The Stars Beyond

Chapter 29: A Living Female Practitioner

“The danger has passed, all of the Ashen Blood’s battleships have been destroyed.”

Qing Mu let out a long sigh of relief upon receiving the news. Black Tiger, Old Mu, and Kite also visibly relaxed. They had been on the brink of becoming the hunted, trapped in a deadly game with the Ashen Blood. Today had been a close call.

Wang Xuan, however, remained silent. He could not shake off the unease that lingered within him. The feeling of being completely at the mercy of others, his safety and fate out of his control, was unsettling. This was not what he had signed up for.

From the perspective of the older man, there was no denying the success of their mission. The trap had been sprung, and the Ashen Blood had suffered a significant blow. The battle had been executed flawlessly. Yet, Wang Xuan could not help but see things differently. A slight misstep today, and their starship would have been reduced to mere scrap metal, with none of them surviving.

What are you thinking?" Qing Mu, as an expert of the Old Arts, was very perceptive and could sense Wang Xuan’s low spirits.

Wang Xuan did not hesitate to share his feelings either. “While today’s mission was successful, we were mere bait, always at risk of being devoured by a bigger fish. Our survival ultimately depends on luck.”

Black Tiger, Kite, and Old Mu remained silent, but their agreement with Wang Xuan’s sentiments was evident. The only difference between them was that they had faced countless crises before and had grown somewhat accustomed to the constant danger.

“I will provide your feedback to my superiors,” Qing Mu assured, attempting to gloss over things.

Wang Xuan pondered silently. The Adventurer’s Guild was undoubtedly powerful, reaping great rewards with each mission. However, the feeling of being a pawn and having his fate dictated by others, gnawed at him. It made him extremely uncomfortable, to the extent that he contemplated the idea of pulling out entirely. He wanted to be able to explore Old Arts freely, without being tied down to any organizations.

Deep within the ravine, clouds billowed and energy cannons continued to blast. Unbeknownst to the Ashen Blood members, their escape route had been cut off, and their medium-sized battleships had been obliterated. Oblivious to the danger, they pressed on.

Their progress was soon hindered. Deep within the ravine, a multitude of advanced weapons fiercely retaliated against their invasion. It became clear that something was amiss. How could an Immortal Tomb possess such advanced technology, with more energy cannons than they had?

Automatons armed with energy weapons emerged, relentlessly strafing the invaders. Realizing that the situation was amiss, the Ashen Blood members swiftly retreated and immediately called for reinforcements. However, to their dismay, they were unable to establish any communication.

“Who are you people, and why are you ambushing us?” one of the Ashen Blood members shouted.

The person hidden deep in the ravine retorted angrily, “You attacked our underground lab and have the audacity to ask that question? How absurd!”

Both sides clashed violently, causing chaos within the ravine. Automatons, armed with energy weapons and alloy swords, fought at the forefront, unleashing beams of light and slashing with precision.

The Ashen Blood still had small starships nearby, but they could only helplessly watch the battle unfold. The mingling of both sides in the ravine made it impossible for them to intervene.

Eventually, the Ashen Blood members succumbed to defeat and began a hasty retreat. Their starships took to the sky, but before they could escape, they were struck. A series of explosions ensued in the sky.

The relevant departments and the Adventurer’s Guild, who had been observing from a distance, seized the opportunity and swiftly moved in. They had been waiting for this moment, and when they witnessed the collapse of the Ashen Blood, they showed no mercy.

Silence fell upon the individuals within the depths of the ravine as they realized they were being targeted. It became apparent that multiple forces had entered the heart of the Greater Khingan Range.

They had a sinking feeling that this time, they would not be able to confront the incoming forces. They could only speculate on the identity of the new arrivals, blaming themselves for conducting secret research for so long without reporting it to the relevant departments of the Old Earth.

Even so, they were still unwilling to surrender their research and decided to showcase the extraordinary nature of their location to facilitate negotiations. As they connected with the opposing side, they retrieved an object from the depths of the ground—a golden bamboo with leaves, brimming with vitality.

As they activated it with a peculiar instrument, a haze surged forth, emanating a powerful supernatural force. Instantly, nearby starships were affected, as if they had been struck by a shockwave.

“Is that the raw material of golden bamboo slips?” Wang Xuan stood in front of the large screen in the starship, unable to tear his eyes away. The leaves of the bamboo emitted a golden haze, releasing a shower of light that interfered with the precision instruments in the vicinity.

Qing Mu was astounded. “Supernatural force is being released through that bamboo, and it seems to only affect the surrounding area, leaving them unharmed.”

He could not help but wonder what kind of secrets lay hidden within this underground lab for the research department from Terra Nova to reveal this extraordinary plant without any hesitation.

Over the years, the major organizations and megacorporations of Terra Nova had discovered four golden bamboo slips on the Old Earth, but they had never obtained a living specimen of such bamboo. It surprised him that there was one among the Greater Khingan Range.

Boom! The top management of the Adventurer’s Guild and the representatives from the relevant departments obviously received a report. Without hesitation, they launched an attack on the remnants of the Ashen Blood, swiftly bringing an end to the conflict. They then established contact with the underground lab, preparing for negotiations.

“Qing Mu, escort the people from the relevant departments inside the ravine together with Jin Chuan to see what’s going on with the underground lab.” The old man’s voice came through again, instructing Qing Mu to bring a few of his reliable men to go deeper into the underground.

There was no doubt that the Adventurer’s Guild had always had close dealings with the relevant departments. Otherwise, the collaboration today would not have happened.

