Chapter 228: Star Traveler

Chapter 228: Star Traveler

Ji Xinghuo's heart lurched, but he maintained a calm facade. He activated his electromagnetic sensing, scanning every inch of the surrounding space. However, he found nothing.

Within a radius of three kilometers, the streets were the same as before. Everyone's electromagnetic field was normal, with the strongest being the seven Legends and one King. Their fields were vastly different from that of a Star Shepherd.

"Such means..." Ji Xinghuo's mind raced with speculations. Either the Star Shepherd had the ability to conceal his electromagnetic field and had intentionally revealed himself to make his presence known, or he moved at an unbelievably fast speed, surpassing the range of electromagnetic sensing.

Either way, he was unfathomable.

The most terrifying part was that the Star Shepherd seemed to have seen through his secret! Ji Xinghuo wanted to flee from Tianzhuai Cliff immediately, but the thought of the Star Shepherd's power made him feel as insignificant as an ant, unable to resist if the other party had ill intentions.

"Who are you?" he asked silently in his mind.

The voice in his head replied, "Just a wanderer drifting in the stars."

It was only then that Ji Xinghuo realized that the other party was speaking a language he had never learned, yet he could understand it perfectly.

It was as if a thought had been transmitted directly into his mind, requiring no translation, allowing for seamless communication.

"A wanderer?" Ji Xinghuo asked, puzzled.

As he communicated with the voice, he kept his expression neutral, riding his mount alongside Xia Qingyu and Misha, slowly making their way through the streets.

The voice fell silent for a few seconds, offering no further explanation.

But Ji Xinghuo remembered.

Out of the over 40 known profession templates and 200 advanced professions on Earth, there were some that people had only heard of but never successfully pursued.

One of them was called the "Star Traveler."

The template and knowledge of this profession were obtained by a legendary eccentric during their adventures in the star realm.

The core ability of the Star Traveler was "Star Realm Leap," allowing them to traverse incredibly long distances within the star realm and reach far-off places in a short time.

This profession had over ten template abilities, including several space-related ones such as "Vacuum Sense," "Phase Shift," and "Space Distortion."

Once a Star Traveler's template was complete, they could even become a Star Shepherd and open stargates, using the star realm as a bridge to travel through the galaxy, achieving interstellar travel beyond the capabilities of technology.

They were the freest beings in the galaxy! They could go wherever they pleased, possessing not only immense combat power but also unparalleled survival skills.

"Star Traveler?" Ji Xinghuo asked again.

"Oh?" The voice sounded surprised. "You know about Star Travelers? That's rare. Earthlings truly live up to their reputation as a fourth-grade civilization, more advanced than most civilizations and races in the southern region of the True Dragon Star Domain. Your potential is immense."

Ji Xinghuo's heart skipped a beat. The other party knew about Earth.

He dared not speak casually anymore.

Any Star Shepherd was an unstoppable force to Earth in its current state. If he offended the other party, it could bring about Earth's destruction.

But the next words of the Star Shepherd startled Ji Xinghuo even more.

"I have no interest in Earth. There are too many civilizations like this in the galaxy. However, I am intrigued by you, an Earthling."

Ji Xinghuo's heart nearly stopped.

"May I ask what has caught your interest, Senior?" he asked cautiously.

"Hehe..."

The voice suddenly laughed.

"You don't have to be afraid," the voice said kindly. Even though it was just a voice, Ji Xinghuo felt as if he could see a smiling face through the thought, "I have an ability to see the future possibilities of some people, and your future..."

A sense of awe was conveyed through the other party's thought.

"...is too astonishing!"

"It was just a vague phantom of your future, yet it was enough to be called magnificent. It startled me to the core."

"Ah..." The voice sighed, "I once had an audience with an Infinite Realm Master, and it felt somewhat similar to this."

"Hence, I say that you hold a great secret."

Ji Xinghuo was bewildered.

To foresee the future? What is an Infinite Realm Master?

He felt absurd. Although he had always been ambitious on the path of life evolution, he had never specifically thought about what kind of achievements he wanted to attain. After all, he knew that the highest realm was the seventh stage, known as the Star Shepherd, which was already unattainable.

He didn't fully believe that the other party could accurately foresee his future achievements.

