Chapter 171 Chapter 171

Daxia, northeast direction.

It was late summer, early autumn, and the wheat fields were rolling, their golden waves swaying in the sunlight. An elderly farmer was harvesting in the fields, operating a tall automated harvester, rapidly peeling the heavy wheat ears into golden kernels.

A small gray bird perched on top of the machine, monitoring the harvester's progress. Its head held high, its eyes blazing, it would occasionally open its small, delicate beak and chirp: "Chirp, chirp, chirp!"

Whenever he hears the clear and melodious call of the little gray bird, the old farmer presses the operating button of the harvester. Large streams of snow-white steam gush out from the tail of the tall machine, and the direction is precisely adjusted with the sound of "wool-long wool-long" of the tracks turning.

The wheat grains spit out by the harvester gathered into piles, but a few still fell across the field. A golden-tailed squirrel followed closely behind the harvester, quickly snatching up the stray grains and throwing them onto the pile.

Of course, when the little gray bird and the old farmer weren't looking, it would quietly put some in its mouth, and soon its cheeks* would become bulging.

The old farmer inside the harvester turned around and scolded him with a smile, "Little thing, it's not like I'm not giving you dinner, why do you always like to steal it?"

Although he said so, his eyes were full of doting when he looked at the golden-tailed squirrel. He turned around, grabbed a handful of nutritious food, and handed it to the back.

"If you're hungry, you'd better eat this. You still have to process those wheat grains!"

The golden-tailed squirrel's eyes rolled around, and it jumped lightly onto the harvester and grabbed the nutritious grains from the old farmer's palm - but it didn't spit out a single grain in its cheeks.

How can I spit it out if I have already put it in my mouth?

Seeing this, the old farmer raised his hand with a smile and touched the little head of the golden-tailed squirrel.

This was not his contracted mystical beast, but a wild mystical beast he had picked up, including the little gray bird on the harvester.

At the old farmer's age, it is difficult to carry out mental development training, but the old farmer does not feel regretful - these two little guys, whose intelligence far exceeds that of ordinary animals, have been with him for seven years and are definitely the most important family members in his life.

Sometimes, the old farmer even feels that they are closer to him than his own children who are far away in the world...

“Chirp, chirp, chirp!”

The old farmer was lost in thought when suddenly, he heard the frightened cry of a little gray bird outside.

He quickly leaned out to see: "What's going on..."

"ah?"

At some point, several thick rhizomes grew out in the middle of the wheat field!

The gray-brown skin was like wrinkles on an old tree, its roots intertwined and still slowly wriggling, growing faster and faster, and gradually the tips revealed a lush green color.

A tall tree grew, reaching into the sky.

The old farmer was completely stunned. He couldn't help but raise his hands and rub his eyes: "Where did this come from?"

Now that information technology is advanced, the Beast Tamer Association has been conducting popular science on mysterious beasts. The old farmer also likes to browse Starblog and short videos when he has nothing to do. So when he saw the big tree for the first time, his instinctive reaction was: Another wild mysterious beast?

It’s still the plant department!

"My field is actually considered a treasure," the old farmer muttered. "This is the third one... But I heard that plant-type profound beasts may have the ability to stimulate plant growth, so they'd be perfect for farming with me."

He walked towards the big tree with great interest, and carefully stretched out his skinny hand, wanting to touch the strong roots.

But at the moment of touch, something strange happened!

The space around the roots suddenly twisted! As if an invisible cavern was stimulated, it suddenly opened its huge mouth and swallowed the old farmer whole!

The old farmer didn't even utter a scream. That piece of space seemed to be completely isolated from the rest of the world, becoming an independently developed small area.

The golden-tailed squirrel next to the little gray bird was also frightened in an instant.

None of them were mysterious beasts that were good at fighting, but at the moment the old farmer was swallowed, the two little beasts did not hesitate at all and followed him to the place where the old farmer was swallowed.

…and then, like a stone thrown into water, it was submerged in an instant.

…

South China Sea.

On the silent water, several fishing boats are swaying leisurely.

A huge fishing net was dragged behind the boat. Several young men gathered in the cabin playing cards, and laughter could be heard from time to time. Three white-headed gulls stayed at the stern, "diligently" supervising the progress of fishing. From time to time, they would turn their heads and take a bite, stealing one or two fresh hairtails.

At this moment, a huge whirlpool suddenly appeared on the sea.

“Hula…”

The whirlpool emerged silently, and its depth was bottomless. What was even more terrifying was that the surrounding sea surface did not cause any waves at all, but continued to rise and fall slightly with the sea breeze as usual.

Several vines emerged from the whirlpool, and their roots spread out on the sea surface, converging into a tall tree.

