Professor Mo Xuan was silent for a moment. Then he nodded and said, "Yes. There are not many candidates who are suitable for the mission, and you are the first on the list.
"On one hand, you have valuable experience in exploring the Flying Star Sector and the Blood Demon Sector on your own, which is something that no other expert in the three Sectors has.
"The results of the two adventures on your own are both not bad, which proves that you have all the necessary abilities for the mission. Luck may have played a role in it, but the newborn Xing Yao Federation does need some luck in order to embark on the path of hegemony in the sea of stars.
"On the other hand, you are one of the best refiners in the three Sectors. Although you are not good at theoretical studies, your practical skills are definitely among the best. You can even be ranked among the top five.
"The mission this time requires the explorers to assemble a lot of magical equipment units. They may also have to perform complicated maintenance work. Such work does not require too profound theoretical knowledge, but it does have a high demand on their practical abilities.
"All in all, you are the well-deserved candidate for the mission.
"However, I've explained the difficulties of the mission to you just now. As the saying goes, one day in the mountain is a thousand years in the world. Such a mission will have a great impact on your life plan and the future of your family.
"You are no longer the penniless, poor boy twenty years ago who can travel in the world without any worries. You are a core member of the Colossus Project, responsible for organizing and writing the operation manual of the Colossi, which is essentially the chief tutor of the Colossi in the three Sectors. You also have many teams under your name, such as the Glorious Sunlight Group, the Double Dragons Union, and Skyfire, all of which are doing well in the three Sectors. Also, you have been married for only five years, and you don't have any children yet.
"If you carry out the mission, it means that you will be separated from everything for decades, if not a hundred years.
"A hundred years of turbulence, when you return from a foreign land, the Xing Yao Federation is destined to be turned upside down.
"You and Ding Lingdang need to consider all the changes carefully.
"In fact, even I don't know whether or not it is worthwhile to choose you to carry out the mission, because you will play an irreplaceable role in the three Sectors. Chances are that you will create more value than exploring the sea of stars.
"Therefore, even if you and Little Ding refuse to carry out this mission after careful consideration, I will absolutely support your decision. I can arrange some relatively close and less difficult Sectors for you to explore."
"Those are my heartfelt words. Perhaps it will be better for you to stay in the Federation as a spiritual symbol. The fame, position, wealth, and resources that you will gain will be much more than if you go to the depths of the universe. You will also create more stable value for the Federation."
"This jade slip contains all the research data about the mysterious world ever since we received the mysterious signal. You and Little Ding might as well take a good look at it and think about it carefully from all aspects. It won't be too late to give us a reply. There's no need to rush this matter."
Li Yao hesitated for a moment before taking the jade slip. The small jade slip in the shape of a jade cicada was held in his palm, but it seemed to weigh a ton.
Thinking for a moment, Li Yao asked one last question. "Professor, the matter is indeed too complicated. I need time to think about it with Ding Ling Dong. However, there is one thing that I'm very curious about. Can you tell me how many candidates are on your candidate list? Who else is there besides me?"
Li Yao was more or less proud of himself.
He was very curious to know who else was capable of carrying out such a mission other than him.
Glamorous brilliance beamed out of Professor Mo Xuan's eyes. He said slowly, "I was lying when I said that there were many names on the candidate list. There are only two names on the entire list."
"Okay."
Li Yao's eyes suddenly shined. "Who's the other one?"
"It's myself."
Professor Mo Xuan extended one of his liquid metal tentacles and pointed at himself. "I put myself in the second place on the list. If you don't go, I will certainly go. Then, it will be unnecessary to put a third name on the list."
"Professor."
Li Yao was greatly surprised. "You — you are abandoning everything for an adventure in the dark nebula?"
"Why? Do you think that I'm not as good as you?"
Professor Mo Xuan smiled. His tranquil voice was filled with confidence. "You've made tremendous progress in the past five years, but other people won't stay in the same place, either. At the very least, I've been completely reborn compared to five years ago.
"The body of liquid metal is not as simple as being able to swallow crystal processors. It can play an unexpected role in a battle, too.
"Of course. I am a creation-type Cultivator. However hard I train myself, my combat ability is no match for yours.
"However, the exploration mission this time is mainly about infiltration and intelligence collection. I don't necessarily need to fight the enemy head-on. My ever-changing appearance is not necessarily an advantage.
"Besides, after I swallowed Xing Hai and the star brain, my computational ability is much higher than yours. I have more advantages in calculating astronomical parameters, inferring jump coordinates, collecting and analyzing intelligence, and so on."
