This Is Clearly a Ten-Thousand-Li Cruise Missile!

"Besides that—" Wang Kui stood to the side, reporting, "Quite a few exotic treasures dropped as well. All of them have been logged into the warehouse, awaiting Domain Lord's inspection. Among them, before that Great Ghost died, its ghost qi condensed into two exotic treasures." "Their glow was the most dazzling of all." With that, Wang Kui presented the two exotic treasures in his hands. "..." Chen Fan's brows furrowed slightly. The stronger the ghost creature, the better the exotic treasures it dropped. But getting only two seemed far too few. Yet after seeing their panels, he was suddenly relieved. Concentrated essence was indeed the best. These two exotic treasures were easily worth hundreds of white-grade ones. Both were yellow-grade. The first was a stone. An old acquaintance. [Exotic Treasure Name]: Heavenly Dao Stone. [Exotic Treasure Grade]: Yellow. [Exotic Treasure Effect]: Applied to any building, it grants that building a 'Heavenly Dao Blessing Effect,' which will take effect on all buildings of the same type under the camp's name. [Note: Can only be applied to max-level buildings.] Previously, he had obtained only one Heavenly Dao Stone, and that was after lighting up five max-level buildings in the compendium. This was his second. The max-level God-Slaying Cannon's Heavenly Dao blessing effect, 'Sweep the Entire Army,' could perfectly utilize overflow damage. That effect had come from a Heavenly Dao Stone. Needless to say, without it, the God-Slaying Cannons would never have been so formidable. Even now, the God-Slaying Cannons had not fully shown their might. The true moment to unleash their full power would be three years from now when the 'undersea ghost tide' made landfall, sending hundreds of millions of ghost creatures swarming in. Ordinary cannon towers, no matter how many were built or how vast their ghost stone reserves, would struggle to withstand so many enemies. Any organism, even insignificant ants, would trigger a terrifying qualitative change once their numbers reached the hundreds of millions. To say nothing of ghost creatures. Yet with the God-Slaying Cannon's Heavenly Dao blessing effect, handling them would be much easier. "Not bad." Chen Fan smiled and tucked the Heavenly Dao Stone into his robes, pondering which max-level building he should apply it to later. Ghost fire? High-speed rail? Or the Anti-Air Cannons? With only one Heavenly Dao Stone, he needed to think it through carefully to maximize its utility. As for the other exotic treasure, it was of a special category. It looked like cotton candy, soft to the touch like a cloud, though its entire body was the color of dark mist. [Exotic Treasure Name]: Tribulation Cloud. [Exotic Treasure Grade]: Yellow. [Exotic Treasure Effect]: Tribulation Cloud. Can be placed within the camp. Consumes ghost stones to produce localized, concentrated rainfall over a small area, accompanied by thunder and lightning. "..." Chen Fan's brows furrowed slightly as he fell into thought. It was an exotic treasure that could control the weather. Though its grade wasn't particularly high, the ability to control the weather alone made it extraordinary. Even if it was only small-scale rain, it was still extremely useful. Sitting atop the city wall, he looked up at the cliff face of Wuming Mountain. Eternal Night had already enveloped the Heaven-Piercing Pillar, but amidst the sky-filling crashes of thunder, he could clearly see the pillar's progress bar rising rapidly. It had already reached 17%. At this rate, it would likely reach 100% in a matter of days. The Heaven-Piercing Pillar could absorb lightning and store it to repel enemies, unleashing immense power in an instant. That was the description on the panel. As for what kind of power it possessed, he had no idea. Once the progress hit 100%, he planned to test its might. If it proved decent, he would construct more Heaven-Piercing Pillars atop the mountain to build up reserves. That way, he could give the undersea ghost tide coming to 'pay New Year's greetings' in three years a massive welcoming blast. And this Tribulation Cloud could charge the Heaven-Piercing Pillar outside the rainy season. Whether this exotic treasure was strong or not depended primarily on how strong the Heaven-Piercing Pillar turned out to be. "Let's go check the warehouse." Chen Fan rose, walked down the wall, and headed toward the warehouse camp inside the caverns. Over the past year, Weiwei had expanded the warehouse cave considerably. At this moment, ten warehouses stood neatly arranged within the camp. Of