174: Chapter 174 The Hidden Dangers of the Star Pulse Network

It has been a full five years since the talent circulation plan was fully implemented.

Over these five years, the connections between various realms in the Star Sea have become much closer.

There are over one hundred thousand Cultivators registered in the talent pool, and the number of Cultivators participating in the exchange program every year has increased from the initial three hundred to three thousand.

Elders from various realms touring and giving lectures has become the norm, and young Cultivators can listen to lectures by renowned masters from other domains right at their own doorsteps.

The resource sharing platform also operates smoothly, and contribution points have become a universal currency across the various realms of the Star Sea.

From Spiritual Vein crystals to Medicinal Pills and Magical Artifacts, and from Spirit Medicine and spirit materials to Cultivation Technique manuals, various resources flow on the platform, with each realm taking what it needs, no longer having to worry about scarcity.

The star vein network connects all of this together.

Through teleportation arrays spread across all realms, Cultivators can travel back and forth between any domain at any time, and supplies can be delivered to the most remote corners on the same day.

Guardian Lin Jingyun stood at the highest point of the Alliance Grand Hall, overlooking the increasingly prosperous city, his eyes filled with gratification.

Five years had passed, and the three major policies he promoted—the star vein network, the resource sharing platform, and talent circulation—had completely changed the appearance of the Star Sea.

The once marginal minor realms were now places where talented people emerged in large numbers.

The once resource-scarce domains were now lands rich in produce.

The once isolated domains that never interacted with each other were now an inseparable whole.

He took a deep breath, turned around, and prepared to inspect the operation of today's teleportation arrays.

Just at this moment, a young Disciple rushed into the hall with a pale face.

"Patriarch! Something terrible has happened!"

Guardian Lin Jingyun's heart sank, and he hurriedly asked,

"What has happened?"

The young Disciple knelt on the ground, holding an emergency communication talisman with both hands.

"An urgent report came from the Meteor Minor Realm—their star vein teleportation array suddenly went out of control and exploded!"

Guardian Lin Jingyun's pupils shrank sharply.

A teleportation array exploded?

How could this be possible?

Since the completion of the star vein network ten years ago, there had never been any major malfunctions.

Every teleportation array was maintained day and night by Array Hall Disciples, and every node was regularly inspected by the Investigation Department; how could it possibly explode?

He took the communication talisman, and his Divine Thought probed into it.

The panicked voice of the Realm Lord of the Meteor Minor Realm came from the communication talisman—

"Patriarch Lin! The teleportation array suddenly went out of control, the light surged, and then... and then it exploded! The explosion affected a radius of a hundred zhang around it, seventeen Cultivators waiting for teleportation died on the spot, and more than thirty were heavily injured! We have no idea what happened at all!"

Guardian Lin Jingyun's hands were trembling.

Seventeen Cultivators died on the spot.

This was the first time casualties had occurred since the completion of the star vein network.

Moreover, seventeen people died all at once.

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.

"Immediately notify the Investigation Department and the Array Hall, and have them send their most elite Disciples to accompany me to the Meteor Minor Realm!"

"Yes!"

Half an hour later, the fastest star skiff rose from Yongning City, speeding towards the Meteor Minor Realm.

On the star skiff, Guardian Lin Jingyun looked solemn and didn't say a word.

Various possibilities flashed continuously through his mind—

Was it due to poor maintenance by the Array Hall Disciples?

Was it a design flaw in the teleportation array itself?

Was someone sabotaging it in secret?

Or... was there some other unknown reason?

Three days later, the star skiff arrived at the Meteor Minor Realm.

From afar, one could see that the location of the teleportation array was in utter ruins.

The once magnificent teleportation hall had turned into ruins, and the surrounding buildings were also affected, with broken walls and remnants everywhere.

The Realm Lord of the Meteor Minor Realm—the son of the former old Realm Lord, now with white hair—was directing the rescue in front of the ruins.

Seeing Guardian Lin Jingyun's star skiff land, he hurried forward to greet him.

"Patriarch Lin!"

Guardian Lin Jingyun landed, unable to bother with polite pleasantries, and directly asked,

"What is the casualty situation?"

The Realm Lord's eyes were filled with tears.

"Seventeen people died on the spot, thirty-seven were heavily injured, and those with minor injuries numbered over a hundred. Those heavily injured have been urgently sent to the Guardian Academy for treatment, but... but I'm afraid some cannot be saved."

