ccnovels #427 - Raise an army for a thousand days and deploy it for a moment
#427 - Raise an army for a thousand days and deploy it for a moment
Good news: Humans mainly live beneath the lunar surface, where numerous large fortresses are located, with footprints spanning everywhere.
Bad news: The Stone of the Past is no longer glowing.
Wang Jixuan directly pocketed the Stone of the Past and wandered around these lunar fortresses with Ling Tong.
To be fair, the scenery here is quite nice.
In many places, looking up, you can see that giant blue disc hanging overhead, bringing with it a sense of inexplicable oppression.
As everyone knows, viewing Earth from the Moon makes the ‘globe’ appear more than ten times larger than viewing the Moon from Earth.
This kind of spectacle can create the illusion that ‘you are very small.’
Ling Tong loves this scenery and took many photos with her personal communicator; Wang Jixuan, however, didn't have the time to appreciate the view, muttering to the Stone of the Past in his arms, hoping it would return to normal.
Then, he took Ling Tong back and forth between the lunar near-Earth orbit and the lunar fortresses.
The Stone of the Past only exhibits the phenomenon of glowing mist at a specific distance and location.
That being said, if the Ina civilization obtained the Stone of the Past and enshrined it in the City Above the Clouds, it's quite possible they wouldn't have observed this phenomenon.
The likelihood of treasure being hidden here is decreasing;
But if there really is treasure, predating the Ina civilization by over a million years… that possibility is increasing.
Wang Jixuan patiently had Ling Tong help him record data, piloting the spacecraft to conduct pinpoint investigations.
After several hours of this, a map appeared before the two of them.
In the outer space of the Moon, there is a cylindrical area with a diameter of thirty kilometers and a thickness of six kilometers; this is the area that can trigger the anomaly of the Stone of the Past.
“Hmm…”
Ling Tong crossed her arms and carefully analyzed:
“I had them check the Moon's gravity, magnetic field, and various other data, but there's nothing unusual.
“What is the principle behind this stone's sensing?”
“I'm not sure… What's the diameter of the Moon again?” Wang Jixuan asked.
“About three thousand five hundred kilometers.”
“I'll try Earth Tunneling,” Wang Daoshi said, eager to try. “I'll fall directly from this area and use Earth Tunneling to see if I can drill out from the opposite side of the Moon.”
Ling Tong said, “Speaking of that, I remembered a report… Wait a moment.”
She took two steps to the side and began searching for archival data on the ship's terminal.
Wang Daoshi gazed at her slender and graceful back, feeling a bit of heat in his heart again, but he quickly suppressed it.
Time to focus on serious matters;
Although desire for food and sex is natural, it's been a bit too frequent lately.
Ling Tong quickly projected a document in front of Wang Jixuan.
“During previous lunar survey experiments, some anomalies were discovered in the lunar core.”
“Anomalies?”
“Yes, the mass doesn't match up. The mass of the lunar core is lighter than calculated, while the structure surrounding the lunar core, similar to the mantle, is heavier than we calculated.”
Ling Tong continued to search, and report after report was sent to Wang Jixuan.
“Besides these, scientists have also discovered that the Moon experiences a very slight moonquake.
“This moonquake isn't dangerous, but strangely, each time this special moonquake is detected, its frequency and intensity are exactly the same.
“There's also this… When we were building Lunar Fortress Seven, dozens of devices simultaneously lost contact, but they returned to normal after six hours.”
Wang Jixuan carefully read these reports, many of which were government confidential documents.
Soon, Ling Tong couldn't find any other sources of information, and Mu Dan gave him a few more lunar observation reports.
But after reading them all, Wang Daoshi felt like he was watching flowers from across the bank, scratching an itch from outside his boot. He vaguely gained something, but in reality, there was no substantial breakthrough at all.
Wang Jixuan said, “I still need to do some Earth Tunneling… Don't worry, I'll use an Other Soul to tunnel, and my main body won't easily take risks.”
“Mm,” Ling Tong smiled gently. “It's like I'm not worried about anything. I have full confidence in your abilities.”
Wang Daoshi suddenly reached out and pulled her into his arms, sitting together on the chair with pulleys, and then closed his eyes and concentrated. A black dragon flew out from his shoulder and crashed straight into the lunar surface.
Half an hour later, lunar observation stations began issuing moonquake warnings.
People active in the lunar fortresses and surface bases could clearly feel the Moon trembling slightly.
This vibration wasn't dangerous, but it made people feel uneasy.
The Moon is ultimately not as stable as Earth.
