by <unknown>
Bai Xinghe ran forward fast as he explained, "Yan Xinjian spent decades resetting the parameters of the crystal processors in the main control room of the underground fortress. There was nothing strange upon first inspection, but an extremely sordid backdoor actually had been concealed.
"When the traps are activated, the entrance and the exit of the underground fortress will be immediately detonated. But other than them, all the other channels, including the gates, tunnels, ventilation tubes, and maintenance tubes, will be fully opened and cannot not be closed off with the crystal processors so that the flood can pour in without any obstacles!
"The flood is not terrifying per se. Many crystal suits can fight underwater. For the experts who have Cultivated to a certain level, they can live a long time by holding their breath and resorting to their 'inner cycles'.
"However, there are countless horrifying beasts inside the river. Those we met when we leapt across the Nether River are just one kind of them. The hundreds and even thousands of other beasts did not have the ability to soar hundreds of meters into the sky. That was all.
"The beasts have lived in the Nether River for thousands of years. By absorbing the mother lodes below the ground, they continue mutating and strengthening themselves. They have strong senses about spiritual energy just like the Lustful Rock Spider and feast almost exclusively upon spiritual energy!
"When the intruders in the underground fortress encounter such a drastic change, they will certainly put on their crystal suits and trigger their spiritual energy. If so, they will be perfect prey for the beasts in the water!
"Moreover—"
Bai Xinghe narrowed his eyes and said, "A lot of high-purity crystals, such as 'Thunder Stones' and 'Sunlight Stones', are stored inside the warehouse of the underground fortress. Those crystals are as stable as rocks in dry air. However, once they meet water, intense chain reactions will be triggered. A huge amount of spiritual energy and heat will be emanated instantly as they turn into powerful bombs!
"Hehe. It was indeed an excellent move for Yan Xinjian. Since this is a fortress, important war assets such as the Thunder Stones and the Sunlight Stones are not weird at all when they are piled up in this place!
"The intruders would never have dreamt that the Thunder Stones and the Sunlight Stones, which are stored in the driest, special warehouses and blocked by drying rune arrays, will be submerged by a flood!
"The flood and the explosion of the Thunder Stones and the Sunlight Stones will block the upper half part of the underground fortress immediately.
"The important persons of the Immortal Cultivators are all concentrated in the bottom half of the fortress. They will have absolutely nowhere to run to when they realize what is going on!"
Sweat covered Li Yao's forehead. Yan Xinjian's schemes were indeed sordid.
It was impossible to destroy the entire underground fortress. However, drowning half of the fortress by pouring the river into it, together with the explosion of the crystals and the underwater predators, was going to be a major headache for the intruders.
Pondering for a moment, Li Yao asked, "Such traps might be sufficient for those in the Refinement Stage and in the Building Foundation Stage, but I wonder whether or not they are effective for those in the Core Formation Stage and in the Nascent Soul Stage."
"That is exactly why I am hiding here," Bai Xinghe explained. "After I discovered Yan Xinjian's traps, I thought of building the traps into my last trump card. Therefore, I performed major modifications on the Star Prier's House and sealed it again. Moreover, I deployed water-driving rune arrays around the house and stored tremendous food, compressed air, and water-driving magical equipment inside.
"In the meantime, I spent ten years digging a secret tunnel leading to the outside of the underground fortress from the Star Prier's House. The front end of the tunnel exceeded the block range of the fortress. I built a one-way teleportation array there that could transport people out!
"My plan was simple. When the river poured into the underground fortress, I would stay in the Star Prier's House and have a good rest while I observed the fight between the Immortal Cultivators and the underwater beasts.
"When the Immortal Cultivators had soaked in water for one day or two and were exhausted in the battles against the beasts, I would sneak out with the water-driving magical equipment and assassinate my targets.
"The underground fortress has a complicated terrain, and I am familiar with the environment here. Having had several days of good rest and knowing the location of every one of them, I could avoid the strongest experts and attack the lone, weak ones.
"With my capability in the Nascent Soul Stage and the chaos of the situation, it should not be a problem to slay a few people in the Core Formation Stage. By any luck, I could assassinate Fengyu Zhong or the Black King if I had the opportunity!
"Whether I could successfully assassinate the important persons of the Immortal Cultivators or not, I would return to the Star Prier's House without any hesitation and then leave the underground fortress through the secret tunnel!"
Li Yao thought for a moment and suddenly blurted out, "When a tiger leaves a mountain, the monkey calls itself the king."
Bai Xinghe chuckled and sneered. "Do you think Boss Bai is a monkey? But you are not wrong. Compared with the powerful Temple of Immortals, I am indeed a monkey.
"However, when I reappear on the surface, the 'tigers' of the Temple of Immortals will still be struggling to survive in the underground fortress!
"The traps might not be enough to kill the Black King, Fengyu Zhong, and Bai Wulei, but the space pirates and the Immortal Cultivators in the Refinement Stage and Building Foundation Stage will definitely suffer heavy losses!
"Then, just think about it. All the space pirates who distinguished themselves in the final battle between me and Fengyu Zhong and proved themselves loyal to the Temple of Immortals were permitted to enter the underground fortress. Then, what kind of person would be left on the surface?"
