Luo Zhiyuan's First Battle

After Luo Zhiyuan got his new toy, the Black God Set, he spent several days playing with it. He often controlled it to turn into all kinds of strange outfits, making the whole family laugh. Some time later, Hong and Thunder God—the two strongest humans before Luo Feng—woke up from their comas after suffering severe injuries. Both had been wounded by the Golden Horned Behemoth.

Luo Feng went to visit them. All three knew how dangerous the universe was. If the people of the universe discovered Earth in its current state, they would simply buy and sell its inhabitants as slaves. So the three became sworn brothers and decided to shoulder the future of Earth together.

Hong and Thunder God thought that training together would help the three of them improve faster. But Luo Feng had a better idea: he would bring Hong and Thunder God into the Yunmo Star Lineage too. Then they could learn its legacy, which would let them progress far faster than training on their own.

Hong and Thunder God were delighted and quickly agreed. Then Luo Feng grinned and told them some bad news: "Big Brother, Second Brother, since you've both joined my Yunmo Star Lineage, there's something else I have to tell you. I'm currently the lineage's senior disciple, but there's another disciple above you who joined before you did. So, let me formally introduce him: your Second Senior Brother is my son, Luo Zhiyuan. He's a year and a half old now. Hahaha!"

Hong and Thunder God stared blankly at Luo Feng, then exchanged a look. In the end, Thunder God couldn't hold back and shouted at him, "Third Brother, you can't pull this kind of stunt on your big brothers! What are we supposed to do when we meet your son, as his uncles?"

"Haha, all right, I'm done teasing you. We'll each use our own titles. Although my boy is only a year and a half old, he's already a Planetary Level One Spirit Reader and Martial Artist, and he's very mature for his age. If you ignore his age and height, you can treat him like an adult. So you don't need to worry too much. But as his uncles, shouldn't you prepare some gifts for him? Haha."

This startled Hong and Thunder God all over again. They couldn't sit still and urged Luo Feng to take them to meet their Second Senior Brother right away. They were eager to see such an extraordinary genius.

When Luo Feng brought Hong and Thunder God home, he went to his gravity room to find Luo Zhiyuan. Inside the room, Hong and Thunder God met Luo Zhiyuan for the first time.

As they watched Luo Zhiyuan training in the gravity room, Hong and Thunder God first felt the powerful gravity. They glanced at the control panel and saw an astonishing figure: 1,200 g! That was 1,200 times Earth's gravity. Hong and Thunder God had gravity rooms of their own, but theirs could only reach a maximum of 1,000 times Earth's gravity. Luo Feng's had been modified by Babata and could reach a maximum of 90,000 times Earth's gravity.

They usually trained under the highest gravity their rooms could provide. But seeing such a small child move freely under 1,200 times Earth's gravity was already astonishing. Then they took a closer look at Little Zhiyuan's movements and were so shocked they couldn't speak.

Luo Zhiyuan was sweating profusely as he practiced a movement technique. Watching it made them question their own eyes. He seemed to be right there, but then his figure blurred for a moment and he appeared somewhere else. His whole body looked indistinct, as if it were constantly vibrating at high frequency and leaving afterimages, making it impossible to see the details of his real body.

What... what kind of movement technique was this? It felt so strange!

Luo Feng was just as baffled. His son hadn't practiced this movement technique before he left, so he had no idea what was going on. He could only ask Babata.

"Haha, Luo Feng, your son really is a genius. I just taught him a movement technique called Godly Evasion. Once someone masters the fourth layer, they can create a hundred afterimages, leaving their opponent unable to tell where their real body is. Your son has only been practicing for a day, yet he's already reached minor mastery of the first layer. He can make his figure waver and blur, making it difficult for his enemy to pinpoint where to attack."

"And that's not all. Little Zhiyuan has also developed a Domain of his own: the Light Domain. Combined with this movement technique, no one of the same level could hit him. Their attacks would all miss him."

Wait, when did my son develop a Domain too? Big Brother and Second Brother both have Domains. Why don't I have one? Luo Feng was deeply shaken. He had even taken over the body of a Golden Horned Behemoth! Hadn't Babata said his conditions were exceptionally good? He hadn't even comprehended a Domain, and his son already had one. How am I supposed to live like this? I don't have a shred of a father's dignity left!

