliminates supernatural ability users one by one, they’ll be able to control a vast number of divine crystals!”
Old Qiu frowned, “If that happens, the Chinese martial world will never recover.”
Shi Hao sighed deeply, “Once they mass-produce these stones, with the barbarian court’s ruthlessness, they will definitely hunt down all supernatural ability users and those who possess magical weapons. They might even create an army entirely composed of supernatural ability users. The Chinese martial world will have no chance of resistance.”
Old Qiu said grimly, “I must inform headquarters immediately. If headquarters sends experts to kill Daoist Lan Ke…”
Shi Hao shook his head, “It’s useless. I considered that as well, but it’s too late to kill Daoist Lan Ke now.
“In the beginning, even he didn’t expect to succeed. He simply thought it was a possibility and experimented. Later, somehow the news leaked out, and a thief stole a significant amount of data from the Golden Crucible Hall.”
Lu Tong said, “The female thief the barbarian court was searching for a few days ago?”
Shi Hao nodded, “That’s right. That female thief is either a supernatural ability user or possesses a unique magical weapon. Although Ming Kun Monastery’s security is tight, she still managed to steal the information. The Yue Ke Tai family and Abbot Song Cui realized they couldn’t hide it any longer, so they reported it to the court and the Chongxian Sect elders.
“Yesterday evening, the barbarian court sent a group, including several experts and riders. They transported the three God-Sealing Stones overnight, likely to the capital. The Yue Ke Tai family, Daoist Song Cui, Zhuo Mulan, and others were all involved in this experiment, and now the barbarian court and the Chongxian Sect know it was successful.
“Even if we kill Daoist Lan Ke now, I’m afraid it won’t stop this disaster.”
Old Qiu stood up, “I must inform headquarters immediately. Given the importance of this matter, they will definitely respond swiftly. We might be able to gather enough experts to intercept the transport before it reaches the central plains.
“No matter what, we cannot allow those three God-Sealing Stones to reach the capital.”
Shi Hao asked solemnly, “Do you have enough men?”
Old Qiu smiled wryly, “To be honest, Dark Thunder was formed by our leader uniting righteous martial artists from all over who oppose the barbarian court. Our leader always asks, ‘Why are we, the descendants of a land so rich in talent and resources, being oppressed by the barbarians?’ It’s because the various martial arts factions have always been divided.
“Although we have gathered many people, our organization is still young. Our leader has instructed us to spread out, develop our forces secretly in various regions, and wait for the right opportunity. Once the time comes, we will rise up simultaneously across the land.
“Logically, we shouldn’t reveal our strength to the barbarian court at this time. But this matter is too important. If we don’t act now, we’ll regret it later. At this point, even if we’re exposed, we have no choice.”
Shi Hao nodded, “I understand. Tonight, I’ll deal with the abducted children. You focus on informing your headquarters. Leave me your contact information. After I’ve handled this matter, I’ll join you. Count me in for intercepting the God-Sealing Stones.”
Old Qiu looked at him gratefully, “Righteous Hao…”
“My name is Hao Xinghua,” Shi Hao said, his voice firm and resolute, “As long as you’re willing to expel the barbarians and restore our Chinese lands, I’m with you!”
Shi Hao left the city, map in hand, and headed northwest.
He traveled tirelessly until the sun reached its zenith, finally arriving at the location marked on the map.
Hiding in the shadows, he saw a small, hidden village nestled in the mountains, its gate guarded by watchful martial artists.
He didn’t dare to approach too closely, not wanting to alert them. He circled the village and, ignoring it, continued west, following the map.
He climbed a hill and surveyed the surrounding terrain.
He had drawn several circles on the map and checked each location, crossing them out one by one.
He reached a mountain canyon and looked down from the north side.
The dense forest here was a perfect place for an ambush.
Above him, ancient trees towered, their branches and leaves blocking out the sunlight.
He quickly calculated the distances and locations he had just passed, forming a mental map.
Suddenly, he leaped down into the canyon, then climbed the opposite side, searching among the jagged rocks and ancient vines.
He spent almost two hours before finally finding a hidden cave. It wasn’t spacious, but it was enough for him. And concealed by the dense forest, it would be difficult for anyone to find him.
As evening approached, knowing he didn’t have much time, he took out a chisel and began carving a strange pattern on the ground, using all his strength.
After half an hour, he stood up, wiped the sweat from his forehead, looked down at his work, and smiled with satisfaction.
Without wasting any time, he left the cave and hurried back towards Jin Prefecture.
The setting sun dipped below the horizon, and dark clouds gathered in the sky. Although there was no sign of rain, the air was heavy and humid.
It would be a moonless night…
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