Once Gao Xinwen had made his decision, he immediately felt that he could not stay at Little Awakening Temple for even another moment. After making a few quick preparations, he went to take his leave of the Prior of Bakong Temple.
The Prior tried to urge him to stay, but seeing his mind was already set, he pressed the matter no further.
He pushed the chan meditation beads Gao Xinwen had returned back toward him and said, "Let this remain as a gift to Patron Gao. Whenever your mind feels troubled or uneasy, Mr. Gao, you may use it to chant the sutras. There is no need to fathom deep Chan truths; seeking peace of mind alone is good enough."
Gao Xinwen looked at the beads and accepted them. That very day, he departed Bakong Temple aboard an airship and arrived at the company's nearest branch station.
Even after arriving, his restlessness did not diminish in the slightest, so he decided to leave the Federation as soon as possible.
Using the company's secure line, he placed a call to the CEO of Progenitor Company—his eldest brother, Gao Xinjian.
His female assistant, Gao Yueying, answered the line and asked him to wait a moment.
A moment later, Gao Xinjian's voice came through. "Xinwen?"
Gao Xinwen said, "Eldest Brother, it's me."
"Mm. I heard recently that you went to Little Awakening Temple. What made you suddenly think to go there? Communications there are so inconvenient—not even a single telephone."
"It was nothing. I just suddenly felt irritable and restless before, so I went there to chant sutras and meditate, hoping to calm my mind."
Gao Xinjian's tone turned more earnest. "Xinwen, how has your health been lately?"
Gao Xinwen said, "Don't worry, Eldest Brother, everything is fine. Dr. Guan, whom you arranged for me, has stayed by my side the whole time, and his skills are excellent. It's just that I don't feel like staying at Little Awakening Temple anymore. I want to take a vacation abroad to clear my head, so I wanted to let you know beforehand."
Gao Xinjian said, "Taking a vacation is a good idea. Just make sure everything on your hands is properly settled first."
"Mm, I'll have everything arranged in advance. It won't hold up company affairs."
"Where are you planning to go?"
"North Lailusi."
"Ah, there..."
Gao Xinjian paused briefly before saying, "Xinwen, since our younger sister disappeared, only the two of us are left in our generation. You really must take good care of yourself."
Gao Xinwen fell silent for a brief moment. "Understood, Eldest Brother."
Gao Xinjian added, "Wasn't a ruin discovered on North Lailusi before? I haven't had the time to look into it. Since you're heading there to unwind, take a look at it if it's convenient."
"All right, Eldest Brother."
"Mm. Do you still just have the same few people around you? That won't do. How about this: I'll have Old Xiang head over to your side."
Gao Xinwen said, "There's no need, Eldest Brother. You need people to protect you over there as well."
"You don't need to worry about my security over here. There won't be any problems. Since you're traveling abroad, you must have someone by your side. Don't forget, that Emperor is still out there. You can never be too careful."
Hearing him say this, Gao Xinwen didn't insist further. "All right. Thank you, Eldest Brother."
After chatting casually for a few more moments, he hung up the phone.
After waiting there for five days, Xiang Boqing arrived.
Upon seeing him, Gao Xinwen asked, "Mr. Xiang, now that you've left, who is responsible for protecting Eldest Brother?"
"I'm not sure,"
Xiang Boqing replied. "The boss trusts Gao Yueying the most, but I don't believe there is any need to worry about his safety."
Gao Xinwen nodded in silence. Although he and Gao Xinjian spoke frequently over the phone, they had not seen each other in person for a very long time. He had no way of knowing now—unable to tell whether the voice on the other end of the line, or the man residing in the Federation Capital, was truly his eldest brother in person.
Fortunately, once Xiang Boqing was by his side, he suddenly felt much more at ease, and the restlessness that had plagued him for days subsided considerably.
Past noon, he boarded an airship with his retinue and departed the branch post. As the airship climbed, he could still see flickering points of light across the sea in the distance—likely the eternal lamps burning year-round in Little Awakening Temple.
Watching the airship draw further away, he felt a sense of relief, yet at the same time felt as though he had lost something.
Shaking his head, he pushed the thought aside and returned to the main cabin hall, where an invited chess master was already waiting, bowing respectfully to him.
He nodded, walked over, and sat down opposite him. The butler lightly clapped his hands, and the ensemble waiting nearby began to play soothing music.
The airship formation sped northward along the Federation's coastline, with Progenitor Company escort vessels trailing on the waters below.
Three days later, the fleet completely cleared the Federation's territorial landmass. After another two days, they finally arrived over North Lailusi.
This was a sparsely inhabited northern island. Progenitor Company had purchased it years ago simply because of its scenic beauty and unique geographical environment, which blessed it with a warm, pleasant climate, making it an ideal private resort estate.
Later, however, during the island's development, traces were discovered of a fissure opened by the early First People. A ruin of immense antiquity likely lay here, dating back perhaps ten thousand years to the early era of the First People.
Moreover, a rather unique mutated plant was found here. It was through research into the special structure and biological activity of this mutated flora that early doll technology achieved its critical breakthroughs.
