192: Chapter 192: The Lighter

The Golden Gate rose.

Behind the gate, a woman's light laughter drifted out.

The sound wasn't loud.

But at this moment, the seats of Venerable Xuan, Venerable Ming, and The Name Writer on the Inverted Chessboard all fell silent.

Zero Seven stared intently at the lunchbox in the Dragon Girl's arms.

At the bottom of the lunchbox, that small golden character was still glowing.

[Flower.]

Li Yan's throat bobbed.

"No way."

"This lunchbox has a backstory too?"

The Dragon Girl looked down at the lunchbox, then up at Jiang Feng.

"Master, have the ribs become spirits?"

Jiang Feng glanced over.

"No."

He reached out and took the lunchbox.

The food was still hot.

The character 'Flower' at the bottom of the box looked as if it had just grown out from within.

Liu Cuilan's communication was still open.

Hearing the commotion on this end, she immediately asked, "Xiao Feng, what's wrong with the lunchbox?"

Jiang Feng said, "It's nothing."

"Someone scribbled on your lunchbox."

Liu Cuilan's temper flared up instantly.

"I just scrubbed that lunchbox clean!"

Li Yan's mouth twitched.

Auntie's focus was incredibly steady.

Inside the Golden Gate, the woman laughed again.

"The Ninth Lamp is protected."

"The Tenth Lamp should also wake up."

"Jiang Feng, come in."

Golden patterns flowed across the gate.

A new rule slowly emerged.

[Those who enter the Flower Gate must offer a Home Lamp.]

[After offering the lamp, one may see the First Lamp.]

Zero Seven's expression changed.

"Mr. Jiang, you can't offer it."

"The Home Lamp is the Name-Guarding Foundation that the Blue Planet just condensed."

"Once it's offered, Huaxia's new profession System will drop significantly."

From behind the seat of Venerable Xuan, a cold voice fell.

"The Gate of the Stamen does not accept the rootless."

Blood light surged from the seat of Venerable Ming.

"Jiang Feng, if you want to know who the First Lamp is, hand one over."

Behind the seat of The Name Writer, a half-section of gray light regrew at the severed wrist.

An aged voice followed.

"This is the rule."

Jiang Feng looked up.

"Rule?"

He handed the lunchbox to the Dragon Girl.

"Hold this."

The Dragon Girl immediately hugged the lunchbox tight.

"I guarantee I won't let the bad guys lick it."

Li Yan almost lost his composure.

Crude words.

But very Dragon Girl.

Jiang Feng walked up to the Golden Gate.

The golden characters on the gate pressed down again.

[Those who have not offered a lamp may not enter.]

Jiang Feng raised his hand and pressed it against the door frame.

A System prompt popped up.

[Touch: Core flower stamen Outer Gate Lamp Offering Rule.]

[Function: Extracts the world's Home Lamp as the price of entry.]

[Level: flower stamen Peripheral Rule.]

[Plunderable.]

Jiang Feng's voice was flat.

"Plunder."

[Secret Art: Pangu Plunder activated.]

[Zero-er triggered simultaneously.]

[Erasing the necessity of lamp offering.]

[Plundering the flower stamen Outer Gate Lamp Offering Rule.]

Boom!

The Golden Gate shook violently.

The line of characters on the gate was torn in half on the spot.

[Gained All Attributes: 9,000 ganges sand.]

[Current basic six-dimensional attributes: 54,000 ganges sand (5.4 asankhyeya).]

Inside the Golden Gate, the laughter stopped.

Li Yan's eyes lit up.

"Nice!"

"Trying to collect a ticket at the door, huh?"

Zhang Changlin said in a deep voice, "No."

"He even tore down the ticket booth."

Behind the gate, the woman's voice grew fainter.

"You even dare to tear down the Gate of the Stamen?"

Jiang Feng said, "The gate was in the way."

"Of course I'd tear it down."

After he spoke, his five fingers continued to exert force.

Crack.

The outer layer of the Golden Gate shattered directly.

A golden root path was revealed inside.

On both sides of the root path, lamps were hanging.

In every lamp, there was the shadow of a Mortal woman.

Coarse cloth clothes.

Old aprons.

Patched sleeves.

Some were holding children.

Some were sitting by the stove.

Some were standing in the rain, waiting for the door to open.

Zero Seven's expression tightened as she watched.

"These aren't ordinary mother anchors."

