Unboxing, Unboxing

Seeing Lin Yi even had the mood to joke around, everyone felt a weight lift from their hearts.

Although Zhou Jianjun hadn't said anything, they had all noticed the worry on his face earlier. So, deep down, everyone had been carrying a stone in their hearts.

The joking eased the oppressive atmosphere that had hung over the hall for so long.

"Brother Yi, why don't you open those crystals and let us broaden our horizons?"

Seeing everyone in good spirits, Chen Yu rubbed his hands together and made the suggestion to Lin Yi.

As a streamer who dabbled in unboxing designer toys, he was naturally very interested in things like these. Ever since he'd heard that there were two pieces of equipment inside the crystals, he'd practically glued his eyes to the equipment crystals in the box. His face was full of impatience.

The others were curious, too. In particular, they wanted to see the "Flowing Cloud Type I Light Armor" and the "Abyss-Splitting Type I" spear, which sounded extraordinary. They all wanted to see what Source Energy equipment used for battle actually looked like.

"Brother Yi, give us a look!"

"Yeah, Xiaoyi. Show us what you've got. We're all worried about you going out in damaged armor. New equipment will put our minds at ease, too," Zhou Jianjun said with a smile. As a soldier, he was also a weapons and equipment enthusiast.

Lin Yi saw the eager looks on their faces and naturally didn't want to disappoint them.

He smiled and picked up the white crystal containing the "Flowing Cloud Type I Light Armor."

"All right. Let's take a look at the armor first."

As he spoke, he tightened his fingers. With a crisp crack, the crystal shattered.

This time, however, the broken crystal didn't turn into lightning like the Detector had. Instead, it burst into a soft white glow, like a wisp of cloud.

The glow quickly gathered and took shape in midair, finally transforming into a solid object that Lin Yi caught.

It wasn't the imposing suit of armor everyone had imagined, but a metallic belt that looked highly advanced.

The belt was silver-gray all over. At its center was a slightly raised, oval-shaped dark crystal that seemed to be its core.

"Huh? Isn't it supposed to be armor? Why's it a belt?"

Chen Yu froze, looking confused.

Lin Yi didn't explain. He fastened the belt around his waist, then gently pressed the dark crystal with his fingertip. At the same time, he focused his thoughts and infused it with a faint wisp of Source Energy.

In the next instant, countless silver-gray streams of light, like liquid metal, shot out from the belt. They didn't spread at random, but swiftly traced a fixed, extraordinarily complex pattern, covering Lin Yi from head to toe.

His shoulders, chest, back, arms, and legs. In almost the time it took to breathe, a sleek suit of lightweight armor, simple in design yet full of strength, had fitted itself snugly over his torso and limbs.

Under the candlelight, a watery gleam flowed across the armor's surface. That was how it had earned the name "Flowing Cloud."

"Holy crap! Holy crap!" Chen Yu stared in amazement, unable to hold back a curse.

The others broke into excited chatter as well.

"Th-that's amazing!"

"It just put itself on?!"

Lin Yi moved his arms and legs, feeling the slight restriction the armor imposed and its almost negligible weight, then explained:

"According to the information in the crystal, this is portable Source Energy gear. The belt is its core and trigger. It only takes a trace of your own Source Energy to activate and equip it."

"Maintaining this basic armor form takes very little Source Energy. At my current level, I can keep it up for an entire battle. And even its most basic defensive capabilities should be comparable to the armor on a main battle tank."

"As for its additional effects, there are two: dynamic defense and deflection. See the subtle flow across the armor? It isn't just for looks. Dynamic defense lets you use Source Energy to increase the protection of a small area by reducing the defense of the surrounding areas. I'm guessing it's mainly meant to counter penetrating attacks."

"Deflection, on the other hand, uses the armor's flowing surface to dissipate force. It can deflect and disperse low-intensity attacks quite effectively. Of course, activating its active defenses requires extra Source Energy."

With that, Lin Yi stopped feeding it Source Energy.

The armor receded like a tide, quickly returning to the form of a belt.

