Chapter 116
Chapter 116
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: Two Birds with One Stone
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Seoran and the expedition members were gleefully playing a piece from the Liang Kingdom's court music.
It was typically used for rain rituals or harvest festivals.
The melody itself was steeped in worship of the Dragon God, making it perfect for celebrating the completion of the Yeouiju.
Under Seoran's lead—who had first suggested the idea—the volunteers had gathered in their spare time to practice their instruments.
Naturally, it was kept secret from Damcheong.
A surprise party was always more touching that way.
However, his closed-door training, which was supposed to last three months, had ended in just half a month, leaving them short on rehearsal time.
As a result, the expedition's performance was full of squeaks and stumbles.
But music was meant to be felt, not overthought. Seoran and the expedition threw themselves fully into their playing.
They were so absorbed that no one even noticed Damcheong's odd state.
They just thought he was gazing at the sky, floating up, then descending again.
They were too busy wrestling with unfamiliar instruments to pay attention to anything else.
Damcheong landed lightly on the ground and spoke.
"Everyone, pause the music for a moment."
The expedition members hesitated before gradually stopping.
Of course, some kept blowing away, unable to hear.
Only after their companions elbowed them in the ribs a few times did the whole group fall silent.
Seoran, who had been trumpeting to the end, asked,
"Lord Damcheong, what's wrong all of a sudden? Was our playing that bad?"
"No, it was quite splendid. True, it lacked polish, but the emotional conveyance was excellent. I stopped it because there's an important announcement."
"What announcement?"
Damcheong fell silent for a moment before speaking.
"I nearly ascended just now."
"Ascended? Right now?"
"Yes. Perhaps the aftershock of completing the Yeouiju and truly becoming a dragon... An irresistible impulse surged within me. I only wanted to ascend immediately. I nearly forgot my duty to guard the world's core as the Lone-Eyed Dragon, the natural disasters plaguing the southern continent—even you."
Seoran looked puzzled.
"I'm not sure I get it. Was it that intense?"
"I don't know how to put it."
"Do you still feel that impulse?"
Damcheong looked up at the sky.
Beyond the thunderclouds was only silent void.
The celestial vista that had filled his vision lingered only in a corner of his mind.
Thus, he was no longer overwhelmed by that massive emotion as before.
Lowering his gaze, Damcheong said,
"I seem fine now."
"You're really okay?"
"Yes, thank you for worrying."
"What are friends for?"
Damcheong gave a faint smile.
"You're right."
Seoran glanced around and said,
"If everything's settled, shall we get back to it?"
"Ah, the performance? Sorry about that. You all worked hard practicing, and I interrupted the flow..."
"It was for you from the start, so no big deal. And music isn't all we prepared."
Damcheong looked slightly surprised.
"There's more?"
"Of course. Come with us—to the world of fine dining."
The group headed to the dining area of the Feast Mountain Great Peng.
Fruits in honey, sugar candies, flower teas—tons of Damcheong's favorite foods had been prepared.
The southern continent chefs had worked tirelessly on them.
The Yeouiju completion celebration ended in grand success.
*****
There had been a minor hiccup, but the ritual concluded safely.
Damcheong had finally become a true dragon.
He had infused a star into the Yeouiju and even acquired thunder spirit root.
The powers of his antler—for reading heavenly omens—and his dragon eyes—for peering into all things—had grown even stronger.
The Heaven-Observing Net Qi Research Institute's goal was achieved.
The expedition and Immortal Alliance immediately began data collection.
To save the southern continent as soon as possible, there was no time to rest.
Time flew by.
The Heaven-Observing Net Qi Research Institute endured countless trials and errors.
The biggest issue was the nature of the dragon eyes.
Damcheong's eyes excelled at seeing far or deep but lacked breadth.
They weren't ideal for surveying an entire continent's heaven-earth spiritual qi.
It was time for the world's top puppeteer to step up.
Seoran redesigned the Self-Eye Effect legion in just a few days.
The Feast Mountain Great Peng's puppet factory began upgrading the owl puppets according to the new blueprints.
The modified owls (version 2.0) left the factory and scattered across the continent.
The million-strong Self-Eye Effect legion settled in key spots and shut down most functions to conserve spiritual power.
