"Old man, what the hell are you doing?"
Shi Dong glared disapprovingly at the old archbishop, clearly unhappy.
"This isn't a picnic, what's the point of bringing a delicate young lady along?"
"What's the point?"
Hearing this odd phrase learned from Fang Zheng, the old archbishop rolled his eyes helplessly.
"One point! Don't forget, there are spatial restrictions there. Without this young lady's help, even if you find the person, how will you return? Without the Path of the Stars, do you plan to run back thousands of miles from Shadow Canyon?"
"Alright, if that's the case, I have no objections."
Hearing the old archbishop's response, Shi Dong had nothing more to say. Breaking out of Shadow Canyon on his own was something he didn't think he could do, and under the spatial restrictions, ordinary methods wouldn't work either. So if they wanted to return safely, it seemed necessary to bring this delicate young lady along.
So Shi Dong wisely shut his mouth, leading Fang Zheng into the teleportation array, and the young lady followed them in. Maybe because Shi Dong's scowling face looked a bit scary, or perhaps because she had met Fang Zheng before, the young lady stayed closer to Fang Zheng, cautiously watching Shi Dong.
"Alright, the rest is up to you, little girl."
Shi Dong clearly didn't care about such trivial matters. He took a deep breath, then his expression became serious.
"Let's see where you can send us."
"Okay... I understand..."
The young lady replied softly, closing her eyes. Soon, Fang Zheng saw azure light points quietly appearing around her. They connected with straight lines, encircling the three like a constellation.
"Is this the Path of the Stars?"
Fang Zheng watched the twinkling star map with great interest, feeling it resembled high-tech three-dimensional projections from his previous life. He knew a bit about the Path of the Stars; simply put, it was like a natural phenomenon akin to tides on this continent. He didn't fully understand the principles, just knowing it involved overlapping oneself with constellation projections and folding space for teleportation... possibly similar to a wormhole?
Because the Path of the Stars was a natural phenomenon, it wasn't restricted by spells that sealed space. However, summoning the Path of the Stars required extremely high talent and computational power, making it rare for people to use it. Clearly, this seemingly delicate girl was hiding impressive skills.
"I found it..."
At this moment, the young lady suddenly spoke. Eyes closed, she frowned slightly.
"A life star... is about to disappear... coordinates fixed... now!"
As soon as the young lady finished, Fang Zheng saw a large hole suddenly tear open in the space above them. Before he could react, a powerful suction force pulled him and Shi Dong inside.
It was a very peculiar experience.
Upon entering the void, Fang Zheng first saw endless stars and a vast, immeasurable universe. He felt as if he were floating in space. But soon, he felt himself sliding rapidly in a certain direction, as if on an invisible slide. His speed increased, and the scene before him changed quickly. Stars streaked into bands of light, becoming more distant until they merged into pure white...
"Bang!!"
The next moment, Fang Zheng felt as if he had reached the end of the slide and was thrown out, landing hard on the ground.
"Hiss..."
The impact wasn't pleasant, but Fang Zheng had no time to worry about it. As he landed, he heard a deep growl near his ear, followed by the sound of a weapon slicing through the air behind him!
"Oh crap!"
In that moment, Fang Zheng's experience in the Free Instance kicked in. He instinctively rolled across the ground, dodging the attack. He reached for his Skybreaker Sword at his waist and looked up, startled by what he saw.
Before him stood a dozen skeletal soldiers wielding weapons and wearing tattered armor. Their eye sockets glowed with red light, forming a semicircle around him. Nearby, a knight lay on the ground, eyes wide in shock at the sudden appearance of this young man.
Who is he?
No wonder the knight was puzzled. Moments ago, he was prepared to fight these undead spirits to the death. Unexpectedly, a flash appeared before him, and this young man suddenly stood in his path.
Since Fang Zheng was only an apprentice Guardian Knight and not a full member of the Sanctuary, he didn't wear the Sanctuary's standard armor like Shi Dong. Instead, he wore the noble attire from when he first arrived in Star Moon City. Thus, the knight didn't recognize Fang Zheng's identity. However, seeing Fang Zheng ready his weapon to fight the undead, the knight couldn't help but warn him.
"Careful, these are un..."
But before the knight could finish, Fang Zheng had already struck.
Skybreaker Sword's Holy Light burst forth. Fang Zheng stepped forward, sweeping his blade in a golden arc that struck the undead. Golden cross patterns appeared on their bodies, exploding and sending them flying.
Crusader Strike!
With a successful hit, Fang Zheng didn't waste the opportunity. He swung his longsword forward, summoning three crimson greatswords from the ground that shattered the skeleton archers. Holy Light then emanated from Fang Zheng, and he charged into the undead ranks like a ferocious tiger.
"Bang!!"
The leading undead warrior didn't even have time to raise his weapon before Fang Zheng beheaded him. He raised his longsword, radiant light gathering around him and forming dozens of Light Blades. These Light Blades leveled out and rotated, shredding the undead's bodies and souls like a merciless meat grinder.
Divine Storm!
The severely injured knight was astonished. He had seen similar power before, but Fang Zheng's flashy, light-filled combat skills left him in awe. Fortunately, within Fang Zheng's Holy Light, the knight didn't sense any evil or undead aura, which reassured him somewhat—at least Fang Zheng didn't seem to be an enemy.
However, as he looked at Fang Zheng's youthful, handsome face, the knight couldn't help but gasp. He hadn't noticed Fang Zheng's face before, but now he was shocked. As a knight of the Sanctuary's Bishopric, he had seen many powerful figures, but they were mostly older, at least middle-aged. This young man... was he even twenty?
Who exactly is he?
Could he be a descendant of some hidden noble house?
What is he doing here?
While the knight speculated on Fang Zheng's identity, he saw the young noble sheathe his weapon and extend a hand to him.
"You must be the Sanctuary's knight. Looks like I wasn't too late..."
"... Huh?"
Hearing this, the knight was momentarily stunned. He looked up at Fang Zheng.
What is going on?