Void Cultivation

Bao’s expression changed slightly, however, he raised his hand and gave a tired wave.

Grey increased his walking pace and a few moments later, he arrived beside Bao.

He glanced briefly at the slightly chubby man before turning his attention toward the blueprint resting on the iron barrel.

His gaze swept across the intricate designs covering the paper.

Grey could not understand every detail on the blueprint, but he could tell that the magic ship depicted on it was extraordinarily complicated. There were numerous magical formations, mechanical structures, and other components that he could not even begin to identify.

After looking at it for a few seconds, Grey quietly turned his gaze away.

He had not come here to study Bao’s blueprint.

"Sigh Your magic ship took way longer to finish than I initially expected."

Bao’s tired voice sounded beside him.

"But that’s because I had to rebuild the entire thing from scratch. Assuming I still had the old divinity core and the spirit diagrams, it would have been easier."

He paused for a moment.

"But it’s finally done now."

As he finished speaking, Bao reached into his storage bag.

A moment later, he pulled out a small bottle. Inside the bottle was a miniature magic ship.

The tiny vessel floated quietly within the container, its intricate structure visible even at such a small size. Despite its miniature appearance, Grey could immediately sense the faint fluctuations of spiritual energy emanating from it.

It was his magic ship.

Grey tacitly reached out and took the bottle from Bao. Without even giving it another glance, he placed it directly into his storage ring.

Bao’s eyes widened as his pupils dilated slightly.

"You’re not going to check it out first?"

Grey paused. Bao stared at him in disbelief.

"At least take a look and see if I did the work properly!" he exclaimed, his previously tired voice suddenly becoming more energetic. "You spent a lot of money on this thing!"

There was an obvious look of astonishment on his face.

Bao had spent an enormous amount of time working on Grey’s magic ship. He had practically poured his heart and soul into rebuilding it.

Yet, Grey had simply taken the ship and put it away.

He did not even inspect it. Grey looked at him calmly. Then, he slowly shook his head.

"I trust you..."

He began speaking, but paused halfway through his sentence. Bao’s expression immediately became somewhat nervous.

Grey looked at him with his usual blank expression.

"If it’s not up to standards, then I’ll come find you."

His tone was completely indifferent. However, Bao’s body trembled slightly.

For some reason, he suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

The meaning behind Grey’s words was obvious.

If the magic ship was not as good as Bao had claimed it to be, then he would be in serious trouble.

Bao’s mind immediately recalled the time when he and Grey had been enemies.

Back then, Grey had genuinely wanted to kill him.

Bao had spent a considerable amount of time hiding from him, constantly changing his location and using paper substitutes to mislead him whenever possible.

And that had been before Grey had even entered the Foundation Establishment realm.

Now?

Grey had already progressed far beyond that point.

Bao did not even want to imagine what would happen if Grey became truly serious about hunting him down now.

He would probably have nowhere to hide.

’Thankfully, I poured my heart into making his magic ship as good as I possibly could.’

Bao secretly wiped away the cold sweat that threatened to form on his forehead.

’Especially when it came to designing the spirit formations and the Divinity Core.’

A faint trace of pride appeared within Bao’s heart.

’Even expert artisans would have difficulty matching my accomplishments in these areas. When it comes to the construction and design of spirit formations and Divinity Cores, there are very few people who can surpass me.’

Bao secretly nodded to himself. He was confident in his skills. There was no way he would have dared to hand Grey an inferior magic ship.

At least, not if he wanted to continue living. Bao’s gaze shifted toward Grey.

The young man was currently scanning the warehouse with his eyes, observing the artisans as they hurried around the Transportation Department.

For some reason, Bao could not help but let out another tired sigh.

He had sighed too many times since meeting this man.

A few months ago, Grey had tried to kill him. Not only had he tried to kill him, but he had gone out of his way to search for him.

Bao had spent a considerable amount of time running and hiding.

And yet, despite everything that had happened between them, the two of them were now standing side by side as if none of it had happened.

Bao found the situation somewhat absurd.

’This guy really holds a grudge.’

Although Grey rarely showed his emotions openly, Bao had slowly come to understand his personality.

Grey was the kind of person who would repay malice with malice and kindness with kindness.

If someone treated him well, he would remember it. If someone tried to harm him, he would remember that as well.

People like this were not particularly rare in the world.

However, finding someone who remained so consistent in their principles was exceedingly difficult.

Bao had met many people throughout his life.

Some people would forget kindness the moment it was no longer beneficial to them.

Others would forgive an enemy today only to stab them in the back tomorrow.

Grey, however, seemed different. At least, that was how Bao saw him.

Suddenly, Grey turned his head. His eyes narrowed into thin slits as he stared directly at Bao. Bao immediately felt his body stiffen.

