A World Worth Protecting

The face of every Federation citizen was filled with horror. Every cultivator on Mars was struck by shock. Terror surged through them uncontrollably. Even the cultivators from the Dao Palace were seized by fear!

They had lost all desire for battle and were trembling. They had been ignoring the presence of the Never-Ending Clan cultivators as well as the Never-Ending Clan puppets. However, as the events continued to unfold before their eyes, and as Daoist You Ran declared his intentions upon his complete fusion with the Death Dao Battleship, they could no longer fake ignorance.

Besides… if not for Wang Baole, there was a great chance that Daoist You Ran would have drained them dry of their vitality and cultivation earlier. Emotions flashed across the eyes of these Dao Palace cultivators as they stood in silence and gazed into the cosmos.

Reflected in their eyes, and in the eyes of the Martian cultivators and the Federation citizens… was Daoist You Ran’s gargantuan form. He seemed to hold the power to shake heaven and earth as his enormous form towered before Wang Baole. The aura he exuded remained as supernatural and eerie as before, but the power he seemed to possess… had clearly drastically transformed!

Zi Yue… Wang Baole narrowed his eyes. He knew that Zi Yue was the cause of Daoist You Ran’s transformation. He could hear the difference in Daoist You Ran’s voice as well. He sounded like a machine, and there were sounds of something metallic running. It appeared that his very nature had been changed.

Wang Baole had no idea the price that had to be paid for this transformation. Regardless, he understood that Daoist You Ran’s power and strength were clearly much greater than before. Wang Baole might have his Dark Artifact with him, but that didn’t stop him from feeling an extreme sense of danger at that moment!

One might say that the tables had been turned the moment Daoist You Ran and the Never-Ending Clan Death Dao Battleship had completed their fusion!

Daoist You Ran didn’t give Wang Baole time to react to his transformation. As his words resonated in the cosmos, he raised his right hand and pointed at Wang Baole, launching an immediate attack!

The attack didn’t trigger an eruption of light, but that didn’t stop the flash of alarm flickering on Wang Baole’s face as he swept his Lantern Oar before him. The Dark Fire spread out instantly, transforming into a sea of fire in front of him. The Dark Sampan under his feet glided back swiftly. At that precise moment, the cosmos before him caved in. A thunderous boom reverberated in the air, and countless vines surged out of the collapsed cosmos and rushed at Wang Baole.

Where these vines passed, the cosmos withered and wrinkled. Finally, the vines collided with Wang Baole’s Dark Fire.

The Dark Fire, which had proven a bane against everything else, met a worthy opponent for the first time. Amidst the rumbling of their collision, the Dark Fire burned numerous vines. However, it was also rapidly being extinguished. Within a few seconds, the Dark Fire was completely put out. The scorched vines wriggled as new shoots sprouted from their bodies. Then, they made a second charge at Wang Baole.

Daoist You Ran narrowed his eyes, and his right hand formed a series of hand seals. Numerous more vines emerged from his body, surging into the cosmos. They looked like countless tentacles swaying in the air as they raced towards Wang Baole. It was as if they intended to surround him fully and trap him within!

That wasn’t the end of Daoist You Ran’s attack. A murderous glint flickered in his eyes as he stepped forward and raised his left hand. It tightened into a fist that then smashed towards Wang Baole with overpowering force. It was a punch that seemed to contain the power to destroy everything in its path!

Countless vines danced in the air, swift and innumerable. They surrounded Wang Baole, on the verge of closing in and trapping him. Daoist You Ran’s fist was descending upon Wang Baole as well, carrying with it incredible destructive power.

The expression on Wang Baole’s face was dark as the intense danger and immense threat of death loomed over him.

Every one of the vines contained incredible resistance and resilience. Wang Baole’s Dark Fire could burn them, but it was clear that he didn’t have enough Dark Fire when compared to the countless number of vines. That was why he hadn’t been able to destroy them completely.

What made things worse was how the vines would continue to regenerate as long as they weren’t completely destroyed. Their strong regenerative abilities and inherent power made Wang Baole’s heart sink. The overwhelming power exuding from the approaching Daoist You Ran added greater stress to Wang Baole.

We can’t continue the fight here… Grim determination flashed across Wang Baole’s eyes. He knew that continuing the fight here might result in collateral damage inflicted on Mars. Any one of their attacks could be disastrous for the planet. At the same time… while Mars was a huge planet, when compared to the entire Solar System… it still wasn’t the place where he could unleash his full power.

