The Various Races [2k]

Translator: CinderTL

The stones of distant mountains can polish jade.

Though some races may appear weak in certain aspects, no one can predict what insights their abilities might offer humanity.

The Human Race's dominance over vast swathes of the cosmos, and its position as the most powerful civilization among all those it had encountered, stemmed from its unparalleled ability to absorb and adapt the strengths of other races, thereby enriching its own capabilities and expanding its influence.

The fact that the Wood Spirit Clan possessed such advanced communication technology...

"No! It's more than just communication technology!"

Li Chunjun's gaze fixed on the Innate Sect Spirit Tree before him.

This was a Fifth-Tier Spirit Tree. Its branches appeared to be an exceptionally resilient material, perfect for forging wood-attribute Spirit Treasures.

But that wasn't the crucial point.

The key was that this Spirit Tree had come to life, birthing a unique entity known among humans as a "plant spirit."

Plant spirits, along with Artifact Spirits, Book Spirits, Artificial Intelligences, and other anomalous life forms, were classified as First-Tier Protected Species under Human Race patronage.

Each such species held the potential to bring immense benefits to humanity.

"Chang Feng."

Li Chunjun directed his consciousness toward True Monarch Chang Feng, who was stationed nearby to monitor the Spirit Tree.

Further away, Sect Master Zhao Chunyang of the Innate Sect and other Nascent Soul True Lords stood ready to heed his commands.

Li Chunjun ignored the others and directly instructed, "Inquire of the Ancient Tree Spirit about the Wood Spirit Clan—their current situation and how they granted it life."

"Sword Master?" Chang Feng exclaimed, his face lighting up with surprise upon receiving the mental message. "I'll ask right away." He immediately relayed Li Chunjun's questions to the Spirit Tree.

The Spirit Tree pondered for a long time before answering, "I have always possessed consciousness, though my thoughts flowed slowly. One day, I sensed a great will and merged with it. Through its divine grace, my awareness suddenly sharpened, as if a hazy world had instantly become clear."

"Divine grace?" Li Chunjun frowned. Such terms should not be used lightly. Only Dao Venerables who had mastered the Great Dao of Life or the Great Dao of the Soul had the authority to bestow such grace upon life, whether upon Artifact Spirits, plant spirits, or others. Yet this Spirit Tree claimed the Wood Spirit Clan wielded such power.

Dao Unification?! The thought surged through Li Chunjun's mind, but he quickly dismissed it. How could a faction capable of Dao Unification fail to withstand a Void Storm, allowing their entire world to plummet into this Forbidden Zone teeming with Heart Demons?

"It must be Dao Artifact materials infused with Dao Rhythm... perhaps even beyond Seventh-Rank, reaching Eighth-Rank!"

Li Chunjun's thoughts crystallized, and he immediately instructed Chang Feng to inquire, "Investigate the situation with the Wood Spirit Imperial Clan."

As Chang Feng relayed the message, the Spirit Tree responded, "The Wood Spirit Empire is plagued by rebellions. However, these uprisings are not natural occurrences; an unseen force is subtly instigating them from behind the scenes. While the empire possesses the strength to suppress ordinary rebellions, it is powerless against this invisible enemy."

"It's the Heart Demons," Li Chunjun replied through Chang Feng. "Inform the Wood Spirit Clan that they are under attack by a race called the Heart Demon Clan. They devour the souls of sentient beings and are a primordial evil native to this cosmos. Originally dormant, they were awakened by the arrival of external life and have since launched attacks on every sentient being within their reach."

He added, "Sharing this information about the Heart Demons is a gesture of our sincerity. However, if the Wood Spirit Empire requires further assistance, they must demonstrate their own value."

"Your will shall be conveyed," the Spirit Tree replied.

Li Chunjun then used Chang Feng to gather more information about the Wood Spirit Realm.

Afterward, he swept his senses across the entire Azure Star Minor Realm, confirming that no new Heart Demons or invaders had appeared before withdrawing his perception.

