Chapter 169: The Rumbling Smoke Signal

Pained, Wang Baole grimaced and left his cave abode.

It was dusk, so the sky in the horizon was awash with orange hues. It was approaching spring. Even though the location of Ethereal Dao College made it seem like spring all year round, during the actual spring season, the temperature outside still carried a hint of the coldness.

The humidity was also higher. The winds blowing into one’s face went straight to the bones. It might not have seemed too cold initially, but one would start feeling the cold after an extended period outdoors.

To a cultivator, however, a little cold was something that could be disregarded.

Wang Baole was not bothered by the cold winds that preceded the approach of spring. He walked out of the cave abode area, toward the setting sun, and ended up in a corner with no one in sight. He prayed inwardly, raised his right hand in a wave, and saw, instead of the scabbard appearing, invisible strands of Sword Qi shooting out from his palm soundlessly.

The Sword Qi transformed into nine mosquitoes in midair!

The nine mosquitoes looked extremely realistic, their appearances no different from real mosquitoes. They possessed a certain mind of their own and started flying around Wang Baole.

They gave off a similar feeling. Wang Baole shivered as he heard the endless buzzing in his ears. He almost raised his hand and swatted them, but he held back his sudden urges, took a deep breath, and forced his agitated mind to calm down. Instead, he tried to control the mosquitoes.

As soon as the thought rose in Wang Baole’s mind, the nine mosquitoes shook. They flew in front of Wang Baole instantly and lined up in one row, like soldiers, before him.

“Hmm?” Wang Baole’s eyes brightened. Another thought formed. In an instant, the mosquitoes kept reorganizing themselves before him, forming all kinds of formations that were identical to what Wang Baole had thought up.

“They’re so agile!” Wang Baole was slightly surprised and pleased. He had been too glum earlier and had not immediately realized how different the mosquitoes were. He suddenly felt the mosquitoes to be quite powerful.

What if I don’t go for precise control and instead issued a command?

Upon thinking that, Wang Baole immediately tried doing it. He soon realized to his surprise that these mosquitoes seemed to possess a certain mind of their own and could likely carry out the orders that he issued.

Patrolling, for example, or guarding against enemies. After Wang Baole infused more Spirit Qi into the scabbard inside his body, he was surprised to find a huge transformation in his vision!

An ordinary person, when staring straight ahead without moving their eyes, would maybe have a field of vision of approximately forty-five degrees. This was something even being a cultivator could not change. The most he could do was to hone his five senses and acquire a vague sensing of his surroundings.

But now… Wang Baole discovered, much to his shock, that his field of vision had transformed from its original forty-five degrees to a full three-hundred-and-sixty-degree field of vision!

“This… this…” Wang Baole’s breathing halted. After detailed observations, he immediately realized the cause. He was borrowing the field of vision from the nine mosquitoes. Each mosquito was like a pair of eyes. In this manner, he was able to exceed the limits of his original vision!

This discovery sent Wang Baole shaking inside. He immediately realized very clearly that such a field of vision would prove to be of immense help to him. When facing an enemy, it would be as if he had grown eyes all around his head… making him even more agile and aware of his surroundings.

In addition, if someone attempted to ambush him, it would be difficult for them to do so without his discovery!

Excited, Wang Baole felt that he needed to study this ability more. He maneuvered the mosquitoes and shifted their lines of sight endlessly. He found out excitedly that it did not matter if it was one mosquito or all nine mosquitoes, they could all become his eyes. He was able to control them flawlessly.

This ability alone is worth the ten thousand Armament Sand! Wang Baole was beyond excited. He eagerly tried to manipulate the mosquitoes into flying further away into the distance.

Let’s see how far they can fly…

The thought had just appeared in Wang Baole’s mind before a wave of emotions stirred within him again. As the nine mosquitoes flew rapidly away, Wang Baole discovered his vision transforming instantly again!

It was like ten different images being layered together without affecting one another, sharing one another’s vision. He could see almost half of the Dharmic Armament Pavilion!

Even though blind spots started appearing as the mosquitoes flew further and further away, such an experience was already unprecedented to Wang Baole. It was at that moment that a cacophony of noises suddenly appeared and exploded in Wang Baole’s head!

He could hear countless voices!

“The Armament Disciple exam is too hard. I hope I can pass this time!”

“Senior Brother Zhou, can this Mystic Flame Metal of yours be cheaper? I need loads of it!”

“Fried potatoes, freshly made fried potatoes…”

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“Have you heard? The Beast Tide this year is approaching. A primary stronghold near my hometown is already preparing for war!”

All kinds of sounds exploded in Wang Baole’s ears. It was like a huge tsunami that nearly flooded and drowned Wang Baole. The sensation was akin to being teleported instantly to a market place from a silent environment. Wang Baole was dazed instantly. He quickly controlled the mosquitoes into flying higher. This made him feel slightly better.

These mosquitoes can actually hear sounds… It’s just that there is too much noise.Wang Baole felt his head swelling in pain. However, he was more excited than pained. He tried filtering the noises. The effect was not very promising, but it was still acceptable, though barely.