course, most were empty. After all, he had consumed quite a lot recently, burning through ghost stones rather quickly. Within three years, he would fill all ten of these warehouses. Standing at the entrance of the first warehouse, Chen Fan scanned the stored exotic treasures one by one, searching for anything of value. Fan Domain had no appraiser; essentially all appraisals passed through his hands. It was fast and effortless. The night deepened. Most of the people in Fan Domain had already drifted off to sleep, save for the few on night watch. Inside Cave No. 1, only Wang Kui's occasional reports broke the silence, mingling with the patter of torrential rain like white noise, lulling listeners to sleep. *** Deep within the Eternal Night Continent. In an unknown place, a realm of absolute darkness where no outsider had ever set foot. A middle-aged man sitting cross-legged on the ground slowly opened his eyes and gazed into the depths of the dark. He sensed someone coming. "Honored one." A rather deep voice suddenly echoed through the darkness. "You have been trapped here for thirty-eight years. Are you still unwilling to answer? It is truly a very simple question. "It will do you no harm." "..." The middle-aged man, who had been cultivating with his eyes closed, chuckled upon hearing this. He could tell the other party was growing anxious, a hint of urgency lacing the voice. "It seems the situation on the Eternal Night Frontline isn't looking very optimistic for your Ghost Clan." "A bit," the voice in the dark admitted candidly. "The defenses on the Eternal Night Frontline are exceptionally tight, making it difficult to break through. But it won't be long now. Mortal strength is ultimately finite. "The Ghost Clan is not actually as tyrannical as you humans imagine. "We only desire a place to dwell. "Long ago, someone promised the Eternal Night Continent to us. "The Eternal Night Continent was ours to begin with. "You merely occupied the magpie's nest while we were away. "However— "If you can tell me the location of that other continent, our Ghost Clan can abandon the assault on the Eternal Night Continent and head there instead. Wouldn't that be better for both of us?" "Heh." The middle-aged man chuckled softly and stroked the scales of the Sky-Swallowing Crocodile beside him without a word. The two Sky-Swallowing Crocodiles beside him were not frolicking as they usually did; instead, they lay quietly on the ground, their bodies visibly taut, ready to lash out at any moment. Over the years, nourished by a vast amount of his heavenly materials and earthly treasures as well as his painstaking care, their strength had long exceeded the upper limit of their kind, possessing tremendous power. Yet even so, they could not break through the grand formation laid down here. "..." The voice in the dark fell silent for a long time. Perhaps feeling it had been too harsh, it softened slightly. "You bear no Heavenly Dao brand of the Eternal Night Continent upon you. "I know you are not from the Eternal Night Continent. "You come from another continent. "Before this— "The Ghost Clan never knew that a second continent existed in this world besides the Eternal Night Continent. You brought new hope to the Ghost Clan. "You are very special. "We cannot kill you. "Yet we know that you will die as your lifespan drains away. How many more years can the Heavenly Dao blessings you earned while guarding Jiangbei prolong your life? "Do you truly intend to remain trapped here until you die?" The middle-aged man laughed. "Thirty-eight years, and you haven't explored outward? Eternal Night places no restrictions on you, does it?" "Eternal Night has no restrictions. "But Eternal Day does. If a ghost creature appears under the sun during the day, regardless of its strength, it will burn to death. Only pseudo-human ghosts can appear on the Eternal Night Continent at dusk." The voice in the dark sounded somewhat resentful. "Over the years, the Ghost Clan has dispatched countless Great Ghosts using every method imaginable to try to cross the sea and reach the ocean's end. "Untold numbers of Great Ghosts have perished. "Yet all they found was a boundless 'Thunderstorm Sea.' Anyone caught in it is trapped forever, unable to break free, enduring endless torment. "We suspect that boundless Thunderstorm Sea envelops the entire Eternal Night Continent. "Had those Great Ghosts been deployed to the frontline, we might have breached it already." "Tsk." The middle-aged man laughed again, casually stroking the crocodile's scales. "Don't romanticize the path you didn't take. The outcome might have been