Free Web NovelChapter 197: Chapter 197: Panshi Safety Zone
Ning Xuan’s reaction immediately revealed the answer. She happily leaned over, hugged Di Youlin, and gave him a kiss. "Has your mouth been blessed or something? You actually guessed right."
"This ring really is a Space Artifact, one that can be used on this planet." Ning Xuan was overjoyed. Life was so inconvenient without a Space Artifact, and this storage ring was the perfect solution to their most pressing problem.
After being kissed in public, Di Youlin’s face lit up, and he even pushed his luck by taking Ning Xuan’s hand.
The others also began cutting their fingers, one by one, dripping blood onto the items in their hands. Yun Han handed the folded fan and the Jade Pendant to Ning Xuan, wanting her to try them.
Ning Xuan initially refused, but seeing the stubborn look in his eyes, she took the Jade Pendant. When her blood dripped onto it, the pendant suddenly emitted a green glow. The coiled, hornless dragon carving on its surface seemed to slowly swim about. A moment later, the Jade Pendant returned to its original state.
However, Ning Xuan could now sense that the Jade Pendant had formed a connection with her. She could also perceive its purpose.
It was a defensive Jade Pendant, capable of blocking a fatal attack and reflecting it back at the attacker. It could be used three times.
Yun Han dripped his blood onto the folded fan, which had a similar reaction. It was as if a seal on the once-ordinary fan had been broken, and its appearance changed in an instant.
With a flick of his long, slender fingers, Yun Han opened the fan. A vision of high mountains and flowing water materialized on the Jade Bone Ice Gauze surface.
Yun Han infused his own energy into it, and thirty-six streaks of white light shot out from the fan’s face, tracing profound trajectories. They froze in mid-air just after leaving the fan. With a wave, Yun Han recalled the objects to his hand and showed them to Ning Xuan. She stared at the tiny needles, amazed.
"There are needles hidden inside this fan? So it’s used to fire Hidden Weapons?" Ning Xuan guessed.
"Yes. This fan is called the Thousand Blades Flowing Light Fan. It can fire many kinds of Hidden Weapons; these needles are just the most basic type." Yun Han looked at the fan, somewhat surprised himself.
’To be honest, with his level of combat prowess, he had no need for such flashy Hidden Weapons.’
’Still, the craftsmanship required to hide dozens of different Hidden Weapons in such a small fan was astonishing. And most impressively, it could actually be bound to a master by blood.’
’In the Federation’s nearly thousand-year history, not a single Artifact Refining Master had ever managed to forge a weapon that could be bound by blood.’
’Of course, that might also be because they didn’t have much need for such weapons.’
’After all, their personal combat strength was already formidable, further enhanced by their Companion Spirits. And for interstellar battles, they used heavy weaponry like Mechas.’
After absorbing his blood, Chen Nan’s dagger turned as black as ink, and the dark patterns on the blade seemed to writhe like living things.
"This dagger is called Netherworld. It’s inherently poisonous. A mere scratch is instantly fatal." As Chen Nan spoke, Nine-tailed, who was standing closest to him, instinctively shuffled away.
Lan Xin had received a small umbrella. It looked perfectly ordinary at first, but after he dripped his blood on it, its surface erupted in a brilliant flash. The moment the umbrella opened, the light in the area began to twist bizarrely.
Even though they were all standing right there, their Divine Senses felt as if they had plunged into a misty abyss. Everyone was disoriented for a moment.
"This umbrella is called Illusion Sea. It was originally meant to create an Illusion Realm, block Divine Sense, conceal one’s figure, and automatically warn of danger—an anti-tracking device. However, when combined with my own energy, this umbrella can not only create an Illusion Realm, but it can also pull people into it." Lan Xin felt the umbrella was practically tailor-made for him; in his hands, its potential could be fully realized.
Some of these items could be activated with blood, but others couldn’t be opened with blood or spiritual power. For example, the black rod Ning Xuan had obtained. She had everyone else try it, but the black rod didn’t move or show any change at all.
A longsword, an axe, and a zither had the same issue as the black rod.
Since blood didn’t work, Ning Xuan tried mobilizing her Bloodline Energy and infusing it into the rod, but it wouldn’t go in. The rod didn’t react to her Bloodline Energy at all. Instead, Di Youlin couldn’t help but lean in closer, and Ning Xuan ended up giving the energy to him.
Just as Ning Xuan was about to give up, she idly conjured a small flame to play with. The moment the flame touched the rod, the black rod reacted instantly.
The black iron rod suddenly began to tremble.
Its simple, unadorned surface shed a charred layer that flaked away like a molting snake’s skin, revealing a dark golden body covered in a web of crimson patterns.
"Are these... runes?"
After the black rod’s transformation, Ning Xuan had already formed a connection with it. She could perceive some of its properties, but she didn’t elaborate, simply stating that it was a weapon.
After Ning Xuan explained how to unlock the little black rod, the others tried it as well. In the end, the zither was unlocked by Lin Mo, the longsword by Di Youlin, and the axe by Qinghe.
Everyone had gotten something, but they mostly regarded the items as novelties. They didn’t think these things would significantly increase their combat strength.
In their opinion, the greatest prize was Ning Xuan’s Space Ring. Its area was about the same as a Space Button, but the ring had one major advantage: its storage height was unlimited. That alone meant they could store far more supplies.
After discovering how to use the various items, Ning Xuan and her group were certain that this planet was once inhabited by a highly intelligent race—most likely Cultivators. They figured there must be many more ruins like this one scattered around.
"We’ve gathered a good amount of supplies lately. Tomorrow, let’s head to Panshi Safety Zone to check it out and do some trading. Who wants to go?" Ning Xuan asked.
"I do!" Di Youlin shouted, quick and excited.
Some time ago, Nine-tailed, Min Wu, and the others had visited Panshi Safety Zone. According to the intelligence they gathered, the zone was managed by the Huajia. The accumulation of Combat Points followed the Military Department’s standardized rates, which was fine, but the exchange rates for certain supplies were a bit of a rip-off.
This was likely due to the large number of students taking the assessment who were living in Panshi Safety Zone. As they hunted more Exotic Beasts, their increasing supply of loot had driven the prices down.
For items obtained from slaying Exotic Beasts—like meat, pelts, and various materials—the prices there were nearly half of those at Supply Point No. 7.
After Di Youlin raised his hand, Yun Han and Lin Mo also volunteered, both wanting to go with Ning Xuan.
Ning Xuan looked from one to the other, finally deciding that they should all go to the safety zone together and assess the situation.
