Forty Millenniums of Cultivation, page 1019
Screwhead, on the other hand, did not think that it was a big deal. "What's there to intervene with? Most of the books are actually published by the press in the Star Glory Federation. They are sold to the public within the federation, too. This is the freedom of speech! Not just those books, even the books that promote the true path of immortality can also be published as long as they do not involve terrorism after being investigated!
"After all, the Spiritual Nexus is too advanced nowadays. Even if such books are forbidden from being published openly, they can still spread in secret until everybody knows their content. It will only be a sign of the country's lack of confidence if such books are banned, right?
"Alright, bosses, please search for the books that you find interesting yourselves. The introduction and map of every area are here. I believe that there must be something that you are interested in!"
It was quite true. All the eyes of the Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators and the Divinity Transformation Stage Cultivators were glittering. They could not wait to dive into the ocean of jade chips now.
Meng Chixin, Wu Suiyun, and Wan Mingzhu went to the area that focused on the arts of the spectral Cultivators and the relationship between human beings and ghosts.
Han Baling and Qi Changsheng, on the other hand, went to the military area, studying the military magazines and books that had recently been published in the Star Glory Federation.
'Emperor Phoenix' Zhu Zongyou went to the politics section, planning to learn the differences between the system of the federation and that of the Imperium. 'Sword Maniac' Yan Liren obviously went to the area of the training techniques, apparently unable to drag his short, fat body out of the section of the sword arts after throwing it into the place.
As for Li Yao, he did not have a particular place that he wanted to go to. With mixed feelings, he simply wandered next to the ocean of jade chips, skimming over the rows of jade chips and the promotional pictures that they projected. He then observed the people who were reading the jade chips carefully without saying anything.
The readers' clothes, countenance, accessories, and the portable crystal processor on their wrists had undergone slight changes compared to a hundred years ago. They looked more fashionable and natural.
The feeling made Li Yao feel both nostalgic and strange. It seemed that he would need some time to adapt himself to the new environment.
Right then, Li Yao noticed a name after a quick glance. He was slightly dazed and could not help but stop.
Sitting in front of the advertisement column of the popular jade chips of the biography area, he saw Ding Lingdang's name. The book right above the name was entitled 'History of the Nether World'.
According to the introduction on the advertisement, it was a book that told that the full story of how Ding Lingdang ended the hundred-year War of Ghosts in the Nether World Sector, unified the world, and brought the Nether World Sector to the federation on her own.
Curious, Li Yao took out a jade chip that contained the 'History of the Nether World' from the bookshelf.
The jade chips that had not been sold yet were all installed with barriers that prevented the readers from reading the whole content. However, the beginning and some of the exciting excerpts were often provided for the customers as another kind of advertisement.
Li Yao looked around and found an unoccupied egg-shaped reading seat in the corner. He then inserted the jade chip into a slot on the side of the reading seat.
A translucent, three-dimensional light beam immediately drowned him, taking him to the amazing world of a 'Half-Step Grand Illusionary Land'.
The modern books in the jade chips were not made of pure words but a comprehensive artistic and informational form that included text, audio, video, all other effects, and even the powerful telepathic thoughts of the culture-type Cultivators.
What appeared in front of Li Yao was a Sector with a highly developed civilization, with beautiful scenery and skyscrapers everywhere in the city in an orderly fashion. The glittering crystal rails floating in midair were surrounded by colorful shuttles flying in and out.
A narrator began speaking.
"The Nether World Sector was a world of peace and prosperity once. The people living in this place enjoyed an easy and happy life."
The picture zoomed in, and the camera drew close. On the jam-packed streets, the citizens were talking and laughing lightheartedly everywhere.
"However, the meteor shower a hundred and fifty years ago changed everything."
The picture focused on the face of a young woman on the street. She was laughing and playing with her friend, when her eyes suddenly opened wide as she saw something. Green flames seemed to grow from deep within her pupils!
The picture turned and aimed at the sky. A hundred shooting stars, like falling suns, tore apart the sky and hurtled toward the land!
For a moment, everything in front of Li Yao's eyes turned into devastating violet. When the violet color gradually faded away, the world had already become a dark, derelict wasteland enshrouded in purple mist.
The previous skyscrapers had only the contorted rebars and pillars left, as if they were skeletons made of iron. The crystal rails dangled from the broken walls like whirls, dotted by some shuttles that had been burnt into frameworks. The civilization seemed to have been entirely wiped out.
"The meteor shower only destroyed half of the planet, but the long winter and the pollution of water sources caused by the meteor shower drained the previously abundant resources. To fight for whatever was left of the resources, a prolonged war broke out. The fire swept across the entire planet and consumed everyone!"
On the picture, in the gaps of the debris, unpredictable air was suddenly crawling out. It gradually condensed into the shape of a confused human being.
"Nobody knows what kind of marvelous materials the dust of the meteorites stored. However, in the world enshrouded in the purple smoke, the odds of the deceased turning into ghosts were significantly increased. Countless soldiers and civilians turned into ghosts from living people.
