Two figures crisscrossed through space, and then space began to violently collapse as planets shattered one after another. An indescribably terrifying attack swept past the spacecraft and into the distance.
Lu Yin was shocked, but before he could think, the spacecraft began to shake violently. The battle between the two had created a strange vortex in space that the spacecraft could not escape and was sucked in.
Lu Yin's scalp went numb; he was done for. He did not know how strong these two were, but every attack could easily shatter the spacecraft. And from the looks of it, they did not care about his life at all.
"Bang!"
A loud sound rang out in space, exceeding the limits of the spatial seal. Lu Yin almost fainted from the impact, and the surrounding planets began to shake as they were pulled towards the two.
The vortex grew larger and larger, like a newly born galaxy.
Lu Yin stared at the scene and felt dizzy, but then suddenly became clear again. Coincidentally, eight planets were revolving around the two and being swallowed by the vortex. Lu Yin's spacecraft was the ninth.
In that instant, Lu Yin calmed his heart, and the Sirius Art began to circulate around his body. Soon, a ninth star vaguely appeared.
The planets began to crack, and red magma and blue seawater began to evaporate into space. As the planets exploded, the void began to crack. Lu Yin gritted his teeth, and his lips began to bleed. He could not escape; three planets had already exploded, and the vortex was sweeping towards the fourth. He was not far from death.
He watched as the fourth star exploded, and the two were still fighting at the center. Lu Yin was sorrowful; he had activated the ninth star, but he did not even have a chance to use it before dying.
The Sirius Art slowly dissipated from his body, and the faintly visible ninth star broke away from the Sirius Art the moment it dissipated. This was a result of Lu Yin's unstable state of mind, and he had not been able to control it. The perfect imitation of the nine stars had begun to collapse.
Lu Yin's eyes lit up when he saw this, and he personally took control of the spacecraft and charged towards the center of the vortex at maximum speed.
The spacecraft warned him of danger, but Lu Yin did not care and continued to charge forward.
At the center of the battlefield, the two who had been fighting stopped and looked at the spacecraft strangely. They watched with interest, but they did not try to help or stop him.
The vortex could be absorbed, but it could also be used to separate itself. It all depended on whether or not Lu Yin could control his meridians.
If it was before, he wouldn't have been able to control it. But now, with his connection to the ninth star, he was able to control the veins of the galaxy. The Aurora spacecraft borrowed the power of the vortex to escape the eighth star's explosion and was sent flying.
Behind him, a planet exploded, causing the heavens to undulate. However, none of this had anything to do with Lu Yin, as he was already out of danger.
'Position shifted. Replanning route. Route setup successful.'
Lu Yin heaved a sigh of relief and smiled bitterly. He hoped that he wouldn't encounter such a situation again, as it was too dangerous.
Behind him, the two students were shocked. "I didn't think that this brat would be able to escape. Based on the insignia on the spacecraft, it's from Astral-10. That academy has been quite lively lately."
"So what? From what I've heard, only twelve new students were recruited this time, and quite a few of them came from the Innerverse. They can be recalled with a single order. That academy has already completely declined."
"As long as the Director returns to normal, no one will dare to have any ideas about Astral-10."
"That's true. Of the ten deans of the Astral Combat Academy, that old guy is the most terrifying. As long as he returns to normal, no one will dare to provoke him. Unfortunately, it's too difficult. He touched something that he shouldn't have."
"It has nothing to do with us. The Astral Combat Tournament is approaching, so let's just watch. That brat isn't bad. He actually managed to escape."
"He was lucky. At least we didn't have to save him."
"Let's continue. I want to see how much you've improved over the past few hundred years."
"What a joke. When have you ever beaten me?"
"Shameless. I only beat you once in the Cosmic Sea."
"Why don't you say that you beat me in the Neoverse as well? Don't try to deny it."
"You talk too much."
…
Lu Yin's spacecraft continued to travel smoothly. Right in front of him, a large spacecraft was strangely parked in space. From a distance, the lights on the spacecraft were dazzling. However, everything changed when a smear of blood spilled onto the glass.
Countless wails could be heard from the large spacecraft as blood flowed out from the gaps in the spacecraft, adding a touch of terror to the originally dark space.
A few hours later, Lu Yin saw the large spacecraft and wondered why it was parked in space.
Soon, Lu Yin's expression changed when he saw the blood spreading out from the spacecraft. Something was wrong. He stared at the spacecraft vigilantly, not daring to relax.
A figure appeared before Lu Yin's eyes. It was a woman with long black and white hair that drooped down and dripped with blood. She held a red sword in her hand while countless corpses lay beneath her feet.
Lu Yin knew how cruel the universe was, but he did not care about the corpses. Instead, he cared about the woman's black and white hair, which meant that she was from the Daynight clan. When had another woman from the Daynight clan appeared in the Outerverse? This clan was truly all-pervasive.
Sensing Lu Yin's gaze, the woman turned around and shot him a cold glare. Lu Yin's heart trembled. What kind of gaze was that? Cold, emotionless, despairing, remorseful, helpless, and yet, there was also an unforgettable sadness. That complicated gaze was imprinted into Lu Yin's heart, and he would never forget it.
