Chapter 431: Chapter 430: Authority Curtain, Old Acquaintance
The southern area has fewer God Patterns compared to the east.
However, the quality is superior.
Lower God Patterns are scarce on Li Jing’s southern journey. What is more common are at least Middle God Patterns, Superior God Patterns are not few.
Guided by Ling Ling, while picking up God Patterns along the way, Li Jing began to estimate.
The eastern side he visited earlier might be the first battlefield between the Supreme God System and War Worship God System. It could also be the place where the Supreme God System invaded this Fragmented Space.
So the bearing results on the east side were mainly both sides probing each other, with Lower Gods acting as the main force.
By the time they reach the south, Middle Gods and Superior Gods start to take the stage in large numbers.
Moreover, at least each side has one Supreme Main God that fell in battle, with the Divine Court’s side being ultimately defeated.
The situation is roughly like this.
On this basis.
In conjunction with the large number of Evil Spirits targeting the Supreme Court on their way to a known destination, it is not difficult to draw a conclusion.
The destination of the Supreme Court is a main battlefield where the two divine systems fought fiercely.
Meanwhile, that destination is also the last barrier of the War Worship God System in their constant retreat, where they have things that they wanted to protect even after their death by becoming Evil Spirits due to their unwillingness to die.
Evil Spirits have no rationality at all.
But they are still protecting something on some past obsessions.
This interests Li Jing.
He has encountered a similar situation once in the Heavenly Saint Land.
After Longxu died and became a remnant soul with fragmented memories, he protected Qingyuan Holy Land for tens of thousands of years in accordance with the prophecy.
What these Evil Spirits in the present Fragmented Space are guarding must not be simple as well.
...
They travelled without conversation.
Li Jing, accompanied by Ling Ling.
Stopped and started, while picking up the fallen God Patterns, also approached Alicia’s location sensed by Ling Ling.
In a single day.
In one day’s time, Li Jing collected over three hundred more God Patterns.
He didn’t share this batch of God Patterns with Ling Ling.
To build several Supreme Gods, he needs a large number of various levels of God Patterns to make up for the lack. The only Supreme God Pattern on hand is broken, but he is optimistic about the future, and it would not be a mistake to collect more God Patterns for back-up and worry about the surplus later.
On the way south, Li Jing has seen many bodies left by the advancing troops.
Evil spirits were rarely seen.
According to the aggressive advancements of the Supreme Court, it is unlikely that the Evil Spirits were annihilated, most likely they joined the Evil Spirit group that was sniping and chasing the troops.
In a collapsed palace, Li Jing found and pocketed one Superior God Pattern then looked at Ling Ling, who was shaking her small feet on his shoulder.
"How far are we from the Saint of the Goddess of Light?"
"Not far, according to our speed, we can get there in less than half a day."
Ling Ling responded, saying.
"She seems to have already reached her destination and stopped or encountered something; her location hasn’t changed for a long time."
"Stopped?"
Li Jing raised an eyebrow, thought about it, and said.
"Let’s continue searching for God Patterns while moving, remind me when we are close to the location of the Saint of the Goddess of Light."
After saying this, he moved his figure and lifted up into the sky with Ling Ling once again.
...
After half a day has passed.
Li Jing, guided by Ling Ling, "picked" up many God Patterns on the way. He has gleaned at least five hundred pieces of God Patterns in his pocket, enough for wholesale.
Under these circumstances, Li Jing couldn’t help but sigh.
The Supreme God System is truly myopic.
They don’t use Ling Ling to her fullest potential and don’t even give her a share of the benefits gained through her. It’s as if they are purposely driving her off...
Why?
Indeed.
The existence of Ling Ling is indeed a considerable potential threat to the Supreme God System. No matter how she grows, the threat will intensify.
But as long as this little one is tied up and closely controlled, how big could the problem be?
If you cannot cope with an "enemy" who could also bring remarkable benefits, then wouldn’t making them a friend be more delightful?
Short-sighted!
Li Jing set aside his thoughts.
After reaping a Middle God Pattern in some ruins and about to lift into the sky again, Ling Ling, who was sitting on his shoulder gnawing at a God Pattern, suddenly spoke up.
"We are approaching the Apostle of the Goddess of Light, she is probably near the curtain up ahead."