even worse. At least you got to see the Thunderstorm Sea. "How was it? Nice scenery, wasn't it?" Seeing that the middle-aged man had no intention of speaking, the voice in the dark remained silent for a long time before slowly fading away. "..." The middle-aged man sat cross-legged on the ground, continuing to stroke the crocodile's scales, his expression drifting into a distant daze. He was not from the Eternal Night Continent. Or more accurately, he was not human. He was a peculiar anomaly born of coincidence. In the entire world, he was likely the only one of his kind. He no longer had a home. Now, his sole obsession was to use his battered remnants to protect the Eternal Night Continent as best he could. The outcome might be poor, but he had done his utmost. "Boss," the larger Sky-Swallowing Crocodile lying on the ground finally rumbled in a muffled voice after the shadow departed. "Are you really incapable of dying?" "Of course," the man chuckled. "How do you do it?" "Because..." The man paused a moment before speaking softly, "A very, very long time ago, I already died. "What state I'm in now, even I don't know. But the current me has a bit more emotion and a bit more capacity for thought than before. It feels pretty nice, actually." "Boss, you're so strong. How did someone kill you back then?" "Nobody killed me." "If nobody killed you, how did you die?" "I self-detonated." "Self-detonated?" A gleam of longing flashed in the giant crocodile's eyes. "Then with strength like yours, Boss, the explosion must have been massive, right?" "Of course." The man laughed, gesturing exaggeratedly with both hands. "It was thiiis big—enough to sink the Eternal Night Continent!" "Incredible." The crocodile didn't realize he was exaggerating at all. Instead, it looked on with profound admiration. "A true man ought to be like that!" "Pfft." The man shook his head, unable to hold back a laugh. With these two crocodiles by his side over the years, he found himself laughing far more often than he used to. Yet after a brief pause, his voice turned soft and complex. "It wasn't as heroic as you think. I was forced to detonate on the brink of defeat. Truth be told, it was rather pathetic." "Still, it must have dealt the enemy a crushing blow, right?" "Of course. The enemy didn't gain a single scrap of advantage." "Then that's enough!" If only the crocodile's forepaws weren't so thick and clumsy, it certainly would have given him a thumbs-up. "..." The man smiled, falling silent once more. His thoughts drifted far away. He missed home a little. Sadly, his home was gone, and he could never return. No one could cross that Thunderstorm Sea. Unless... an impossible miracle occurred. *** Dawn arrived. As the Eternal Night receded like an ebbing tide on the Eternal Night Continent and the sun slowly climbed, the Eternal Night on the New Continent also receded, and the sun rose in turn. "..." Stepping out of the airship's cabin, Wang Mazi stood on the deck, looking out toward the boundless, colossal crater in the distance. The crater was so vast that unless viewed from above, one could hardly tell it was a crater at all. This was their exploration objective for the day. It was daylight. Time to depart. He looked up at the sun overhead, staring intently at it as though gazing upon a lover's face. "Pavilion Master." A subordinate leaned in beside him, following his gaze toward the sun, completely bewildered. "Pavilion Master, what are you looking at?" "I'm looking at the sun." Wang Mazi squinted, enduring the ache against the harsh glare as he studied it closely. "Tell me, do you think this sun is the same one we see over the Eternal Night Continent?" "..." The subordinate froze. He had never considered such a question before. As expected of the Pavilion Master—the things he pondered were far deeper than what the rest of them thought about. After observing for a moment, he replied hesitantly, "Seems to be the same, I suppose..." "Then tell me," Wang Mazi paused, then continued, "could this sun shine upon even more continents? Beyond our Eternal Night Continent and the New Continent, are there other continents in this world? "Perhaps other continents are suffering from ghost creature onslaughts as well. "Perhaps they've already perished. "Perhaps they defeated the ghost tide and are rebuilding. "Or perhaps, like our Eternal Night Continent, they are locked in a bitter struggle?" "Pavilion Master," the subordinate stammered after a long pause, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. "What you're saying is making my scalp itch. I'm not really interested in whether there