The King Of Warriors novel (Jared Chance) novel Chapter 6742

A thoughtful gleam crossed Gwendolyn's ice-blue eyes. "What about the Void Chamber of Commerce? It's the largest merchant organization in the celestial realm. Surely it has routes connecting the different firmaments."

Jared's eyes brightened slightly. "You're right. It conducts business between firmaments, so it must have a way through the spatial barriers."

Without wasting any time, he led the other three straight to the Void Chamber of Commerce's Twentieth Firmament branch.

Manager Sterling was checking the accounts behind the counter. The moment he saw Jared and his companions return, his practiced smile appeared. "Mr. Chance! You're back. What can I do for you this time? Do you have more items to sell?"

"No."

Jared approached the counter. "I have a question. Can the Void Chamber of Commerce help us reach the Twenty-First Firmament?"

Manager Sterling's smile faltered, and he slowly closed the ledger in his hands.

He fell silent and looked Jared over as though weighing something in his mind. Only after a moment did he speak. "Mr. Chance, are you certain you want to go to the Twenty-First Firmament?"

"Yes."

Manager Sterling lowered his voice. "The Void Chamber of Commerce does have a way to get there. However, it involves a teleportation route between firmaments, and it isn't cheap."

"What's the fee?"

Manager Sterling raised five fingers. "Five million high-grade spirit crystals per person. That is the lowest possible price."

Master Veridian almost jumped into the air. "Five million? Why don't you just rob us?"

Manager Sterling waved his hands with a bitter smile. "Sir, I truly am not naming an outrageous price. Maintaining a cross-firmament teleportation array costs an enormous amount.

"It consumes vast quantities of heavenly crystals, and specialists must activate the array every time it is used.

"The spatial barrier around the Twenty-First Firmament is far thicker than those around the Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twentieth Firmaments.

"Ordinary spatial teleportation cannot pierce it. The resources the Void Chamber of Commerce spends each year to keep that route open are astronomical."

Jared regarded him with no ripple in his violet eyes. "Is there no other way?"

At that rate, the fare for even one traveler exceeded Jared's means.

Manager Sterling thought for a moment. "There might be. I know another route to the Twenty-First Firmament. It hasn't been used in many years, though, because the celestials there enforce very strict controls over interrealm passages.

"Anyone caught crossing without authorization will face severe consequences. The passage has also fallen into disrepair.

"You would have to activate it yourselves. If luck is on your side and you manage to start it, it could take you to the Twenty-First Firmament."

"Show me," Jared said, his tone even.

Manager Sterling took a yellowed parchment map from behind the counter and spread it open.

The map showed the terrain of the Twentieth Firmament. A red circle marked a wasteland at its northernmost edge, with a small annotation beside it: Ancient Teleportation Ruins, Merak Array.

"This place is known as the ruins of the Merak Array. It's a cross-firmament teleportation array from ancient times. The Aureate Way is said to have built it, but after the order declined, the array was abandoned.

"The Void Chamber of Commerce took control of it long ago and performed regular maintenance. Later, when the celestials of the Twenty-First Firmament tightened their control over spatial travel, this route gradually fell out of use."

Jared studied the red circle on the map, a glimmer passing through his violet eyes. "Can the Merak Array still be used?"

"In theory," Manager Sterling replied.

"Its foundation remains intact, but many of the sigil nodes have been damaged and must be reactivated. As for how to activate them... in all honesty, I don't know. The cultivators who once maintained the array have been gone for several thousand years."

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify