Mist Island's night was anything but quiet.
The shock caused by Atkin's fall and the headless corpse he left behind had yet to fade when the secrets and effects of the Muya Crystals spread. Countless people went wild over them!
The news was as good as telling them that even a War God could ascend on the spot if he got one.
The stakes were high enough to drive even saints mad.
The various factions, already trembling with fear over Atkin's death, now had bloodshot eyes.
Greed swallowed their fear. Their noses became even keener than those of hyenas in the Wilderness Zone as they frantically tracked the crystals' distinctive fragrance through the mist.
However, this night was destined to become a nightmare for many.
1:00 a.m.
Above a marsh on the southeastern side of Mist Island.
"Found it! A Muya Crystal!"
A Councilor-level powerhouse from the European Union stared at the crystal in the middle of the marsh, glowing with a milky-white light. His eyes blazed with joy.
The two High-level War Gods behind him were trembling with excitement.
"Quick! Get it!"
The councilor roared, darted forward like lightning, and reached for the crystal.
But just as his fingertips came within three inches of the Muya Crystal—
Whoosh!
A black streak of light seemed to emerge from the Void. With a domineering, unreasonable speed, it overtook him and snatched the crystal away in an instant.
"Who?!"
The EU Councilor grabbed at empty air. Staring at his empty palm, his face flushed a liverish purple as he roared in fury, "Which bastard dares to steal from the European Union?!"
No one answered.
Only a faint chuckle drifted from the distant mist. Then the presence vanished completely, as if it had never appeared.
2:53 a.m.
On the western side of Mist Island, in a field of jagged rocks.
A brutal battle had just taken place.
Two teams from America and Soviet Russia had fought a bloody struggle over three Muya Crystals clustered together.
The ground was stained red with blood, and the rocks lay shattered.
The Councilor-level powerhouses from both sides were badly wounded. Gasping for breath, they faced off against each other.
"Ivan, we split the three crystals evenly. Otherwise, neither of us is taking them!" The American councilor clutched his chest and gritted his teeth.
"Deal." The burly Soviet Russian wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
Just as the two sides reached an agreement and were about to step forward to collect their spoils—
Whoosh—
A strange wind swept past.
The three Muya Crystals, which had been lying quietly in the rubble, floated into the air. Then they turned into three streaks of light and shot off in the same direction!
"Fuck! That light again!"
"Bastard! We paid for those with our lives!"
The councilors of the two superpowers could only watch, furious enough to nearly spit blood.
Then, at four in the morning, anguished roars rang out from the Indian team as well.
For a while, it seemed as if a ghost had descended upon all of Mist Island.
The factions who usually held themselves above everyone else and couldn't stand one another formed a brief but solid alliance.
They had only one goal: capture the culprit hiding beneath that streak of light!
They knew perfectly well that it couldn't be Hong or Thunder God.
Given their status and strength, those two wouldn't stoop to such sneaky behavior.
7:00 a.m.
Dawn broke, and the mist began to thin.
On an open riverbank, a dozen Councilor-level powerhouses from around the world finally cornered the "culprit."
"Go on, run! Why'd you stop?"
"Hand over the Muya Crystals!"
Everyone glared furiously at the young man standing with his back to them.
He slowly turned around, revealing a handsome, refined face with a trace of helpless amusement at the corner of his mouth.
It was Lin Yuan.
"Gentlemen, getting this worked up so early in the morning isn't good for your health." Lin Yuan toyed with a lustrous Muya Crystal in his hand and spoke calmly.
"Lin Yuan! So it was you!" The EU Councilor gritted his teeth. "You're an Inspector, yet you're acting like a common thief. Aren't you afraid of provoking public outrage?"
"Public outrage?"
Lin Yuan raised an eyebrow, his gaze suddenly turning cold. "The treasures go to those with virtue—and to those with strength. Since you're not satisfied..."
Boom!
A terrifying Spiritual Force erupted from Lin Yuan, spreading out in an instant!
An overwhelming pressure filled the area!
"W-What kind of power is this?!"
"Impossible! He's clearly only..."
Bang! Bang! Bang!
There were no flashy techniques, only the sheer weight of his presence.
The arrogant councilors all fell to their knees, as though a mountain were pressing down on their heads.
Lin Yuan looked down at them, his gaze as indifferent as a god's. "Does anyone still have a problem?"
Dead silence fell over the area.
In the distance, Hong and Thunder God were searching for Muya Crystals. They sensed the commotion and stopped to look.
"That kid sure is domineering."
Thunder God rubbed his bald head and chuckled.
"Let him be." Hong shook his head, a hint of approval in his eyes. "As long as he doesn't kill them all, these Muya Crystals were meant for the strong in the first place."
The two exchanged a smile, then turned and continued searching for their own opportunities, making no move to intervene.
Lin Yuan had treated them fairly and had never stolen any of the treasures they found. They understood the unspoken agreement between them.
From then on, Mist Island had one more person no one dared to provoke.
Whenever that black streak of light flashed by, the powerhouses of the various factions could only pray to themselves: Please let it be Hong this time! At least Hong was reasonable and would leave them a little.
As for Lin Yuan... he was a downright demon!
He stripped the place bare, leaving not a blade of grass behind!
What was there to say? Just give him the Muya Crystals! Staying alive was what mattered!
