"What do you think?
Is that person very strong? "someone asked.
Zhanlong Daynight's eyes darkened, and his expression turned solemn. "Very, very strong. Even though we only exchanged a single blow, his strength is at the peak of the Limiteer realm. It's normal for Yanqing to not be his match. Even my Daynight Restoration Technique was almost broken."
The surrounding Daynight clan members' expressions changed. "Brother Zhanlong's Daynight Restoration Technique is invincible. It can't be broken."
Zhanlong Daynight disdainfully replied, "There's no such thing as an invincible technique. This Lu Yin almost destroyed my Restoration Technique with a single blow, and he's much stronger than Yanqing. If I hadn't been imprisoned in the ancestral grounds and improved my strength, I wouldn't have been able to fight him. Right now, it's still unknown who will win."
Zhanlong Daynight's words shocked everyone. He could be considered the strongest Limiteer in the Daynight clan, but for him to say such a thing showed just how strong Lu Yin was. It was no wonder why he could defeat the Sword Sect's Liu Shaoqiu and Nightqueen Yanqing and become one of the top four in the Astral Combat Tournament. This person was terrifying.
"Those old fogeys have good eyesight this time. Aside from me, no other Limiteer in the Daynight clan is Lu Yin's match. It looks like we'll have some fun this time." Zhanlong Daynight was excited, and he really wanted to fight Lu Yin. That palm strike had been too strange, and no one had ever given him such a feeling before. It had almost broken his Daynight Restoration Technique, and it had never been mentioned in the Daynight clan's historical records.
The matter of Lu Yin blocking Zhanlong Daynight's attack was suppressed by Ming Zhaoshu, who stood guard at the entrance as usual.
Seven days passed. These seven days were very calm, so calm that it was strange. Everyone seemed to be preparing for something.
What disappointed Lu Yin was that he did not see Ming Yan again. She had probably been grounded, and she could not even walk through the entrance.
Lu Yin was both disappointed and relieved. He really wanted to see Ming Yan, but he was also afraid of exposing himself in front of Li Zimo. Ming Zhaoshu had done the right thing.
On the eighth day, Lu Yin and the rest were summoned back. The entire Ming Vanguard left the Reverent King's Residence, including Li Zimo.
After leaving the residence, Lu Yin and the rest were ordered to put on blindfolds and other items that cut off their five senses. They were then brought to a cold, dark place. Li Zimo was the same.
"You've been brought to the bottom of the Tower of Resonating Light," the monkey said.
Lu Yin took off his blindfold. His surroundings were pitch-black, but he could vaguely make out quite a few people. Li Zimo wasn't too far away from him, and this was the underground of the Tower of Resonating Light. This meant that these people were here to ambush Han Chong and the others.
Both sides had a tacit understanding that the battle on the day of the celebration would be a battle of strength. From Han Chong's point of view, as long as they could defeat the Tower of Resonating Light and destroy the five sealing nodes, the experts from the outer realm would be able to swarm in and occupy Shenwu Continent. To Crown Prince Ming Hao, this place would be a prison for the majority of the trialtakers.
"Everyone, move out upon hearing the order. Everyone, rest here," Ming Zhaochen's voice rang out.
There were thirteen levels to the Tower of Resonating Light. Five of them were exposed above ground, which was the Tower of Resonating Light that everyone could see. The eighth level was hidden underground, and the lower one went, the wider the area. The thirteenth level was almost the size of the capital, and Ming Taizhong had been buried on the thirteenth level.
Lu Yin looked at the ground beneath his feet. An almighty powerhouse was buried some distance away from him, and there should be precious techniques, insights, and secret treasures there. It was a pity that he couldn't touch them.
Ming Zhaoshu had said that even a Hunter would find it difficult to survive in Ming Taizhong's grave, and that should be the thirteenth level.
Lu Yin's current location should be the seventh level.
Crown Prince Ming Hao had revealed that the five sealing nodes were located at the bottom of the Tower of Resonating Light. Han Chong and the others only knew that it was on the sixth level, so the only way to ambush them would be on the seventh level. Of course, it was also possible that they had guessed that there was more than one level underground.
Crown Prince Ming Hao was so confident that he could capture all of his attackers.
Lu Yin was curious, and he looked around.
The seventh level was very wide, and because it was hidden underground, it was very dark. Not a single ray of sunlight could be seen, and aside from the hard stone floor beneath his feet, he couldn't see anything else.
However, his martial power was abundant, and it was almost boiling. It was enough to allow the Ming Vanguard to remain in peak condition.
"Strange, this place is very strange," the monkey said.
Lu Yin couldn't speak, and he could only listen to the monkey muttering to himself.
"Aside from the abundant martial power, there's also a mixture of other energies, and they're all very large. This feels very similar to … how should I put it? Sourceboxes. Right, sourceboxes!"
Lu Yin's eyes flashed, and a thought flashed through his mind. He suddenly recalled the two strange beast sculptures at the entrance of the Ming Constables. Those were sourceboxes.
"There's no mistaking it. We're surrounded by sourceboxes!" the monkey exclaimed.
"What do you mean?" Lu Yin used his martial power to seal off their surroundings.
The monkey muttered, "It's not easy to explain. Let's put it this way. Think of the entire Tower of Resonating Light as a giant sourcebox, and we're currently trapped inside."
Lu Yin was astonished. "How is that possible? Sourceboxes can be used like that?"
"Of course they can. Let me tell you something — you humans aren't the only ones with Lockbreakers. Our Astral Beast Domain has Lockbreakers as well, and they can unlock treasures that have been sealed by the universe. Your great Marquis is a Lockbreaker," the monkey said proudly.
"You're a Lockbreaker?" Lu Yin was truly shocked. A monkey was a Lockbreaker? What a joke!