Black Tiger, Kite, and Old Mu watched with bated breath. Knowing that it would not be dangerous to venture into the ravine, they were all eager to witness the discoveries and the scientific results that the research department from Terra Nova had made and produced. With so many starships flying across the sky outside and all sorts of advanced weapons aimed at the ravine, the people in the underground would not start a war unless they were crazy.

“Little Wang, Black Tiger, you two follow me.” Qing Mu got off the starship first, then he selected six more people from the other groups to join him.

Kite and Old Mu were slightly disappointed, but they understood Qing Mu’s decision. Although there should not be any danger, it was wiser to pick better fighters to join him.

Jin Chuan also brought eight people along and waited at the entrance to the ravine.

Seven people from the relevant departments arrived. Their leader was a man in his forties, wearing black-rimmed glasses. He would be the person in charge of approaching the other party for preliminary negotiations.

Wang Xuan was startled when he caught sight of the man’s profile. Ever since Wang Xuan had heard the voice of the person talking to Qing Mu, he had been suspicious if that old man was his colleague. Now, this middle-aged man was wearing the black-rimmed glasses, just like his colleague, further fueling his paranoia. Fortunately, his keen intuition as an expert in Old Arts assured him that this person was definitely not his colleague, despite his face being covered by a human face mask.

Beside the man with the black-rimmed glasses were two people from the military. Likewise, both of them were also experts in Old Arts. The remaining four people were professionals in the field of life science research. They were the ones who would be escorted inside the facility and confirm the activities in it.

A small starship emerged from the ravine that had been badly destroyed, taking everyone deeper into it until they reached a huge cavern at the end of it. As soon as they stepped out of the starship, they saw the underground fortification. It was well-built, with all sorts of facilities built to modern standards.

It was a brightly lit, spacious underground facility with a modern touch. It looked no different than the interior of a skyscraper, equipped with a large lounge and the most advanced laboratory.

The group rode the elevator more than a hundred meters down before stopping. Then, they left the modern looking area and headed toward a cavern.

The representatives from Terra Nova accompanied them, explaining along the way, “This was where we made the most amazing discovery. Since we decided to share it with the Old Earth, we won’t withhold any information...”

The organization, known as “Origin”, was far from small and boasted a stellar reputation on Terra Nova. Despite its name suggesting a focus on scientific research, Origin was actually involved in various fields and held significant influence in the industry. This was evident in their ability to finance the construction of an extensive research lab on the Old Earth. Their substantial security force also proved that they had no fear toward mercenary groups like the Ashen Blood.

The middle-aged man wearing black-rimmed glasses asked, “How did you guys find this place?” This was the Greater Khingan Range, a region covered with dense primitive forests, not some famous mountains or rivers. There were no myths or legends, so to come here and randomly dig down hundreds of meters without reliable information would be either crazy or stupid.

A female researcher from Terra Nova explained, “We deciphered a volume of bamboo slips from the Early Qin dynasty and found a mention of this place. We explored for many years and finally found it.”

“What was written on the bamboo slips that motivated all of you to pursue all the way here?” the man wearing black-rimmed glasses continued asking.

Wang Xuan, who was standing nearby him, was equally interested in these questions.

“The bamboo slips mentioned a renowned female practitioner who aspired to ascend to immortality. Although the bamboo slips were damaged and the text was incomplete, the location was mentioned, so we searched for it all the way here.”

The people from Nova Terra once dug up several incomplete corpses of practitioners from the Early Qin dynasty in the Old Earth. They had extracted abnormal substances from their bones and hair, which had amazing scientific research value. Since there was a female practitioner who aspired to ascend to immortality here, their interests were naturally piqued..

The most powerful practitioners were considered legendary figures known for their incredible abilities. Unfortunately, information about them was extremely rare to come by. Any news about them would garner the attention of major organizations, even in an era where New Arts were flourishing. Furthermore, many believed that these so-called immortals were all exceptional practitioners from the Early Qin dynasty.

“Did you all manage to find that female practitioner?” the middle-aged man wearing black-rimmed glasses asked.

“We did.” The female researcher, who accompanied them all the way toward the cavern, answered the question affirmatively as she ordered the people to open the stone chamber in front of them.

With a loud rumble, the stone door was opened and an inexplicable aura immediately flowed through it. Although Wang Xuan had not gone in yet, he believed the words of the female researcher.

It was an extremely familiar aura. He felt like he was in the “Inner Landscape”. He caught some mystery factors. That substance was actually drifting in the air down here!

Everyone was shocked.

There was a golden bamboo with the diameter of a meter in front of them. It was cut open in a way that it looked like a small boat. A young woman was lying in it. She looked alive, as if she had just fallen asleep not long ago.

This woman was undoubtedly a beauty, even by modern beauty standards. Her delicate skin was as fair as snow and her hair flowed like dark silk. She had a flawless and exceptionally beautiful face.

“There’s still life in her!” Qing Mu’s expression was grave. It was the first time he spoke, and he actually sounded a little nervous.

Although the woman remained motionless with her eyes closed, Qing Mu could not help but feel an unsettling presence from the faint aura surrounding her. He felt like a herbivore in the face of the king of beasts—filled with unease and an instinctual desire to flee.

Wang Xuan was also staring at the woman in the golden bamboo boat, clearly sensing powerful vitality from her. The young woman’s body showed no signs of decomposition, and the clothing she wore had a distinct design from the Early Qin dynasty. Despite the passing of many years, both her body and the clothes remained remarkably well-preserved.

“That's right, her body seems to be alive!” The female researcher from Terra Nova nodded solemnly.