True Source High Rank, Bring Him to Me
Ruizhan flew at a slow speed, still adhering to the rule in Mist Sea City that prohibits ultra-high-speed flight.
His back was straight, just as it had been when he arrived.
The Huo Family elder hovered in place, watching Ruizhan's departing figure, a mocking smile playing on his lips, before turning and flying back to the floating island.
When Ruizhan flew back to the Rui Family's floating island, the protective shield hovering at the edge of the island had already opened a gap.
He didn't stop; his figure passed through the gap, and then Time Stop.
The square was already packed with people.
All members of the Rui Family who received the news, regardless of age, came out of their respective homes and gathered here.
They formed a neat line, stretching from the edge of the square all the way to the steps of the main hall.
When Ruizhan's figure appeared in the sky above the square, everyone bowed in respect.
Ruizhan slowly descended from the sky. The moment his foot touched the ground of the square, the clansmen straightened up and all their eyes were focused on him.
Ruizhan didn't say much, but gave everyone a reassuring smile, nodded, and walked towards the main hall.
Ruituan was already waiting at the palace gate.
The two brothers exchanged a glance.
Ruituan stepped aside to make way, and Ruizhan entered the hall, the heavy doors slowly closing behind him.
Inside the core conference hall, only seven people sat around the long table; they were all high-ranking members of the Rui Family who were still on the floating island.
Ruizhan sat down in the main seat, Ruituan sat to his right.
"Chief."
An angry elder with a fiery temper exclaimed, "The Huo Family is going too far!"
"There's nothing to say about this," Ruizhan interrupted him calmly. "The Huo Family has made their stance clear: they're not leaving us a way out."
Although they already knew the outcome through intelligence channels, hearing the clan chief say it aloud still felt like a knife stabbing into everyone's hearts.
"Therefore," Ruizhan withdrew his gaze and looked at everyone present, "We cannot sit idly by and wait for our demise."
His voice lowered slightly. "The Huo Family wants to devour us, and they also want to devour several other families. We alone are no match for them. But if we unite..."
97
A middle-aged clan elder, seated at the end of the long table, asked, "Clan leader, what do you mean?"
"I'll visit the other families," Ruizhan said slowly. "I'll go to all the families that the Huo Family has their eyes on."
Ruituan frowned. "Brother, will they agree? We contacted them before, and they were still hoping for a peaceful resolution."
"That was then." Ruizhan's lips curled into a cold smile. "Now that I've set an example, they should understand what to do."
He looked out the window, where the sunlight seemed to penetrate the protective shield of the floating islands and fall on the distant family floating islands that were also being suffocated by the Huo Family.
"The Huo Family's methods this time are not ordinary business competition. They've cut off supplies, seized distribution channels, and attacked transport ships—they're trying to completely destroy our foundation." Ruizhan's voice echoed in the conference hall. "Right now, they can still harbor illusions, thinking that if they back down, the Huo Family might let them off the hook. But now, I've used my own experience to make them understand the Huo Family's attitude."
"They must now understand that taking a step back doesn't lead to a brighter future, but rather to an abyss."
Upon hearing this, a ruthless glint flashed in Ruituan's eyes. "That's right. If they want to devour us, they'll have to break a few of their teeth first!"
Another elder hesitated and said, "But clan leader, if we unite against the Huo Family... our combined strength is probably not enough."
"It's not enough," Ruizhan readily admitted, "But we don't need to win."
"We just need to stall."
"If we drag it out until the Huo Family feels it's not worth the loss, if we drag it out until someone from the City Lord's Mansion gets fed up and intervenes, if we drag it out until... something unexpected happens."
He spoke very softly when he said his last words.
But everyone in the conference room understood.
variable.
That young man who was fighting on the Frontline of the Black Mist Sea, had already been promoted to centurion, and had earned the appreciation of the military lord.
Lin Yi.
Black Mist Sea, the Seventy-First Garrison Fleet's defense zone.
