From Shang Youhen’s words, Jun Changxiao learned that the Star Fortress had nine levels of hell, extremely similar to the prison he had created, with each level confining prisoners of varying strength.

Who borrowed from whom wasn’t important—what mattered was what the fortress thought it was doing, casually imprisoning warriors from mortal plane realms?

“I heard the Star Fortress is connected to the Upper Realm,” Shang Youhen said.

“Upper Realm?”

Jun Changxiao recalled the Enforcement Bow he had obtained earlier. Drawing its string could gather an Arrow of Punishment.

The Black and White Twin Demons had mentioned this object came from the Upper Realm, possessed only by some Realm Hall, and now the Star Fortress was connected to it. Could it be a prison established in the mortal realm under orders from above, confining various beings who violated the rules?

“Quite possible,” the System agreed.

Jun Changxiao stroked his chin, saying, “If that’s really the case, doesn’t the Star Fortress essentially have the Upper Realm backing it? That’s a bit scary.”

“Cowardice isn’t the host’s style. If Heaven oppresses you, then defy it,” the System said.

“Get lost!”

Jun Changxiao retorted, “Stop talking big when you have nothing at stake.”

Right now, he just wanted to complete the main quest. If conditions allowed, going to the Upper Realm to have a look wouldn’t be bad either. As for defying Heaven… he really needed to think thrice before acting, since this wasn’t child’s play.

Of course.

Gousheng took note of the Realm Hall.

Because the successive punishments and sanctions he endured on the battlefield all required approval from this department before implementation.

“Damn it!”

Recalling old and new grievances, Jun Changxiao clenched his fist and furiously declared, “Once I ascend, I’ll definitely overturn the Realm Hall!”

The seed of hatred buried in his heart had just begun to show its first tender shoots.

…

Jun Changxiao also asked Shang Youhen about the Great Shang Empire’s ancestor’s strength and which level of hell he was imprisoned in, but the response he got was complete ignorance.

“If you don’t know anything, how are you going to ransom him?”

“With resources.”

“Imprisoned criminals can be ransomed out?”

“According to Star Fortress regulations, as long as you pay enough resources, they can be released for a certain period, but ultimately they’ll still be locked up again.”

“…”

Jun Changxiao said, “That’s quite interesting.”

The person still had to be confined—it was just paying money to temporarily bail them out for a period, which could be exploited repeatedly. His own prison could also implement this model.

The System complained, “Just afraid that after collecting the ransom, the criminals will flee to the ends of the earth, impossible to chase down.”

“…”

Jun Changxiao said, “So we’d still need absolute strength before implementing this.”

“Don’t worry.”

He patted Shang Youhen’s shoulder, saying, “Since I’ve taken your money, I’ll safely bring you to the Star Fortress.”

“Thank you, Big Brother Jun!”

“Whoosh—”

The Tonggu Warship advanced at full speed, leaving faint light trails in its wake.

…

Having accepted the fallen prince’s payment, Jun Changxiao completely abandoned the idea of visiting other planes, focusing his mind entirely on the journey to the Star Fortress.

Of course.

He also developed a strong interest in the nine levels of hell.

The Tianyuan Prison Suppression Tower had only just been built, with not many criminals confined inside.

This hell that had existed for a long time should have quite a few prisoners from various major planes. What was their overall strength like?

“What if…” Jun Changxiao thought secretly, “I released all the prisoners confined in the nine levels of hell—would the fortress master’s mental state explode on the spot?”

“Whether his mental state would explode I don’t know, but I know this would definitely be an extremely terrifying thing,” the System said.

The Star Fortress’s strength could be glimpsed from the two times they sent powerful experts to investigate. The prisoners confined in hell naturally weren’t ordinary either—releasing them would be tantamount to a disaster.

“If the fortress master keeps hounding me relentlessly, and I’m pushed to the edge, I’ll just go break open the nine levels of hell!” Jun Changxiao said coolly.

The System said, “That’s playing it pretty big.”

“Of course.”

Jun Changxiao’s eyes narrowed to slits as he said, “I could also transfer all the prisoners into the Tianyuan Prison Suppression Tower.”

“…”

The System broke down, “That’s a very bold idea!”

Regardless of how it was said, Gousheng had already set his sights on the nine levels of hell. If conditions allowed, he would definitely go do something about it.

…

Many meteorite regions existed in the universe. They slowly gathered together, forming special existences similar to stellar rivers. Of course, they could also be described as ‘garbage heaps,’ because they contained not only rocks but also various debris and skeletal remains.

At this moment.

The Tonggu Warship was traveling at low speed through a garbage heap.

Because the stellar river covered an extremely wide area, Jun Changxiao had no way to choose a detour and could only carefully navigate through it.

“Big Brother Jun.”

Shang Youhen said worriedly, “These stellar garbage heaps are the easiest places to get ambushed.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the Tonggu Warship rounded several huge meteorites, and ahead near the rock piles, several warships floated quietly, their decks crowded with fully armed black-armored warriors.

Jun Changxiao said helplessly, “You really have a crow’s mouth.”

“…”

A bitter smile appeared on Shang Youhen’s face, but his gaze contained endless fury, because the black-armored warriors on the ships were precisely the enemies who had been relentlessly pursuing him.

His home was gone.

His relatives were gone too.

Why wouldn’t they let him go, insisting on complete annihilation!

“Your Highness the Prince.”

The middle-aged leader standing at the ship’s bow smiled, “You should hurry to the Yellow Springs and reunite with your father king.”

“Crack!”

Shang Youhen clenched his fists, unable to suppress his surging rage.

“Of course.”

The middle-aged man continued, “If you’re sensible, hand over the Great Shang treasure, and perhaps you can avoid death.”

Shang Youhen’s eyes nearly split with fury, “The Great Shang treasure is the life’s work accumulated by my ancestors through generations—how could I hand it over to you ugly demons!”

“Kekeke!”

The middle-aged man cackled strangely, “Since you won’t cooperate, then die!”

With that, his gaze turned to Jun Changxiao, saying disdainfully, “Boy, daring to help our prey—you’ve grown tired of living.”

“I thought you were treating me as non-existent,” Jun Changxiao shrugged.

The middle-aged man said coolly, “Whether you exist or not doesn’t matter, because you’re about to truly not exist.”

“You want to kill me?” Jun Changxiao asked.

The middle-aged man was amused by this question, because it was simply too foolish.

“General.”

A subordinate said in a low voice, “This guy’s warship is quite nice.”

The middle-aged man had noticed long ago, saying coolly, “Be careful when you attack—don’t damage the warship. This general still wants to pilot it back.”

“Yes!”

Everyone responded.

The middle-aged man pointed at Jun Changxiao, “Hurry up and get out here.”

From his appearance until now, he hadn’t properly looked at Jun Changxiao even once—utterly arrogant to the extreme.

“Alright.”

Jun Changxiao’s toes touched down as he flew out of the Tonggu Warship.

Because regions where meteorites gathered also had systems similar to planes, the tearing sensation brought by cosmic force wasn’t particularly obvious. With his strength, he could easily handle it.

“Big Brother Jun…” Shang Youhen called out.

On the ship there was still a chance to escape, but flying down like this, once surrounded there would absolutely be no way out!

“Quite cooperative,” the middle-aged man waved his hand.

“Whoosh! Whoosh!”

Thousands of black-armored warriors flew out from the warships, then burst forth with their cultivation, splitting into two groups charging toward Jun Changxiao and Shang Youhen.

Kill the people.

Take the Tonggu Warship too!