Chapter 44: Frequency 204

The transformation of the Boundary Gate was something Mo Jiang had not anticipated.

“Knocking rights… could it be referring to that?” A thought flickered in Mo Jiang’s mind. He glanced at the stone gate pattern in his palm. He wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination, but ever since the will of the Main World had taken charge of the Boundary Gate, the Gate’s prompts seemed… capricious?

It was as if a forgetful old man, suddenly recalling something, would act on a whim.

“But why should I leave the Main World?”

Mo Jiang shook his head. He knew there were many mysteries in the world beyond his grasp, but he had no desire to seek them out. Once, he had wished to devour the Fruit of Desire to enhance his physique and strength, to become a powerful figure.

But now, wasn’t there a shortcut laid right before him…

The passive enhancement of the Bone Armor and the Bone Halberd could double his natural strength. Although this only applied to those with strength at or below the third standard level, this restriction was based on Mo Jiang’s original strength. In other words, if Mo Jiang could raise his strength to the 2.5 standard level, the Bone Armor’s passive enhancement would allow him to instantly possess the power of the fifth level! (About the Bone Set, I may not have explained it clearly before—let me reiterate…)

Mo Jiang planned to sacrifice the Demon Ghost World to the Boundary Gate, so the Eternal and Endless Dragon could integrate the Bone Armor’s power into his very being, making it truly his own.

To avoid attracting malice from the Main World, Mo Jiang intended to seal away this part of his power, to be released only when he left the Main World—then he could unleash fifth-level strength.

It must be said, Mo Jiang’s calculations were quite clever. With this, he could live as a free and powerful existence, and the Main World would allow such a presence.

Of course, all this was predicated on Mo Qingqing not developing any derivative divinity.

For the Eternal and Endless Dragon, nothing was more important than raising offspring.

…

“Where is the Demon Ghost World’s coordinate marker?” Upon returning to the Main World, Mo Jiang discovered something unexpected: within the Boundary Gate, only the “Great Sugar Kingdom” marker remained. This meant that even if Mo Jiang had crossing attempts left, he could no longer enter that virtual world.

“I killed the Heavenly Dao of the Demon Ghosts. By rights, I should now be the lord of that world…” Mo Jiang was puzzled, but also helpless.

He tried to call upon the Eternal and Endless Dragon, but naturally received no response. The reward for slaying the Heavenly Dao had already been given; at the same time, Mo Jiang noticed a new attribute in his status panel—

Appraisal and Exchange!

Beneath this attribute were all the items Mo Jiang had acquired in the Demon Ghost World, all considered rare resources, neatly listed.

But his joy was short-lived, for when he reached the end of the list—

“One Tier-Two Fruit of Desire can be exchanged.”

“Boundary Gate, you’re really stingy!” Despite this outburst, Mo Jiang still chose to exchange it, and promptly popped the Tier-Two Fruit of Desire into his mouth. As before, he wished to enhance his physique.

His wish didn’t come true, but his physical strength still increased steadily by 12 frequencies.

Tier-Two standard strength ranged from 101 to 300. Now, Mo Jiang’s physical power was at 204, and he instantly felt a difference. Glancing at his status panel, he saw that under the harvest section, a small parenthesis had appeared next to the Bone Armor.

“Limit reached. Can be doubled to fifth-level strength!” Mo Jiang read these words aloud, his expression a mixture of surprise and uncertainty.

He sensed something new within his body.

But perhaps it was just an illusion.

It was as if, when listening to an old record, scenes from a bygone era suddenly appeared before his eyes.

Though he couldn’t quite explain it, once he calmed himself, Mo Jiang understood: this must be the foundation that would allow him, upon donning the Bone Armor, to multiply his strength to the fifth standard level.

“This Bone Armor is truly remarkable.” Mo Jiang had lost count of how many times he’d marveled at it. “When I was just at three frequencies, I never realized how formidable it was. But now…”

He shook his head, letting the thought go.

No matter how powerful the Bone Armor was, this was its limit. As for the defective puppet he once treasured, now it was far inferior to the Bone Armor.

Even back in the Demon Ghost World, when Mo Jiang, due to the Bone Armor and Halberd’s enhancement, reached the fourth-level peak, the puppet’s combat power was unremarkable—far less than the power of a punch from Mo Jiang.

“I wonder if I can exchange it?”

Mo Jiang tried to trade in the defective puppet, but the Boundary Gate didn’t even offer him half of a Tier-One Fruit of Desire.

He was speechless for a long time.

Glancing aside, he noticed his phone screen flashing—a call coming in. He’d set it to silent and forgotten to change it back.

It was Wen Lanjing calling.

As soon as Mo Jiang answered, Wen Lanjing’s anxious voice rang out, “Quickly, hurry to number seven, Wensong Street. Xiao Zhou’s been kidnapped—on the rooftop. The kidnapper wants to see you. If you don’t come, he’ll kill her.”

…

What in the world was this about?

Mo Jiang scratched his head, utterly bewildered, at a loss. But since Su Nanzhou at least called him “Brother Mo Jiang,” he rushed to his car and sped off.

On the way, he didn’t forget to text Mo Qingqing, asking what had happened. However, her “spying” ability seemed to have regressed upon returning to the Main World; she was clueless, and Mo Jiang nearly ended up crashing onto someone else’s car roof because of the distraction.

Driving and texting truly don’t mix.

Lost in thought, he soon arrived at the building on Wensong Street. From a distance, he saw police cars forming a cordon, and atop the seventy-plus-story building, two figures were faintly visible.

Mo Jiang was initially barred from approaching, but the police, upon learning he was the person the kidnapper wanted to see, practically dragged him upstairs, assuring him as they ran that they’d keep him safe.

Naturally, Mo Jiang had no need for their protection, but he didn’t wish to reveal his true strength, so he played along with the officers.

But when he reached the rooftop and saw who was holding Su Nanzhou hostage, Mo Jiang was taken aback.

It was Wen Zheng.

“You finally showed up!” Wen Zheng’s face twisted in fury at Mo Jiang’s confusion. He shouted, “Come here, or I’ll push her off!”

“All right, all right, I’m coming,” Mo Jiang replied, catching a signal from a nearby policeman who was inching closer. Playing along, Mo Jiang advanced slowly. “Don’t do anything rash, I’m coming over right now.”

“Hurry up.” Wen Zheng’s eyes had already caught the officers’ movements, but he pretended not to notice, focusing solely on Mo Jiang.

“All right, I’m here. Let her go!” Mo Jiang said. “There’s nothing really between me and Xiao Zhou. I’ve always seen her as a little sister.”

But as he said this, Mo Jiang recalled his past self, and realized how unconvincing he must sound.

He glanced at Wen Zheng.

Sure enough, Wen Zheng’s face was already twitching with rage the moment he heard those words.