A World Worth Protecting

What he had to get his hands on in order to leave the Divine Eye Star System and return to the Solar System… was a Divine Eye battleship!

After spending some time going through the records, Wang Baole had gained quite a bit of knowledge about the Divine Eye civilization. He knew that it was a civilization that ran on pillage and robbery. That defining feature of this civilization led to their special regard for battleships.

The civilization’s progress depended on how much travel and banditry their people did. It was their culture. It meant that even though solo missions occurred from time to time, most of the time, the people of the Divine Eye civilization gathered in swarms, like bees. They traveled and attacked in a group. This gave rise to the need for battleships that could travel at high speeds and for vast distances. As a result, the research and development of battleships became a primary focus for the Divine Eye civilization.

They may call it a battleship, but it’s really a battle fortress that’s not only many times more powerful than the fortress I built in the Solar System, but is also many times faster than the Lunar Stronghold! Wang Baole’s heart raced with excitement. He thought about how he could also achieve space travel if he activated his Thearch Armor and Stellar Nascent Soul. However, it would take too long for him to get back to the Solar System. He wouldn’t be able to take a break during the journey either. In addition, there were bound to be many unexpected obstacles along the way.

A fortress that was fast enough and sturdy enough, and possessed powerful offensive capabilities and navigational power, was exactly what he needed.

Wang Baole took a deep breath at that thought. His eyes shone brightly. No one from the Divine Eye civilization would understand the determination in his eyes, but if Li Xingwen or Duan Muque were here now, they would know exactly what he was feeling.

These feelings… were the strong desire to return to the Solar System and to become the Federation President!

Wang Baole thought about how far he had come from his youthful days and how he still wasn’t the Federation President. He couldn’t control the emotions stirring inside him.

In the past, I couldn’t become the Federation President because I was too good looking, and I also coincidentally didn’t have the prerequisite rank!

I’ve gone through so much trouble to slim down in order to hide my natural good looks. I’ve also climbed the ranks. The Federation President has been within my reach, but my senior brother has taken me away from it… Now, the only thing stopping me from becoming the Federation President is my not having a battleship! The expression on Wang Baole’s face was serious. He raised his right hand, and with a wave, he yanked a pack of chips from his storage bracelet and began munching noisily.

He seemed to be trying to prove the strength of his determination with the strength of his bite. He crunched hard on the chips, transforming his resolute will and his strong bite into one!

I’m going to become the Federation President! Wang Baole bit into his chips and promised himself.

He hadn’t completely lost his senses though. He stopped himself from finishing the entire pack and stored the pack still half-filled with chips away. He had prepared for the long journey away from Earth and stored almost a thousand cartons of snacks of all kinds in his storage bag. But who knew how long he was going to be here? Wang Baole thought he should be more cautious and ration his snacks.

I’ll have to plan carefully what to do next… Wang Baole rubbed his chin and began to think. Since he had a goal in mind, he should work towards that goal. In his opinion, there were a few ways he could get his hands on a battleship. He could use someone else’s or build his own.

If he chose the first option, he could consider commandeering a Sea Glutton. It would be easier for him, he just needed enough money. He might face some difficulty in acquiring some cash, but Wang Baole felt that if he put his mind to it, this was a problem that could be easily resolved.

Wang Baole wasn’t confident of how well other people’s battleships might work though. He was planning to leave the Divine Eye Star System, after all. He might encounter numerous obstacles during his journey back home. Wang Baole needed to be able to repair the battleship when the situation called for it.

After weighing the pros and cons of each option, Wang Baole came to a decision.

I’m going to learn how to build a battleship and build my own. I’ll know the ins and outs of the entire battleship then, and I’ll be able to repair it if anything goes wrong.

This might be challenging for others, but not for Wang Baole. He was a Dharmic Armament master who could craft eighth-grade Dharmic Armaments. He was still some way from successfully crafting a ninth-grade Dharmic Armament, but he had no problems repairing one. After gaining an understanding of the Dharmic Armament system in the Divine Eye civilization, he was confident in his success. He just needed to learn how to do it in the first place.

In the days that followed, Wang Baole did what he had been doing, leaning furiously. The Holy Crest Sect didn’t have a big disciple population. Even though only six hundred or so of them remained in the sect during this period, they all knew each other rather well. Wang Baole’s lessons were often interrupted by visitors.

Wang Baole couldn’t turn these people away since they had been Long Nanzi’s friends. Besides, he was interested in learning more from them as well. Wang Baole welcomed each visitor with great enthusiasm. As they fretted over the sect’s current situation and its uncertain future, Wang Baole tried to find out more about the Holy Crest Sect and the Divine Eye Star System.