He reactivated his Mind Power, sensing the Heart Seeds he had planted within his followers.

Having successfully condensed their Mind Power, Su Fang and Yu Jin led teams of surveyors to explore the surrounding worlds. Half of Yu Jin's team carried Li Chunjun's Heart Seeds, allowing him to constantly monitor their locations and communicate with them.

Dong Xuan was currently accompanying Yu Jin.

After quickly assessing Yu Jin and Dong Xuan's positions, Li Chunjun instructed Dong Xuan to relay the following message to Yu Jin: "Change course and proceed to that Lesser Thousand World. Investigate their specific situation."

Yu Jin glanced at the coordinates and immediately replied, "I'm turning around now. We'll reach that Lesser Thousand World in one day."

"What was the condition of the Lesser Thousand World you surveyed earlier?"

"That world is inhabited by many members of the Divine Race. It appears to be a Lesser Thousand World that fell into this cosmic region from the territory of the Great World of the Gods," Yu Jin reported swiftly. "They've also been attacked by the Heart Demon Clan. However, the Divine Race's unique characteristic is that they dedicate their minds and souls to their Divine Beings. As a result, when a Heart Demon corrupts a Servitor, Divine Spirit, or Demigod, their patron god immediately senses it. Some Heart Demons are already retreating from that Lesser Thousand World."

"The Divine Race!"

This was a formidable enemy of the Human Race.

Moreover, upon closer examination, the Divine Race's characteristics proved surprisingly effective against Heart Demons and even the Heavenly Demon Clan.

"The Divine Race World maintains extremely high vigilance," Yu Jin explained. "If even one believer discovers us, their high command will be alerted immediately. Fortunately, their Divine Race Small Worlds suffered heavy losses. Considering their location wasn't on the front lines of the spatial storm's impact, we can conclude that their strength is likely inferior to ours."

"Likely?"

"We dare not venture deeper into their world..." Yu Jin's voice carried a hint of shame.

Li Chunjun, mindful of the Divine Race's vigilance, didn't press further. Instead, he instructed, "Head to the Wood Spirit Clan to gather intelligence. I'll provide further instructions once we have a clearer picture. If things go smoothly, we might acquire new communication and reconnaissance methods from them, allowing us to ascertain the Divine Race's true strength!"

Once they understood the Divine Race's capabilities, they would proceed to thoroughly purge them from this Lesser Thousand World.

At that moment, Li Chunjun sensed something. His heart-mind shifted focus to Su Fang's location.

Liu Feng was currently activating his Heart Seed, attempting to establish contact with him.

"Are we there yet?"

Li Chunjun glanced around and saw that they had arrived at the edge of a Lesser Thousand World.

Liu Feng's voice carried a hint of excitement. "This is a Lesser Thousand World belonging to our Human Race. True Monarch Su Fang is already making contact..."

He seemed to receive a response almost immediately. "It's the Hong Clan's fief! Excellent!"

"The Hong Clan," Li Chunjun mused, his thoughts stirring.

There were only five Void Refining Great Powers in the Azure Sea Domain. However, the Frigid Jade Fortress and the Domain Lord's Manor clearly didn't house permanently stationed Void Refining experts. The only three Void Refining cultivators truly native to the Azure Sea Domain were two from the Myriad Phenomena Sect and the Dragon Spring Sect, and the last was Hong Qianjue of the Hong Clan.

"Did Hong Qianjue protect the Hong Clan's fief?" Li Chunjun asked, then quickly realized something was amiss. "Wait, if the Hong Clan's Void Refining expert was present in their fief, this Lesser Thousand World shouldn't have drifted into this region at all."

"Heavenly Monarch Qian Jue isn't just the Hong Clan's founding ancestor," Liu Feng replied. "He also joined the Wu Ji Sect as an Elder and happened to be fulfilling his duties there at the time."

Heavenly Monarch. This was the respectful title by which the world addressed Void Refining experts, just as Primordial Spirit cultivators were called True Lords and Primordial Soul cultivators were called True Monarchs.

