Chapter 415: Never-Fading Dream

The heavy rain continued to pour down, drenching the ground and the fortress.

The teleportation array was in an open area, so the rain quickly washed away the bloodstains on the ground.

Amidst occasional flashes of lightning and rumbling thunder, Wang Chen's smoky clone rapidly repaired the array and altered its destination. After all, this place had previously been occupied by the Blackguard of the Saint Lan Race who had infiltrated Feng Hai County. Even if the teleportation array was repaired, the safety of the planned destination couldn't be guaranteed. Therefore, a safer approach was to change the array's destination.

During the repair process, Kong Xianglong frequently looked up towards the Saint Lan Race border, his expression clouded with gloom.

"This ambush doesn't seem to be specifically set for me; they couldn't have known my movements, and if they were targeting me, there wouldn't be so few personnel," Xu Qing spoke in a deep voice from beside him. "Therefore, it's more likely meant to stop anyone approaching the border, and there should be more than one problematic teleportation array fortress."

"The Saint Lan Race must be searching for the person we're supposed to assist in the area ahead," Shan Hezi said slowly as he approached.

"Could this route of ours be the real one?" Ye Ling asked in surprise, then instinctively looked around. According to their previous analysis, the true extraction route was likely to be secretly accompanied by powerful individuals.

"Not necessarily. The Saint Lan Race's actions also reveal that they still haven't grasped the true route of our hidden agent. So, they're probably searching the border areas of multiple states." A sharp glint appeared in Kong Xianglong's eyes.

Xu Qing nodded to himself.

For this mission, everyone understood that the person they were assisting was likely a decoy. The hidden agent returning from the Saint Lan Race would surely employ a "nine false, one true" strategy. This would make it difficult for the Saint Lan Race to accurately pinpoint and eliminate them. Naturally, there were also Saint Lan Race agents within Feng Hai County, so the movements of the Sword-Wielding Palace could, to some extent, indicate the hidden agent's true route. This was also why the Field Operations Office had dispersed multiple small teams. Xu Qing even considered that all overt support teams might just be smoke and mirrors to deceive the Saint Lan Race, and perhaps there were covert teams operating. Furthermore, the true hidden agent returning from the Saint Lan Race might not even require any assistance. This was a gamble between two sides.

However, through this incident, Xu Qing once again felt the decline of the human race. For instance, in this border region, although there were restrictions on Nascent Soul cultivators entering, the sheer number of Saint Lan Race cultivators below the Nascent Soul stage was enough to illustrate the vulnerability of Feng Hai County's defenses.

Everyone understood this point, and a silence fell upon them.

Before long, amidst a series of thunderous roars, the teleportation array was fully repaired. Regardless of whether this mission was real or a decoy, their group had decided to proceed. They swiftly stepped into the teleportation array, and as its light shone, their figures vanished in the heavy rain.

They reappeared in a secluded valley on the border of Lin Lan State.

As he stepped out, Kong Xianglong spoke in a low voice, simultaneously taking out a compass. He instructed everyone to stay vigilant, anticipating many Saint Lan Race infiltrators, and stated he would first locate where their hidden agent was hiding, hoping he was still alive. Among Sword-Wielders, there was a series of secret communication methods, each different for every mission, known only to the mission's person in charge. For example, this compass was equipped for this mission, a special magical artifact that would guide them to the hidden agent they were meant to assist. Their task was to use the compass to find the agent and escort them away.

Xu Qing was aware of these procedures, as they were commonly taught and disseminated during secret training at the Sword-Wielding Palace.

In front of everyone, Kong Xianglong formed a hand seal and pointed at the compass. Immediately, its needle spun rapidly, not merely indicating a direction, but transforming into a scene as it rotated. In the image, there was a red dot some distance away, faintly flickering. Seeing the flickering red dot, everyone felt a sense of relief. This indicated that the person was still alive.

Kong Xianglong's spirits lifted, and he began to give instructions to the group. The extraction couldn't be rash; if they went directly, it would likely expose the agent's location. So, the first step was to lure away the Saint Lan Race members from the area, concurrently conduct a sweep, and simultaneously carry out the extraction. These three steps had to be performed together. Xu Qing's role was to clear the area as much as possible, with Ye Ling assisting him. Shan Hezi, Wang Chen, and others were responsible for luring the Saint Lan Race. The extraction itself would be completed by Kong Xianglong alone.

