Chapter 683: The Drawbacks of the Ancient King's Disappearance, Seen in a New Light

Chapter 683: Chapter 369: The Drawbacks of the Ancient King’s Disappearance, Seen in a New Light

“Refinement?”

“I don’t know what kind of profession can be refined from this Morning Star Residue.” Since the Soldier Nurturer was doing the work for him, Su Chen was naturally happy to see it happen.

However, whether it was Qin Yun, Wei Zhenghong, or the description on the interface, they all mentioned refining a regular profession. Under normal circumstances, it should be extremely difficult to refine a Holy Profession.

But with the assistance of the Deceitful God Essence, it might just give him a pleasant surprise in the end.

“But the Soldier Nurturer is an auxiliary profession… related to weapon upgrades… An auxiliary Holy Profession?” Su Chen thought about it. He had never actually encountered one. Even medical-type Holy Professions like the Phoenix could play a massive role in combat.

As for a purely auxiliary type, he had never even heard of one.

Morning Stars weren’t exactly a dime a dozen in the Dust Star Sea. If it resulted in an auxiliary Melting Holy Profession, his combat power would be utterly useless, not even comparable to most Double Ninth Tiers.

Even the Royal Court wasn’t extravagant enough to waste resources like that.

After waiting a moment, the interface showed no further activity. Su Chen understood. “It looks like the Soldier Nurturer will need some time to refine it.”

Su Chen walked straight out of the Nether Tower and went to the storeroom, opening the several metal chests Ming Lin had brought.

He originally had some stock of Deceitful God Essence left, but the Soldier Nurturer had just consumed it all. Naturally, he needed to replenish it as soon as possible in case of emergencies.

He was already highly experienced at absorbing the Deceitful God’s Power. It didn’t take long for him to empty all the chests, refining everything into essence as a series of CLINK CLANK sounds rang out.

“The next time I perform a Melting Holy Profession, I’ll need to use Divine Blood as fuel.

“However, although the Residual Spirit has been dealt with, Qin Yun is still around.

“The Residual Spirit and Qin Yun had an agreement. She would help the Residual Spirit take over his body, and in return, the Residual Spirit would restore Qin Yun to her peak state and help her inherit the throne of the Bronze Ancient King.

“Right now, in Qin Yun’s mind, my body has probably already been taken over by the Residual Spirit. Naturally, I can’t possibly help her do anything. I wonder what move she will make next?”

Su Chen pondered for a moment before temporarily pushing the matter to the back of his mind.

Right now, he needed to make a trip to the Copper Heart and officially take on the Shadow Shattering Body as soon as possible to improve his development efficiency.

Increasing his strength was the ultimate solution to all problems.

“Once I advance to Tier Eight, I shouldn’t have to fear a heavily crippled Qin Yun,” Su Chen muttered to himself.

He packed up a bit, left the Floating Island, and headed straight for the Copper Heart Department. Many people greeted him along the way, and he navigated his way into the Copper Heart with practiced ease.

However, the void rift that usually sat in the center of the hall had vanished without a trace.

“Huh?” Su Chen was inevitably surprised. He turned to look at the old man lying in the armchair to his back right.

“Brother Ku?” he called out tentatively. The man remained motionless. Having reached the end of his lifespan, his bodily functions were declining with every passing moment.

“Has he already started shutting off his external senses?”

Su Chen cautiously leaned in. Before he could even speak, the old man’s eyelids twitched. He suddenly spoke in a low voice, “It’s you. You want to enter the Copper Heart again?”

Su Chen’s heart skipped a beat, rendering him momentarily speechless. He replied, “Yes, Brother Ku. Why is the entrance to the Copper Heart gone?”

The old man’s voice was feeble. “The Ancient King has left temporarily, and it’s unknown how long it will be before his return. The operation of the Copper Heart relies on the power of the Ancient King. The residual power he left behind diminishes with every use, so we naturally must conserve it right now. Chu Lingyuan ordered the Copper Heart to be temporarily closed.”

“So that’s how it is…”

Su Chen came to a sudden realization, followed by a wave of helplessness. Since the Ancient King’s disappearance, this was the first time he had so clearly felt the negative consequences.

But it couldn’t be helped. Chu Lingyuan definitely had to prioritize the bigger picture. Sighing helplessly, Su Chen nodded and said, “Sorry to bother you, Brother Ku.”

He turned around, intending to leave, but then heard a hoarse voice from behind, “Wait.”

Su Chen stopped and turned back, somewhat surprised.

“Come here. Let me get a good look at you.”

Su Chen’s brows twitched slightly. He grumbled internally but still walked over. Suddenly, the old man opened his eyes. They were clouded with a grayish-white haze, and an overwhelming aura of decay washed over Su Chen.

Su Chen’s heart gave a terrified lurch.

“Star Chief…” the old man murmured. “Such a young Star Chief. Good, good, good, very good…”

He said “good” several times in a row, his lips slowly pulling back into a chilling smile that made Su Chen’s skin crawl.

“Go on, off you go.”

The old man immediately shooed him away, as if in a hurry. After watching Su Chen’s back disappear, the old man slowly closed his eyes again. His fingers trembled slightly as he opened a virtual screen, found Chu Lingyuan, and sent a message.

***

“I can’t enter the Copper Heart. I can’t possibly spend two and a half years slowly grinding out this Shadow Shattering Body, can I?”

Su Chen felt this matter was a bit tricky. Compared to the preparation time for a normal Holy Profession, two and a half years was already quite short. But for him, it still felt far too long.

“I wonder if I can pull some strings,” he mumbled to himself. “I am a Star Chief, after all. Surely they can give me some special treatment?”

He really didn’t want to waste so much time. Boarding his Flying Device, he drifted smoothly all the way back to the Floating Island.

As he exited the port, before he could even step into the main building, his footsteps halted. He turned to look as a gust of wind descended from the sky. It was Qing Cang.

“That fast?” Su Chen was a little surprised. He had just sent Qing Cang a message less than two minutes ago.

“Senior Brother!” he greeted with a beaming smile. “You got here incredibly fast this time.”

“Too fast?” Qing Cang was somewhat surprised. Looking thoughtful, he opened his Wristband and glanced at it, only then noticing Su Chen’s message.

“So Old Qing didn’t come because he saw my message. No wonder he arrived so fast this time…” Su Chen muttered inwardly upon seeing his reaction.