Curtain?
Li Jing was stunned, subconsciously turned his head.
There was nothing in the distant horizon, where was the curtain?
At this moment.
Ling Ling spoke again.
"That curtain is formed by a special Authority to shield it, blocking all external probing. Only when we got here did I feel it. You have Authority, but you are just starting to use it. It’s perfectly normal to not feel it. Just get a little closer."
Hearing such words, Li Jing nodded silently.
Barely entering Ninth Realm, he had only just stepped on the threshold of being able to manipulate rules.
Speaking of understanding, except for the two rules controlled in advance by the status bar, his understanding of the rules is just so-so.
What cannot be sensed can’t be forced.
Without giving it much thought, Li Jing activated Silent Shadow again and rose into the sky again.
...
After a while.
Li Jing sensed the existence of the curtain.
At the same time.
He also saw that the main force, whose number of personnel was at least reduced by one-third, had camped near the location where the curtain was sensed.
Before Li Jing’s arrival, they had obviously experienced a tough battle.
There were a lot of casualties in each camp.
The ones not wounded were treating the others.
On his way there, Li Jing had indeed seen many recently dead bodies.
Looking at the situation.
The whereabouts of the curtain was obviously the destination of the Supreme Court.
After successfully reaching it, they dealt with the hindrance the Evil Spirits were causing to their journey, so the troupe can recover in one fell swoop.
This battle was quite intense.
However, the real main force is not these common cultivators.
When they arrived.
Li Jing’s powerful Ninth Realm Primordial Spirit easily captured the aura of two others in the same realm.
Both of their powers were characteristic of the Holy Power, which is unique to the Supreme God System.
Who these two are isn’t hard to guess.
The Heavenly Saint Land should not logically have anyone with Ninth Realm.
Those two Ninth Realm beings could only be Wina, the Messenger of the God’s Descent, and Alicia the temporarily favored Saint of the Goddess of Light.
It seemed that.
The two of them no longer concealed their abilities once they had arrived at their destination.
In order to ensure that they would have enough manpower available for their own use later on, they each brought out their true skills and decisively dealt with the pursuing evil spirits.
The evil spirits, which required both of them to use their true skills to deal with them, must be very powerful and numerous.
Sigh!
Becoming obsessed with collecting god patterns has misled people!
While feeling regretful, Li Jing’s expression was peculiar.
At this moment in his perception.
Wina and Alicia were each in two separate camps.
The people from the Supreme Church were all on Alicia’s side.
The Present Supreme Church, however, was on Wina’s side.
The two camps kept a certain distance from each other, seemingly in opposition.
This situation honestly took Li Jing by surprise.
It was true that Wina and Alicia each had their own lords.
However, Li Jing didn’t expect Wina to be so bold as to fall out with Alicia.
The Main God she served was far inferior to the Goddess of Light, who was even one of the seven supremes.
Who gave her that confidence?
Could it be he himself, who had been missing for an astonishing nine days?
Li Jing did not believe that this was the case.
Although Wina was naive, she wasn’t that stupid.
To put hope in a man who had been missing for nine days.
Looking at this layout, it was indeed a bit delicate.
All the people from the Supreme Church were on Alicia’s side, while the Present Supreme Church was on Wina’s.
Could it be that the main gods behind the two were directly tearing their faces apart and starting a gambit for the gains of this trip?
This...
Could it be?
Keep in mind that the Goddess of Light is one of the seven supremes of the Supreme God System. What could the master of Wina use to compete with her?
Li Jing was confused as his gaze fell on a camp where the flag of Longyu was flying.
At a glance.
The Longyu exploration team sent quite a few people this time.
At least ten groups of ten thousand each to estimate.
Many of them were wounded, and the remaining members of the exploration teams were depressed and had a gloomy expression, indicating that they had participated in a fierce battle earlier and had suffered heavy casualties.
Looking back at the road they had come down, which was strewn with corpses, Li Jing quietly landed in the camp where the Longyu flag was flying. His gaze shifted to a tent in the centre of the camp where there was a faint sound of quarreling.
"We can’t just let this matter slide! In this battle, we of Longyu have lost a full twenty thousand elites! Those bastards of the Supreme Church intentionally put us in the front lines, we need to make them pay the price!"
