This was Chen Xu's second visit to the Demon Abyss seal. The last time he came, the entrance was quite rudimentary, guarded only by a slovenly, drunken middle-aged security guard. But now, the entrance had undergone a dramatic transformation. Clusters of orange-yellow flowers bloomed all around the entrance, forming a sea of flowers that swayed in the wind. From the stamens, bubbles would occasionally emerge, floating into the air with a gust of wind. These bubbles were exceptionally resilient, drifting in the sky for a long time without breaking. "Teacher Xia, what's going on? Why does Daxia have time to plant so many flowers at the Demon Abyss entrance? Are they turning it into a tourist attraction? But these flowers look a bit familiar; I feel like I've seen them somewhere before."
Chen Xu approached, crouched down, plucked a flower, and examined it closely. "These dream flowers aren't what you and the Hurricane Warband brought back? They were described as a secret treasure and gift from the Yellow Sand Kingdom."
"Oh! So those were the seeds."
It was only after Xia Qiming's reminder that Chen Xu remembered the mysterious seeds from the Yellow Sand treasure trove. At the time, the Plant Mage from the Hurricane Warband had cultivated one of the seeds, and Chen Xu had seen it once.
"But why are they called dream flowers? Aren't these special plants for detecting corruption and degradation?"
Xia Qiming looked back, signaling Chen Xu to hurry and catch up. "You'll know once you go inside."
Chen Xu followed, entering the dungeon with Xia Qiming.
"Holy crap, Teacher Xia, how many resources did Daxia spend? The entire dungeon is covered in dream flowers."
As far as the eye could see, everything was blanketed in orange-yellow dream flowers. Although this buffer dungeon above the Demon Abyss wasn't huge, it was at least the size of a hundred football fields. Covering it with so many dream flowers must have cost an immense amount of resources and effort. These weren't chives or weeds that you could just scatter seeds and forget about.
"That's nothing. Daxia developed super fertilizers many years ago. By now, they even have transcendent-tier fertilizers with five-element attributes. Planting a few ordinary plants like this is a trivial matter."
The two walked onward and soon reached the large pit where the World Will resided. The dream flowers near the pit no longer emitted bubbles. The bubbles released from the outer areas would burst into foam as soon as they floated over the pit.
Seeing this, Chen Xu understood how the dream flowers detected corruption. No wonder they were called dream flowers; spitting bubbles in a sleep-like dream state signified a normal environment. Once there was an aura of corruption in the surroundings, they would awaken and stop emitting bubbles.
Before they even got close, a ray of light flew out of the pit. The light faded, revealing a small child floating in the air. This time, he wasn't wearing a traditional bellyband but an ill-fitting Daoist robe, which, combined with his short stature, looked somewhat comical.
The World Will first glanced at Chen Xu before turning its gaze back to Xia Qiming. "Why are you two here again?"
"Lord Heavenly Dao, Chen Xu discovered traces of Hell's corruption in the Akhan world. So, I would like to ask if you could temporarily close the dungeon entrance leading to the Akhan world while Daxia clears the ultra-tier dungeon."
The World Will remained unconcerned, landing on the ground and dragging its long Daoist robe as it walked towards them. "It's quite normal for Big Brother Akhan to have residual Hell's corrupting power after being invaded by Hell, isn't it? Why the fuss?"
"But I found the corrupting power on one of their councilors, and it's highly probable that an Archmage infected him. You understand what an Archmage is, right? In Akhan, they are equivalent to someone of my status."
Chen Xu, fearing the World Will might not be familiar with Akhan's culture and history, specifically explained. Unexpectedly, this well-intentioned gesture was met with a disdainful smile from the World Will. "I maintain the appearance of a human child merely to conserve energy; it doesn't mean my intelligence is like a child's, okay? You mentioned Archmages, so you should also know they are a group of lunatics who would do anything for the sake of truth. It's not impossible for them to use corrupting power for experiments. I've read Big Brother Akhan's Annals of Time; such things have happened quite often."
The World Will didn't care. Regarding Akhan's corrupting power, it simply thought it was another mad act by some Archmage. "But that's Hell, isn't it? Wouldn't it be better to be cautious?"
Chen Xu was puzzled. Why was the World Will so brave today? It wasn't like this last time he visited. "Suit yourselves. If you absolutely insist, it's not impossible. After all, your Daxia has set an example for other countries, so I can grant you some small requests."
With that, the World Will casually conjured a small bead, tossed it to Xia Qiming, then turned and walked directly back into the pit. "Activate this world bead with mental strength, and you can temporarily close the world passage to Akhan. As for when to use it, that's up to you to decide."
The World Will bounced once, flew into the air, returned to its initial glowing form, and plunged into the pit. Chen Xu and Xia Qiming exchanged glances, shaking their heads helplessly. Although they didn't understand why the World Will was so unconcerned about the hidden danger in the Akhan world, with the world bead in hand, their objective was achieved.
The two started walking back. Halfway there, the World Will's voice echoed. "Oh, right. You can prepare thoroughly for the ultra-tier dungeon clearing; no need to rush. I've already checked beyond the world, and there are indeed Hell demons active."
Upon hearing this, Chen Xu and Xia Qiming froze. Before Xia Qiming could speak, the World Will continued. "However, besides the Hell demons, I also discovered Heaven's angel legions. Hell and Heaven are already clashing. We are on the edge of the battlefield and won't be affected for now. So, you can develop slowly; you should have enough time."
No wonder the World Will seemed like a brute today, no longer as cautious about Hell. It turned out it had seen Heaven drawing Hell's fire from beyond the world. Given the animosity between those two factions, a hundred years of fighting would be considered short. Some large battlefields had been raging for tens of thousands of years. In either case, there was ample time for Blue Star's job-holders to grow. Moreover, being on the edge of the battlefield would also provide a continuous stream of world fragments, serving as resources for the job-holders' growth.
...
Back in Daxia, Xia Qiming first sent messages to other countries, notifying them that Daxia had decided to close the Akhan world passage in ten days, asking them to evacuate personnel in advance. Although the World Will said Heaven was countering Hell, Xia Qiming remained conservative. All of Daxia's high-end combat power would enter the ultra-tier dungeon, and the clearing time was unknown. If they were backstabbed at such a time, the loss would be immense.
Ten days later, in the Nanhai District, Linghai City.
Daxia began the traction ritual. As the last rune was drawn, the array on the ground lit up with a dazzling light. A pillar of light shot straight into the sky, connecting to the dungeon space beyond the world. At the same time, Xia Qiming activated the world bead, temporarily closing the world passage to Akhan.
Subsequently, Chen Xu's top enforcer, the Undead Kingdom's chief minion, Soul of Freedom Flideng, was the first to enter the dungeon. After a moment, Chen Xu looked at Xia Qiming and nodded. Xia Qiming waved his hand, and the clearing force set out.
Rate on N.U.