The woman only glanced at Lu Yin before standing quietly in the spacecraft and looking into the distance. Nobody knew what she was thinking.
At that moment, Lu Yin's spacecraft overtook the large spacecraft, and he saw a murderous symbol at the front of the spacecraft. It was the symbol of an interstellar pirate, and everyone in the spacecraft was an interstellar pirate.
The Daynight clan was a powerful clan in the universe, and they could not possibly be pirates. Did that mean that this woman had killed pirates?
Although it was just a glance, Lu Yin was sure that aside from that woman, no one else had survived. What a murderous aura.
Soon, Lu Yin's spacecraft was far away, and he could no longer see the large spacecraft. However, that woman's gaze left a deep impression on him. It was the first time in his life that he had seen such a complicated gaze, and the sadness and helplessness in it had shocked him.
He shook his head. It had nothing to do with him, and he had no right to interfere with the Daynight clan's matters. He closed his eyes and began to circulate the Sirius Art. He needed to stabilize his ninth star as soon as possible and perfect his Sirius Art. This was something that he had risked his life to comprehend.
Due to the constant changes in his itinerary, Lu Yin took more than ten days to reach the Umbral Butterfly Weave.
Just as he arrived, Michelle appeared at Astral-10's trial zone entrance. After two months of Elder Cai's guidance, she wanted to challenge a hundred victories in ported battles and enter the trial zones as soon as possible.
Of the twelve new students, Schutz had the most victories aside from Lu Yin, with a total of fifty-two. Of course, he had also paid a heavy price for his victories, with a total of 237 defeats. He had challenged more ported battles than anyone else, and he had won more than a hundred battles than Lu Yin.
Schutz had been challenging ported battles before the New Student Competition, and the others had stopped long ago. It had not been easy for him to obtain fifty-two victories, and it had been mostly due to his battle experience and luck. Now, Michelle had appeared.
Her previous record had been thirteen victories and fifty-six defeats.
After she entered the teleportation stone's range, she only came out after a long time.
The Trialmaster opened his eyes, "Michelle, seventeen victories and fifty-seven defeats."
…
"Michelle, twenty-three victories and sixty defeats."
…
"Michelle, thirty-nine victories and sixty-five defeats."
…
"Michelle, seventy-two victories and eighty-eight defeats."
…
"Michelle, ninety-three victories and ninety-eight defeats."
When Michelle stepped into the teleportation stone's range again, Silver arrived at the trial zone entrance just in time to hear the Trialmaster's results. He was astonished, "It's only been two months, but she's improved so much. Should I call her a genius?"
When Michelle walked out again, the Trialmaster opened his eyes and looked at her seriously, "Michelle, ninety-nine victories and ninety-nine defeats."
"Congratulations, student. You're only one victory away," Silver congratulated her with a smile.
Michelle looked exhausted, as she had spent several days at the trial zone entrance to reach her current results. It had been too difficult, but it also reflected the tutor's teaching ability. Thinking back to her two months of hard work, every mission had been the most effective training for her. As expected of an Astral Combat Academy tutor. However, Michelle still had her doubts, as the tutors of the other academies did not have such an effect. Astral-10's tutors seemed to be different from the others.
She turned to Silver, "Do you want to challenge?"
Silver smiled, "You can go after you win a hundred battles."
Michelle did not refuse and stepped into the teleportation stone's range again.
At the same time, Xia Luo arrived at the trial zone entrance and glanced at Silver. He walked over to the Trialmaster and said something. The Trialmaster nodded and pointed at the teleportation stone, "Go to the trial zone."
Xia Luo smiled and nodded. He walked over to the teleportation stone and waited for Michelle to walk out.
Not long after, Michelle walked out of the teleportation stone's range with an excited expression. The Trialmaster's aged voice rang out in her ears, "Michelle, one hundred victories and one hundred defeats."
Xia Luo was astonished, but he quickly congratulated her.
Michelle suppressed her excitement, as she had finally won a hundred battles. Although she was excited, when she thought about how Lu Yin had already won a hundred battles two months ago, she felt that she was much slower than him. However, her innate gift was destined to be extraordinary. If her sister could achieve that, then so could she.
Silver stepped into the teleportation stone's range, and Xia Luo watched him leave, deep in thought.
Not too far away, Michelle walked up to the Trialmaster and respectfully said, "Tutor, I wish to enter the trial zone."
The Trialmaster nodded, "Alright, go in."
Michelle was confused, "Go in? Where?"
The Trialmaster pointed behind him and sighed, "None of you are enlightened."
Michelle stretched her hand forward, exactly like what Lu Yin had done in the past. Her eyes flickered, and she stepped in, disappearing from sight.
Xia Luo's eyes lit up when he saw this. It was time for him to enter the trial zone.
Michelle was no stranger to the trial zone mountain, and she directly entered it. She closed her eyes and chose the Sixth Dao of Purgatory. She had chosen the same path as Lu Yin, but the treatment was different. Lu Yin had been ridiculed and ambushed upon entering, but Michelle had been met with stunned gazes and enthusiastic introductions.
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Happy New Year's Eve! Thank you, brothers, for your support! I've done my best and have been writing throughout the New Year! I'll continue tomorrow!
Thank you!