Chapter 645: Ghost Empire

Luo Sai inhaled deeply, then exhaled slowly; after steadying his emotions, he spoke again:

"That belongs to Beiernadai; I have no authority to decide."

"I left only this much of Beiernadai's belongings, and you're still thinking about all of it—aren't you being a bit excessive?"

"It's a trade; you need a new seal object, or any assistance when necessary, and I can restore that mask after extracting the 'Death Regent' trait."

Lei Kedun shook his head, emphasizing that what he proposed was a trade.

Luo Sai, no longer tangled over the issue, said casually, "You should discuss it with Beiernadai; what's already given to her is, of course, hers to command."

"Fine." Lei Kedun nodded lightly, then ended the topic.

His gaze swept the surrounding mechanical devices, one after another; his right hand, gloved, rose to mid‑air and pressed down a few times in empty space, invisible ripples spreading, causing all nearby items to levitate of their own accord.

The restraints and seals that had surrounded those items suddenly failed, and brilliant golden sunlight instantly bathed the area, turning everything a dazzling gold and completely obscuring the view.

The scorching sunlight lasted less than a second before rapidly receding, and the local physical laws altered, no longer accommodating the spread and propagation of the light.

"In a sense, I am also one of the finest craftsmen in this world."

After a self‑admiring remark, Lei Kedun caused the levitating items to be cloaked in a colorless glimmer, disintegrating piece by piece before reassembling.

A mist of faint light, composed of countless illusory forms, quickly spread around, drifting in mid‑air and outlining three‑dimensional, hard‑to‑discern, indescribable mysterious symbols—like an ever‑intertwining, layered spiderweb that bound and concealed the pale golden sunlight, flowing outward along preset paths.

The levitating mechanical devices fell one after another, their indicator lights flashing as a low hum of machinery filled the air.

Watching the machinery come to life, Luo Sai clapped his palm sharply and exclaimed:

"Clever—laying energy transmission lines in the void; except for a few high‑tier or specially‑channeled cultivators, no one else would notice, so there's no worry about others digging pipelines or stealing materials."

"But how do we solve the pollution issue? Though the contaminant in the air is thin, long‑term accumulation can still be lethal."

"Moreover, for cultivators on the 'Thief' path, it's overly tempting—like a gift from nature; a casual grab in the air yields raw material for a Sun Domain talisman, without needing any divine grant."

"From now on, you should put a slogan on city advertisements: A Meng and dogs are prohibited from entry."

"Why dogs?" Ge Lan looked at Luo Sai with some surprise.

"Well, that's… a deep philosophical factor; no need to delve into it." Luo Sai replied solemnly and perfunctorily, then turned to Lei Kedun and asked:

"Do you have a way to solve the pollution problem?"

Lei Kedun slowly shook his head: "No."

After a pause, he continued, "Give it some more time; once I fully accommodate the trait within me, I'll try a method of using pollution to counter pollution."

"You're a bit insane; are you truly sure you can resolve the lingering pollution within that trait?"

Luo Sai frowned at Lei Kedun; he isn't a psychiatrist, yet he could sense Lei Kedun's mental turmoil, heavy, oppressive, and frantic.

He shook his head, sighed, and suddenly changed the subject:

"Do you know the Ghost Empire? It's one of the most renowned treasures above the Five Seas, said to hold the majority of the Te Lun Suosi Te family's legacy. Though the ship vanished, legends claim it haunts the Sunia Sea. Interested in exploring it?"

"Your topic shift is a bit abrupt."

Lei Kedun stated calmly, then fell silent, awaiting Luo Sai's next words.

"There are some speculations; if nothing unexpected occurs, then nothing unexpected will happen."

After a brief silence, Lei Kedun couldn't help but retort, "You still understand nonsense literature."

Luo Sai puffed his chest a bit proudly, saying, "I used to be a surfing ace, alright? Now, don't interrupt me."

He cleared his throat lightly, gathered his words, and continued:

"Doesn't the Fool have a Black Emperor (Item) there? If we locate a descendant of the Te Lun Suosi Te family, or some artifacts left by the Te Lun Suosi Te Empire, we can, through occult connections, have a high chance of encountering that ghost ship."

"A 'Knowledge Emperor' with keen insight and prophetic ability, combined with my special status as the Black Emperor, makes this plan highly likely to succeed." "Although you're not in the best condition now, you still possess the ability to endow abstract knowledge with tangible power. I have the status, you have the strength; together we become a genuine Black Emperor, don't we?"

