Chapter 1423: 35: Chance Encounter. [Please subscribe to the official version]

Chapter 1423: Chapter 35: Chance Encounter. [Please subscribe to the official version]

A voice carrying a hint of surprise echoed next to Jia Yan’s ear.

Jia Yan turned his head and saw, in the chaotic place outside the workshop, a skinny secondary level monster standing right at the doorway, observing him with peculiar curiosity.

Startled, Jia Yan noticed the monster was holding a small radar-like device on its foot, and he suddenly smiled knowingly.

Her appearance was not unfamiliar to Jia Yan; she was Xi Bala, the female secondary level monster from the Liqiao Force who had traveled with him before.

At this moment, Xi Bala was holding the radar, which seemed to react significantly to Jia Yan by emitting continuous beeps. She was glancing back and forth between the radar and the ‘Metallic Crow’ in front of her, hesitant to confirm what she was seeing.

The radar she held was indeed the ‘Lord Jia Yan’s Detector.’

Following their separation, Xi Bala had escaped back to the Liqiao Force. The Dark Realm Northern Group was a tremendous threat to her faction, which, despite its advanced technological capabilities, was not particularly strong in combat.

Thus, Xi Bala dared not provoke the BeiTuan Faction any longer and instead checked her Jia Yan’s Detector each day, hoping he would come to ensure her safety.

To her surprise, while out with elders for a procurement, she had accidentally used the detector and sensed Jia Yan’s presence!

“Who exactly are you?”

Xi Bala voiced her doubts. Having experienced Jia Yan’s disguises before, she didn’t suspect the detector too much. However, the powers radiating from Jia Yan’s metallic conceptual body were at a secondary level, which made her skeptical, as she hadn’t expected Jia Yan to advance so quickly.

“Xi Bala, I am indeed Jia Yan.”

Initially, Jia Yan didn’t intend to reveal his identity. After all, the conceptual ship was hard to explain, but he suddenly realized Xi Bala’s technological prowess might offer some aid in repairing the ship, or at least a hint.

So he directly acknowledged his identity.

“You are indeed Lord Jia Yan! The BeiTuan pursuit earlier didn’t harm you, did it?” A flash of joy appeared on Xi Bala’s thin monster face, and she greeted him with unconcealed happiness.

“This isn’t the place to talk. Do you have some time now? Let’s find somewhere to discuss,” Jia Yan suggested to Xi Bala after looking around.

“Alright, you must have returned to assure my safety. I knew Lord Jia Yan was the most nostalgic.”

Xi Bala seemed to have misunderstood something, but Jia Yan didn’t bother to correct her.

Familiar with the workshop area, Xi Bala led Jia Yan to a resting place for strong monsters.

An attendant served enormous fruits and beverages.

Xi Bala casually opened and started eating a massive fruit tens of meters in size.

Jia Yan hesitated a bit, as it was his first time entering such a resting place since arriving in the Starry Sky.

“Is Lord Jia Yan not eating? It’s tasty and contains a trace of peculiar energy. This fruit is highly popular here, and if it weren’t for my privileges, it wouldn’t be readily available.” Xi Bala found it odd that Jia Yan wasn’t partaking.

Jia Yan shook his head with resignation, then controlled his metallic conceptual ship. The crow’s mouth protruded and sipped a little fruit juice, which soon traveled through the ship’s channel to his oral area, and Jia Yan consumed it.

“Quite nice.” Jia Yan’s compound eyes gleamed.

Indeed, the fruit favored by Xi Bala was a delicacy for Starry Sky Strong Ones. Not only delicious, it imparted a subtle strength feeling, which, though not significantly enhancing for Jia Yan, added a unique touch of taste, truly a gourmet experience!

“Hey, I heard a mechanical sound.”

As Jia Yan opened his mouth, Xi Bala suddenly lifted her head and looked toward his direction with some surprise.

Being an outstanding scientific monster, she could detect even a faint mechanical noise. Despite not noticing the concealing prowess of Jia Yan’s conceptual ship earlier, she could hear it clearly once he opened the passage inside.

A look of amazed surprise appeared on Xi Bala’s face; though confident in her technological skills, witnessing an armor with workings possibly beyond her understanding left her in shock.

Yet relief followed, realizing Jia Yan hadn’t changed due to advanced powers, but was just adorned with this mechanical battle armor; as a fan, she did admire his original cool Mosquito appearance.

“Uh.” Jia Yan found himself awkward at being inadvertently revealed.

But perhaps this situation was an opportunity to explain his current state, and he trusted Xi Bala not to betray him.

Even if she did betray him, unless it was to a high-level semi-permanent star presence, Jia Yan now had confidence in escaping.

Clack clack clack.

As Xi Bala unveiled Jia Yan’s true body behind the conceptual ship, the metallic crow slowly dissolved.