are other continents. How about we stick to our objective and explore how this crater was formed first?" Wang Mazi said no more. Only after a long while did he pull his gaze away from the sun, rubbing his sore eyes as he muttered to his surroundings, "Tell me... "Do you think the women on other continents look different from those on the Eternal Night Continent? Each with their own charm? "Jiangbei and Jiangnan are only separated by a river, yet the women have entirely different flavors. "If they're from different continents, wouldn't the difference be even greater?" "Mm..." The subordinate's face suddenly turned dead serious, his voice turning husky. "Pavilion Master, I've suddenly developed a tremendous interest in other continents! What if their skin color is different?" "Possible." "Pitch-black skin all over?" "Now you're making it sound a bit disgusting..." "Like bedding a ghost creature." "All right, that's enough." "Talk about a thrill! And if they had tentacles and fangs like ghost creatures..." "Shut up!" Wang Mazi glared impassively at his subordinate, who was already lost in fantasy, pointing toward the crater ahead. "Set sail! Today's objective: explore the crater!" The airship pressed down from the sky, descending into the crater. The deeper they advanced, the more of the crater's full scale came into view. Finally, with half an hour left before the onset of Eternal Night, they reached the exact center of this 'crater.' It had taken them a full day of flight to get here. The reason they judged this to be the center was purely because this was the lowest point, and the terrain sloped upward in every direction outward, like a funnel. "Take us down," Wang Mazi cautiously instructed the crew beside him. He looked down into the crater. This was not a naturally formed landform at all. As their altitude dropped, the details of the crater became clear: the walls were not rough rock strata, but possessed an obsidian-like glassy texture. Extremely bizarre. At last, the airship touched down at the bottom of the crater. There was nothing around—no ghost bones, no ghost stones. "..." Wang Mazi stepped out of the airship with vigilance, standing at the bottom and scanning the surroundings. Strangely enough, though the ground didn't look sturdy, stepping on it felt remarkably solid. "Pairs of two. "Scout in all directions." They were out of contact with Fan Domain here. Once the exploration was complete, he would send word back. *** Three days later. Sitting atop the wall, Chen Fan frowned slightly. Wang Mazi had been out of contact for three days, and there was no telling if he had run into danger. Three days had passed since the start of the rainy season. Mining operations on the New Continent were progressing normally, but Wang Mazi had been unreachable for a long time. His last message before going silent mentioned that he planned to explore a crater. He still had not returned. Right then— A voice transmission talisman from the New Continent relayed a message back through several Signal Towers in the undersea tunnel, reporting that Wang Mazi and his party were on their return journey. Everyone had come back safely, though Wang Mazi was rather weak, looking as if he had starved. Only then did Chen Fan breathe a sigh of relief. As long as they returned alive, that was all that mattered. Once Wang Mazi recovered, he would ask what had happened and how the man had managed to starve himself weak. Then, he turned his gaze to the panel of the Heaven-Piercing Pillar installed atop Wuming Mountain. [Can attract lightning during the rainy season and accumulate energy, discharging it when needed to repel enemies or for other purposes.] [Attack range can exceed camp boundaries.] [To upgrade to the next level: 10,000 ghost stones required.] [Current storage progress: (100/100).] Last night, the Heaven-Piercing Pillar's storage progress had reached 100%. He intended to see just how powerful it was. Walking down from the wall, he headed toward the Nine-Five Dragon Carriage. A maid beside him hurriedly raised an oil-paper umbrella, following behind to shield him from the wind and rain. Soon, the Nine-Five Dragon Carriage broke through the rain curtain and reached the summit of Wuming Mountain. He looked up at the hundreds-of-meters-tall Heaven-Piercing Pillar before him, towering atop the mountain like a pillar of a god, exuding sheer dominance. It was not a cylinder. Its cross-section was square, and raised patterns covered its surface like sculpted murals. Nor was it straight; it twisted and struggled upward in an ascending posture. He found it hard to describe