Accompanying the crowd of Dao Foundation cultivators were, naturally, the five massive Dao soldiers. Han Li and Jun Weizhi each led two Dao soldiers forward to scout the flanks, while Dugu Cangqiong was tasked with bolstering the defenses and sentry duty of the central outpost, as well as providing covering fire when Wei Yuan fell back.
Upon stepping into the otherworldly realm, many of the Dao Foundation cultivators immediately turned pale, trembling uncontrollably.
The grade of this realm fragment was extraordinarily high. Under the crushing pressure of its heaven and earth, the Dao Foundation cultivators could barely hold onto their own Dao power, which bled away continuously. Had it not been for the blessing of the Heavenly Secret Fortune Transformation Art doubling everyone’s strength, it would have taken a mere stick of incense for their Dao power to run completely dry.
Yet Wei Yuan had his reasons for bringing so many Dao Foundation cultivators along.
As soon as they arrived, they began digging up earth and crushing rock on the spot, shaping the soil and stone into rectangular green bricks. Cultivators of the Fire Dao Foundation then began baking them with Dao flame, firing a batch of earthen bricks roughly every half stick of incense. Most of these bricks were used to reinforce the central outpost, while a small portion was used to erect a small hut beside the teleportation portal.
Meanwhile, Wei Yuan had already led three dragon guards in a charge into the edge of the ruins, destroying four monsters and securing another strand of Dao profound qi. He brought back the grains of sand that the slain beasts dissolved into as well.
In addition to the monster materials, Wei Yuan and his guards gathered a large number of metallic objects along the way and carried them all back.
At this point, the Metal and Fire Dao Foundation cultivators began working together, sorting and melting down these metal components before forging them into compact hand-warmers.
Each of these stoves was no larger than an apple, internally inscribed with a basic formation of the Heavenly Secret Fortune Transformation Art, and hung from the waist of every cultivator. Burning within the hand-warmers was the azure qi of human fortune, a single strand of which could burn for a very long time. With these warmers at their sides, the Dao Foundation cultivators had their karmic luck replenished constantly, freeing them from the dread of the otherworldly realm's cold and greatly extending the time they could operate outdoors.
Inside the small hut, a hand-warmer was hung on each of the four walls. Upon entering, the cultivators found it as warm as spring, removing any need to wear one on their bodies. The cultivators quickly forged seven or eight three-foot-square tables, packing the room to capacity.
Just as preparations were finished on this end, Wei Yuan returned from the ruins with several dragon guards. This time he brought back another massive pile of metal parts, along with many bizarre little gadgets. Due to the passage of vast ages, however, these trinkets were severely damaged.
As each item was brought back, it was laid out upon the tables, where the cultivators behind them immediately began recording and analyzing it, primarily cataloging all of its detailed specifications. Once enough data was gathered, it would be sent back to the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World for analysis.
The laws of this realm were utterly incompatible with the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World, meaning that many things simply could not be brought into it. Wei Yuan had tested this several times, only to find the teleportation portal's energy consumption spike dramatically; the portal would likely collapse before many of these objects could even pass through.
Only spiritual, insubstantial things like the black birds, or items whose grade bordered on the Dao like the Dao profound qi, could be taken back into the Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World.
Thus, for this expedition, Wei Yuan decided to set down roots directly in this realm, establishing a research outpost right on site to study the various objects. This realm bore some resemblance to the other world Xu Wenwu had spoken of, which intrigued Wei Yuan immensely; after all, there were now direct samples available for study.
After several trips back and forth, Wei Yuan had cleared a dozen buildings on the periphery of the ruins, slaying the dozens of monsters lurking within and obtaining another strand of Dao profound qi, bringing his total harvest to three strands.