"Why can't I go?"
Li Yao blushed. He waved his hands quickly and said, "I — I didn't mean that. What I mean is, if you do go, what will happen to Professor Yuan?"
Li Yao was referring to Yuan Manqiu, Professor Mo Xuan's wife, the former dean of the Refining Department of the Grand Desolate War Institution, and a famous refiner of the Federation.
Yuan Manqiu was also Li Yao's first real teacher after he received the systematic learning of refining. …
The original Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit was made by Yuan Manqiu and Li Yao.
"She will understand and support me, I know."
I know, "Professor Mo Xuan said calmly, but there was an indescribable emotion in his casual voice.
"But why?"
Li Yao couldn't figure it out. "Professor, do you know how important you are to the future of the three Sectors? You are now the president of the Refiners' Association of the Federation. There will be countless super magical equipment projects waiting for you to lead in the next hundred years. Why do you want to take the risk and carry out such a dangerous mission?"
"I don't believe that we can't find a third candidate who is suitable for the mission. If there is no other candidate, we can always choose a super expert who is best at a certain aspect and train him in another aspect. With the computational ability, comprehension ability, and learning ability of the Nascent Soul Stage, a year and a half of intensive training should be enough, shouldn't it?"
Professor Mo Xuan chuckled and said casually, "Li Yao, you are mistaken. I put myself in the second place of the candidate list not because of my consideration for the future, but only for myself. It's not because I have to go for the Federation. I simply want to go."
"You want to go?"
Li Yao was dazed. He repeated the words several times in his mind, as if he had understood something.
"Of course I want to go."
The brilliance beaming out of Professor Mo Xuan's soul was so intense that even the crystal cameras could not bear it. Brilliant sparks were popping up.
His voice seemed to be echoing among the stars. It was deep, hollow, and powerful. "A mysterious world in the depths of the sea of stars may contain a lot of secret treasures of the Pangu civilization from hundreds of thousands of years ago. Its scale may be ten times larger than Kunlun's.
"The most dangerous enemies may be lurking there. The Imperium, the Holy League, the extraterrestrial devils, and the Pangu may have powerful potential allies, such as another Cultivation civilization that is struggling in the dark universe or even the Nuwa Clan that once fought side by side with human beings.
"All the answers are hidden in the mist, waiting for us to explore and explore.
"Is there anything more interesting than this for a Cultivator?"
"I am a man who has come back from the dead. My second life was born in a cosmic storm in the first place. As long as I can witness the infinite wonders of the mysterious world with my own eyes, it doesn't matter even if my life is obliterated in the sea of stars again.
"The ancient people often said that if one learns the truth in the morning, one can die without regrets in the evening. Perhaps this is what they meant.
"Therefore, Li Yao, do you know that, if you were not more suitable for the mission than I am, I would never have put you at the top of the list.
"Even right now, I strongly hope that you can turn down the mission and give the rarely-seen opportunity to me.
"Go now. Think about it with your wife and tell me your answer. I'll be waiting for you."
Professor Mo Xuan waved his hands and ignored Li Yao. He returned to the tiny world of the 'Heavenly Road Plan' with Si Koulie again.
In the sky of the Grand Desolate Plateau, the sun had just risen among the thin clouds, covering the clouds in tides of gold and crimson.
Hand in hand, Li Yao and Ding Lingdang walked on the clouds, looking down at the cities that were even smaller than matchboxes below their feet. They were scattered everywhere.
"We seem to have traveled back in time to twenty years ago."
Ding Ling Dong said with a smile. "Do you still remember that day? At that time, you were heavily wounded in the Limit Challenge Competition on the Devil Flood Dragon Island. You were in a coma, and your spiritual root was torn apart. You were crippled."
"Of course I remember."
"At that time, nobody believed in me. They thought that I would never be able to recover from the setback and sink to the bottom of the valley. When I finally woke up, nobody cared about me. You were the only one who believed in me. You stayed by my side all day long when I was in a coma. You even went to the Crimson Nimbus Second Senior High School to look for me. Later, you took me to the clouds and looked down at the entire land. You enlightened me and encouraged me to pull myself together again so that I could stride forward."
"Right. I remember that you brought a lot of delicious food that day, such as sausages, roasted chicken, ham, and trotters. I was quite shocked."
"Hahahaha."
Ding Ling Dong burst into laughter with her arms akimbo. "Did I leave such a deep impression on you that you fell in love with me uncontrollably since then?"
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