Forty Millenniums of Cultivation

Chi!

The crystal train under the night sky was like a long, black dragon. It had just finished the final maintenance. The anti-gravity rune arrays on the chassis were activated. White steam spurted out of the circulative cooling tubes in hissing sounds.

The crystal train slowly floated. A gap of dozens of centimeters appeared between the chassis and the railway. By doing so, there would be no physical contact between the train and the railway. The friction would be minimized, and the speed would be accelerated to the highest point.

Deep inside Li Yao’s brain, the 3D structural design of the crystal train of this particular model quickly popped up. The tiny lines interweaved into a complicated maze.

The Thunder Light III crystal train was a classic model created by the Heavenly Thunder Sect a hundred and thirty-three years ago. It boasted a firm framework, and it was quite easy to maintain. Sturdy and durable, it was one of the most popular crystal trains rushing on the vast land of the federation.

However, it was an obsolete model from more than a hundred years ago after all. As the technology of the crystal trains advanced, the super-high-speed trains were each replacing the last, and the Thunder Light III was gradually eliminated by the major routes because of its many natural flaws.

Right now, the major cities of the federation had all been equipped with a super-high-speed crystal train of the latest models. The Thunder Light III was now only used in the underdeveloped cities, the mines, or the remote factories.

Li Yao’s destination was East Seagull Port, a city by the coast. In fact, there was a direct train from North Tranquility City to East Seagull Port.

But it was the super-high-speed crystal train of the latest model, whose highest speed was higher than that of sound. Also, its shell was as smooth as a mirror, without a place he could cling to. The train was also equipped with the automatic alert rune arrays that were highly responsive. Even the tiniest damage on the rune arrays on the chassis would feed an alarm back to the cockpit.

But the Thunder Light III was different. It was relatively slow and easier for Li Yao to clutch to. The alert rune arrays on it were not in tandem but on parallel. There would not be any sign if one or two of them were damaged. Most importantly, there was a small dent right below the locomotive of the Thunder Light III in the shape of a ‘7’, which was designed for a technician to crouch inside.

Li Yao figured out that the train must be a slow one that utilized the old-fashioned locomotive by calculating the leaving time and the arrival time on the train schedule in North Tranquility City.

After he arrived in Green Plateau City, he confirmed the detailed information of the train through the crystal processors in the restaurant. It was why he came to the unknown city!

Swoosh!

When the several Secret Sword Agents all boarded on the train leaving for the capital city for investigation, Li Yao darted toward the Thunder Light III like an arrow and soon disappeared below the train!

Right below the train, the anti-gravity rune arrays had been activated to the maximum. The intense spiritual waves between the rune arrays and the railway made Li Yao’s head dizzy and made it difficult for him to breathe.

He gritted his teeth and moved forward rapidly in the gap between the anti-gravity rune arrays like a lizard. It took him two minutes to crawl below the locomotive!

There was one minute to go before the train left. By then, besides the anti-gravity rune arrays, the power rune arrays and the spiritual shield would be activated, too, and he would certainly be shaken off.

Golden brilliance dispersed out of Li Yao’s eyes as he scanned every detail below the locomotive of the Thunder Light III and came up with a modification plan the next second.

As fast as lightning, he cut off the connection between the main power rune arrays and the direction-changing rune arrays without any hesitation. In only three seconds, he reconnected them in a brand-new way. Together with the stabilizing units that he had devised earlier, he built a tiny safe zone for himself without affecting the performance of the train.

The tiny space, along with the original 7-shaped dent on the chassis, was enough for one person to hide in!

Li Yao waited patiently for three seconds to make sure that his movement just now did not trigger the alarm rune arrays or affect the specifications in the cockpit.

Then, he exhaled in great relief. Constricting his muscles, joints, and bones to the minimum, he crouched in the tiny space like a black leopard that was lurking in the bushes.

The strength all over his body was focused on his four fingers and two toes as he clung to the few shallow whorls on the dent.

Li Yao fixated himself to the bottom of the crystal train in a very uncomfortable posture without moving at all.

Wu!

He had just settled in when the crystal train slowly launched after a magnificent blast of its horn.

Power rune arrays emitted circles of light, as if ten suns were rising right in front of his eyes simultaneously. The cooling rune arrays of the old locomotives were never satisfactory. Tremendous light and heat spurted to his face like magma and turned him into a piece of charcoal!

With Li Yao’s capability, he could naturally resist it with his spiritual shield.

But if he triggered a tremendous amount of spiritual energy, the power rune arrays on the train would be affected, which would lead to the anomaly in the specifications on the control light beam in the cockpit. The driver and the train conductor would definitely come down to examine. Cultivators, if there were any on board, might notice him, too.