I have to leave this place! Wang Baole didn’t hesitate as he watched the vines around him charge at him. He placed the Lantern Oar on the Dark Sampan, the sound of both artifacts coming into contact resonating in the air once more. Then, a string of complicated Dark Sect spells came out of Wang Baole’s mouth!

As soon as the spells were spoken, the State Preceptor’s face appeared on his Dark Robe, and the figure of the little boy drifted out from the Lantern Oar. There was a fearsome look on the boy’s face, it was lined with fury and violence. He screamed, and the lamp on the Lantern Oar suddenly cracked!

The Dark Fire inside the lamp surged out. The flames spread out, greater in number compared to the Dark Fires housed inside Wang Baole’s body. He was sacrificing the Lantern Oar in order to unleash the power of the Dark Fire once again!

Black flames flowed out of the broken lamp, surrounded Wang Baole, then surged outward in the blink of an eye. It was like the eruption of a volcano, black fire that clashed with the surrounding vines.

Thunder rumbled in the skies. The vines might be resilient, but Wang Baole had paid a heavy price for this second attack of Dark Fire. The vines weren’t its match. Most of them turned into dust in an instant, though the Dark Fire also suffered a hit in the collision. As a result, it wasn’t a match for Daoist You Ran’s punch. In the next instant, it scattered to the winds like autumn leaves. Daoist You Ran’s fist smashed through the sea of Dark Fire and headed straight for Wang Baole.

Just as his fist was about to land on Wang Baole, the State Preceptor howled. The Dark Robe ballooned into an incredible size, surrounding Wang Baole like a protective barrier. Daoist You Ran’s destructive punch landed on the robe.

Thunderous booms reverberated in the air, and the Dark Robe shattered into multiple pieces. The State Preceptor’s face grew blurry, and Wang Baole himself spat out a mouthful of blood. Then, the blow pushed the Dark Sampan under his feet… it dashed out of the sea of fire in the next moment, shot out of the wall of vines surrounding him, and reappeared… in the distant starlit skies.

It didn’t stop there, it continued to head for the stars.

“Trying to escape?” Daoist You Ran narrowed his eyes. He didn’t pull back his right fist, and instead, the fist suddenly stretched out in an impossible manner, moving towards Wang Baole as if in pursuit!

His fingers stretched rapidly as well. It was a disturbing sight to behold. Wang Baole had experienced numerous fights since he had first embarked on his journey of cultivation. He was battle-worn and experienced. He didn’t even spare a glance for what was going on behind him. A resolute light glimmered in his eyes.

“Lantern Oar, I promise that I’ll remake you again one day in the future!” The little boy hovered above the ruined Lantern Oar, on the verge of tears. He could only nod in reply. As he turned back and stared at the giant hand pursuing him, a flash of murderous grudge appeared in his eyes. He started chanting a curse in step with Wang Baole’s intentions. Then, Wang Baole released the Lantern Oar. The little boy’s soul returned to the artifact, and the Lantern Oar swung itself around and charged at Daoist You Ran’s giant hand!

Waves of self-destructive power surged from the Lantern Oar, growing in strength until they reached their peak. Then, in the next instant, the oar exploded. The explosion transformed into an invisible barrier that stopped Daoist You Ran’s giant hand in its tracks!

Despite Daoist You Ran’s desire to continue the pursuit, he wasn’t given a choice to do so. No matter how damaged the Lantern Oar was, it was still a Divine Armament of superior grade. Its timely and region-specific self-destruction forced the powerful Daoist You Ran into retreating so as to evade the attack!

Explosive booms thundered in the air, and Daoist You Ran was successfully held back by the explosion. Wang Baole spat out a mouthful of blood as the Dark Sampan unleashed its full force and sped away into the distant cosmos. There was a fierce glint in Wang Baole’s eyes. He knew that he wasn’t Daoist You Ran’s match at the moment. The only way to turn the tides of this fight might be to receive a boost of power from the largest planet in the Solar System. There was also something else… the summoning call from Pluto!

He was making a gamble. He was betting on his importance to Zi Yue, betting that it surpassed the importance of the Federation. He might not have been confident of his odds prior to his battle with Zi Yue, but after absorbing the power of her finger, he now felt a certain measure of confidence in his judgment.

He was also betting on Zi Yue’s nature. Someone who was so selfish and focused on her own self-interests wouldn’t think of trying to threaten him with the survival of a civilization, as that would be the ultimate childish act in her eyes.