Whoosh—!
A black speck flickered into existence within a mysterious structure—then vanished as if it had never been.
Gu Tianchen peeked out from a shadowed corner of the wall. After confirming no one was around—and crucially, that there were no surveillance devices on the walls—he stepped out, relying on his illusion array for cover. He fiddled with the array pattern on his wrist, then began his work.
Boldly activating his martial soul, he revealed all seven soul rings. As black light shimmered, a distorted black vortex silently formed, seemingly connecting to another realm.
Gu Tianchen frowned at the spatial gate. Sensing its instability warping the portal further, he quickly stabilized it with his soul bone, calming the spatial ripples. Then, he gave a thumbs-up through the gate.
"Spatial instability?" A foot emerged from the gate—Chen Junting stepped out, followed inevitably by Dugu Xin.
"Could this be Sun Moon's deliberate doing?" Dugu Xin pressed a hand against the metal wall, muttering. "If spatial abilities were this easy to use, enemies could waltz into any imperial stronghold."
Chen Junting shook his head. "Not deliberate interference. Some metals naturally disrupt spatial energy." He continued, "Besides, only Limit Douluos or spatial-attribute soul masters can open gates this precisely. They wouldn't waste resources countering such rarities."
It was now the eve of the finals—the operation had begun.
Pre-midnight: time to infiltrate the granary.
"Old Gu, can you sense the location?" Chen Junting didn't elaborate. "Can you stabilize the gate?"
"No problem," Gu Tianchen nodded.
"Good. Let's go."
Gu Tianchen reconstructed the spatial gate, resisting the metal walls' interference. Soon, a passage to the storage district opened.
"I'll scout ahead. If anything's wrong, retreat immediately," Chen Junting said, stepping through—only to find the outer storage area completely empty.
"How absurd," he muttered. His spiritual sense bounced off the walls, but he confirmed: no guards inside.
"Yuhao mentioned lax security, but this? Not a single guard in the critical grain zone? Ridiculous…" He shook his head, pleased. Stealth was paramount. After double-checking, he returned, and the trio crossed through.
No need for concealment here—no person and no cameras.
Dugu Xin scanned the area. "Was it always empty?"
"No wonder I said you'd be shocked," Chen Junting replied.
"Inconceivable," Gu Tianchen closed the gate, overhearing. "Grain is more vital than armories, yet they're this careless?"
"They never expected this," Chen Junting explained as they walked. "In peacetime, who'd raid an imperial granary? Invaders target high-grade soul tools, not grain."
They halted before a massive metal fireproof door—the Mingdu Granary's core.
Chen Junting stepped aside. Gu Tianchen instantly opened a spatial rift—effortless, flawless.
Inside, metallic grain silos stretched endlessly. Each was a sophisticated soul-engineered system, capable of ventilation, fumigation, temperature control, and monitoring.
"Only the Sun Moon Empire could afford this," Chen Junting noted, tapping a screen. If we'd known, we'd have brought a soul engineer. Now we're blind.
"Xin, can your poison bypass detection?"
"Undetectable to humans, yes. But machines… the grain's internal state will change," Dugu Xin admitted, pulling out his vial. He wasn't confident—it'd likely trigger alarms.
Chen Junting studied the silo roof. "Old Gu, open a hole up top. I'll deploy an array from above to blind the soul tools' sensors."
"Your call," Gu Tianchen agreed—but groaned inwardly at the sea of silos. This'll drain me!
He opened spatial gates anyway. Soul power depletion hit hard; he resorted to a recovery bottle, far worse than their Snow Demon Sect battle.
Chen Junting, however, floated illusory arrays with ease, enveloping the silo interior.
"Xin." At Chen Junting's call, Dugu Xin sprang into action, sprinkling his toxin.
Open silo → Deploy array → Poison → Repeat.
Their progress accelerated.
Finally: "Done."
Chen Junting surveyed the unchanged silos, satisfied. "Let's return outside."
No objections. But as they reached the door, preparing Gu Tianchen's gate—
Clang!
The metal door shuddered. Outside stood a bewildered young man.
—
My name's Li Hua, a new recruit assigned to Mingdu Granary. Tonight's task: routine grain inspection—a tedious chore I've done barehanded for weeks, since it's just a formality.
Until…
Coincidentally, as I entered the code and opened the door, I froze. Inside stood three unmistakable figures—Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect's Chen Junting, Gu Tianchen, and Dugu Xin! As a die-hard tournament fan, I'd recognized them instantly after the quarterfinals.
Wait—aren't we enemies?!
Before Li Hua could scream—
"Oh, what a coincidence," Chen Junting said, hand clamping his shoulder. Crushing pressure locked Li Hua in place, cold sweat drenching him.
Move! Call for help!
Why won't you move, Li Hua?!
Chen Junting, oblivious to his panic, greeted him casually: "Good evening."
Li Hua's face contorted into a pained smile. "G-good evening…"
Thud!
Lights out.
"Handled," Chen Junting said, propping the unconscious Li Hua against the door. "His memory's edited."
As Gu Tianchen opened the gate, he asked, "Will he notice?"
Chen Junting smirked. "Trust my editing skills. The 'plot' is flawless."
They stepped through—their encounter with Li Hua just a minor hiccup.
Once Chen Junting vanished, Gu Tianchen and Dugu Xin followed. The granary returned to silence.
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