I'll Be Right Back

Standing at the rooftop's edge, Lin Yi gazed down at the silent city and took a deep breath.

He didn't begin practicing right away. Instead, he closed his eyes, pretending to immerse himself in digesting the information on the new techniques. He wore an appropriately thoughtful, confused expression, occasionally looking as if something had just dawned on him.

"Since it's my first time practicing, there's no need to make it look too outrageous. I can improve after another fight."

Having decided how far to take the act, Lin Yi suddenly opened his eyes.

"Wandering Star Steps is mainly for evasion. It focuses on maneuvering within a tiny space. It lacks a little explosive speed, but its strength lies in endurance, and it consumes very little Source Energy. The General Staff clearly chose it for that reason. Mm. I just need to show that I've grasped the basics of its nimble footwork."

With that in mind, Lin Yi shifted his stance and stepped forward. His movements were no longer simple running and jumping; they now followed a strange rhythm.

At first, his movements were a little awkward, and his steps occasionally fell out of sync. But soon, they grew visibly smoother, and every so often he even managed some seemingly impossible changes of direction.

This was exactly what it looked like to have just begun mastering Wandering Star Steps.

After practicing the footwork, Lin Yi drew the long spear Abyss-Splitter and channeled Source Energy into it, restoring it to its true form.

"As for Star-Splitting Spear Art, this spear technique pursues piercing power and destruction to the extreme. Its moves are fierce, and it excels at breaking through defenses with a focused strike. Tsk. Interesting. From the weapon to the basic moves to the secret techniques, everything follows the same principle of concentrating force to break through. I'll just get the first few forms flowing smoothly. A little Source Energy glow will be enough to call it a success."

Having settled on how to play it, Lin Yi held the spear. His gaze suddenly sharpened as he slowly thrust out the first strike.

At first, his movements were slow and deliberate, as if he were carefully studying every detail of how to apply force and the paths along which Source Energy flowed. The sound of the spear cutting through the air was muffled, and only an almost imperceptible glimmer of Source Energy occasionally flashed at its tip.

But as time went on, his movements grew faster and smoother.

Thrust, jab, lift, chop, sweep—the basic spear techniques gradually flowed together in his hands, taking on a hint of fierce, lethal intent.

The wind whistled around the spear, and Source Energy began to flow steadily along its blade. The glow was faint, but it had taken shape.

Every now and then, a forceful strike even produced a clear, piercing whistle!

Lin Yi practiced the first few forms of Star-Splitting Spear Art repeatedly for nearly an hour. Only after his movements had grown familiar and the Source Energy flowed without obstruction did he slowly lower his spear.

He rested briefly. Ten minutes later, he sat cross-legged and began practicing Micro-Dust Art.

This secret method didn't increase his total Source Energy. Instead, it focused on honing his control over it, teaching him to manipulate every wisp of Source Energy within his body with precision, as easily as moving his own arm, and to carry out all kinds of intricate operations.

That was harder than broad, sweeping combat techniques.

Lin Yi raised his right hand and extended his index finger. A wisp of pure Source Energy slowly emerged from his fingertip, forming a faint but steady azure glow.

At first, the glowing sphere only trembled slightly, its shape unstable, like a candle flame in the wind.

Time passed, and sweat began to bead on Lin Yi's forehead. The light at his fingertip began to change.

Its trembling grew fainter, and its radiance gradually drew inward.

Then the bottom of the glowing sphere began to lengthen and narrow, while its tip slowly divided, taking on the shape of a leaping flame.

A moment later, a lifelike, motionless flame hovered steadily above his fingertip!

This was the sign of having just begun to grasp Micro-Dust Art.

To shape formless Source Energy into a stable, simple object and maintain it required considerable control over both its energy output and its form.

Looking at the steady flame of Source Energy at his fingertip, Lin Yi's lips curved into a faint, satisfied smile.

After admiring his "masterpiece" for a while, he dispersed the Source Energy at his fingertip.

Then Lin Yi stood up. Next, he was going to "try" practicing Annihilation Strike!

After succeeding at one technique after another, it was only natural for a "genius"—a young man—to want to try a more advanced secret art. It would actually seem strange if he didn't even give it a try.

So Lin Yi took out his spear again and began clumsily going through the motions of the technique he remembered.

He deliberately made his movements extremely slow, and the flow of Source Energy seemed sluggish and blocked. Several times, he even lost control and let the Source Energy escape, making the whole thing look like a struggle.

"Mm, this secret technique really does have a high barrier to entry. But could I... try simplifying it like this?"

