Chapter 00083: Unwilling to Die
# Unwilling to Die
Chapter 83
Novel: Abandon The Universe
Chapter 83: Unwilling to Die
In this Jade Dawn Star, Lan Xiaobu dug up all the precious spiritual herbs he found and tossed them into his spatial ring, following the increasingly rich flow of spiritual energy. As for dealing with Tao Ai, there was no rush; that fellow would certainly come looking for him. After all, he had a positioning chip for Tao Ai.
For half a month in a row, Lan Xiaobu ventured forth, unearthing all sorts of medicinal materials. The closer he got to the areas with denser spiritual energy, the better the herbs he found. Many materials were unfamiliar to him, but the pleasant scents and concentrated vitality they released were enough for him to collect them all without hesitation.
Jade Dawn Star, home to wild beasts as well. During this time, Lan Xiaobu had encountered more than one beast. Yet, none posed a threat to him. Aside from a few that served as meals or practice for his companion, Gu Dao, at first, Gu Dao needed his assistance. But soon, Gu Dao could handle the beasts on his own.
This puzzled Lan Xiaobu. Logically speaking, with so much spiritual energy in Jade Dawn Star and various spiritual creatures present, the beasts here should be becoming increasingly strong. Not to mention Gu Dao; even if Lan Xiaobu had innate powers, he shouldn’t be able to roam freely. There had even been wild ginseng with formidable presence; one can only imagine how powerful the beasts might be.
However, the beasts he encountered were average and posed no real danger. They were hardly different from the wild animals on Earth. Since the beasts were no threat to Gu Dao, his companion soon lost interest in hunting and began searching for herbs instead. Gu Dao, being a carnivorous creature, had taken a liking to the herbs here, and even seemed to prefer them over the beasts he used to catch.
As time went on, Lan Xiaobu found himself wondering if Gu Dao was preparing to abandon his carnivorous ways. The creature was consuming less and less meat but was more eager to devour herbs.
Unable to find any ruins related to cultivation, Lan Xiaobu continued his search while digging up herbs. One day, while he was at it, he heard a series of booming sounds in the distance.
Clearly explosive noises—someone was using dynamite nearby.
Could it be a treasure? Lan Xiaobu thought as he rushed over. How could a treasure hunting expedition be complete without him, Lan Xiaobu? Furthermore, he intended to deal with Tao Ai.
Suddenly, Gu Dao let out a low growl. Alarmed, Lan Xiaobu hurried over to find Gu Dao standing in front of a stone tablet, beneath which lay a skeleton.
Using his spiritual sense, Lan Xiaobu quickly confirmed that this skeleton was also from a technological civilization, similar to himself. It appeared that this person had entered Jade Dawn Star but failed to leave, ultimately meeting their demise here.
Bending down, Lan Xiaobu picked up a metal shard from the skeleton’s hands. The shard had some words crudely etched on it: "Across the sea, there is..."
Across the sea, there is... what? Lan Xiaobu gazed into the distance; all he saw were vast mountains and dense forests. Perhaps because of the rich spiritual energy, the entire Jade Dawn Star was cloaked in green, and any streams were hidden among the towering plants.
From the information he gathered, was it possible a sea existed here? What could "across the sea" refer to?
It quickly dawned on him that there must be a vast ocean nearby. Just how massive was Jade Dawn Star? It was only open for a little over a month at a time, and even innate level practitioners would find it nearly impossible to traverse the sea. Moreover, there was no need to cross the ocean when there was plenty of good stuff on the side they were on.
Though unsure how this deceased contender had knowledge of what lay beyond the sea, Lan Xiaobu decided to investigate further.
Just because others couldn’t cross the sea didn’t mean he couldn’t.
But before making such a crossing, wouldn’t it be wise to see what those individuals were blowing up? Perhaps they had discovered some ruins or another.
Just as that thought crossed his mind, he suddenly halted. In his peripheral vision, he caught sight of a fuzzy figure, which soon sharpened into focus—it was Tao Ai, armed with a magnetic gun. Lan Xiaobu instinctively knew the other wouldn’t shoot just yet.
As soon as Tao Ai appeared, Lan Xiaobu had focused his spiritual sense on the man’s finger; as soon as it twitched, he would dodge.
Even if Tao Ai had reached the innate level, Lan Xiaobu understood that avoiding a magnetic gun’s shot was nearly impossible.
"Don’t turn around. The moment you do, I will shoot. You can guess I’m holding a twisting magnetic gun," Tao Ai warned.
If it wasn’t a magnetic gun? The twisting magnetic gun's damage was far greater, and for Lan Xiaobu, there was little difference.
