Li Yao's eyes suddenly shone. He rose up abruptly. "Boss Bai, you did have other plans. The map and the key that you let Bai Wulei get on purpose must be weird! You must know about the traps deployed by the military in the Star Ocean Imperium! "
Bai Xinghe shook his head. "Like I said just now, I didn't.
"Bai Wulei, Fengyu Zhong, the Black King, and the rest of the Immortal Cultivators of the Temple of Immortals are all cunning to their bones. They are definitely not idiots.
"There are a lot of coincidences in my plan. If they think about it for a moment, they will notice that something is wrong. If I give them a tampered map and a Spider Key, there is no way that these cunning people will believe me!"
"Besides, the space pirates have been exploring the underground fortress since a thousand years ago. Although they have never entered the central area, they have accumulated abundant experience in underground exploration.
"The Temple of Immortals lurked on Spider Den for almost a hundred years. They must've recruited a lot of experts in this field, too.
"Those experts are adept at architecture, structure, traps, and rune arrays. They have a lot of knowledge about the design of the underground fortress and the mechanisms of the traps.
"After they got the map and the key, those people must've studied them multiple times and analyzed every detail before they went deep into the underground!
"How can I compete with the wisdom of so many experts by myself?
"Besides …"
Bai Xinghe smiled bitterly and said, "The Star Ocean Imperium did not leave any traps that could've destroyed the entire underground fortress ten thousand years ago!"
Li Yao blinked. "You don't?"
"Maybe they did," Bai Xinghe said. "But the more precise a piece of magical equipment is, the more likely it is to be damaged. After ten thousand years of erosion and countless severe earthquakes, the world has changed a lot. Even if there was a piece of destructive magical equipment in the beginning, it would still be damaged. Even if there were any destructive weapons, they would've been destroyed a long time ago! "
Li Yao thought for a moment and realized that it did make sense.
As a refiner, he knew the preciousness of magical equipment very well.
Even in the age of ancient Cultivators forty thousand years ago, a crude flying sword had to be washed with all kinds of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures and even blood. Otherwise, it would be dull, lackluster, and rusty.
It was needless to mention the modern magical equipment that was precise in structure and complicated in mechanism. It needed to be taken out and maintained from time to time. Most of the time, the cost of maintenance was extremely high. After a long time, the price of a major maintenance might exceed the original cost of refining.
What was even more frightening was that many radioactive or corrosive crystals had to be stabilized with new array glyphs every once in a while. Otherwise, if the outer shell of the magical equipment was corroded, it would cause a huge explosion, which was a common occurrence.
For example, Li Yao had found Sparkle, a crystal warship from the Star Ocean Imperium, on Boneyard by accident. It had been soaked in the silver liquids that were full of spiritual energy in the mysterious silver ocean below the ground. Only then was it barely preserved.
Even so, it was repaired and strengthened many times. Only then did he fully recover his combat strength.
The underground fortress of Spider Den was so enormous that even if there was a mechanism that could destroy the fortress instantly, it must have been extremely precise. How could it have remained intact for ten thousand years?
Li Yao frowned. "Boss Bai, you've already mastered the way to enter the core area of the underground fortress. Haven't you thought about building some new traps yourself? It's not your style at all! "
"Although I've advanced into the Yuanying level," Bai Xinghe said, "I'm not omnipotent. How can I build a large mechanism deep below the ground with the strength of one person?
"If I want to build a large mechanism, a lot of manpower and resources will have to be mobilized. But I consider the underground fortress to be my secret nest. How can I let other people in easily?
"Those who are capable of building such a large mechanism are at least experienced refiners, operators, and rune masters. Those people have a lot of connections and influence. Even if I were the Pirate Potentate, it would be impossible for me to kill all of them after the job was done!"
Li Yao thought for a moment and realized that it did make sense. A mechanism of such a level could not have been built by any random Tom, Dick, or Harry.
The refiners who were capable of building such a mechanism must have powerful backgrounds. It was unlikely that Bai Xinghe would kill all of them to keep their mouths shut!
Bai Xinghe sighed, as if he were helpless. "After I realized the existence of the Temple of Immortals, it was even less likely for me to set up any traps, because I didn't know who was the spy of the Immortal Cultivators in the Abyss Pirate Gang at all. Under such circumstances, would I ask my subordinates to build the traps? Wouldn't I be asking to be killed? "
Li Yao thought for a moment and realized that it did make sense. Even his first true disciple had turned traitor. It was indeed impossible that Bai Xinghe would entrust such an important matter to any of his subordinates.
No wonder he had set up such a trap that seemed to be easily seen through.
It was because the people of the Temple of Immortals were not scared at all. They knew that it was impossible for him to set up a trap deep below the ground!
"All in all," Bai Xinghe said, "the map that I gave to Bai Wulei is real. It was jumbled up by several military maps of the Star Ocean Imperium. Some places, such as the Star Prier's House, were hidden at best.