"They are lamps recorded by the flower stamen."

"Even earlier than The Name Writer's general register."

Jiang Feng stepped into the root path.

As soon as he stepped in, the lamps on both sides lit up simultaneously.

Countless fine golden threads extended from the lamps, wrapping toward him.

A System prompt jumped out immediately.

[flower stamen Lamp Identification Procedure activated.]

[Detecting target: Pangu Sovereign: Name-Guarding Divine Lord.]

[Target carrying: Ninth Lamp ownership.]

[Determination: Samplable.]

[Execution: Extracting Liu Cuilan's Home Lamp sample.]

At Tianshu Dragon Garden.

The peace buckle on Liu Cuilan's wrist suddenly grew hot.

Jiang Jianguo immediately raised the ruyi heaven-breaking staff, his face darkening.

"Trying to steal again?"

On the Inverted Chessboard.

Jiang Feng raised his hand and made a grasping motion in the air.

The golden threads that were wrapping around him snapped directly.

[Touch: Home Lamp Sampling Procedure.]

[Function: Replicates the Mortal mother-wish structure to cultivate the next lamp.]

[Plunderable.]

Jiang Feng's eyes turned cold.

"You still want to replicate my mom?"

The woman inside the gate did not answer.

Jiang Feng's voice became even flatter.

"Plunder."

[Secret Art: Pangu Plunder activated.]

[Plundering Home Lamp Sampling Procedure.]

[Gained All Attributes: 7,600 ganges sand.]

[Current basic six-dimensional attributes: 61,600 ganges sand (6.16 asankhyeya).]

[Gained Special Authority Fragment: Sampling Refusal.]

[Effect: Home anchors, mother-wish structures, and Home Lamp characteristics recognized by the host cannot be sampled, replicated, or simulated by external forces.]

Inside Tianshu Dragon Garden.

The heat of the peace buckle receded.

Liu Cuilan touched her wrist and snorted.

"That's more like it."

"Whose motherly role can just be copied like homework?"

Li Yan was amused.

"Auntie, those words of yours should be written into the Huaxia Name-Guarding textbook."

Xiao Zhenjiang's communication followed immediately.

"Already recorded."

Li Yan was stunned.

"Commander, are you for real?"

Xiao Zhenjiang's voice was very steady.

"The Blue Planet's new System needs simple principles."

"Ms. Liu's words are very suitable."

Li Yan was silent for a second.

"Fine."

"The perspective has indeed broadened."

On the Inverted Chessboard.

At the end of the root path, a golden flower platform appeared.

In the center of the flower platform was not a flower.

But a flower bud that had not yet opened.

Wrapped around the outside of the bud were ten lamp wicks.

The first nine were already lit.

The tenth one was only slightly lit.

The character 'Flower' at the bottom of the lunchbox was transmitted from the Tenth Lamp wick.

Zero Seven's face turned pale.

"The Tenth Lamp isn't Auntie Liu."

"Nor is it the previous eight Cuilans."

"It hasn't been fully lit yet."

Li Yan frowned.

"Then who is it?"

Inside the flower bud, the woman's voice sounded.

"The Tenth Lamp is prepared for Jiang Feng."

"As long as he is willing, he can light the lamp with his own hands."

"From now on, all Home Lamps on the Blue Planet will be under his sole command."

Behind the seat of Venerable Xuan, the profound light shifted slightly.

Behind the seat of Venerable Ming, the blood light also paused for an instant.

The Name Writer's voice lowered.

"The flower stamen actually wants to give him the position of Lamp Lord?"

Zero Seven's pupils shrank.

"Mr. Jiang, you can't accept it."

"Lamp Lord sounds like authority, but in essence, it might be another kind of lock."

"If you become the Lamp Lord, all families, hometowns, and mother-wishes will be hung upon you."

"The Blue Planet will become stronger."

"But you will be bound to the main root of the flower stamen."

The flower bud swayed gently.

The woman laughed and said, "This is not a lock."

"This is a crown."

"Jiang Feng, haven't you always wanted to guard your home?"

"I will give all ten thousand homes to you."

"If you light the Tenth Lamp, your fourteenth transition profession can ascend once more."

A System prompt popped up at the same time.

[Detected: flower stamen Lamp Lord Position.]

[Upon acceptance, one can obtain temporary profession ascension: Lord of Ten Thousand Lamps.]

