Chapter 687: The Real Game!
Translator: flycrane01 Editor: Millman97
At 7:58:36 p.m. in the standard time of the Flying Star Sector, in the central area of the Edge Sharpeners' Meeting in the first ring of Heavenly Saints City, a deep, dark night sky gradually manifested in the artificial dome. The lamps brought brightness to the city. The tourists, who did not know what was going on, were still coming and going amid lively laughter.
Many product release conferences and magical equipment tests were carried out as planned.
In every refining room, countless refiners were talking and communicating with each other without a care in the world.
Everything seemed the same as yesterday.
But an impenetrable dragnet had been tossed over 27 coordinates in the central area silently.
Hospital, supermarket, intersection, luxury hotel, ragged motel, air cleaning station, temporary space sport for the Edge Sharpeners' Meeting…
Danger was lurking in the ostensible peace. The final tranquility before the earthquake was so protracted that it was almost breathtaking.
The Mist Clearing Operation was about to be put into action.
In the entrance of the No.55 examination tube at the outskirt of the city, Li Yao was crouching behind the complicated wires and hid himself in the darkness, like a viper that had snuck into a swamp.
The muscles all over his body were shivering and making his armor utter clattering noises.
Participants of the Mist Clearing Operation were divided into three groups.
The first group was the strike team. They were in charge of the thunderous attack toward the Black King and the Eight Blades of Black Spider, who had been locked onto long ago.
Members of the strike team were mostly the super experts of the six sects of Heavenly Saints City, including several battle-type Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators. They had done hundreds of rehearsals in the virtual Heavenly Saints City built by the Grand Illusionary Land and prepared for every contingency.
The second group was the siege team. It consisted of the core disciples of the six sects of Heavenly Saints City, too. They were well-trained and fearless of death.
Their task was to surround and block all the Immortal Cultivators after the thunderous attack was launched.
Cultivators in the Nascent Soul Stage were all daunting super experts who would not be suppressed just because their enemy had an advantage in number.
The 'Black King', the Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator of the Temple of Immortals, might not have been as strong as the Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators of the six sects of Heavenly Saints City, but he was certainly better at stealth and assassination.
If such a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator was determined to flee, three or even more Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators might not be able to stop him!
If he abandoned his escape when he ran into a dead end and decided to make some victims without considering the cost, ten Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators might not be enough to stop the tragedy in the central area of Heavenly Saints City!
Therefore, there were ten times the warriors on the Cultivators' side than those on the Immortal Cultivators'; nobody dared to be careless.
Cultivators of the siege group had made up their minds that they would stall the Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators should they show up even at the cost of their own lives!
The third group was the leak-filling team.
The Cultivators who were temporarily summoned, including Li Yao, were mostly assigned to this team. They constituted the third defense line and guarded the entrances and exits of the first space ring that the enemy was most likely to attempt to escape from.
Heavenly Saints City was too large a metropolis. Other than the ten rings in outer space, the central area of the first space ring was itself an enormous central area.
The population of the city had soared because of the Edge Sharpeners' Meeting. To meet the need of visitors and participants of the meeting, countless assets were transported from the other nine rings to the central area. Therefore, a lot of temporary space ports and docks had been built, and more ships were commuting between the first ring and the other rings every day. The terrain was extremely complicated.
Therefore, it is necessary for the leak-filling team to stay alert in the places where the enemy might get away.
The 'Mist Clearing Operation' had been rehearsed in the Grand Illusionary Land countless times before a perfect plan with consideration of every factor was drafted.
Right now, the one who was hiding near the No.55 ventilation tube together with Li Yao was Ye Hongfei, a crystal suit expert in the Core Formation Stage and a young associate professor of the Battlesuit Department of Flying Star University who had communicated with him a lot.
Ye Hongfei was also Sand Scorpion's crystal suit teacher.
Two months ago, Li Yao had gone to the leadership of the school and stated that he had recognized the formidability of the super magical equipment known as crystal suits. He had expressed his interest in the arts of crystal suits.
As it happened, Ye Hongfei had a few matches with Li Yao before, and the two of them got along quite well. Therefore, he agreed to the assignment and taught Li Yao the rudimental knowledge about crystal suits in his spare time.
"Master Sand, are you a bit nervous?"
Ye Hongfei was watching the dozens of pictures on the light beam that were captured from the first person perspective of the members of the strike team and the siege team. It was meant to allow the leak-filling team in the outmost area to follow the progress of the Mist Clearing Operation.
"Nervous?"
A cluster of blood-red spread out in the depths of Li Yao's left eye and formed a demonic crimson ring around his pupil before it suddenly vanished. He licked his dry lips and replied, "I'm not nervous; I'm hungry, so hungry that I'm shaking."
Ye Hongfei replied, "Hungry? I have a few highly-condensed spiritual energy biscuits here. Do you want some?"
