Chapter 161 Long Time No See, It Is an Honor

Wu Ming looked earnestly at Lu Sheng and said, "What I want to do is very simple: protect the safety of all humans in Luzhou with all my strength."

"That kind of thing is hardly simple." Lu Sheng tapped his fingers rhythmically on the table. "How do you plan to go about it?"

"I already have a plan in mind," Wu Ming said, gathering his thoughts. "After all, the Blue Star is our home turf, and we hold a distinct advantage when it comes to intelligence."

"Therefore, we must leverage our intelligence advantage to crush the enemy."

"Knowledge Pavilion will be responsible for gathering intelligence on the monsters within Luzhou, and we only need to dispatch high-tier combatants to target solitary high-tier monsters."

"Humanity has developed to this day and is far from defenceless. As long as we eradicate the monsters' high-tier powerhouses, humanity can easily resist the rest."

"The current situation is so dire simply because there are too many high-tier monsters, capable of easily shattering the resistance of major factions."

Lu Sheng raised a question: "Can't we launch a frontal assault?"

Wu Ming said with a hint of awkwardness, "Our combined forces probably couldn't defeat the monsters in a frontal clash. Right now, there are only two Tier 9 beings in Luzhou—you and me—yet the known Tier 9 monsters already number as many as five."

Lu Sheng nodded. "What you say makes sense, but you've overlooked a crucial piece of information—one that you aren't aware of. Monsters do not travel alone."

Wu Ming's expression shifted, and he looked at Lu Sheng with a trace of unease. "What do you mean by that?"

Lu Sheng said softly, "Exactly as it sounds. According to my intelligence, the Tier 9 monsters will gather together."

"This..." Hearing Lu Sheng's words, Wu Ming's expression turned grim.

He furrowed his brows, unable to think of a good solution for the moment.

Seeing that Wu Ming still harbored some disbelief, Lu Sheng twisted the knife further: "There's no need to doubt the source of my information; it is undeniably true."

In truth, for Lu Sheng, Tier 9 beings were nothing more than trivial existences that could be dealt with effortlessly. He said this now simply to observe the complex expression on Wu Ming's face.

Watching Wu Ming's countenance undergo a drastic change of shock in response to the news he had dropped, Lu Sheng felt a subtle, inexplicable surge of satisfaction.

Just over ten days ago, this was a towering figure completely out of his reach. But now, Lu Sheng's strength had completely surpassed his counterpart's.

Wu Ming fell completely silent, but he snapped back to reality when he inadvertently caught the smile at the corner of Lu Sheng's mouth.

Wu Ming gave a wry smile and said to Lu Sheng, "Leader Lu, you must have a solution, right? Why must you make a fool of me here?"

Had anyone weaker than him teased him like this, Wu Ming would have flown into a rage long ago.

However, he could not gauge Lu Sheng's true strength. Based on their brief probing just now, Lu Sheng was at least on the same level as him.

With equal strength comes the capacity to tolerate such jests.

A smile crept uncontrollably onto Lu Sheng's lips. "I am not joking with you at all. Everything I just said is true."

"Except..."

Left hanging, Wu Ming felt a bit helpless. Swallowing his pride, he leaned in and said, "Please speak freely, Leader Lu."

"Except that you still don't quite understand my strength," Lu Sheng said calmly. "A Tier 9 monster is nothing more than a paper tiger in front of me."

Had he uttered these words a day ago, he certainly wouldn't have dared to speak with such bravado.

Yet today was no longer yesterday. Wanting to eliminate a Tier 9 monster was indeed as effortless as he made it sound.

Wu Ming twitched the corner of his mouth, sensing that the young man before him was simply boasting.

"Leader Lu, this is hardly the time for joking."

The higher one's realm, the harder it was to improve. Even with the recent appearance of the bounty board, it had only been around for a few days—how much stronger could anyone possibly have gotten?

"I am not joking. If you don't believe me, shall we test it?" Lu Sheng extended the invitation, intending to take the opportunity to test his own strength.

As a corps commander, Wu Ming naturally had no reason to back down from a challenge, especially not from such an arrogant young man.

Wu Ming made up his mind to go all out and teach Lu Sheng a lesson, ensuring he learned not to look down on the heroes of the world simply because of a little strength.

"Very well, let's test it then. Leader Lu, name the place."

