Chapter 302 - 252: Rewrite Sealing Memory Technique

Taking a deep breath, Chu Bamboo didn’t engage with Howard. He lowered his gaze, silently sensing the mark of the Crimson Sky Fire in his mind...

The reason Chu Bamboo dared to come this time wasn’t just because of the diary he’d read. To be blunt, the diary had also recorded Golden Dawn’s betrayal. If he had followed it to the letter, he should have rejected Coach Yuan’s invitation from the start!

The main reason... was the transformation of his Divine Techniques!

Although the feedback in the Real World from his breakthrough to the Second Realm of Cultivation hadn’t allowed him to break through to the First Realm, it had brought some changes...

At the same time, and most importantly, Chu Bamboo had brought back the Divine Techniques he had imprinted.

Yes, Chu Bamboo’s Blessing Power was currently extremely scarce. Ultimately, he still hadn’t broken through to the First Realm! In theory, at his level, he shouldn’t even possess Divine Techniques.

But no matter how scarce it was, it only meant a smaller attack range when using his Crimson Sky Fire...

Activating the seal in his mind, successfully Rewriting it, and then using it—that was still no problem at all.

In any case, when the Crimson Sky Fire was activated, it could maintain the passive effect of transforming his body into fire for at least ten minutes...

Under these circumstances, his room for maneuver, whether for counterattacking or escaping, was infinitely greater.

Most importantly...

Chu Bamboo discovered that although his Cultivation hadn’t advanced, the recovery rate of his Blessing Power after use was terrifyingly fast. He had been running simulations on the plane the entire time, and the Blessing Power he consumed was rapidly replenished...

It was to the point that he had been simulating Skills the entire trip and hadn’t felt any scarcity of Blessing Power.

He couldn’t have accomplished this even at the First Realm!

Chu Bamboo suspected... this might be some kind of fundamental change brought back from the Second Realm.

Taking all this into account, Chu Bamboo now felt very confident.

"Oh, right! That thing I asked you to do for me," Chu Bamboo said, raising an eyebrow.

"..." Howard was silent for a good while. He gave Chu Bamboo a deep look, gently swirling the red wine in his glass with one hand while raising the other. "Alright, alright! If you want to have your fun, then go ahead for a few days! Afterward, you’re coming with me to the rock music studio to re-record some songs... and yes, I’ve arranged a special guide for you!"

"I really don’t get it! You—or rather, you Shen Zhou people—all seem to love going to see... exhibitions of Divine Continent artifacts lost abroad!"

Howard complained, "You guys are so aggressive! When will you ever learn... that being a bit more gentle would help you get along with us better?"

Chu Bamboo didn’t reply. Howard, finding his comment fell flat, didn’t press the issue and quickly started chattering about other things, mostly about music.

Chu Bamboo nodded along from time to time, his mind racing.

’Yes, one of my main reasons for coming this time... was the artifacts!’

’To be more precise, Artifacts!’

’Through the Chixiao Sword, I vaguely guessed that some of these ancient antiques might also possess special properties... Perhaps they’re extremely rare, or perhaps their activation requires a certain level of Cultivation—which is why they haven’t caused any stir in the past!’

’And this time, the reason I came to Big Apple City was because a top-tier exhibition of Eastern artifacts from Europe and America was being held here.’

’The participating countries, besides the White-headed Eagle, included Britain, Gaul, and others...’

’This time, Britain really went all out, bringing out many artifacts from the Divine Continent exhibits in the British Museum and the Military Aircraft Museum...’

’Of course, the exhibition was publicly promoted as a simple cultural exchange of Eastern antiques!’

However, on the Divine Continent’s internet, two theories were circulating:

One was that the White-headed Eagle was secretly trying to open another channel of discussion with the Divine Continent, implying that if the talks went well, there was a chance for these antiques to be returned.

The other was that the person in the White House had gone mad and simply wanted to hold this event to humiliate the Eastern Great Power!

’How should I put this?’ Chu Bamboo thought. ’Looking at the White-headed Eagle’s series of bizarre moves, I’m leaning towards the second possibility. But... that has nothing to do with me! I just wanted to come take a look and, while I’m at it, see if I can procure some new inventory.’

’If I can just find one comparable to the Chixiao Sword... no, even one that’s just a bit inferior would make this risky trip worthwhile!’

After having a meal with Howard, Chu Bamboo parted ways with him. However, Howard sent along several bodyguards and a few guides, and booked him a five-star suite, insisting that all his expenses in Big Apple City be put on his tab.

’...This guy, he’s actually not bad!’ Chu Bamboo sighed. ’I finally get why Howard was such a major presence in the diary. If you take the whole ’friend or foe’ thing out of the equation... that guy...’

Patting his cheeks, Chu Bamboo’s expression turned serious. Then, he started getting down to business with the guide.

In summary...

He just went back and forth, looking at the exhibits at the Exhibition of Eastern Artifacts.

Unfortunately... Chu Bamboo sighed. ’Just looking doesn’t really reveal much... Perhaps I need to actually make contact with them to figure anything out?’

However, Chu Bamboo did identify some suspicious items. For example... Chu Bamboo’s gaze burned as he looked at the longsword in the glass display case—an exhibit brought over from Britain, Emperor Yongle’s personal sword!

Of course, it was just a suspicion.

Besides, the reason he suspected it was also because of the Chixiao Sword...

His eyes fixed on the Yongle Sword, Chu Bamboo reluctantly departed. After a final lap around the museum, Chu Bamboo chose to return to the five-star hotel.

「That night.」

Chu Bamboo took a deep breath and rubbed his cheeks. He stared at his reflection in the mirror, chanting to himself internally.

’This time, I’ll think about nothing. I’ll worry about nothing. The Jinghai City crisis has nothing to do with me... Big Orange Cat is just an ordinary orange cat. I absolutely, positively will not think about her true identity...’

After chanting this for a full half-hour, Chu Bamboo felt his mind gradually go blank. Only then did he lie down on the bed with a serious expression.

...

He opened his eyes again.

「Nuwa Base.」

Chu Bamboo kept his expression neutral, his voice calm. "Nuwa No. 17! Bring up... my diary."

Chu Bamboo did his best to keep his mind empty, focusing all his energy on the diary.

In the next instant, a screen of light appeared.

After scanning for a moment, a strange look appeared in Chu Bamboo’s eyes. He filtered out a large amount of useless information...

Then, Chu Bamboo successfully found what was most important to him right now... the Duplicate Seal Technique!

After carefully memorizing the Sealing Technique, Chu Bamboo breathed a sigh of relief. "Alright... I’ve got my fallback plan. Now, the next step is... Huh?!"

Chu Bamboo’s expression stiffened. The familiar voice of the Big Orange Cat sounded in his ear, "Nuwa grea—"

SHIT!

’I let my guard down for a second and she spotted me?’

Without hesitation, Chu Bamboo bit down on the poison capsule in his gums and swallowed it...

The next breath...

Time, began to reverse!