The energy shield on the surface of the Fierce Blood Assault Ship, where the Sixteenth Squad was located, was operating stably, isolating the surrounding surging chaotic airflow from the outside.
Through the porthole, one could see the dark shadows surging like a tide in the distance.
Those were the Black Silence Beast, relentlessly assaulting the Empire's defenses.
The current defensive position of the Sixteenth Squad is basically at the forefront of the Seventy-First Fleet.
The reason is simple.
Because they are the strongest.
Li is an outstanding individual among those at the high level of True Origin, just one step away from perfection.
Lin Yi is at the sixth level of the True Source Realm and has mastered five Cosmic Universe Seal. His actual combat strength has surpassed that of most veteran captains.
This combination was naturally placed in the front-line area where the pressure was greatest.
They stood like a solid reef, bracing against wave after wave of the horde of monstrous beasts.
At this moment, inside the training room of the Fierce Blood Assault Ship.
Lin Yi sat cross-legged, his eyes slightly closed, with a pale yellow halo flowing around him.
That was the fluctuation of the Earth Cosmic Universe Seal of Emptiness.
Now, nearly two Epoch have passed since he broke through to the sixth level of the True Source Realm.
His improvement in cultivation level was quickly noticed by his teammates during this period.
After all, he couldn't deliberately hold back in a fight, so the moment he started fighting, he immediately surprised everyone.
But everyone tacitly refrained from asking further questions.
Cultivation is a matter of paramount personal privacy, and it is taboo to pry into it casually.
Moreover, Lin Yi's talent was obvious from the beginning. Although his rapid advancement to the sixth rank shocked everyone, after they automatically came up with all sorts of random reasons, it didn't seem entirely unacceptable.
Occasionally, during battle, when Lin Yi unleashed all five seals and tore a late-stage Tier 1 Black Silence Beast to pieces, the surrounding team members couldn't help but take a few more glances.
The overwhelming sense of crushing power they felt was beyond their comprehension of a mid-stage True Source Realm.
Lin Yi himself didn't explain much.
He devoted all his energy to cultivation.
Fight, recover, comprehend the Earth Cosmic Universe Seal, and fight again.
This cycle has repeated countless times over the past two Epoch.
Each time he returned to the Fierce Blood Assault Ship for rest and recuperation, he would immediately enter a state of deep cultivation, seizing every minute to advance the condensation of the Earth Seal.
The Earth Cosmic Universe Seal is characterized by its solidity and weight. Its seal structure is based on layers of overlapping walls, making it adept at defense.
Now his attack methods are quite diverse: the Gold Seal Sharpness, the Time Seal controls the field, the Space Seal allows for displacement, the Life Seal restores health, and the Death Seal corrodes.
However, defense remains a weakness.
Facing a first-tier Black Silence Beast is manageable, but once you encounter a second-tier one...
Last time, a casual attack from that early-stage second-tier Black Silence Beast almost seriously injured Li.
If he hadn't used his Time Seal Clone, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
After the earth seal condensed, Lin Yi figured that although he couldn't directly confront Black Silence Beast at the early stage of the second tier, he could barely manage to take the hit and escape unscathed.
That's enough.
As long as he can survive the attacks of the Second-Order Black Silence Beast, he will have room to maneuver.
Time flew by as I focused on my practice.
Another combat rotation recovery period.
On this day, Lin Yi returned to the Fierce Blood Assault Ship as usual and entered the training room.
The hatch closes, and the indoor energy concentration automatically adjusts to the highest level.
He sat down cross-legged, his consciousness sinking into the depths of his soul.
There, the five Cosmic Universe Seal were slowly rotating along a mysterious trajectory, with subtle energy connections between them, forming a preliminary synergistic system.
In the center of the five seals, a pale yellow illusory seal is slowly coalescing.
That was the prototype of the Earth Cosmic Universe Seal.
Over the past two Epoch, Lin Yi has completed the outlining of the illusory seal, the weaving of the regular patterns, and the initial construction of the energy circuit.