Shortly after, Lu Sheng led Wu Ming to an open clearing on the floating continent. Unaware of the fate awaiting him, Wu Ming was still brimming with fighting spirit, ready to put on a stellar performance.

Wu Ming remained quite confident in his own strength; after all, he was the commander of the Dawn Corps.

The two assumed their stances.

Wu Ming struck first: "Let's begin!"

Channeling the Laws of Wind, Wu Ming unleashed a barrage of wind blades the moment he moved. Each blade flashed through the air like a chilling gleam, hurtling straight toward Lu Sheng's position.

Lu Sheng remained unhurried. Facing this rain of wind blades, he effortlessly manufactured a spatial barrier in front of himself.

When the wind blades struck the spatial barrier, they produced a deafening collision sound. Following the impact, the vast majority of the wind blades simply vanished into thin air right before Lu Sheng.

From Wu Ming's perspective, the wind blades he projected approached Lu Sheng only to be intercepted by some unknown means, unable to even come within close proximity.

Wu Ming was somewhat startled, caught off guard by Lu Sheng's methods.

He had anticipated that Lu Sheng might dodge, pull out some magical item for defense, or perhaps counter with his own laws.

Yet, it currently appeared as though Lu Sheng had done nothing at all, merely standing quietly in place while every single attack he launched was completely blocked.

Though Lu Sheng's method of defense was bizarre, Wu Ming refused to be discouraged.

He launched another assault on Lu Sheng.

Since frontal attacks failed, he decided to try area-of-effect techniques.

With a wave of his hand, he conjured several typhoons that swept forward, descending directly upon Lu Sheng.

Faced with such an onslaught, Lu Sheng employed the Law of Space to freeze the surrounding fabric of space.

However, this time he froze the space specifically around himself.

His current location seemed enclosed within a spatial fortress, rendering the raging winds howling outside utterly incapable of affecting him.

Lu Sheng stood serenely at the epicenter of the storm, completely unchanged.

Wu Ming's expression turned far more solemn. Although these had merely been probing attacks, the complete lack of reaction from Lu Sheng implied that none of his exploratory maneuvers had any effect.

A probing strike did not mean it lacked destructive power; Wu Ming was acutely aware of his own strength, knowing that either of those two exploratory strikes would prove difficult for any ordinary Tier 8 being to withstand.

Even if his opponent was Tier 9, there ought to have been some sort of reaction.

Yet the current reality was that Lu Sheng felt nothing at all.

Drawing his weapon next, Wu Ming prepared to engage Lu Sheng in close combat.

While the power of laws could facilitate long-range attacks, such blanket-coverage assaults suffered from a severe drop in sheer destructive potency.

Only close-quarters combat could fully unlock the terrifying might of one's laws.

Generally speaking, practitioners would infuse their laws into their weapons or merge them into their own bodies, drastically elevating their combat prowess.

As for the specific execution, it depended entirely on the nature of the laws one cultivated.

Thus, Wu Ming's decision to close the distance was entirely sound.

His wind laws could either imbue his blade or merge with his physical body to enhance his speed and agility.

Regarding the infusion into his weapon, Wu Ming had even developed a unique combat style.

He coated his long saber in a layer of wind law, then accelerated the rotation of the wind energy to create a high-frequency cutting mode.

This allowed the blade to first shatter an opponent's defense through high-speed friction before delivering the physical slash itself.

This unique technique of his had proven invincible in all his past battles.

At the same time, he worried about accidentally severely injuring Lu Sheng, so he kept himself mentally prepared to pull his punches and rescue Lu Sheng at a moment's notice.

Wu Ming surged forward with a sudden burst of speed, closing the distance of dozens of meters in a mere few steps.

He brought his saber down in a heavy downward slash toward Lu Sheng.

With a wave of his hand, Lu Sheng erected another spatial barrier before him.

As he closed in, Wu Ming sensed the spatial laws at play.

Realizing what was happening, he could not help crying out in shock: "The Law of Space!?"

Wu Ming was certain his senses were not deceiving him; Lu Sheng was undeniably wielding the Law of Space.

The spatial barrier materializing right before him served as the absolute proof.

He brought his saber crashing down upon the spatial barrier.

Though the space before him appeared entirely empty, his strike was violently halted mid-air, triggering a thunderous explosion.