Perhaps they had misinterpreted the signs, or perhaps the existence of the Myriad Images Star Pupil had created an illusion.

The most crucial concern for Ji Xinghuo was, what if the other party took action against him based on this prediction? Despite the show of goodwill, he couldn't completely trust them.

Ji Xinghuo was at a loss for how to respond.

"You have your secrets, and I have my destiny," the voice replied calmly. "Even though I know that I might gain greatly from you, I will never initiate a dispute. I am a man of peace and, more importantly, a trader."

There was a brief pause before he continued, "Everything has a price, and nothing lasts forever."

"If you are willing to exchange your secrets with me, I will offer a price that will surely satisfy you."

"And if you are not willing, then let us be friends."

"I would be delighted to befriend a future Infinite Realm Master and, in the process, make a small investment. Of course, all of this is premised on your voluntary agreement, free from any coercion or manipulation from me."

After finishing, he waited for Ji Xinghuo's response.

Ji Xinghuo detected the sincerity and openness in the other party's words, secretly relieved. He also guessed the reason behind the Star Shepherd's behavior; this being seemed to abide by a certain set of rules, whether out of personal belief or racial tradition, which was definitely a good thing.

Even a fool would know what choice to make at this point.

"To befriend a senior like you is an honor I seek." Ji Xinghuo readily agreed and introduced himself. "My name is Ji Xinghuo."

"My real name is not something I can disclose, but I have a nickname—the Ethereal Wanderer." The other party replied, "You may address me as Senior Ethereal."

"Greetings, Senior Ethereal."

Ji Xinghuo greeted him respectfully and asked curiously, "Is Senior Ethereal just passing by Tianzhuai Cliff?"

"Hehe..."

Senior Ethereal laughed, "For hundreds of years, I have spent most of my time at Tianzhuai Cliff. Up on the plateau, I also have another identity—the Lord of Tianzhuai Cliff."

"Ah!" Ji Xinghuo exclaimed in surprise.

He looked up at the stone palace in the middle of the cliff, which was too far away to be within the range of his electromagnetic sensing. However, he vaguely sensed that at that moment, a gaze was upon him from the tall palace, and it belonged to Senior Ethereal.

"So, Senior Ethereal is the owner of Tianzhuai Cliff. My apologies for my ignorance," Ji Xinghuo realized.

"Just an empty title."

Senior Ethereal waved it off casually. "Tianzhuai Cliff is merely one of my temporary residences and a trading post where I collect resources from the Bloody Highlands."

Ji Xinghuo asked, "What kind of resources?"

"Weapons and equipment, precious raw materials, knowledge, expansion curios, exotics, etheric crystals..." Senior Ethereal listed many things. "Anything of value and uniqueness that can be traded in the Star Realm and the galaxy piques my interest."

"Of course, I have very high standards and am not interested in just anything."

"At the same time, I also have connections to procure many treasures that are unavailable in the True Dragon Star Domain, such as armor from the Eternal Empire, starglands and exotics from the Star Alliance, interstellar shuttles from the Infinite Trade Consortium, ultimate treasures from the Void Empire, or secret arts from the Spirit Power Sect and the Etheric Sword Sect..."

"As long as you can afford the price, I will do my best to get them for you."

"Everything has a price!"

As he finished speaking, Senior Ethereal emphasized, "Everything has a price," with the solemnity of a believer reciting a religious creed.

Ji Xinghuo remembered that this was the second time Senior Ethereal had mentioned this phrase.

He understood the implication behind the words.

This Star Shepherd was akin to a "merchant" or a "trader," utilizing his extraordinary star-traveling abilities to collect goods from across the galaxy and the Star Realm, bringing them to other places for trade and profiting from the price differences.

At the same time, Senior Ethereal adhered strictly to certain rules and pursued fair trade.

Tianzhuai Cliff was one such market established by Senior Ethereal for resource collection and trading, and there were likely similar markets elsewhere.

"I will remember that, Senior," Ji Xinghuo replied.

"Here."

A token appeared out of thin air and landed precisely in Ji Xinghuo's hand, unnoticed by anyone else.

Ji Xinghuo's heart raced.

Just this ability to deliver an item through space surpassed his imagination.

