Hai Qiqi's body swayed, and the blue halo disappeared. Her face was pale, and she looked much weaker than before.
Lu Yin hurriedly supported her, but she pushed him away and left on her own.
Ban Jiu stepped forward. "That person is already heading towards Northcastle Weave. He didn't stop."
Lu Yin nodded. Huo Houye had been scared out of his wits, and he was too afraid of death.
Wendy Yushan said, "Go comfort her. She saved us."
Lu Yin grunted. "I'll leave the rest to you." He then chased after Hai Qiqi.
Hai Qiqi arrived at the shore, which had already collapsed. Much of the sea had been evaporated by Huo Houye's power, and it was still steaming.
Hai Qiqi reached into the sea with a melancholic expression.
Lu Yin appeared behind her, as this was the first time he had seen Hai Qiqi like this. She had grown up overnight after the Sea King's accident. Just like before, she had shouldered the promise of the Sea King's Dome, and she was no longer the venomous girl who liked to insult others.
"In the past, I always thought that Father was the greatest person in the universe. There was nothing that he couldn't solve, and there was no one who dared to oppose him," Hai Qiqi said dejectedly.
Lu Yin sat down beside her and looked at her. "The Sea King is indeed powerful, but the boundaries of the universe can never be seen. No one is invincible, but I believe that nothing will happen to the Sea King."
Hai Qiqi raised her hand, and the blue halo flickered before disappearing. "Father's power is gone."
Lu Yin was puzzled. "The Sea King only fused that much power into your body?"
Hai Qiqi hugged her knees. "That person was an Enlighter."
Lu Yin understood. The Sea King had indeed fused a lot of power into Hai Qiqi's body, but her body's ability to withstand it had to be considered. At most, he could fuse power that could threaten an Enlighter, and it would be gone after a single use.
"Before I left, I asked Father what would happen if his power was gone." Hai Qiqi looked up with red eyes. "Father told me that he would know if it was gone, and he would come and get me." She paused as tears streamed down her face. "I also asked Second Brother what would happen if Father didn't come. Second Brother said that regardless of whether it was Father, Eldest Brother, or himself, as long as I said the word, they would immediately appear. No matter how dark the universe is, I'm not afraid.
Hai Qiqi raised her gadget and tried to contact Hai Dashao, but she could no longer contact him. The Innerverse and Outerverse had been separated, and the network had been cut off as well. All connections with the Innerverse had been severed.
Hai Qiqi buried her head in her arms, appearing very helpless. She no longer had a home, especially when the Sea King's Dome was facing a crisis. She could not do anything, and she did not know anything.
Lu Yin had experienced this feeling before, and he understood her helplessness. However, there was nothing he could do, as he did not have the ability to make any promises. Even an old freak with a power level in the hundreds of thousands would not be able to break through the Astral River's seal, let alone Lu Yin. Perhaps this parting would last for countless years, and Hai Qiqi would never be able to return to the Sea King's Dome.
She knew it herself, so she grew up.
Lu Yin placed a hand on her head. "I promise you that I'll send you back to the Sea King's Dome, even if there's only the slightest possibility."
Hai Qiqi was silent.
News of Huo Houye's retreat from Zenyu Star had been purposely spread by Lu Yin's subordinates to intimidate other Enlighters. Huo Houye was not the only Enlighter who coveted the secret technique, and the Blaze Realm was not the only organization that had a grudge against Lu Yin. He wanted to use this matter to stabilize himself for a period of time.
Two days later, Ban Jiu found Lu Yin and took the blueprint that Lu Yin had given him. His expression changed as soon as he looked at it. "Royal Regent, where did you get this blueprint?"
It had been dropped when the die had been rolled. Lu Yin calmly replied, "It was a coincidence. How is it? Is it useful?"
Ban Jiu excitedly replied, "Do you know what this blueprint is?
This is the blueprint for the most advanced androids in the universe. There are nine androids in total, and it describes their strength and manufacturing methods in all aspects. "
Lu Yin was puzzled. "You've always been in the Great Yu Empire, so how do you know that this is the most advanced androids in the universe?"
"Because of this." Ban Jiu pointed at the bottom right corner of the blueprint, where there was a symbol that Lu Yin could not understand.
Ban Jiu excitedly explained, "This is the symbol of a research team in the Technocracy that was left behind. When I was traveling the universe, I went to the edge of the Technocracy and accidentally learned of some things. There are many research teams in the Technocracy, and each of them has their own armed forces. They are similar to the various large organizations in the Human Domain, and this symbol represents one of the more advanced research teams."
Lu Yin nodded. "Are the androids powerful?"
"Very powerful. According to the blueprint, these androids can be upgraded without limit, unlike the current androids that are heavily restricted. These androids are not restricted, and they can be upgraded as long as they have the materials." Ban Jiu was excited, but there was also a trace of disbelief in his voice. This manufacturing method was too novel and full of illusions, but it had actually succeeded.
Lu Yin did not understand this, but he had seen the Technocracy's androids, and they were indeed powerful. However, they were the crystallization of the Technocracy's most advanced technology, and he did not believe that this blueprint represented the most advanced technology. If it did, how could it be casually placed in a cosmic ring? "Then go ahead and research it. If you can create androids, then it will also increase the Great Yu Empire's strength."