About two hours later.
Wang Jixuan frowned and opened his eyes.
He glanced at Ling Tong, who had already fallen asleep in his arms, and then remembered that she wasn't a proper cultivator, nor was she a mechanically modified body like Lao Fu, and couldn't continue without rest.
After carrying Ling Tong to the small rest area, Daoshi contacted Mu Dan with a solemn expression.
“Is it difficult to drill a hole on the Moon?”
“Drill a hole? How deep of a hole?”
“About a thousand kilometers deep,” Wang Jixuan said in a deep voice. “The journey will pass through many dense rock layers.”
“It will take two years,” Mu Dan directly gave the result. “Did you discover something?”
“Mm.”
Wang Jixuan organized his thoughts and said quickly:
“Hidden inside the Moon is a sub-space with a diameter of about a hundred kilometers, attached to the Moon itself. The entrance can't be found. The small space is perfectly integrated, and conservatively estimated, the strength of the space barrier is a hundred times stronger than a spiritual cultivator's sub-space.
“There really is a treasure here.
“Moreover, this sub-space was also accidentally triggered by me using an Other Soul to collide with it. At first, there was only a very vague boundary. I collided with it thousands of times before it fully revealed itself.”
Mu Dan was also a little surprised: “Is it a treasure left by the Ina civilization?”
“No,” Wang Jixuan said immediately. “The time doesn't match up.”
“Time?”
“Mm.”
Wang Daoshi explained:
“The Ina civilization obtained this Stone of the Past before the arrival of the Three Realms Vagabond. This point in time is quite early.
“The Ina civilization's home planet has always been Earth in ancient times. This hasn't changed. The time that the Moon has accompanied Earth is calculated in billions of years.
“And this sub-space itself still relies on spiritual energy and spiritual power. The Ina civilization had no spiritual energy to use before encountering the Three Realms Vagabond.”
Mu Dan said, “Then is it possible that the Ina civilization used this stone as a key to create this sub-space at the end of their civilization, after the remnant soul of the Three Realms Vagabond fell asleep?”
“What you said also makes sense.”
Wang Jixuan chuckled:
“However, I personally prefer the idea that this sub-space is more ancient.
“That way, the things inside will be more valuable.
“The current problem is how to get in. This Stone of the Past is too mysterious.”
“How about calling Professor Shen over to help?” Mu Dan suggested. “She often has some strange ideas in her head.”
“Sure, it's been a long time since I've seen her.”
Wang Jixuan clicked his tongue:
“That guy is doing well now. He doesn't lack research funding and venues anymore. He's even leaving me, his former boss, on the sidelines?”
“Professor Shen's personality is like that,” Mu Dan said with a smile. “In addition, on Zhou Zhengde's suggestion, the First Expeditionary Fleet has begun to return, stationed in Earth's outer space for rest and reorganization, actually to deal with potential enemies that may appear next, bringing in more power.”
Wang Jixuan responded: “Is Lao Fu's brain in the First Fleet?”
“Yes.”
“That's great. I can also catch up with his brain… By the way, remind them that they can't actually help much in battles at the spiritual cultivator level.”
Mu Dan said: “There are enough high-level mechanical bodies. Many ants can kill an elephant.”
“You guys can arrange it. I'll focus on researching this treasure.”
Wang Jixuan rubbed his hands, his eyes full of excitement.
The various relics of the cultivation world have long been turned upside down by the major sects. He has never had such a good opportunity to experience the fun of treasure hunting and tomb raiding.
The Black Dragon tunnels again!
Let's get started!
…
Wang Jixuan worked day and night for a whole day, but there were no obvious gains.
He had tried to have the Other Soul carry the Stone of the Past close to that sub-space;
He had also tried to set up the Qiankun Formation to disturb the boundary of the sub-space;
He even tried to have the Other Soul pretend to be a wisp of a lonely soul, and his main body tunneled into the Moon pretending to be seriously injured… and so on.
He tried all the methods he could think of;
That sub-space showed no response to him.
Wang Jixuan vaguely felt that he should just hold the Stone of the Past, stay in that area outside the Moon with a diameter of thirty kilometers and a thickness of six kilometers, and use some method to activate the Stone of the Past.
The Three Realms Vagabond, who hadn't rested for long, was woken up by him and tried a few times.
There were still no results.
After thinking about it, Wang Jixuan was no longer in a hurry and simply waited for Shen Qionglin and Fu Jian to come over and try again.
If they really can't get in, then this treasure land is not destined for him.
Just let it go.