Nowadays, with technological advancements, that material had gradually fallen out of use. But because the island lay some distance from the Ying Continent, the Gao clan treated it as a retreat to fall back on. As a result, the island was equipped with comprehensive facilities and harbored the battleship Tianlou, two Meng-class warships, and various yachts.
A permanent garrison of five thousand armed troops was stationed on the island, along with an elite armed security force of two thousand from Progenitor Company, plus three Monster-class combat airships kept on constant standby.
In the surrounding waters were marine mutated creatures purchased from companies like Deep Sea Spiral and Oceanic Life, capable of intercepting any undersea probes. It was, for all intents and purposes, a military fortress.
Yet on the surface, it remained merely a private seaside resort manor belonging to the Gao clan.
Yet that place held a special significance for Gao Xinwen himself. Sitting inside the primary cabin and gazing up at the manor castle perched on high ground, which blended Eastern and Western architecture, he asked:
"Kambo has been staying there the whole time, right?"
The assistant stepped forward and bowed. "Mr. Gao, Mr. Kambo has been here all along and has never left."
Gao Xinwen nodded.
Kambo was a combat doll similar to Gao Yueying, though while the latter was cultivated entirely from mutated tissue, the former was modified from the physical body of a former demigod of the First People.
After modification, his combat prowess was far inferior to what it had once been, but equipped with an active conscious entity custom-tailored by Progenitor Company, he could barely match his original level. This was Gao Xinwen's personal trump card.
After disembarking from the airship, he settled into the estate with his entourage of servants. Once here, his mind was instantly set at ease.
His restlessness over the past few days had stemmed in part from a pervasive sense of insecurity. Even at Little Awakening Temple, he had not been accommodated in the main compound; moreover, those Chan practitioners were outsiders after all, and he could never place full trust in them.
Now, he finally felt that he could get a good night's sleep.
***
Kawatua.
Chen Chuan was fully immersed in his cultivation, pouring in the training resources he had accumulated beforehand without sparing any expense.
As his mutated tissue steadily transformed, the purple qi within his body grew progressively fuller and more abundant.
Feeling himself grow stronger step by step brought a profound sense of fulfillment and satisfaction.
Beyond his personal cultivation, his study into burst techniques grew increasingly deep, gradually coalescing into a method for subduing enemies with rapid decisiveness.
At this time, an orderly received a telegram that Chen Chuan had specifically instructed to monitor at all times.
Gao Xinwen had left Little Awakening Temple.
Upon learning the news, Chen Chuan immediately exited the Sacred Tree airspace. He reviewed the follow-up intelligence, which reported that Gao Xinwen had first lingered for a time at a company outpost beside Savila Island State before departing over the sea aboard an airship, his current destination unknown.
After sending word back and forth to confirm, he determined that the information was essentially reliable. Gao Xinwen's departure had caused quite a stir this time—not only had there been airships, but an escort fleet had trailed on the waters below, which was impossible to conceal.
He pondered, "Out to sea..."
Once on the open sea, which direction they took and whether the airships and naval fleet would split up during the voyage were entirely unknown.
This meant he had abruptly lost the man's trail.
Yet he was not entirely without options.
After a moment's thought, he gave instructions to the orderly waiting nearby, boarded a carriage, left the manor, and arrived at the temple. This time, he came to see the High Priestess.
With Ikus's feather, he could actually enter the temple whenever he wished, but out of courtesy and respect, he still chose to visit formally.
Informed of his visit, the High Priestess came out personally to receive him. She ushered him into the temple, and once they were seated, she asked politely, "Mr. Chen, is there anything I can help you with?"
Chen Chuan said, "I need to find someone, and I would like to ask the High Priestess to divine his specific location for me."
He knew that the rituals of the First People's priesthood possessed such capability. He hadn't sought her help earlier because the Federation was currently riddled with field interference and burgeoning sects everywhere; attempting to locate a specific person accurately would have been grueling, and the High Priestess might not even have been able to endure the strain. Gathering intelligence directly had been far more practical.
Out on the open sea, however, locating someone was comparatively much easier.
The High Priestess said, "Do you have any tissue from this person's body or a personal token? Or perhaps this person's name? It is best if the person Mr. Chen is seeking shares a deep entanglement with you."
Chen Chuan gave the man's name and added, "This person indeed has ties to me, but I cannot provide any token or bodily tissue."
The High Priestess asked him to write down the name. After glancing at it, she spoke with measured caution: "In that case, we can at most point out the general direction of the location where the target is lingering. Beyond that, I cannot guarantee anything."
Chen Chuan said, "That is fine. A general direction is all I need."
The High Priestess bowed slightly and said, "Then please wait a moment, Mr. Chen. We may require some time."
Chen Chuan nodded. "I will wait here."
After giving a few instructions, the High Priestess began gathering the members of the priestly circle. She could tell that Chen Chuan attached great importance to this person, and she also wished to demonstrate the capabilities of the First People to him. Thus, she resolved to carry this out to the utmost of her ability.
Chapter 1245