Battle of Jinling

Lu Yin hadn't expected to be able to cultivate like this on Earth. Coupled with the Heavenly Star Art doubling his cultivation speed, his rate of absorbing energy far surpassed that of students like Granny. He was likely among the top in the Great Yu Empire.

Before long, an entire Star Energy Crystal was depleted, and Lu Yin's absorbed Star Energy increased significantly.

Afterward, Lu Yin crushed another one and began absorbing it.

Having enough Star Energy Crystals didn't mean one could cultivate their current realm to its peak. They also contained energy impurities that needed to be condensed, something only achievable by those cultivating the Body Sculpting Technique.

Those who directly absorbed Star Energy Crystals to cultivate could only remove impurities after reaching the Integrating Realm. Consequently, their energy wasn't strong, their combat power unstable, and their cultivation relied on Star Energy Crystals, which were difficult to obtain. This created a vicious cycle, which was the origin of the terms "Wandering Soldier" and "War Slave."

Lu Yin absorbed all five Star Energy Crystals. Only then did he feel the surging energy within him. He had reached the peak of the Gaze Realm, the highest level of Earth Rank on Earth. He was just one step away from the Probe Realm, and that step required the Body Sculpting Technique.

Lu Yin lay on the roof of the villa, resting for a night. The next day, he directly approached Granny. "Let's spar."

Granny was speechless. "You want to spar with me first thing in the morning? I'm a cultivator, but I'm also a woman. What man seeks out a woman to fight first thing in the morning?"

Lu Yin also felt it was a bit odd, but he was too eager to know the gap between himself and the elite Probe Realm cultivators at the academy. "Then I'll come find you this afternoon."

"No need, if you want to fight, let's fight," Granny said. She didn't take Lu Yin seriously at all. If it weren't for his passable Wave Palm, she wouldn't have sought him out for cooperation.

The two found an open space, ten meters apart. Faint beast roars could be heard from the sides, and a faint smell of blood drifted with the wind.

"Attack, I won't retaliate," Granny said calmly, her gaze arrogant.

Lu Yin clenched his right palm, then relaxed it. The air parted like a curtain. He thrust his legs forward, and the airwaves split the ground. He charged directly in front of Granny and struck out with a palm. It was a pure Wave Palm, Lu Yin's full-power attack.

The single Wave Palm surprised Granny. She had initially planned to block with one hand but ended up raising both.

Bang

The airwaves swept across, and the immense air pressure crushed the ground, shattering it. Lu Yin's palm pushed Granny's legs into the ground, creating a crater several meters in diameter.

Granny was astonished. "Impressive power. Even our academy's Probe Realm students might not be able to unleash such a fierce palm strike. It could kill a Probe Realm cultivator with combat power below two thousand if it were a surprise attack."

Lu Yin grinned. He had indeed killed Asta with the Wave Palm. Although it wasn't as powerful then, Asta hadn't reached a combat power of two thousand. "It's not over yet, continue," he said, and struck out with another palm, still the Wave Palm. This palm strike had similar power to the previous one, pushing Granny a bit deeper into the ground.

Granny frowned, her hands going numb. "Enough. Your attacks are ineffective against me. My combat power exceeds two thousand. You should know that with every thousand increase in combat power, the energy intensity and strength differ."

Lu Yin shouted, "Last palm!" As he spoke, starlight flashed on the surface of his right palm. The moon revolved around his palm, and on the outermost layer was an airflow similar to the Wave Palm. This was the Heavenly Star Palm.

As Lu Yin brought down his final palm, Granny's heart raced. Her body turned into an afterimage and disappeared. The spot where she had been was shattered by Lu Yin's palm. The ground within a hundred-meter radius was pulverized, and the energy spread outwards, emitting a loud noise. Even the air mid-flight was shaken by the airwaves, causing the air to distort.

Granny reappeared several meters away, looking at the scene in shock. "What is this?"

Lu Yin said proudly, "My grandfather taught me this, the Limit Wave Palm."

Granny narrowed her eyes. With her knowledge, she couldn't identify the Heavenly Star Palm, but the Wave Palm's power was too immense, making her feel a sense of crisis. "I've heard that the Wave Palm can be stacked. That last palm was likely a Double Wave Palm," Granny said seriously.

Lu Yin shrugged. "Perhaps. The name is just different."

Granny looked at Lu Yin, her arrogance gone, replaced by seriousness. Her tone was calm. "The Double Wave Palm has extremely high requirements for physical strength. Even among Probe Realm cultivators, very few can achieve it. None in our academy can. You are very powerful. Once you reach the Probe Realm, you'll be able to contend with any elite, and you might even be able to enter the empire's highest institution—the Yu Hall."

Lu Yin was surprised. "Yu Hall? Me?"

Granny said, "Perhaps. With your physical strength, it's not impossible. Alright, I'm tired, let's go." Granny then left.