The three white-headed gulls stared in amazement, their long beaks opened wide, and the fish they hadn't swallowed fell back into the water. One of them finally came to its senses, raised its head and gave a warning: "Chirp, chirp!"

The fight was going on in the cabin, and the warning from the white-headed gull was ignored.

"Royal bomb!" Someone threw the cards on the table. "Haha, I win!"

He used his elbow to push all the banknotes on the table in front of him, wiped them with spit, and happily began to count them. The others' faces turned pale and they couldn't help shaking their heads and muttering, "Why did you win again? No, you're cheating, you're definitely cheating!"

"Nonsense, don't play if you can't afford to lose."

"You—wait, what are you sitting on? Like a big ace—"

"Asshole! I knew you were cheating!!"

The cabin was in chaos, the cries of the white-headed gulls blending in, seeming insignificant. The whirlpool in the middle of the sea didn't give them much time to react. Just a dozen seconds later, the fishing boat was swept into the center of the whirlpool in the chaos.

Only one white-headed gull flew away in a hurry, circling around the giant tree several times in a daze, and its terrified cry could be heard from far away.

“Chirp, chirp—!”

…

Different space, District 12.

A group of adventurers carrying out a rescue plan had just driven out the herd of mysterious beasts that had surrounded the isolated peak and rescued the hapless beastmaster trapped on the peak. When they turned back, they saw the ground and rocks collapsing at the foot of the mountain and the ground cracking.

Then, from the huge crack as big as a chasm, a giant tree reaching into the clouds inexplicably grew out.

The team leader frowned as he pulled out a compass. Seeing the needle spinning around like a headless fly, he sighed deeply, "The space is in disarray. It looks like the portal won't be open anytime soon. We need to wait here a while longer to see how long it takes for it to stabilize again."

"Strange, isn't the space in District 12 quite stable? It's not a debris belt like District 7, and this big tree..."

The more the captain looked, the weirder it seemed.

Perhaps due to the difference in distance, the projection in the alien space is much clearer than that on the blue planet. You can almost see the branches and leaves of the giant trees swaying and the trunks shaking gently when the breeze blows.

There were also streams of light shooting out, weaving through it, and vaguely one could see swords flying and golden armor surrounding the city.

"Who's fighting? But the trunk of this tree remains motionless. Could it be that the two are in different dimensions?"

The captain muttered to himself, and his teammates looked at each other in confusion.

At the back of the team, Cheng Zizhuo, sweating profusely, had just emerged from the cave on the top of the mountain. He was stunned when he saw the towering trees in the distance.

The tree is an illusion, a projection of disordered space, just like a mirage - this is not difficult to see through for adventurers who have been exploring different spaces for years.

But with just a quick glance, Cheng Zizhuo clearly saw a golden light flashing between the branches, and a vague human figure flashed by.

Looks so familiar. He pondered over it, that person seemed to be...

Dewy fir?

Cheng Zizhuo: “!!!”

The young man was shocked by his own thoughts, but when he thought about it carefully, the armor shell of Yucong's divine beast, the Golden Nether Star Beast, was golden!

Moreover, he knew very well that Yu Cong was currently leading a team to explore the Yiyuan Secret Realm - could it be that the shadow in front of him was actually a projection of the scene inside the Yiyuan Secret Realm?

Cheng Zizhuo could no longer sit still.

Xia Muqing was also in the Yiyuan Secret Realm! Could it be that something unusual had occurred within the Yiyuan Secret Realm? Then, what was the intention of the person who created this phantom and used the spatial disorder to seal the spatial gate of Area 12?

His mind raced, and he immediately summoned the mysterious beast: "Fairy Caiyun!"

A beautiful phoenix appeared in mid-air, and the young man leaped onto the beast's back with a flip. A dazzling light streamed as the phoenix flew straight towards the shadowy figure, leaving only Cheng Zizhuo's hurried final words lingering in the air: "Captain, that projection looks a bit strange. I'll go take a look!"

The captain's face was covered in sand from the wind and waves stirred up by the phoenix. He wiped the sand off his head with a frown and said, "You kid—bah, bah! What are you so anxious about? You can test it, but don't act rashly—!"

…

Blue Star.

Similar projections appeared everywhere. Some giant trees emerged directly from the center of the city, instantly growing taller than skyscrapers. They were just shadows, overlapping with the outlines of the vast steel jungle. At first glance, it looked like a virtual game.

The commotion caused was extremely serious - the center of the city was a densely populated area, and the sudden spatial fluctuation swept away a large group of people, and the rest fled in panic. The alarm sounded throughout the sky in an instant.

