Chapter 2051: We’re Going Home

After Shang Xia listened to everyone’s reports and roughly assigned the tasks to be done next, everyone took their leave one after another.

Shang Xia then turned his gaze toward Yuan Qiuyuan, who was sitting quietly in a corner. Because of his temporary blindness, his expression seemed more somber than usual.

After some time, he asked, "How are your eyes now?"

Yuan Qiuyuan tilted his head to the side as though he had just come back to his senses and smiled. "After rinsing them again with Starlight Essence, they are much better. The time needed for my sight to recover should be greatly shortened."

Shang Xia nodded slightly before asking again, "Tell me, what exactly did you discover in the Star River with your stargazing technique?"

When he heard Shang Xia’s question, even though Yuan Qiuyuan’s eyes were still void of light, they seemed to flicker with a strange glow. Yet he did not answer immediately, but instead appeared to be pondering how to phrase it. "I saw that the Star River stretched into the endless distance, yet there were countless branches swaying. Each branch led toward an abyss, and the place we connected to the Star River seemed to be merely one of those branches."

"Whenever I tried to follow its tracks and explore the abyss, I could not detect anything. It was as though each part was separated from me by an immeasurable distance."

As Shang Xia listened, his face remained expressionless. In the end, he asked simply, "So were your eyes affected because of what you saw?”

Yuan Qiuyuan answered in a low voice, "When looking at the abyss at the end of each branch, I was still able to perceive something even though it seemed a little difficult. My eyes were only damaged when I noticed that there seemed to be several living creatures slumbering in some great stars. In fact... Some of those stars seem to be living entities themselves.”

Shang Xia showed no surprise at Yuan Qiuyuan’s discovery and continued, "Other than that, was there anything else? For example, did you find anything in the Star River similar to that humanoid monster I captured and sealed?"

Yuan Qiuyuan shook his head. "I could not probe further into the essence of the Star River, nor did I find any other of them..."

Pausing slightly, he suddenly revealed a hesitant expression.

Shang Xia noticed and asked, "What is it? Did you notice something?"

Yuan Qiuyuan answered with some uncertainty, "At the very last second... I seem to see the silhouette of a sail..."

"A sail?" Shang Xia’s gaze sharpened, and he growled, "Tell me what you saw exactly.”

Unfortunately, Yuan Qiuyuan shook his head. "I can’t be sure of what it was. All I saw was a golden glimmer resembling a sail flash past before vanishing into the Star River. It was too far to observe properly, and I just noticed the sharp pain in my eyes. I even suspected it was a mere illusion...”

"A sail? A vessel capable of sailing in the Star River?" Shang Xia murmured to himself, "Even if it isn’t real, it’s still an intriguing thought."

Yuan Qiuyuan could not help but quip, "Sage Shang, I hope my speculation does not mislead your judgment."

Shang Xia smiled faintly. "I know what you are thinking. Do not speak of this for now. When we return to the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field, only tell Patriarch Kou about it."

Yuan Qiuyuan nodded in agreement and took his leave.

The reason Shang Xia wanted them to rest for two days before setting off was actually to wait for Yuan Qiuyuan’s sight to recover. Although Yuan Qiuyuan was not the only Stargazer aboard the Spirit Ark, and they had already charted their entire route over, they were stuck in the boundless sea of stars. They weren’t in the Chaotic Sea of Stars. It was far more reassuring to have a rank six Grand Stargazer taking command of the navigation.

Not long after Yuan Qiuyuan left the cabin, Shang Xia rose and went to look for the Giant Ape King. Feeling its stable aura from outside the Giant Ape King’s cabin and realizing it was not hastily refining or merging the blood essence of the bird emperor, Shang Xia felt relieved and proceeded toward the opposite end of the lower decks.

It was where a specially isolated cabin stood and it was the most fortified room on the Spirit Ark. It was deliberately built during construction for imprisoning and sealing purposes. Around it were layered formations set personally by Chu Jia, with additional restrictions laid down by Shang Xia himself. Even a Sage wouldn’t be able to escape easily if they were trapped in there.

As Shang Xia stepped in, the humanoid creature he had captured alive and sealed within a fragment of a distorted region of space from the Star River floated in the center. Previously, it had been endlessly repeating its charge at him, but much of the power of time had dissipated. The creature no longer repeated its motions, though it had not broken free.

Its appearance had also changed. The tentacles and deformed protrusions extending from its body had shrunk considerably and seemed to be receding further, making it look increasingly like an actual human.

When Shang Xia entered, the creature suddenly opened a pair of eerie eyes and fixed them on him.

In turn, Shang Xia met its gaze calmly.

"It seems you have regained a measure of reason." Shang Xia said casually.

From its eyes, he sensed emotional fluctuation, and from its composed expression, he realized it had indeed recovered its sanity.

Yet the creature did not attempt to speak. It simply stared at Shang Xia with its strange eyes, as if that was enough to extract all it desired to know.

Shang Xia was not bothered by its silence. After sizing it up, Shang Xia asked, "So this is how you modified yourself after your work on Beast Warriors?"

The creature remained silent, though the agitation in its gaze grew stronger, showing that it was not entirely indifferent and did in fact possess rationality.

Shang Xia continued without hurry, "Ah, of course. From the strength you displayed before, it’s clear you could not have modified yourself. You are nothing more than someone else’s experiment."