Everyone watched in wonder, astonished by technology that far surpassed anything they'd imagined.

Next, Lin Yi picked up the crystal containing the "Abyss-Splitting Type I" spear.

After he crushed it, what appeared in his hand was a meticulously crafted miniature spear, only as long as his palm. Its surface was dark and subdued, with the spearhead and shaft clearly visible, like a work of art in miniature.

"Could this one get bigger, too?" Li Jie muttered.

Lin Yi didn't answer. Instead, he gathered another trace of Source Energy and slowly infused it into the model.

Hum!

A faint light flickered across the miniature. It rapidly grew longer, thicker, and harder before their eyes!

In the blink of an eye, he was holding a full-sized metal spear, dark all over, with a long, sharp blade that radiated a cold killing intent.

The shaft had clean, sharp lines. Its weight was just right, its balance perfect, and a startling sharpness seemed ready to burst from it.

"This spear's main effects are Sharp Edge and Armor-Splitting. The spearhead is made from some kind of extremely hard alloy and permanently reinforced by Source Energy circuits. Its physical sharpness has reached the peak of the low Stardust Rank. Without using any Source Energy, it can easily pierce the defenses of Abyss Beasts of the same rank."

"Armor-Splitting works through the Source Energy circuit in the spearhead. It compresses Source Energy into a single point at the very tip, giving the next thrust an explosive increase in penetrating power. It's particularly effective against hard shells and energy shields."

"And it takes very little Source Energy to maintain the spear's basic form. When you aren't using it, it can return to its miniature form."

Hearing that, Zhou Yuxuan, standing nearby, mused, "Sounds like these are all equipment that can be used at a basic level with very little energy. They must have chosen them that way on purpose. That means the Supreme Command Center really values Lin Yi—not just a little. Source Energy, Source Energy!"

He let out a deep sigh to himself, then returned to the corner where he'd been lying down and closed his eyes. He recalled the key points of the Source Energy Guidance Technique Lin Yi had explained, and decided not to join in the excitement anymore.

Lin Yi didn't notice Zhou Yuxuan's inner turmoil at all. After showing everyone the spear, he focused his thoughts and stopped infusing it with Source Energy.

About a minute later, the spear began to shrink rapidly, returning to its miniature form.

As he spoke, he slid the model into a slot on the side of the belt and explained to everyone, "The Flowing Cloud Light Armor Belt has several slots on the right for storing items in miniature form. There are several more on the left, for Source Energy Crystals."

This drew another round of amazed exclamations.

The way these devices combined advanced technology with Source Energy had completely upended their understanding of "weapons and equipment."

Only Lin Yi knew that, as extraordinary as these devices seemed, they were merely standard-issue equipment from a low-level civilization in the vast universe.

After the demonstration, Lin Yi picked up the remaining Technique Crystals one by one, crushed them, and absorbed the streams of information inside into his mind.

Outwardly, though, he made a point of spending several minutes digesting each technique.

Once he'd learned them all, Lin Yi closed the box and said to everyone, "All right, you've all seen everything. It's getting late, and the crisis hasn't passed. Get some rest and save your strength. We may have another fierce battle tomorrow."

He paused, then continued, "Since I've been cultivating Source Energy, I don't need much sleep anymore. You all get some rest. I'll head up to the rooftop and practice the techniques I just got, so I can get used to them as soon as possible."

Everyone was still excited, but they knew Lin Yi was right. They nodded and found places to lie down, trying to fall asleep.

Whether they could actually sleep was another matter.

Lin Yi crushed all the remaining gray crystals at once, turning them into Source Energy Crystals, then put them into the slots on the left side of his belt. After that, he went up to the third floor and found the stairs leading to the hotel rooftop.

As he slowly pushed open the heavy fire door, the muggy summer-night air rushed into his lungs.

The rooftop was open and silent. In the distance, the city remained shrouded in deathly darkness. Only the enormous Abyss Beast Nest pulsed slowly like a heart, giving off an ominous purple-black glow.