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
The Muya Crystals in the shallow layers of Mist Island and on the surface had been all but excavated.
At a temporary camp, Hong called everyone together to distribute the spoils.
As they looked at the pile of Muya Crystals before Lin Yuan, stacked as high as a small hill, everyone's eyes twitched. He had several times more than all of them combined!
"According to the rules, thirty percent goes to the Martial Arts Hall." Lin Yuan generously pushed part of the pile forward.
Hong waved a hand and took only a tiny portion. He glanced at Lin Yuan meaningfully. "A token offering is enough. With your current strength, you've earned these resources."
His words left everyone even more wary.
On the surface, Hong was the Hall Master and the world's strongest man.
But in truth, he knew that Lin Yuan was already his equal.
He even wondered whether it was time to... replace the First Speaker.
After the spoils were distributed, it was time to explore freely.
Most people chose to leave or rest. They had been under tremendous mental strain these past few days, and it had worn them out.
Lin Yuan was undoubtedly the biggest "winner," but he wasn't satisfied. His gaze swept casually over the crowd, and he happened to spot Luo Feng, carrying his War Blade on his back, heading alone toward an underground fissure deep within Mist Island.
At the sight, Lin Yuan followed like a ghost!
Deep underground, the cavern stretched into darkness.
Luo Feng proceeded cautiously, keeping his Spiritual Force alert to his surroundings.
Suddenly, he stopped and let out a surprised sound.
"Hm?"
He lowered his head and looked at a pile of rubble by his feet. A palm-sized, blood-red shard lay half-buried in the dirt, inconspicuous at a glance.
But just moments ago, his battle boot had accidentally brushed against it.
Scritch!
Those were SS-grade Blood Shadow Battle Boots! Even the claws of a Lord-level Monster could hardly pierce them, yet the shard had sliced right through them as easily as paper!
"What kind of metal is this?"
Luo Feng's expression shifted. He crouched down and carefully picked up the shard. It was icy to the touch and extraordinarily heavy, with edges sharp enough to make his heart skip a beat.
He studied it closely, weighing it in his hand, puzzled. He had never heard of any metal on Earth with this kind of hardness.
Just then—
Buzz!
The shard in his hand suddenly floated up of its own accord, hovering in midair and glowing faintly red.
A calm voice rang out in the dim cavern:
"Confused? This isn't something from Earth. It came from the universe."
"The universe?"
Luo Feng froze. Every muscle in his body tensed as he whipped around to look toward the voice.
A tall, slender figure emerged slowly from the shadows nearby.
When he saw who it was, Luo Feng relaxed slightly. He immediately bowed respectfully. "Inspector Lin!"
Lin Yuan nodded faintly, his gaze settling on the shard. His eyes were profound. "Do you know why Hong, Thunder God, and I possess strength far beyond ordinary people and rank among the best in the world?"
Luo Feng shook his head, looking eager to learn. It was a mystery that had puzzled martial artists around the world for years.
"It comes from the gifts of the universe."
Lin Yuan spoke frankly, his voice echoing through the vast cavern. "The most common examples are the ancient civilization ruins. And the shard in your hand came from the wreckage of a spaceship that crashed on Earth."
With a flick of his hand, he sent the shard flying.
As if drawn by an invisible force, the hovering shard flew back into Luo Feng's hand.
"This is your opportunity. Keep it safe," Lin Yuan said.
Luo Feng instinctively clenched his hand around the shard.
Then Lin Yuan spoke again, a hint of praise in his voice.
"I watched you fight up above just now. Your movement and force application have both improved considerably. Your Nine-Layer Thunder Blade is much stronger than the last time I saw you, and much more fluid, too."
"The last time you saw me?"
Luo Feng furrowed his brow.
He had caught that key phrase. When had Inspector Lin seen him use the Nine-Layer Thunder Blade?
The floodgates of memory opened in an instant.
He remembered that night at the Elite Training Camp—the dim corridor, the mysterious figure who had brushed past him, and the words that had struck him like thunder:
"Rather than trying to release your strength, learn to grasp it first."
That figure's back gradually merged with the Inspector who now shook the world.
Luo Feng's eyes flew wide, his breathing quickened, and his voice brimmed with barely contained excitement and respect.
"Y-You're that senior?!"
Meanwhile.
Deep beneath the ground, inside the wrecked Falling Ink Star spaceship.
A childlike phantom in a black robe, with two horns growing from his forehead, watched the entire scene through the surveillance system.
At first, it had been hopping around furiously.
"Bastard! Bastard! Where did this guy come from? He dares to interrupt me while I'm recruiting my disciple! I waited fifty thousand years for a promising psychic!"
Babata was so angry that he shrieked. He wanted nothing more than to rush out and bite Lin Yuan.
But in the next second, it activated the spaceship's barely functioning detection system and ran a detailed scan on Lin Yuan.
Beep beep beep—
A string of red data flashed wildly across the screen.
Babata's blood-red eyes widened in shock. His jaw dropped, revealing two small, pointed canine teeth.
"T-This physical strength? This purity of Origin Energy? And these Spiritual Force readings..."
"None of these numbers make him look much like a native 'human' of Earth!"
Babata scratched his head, utterly baffled. At last, he blurted out in astonishment:
"Unbelievable... There's another expert on Earth?!"
Before you continue