[Estimated all attribute increase: 30,000 ganges sand.]

[Risk: Host's Name-Guarding System will be bound to the flower stamen's main root.]

Li Yan's eyes went wide as he looked at the prompt.

"Thirty thousand ganges sand?"

"That's quite the temptation."

Zhang Changlin, however, shook his head.

"Things that are delivered too quickly to your door are usually expensive."

Liu Cuilan's voice came through the communication.

"Xiao Feng."

"When others give you things, check if there's an IOU first."

Jiang Feng nodded.

"Yeah."

He looked at the flower bud.

"I won't take it."

The woman's voice paused.

"Why?"

Jiang Feng said, "I'll seize it myself."

Li Yan slapped his thigh.

"Now that's more like it!"

The Dragon Girl added seriously.

"Master doesn't take things for free."

"Master takes them by force."

The flower bud was quiet for a breath.

The next second.

Ten lamp wicks stabbed out simultaneously.

This wasn't giving authority.

This was seizing authority.

[flower stamen Lamp Lord Forced Granting Procedure activated.]

[Target: Jiang Feng.]

[Execution: Forcefully register the host as the Tenth Lamp Lord.]

[Attachment: The Blue Planet's ten thousand lamps' fire will be incorporated into the flower stamen's main root.]

Jiang Feng raised his hand.

He grabbed all ten lamp wicks at once.

The System prompt flashed a crimson warning.

[Touch: flower stamen Lamp Lord Forced Granting Procedure.]

[Function: Binds the target in the form of granting authority, consolidating the world's Home Lamp System.]

[Plunderable.]

Jiang Feng said, "Plunder it all."

[Secret Art: Pangu Plunder activated.]

[Zero-er triggered simultaneously.]

[Forced granting exemption erased.]

[Lamp Lord binding erased.]

[flower stamen main root traction erased.]

[Plundering the Tenth Lamp Wick.]

Boom!

A circle of the flower platform exploded.

The Tenth Lamp wick was forcefully pulled out by Jiang Feng.

Golden light surged backward, all pouring into his body.

[Gained All Attributes: 18,000 ganges sand.]

[Current basic six-dimensional attributes: 79,600 ganges sand (7.96 asankhyeya).]

[Gained Special Authority: Home Lamp Self-Ignition.]

[Effect: The Blue Planet's ten thousand lamps' fire no longer depends on external flower stamen ignition; it can be sustained by family, hometown, and name themselves.]

[Name-Guarding profession advanced.]

[New branch added: Lamp Lighter.]

[Effect: Can reignite native Name-Guarding lamps in families, cities, and worlds extinguished by external rules.]

Huaxia Command Center.

A technician literally jumped out of his chair.

"Commander!"

"Another new profession has appeared!"

"Lamp Lighter!"

"All Name-Guarding profession holders nationwide have gained a passive ability!"

Xiao Zhenjiang looked at the screen.

"The effect?"

The technician's voice trembled.

"When a city encounters archiving, namelessness, or an ethnic extinction curse, as long as one person still remembers home, the collective anchor can be reignited!"

Xiao Zhenjiang slowly exhaled.

"This is the Blue Planet's own fire."

On the Inverted Chessboard.

The flower bud split open.

There was no woman inside.

Only a single golden eye.

In the center of the eye grew a flower petal.

Jiang Feng looked at it.

"You are not the First Lamp."

The golden eye turned slightly.

The woman's voice turned completely cold.

"Of course I'm not."

"I am the one who watches over the flower stamen."

"Since you pulled the Tenth Lamp wick, you must see the true First Lamp."

The golden flower platform sank into the ground.

At the end of the root path, a small door opened.

Inside the door was a very ordinary kitchen.

There was steam rising from the stove.

On the table sat an old bowl.

Beside the bowl sat a woman.

Her back was to Jiang Feng.

She was peeling garlic.

Liu Cuilan's communication suddenly cut out for a moment.

When it reconnected, her voice had changed.

"Xiao Feng."

"I just... saw her."

Jiang Feng looked inside the door.

The woman slowly turned her head.

That face was not Liu Cuilan's.

Yet it made all the lamp fires bow their heads at once.

She spoke, her voice very light.

"I lit the First Lamp."

"And with my own hands, I hid the Blue Planet inside the flower stamen."

"Jiang Feng."

"Do you want to know why you transmigrated?"