Chapter 747: Activate the Base! Thorn Sword Grass Probes!

Half of Sakura Country has become a paradise for ferocious beasts.

The place Xu Jingming was heading to was once known as Kumamoto Prefecture, over a hundred years ago.

"Roar—"

"Scream—"

"......"

In southern Sakura Country, just over ten kilometers from Kumamoto Prefecture, Xu Jingming sprinted swiftly through the jungle.

The roars of ferocious beasts echoed around him, thick with bloodlust and brutality.

His speed was not slow—even as he constantly dodged obstacles, he moved at an astonishing sixty meters per second.

Having broken through to Seventh Stage Mid-Level, he faced virtually no life-threatening danger unless he encountered a Ninth Stage ferocious beast.

After another dozen or so minutes of relentless sprinting, Xu Jingming finally arrived at his destination: Kumamoto Prefecture.

Before him lay a city of ruins, overgrown with wild grass and towering trees.

Some trees had grown straight through the skeletons of skyscrapers, bursting through the upper floors and fusing strangely with the buildings.

Even the few relatively intact structures were covered in thick green vines.

Occasionally, one or two ferocious beasts wandered through the ruins, fighting and killing each other.

"According to records, over two hundred years ago, this was still a named county of Sakura Country, even with its own unique mascot.

Yet after just two centuries, it has completely reverted to a lush, natural wilderness.

If not for the scattered ruins, there would be no trace left of human presence."

Looking at the scene before him, Xu Jingming couldn't help but feel a pang of awe.

"Time is the most terrifying force—even our mighty Jin Nation, after being destroyed for over a thousand years, can only be rediscovered by the humans of your Third Civilization as buried relics."

The green-haired, twin-tailed little girl Eva crawled out of his smart bracer, shaking her head.

"Your relics are treasures to us."

Xu Jingming smiled, opened the map of Kumamoto Prefecture on his smart bracer, and asked:

"We're in Kumamoto Prefecture now—where's the relic?"

"That relic isn't a secret realm—it's a real research base.

According to my database, it was never excavated.

That means it's likely hidden underground; otherwise, it would've been discovered when Kumamoto Prefecture was first built."

That means it's likely hidden underground; otherwise, this ruin should have been discovered long ago when Kumamoto Prefecture was first established.

"Underground? I understand."

"Little Sword, you and I each take half the area to search for the relic."

"Search depth—set at about one hundred meters underground."

After reaching Seventh Stage Mid-Level, Xu Jingming's spiritual force had strengthened further.

But due to the thick layers of earth, he could sense no deeper than roughly one hundred meters.

But because the soil underground is too thick, he could only sense objects as deep as about 100 meters.

The Thorn Sword Grass, fused to his battle suit, extended its branches and swayed, signaling understanding.

Then, the man and the grass began their search across the ferocious beast-infested county.

Along the way, many ferocious beasts that spotted humans launched attacks—but against these Third and Fourth Stage beasts,

Xu Jingming didn't even need to use battle techniques; merely releasing Dou Tian Divine Thunder was enough to instantly obliterate them.

Xu Jingming didn't even need to use combat techniques—just releasing Dou Tian Divine Thunder was enough to instantly kill them.

Half an hour later, as Xu Jingming moved through a ruined residential area, his eyes suddenly lit up.

He sensed a region about sixty meters underground that his spiritual force could not penetrate.

The area was vast—at least thirty to forty thousand square meters.

"Little Sword, come here."

Xu Jingming called inwardly. Soon, the Thorn Sword Grass, its branches still stained with blood, sprinted over from afar.

"Little Sword, dig down to about sixty meters underground."

Xu Jingming ordered.

Though he could dig himself just as fast, if there was free labor available, why not use it?

Although his own digging speed wasn't slow, since there was free labor available, why not use it?

The Thorn Sword Grass instantly grew dozens of vines and began digging furiously.

Just two or three minutes later, it had carved out a tunnel wide enough for one person, descending straight to sixty meters underground.

After the Thorn Sword Grass reformed into its plant battle armor and covered his suit, Xu Jingming leapt forward and plunged into the tunnel.

After the Thorn Sword Grass reformed into a plant armor covering his battle suit, Xu Jingming leapt forward and jumped directly into the passage.

Wind howled past his ears; the stench of damp earth filled his nostrils.

Wind howled past his ears, and a stench of damp earth pierced his nostrils.

Seconds later, Xu Jingming landed hard, his battle boots hitting the ground.

The space around him had been widened by the Thorn Sword Grass, but the light was extremely dim.

The space nearby had been deliberately widened by the Thorn Sword Grass, though the light was extremely dim.

Golden lightning danced across Xu Jingming's body, instantly illuminating the surroundings.

Before him lay a mass of black metal buried in the soil.

"Little Sword, clear away the surrounding soil."

At Xu Jingming's command, the Thorn Sword Grass immediately acted.

It grew dense leaves and branches, clearing away dirt while propping up the walls to prevent collapse.

The black metal hidden beneath the earth gradually revealed its full form—it was a massive alloy door!

"Looks like we got lucky—we landed right by the door.

Alright, Eva, your turn."

A glow flashed from his space ring as Xu Jingming pulled out all sixty-five energy modules.

The space ring flashed, and Xu Jingming pulled out all 65 energy modules.

Eva giggled, arranging the sixty-five energy modules in a specific pattern before the alloy door.

Then she spread her arms, her dark, bright eyes instantly flooded with streams of data.

Then he spread his arms, and those dark, bright eyes instantly flooded with streams of data.

All energy modules lit up at once, their power converging into a massive surge that slammed into the door!

All the energy modules lit up at once, a massive surge of energy converging and slamming into the door!

The ground trembled slightly; the entire civilization base shook, sending cascades of soil falling—but all were held aloft by the Thorn Sword Grass.

The shaking lasted over ten seconds, then the sealed alloy door burst open with a thunderous crash, splitting to either side.

A stale, sealed odor rushed out, the interior pitch-black, like the gaping maw of a bottomless abyss.

"Huh? My spiritual force still can't penetrate inside?"

Xu Jingming frowned.

Though the door was open, his spiritual force was blocked entirely.

As if separated by an invisible membrane.

Even the passive perception of his SS-Rank technique, "Heart Net," failed.

"Eva, can you hack into the base's electronic systems?" Xu Jingming asked.

"I already scanned it—there are no functioning electronic devices inside the base.

The power source was either drained or cut off."

Eva shrugged helplessly.

"I see."

Xu Jingming frowned, thought for a moment, then turned to the Thorn Sword Grass:

"Little Sword, go in first—scout the way for us."

"Xiao Jian, go in first and scout the way for us."