Chapter 556: The Gods' Walking Association

The ship hovered in the air.

Its massive hull resembled a fragmented continent, sailing slowly toward a gap in the sky that was thick with the aura of chaos.

"All Ninth Tiers, get ready."

Yan Jing spoke with perfect calm.

A second later, Yan Jing, Wen Xu, Wen He, Mao Si, Bai Yue, Bai Chen, Zhou Mian, Weng Lingxiao, and even the long-dead Ninth Tier corpses simultaneously unleashed the weird energy from their bodies.

At the Ninth Tier, one could survive inside a Space Rift for a short time.

The Cat Ship had never undergone a full test in a Space Rift. If anything went wrong, the combined power of the Ninth Tiers could at least compensate.

But Yan Jing had clearly underestimated this ship.

He had also underestimated the true meaning of the word "Domain."

As the prow breached the gap in the sky, the aura of chaos swarmed the hull like flies to rotting meat, attempting to invade the ship.

But the massive mark suspended over the ship suddenly flared to life. As its brilliance pulsed, an invisible path of light extended from the prow, stretching toward an unknown destination in the Space Rift to guide the vessel's way.

Upon encountering this illuminated path, the aura of chaos appeared utterly repulsed, automatically parting to make way.

Aside from a momentary shudder at the very beginning, the ship stabilized, sailing smoothly and steadily along the path of light.

Watching this path, Yan Jing remembered his departure from Old Sin City. Back then, a similar path of light had extended from the city.

"This is a Domain's guiding beacon," Wen He said softly. "It's as if all Domains share a collective consciousness. From the moment they are born, they yearn to gather. Even though Space Rifts and historical shifts have left them fractured and scattered across completely different locations, given the chance, they will always point toward the largest Domain closest to them."

"The Great Prison's location isn't too far from the Several Major Domains. I don't know which direction this ship will take, but one thing is certain: no matter where we go, we will eventually run into people from the Gods' Association."

The Gods' Association...

Yan Jing had heard Chen Nian mention this name before.

Its full name was the Gods' Walking Association. Composed of Divine Envoy representatives from the most powerful Domains, it was responsible for managing all Domains.

"The Gods' Association has established outposts along many unavoidable routes within the Space Rifts," Wen Qiao explained. "They inspect newly arrived Domains, classify them, and notify them of the rules. If this ship wants to continue its voyage, an inspection by the Gods' Association is unavoidable."

Yan Jing nodded.

He turned his head, looking back at the Great Prison as it gradually receded into the distance.

Through the gap, he could see the collapsing world. The rain was growing heavier, and the fog had woven into a thick curtain, so dense that the scenery inside was completely obscured. It had entirely transformed into a dead zone.

As time passed, no one would remember the past glory of this world.

Nor would anyone know that a peerless heavenly prodigy—one who had burst into existence and suppressed his contemporaries for centuries—was buried here.

History was like the tide, rising and falling under the gravity of time. When the tide receded, even the most roaring waves would vanish without a trace.

Suddenly, Yan Jing's eyes narrowed, and he flew toward the stern of the ship.

Beside him, Wen Qiao was briefly stunned by his sudden movement before hurriedly giving chase.

Looking at Yan Jing standing at the stern, she asked, "What is it, Xiao Jing?"

"Something is coming," Yan Jing said softly.

Wen Qiao gazed into the distance. Gathering weird energy around her eyes, she did indeed spot something.

It was a sphere of light, roughly the size of a palm. It was easily several thousand meters away from the ship; anyone with a slightly lower tier, or who wasn't looking carefully, would never have noticed it at all.

Yan Jing's expression remained perfectly calm as he reached a hand forward.

Following the motion of his arm, the surrounding aura of chaos materialized into a colossal hand. With starlight swirling in its palm, it grabbed at the glowing sphere.

With a muffled thud, the giant hand caught the sphere of light.

Yan Jing could feel the sphere frantically bouncing against his palm, struggling to break free of his control and dive into the ship below.

He pulled his hand back, and the giant palm lowered accordingly. He parted his fingers, allowing himself a clear look at the object.

It was a spherical object with a dual-layer structure. Its core was pitch black, encased in an outer layer of crystal-like jelly...

It looked like a filled tapioca pearl in a cup of milk tea.

"A Domain Seed!" Wen Qiao leaned in close, her face practically pressed against Yan Jing's as she stared intently at the glowing sphere. "This should be the Great Prison's Domain Seed."

"But this shouldn't be happening. Mu Tian and the Great Prison were deeply connected. Now that Mu Tian is dead, how could it..." Wen Qiao trailed off, stunned.

There was only one possible explanation for this situation.

Right before he died, Mu Tian had severed the connection between himself and the Great Prison.

A complex look flickered in Wen Qiao's eyes as she turned her head to look at Yan Jing. "This Domain Seed no longer has an anchor. Now, it wants to merge with this ship."