"Why are you eating a peach?"

"..."

Bao paused. For a moment, he simply stared at Grey.

It was as if he was genuinely contemplating the question.

Finally, he sighed.

"Honestly..."

He looked down at the half-eaten peach in his hand.

"I don’t know."

Grey raised an eyebrow slightly. Bao scratched the back of his head.

"I think Violet’s behavior of constantly eating apples has rubbed off on me."

"That’s your explanation?"

"That’s the only one I have."

Bao shrugged helplessly.

"Besides, I found that eating fruits whenever I’m stressed helps relieve my anxiety."

He smiled awkwardly.

"Hehe."

After saying this, Bao rubbed his slightly protruding stomach.

Grey remained silent as he stared at Bao for several seconds. Then, without saying anything, he reached into his storage bag.

Bao watched curiously.

Grey pulled out an apple. Unlike the red apples Violet was always eating, this one was green.

Grey stared at it for a moment. Then, he reached into his storage bag once more and pulled out another apple.

Without saying anything, he tossed it toward Bao.

Bao caught it effortlessly.

"Oh."

He looked at the apple in his hand with some surprise. Then he looked at Grey.

Grey had already taken a bite of his own apple. Bao stared at him for another moment before shrugging.

"Well, alright."

He took a bite. The moment his teeth sank into the crisp fruit, his eyes widened slightly.

"...Not bad."

He took another bite. A satisfied expression slowly appeared on his face.

The exhaustion that had been weighing heavily on his body seemed to dissipate slightly.

Perhaps it was merely psychological.

Or perhaps there really was something special about eating fruit when one was exhausted.

Either way, Bao did not care. It tasted good, and that was enough.

The two figures remained leaning against the iron barrel.

Neither of them spoke.

For several long seconds, the only sounds surrounding them were the constant movements of the Transportation Department.

The clanging of metal and the hurried footsteps. As well as the occasional shout from one artisan to another.

The hum of magical formations. All of these sounds blended together.

Eventually, both Grey and Bao finished their apples.

Yet, neither of them immediately moved.

They simply continued watching the hustle and bustle of the Transportation Department.

Once again, admiration subtly appeared within Grey’s eyes.

He had already seen how hardworking these people were.

However, watching them work for such a long period of time only strengthened his impression of them.

They truly took their work seriously. After a long while, Bao finally broke the silence.

"I heard that you two captured the Heaven’s Chosen from the Bizarre Broken Sect."

Grey’s expression remained unchanged.

"Was it difficult?"

Grey shook his head.

"It wasn’t hard."

His answer was simple.

"Besides, Violet handled the difficult part. She killed his bodyguard before he could interfere."

Grey paused briefly.

"If she hadn’t done that, it would have been troublesome."

His voice was not particularly loud. Yet, his words were crystal clear to Bao. Bao let out another sigh.

"I’ve sighed too much whenever I’m with you guys."

Grey glanced at him. Bao ignored the look.

"However, I hope you’re aware of the consequences that will soon follow."

Grey’s expression remained calm.

He simply nodded while continuing to watch the artisans moving throughout the warehouse.

"Of course."

Bao’s expression became slightly more serious.

"Moreover, the force they were working for is the Secret Order."

At the mention of those words, Grey’s gaze finally shifted toward him.

"Although they haven’t been particularly active in this part of the continent, I’ve heard that they’ve been becoming a serious menace throughout the continent."

Grey’s expression gradually became more serious.

He looked directly at Bao.

There was an obvious trace of curiosity within his eyes.

This was the first time Grey had heard someone speak about the Secret Order in such a manner.

He knew very little about the organization. Even less about its influence. Only that they were a bunch of fanatics who kidnapped people and tried to use them to solve the problem of corrosive substance.

Apart from that, Grey know nothing else about them.

Bao noticed Grey’s reaction. He hesitated for a moment before continuing.

"The part of the continent we’re currently in is still considered part of the Central Quadrant."

Grey listened attentively.

"However, we’re only in a relatively small corner of it."

Bao raised one hand and gestured vaguely toward the surroundings.

"The second continent is enormous. Much larger than most people here can imagine."

Grey’s expression remained solemn. He had never really considered the scale of the world beyond Sky Mist City.

But he knew that the continent was vast.

But hearing Bao speak about it like this made him realize just how insignificant their current location might actually be.

Bao continued.

"The Central Quadrant itself is incredibly vast. There are countless regions, empires, sects, organizations, and ancient forces scattered throughout it."

He paused.

"But the main place where the Secret Order operates..."

Bao’s expression became somewhat complicated.

"...is in the very center of the Central Quadrant."

Grey’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"Near the Imperial Palace."