Ignoring Tao Ai’s threats, Lan Xiaobu calmly turned his head while locking his focus tightly onto Tao Ai’s finger.
Had he not wanted to inquire about what had been detonated, or seek higher-level technological civilization information, he would have dispatched Tao Ai immediately with a soul attack.
Seeing Lan Xiaobu dare to turn, Tao Ai’s eyes flickered with shock, quickly replaced by a cold tone, "You think I won’t kill you?"
Regardless, Lan Xiaobu sensed an imminent threat even without seeing the finger pull the trigger. A twisted light beam struck where he stood, prompting him to swiftly counter with a soul attack.
Tao Ai let out a bloodcurdling scream as the twisting magnetic gun clattered to the ground. Lan Xiaobu stepped forward, picked up the gun, and quickly examined it with his spiritual sense.
This weapon was a notch higher than the previous gray-clad man’s magnetic gun, fully controlled by chips. He swiftly peeled off a small ceramic piece near Tao Ai’s temple.
Impressive indeed, Lan Xiaobu mused as he inspected the intricate circuitry within the ceramic. It utilized thought to trigger a shot, connecting with brainwave fluctuations to wirelessly transmit commands to the magnetic gun, leading it to fire at a specified location.
Tao Ai likely hadn’t aimed to kill him outright; instead, he probably intended to cripple Lan Xiaobu's legs. However, Lan Xiaobu's spiritual sense had sensed the murderous intent.
This magnetic gun was likely a product beyond the level-five technological civilization. If such a weapon flooded Earth, it would easily spell death for countless individuals, and tracking the source would be nearly impossible.
Sure enough, the ultimate aim of technology wasn’t civilization itself, but rather a pathway toward primitive slaughter or destruction.
"How did you evade that?" Tao Ai sat on the ground, staring at Lan Xiaobu with shock. Lan Xiaobu didn’t unleash another soul attack. Although his head throbbed with pain, he could still speak.
"It’s not your turn to ask. It’s mine," Lan Xiaobu said, aiming the magnetic gun at Tao Ai's head. This weapon could just as easily pull a trigger.
Tao Ai was nonetheless fixated on Lan Xiaobu, mumbling, "I understand now. It was you. You can use an invisible attack to severely injure others..."
He realized the truth—Ke’er managed to ambush Han Shou not due to superior skill but because Lan Xiaobu had broken the rules and attacked the competitors on stage.
Connecting the dots, understanding that Lan Xiaobu’s ability to deal invisible damage to his opponent's mind, one could also infer how he easily manipulated the dice at the gambling table—this was likely the same method, potentially involving top-tier brainwave technology.
"I want to ask you a few questions..."
Before Lan Xiaobu could finish, he was cut off by Tao Ai, "You won’t let me go, will you? I know clearly that Emperor Sino is targeting you for your spatial treasure. Moreover, I suspect his only son, Lian, is dead because of you. So there’s no point in asking me anything; I won’t say a word."
Everything became clear. He had stolen Lan Xiaobu’s boundary stone and provided Lan Xiaobu the perfect cover—he had helped shield Lan Xiaobu from suspicion regarding the spatial treasure.
What plagued him even more was that he prevented Emperor Sino from suspecting anything yet ended up meeting his demise at Lan Xiaobu's hands. Was there anything more frustrating in life? He was unwilling to accept his fate.
Lan Xiaobu replied coolly, "No, you will answer me..."
After uttering this, Lan Xiaobu’s spiritual sense surged without hesitation into Tao Ai's mind, beginning to tear at his soul.
"Ah..." A scream cascaded from Tao Ai, who writhed on the ground. Lan Xiaobu showed no signs of stopping.
He was careful to gauge the extent of his force—neither completely tearing apart Tao Ai's soul nor ceasing his assault.
"Stop! Stop! I’ll tell you! I swear! Give me a quick end..." Tao Ai, initially confident, felt his resolve crumble under the torment of his soul being pulled apart.
"Why the hesitation?" Lan Xiaobu paused the soul attack and said flatly.
"Go ahead and ask, but hope to give me a quick end afterward," Tao Ai’s face turned pale. If he could have taken his own life, he would have done so already.
Lan Xiaobu calmly stated, "First, let me know what caused the explosion you heard earlier?"
Tao Ai, pale as a ghost, felt as though his head might shatter. He hadn’t even considered pretending not to know until Lan Xiaobu asked. He hurriedly replied, "They say it’s an ancient tomb ruin. Last time, someone got the news but couldn’t open it. This time, they went directly to blast that ancient tomb. I haven’t been able to check it out yet…"
Clearly, Tao Ai intended to kill Lan Xiaobu before heading over.
(Today's update ends here. Good night, friends!)
(End of Chapter)