The Alliance Headquarters.
In a meeting hall.
A dozen men and women sat around a long table in a spacious and bright room, with the Alliance's emblem—a symbol representing infinity (∞)—hanging on the wall.
At the center of the long table.
An instrument was placed.
The values on the instrument continued to rise.
Li Mingyuan had just stepped out of the laboratory. Wearing a white lab coat, he adjusted his glasses and glanced at the man sitting at the head of the table, frowning as he asked, "Where is the leader?"
The man at the head was a middle-aged man in a dark suit, his facial features sharp and his forehead faintly streaked with silver. He sat calmly and replied, "The leader is in seclusion, striving to break through his cultivation realm. Therefore, I am here to convey his instructions."
As he spoke.
The man looked around at everyone present and said in a deep voice, "The Age of Dharma Decline has ended. The Rebirth of Spiritual Energy has arrived."
"The leader said... they are about to awaken."
As soon as these words were spoken.
The expressions of those present varied.
Li Mingyuan furrowed his brows, lost in thought.
They...
Are the ancient forces about to emerge?
Tsk, what terrible timing.
As the head of the research department, he believed in the ascension of technology, in using science to change the world.
But now, before the experiments were even completed, the emergence of ancient forces would undoubtedly cause a massive shift in the world's balance.
Sitting next to him was a woman with black-rimmed glasses and braided hair. Her hands were clasped together, her face pale, her lips trembling slightly as she asked in a shaky voice, "Is... is this true? Who exactly are 'they' that the leader mentioned? Are we prepared? Am... am I going to die...?"
"Heh! Wang Xiaohua, why are you so nervous?"
A man nearby had his feet propped up on the table, yawning while wearing a disdainful smile, as if none of this concerned him.
He stretched lazily and said slowly, "Spiritual energy resurgence, awakenings... I'm so tired of hearing about it. Even if they come, so what?"
The man clenched his fist and sneered, "I'll just punch anyone who causes trouble into a pulp."
"The one who'll end up as pulp is probably you, Wang Yun."
"All brawn and no brains. The ancient forces aren't as simple as you think."
At this moment.
A woman in a black robe sitting on one side of the table glanced at the boastful Wang Yun.
Her hair was as dark as the night sky, and her eyes were filled with mockery. "Forget the ancient forces. You might not even be able to handle that guy in Jiang City."
"What did you say?!"
Wang Yun's eyes blazed with anger as he stared at the woman. "Ye Zhidie, you old hag! Don't think you can lecture me just because you've been around longer than me!"
"Old? Me??"
Ye Zhidie's brows furrowed, and a flash of killing intent appeared in her eyes. She gritted her teeth, and spiritual energy surged at her fingertips as butterflies began to materialize around her. "I'll cripple you!"
"Heh! I'll cripple you first!"
Wang Yun stomped on the table, flipping over it as he lunged at Ye Zhidie with a punch.
Wang Xiaohua covered her head, panicking as she cried, "Stop... stop fighting! Wuwuwu..."
The next second.
"Stop arguing."
A soft voice echoed in their ears.
A soothing light enveloped the two of them.
The anger in their hearts suddenly dissipated.
Ye Zhidie and Wang Yun exchanged a glance and then sat back down.
"Mmm, no more fighting, okay?"
"Yiyi doesn't like seeing friends argue."
A woman in white smiled sweetly.
A warm, peaceful glow radiated from her entire being.
Seeing her, Wang Yun's face turned red, and he quickly looked away, shouting, "If Yiyi says so, then I won't say anything more!"
"Mmm, Brother Wang Yun always listens to Yiyi!"
Yiyi walked over to Wang Yun and gently ruffled his hair, smiling. "Yiyi likes obedient Brother Wang Yun the most."
"..."
Wang Yun was momentarily stunned.
Yiyi is so adorable...
"Sigh."
At this moment.
Jing Er, with her pink twin tails, propped her chin on her hand and sighed softly. She didn't care much about the resurgence of spiritual energy.
Her mind was preoccupied with what Qin Luo had said to her the last time she visited Jiang City.
"Sigh..."
Jing Er sighed again and muttered, "Should I really go out on the streets wearing a Kitty Cat outfit and shout 'I'm Kitty Cat's dog' three times...?"
