Former Interstellar Mercenary In Urban Cultivation World
Chapter 1032: Return to Nameless Peak

Chapter 1032: Return to Nameless Peak

Nameless Peak remained as desolate as ever. The path up the mountain, once flanked by a vibrant display of blooming flowers, had seen most of them wither in just a month.

On the way here, Amalia and Kenny Lin overheard conversation about Ding Huiqing damily.

"Well, I didn’t expect Ding Huiqing’s mother to be the Sixth Elder’s sister. It’s no wonder the Sixth Elder was so invested in the matter and even replaced the Fifth Elder to come thank us personally," Amalia remarked.

"Hardly surprising. Look at Vincent Tan, who’s so gullible he might as well have ’Easy to Trick and Sell’ written on his face. The fact that Ding Huiqing hasn’t actually sold him off yet shows they must have a deep bond," Kenny Lin commented dismissively.

"He’s just naïve, not actually stupid," Amalia replied, rubbing her temples.

"Oh? Do you like the naïve type?" Kenny Lin’s expression turned dangerously sharp.

"How could I? I like someone like you," Amalia responded calmly.

Kenny Lin’s face faltered for a moment before betraying a hint of delight, though he tried to keep it hidden. "I know you like me. You don’t have to keep repeating it. Just say it once every time we meet."

"Give you an inch, and you’ll take a mile," Amalia chuckled, shaking her head. She knew this man would never change.

"Of course, because that inch of sunlight is something I’ve worked so hard to earn," Kenny Lin replied with a grin.

The two had just returned to Nameless Peak when Renshu Chang sent someone to deliver the reports they had requested.

Amalia stepped out to collect them.

"So many?" Amalia exclaimed, noticing the thick stack in Kenny Lin’s hands as he walked back in.

"It’s not just the martial report; there’s a pile of what they’re calling ’cultural reports’ too," Kenny Lin said, tossing the newspaper-like documents onto the stone table.

Amalia glanced at the stack and immediately understood the difference between the two types of reports.

The cultural reports were essentially collections of trivial daily events, akin to entertainment gossip in Earth terms. Meanwhile, the martial reports focused on rankings such as the Heavenly Talent List, the Earth List, and the Spirit List, as well as key duels between cultivators and inter-sect power dynamics.

"What’s so interesting about gossip? It’s a total waste of time," Kenny Lin said dismissively, pushing the cultural reports aside.

Amalia, however, picked them back up. "It’s not necessarily. Sometimes fragmented information can come together to reveal something useful."

Kenny Lin held up one of the martial reports. "Renshu Chang even sent last month’s martial report."

He skimmed it briefly before setting it aside in favor of the latest ones.

The Spirit List and Earth Lists hadn’t changed much. As expected, Master Lian still firmly held the top position on the Heavenly Talent List—a spot unchallenged for many years.

Kenny Lin’s gaze fell on the second name on the list. "Your master ranks second on the Spirit List. It’s was surprising that she hasn’t already stormed the pavilion that publishes these rankings."

"I’d bet she had tried it but failed. Most likely, my master stopped her. If she scared them into submission and they ranked her first out of fear, wouldn’t that make my master second—"

Kenny Lin abruptly stopped mid-sentence.

Amalia gave him a knowing look. "I suggest you don’t finish that thought. Even if My Master is in seclusion, there’s always the chance her divine sense is still monitoring outside. I can’t save you if she hear it."

"I have a master too, you know," Kenny Lin muttered, rubbing his nose sheepishly.

"You’re overestimating your importance," Amalia said bluntly, shattering his fantasy. "Hand me the martial report."

Kenny Lin tossed it over with a bored expression. "No need to look. We’re not ranked first or second."

Of course, neither Jirandal Tang nor the others were ranked that high either. They had only recently reached the Deity Transformation stage, whereas those ranked above them were mostly over a hundred years old, with one nearing two hundred.

While these people were geniuses, they hadn’t yet reached the level of heavenly talents. Without further breakthroughs, it was only a matter of time before they were surpassed.

"The Mystic Void Continent is full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers. There are likely many powerful individuals who haven’t been included in the Heavenly Talent List yet," Amalia mused.