Following the shockwave, Wu Ming was thrown backward by the recoil of his own force. He adjusted his posture mid-air and landed steadily on his feet.

Yet the shock within Wu Ming's heart grew even more turbulent.

The attack he had just unleashed essentially constituted his full strength under normal conditions.

Yet, much like his previous attempts, it proved completely useless against Lu Sheng.

His attack hadn't even managed to physically touch Lu Sheng.

Lu Sheng let out two hearty laughs. "It's my turn!"

With that, Lu Sheng's figure vanished from the spot.

Seeing Lu Sheng disappear, Wu Ming instinctively unleashed his perception to its absolute limits.

He successfully detected Lu Sheng shuttling through the fabric of space.

Without hesitation, Wu Ming threw a slash directly toward the spot where Lu Sheng was about to emerge.

Fighting to this point, Wu Ming no longer delusional enough to think he could defeat Lu Sheng.

Still, some form of resistance was required; he had witnessed Lu Sheng's defensive prowess, but he had yet to witness his offensive capabilities.

Lu Sheng emerged faster than Wu Ming's descending blade.

The instant he appeared, Lu Sheng cast spatial imprisonment, freezing Wu Ming's descending saber mid-air.

Even Wu Ming's entire body was locked in place, rendering him entirely unable to move.

Had Lu Sheng wished to inflict harm at this moment, it would have been effortless.

The imprisonment persisted for a full ten seconds before dissolving—and only because Lu Sheng voluntarily lifted the restriction; otherwise, Wu Ming would have remained trapped far longer.

During the duration of the confinement, Lu Sheng had already shifted locations, meaning the moment the imprisonment lifted, Wu Ming's descending strike hit empty ground rather than striking Lu Sheng.

Regaining control of his body, Wu Ming wore a deeply complicated expression.

"Leader Lu, I never imagined your strength was so immense. It completely exceeded my expectations."

Wu Ming meant every word; Lu Sheng gave off a sensation of absurd, overwhelming strength.

In Wu Ming's current estimation, even the City Lord of Hope City paled in comparison to Lu Sheng.

At the very least, City Lord Ye Tian could not have locked him in place for ten seconds while remaining so utterly relaxed and unbothered.

This prompted Wu Ming to wonder where such a terrifying powerhouse had suddenly emerged from.

Lu Sheng smiled. "If I weren't strong, how would I dare spout such tall tales? Now that you've witnessed my capabilities, let's head back and discuss the alliance."

"Agreed," Wu Ming nodded, sharing the exact same sentiment.

The stronger Lu Sheng was, the better; he would have been thrilled if Lu Sheng turned out to be an eleventh-tier powerhouse.

The two returned to the conference hall once more. This time, however, Wu Ming's aura was completely restrained, stripped of any pretense of arrogance.

The haughtiness born of his status as a major faction leader had been thoroughly shattered by Lu Sheng, leaving not a shred behind—at least not in Lu Sheng's presence.

Back in the conference room, Lu Sheng naturally assumed the dominant role and spoke first: "I find your plan quite sound. If we wipe out the high-tier monsters, humanity can certainly fend off the low-tier ones."

"Given that I possess the capability—and honestly intended to do so anyway—I don't mind lending humanity a hand."

"Now that you've witnessed my strength firsthand, you simply need to supply me with the locations of the high-tier monsters, and I will handle them personally."

This genuinely aligned with Lu Sheng's original intention: eradicating high-tier monsters first would reduce casualties and count as helping the human race.

As long as it didn't inconvenience him, Lu Sheng was always happy to help.

Wu Ming pondered for a moment before speaking. "I don't have intelligence on the monsters on hand right now; we'll need Knowledge Pavilion to investigate. But do you truly believe you can handle a horde of Tier 9 monsters alone?"

Seeing Wu Ming's lingering doubt, Lu Sheng laughed. "Let's put it this way: no matter how many Tier 9 monsters come, I'll slaughter them all."

When someone possesses the strength to back it up, such words sound like a simple statement of fact. Without strength, however, it amounted to arrogant boasting.

Moments ago, Lu Sheng had proven through actions that he possessed the strength to back up his arrogance.

"That would be ideal," Wu Ming replied with a nod. "However, would it be convenient for you to accompany me to the Knowledge Pavilion's headquarters to await the intelligence?"

