Lin Yun withdrew his gaze and began collecting all the storage rings left behind by the various teams.
Next, it was time to tally the spoils.
Lin Yun summarised the contents of the storage rings. In total, he collected 38,000 Tribulation Pills.
Since these Tribulation Realm cultivators were also cultivating their realms and consuming Tribulation Pills in the process, they didn’t possess an especially large quantity. Moreover, the condensation rate of Tribulation Pills was inherently extremely slow.
Of course, this was still an astonishingly large number.
If Lin Yun had to refine them himself, who knows how long it would have taken to produce so many.
As for Spirit Crystals, he harvested over 30 million—a rather impressive haul.
Beyond that, there were several Holy Spirit-level weapons and a few Holy Spirit-level artifacts.
The total number of Super God-level weapons and artifacts combined reached dozens.
“This haul is quite decent,” Lin Yun remarked.
These were merely additional gains.
The most important prize was securing the Frost Heart, allowing him to complete his mission.
With that, Lin Yun stowed all the items away.
“Time for me to leave too.”
Lin Yun summoned his flying vessel and set off at high speed on his return journey.
…
The return trip went smoothly.
Lin Yun had initially worried that the Tiger Shark Clan might intercept him, but they didn’t.
Perhaps the Mo Sha Clan had specifically notified them? It was a possibility.
The journey back was steady, taking a total of thirteen days before land finally came into view.
“Returning to land feels so good,” Lin Yun said, gazing at the coastline ahead and the towering mountains in the distance.
Officially stepping back onto land marked the end of this journey to the Endless Sea.
From departure to now, four months had passed.
Though the destination this time was only the outskirts of the Endless Sea, Lin Yun had to admit the trip had been incredibly perilous.
Completing this training mission had been no easy feat.
Yet the rewards were immense, and Lin Yun had seized the opportunity to significantly boost his strength.
After returning to land, Lin Yun headed straight for the prefectural capital, planning to take a teleportation array from there back to the Divine Capital to report to Emperor Huoyun.
…
The Divine Capital, Imperial Palace.
Inside the Tongshen Hall.
The red-furred cat spoke up, “Master, your disciple has been gone exploring the ruins for four months and hasn’t returned. I fear the odds are against him.”
Hearing this, Emperor Huoyun set down his brush and said, “Indeed, it seems it’s been four months. That’s quite a long time.”
In his view, whether Lin Yun succeeded or failed, he should have returned within a month or so under normal circumstances.
Four months with no sign of him was indeed unusual.
Could something have happened?
“Master, the difficulty and danger of this training mission were honestly too high,” the red-furred cat remarked.
“Hmm, he’s back?” Emperor Huoyun paused, startled.
The next moment, a Forbidden Guard appeared at the entrance of the hall.
“Your Majesty, Lord Lin Yun requests an audience outside the hall!” the guard reported.
“Let him in,” Emperor Huoyun replied calmly.
“Yes!” The guard acknowledged the order.
Soon, Lin Yun entered from outside the hall.
Seeing Lin Yun return intact, Emperor Huoyun felt relieved.
After all, Lin Yun was a promising talent. While he wanted to temper Lin Yun with challenges and setbacks, he didn’t wish for him to die. That’s why, before Lin Yun set out, he had given him a life-saving trump card.
“Greetings, Master. Your disciple has returned from the training mission at the Great Kun ruins,” Lin Yun said, bowing from below the hall.
Emperor Huoyun looked at Lin Yun and spoke slowly, “Four whole months—it seems the troubles you encountered on this mission were considerable. Don’t be discouraged. Failing a training mission once is no big deal. Failure helps you recognise your shortcomings and fuels your drive to move forward. You’ll need to work harder in your cultivation from now on.”
Hearing this, Lin Yun froze for a moment. His master thought he had failed?
“Uh…”
“Master, it’s true that this mission was fraught with difficulties, but your disciple did not disappoint. I’ve obtained the Frost Heart left by the Great Kun Clan,” Lin Yun said.
Emperor Huoyun, seated on his throne, paused upon hearing this.
“You got the Frost Heart?” Emperor Huoyun asked, taken aback.
Even he, who remained unflinched before the collapse of Mount Tai, couldn’t hide a flicker of shock in his eyes.
“Yes, Master. Please take a look.”
Lin Yun presented the Frost Heart.
Emperor Huoyun glanced at it and quickly confirmed it was indeed the genuine Frost Heart.
This left him slightly embarrassed. He had been certain Lin Yun couldn’t succeed, which was why he’d spoken as he did.
Yet Lin Yun had actually brought it back…
Beyond the embarrassment, he felt profound astonishment!
Emperor Huoyun knew full well how difficult this mission was—so much so that even he considered it an impossible task.
“You’re truly remarkable. To complete such a challenging mission and bring the Frost Heart back from the Endless Sea,” Emperor Huoyun couldn’t help but marvel.
He had assigned this mission to Lin Yun with the intention of giving him a setback, hoping to curb any arrogance or complacency. Too many geniuses had fallen to pride.
Yet Lin Yun had succeeded.
This…
This made Emperor Huoyun see Lin Yun in a new light once again!
“The task was indeed difficult, but I couldn’t bear to fail the mission you entrusted me with, Master. I had to give it my all,” Lin Yun said.
Emperor Huoyun nodded. Even for a seemingly impossible task, Lin Yun had gone all out to accomplish it.
In his eyes, Lin Yun was a capable individual, someone worthy of bearing great responsibility and trust!
“It seems I underestimated your abilities. Completing this mission has genuinely surprised me. You must have endured no small amount of hardship, difficulties, and trials on this journey. Rest assured, your reward will be substantial,” Emperor Huoyun said.
Then, he extended his hand. “First, hand the Frost Heart to me.”
“Yes!”
Without asking questions, Lin Yun held the Frost Heart in both hands and walked up to the throne.
“Master.”
Lin Yun handed the Frost Heart to Emperor Huoyun.
After receiving it, Emperor Huoyun channelled his inner energy into the Frost Heart.
A moment later.
“There. The baleful energy within the Frost Heart has been purged, and the imprint left by the Great Kun Clan has been erased by me. Now you can refine it. It will transform into a thin membrane that attaches to your body, becoming a powerful defensive tool!” Emperor Huoyun said, handing the Frost Heart back to Lin Yun.
