Hong Mandun's casual remark struck Ji Changkong like a massive boulder, sending turbulent waves across the lake of his heart.

Purple Gold Star Crystal—a rare gem, the sort of stone produced only once in tens of thousands of active stars. Even Dick, with his distinguished status among the Dark Star race, had never possessed even a small shard. This revealed just how incredibly precious the Purple Gold Star Crystal was.

How could he stand it, seeing Hong Mandun treat such a priceless treasure with such nonchalance, as if it were commonplace?

The Purple Gold Star Crystal was the foundation stone for activating the "Ice Magnetic Ripple." Without it, the apparatus he obtained from the Zakk race aboard the Guang Chen was nothing more than decoration, entirely useless.

Yet, once he had the Purple Gold Star Crystal, once the "Ice Magnetic Ripple" could be utilized... it possessed the power to obliterate experts at the Heaven-Severing Realm! Thus, for him, the Purple Gold Star Crystal was a massive safeguard.

Looking strangely at Hong Mandun, Ji Changkong felt utterly bewildered, his anticipation for this journey surging.

"Kid, is that stone useful to you?" Seeing Ji Changkong remain silent, Hong Mandun casually asked. "Yes, extremely useful," Ji Changkong nodded, then immediately turned back to the apparatus for the "Ice Magnetic Ripple" within the Guang Chen, ignoring Hong Mandun thereafter.

This "Ice Magnetic Ripple" was composed of iron tubes as thick as a man's finger, woven into the various grooves and tiny ports across the Guang Chen. They could unleash terrifying energy surges simultaneously from all directions.

The core of the "Ice Magnetic Ripple" connected directly to the control disk of the Guang Chen. It was like an auxiliary device embedded in the disk, to the point where one couldn't argue it wasn't part of the disk itself.

This apparatus was hexagonal, fitting snugly beneath the main control disk. Each of the six vertices held a type of peculiar stone: Flame Stones, Prismatic Crystals, and similar energy stones that, while precious, were not difficult to acquire.

When he had raided the Meteorite Sea territory of the Heavenly Crocodile race, he had confiscated quite a number of strange stones, including Flame Stones and Prismatic Crystals. He possessed the other four types of stones required to complete the hexagon as well.

At the center of that hexagonal apparatus was an oval-shaped recess—this was the most crucial part.

The recess was meant to house the Purple Gold Star Crystal. Only when the crystal was inside could this hexagonal assembly truly activate, channeling all its contained energy through those numerous small tubes to the outside, releasing the "Ice Magnetic Ripple."

Bending low, Ji Changkong scrutinized the underside of the control disk for a while. He retrieved the Purple Gold Star Crystal Hong Mandun had tossed him, hesitated briefly, and then inserted it into the recess.

Strangely, the moment the Purple Gold Star Crystal settled in, iron filaments sprang out from the four sides of the recess, locking the crystal firmly in place.

Suddenly, the Purple Gold Star Crystal flared with a peculiar purple-gold light. The glittering motes of energy stored within it abruptly vanished.

The next instant, bang—these motes reappeared within the surrounding Flame Stones and Prismatic Crystals, beginning to flow between the six adjacent stones.

In an instant, the Purple Gold Star Crystal and the six surrounding stones seemed to fuse into a single entity. A new power began to integrate, swirling across all seven stones, spurring the energy within each one to its peak.

An eerie fluctuation manifested on the control disk, threatening to transmit outward through the tiny ports.

It works! A thought flashed through his mind. Without waiting for the "Ice Magnetic Ripple" to fully deploy, Ji Changkong hastily reached out and wrenched the Purple Gold Star Crystal free.

The moment the crystal vanished from the recess beneath the disk, the radiance on the other six stones instantly disappeared without a trace. The "Ice Magnetic Ripple" that was about to be unleashed was abruptly halted.

A satisfied smile crossed Ji Changkong's face. He quietly tucked the shard of Purple Gold Star Crystal away, intending to use it only at a critical juncture.

He tested it and found that the mysterious energy contained within this single shard could sustain the "Ice Magnetic Ripple" for a full ten seconds! This was even longer than the duration the Zakk race leader had managed to activate it years ago! Ten seconds—enough time to utterly annihilate any nearby life forms. Anyone caught in the ripple’s radius, unless they fled instantly and far away, would face a horrific end.

"Strange..." Hong Mandun frowned, murmuring, "That fluctuation was indeed odd. Kid, what did you just do?"

"Nothing, just testing something. Don't be nervous," Ji Changkong said with a relaxed laugh, sitting down obediently, choosing not to say more. Hong Mandun watched him with suspicion for a moment, then said, "I'll give you a bearing. Just follow that direction."

Then, Hong Mandun began sketching out the specific location, telling him exactly where he needed to go.

"Huh? Isn't that direction toward the territory of the Hidden Demon race?" Ji Changkong asked, surprised after listening for a moment.