On one side of the token was the emblem of Tianzhuai Cliff, and on the other was an engraving of a blurry, bizarre face. The face had no features, only tendrils that stretched out like tentacles, sharp and claw-like. Despite being just a carving, it exuded a chilling sensation.

Ji Xinghuo pocketed the Tianzhuai token and said, "Thank you, Senior."

However, there was no response from the Ethereal Wanderer.

"Senior?" Ji Xinghuo called out a few more times, but the voice in his mind remained silent, indicating that the psychic connection had been severed.

Finally, he's gone.

Ji Xinghuo secretly breathed a sigh of relief, only then realizing that he had broken out in a cold sweat.

The Star Shepherd had put him under immense pressure.

He made his way back to Xia Qingyu's home, but neither Xia Qingyu nor Misha noticed anything amiss. As soon as they entered the house, they embraced passionately and headed upstairs to the bedroom, soon filling the house with the sounds and vibrations of their intense collision.

"Dog lovers!" Ji Xinghuo cursed, disturbed even in his cultivation room. He decided to go out for some fresh air.

Mounted on Qinghong, he rode towards the stone mountain in the middle of Tianzhuai Cliff. Xia Qingyu's home wasn't far from the mountain's foot, and he soon entered the Snow Ape Giant tribe.

Snow Ape Giants preferred to dwell in caves, but as the stone mountain was too short to accommodate caverns, they built their homes from giant stones instead. Each house stood at an imposing height of over a dozen meters, with a vast footprint, surrounded by beautiful gardens and public spaces.

These stone houses encircled the central stone mountain, ascending with the slope of the mountain, guarding the palace atop it.

As Ji Xinghuo approached the tribe, he could already see many Snow Ape Giants in the distance.

There were adults, as well as younger giants, and regardless of age or gender, they all possessed formidable strength, with an average of at least the second stage of the Giant realm.

The elites among the giants were all in the fourth stage.

Through his electromagnetic sensing, Ji Xinghuo detected thirty-seven fifth-stage giants, known as Legends.

There were even three King-level giants!

He couldn't help but marvel at the giants' innate talent, which far surpassed that of other races.

The Snow Ape Giant tribe of Tianzhuai Cliff had a population of just over 3,000, yet it boasted three Kings, an astonishing ratio of one in a thousand. In contrast, Earth had a population of over 4.2 billion, but only 49 Kings, averaging one King for every 85 million people—a stark difference.

As Ji Xinghuo entered the tribe, he was promptly stopped by a well-equipped giant patrol.

" Outsiders are not allowed," a Snow Ape Giant called out.

Ji Xinghuo presented the Tianzhuai token, saying, "I request an audience with Chieftain Hanqiu."

The leading giant recognized the token and said, "Follow me."

Ji Xinghuo trailed behind the giant, who stood taller than him even when he was on Qinghong. With each stride, the giant covered three meters of ground, causing the earth to tremble slightly, and the surrounding temperature dropped noticeably.

Snow Ape Giants naturally possessed ice-based abilities, and unlike many other giants, they combined strength with agility, making them exceptionally powerful.

The armor they wore was clearly not something crafted on the plateau.

"It must have been obtained by the Ethereal Wanderer specifically for the Snow Ape Giants, and it's likely custom-made," Ji Xinghuo mused. Now that he knew of the existence of the Ethereal Wanderer, he could piece together the situation.

Following the giant, he arrived at the foot of the mountain and entered a massive stone house.

"I'll inform the chieftain of your arrival," the giant said, stepping into the stone house. He soon returned and said, "The chieftain will see you now."

Ji Xinghuo dismounted from Qinghong, leaving it outside, and entered the stone house. In the spacious and lofty hall, he beheld a Snow Ape Giant with an extraordinarily formidable aura.

This giant also wore a superpower armor, his body robust and powerful, with a natural stoop that made his arms nearly reach the ground. Standing there, he loomed at a height of over six meters. White fur peeked out from his armor, long and dense, and his eyes held a grayish-blue hue, reflecting a sense of age and experience.

A sixth-stage giant, a King-level powerhouse! Ji Xinghuo dared not be careless and quickly approached, offering his greetings. "Greetings, Chieftain Hanqiu."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end