"However…"
Hooo!
On the picture, an armored, iron tank that was rusted and riddled with holes suddenly jumped into the sky from deep inside the debris and landed exactly in front of the newborn ghost.
Right behind the tank stood three spectral Cultivators supported by battle-type artificial bodies, who looked no different from three dark, iron skeletons. Howling scarily, they waved a piece of magical equipment that looked like a noose. With the magnetic rope in the front, they caught the newborn ghost immediately and dragged the captive into their own tank!
The iron skeletons were grinning hideously, the newborn ghost was struggling and screaming, and the iron-armored tank was fulminating. All the noises gradually faded away to the end of the picture.
"War. War never changes. Even if most living people were killed in the war, there was still no stopping some people's greed and hatred.
"After the living people turned into ghosts, the ghosts continued the war, to fight for artificial bodies, for spiritual energy to activate the artificial bodies, to swallow other ghosts to build up their own soul power… For a hundred years, the planet turned into a battlefield of the deceased!
"Ghosts do not have eternal life, and dissipating into nothingness is their end. As more and more living people hiding in the shelters were transformed into ghosts, the Nether World Sector slid into the abyss of destruction. None of the forces of the ghosts was able to save the dying world, except…"
On the picture, from deep inside the debris, a person who was entirely covered in a gray cloak, with a face hidden in darkness, was walking closer.
The cloak was fluttering hard in the blowing wind that was mixed with the smell of the rust. Below the cloak was a pair of leather boots that were fully embedded with iron nails. They were producing clicking noises as the person stepped forward.
The person hidden in the cloak was walking unhurriedly in the debris of the city, followed by a big yellow dog that was slightly abnormal because of the radiation of the meteorites.
Standing right next to the dilapidated buildings that rose high into the sky but seemed to be about to collapse, her body was both slender and insignificant, and it appeared that she would be swallowed by the wasteland anytime.
Right then—
"Owww!"
A battle-type artificial body that was more than four meters tall suddenly leapt out of one side of the debris. It was thick and strong, with two arms that were unbelievably bulky. There were iron nails all over its fists, making it look like a huge gorilla made of iron and copper!
The 'iron gorilla' was shouting deliriously, and sparks were bursting out of the iron nails on the two fists as it lunged toward the person in the cloak!
Compared to the artificial body that was more than four meters tall, the person in the cloak seemed thin and vulnerable, as if she would be crushed as soon as he pressed close!
However, right when the iron gorilla lunged to the midair, a healthy, caramel-colored arm suddenly extended out of the cloak. The fist clenched, and the iron gorilla was frozen in midair!
The eyes of the iron gorilla immediately bulged. He waved his arms and feet, struggling crazily, only to find that it was impossible to move at all!
Boom!
The cloaked person pressed hard. With her spiritual energy and nothing else, she knocked the iron gorilla to the ground, creating a depression more than three meters deep. Sparks were jumping out everywhere from the body, indicating that the artificial body had been completely scrapped!
Stepping on the head of the iron gorilla, the cloaked person took off her hood and goggles unhurriedly, revealing the face that Li Yao could not have been more familiar with.
However, at that moment, there was an enticing charisma on her face that Li Yao had never seen before.
"Ding Lingdang, the most dreadful living person walking in the world of the deceased…"
Crack!
Ding Lingdang crushed the head of the iron gorilla with her foot. After grinding the iron plate beneath her boot against a burnt rock nearby, she put on the goggles and cloak again. Bringing the yellow dog whose tail was wagging hard, she moved further and further away from the body.
"First published in the federation, authorized by Ding Lingdang, with more than three hundred minutes of interview with Ding Lingdang and other first-hand accounts, from a dying world to a paradise for the spectral Cultivators of the federation, 'History of the Nether World' has all the wonders you need. Unlock all the content with only 29.9 star coins…"
Chapter 1572: If We Burn, the Universe Will Never Be Dark! |
Li Yao was quite interested in his wife's experiences in the Nether World Sector. He was about to pay with an anonymous crystal card and read on when he sensed somebody breathing and chuckling next to him. Frowning, he exited the Half-Step Grand Illusionary Land state, only to discover that Long Yangjun was looking at him mischievously, leaning against the shell of the reading cabin he was in.
"A… very strong woman." Long Yangjun was quite amazed by Ding Lingdang's image on the promotional picture, in which she was grabbing a giant sword with both hands that were covered in a pair of crystal gloves, with some of her crimson hair leaking out of the hood. She blinked at Li Yao and said, "I can't admire you more now. It never occurred to me that I was faced with such a legend among legends, 'Monster Li'!"
"Where are they?" Li Yao craned his neck and looked around.
"Don't worry," Long Yangjun said. "They are all too fascinated by the jade chips to care about anything else right now. You wouldn't be able to get them out even if you pulled them with nine bulls or beat them with sticks."
"What about you? Why are you not reading the books like they are?" Li Yao tried to change the topic.