The Beastmaster Association was also in chaos, with countless people running back and forth, and flying mysterious beasts coming and going without stopping for a moment.

"A new giant tree projection has appeared in City Z! Coordinates: 36° North Latitude, 110° East Longitude!"

"Who is the beast master in charge of the north?"

"It's Wang Huan, the beast master. He's received the news and is on his way. He's expected to arrive at the scene in 7 minutes—"

"Wait! The giant tree projection in City E swallowed up Zhao's beast master, the Silver Jade Snow Leopard! That's a divine beast, a divine beast!"

"Hurry and tell the others that this projection is not simple. Tell them not to act rashly! For now, the priority is to evacuate the people!"

"This tree—is this a fucking space gate?!"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone around fell silent. Even the messengers who were busy running around stopped for a moment.

Coincidentally, everyone's mind flashed back to the day many years ago when the alien space fell from the sky.

The sky was obscured by a haze, and countless tall gates appeared out of thin air in various places. Thousands of bizarre and strange beasts poured out from the light gates, unleashing various abilities in the city in groups. It was so terrifying that it seemed as if the end of the world had arrived...

Although today, the light gate has been fixed as a passage to travel through the alien space, and the mysterious beasts have gradually integrated into human life and become partners fighting side by side with the beastmasters, the panic at that initial moment is still imprinted in the minds of many people. At this time, the old scene reappears, and the familiar feeling once again surges into their hearts.

...No, but compared to that time, it is different after all!

"Whatever the giant tree is, the invasion of mysterious beasts, or the space gate—we are no longer fools who first encountered these things more than a decade ago."

In the hall, a middle-aged man in a suit and tie walked out quickly and gave instructions in a concise manner: "There's no need to panic. Follow the steps of the Level A emergency plan first. Isolate the area affected, evacuate the residents, and maintain long-range observation."

"The association has issued a temporary call-up notice through various channels. The number of applicants is surging. Have those with more experience go over and take a look. Report any signs immediately!"

"Especially those Space-type Divine Beast Masters... Oh, and where's Divine Beast Master Yu?"

Someone whispered, "The Divine Beast Envoy Yu is leading the team to the Yiyuan Secret Realm."

The middle-aged man slapped his forehead and said, "Yeah, I remember now. Don't worry, immediately summon the other space-based beast masters, the sooner the better—"

Before he could finish his words, someone suddenly ran in: "Bad, bad news! The souls of the Golden Nether Star Beasts that remained in the various research institutes have all disappeared!"

Everyone in the room was shocked again.

But soon, someone else suggested: "Don't make a fuss. It must be that Yu Shen Beast Master used the 'Resurrection' skill to recall all the fragmented souls."

"Yu Cong is the strongest beastmaster in the space system. He won't be defeated so easily, and the Golden Nether Star Beast won't be destroyed so easily. Everyone, don't panic!"

Some nodded frequently, their expressions softening, agreeing that what he said made sense. But others, still frowning, shook their heads in displeasure. "But doesn't recalling all the souls also mean that he's faced a tremendous difficulty, requiring the complete form of the Golden Nether Star Beast to resolve it?"

"No matter what, something must have happened in the Yiyuan Secret Realm. We have to find a way to contact them."

"Even the sudden appearance of giant tree shadows in various places, if I were to guess, they're probably related to the Yiyuan Secret Realm!"

The meeting room gradually became noisy, and soon someone stood up to refute, saying that the previous person was not a combatant and had no idea how powerful the Golden Nether Star Beast was in its complete form. No matter how big the trouble in the Alien Secret Realm was, there was no need to be afraid. But now it was impossible to determine whether the projection of Blue Star was related to the Alien Secret Realm, so they should retract their attention.

A group of people were discussing heatedly, but they didn't notice that two people in the crowd quietly walked to the corner, avoiding the most intense discussion.

The two people in the corner were both white-haired old men. Although they were not combatants, they still had considerable prestige within the power system because they controlled resources.

At this moment, the two of them looked at each other, their eyes exchanging, both of them with fiery gazes.

One of them murmured silently: "It's started, it's finally started..."

"Have you felt that the concentration of profound energy in the air has increased significantly?"

The other person nodded repeatedly: "Isn't it?"

"I didn't expect that kid surnamed Zhang to be quite capable. If he could come up with some tricks, he'd be much better than the previous ones."

"Speaking of which, the profound energy in this alien space is different. After absorbing a few more, I feel like my old arms and legs are much lighter."

In the dimly lit corner, the two old men lowered their eyelids, and their right hands subconsciously stroked the hidden patterns engraved on their arms. Red light surged in their eyes, and they grinned.

"Don't be impatient, don't be impatient, this is just the beginning."

"Our good days are still ahead!"