To pilot this massive Immortal Ark through the Cloud Sea and into other maps, Su Fu’s top priority was to become the Ark Master first.
Although the mission description sounded simple, in reality, it was anything but.
She had to remember, this was an S-level Mythic Civilization Ruins instance.
The last S-level exam she’d taken was the Chang’an Instance.
The most distinctive feature of an S-level exam paper was that the entire instance had become a self-sufficient system, complete with a comprehensive organizational structure, such as the Imperial Observatory, Dali Temple, City God Temple, and so on.
There were even anomalies copied into the forms of Black and White Impermanence.
However, her objective back then was merely to solve a case, and she didn’t really have much conflict with those formidable anomalies but this time was clearly different.
She gazed out the window at the churning Cloud Sea, her eyes grave, “This time, it’s a real S-level exam.”
This meant there could very well be S-level anomalies within, who could completely replicate a deity, possessing the true power of gods.
And unlike the likes of the Bull Demon King, these anomalies weren’t solitary beings but organized, disciplined groups.
If you broke the rules, the danger would instantly skyrocket.
“So,” Su Fu mused, “in this kind of instance, the key is to play your role well. The first thing to do is to figure out the environment and your own identity.”
Su Fu looked up at her surroundings.
Since this was a passenger cabin, she must be a passenger on board.
There must be some kind of identification.
She got up and searched the room.
It wasn’t hard to find: on the desk sat a small redwood box, inside of which was a jade token.
“Proof of passage?”
Su Fu picked up the jade token.
In the center were the seal characters “Penglai Immortal Ark,” while the back held the passenger’s information.
But as she touched it, the name and image visibly changed to her own.
“Identity: Ranger.”
It seemed Shen Yan had intervened a little, so they could integrate smoothly into the map.
Just to be sure, Su Fu decided to use the Heavenly Eye to double-check.
The information shifted once more, the ink flowing and recombining.
When it settled, Su Fu’s expression grew subtle as she looked at the final result.
The name and image hadn’t changed, but her identity had.
It now clearly read: Vice Director of the Imperial Observatory, Chang’an.
This was the position her Supervisor Master had given her before she left the Chang’an instance.
She’d been just one step away from succeeding the Imperial Observatory.
“But this is the Penglai Immortal Ark instance—how did it link up with the Chang’an instance?” Su Fu muttered, a little shaken.
On second thought, it made sense.
S-level anomalies could move and interfere between different maps, so of course there would be connections between them.
Suddenly, a thought struck her, ‘Didn’t that mean there might be anomalies from other S-level maps on this Immortal Ark too?’
No wonder the league used S-level instances—they probably knew all along that maps could be interconnected, even fused together.
Which brought up a question.
She eyed the jade token and thought, ‘So, if the Imperial Observatory sent someone to the Ark, what are they here for?’
Su Fu glanced at the redwood box again and beneath it lay a scroll, tied with a red ribbon.
She picked it up and untied the ribbon, unrolling the scroll.
It was a letter of authorization from the Supervisor, basically saying that the Imperial Observatory was sending personnel to the Penglai Immortal Ark to help investigate anomalies onboard.
Just then, Shen Yan’s prompt sounded: [“Hidden quest activated: As Vice Director of the Imperial Observatory, you may choose whether to accept and complete the Immortal Ark mission.”]
Su Fu understood.
Originally, someone from the Imperial Observatory was supposed to come aboard to complete an investigation.
But with her entry, Shen Yan simply replaced that person with her, and transferred the mission.
She suddenly thought, ‘So, the Imperial Observatory probably sent more than just me, right? Do I have subordinates?’
At that moment, a crisp “click” sounded in the room.
Su Fu jerked her head up.
A wooden panel on the wall split open, ejecting a small bronze bird, exquisitely carved, its eyes set with blue sapphires.
The bird flapped its wings, gears whirring faintly, and began to announce the time in a clear, ringing voice: “It is now Immortal Ark time—9 a.m. Here is today’s news: The Ark will soon open its General Election. All aspiring candidates, please collect Immortal Tokens actively. The following are today’s available Immortal Token tasks—”
Before it finished, the sapphire eyes shot out a beam of light, forming a semi-transparent projection in the center of the cabin.
Su Fu walked over curiously, thinking the Ark’s tech was impressive, able to project images like this.
On the display were several panels, each showing a bounty mission:
[Alchemy Division Bounty: Firecloud Pills stolen, suspected Yunzhong Demon involved. Retrieve the pills and apprehend the demon, or provide solid leads. Bounty: 3 Immortal Tokens. Contact: External Affairs Hall Master Murong Qing, Alchemy Division.]
[Workshop of Heavenly Crafts Request: Find Cloud Mica Refined Iron Ore vein. Requires delving into the depths of the Cloud Sea to locate mineral deposits and handle Cloudsea Demons. Bounty: 2 Immortal Tokens per ore. Contact: Master Zhao Zheng, Heavenly Workshop.]
[Patrol Guard Bounty: Capture Cloudsea Demon. This demon can shapeshift and is suspected of infiltrating the Ark. Bounty: 10 Immortal Tokens. Contact: Commander Beidou, Patrol Guard.]
[Cloudsea Chamber of Commerce Investigation: Investigate missing sacrificial offerings. Lately, offerings for the Ark’s sea worship rituals have frequently disappeared. Retrieve the offerings and uncover the truth.
Bounty: 15 Immortal Tokens. Contact: Cloudsea Chamber of Commerce Manager Jin Chan.]