It turned out that after Luo Zhiyuan broke through to the Planetary Level as a Martial Artist, his body could finally keep up with his mind when he used Flowing Time. His body and mind no longer fell out of sync.

But another, more wondrous sensation grew clearer. His Spiritual Force, the Origin Force in his body, his will, and his body naturally came into harmony. The different powers even began to merge. The white energy formed by their fusion could actually control the space around him.

Luo Zhiyuan felt as if he were the master of the light in the area around him. He could change the direction in which light traveled, so that it no longer moved only in straight lines. Instinctively, he incorporated that sensation into his movements. And so, while Babata shouted in amazement, Luo Zhiyuan developed a Domain of his own: the Light Domain.

Practicing Godly Evasion required him to keep shaking his body, interfering with his opponent's vision and Spiritual Force perception until his body seemed to have shifting boundaries and afterimages. But while shaking his body, Luo Zhiyuan could also use his Domain to make light flicker around him. That was why he quickly mastered the first layer of Godly Evasion. Now he was practicing it over and over, training his body until the movements became muscle memory, so he could enter that state whenever he needed to.

When Hong and Thunder God entered the gravity room, Luo Zhiyuan sensed that outsiders had come in. He stopped moving and looked at the two strangers who had entered with Luo Feng. One was a man dressed in black, with a cold, indifferent air, as though there were no sign of life in his eyes. The other wore a white robe and was bald; his whole body seemed to be wrapped in lightning, dazzling to behold. Luo Zhiyuan's heart stirred, and he guessed who they were.

Luo Feng said to Luo Zhiyuan, "Zhiyuan, come and greet your two uncles, Uncle Hong and Uncle Thunder God." Just as he'd thought, they were the strongest and second-strongest people on Earth. They had fallen unconscious after severely wounding the Golden Horned Behemoth, but now they had finally woken up.

Luo Zhiyuan had admired Hong and Thunder God for a long time, so he was quite excited to see them. After all, they had established the two largest martial arts schools on Earth and made the path of evolution smoother for humanity. Without them, Earth might have been overrun by all kinds of monsters long ago, and humanity might have lost its home and refuge. These two were heroes of humanity, beyond question.

Luo Zhiyuan put on the air of an obedient little boy and greeted Hong and Thunder God with a smile. "Uncle Hong and Uncle Thunder God, you've finally woken up! Dad has told me about your heroic deeds so many times, and I've been worried about you for ages. It's wonderful that you're awake now!"

As he spoke, he kept staring wide-eyed at Hong and Thunder God, studying them from head to toe. They began to feel a little awkward under his gaze. They didn't know how to interact with this tiny Second Senior Brother.

Watching the two grown men and one little boy stare at one another, Luo Feng couldn't help joking, "Zhiyuan, these two uncles have another identity: they're your junior disciples. They've joined the Yunmo Star Lineage along with us. And you two, have you prepared gifts for my son? Hurry up and present your offering to your Second Senior Brother."

Hong and Thunder God immediately flushed red. At their age, having to call such a tiny child their senior brother was painfully awkward. But they both took tradition seriously, and by seniority, they really should present a gift to their senior brother. So, blushing, they cupped their hands toward Luo Zhiyuan and bowed, preparing to address him as Second Senior Brother.

Luo Zhiyuan hadn't expected this and froze for a moment. To his surprise, he ended up accepting Hong and Thunder God's formal greeting. He felt a little embarrassed too, so he hurried over and caught them by the arms before they could complete the bow. "Oh, you two uncles, I can't accept this. You're going to embarrass me to death. You really shouldn't.

"Don't listen to Dad. There's no one else in the Yunmo Star Lineage, and we don't care about that sort of thing. Please don't call me Second Senior Brother again. Besides, Second Senior Brother doesn't sound very nice. I'd rather just be your little nephew. That way I can ask you for gifts, heh."