"The main control center of the underground fortress, as well as the warehouses where abundant weapons, magical equipment, and crystals are stored, have all been marked clearly.
"The Spider Key that I handed over is real, too. It is not a key but a series of identification runes and dynamic passwords to enter and exit the main channel. With the identification runes and the passwords, you will be able to reach the control center without any hindrance.
"I didn't do anything in these places because all of my tricks would be seen through. All of my traps would be seen through."
"However, of course, I was not hiding below the ground and waiting to be killed, either. My methods are in other places, and I can't tell you about them right now."
While talking, Bai Xinghe raised his hand, and a cluster of green brightness flashed over.
Li Yao did not catch it with his hands but covered the green brightness with his spiritual energy carefully. It turned out to be a Cosmos Ring, on which a vivid dragon head had been carved.
"The Dragon King Battlesuit is inside," Bai Xinghe said casually. "I've removed the barriers. You are free to retrieve it.
"If you are willing to give me a hand and let go of the grudge between us to deal with the Immortal Cultivators, you can repair the Dragon King Battlesuit for me.
"I didn't guess the Black King's identity. The strike of the Black King Dark Empyrean did not kill me, but the Dragon King Battlesuit was heavily damaged. It will be inconvenient when my plan is about to be activated.
"However, both 'Li Yao' and 'Sand Scorpion' are the best refiners of the Flying Star Sector. I'm afraid that the people of the Temple of Immortals would never have foreseen that you would be with me."
Bai Xinghe had given him the best Crystal Suit on Spider Den!
Holding back his excitement, Li Yao rolled his eyes and asked, "What's in it for me to repair the Crystal Suit for you?"
Bai Xinghe smiled. "Let's cut to the chase. The maintenance manuals, structural designs, and spiritual energy flow diagrams of the Dragon King Battlesuit are all inside the Cosmos Ring. The Crystal Suit adopts a lot of technology from the Star Ocean Imperium. The nine dragon heads are directly made of the components of the Star Ocean Imperium.
"For a refiner of your level, isn't it the greatest benefit for you to browse through all the maintenance manuals and structural designs?
"To be honest, I know some simple maintenance of the Crystal Suit myself, too. I wouldn't have given the Dragon King Battlesuit to you unless I had to!"
Li Yao chuckled. He finally understood why Bai Xinghe, such an unparalleled brutal man, had been so honest with him and even told him about his childhood.
He was trying to win Li Yao's trust!
Bai Xinghe must've made some secret arrangements in the underground fortress.
But he had taken everything into consideration except the Black King's identity. As a result, he had been heavily wounded by the real Black King. More importantly, the Dragon King Battlesuit had been seriously damaged!
As a Yuanying expert, he could take his time to recover from his wounds or even suppress them with secret arts.
But Bai Xinghe was not a professional refiner after all. If the Crystal Suit was seriously damaged, there was no way that he could've repaired it himself.
As it happened, Bai Xinghe had discovered Li Yao's real identity, which was that he was a somewhat famous refiner in the Flying Star Sector. Naturally, Li Yao's value to Bai Xinghe was greatly increased!
Giving a crystal suit to a strange refiner for maintenance was a risky thing to do, because it was very possible that the refiner had set up countless backdoors during the maintenance without anybody noticing.
In terms of combat ability, Li Yao was naturally no match for Li Yao. But when it came to the arts of refining, Li Yao was confident that Bai Xinghe would be able to discover even one of the ten backdoors he had set up!
Bai Xinghe had no choice but to trust Li Yao's methods. That was why he had talked so much and revealed so many secrets as a gesture of friendship.
Li Yao was greatly moved by Bai Xinghe's sincerity. Then, he decided that he would at least set up twenty backdoors inside the Dragon King Battlesuit!
Bai Xinghe knew the methods of refiners, too. He also knew that nothing good would come of the Crystal Suit in the hands of such a cunning and brutal man as Li Yao. But he didn't have any other choice.
After throwing the Dragon King Battlesuit over, Bai Xinghe said in a low voice, "It will take the Immortal Cultivators three to five days to analyze all the maps, gather all the 'meritorious subjects', and make preparations for the exploration of the underground fortress.
"Take your time to repair it. I've prepared enough food and crystals. Take whatever you want. Don't ask me."
Bai Xinghe stood up and entered the metal hut to treat his wounds again.
His hands were still tied by the tendons, and the Dragon King Battlesuit was back in Li Yao's hands. Li Yao thought for a long time but could not find any loopholes in Bai Xinghe's words. He did not have any reason to stop him from treating his wounds, either.
Until the Immortal Cultivators were settled, the conflict between the two of them would not escalate.
Whatever. Whether or not he is telling the truth, the Dragon King Battlesuit is now in my hands. As long as I open a dozen backdoors inside, I won't be scared at all even if they end up on bad terms with me!
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