"But... no."
She shook her head, her face filled with confidence and excitement. "Three times isn't enough! I'll shout it a few more times! I'll outdo that jerk!"
Li Mingyuan silently watched the chaotic scene before him, his eyelids twitching uncontrollably.
Why... why am I teamed up with these people...
"Sigh."
He also sighed.
In any case.
Li Mingyuan turned to the man at the head of the table and asked, "So, you called us here just to tell us this?"
The man shook his head slightly, then looked at a little boy sitting on a hovering spacecraft and said, "Open it."
"Alright."
The boy licked his lollipop and fiddled with a small device.
The next second.
A holographic projection appeared.
Everyone turned to look.
The image displayed a grand ancient ruin.
"An ancient ruin?"
"Judging by the location... it's in Jiang City?"
Jiang City.
Everyone fell silent, their attention fixed on the hologram.
They had seen many ancient ruins before.
But... Jiang City was the territory of that Transcendent.
As time passed.
When everyone finished watching the footage, they all gasped in shock.
"Wow, this... are they lining up to get eggs?"
"Unprecedented. In the era of spiritual energy resurgence, something like this is happening?"
"Su Muwan really has some tricks up her sleeve. Without her, Jiang City would probably have suffered countless casualties like the other cities."
The man at the head nodded. "From what we can see, Su Muwan's strength and methods are truly unprecedented."
"Especially since she has already reached the Domain Realm..."
Before he could finish.
Li Mingyuan frowned and spoke in a deep voice, "Does the leader want to recruit her into the headquarters now?"
"Isn't it too sudden? After all, she just became the head of the Jiang City Alliance branch not long ago."
The man shook his head slightly. "That was the leader's previous idea."
Previous idea?
Li Mingyuan was puzzled.
Just as he was thinking, the image on the screen changed.
Everyone looked.
What appeared was a palm-sized bronze cauldron.
"What is this?"
"A bronze cauldron?"
"An antique? Does the leader collect antiques too?"
Everyone whispered among themselves.
The man at the head said gravely, "Our current objective is to retrieve this cauldron from Su Muwan."
Li Mingyuan understood. "What's so special about this bronze cauldron?"
"I don't know. The leader didn't tell me."
Li Mingyuan pressed further, "Then do we still need to recruit Su Muwan?"
"We can try to recruit her, but the bronze cauldron must be retrieved and brought back to headquarters."
Hearing this, everyone's expressions shifted slightly.
Wang Xiaohua timidly raised her hand and asked, "Then... who will go this time?"
According to the Transcendents' internal rules.
Any mission involving Transcendents could only be carried out by fellow Transcendents.
Because the leader had said.
Only a Transcendent can defeat another Transcendent.
Li Mingyuan, after a moment of thought, turned to the boy with the lollipop and said, "Pull up Qin Luo's profile."
"Okay."
As soon as he spoke.
Qin Luo's image was projected.
Li Mingyuan explained, "This man is Qin Luo. Although he's not a Transcendent, it seems... Su Muwan values him greatly."
"If we can win him over, dealing with Su Muwan should be much easier."
"Whether it's retrieving the bronze cauldron or recruiting her, he could be a useful asset."
Qin Luo?
The group collectively smirked.
A mere mortal. They had no interest in dealing with him.
Wang Yun sneered, "Just a lackey. Do we really need him to deal with Su Muwan?"
Jing Er, upon seeing Qin Luo's image, recalled the way he had acted in front of Su Muwan.
She muttered, "That guy is insufferable. I'm not going."
"If you want to go, you go."
At this moment.
A soft voice spoke up.
"I'll go."
Everyone turned.
To see.
Yiyi's lips curled into a sweet smile as she gazed at the group. "It's been a while since I went on a mission," she said with a playful tone. "Let me take this one."
"I'm sure Big Brother will have a nice chat with me," she added with a wink.
Qin Luo...
Not bad-looking...
Hehe.
He’d make the perfect personal servant for me.
Seeing this, Wang Yun quickly chimed in, "Yiyi, I'll go with you!"
"Sure!" Yiyi replied cheerfully.
The leader nodded. "Then it's settled. Yiyi and Wang Yun will go."
"Got it."
"Mm-hmm!"