An angry male voice sounded out, filled with resentment.
As soon as he finished speaking, a female voice rang out.
"Of course we can’t just let this matter slide, but it’s not the right time to trouble the Supreme Church. They have the Messenger of God’s Descent, Wina, and none of us are her match. Plus, during the battle, not only was Wina with us in the front lines, she also took care of our people. Were it not for that, our casualties would have far exceeded twenty thousand. This act can be counted as a favour, and there was once a sense of shared hatred for the common enemy during the fight against the massive army of evil spirits. It’s not wise to rashly become her enemy."
Hearing this female voice, Li Jing was taken aback.
The key was that he was familiar with this voice.
Dog Demon Su Qiong.
This old acquaintance had actually come to Heavenly Saint Land too and was a member of the exploration team headed to the West Continent, which was quite surprising to Li Jing.
While he was still stunned.
Another calm male voice rang out.
"Squad Leader Su is right, it’s neither wise nor appropriate to be enemies with the Supreme Church at this time. Wina alone is not someone we can deal with, and we have once been on the same front line. Many brothers are alive because of her. We have now arrived at our final destination, and once the Supreme Church lifts the curtain’s restrictions, we don’t know what we might encounter on the road ahead. This is not the time to fall out with the Church. That account can be settled when we return, there’s no rush."
The calm male voice seemed to hold a high position.
With his opening.
The loud male voice stopped speaking, and Su Qiong also remained silent.
The others in the tent began to discuss the future strategy and arrangements.
Li Jing stood outside the tent without going in.
He had roughly understood the situation.
The Longyu side was tricked by the Supreme Church, resulting in the sacrifice of twenty thousand elites.
He made a note of this grudge.
However, he didn’t plan to do anything about it.
It’s true that he is from Longyu, but he didn’t see the need to pay for all of Longyu’s decisions.
On one hand, this would be exhausting.
On the other hand, Longyu’s exploration team’s involvement in the West Continent’s affairs was a mistake in the first place.
They didn’t understand.
What they encountered.
And what they were trying to gain from existing powers.
Especially this time, as the Supreme Church, which had always been at odds with Longyu, had a somewhat leading position.
The common exploration team, with most of their combat power only around the Fifth Boundary, had joined in for the benefits without fully understanding the situation. It was already quite fortunate that they hadn’t all been gobbled up.
What surprised Li Jing somewhat was.
Wina actually took care of Longyu’s exploration team during the battle.
Frankly, this was quite unscientific.
After all, the people of Longyu were atheists. Wina taking care of Longyu’s exploration team didn’t make much sense, at best it could win her some favor.
Could it be because the vessel she descended upon was of mixed eastern and western blood?
...
The meeting in the tent did not last long.
After a while, the high-ranking members of the various exploration teams began to leave in batches.
There were many disputes during the meeting, and many disagreements among them. Some advocated for withdrawal, while others recommended an alliance with the Northern God Country. Some even suggested finding an opportunity for revenge against the Supreme Church.
The entire meeting process was not pleasant.
After three groups of high-ranking exploration team members had left, Li Jing finally saw Su Qiong come out.
She was accompanied by two others.
Judging from the emblem on their uniforms, they belonged to the same Xiang City Management Bureau as Su Qiong.
Not paying attention to these two people, Li Jing discreetly cancelled the Silent Shadow spell on Su Qiong.
As Su Qiong and her two companions walked out of the tent, looking fatigued and ready to rest in their own tents,
She suddenly noticed Li Jing out of the corner of her eye, standing not far off, and paused to rub her eyes vigorously.
Seeing this, Li Jing chuckled silently and subtly made a silencing gesture.
As a successful monster in the Xiang City Management Bureau, Su Qiong was naturally sharp.
Seeing Li Jing’s gesture, she immediately understood and pretended not to see him as she resumed her steps and conversation with her comrades.
Observing this, Li Jing secretly followed her, while glancing at the Health Bar above her head.
7168.
Late Fifth Boundary.
Compared to her early Fourth Boundary stage, Su Qiong’s growth rate could be described as astonishing.
It seemed.
After the incident in the Small Secret Realm No.107, Su Qiong’s promotion brought many conveniences to her cultivation path. She probably consumed lots of monster flesh that was hard to obtain before.