"I am as fascinated as them!" Long Yangjun said with a smile. "However, it is my opinion that the best way to learn about a country and a civilization quickly is to browse through the biographies of celebrities, in order to know what kind of brilliant, extraordinary figures have emerged during the rise of the civilization. That's why I'm here and how I ran into you. Shouldn't I say hello?"
"The hello has been said," Li Yao snapped. "Anything else?"
"There is indeed something not very important," Long Yangjun said. "I have picked out a bunch of biographies, but I'm wondering if some of them are simply based on rumors and groundless stories. In that case, wouldn't I be wasting my time to read them?
"As it happens, you are right here. Help me check if those books are full of bullsh*t!"
She handed over a few jade chips and activated the advertisement on the first jade chip. The name of the biography in the jade chip popped up.
'He Changed the Federation: A Biography of Li Yao'.
Right above the title was a young man who was resolute and determined. Fierce flames were beaming out of his eyes, giving everybody the impression that he was a visionary man with the charisma of a leader. He was resting his hands on his hip while he stared at the infinite brilliant stars.
"…" Li Yao.
"Look, look!" Exclaiming in astonishment, Long Yangjun touched a corner of the picture, and it immediately changed from the cover to the title page.
On the title page, with the deep, dark universe as the background, there was a dazzling line that seemed to be written with lightning.
"Every one of us is a star. If we burn, the universe will never be dark. – Li Yao"
"Huh?"
"I really can't hold back my admiration for you anymore. It never occurred to me that not only can you awe the two toughest women in the federation, you are also capable of such philosophical speech. According to the traditions of this world, I'm almost inclined to ask for your autograph!"
"… Well, I really don't remember speaking in such a pretentious way before."
"Really?" Long Yangjun raised an eyebrow and changed to a different jade chip. "What about this one? '999 Life Lessons Li Yao Offered to the Young Cultivators Before He Left'?"
"Well. I don't think I've heard about it before."
"You can't be serious. Are the offspring so shameless as to fabricate and exaggerate the nonexistent stuff? What about this one?" Long Yangjun took out a third jade chip. "'Romance of the Old Federation: Li Yao and His Women'. Wow. This book is rather shocking. It claims that you and your disciple Jin Xinyue are in an ambiguous relationship. That's why Ding Lingdang and Jin Xinyue are at loggerheads with each other. The competition of Skyfire and the Patriots Front, two major forces in the federation, boils down to the competition over a husband between the two women!
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Although the book sounds ridiculous and not worth reading, now that you are here in person, I think that I'd better check it with you first. It can't be true, right, Monster Li?"
"… No comment!"
"So, are you saying that it is true?"
"… Nonsense!"
"Hehe. You're finally admitting that you are Vulture Li Yao, the legendary dominator of the three Sectors and one of the founding fathers of the federation, right?"
"I don't know about the dominator of the three Sectors, but it's true that I am Vulture Li Yao. Is there a problem?"
Long Yangjun blinked. "Huh. I feel that you have changed into a different person after returning to this place. You are more and more like 'Monster Li' right now. It seems to me that you are no longer worried that your identity will be exposed!"
Looking at Ding Lingdang's image on the advertisement of the jade chip in his hands and the covers of Jin Xinyue's biographies that were everywhere to be seen not far away, Li Yao put on a confident and casual smile. "I wandered in the sea of stars for almost a hundred years and went through so much trouble before I found the Ancient Sages Sector. To be honest, I was indeed a bit worried at that time, not knowing what exactly had happened in the federation during the hundred years.
"Did the unification of the Heaven's Origin Sector, the Blood Demon Sector, and the Flying Star Sector go well? Were the demons really willing to be transformed into human beings? Would other human beings discriminate against the people with the bloodline of the demons? Was Ding Lingdang capable of intimidating the radical, extreme fellows in the Patriots Partnership? Would the expedition army of the Imperium arrive in advance and begin to savage my motherland?
"At that time, I didn't have any answers to those questions!
"At that time, I thought that the fate of the federation was on my shoulders and that my every action would decide the federation's future. Therefore, I was often hesitant because of those concerns.
"However, now that I have come back to my hometown, I've realized that while the Star Glory Federation today is not a perfect country, and despite all the problems here, it is still much better than what I imagined. Ding Lingdang, Jin Xinyue, and all the other citizens of the federation are all working hard in their own way!
"Just now, when I watched Ding Lingdang travelling in the world of the deceased on her own, accomplishing something great that I might not have been able to achieve myself, I finally figured it out.
"Maybe I am not as important as I thought.
"The future of the federation can't and shouldn't be decided by myself but by me; Ding Lingdang; Jin Xinyue; and countless warriors, citizens, and ordinary people together. Even if some of us make a mistake on a certain plan, it is still not going to stop the rise of the federation!
"I firmly believe that the Star Glory Federation will show you her strength and hope, which will prompt you to make the right decision. Then, does it really matter what my real identity is and whether or not it is exposed?"
Long Yangjun's mischievous expression was somewhat frozen, as if a certain delicate camouflage was shattered by Li Yao's powerful speech. Confusion and hollowness were flowing out of the tiny gaps.