[……]
The light screen scrolled through even more tasks: inventorying treasures in the Ark’s vaults, serving as escort for distinguished guests, investigating strange phenomena on board, and so forth, all with varying rewards and difficulty.
As Su Fu took in the list, she realized, “So, working for the Ark earns Immortal Tokens, and the one with the most becomes the General?”
It seemed odd, but for now, collecting more Immortal Tokens was the way forward.
But before that—
“Chesia.” Su Fu called out to the Serpent of Temptation, “Time to work!”
Serpent of Temptation: “???”
‘Your mission? I’m doing the work?’
That’s what it wanted to say, but it dared not.
It only poked its head out from the Thorn Ring, looking wronged.
“What is it?”
“Help me out.” Su Fu asked, “With your abilities, eavesdropping on the whole Ark shouldn’t be an issue, right?…”
After all, back in Eden, whatever happened, it always knew—its detection range was massive.
If she didn’t use this power now, then when would she?
Know yourself, know your enemy, and you’ll never lose.
She wanted to see just who was on this map.
“Oh!” At the mention, Chesia was even more excited than Su Fu, its voice rising, “Of course that’s no problem! You want me to snoop around? Just wait!”
“Don’t tip anyone off.” Su Fu reminded her.
“Relax,” Chesia said confidently, “I’m better at this than you.”
Su Fu: “………” ‘makes sense.’
Soon, Chesia’s voice returned: “I spotted some candidates from Ancient Civilization Descendants, but there aren’t many—they’ve already started taking missions, pretty quick on the uptake.”
“Hm? I found a bunch from your school! Looks like they’re trying to get in touch with you.”
Su Fu didn’t need Chesia to tell her—her communicator kept pinging, messages from Lingshan Society members, some Battle System Students she’d beaten before, and George, among others.
“Oh! I found something juicy!” Chesia’s tone changed, gloating, “The other universities’ people have banded together, they’re plotting against you!”
Su Fu knew who without asking: it had to be the students from Ring of Radiance Branch Campus and Eternal Gate Branch Campus.
Those two schools’ candidates had always resented Tianqiong Path Academy being first, and longed to knock it down.
“So what’s their plan?” Su Fu asked directly.
“Hold on, I’m listening…” Chesia said.
A moment later, Chesia continued: “Oh, here it is! They’re planning to steal your Immortal Tokens, and claim to have some artifact that can do it. That guy sounded so sure, everyone believed him.”
“Well, now that they think they have you handled, they’ve gone off to accept missions too.”
Su Fu considered this.
For them to be so confident—could it be an SSS-level Artifact, or maybe a Forbidden Object?
“Actually, that’s a good reminder.” Su Fu muttered, “I really didn’t prepare for this, a bit careless. After I head out, I need to get myself a Storage Pouch or something.”
But for now—
“Shen Yan, seventy-thirty split?” Su Fu suddenly asked.
Shen Yan: “……”
Split what?
Immortal Tokens?
What would it want with Immortal Tokens!
Still, thinking of all the things Su Fu had gathered before… for the sake of lasting friendship in the future……
“Ahem.”
In the end, after bargaining, the two reached an agreement: next time Su Fu collected treasures, Shen Yan would get an extra share; this time, the storage was a freebie.
Su Fu agreed cheerfully, “No problem!”
She wanted to see if those people could actually steal from Shen Yan—if they could snatch something from an SSS-level Shen Yan, she’d gladly concede defeat!
“Oh, right!” Su Fu suddenly remembered, “Chesia, pay attention to where they stash their Immortal Tokens after collecting them.”
“Heheh.” Chesia gave a meaningful laugh and said,”Don’t worry, I’m a pro at this.”
For the first time, Su Fu gave it a thumbs-up and said, “You finally have a chance to shine.”
Chesia: “…..”
Su Fu pondered—this made sense.
Most people knew little about the Chinese pantheon, and even less about maps like the Penglai Immortal Ark, unable to judge the risk or value, so they wouldn’t barge into an unfamiliar instance like this.
Especially since someone like her, who was very familiar with the Chinese pantheon, was sure to enter.
In comparison, entering would be walking into a trap—no one wants to die needlessly.
So, the rest of the candidates from other pantheons would surely pick maps they knew best, to maximize their advantage.
Given that, Su Fu thought, this Ark was almost certainly hers.
The next priority was to obtain Immortal Tokens.
Ideally, she’d claim the Ark Master role by the rules, but if that failed, she’d just let the anomalies perish.
But for now, she didn’t want to take it that far—living beings were fighting power, were resources.
“Time is tight, every second counts. Get the Immortal Tokens, and start preparing my Ark early.”
Su Fu quickly made a group chat with everyone who’d contacted her, then shared Chesia’s intel in the group: [Su Fu: @everyone The floating Immortal Ark has several core departments: Alchemy Division, Heavenly Workshop, Patrol Guard, Cloudsea Chamber of Commerce, and Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion.]
[You’re probably familiar with the first few. Alchemy Division handles alchemy and spirit medicine—they make pills that can heal, boost cultivation, and some can even multiply battle power tenfold for a short time.]
[Patrol Guard maintains order and hunts demons. They’re the Ark’s law enforcement, the first line of defense.]
[Cloudsea Chamber of Commerce manages trade and intelligence. This is the Ark’s intel center—they know almost everything. They also run the largest trading hub. Their manager is Jin Chan.]
[Heavenly Workshop handles Ark repairs and artifact forging.]
[Lastly, Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion is in charge of divination, celestial phenomena, and Ark array management. They can sense crises in advance—they’re the Ark’s eyes.]
[See which missions suit you. This time, we need to work together to take the Ark Master seat! Go for first place!]