"Kid, how do you know about the Hidden Demon race?" Hong Mandun’s eyebrow shot up. But only for an instant; he seemed to grasp the reason right away. "You must have learned from the Dark Star race. I heard you have connections there. Zi Chou must have told you about some of the higher-ranking races nearby."

Ji Changkong neither confirmed nor denied. "The place you're sending me—it isn't within the Hidden Demon race's domain, is it?" He had felt the might of the Hidden Demon race firsthand. If this mission took him inside their territory, encountering any high-level Hidden Demons would certainly cause enormous trouble.

"...It’s not in the Hidden Demon race's domain," Hong Mandun snorted, explaining impatiently. "If it were truly in their domain, it would be simpler. Those Hidden Demon guys, despite being powerful, are too weak in soul attainment. Troublesome, yes, but solvable."

"The place you're talking about is even more dangerous?"

"...Far more dangerous," Hong Mandun offered a wry smile. "Don't ask so many questions. You'll know when we get there. However, we need to cross through the Hidden Demon race's domain on this trip, so be careful not to be spotted by those barbarian Hidden Demons, to avoid unnecessary hassle."

"I'll do my best."

Ji Changkong felt a subtle sense of unease. According to Dick, the Hidden Demon race was one that never let a slight go unpunished. And the Guang Chen he was currently piloting originated from the Zakk race. If he appeared in the Hidden Demon territory, wouldn't that invite trouble? Thinking this, he immediately became cautious, preparing himself for combat at any moment.

Time rushed on, and half a year passed in the blink of an eye.

The Guang Chen had long since passed through the Solar Star Domain. It navigated a secret juncture connecting the Solar Star Domain and the Meteor Sea Star Domain, proceeding into the vast expanse of the cosmos.

Along the way, nothing greeted them but the boundless, pitch-black void, punctuated by a few scattered dead stars.

This was an area once traversed by the Heavenly Scholars of the Meteor Sea Star Domain. Back then, unable to locate the Essence of Stars, those Heavenly Scholars had ventured thousands of miles into a nearby region, finally reaching the edge of the Hidden Demon race's domain. There, they encountered Hidden Demon experts guarding the perimeter, ultimately provoking three high-level Hidden Demons.

Having long known the story from Hei Luo, Ji Changkong was now entering this very star field. He immediately tensed up, terrified of encountering those high-level Hidden Demons from the Hidden Demon race.

The fire snakes ejected by the Guang Chen, which had been trailing ten meters behind, gradually shortened to about five meters. The Guang Chen's speed also began to slow. Inside, Ji Changkong completely concealed his aura, fearful that the Hidden Demons might detect him.

Under Hong Mandun's guidance, he piloted the craft along the direction indicated, slowly threading his way through a dense field of meteorites.

This meteorite zone was bizarre; the stones were in constant, rapid rotation, like a massive vortex.

The moment the Guang Chen entered this meteorite vortex, it was inevitably battered by the flying rocks. The hull, despite its hardness, began to accumulate indentations from the continuous impacts.

"What the hell is this place? Why aren't these meteorites scattering? Why are they clustered together!" Ji Changkong complained, struggling to maneuver the Guang Chen.

"Don't worry about what this place is; just remember we have to pass through it. This is the only area around here without high-level Hidden Demon guards. It's worth expending extra energy to avoid those troublesome demons," Hong Mandun replied impassively, holding his sword while staring blankly ahead.

"Easy for you to say. These meteorites are flying wildly, and their size is increasing! If the central one is this big, the problem will become serious," Ji Changkong noted.

"Don't worry. If a meteorite threatens your Guang Chen, I'll handle it," Hong Mandun said, rolling his eyes with slight impatience. "Kid, focus. Even if there generally aren't any Hidden Demons nearby, you still need to be cautious."

Ji Changkong cursed inwardly but forced himself to refocus on the control disk. He sat down and began exploring the path ahead using his soul, sacrificing his own mental energy to constantly find routes for the Guang Chen that could evade the incoming meteorites.

This Guang Chen had been specially built by the Sky Craft race for the Zakk race. Since the Zakk race excelled in soul power, operating the control disk demanded immense spiritual energy—it must have been custom-designed for them by the Sky Craft race.

Although Ji Changkong could also use mental power to control it, precise maneuvering required intense concentration of his spirit. Especially under these conditions, he needed to immerse his soul completely in the disk, extending his divine sense to perceive every change around him. This was incredibly draining.

Threads of divine sense spread out; his focus sharpened to an unprecedented degree, his eyes gleaming brightly. He pushed his soul to its absolute limits, narrowly navigating the passage between the impact zones of massive meteorites.

Once he was no longer threatened by the bombardment, he immediately slumped over, drenched in sweat.

And at that moment, he suddenly felt something strange happening to his body...

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