Seeking Truth with a Sword-Chapter 601 - 542 Dragon Fall_2
With such a large number of Bookworm Immortals, perhaps it really could preserve and record the entirety of human civilization!
"We’ve arrived."
Ati halted, and Li Ang ceased his steps as well.
Before him appeared an enormous Bookworm Immortal, rivaling the size of a blue whale. Its dense golden threads extended in both upward and downward directions, like towering trees, connecting the floor and the ceiling. Additionally, every Bookworm Immortal within each bookshelf also extended one or two golden threads, like fiber optics, bundling together and connecting to its roots. Combining Ati’s previous description, a shocking conjecture emerged in Li Ang’s mind: Could this gigantic Bookworm Immortal have integrated all the information that Yu Country managed to collect?
"Take out the Academic Palace Patrol Jade Pendant and touch it."
Ati’s voice pulled Li Ang back from his reverie. He stepped forward, climbed the ladder, took out the Patrol Jade Pendant, held it in his palm, and gently stroked the Bookworm Immortal’s head.
WHIRR—
Massive amounts of golden threads rapidly extended, covering Li Ang’s palm. Instantly, his vision went white, and he felt as if he were situated in an infinitely expanding, ever-enlarging library, where he could locate specific information merely by a thought.
Classics, history, philosophy, collections, various literary materials—private letters, notes, documents, contracts, local records, literary works, academic writings...
A massive amount of information unfolded before him, transforming into twinkling stars, each star representing an entry. This sensation of near omniscience was intoxicating. Unfortunately, many pieces of information were dim and unlit, as these were confidential data from the Academic Palace and Yu Country that one couldn’t access just with a Patrol Jade Pendant.
Li Ang concentrated his Divine Thought to intensify the thoughts in his mind. Searching for the Mutated Objects in the Dongjun Tower...
Stars instantaneously dimmed by a great number, yet the remaining quantity was still astounding. Searching for weapon-type Mutated Objects in the Dongjun Tower...
Li Ang upped the criteria. He needed close-combat Mutated Objects that were stable and easily preserved without going out of control. They had to be capable of sustaining combat at the Martial Arts Grandmaster level without being damaged and, preferably, not conflict with other types of Mutated Objects. He had already learned the approximate information about all core members of Zhao Ming from Lu Yunan. Therefore, his weapon selection targeted defending against, or even eliminating, members like Jun Qianzi, Yuan Sou, and others from Zhao Ming.
Stars dimmed one by one, leaving only a dozen or so bright lights.
Li Ang systematically clicked open each star to read the detailed information.
[Chu Ren’s Shield], an ancient shield from the Warring States period, circular in shape. Its effect is to create an invisible force field that diverts any damage taken head-on by the shield. If one could wield the shield at the right time and angle, it could reflect the damage back.
[Transformation Realm], a long spear of unknown origin. Each attack absorbs surrounding Spiritual Energy, increasing its damage, getting stronger as the battle progresses. However, if the wielder gets injured, all Spiritual Energy stored within the spear will dissipate, only to start accumulating again after one minute.
[Rift Demon Slash], a peculiar artifact unearthed from the Yin Ruins, turned into a weapon by the sages of the Academic Palace. It resembles a sword hilt with a piece of dark lightning suspended above it. Its effect is ’Separation.’ It can tear through space, create Instant Teleportation passages, and even sever an opponent in half with one strike.
[Yama Banner], speculated to be crafted by a Former Sui Sect, appearing as a cross spear with a blood-stained banner. Its effect is to awaken the restless souls of ancient battlefields, gathering the strength of thousands of souls unto oneself, temporarily possessing the power of ghosts and gods.
...
The Academic Palace indeed has deep resources. In comparison, the auctions at Chang’an Ghost Market are simply trivial matters. Li Ang scanned the list, exclaiming sincerely, If possible, I wish I could take all these items away.
However, that’s unrealistic. Not to mention whether the Mutated Objects would interfere with each other and cause mutations, my own Early Stage Cloud Patrol Qi Sea level isn’t sufficient to wield so many weapons. I can only choose one.