with precision. Now that its progress had reached 100%, a new panel appeared before him. On the panel was an aerial overview of the Jiangbei Wasteland, formed from countless white lines. He looked at the translucent map floating before him, pulsing gently with light. Tentatively, he tapped a spot on the Jiangbei Wasteland. The next instant, a line of crimson text suddenly surfaced on the translucent map. [Coordinates selected. Launch?] "La... launch?" Chen Fan froze on the spot, his eyes wide with utter bewilderment. The Heaven-Piercing Pillar's panel had stated clearly: can store the power of lightning and repel enemies. He had assumed it would be like a Prism Tower, unleashing lightning attacks. But... what in the world did 'launch' mean? His gaze lingered on the small line of text on the Heaven-Piercing Pillar's panel. [Attack range can exceed camp boundaries.] After a long pause, he took a deep breath. He checked the location he had chosen once more. It was a barren stretch of the Jiangbei Wasteland, a good ten-odd kilometers from Fan Domain's rainy season defense line. There was definitely no one there; nobody would wander out here during the rainy season. Wait, no. Chen Fan pulled out his ghost-skin map and scanned it thoroughly. Only after confirming that not a single ghost fire was burning in that part of the Jiangbei Wasteland did he put his mind at ease. He was somewhat afraid of blowing someone up. After all... if someone had suddenly launched lightning at him last year while he was slaving away building walls at the old camp, he would have been utterly baffled too. He had no idea how lightning could be launched that far either. Would there even be enough thrust? He raised his finger and pressed the word 'Launch' on the translucent map. At that very moment, the ground atop Wuming Mountain began to tremble gently. The vibration was not violent, but it clearly traveled from beneath his feet through his body. Before him, the hundreds-of-meters-tall Heaven-Piercing Pillar began to vibrate at high frequency as well. "You've got to be kidding me?" Chen Fan's throat bobbed slightly, disbelief flashing in his eyes. Without the slightest hesitation, he pulled the maid into the Nine-Five Dragon Carriage and bolted to the side. A few breaths later, as though making a final burst, the ground shook violently. Immediately following that, he saw the enormous, hundreds-of-meters-tall pillar light up. The patterns carved into its surface illuminated from the base and raced upward, fully igniting the entire pillar's engravings in the blink of an eye. In the rain curtain, it was blindingly bright. It was as if someone had raised a Balala the Fairies transformation wand. He almost thought he heard someone shouting 'Tiga!' right by his ear. The next instant— just as the illumination on the pillar's patterns peaked, the outer shell rapidly peeled away, shattered, and crashed down the slopes of Wuming Mountain, revealing a slender, ten-odd-meter-tall, perfectly straight cylindrical pillar suspended in midair. Now, this cylindrical pillar that had burst from its shell was crystal-clear all over, translucent like a wonton wrapper. Countless lightning bolts could be faintly seen thrashing and coursing wildly within. And at its rear, torrents of erupting lightning provided thrust for the cylindrical pillar. The pillar began to ascend. Faster and faster, accelerating until it vanished into the clouds. Yet soon, he saw the cylindrical pillar once more. It was already ten-odd kilometers away, diving straight toward the ground at a steep angle with astonishing speed! The rain curtain obscured his vision, preventing him from seeing the pillar's exact appearance. Yet he could see the fury of the lightning erupting from its tail. Like a spear hurled by the God of Thunder, carrying world-ending might, driving forward with an unstoppable resolve of 'even if I die, all under heaven shall perish with me,' it pierced through the rain curtain and slammed straight into the ground. The first thing to meet his eyes was blue. A blue of absolute purity, laced with a faint, ghastly white. Countless lightning bolts detonated in the rain curtain ten-odd kilometers away, soaring into the sky. Immediately after, he heard deafening thunder—far heavier than the ordinary thunder of the rainy season, as if thunder accumulated over ages had finally burst forth all at once. "..." Chen Fan stepped out of the Nine-Five Dragon Carriage, staring in a daze at the wild lightning exploding in the distant rain and the shattered remains of the Heaven-Piercing Pillar scattered nearby. He truly hadn't expected