702 The Lunar Stronghold! (1/2)
The days passed steadily as Wang Baole considered his options. Feng Qiuran's and his arrival on the planet had spread to every Federation cultivator situated on the base. Duan Muque had intentionally promoted the matter. As a result, everyone on Venus, Mars, as well as Earth, were aware of Wang Baole's return.
They found out about Wang Baole's advancement in his cultivation as well as the Grand Supreme Elder of the Dao Palace, Feng Qiuran's alliance with the Federation. The news excited everyone in the Federation.
The response on Venus was especially positive. Wang Baole's speech at the aerial port had reached the ears of many and energized many more cultivators on the planet. They were burning with fighting spirit.
Visitors continued to bombard Wang Baole's temporary residence since his return. They included Federation Seedlings he had gotten to know on the ancient sword, old acquaintances like the giant tree and Sect Lord Xu, and powerful figures from the various political entities in the Federation. They expressed their desire to get to know Wang Baole better and showed great respect and even deference during their visits.
If it had been some other occasion, Wang Baole, well-versed in the high officials' autobiographies, would have spent most of his time with these people, deepening his relationship with them. However, he wasn't in the mood for that now. After a few days, he announced his decision to retreat into seclusion.
The war continued while Wang Baole remained in seclusion, growing from minor skirmishes to more frequent encounters. As the Solar System Array Formation continued to monitor everything under the sun, all evidence seemed to be pointing towards the inevitable… the Dao Palace and the Never-Ending Clan were close to completing their preparations for battle. The war against Venus was approaching.
On the tenth day of Wang Baole's seclusion, Kong Dao finally completed his own mission and returned to the Federation. He was the first of Wang Baole's friends and comrades to return.
He made his way to Wang Baole's place immediately upon his return. The first thing he told Wang Baole when they met was…
\”Baole, Zhuo Yifan has gone missing!\”
A cold light flickered in Wang Baole's eyes. Questions, careful and precise, began flowing. During that fateful mission on the Never-Ending Clan battleship, Kong Dao had hidden himself inside a rescue pod and avoided the massacre that followed. Then, he had seized the moment of Daoist You Ran's absence and the weakening in the battleship's interference to escape.
He hadn't managed to catch up with Zhao Yameng after he had returned to the Vast Expanse Dao Palace and had missed the evacuation back to the Federation. However, he had made use of his connections in the Dao Palace and used up whatever battle credits he had accumulated to escape from the ancient sword before Daoist You Ran's return.
\”I was lucky. Mercury was still standing when I returned. The President hadn't given the orders to blow up Mercury. If he had…\” Kong Dao shuddered at that thought.
\”I found Zhao Yameng and the others when I came back. We exchanged information and realized that no one had seen Zhuo Yifan. You've returned, and Zhuo Yifan remains missing. His brother, Zhuo Yixian, is missing as well!\” Kong Dao said, then eyed Wang Baole.
Wang Baole remained silent for a long while before releasing a soft sigh. If not for the looming war, he could have easily made use of his status as the Vast Expanse Dao Palace's Grand Supreme Elder to locate his friend.
But they were at war. Zhuo Yifan had only himself to rely on now. No matter how worried Wang Baole was for his friend, he could only set this matter aside for the looming war ahead of them. He spoke a while longer with Kong Dao. Kong Dao was exhausted and concealing his injuries, so Wang Baole gave him a few bottles of spirit liquid before ending their chat.
The skirmishes between the Federation and the Dao Palace cultivators continued to grow more violent. After Kong Dao recovered from his injury and got sufficient rest, he was once again summoned for a team mission. All Core Formation realm cultivators like Kong Dao were being worked hard. There were simply too many things that required their attention.
Core Formation realm cultivators were the pillars that supported teams that patrolled their borders, supported the greater array formation, went on scouting missions, and conducted search and rescue efforts. The cultivation techniques that Wang Baole had sent back while in the Dao Palace had aided many of the Federation's more experienced cultivators who had been stuck at the perfected Core Formation realm for a long time and granted them great enlightenment. Regardless, there had only been three new additions joining Sect Lord Xu, the giant tree, Duan Muque, and Li Xingwen in the ranks of the Nascent Soul realm.
One of them was Li Wan'er's father, the head of the Senate. Another was an elder from the Five Generation Sky Clan. The last… wasn't from the Four Dao Colleges or the Trilunaris Corporation, nor was he the Sect Lord of the Plume Manifestation Connate Sect. He had seemed an unlikely candidate. Yet, upon closer contemplation, it should have been something that was to be expected. The third person was… Lin Tianhao's father, the City Lord of Ethereal City, Lin You!
Lin You had been one of many senators in the Senate. He might have wielded great power in the Federation as the lord of a city, but he had not been counted amongst the ranks of the truly powerful in the Federation. Everything had changed since his breakthrough. No one dared underestimate this young senator who showed great potential now!