Looking at Su Qiong’s Health Bar, Li Jing couldn’t help but think of that slacker cat he knew.
If only Ji Qing was as diligent as Su Qiong.
Given his assistance in her advancement, hasn’t she stepped into the Six Realm already?
Thinking about how long it had been since she had gone home, Chen Yuran went to the Secret Realm again, Xiaoli needs to recharge and could only rely on Ji Qing for help. The two of them are probably going to game until the day goes dark. Li Jing rubbed his brows and chose to abandon these thoughts.
Ji Qing was one of the few friends Li Jing had, naturally he took it seriously.
This time, he had obtained so many God Patterns and the Heritage Stele of Qingyuan Fairy Palace. Once he returned, he might as well grab that wastelander and confine her into the Little Universe. Without the Internet, she should be able to cultivate diligently, right?
...
Not long after setting off, Su Qiong bid farewell to his two colleagues and entered a tent.
Seeing this scene, Li Jing followed him in.
Just as he entered, Su Qiong pulled out a parchment to seal the divination and pasted it on the curtain, then looked over with shining eyes.
"Xiaolizi, it’s been a long time matching!"
"..."
Li Jing.
He was, after all, an old friend of Su Qiong’s.
But her calling him Xiaolizi, was somewhat obnoxious.
Looking at Su Qiong, her face was full of joy, she seemed to be swaying as if she had not been rid of her dog instincts despite having stepped into the Fifth Boundary. With a gentle voice indicative of both amusement and resignation, Li Jing spoke.
"Yes, it has been a while, I didn’t expect to meet you here."
Before his words had finished, Su Qiong hummed in response.
"You have the gall to say that! I heard that you were going to be on this mission, so I volunteered to lead the team here, but once we arrived at the Secret Realm, we couldn’t find you at all."
Li Jing was taken aback by her words and asked in confusion.
"If you had asked our people from the Jianghai Management Bureau, I would have somehow received a message."
"I would have liked to ask people from the Jianghai Management Bureau, but I couldn’t."
Su Qiong shrugged her shoulders and explained,
"On this journey I was accompanying one of the parachuted leaders in the delegation, you must be well aware of the overt and covert conflicts among the higher-ups. Coincidentally the person I was accompanying had issues with the Jiang family. The director of your Jianghai Management Bureau is from the Jiang family.Regards to Jianghai ManIf I had asked, I probably would end up in trouble."
"..."
Li Jing fell silent.
Su Qiong’s explanation left Li Jing a little speechless.
Well if she couldn’t ask openly, why didn’t she find a secret way?
But on a second thought, Su Qiong’s prudence was also understandable.
The manipulation games amongst the higher-ups indeed was kind of bothersome for those who were lower in the organization.
It was especially taxing when it involved dealing with powerhouses like the Jiang family...
Those who dared to go against the Jiang family were certainly not simple beings either.
With a quiet shake of his head, Li Jing spoke.
"Just now, when I was listening to your meeting from outside, I already had a basic understanding of what you guys have been through. You guys should probably refrain from delving too deep into what’s coming next."
"Well, it’s not for me alone to decide."
With a sigh, Su Qiong added,
"I don’t really want to be part of these troubles either, but I don’t get to choose. Moreover, I can’t just abandon my subordinates and run away."
After saying that, she chuckled and said,
"But knowing that you’re here this time, I can be at ease."
Li Jing laughed upon hearing this.
"You’re really overestimating me if you think you can relax just because I’m here."
"I may not know how powerful you are now, but I do know that you’re someone who never lets himself be taken advantage of."
Smiling, Su Qiong continued after she took a seat on the bench,
"If I’ve guessed correctly, you’re seeking me out because you want to find out what the Supreme Church’s next move is, right?"
"Yes."
Li Jing nodded with a smile, and then he asked,
"How much do you know about the aftermath?"
"There’s not much that I know."
Answering his question, Su Qiong elaborated,
"During this trip, the Supreme Church has always been mysterious and the Supreme Church has been in opposition to the Church since the incident in the Death Sea. It’s quite apparent to the keen-eyed that there’s a bigger force secretly orchestrating this conflict. Both parties are fighting for some interests."
