Free Web NovelChapter 274: Chapter 28: An Abnormal Atmosphere
"Professor Su, you’ve finally arrived... Is this the team you’ve brought? Their aura is extraordinary. They’re all elites!"
Bai Canglang had a sharp eye. He could tell that Su Zhou’s small team not only had a solemn and imposing aura, but they were also incredibly strong. All three were at High-level Awakening. Among them, Guan Wanjing seemed on the verge of a breakthrough; with a little push from the high-concentration environment around the ruins, he would probably reach his peak.
As for the weakest member, Shao Qiming, his healing talent was well-known to Extraordinary Influences like Bai Canglang, who knew he was Su Zhou’s friend. Who would ever look down on a healer for being weak? Besides, Shao Qiming had only been exposed to the Extraordinary for a year. To have reached the initial stage of Awakening in that time already made him a prodigy.
"Ah, Brother Canglang, it’s so good to see you," Su Zhou said, feeling like he’d been holding it in for far too long. When had a dual-threat troll like him, who dominated both online and in real life, ever encountered someone so withdrawn and unresponsive? Especially Li Hanshan. When he’d tried asking a tentative question, the guy had immediately turned his head away and started trembling. Su Zhou had scratched his head on the spot, not daring to press any further. ’What is with these problem children? I wasn’t even using my Suppression.’
Bai Canglang was one of the leaders of this Kunlun Ruins exploration. The overall directors were the two Holy Seats, the Math Saint and the Artisan Saint. They had personally come to analyze the data of the ruins’ Grotto Heaven entrance and were attempting to open it. frёewebηovel.cѳm
The ruins had already been partially opened and were expected to formally open within seven days, so personnel had been gathered in advance to stand guard.
After a bit of small talk, Su Zhou noticed a young man following Bai Canglang. He looked to be in his twenties, had an extremely faint presence, and his face was ashen white, almost like a corpse. His Spiritual Power Attributes also gave Su Zhou a strange sense of familiarity. He couldn’t help but ask, "Oh? And who is this?"
"This is Tang Yuan, a special talent from the Security Bureau."
Bai Canglang smiled and turned sideways to introduce him to Su Zhou. "He possesses a Grade B+ Divine Technique, ’High-Level Spiritualization.’ According to our tests, it can penetrate the vast majority of Extraordinary Tier seals and barriers. Typical Spiritualization Divine Techniques are rated around low to mid C Class. If they can’t interact with the physical world during Spiritualization, they might even be D Class. But Inspector Tang’s ability is clearly a cut above. Not only can he penetrate seals, but his ability to interact with the physical world is also extremely strong. He can even spiritualize a certain amount of matter and pass through space along with it."
"Oh, that powerful?" Even Su Zhou was surprised. "That’s truly perfect for exploring ruins or any place with seals... Not to mention, even for simple reconnaissance, stealing intelligence and supplies, it’s a first-class talent. That’s really amazing."
Even within the team, Lii Yeyu let out a soft gasp of amazement. Her Tongyou Divine Techniques were often compared to Spiritualization, with each having its own pros and cons, but the Divine Technique Tang Yuan possessed was clearly stronger than hers.
But Divine Techniques were one thing, and actual strength was another. Tang Yuan seemed to have only just entered the Awakening stage. His strength was even lower than Shao Qiming’s, and he didn’t possess much direct combat capability. However, his self-preservation skills were top-notch. It was no wonder he was chosen for the ruins exploration team and was even allowed to stay by the side of a leader like Bai Canglang.
Hearing Su Zhou’s praise, the young inspector named Tang Yuan’s lips curled into a stiff, skin-deep smile. It wasn’t that he was being disrespectful; he just seemed to be like that naturally. Su Zhou could sense the goodwill from him, so of course, he didn’t mind.
"By the way, Tang... are you from the Tang Family?"
Soon, Su Zhou remembered what it was about him that felt so familiar. Thinking about it, the Tang Family’s talent was indeed in Spirit Control and Spirit Communication, so it wasn’t surprising for a member with Spiritualization to appear. He immediately looked at Tang Yuan, and the pale young man froze for a moment, seemingly surprised that someone knew this.
Then, Tang Yuan shook his head and answered seriously, "Yes and no. I... was pretty much kicked out of the family back then. Besides, the Tang Family is gone now. I’m just Tang Yuan, not a member of the Tang Family."
He briefly explained his relationship with the Tang Family. He spoke with a practiced ease, as if he’d had similar conversations with many others before. ①
"To think they kicked a genius like this out of the family..."
Feeling a touch of indignation for Tang Yuan, Su Zhou let out a breath in his mind. ’It’s good that he’s not related, and that he hasn’t done anything evil. Otherwise, I might have had to take action in secret.’
A large, scattered area of simple bases had been established around the Kunlun Ruins. Various prefabricated steel-panel buildings stood on the highland plateau, facing the distant Kunlun Mountain Range, which faintly glowed with Spiritual Light. Many researchers were moving in and out, while over three hundred White Emperor Guards stood watch and patrolled the surrounding simple fortresses. Students from the Cultivation Academies were also assisting with patrols and receiving instruction.