He rubbed his chin, contemplating deeply. My primary enemy is undoubtedly Zhao Ming, especially Jun Qianzi as a Divine Talisman Master. My secondary enemies are the cultivators from Taihao Mountain. From this perspective, Chu Ren’s Shield, which can rebound attacks, seems like a decent choice.
He muttered to himself, "But Chu Ren’s Shield’s effect can only rebound attacks from the front, and the talismans of a Divine Talisman Master generally cover a wide area. Once the enemy becomes aware of the shield’s special effect, its effectiveness will be greatly diminished. The Transformation Realm spear gets stronger as the battle progresses, but its flaw is that once the wielder is injured, its power greatly decreases. Every core member of Zhao Ming is undoubtedly at the Candle Cloud Realm, and it’s impossible to avoid injuries when clashing with them. Rift Demon Slash doesn’t have this weakness, and its space-slicing effect is powerful enough; however..."
The reason Dongjun Tower stored these weapons instead of distributing them to the Supervision Department members was multifaceted. For example, some Mutated Objects have a corrupting effect; long-term possession could lead one down the Demon Path. Some Mutated Objects were too precious or powerful, and their loss or damage would be a great blow to Yu Country. Some weapons were too difficult to use. Other than their creator and first user, later generations could hardly achieve the same effect and might even harm themselves during operation.
And Rift Demon Slash undoubtedly met all these criteria. It continuously emitted faint whispers that confused the user and corrupted their mind. Furthermore, only its hilt had any weight, making it difficult to handle properly; it could suddenly open spatial rifts and potentially split the user in half.
In the history of the Academic Palace, only a very few individuals had wielded this weapon, such as Su Zi, former Mountain Master Chou Zhibai, and the current Mountain Master Lian Xuanyao.
After much consideration, Li Ang decided to give up on Rift Demon Slash, as he was not yet capable of handling it.
Finally, his gaze landed on a spear with a bizarre design.
The spear’s shaft was over two meters long and entirely crimson. Its material was translucent, resembling a mix of Water Crystal and ice crystal. Its spearhead split into three parts: three pointed cones spiraled upward, converging at the very tip.
Its name was Dragon Fall.
It had once been wielded by the founding Emperor of the Sui Dynasty. According to the rumors, before he led a rebellion, this Emperor had ventured into an unknown land, found the last True Dragon in the world, and brutally killed it. He stripped its scales, extracted its Dragon Sinews, drained its Dragon Marrow, and with the combined efforts of his clan, forged this mighty weapon.
Of course, another version of the tale claimed that Great Ancestor Sui was so distinguished that the Emperor he served saw him as a threat to be eliminated along with his entire clan. At that time, still young, Great Ancestor Sui fell deeply in love with a Dragon Girl, and they pledged to spend their lives together. To protect him, she voluntarily sacrificed herself, transforming into Dragon Fall, enabling the young man to overthrow his former ruler and secure the vast realm of the Sui Dynasty in the subsequent wars among warlords.
Whether these tales were true or false, whether dragons really existed, the preciousness of Dragon Fall was beyond doubt.
[Alien Name: Dragon Fall]
[Alien Number: Alien—One—Twenty Three]
[Containment Measures: Dragon Fall must be stored in a long, narrow box made of Water Crystal material, isolated in a secret chamber beneath the Academic Palace East Lord Tower. During the protection period, no living creatures are to approach, and only Mechanical Servant Puppets may perform routine maintenance each month. Maintenance duration must not exceed 15 minutes. Should a Mechanical Servant Puppet stay with Dragon Fall beyond the time limit, it must be immediately destroyed. In one year, the same Mechanical Servant Puppet must not enter the chamber where Dragon Fall is stored twice. To deploy Dragon Fall, the personal permission of the Mountain Master is required.]
[Description: Tests have shown that Dragon Fall possesses three capabilities:
One, Dragon Transformation. Bestows ’Dragon Transformation Blessing’ on beasts, causing mutations in their flesh and blood, making them powerful and aggressive. In some sense, it could also be regarded as a Dragon Transformation Curse.
Two, Command Spell. Exerts a mighty pressure, intimidating and even controlling some relatively weaker wild beasts and demons.
Three, Cloud Soaring. The faster the swinging or charging speed, the higher the damage.]