Now only the final step remains: to completely solidify the illusory seal.
He took a deep breath and activated the Chaos Power within his body.
Pure chaotic energy surged from the Source Sea, flowing along a specific route into the depths of the soul, and was injected into that pale yellow illusory seal.
The textures on the surface of the imprint began to glow.
The earthy yellow light wasn't dazzling, but it had a reassuring, weighty quality.
As the light gradually intensified, the outline of the illusory mark became clearer and clearer in the light, and the previously somewhat blurry regular patterns became as distinct as if carved by a knife.
Lin Yi could feel an unprecedented sense of stability spreading from the depths of his soul.
That is the unique essence of the Earth Seal, carrying and protecting true meaning.
Time ticked by, second by second.
When the light on the surface of the virtual seal reached its peak, Lin Yi's eyes suddenly turned serious.
Buzz!
The energy in the entire training room suddenly surged.
A pale yellow halo spread out from Lin Yi, and wherever it passed, even the space itself seemed to become heavier.
The illusory seal solidified completely, transforming into a thick, earth-yellow mark.
The Earth Cosmic Universe Seal is formed.
Lin Yi slowly opened his eyes. He felt the newly formed earthen mark deep within his soul and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
He had actually been somewhat worried about these two Epoch.
He feared that before he could condense the earth seal, he would encounter another attack from Second-Order Black Silence Beast, just like last time.
Fortunately, it seems that after the last incident involving the escaped beasts, Commander Lainiadun has increased his attention to their frontline squad.
In every battle, whenever a Second-Order Black Silence Beast approaches the Sixteenth Squad's defense zone, Lainiadun prioritizes dealing with it and will never allow it to threaten Li and Lin Yi.
Therefore, although these two Epoch were filled with frequent battles and great pressure, no particularly dangerous situations occurred.
Lin Yi raised his hand, palm facing upwards.
With a slight thought, the phantom images of six Cosmic Universe Seal appeared one after another above his palm.
Gold, time, space, life, death, earth.
The six marks slowly rotated, and the energy connection between them became more stable than before.
The newly added earth seal, in particular, acts like a solid foundation, firmly supporting the other five seals and making the entire seal system operate more smoothly.
"Six seals." Lin Yi muttered to himself.
According to the <Nine Seal Cosmos Art>, once all nine seals are condensed and combined into one, one can touch a trace of the power of the Chaos Law, making one invincible in the True Source Realm.
He has now completed two-thirds of it.
The remaining three seals...
Lin Yi withdrew the illusory mark from his palm, left the training room, and strode to the bridge.
Outside the bridge window, churning black mist stretched out. Further away, the energy shields of other Fierce Blood Assault Ship could be faintly seen, like stars stubbornly twinkling in the darkness.
The battle continues.
The Black Silence Beast Tide seems endless.
But Lin Yi felt no fear, only a calm fighting spirit.
Soon, the hatch slid open, Lin Yi leaped out.
Next, another attack will be launched.
The news that Lin Yi had condensed the Earth Cosmic Universe Seal was captured by Zero Three the instant the illusory seal completely solidified.
Li was currently hovering on the outer deck of the bow of the Fierce Blood Assault Ship.
As the captain of the Sixteenth Squad, he was responsible for overseeing operations and providing emergency support.
"Li." Zero Three's voice rang directly in his ear, "Lin Yi's Earth Cosmic Universe Seal is complete."
Upon hearing this, Li showed no surprise whatsoever.
He simply nodded slightly, a sense of "I knew it" rising within him.
Less than two Epoch later.
From comprehending the sixth seal to finally condensing it, Lin Yi only spent this much time.
This is beyond fast; it can't even be described as fast.
"It seems this is his true talent," Li thought to himself, a smile involuntarily creeping onto his lips. "Clearly, the two-star mark is merely the limit of their Cosmic Clam, not his. Tsk tsk, truly terrifying."
Li shook his head, and the thought of "having Lin Yi take over his job" that had been in his mind completely vanished at this moment.