Therefore, he could only narrow his eyes and resisted the heat with a thin suit and his repetitively built-up body!

As the train went faster and faster, the power rune arrays were gradually stabilized. The light and heat finally became less insufferable for him.

But the crazy wind started blowing over and pierced to the bottom of the train like cold sabers!

Under the gust, Li Yao’s skin was frozen purple.

He seemed to have turned into a block of lead and melted into the crystal train.

In such a way, Li Yao jumped out of Guo Chunfeng’s circle of search and disappeared right below the eyes of the Secret Sword Bureau!

…

In the command center of the Demon Execution Division of the Secret Sword Bureau in the capital city, Mosquito shouted, “Boss, a major discovery!”

Excitement was beaming out of every pore on her body. She was about to dance right before Guo Chunfeng.

As per Guo Chunfeng’s command, they had made a list of the passengers who went to North Tranquility City from the capital city in the last couple of days. There were thousands of names on the list.

However, few of them had returned to the capital city after spending only one to two days in North Tranquility City. There were only eighty-seven of them.

The agents analyzed all the whereabouts of the eighty-seven passengers in North Tranquility City, especially their behavior in the exit, through the surveillance picture. Eventually, they locked onto three candidates.

When the three residents of the capital city left the railway station, a mysterious person had contacted them at a close distance.

The mysterious person was very prudent. His face was never shown in the surveillance picture. Also, he had worn another outfit and been walking differently during every encounter.

Had it not been for Guo Chunfeng’s instructions, it would have been impossible to find out the guy from the infinite surveillance picture!

“Very good!” Guo Chunfeng heaved a long sigh of relief. He took off the blanket and wiped off the sweat on his forehead. Then he smiled. “Now, we have grasped Li Yao’s three newest fake identities. Once he arrives in the capital city, he will certainly make use of one of them!

“Contact the three residents right now and find out their position and their agenda in the next couple of days. It would be best if you can establish three safe areas and ask them to stay there in the next few days!

“Then, inform the Data Analysis Center of the capital city to consider the facial information of the three residences a top priority. Scan them in the range of the whole city every half minute!

“As soon as the surveillance cameras of the capital city discover that one of the three residents appears out of the safe areas or two identical faces are detected at the same time, something will be wrong!”

Guo Chunfeng lay down on the soft chair and looked at the maps of the cities within the capital ring with a cold smile.

So far, he had not figured out Li Yao’s infiltration approach yet.

But so what?

All six fake identities had been discovered. Even if Li Yao could sneak in without alarming anyone, he would still be committing suicide!

…

It was raining in East Seagull Port.

There were two days to go before the hundred-day memorial ceremony.

Li Yao was 1,220 kilometers away from the capital city.

This was not a large port, best known for the bizarre seafood and the small islands with enjoyable sceneries. In April and May every year, when the Gold Dragon Sturgeons laid eggs, many tourists would come to the golden beach and the board-like islands for vacation and enjoy the delicious eggs of the Gold Dragon Sturgeons.

It was already early autumn. The wind was rather strong on the ocean, and there were few tourists. The only thing that could be seen were the few fishing boats near the coastline.

The houses of many fishermen, and sometimes even their wasted boats, had been transformed into diners. Although the environment was a little shabby, the food there was definitely new and fresh. The seafood there was unavailable in many luxury hotels in the major cities inland.

Li Yao was enjoying the fat scallops, oysters, and sea snails whose name he did not know on a stranded boat.

Leaning against the gunwale comfortably, he sucked his fingers that were stained with the sauce and chatted with the hostess casually.

“Bamboo shrimps the size of a palm? We don’t have ’em here! They’ve all been purchased by the White Sea Sect! See? The biggest boat over there belongs to the White Sea Sect. They are a partner to several big hotels in the capital city. Every morning, the freshest seafood will be frozen the moment they are fished up and shipped to the capital city by air immediately! The seafood picked up five o’clock in the morning will be served on the table in the major hotels in the capital city at noon!”

Li Yao was almost out of breath having the delicious meal of seafood. The hostess was overjoyed by his extravagance, too, and could not wait to pass on all the information about the White Sea Sect to him.

Li Yao waved his arm and said that his portable crystal processor had been ruined by the water when he was on the ocean. He asked if he could borrow the crystal processor in the hostess’ house.

Naturally, the hostess agreed instantly.

Li Yao checked all the information about the White Sea Sect again with the crystal processor in the fisherman’s house, including the magical equipment involved in their seafood quick-freezing technology.

The next fishing trip would be following morning. He had a long night to prepare for the magical equipment to be used in the capital city.

“I wonder, do you have magical equipment stores that provide services for spectral Cultivators here, hostess?” Li Yao asked in a smile.