Luo Feng hadn't expected his two big brothers to take the formalities so seriously either, and had nearly been startled. When he heard what his son said, he quickly urged Hong and Thunder God to let the greeting go at that, rather than actually bowing to his son. Then he seized the opportunity to tease them and demand that they hand over their gifts.

Hong and Thunder God looked at each other and decided not to dwell on it. They began to consider what kind of greeting gifts to give Luo Feng's son. Something ordinary, like a gold lock, wouldn't do. What should they give him?

Thunder God was quick-witted. He took a beautiful fruit from his storage gear. It gave off an enticing fragrance. He handed it to Luo Zhiyuan and said, "All right, I have an energy fruit here. I got it during an operation on the African continent. It should taste pretty good. Little Zhiyuan, give it a try."

Hong then took out an insulated box and handed it to Luo Zhiyuan. "This contains the roe of a fish monster I found near the North Pole last time. It tastes great and is very nutritious. You're still growing, so it'll be good for you."

Luo Zhiyuan put both gifts into his storage space and thanked them again and again, saying all sorts of adorable things that made Hong and Thunder God burst into laughter. That helped them move past the awkwardness from earlier.

After seeing Luo Feng's gravity room, Hong and Thunder God realized it was far better than their own. They decided they would train at Luo Feng's place from then on and never leave.

A few months later, in the summer of 2062, Thunder God reached Planetary Level Nine as a Martial Artist, with a Domain at the First Layer. Hong reached Planetary Level Eight as a Martial Artist, with a Domain at the Second Layer. Luo Feng was a Planetary Level Five Martial Artist and a Planetary Level Eight Spirit Reader, with a Mental Power Amplitude of 32.

Luo Zhiyuan had also reached Planetary Level Five as a Spirit Reader, with a Mental Power Amplitude of 20. His body had reached Planetary Level Four, and his Domain was close to the Second Layer. But because he had advanced so quickly, his foundation was unstable. Babata decided not to let him train to raise his level and instead had him strengthen his foundation.

Luo Zhiyuan had no objections. By age, he wasn't even two years old, but his body had developed like that of a six- or seven-year-old child. Unless they saw him every day, Luo Feng and Xu Xin would never have recognized him as their own son.

There were several reasons for Luo Zhiyuan's rapid growth. For one, he was always using Flowing Time to speed himself up. Also, Hong and Thunder God occasionally brought him what they called "health supplements." All of this had helped his body develop rapidly. Xu Xin couldn't help complaining to Luo Feng that she could barely hold Little Zhiyuan anymore. She still hadn't had her fill of cuddling him!

Under Babata's arrangements, Luo Zhiyuan began running all over Earth. The only monster on Earth that posed a threat was a Beast Emperor in the ocean. Even King-level monsters could no longer put his life at risk. But Luo Zhiyuan had never actually fought an enemy before, which was a serious imbalance. So now he needed to battle all kinds of monsters across Earth and gain combat experience.

The first opponent Babata picked for Luo Zhiyuan was a Level 8 Apprentice Spiked Turtle, classified on Earth as an Intermediate Lord Level monster. The Spiked Turtle was relatively slow, with average attack power and extremely high defense. It could withstand a full-power attack from a Planetary Level One Martial Artist and could even unleash a counterforce to injure its opponent. It was the kind of enemy Martial Artists hated facing most.

Since Luo Zhiyuan was much faster than the Spiked Turtle, Babata thought fighting it posed no real danger and would make a good practice match. So he told Luo Zhiyuan to approach and provoke it first, and to familiarize himself with the basics of fighting outdoors before killing it.

Babata found the Spiked Turtle on the outskirts of a ruined county town. It had made its home in an abandoned warehouse. Luo Zhiyuan flew in wearing a close-fitting suit of armor in a tiny size. Babata had thrown it together as an ordinary suit of armor, capable of withstanding attacks from Level 5 Apprentices at most, so it wouldn't hold up against the Spiked Turtle. This battle wasn't meant to be a life-or-death struggle; it was only to help him get used to fighting.

Luo Zhiyuan flew down and hid behind a pile of rocks. He ignored the several unknown guard monsters on the outskirts. According to Babata, they weren't even worth using for practice, so there was no need to learn anything about them.

