Hao Yun remained silent, instructing the author to lay out the three manuscripts according to his directions, overlapping them from three different angles on the ground. After examining the overlapping sections of the manuscripts from various perspectives, as if realizing something profound, he pointed at the elliptical deep pit ahead and said, "No wonder this place is so peculiar! If I interpret this correctly, rather than suffering from a sudden natural disaster, this place experienced a long-planned sacrificial ritual. The purpose of this ritual was to accelerate the arrival of disaster upon the planet."

"What?! Are you saying that the punishment my family suffered because of me was actually a premeditated sacrificial ritual? They... Mei Mei, they became sacrifices in that ritual?!" The author exclaimed in utter shock.

"If my understanding is correct, that seems to be the case," Hao Yun cautiously reiterated his conjecture.

Hesitating for a moment, Hao Yun continued, "However..."

"However what?" the author anxiously interrupted, eager to learn more about the sacrificial ritual.

"It's quite strange. Despite the apparent severity of the sacrificial ritual, in reality—" Hao Yun paused, carefully choosing his words, "—all the victims who were sacrificed apparently did not die on the spot. Instead, they were all transported somewhere mysterious through the energy that appeared here."

"What?! You mean my family didn't die? They... they're still alive?!" The author, overwhelmed by this revelation, was nearly frantic. His eyes widened as he looked back and forth between Hao Yun and the ruins, his face filled with astonishment.

"Yes. At least at the time of the disaster, they didn't immediately perish. Based on my analysis of the residual energy here, the catastrophic disaster didn't harm the lives encased within," Hao Yun explained cautiously.

"So, this seemingly devastating disaster was just a large-scale teleportation array. Everyone present at the time was actually transported somewhere else through that array?" Dream Jia asked incredulously.

"From the information I've deciphered so far, that seems highly likely. Although the disaster erupted as a sacrificial ritual, it didn't harm the victims but rather transported them away. It's quite peculiar," Hao Yun analyzed the sacrificial ritual.

"Hao Yun! Do you have a way to find them, to find my family? If you can help me find them, I... I'll do anything for you, even if I have to work like an ox or a horse, no! Even if I have to die and become a spirit, I will forever serve you!" The author grabbed Hao Yun's arm excitedly, kneeling before him and pleading.

Hao Yun quickly pulled the author up and reassured him, "Hey, Old Chou, what are you doing?! Get up quickly! Don't get too worked up! Remember, it's not just about finding your family, but about finding all the missing people together! By locating these missing victims, we might uncover the root cause of the world's impending destruction and trace back to the mastermind behind all these disasters!"

"The mastermind? Who could be behind all this? Are they extremely powerful?" Dream Jia perked up at the mention of a mastermind.

"According to the data my system can currently analyze, our opponent is likely connected to mold spirit energy. Because my system has detected catastrophic levels of mold spirit energy on this planet, the adversary we're about to face is undoubtedly formidable," Hao Yun replied, summoning a holographic screen that displayed various monitoring data of the planet.

Pointing to one of the data points, Hao Yun said, "Furthermore, the form of mold spirit energy here is also very peculiar."

"What do you mean by peculiar?" the author asked curiously, unable to decipher the data displayed on the screen and relying on Hao Yun's explanation to understand the current situation.

"According to the system's monitoring results, the mold spirit energy here is extremely unstable and somewhat uncontrollable, making it even more dangerous. It's like unstable bombs that could explode at any moment. Therefore, if we want to help this planet resolve its crisis, our first task should be to quickly identify the source of this mold spirit energy and execute a decisive action before it spirals out of control."

"Note that I mean completely eliminating this mold spirit energy, not just capturing it first and resorting to killing as a last resort. Because the state of this mold spirit energy is so unstable, capturing it would only increase our risks. However, how we go about eradicating this mold spirit energy without jeopardizing the safety of the planet is a thorny problem that requires further investigation," Hao Yun explained quickly, summarizing the information he currently possessed.

"It looks like the upcoming mission will be exceptionally perilous! But it's alright! Mei Mei, if you're still alive, please hold on! As soon as I resolve the problems on this planet, I'll immediately find a way to rescue you!" Despite feeling apprehensive about hunting mold spirit energy, the author expressed his eagerness. Now that he knew there was a chance his family was alive, he was determined to brave any dangers ahead and would never give up easily!

Just as Hao Yun and his team began planning their next course of action, they suddenly received a message heavily distorted by electromagnetic interference: "Crackle! Hiss! Hiss hiss! Hello? Hello! Is anyone there? Hiss! Hello?! Can anyone hear me? Respond if you can!"

