All Things Are Contracts

Chapter 18: Successful Escape

In the underground world, a mysterious space. The puppets holding mirrors gathered again, with eighteen shadows appearing on the mirrors.

“Dream Vulture Lord is dead,” said the Lord named Strategist, speaking first.

“Dead… dead, when did this happen?” The crowd was in an uproar.

“Just now. It’s been nearly a thousand years since a Lord has died. Who did it? Thunder Lord or Sword Lord?” Strategist was equally clueless.

“Star Disgust Lord, Sunset Wasteland is your territory. You’ve had the most contact with Dream Vulture Lord since it was sealed in Sunset Castle, right?” someone asked.

“That’s right, but unfortunately I’m not in Sunset Wasteland at the moment. Our Nightmare race doesn’t have teleportation formations like humans do. Even if we possess corpses, we can’t use those formations. We’ve always been less mobile than humans. But if Strategist gives the order, I can have all the nightmares in Sunset Wasteland attack Sunset Castle. The killer might not have left yet,” Star Disgust Lord suggested.

“No need. Anyone who could kill Dream Vulture Lord isn’t someone your minions can handle. There’s no need for unnecessary casualties. Besides, everyone knows the Nightmare race has a strong sense of territory. Such a reckless attack on Sunset Castle would only make them suspicious. After all, compared to Dream Vulture Lord, the secret of Sunset Castle is more important,” Strategist said. He hadn’t expected Dream Vulture Lord to be killed by Zhanyue in the dream realm. If the Nightmare race rushed towards the castle, he and the Holy Maiden might both end up dead there. The usually infallible Strategist had made the biggest mistake of his life – overestimating the enemy.

“Back then, Dream Vulture Lord was escorting the Ghost Fruit for His Majesty the Corpse Emperor when it passed by Sunset Castle. That’s where it encountered the illumination Goddess. Worried that the Ghost Fruit might be damaged in battle, it swallowed the Ghost Fruit on its own, intending to have His Majesty the Corpse Emperor retrieve it upon return. But unexpectedly, it was sealed in Sunset Castle. After His Majesty the Corpse Emperor fell into slumber, we didn’t have the strength to retrieve that Ghost Fruit. Who knows if it has been refined by now,” someone discussed.

“What do you mean by that? Dream Vulture Lord’s character is beyond question. I’ve met it a few times, it wouldn’t dare to touch the Ghost Fruit at all. It was just waiting for His Majesty to awaken, to take the Ghost Fruit out of its body anew, letting it complete the mission it should have completed thousands of years ago,” Star Disgust Lord defended Dream Vulture Lord.

“I actually hope it could have refined the fruit. Now that it’s dead, hasn’t the Ghost Fruit benefited the human race? We should have released it back then and imprisoned it elsewhere,” that person said discontentedly.

“Enough! One Ghost Fruit would only create one more powerful human, it doesn’t affect the big picture. I was the one who ordered it to be imprisoned in Sunset Castle! By coincidence, it was sealed onto Sunset Castle, and it was because of this that the secret of Sunset Castle was preserved. That’s why I didn’t let you rescue it. Now that it’s dead, if the secret of Sunset Castle is discovered by humans, I’m afraid my plan will have to be completely changed. After the meeting, I’ll set out immediately to check Sunset Castle personally,” Strategist’s words silenced everyone.

“Strategist, if the secret of Sunset Castle is so important, why not just destroy it and let the secret disappear from this world forever?” someone asked puzzledly.

Strategist sneered, “You go ahead and try to destroy it. How could we possibly damage the Heaven-Defying Demon-Subduing Grand Formation? It’s fortunate that the human race’s current mastery of formations isn’t even one percent of their ancestors’, otherwise we wouldn’t stand a chance against them.”

“Strategist has systematically studied human formations and is the only one in our Nightmare race who understands formations. He has even used illumination Stones to activate formations to kill human Spirit God Realm powerhouses. Don’t question Strategist’s judgment, it only makes you look foolish,” someone taught a lesson to this ignorant Lord.

While the Nightmare Lords were discussing Sunset Castle, Holy Maiden Lixi finally made her decision.

“I… I agree with you. You better not be deceiving me,” Lixi looked at Zhanyue with earnest eyes.