Li Yao shook his head. "Thanks, but no. It is not my stomach that is hungry. The biscuits are not going to feed me."
Ye Hongfei was dazed for a moment. Then he smiled and said, "I understand. You are not nervous; you are excited! When I went to participate in the unlimited crystal suit match in the Heavenly Sword Arena for the first time, I felt the same."
"You don't understand, Master Ye. This is different from the arena matches that you took part in."
Li Yao's expression became weird while he rubbed his left temple slowly. He seemed to be both expecting and enjoying something. His eyes half closed, Li Yao mumbled, "Master Ye, you were born in a noble family, and you have been a well-acknowledged prodigy since you were born. You grew up smoothly, went to the Battlesuit Department of Flying Star University smoothly, stayed to teach at the school smoothly, and advanced into the Core Formation Stage smoothly.
"The most brutal battle for you is perhaps an unlimited crystal suit match in an arena. No more!
"Therefore, you don't have any idea what I am expecting!
"The unlimited crystal suit matches that are held in designated arenas and watched by countless spectators are but child's play for me.
"Let me tell you what a real unlimited match is.
"The sky and the earth are the area, the billions of stars in the universe are my audience, and the sun and the moon will be the judges. Every last bit strength in my soul, cells, and life is exploited. Even death will not mark the end for the match!
"This is a real unlimited match and a game that I've been yearning for!
"Right now, the game is about to begin. How can I not be excited and hungry?"
Ye Hongfei was dumbfounded.
The Core Formation Stage Cultivator was deeply awed by the powerful, sharp, and mysterious aura that had suddenly burst out of Li Yao's body.
For a moment, he even felt that he was shuddering.
With a pale face, Ye Hongfei stammered, "Ma—Master Sand, what happened to you? You seem different from usual."
Li Yao was shocked and confused himself by what he had blurted out just now. Taking a deep breath, he rubbed his left eye and said in a low voice, "I'm sorry, Master Ye. I must have been too excited to keep my tongue in order.
"But anyway, we've been assigned to a terrible location in the Mist Clearing Operation. The No.55 ventilation tube is the safest and most unlikely place for the Immortal Cultivators' escape. Are they not looking down upon us by sending us here?"
Li Yao only spoke half the truth.
Since this was the 'safest' and 'most unlikely place for Immortal Cultivators' escape', those around him were definitely not the super experts.
It meant that, if the super experts among Immortal Cultivators such as the Black King 'accidentally' chose to break out of the siege through the No.55 ventilation tube, Li Yao would have barely any teammates that would be of use!
"It can't be helped. The Mist Clearing Operation is truly a great undertaking. Not just you, even I have never seen so many experts gathering together in all my years as a Cultivator!
"This is a real war of Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators!"
Ye Hongfei was greatly relieved, seeing that Li Yao had returned to normal. He smiled bitterly and said, "Although I am in the Core Formation Stage, you were quite right about my lack of experience in real-life combat. I'm no match for the super experts who are all seasoned warriors. It's only normal that I was assigned to the most remote place."
Li Yao sniffed. "But my combat ability is as good as that of a Core Formation Stage Cultivator, and I have abundant experience in real-life battles. Why was I ordered to this location, too?"
When he spoke the last sentence, Li Yao turned on the communication channel intentionally so that every member of the Mist Clearing Operation would hear it.
Ye Hongfei glanced at Li Yao's face and noticed that he was perfectly normal. He scratched his nose and said, "Master Sand, let's be honest here. It's true that your secret arts are indeed powerful enough to help you wield combat ability more than ten times that of a Cultivator in the peak of the Building Foundation Stage. Normal Core Formation Stage Cultivators are no match for you, and you may even be able to survive one or two attacks from a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator.
"However, that's only true when nobody is wearing a crystal suit!
"Crystal suits were the greatest invention of the modern Cultivation civilization. It is a super platform and the king of magical equipment! A Cultivator with and without a crystal suit can have a vastly different combat ability!
"Although I'm definitely no match for you when I'm not in a crystal suit, you've already seen me in a crystal suit in person. You don't need me to remind you of the results of our competitions, do you?
"As for the True Qi armor of Iron Plateau…
"Forgive me for being too blunt, but the difference between a True Qi armor and a crystal suit is similar to the different between a bull and a rhino. They may look alike, but their enhancements for combat are worlds apart!"
Li Yao glared at him. "About that!"
Ye Hongfei opened his hands and said, "I wouldn't have put it so straight if you were not an experienced refiner who participated in the refinement of the Unparalleled Extension and a bunch of other crystal suits. You should have a personal understanding about the formidability of crystal suits right now, no?
"Otherwise, you wouldn't have gone to the leadership of the school hoping to learn the arts of crystal suit in a hurry two months ago, would you?
"However, it's only been two months, and you simply devoted your spare time to it instead of practicing crystal suits full-time. I was only able to teach you the rudimental knowledge. So, I'm well aware of your skill in a crystal suit!"