"It's Dao Lao! That's Dao Lao's voice!" Despite the interference, both Hao Yun and Dream Jia immediately recognized the owner of the voice.

“Dao Lao? Dao Lao?! Is that you?! I'm Haoyun! Please respond if you hear me!" Haoyun called out excitedly.

"It's me! It's me! crackle Oh, man! You guys are really... crackle... really here!" Dao Lao replied with equal excitement.

"Dao Lao! Here are our coordinates! Can you come over? We're waiting here!" Dream Jia, in her excitement, quickly sent her coordinates to help guide Dao Lao to their location.

"Old Dao! How did you make it here? I thought you were blown to bits on the spot!" Haoyun continued excitedly, fearing that not maintaining continuous dialogue with Dao Lao would sever their signal connection.

"Ah, bullshit! Who do you think I am? How could I be blown away so easily? Besides, your explosion power is as weak as a fart, not even enough to kill two flies. How could it possibly harm me?" Dao Lao retorted defiantly.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"I say, can you two stop? Whenever you two get together, all you do is argue like market vendors. Aren't you tired of it?!" Dream Jia, seeing Haoyun and Dao Lao engaged in a spitting contest over the communication channel, immediately scolded them sternly.

Seeing both of them quiet down like scared little chicks, Dream Jia regained her composure and asked calmly, "Dao Lao, how did you know we were here? How did you get here? What happened after we left?"

Angrily, Dao Lao replied, "Oh, don't even mention it! That bastard from the Balance Ring, after you guys blew up Elina, had his eye on me! Probably because she sacrificed a lot of her power to help you fight Elina and relieve the pressure from Guardian Uryll and the Mother of Moulds. Then, forced by the agreement you reached, he had to abandon purifying Earth and other actions, leaving her emotionally devastated and filled with resentment. So, after dealing with Elina's matter, that bastard started fabricating charges against me in every way possible, trying to execute me to vent his anger!"

"Fortunately, Old Yan and Old Gu intervened in time, telling the Balance Ring that I also have some connection with Guardian Uryll and the Mother of Moulds. If they forcefully executed me, they might again exploit the situation and plan actions detrimental to the entire Spirit God Realm. That's barely how I managed to save my life."

"But that malicious Balance Ring didn't want to let it go like that. So, while agreeing to spare me, she stripped me of my qualification to live in the Spirit God Realm and exiled me to the main base of the abandoned Purification Squad P1557 to die. Unexpectedly, as soon as I was forcefully thrown out of the Spirit God Realm, I immediately entered into a realm of darkness and chaos. Then, I fell into a deep sleep and heard a strange voice."

"A strange voice? What kind of voice?" Haoyun asked.

Dao Lao replied uncertainly, "It was a very unfamiliar yet strangely familiar strange voice. That voice told me in my dream that a new journey was about to begin and said you were waiting for me there. Then, that voice started singing a lullaby-like song, and I quickly lost consciousness."

Haoyun and Dream Jia couldn't help but exchange glances upon hearing this, highly suspecting that the strange voice Dao Lao mentioned was the same voice that had been directing the author to write the novel.

Continuing through the communicator, Dao Lao said, "When I woke up again, I found myself in a chaotic world, and I also found that my injuries had completely healed. Even the Dark Spirit Realm battle armor on me had been repaired. Only my Mould Energy Tracking System is still under reconstruction. Except for basic functions like information transmission, all other functions are still malfunctioning. But luckily, the information transmission function is usable, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to contact you so quickly."

After briefly introducing his situation, Dao Lao's tone changed as he sighed, "Oh man! But speaking of which, where exactly is this place? Why does it look so chaotic? It seems we've definitely gotten into some big trouble again, huh? Ah, I'm really out of luck! Since I met you, Haoyun, I haven't had a peaceful day!"

Ignoring Dao Lao's complaints, Haoyun succinctly explained, "This planet is called Earth. It was suddenly covered by a disaster. But we haven't figured out what happened here yet. In addition to Earth, many worlds here are heading towards destruction. What we are preparing to do is to save as many worlds as possible from destruction."

"Hahaha! So that's how it is! It looks like we're going to have new adventures again! Since it's about saving lives, I'm naturally willing to participate!" Upon learning about the situation here, Dao Lao immediately laughed heartily, full of anticipation for the upcoming battles, just like Dream Jia who never refused a fight. As soon as they talked about fighting, their voices were full of strength and enthusiasm.