“Of course I won’t deceive you. But others might not be so honest. You really are a woman who trusts others easily,” Zhanyue sighed as he looked at the Holy Maiden in front of him. But it was normal for the Holy Maiden to be inexperienced in the ways of the world.

“It’s… it’s not that I trust others so easily. I just feel that you’re a very strange person… but… but I can sense your good intentions. Since I was young, I’ve been very accurate in sensing the good or evil thoughts of people around me. I’m sure I’m not wrong. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have secretly followed you earlier, and dared to follow you into the castle,” the Holy Maiden explained.

“So you have this ability?” Zhanyue looked at Lixi in surprise. She could sense others’ good and evil thoughts?

“I can do that too. Perhaps it’s an innate ability of light contractors,” the illumination Goddess added.

“What about me? Why can’t I do it?” Zhanyue said discontentedly. He could use the power of light too.

“Because you’re not a light contractor! You’re just borrowing my power, but you can’t borrow talent,” the illumination Goddess said helplessly. “However, I’m quite satisfied with this disciple you’ve recruited for me. When there’s a chance in the future, I’ll teach her properly. For now, give her the technique and let her focus on cultivation.”

“Alright,” Zhanyue turned to Lixi and said, “Sit down and close your eyes. I’ve only learned this method for now, so excuse me.”

“Huh?” Lixi didn’t understand his meaning, but followed his instructions, sitting cross-legged and closing her eyes. She felt a breath silently approaching her, making her heart race. “What… what is he going to do? Surely not…” Lixi was a bit scared, but also felt it didn’t seem likely.

Zhanyue pressed his forehead against Lixi’s. This was the ‘Mind Communication’ method that the illumination Goddess had just taught him. However, Zhanyue currently needed to have their heads as close as possible to use it.

Before Lixi could resist, a flood of vast information rushed into her mind. She nearly fainted, but thanks to her excellent constitution, she managed to withstand this wave of ‘enlightenment’.

“‘Great Sun Traversing Heaven Technique’? How… how is this possible?” Lixi was shocked, her face pale. She naturally knew the reputation of this divine-level technique. Wasn’t it lost long ago? Legend had it that the illumination Goddess had cultivated three divine-level techniques, one of which was the ‘Great Sun Traversing Heaven Technique’.

“No… this is too precious. I can’t accept it,” Lixi knew the value of a divine-level technique. What qualifications did she have to accept something so precious from someone else?

“What? You think you can give it back to me? If you want to thank someone, thank that master of yours whom you’ve never met. Since you’ve taken her as your master, this technique is rightfully yours. Whether it’s divine-level or whatever level, this is just teaching material from a master to a disciple, understand?” Zhanyue persuaded.

“Oh…” Hearing this, Lixi indeed felt much better. This was from a master to a disciple, it’s rightful, it’s rightful. But she still felt as if she were dreaming. This was a divine-level technique after all.

“When you go back, don’t reveal the secret of this technique to others. Let alone those with ill intentions, if the Nightmare race learns that your cold poison can be suppressed by a technique, I’m afraid your days won’t be peaceful,” Zhanyue advised.

“Mm.” Lixi agreed with a blushing face, “I’ll keep this secret. After all, this is a divine-level technique, it’s of great importance. I won’t tell even grandfather.”

“Why are you blushing? Come on, it’s time to leave this place,” Zhanyue stood up first, leading Lixi towards the depths of the castle.

They ascended to the second floor of the castle, which was a huge hall surrounded by candlesticks. Following the illumination Goddess’s instructions, Zhanyue lit several designated candlesticks in sequence, easily solving the puzzle. A teleportation formation appeared in the center of the hall, making the Holy Maiden beside him open her small mouth in surprise. However, she also realized that there were too many mysteries about this man. She was still curious about why Zhanyue was so familiar with the castle. Had he been here before? But he was only at the Spirit Contract Realm. Well, possessing a divine-level technique at the Spirit Contract Realm was even more unreasonable.

“What are you daydreaming about? Use the illumination Stone to activate the formation. We’re leaving this place. Sunset Wasteland is still too dangerous. This formation can send us out,” Zhanyue said.

“Alright.” Lixi took out several illumination Stones, and the formation flickered with a deep blue light.

