Chapter 1081: Earth Star

“Oh? We already have 2 rank three Astronomers? Looks like the Heavenly Star Palace no longer dares to hide any secret...” Shang Xia looked at their Astronomers and sighed. The first was naturally Yan Ming, who managed to obtain the incomplete inheritance the Tongyou Institution got their hands on. The second was actually a disciple of the Upper Division who had been picked because of his talent.

It didn’t matter if it was just Yan Ming as she no longer had any future as a Stargazer due to her cultivation being at the Martial Dipper Realm. However, the Upper Division disciple was called Yuan Qiuyuan and he was only at the Martial Intent Realm!

“Just the 2 of them are enough to use the Star Observatory?” Shang Xia gasped.

Kou Chongxue chuckled in response, “Of course not! However, the Star Observatory is the Heaven Supporting Jade Pillar of our Elysium and they can draw on the power of the Elysium to do so.”

Shang Xia’s eyebrows jumped slightly. “How much energy do they use?”

The smile on Kou Chongxue’s face remained and he muttered, “It’s alright. After we use the Star Observatory, we can draw over the power of starlight that contains essence qi to make up for the loss...”

Shang Xia immediately snorted as he put on an expression that he was afraid he was getting played by Kou Chongxue. He pointed at the thin ray of starlight falling and he mumbled, “This is a lot weaker than the starlight drawn over by the Heavenly Star Palace!”

Helpless, Kou Chongxue could only try to explain, “Of course we can’t compare ourselves to them! However, if they manage to take a step further in the path of a Stargazer, or if we manage to produce even more in the future, the power of starlight we can draw over will increase by several times! In fact, it might increase by tens of times! When that happens, we’ll be able to draw more power than the Heavenly Star Palace.”

“Also... The Heavenly Star Palace took control of the Star Observatory in the Jiao Continent. There’s basically no obstruction by our heavenly screen when they draw starlight over. However, the heavenly screen above our You Continent is solid and it also needs to pass through a layer to enter our Tongyou Elysium. Of course it’s going to be weaker!”

Shang Xia nodded slowly. He understood the difference between their Tongyou Institution and the Heavenly Star Palace. To put it simply, the Tongyou Institution was able to reduce their risk when absorbing starlight while limiting their gains. On the other hand, the Heavenly Star Palace was able to draw on a large amount of power of starlight, but they would also risk a lot in the process.

“Right, you said that they discovered something?” Shang Xia asked after seemingly having thought back to it.

Kou Chongxue could only sigh helplessly in response, “Yeah, I was interrupted by you and nearly forgot what I was going to say!”

Pausing for a second, Kou Chongxue turned serious all of a sudden. “They made 3 attempts to carry out short observations, and during those attempts, they discovered an Earth Star that is flying towards our Spirit Luxuriant World at high speeds.”

“Earth Star?” Shang Xia mumbled softly. However, he didn’t seem to care too much about it.

After all, it was a mere Earth Star...

“There are people on the Earth Star, and there are quite a few of them!” Kou Chongxue continued suddenly.

“So what? At the end of the day, it’s just an Earth Star! Why don’t you guys let them replicate how the Heavenly Star Palace located the Star Beast Nest? Wouldn’t that help them in their path of becoming a better Stargazer?” Shang Xia raised an eyebrow and muttered.

In response, Kou Chongxue merely chuckled, “Stop being impatient. What if I tell you we should be pretty familiar with the Earth Star coming our way and I tell you it’s being drawn over by some special force in our Spirit Luxuriant World?”

“Familiar?” Shang Xia was slightly taken aback. He quickly guessed, “Don’t tell me it’s related to the Manyu Continent back then? Who’s pulling it towards us?”

“I knew you would be able to guess. However, why don’t you try guessing who’s behind it?” Kou Chongxue nodded in response.

Shang Xia stared at the Astronomers who were recovering their energy under the Starry Tree and thought of something. “Don’t tell me the members of the Heavenly Star Palace are messing around?”