After failing a few times, Lin Yi mumbled to himself as he struggled through the motions.

He pretended to ponder hard, sometimes pausing, sometimes attempting to alter a point in the flow of Source Energy.

To anyone watching, it looked like a genius unwilling to give up, feeling his way toward mastering a secret technique.

At last, Lin Yi sighed and shook his head. "Forget it. Looks like I'll have to spend more time figuring it out. I'd better focus on training and improving my strength for now."

But in truth, during that awkward practice and experimentation, he had already successfully simplified Annihilation Strike into a "weakened version" he could barely use right now.

Though far less powerful than the original, its instantaneous burst of force had already reached Stardust Rank, making it a suitable trump card.

"I'll call this simplified version Star Shatterer. If I run into a critical moment before reaching Stardust Rank, I can pass it off as a last-second breakthrough, some power I awakened in a desperate situation. If that never happens, no matter. Once I reach Stardust Rank, I can learn the full version, and give the simplified one to the General Staff." Lin Yi mused to himself.

After finishing his practice, Lin Yi took three gray Source Energy Crystals from his waist.

Without hesitation, he crushed and absorbed them one by one.

He hadn't practiced the Nine-Layer Source Origin Method because it was a cultivation method for Stardust Rank. Before he condensed Source Energy stardust inside his body, he couldn't practice it at all.

For now, he still had to stick to the Source Energy Guidance Technique.

This time, Lin Yi didn't use the Source Energy Crystals one at a time. He clasped all three in his hand and used the Source Energy manipulation techniques he had just learned to guide their energy.

Some of it went toward tempering his body more deeply, widening his meridians, and raising his upper limit of total Source Energy.

The rest was converted into pure Source Energy, filling the Source Sea in his dantian, which had been left spacious by the increase in his capacity.

When he had absorbed every last trace of energy from the three crystals and they crumbled into dust, the Source Energy within him had grown considerably, and his body had become stronger as well.

Lin Yi slowly opened his eyes. Feeling the surging strength within him, he glanced at the pulsing Nest in the distance, filled with anticipation for the coming battle.

By then, the eastern horizon had begun to pale. Dawn was almost upon them.

Yet just as day was about to break—

"ROOOAR!!!"

A deep, thunderous roar suddenly exploded from the direction of the purple-black Nest in the distance, reaching Lin Yi on the rooftop in an instant.

The roar was far deeper and more violent than the Abyss Wolves' howls, filled with a terrifying force and oppressive presence that made one's heart tremble.

Hearing the rumbling roar, Lin Yi hurried to the rooftop's edge. His eyes swept across the dim streets and locked onto the Nest.

"Tsk, what a grand entrance. I don't know why, but I'm kind of excited." He grumbled to himself. "They say if you pretend to be weak and then surprise people for too long, you'll really turn into a pig. Why is pretending to be a teenager making me feel all fired up?"

Of course, jokes aside, Lin Yi knew the main reason: after all these years, he had grown accustomed to a life of fighting and adventure.

Being forced to rein himself in and keep up the pretense after coming back to life had left him feeling stifled.

Now, after finally getting into a few fights and being able to loosen some of those restrictions, he was naturally itching for action.

"The others should be here soon, too."

As Lin Yi activated the Cloud-Flow Light Armor and took out Abyss-Splitter, restoring it to its combat form, he estimated how much time had passed.

Before long, hurried footsteps sounded as Zhou Jianjun, Chen Yu, and the others came rushing onto the rooftop, panting. They gripped their crude spears and shields tightly, their faces pale.

"Lin Yi!" Zhou Jianjun said, his expression graver than ever. "Chen Yu saw it through a crack in the window. A huge thing crawled out of the Nest! At least four meters tall, and its whole body looks like it's made of piled-up rocks. The wolf pack is surrounding it, and they're heading this way. What do we do about this building? How do we defend it?"

Everyone's eyes focused on Lin Yi. Though they saw he was fully armed, they still couldn't help feeling afraid.

After all, a Giant Bear that enormous would leave an ordinary person injured by a mere graze and dead from a direct hit.

But Lin Yi slowly turned around, not a hint of nervousness on his face.

He even gave a quiet laugh.

"Defend?"

Lin Yi shook his head, his tone as casual as if he were discussing the weather.

"No need to defend."

Everyone stared at him in astonishment.

Lin Yi remarked offhandedly, "I just realized I was a little hungry and was about to go downstairs for breakfast when I heard all that commotion over there..."

As he spoke, he gave them no chance to react. He leaped forward from the rooftop's edge.

All he left them was the fading echo of his words.

"I'll be right back."