After saying that, she paused and continued,
"Since you sneaked along with this trip, you must already have understood the situation without me explaining. What I do know is the Church and the Cathedral will likely break through the barrier after about three days. We have no idea what lies behind the barrier, though both sides have signaled us ’worker bees’ to prepare for potential conflicts. If everything goes as planned, a brutal battle is likely to ensue after the barrier is broken."
Li Jing nodded silently after hearing her explanation.
He had noticed the division between the Supreme Church and the Church.
But he was not aware that it happened after the Death Sea incident.
This was worth pondering over.
Things probably turned out as he had previously anticipated.
After the Supreme God had been tricked by him, there must have been some sort of divine revelation.
However, this divine revelation might not necessarily come from the Supreme God.
It could very well have come from the Main God that Wina served, along with its higher ranking Main God.
The one to "intervene" might very well be another Supreme other than the Supreme God and the Goddess of Light.
Based on this, it would make sense that Wina has the confidence to fall out with Alysia, even in his absence.
Mulling over this,
Li Jing drew a conclusion.
The Supreme God’s will to descend into the Heavenly Saint Land has already been publicized in the Supreme God Domain. After having been fooled by him and suffering some losses, the Supreme behind Wina’s Main God was happy to witness the debacle and was also aware of the Goddess of Light’s involvement in the Fragmented Space. He took matters into his own hands and strived for a piece of the pie.
Taking a deep breath, Li Jing organized his thoughts.
Things were complicated to begin with.
Now they have gotten even more complicated.
With two Supremes involved in the contention, the Supreme God would probably not easily back down.
Previously, the Supreme God wasn’t involved in this, and the Goddess of Light jumped in halfway through.
Based on this reasoning,
It seemed like each Main God had their own territory.
The Heavenly Saint Land probably belonged to the Supreme behind Wina’s Main God, who wouldn’t allow others to meddle easily.
The mighty intervention of the Goddess of Light was naturally unacceptable for the Supreme.
Resistance was inevitable.
It was uncertain whether the Supreme God, having been fooled once, would send someone else to settle the score with him.
What could be confirmed was,
Now the Supreme God definitely had an ample excuse to get involved.
After sorting out his thoughts, Li Jing looked up.
"Since the barrier can only be broken in three days, why don’t you take a short break for these three days."
Having said that, he smiled and continued,
"You’re really lucky, I’ve made a large haul this time. As old friends, I should certainly share some of the good fortune with you."
Li Jing’s words were quite sincere.
Upon hearing that, Su Qiong’s eyes lit up instantly.
She has had a taste of Li Jing’s benefits,
And not just once.
"Taking a break is easy, I just need to inform someone."
Smiling broadly, Su Qiong stood up and walked towards the exit of the tent while continuing,
"You can wait here, I’ll be back shortly."
Before the words had a chance to fall, she was already hurrying out.
Watching Su Qiong’s small waist twirling out of the door, Li Jing was left in helpless laughter.
If Su Qiong revealed her monster characteristic, he might expect to see Stinky Tofu reacting to his frequently used "secret skill" of a propeller-style tail flick.
Reclaiming his sight, Li Jing opened up his collar.
Entering his view was Ling Ling, lying on his collarbone, appearing at peace and deep in sleep.
You have to admit it.
This little thing is quite dramatic.
Noticing Li Jing opening his collar, she sneakily opened one eye to steal a peek, then swiftly pretended to sleep again.
Seeing this, Li Jing, between laughter, spoke.
"The one just now is my friend. With her strength, she probably cannot properly fuse with a Lower God Pattern, so I will need you to help later."
While talking, he took out an Upper God Pattern and handed it over.
Ling Ling, seemingly simple-minded, but actually very cunning.
Her feigned sleep was because through Li Jing’s words earlier, she knew he was going to give someone a God Pattern and then ask her to help.
Seeing him hand over an Upper God Pattern, the little creature grudgingly took it, giving a humph in response.
"Got it."
Ling Ling was easily satisfied, and also quite greedy.
Even though she already had nearly a hundred and fifty God Patterns stashed away, she wouldn’t mind having more.
And if there’s an extra Upper God Pattern, it would be great.
Seeing Ling Ling agree, Li Jing, amidst his laughter, asked.
