[The injured man: “Sect Master Ma, Brother Shen, I am about to die. This child can only be entrusted to you... Please, you must deliver him to Vermilion Violet Star. Once there... he will be safe...”]
[Shen Yifeng: “Mr. Xun! Mr. Xun, hang in there! Here are some healing pills refined by our sect’s Sixth Elder. Their effects are unique—you can definitely be saved!”]
[The injured man: “Don’t waste resources. It hasn’t been easy for you to develop this far... I was wounded by a Divine Ability. Divine power has pierced through my body; ordinary pills can’t cure this...”]
[Ma Bang: “Mr. Xun, the other brothers...”]
[The injured man: “All dead. You are my only hope... I know this is difficult... I can only rely on your character and the oath you took when you joined...”]
From the images transmitted back by Myriad Ghosts Go to Market,
you saw this Mr. Xun, in the final moments of his life, cast a kind smile upon the boy—no more than three years old—cradled in his arms.
Then, holding him with both hands, he passed the child into Shen Yifeng’s embrace.
That gesture drained the last of his strength.
The Ten Thousand Souls Banner told you that Mr. Xun’s soul had thinned into a wispy thread. The moment he died, his soul dissipated—too far gone even to be reclaimed.
“Mr. Xun! Mr. Xun!”
Shen Yifeng and Ma Bang knelt over Mr. Xun’s corpse, their grief plain to see.
Then Ma Bang rose, snatched the child from Shen Yifeng’s arms, and dropped to both knees.
“Master! For the grace of your guidance, I will repay you in my next life! Let me handle this matter!”
Shen Yifeng shook his head firmly.
“No! Now that Headquarters has sacrificed everything, I am the primary responsible party. You must obey my orders! Let me go!”
“No! I’ll go!”
“I’ll go!”
As the two argued, you spoke up unexpectedly.
“How about I go instead?”
They turned to look at you. You stood at the entrance to the cellar, arms crossed over your chest, back against the wall, moonlight illuminating half your face.
As you walked over, Shen and Ma both looked flustered.
“I heard everything.”
Ma Bang was stunned.
“Everything? Do you know we’re members of the Torch Society now?”
“Oh, I only just learned that part. Explain—what’s going on here? And what is the Torch Society?”
Shen Yifeng, seeing there was no hiding it from you, had no choice but to tell the truth.
From his words, you learned:
Across the vast universe, humanity’s situation is dire. Only among the few ancient clans with long-standing traditions can people live and cultivate normally.
Everywhere else, the Alien Races share an unspoken consensus—they do not allow human geniuses to grow.
They use various methods and excuses—or simply none at all—to directly check the cultivation aptitude of newborns.
Those found to have high aptitude are eliminated under any pretext—or without one.
You were no stranger to this.
Fortune Star was the extreme end of this model.
Blazing Star was slightly better; at least those with poor aptitude could scrape by and enjoy a modicum of freedom.
But indeed, you had never seen a talented human.
Otherwise, the Firewood Sect wouldn’t be the largest human sect on this planet.
“I know you want to ask why it’s like this.
Unfortunately.
It’s been far too long.
So long that even the Alien Races don’t know why they suppress us. So long that even we humans don’t know why we’re treated this way.
It seems as if it has always been this way since ancient times.”
“Then the Torch Society is...”
“Where there’s oppression, there’s resistance. But we humans have always been weak. Confronting so many Alien Races head-on would give them the excuse to annihilate us completely.
So the Torch Society was founded.
Its goal is to protect human geniuses from Alien Races’ poison, help them grow, and set them on the path of cultivation.
Its hope is that, in the future, humanity might once again produce a Celestial Emperor-level powerhouse to overturn the situation of being oppressed by all races!
The Torch Society is an underground organization. We have no overt strongholds; all communication is through single-threaded contacts.
But the Torch Society is vast, spread across the universe. Wherever there are humans, there are members of the Torch Society!”
Ma Bang sighed.
“Actually, according to Torch Society rules, anyone who learns our identity must either join the Torch Society or else...”
You knew what Ma Bang meant, and you also knew they couldn’t—and wouldn’t—harm you.
“So this child is a genius? How can you tell? He’s so young. As far as I know, immortal roots can’t be measured in very young children because they haven’t fully grown yet.”
Shen Yifeng said nothing. He simply took the sleeping child’s chubby little hands, clenched into fists, and pried them open.
“Swish!!”
In an instant, golden light flooded the entire cellar.
In the child’s palms—a “Sun” character on the left, a “Moon” character on the right!
“Heaven-born anomalies!”
You had heard of such people back in the human world.
They were geniuses among geniuses, prodigies among prodigies!
Their talent was so overwhelming that it couldn’t be concealed, manifesting as various anomalies on their bodies.
Such individuals didn’t just have high immortal roots—they likely had a full package of special physiques, special souls, and top-tier luck!
“If this kid grows up smoothly, he’ll definitely be extraordinary!”
Shen Yifeng nodded.
“So, even if it costs me this old life, I will deliver him to Vermilion Violet Star! ‘Passing the torch, guarding the bloodline’—that was my oath when I joined the Torch Society!”
“Why Vermilion Violet Star? Don’t the humans there suffer oppression?”
“Mr. Xun didn’t have time to explain. He only left us this.”
Shen Yifeng unfolded a slip of paper. On it was a poem.
“What’s this?”
“The poem contains the contact person, contact time, contact location, and code words on Vermilion Violet Star. As long as I deliver the child into that contact’s hands, my mission is complete.”
You glanced at the poem.
“When Orion and Scorpius first turn, autumn on Dongting Lake,
At dawn’s moon, a traveler by the ancient ferry waits.
If you ask what’s stored in my sack—half a boat of moonlight, half a boat of gulls.”
You couldn’t make out anything at a glance—probably some kind of riddle.
“Senior Shen, you should know that humans aren’t allowed into Blazing Star’s Star Harbor, right?”
“Of course I know.”
“Then how do you plan to take this child away?”
Shen Yifeng gave a bitter smile.
“I can only take my chances.”
“Then everything the Firewood Sect has worked for until now will be reduced to nothing.”
“I won’t drag my sect disciples down. Tomorrow, I’ll disfigure my face, take the child, and flee to a distant land. When the time comes, I’ll storm the Star Harbor and escape using the Star Ship on this child!”
You noticed that around the toddler’s neck hung a Star Ship—all Star Ships can freely expand and contract.
“Senior, your plan is suicide.”
“I’m old—what fear have I of death? My only regret would be failing to complete my mission!”
Moonlight streamed into the cellar, forming a halo behind you. Every word you spoke landed with weight.
“I am the only one who can take this child off Blazing Star!”
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