“By the way, this formation is older than you, right? Why can it also be activated by illumination Stones? Weren’t illumination Stones invented by you?” Zhanyue looked at the formation in front of him, puzzled.

“Am I that old? And who said I invented them? I just found the method of refining illumination Stones and illumination Towers in ruins. They are all relics of the previous civilization. I just brought them back to the world,” the illumination Goddess explained.

“Oh, alright. Then is Sun City your hometown?” Zhanyue asked curiously. It was most reliable to ask the person herself about this question.

“No, I was born in Sun-Bathing Valley. But I did live in the Sun City area for a few years when I was young. At that time, it was just a small mountain village,” the illumination Goddess explained.

Zhanyue mused internally, “It’s normal that they don’t know about things from thousands of years ago. Besides, the Goddess did stay there for a few years when she was young.”

The blue light flickered, and the formation activated. The two were drawn into the teleportation formation. At this moment, Zhanyue felt a sudden palpitation, just like when he saw the Goddess statue earlier. But this feeling vanished in an instant, and in the blink of an eye, the two arrived at a mountaintop.

“That feeling just now, it wasn’t an illusion?! Is my contract object in that castle? But why didn’t I feel anything during the whole night I stayed there, only having that slight palpitation at the moment of teleportation? What is that thing, and where is it hidden?” Zhanyue wondered, then posed these questions to the illumination Goddess.

“I don’t know either. If what you say is true, the contract object you sensed might be in a different space. That’s why you could only sense it when the teleportation formation was activated and the space was disturbed. But your current strength is too weak. Just remember this for now. When your strength is sufficient, go back to the castle and take a look. Not long from now, that place should be reoccupied by the Nightmare race,” the illumination Goddess suggested. “I need to attend to my own matters now. Take care of yourself.”

Zhanyue nodded, having no choice but to accept this.

The two stood on the mountaintop, just in time to greet the rising sun. The beautiful morning light shone on the two, making them look as holy as a painting.

“What a beautiful sunrise……” Lixi sighed, her beautiful face full of excitement.

In the direction of the sunrise, a majestic city appeared before them. It was ‘Chuyun City’, one of the hundred cities of the Eastern Kingdom, not too far from Sun City.

“It’s dawn, and we’ve found the city. Our one-day tour of Sunset Wasteland is over,” Zhanyue said, looking at the city before them. They were safe now.

“Yes, it’s over.” For some reason, Lixi wasn’t too excited, but rather felt a vague sense of loss.

“Um… would you be willing to come to the Rising Sun Kingdom? I could hire you as a Holy Temple Knight. The treatment would be much better than in the Eastern Kingdom,” Lixi invited boldly.

“That won’t do. Judging from the pomp of your travels, that’s not a free job. Compared to good treatment, I prefer to be a bit freer,” Zhanyue refused.

“Free… freedom…” Lixi’s eyes darkened. That was exactly what she longed for but couldn’t have. How could she confine Zhanyue by her side for her own selfish desires? “You’re right. I believe that one day, your name will be known throughout the entire Myriad Spirits Realm.”

After going back, she would still be the high and mighty Holy Maiden, while Zhanyue was currently just an ordinary soldier of the Eastern Kingdom. The two probably wouldn’t have a chance to meet again.

“Oh right, take this,” the Holy Maiden took out the staff from her spatial ring, but handed the ring to Zhanyue.

“This… how could I?” Although Zhanyue craved such a treasure, he also knew it was too precious.

“You were willing to give a divine-level technique, what’s giving you a ring compared to that? Besides, this ring is actually one of a pair. I have another spare one at home. I rarely use it in daily life, but you might need it more than I do when you’re out adventuring,” the Holy Maiden said, almost pleadingly.

“Alright… then I’ll humbly accept,” Zhanyue happily accepted the ring, but it would take some time to refine it anew, so he couldn’t use it for now. Seeing Zhanyue accept it, the Holy Maiden also breathed a sigh of relief.

Soon after, the two walked to Chuyun City, quickly alerting the search party.

“The Holy Maiden has been found!”

The news was quickly sent to Sun City. Not long after, a red flying dragon landed in Chuyun City. It was the female war god of the Eastern Kingdom, Imperial Princess Mi Hongchen, who had come in person.

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