"Looks like I won't be getting to succeed him." He chuckled to himself. "Heh heh, but I doubt he'll get a chance with the commander either."
But then, an inexplicable sense of anticipation welled up in Li's heart.
"I just wonder how long it will take this kid to reach the seventh level of the True Source Realm and officially become a high-level True Origin cultivator."
The advanced stage of the True Source Realm is another watershed.
The breakthrough from the sixth to the seventh rank requires an increase in the Rule Comprehension from 50% to 60%, a higher threshold than any previous breakthrough.
Many exceptionally talented cultivators are stuck at this stage for thousands or even tens of thousands of Epoch.
But Li had a gut feeling that this threshold probably wouldn't hold Lin Yi back for long.
As for his previous obsession with having Lin Yi succeed him, he has now come to terms with it.
The reason is simple.
The reason he had hoped Lin Yi would succeed him as the next captain of the Sixteenth Squad was because he was worried that if he failed to break through to the Eternal Source Realm and perished, the Sixteenth Squad would be ostracized and bullied by other squads because they would not have a strong backer.
After all, it's common for the various squadrons within the fleet to compete openly and covertly. Although Commander Lainiadun can maintain overall fairness, he can't interfere in everything.
But now, the situation is different.
Even though Lin Yi reached the Eternal Source Realm before him and was transferred to a more important position, the label of "leaving the Sixteenth Squad" would always follow Lin Yi.
Given Lin Yi's current reputation, who would dare to bully the Sixteenth Squad?
Having figured this out, Li's regret was completely dispelled.
He stood outside the bow of the ship, watching the faint shimmering light in the distant black mist, a relaxed smile on his face.
Lin Yi, of course, had no idea what Li was thinking at that moment.
He's now single-mindedly focused on earning military merit.
At this moment, he held Black Mystic Long Spear, wore black armor, and the hundred-foot-long badge on his chest glowed faintly in the chaotic air currents.
Ahead, dozens of Darkflame Beast surged forward like a tide.
Unlike before, Lin Yi did not first create distance and look for an opportunity to strike.
He charged straight at the herd of beasts.
A Darkflame Beast roared and pounced, its front paws, burning with black flames, slamming into Lin Yi's chest.
Lin Yi neither dodged nor avoided the attack.
A yellowish-brown halo emerged from his body, instantly forming a thick, semi-transparent barrier around his armor.
Bang!
The Darkflame Beast's claws slammed against the barrier, producing a dull thud.
Ripples spread across the surface of the barrier, but it remained perfectly still.
Lin Yi didn't even take a single step back.
With a flick of his wrist, he swept his Long Spear horizontally.
The golden seal lit up at the tip of the spear, and the Sharpness Chaos Power transformed into an arc-shaped blade of light, severing the Darkflame Beast in half.
Black blood and fragments of internal organs splattered in the void.
Lin Yi didn't stop, and continued to rush forward.
The second and third Darkflame Beast pounced at the same time.
He still didn't hide.
The earthen barrier withstood two more attacks. At the same time, his spear moved like a dragon, its tip striking out repeatedly and accurately piercing the crystal cores of the two Darkflame Beast.
Sold out instantly.
The teammates around them couldn't help but whisper among themselves.
"Lin Baichang's defense... is just too monstrous!"
"He withstood a full-force attack from a mid-stage Tier 1 elite Darkflame Beast as if nothing had happened?"
"That must be the effect of the Earth Cosmic Universe Seal, right? I've heard that the Earth Seal is mainly for defense..."
Lin Yi ignored his teammates' comments.
He was immersed in this new rhythm of combat.
With the Earth Seal's blessing, he could completely abandon most of his dodging actions and focus on attacking when facing Black Silence Beast below the late stage of Tier 1.
The energy and Chaos Power saved can be fully invested in killing efficiency.
In the ensuing battles, Lin Yi's fighting style became increasingly unrestrained.
He was like a rampaging war chariot, carving a bloody path through the horde of beasts.