Finally, his words pierced his defenses. Its body began trembling violently as the tentacles and protrusions that had been receding flared again. The tentacles lashed repeatedly against the seal, and black-purple pus and fumes sprayed around it to corrode the weakened power of time and space.

Shang Xia remained still as he quietly watched the creature struggling as the seal weakened further.

After a while, as it thrashed, the creature became increasingly inhuman.

Shang Xia spoke suddenly. "Even if you break this seal, what then? Without the Star River’s protection, how long can you last out here?"

His words struck home. The frenzied thrashing froze, and the crazed creature looked down at itself, at the re-extended tentacles and regrown deformities. Only a look of despair appeared in its eyes.

Shang Xia understood and said calmly, "So your sanity is linked to the degree of your mutation and your remaining vitality..."

Then a rasping, distorted voice suddenly echoed in the chamber. "Save me!"

That hoarse, harsh sound carried eerie interference, as if able to disturb one’s soul. However, it had no effect on Shang Xia.

He coldly replied, "Why should I save you?"

The creepy voice came again. "Save me... Otherwise... I break the seal... I die... I destroy the Ark!"

It was a threat. If Shang Xia refused to help, the creature would break free and perish by shattering the Spirit Ark itself.

But Shang Xia only smiled faintly. "You know very well you don’t have that ability since I’m here. And more than that, you don’t want to die. You wouldn’t dare. Otherwise, why would you twist yourself into this abomination and struggle so desperately to return to the Chaotic Sea of Stars?"

Once more, the words struck true. After a pause, the voice rose again. "What do you want?"

At last.

Shang Xia smiled. "Tell me everything you know."

...

The fleet remained in the region far longer than the two days Shang Xia had initially mentioned. During that time, Yuan Qiuyuan’s eyes were bathed again and again with Starlight Essence until he regained his sight. Even though his vision was still blurry and far from full recovery. Still, he could perform simple stargazing techniques and, more importantly, guide other Stargazers, giving the fleet greater security for the return journey.

When Shang Xia received the news, he issued the order to depart, and the fleet finally began its voyage back to the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field.

Though they couldn’t measure the time by days and nights when traveling through the void, other methods of timekeeping existed.

When they set off secretly from the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field, it had been the 26th year of the Essence Luxuriant Calendar. Now, it was already past the middle of the 27th year.

Though the return trip would still take time, it would be much faster than the journey when they left. They might even make it back before the New Year, assuming no more accidents occur.

Yet ever since Shang Xia gave the order to return, the other True Immortals, including Chu Jia and Yuan Qiuyuan. Even Chu Jia could only occasionally contact him via transmission talismans, and responses came after long delays.

Were it not for Chu Jia’s direct control over the grand formation of the Spirit Ark, confirming Shang Xia’s safety, the others might have suspected he had been devoured by the creature.

Of course, such thoughts were mere jokes.

After all, Shang Xia’s cultivation was at the edge of the grand completion stage. He stood at the very pinnacle of the Chaotic Sea of Stars. Who could possibly harm him?

Even so, his constant seclusion with the humanoid monster stirred curiosity among the others.

No one knew how long had passed when Chu Jia, anxious from receiving no response to two transmission talismans, hurried to the sealed cabin and knocked hard on the door.

Moments later, formation runes lit up on the entrance, then faded. The door eventually opened inward and Shang Xia, looking somewhat weary but unharmed, appeared and asked in surprise, "What happened?"

Seeing he was mostly fine, Chu Jia’s eyes strayed past him to glimpse a deformed figure floating cross-legged within. It was even clothed. But as soon as the figure sensed her gaze, its strange eyes turned to her.

Shang Xia subtly shifted half a step, blocking her line of sight and shielding her from the creature’s gaze.

Chu Jia quickly collected herself and said, "I sent you two transmission talismans but got no reply, so I came knocking. We have returned to the Chaotic Sea of Stars, but our timekeeping seems to have gone wrong."

Shang Xia froze for an instant as a frown appeared on his face. "By how much?"

Chu Jia replied, "By more than a year. According to our calculations, it should now be late in the 27th year. But when we compared notes with another fleet we encountered, we found a discrepancy. After conversion, it appears the current time has already passed into the 29th year of the Essence Luxuriant Calendar."

Rushing out of the cabin, Shang Xia shut the door as the formation runes lit up again.

He strode toward the bridge of the Spirit Ark, asking, "What kind of fleet would be traveling along the edge of the Chaotic Star Sea?"

Chu Jia hurried after him and explained, "Yuan Qiuyuan replanned the route. After returning to the edge of the Chaotic Sea of Stars, we arrived near the Floating Star Region."

Shang Xia paused in surprise and looked back at her. Chu Jia continued, "The Desolate Forbidden Region of the Floating Star Region has been breached by the other Star Fields. From it poured waves of spiritual birds, beasts, and Star Beasts. Their Heavenly Fields failed to resist the invasion at the Desolate Forbidden Region and withdrew collectively into their worlds to fend for themselves.”

"Now their Star Region is ravaged by high-level spiritual beasts and Star Beasts. Even though their Heavenly Fields still maintain some connection with each other, fleets need to avoid those beasts. Hugging the edge of the Chaotic Sea of Stars is relatively safer, so it has become the preferred path for new routes."