"Hiss~~~"
Strands of golden light permeated, and the gourd shard in Lin Zhao's palm grew smaller and smaller. However, wisps of golden veins emerged from the inner wall of the shard, identical to the golden veins on the inner wall of the green gourd when the old Daoist imprisoned the reincarnation of a true dragon. Lin Zhao's heart stirred, and he steadied his mind, refining all these golden veins bit by bit. Finally, a gourd shard disappeared completely in his palm, transforming into a green shard that appeared in the Spirit Ruins.
"Finally done."
Lin Zhao took a deep breath and walked out of the Natural Residence. He lay down on the blazing maple lounge chair outside and immersed his spiritual sense into the Spirit Ruins. He saw two enormous Sword Nourishing Lakes spinning and churning, each containing a celestial sword. In addition, five celestial swords and twelve Great Desolate Ancient Swords hovered in the Spirit Ruins. The figures of these celestial swords and ancient swords were colossal within the Spirit Ruins, emitting a majestic aura of slaughter.
Finally, Lin Zhao's spiritual sense found the green gourd shard. With a thought, it transformed into a small Lin Zhao who appeared in the Spirit Ruins. This small Lin Zhao was none other than the Nascent Soul cultivated by his Yuan Shen. The small Lin Zhao sat quietly in front of the green gourd shard, beginning to observe and comprehend the wisp of sword intent contained within.
This was an extremely long and gradual process.
It wasn't until around midnight that Lin Zhao finally saw a green figure within the sword intent. It seemed to be an ancient sword immortal clad in a green robe, holding a long sword. The moment he unleashed his sword, the heavens and earth changed color. The grace of that sword was peerless. Lin Zhao studied it meticulously many times, yet still could not comprehend the profundity of this sword.
As expected, creating one's own skill couldn't be rushed. This was only the first day the self-creation skill function was activated, and it was natural that no player should be able to comprehend it.
"Beep!"
A message arrived from Chen Xue: "Late-night snack?"
"Mhm, logging off now!"
Lin Zhao wasn't in a hurry. He logged off. In the row of gaming pods, Shen Xingchen, Ding Chi, Luo Man, and others rose one after another. The girls, dressed to the nines when they logged in, were indeed quite a sight. Downstairs, Wang Ju had prepared seafood congee. Lin Zhao and the others drank the congee while discussing matters within the game.
"Did someone create a skill today?" Lin Zhao asked.
"Mhm, they did," Shen Xingchen replied.
"Ah?!"
Lin Zhao was surprised. "It really happened?"
"It did, but don't worry," Chen Xue chuckled. "It seems to be a second-tier knight from the Azure Dragon Guild. Around nine o'clock tonight, they created an Earth-grade ★★ attack skill called 'One Spear Breaks the Mortal World.' Tsk tsk, its estimated combat power is only around an A-grade skill, not all that impressive."
"There are grades too..." Lin Zhao said in surprise.
"Of course there are."
Shen Xingchen glanced at him as if he were an idiot. "The grades of self-created skills are Human, Earth, Heaven, and Immortal, in that order. Each grade is further divided into one, two, and three stars. So, this Earth-grade two-star skill is, at most, a mid-tier skill. It won't affect the game balance. To truly impact the overall strength of players, it would probably require at least a Heaven-grade self-created skill to start with."
Ding Chi frowned. "Esteemed Deputy Alliance Leader, we only heard that someone successfully created a skill. Does anyone know how they did it?"
"Unclear," Shen Xingchen shook her head.
Chen Xue added, "I learned through someone I knew from the Azure Dragon Guild that the reason that person succeeded in creating a skill was because they saw a cultivator in the Sea Treading Realm, known as the Spear God of Furong State, practicing with a spear. They felt one particular move was incredibly remarkable and practiced it repeatedly. Eventually, through sheer practice, they suddenly had an epiphany and created this Earth-grade ★★ skill."
"That's truly bizarre," Lin Zhao remarked.
Zhang Jun chuckled meaningfully. "It seems like out of all of us, you're the least qualified to say 'truly bizarre,' aren't you, Mountain Master?"
"..."
Lin Zhao couldn't refute him. He chuckled and continued to drink his congee.
...
"Rumble—"
As everyone was drinking their congee, the ground suddenly shook violently. The entire villa of the studio trembled, and the chandelier overhead swung back and forth. Lin Zhao instinctively placed a hand on Shen Xingchen's and Luo Man's shoulders, pushing them under the table. At the same time, he activated his Xihe-class combat armor, deploying a shield to protect everyone from falling debris from the ceiling.
However, the violent tremors only lasted for a few seconds before ending.
"An earthquake?"
Chen Xue also entered her individual combat armor system, frowning and looking at Lin Zhao.
"Don't know."
Lin Zhao frowned. Seeing that there was no further movement, he said sternly, "Quick, everyone go outside to take shelter!"
Everyone rushed out.
Outside, Nangong Jilin, also in combat armor, met them. "Young Lady, are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
Shen Xingchen was quite calm. "Don't worry, what happened?"
"It seems to be vibrations from afar."
Nangong Jilin looked at the holographic data on his arm. "But the data shows no seismic activity from crustal movement. If nothing else, it should be for another reason."
"..."
Shen Xingchen frowned in silence.
Just then, Lin Zhao's communicator rang. A message from his cousin, Murong Feiyue. He immediately turned to the edge of the woods and answered the communicator. Murong Feiyue, in her military uniform, appeared as a holographic image above Lin Zhao's wrist. She frowned, "Little Zhao, you also felt the tremors from underground, right?"
"Mhm, what's going on, Sis?" Lin Zhao asked.
"It's not an earthquake."