"Old Dao, you'd better come over and join us quickly, so that Haoyun can help you upgrade your Mould Energy Tracking System as well! Haoyun just helped me with the Mould Energy System. Oh, right! We can't call it the Mould Energy Tracking System anymore! It's now called the 'Stellar Guardian System 1.0.'" Dream Jia said proudly, while casting a glance at Haoyun who looked a bit nervous. She wanted to see if Haoyun would also help Dao Lao upgrade the system through such intimate actions. If not, she would definitely make Haoyun look bad!

"'Stellar Guardian System 1.0'? Doesn't sound that great! Ah well, it doesn't matter! It's time for us to draw a clear boundary with the Spirit God Realm! But how did you suddenly gain the ability to upgrade the system? Looks like you've had quite a few adventures since leaving the Spirit God Realm!" Dao Lao replied casually.

Upon hearing this, Haoyun hurriedly avoided Dream Jia's sharp eyes, coughed a few times, and replied to Dao Lao, "Cough, cough, cough! I just happened to find a way to manipulate the system. But this matter is quite complicated. Let's meet up first, and I'll explain it to you slowly!"

"Alright! Wait for me to join you! According to the system display, I should be very close to the coordinates Dream Jia provided! Huh? Wait a moment! What's that?" Dao Lao replied joyfully to Haoyun, then suddenly changed his tone and asked.

"What's that? Dao Lao? Have you found something?" Haoyun quickly inquired upon hearing this.

"I seem to have seen a cluster of purple-red energy swiftly flying past not far ahead of me. That energy... it feels a lot like Mold Spirit energy? No, that cluster is Mold Spirit energy! I have to catch up and see what's going on! Haoyun, here are my coordinates. You better hurry over to find me! That energy is flying towards a distance, as if trying to escape from here! It seems unaware of me! Hurry up and find a way to get here! I'll keep an eye on it!" Dao Lao urgently urged.

Since Dao Lao's system couldn't detect the Mold Spirit energy, nor determine its exact combat power, he relied on experience to judge that the rapidly moving energy entering the rolling fog in the electric clouds was Mold Spirit energy, but he couldn't gauge its danger level. Therefore, Haoyun quickly reminded him, "Dao Lao! Be safe! The unusual energy you found is most likely Mold Spirit energy, and it's at least catastrophe-level in strength! Dao Lao, don't engage it on your own. Mold Spirit energy here is very strange and highly unstable, with a risk of explosion at any moment! You must wait for us to arrive!"

After reminding Dao Lao, Haoyun signaled Dream Jia and the author to prepare for battle. However, since the author didn't have the Star Guardian System 1.0, he was completely unaware of the conversation Haoyun and the others had just had. This left the author standing there, bewildered and unsure of what was happening, when Haoyun suddenly issued combat orders.

"Old Abi, just stay behind us! Don't act on your own! Don't worry, as long as you stick close to us, you'll be safe!" Because Dao Lao was tracking a Mold Spirit energy force at catastrophe level, Haoyun couldn't explain much to the author right now. So, after hurriedly instructing the author a few times, he looked back at Dream Jia.

Having worked with Haoyun for a while, Dream Jia instantly understood his gaze. Thus, with a displeased roll of her eyes, she reluctantly handed her flying cloak to the still bewildered author. Then, in a threatening tone, she warned, "Hey! I'm telling you, Old Abi! This cloak of mine is quite expensive! So, you better be on high alert! If you even accidentally damage or soil my cloak, I'll skin you alive! Got it?!"

"Oh! I just wanted Old Abi to wear your cloak and fly with us, not to join the battle! He definitely won't damage your cloak, so just relax!" Seeing the author holding the cloak in fear, looking at Dream Jia with a timid expression, Haoyun quickly reassured her.

"Alright, alright! Old Abi, this is your first time flying with the cloak, so it might feel uncomfortable at first. But after a few flights, you'll get used to it. Remember! Stay close behind me. If you stray too far, I can't guarantee that I'll control the cloak well enough to keep you from falling and turning into a meat pancake!" Dream Jia reminded the author sternly before shaking her head at Haoyun, indicating she was ready to fly with the author.

"Old Abi, just relax and follow my lead! With me around, you'll definitely be fine!" Haoyun reassured the author, gently patting his trembling shoulders.

Then, Haoyun took out the Phoenix Blade, exuding confidence as he addressed Dream Jia, who held the balance of all living beings, and the author, clutching the large black backpack containing the manuscript of this novel, "Alright! Let's go! Let's go!"

Immediately, the three leaped into the air, accompanied by the author's screams that resembled pig slaughter, and swiftly plunged into the swirling clouds of thunder and fog.

(The End.)