Chapter 200: Chapter 193: Setting Off
Piercing through the Ninefold Celestial God Array, Wang Xu landed on Earth.
"Huh?" Wang Xu casually swept his spiritual consciousness and immediately saw Tang Yan and Princess Bing Qing.
However, what surprised him was that a few days ago, when Wang Xu left, they were still at odds, but now, in the blink of an eye, they were chatting and laughing on the street, behaving intimately. Those who didn’t know might think they were sisters, attracting the attention of passersby.
"Women... really hard to understand." Wang Xu smiled helplessly, put away the Earth, and returned home.
...
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, a year swept away with the wind.
During this year, Princess Bing Qing had become an integral part of Wang Xu’s family life, so much so that Lin Hui even wanted to adopt Princess Bing Qing as a goddaughter, but Wang Xu persuaded her otherwise.
No matter how approachable Princess Bing Qing was, her noble status was clear, inevitably creating a class gap with Wang Xu and others. Even if Princess Bing Qing agreed, the ministers in the National Hall would make a fuss.
During this period, Wang Xu always stayed close to his family. Tang Yan and Princess Bing Qing’s relationship also gradually became more intimate, to the point that sometimes even Wang Xu couldn’t peek into their little secrets.
"Brother Wang!"
One day, Wang Xu was at home watching a movie with Tang Yan, the two snuggling sweetly, when suddenly, a loud voice came from the sky.
Wang Xu looked up, his gaze piercing through tens of thousands of meters of air layer, beyond the Ninefold Celestial God Array, to see a graceful and humble figure outside Earth.
"Brother Su Long!" Wang Xu flew toward him, exclaiming with joy, and hurriedly cleared the Ninefold Celestial God Array to invite Su Long in.
"Who is this?" Behind Su Long stood a burly figure clad in armor, standing five meters tall, entirely encased in black armor that shimmered with cold light.
"Let me introduce you, this is ’Ba Donghe,’ who is joining us to participate in the qualifications battle," Su Long introduced, "He is part of the Mercenary Martial Arts Hall as an ’Internal Mercenary’ disciple, with Contribution Points of 15.63 million, he’s soon to be promoted to a Five-star Mercenary."
Wang Xu’s eyes lit up. He had also been part of the Mercenary Martial Arts Hall but was only an external apprentice mercenary, not even reaching Two-star. But he knew that to become an internal mercenary, one must reach Four-star with Contribution Points of at least over 2 million.
External mercenaries and internal mercenaries are worlds apart. Once becoming an internal mercenary, the Mercenary Martial Arts Hall treats them as core disciples, offering abundant resources and treasures. Once strong, they are no less than the extremal disciples of the Cosmic Alliance and have the authority to command external mercenaries across several stars.
"Ba Donghe has met Brother Wang. I’ve heard Brother Wang is a disciple of the Heaven-Reaching Pavilion. I wonder if..." A glint of light flashed through a crack in the cold black helmet. Wang Xu could sense that Ba Donghe was itching to challenge a strong person, as geniuses often do, and he immediately raised his hand to interrupt.
"A guest is a guest. Since you’ve come to my hometown, I must fulfill my duty as a host." Wang Xu led the two down to tour Earth, letting them experience Earth’s beautiful scenery.
Soon, the two met Princess Bing Qing, who took them around. It must be said, Princess Bing Qing, having been here only a year, had already become a local expert, eloquently telling where was fun, where had good food, where was special.
Three days later.
"Alright, Princess Bing Qing, Brother Wang." Su Long stopped walking, "This time we are here on the orders of the Sovereign. We must soon set off for the Thousandfold Cosmic Country to participate in the qualifications battle."
"The distance to the Thousandfold Cosmic Country is vast, requiring long space-time travel, leaving us no time for further sightseeing." Su Long shook his head.
Wang Xu took a deep breath. This day had finally come. It’s only been a year, and he wanted to spend more time with his parents, wife, and son, but the weight of responsibility left him no choice.
After a moment of silence, Wang Xu said, "Alright, we’ll set off tomorrow."
...
At night, Wang Xu gathered the whole family.
"Dad, Mom, I’ve received orders from the Sovereign to go on a long journey." Wang Xu said with a smile, not wanting to announce it in a heavy tone that would worry his parents.
"How long?" Tang Yan couldn’t help but ask.
"Several decades at the shortest, and as for longer... I can’t predict." Wang Xu didn’t dare make promises; going to the Thousandfold Cosmic Country for the qualifications battle was perilous, and even Wang Xu might face unforeseen dangers.
Wang Zhenguo and others were all silent. Wang Xu bore heavy responsibilities, and Princess Bing Qing explained that this qualifications battle was linked to the honor of the entire Tai Long Cosmic Country. With Wang Xu’s participation, Tai Long had a better chance of winning.
"Go ahead, take good care of yourself." Wang Zhenguo sighed after a long silence, finally saying these words.
The son had grown up, and his power had increased, but with greater power came greater responsibility. He could enjoy life quietly, but the son needed a broader stage to showcase his prowess. Wang Zhenguo understood this very well.
"Dad, I’ll come back as soon as I can!" Wang Xu said firmly, nodding.
