Chapter 1840: Third Form of the Seven Star Mace Technique, Dipper Attraction

The elimination of spiritual beast hordes within the Essence Luxuriant World had always been an ongoing effort among the major factions.

Thanks to the world’s rapid advancement, coupled with the natural time needed for local cultivation sects to grow, the native beast populations enjoyed an extended period of unchecked expansion.

In less than a decade since the Essence Luxuriant World's ascension, three or four beasts had already advanced to the sixth rank, becoming Beast Kings.

And that didn’t even include some deep-sea creatures hiding in the oceans, nor the fact that Shang Xia himself hadn’t returned to the Essence Luxuriant World for over a year. That meant that the actual number of Beast Kings might be even greater.

Though, overall, those beasts weren’t yet a real threat to the various cultivation sects, especially with two Sages overseeing the world... Whatever it was, it was unwise to let them expand unchecked.

As such, the various forces of each continent would organize regular suppressions to keep the beast populations within controllable limits. Those beasts could then serve as a renewable source for harvesting spiritual material or provide training grounds for disciples... It was a win-win-win situation!

In addition, the Essence Luxuriant World had long encouraged exploration beyond their world. Star Ships would venture out into the void from time to time to hunt Star Beasts.

It was something nearly every powerful world engaged in, not just for exploration but for the acquisition of rare resources.

However, most of the operations had always been managed independently by the major sects. Despite the dominance of the Tongyou Institution, neither Kou Chongxue nor Shang Xia had ever directly interfered in their actions. They preferred to influence things from behind the scenes.

They understood that even with the power to control every other faction in their world, overreach would only cause resistance and passive defiance, which would backfire in the long term.

It was precisely because of their hands-off approach that when either of them occasionally called for a large-scale joint operation, the various factions responded with unusual enthusiasm.

Shang Xia's current motivation was to gather a batch of materials to expand the Essence Luxuriant World’s trade presence in the 6th Starsea Market. He also intended to test the waters for establishing new trade routes to other markets.

That said, he had no plans to return to the Essence Luxuriant World himself.

When Zhu Nang asked, Shang Xia simply smiled in response. "I’ll send my Origin Star Avatar back with you."

Zhu Nang immediately heaved a sigh of relief.

Though he could have led a team back on his own, he was only a second tier True Immortal. On his way back, he would be transporting a shipment of high-value goods acquired from the Starsea Market. Also, the lingering fear of the previous ambush by the Three Fleet Star Pirate Alliance still haunted him.

Hearing that Shang Xia’s Origin Star Avatar would be going along, all his worries disappeared.

At the same time, he understood that the real reason Shang Xia was sending his Origin Star Avatar back wasn’t to protect their fleet. He most likely had important matters to discuss with Kou Chongxue.

Reflecting on everything that had happened, especially the secret investigations Song Zhen had been conducting ever since becoming a Starsea Guardian, Zhu Nang couldn’t help but make a few guesses.

Naturally, someone as sharp as him wouldn’t say his concerns out loud. He suppressed his thoughts for the time being and chuckled, “Looks like I can rest easy then!”

Shang Xia simply chuckled. He knew Zhu Nang was shrewd and could often piece together his intentions with minimal clues.

But Shang wasn’t bothered. He simply waved his hand and said, "I trust you to deal with matters like this. Go make preparations."

Zhu Nang quickly rose and departed. As he left the cabin, he decided that if he were ever sent out on another mission, he would insist on getting a high-level True Immortal buddy assigned to him by Kou Chongxue. After all... The Chaotic Sea of Stars was bound to grow even more volatile.

Not long after, Zhu Nang led a team aboard a large Star Ship and began the journey back to the Essence Luxuriant World. Accompanying him were Shang Xia’s Origin Star Avatar and the newly promoted rank four Stargazer, Zhang Yusheng.

As for Shang Xia himself, though he never entered the 6th Starsea Market, he had established a temporary cultivation grounds in a nearby asteroid cluster and entered a state of deep meditation.

This time, Shang Xia secluded himself because he had completed the initial concept for the third form of his self-created rank seven martial art, the Seven Star Mace Technique. He was at the final step of refinement to complete the third form.

The inspiration for the third form came from his harrowing struggle inside the depths of the great spatial vortex, and the moment of epiphany when he broke free using the guidance of the seven suns.

That was also why he named the third form of his technique the Guided Dipper.

The point that made the third form stand out was its ability to remain steadfast in the face of chaos. The moment it was unleashed, it would ignore all spatial distortion, sensory confusion, and mental interference. As long as Shang Xia locked onto his opponent’s soul, he would be able to land his strike

It was a move that would never miss.

However, mastering the third form was no easy feat. Even more difficult was wielding it reliably in battle.

Ever since escaping the great spatial vortex, Shang Xia had devoted all his focus toward refining his new move. He only recently found the key to perfecting it.

In the asteroid field tens of thousands of miles from the 6th Starsea Market, all was silent. Hundreds of thousands of asteroids floated gently in the void without colliding with one another.

It was unclear how much time had passed before Shang Xia, seated atop one of the larger rocks, suddenly opened his eyes. The Seven Star Mace appeared in his hand silently as he swung it at the empty void before him. The motion was simple and it was completed without flair.

Yet at that exact moment, a startled gasp echoed from several thousand miles to Shang Xia’s upper left. The void trembled before returning to its original calm.

The next moment, to his lower left, several hundred miles below that point, the void rippled once more before returning to its original still.

It happened again as another disturbance appeared nearly 2,000 miles behind Shang Xia. The asteroids were flung to the side and a region of space dozens of miles wide was created. However, no one could be seen as the space eventually returned to its original calm.

Finally, a ripple burst forth 1,000 miles away. Amid the spatial disturbance, a silhouette suddenly appeared. The figure didn’t move, nor did he look directly at Shang Xia. Instead, the figure stared at the void ahead as if he was about to face a formidable enemy.

A soft yell emerged from his lips as a golden sword light slashed through the void. The next moment, a loud blast echoed through the void, and the resulting shockwave shattered the asteroids hundreds of miles around into space dust.

"What kind of technique was that?!"

The man sheathed his golden sword as he spoke. He looked at Shang Xia who was thousands of miles away with a look of astonishment.