Li Yao took a long breath and replied, "All the space pirates loyal to the Temple of Immortals have come deep below the ground. Those left on the surface will either be the pirate gangs that were defeated and battered because they are loyal to you or those who were not really willing to contribute to the Temple of Immortals' cause during the last battle!
"The final battle between Fengyu Zhong and you was like a filter that directed all the hardcore lackeys of the Temple of Immortals underground. Those who were left on the surface are definitely not the most loyal ones even though they were lackeys, too!"
"Exactly," Bai Xinghe said. "That is the key of my entire plan.
"As the saying goes, a cake is sour when it is not divided evenly. I publicized the news that a lot of secret treasures of the Star Ocean Imperium are buried inside the underground fortress since a long time ago. Even a pig on Spider Den should be familiar with the rumors and fantasizing the wealth, not to mention the space pirates.
"The space pirates left on the ground are destined to not be trusted by the Temple of Immortals in the future. They can only wait and watch other pirate gangs looting trophies underground and probably swallowing them one day when those pirate gangs are strong enough!
"Tell me, what would those space pirates think?
"It is needless to say that the pirate gangs defeated and loyal to me are probably waiting for their death now. As long as there is a slim chance of survival, they will definitely try their best!
"Alright. That would have been the basic situation when Boss Bai, the Pirate Potentate, returned to the surface.
"The Temple of Immortals would have no leaders, and their core persons would not be able to break out of the underground fortress in a fortnight.
"Besides, with the flood and the explosions, and because of the blockage of the thick rock stratums, no news would be leaked out. I would be the only one who could tell them what happened below the ground.
"Just like that, when I showed up in front of everythin
g and claimed that I had killed all the key persons of the Temple of Immortals in the underground fortress, preferably with the Black King's or Fengyu Zhong's head, do you think there would be anybody on Spider Den who would not obey me?"
Li Yao thought for a moment and cursed. He mumbled, "The king has returned!"
Bai Xinghe smiled and said, "Half a month would be more than enough for me to carry out a brutal counterattack!
"By then, even if the Black King or Fengyu Zhong could break out of the underground fortress, so what? Everything would already have changed!
"Hehe. What I was going to lose was the Abyss Pirate Gang, whose loyalty was questionable, but what I was going to get was the whole of Spider Den! Isn't that a fair deal?"
"It's a pity that you never calculated that your son would appear out of nowhere," Li Yao said.
Bai Xinghe smiled bitterly. "Indeed, I didn't. What a fool. I haven't seen him for decades. Right now, I seem to be doomed for sure. Why did he come here?
"Is it possible that he grew suspicious about his past and wanted to know the truth before I was killed?"
Li Yao recalled Bai Kaixin's eyes that were forever filled with vague sorrow and yet were as sharp as a frosted blade. He shook his head and said, "Boss Bai, you can't see the big picture because you are in the game. Bai Kaixin is such a smart guy. Do you think he does not know the truth to this day? In my opinion, he figured everything out a long time ago.
"He did not come for an answer; he came to save you."
Bai Xinghe suddenly stopped running and blurted out, "I am a battle-type Cultivator in the Nascent Soul Stage, and he is an admin-type Cultivator in the Building Foundation Stage. Do I need him to save me? What makes him think that he can save me?"
"The fact that he is your son," Li Yao said.
Bai Xinghe was dazed for almost ten seconds. He suddenly burst into laughter. The aura of a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator fully burst out and nearly knocked Li Yao over.
"Yes. I should've realized it earlier. He is here to save me. My son is here to save me!
"But right now, let your old man save you first!"
Chapter 755: Fierce Flood! |
Inside the main warehouse at the bottom level of the underground fortress, Bai Wulei looked at debris, remains, and the rusted scraps of magical equipment that had been piled up like a hill, dumbfounded.
Powerful crystal suits of the Star Ocean Imperium appeared to be hanging on the sixty shelves that were dozens of meters high. However, with the slightest touch, all the crystal suits crumbled into crazily flying iron dust as if they were made of sand.
Bai Wulei coughed heavily because of the stimulation of the iron dust. He coughed while he bellowed, "It's impossible! How could there be only such a pile of garbage? The old man said that magical equipment that could equip tens of thousands of Cultivators was hidden in his place!"
He rushed crazily inside the warehouse madly and explored the weapons and magical equipment one area after another. It was a pity that his finger seemed to be blessed with a destructive ability all of a suddenly. All the weapons and magical equipment he touched were shattered and collapsed into debris.
"How can this be?" Bai Wulei was about to cry. He gnashed his teeth and said, "It's unreasonable. The old man already presented countless techniques and magical equipment he took from the underground fortress in order to boost morale. At that time, I asked him what about ourselves when we were offering so many secret treasures to other people.
"In the end, the old man burst into laughter and declared that what he had taken out was only one tenth of all the treasures. The real good items were still below the ground!
"How is it possible?
"There must be something wrong. There must be another warehouse. There must be!"