As she committed the names on the rankings to memory, she gained a better understanding of the hierarchy of power on the Mystic Void Continent.

"Enough of this. Bring out the boxes from the Immortal Spring. Let’s see if there’s anything useful for us," Amalia said.

Without wasting words, Kenny Lin retrieved all the boxes.

He had collected more boxes than anyone else—three of them had shone the brightest during their initial descent. He had grabbed them the moment they hit the water, storing them in his spatial ring. Without Amalia’s support, he might have sunk along with them.

There were also eight dimmer boxes, their engravings rougher in design.

Amalia picked up one of the boxes and ran her fingers over it. "These boxes aren’t made from ordinary materials. They’re icy to the touch, resembling minerals, but they’re actually a type of tree. Likely over ten thousand years old, it must be a key material for forging celestial artifacts. Truly extravagant of the Immortal Realm."

"Let’s open them and see what’s inside. If they’re useless, we can always use them as crafting materials," Kenny Lin said, opening one of the boxes without hesitation.

A flash of light streaked across as the box revealed its contents.

Inside lay a bundle of green objects, resembling a vine sprawled within.

"What’s this?" Kenny Lin asked, pulling the vine out of the box.

The vine twitched slightly in his hands, a bizarre sight. Yet, he remained calm, pinching it firmly between two fingers without a hint of fear.

"It looks like some kind of immortal vine. Likely a crafting material. Since the Immortal Palace took the trouble to seal it inside this box, it’s probably not ordinary. Let’s store it for now. I’ll examine it more closely later," Amalia said.

With that, she opened the box in her hands.

This box was much smaller—only half the size of the one Kenny Lin had opened.

Inside lay a peculiar stone, gray in color, with no apparent distinguishing features.

"Could it be that the Immortal Palace folks had a habit of collecting oddities?" Kenny Lin speculated.

"Even if they did, they wouldn’t store them in a box like this. Besides, this was one of the brightest glowing boxes earlier. This stone likely holds some significance we don’t yet understand."

After the incident with the Immortal Realm, cultivators on the Mystic Void Continent had lost all contact with immortal beings. Many records and texts about the Immortal Realm had also vanished.

Finding any information about celestial artifacts now was almost impossible.

"Let me test something," Kenny Lin said suddenly, picking up the stone.

He tossed it into the air, then, with a wave of his hand, sent a streak of sword energy hurtling toward it.

Something astonishing happened. The stone remained entirely unscathed. More surprising still, the sword energy never even reached it, stopped short by a barrier of light emanating from the stone itself.

"Interesting," Kenny Lin mused. "It can automatically block my sword energy. Could this stone have developed sentience?"

"If it had, it would’ve run off by now," Amalia said, placing the stone back in its box.

Kenny Lin moved on to the next box. He opened the second of the three most impressive boxes, revealing a blade inside. He immediately handed it to Amalia with a triumphant grin.

"Look! Finally, a divine artifact worthy of you."

Amalia was taken aback. She hadn’t expected to find a blade inside. "This blade... it looks damaged."

The blade was riddled with jagged dents, and the hilt was only half intact. It radiated no spiritual energy at all.

Kenny Lin’s excitement faded instantly. He was about to discard the blade in disappointment when Amalia stopped him.

"Just because it’s damaged doesn’t mean it’s useless to me," she said firmly.

"Though this divine artifact is damaged, the fact that it was stored in this box suggests it was once a powerful artifact. It might still be useful someday," Amalia said thoughtfully, deciding to keep the blade.

"This one better not disappoint me," Kenny Lin muttered, picking up the last box.

This was the very box that had nearly dragged Amalia into the depths of the Immortal Spring during their final retrieval attempt.

Just as Kenny Lin was about to lift the lid, the box trembled violently in his hands. He immediately exchanged a glance with Amalia.

"Is it alive?"

"What kind of living thing could survive for countless years in such a tightly sealed box? It’s likely just a tremor triggered by the artifact before it’s activated," Amalia speculated. "Still, let’s be cautious. I’ll set up a formation in the hut."