After that, he maneuvered the mosquitoes into flying in the further parts of the Dharmic Armament Pavilion. He soon heard voices and saw an image. It was the inside of the hall in the College Administrative Department. Sun Fang, his face grave, was about to leave the hall. Someone chased after him and shouted for him to stop.

“Senior Brother Sun, we…”

Upon hearing that, the look on Sun Fang’s face changed. He surveyed the surroundings with great care, then turned and glared angrily at the new arrival.

“Shut up. Next time, when we’re in public, call me Senior Brother Fang. I’m called Fang Sun!”

Watching Sun Fang, and hearing Sun Fang’s words, the remote Wang Baole could not help but cough. This Sun Fang had offended him previously and had been disciplined by the College Administrative Department. Wang Baole felt himself to be a forgiving man, and especially with him recently promoted, he did not wish for others to find himself too harsh. That was why he had let him off lightly. He had intended to wait a while longer before finding an opportunity to deal with him, but this person was like a devious monkey spirit. After the incident, the genius had claimed to have changed his name and, from then on, was called Fang Sun.

Wang Baole could not, in good conscience, continue to pursue the matter. He thought of how forgiving and benevolent he was and truly let the matter rest.

At present, he did a sweeping glance and disregarded the scene, continued to maneuver the nine mosquitoes into flying farther ahead, and finally found that they could fly as far as three miles away from him. Wang Baole was overjoyed. He tested how fast they could go in a short-distance dash as well as the strength of their attacks.

The former was astonishing. The sudden burst of speed was too fast for the human eye to see. The latter was considerably weaker. The most that they could achieve was piercing some trees. Rocks were more challenging.

That’s okay—they’re mosquitoes. They’re supposed to bite people, not bulldoze them!

After comforting himself, Wang Baole wanted to test the effects of the mosquitoes’ bite on a person, but even though there were plenty of people in the Dharmic Armament Pavilion, they had done nothing to offend him. As for Lin Tianhao, he was away in seclusion. Wang Baole manipulated the mosquitoes into making a few rounds in front of the cave abode that Lin Tianhao had recently moved into, but he gave up after they could find no way in.

“It’s a pity the shameless monkey isn’t around,” Wang Baole muttered regretfully. He planned to test out the power of his mosquitoes’ bite when either the shameless monkey turned up or when Lin Tianhao emerged from his seclusion. Then, he recalled the nine mosquitoes.

Right, I still have to test their defense!

When the nine mosquitoes appeared before Wang Baole again, he thought for a bit before pinching one of them. It seemed quite hardy, but after Wang Baole used his strength…

Smack.

The mosquito shattered into pieces…

Wang Baole frowned and quickly his heart stirred. Spirit Qi surged into the scabbard. With a wave of his hand, another mosquito appeared. Wang Baole’s eyes shone brightly at the sight of it. After multiple tries, he realized that as long as he did not exhaust his Spirit Qi, the mosquitoes could be regenerated for an infinite number of times after they were destroyed.

“This is too much!” Wang Baole examined all the data he had collected. As a soon-to-be Armament Soldier who could refine Numinous Treasures, he was blown away.

Even though he did not know how powerful the actual scabbard that could shoot out flying sword needles would be if he had followed the instructions of Little Missy in the black mask and refined that scabbard, from how he saw it, this mutated scabbard of his was not that much weaker. In some respects, it might even surpass the real deal!

While Wang Baole was about to test out the Dharmic Artifact that were the mosquitoes, a signal was activated a long distance away from Ethereal Dao College in a vast expanse of mountains.

From afar, the mountain range was obscured in darkness. Only a smoke signal rose in thick waves into the sky. It seemed like it would never be extinguished and exuded an aura that was beyond description. It seemed to be connected directly to the heavens and made the entire sky appear to be scattered with rings of clouds!

However, if one should approach for a closer look, one would discover that the mountains seemed like they were coated in metal. On the peak of the mountain, where the smoke signal rose, sat a giant stronghold!

This stronghold was imposing and grand, made not from bricks and mortar but from a special kind of metal. It glimmered with a pitch-black light. Constructed against one side of the mountain, the walls of the stronghold were covered with spikes. The spikes varied in length, some long and some short, and were stained in dried blood. At the edge of some of the spikes stood a ring-shaped platform. Upon the platform sat what looked like a giant cannon.

This was the composite Numinous Treasure that had been invented by the Federation; it was extremely powerful. With a single glance, one could see numerous Numinous Treasures like it on the spikes lining the stronghold walls. It was almost impossible to count them all.

The main body of the stronghold spanned hundreds of yards. It stood impressively tall, towering five thousand yards. It was as if a gate that could seal the heavens stood on the mountain, merged with the entire mountain range. It impressed, astounded, and at the same time, divided the lands into what lay inside and what was kept outside.

Inside was the Federation!

As for what lay outside, it was an expanse of scorched land. Even further beyond it were endless jungles. One could almost hear the howls of ferocious beasts thundering from the within the jungles, resounding through the air.

It was like a primordial land!