"That way, we can acquire the information as quickly as possible and reach the monsters' locations even faster."

"Currently, all Tier 9 monsters have been confirmed to be concentrated within the first three districts; there are no reports of Tier 9s appearing anywhere else yet."

Lu Sheng raised no objections to Wu Ming's invitation. As long as he didn't erase his teleportation anchor point, he could return at any moment.

"That's not a problem at all," Lu Sheng agreed, then added, "I heard that Corps Commander Wu brought a person named Wei Liang into the Second Corps some time ago. Do you know how he's doing, and where he is right now?"

Wu Ming was taken aback, not expecting Lu Sheng to inquire about this, but he quickly recovered. "Ah, Wei Liang? He's my disciple now. As for his whereabouts, shortly after arriving in Luzhou, he insisted on going to retrieve the people from his former settlement, so he set out last night. Judging by his progress, he should have reached his old home by now."

"Though... how is it that Leader Lu knows of Wei Liang?"

Wu Ming cast a suspicious gaze at Lu Sheng, seeking an explanation, but Lu Sheng had no intention of offering one.

"Just heard about it," Lu Sheng replied casually, refusing to elaborate.

Sensing that Lu Sheng preferred not to discuss it further, Wu Ming did not press the matter. If Lu Sheng chose not to speak, it wasn't as though he could subject him to interrogation.

With the terms settled, Lu Sheng followed Wu Ming and departed from the floating continent.

His standing order to Xiong Dabao remained unchanged: use the telepathic bug if anything came up, and try not to die.

Since both possessed flying mounts, they took to the skies directly.

"Leader Lu is quite fortunate to have acquired such a floating continent. It's just a pity that it's immobile."

"I hear there's a flying island in the Southern Domain that can actually move, even traversing through spatial rifts, though the energy consumption is astronomical, so they rarely choose to relocate it."

"Oh?" Interest piqued, Lu Sheng asked, "Do you know how many flying islands currently exist across the entire Blue Star?"

Wu Ming looked at Lu Sheng in mild surprise. "There is only one flying island; it serves as the stronghold for the top faction in the Southern Domain, and that faction is named Flying Island itself."

"I want the location data of that flying island," Lu Sheng stated calmly.

While he hadn't personally suffered any injustice from the flying island, he intended to seek justice for his predecessor's sake.

At the very least, those responsible for committing such inhumane acts deserved to die.

Wu Ming didn't think much of it. "I do have the location data, though I don't carry it on me. Once we return, I'll have a subordinate send a copy up."

Lu Sheng nodded in agreement. "Very well."

The journey continued in silence as they sped toward the domain of the Knowledge Pavilion.

...

Meanwhile, Wei Liang and Guan Shan, riding their single-horned horses, had successfully arrived in District 21.

Traveling through the night was ultimately no simple task. Even with both of their formidable strengths, they had brushed past mortal peril on several occasions.

Whether it was due to sheer bad luck or the heightened nocturnal activity of the monsters remained unclear.

Throughout the night's journey, they encountered six Tier 8 monsters—even more than the Dawn Corps had encountered during their travels.

Faced with beasts of this caliber, they naturally refrained from retaliating and could only flee.

Their objective was to pick people up, not to hunt monsters.

Encountering so many threats along the way left both men mentally exhausted and strung out.

As they neared their destination, Guan Shan's nerves finally relaxed somewhat.

Wei Liang's mood, however, remained quite grim. Running into so many dangers along the route implied that the monsters in this district were equally formidable.

If that was the case, their tiny settlement stood virtually zero chance of survival.

By this point, Wei Liang had abandoned all hope.

He was driven purely by an obsessive desire to return and take a look.

Guan Shan sensed the heavy emotional aura radiating from Wei Liang, but lacking the words to offer comfort, he simply followed silently behind to prevent any accidents.

Wei Liang possessed a purple-tier talent—a purple talent on par with City Lord Ye Tian—meaning not a single mishap could be tolerated.

Traveling at high speed, the two men entered District 21 and swiftly arrived at the former location of the Gale Settlement.

Upon arriving, Wei Liang's final flicker of hope was thoroughly crushed.

The intact settlement lay right before their eyes, yet not a single trace of human presence remained.

Unwilling to accept this, Wei Liang wrenched open door after door, desperately searching for a living soul while Guan Shan trailed behind in silence.