"If it absorbs this seed, this ship will very likely become a Second Level Complete Domain outright."

Yan Jing nodded. "Warden Mu was worried I'd have too hard of a time and wouldn't have the energy to look after his young master. He really went to great lengths."

He relaxed his grip, letting the glowing sphere eagerly plunge into the ship.

Hum—

A crisp hum emanated from the depths of the vessel, and the entire ship erupted in a burst of blinding, radiant light.

The residents of the ship, who had been fully immersed in the marvel of spatial travel, were simultaneously captivated by the sight before them.

The radiant light was exceptionally comforting, offering a faint, gentle warmth. To their astonishment, some people found that simply bathing in this glow caused their strength to begin increasing on its own.

Although the increase wasn't massive, it was already nothing short of a miracle.

Over the next two days, Yan Jing stayed on the ship.

The system had actually notified him that his mission was complete a long time ago. However, the Cat Ship was just starting out, and according to Xiao Xin's messages, the Surface World was temporarily peaceful. Therefore, he decided to stay and observe the situation a little longer.

After all, there was still a massive problem in the Inner World that hadn't been dealt with. He needed to be fully prepared to meet the Gods' Association at any moment.

Everyone on the ship also began to get used to the spatial voyage, and life gradually fell onto the right track.

"This is the schedule and agenda for today's meeting, Commissioner Yan." Weng Lingxiao handed a document to Yan Jing.

"Has Director Wen seen this?"

"He has already reviewed it."

Yan Jing nodded. "Alright, Director Wen can lead the meeting."

"Understood." Weng Lingxiao nodded and walked straight out the door.

Yan Jing tapped his fingers against the desk.

Lately, this was how he handled most affairs—by handing them over to Wen Xu to manage.

It was a formal transfer of power.

One day, he would inevitably leave the Great Prison behind.

As for Wen Xu, although he had done a lot of work in the Great Prison, most of it hadn't been particularly earth-shattering.

As for the small portion of his actions that were earth-shattering—everyone who knew about them was already dead.

Today's meeting was extremely important; it was a beginning.

Soon, the meeting commenced.

Yan Jing sat at the head of the table in the identity of Wen Xu.

Seated in order down the left side were Wen Qiao holding Mao Si, Weng Lingxiao, Liu Ye, and the corpse of Merkel.

On the right side were Bai Yue, Bai Chen, Zhou Mian, Bobo, and Master Su.

"The themes of today's meeting are the transmission of our signal and how the Cat Ship will position itself going forward."

Yan Jing picked up the document. "Everyone has been given a copy of this file."

"I believe you have all read it by now."

"The premise is very simple. The people of the Gods' Association will sooner or later discover our newborn Domain, and when that happens, everything will spread."

"Things like the condition of the Great Prison, our current whereabouts, and our present strength."

"Commissioner Yan's idea is that rather than passively waiting, we should unblock the signal sources we previously jammed and actively invite the other side over."

"What do you all think?"

The group looked down at the documents in their hands, their expressions varied.

A few seconds later, Weng Lingxiao was the first to speak. "Director Wen, looking at our current situation, once we are exposed, we will definitely become a target for various factions to fight over."

"Right now, we have a total of eight living Ninth Tiers on this ship. No matter which Domain you place us in, we are an incredibly terrifying force."

"Coupled with our ability to move freely, those First Level Complete Domains and First Level Incomplete Domains will absolutely not pass up this opportunity."

"Furthermore—we offended the Pure Blood Heavenly Kingdom last time—so for our own self-preservation, we might need to find a powerful backer to cling to."

At these words, everyone's expressions darkened.

No one wanted to live under someone else's roof. The situation aboard the Cat Ship was already quite unstable; allowing outsiders to abruptly intervene would very likely cause major problems.

Yan Jing nodded. "This is also something Commissioner Yan and I considered."

"But the chances of the Gods' Association showing up are extremely high, which is why we gathered you all here to discuss it."

"We can exist as a wandering Domain," Wen Qiao suggested. "You all know of Sky City, right? That's exactly how they operate."

Sky City...

Weng Lingxiao smiled bitterly. "Although Sky City is independent from the First Level Domains, their initial positioning was very unique, much like our Great Prison."

"In reality, they have an ongoing trade agreement with the Gods' Association to manage the aerial affairs of various Domains. Furthermore, I've had contact with their people before; they are constantly trying to please every side and their lives are far from easy."

Bai Yue nodded. "Our ancestors originally came from Sky City. They started off as sky bandits before eventually being brought to heel and integrated."

"What about the Wizard Continent and Five Elements Heaven?" Wen Qiao named two other Second Level Domains.

Zhou Mian shook his head. "I am from Five Elements Heaven. Both of those Domains are just coasting on their past legacies. They used to have massive territories, but their actual standard of power was very low, which is why they failed to advance. I only came to the Great Prison to find a breakthrough myself."

