Who let him join the Sword Sect!

Chapter 419 Someone Who Won't Let Go

"What is Apacha?" Zhang Ze asked curiously.

"That box you're holding contains Apacha," Big Head said, shaking his ahoge and pointing to the box Zhang Ze was holding.

Apacha is exactly what it sounds like.

Apa tea is made by steeping dried leaves of the Apa tree in water.

According to Da Tou Cai, the brewed Apa tea is a bright orange color and smells delicious.

And what these fireflies like to do most in their spare time is to soak upside down in the water, gulping it down and blowing air at the same time.

This project is one of the few shared interests that the two factions of Fireflies have had in the year since they developed individual consciousness.

So much so that after those white-clad homecoming party members decided to take off, they also picked and transported a large amount of Apa tea and placed it in the Silver White Ruins, intending to take it away from the four continents along with them.

In fact, most of the various characters captured by the Fireflies and brought here are tasked with helping to dry and prepare Apa tea.

Among them, the fireflies especially favored the bald heads of Buddhist monks.

According to the intelligence gathered by the cabbage undercover, after being tasted by the experts of the Firefly Apa Tea, they voted that the Apa Tea roasted by Baldy tasted the most authentic.

“We old Changzhou people just love this kind of food,” said the pickled mustard greens.

"I see." Zhang Ze replied absentmindedly, continuing to observe the surrounding buildings while thinking about other things.

Unlike the surrounding area, the buildings here are much better preserved, some of which even emit a faint glow.

The two talked as they walked, and soon arrived near the largest pyramid.

The infiltration operation was easier than expected.

Zhang Ze has always believed in the principle that the simpler the plan, the higher the success rate, so his plan is quite simple.

They split into two groups: he and Turnip were responsible for infiltrating and figuring out how to take down the pyramid that was the core.

Monkey King and Ah Li were responsible for rescuing the passersby who had been kidnapped by the Firefly Spirits. Those who could regain their senses were to be put back into the 'Sumeru Treasury Golden Dragon Decree Eight Directions Wealth Nine Luminaries Ten Directions Boundless Cave Heaven Returning Star Treasure Vault' by Ah Li.

We'll pack it all up and take it with us later.

Zhang Ze left the specific details of the operation to A Li to figure out.

Having spent so much time together, Zhang Ze felt that Ah Li was somewhat trustworthy in matters like this.

Ah Li waved her hand to indicate that there was no problem.

As for himself, Zhang Ze first tried his tried-and-true black bodysuit, but unfortunately, there was a barrier around the pyramid, and having lost his magic power, he couldn't find a good way to break through.

However, after this attempt, Zhang Ze discovered an interesting situation.

That is, these fireflies are somewhat silly.

In the literal sense, they are naive to the point of being foolish, just like the freshly unearthed rotten princesses of yesteryear.

They're even easier to fool than those out-of-towners who come to Qianji Town for the first time.

However, it's not because the Fireflies are inherently dull-witted; on the contrary, these little creatures are quite intelligent.

It's just that Changzhou is remote, with no one for miles around, and they haven't even been sentient for a year yet, and have been busy brooding over each other during that time. They know very little about the dangers of the world.

They are a group of infants wielding a thousand-machine thunderbolt, with immense destructive power.

There's no sense of accomplishment in fooling them.

Zhang Ze, carrying a large box, pretended to be a hypnotized cow or horse, and followed the turnip openly toward the pyramid.

Even before chatting with the turnip, he didn't know what he was holding in his arms.

Occasionally, when encountering fireflies patrolling the streets, one can simply greet them with a blank stare and say "Hello, citizen" to easily fool them.

"Look, we've arrived." Zhang Ze gently nudged the cabbage with his foot, indicating that they would discuss the Apa Tea matter later.

"Huh? This is it?" Big Cabbage asked in astonishment.

"Otherwise what?" Zhang Ze shrugged, too embarrassed to say it was because you guys were too stupid.

"Teach me! I want to become a master like you too!" The turnip's eyes lit up (ω).

"I definitely will after I leave here," Zhang Ze said with a light laugh.

After turning past a collapsed building, Zhang Ze finally arrived at the front of the core pyramid.

From here, you can clearly see the top of the pyramid, where dozens of fireflies are standing hand in hand, forming a polyhedral shape to maintain the barrier's operation.

The barrier blocking Zhang Ze showed no sign of fading.

The eyes of the giant beetle, which had been shining brightly, dimmed again. His companions were all sealed in the southeast corner of the city. Without the support of his companions, he could not become a giant. Without becoming a giant, he could not break through the barrier.

In the heady turnip's simple-minded mind, becoming a giant was the only way to enter the pyramids.

But Zhang Ze didn't think so.

He glanced down at the box in his hand, a box of Apa tea that he had casually taken from the storeroom.

After gesturing for Da Tou Cai to be quiet, Zhang Ze carried the box and walked towards the security booth.

That guard booth was once part of a building, but it was blown in two by an explosion and then tied back together with vines and strips of cloth, which is how it looks now.

A firefly was fast asleep inside.

Zhang Ze walked closer and ruffled its tuft of hair.

"Don't talk to me. Wake me up when we get home." The firefly twisted and pulled its ahoge (cowlick) out of Zhang Ze's hand.

"Could you open the door for me? We're here to deliver Apa Tea." Da Tou Cai, following Zhang Ze's instructions, kicked the metal plate of the security booth and asked with a rumbling sound.

