Global Crossing: Empire of Stars

"What's not good about it?" Lin Zhichen asked.

"Nothing's not good. Compared to taking risks, commander-type Heroes are much rarer. Usually, the commanders of large fleets are also this type of Hero," Liu Manyun said with a smile.

"You've also mastered subspace assaults. If you can merge the two domains, you can use it as a trump card at a critical moment. Any Hero of the same rank would be greatly troubled if they encountered it."

"There's actually so much to it," Lin Zhichen said in amazement. He realized his past experiences had still influenced his thinking. This knowledge was probably something that any family with a bit of background in the Federation would train their children in from a young age to avoid taking detours. This was the difference in their foundations.

"Although the basic verification is complete, your performance from now on will affect your future prospects. Please take it seriously!" Liu Manyun's smile faded as she changed her tone, her expression also turning serious.

"Now, please feel it carefully!"

She extended a hand, and powerful psionic energy surged. The previously calm air seemed to ignite, twisting and dancing.

Affected by the scattered psionic energy, everyone in the entire building felt an oppressive, suffocating pressure, making it difficult to breathe.

Lin Zhichen's mind stirred, and his powerful psionic energy instantly spread out, isolating the pressure subtly emanating from the other side. All the Natural Persons in the building felt a sense of relief, breathing deeply and looking at each other with unconcealed fear.

"This is psionic energy. It's a Psionicist."

Curious about the newcomer, those secretly observing from the shadows felt a chill in their hearts.

There were many legends about Psionicists online, but now they truly felt their reality.

After awakening their psionic energy, their previous divine sense and magical power vanished, replaced by psionic energy. With a thought from Lin Zhichen, his psionic power naturally transformed into a silent wave that completely enveloped the distorted air.

A flicker of surprise flashed in Liu Manyun's eyes. Even though she knew from her senses that the man before her had extraordinary talent, having advanced to Warrior status right after awakening, her surprise at his proficient psionic energy control was still evident.

Adults can control their power with relative precision because they have practiced countless times since infancy. Newly awakened Psionicists often cause damage to their surroundings or even themselves due to their inability to control their power. This is one of the main reasons why the Federal Psionic Association dispatches veteran Psionicists to assess newcomers; they must ensure that the individual does not act recklessly and cause irreparable damage.

"Bang~" A ball of flame danced in Liu Manyun's hand. The flame changed shape at her will, radiating heat, yet it did not harm her delicate hand, which was as exquisite as fine jade, though it was close.

"Psionic energy drives air to vibrate, generating high temperatures!" Almost the instant the flame ignited, Lin Zhichen understood her intention. She was teaching him how to control his power and testing his level of psionic energy control.

Without needing to think, the air in front of him quickly twisted. In an instant, a ball of flame exploded, transforming into a fireball under psionic restraint.

"Good!" Liu Manyun gave him a deep look. With this level of control, if she hadn't been certain he had just awakened, she would have thought he was a seasoned apprentice.

Don't think this action is simple. To achieve this, orthodox psionic apprentices must control multiple metal spheres orbiting like planets.

Only when they can simultaneously control hundreds of metal spheres moving in different orbits and at different speeds can they attempt to ignite a flame, which usually requires more than half a year of practice.

Being able to achieve this indicated that Lin Zhichen did not need to undergo basic training at the specialized training academy of the Federal Psionic Association.

The flame quickly dissipated, transforming into a whistling wind, condensed into a miniature tornado, spinning in Liu Manyun's palm.

This was simpler, just air currents. Soon, an identical tornado whirled in Lin Zhichen's hand.

"Crack~"

As if she knew he wouldn't find it difficult, Liu Manyun canceled the tornado and casually pulled, forming a dazzling bolt of lightning. With a wave of her hand, it shot out like a chain. The ground struck by the lightning exploded with a "bang," kicking up a small cloud of dust.

Lin Zhichen's gaze sharpened. He finally felt a slight challenge. Condensing lightning, while seemingly simple, was actually achieved by altering the distribution of electric charges in the air with psionic energy, then gathering and releasing the dispersed charges.

This meant that releasing lightning required his controlled psionic energy to be able to sense and influence even finer elements in the air.

But this still didn't stump him. With a little concentration, a lightning snake quickly took shape, writhing in the void.

This time, even the usually aloof and intellectual beauty couldn't help but look at him seriously. A newly awakened individual being able to achieve this had surpassed over ninety percent of the apprentices who graduated from psionic training academies.

