Chapter 88 - 86: [Exotic Treasure Name]: Heaven-Asking Incense
Chapter 88: Chapter 86: [Exotic Treasure Name]: Heaven-Asking Incense
The small group had become increasingly skilled at working together during the rainy season.
Only the crocodile hadn’t seen the Meat Grinder activate. It had no idea what had happened outside. The entire time, it had been hiding deep inside the cave, shivering, its front claws covering its head as it cowered in a corner.
Now, seeing the City Wall lower, a flicker of confusion appeared in its lantern-sized pupils. It rose cautiously from the cave, slowly inching its way out from behind the wall. What it saw next was a scene that shook it to its core.
Outside the city, the ground was covered in Ghost Corpses.
Not a single Ghost Object had survived.
The crocodile stared at the scene in disbelief. It turned its head to look at Chen Fan, who stood atop the City Wall, then looked back at the corpses at the bottom of the Celestial Pit. Then it turned its head back to Chen Fan again.
It repeated this action over and over.
"Hey, what are you trying to do?"
Chen Fan, standing on the City Wall, took in all the crocodile’s fidgeting and couldn’t help but laugh. "You little rascal, it looks like you’re so worked up you’re about to start talking."
This was the first time he had seen such human-like emotions in Hey Hey’s eyes.
He had never imagined it.
He had never imagined he could read such complex and hard-to-express emotions—like shock and disbelief—in a crocodile’s eyes.
And then...
That expression of shock gradually transformed into admiration and... the kind of look one reserves for the truly powerful.
"Alright, go on and rest. I’ll grill you some seafood later."
As Chen Fan walked down from the City Wall, preparing to inspect the octopus corpse himself, he saw the crocodile crawl right up to his leg. It began rubbing its flat, rough head against his pants, its eyes filled with excitement and a fawning adoration.
"..."
The corner of Chen Fan’s mouth twitched, his face otherwise expressionless. In that instant, three words popped into his mind.
Power by proxy.
He suddenly understood why the creature was so excited. It had a powerful friend to watch its back now.
’This creature...’
’Does it really not know how strong it is?’
...
「At the bottom of the Celestial Pit.」
Chen Fan stood beside the massive octopus corpse, looking it up and down. He soon spotted two Ghost Skins, identical to the one he had found on Qian Hou—a bit coarse to the touch.
There was writing on the skins.
The first Ghost Skin read:
-
"Qian Hu, you are commanded."
"Lead your subordinates across the Dead Sea. Take the Ghost Stones accumulated this year and head south to the Jiangbei Wilderness. Go to Nameless Mountain and find the Mountain Remains Embryo. If you cannot find it, rendezvous with Qianxi in the Wilderness and await my arrival."
-
’So it really was one of the Ghost King’s four great generals.’
’Qian Hu...’
Chen Fan silently repeated the name and took a deep breath. ’Head south to the Jiangbei Wilderness... what’s north of the Wilderness? Only the sea. This Ghost Tide really did come from across the sea.’
And for the first time, he learned the name of that sea.
The Dead Sea.
’Doesn’t sound very lucky.’
Moreover, the appearance of this batch of Ghost Objects made it clear that the sea also teemed with them, and in large numbers.
This message was packed with information.
’Go to Nameless Mountain to find the Mountain Remains Embryo.’
He glanced up at the high rock walls surrounding the Celestial Pit. ’It seems the Mountain Remains Embryo I seized from Qian Hou was extremely important to the Ghost King. Important enough that after losing one, he’s immediately sending them to find another. Does Nameless Mountain even have a Mountain Remains Embryo?’
’And another of the Ghost King’s generals, Qianxi, is already in the Wilderness waiting to rendezvous with Qian Hu.’
"Are these orders so hard to remember?"
Chen Fan muttered to himself as he stuffed the Ghost Skin into his clothes. ’You’re supposed to destroy the skin after you receive and memorize the order. Otherwise, if an enemy picks it up, isn’t all your intel completely exposed?’
He then looked at the other Ghost Skin.
-
"180 years have passed. That person is long gone and will not return."
"Go."
"Cross the Dead Sea and make landfall on Nameless Mountain. As long as you find the Mountain Remains Embryo, I will credit you with a great merit. After I ascend to the rank of Ghost King, I will pour all my efforts into cultivating you."
-
"..."
Chen Fan stood in expressionless silence. ’It seems the Ghost King is wary of Nameless Mountain. He probably wouldn’t have come here if he didn’t desperately need the Mountain Remains Embryo. 180 years...’
’Did some powerhouse live here a long time ago?’
