The team complained about Zheng for a brief moment then quickly turned their attention to the three movie characters, especially Jonathan who hadn’t shut his mouth the whole time. He was narrating his trip in China.
“I met a few arms dealers in the U.S. and I had plans to visit China for vacation anyway so I accepted their suggestion to come here. While I am here, I might as well help them find some buyers.” Jonathan said while he ate. Though his volume dropped on that last sentence.
Team China laughed. The Chinese ancient tomb exploration was nothing more than a cover for his firearm business. Jonathan never possessed the adventurous spirit of his sister since the very first movie. His pursue for money, on the other hand, was abnormally persistent. Furthermore, luck never seemed to be on his side. Strange phenomenon always found their way to him, just like what happened inside the ancient tomb on this trip.
“Then I visited the warlords in China… You know how I loyal I am to my friends. I can’t go exploring without finis.h.i.+ng what they asked for. Those ancient tombs were left to the end when I had time.” Jonathan smiled.
Zheng said, “Stop embellis.h.i.+ng yourself. You are just here to sell arms and somehow found that ancient tomb. Then greed drove you into it. Yan Xishan is probably as greedy as you. The two of you resonated with each other so you provided the expertise and he provided people for a fifty-fifty split. Right?”
Jonathan awkwardly laughed. “It was thirty seventy. He got seventy. I was also responsible for the expenses though he provided for our safety. You know safety is the most important aspect in archaeological diggings. The two of us were going to unearth the greatest tomb…”
“And the actual outcome?” Zheng asked sarcastically.
Jonathan began to narrate his story. He came into possession of a treasure map by chance. The map was worn and the drawing could barely be made out. But as an expert in archaeology, he happened to have the skills required to recover paintings. The final product he achieved was a map called ‘Bonus mission for G.o.d’s realm’.
“What name? I thought I heard bonus mission for G.o.d’s realm. Haha. Is auditory illusion a side effect of the fourth stage? I should go get some sleep.” Zheng rubbed his ears and laughed.
Xuan said, “You’re not mistaken. I heard the same words. Do you still have the map with you?”
Jonathan nodded as he took out a silver box from his pocket. He opened the box. Inside it was a yellow tainted piece of paper. He carefully handed the paper to Zheng but Xuan took it from his hand.
Xuan studied the paper with interest before he read, “Bonus mission for G.o.d’s realm. Enter the Sky Tower within seven days of seeing this map or part of the Buddha. Kill the first experimental product, G.o.d, Hao 1. Failure to enter the Sky Tower or kill Hao 1 deducts 10000 points from every member. Completion awards a rank B reward to every member. Killing Hao 1 awards two rank B rewards.” The notification came at the same time and overlapped with Xuan’s voice.
“Uh… only ranked rewards and no points?” Heng was surprised.
The rest of the team reread the notification and noticed the same thing. That wasn’t to say the mission was a waste of time. Everyone would still get a rank B reward and perhaps bonus items from the tomb. Overall, the rewards were quite good for this mission.
“Our power will take leap again even without the points. That’s a rank B reward for everyone.” Zheng sounded excited. As he planned to talk about future exchanges, Xuan spoke again.
“To the destined. Only players can see the following.
“Creation of G.o.d’s realm started three hundred years ago and it’s finally completed. The relations.h.i.+p between the Saints and us Cultivators softened up in the meantime. We still do not accept each other’s ideologies but as humans, or more accurately, former humans, we don’t want our race to come to extinction. The last Ascension War expended too much of our resources. We expect to all die in the coming battle against them. The realm that contained the hope for the rise of humans is now done. It’s time for us to fight together.
“However, no matter how powerful we have become, creatures could never rid themselves of selfishness. The black race are the most reproductive. Yet, they only have Saints and not Cultivators. Thus, their chances of being selected for G.o.d’s realm is the lowest. This decision is unfair but it’s done for the continuation of our race.
“The white race have Cultivators but the path they have taken deviated from the correct path. They cast their energy out of the body to form magic. Magic is destructive yet it does not progress the user’s life form. They can not acc.u.mulate their power to pa.s.s to the next generation. If it isn’t for the coming war, we Cultivators could make the yellow race the only race in the world. We will neither age nor die. Unfortunately, the white race have more Saints than us. They are skilled in pa.s.sing their genes to the next generations. I wonder if their gifts will allow their descendants to surpa.s.s ours?
“All three factions know of these secrets. But such war is still among us humans. Our descendants, no matter what place your race stand in the world, do not abandon the ident.i.ty as humans. Do not kill off the other factions no matter what reason you have.
“So during the design of G.o.d’s realm, all three factions of Saints and Cultivators hid secrets in the realm. The Sky Tower is from the Cultivators of the East. Only descendants of the yellow race can see this message. The other factions probably have their own secrets places with items related to their powers. We are a total of 476 Cultivators and have recorded most of our Cultivation methods in the Sky Tower. Only those with the power to defeat the first experimental G.o.d can prove they have the power to protect the manuals from losing to the other races.
“Cultivator of the East, Hongjun. Written three days before completion of G.o.d.”
Everyone took a deep breath from the information revealed in this message. The mystery of G.o.d’s realm was unraveling, only a thin layer still masking the whole truth.
Zheng breathed out and laughed. “I never expect there’s such a big secret in G.o.d’s realm. Even the name of the Three Pure Ones from mythologies appeared. I wonder what happened in that age.”
Xuan said, “There’s another message underneath. The writing looks different so it’s probably another person’s message.
“Cultivators show respect to Saints on the surface but they are a prideful group. They believe the acc.u.mulation of knowledge through generations and training will allow them to surpa.s.s the limits of unlocking the genetic constraint. Yet, they forgot that all knowledge is contained in the laws of the universe. We humans are the embodiment of the laws of the universe upon reaching the final stage. Cultivators do not stand on the same height as us, not until their acc.u.mulation of knowledge reaches everything there is.
"As a person of the yellow race, I understand their intention. However, Saints are far more adept in energy manipulation than they can imagine. We knew of their doings the moment they started. But since all three fractions have their share of hidden actions, no one spoke out. This is a warning to our descendants. Saints from the other factions have likely altered the Sky Tower. Saints of the white race are especially concerning since their number exceeds ours. Cultivation manuals from the yellow race are marvelous but you must be careful. This trial is extremely dangerous.
“Saint of the East, f.u.xi. Written on the day of completion of G.o.d.”