"Congratulations, you have already graduated from the Psionic Training Academy!" Liu Manyun lowered her hand, a smile returning to her face.

Lin Zhichen's performance had been uploaded directly to the optical computer for review via holographic photography. Almost instantly, a graduation certificate was sent to his psionic wristband.

The Star River Universe valued efficiency, and all unnecessary procedures were simplified or even omitted. As long as one proved their strength, the processes that beginners would normally need to learn could naturally be bypassed. This was a good thing for both society and the individual.

"Your performance has been reported to the Federal Psionic Association, which will greatly benefit your future development. Remember, the Federation never rejects geniuses!" Liu Manyun's tone was gentle, a stark contrast to her resolute appearance, making her even more charming.

"You are the most outstanding awakened individual I have ever encountered. This has saved me a lot of time. In return, I can teach you a commonly used psionic technique. I will only demonstrate it once. Whether you can learn it depends on you."

"Okay!" He exhaled, slightly calming his emotions, and once again extended his psionic senses, observing her movements.

"Watch carefully!"

Liu Manyun's outstretched hand formed a fist. The air within it churned and danced. The psionic energy fluctuation that erupted in that instant made even Lin Zhichen's eyes widen.

The intensely surging psionic energy was confined to a small space, distorting and vibrating the air. Under the high temperature and pressure, the speed of movement of the tiny particles in the air suddenly accelerated, but they were restrained by psionic energy, moving in the intended direction.

"Zzz~"

It seemed like a long time, yet also like an instant. The air seemed to ignite, and a dazzling light rapidly materialized from nothingness. With a forceful pull from a delicate hand, a shining light sword took shape.

A psionic light sword!

Formed by psionic energy restraining high-temperature plasma, its extreme heat and rapid vibrations made the light sword virtually indestructible.

Simply put, it was like creating a nuclear fusion with one's hands, using the energy of fusion as a weapon!

Pure psionic power was not much different from telekinesis, but when combined with science and the industrial civilization of intelligent life, it could create miracles.

"No wonder psionic energy is called the greatest miracle in the universe. Psionic Warriors alone can achieve this. I can't imagine how powerful high-level Psionicists would be?"

He let out a breath, calming his agitated emotions. Being able to create nuclear fusion by hand explained why even powerful interstellar government powers dared not oppress Psionicists.

The light sword in Liu Manyun's hand alone, if it were to explode without restraint, could destroy an entire building, killing hundreds or thousands of people.

In ancient societies, a Psionicist of this level could have destroyed an entire nation single-handedly.

He reached out his hand, and powerful psionic energy gathered at a single point. Dust particles drifting in the surrounding air were absorbed by the force field, condensing to their limit under the pressure of the psionic energy.

The surrounding air churned, showing visible distortion. It was clear that Lin Zhichen was manipulating psionic energy, applying infinite pressure to a specific point.

Li Murong, standing nearby, instinctively took a step back. Cold sweat trickled down her forehead, though she was unaware of it.

As a scientist, Li Murong knew the danger contained within that mass of distorted air just by looking at it. If it were to go out of control, it would be like a miniature nuclear explosion, easily destroying everything within a radius of about half a kilometer.

Fortunately, her worry was unnecessary. Psionic energy originated from the psionic realm, and as long as the psionicist's energy wasn't depleted, their power was endless. As Lin Zhichen controlled it, the mass of distorted air rapidly shrank, its internal temperature and pressure soaring exponentially.

"Boom~"

Suddenly, a tiny flame ignited within the mass of air. The moment this starlight appeared, it spread rapidly, turning the entire mass of air into a fireball.

Without the slightest hesitation, Lin Zhichen reached out and grabbed the fireball. A high-temperature ion sword, shimmering with fusion light, quickly took shape.

He raised his hand, looking at the light sword before him. It was the most commonly used weapon for psionicist melee combat. The brilliant light was almost enough to suffocate everyone present.

The industrial system Humanity on Earth had spent over two hundred years to build had only barely touched the edges of nuclear fusion. Relying on their own efforts to ignite this technology, no one knew how long it would take. Yet, this sword of flame before them condensed the most cutting-edge technology.

It was about a meter long, its hum vibrating the air. The area around the light sword was distorted; even the smallest dust particle, upon falling into it, would burn as fuel.