In this location, the Spiritual Qi concentration was already three times the average, equivalent to a typical Spirit Gathering Array running at full power. Outside the research camp, there was another camp for the exploration teams, which was where Su Zhou and his group were stationed.
There were many people in the camp who didn’t seem to be researchers or from the Academies. According to Bai Canglang, they were members sent by the various Dao Mimic Clans. These members all seemed to know Su Zhou... which wasn’t surprising, as there weren’t many in Zhengguo’s Extraordinary circles who didn’t know him by now. In any case, they were all very friendly toward him, even taking the initiative to come over and greet him.
"Many of them are from Dao Mimic Clans with incomplete or completely lost inheritances."
As the next Host of the Northwest Bai Family and the emissary who liaised with the various Dao Mimic Clans, Bai Canglang was very clear about their identities, which was why he couldn’t help but sigh. "Like the Vermilion Bird Lineage, whose inheritance is completely lost, and the Black Tortoise Lineage, which lost part of its inheritance and had to merge with the Zhenwu Academy. They’ve all come."
"Hanshan, isn’t that right? Your Chongming Lineage is also missing important Cultivation techniques. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have only managed to cultivate the ’Pupil Anomaly.’"
He clearly knew Li Hanshan, which was normal for members of Dao Mimic Clans. Li Hanshan’s reaction was the same as before: he turned his head away and didn’t reply. The only difference from when Su Zhou questioned him was that he didn’t tremble when Bai Canglang spoke to him.
"Sigh, the Li family are all like this. Professor Su, please don’t take offense. The Dao Mimic Clans are influenced by their Demon Blood, so most of them have some minor quirks."
Bai Canglang didn’t get angry, obviously used to it. Su Zhou, on the other hand, was shocked. "The whole family is like this? Then how do they usually talk to each other?"
"They used to use paper. It got much better after cell phones came out; they’re used to communicating electronically. But since we can’t bring phones on this mission, it is indeed a bit troublesome."
"Haha." At that moment, Yara was also laughing at Su Zhou in his mind. ’You, the contrarian troll, have finally met your nemesis, haven’t you? As long as he doesn’t speak, you can’t argue with him!’ fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm
’Shut up! Aren’t you a contrarian yourself?!’
Su Zhou and Yara accused each other in his mind, but it was clear that neither of the two contrarians was a saint.
The simple camp was indeed mostly filled with members of the Dao Mimic Clans. He even spotted the Divine Walker ’Fu Yunsong’ from Modu Academy, whose Spiritual Testing speed data was second only to Su Zhou’s. She might have the bloodline of an ’Yingzhao’ or a ’Celestial Horse,’ but her parents and ancestors were all ordinary people. It was likely a case of atavism, with the inheritance having been lost hundreds of years ago. That was why she was specially summoned here, with the hope of finding and restoring the relevant inheritance in Kunlun.
Unfortunately, not a single inheritor of the Cyan Dragon Lineage could be found today, making restoration difficult. If they really did obtain the Cyan Dragon inheritance from Kunlun, they would probably have to find someone with a suitable constitution to recreate it.
"That’s pretty much the situation."
Bai Canglang led Su Zhou and his team to the "Emergency Response Team" camp, in front of a row of modular buildings that resembled a simple motel. He explained to Su Zhou and the entire team, "You’ll be cultivating here for now, just wait for any calls for assistance. Three meals will be provided daily. If you need anything else, you can make a request to the support staff."
"Won’t this be too leisurely? It doesn’t seem fair to the other students who have to carry out missions."
The one who raised this question was Shao Qiming. He already had some thoughts on the matter and was only asking to gather more information. Bai Canglang smiled, a hint of exhaustion visible on the Bai Family inheritor’s face. "There’s no such thing as true fairness to begin with. Besides, don’t think it’ll actually be leisurely and safe. The ruins are about to open, and the world around them is bound to change. As the emergency response team, you will be the first line of defense against any danger."
"But so far, we haven’t encountered any emergencies that require assistance."
Bai Canglang’s tone was optimistic.
But at that moment, Su Zhou looked up.
He could feel the atmosphere of the physical world constantly churning like a vortex, stirred by a Spiritual Qi density far greater than the surrounding area.
The wind had changed. Heavy clouds from the northeast were rapidly approaching, pressing down. And within the Kunlun Ruins, which emanated Spiritual Light, a demonic atmosphere was gathering.
"It’s going to snow," he said with a frown, stating what he saw. "And I can feel Demon Qi."
"Something isn’t right."
Hearing Su Zhou’s confident prediction, Bai Canglang froze for a moment. He then hurriedly took out his communicator to check the relevant data, only to receive a reply that an accurate forecast was impossible.
「And three hours later.」
A blizzard descended upon the area surrounding the Kunlun Mountain Range.
The first wave of the ruins’ influence on the real world began to reveal its power.
