High Martial: I Grind Professions

Chapter 506: Chapter 318: Fatal Threat, Return to Blue Star

A massive interstellar port.

Starships of all shapes and sizes were already neatly docked in their berths.

Their engines emitted a low hum of energy, like giant beasts growling before a long journey.

Each Starship represented a genius’s journey home or the start of a new one.

Li Wen and Blood Blade stood together on the port’s viewing platform.

From this vantage point, the sheer scale of the Starships and the grandeur of interstellar travel were even more apparent.

They silently watched the scene below.

They watched as the young figures who had toiled here, now bearing the fruits of a year’s worth of training and refinement, boarded their respective Starships one by one.

A poignant sense of farewell welled up in both their hearts.

”Li Wen, farewell!” Lorne Meck’s figure appeared at the hatch of a magnificent Starship.

He stopped, turned, and waved vigorously toward Li Wen on the platform above. His voice boomed, filled with genuine regret at their parting and a heartfelt blessing.

”Farewell!” Li Wen replied, raising his hand and nodding firmly.

Their eyes met, and both knew with certainty that this parting in the physical world meant that meeting in person over the long years to come would be incredibly difficult, if not impossible.

At their current level, the vast physical distances of the cosmos were still an unbridgeable chasm.

The Virtual Cosmos would become their only point of contact.

The roar of the engines suddenly intensified, and brilliant light erupted from their powerful exhaust.

One by one, the Starships smoothly lifted off, piercing the sky above the base.

They became streaks of light, vanishing in an instant against the deep backdrop of space, leaving only faint trails of energy in their wake.

Soon, the once-clamorous port became empty and silent.

Only the lingering hum of the engines reverberated through the vast, empty space.

Now, only Li Wen and Instructor Blood Blade remained in the vast port.

”The people on Alka Star are very efficient. Your escort has already departed.”

Blood Blade’s deep voice broke the silence. He looked at Li Wen. ”I estimate they’ll arrive at the base in about ten days.”

”Thank you for going to all this trouble, Instructor,” Li Wen said with sincere gratitude.

The two briefly discussed a few more details about the handover.

Then, they left the empty port together and returned to Elite Training Base Seven.

...

「At the same time.」

In the remote Lain Minor Imperial Star Domain.

Within the Tianhe System, home to Blue Star.

A pitch-black, teardrop-shaped meteorite was approaching Blue Star at near the speed of light.

It was now only a few tenths of a light-year away from Blue Star.

A crimson marking on the meteorite’s surface suddenly lit up—exceedingly faint, yet pulsing with a terrifying psychic will—as a hazy thought emanated from deep within the rock: ’Devour... souls... devour.’

If anyone had been nearby, they would have discovered this psychic pulse was immensely powerful, approaching the strength of a Tier Four Star Lord.

...

Ten days of quiet cultivation and waiting passed in a flash.

Li Wen was sitting cross-legged in his room, in a state of absolute concentration as he sorted through his insights on the Time Law and the details of his new avatar.

A message from Instructor Blood Blade, relayed by the Star Pivot, entered his mind: ”The escort has arrived. Come to me at once.”

Li Wen immediately gathered himself, rose, and pushed open the door, striding quickly toward Instructor Blood Blade’s residence on the base.

Before he even got close, he heard a burst of resonant, hearty laughter coming from inside the residence.

”Hahaha, Blood Blade, you old dog! Guarding this Base Seven, and you’ve managed to dig up another incredible talent!”

Another familiar voice, which Li Wen recognized as Blood Blade’s, replied with a chuckle:

”Leo, you got lucky this time, landing such a cushy assignment. I’m handing him over to you now. It’s a long road to Alka Star, so take good care of him.”

The conversation inside paused at Li Wen’s arrival.

Blood Blade immediately beckoned. ”Li Wen, over here.”

He gestured to the burly, middle-aged man beside him, a man with resolute features and a piercing gaze.

”This is Leo Lieyang, a Senior Deacon from the Source Net’s External Affairs Department on Alka Star. He’ll be responsible for escorting you to the branch there.”

Leo Lieyang’s gaze locked onto Li Wen for just a moment before it was replaced by an even more enthusiastic smile.

He strode forward, offering his hand. ”Li Wen! I’ve heard so much about you! Even on Alka Star, we heard the news that you stormed the tower and defeated a King. A true young hero! It’s my honor, Leo’s honor, to escort an internal genius like you to Alka Star!”

His attitude was exceptionally friendly and enthusiastic.

He knew full well that as long as they didn’t fall along the way, every internal member of the Source Net had an excellent chance of one day reaching the realm of a Tier Nine Star Lord.

It was well worth it for a Tier Five Star Lord like himself to proactively show some goodwill and forge a good relationship.

As the man sized him up, Li Wen’s keen gaze also fell upon the badge on Leo’s chest—a small black tower entwined with menacing, blood-red thorns.

It was identical to the one he had seen on Instructor Blood Blade—a Tier Five Slaughter Centurion!

This silently demonstrated that the man was not just an administrative deacon, but a battle-hardened and immensely powerful warrior.

After their brief introduction, Leo Lieyang demonstrated a brisk, military-like efficiency:

”Blood Blade, I’ve met him. He’s certainly extraordinary! There’s no time to waste, we should get going, don’t you think?” he said, looking at Blood Blade.

”Good idea. The sooner you leave, the sooner you’ll arrive,” Blood Blade agreed with a nod.

Once again, Blood Blade personally escorted the two to the interstellar port.

This time, docked in an exclusive berth, was a Starship with an even more streamlined design. Faint, deep-blue energy circuits flowed across its surface.

It was not particularly large, but it emitted force field fluctuations that far surpassed those of the trainees’ Starships from the day before.

It was one of the advanced vessels that the Source Net equipped exclusively for its internal members.