"She is a living monster, her situation might not be quite like Longxu’s. How much time does she need to absorb a Lower God Pattern? And how many lower, middle and upper God Patterns does she need in order to level up her own God Pattern to an upper one?"
"Her situation is indeed different from Longxu’s, and I can see that her body is as robust as yours."
While replying, Ling Ling lowered her head, crunching on a God Pattern, she continued.
"For a Lower God Pattern, she only needs about two hours. To feed her God Pattern up to Upper God Level, probably about twenty Lower God Patterns, then ten Middle God Patterns, and two Upper ones. However, three days isn’t enough time for her to digest all that power at once, most likely she can only get to the middle level."
"Hm."
Li Jing nodded.
Just as they were talking, Su Qiong hurried back.
To her surprise, seeing a small fairy creature lying on Li Jing’s collarbone as she walked through the door, she paused.
Li Jing took the opportunity to speak.
"Let me introduce you. This is Ling Ling, a friend I happened to meet."
With such an introduction, Su Qiong paused momentarily before responding on instinct.
"Hello, I’m Su Qiong."
"Hello."
Ling Ling laughed in response, lying down and waving a little hand in greeting.
Seeing them greet each other, Li Jing did not dally, standing up and pulling Su Qiong closer.
"Don’t resist."
???
Su Qiong.
They were having a good conversation, why did Li Jing suddenly pull her over?
And ask her not to resist?
What is...
What does he want to do?
Do he want to...
That’s a bit too sudden, isn’t it?
While lost in her thoughts, Su Qiong suddenly felt a strong pulling sensation around her.
Upon feeling this, she immediately realized that she was overthinking things.
Now that she thought about it, it made sense.
Having Li Jing as a friend was a blessing in her life.
Li Jing, being a human, after all she had been through, how could he...
Before the thought could settle, Li Jing had already taken Su Qiong to the top of Canglong Mountain in the Little Universe.
Before she had a chance to get a good look at her surroundings, Li Jing shoved a Lower God Pattern in her hand.
"This is a God Pattern. Ling Ling will help you to absorb it. It can help you to ascend to godhood, increase your strength, and allow you to comprehend a rule, while also enhancing your power."
?
Su Qiong slowly formed a question mark.
As an Eastern monster.
She was a typical atheist like the Eastern people.
But it’s not hard to understand what a God Pattern is.
This is something only Western gods have.
Without a God Pattern, you can’t really be considered a god.
In a flash, many thoughts filled Su Qiong’s mind.
The God Pattern Li Jing gave her came from the Fragmented Space.
This is what the Supreme Church is after.
So...
Why did the Supreme Church rush in here, without any gains, while Li Jing ended up pocketing the God Pattern?
And it seems like he gained a lot, even enough to give her one?
Before she could figure it out, Li Jing took out thirty God Patterns according to the quantity mentioned by Ling Ling beforehand: Nineteen Lower, ten Middle and two Upper, then put them aside before speaking.
"In these three days, your task is to try your best to absorb these thirty Lower and Middle God Patterns completely. Keep these two Upper patterns for later. If time does not permit, you can finish it when you get a chance later."
"..."
Su Qiong.
What Li Jing gave her was not just one God Pattern.
It was a set, thirty-two in total!
From his words, it wasn’t hard to tell that that God Pattern absorption needs to be swift and progressive, little by little.
If she managed to absorb them all, would she end up as a god?
An Upper Level God, held in high esteem in the culture of the Supreme Church!?
All these revelations had Su Qiong struggling to take it all in.
Li Jing didn’t seem to care too much about that, lowering his gaze towards Ling Ling, indicating what to do.
Seeing the situation, Ling Ling didn’t hesitate, and motioned with her hand.
A streak of energy with a deep green tone enveloped Su Qiong’s whole body. Immediately after, the Lower God Pattern in her hand melted into her palm.
!!!
Su Qiong.
With the God Pattern merging with her, she clearly felt a burst of power strong enough to detonate her body entering her system.
It was the green aura around her that was protecting her.
Otherwise, she would have blown up on spot.
With no time to think more, she hurriedly sat cross-legged, trying to digest this burst of power.
God Patterns were quite peculiar.
After being infused, Su Qiong already knew how to digest it.
...