Guardian Lin Jingyun clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white.

"Take me to see the scene."

The Realm Lord nodded and led him toward the ruins.

In the center of the ruins was originally the core location of the teleportation array.

Now, there was only a huge deep pit left there, with countless shattered Formation base fragments remaining on the edge of the pit.

Faint spiritual light still lingered on those fragments, which was the lingering echo of the Formation.

Guardian Lin Jingyun squatted down, picked up a fragment, and examined it carefully.

The Formation patterns on the fragment were twisted and deformed, and their original appearance could no longer be seen.

But Guardian Lin Jingyun could feel that before these Formation patterns were destroyed, they had endured an extremely terrifying energy impact.

The Disciples of the Array Hall were already investigating everywhere in the ruins, collecting every piece of fragment and recording every trace.

An elderly Array Hall Elder walked up to Guardian Lin Jingyun with a solemn expression.

"Patriarch, the preliminary investigation results are out."

Guardian Lin Jingyun stood up.

"Speak."

The Elder pointed to the deep pit.

"Judging from the traces at the scene, the source of the explosion is right at the core Formation base of the teleportation array. The core Formation base suddenly endured an energy impact a hundred times exceeding its design limit, couldn't bear it, and ultimately collapsed and exploded."

Guardian Lin Jingyun's brow was tightly furrowed.

"Exceeding the design limit by a hundred times? How is this possible? The energy source of the teleportation array is the power of the star veins from various realms. The star vein power has always been stable, how could it suddenly surge a hundredfold?"

The Elder shook his head.

"This is precisely what we cannot figure out. We have monitored the star vein power of the Meteor Minor Realm for ten years, and it has never shown any abnormalities. Moreover, even if the star vein power surged, the teleportation array has multiple protection mechanisms that would automatically cut off the energy connection. But this time, all those protection mechanisms failed."

Guardian Lin Jingyun's heart sank.

"All protection mechanisms failed?"

This meant that this was not an ordinary malfunction, but something intentionally done by someone.

He looked at the Elder.

"What about the Formation bases of those protection mechanisms? Were their fragments found?"

The Elder nodded, taking out a few smaller fragments from his bosom.

"Found them. Look, Patriarch."

Guardian Lin Jingyun took the fragments and examined them carefully.

The Formation patterns on the fragments obviously had traces of being destroyed by external force. Those traces of destruction were very subtle, and if one didn't look specifically, they wouldn't notice at all.

Someone had tampered with the teleportation array.

In Guardian Lin Jingyun's eyes, a cold murderous intent flashed.

"Pass down my order: immediately blockade the Meteor Minor Realm, and no one is allowed to enter or leave. The Investigation Department is to mobilize entirely, investigate for me, and investigate to the very end!"

"Yes!"

The next ten days were the most tense ten days in the entire Star Sea.

The Disciples of the Investigation Department worked day and night, investigating everyone who might be related to this matter.

The Array Hall Disciples repeatedly studied those fragments, trying to restore every detail at the time of the incident.

Guardian Lin Jingyun personally presided over the Meteor Minor Realm and did not return to Yongning City.

He wanted to see with his own eyes who dared to sabotage the star vein network.

On the eleventh day, the Investigation Department finally made Breakthrough progress.

Song Xinghe's Disciple, the young director currently in charge of the Investigation Department—Shen Qiuyu, personally rushed to the Meteor Minor Realm to report to Guardian Lin Jingyun.

"Patriarch, we found out."

Guardian Lin Jingyun stared at her.

"Who?"

Shen Qiuyu handed over a dossier.

"It is an organization called 'Shadow'. They call themselves the 'Star Sea Freedom Alliance', believing that policies like the star vein network, the resource sharing platform, and talent circulation are depriving various realms of their independence and turning them into vassals of Yongning City."

"They have been developing secretly for many years, with members spread across all realms, including Cultivators, merchants, and even officials from some minor realms. This teleportation array explosion was done by them."

Guardian Lin Jingyun opened the dossier and read page by page.

The dossier detailed the organizational structure, membership list, and activity trajectories of 'Shadow'. The more he read, the heavier his heart became.

This organization had actually existed for twenty years.

For twenty years, they had been developing in secret, always waiting for an opportunity.

And the explosion of the teleportation array was the first shot they fired.

Guardian Lin Jingyun closed the dossier and looked at Shen Qiuyu.