“When will the greater sect be visiting? I have no idea. Everyone’s trying to decide whether they should remain with the sect now…”

“The Thousand Spirit Sect approached many of our disciples. The perks that they’re offering seem quite good. They’re asking us to join them…”

The news from these visitors revealed the anxieties these disciples were feeling. There had been two incidents during all these visits, where Long Nanzi’s closer friends seemed to suspect something was amiss with him. It was a piece of cake for Wang Baole to deal with such matters though. He had used his powerful cultivation to cast a spell and influence their minds. Life went on without a hitch.

The Grand Supreme Elder had summoned for him once. He had asked some simple questions about his progress with his cultivation. He hadn’t paid much attention to Long Nanzi, who had been stuck and hadn’t achieved a breakthrough in cultivation for a number of years. As a result, he naturally hadn’t realized that Long Nanzi had been replaced with another person. Other than a few words of encouragement, he had simply left Wang Baole with a few casual words before he sent him away.

“These are difficult times for the sect. We need everyone to chip in. That is the only way the sect can restore itself to its former power and continue to offer protection to all its disciples.”

Those words appeared to mean nothing on the surface. Besides, the Grand Supreme Elder hadn’t only summoned Wang Baole, he had summoned every Core Formation realm cultivator who had continued training independently despite the sect’s current situation. The Grand Supreme Elder had offered the same words of encouragement, then left them with the same parting words. After all, the sect was in a dire position now. Most of its physical assets had been torn down and taken over by other sects. The sect grounds looked barren. It was a sad sight to bear.

As the elder, encouraging the disciples and easing their worries was the right thing to do.

But… Wang Baole had immersed himself in the high officials’ autobiographies since he had been a child. He had climbed the ranks to the top in the Solar System. He continued to ponder the Grand Supreme Elder’s words after he left the meeting.

Is this a threat? Wang Baole laughed. He decided to ignore it. He had remained calm throughout the meeting, unworried that he would be exposed. The concealed threat didn’t faze him at all. Even if the Grand Supreme Elder were to find out his true identity or decide to cause him trouble, he could simply kill the middle-aged man and take on his identity.

It was then that he realized that if he were to transform into the Grand Supreme Elder, he would have to deal with a new set of problems. There was the Grand Supreme Elder’s social network, his dealings with the greater sect, as well as administrative matters within the sect itself. He could search the Grand Supreme Elder’s soul for information, but there wasn’t that wide a gap between their levels of cultivation. Even if he succeeded in searching the man’s soul, he wouldn’t be able to acquire complete information. Besides, the Grand Supreme Elder didn’t seem to notice anything wrong with Wang Baole. That was why Wang Baole decided to abandon the idea of taking on the Grand Supreme Elder’s identity after some thought.

So be it. I’ll spare his life. Wang Baole coughed. He returned to his residence and continued his study on the Divine Eye civilization’s artifact refinement techniques.

In the blink of an eye, seven days passed.

Wang Baole’s continued interaction with the sect disciples was a boon to him. He finally assimilated into the sect. The place was no longer as foreign to him as it had been initially. As he continued asking around, he also found out the reason behind the disaster that had befallen the sect and why it had to auction off its assets.

Everything led back to… the battleship that the Holy Crest Sect had been using for raids and was now trying to repair!

This battleship was the sect’s most valuable possession. Its construction had taken a few generations to complete. Vast resources had gone into the construction of the battleship, and it was the key to the Holy Crest Sect’s continued survival.

That was why the Grand Supreme Elder had auctioned off the sect’s assets and bought vast quantities of materials. He had also gathered every cultivator in the sect who was an expert in refining artifacts and sent them to the sect’s restricted zone, where they carried out repairs to the battleship without rest.

Wang Baole couldn’t help but be tempted upon that discovery. The studies that he had done in seclusion could only bring him theoretical knowledge. As a master in Dharmic Armaments, Wang Baole knew how important getting his hands dirty was. In addition, if he could somehow get himself involved in the repairs of the battleship, it would help him gain a better understanding of how to begin to build his own.

He reorganized the information he had learned about how the Divine Eye civilization refined its artifacts, then he left his residence and headed for the restricted zone. The Grand Supreme Elder was supervising the repair work there, so Wang Baole was going to see the Grand Supreme Elder and volunteer to help with the repairs of the battleship.

“Grand Supreme Elder, as a member of the Holy Crest Sect, I can’t just sit by as the sect is suffering. My mind won’t let me rest and focus on my cultivation. I want to volunteer to help with the battleship’s repairs. I wish to contribute my services to the sect. This is everything I’ve saved up, I’m willing to hand everything to the sect for its use. I’d like to offer whatever labor I can provide as well. I swear to stand with the sect in both glory and death!”

Wang Baole waited for a long moment before he was finally granted a meeting with the Grand Supreme Elder. When he saw the tired-looking Grand Supreme Elder, Wang Baole immediately pulled out a storage bag and placed it at one side. Then, he began to speak with a loud, excited voice, proclaiming his loyalty to the sect, like it was clear for all to see. Perhaps to make his proclamation more authentic, Wang Baole smacked his chest loudly.