Lu Yin watched Granny's retreating back. He raised his hand and looked at it. Sparring was one thing, but more importantly, he wanted to see if he had a chance to defeat her. That woman had quick reflexes, dodging at the critical moment with footwork and battle skills. She truly was an elite from the academy.

However, he wasn't bad either. The moment she dodged, the power of the Heavenly Star Palm had been retracted. If that woman thought that was his full strength, she would be disappointed.

Jinling couldn't be contacted, so Lu Yin asked Luo Yun and the others to stay at the gathering point. Granny didn't care about Luo Yun and the others, saving Lu Yin the trouble of explaining.

After two days, however, Luo Yun found Lu Yin.

"Brother Lu, how long do we have to stay here?" Luo Yun asked, her gaze fixed on Lu Yin. She had learned from two frontline Commanders of Ten Thousand that this was a frontline supply station, but she felt something was off. The people here often mentioned Heaven Rank experts; where did they come from?

Lu Yin replied, "Don't ask too many questions. I'll give you an answer in a few days."

Luo Yun was about to ask again when her expression suddenly changed. She looked up at the sky. Lu Yin turned his head, and Granny descended with a look of urgency. "Let's go, Aoton and the others have gone to Jinling."

Lu Yin was startled. He grabbed Granny's arm, and she lifted him into the air, flying towards Jinling.

Luo Yun was surprised. If she wasn't mistaken, the battle armor Granny was wearing was the same as the one worn by the aliens who attacked Jinling some time ago.

Not far away, Xu San also walked over, looking equally surprised.

In the sky, airflow cut through the air as Granny flew towards Jinling at maximum speed. However, since she was carrying Lu Yin, her speed wasn't that fast.

"How did you know Aoton went to Jinling?" Lu Yin asked.

Granny said coldly, "It's none of your business. Remember, once we reach Jinling, act according to the situation. Our goal is to seize Jinling. Aoton is definitely not going alone; his helpers will be absolutely strong. Be careful yourself."

Lu Yin's gaze was solemn. Since Aoton dared to abandon Granny, it proved that the person he chose was definitely stronger than Granny. Based on estimations, Asta's combat power was around 1,500, and Aoton might have reached close to 2,000. Granny exceeded 2,000. Therefore, the person Aoton teamed up with must have a combat power far exceeding 2,000, and likely more than one person.

Lu Yin hoped Zhou Shan could hold on and looked towards the south.

Half an hour later, Granny, carrying Lu Yin, rapidly approached Jinling. Above Jinling, two figures hovered. One of them was Aoton, his ring-like battle armor shattered in a large piece. Beside him stood a young man with his hands behind his back, his gaze arrogant.

All the survivors in Jinling looked up in terror at the two figures in the sky. Two Heaven Rank experts?

Zhong Mountain issued a strong alert. Zhou Shan soared into the sky, stopping a hundred meters away from Aoton and the other man, his face solemn. "You again?"

Aoton sneered, "Are you regretting not killing me last time?"

Zhou Shan narrowed his eyes. "Extremely regretful."

"Hmph, you'll never have the chance. This is my senior, Teres," Aoton said proudly.

Zhou Shan looked at the person beside Aoton and felt the energy fluctuations emanating from Teres's body. His heart sank. This person was far more powerful than Aoton.

Teres looked at Zhou Shan and said coldly, "I didn't expect there to be a strong person like you among the natives. I can help you step into the starry sky. Follow me."

"Senior Teres, you don't need to say more to him. This kind of native is stubborn and won't agree," Aoton said.

Teres glanced coldly at Aoton. "When I'm speaking, it's not your turn to interrupt."

Aoton quickly responded, gritting his teeth and glaring furiously at Zhou Shan, hatred flashing in his eyes.

Zhou Shan gripped his giant axe and said coldly, "It's impossible for me to follow you. You aliens want to snatch Jinling, right? Defeat me first," he said, flying towards the north of Jinling City. He didn't want to fight in the sky above Jinling.

Unfortunately, things were not up to him. Not even a thousand meters after Zhou Shan had flown away, Aoton slashed at Zhong Mountain with his sword. The sword energy-like attack sliced off a corner of Zhong Mountain, bringing countless wails.

Zhou Shan roared, "You're asking for death," and swung his axe at Aoton.

Aoton sneered and attacked with his sword.

Meanwhile, a few minutes later, Granny arrived at Jinling holding Lu Yin. She immediately saw the damaged Zhong Mountain and the Jinling Gathering Place filled with wails. Countless people were fleeing the city, the earth cracked open with several fissures swallowing everything, and the void energy vibrated, destroying countless buildings.

The high-altitude clouds were blown away.

Inside Jinling City, Zhou Shan spat out a mouthful of blood, leaning heavily on his giant axe and glaring at the sky.

Teres and Aoton looked down coldly. "Decent strength, enough to rank in the top fifteen of the military academy. Too bad you met me," Teres said indifferently.