Listening to Kong Xianglong's arrangements, Xu Qing nodded. Their approach was conventional and appropriate, so they quickly divided into three groups and began their respective actions.

Xu Qing blurred, his body merging into the darkness as he began searching for Saint Lan Race members nearby. Ye Ling did the same, and the Sword-Wielders from their Field Operations Office team also dispersed.

Time passed. Half an hour later, as rumbling sounds echoed, magical fluctuations emanated from a distance. Xu Qing looked up; that was the direction of Shan Hezi and Wang Chen, who were tasked with attracting the Saint Lan Race's attention. But soon, Xu Qing's brow furrowed. As he advanced, he found no traces of the Saint Lan Race in this area. It was as if they weren't there at all, which contradicted their earlier assessment that the enemy was searching for the hidden agent.

"Something's wrong!" Xu Qing's vigilance heightened.

Shan Hezi and Wang Chen also noticed something was amiss; their attempts to draw attention had not attracted any Saint Lan Race members. This bizarre scene made everyone's heart sink.

Not long after, a signal light formed by a magical technique shot into the sky, shining brightly. It was an emergency assembly signal. Seeing the signal, Xu Qing's heart sank. He knew there was indeed a problem. The signal came from the location where Kong Xianglong had gone to meet the person they were assisting. If everything had gone according to plan, Kong Xianglong would not have released a signal there; he should have notified everyone only after leading the person away.

Xu Qing immediately changed direction, heading straight for the source of the signal. An incense stick's time later, he finally arrived, seeing Kong Xianglong, Shan Hezi, and the others from a distance. This was a plain, and a hundred feet in front of them, a dying boy lay on the ground. It was a teenager, fifteen or sixteen years old, covered in blood with countless wounds, most of them deep enough to expose bone. Upon closer inspection, it was evident that, except for his face, the skin on the rest of his body had been brutally flayed. He had clearly endured unimaginable torture and pain. Most of his bones were shattered, and all his Dharma apertures were utterly destroyed. From the points of collapse, it was clear that this youth was a 120-aperture prodigy. Now one of his eyes was blind, the eyeball having been gouged out and placed in his own mouth, and both ears were gone. Furthermore, his body had been poisoned and was now decaying. He wouldn't survive; at this moment, he only had one breath left. It was a shocking sight.

Xu Qing's expression was grim, a cold glint in his eyes. As he walked quickly, he noticed that within a hundred zhang radius around the boy, the ground had been clearly arranged with an array. He didn't understand arrays, but he could feel the astonishing killing intent emanating from it. This array was extraordinary, a formation of absolute destruction. The boy had been placed at the center of this absolute destruction array.

Kong Xianglong's eyes were bloodshot, and he gritted his teeth, opening a jade slip he had found there. He explained that this youth was not the hidden agent they were meant to assist, but he should be related, and that this was how he had found him, along with a jade slip left by the Saint Lan Race. Immediately, a calm voice emanated from the jade slip, echoing all around. The voice greeted the Sword-Wielders, expressing regret at not being able to meet them but stating that the Blackguard had left a small gift for them to enjoy and appreciate. The voice was chilling and cruel, ending with a chuckle. It was a recorded message.

Shan Hezi and Wang Chen, along with Ye Ling and the other Sword-Wielders who had also arrived, watched everything and listened to the recorded message from the jade slip, their expressions showing anger. The situation was clear. Without much thought, everyone understood what had happened. The Saint Lan Race had used the fortress incident to delay their rescue mission, and at the same time, located the target the Sword-Wielders were meant to assist. However, this target was clearly not the true hidden agent. So, they had used brutal torture, abusing him until he had only one breath left, then set up this absolute destruction array and departed. The Saint Lan Race Blackguard's objective was to make the Sword-Wielders witness the mission target's death with their own eyes. This array would be triggered upon entry, meaning anyone inside would die, and anyone entering would also die. It was even highly probable that activation methods weren't limited to physical entry, but included other unknown actions that could cause the array to erupt. Moreover, even if the array didn't activate, the youth inside was already at the end of his life force, with only one breath left, ready to cease at any moment. This was the Saint Lan Race's cruelty.