that this so-called 'launch' meant launching the entire Heaven-Piercing Pillar itself. He had thought it merely fired lightning! So... this colossal Heaven-Piercing Pillar served merely as a charging cradle; the true storage vessel was the smaller, narrower, crystal-clear cylinder inside. Right then, the voice transmission talisman in his robes grew hot, carrying Wang Kui's anxious, hurried voice. "Domain Lord! "Ten-odd kilometers south of the rainy season defense line, countless lightning bolts just exploded with terrifying power and immense noise! I suspect it might be—" "I did that." Wang Kui's voice cut off abruptly, quickly switching to a tone tinged with an 'ah, that makes total sense' understanding. "Then never mind. I suspected it had to be Domain Lord's new handiwork." Chen Fan rode the Nine-Five Dragon Carriage down from Wuming Mountain, heading straight for the southern stretch of the defense line. The flight ban across Fan Domain applied to everyone, but not to him. A guard dog had no reason to pounce and bite its own master. That wouldn't be guarding; that would be pure greed for meat. Before long, Chen Fan arrived before the crater. Whether the power was truly immense, he couldn't say for certain since he hadn't experienced it firsthand, but judging by the mark left on the ground, the force was anything but small. The crater before him was a good ten-odd meters wide. Some time had already passed, yet residual electrical arcs could still be seen flickering along its surface. "I shouldn't have killed it." Standing atop the Nine-Five Dragon Carriage, gazing at the crater fringed with crackling arcs, he suddenly regretted killing that Great Ghost. He should have kept it imprisoned in midair back then. That way, he could have tested whether a Heaven-Piercing Pillar fully charged with lightning could threaten a Great Ghost. Could another Great Ghost please show up to let him test his hand? He needed ghost creatures to cooperate in order to gain combat data and understand the exact power of Fan Domain's various structures. "Back!" Without hesitation, Chen Fan immediately headed back toward Wuming Mountain. He wanted to plant Heaven-Piercing Pillars all over Wuming Mountain, just like those monkeys! What Heaven-Piercing Pillar? This was clearly a ten-thousand-li cruise missile! *** Atop Wuming Mountain. Chen Fan stood silently, gazing at the translucent Eternal Night Lord panel before him, while the maid beside him held up an oil-paper umbrella to shield him from the rain. Having inspected the site and rushed over, Wang Kui asked hesitantly, "Domain Lord, "Three days ago, Wang Mazi said he was going to explore a crater. Could that crater have been formed like this? "Some long-range offensive structure unleashed during the New Continent's final battle?" "No." Chen Fan shook his head. After answering, he offered no further explanation. First of all, according to the information Wang Mazi sent back, that crater's diameter was immense. Wang Mazi and his crew had flown in an airship for an entire day just to reach its center. And that airship was not slow—it was even slightly faster than the high-speed rail. The Heaven-Piercing Pillar was, after all, only a yellow-grade building. Even raised to max level and stacked with Heavenly Dao blessings and every buff imaginable, it could never produce such power. A small horse could pull a carriage, but a small horse could never pull the Nine-Five Dragon Carriage. More importantly— the way to use the Heaven-Piercing Pillar was to select a bombardment zone on the translucent map panel, then press the 'Confirm' launch button. This meant that without the panel, even if someone figured out how to construct a Heaven-Piercing Pillar, they wouldn't be able to use it properly. Its only function would be serving as an oversized lightning rod, allowing people beneath it to swear oaths freely without fearing a strike from the heavens. Constructing a Heaven-Piercing Pillar was remarkably simple. It required only 5,000 ghost stones, with no other prerequisites. Of course, that was for Level 1. Chen Fan glanced around. Wuming Mountain was still too small to accommodate many Heaven-Piercing Pillars, and clustering them here would look rather unsightly. An incense stick's time later, Chen Fan appeared at the Fan Domain port. Looking around, he nodded in slight satisfaction. This place was good. After marking out a large area, he consumed 5,000 ghost stones. The next instant, a hundreds-of-meters-tall Heaven-Piercing Pillar formed of countless white lines slowly solidified, quickly settling within his designated zone, identical