The Darkflame Beast's claws struck its body, but were easily blocked by the earthen barrier.
The crystallized armor of the Crystal Snail Beast pierced through the barrier, creating sparks as it struck the surface before sliding down helplessly.
Only a late-stage Tier 1 Black Silence Beast could make Lin Yi take it even slightly seriously.
But only slightly.
He would still choose to withstand the attack head-on, and then kill him with even more lethal marksmanship.
This combat method resulted in more than double the efficiency of accumulating military merits compared to before.
Because he didn't need to dodge or adjust his position frequently, Lin Yi could maintain a near-constant pace of advancement, and wherever he went, Black Silence Beast fell in droves.
Time slips away quietly in this cycle of fighting, resting, and fighting again.
More than sixty Epoch have passed.
The battle in the Black Mist Sea remains deadlocked, but the Seventy-First Fleet's defenses are Rock solid.
The Sixteenth Squad, positioned on the front line of the reef, endured the most impacts and also reaped the most military merits.
This day marked another period of rest and recuperation.
The Fierce Blood Assault Ship has just returned to its mothership.
Inside the cultivation room, a glint of anticipation flashed in Lin Yi's eyes.
His Rule Comprehension has now reached 59.999%, just one step away from the threshold of the seventh level of the True Source Realm.
In fact, he had already reached the 60% threshold half an Epoch ago.
But he forcefully suppressed the urge to break through.
The reason is simple: he's still on the Frontline.
If he chooses to break through, he will inevitably need to go into seclusion for a period of time to stabilize his realm and expand his Source Sea.
During that period, the Sixteenth Squad will lose him as a key combat force.
Although Li and the other team members are all quite strong, the absence of him as the spearhead will greatly increase the defensive pressure on the entire squadron, necessitating a repositioning. This will require Dynamic adjustments to the defensive deployment of the entire Seventy-First Fleet.
Lin Yi didn't want to cause so much trouble because of his breakthrough.
So he waited.
Once the Sixteenth Squad completes its defensive mission for this phase, it will return to the mothership for rest and refitting.
Now, the rest period has arrived.
However, he did not break through immediately. Instead, he stood up and walked out of the training room.
He first went to the mothership's supply area, where he exchanged his military merits for a batch of regular supplies, and then went to the public rest area.
There were many soldiers from other detachments relaxing there; some were chatting, while others were simply sitting and spacing out.
Lin Yi found a corner seat, ordered an energy drink, and slowly sipped it.
He spent over a hundred years in the public area.
During this time, a familiar black-armored centurion came over to greet him, and he chatted with him for a few words with a smile.
No one knew that this young man, sitting quietly in the corner drinking a beverage, was ready to step into the advanced stage of the True Source Realm at any time.
This was exactly the effect Lin Yi wanted.
It seems a bit too coincidental that he immediately went into seclusion to break through to a higher level upon returning to the mothership.
Taking a break before naturally entering into deep practice is more in line with common sense.
One hundred and thirty-seven years later, Lin Yi returned to the Fierce Blood Assault Ship.
He entered the meditation room, sat cross-legged, and took a deep breath.
Spiritual Enlightenment Qi ignited deep within his soul.
The final barrier between 59.999% and 60%, under the Spiritual Enlightenment Qi, melted silently like thin ice under the sun.
Rule Comprehension: 60%
He crossed the threshold of the legendary, extremely difficult seventh level of the True Source Realm just like that.
Effortless and without any obstacles.
After breaking through, Lin Yi did not stop and immediately began to expand the Chaos Source Sea.
Pale blue energy patterns spread along the cabin walls, and pure chaotic energy was continuously injected into the room.
Meanwhile, the captain's private training room.
The Light Sphere from Zero Three appeared before Li.
"Li, Lin Yi has begun expanding his Source Sea. His Rule Comprehension has exceeded 60%."
Li was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this, then laughed.
"In the sixtieth Epoch, we crossed the great threshold of the higher realms..."
He couldn't help but sigh, "This confirms the commander's guess."