Thus, driven almost to madness, Wei Liang flung open every single door in the complex.

He now stood before the final door, his hand trembling involuntarily, reluctant to push it open.

If anyone remained in this room, it would undoubtedly be those he held closest.

This was the communal dormitory of the clearance squad.

In the end, Wei Liang chose not to open it, knowing full well that nobody resided inside.

In that moment, Wei Liang neither threw a tantrum nor shed tears; he simply stood in silence before that door, motionless.

Emotions were beyond human control, and connections forged in the crucible of the apocalypse were all the more precious.

For Wei Liang, the Gale Settlement marked the beginning of his rebirth.

Though he had only lived in the Gale Settlement for a single year, that single year yielded more warmth than all his previous years combined.

Back at the Demon Wolf Settlement, he was merely a bullied child deprived of basic human rights.

After escaping, the Gale Settlement saved him and granted him a new life.

Beneath the cold exteriors of everyone there lay hidden kindness. Having experienced the most vicious bullying, he could easily distinguish between genuine coldness and a feigned one.

A cold and ruthless demeanor was merely a facade required for survival in this environment, yet the tender depths of human nature remained unerasable.

With seven emotions and six desires, who could be truly devoid of them? It was merely a matter of degree.

Three minutes later, the silent Wei Liang finally spoke, "Uncle Guan, let's go."

Watching the drastically changed Wei Liang, Guan Shan felt a flicker of worry and ultimately spoke up, "Xiao Liang, don't worry too much. I noticed no signs of disaster within your settlement; it's entirely possible they simply relocated."

Hearing this, Wei Liang paused and mentally retraced the details.

He realized, sure enough, that there were no signs of a struggle.

Corpses refreshed every 24 hours and blood vanished, but the scars of battle never faded.

That remained the definitive method to determine whether a battle had taken place in any given locale.

Sorting out his thoughts, Wei Liang cast a resentful glance at Guan Shan. "Uncle Guan, why didn't you say so earlier? You scared me half to death and made me stand here mourning for three full minutes..."

Guan Shan smiled awkwardly. "Ah, haha, I was just caught up in your emotions and didn't want to break the mood..."

Wei Liang thought to himself: *I sure as hell thank you!*

Seeing the speechless Wei Liang, Guan Shan smartly changed the subject. "Let's head back first. If we want to track down your former settlement, we'll still have to rely on the Knowledge Pavilion's intelligence network."

Wei Liang could only nod in agreement. "Let's go then, Uncle Guan."

...

After traveling for some time, Lu Sheng and Wu Ming finally arrived at the territory of the Knowledge Pavilion.

Gazing at the towering, staggered buildings of the Knowledge Pavilion's stronghold, Lu Sheng felt a sudden surge of envy.

In comparison, his own stronghold looked like a slum.

A competitive streak flared up within Lu Sheng.

Perhaps he ought to look into architectural development.

The solution was actually quite simple and didn't need to be overly complex.

First, he would have Xiong Dabao find design talents; then, construction talents; and finally, a construction crew to do the physical labor.

As for him... well, he could busy himself tracking down some special monsters.

For instance, iron-forging monsters, wood-harvesting monsters, earth-shaping monsters...

He could simply supply these monsters to the construction crew.

That way, the job would be finished. If he needed assistants, the hundreds of thousands of sub-Tier 6 monsters under his command were the best helpers available.

In short, his sole responsibility would be giving orders.

Xiong Dabao: *Is this supposed to be the perk of being a hands-off boss???*

Following Wu Ming, Lu Sheng arrived before the tallest skyscraper in the area.

An unassuming man stepped forward proactively to greet them. "Commander Wu, this must be Leader Lu, right?"

Wu Ming nodded. "Indeed, this is Lu Sheng."

Li Chunqiu stepped forward to shake hands. "I've heard much about you..."

Lu Sheng desperately wanted to retort: *What exactly have you heard? My rise was as fast as a rocket; there's no way you've 'heard much' about me.*

In his past life, he detested such hollow pleasantries, finding them terribly hypocritical—reciting "I've heard so much about you" for someone you'd never even heard of.

Only now did he realize that human socialization functioned precisely this way.

Smiling, Lu Sheng returned the gesture. "You must be the leader of the Knowledge Pavilion? I've heard much about you..."

The dragon slayer ultimately turns into a dragon...