"Even though Heavenly Monarch Qian Jue is absent, as a Void Refinement Clan, his fief boasts an abundance of powerful cultivators. There are at least a hundred Primordial Spirit True Monarchs and tens of thousands of Nascent Soul True Lords. With their assistance, the repair time for the Golden Crow Battleship could be drastically reduced."

As Liu Feng spoke, his voice carried a glimmer of hope—the prospect of escaping this starfield and returning to Human Territory.

Just then, he seemed to receive a new message.

"Sword Master, True Monarch Hong Guang, the current patriarch of the Hong Clan, wishes to discuss a collaborative venture with you."

"Very well," Li Chunjun replied.

We're all in the same boat here.

With the shared goal of returning to Human Territory, Li Chunjun naturally sought to collaborate with as many allies as possible to expedite the Golden Crow Battleship's repairs.

Especially considering the lingering threats of Heart Demons and Cosmic Aftershocks in this starfield.

"You may act as my representative," Li Chunjun instructed.

Liu Feng acknowledged the order and swiftly made his way to the exterior of the warship.

Outside, a group of over thirty True Monarchs were engaged in conversation.

More than a dozen figures clearly belonged to Li Chunjun's group, led by Su Fang. The remaining twenty-odd individuals were unmistakably members of the Hong Clan.

Upon Liu Feng's arrival, Su Fang introduced him. Immediately, the twenty-odd True Monarchs turned their gazes toward him.

"Everyone, Swordmaster Li has arrived and is available to discuss potential collaborations through me," True Lord Liu Feng announced.

Hong Guang, the leader of the twenty-odd True Monarchs, was about to speak when a nearby True Monarch seemed to transmit a message to him using Divine Sense.

True Monarch Hong Guang then turned to Liu Feng and said with a smile, "The name Li Chunjun, first on the Star Brilliance List, has resounded throughout the Azure Sea Domain recently. The entire Hong Clan has long admired Sword Prodigy Li, especially my nephew Hong Yan, who eagerly wishes to meet him in person. If Sword Prodigy Li doesn't mind, we will activate our clan's Heaven-Piercing Instrument to project Hong Yan's Mind Power directly into the Azure Star Minor Realm for a personal audience."

He chuckled. "On one hand, we hope to bask in the auspicious aura of a peerless prodigy like Sword Prodigy Li. On the other, we'd like to assess the Golden Crow Battleship's condition firsthand to see if we have any suitable repair materials in our reserves."

"The Heaven-Piercing Instrument?" Li Chunjun asked, puzzled.

Su Fang, standing beside him, exclaimed with feigned surprise, "Is that the Immortal Alliance's latest hyperspace communication device? I heard that as long as a world's coordinates are confirmed, it can facilitate near-real-time communication across hundreds of light-years! The Hong Clan actually possesses such a treasure?!"

"Since our Hong Clan's founding ancestor achieved Void Refining thirty-eight thousand years ago, our influence has spread across tens of thousands of Lesser Worlds. While the Human Territory has the False God Realm for independent trade and communication, its information transmission offers no privacy to High-Authority Users. To ensure security and maintain our vast clan's dominance, the Heaven-Piercing Instrument remains indispensable."

As True Monarch Hong Guang spoke, he subtly showcased the Hong Clan's immense power.

"I would be honored to witness the marvels of such an instrument," Li Chunjun replied through True Lord Liu Feng.

"As the Sword Prodigy wishes," Hong Guang said with a smile and a wave of his hand.

Within the Lesser Thousand World, a peculiar wave seemed to ripple outward.

Shortly after this wave was emitted, Li Chunjun, who frequently entered states of "unity with the Dao," sensed something stirring.

Then, a vast and overwhelming surge of divine sense power radiated forth, its origins unfathomably distant yet capable of reaching thousands of miles, resonating across heaven and earth.

"Sword Prodigy Li, Hong Yan greets you with respect."

(End of the Chapter)

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