1
After his idea was confirmed, Li didn't delay and immediately said to Zero Three, "I request an audience with the Commander."
"Clear."
The Light Sphere of Zero Three flickered once and then disappeared.
A moment later, Zero Three's voice rang out again.
"Application approved. The commander is waiting for you in the command center."
Li straightened his armor and strode out of the captain's cabin.
Black Rock Mothership, Core Command Room.
Lainiadun was standing in front of a massive tactical star map.
He moved his fingers across the virtual screen, adjusting the deployment positions of each squad.
He turned around when he heard footsteps.
"Li? What's wrong?"
He bowed respectfully and then got straight to the point.
"Commander, Lin Yi has reached the seventh level of the True Source Realm."
The command center fell silent for a moment.
Lainiadun's finger froze in mid-air.
"Seventh rank?" he repeated.
"Yes." Li nodded. "He is expanding the Source Sea."
Lainiadun was silent for a moment, then sighed, "I never expected... that my little Seventy-First Fleet could produce such an extremely rare, slow-burning genius."
Then, he looked at Li.
"We need to report this matter to the military commander."
Li's expression hardened. "Yes."
Without hesitation, Lainiadun said, "Help me apply for an audience with the military commander."
As soon as the words were spoken, the crimson crystal core on the dome of the command room shone brightly.
After a while, a phantom figure dressed in dark blue armor slowly appeared.
Commander Wen Qianfei.
Her face remained calm, but there was a hint of weariness in her deep blue eyes.
Although the battle in the Black Mist Sea did not last long, it was very intense. Even powerful figures at the level of military commanders needed to keep a close eye on the situation, so they were under considerable pressure.
"Lainiadun," Wen Qianfei said, "The battle situation on your end is not bad, and we haven't detected any mid-stage Tier 2 Black Silence Beast moving towards your defensive zone. What's wrong? Is there some emergency?"
Lainiadun bowed slightly.
"Commander, it's about Lin Yi."
Wen Qianfei raised an eyebrow slightly.
"Lin Yi? That genius from your publicly funded program? What happened to him?"
"He just broke through to the seventh level of the True Source Realm," Lainiadun said.
Wen Qianfei's eyes visibly flickered.
"Seventh rank?" she said slowly. "I remember, it wasn't long ago that he last broke through to the middle rank and condensed the fourth seal?"
"Yes." Lainiadun nodded. "From the fourth to the seventh level of the True Source Realm, it took him less than five hundred Epoch in total. Of that, it only took one hundred Epoch to go from the fifth to the seventh level."
Wen Qianfei fell silent.
Her deep blue eyes narrowed slightly, and after a moment, she slowly spoke.
"This speed... is abnormal."
"That's definitely not normal," Lainiadun continued, "So we had a suspicion earlier, and now we want to report it to the Commander."
"Explain."
"We suspect that Lin Yi is one of those rare slow-burning geniuses," Lainiadun said cautiously.
"A slow-burning genius..."
Wen Qianfei repeated softly, "These kinds of geniuses are extremely rare... but every single one of them eventually reaches at least the Constant Source Realm."
"Are you sure?"
"Sure."
Lainiadun solemnly stated, "Lin Yi's current cultivation trajectory perfectly matches the characteristics of this type of genius. Moreover, his speed in condensing the Cosmic Universe Seal has also become extremely fast."
"Moreover, according to a blood-armored warrior who came from the same Cosmic Clam as him, Lin Yi's talent was only average at the beginning of his cultivation. At that time, the highest expectation for him within the Cosmic Clam was only to stop at the Star Source Realm."
"But then his cultivation speed suddenly increased, quickly leaving everyone else behind. In the end, he became the first cultivator in the history of the Cosmic Clam to obtain the two-star mark."
Upon hearing this, Wen Qianfei fell into deep thought.
After a moment, she slowly said, "If what you say is true, then he is indeed very likely a rare slow-burning genius... In that case, send him to my flagship. There are some things I need to discuss with him in person."