...
The next day, Wang Xu bid farewell to everyone. Although he had parted many times before, each goodbye still brought sadness, especially for Tang Yan, who wanted to travel with Wang Xu, but he firmly refused her.
The qualifications battle was extremely dangerous. Wang Xu could barely protect himself, let alone protect Tang Yan.
Wang Xu has already left behind most of his treasures, Cosmic Crystals, Void Ancient Soldiers, Immortal Divine Soldiers, Ancient Ores, Ancient Medicine, etc. These are not of great value to him, but for Earth, which needs to develop and progress, they are an immense help.
Amidst the reluctant looks of the crowd, Wang Xu dismantled the Ninefold Celestial God Array, and the Earth slowly sailed out.
Outside Earth, a shining token hovered in the void, casting a misty rain of light, enveloping Earth.
This is the Sanctuary Order.
At that time, it was a token given to Wang Xu by Yin Gu, as long as it is there, it represents absolute safety for Earth.
Wang Xu took a deep look at the Sanctuary Order: "Celestial Spirit, initiate space-time teleportation."
The void twisted, and the Earth vanished into it.
"Aren’t you going to tell them?" Princess Bing Qing gazed at Earth through the glass, "This time you’re going to participate in the qualification battle, it will be dangerous, what if you don’t make it back... They will be heartbroken."
"No need." Determination gleamed through Wang Xu’s profound gaze, "I will return... no matter what, I must come back alive."
......
The journey to the Thousandfold Cosmic Country was very far.
Wang Xu proceeded according to the star map Xian Qu had left him, but after tens of thousands of years of changes, the stars, which once had a space-time teleportation platform, were reduced to ashes in the border wars.
During this time, they passed by a small Cosmic Country, but because it offended a nearby Great Cosmic Country, its National Hall toppled, and the Royal Family’s bloodline was completely massacred, it was directly annexed by the Great Cosmic Country.
This is the tragedy of small Cosmic Countries, if they want to survive, they must either depend on a Great Cosmic Country or unite to form an alliance to resist the Great Cosmic Country’s invasion.
As long as the Great Cosmic Country does not have a valid excuse, it cannot start a border war, if it forcibly tries to start one intending to invade, it will not receive support from any of the three major forces in the universe, and other small Cosmic Countries, fearing for their own future, will exhaust all resources to help.
In the cosmos, small Cosmic Countries are as numerous as the stars, as long as they have a Celestial God Realm, they can establish a country, their national power may be small, but combined, their strength can’t be underestimated. If a Great Cosmic Country is too arrogant and greedy, it might stumble unexpectedly.
Therefore, for a Great Cosmic Country to wage war on a small Cosmic Country, it must have a reasonable justification.
Thirteen years later.
The door to the Earth’s Cultivation Room opened, and a figure in a black robe walked out.
Reflected in Wang Xu’s eyes was a dazzling nebula indicating they were close to a Star Domain.
"Void Snake Cosmic Country, the main star of this country has a Space-Time Teleportation Platform; through it, we should reach the next Cosmic Country." Wang Xu turned his palm, and a new star map full of shimmering stars appeared; it was purchased at a branch of the Heaven-Reaching Pavilion in a Great Cosmic Country, providing a clearer star route.
Wang Xu continued to peruse the star map. Although he already knew the routes by heart, the details among the stars needed careful study and observation to uncover.
Moments later, a sturdy figure in black armor emerged from the "Virtual Hunting Ground" and entered the main control room.
"Wang Xu, I have gained new insights, let’s fight again." Ba Donghe immediately issued a challenge.
Within the internal mercenaries of the Mercenary Martial Arts Hall, although Ba Donghe is not among the top ranks, he is truly a genius. It took him less than eight hundred years to reach the Initial White Hole Level; his actual strength, when unleashed, can even contend with the strongest White Hole Level.
It’s notable that ordinary Cosmic Martial Artists, even reaching White Hole Level, require thousands or even tens of thousands of years, let alone possessing the ability to fight across levels. Ba Donghe’s capability is evidently remarkable.
With this mindset, he repeatedly challenged Wang Xu, wanting to see for himself the rumored disciples of the Heaven-Reaching Pavilion and understand the gap compared to himself.
Su Long, having witnessed Wang Xu’s prowess, advised Ba Donghe, but Ba Donghe, stubbornly determined, was unwilling to heed, forcing Su Long to give up with a shake of the head.
Wang Xu, too, was incessantly pestered by Ba Donghe’s tenacity until he finally agreed to the challenge.
Thirty minutes.
That was the duration of their battle, neither long nor short.
When Ba Donghe walked out from the battle room, his head bowed, the expression behind the black armor was unreadable, but as he entered the Cultivation Room without a word, the outcome was utterly clear.
Su Long shook his head, not listening to the elder’s advice, suffering the consequences—a vivid lesson!
Time flew by, and soon another six years had passed.
"Everyone!" Wang Xu, seated in the main control room, opened his eyes, revealing a smile as he looked at the beautiful nebula not far away.
"We’ve arrived at the Thousandfold Cosmic Country!" (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to visit Qidian () to vote for recommendations, monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit for reading.)