"Huh? Apacha! Ah! Who ordered Apacha!"

Upon hearing the words "Apacha," the firefly spirit, who was fast asleep, suddenly perked up and jumped up, shouting a question.

The sound startled the cabbage, almost causing it to flinch.

However, the shout was not directed at it, but at the fireflies at the top of the pyramid that maintained the barrier.

Agitation arose at the top of the pyramid.

"I didn't order it!" "Was it me?"

"I don't know, but would you like some Apa tea?"

"miss you!"

"I want, too!"

"Let it in! We want to drink Apacha!"

Having received a response from the top of the tower, the firefly in the guard booth reached into Zhang Ze's box, rummaged through it, and snatched two jin of Apa tea before waving its hand to signal Zhang Ze to go inside quickly.

A crack was opened in the barrier, just large enough for one person to pass through.

Looking at the fireflies, Zhang Ze thought to himself that they should get along well with Fu Ji.

He gently kicked the cabbage next to him, signaling it to hurry up and follow.

"This works?" Big Cabbage stared blankly at Zhang Ze, recalling his previous infiltration, feeling like a monkey.

"What else?" Zhang Ze shrugged indifferently.

……

After entering the pyramid, a moment later, Da Tou Cai and Zhang Ze, who had just delivered Apa Tea, came out again.

At this moment, Zhang Ze's steps were somewhat stiff, and his expression remained a strange smile. As he passed the guard post, Da Tou Cai unconsciously started shaking again, as if afraid of giving himself away.

Fortunately, the incompetent security guard was enjoying his afternoon tea and didn't notice anything unusual about the cabbage and Zhang Ze.

It wasn't until it was quite far from the pyramids that the turnip turned into an empty building, took out a small storage ring from under its petals, and fiddled with it clumsily for a while before finally opening it.

It chuckled and took in the life-size mold of Zhang Ze.

The real Zhang Ze, however, was wearing that legendary black bodysuit and tiptoed deeper into the pyramid.

As Zhang Ze delved deeper, he suddenly noticed something amiss.

He stopped in front of a metal wall and reached out to touch the magic circle on it.

Judging from the appearance, it was drawn by the fireflies here.

The magic circle was drawn crookedly, but perhaps because the mistakes were made in a convenient way, it still managed to work.

Magic.

However, despite the strangeness, Zhang Ze was not concerned about that. What he was really concerned about was why this magic array had appeared here.

Initially, after learning about the Firefly Split from Turnip, he naturally assumed that these Homecoming Party members had found a way to activate Rainfall Mountain from the memories of that fallen race.

But as Zhang Ze walked along, he discovered that things were not like that.

The buildings here are almost all damaged. Even those that are still usable are in a strange state, much like Xiangxiang's starship engine, where pressing a switch in the living room causes the toilet to spray water.

It's simply impossible for it to start normally and perform its original function.

After discovering this, Zhang Ze asked the turnips for more details, such as whether they had some innate ability to manipulate metal, just like the Star Gods who lived in retirement in the Thousand Machine Pavilion.

But the answer was no. Apart from being able to move freely in Changzhou, their only power was that they could double their strength when they were combined.

Being a captain doesn't mean flying the plane.

At the same time, the memories of the fallen races also contain no specific technological inheritance.

Recalling the absurd repair methods he had witnessed upon entering, and his experience of sneaking in through the main entrance, Zhang Ze realized that there was no intellectual difference between the white-clad "returning home" party members and the green-clad "Changzhou party members."

They know very little about this world, as simple-minded as a one-year-old child who can only crawl.

So the question is, how did they know about this magic circle and the method of sacrificing Changzhou to take off from the spot?

Those fireflies shouldn't have learned these things.

Who taught them to draw these magic circles?
Were they the cultivators who were brought in by kidnappers?

No, it wasn't them. The cultivators who were hypnotized basically all entered a state of dementia.

At most, you can dust them, move bricks, and dry tea leaves; you can't make them draw magic circles.

Senior Brother Shi Xiu? He wasn't affected by the black stone?

But if it were him, there would be no need for such trouble. He could just draw it himself. As a big shot in the Heavenly Sect, he could draw a magic array of this level without even having to use his butt to make it crooked.

But...that's not right!
Zhang Ze went through the timeline again.

The world where the Firefly found the Black Stone and was influenced by it to awaken its intelligence was a year ago.

However, their complete split and hostility occurred about two months ago.

Meanwhile, Shi Xiu was investigating Changzhou, where Heishi had come from. The Fireflies discovered a way to leave the Four Continents, and Shi Xiu became the so-called Fire Seed. The Fireflies then began capturing people...

These events happened almost simultaneously.

The key to the problem, or the clue, likely lies with Senior Brother Shi Xiu.

After figuring out the key point, Zhang Ze didn't linger in front of the magic circle and turned to walk towards the core of the pyramid.

According to the memories shared from Da Tou Cai, Shi Xiu was there.

……

Core module.

Zhang Ze stood in front of Shi Xiu.

Shi Xiu remained motionless, gazing up at the tattered star map on the ceiling.

There was a black handprint on his chest.

Five fingers.

"Holy crap...it can't be him again...I'm his dad, right? How come he's everywhere I am?"

Zhang Ze wanted to breathe on his skin.

(End of this chapter)