A Night of Desperation

Chapter 410: Hope 4

"You must not be a disciple of the True Origin Sect, right? Oh, that’s right, a while back, the only True Origin Sect disciple here committed suicide, his name was Yang Chenhe." The tiger said with a laugh, "Have you ever met him? He was in a very low position."

"Yang Chenhe... I’ve met him." Yu Hong replied, his heart sinking.

"Did he ever tell you that in this world, all things, everything, only the Source Disaster is the true orthodoxy! It is the main theme of everything, we living creatures... are merely the miraculous results of chance?" The tiger laughed heartily.

"Life as such is just a fleeting bubble in the lengthy cycle of the Source Disasters, with only a tiny moment in time where the environment is suitable for our survival. For the vast majority of the time, it’s an environment of Source Disaster completely inhospitable to any form of life."

"Do you know what I used to do?" The tiger continued. "A Fate Master! I was a supreme Fate Master who specialized in calculating people’s future destinies! After much effort and strategizing, enduring revulsion and the blood of hundreds of thousands as my base, I sought the hope for the future!

Whoosh.

The roaring sound of the Black River’s waves could be heard constantly outside the ship.

Yu Hong stood at the bow, slightly fatigued, gazing at the thick fog continuously being split apart ahead.

During these days, he had taken the Black Ship to explore numerous shattered islands, but they only contained some oddly shaped Black Disaster Monsters, without any useful clues found.

Ku Chan was meditating on the aft deck. Qing Huang was flipping through foreign language learning materials collected from Hope City.

Zhang Kajing leaned against the ship rail, holding a comic book in one hand, reading it with relish.

Yu Hong glanced at her;she was holding a martial arts comic book. He had read it himself when he was bored. The characters could all casually destroy mountains and part seas, with their martial arts levels exaggerated to the extreme.

At that time, he had fantasized that if he had the power of those characters, perhaps he could have resisted the Source Disaster and maintained the life he desired.

But judging from their experiences in the Taoist Sect world this time, even such powerful figures might not see any hope...

"What do you think, what kind of power can withstand the Spirit Disaster Black Disaster? Martial arts powerhouses in comics? Gods and Buddhas? Or the pinnacle of scientific development?" Yu Hong asked softly.

"The martial arts powerhouses probably can’t do it... Gods and Buddhas, isn’t that what the Spirit Disaster is? According to ancient records, the Source Disaster is endless and rejuvenates. They have infinite energy and quantities. To confront them, we need to find an infinite power as well, but the only infinite thing in this world is the Source Disaster itself. So it comes back to using the Source Disaster to fight the Source Disaster, which is like walking a tightrope—one misstep, and the entire game is lost. So..." Ku Chan shook his head and opened his eyes. "Only the power that can devour them! Turning them into a part of oneself, to weaken them, to empower oneself! In reverse, suppress them!"

Clearly, he had this idea long ago, which is why he created a Daoist Skill with similar effects.

"That makes sense, Ku Chan. Can you share your Daoist Skill with me? Perhaps I could strengthen and improve it..."

Yu Hong nodded in agreement. Indeed, a true genius. After having a breakthrough, he caught on to the key point immediately.

"Take it." Ku Chan flicked a booklet towards him. "This is the Cloud Transformation Technique I created myself. It’s not perfect yet—only those whose Dao Breath is close to that of a Heavenly Master can use it. Ordinary people cannot even practice it. As an Alliance Hierarch, you shared the Spirit Light Secret Skill and saved so many people—this Cultivation Technique is nothing by comparison."

He seemed to have gotten over his issues now, his essence qi spirit was much more vibrant than before, his eyes bright and resolute, and he started actively joining the efforts to investigate the Source Disaster.

It seemed like he considered the Source Disaster as the only remaining enemy responsible for the death of his family and had found a new goal for surviving.

Click.

Yu Hong caught the booklet, flipped through it, and roughly understood Ku Chan’s train of thought.

Using one’s own Dao Breath to condense an Array in the body, draw in the power of the Source Disaster into oneself, and by outnumbering them with an advantage, suppress and reduce the power of the Source Disaster. Then, bit by bit, clarify the chaos and reorganize it into a completely new structure of power that can integrate and coexist with oneself.

This Cloud Transformation Technique could only be used against Source Disasters that weren’t too opposite to one’s own Dao Breath attributes. The idea was quite novel, and the method straightforward and brutal.

If we ignore the aftereffects of integrating the Source Disaster’s power into the body for the short term, there’s no major issue.

But... upon seeing that Ku Chan’s eyes had already turned blood-red and new dense blisters had started to grow on his disfigured face, Yu Hong knew that the aftereffects had started to manifest.

It’s nothing but a stopgap measure...

He sighed in his heart.

Holding the booklet, he crossed his legs and sat down, silently reciting in his mind.

"Strengthen the Cloud Transformation Technique, direction: eliminate the aftereffects."

Hiss.

A black line flowed out from the Black Mark, rapidly merging into the booklet.

But the next moment, the black line returned to the Black Mark and provided feedback.

’Unable to eliminate, Cultivation Technique’s related functions incomplete.’

"..." Yu Hong immediately understood that the Cultivation Technique needed at least a tiny bit of functionality to combat the aftereffects, but it seemed there was none at all. Perhaps Ku Chan never cared how long he would live.

He thought for a moment and decided to try another approach.

’Strengthen the Cloud Transformation Technique, direction: delay the manifestation of aftereffects by one hundred years.’

Magicians don’t have methods to extend their lifespan, with Quan He being the longest-lived. If Ku Chan’s aftereffects could be postponed to manifest after one hundred years from now, wouldn’t it be equivalent to having no aftereffects?

After all, by that time, Ku Chan would probably have died of old age.

This time, the black line flashed and flowed into the booklet, prompting a query for feedback.

Yu Hong knew the enhancement was successful.

After he confirmed the success, he saw a bright red countdown appear on the booklet’s cover: 5 days 11 hours 05 minutes.