Ban Jiu could sense that Lu Yin did not have high expectations, but he was not anxious either. As long as he could create androids, then the Royal Regent's attitude would definitely change. Only someone like Ban Jiu, who could understand the blueprint, would know the results in advance.
Ban Jiu was about to leave when he suddenly thought of something, and his expression turned solemn. "Royal Regent, the Outerverse is about to descend into chaos. Please make early preparations."
Lu Yin was puzzled. "How do you know that the Outerverse is about to descend into chaos?"
Ban Jiu replied, "Space-Exploring powerhouses have a period of decline. Before the Innerverse and Outerverse were separated, the Innerverse powerhouses had their own organizations to support them, so they did not have to worry about the resources they would need during this period of decline.
But now … "Ban Jiu did not finish his sentence, but Lu Yin had already guessed it. That's right, those Explorers, Cruisers, Hunters, and even Enlighters did not have the resources of their organizations to support them, so they would face a period of decline. In order to avoid that period of decline, they would crazily plunder resources. Why hadn't he thought of this before?
No space-exploring powerhouse would want to face a period of decline. Only by seizing a certain amount of resources would they be able to safely wait for the Innerverse and Outerverse to reconnect. Ordinary powerhouses would be fine, but Enlighters required a terrifying amount of resources. If that was the case, then the Outerverse would indeed descend into chaos. Even the Great Yu Empire's resources might not be enough to satisfy an Enlighter.
How many Enlighters were currently trapped in the Outerverse?
Even if a weave supported just one, the surrounding weaves would be crippled. Furthermore, how could the surrounding weaves be willing to support these Enlighters?
If they could not obtain resources, then these powerhouses would only have one method, which was to plunder them, which would be equivalent to declaring war.
Previously, Lu Yin had only considered the allure of secret techniques to Enlighters, but now, he had to consider resources as well. Hai Qiqi's deterrence would not be enough to protect the Great Yu Empire for too long, and it was only a matter of time before the Great Yu Empire would face the plundering of other powerhouses. Grandtop Weave, Lars Weave, and other weaves might already be facing plundering.
No, he had to quickly gain the ability to protect himself.
A few days later, while Lu Yin was waiting for his die to recover, he received news that Grandtop Weave's Nine Stacks Sect had been destroyed. The sect's strongest Hunter had been killed, and the rest had been scattered. The sect's resources had also been plundered clean by an Enlighter.
Not long after, there were other tragic cases of other organizations being plundered. Aside from Frostwave Weave, the surrounding weaves had all fallen into a quagmire of war, and it had all been one-sided. Against an Enlighter, those organizations were like paper and were easily destroyed.
Lu Yin grew more and more anxious, and he finally returned to King Zishan's palace after ten days. He took out his die and tapped it with a look of intense anticipation. Aside from the battle with Qingyu on Earth, he had never been so excited before, as this was a matter of life and death.
This time, his luck was quite good, and he immediately rolled three pips.
When he saw the two screens appear, Lu Yin heaved a sigh of relief. It was time to go all out. As he thought about it, he took out his remaining four Money Bombs. He had upgraded three Money Bombs in the past, and he had given one to Wendy Yushan and one to Huo Houye. He still had one left, but this time, he wanted to upgrade all of them to the peak.
He remembered that upgrading the Money Bomb had made him feel uneasy, and he had spent dozens of star essence. He tossed the upgraded Money Bomb onto the screen and then tossed in a hundred star essence. He was rich, and he could do whatever he wanted.
The Money Bomb dropped twice, and it had been upgraded twice. Lu Yin's eyes filled with star energy, and he saw that the rune lines had become extremely large. This proved that this Money Bomb had a huge effect on the universe, but it was still far from reaching Huo Houye's level. He tossed in another hundred star essence, but unfortunately, the Money Bomb did not upgrade completely. He gritted his teeth and tossed in a thousand star essence.
The Money Bomb had been upgraded twice, which meant that it had been upgraded four times. At this point, the number of rune lines within the Money Bomb was about the same as Huo Houye's, which meant that this Money Bomb had the destructive power of an Enlighter.
Lu Yin was excited, as the Money Bomb had been upgraded from its initial state to its current state. He had already spent 1,250 star essence, but it still wasn't enough. He needed a destructive power that could instantly kill an Enlighter. As he thought about it, he tossed in 2,000 star essence and upgraded the Money Bomb twice.
As he looked at the Money Bomb, Lu Yin saw a terrifying number of rune lines. He had never seen so many rune lines in his entire life, and in terms of power, he estimated that it could rival 270,000 to 80,000. If he caught an Enlighter off guard, it should be able to heavily injure or even kill him.
Lu Yin carefully put the Money Bomb away and calculated that upgrading it to its current state had cost him 3,300 star essence. He still had three more Money Bombs, and upgrading them all would require over 10,000 star essence. No, he didn't have enough money.
He was speechless, as no matter how much he earned, it would never be enough. However, he had no other choice, as he had to change his target to an Enlighter. There was no such expert in the entire Frostwave Weave, and he had to pay 3,000 star essence to fight against an Enlighter. This was the price he had to pay.
He suppressed his desire to upgrade all of the Money Bombs and instead took out his universal armor. Compared to offense, defense was also very important. His current universal armor was not strong enough to defend against an Enlighter's power, so he had to furiously upgrade it.