Then the Big Mosquito body emerged from behind the conceptual ship’s form.

“Haha, Lord Jia Yan, this is the real you.”

Xi Bala smiled upon seeing that her idol’s appearance had not changed.

“Alright, Xi Bala, there’s something I want to ask you.”

With the conceptual ship exposed, Jia Yan no longer concealed it and decided to be forthright.

Not long after as Xi Bala listened to Jia Yan’s narrative, her eyes brimmed with astonishment.

Jia Yan had concealed some of his battles in the Dark Realm, only recounting his time with the Star Man Faction. Still, tales of battles with Northern Group’s semi-permanent star-level strong ones, and encounters with a fearsome Giant Dragon, were stories beyond Xi Bala’s comprehension.

Jia Yan explained that after his confrontation within the Star Man Faction, he had hidden for a while, and his conceptual ship was said to have broken within those territories, thus omitting the Dark Realm events.

“Phew…” After hearing Jia Yan’s story, Xi Bala let out a long sigh.

“In the end, you want to know whether I can repair this conceptual ship, right?” Xi Bala summarized Jia Yan’s intentions.

“Correct, and also about our prior discussion, I hope Miss Xi Bala will keep it confidential.” Jia Yan nodded.

“Haha, yet another one of our little secrets, the number of little secrets between me and Lord Jia Yan is growing, making the fan clubs envious if they find out.” Xi Bala nodded with a chirpy smile, clearly delighted.

The more Jia Yan looked at this creature, the more unreliable he felt her mouth was.

“Alright then, Lord Jia Yan, let me check out this conceptual ship. But we need a different place.”

Xi Bala guided Jia Yan out of the resting area suite, with Jia Yan still concealed in the conceptual ship, leaving as the Metallic Crow’s strong form.

Through Xi Bala’s explanations, Jia Yan came to understand that Xi Bala was the sole daughter of the big leader of the Liqiao Force and was born in the Genius Battlefield, unaware of the Outer Star Area.

Having never weathered any storms since childhood, no wonder she seemed quite naive. Jia Yan also found out from her that the fans she mentioned were mostly like her, belonging to the local second generation of geniuses brought up with the Genius Key, idolizing stars and strong ones.

Naturally, Jia Yan wouldn’t comment on others’ lives. Without such fans, he might have missed the chance to repair his conceptual ship; now he ought to be grateful for this unique cultural climate.

“We’re here, Lord Jia Yan, hold on; let me check if anyone’s inside.”

Cautiously leading Jia Yan to a large factory area on the Workshop Star, Xi Bala checked inside, seeing no other life forms, and then brought Jia Yan in.

The factory was indeed filled with machinery, though Jia Yan couldn’t comprehend the function of any of them.

“Alright, now let Lord Jia Yan remove the conceptual ship, and I’ll analyze it,” Xi Bala said as she approached a piece of machinery.

Jia Yan stared deeply at her, scanning the surroundings once more, finding no ambush before removing the conceptual ship.

The writhing memory metal transformed into a mass of metallic dough, then unfurled, laying flat on the ground.

Once unfurled, the extensive damages and the missing parts of the conceptual ship became apparent, with some crucial areas in disrepair.

“Huh…” Amid Jia Yan’s slight grief, Xi Bala suddenly gazed at a corner of the conceptual ship, expressing extreme surprise with a soft exclamation.

“This… this conceptual ship…”

Xi Bala stared at the fully extended conceptual ship, and Jia Yan noticed it was at the lower corner where she focused.

There, a symbol was inscribed, like a tiny emblem. Had Xi Bala not noticed, Jia Yan might have worn it all this time without realizing the small mark.

“Mister Jia Yan, we truly have a connection. This conceptual ship may well be my grandfather’s legacy.”

Xi Bala wiped her large monster eyes, seemingly shedding genuine tears.

“Your grandfather’s legacy?” Jia Yan was stunned, then bizarrely nodded.

He was merely astonished to find out that the conceptual ship he wore might be Xi Bala’s grandfather’s legacy. If their connection was genuine, his chances of having it repaired were even greater.

But Xi Bala doused his hopes with cold water.

“Lord Jia Yan, my grandfather was the one who revived the Liqiao Force. Even now, my parents’ scientific power can’t match one percent of his. In those days, he was personally invited by the official of the genius battle domain to join their scientific division.”

“Let me put it this way: if this ship really is my grandfather’s legacy, the markings on it represent his own proclamation of his most outstanding life’s work. The world always speculated about where his masterpiece went, and it turns out to be this conceptual ship…”

“I’m sorry to say, repairing this conceptual ship seems impossible. Not just me, but the entire Liqiao Force and even the current genius battle domain might lack someone capable of fixing this. My grandfather’s technology is beyond understanding.”