Murong Feiyue's expression was grave. "A few minutes ago, a swarm of sea beasts from the deep sea suddenly attacked our undersea foundations. They successfully destroyed the defense network. Now, the East Sea Navy is dispatching a large number of elites to intercept the sea beast tide. But if nothing else, many sea beasts will surely ascend the rivers and head west towards the upstream cities. Cities like Sucheng, Xicheng, and Ningcheng could all become targets."
"Then..."
Lin Zhao frowned. "What can I do?"
"You don't need to do anything."
Murong Feiyue looked at him. "Just stay at the studio and don't go anywhere. The local defense forces in Sucheng are also quite elite. Even if the sea beast tide lands, the threat to Sucheng won't be too great. As long as you don't leave the city, there shouldn't be any major problems. Alright, I'm just letting you know to confirm your safety. I have to get busy now. Take care of yourself."
"Mhm!"
Lin Zhao nodded, but he looked at Murong Feiyue's slightly tired, pretty face and said, "Sis! You take care of yourself too..."
"Mhm, I will."
Murong Feiyue smiled and nodded. She thought to herself that at least this boy had some conscience. He wasn't completely lost in the gentle embrace woven by Shen Xingchen, Leng Yan, Chen Xue, and Luo Man. He at least remembered to care about his sister who was on the battlefield.
...
The night passed without incident.
Everyone soon learned that the waters east of the Shanghai Ruins had been attacked by an unprecedented sea beast tide. However, that was the military's affair, and ordinary civilians could only wait for news from the military.
Waking up in the morning, everything was as usual.
After breakfast, Wang Ju took Xiao Ju to school. Lin Zhao logged in and continued to lie on the lounge chair in front of the Natural Residence, observing and comprehending the sword intent left by the Sword Saint surnamed Pei. Since Tong Yu learned the "Thirty-Six Maneuvers," her sword intent had become even more potent, and her brows exuded an air of a sword immortal. At such a young age, she already possessed the demeanor of a master.
However, sending Zhang Luobai and Zhuang Yirong to the academy was still her responsibility. It didn't matter if she was just a mid-tier Sword Cultivator; even if she were a top-tier cultivator, this task would still be hers. Who else but the senior disciple could do it?
At the town below the mountain.
Huang Tingyu, clad in armor and with a wine gourd hanging from his waist, led a group of snow-field cavalry to patrol the town's safety. The townspeople were accustomed to seeing Huang Tingyu and were no longer afraid. They only knew that although this deputy commander was personally appointed by Lin Zhao, he was nothing like Lin Zhao. On the contrary, old Huang was lazy, loved to steal, and his eyes were always darting towards the women, much like a slovenly guard at the town gate.
"Oh my!"
Huang Tingyu walked to a steamed bun stall. The owner of the stall was a lean middle-aged man. Huang Tingyu sniffed and said, "Old Niu, your steamed buns are getting more and more fragrant. Look at your physique, you're getting stronger and stronger. Last night, I heard you and your wife discussing in bed about having another child? You should have another one; three isn't enough. Your buns..."
"Oh, Commander Huang!"
Old Niu bowed and scraped, quickly wrapping six steamed buns and shoving them into Huang Tingyu's hands. He said with a smile, "Commander Huang has been patrolling day and night for our Tianchi Town and has grown more gaunt. Have some steamed buns to replenish your strength."
"How could that be?"
Huang Tingyu reached into his pocket to get some money. "My Commander Lin said that the armored soldiers of Snow Region Tianchi are incorruptible and self-disciplined, not taking a single thread or needle from the common people..."
"Alright, alright."
Old Niu pinched his nose and smiled apologetically. It's not like you, Old Huang, are taking any less.
"Ah hahaha~~~"
Huang Tingyu searched for a long time but couldn't find a single copper coin. He chuckled, "You're the sensible one, Old Niu. When I have time, I'll talk to the military scribe and ask for your rent to be reduced!"
Old Niu bowed obsequiously.
Huang Tingyu moved on and saw a shifty-eyed, slovenly man eating a bowl of egg noodles. He smiled and took out a steamed bun. "Come, come, Brother Tang, have a steamed bun. Your elder brother just bought it from the stall."
"Commander Huang is truly benevolent!"
Tang Guangjun chuckled. "However, Tang Guangjun walks the Jianghu and never pays for his meals."
"Me too!"
Huang Tingyu heartily slapped the shoulder of the twelfth-level military scholar, looking as if they had met each other too late.
...
Evening.
Lin Zhao's observation and enlightenment finally yielded some clues. The sword intent of the immortal dancing with his sword from the gourd shard was becoming increasingly intense and clear. He lay on the lounge chair, using one finger as a sword, and made a couple of gentle movements. Strangely, a similar sword intent permeated the air. It seemed the opportunity to create a sword move was drawing closer.
Just then, with a "beep," a call came in. The caller was Qing Ning, a top ranger from the guild.
"Lin Zhao..."
Qing Ning's voice was choked with sobs.
"What's wrong?"
Lin Zhao suddenly stood up. "Qing Ning, what's wrong?"
"Zhenjiang... Zhenjiang has been overrun by the sea beast tide..."
Qing Ning cried, "My whole family is trapped on the rooftop. I don't know when the municipal rescue aircraft will arrive. I'm so scared... There are so many planes in the sky, but no one is coming to save us. Many people have already fallen off the roof due to the crowds. What should I do?"
"..."
Lin Zhao's heart trembled violently. He glanced at the news channel on the interface. Indeed, it was broadcasting the news of Zhenjiang City being overrun by the sea beast tide. The real-time footage showed hundreds of meters of city walls being pushed down, and dense swarms of sea beasts pouring into the city, ravaging the human city. There were scattered limbs and bodies everywhere, the footage was extremely bloody, and many parts were pixilated.