“You got it again. The Heavenly Star Palace is really the one drawing the Earth Star over. To be exact, it’s because of their Star Observatory.” Kou Chongxue laughed.

“What would be their goal then?” Shang Xia asked.

Shaking his head, Kou Chongxue mumbled, “That’s what we don’t know. Yan Ming and Yuan Qiuyuan reached their limit when discovering the starlight emitted from the Earth Star. That’s also after they borrowed the power of their Star Observatory. This is also most likely why they have been sent away by the Heavenly Star Palace after they became Astronomers. They were probably afraid our disciples would be able to learn their secrets...”

Shang Xia thought for a second before he continued, “At the end of the day, they’re just trying to grow stronger. An Earth Star that lost its support of world origin for 20 to 30 years might still possess some sort of expert. However, the Heavenly Star Palace wouldn’t be able to gain much benefits even if they assimilated the Earth Star into our world. Could they be aiming for the aboriginal cultivators there?”

“How strong would they be even if they manage to enter our world? The small amount of benefits would barely be comparable to taking in all the mortals living on that Earth Star...” Kou Chongxue snorted.

Both of them continued to play the guessing game for half a day and failed to reach a conclusion. In the end, they could only sigh and change the topic.

“Do Yan Ming and Yuan Qiuyuan have any hopes of reaching a fourth rank Stargazer?” Shang Xia asked, “I heard that the moment they become a Stargazer, not only would they gain the proper title, but they would also no longer need to exhaust the power of an Elysium if they used the Star Observatory.”

Kou Chongxue gave a huge sigh in response, “Not at the moment. The Heavenly Star Palace’s requirement to be a Stargazer is extremely stringent. Even though Yuan Qiuyuan was promoted to a rank three Astronomer in the Jiao Continent, he came back and compared what he knew with Yan Ming and discovered something different. His foundations were far from Yan Ming who was promoted in the institution!”

Shang Xia nodded and he wasn’t surprised at all. “The Heavenly Star Palace would definitely hold back and not teach us everything they know. Actually, if I was in control of the inheritance, I would definitely go even further to protect it.”

𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Kou Chongxue snickered under his breath. “Say... If you and I enter the void and intercept the Earth Star before it arrives, what do you think will happen? Do you think the members of the Heavenly Star Palace will be so pressed that they reveal their intentions?”

Shang Xia nodded in approval. “Heh, actually, I think we’re close to 80 percent sure to succeed! The problem is... Are you really planning to do it?”

...

The next time Shang Xia ran to the Star Origin City, he concealed his presence and identity as per his agreement with the Starry Pavilion.

Only after he entered the Starry Pavilion did he reveal himself to Zhou Mingdao.

With the Deputy Pavilion Master leading the way, Shang Xia once again returned to the quiet chamber on the seventh floor. However, he was quickly shocked by his discovery.

“Huh? Deputy Pavilion Master Zhou, why are there 7 sheets of rank six talisman paper now?” Shang Xia asked.

A look of surprise that superseded that of Shang Xia could be seen on Zhou Mingdao’s face. “True Immortal Little Shang, is there something wrong?”

“This... I had 2 sheets remaining and you just had to bring 3 more...” Shang Xia mumbled with slight surprise.

In response, Zhou Mingdao burst out laughing. “The order I received was to fully support your efforts to craft the talisman. Every time you complete one, I’ll bring over 5 sheets of rank six talisman paper.”

After getting over his shock, Shang Xia cupped his fists. “Many thanks!”

With a soft laugh, Zhou Mingdao prepared to leave. However, he didn’t forget to remind, “True Immortal Little Shang, if you have any other requests, feel free to let me know! I’m at your beck and call!”

After Zhou Mingdao left...

Sealing his chamber, Shang Xia once again returned to the platform where he had been crafting talismans. He discovered that the talisman paper wasn’t the only thing that had been replenished. Even the rank six ink stick that wasn’t fully depleted was gone. In its place was a new rank six ink stick.