to the one that had just been expended. He looked at the upgrade panel. [To upgrade to the next level: 10,000 ghost stones required.] [Current storage progress: (0/100).] Without hesitation, he consumed another 10,000 ghost stones, and a panel slowly popped up. [Heaven-Piercing Pillar upgraded to Level 2.] [This structure has no upgrade branches to choose from. Each upgrade enhances its power, range, and flight speed.] [No upgrade branches can be obtained through any other means.] [To upgrade to the next level: 20,000 ghost stones required.] [Current storage progress: (0/200).] "..." Chen Fan narrowed his eyes slightly. Like the God-Slaying Cannons and Anti-Air Cannons, these exceptionally strong offensive buildings seemed to lack upgrade branches altogether. The storage capacity had increased to 200. This meant a longer charging time, but it also meant greater power. Upgrade. Upgrade. Upgrade! After consuming a total of 455,000 ghost stones, he raised the Heaven-Piercing Pillar to Level 10, which was its maximum level. A panel slowly popped up before him. [Heaven-Piercing Pillar upgraded to Level 10.] [Reached maximum level; cannot be upgraded further.] [Obtained Max-Level Effect 'Utter Devastation': Power increased.] This was Fan Domain's eleventh max-level building. He already possessed eleven max-level buildings. He had seen all sorts of max-level effects. For example, the ghost fire's max-level effect: 'Rule the World': Your ghost fire will draw energy from the dark night, requiring no daily ghost stones for maintenance. When you light ghost fires across all regions of a continent, you will obtain the special reward 'Rule the World.' A quest-type max-level effect, and a brutally difficult one at that—practically impossible to complete. Or the bridge's max-level effect: 'Bon Voyage': All living beings passing over the bridge deck receive the 'Bon Voyage' effect for twelve double-hours, slightly increasing their movement speed. A support-type effect. Yet a max-level effect this blunt was a first for him. 'Utter Devastation'... 'Power increased'... Blunt indeed. Pushing its single greatest strength to the absolute extreme. He looked at the panel. This Heaven-Piercing Pillar raised to Level 10 had a total capacity of [0/10,000]. A total capacity of ten thousand. A Level 1 pillar had a total capacity of 100, while Level 10 had 10,000, meaning its power was amplified roughly a hundredfold. Naturally, by the same logic, the charging time had also increased a hundredfold. During the rainy season, it had taken him three days to fill a Level 1 pillar's progress. By that calculation, filling a Level 10 pillar would require 300 days. A rainy season lasted thirty days a year. That meant ten years. Ten years... "..." Chen Fan fell silent. For any faction, placing such a pillar outside and knowing it would become a weapon of mass destruction in ten years would be cause for immense excitement. Whether Medicine King Valley or the Gongyang clan, or even the more distant Immortal Slaughter Holy Land in the Guanxi Plain, they would all be thrilled. This was heritage. Deep heritage. A heritage far more terrifying than the Nightwatchers, and one that required no sacrifice from anyone. But for him, ten years was simply too long. Ten years... Three years from now, the undersea ghost tide would make landfall. He had been counting on the Heaven-Piercing Pillar to make a grand debut against it; he couldn't wait that long. However... he suddenly smiled again. As luck would have it, he had just acquired that exotic treasure named 'Tribulation Cloud,' which could control localized weather and drastically speed up charging time. As for how much faster, he hadn't tested it yet. He would have to wait until the rainy season ended to experiment. For now, he would build the pillars. Soon, after consuming 4.55 million ghost stones, he constructed ten max-level Heaven-Piercing Pillars, built almost side by side, looking rather crowded at first glance. After all, the Tribulation Cloud could only generate localized rain and lightning. The next instant! He pulled the Tribulation Cloud from his robes and tossed it into the air. In the blink of an eye, the compact Tribulation Cloud expanded rapidly upon taking to the sky. Arcs of lightning continuously flashed within it as rain began to fall, accompanied by occasional lightning strikes. It was already raining during the rainy season, so the natural rain and the Tribulation Cloud's rain blended together, difficult to distinguish. Chen Fan and the others below strained their eyes to discern the difference, quickly drawing a circle on the