The temperature of this light sword reached hundreds of millions of degrees Celsius, making it almost impossible for any material or metal to resist its thrust.

This scene, however, conveyed different information to the two Federation beauties watching. Especially the slightly delicate-looking scientist, Li Murong, who covered her mouth, looking at Lin Zhichen with utter astonishment.

Don't underestimate the principle of nuclear fusion being simple; if it were truly easy to achieve, Earth wouldn't have taken over two hundred years of industrial development without mastering it.

While psionic energy didn't require complex industrial equipment to achieve its goals, the difficulty of manipulating psionic energy to infinitely compress and heat it increased exponentially.

Generally speaking, even powerful Psionic Warriors needed months or even years of specialized training to condense a light sword. In the entire history of the Federation, there were only a handful of apprentice-level psionicists who could achieve this.

"Good! I really didn't misjudge you!" A hint of excited flush appeared on Liu Manyun's face. "Follow me!"

She leaped into the void outside the villa, transforming into a streak of light and instantly arriving at a clearing within the headquarters' courtyard. This was originally a parking area for hovercars, now a large expanse of concrete. She used her psionic energy to lift a few hovercars and place them far off to the side.

Lin Zhichen descended from the sky with a frown. Before he could speak, he felt a chilling killing intent, as if he were standing in a forest of blades, his entire body going cold.

Before Lin Zhichen could speak, Liu Manyun flashed forward, thrusting her light sword. From over ten meters away, she attacked!

Unlike industrialized laser swords, the power of a Psionic Warrior belonged entirely to themselves. With her thrust, the light blade, originally only a meter long, suddenly extended, striking Lin Zhichen at the speed of light.

This speed had completely surpassed the definition of martial arts for ordinary people; even instinct couldn't react in time. A moment before Liu Manyun launched her attack, Lin Zhichen's keen psionic intuition had already jolted him out of his contemplation of the light sword. Instinctively, he swung his own light sword in a circle, surging psionic energy transforming into a psionic vortex.

The incoming light sword blade was immediately torn apart by the force field and exploded on the spot, igniting fusion fire. However, it was then enveloped and constrained by the psionic vortex, creating a vortex-shaped wall of fire between them.

With a casual push, this fiery vortex swirled towards his opponent.

"Swish swish~"

In a flash, Liu Manyun thrust her sword thirteen times, each strike hitting a nodal point. The psionic vortex, which could grind alloy steel balls into dust, trembled slightly and then exploded violently, erupting into a sea of fire.

Figures flickered on the surrounding buildings; these were hired workers alerted by the rare battle between psionicists. Liu Manyun, however, lowered her stance, her fiery military uniform becoming a line of fire as she charged through the sea of flames, attacking Lin Zhichen.

"Zzz~"

The two light swords clashed for the first time. The psionic energy constraining the high-energy particles collided rapidly with the impact, immediately affecting the stability of the light swords.

The constrained high-energy particles burst out like sparks from a bonfire. Despite it being midday, the surroundings seemed to dim. A few larger masses of fusion material flashed into existence in the sky like miniature suns before vanishing.

Lin Zhichen frowned slightly. The collision seemed even, but in reality, he had lost. His psionic force field structure for controlling nuclear fusion was inferior to his opponent's, making the overall stability of his light sword significantly weaker. This wasn't apparent on the surface, but upon collision, it had almost fallen apart on the spot.

Recognizing his mistake and correcting it, he immediately set about resolving it. After achieving the Yang God state and undergoing the psionic baptism, something seemed to have been sublimated. His control over psionic energy and his ability to learn psionic techniques had far surpassed the apprentice level.

As if to illustrate, in an instant, the psionic force field that was on the verge of collapse was restored. The force field's operation rapidly shifted, and the light sword's strength surged.

Though it sounds long, it all happened in an instant. Liu Manyun's second sword strike came diagonally.

"Zzz~"

On the second impact, a fleeting look of shock crossed Liu Manyun's eyes. Compared to the first collision, which had almost shattered on contact, the performance of the light sword this time made her take notice.

Clearly, in the brief interval between their two exchanges, Lin Zhichen had already optimized the arrangement of his psionic force field, and the effect was quite remarkable.

He pushed off the ground, his body like a flying phoenix, leaping over three meters. Mid-turn, his light sword transformed into hundreds of streams of light, attacking Lin Zhichen simultaneously.