"It doesn't match the situation of our Cat— Cat Ship."

"Minhu should be in the same boat," Liu Ye chimed in.

At this moment, Bobo also spoke up. "The Bowen Library is exactly the same. It signed a contract with the Gods' Association to facilitate the circulation and protection of knowledge across the realms, which is why it was allowed to remain independent."

Everyone couldn't help but sigh.

The situation of the Cat Ship was truly far too unique. Wanting to exist as an independent Domain was not going to be simple.

Looking at it this way, it was highly likely that upon meeting the Gods' Association, what greeted the Cat Ship wouldn't be a warm welcome.

It would be a head-on war.

However, after listening to everyone's analysis, Yan Jing's expression turned thoughtful.

"I don't think we are entirely out of options."

Hearing this, the group immediately looked up at him.

Yan Jing's face was perfectly calm. "The Cat Ship's unique situation isn't necessarily a disadvantage. Domains like the Bowen Library and Sky City are also actually very unique."

"We also have our own advantages."

"Space navigation is a pretty good business."

"Passenger transport, cargo freight. Our ship is large enough to negotiate trade with the Gods' Association."

"Is there any Domain out there right now that can take on this responsibility?"

He looked around at the crowd.

Weng Lingxiao's eyes lit up. "There are, but they are very specific entities, like the Post Office. However, the amount of cargo they can transport is very small."

Everyone else's expressions brightened as well.

Hearing this, it sounded like they had genuinely found a breakthrough.

But just then, Wen Qiao's face sank. "It won't work. Someone is already doing this job."

"Where?" Weng Lingxiao was taken aback.

The Great Prison had connections with almost all Domains, and he was the one normally in charge of that sector. He had never heard of a Domain capable of transporting cargo for the various realms.

"The Train. There are a total of two Trains, and one of them does exactly this." Wen Qiao's face was as dark as an overcast sky.

The crowd stared blankly.

The Eerie Capital, Immortal Anomaly, Heavenly Kingdom, Train, and Chaos.

These five most powerful Domains had always existed as superiors, which was why no one had factored them in when considering their options.

No one could have anticipated that the Train, as one of the strongest Domains, actually offered a freight transport function.

Didn't this mean they were doomed?

Weng Lingxiao's face turned even uglier.

They had already provoked one of the three heavenly kingdoms within the Heavenly Kingdom. Now, they were going to provoke the Train as well.

That was no different from courting death.

"Fuck..." Weng Lingxiao clenched his fists tight.

He knew he had still oversimplified the situation.

Back when Mu Tian was above them shielding them from the pressure, it made both him and Song Huien feel as if anyone could be the warden.

But now that the responsibility had truly fallen on his shoulders, he finally understood how excruciatingly difficult it was.

To put it bluntly, if your fists weren't big enough, you simply had no right to speak.

And this was only the very beginning. One could only imagine the immense pressure Mu Tian had been under when he single-handedly established the Great Prison.

"It's fine." Looking at the somewhat dejected group, Yan Jing smiled faintly. "We will pause this topic for now, but continue considering strategies in this direction. After you all go back, you can brainstorm the Cat Ship's irreplaceable qualities. We can use those as bargaining chips in exchange for temporary independence."

"Earning the right to temporary independence would be perfectly acceptable as well."

"Advent Day is drawing closer by the day, and the surges of weird energy are far more intense than before. As long as we endure through this period, who knows—maybe someone among us will break through to the Tenth Tier."

Hearing this, the rest of the group eventually nodded.

After all, they couldn't think of any better solutions for the time being.

"Then the meeting will continue. The next items on the agenda are the reception protocols for when the Gods' Association personnel arrive, and the specific announcements for unblocking our signals..."

Once the meeting concluded, the group departed, each wearing a different expression.

Everyone knew that this was a profoundly difficult period.

And the people facing the hardest burden of all...

Were undoubtedly Wen Xu and Mao Si.

Yan Jing was eventually going to leave.

To be entirely blunt, even if everyone on the ship died, it wouldn't affect Yan Jing in the slightest.

The ship, however, was built by Wen Xu and Mao Si. Having poured so much effort into it and saved so many lives, everyone knew the two of them would absolutely never willingly hand the fruits of their labor over to someone else.

And so it went.

Soon, the signal jammers were deactivated. Announcements regarding the temporary lockdown of the Great Prison, Mu Tian going into secluded cultivation, and the establishment of the Cat Ship were swiftly broadcasted.

As one could easily imagine, every single piece of this news caused a massive uproar in the outside world.

Another two days passed.

On the Cat Ship's navigational route, two "uninvited guests" appeared.

A man and a woman blocked the path ahead of the ship.

They didn't need any insignias. Just from the sheer arrogance in their eyes, their origins were instantly clear—the Gods' Walking Association.

They had finally arrived.