A World Worth Protecting

Wang Baole’s mind buzzed, and his breathing halted. Staring at the scabbard in front of him, his eyes widened and slowly emitted an intense gaze.

“This suppressive force… could this be a first-grade Dharmic Artifact?” Wang Baole drew a gasp as he carefully examined the scabbard. Upon confirming that it was indeed first grade, a wave of shock and excitement unwittingly began to well up in his heart.

“This unbelievable suppressive force coming from just a first-grade weapon. Imagine this to be second-grade… or even third-grade, how much more powerful will this be!” Wang Baole exclaimed.

Just the mere thought of it caused whirlwinds in his heart. With his mind still in disarray, it took him a while before he could suppress his shock and settle down. Suddenly, with a strange glint in his eyes, Wang Baole thought of what Little Missy had said—when it reached its top level, the ancient greenish-bronze sword could be attracted. Although it seemed unreliable, it might still be a more plausible option.

Still pondering over the situation, Wang Baole waited for the scabbard to cool before grabbing it. With a fiery gaze in his eyes, he decided to test the prowess of the scabbard by transferring his Spirit Qi to it. However, the scabbard merely shimmered. Nothing happened.

Wang Baole was taken aback. He stared at the scabbard—empty yet emitting Spirit Qi. Upon checking the interior of the scabbard, Wang Baole found out that the Inscriptions on the Spirit Kernel were not the same as what he had previously seen. Instead of a hundred of them, the Inscriptions were now countless and dense, as if it was some form of encryption. Even Wang Baole himself had to carefully study those Inscriptions before arriving at only a superficial understanding of it. As for outsiders who did not have knowledge of these Inscriptions, it would be a highly difficult task for them to fully understand.

“Hmm, Inscription mutation? Oh, and didn’t Little Missy say before that a sword-like Spirit Qi needle would appear on the scabbard?” Wang Baole remarked and sighed deeply. Refusing to have his beliefs shaken, Wang Baole once again gathered his Spirit Qi and transferred it to the scabbard before swinging the scabbard outward. However, the scabbard remained as before.

“Is this a lie?” remarked Wang Baole with a tinge of anger in his tone. Refusing to admit defeat, Wang Baole once again decided to confirm the suppressive force emitted from the scabbard. It was indeed a remarkable force. In a state of confusion, Wang Baole casually used the scabbard as a dagger and stabbed at the wall beside him.

With a bang, the walls cracked slightly, but nothing else happened. Seeing this, Wang Baole momentarily became dumbfounded. In the heat of the moment, he decided to take out the Hallucination Pillow and ask Little Missy for a clear explanation.

Just as Wang Baole was about to take out the Hallucination Pillow, he paused for a moment. Recalling Little Missy’s eccentric temper behind that mask of hers, he pondered for a while before turning his head around and leaving the cave abode. Upon returning from the marketplace—where he had bought a bouquet of fresh flowers—he entered the Hallucination realm.

With an affectionate gaze, he removed the mask, placed it on the ground, and softly said, “Little Missy, I have come to see you. There was nothing much to do today. I coincidentally passed by a cliff, saw these flowers, and instinctively thought of you.”

Having said that, Wang Baole took out the flowers that he had bought and placed them beside the mask.

The purple petals—together with the black mask—seemed to cast a beautiful radiance. Especially in the wintry Hallucination realm, a small breeze could gently cause the petals to flutter and be carried away by the wind.

“Little Missy, these flowers grow ever so lonely on the cliff, which reminded me of the lonely you. I cannot visit you frequently. I hope these flowers can take my place and accompany you,” Wang Baole muttered. With that, he immediately went to observe the mask. No signs of change. A wave of disappointment began to rise in him.

“Seems like Little Missy is also an experienced being. It’s so difficult to please her…” Wang Baole remarked. Heaving a sigh of relief internally, he blinked and coughed.

“Oh right, Little Missy, I suddenly thought of something. I have already refined the scabbard, which you asked me to do, but the problem is, how do I use it? I have tried a couple of times already…”

Just as Wang Baole was about to complete his sentence, a gust of wind blew, brushing the flowers against the mask. It seemed like these flowers were about to be blown away into the distance.

At that moment, a seemingly invisible hand appeared from the mask and gently pinched a fluttering flower petal. The flower petal froze and stopped in midair!

This scene made Wang Baole’s pupils shrink suddenly, and his breathing hastened. Staring at the flower that hung in midair, he saw the flower rise slightly, as if someone had brought it near their nose to take a whiff.

Not sure if it was just an illusion, Wang Baole vaguely saw a woman’s silhouette above the mask. She had long hair that was swaying lightly. With an indistinct face, she was wearing a traditional regal gown. Yet, she appeared to stand aloof from the world—detached. At that instant, her tender hands held onto the flower, taking in the faint scent.

“Thank you.”