’Does that mean this Celestial Pit and the surrounding canyon, which look like they were made by a hammer, might have actually *been* smashed into existence by someone with a hammer?’
’What kind of being would that take?’
’But there’s good news, too.’
’The Ghost King clearly doesn’t know I’m hiding here. He has no idea who killed Qian Hou and Qiu Kui; he’s completely unaware of my existence. So, when the Ghost King learns of Qian Hu’s death, he might assume they were killed by an Array left behind by that old powerhouse and decide not to come any closer.’
’Nothing could be better.’
"Is the Mountain Remains Embryo really that valuable...?"
He scratched his head, his gaze drifting toward the camp.
There was a Mountain Remains Embryo nestled in the Ghost Fire right now. Its main function was to stabilize the caves, ensuring that the tunnels and caverns dug within the camp’s perimeter wouldn’t risk collapse. ’I never expected it to be so valuable that even the Ghost King would have a hard time getting his hands on another one.’
But soon, he cast that thought aside, because he had spotted something he liked.
Faint wisps of Ghost Qi drifted from the octopus corpse, coalescing into two Exotic Treasures.
"Your friend Qian Hou dropped three items, and your Lady of the House, Qiu Kui, dropped something as good as that altar. How come you only dropped two?"
"Utterly pathetic."
He picked up the two Exotic Treasures from the ground and examined them closely. Their shapes were a bit odd this time.
One of the Exotic Treasures... was a round, pocket-sized Incense Burner, holding three brownish-red sticks of incense.
-
[Exotic Treasure Name]: Heaven-Asking Incense
[Exotic Treasure Level]: Green
[Exotic Treasure Effect]: Light a stick of incense and ask one question. After sacrificing a certain number of Ghost Stones, you will receive an absolutely correct answer. If the question cannot be answered, or if an insufficient number of Ghost Stones are sacrificed, the stick of incense will automatically shatter.
-
"Good stuff."
Chen Fan praised it under his breath. ’An intelligence-gathering Exotic Treasure is perfect for my current situation.’ He was trapped by the rainy season in this desolate Wilderness. He could manage his own resources, but he was completely cut off from the outside world.
There was so much he didn’t know.
He didn’t even know if Jiangbei City and Qi City had been breached.
’But I have to be careful using this Exotic Treasure.’
’Asking too simple a question would be a waste.’
’A pure loss.’
’I only have three chances.’
’But if I ask a question that’s too difficult, one that can’t be answered or for which I don’t sacrifice enough Ghost Stones, the incense will shatter, and a chance will be completely wasted.’
’As for what constitutes an "unanswerable question"...’
’I think I understand. The premise is that the incense gives an *absolutely* correct answer. If no such answer exists, then it can’t be answered. For example... whether I can survive the rainy season.’
’When the eternal night will end.’
’"Does she love me?"’
’Questions like that.’
He didn’t use the Exotic Treasure immediately. He’d use it later. First, he wanted to see what the other one was.
-
[Exotic Treasure Name]: White Jade Pendant
[Exotic Treasure Level]: Green
[Exotic Treasure Effect]: When worn by an Architect, this Exotic Treasure slightly reduces the Ghost Stone cost of construction.
-
"..."
Chen Fan stood there in expressionless silence.
’A Green Level Exotic Treasure?’
’For an Architect, I feel like this could even be called a Yellow Level Exotic Treasure.’
’The longer you live,’
’the more benefit this Exotic Treasure provides.’
’It’s a continuous, unending return on investment.’
’But...’
’For me, it’s fucking useless.’
He wasn’t an Architect, but he put the Exotic Treasure around his neck anyway. If nothing else... it was a ’wushi’ pendant, a flat, rectangular piece carved from white jade. It looked quite nice on. Later, when his Marketplace was built...
’I’ll need a sufficiently grand opening to attract the attention of the surrounding powers.’
’I think this Exotic Treasure would make an excellent centerpiece for the occasion.’
’It would certainly attract a lot of Architects to compete for it.’
’It’ll be a good chance to see what the Architects of this world look like up close.’
’I’m strangely curious.’
...
Chen Fan glanced at the busy Lame Monkey and the others. They’d be working for a long time tonight. This battlefield wouldn’t be easy to clean up; sorting through all the spoils would take a while.
He had already decided which question to ask.
He returned to camp.
He bathed and changed his clothes.
After changing into fresh clothes, he felt refreshed and sat down in the rocking chair on the City Wall, ready to light the incense.
He liked sitting on top of the wall.
Overlooking the camp he had built himself, he felt a sense of satisfaction even just sitting there doing nothing. He had designed and participated in the creation of every corner of this camp. This was his home.
His foothold in this new world.