Only the spiritual qi detection organs, spiritual power sharing, and newly added communication relays remained active.
Half the southern continent fell under the owl legion's watch.
The entire Self-Eye Effect legion acted as transmission towers, relaying spiritual power and information endlessly.
At the center of the spiderweb-like network sat their mothership, the Feast Mountain Great Peng.
If an anomaly arose anywhere, the monitoring Self-Eye Effect would immediately call the mothership.
A communicator who received the signal reported,
"Anomaly detected in the northeast quadrant of the continent!"
Equally excited, Seoran issued orders.
"Activate the Self-Eye Effect legion in that sector!"
The communicator echoed the command and slammed the activation button.
"Self-Eye Effect legion, activate!"
The Self-Eye Effects awoke at the order.
The owls' heads glowed with purple light and began rotating clockwise.
They were calculating the precise coordinates of the anomaly where irregular heaven-earth spiritual qi had been detected.
The communicator shouted again.
"Coordinates calculated!"
Seoran commanded,
"Commence observation!"
The communicator echoed,
"Observation commencing!"
The seat where Damcheong sat slowly rotated.
Soon, it aligned with the target region's angle.
The dragon's eyes locked onto the pinpoint anomaly.
Damcheong's antlers lit up, firing a bolt of thunder at a nearby porcelain puppet.
The scribe puppet, handmade by Seoran, transcribed the information from the thunderbolt onto paper.
A waiting researcher swiftly collected the completed precise observation data.
Everyone moved like clockwork.
This efficient system pinpointed and observed only anomalies.
It was the synergy of Damcheong's deep-seeing dragon eyes and the widely dispersed Self-Eye Effect legion.
The collaboration between the Heaven-Observing Net Qi Research Institute and the expedition yielded observation data—and additional成果.
Namely, natural disaster forecasts.
Damcheong's observation.
"Tidal wave expected tomorrow morning along the eastern coast!"
Seoran's order.
"Initiate disaster prevention protocols!"
The communicator's echo.
"Disaster prevention protocols initiated!"
Owls stationed on the eastern coast hooted in unison.
The midnight warning trumpets jolted ordinary folk awake; they groggily grabbed survival packs and evacuated.
Cultivators hurried to guide evacuations and reinforce coastal seawalls.
The dawn tsunami razed the seawalls and coastal cities but caused minimal casualties.
Only injuries from hasty mountain climbs.
The southern continent's people began to harbor hope.
One year after the celebration, the analysis engine finally backtracked to the source.
*****
At the Heaven-Observing Net Qi Research Institute in the Immortal Alliance's heart.
Word that the analysis engine had finished computing drew massive crowds of cultivators.
This moment would decide the southern continent's fate.
Researchers strained to control the throng.
"Please step back, further back! Further!"
"The expedition can't get through the crowd!"
"No entry except authorized personnel! No entry!"
Despite their efforts, the crowd only swelled.
Seoran, Damcheong, and the expedition barely squeezed inside.
A moment later, and they'd have been trapped in the mob.
The interior was chaos too.
"Keep checking spiritual qi supply—don't let it stop!"
"Coolant depleted! Coolant depleted!"
"Maintain proper temperature at all costs!"
"Don't clutter the input ports or it'll jam!"
"Coolant here!"
"Not that one—something else!"
The expedition dodged scurrying researchers to reach the analysis engine.
The institute director and lead researcher watched the computation anxiously.
Temperature controls roared to cool the engine's exhaust heat.
Seoran greeted as representative.
"Director, we're here."
The director didn't respond.
His mind was wholly on the computation; he was utterly zoned out.
Seoran decided not to disturb him.
Even in this moment of collective desperation, the analysis engine plodded on.
Spiritual qi and coolant consumption accelerated.
At last, the grueling computation ended.
The lead researcher read the results aloud.
Final computation from the analysis engine.
Excessively condensed fire spiritual qi, located 500 li (200 km) beneath the surface in the desert beyond the Thunder Peak Mountains, presumed cause of anomalies.
Margin of error: none.
Confirming the results, the director screamed,
"Finally! Finally! FINALLY!"
Cheers erupted contagiously.
Joyous shouts, roars, tearful sobs.
The Heaven-Observing Net Qi Research Institute had fulfilled its mission.
They had finally grasped the thread of hope.