"Where are they now?"

Shen Qiuyu shook her head.

"After the explosion occurred, most of their members disappeared. We only caught a few peripheral members, and all core members are nowhere to be found."

Guardian Lin Jingyun was silent for a moment, then slowly spoke,

"Continue investigating. Even if we have to dig three feet into the ground, we must find them out."

"Additionally, starting from today, all teleportation Formations will step up security. Array Hall Disciples will take turns standing guard day and night, and the Investigation Department will conduct regular patrols. Any suspicious personnel are to be arrested and interrogated immediately."

Shen Qiuyu nodded solemnly.

"Yes!"

After Shen Qiuyu left, Guardian Lin Jingyun stood alone in front of the ruins, remaining silent for a long time.

As the setting sun dipped below the west, the golden afterglow cast upon the ruins, reflecting countless shattered fragments of the Formation bases.

Among those fragments were the shattered hopes of seventeen families.

There were seventeen people who could never come back.

Guardian Lin Jingyun's fists clenched so tightly that they creaked.

He recalled how, back in those years, those Array Hall Disciples worked overtime day and night to build the star vein network, collapsing from exhaustion at their posts.

He remembered those sacrificed Array Hall Disciples, whose names were engraved on the stone tablets beside the teleportation Formations, remembered by future generations.

Now, someone had destroyed all of this.

Someone had caused even more innocent people to die.

He took a deep breath, turned around, and walked back to his temporary residence.

That night, he wrote a letter and had someone send it to Ling Shuang's courtyard.

There was only a single sentence on the letter——

"Teacher, I've run into trouble."

Three days later, Ling Shuang arrived at the Meteor Minor Realm.

She was already over a thousand years old, with entirely white hair, but her pace remained steady. The moment she saw Guardian Lin Jingyun, she knew that this Disciple had encountered a true test.

Guardian Lin Jingyun detailed the entire course of events.

After listening, Ling Shuang remained silent for a long time.

Then, she slowly spoke.

"Jingyun, do you know what Patriarch would have done if he had encountered this kind of situation back then?"

Guardian Lin Jingyun shook his head.

Ling Shuang looked into the distance, a flash of memories crossing her eyes.

"Back then, when Patriarch promoted the branches of the Guardian Academy, there were also people who opposed it. Those people felt that the Guardian Academy was snatching their Disciples and seizing their Legacy."

"They secretly joined forces, wanting to sabotage the construction of the Guardian Academy. They sent people to sneak into the construction site to destroy the Formation bases; they secretly assassinated the Elders of the Guardian Academy to create panic."

"Patriarch didn't rush to arrest them; instead, he did one thing first."

Guardian Lin Jingyun asked.

"What is it?"

Ling Shuang looked at him.

"He went to see those opponents and listened to what they had to say."

"He alone, with a cup of tea, sat before those opponents, listening to them talk about their concerns, their dissatisfaction, and their fears."

"After listening, he said a single sentence——I understand everything you are worried about. Now let's talk about how to resolve it."

Guardian Lin Jingyun was stunned.

"Just like that?"

Ling Shuang nodded.

"Just like that. Those people originally thought Patriarch would send troops to suppress them and make an example of someone. But Patriarch did not; he only listened and talked."

"Later on, the majority of those people gave up their opposition. Because they discovered that Patriarch was not trying to take away their things, but rather to work together with them to make things bigger."

"Only a few stubborn and unyielding people insisted on sabotaging. You surely know the end of those people."

Guardian Lin Jingyun became thoughtful.

Ling Shuang looked at him and continued.

"Jingyun, you must understand that the organization known as 'Shadow' did not appear out of thin air. The reason they exist is because some people are dissatisfied with the integration policy. This dissatisfaction could be misunderstanding, fear, or actual damage to their interests."

"You cannot only think about arresting them. You must think: why are they opposing? What are their demands? Is it possible to resolve the conflicts through communication?"

"Only those truly stubborn and unyielding people need to be dealt with using force."

After hearing this, Guardian Lin Jingyun remained silent for a long time.

After a long while, he raised his head to look at Ling Shuang and made a deep bow.

"Teacher, I understand."

Ling Shuang smiled slightly and patted his shoulder.

"Go on, do what you ought to do."

Three days later, Guardian Lin Jingyun released an announcement to all realms of the starry sea through the resource sharing platform.