Bai Wulei waved a seemingly glamorous flying sword. But after one slash, it broken into more than ten pieces, suggesting that it was more fragile than glass.
Fengyu Zhong, Master Hidden Fog, who was the previous leader of Black Spider Tower, and Dark Empyrean, who was the real 'Black King', all frowned and stared at the wall, deep in thought.
The spacious warehouse was wreathed in a vague black mist, as if streams of demonic aura were leaking in through the wall.
Fengyu Zhong asked respectfully, "Black King, what do you think?"
Since Dark Empyreal had launched an attack in the Nascent Soul Stage toward Bai Xinghe in front of everybody, there was little point in him concealing his identity any longer. Getting rid of the low profile as one of the 'Eight Blades of Black Spider', he stood confidently, surrounded by a daunting, decisive aura. He replied calmly, "It appears that we have all been fooled by Bai Xinghe. The old, cunning Pirate Potentate was merely bluffing.
"There are not as many secret treasures of the Star Ocean Imperium as he claimed. Even if there were, most of the magical equipment and the weapons would already be rusted and damaged.
"Those he brought to the surface were just about everything. That old fox!
"However…"
Dark Empyrean, the Black King, narrowed his eyes and said slowly, "It suddenly occurs to me that, although most of the weapons and magical equipment on our way here are seriously damaged, there are a great number of war assets, especially high-purity crystals such as the Thunder Stones and the Sunlight Stones. Their volume seems to far exceed the need of a regular war."
Hardly had he concluded his sentence when the color of his face changed abruptly. He drew a rune quickly and held it in his palm while he murmured a spell. Then he opened his hands suddenly!
A black bug immediately flew out of his hands and flew far away in a streak of blackness.
A moment later, Fengyu Zhong's nose flapped as he sniffed the air. He observed with a solemn face, "Something is indeed not right. The moisture of the air has increased all of a sudden. The spiritual energy of the water class is very active right now!"
"Not good!" Dark Empyrean seemed to have sensed something. His face turned extremely pale as he shouted loudly, "Hurry and leave!"
…
The middle level and the upper level of the underground fortress had changed entirely.
Over the past ten thousand years, the multiple earthquakes, especially the super earthquake affected by the apocalypse five thousand years ago, had already riddled the fortress with holes everywhere.
The traps that Yan Xinjian had devised neatly, through a few insignificant explosions, altered the route of the Nether River precisely, turning the Nether River into a raging dragon that invaded the fortress. The hair, claws, and teeth of the dragon were running into the fortress through the countless fractures on the top half of the fortress!
In a moment, the underground fortress turned into a swamp!
The unstoppable flood was roaring in every pathway like ferocious beasts, smashing everything in its way.
Countless space pirates were consumed by the flood before they realized what was going on. They were bashed into the wall hard by the rushing torrent. Despite the protection of their crystal suits, they were vomiting blood with their internal organs torn apart.
The flood alone was not terrifying, but most of the warehouses inside the underground fortress were packed with high-purity crystals such as the Thunder Stone and the Sunlight Stone.
Those extremely unstable crystals did not even need to meet water directly to explode. As long as the moisture of the air increased to a certain level and the spiritual energy of the water class in the air was active enough, they would detonate instantly!
As a result—
Explosions were taking place everywhere inside the underground fortress. Countless warehouses and pathways collapsed before they were swallowed by the flood. The space pirates and the Immortal Cultivators inside were buried and suppressed by the fireballs and billions of rocks that were cascading down on their heads without even having the opportunity to scream.
For the areas that were not affected by the explosions of the Thunder Stones and the Sunlight Stones,
when they were drowned by the flood, the eccentric beasts living inside the Nether River crawled into the fortress along with the currents.
Those eccentric beasts had been living in absolute darkness for thousands of years. They could only perceive their prey through spiritual energy.
In order to keep away from their enemies, most of them had evolved with the ability of converging their spiritual energy, too.
Right now, the space pirates and the Immortal Cultivators who had triggered their spiritual energy instead of concealing it in the emergency were like butterflies in a dark night. They became the most appealing prey for the eccentric beasts.
There were floating eccentric beasts that were emitting dim lights like jellyfish, fish-type beasts that had sharp tusks and could bite through the toughest super alloys, and insect-type beasts that both looked like water snakes and giant centipedes with flagella and tentacles wriggling all over their bodies to name a few.
Hundreds of eccentric beasts were swimming, sneaking, and searching in the water, exchanging greedy and cruel information with each other.
Even the mortal enemies gave up the idea of hunting each other for now because more delicious prey was right in front of them.
Swoosh!
A floating eccentric beast that looked like a transparent jellyfish lunged at a space pirate who was struggling inside the flood. The boneless body of the beast opened like a bag and covered the space pirate's head as fast as lightning. The soft tentacles groped for the gaps in the victim's crystal suit and injected the fatal venom into it.
Hiu!
Hundreds of 'goldfish' that had the sharpest teeth congregated into a cluster of deadly gold as they charged at an Immortal Cultivator who had suffered internal injuries during the strike of the flood. Their teeth bit his crystal suit hard. After being ripped for a moment, the crystal suit was creaking and about to crumble at any moment!