A cold, tranquil voice suddenly sounded out of the black mask while Wang Baole’s heart was racing. This sudden voice gave Wang Baole a fright as he hurriedly took a few steps back. After suppressing his alarm, Wang Baole blinked and hurriedly said, “Little Missy, you have such a pleasant voice.”

The black mask remained silent. After a while, the originally cold-hearted voice became apparently less cold and seemed to have more emotions in it, just as it started to say more.

“The scabbard is a growth-typed Dharmic Artifact. Only by refining it to the third grade will you be able to release the sword-like Spirit Qi needles. Let me teach you a way where you can infuse the scabbard into your body for nurturing. This will allow you to become one with your weapon, granting you the ability to command it with ease as you wish.

“At the same time, throughout this cultivation period, it will also serve as your Intrinsic Dharma treasure. In the future, in terms of function and physical changes, this scabbard will also match your personality as well as your state of mind.

“In addition, I will impart the knowledge on how to refine this scabbard to the third grade to you. You must remember that you have to quickly refine this to the third grade.”

As Little Missy’s voice constantly spoke, Wang Baole became more agitated and excited.

This was the longest conversation that Wang Baole had held with the mask ever since he obtained it. This time, it was evident that the tone was not as cold-hearted as before. This made Wang Baole excited. He realized that he had given the correct present. As he pondered over his stupidity in the past, he recognized that it was becoming apparent that there were still many things that he had to individually understand and dive deeper into.

Hmm… It looks like I have to put in more work to please her in the future… I should quickly grab hold of the opportunity to understand everything, obtain a mutual cordial relationship, and boost our impression of each other!

Feeling delighted, Wang Baole faithfully remembered what Little Missy had taught him—about how he had to use his scabbard as his Intrinsic Dharmic Artifact as well as how he could refine it to the third grade. Only then did he decide to leave.

Just as he was about to pick up the mask and leave the Hallucination realm, Little Missy’s cold-hearted voice once again reverberated.

“I wish to remain here.”

“Ah?” Wang Baole was taken aback. Pausing for a moment, he left the Hallucination realm on his own. Before he left, he turned back to look at the mask with the flower floating in midair as before.

It was as if she was always looking, gently taking in the flowery scent…

All of this left a deep impression on Wang Baole. It appeared that he could genuinely feel the loneliness of the woman…

Amid the silence, Wang Baole returned to reality. As he opened his eyes, he realized that the mask had indeed disappeared. All that was left was just the Hallucination Pillow. As such, he carefully put away the pillow, took a deep breath, and sat cross-legged. Following the teachings imparted from Little Missy, Wang Baole attempted to infuse the scabbard into his body for cultivation.

Little Missy’s technique was simple, and the process ran smoothly. In a matter of seconds, the scabbard vanished from the outside world into his body.

As for the formula to refine the scabbard to the second grade, the materials required were far more precious than those required for the first grade, and the quantity needed was at least ten times greater.

Furthermore, he also needed to acquire Armament Sand, not just a hundred grains but a thousand!

This was still not worth mentioning. To refine the scabbard to the third grade, the materials required were far more exaggerated—especially the Armament Sand. It required ten thousand grains!

These numbers—even if Wang Baole himself could refine the Rainbow Spirit Stones himself—were still an astounding amount that would leave one speechless.

However, upon thinking of the prowess of the scabbard, Wang Baole gritted his teeth. Filled with anticipation, he began to refine the Armament Sand. However, in the midst of his refinement, an idea suddenly flashed across Wang Baole’s mind.

Hmm… the Armament Sand can fully trigger the potential of the scabbard and cause the Inscriptions to evolve… then… can I use it on other Dharmic Artifacts?

The thought of this excited him.

The scabbard’s power is hindered by its grade. Up till now, the refinement of the scabbard still has not shown any obvious effects. However, those flawless and unparalleled second-grade Dharmic Artifacts that I have are extraordinarily powerful. If I can fully trigger the potential of my scabbard and cause the Inscriptions to evolve, then won’t my power increase exponentially?

With this in mind, Wang Baole’s eyes shone, and he sighed deeply. Thinking of all the possibilities, he decided to attempt to refine the scabbard and observe the outcome of it. With that—instead of the precious Dharmic Artifacts that he had—Wang Baole retrieved several leftover second-grade Dharmic Artifacts from his storage bag that he had used in his previous refinement, many of which he had been unable to sell. He then ran toward the smelting furnace and started his refinement process.

It doesn’t matter if I fail, but once I succeed, my Dharmic Artifacts will undoubtedly possess unimaginable power! However, due to the wild and uncontrollable nature of the evolution, even I myself do not know what will happen if the Dharmic Artifact evolves!

Wang Baole’s eyes were filled with longing—unable to suppress the desire in him.

Will some kind of nascent Divine Armament appear?