NOVPUBChapter 348 -345 Intermediate Source Power Study
“Is the Mirage Mountain Range really on Earth?”
Tang Yu pondered in the castle’s library.
People used the inability to see the sun as a sign to distinguish between the inner and outer parts of the Mirage Mountain Range; it was the inner part that was the true Mirage Mountain Range.
Yet, in the inner part, even though the sun and moon were invisible, it was not pitch-black darkness, but rather dim, as if sunlight found it difficult to penetrate deep into the mountains, resulting in less abundant light.
But even when the outside world’s sun set and night fell, the inner part of the Mirage Mountain Range remained dimly lit.
Tang Yu was aware that Jing City was organizing manpower for exploration, and Zhou Zhenglei, the Ancestor Dragon Commander from Lindong, had also sent someone to invite him, which he declined.
“Having a lot of people in the exploration team isn’t necessarily a good thing, but it seems Jing City has no choice. A small squad could indeed avoid danger more easily, but the demonized beasts and mutant beasts in the Mirage Mountain Range are too powerful; with too few people, there’s little resistance when danger strikes.”
“Given Jing City’s foundation, they must have made quite a few preparations, maybe they could gain something…”
Tang Yu mused.
For him, heavenly materials and earthly treasures were not very attractive. Fruits that could awaken special abilities or items with strange powers were just so… What was more attractive were things like the libraries owned by the Mage Alliance, containing a vast collection of books.
Compared to exploring the Mirage Mountain Range, there were more important things to do right now.
He lowered his head, looking at the book in his hands inscribed with profound patterns, and his mind completely immersed.
Reading brings me great joy!
…
“Phew~”
Having put down the exquisite Rune Language Book, Tang Yu felt he had learned a lot.
This was an “Intermediate Source Power Study” book that had just appeared in the market yesterday.
The market had long been producing Rune Language Books, including Basic Rune Studies, Pharmacy, and Basic Battle Study, etc… These foundational books had been in his possession for more than two months, and it was precisely because of these Rune Language Books that he was able to establish a solid foundation.
Followers like Eileen, Kevin, and Luo Zhe also benefited greatly from Rune Language Books.
But later, for more than two months, not a single Rune Language Book appeared. Lucky Tang once defied belief, and spent a hundred thousand Source Crystals sweeping the market until his hands cramped, only to end up with a few slightly valuable blueprints and nothing else.
It was a loss all the way to grandma’s house.
For a while, he thought he was Bad Luck Tang, but then a few days ago, an “Intermediate Pharmacy” appeared in the market, and yesterday, an “Intermediate Source Power Study”…
Tang Yu felt something was off.
He hadn’t been specifically refreshing the market; it simply refreshed at midnight, and then two precious Rune Language Books appeared, both at the intermediate level.
If he had been successful in smuggling, there was no reason to wait until now.
Thinking back on the more significant events that happened recently…
It was Nancy’s breakthrough into the Transcendent Tier.
Before, whether in “Basic Rune Studies” or other Rune Language Books, references to transcendent knowledge were very rare, and Tang Yu even had to analyze and infer the power of the Transcendent Tier.
But the two Rune Language Books that appeared recently, without exception, spoke of transcendence.
“Intermediate Pharmacy” talked about using materials from transcendents to make potions… Indeed, Transcendent Tier, every strand of hair, every drop of blood, including any part of the body, could be used as special material… Some parts even inherently carried strange abilities.
“Intermediate Rune Studies” discussed the higher-level use of Source Power, stripping away the mysterious veil shrouding transcendent beings.
“Transcendence is divided into three stages.”
“The gap between each stage is as huge as the difference between the Transcendent Tier and the Awakening Tier.”
“Nancy and Yan Dingtian are both in the first stage, the kind that has just entered; compared to a senior transcendent strongman, the difference should be quite large.”
The gap with Yan Dingtian should be quite significant, Nancy. Her strength progresses rapidly every single day… It might not be impossible for her to battle a Senior Transcendent.
“But at the Second Stage, the nature of life changes.”
“Transcendents of the Second Stage, those of the Elemental Series, can transform themselves into energy; those of the meat series can regenerate limbs, even revive from a few drops of blood; while those of the Spiritual Series can perform soul out-of-body, roaming the world…”
“It could be said that at the Second Stage, Transcendent Strongmen possess unbelievable survival abilities. They might be defeated, but are extremely difficult to kill.”
“And at the Third Stage…”
Tang Yu murmured:
“The most emblematic ability is the domain! Once deployed, the whole heaven and earth fall under its influence.”
“When summoning Nancy from another realm, that terrifying strongman who appeared at the end must have been a Transcendent of the Third Stage.”
As he thought about this, he still felt residual fear; had it not been for the system’s summoning power, even clutching the Return City Scroll might not have guaranteed his escape.
…
Mirage Mountain Range.
After several hours of trekking, the Exploration Team came to a stop in front of a swamp, peering through the dim light to barely discern the other shore of the swamp and the pitch-black, bubbling mud within.
“Is this still a swamp?”
“Yes, and no,” the nominal Commander from Jing City declared.
His eyebrows arching upward lent him an imposing aura, yet his tone carried no aggression.
“The domain before us has the characteristics of a swamp but is much more dangerous. The swamp soil is highly toxic and corrosive. Once you fall in…”
“However, if you look closely, there are numerous protruding rocks on the Black Swamp. Treading on these rocks will allow us to reach the opposite shore, provided we exercise caution.”
Yet someone countered:
“Who knows what other dangers lie in the Black Swamp? What if monsters emerge? Why not choose to detour?”
The Eyebrow-Raising Commander didn’t get angry. Instead, he smiled and asked:
“Have you noticed that our path has been very purposeful all along? Somebody might have guessed it already. Indeed, when the mirage was clear that day, we managed to map a small part of it, which we later confirmed for authenticity by comparing with the actual environment.”
“The path we’re taking leads directly to a well-preserved palace complex. If we detour, we might lose clear landmarks, making it hard to find that palace.”
“While exploring the Black Swamp before, we crossed it by stepping on the rocks without any danger.”
No one argued further. The Exploration Team found a section near the Black Swamp where the distance to the opposite shore was shorter. Several Jing City Awakeners who had crossed once led the way, proceeding one by one.
“It’s our turn.”
Zhou Jianhong looked at the few silhouettes leaping ahead, pushed off lightly, and landed on the first rock.
The Black Swamp kept bubbling menacingly, but standing on a rock didn’t feel uncomfortable. The only difficulty was that some rocks were far apart, some had smaller standing areas, and some were slippery…
However, for someone who had conquered up to the forty-fifth floor of the Trial Tower, crossing the Black Swamp was effortlessly easy.
Standing on a slippery, tilted rock felt as familiar as being back home.
Even for Awakeners from other Sanctuaries, as long as they were careful, crossing the Black Swamp was as straightforward as Eyebrow-Raising Commander had indicated. There was nothing difficult about it…
“Ah—”
A scream echoed not far away. Zhou Jianhong swiftly turned to look. 𝒏𝒐𝙫𝙥𝙪𝙗.𝒄𝙤𝙢
A dark shadow burst out from the swamp soil, while an Awakener reacted promptly to jump away, but neglected the footing beneath him. He stepped into the soft swamp soil and sank in.
A faint smell of burning wafted over.