The Spiked Turtle was in the open space inside the warehouse, tearing into a monster's corpse as it ate. Luo Zhiyuan watched its movements from hiding for a while. The thing looked enormous: it stood two meters tall, and its shell, covered in short spikes like rhinoceros horns, was four meters in diameter. It was also highly alert. It had probably already noticed someone nearby, because it had stopped eating and was slowly turning back and forth, poking its head around to watch its surroundings.

After observing it for more than ten minutes, Luo Zhiyuan felt he'd figured out its movement patterns. He left the pile of rocks and approached it, intending to test his movement technique. To his surprise, the moment the Spiked Turtle saw him rush out, it turned around in an instant, moving far more nimbly than before, and swiped a claw at the little boy.

Luo Zhiyuan hadn't expected the Spiked Turtle to turn around so quickly. Fortunately, he'd only been trying to test his movement technique, so he didn't panic. He slipped to the side in an instant, then kicked the Spiked Turtle's shell hard before quickly moving to its rear flank. A powerful counterforce shuddered through his leg.

The Spiked Turtle clearly couldn't pinpoint Luo Zhiyuan's position. Its claw struck more than half a meter away from where he'd been. Realizing it had missed, it quickly spun around again and swiped at Luo Zhiyuan's new position—but missed by more than half a meter again. Then it turned for a third time and charged, only to veer off target. On its fourth turn, it snapped at empty air...

By then, Godly Evasion had already proven its power. It truly lived up to its reputation as an advanced secret technique collected by the Yunmo Star Lineage. It was extremely effective at deceiving a living creature's senses.

But to get more familiar with how the movement technique worked, Luo Zhiyuan kept darting back and forth around the Spiked Turtle. He repeatedly used the evasive techniques Babata had taught him, and occasionally punched or kicked the creature to provoke it. The Spiked Turtle roared furiously, unable to hit the annoying little boy. Instead, it sent the approaching guard monsters flying and demolished half the warehouse.

The Spiked Turtle seemed to realize that although the little boy was annoying, he couldn't hurt it. After a while, it simply pulled in its limbs and head, turning itself into a real turtle shell. No matter how much Luo Zhiyuan tried to provoke it, it decided to ignore him. It wasn't moving. He could do whatever he wanted.

Luo Zhiyuan was frustrated. I haven't even had much fun yet. Why'd you stop moving? He kicked the Spiked Turtle again, but it still didn't react. At a loss, he thought, Forget it. I'll try a Soul Attack Secret Technique. So he backed away a little and used the only Soul Attack Secret Technique he knew at the moment: Mental Shock.

He gathered his Spiritual Force into ten strands and sent them rushing toward the Spiked Turtle. Luo Zhiyuan felt his Spiritual Force touch the Spiked Turtle's Soul Space at once. The impact made it shudder violently, as though it might shatter at any moment.

From the Spiked Turtle's outward appearance, all Luo Zhiyuan could see was its shell shaking once. Then there was no further response. Its limbs had already been tucked inside, so he couldn't tell what was happening.

Luo Zhiyuan was at a loss again. This is hopeless. I can't see whether the Soul Secret Technique did anything at all. Fine, I'll test another technique: Innate Secret Technique—Soul Fusion. In an instant, the Spiritual Force he'd sent into the Spiked Turtle's mind returned to his own mind, seemingly bringing something else back with it.

After sensing his Soul Space, Luo Zhiyuan discovered a miniature image of the Spiked Turtle inside it, rapidly fading away. Then he began receiving a flood of information: all of the Spiked Turtle's memories, its life experiences, its hunting instincts, and its escape techniques. Luo Zhiyuan discarded the memories and emotions that were of no use to him and absorbed all the other experience that could help him grow.

When he returned to the Spiked Turtle and saw it still curled up in its shell, Luo Zhiyuan knew that this Intermediate Lord Level monster's soul had already dissipated. He silently said to it, As my first opponent in the world of Swallowed Star, our battle may not have lasted long, but I'm still grateful for everything you gave me. You started my career as a fighter, and I'll keep you in my memories forever.