Silence fell upon the group.

Wang Chen, who was skilled in array formations, now squatted down. After sensing the array, he looked up at Kong Xianglong with a bitter expression and spoke softly. He explained that it was the "Spirit-Heart Absolute Annihilation Array," unique to the Saint Lan Race Blackguard and rumored to originate from the Black Sky Race. He stated that it used a person as its core, and the youth had completely merged with it. Any attempt to enter, even through anomalous manipulation, would trigger it, rendering it useless. He added that its principles were still being researched by Lord Governor, but unfortunately, no breakthrough had been made. He concluded that it was a one-time activation, with no solution, and the youth was also at the end of his life.

Kong Xianglong's eyes grew redder, and his breathing became ragged.

Xu Qing gazed at the unconscious youth within the array and quietly walked to the edge of the formation. Unsure if his shadow could interact with it, he spoke softly. "I can try, but I'm not sure if it will succeed..."

Kong Xianglong clenched his fist, gritting his teeth, about to speak. But just then, the youth's eyelids inside the array trembled slightly, and he weakly opened his eyes. His eyes still held pain, and he looked at Xu Qing and the others with a bewildered expression. "Are you... Sword-Wielders?" the youth murmured, his voice incredibly weak, tinged with a hint of disbelief.

Everyone looked over instantly. Xu Qing took out his command sword, and Kong Xianglong and the others did the same. As the command swords shone with brilliant light, a faint glimmer appeared in the dim eyes of the dying youth lying there.

"The mark my father imprinted on my soul lets me feel that you are Sword-Wielders..." the youth said. "I'm sorry you have to see me like this." He seemed to care deeply about the Sword-Wielders. He tried to make himself more presentable, but he couldn't. "My father is human, my mother is Saint Lan... I am not a Sword-Wielder." He continued, "But I know your secret storage method; my father taught me." As if having a burst of last energy, his voice gaining some strength, he declared, "I didn't tell those Saint Lan Blackguard members, no matter how they interrogated me, I said nothing!" He tried hard to smile, but the pain stripped his smile of any beauty. "Father told me to bring something here and give it to the Sword-Wielders. He told me this item wouldn't be destroyed. When I die later, you can take it. I completed my mission."

The youth still tried to smile, as if this was his last shred of dignity. The completion of his mission finally brought a look of satisfaction to his face, though the severity of his injuries slowly dimmed his smile and weakened his breath. The pain in his body also made his words tremble. "My father is a Sword-Wielder. He has always been proud to be one, and I want to become one too. But I'm not human. He said if I complete this mission, I can stay in Feng Hai County and become a Sword-Wielder!" These words deeply moved Xu Qing. Kong Xianglong and the others were also profoundly shaken.

"Just like... Father, to become a Sword-Wielder..." the youth murmured, seemingly lacking the strength to keep his eyes open, which slowly began to close. Before they did, he struggled to form a hand seal, opening his storage space. A package appeared beside him.

This scene stirred indescribable emotions within everyone, a profound, overwhelming weight filling their hearts and minds.

"You *are* a Sword-Wielder!" Kong Xianglong declared loudly, looking at the youth and raising his command sword. "I swear to become a Sword-Wielder, to fulfill my duty, unafraid of sacrifice."

Kong Xianglong roared the Sword-Wielder's oath, and the people around him joined in, their voices intertwining. Xu Qing did the same, his heart stirring with intense emotion.

The youth's body trembled. His eyes, which were about to close, suddenly snapped open. He looked at everyone and murmured the same words. "I swear to become a Sword-Wielder, never to betray humanity, always ready to fight. I swear to become a Sword-Wielder, to fight for humanity, and protect humanity. I swear to become a Sword-Wielder, to sever the dark fate of dawn and illuminate the world."

The youth's voice merged with the voices of the others.

The next instant, his eyes closed, and the satisfied smile on his face became eternal, until an earth-shattering roar erupted from the array. He died, and the array activated. Violent winds swept outwards, fluttering their clothes and hair, until, after a long moment... as the storm dissipated, the youth's body was gone, vanished into thin air. Only a box remained where he had died. It was a wish box. An opened wish box. That was the intelligence he had sent back, with his life.