ground marking the coverage area of the Tribulation Cloud. Having done all this, Chen Fan looked upon the scene and nodded in satisfaction. The Tribulation Cloud covered a substantial area, easily accommodating these ten max-level pillars with room for four or five more. Within this zone, he would build max-level pillars. As for outside this zone, he wouldn't build max-level ones, since they wouldn't charge in time. Instead, he would build a large number that would finish charging precisely three years from now—three years of rainy seasons totaled ninety days. Ninety days meant... Mm. Level 6 Heaven-Piercing Pillars would be just right. A Level 6 pillar cost only 150,000 ghost stones. Standing on the wasteland for three years, it would bloom into dazzling fireworks when the time came. "Heh." Chen Fan grinned. He suddenly felt the joy of sowing seeds. As long as one sowed, one would reap. The seeds he planted today would blossom and bear fruit three years from now. Next, like a diligent farmer, he squeezed five more max-level pillars into the area covered by the Tribulation Cloud, then began constructing Level 6 pillars outside its reach. Towering pillars hundreds of meters high, formed of white lines, rapidly solidified and settled onto the earth. One. Two. Three. Chen Fan built with astonishing speed. In merely a few breaths, a Heaven-Piercing Pillar would solidify and stand complete. With each upgrade, the pillar's exterior showed virtually no change; a Level 1 pillar and a Level 10 pillar looked almost identical. Of course, he knew that the true change lay in the core hidden inside—that slender cylinder within was the real Heaven-Piercing Pillar. *** Fan Domain, the port. This was where Fan Domain's sea ships set sail, and where the entrance to the undersea tunnel leading to the New Continent was located. Situated at the edge of the coastline, it had originally been a desolate place with few structures. Yet now, in the torrential downpour, towering pillars hundreds of meters tall rose one after another from the ground. At a glance, they looked like heroic spirits guarding the coastline. "Watching Domain Lord build things is as mesmerizing as ever." Standing nearby, Wang Kui watched the construction process, exhaling a long breath, a hint of helplessness flashing in his eyes. In the past, he had rarely been qualified to interact with architects, so during the rainy season, he hadn't reacted strongly to Domain Lord's building speed. Though he knew it was exaggerated, he had lacked a frame of reference. It wasn't until Fan Domain rose to prominence that he interacted with many architects, particularly at the Architects' Conference, where he observed many of them at work. His only thought at the time had been: Thank goodness these architects were in Jiangbei. Had they been on the Eternal Night Frontline, the Eternal Night Continent would have been entirely finished; they might as well have waited for death, for relying on such people could never have held the front. Certain doom. They were agonizingly sluggish. Some architects even had to pause to hold heaven-worship rituals, begging every ancestor and deity in sight. Domain Lord, on the other hand, was crisp and decisive. Not only was he blazing fast without a shred of hesitation, but more importantly, every single Heaven-Piercing Pillar built so far had solidified successfully, without a single failure. Just how did he do it? He couldn't fathom it, but he knew one thing: thank goodness he belonged to Fan Domain, and was not Fan Domain's enemy. Recalling the crater he had just seen, and looking at the growing forest of towering pillars rising before him, the corners of his mouth twitched slightly. He suddenly felt a twinge of pity for Fan Domain's enemies. The most terrifying aspect of the Heaven-Piercing Pillar was not its raw power, but that utterly unpredictable, uncanny method of attack. Finally, after a long while, Chen Fan stood with his hands on his hips, panting slightly as he looked upon the vast array of pillars he had constructed, smiling in satisfaction. The sense of accomplishment was immense. Looking at such a vast, uniform grid of Heaven-Piercing Pillars, even without activating them, felt exhilarating. It was a pity ghost stones couldn't be spent recklessly; otherwise, he would have loved to cover all of Jiangbei with them. Still... could this thing bypass the flight ban? He turned to look toward the rainy season defense line nearby, pondering whether to build a Level 1 pillar first. Once its progress hit 1%, he would conduct an experiment by firing a shot right over Fan Domain to see.