He accompanied Ling Tong on sightseeing for three days. The two of them held a simple wedding ceremony, eating a candlelight dinner under the witness of Earth and putting rings on each other's fingers.
And then the remaining time, they were all in passionate excitement and surging waves.
As if tomorrow would be the end of the world.
The area on Earth where spatial fluctuations appeared still had continuous, weak fluctuations, as if a portal could appear there at any time.
The surface has already begun evacuation work, and several cities in that area have completed underground shelter preparations.
Just as Wang Daoshi was indulging in beauty, one of his old friends, Shen Qionglin, finally appeared in front of Wang Daoshi.
The only thing that hadn't changed about Shen Qionglin was her height.
In other aspects…
She still preferred wearing a white coat and now sported short hair. Her appearance had changed somewhat from before, and her delicate, palm-sized face carried an indelible weariness.
Her features were still beautiful, but they couldn't conceal the fine crow's feet at the corners of her eyes.
Shen Qionglin's God-Domain brain and her current SS-rank awakened psychic abilities should have granted her a lifespan of at least several centuries.
However, her workload was simply too great, and she was showing signs of exhaustion.
Overall, though, she still maintained her elegance.
"Long time no see," Shen Qionglin greeted with a smile, "Boss."
Wang Jixuan casually tossed a few pills to Shen Qionglin: "You're quite the busy person. I have to wait in line just to see you."
"Is there anything worth talking about when we meet? Reminiscing, introducing our recent situations, telling each other how much we've missed each other?"
Shen Qionglin took the pills, sniffed them, and after confirming they were the same kind, kept one and swallowed the other three.
She was instantly revitalized by the spiritual energy, her vigor restored.
Shen Qionglin smiled and said, "Thanks. The pills you concoct taste better than those made by Crimson Serpent and Wu Man."
"You've made significant contributions to humanity over the years. It's quite admirable."
"I'm just working on some topics that interest me," Shen Qionglin said. "My life is finite, so I want to make the most of every second, exploring the unknown and experiencing the sense of accomplishment after solving problems... What did you call me here to do? Peony said you had a major discovery."
Daoist Wang's face darkened: "Couldn't I call you here without a discovery?"
"You could," Shen Qionglin blinked. "You're my boss, after all."
Wang Jixuan shook his head, refrained from further pleasantries, and led her to the spaceship's cockpit, where he explained the situation regarding the sub-space within the moon.
Afterward, Shen Qionglin fell into a five-hour silence.
She reviewed all the data and then began a long period of contemplation.
Wang Jixuan and Ling Tong waited for a while before attending to their own tasks, acting as if Shen Qionglin didn't exist.
Finally...
"I have roughly three ideas about how to enter this sub-space."
"Speak!"
Daoist Wang, who had been reading books related to the moon, jumped up.
Shen Qionglin pondered for a moment: "One idea, or rather, a plan, is to bombard this stone with a high-energy ion beam to see how it reacts and whether it triggers any self-preservation mechanisms or something."
"Give me another one," Daoist Wang immediately shook his head. "I still need to keep this thing to save my life."
"Alright then, only two left."
Shen Qionglin pointed to Earth:
"The moon and Earth are tidally locked, meaning one side of the moon always faces Earth. And have you noticed?"
"The area that causes this thing to emit colorful light is actually located in the center of the side of the moon facing Earth. Observing from the side, draw two intersecting straight lines to cut through the circles of Earth and the moon. You can find an intersection point, and from this point, draw two straight lines to cut through the circle formed by this area..."
Shen Qionglin continuously created diagrams on the projection screen, which soon became filled with dense mathematical symbols.
Wang Jixuan's head ached from looking at it.
It's normal for him to not understand math and science since he cultivates immortality.
He only needed to understand Shen Qionglin's conclusion.
"So, we can try injecting enough spiritual energy into this Stone of the Past from these points and see what happens."
Wang Jixuan nodded: "That sounds more reliable. What's the third plan?"
"Well..."
Shen Qionglin stared at the honeycomb-like Stone of the Past for a moment and asked softly:
"The third idea might be a bit crazy."
"Your first plan was already crazy enough."
"This is different," Shen Qionglin said. "I suspect this stone isn't a key to open a treasure, but rather the entity of this sub-space itself in our current dimension."
Wang Jixuan: ...
"Just tell me the plan."
"Okay," Shen Qionglin blinked, her eyes full of anticipation. "Can we talk about the compensation this time? If I open this thing, you must satisfy my curiosity. I won't touch the high-value treasures inside, how about it?"