The monkey sternly replied, "I'll warn you one more time: don't underestimate astral beasts, ever. Ever since the birth of the universe, astral beasts have existed for far longer than you humans. I've also said before that humans are actually a type of astral beast. In the eyes of astral beasts, humans are just a branch, and that's all. Anything that humans can do, astral beasts can do as well, and lockbreaking is no exception. In fact, there are many astral beasts with extraordinary innate gifts that far surpass humans when it comes to lockbreaking."
"How can you lockbreak?" Lu Yin was puzzled.
The monkey was displeased. "What are you talking about? Your Grandpa Marquis' control of star energy is extremely strong, and I'm just short of comprehending a domain. But that doesn't matter. Your Grandpa Marquis was born with two different colors, and I can clearly see changes in star energy that ordinary people cannot. Let me tell you something; according to your human classification of Lockbreakers, your Grandpa Marquis is considered a five star Discerning Elementary Lockbreaker."
Lu Yin rolled his eyes, as he definitely did not believe the monkey. However, the monkey's eyes were very sharp, and Lu Yin knew that no disguise would be able to fool it. It was possible that the monkey could lockbreak.
"So what you're saying is that we're all trapped in the giant Tower of Resonating Light?" Lu Yin asked.
"Of course the Tower of Resonating Light isn't a sourcebox, but there are sourceboxes around us that have formed a strange environment that's covered in energy. This environment might undergo a qualitative change and completely seal off the ground. It's really similar to the solid energy on the surface of a sourcebox," the monkey explained.
Lu Yin finally understood. It seemed that Ming Hao was planning to use this method to trap everyone, but where had he gotten so many sourceboxes?
Was the Shenwu Continent rich in sourceboxes?
"If we're really trapped in a sourcebox, will we be able to escape?
With lockbreaking techniques? "Lu Yin asked.
The monkey replied, "I'm not sure. That depends on the strength."
Lu Yin's eyes flickered, and he closed them as he waited for the celebration to arrive.
Three days later, there was a huge explosion in the sky as fireworks bloomed in the sky above the capital. At the same time, all of the cities in the Shenwu Empire lit up with fireworks. The celebration had finally arrived.
The Reverent King, Ming Zhaoshu, was dressed in splendid attire as he led Ming Yan to the palace. Officials from all over the country converged like a river, and countless experts stood guard while the army sealed off the city gates.
The entire country was celebrating on this day, but only the upper echelons knew that this was also the day of the final battle with the outsiders.
Lu Yin stayed in the dark underground, unaware of what was happening in the outside world. Everyone was waiting for a possible battle to break out.
After an unknown amount of time, the ground trembled, and a ray of light shot into the ground, followed by a violent sonic boom. Li Zimo unsheathed his sword, and his body flashed as he walked out of the ground, his blood spreading across the surface.
Lu Yin opened his eyes and looked up. The top floor had cracked open, and dust was falling down.
All of the Ming Vanguard stood up and rushed out of the seventh floor.
At the same time, the capital's palace was celebrating.
Ming Zhaotian did not appear, and Crown Prince Ming Hao was overseeing the celebration.
Ming Zhaoshu would occasionally look into the distance, in the direction of the Tower of Resonating Light.
Ming Yan sat behind Ming Zhaoshu with a worried expression.
Not too far away, Bei Qing looked at Ming Yan with a burning gaze, but he was interrupted by a middle-aged man beside him. This person was the empire's Minister of War, Bei Hong.
On the other side, Finance Minister Ming Zhaocai was beaming from ear to ear. Behind him, Grandini Mavis, who had changed her name to Alan, stared at the woman sitting behind Crown Prince Ming Hao. She had never expected that Starsibyl would actually sit there. This was too brazen and too ruthless.
Suddenly, a crack extended high up in the sky, as if the sky had been split open. A boundless and terrifying aura poured down.
Ming Hao's eyes flashed coldly.
The four peaks surrounding the capital shone brightly as they simultaneously acted to block the shockwaves. They then rushed into the void, joining the battle.
These four were not the only ones. Many figures within the capital also rushed into the sky, rushing towards the five sealing planets to fight the outsiders.
Powerhouses from all over the Shenwu Continent headed towards the five sealing planets. From the perspective of many, this was a tragic scene. Regardless of whether they had once been friends or foes, they were all fighting to the death for their hometowns. After today, who knew how many would be buried in space forever?
Within the Tower of Resonating Light, dozens of trialtakers rushed in with a simple goal: destroy the node at the base of the tower. As long as they could destroy the node, the Darkmist Weave's powerhouses would invade, and the Shenwu Continent would be finished.
In a corner, Yue Xianzi frowned. This shouldn't be happening. Even if the Darkmist Weave was putting a lot of pressure on the Shenwu Continent, it was impossible for there not to be any Explorers left behind. This was the node of the five sealing planets, which was the most important location. They had already thought of a countermeasure before the attack, and they had even made preparations to face off against Cruisers. So why wasn't there even a single Explorer?
Yue Xianzi wasn't the only one who had thought of this. Han Chong and the other hidden Daynight clan experts had also thought of this possibility. However, they had already arrived, and there was no turning back.
Lu Yin stopped one of the trialtakers, but he did not end the battle so easily. Instead, he dragged the trialtaker along to observe the battlefield.
The trialtaker was bewildered. He had clearly used all of his strength, but he was still unable to finish off the person in front of him. Furthermore, this bastard's eyes kept darting around, and it was obvious that he did not take the trialtaker seriously. "Die, you bastard!"
Lu Yin took a few steps back and frowned at the inexplicably angry man in front of him. "What's wrong?"
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Third Update: Thank you for your support! Thank you!