"So, interested in cooperating?"

After a brief contemplation, Lei Kedun slowly nodded:

"We can try, but Te Lun Suosi Te descendants are hard to locate."

Luo Sai, as if already prepared, replied swiftly, "No problem; if we can't find descendants, we can substitute items taken from them, compensating by twisting certain rules and concepts—though the effect will be slightly weaker."

"It would be great to have a Judgment Card, but unfortunately I have no idea where that card ended up."

"The Blood Clan cooperated deeply with the Te Lun Suosi Te Empire in the Fourth Era; they should have retained many items. Aren't you quite familiar with the Duke of the Round Moon? Go see him."

Lei Kedun gave a faint nod: "Sure."

After a brief exchange, he returned to the manor's bedroom, contacted Claire through the gray mist, and conveyed Luo Sai's idea of exploring the Ghost Empire.

Above the gray mist, Claire reclined in the high‑back chair belonging to the Fool, lost in thought.

"Ghost Empire," the most renowned treasure above the Five Seas, is hard not to stir one's heart.

It is said to be a ghost ship as massive as a city; after the Te Lun Suosi Te Empire collapsed, the nobles transferred all their treasures and wealth onto it, intending to flee the Northern Continent, but the venture ended mysteriously—none of the scheduled passengers or crew survived to reach a port.

Claire recalled all the information he knew about the Ghost Empire, then manifested paper and pen, using the gray mist to perform a simple divination.

A moment later, he opened his eyes, rose from the chair, and sighed lightly, "As expected, it failed; if such a ghost ship could be found through divination, it wouldn't remain a legendary treasure."

He exhaled deeply, turned the information discussed with Lei Kedun into a flash of light, and dropped it into the deep‑red star representing the Moon.

"Emrin should now be carrying out a task assigned by the Blood Clan; I don't know if he has time to search for Te Lun Suosi Te Empire‑era items, and they must belong to members of the royal family at that time."

"Inditis has already declared war on the independent regime in the Pas River Valley of the Southern Continent; yet they still have the mind to hunt for treasure. Is that overconfidence, or simply that they disregard the Inditis military and the Eternal Blazing Sun and God of Steam and Machinery churches?"

Claire murmured a few sighs, and shortly after heard Emrin's reply: "Esteemed Fool, please convey to the World and the White Tower that I will purchase a batch of items from the Te Lun Suosi Te Empire within the Blood Clan, though they'll likely be ordinary, and I cannot guarantee they belonged to royal members at the time."

Claire leaned against the chair back, nodding lightly. After such a long span, unless the items are magically saturated with traits, their spirit would have long faded; trait‑rich items are too costly, so buying ordinary antiques is better—perhaps luck will bring a personal belonging of a royal member from that era.

Thinking of luck, Claire suddenly recalled a baby who wielded partial control over destiny.

He instantly manifested a dummy named 'World', theatrically praying, "Esteemed Fool, please tell the Moon gentleman not to act hastily; I will find a way to temporarily boost his luck, increasing his chances of success."

After speaking, Claire turned the vision into a flash of light and poured it into the deep‑red star representing the Moon, Emrin.

Having done all that, he quickly left the gray mist.

On the north bank of the Pas River Valley, in the second‑floor bedroom of the countryside manor, Tu Ba Ge placed a pile of red and green fruits beside Lei Kedun, then skillfully hopped onto Lei Kedun's leg, lounged leisurely, and gazed at the Crimson Moon outside the window.

Lei Kedun rested one hand on Tu Ba Ge's ear, gently pinched twice, and whispered, "Aren't you afraid of how I look?"

Tu Ba Ge shook his head, hands on his hips, looking as if he were impressive, and said:

"As a 'biologist', I can see the true interior of a creature through its surface; everyone is just a bunch of moving flesh, only appearing different because they are tainted by different desires."

Lei Ke Dun paused, his eyes deepening, lowered his head to look at Tu Ba Ge lying at his feet, frowned and asked:

"Where did you hear that theory?"

"The village shaman doctors here, many of them believe in this theory; I think it makes some sense."

Tu Ba Ge answered casually without any awareness.

This place truly needs some purification of the Spiritual Realm, to bury those unsuitable ideas. As thoughts drifted, Lei Ke Dun continued to pinch Tu Ba Ge's ear and whispered a warning:

"In the future, do not learn from those village shaman doctors; they are all potential followers of the 'Desire Mother Tree'."

(End of chapter)