In the announcement, he did not accuse 'Shadow', nor did he threaten to arrest anyone.

He only said——

"The star vein network explosion resulted in seventeen casualties. I am very saddened, and also very angry."

"But I know that anger cannot solve problems. What I want to know even more is: why would someone want to destroy all of this?"

"If you are dissatisfied with the integration policy, if you feel that your interests have been harmed, or if you are simply afraid of being marginalized, then please come to Yongning City, and we will talk face-to-face."

"Just myself, with a cup of tea, listening to you speak."

"No matter what you say, I guarantee that you will not suffer any punishment."

"But if you choose to continue sabotaging and continue harming innocent people, then I also guarantee that you will pay a price."

After the announcement was issued, the entire starry sea was in an uproar.

Some people said that Guardian Lin Jingyun was too weak and should directly send troops to suppress them.

Some people said that Guardian Lin Jingyun was too brilliant, and that this was a way to divide and disintegrate.

Others said that this was what a true Guardian was like—not abusing force, not indiscriminately killing the innocent, and willing to listen to the voice of every single person.

A month later, a person quietly arrived in Yongning City.

He wore an ordinary grey robe and a bamboo hat, concealing his face.

He found the Alliance Grand Hall and said to the Disciples guarding the door.

"I come from 'Shadow', and I want to see Patriarch Lin."

After the Disciple reported it, Guardian Lin Jingyun personally came out to welcome him.

He had someone serve tea and invited that person to sit down.

Then, he picked up his teacup and took a gentle sip.

"Speak, I am listening."

That person looked at him dazedly, his eyes filled with complexity.

After a long while, he removed his bamboo hat, revealing a face full of vicissitudes.

"Patriarch Lin, my name is Zhao Lie. Twenty years ago, I was an ordinary Cultivator of the Meteor Minor Realm."

"I opposed the integration not for any other reason, but because I was afraid."

"I was afraid that my hometown would become a place without any distinct characteristics. I was afraid that my children would not remember what the Meteor Minor Realm looked like in the future. I was afraid that minor realms like ours would ultimately be reduced to vassals of Yongning City."

"I joined 'Shadow' because they told me that they wanted to protect the independence of each realm."

"But this time the teleportation Formation exploded, and seventeen people died. Among those seventeen people were fellow townsmen of mine and people I knew."

"Looking at their corpses, I suddenly asked myself——what on earth am I doing?"

"Is this the 'protection' I wanted?"

Tears streamed down his face.

Guardian Lin Jingyun put down his teacup and looked at him.

"Zhao Lie, have you finished speaking?"

Zhao Lie nodded.

Guardian Lin Jingyun stood up and walked in front of him.

"Then let me tell you, integration is not meant to eliminate the independence of each realm, but to make each realm better. The Meteor Minor Realm is still the Meteor Minor Realm; it will not become a vassal of Yongning City."

"You have your hometown, and I have my responsibilities. Together, we can make the Meteor Minor Realm better, and make the starry sea better."

"But all of this cannot be built upon the foundation of sacrificing innocent people."

He extended his hand.

"Stay and help me. Together, let us find out the real 'Shadow'. Those people who only want to destroy and not to build are not worthy of representing you."

Zhao Lie looked at his hand, hesitating for a long time.

In the end, he grasped that hand.

Tears welled up once more.

A month later, with Zhao Lie's help, the Investigation Department successfully locked onto the hiding place of 'Shadow's core members.

Guardian Lin Jingyun personally led a team to wipe them out in one fell swoop.

Among those core members, some were spies from other factions, some were madmen who simply wanted to cause destruction, and some were opportunists greedy for benefits.

Not a single one of them was genuinely fighting for the independence of the realms.

After the interrogation ended, Guardian Lin Jingyun stood before the Monument of Heroes, gazing at the Chaos-colored light at the top of the monument.

Ling Shuang stood by his side.

"Jingyun, you have done very well."

Guardian Lin Jingyun shook his head.

"Teacher, I haven't done well enough. If I had listened to their voices earlier like Patriarch did, perhaps those seventeen people wouldn't have had to die."

Ling Shuang patted his shoulder.

"No one can predict the future. All you can do is do better in the future."

Guardian Lin Jingyun nodded, gazing toward that ray of light.

"Patriarch, do you see this? I understand."

"Guarding the Dao is not merely protecting the land, but rather protecting people's hearts."