By then, the central outpost had reached its initial completion. An exceptionally powerful flying-sword gun had been mounted at the primary position, manned by a dharma idol warrior. Every flying sword loaded into the gun was infused with azure qi; each shot consumed a strand of human fortune azure qi, but its power increased drastically as a result. A mere dozen shots were enough to severely wound a late-stage Dharma Idol monster. Supported by suppression from the other weapons, ordinary monsters could no longer even reach the defensive line.
Wei Yuan’s current objective was a rather conspicuous building at the heart of the complex. Two stories tall, square, and bare on the outside, it was topped with a massive sign whose lettering had long since flaked away, rendering it illegible.
Holding a flying-sword gun, Wei Yuan slowly approached the building. As he walked, a continuous rustling sound rose from the ground around him.
A closer look would reveal countless finger-sized pixel Dao soldiers scurrying across the ground like an army of ants in the darkness, combing through every corner.
At present, their formation placed Wei Yuan at the vanguard, flanked by the Civil and Military Dragon Guards, with Longying bringing up the rear.
If Wei Yuan engaged an enemy, he would fire while falling back. Once the flanks were confirmed clear, the dragon guards on either side would suppress the enemy with crossfire, while Longying laid down fire from his position, covering Wei Yuan’s retreat until he fell back in front of him.
No matter how powerful a monster was, it could not hold out for long under the full firepower of four Dharma Idol combatants; at most, it could advance a hundred paces against the storm of swords. After all, every breath was equivalent to enduring dozens of strikes from Dao Foundation cultivators, enduring over a thousand impacts in the blink of an eye. Moreover, these attacks carried the enhancement of human fortune azure qi, lending them extraordinary lethality.
Wei Yuan took a step forward when his toe suddenly struck something. The object flew forward as if startled, letting out a sharp, metallic clatter upon landing.
A pile of trash in a nearby corner suddenly scattered as a monster roughly the size of a small dog burst out and turned to flee. Far faster than the creature, Wei Yuan had already locked it in his crosshairs and blasted it in two with a single shot.
Taking two steps forward, Wei Yuan picked up the object he had kicked, finding a flattened metal can. The metal was remarkably thin and light, coated with a protective layer that had remarkably survived the ravages of endless time, leaving a few words and symbols faintly visible. Treating it like a priceless treasure, Wei Yuan carefully stowed the can away.
Before long, Wei Yuan arrived before the building. Surrounding it was an open plaza littered with heaps of metal frames, which were arranged quite neatly. A few of the frames still held remnants of intricate machinery.
The moment Wei Yuan stepped onto the plaza, celestial light reappeared in the air. A young boy could be seen cradling something in his arms, cautiously picking his way through the ruins before walking into the building. Within the ring of light, the building still retained its glass curtain walls, though several large holes had been smashed through near the ground. The boy gingerly squeezed his way through one of them.
Once inside the building, beams of light shone down through the shattered roof, revealing toppled shelves all around the boy's feet, their goods strewn across the floor.
He soon walked deeper into the building, and the light vanished. The goods revealed by the ring of light had now all decayed into a thick layer of black ash.
Only a few metal skeletons of the shelves remained. Whatever material the shelving panels had been made of, it had not withstood the washing of time.
Wei Yuan reached the edge of the wall, instinctively sensing that stepping inside would trigger a fierce battle. Having long moved past the solitary vulnerability of his first arrival, he was in no hurry. Instead, he bent down and picked up several transparent shards.
These were fragments left behind by the shattered glass walls, many of which had surprisingly survived to this day.
Wei Yuan gathered several dozen shards, intending to take them back for compositional analysis. Glass was simple, but glass capable of surviving the collapse of an apocalyptic world was anything but ordinary. Wei Yuan then retreated, selecting the two most intact-looking mechanical metal wrecks in the plaza. He and Longying each carried one back to the teleportation portal.
Only after Wei Yuan disappeared did a figure materialize inside the building, silently gazing in the direction of his departure. Shadowy forms emerged around it one after another in increasing numbers, standing in eerie silence within the vast, empty hall.
Chapter 754