Da Pao and Xiao Pao's expressions were grave. They had already investigated Kuang Wang, so they naturally knew of the Cang Long's existence. But truly facing this colossal monster, the shock to their minds was still unavoidable.
The Cang Long rose into the air, circling above the shore. Its massive eyes stared at Da Pao and Xiao Pao, the sunlight casting a vast shadow that enveloped them.
As Kuang Wang's finger pressed down, the Cang Long roared, its massive tail lashing out at the two of them.
Everyone's scalp tingled, and they unconsciously retreated, afraid of being caught in the crossfire.
Da Pao and Xiao Pao retreated simultaneously. The shore was lashed open, creating a huge fissure that was filled by the Purple Sea's water. The Cang Long brandished its sharp claws. Visible gales condensed in the void, forming terrifying sharp blades that slashed at the two, tearing space in an instant. Under the Cang Long's claws, space was as fragile as paper.
Da Pao raised his long spear and fired at the Cang Long. Countless bullets pelted the Cang Long's body, letting out booming sounds. The Cang Long roared; its body was completely unharmed by Da Pao's attack.
Kuang Wang laughed heartily. "Across the entire Starry Sky Academy, there are no more than twenty people who can harm the Cang Long. This... is a Zone Master. Do you understand?"
Da Pao was still unwilling to give up, desperately attacking the Cang Long. His attacks angered the beast, which pressed down from above. The entire shoreline trembled.
But at this moment, Xiao Pao appeared above Kuang Wang, raising his palm. The black flame palm print pressed down. This was their strategy: one would pin down the Cang Long, while the other dealt with Kuang Wang.
Among the nine Zone Masters, only Kuang Wang was from the Beast Taming Flow-Zone. The primary combat power of the Beast Taming Flow-Zone was concentrated in their tamed beasts. As long as the beast could be pinned down, defeating the master was not impossible. The Cang Long accounted for more than half of Kuang Wang's strength. Xiao Pao was confident he could defeat Kuang Wang at this moment.
At this point, the spectating students also understood. One pins the Cang Long, one defeats Kuang Wang. The two from the Tenth Academy had come prepared.
More critically, Xiao Pao had hidden his strength until this very moment. As the Black Flame Palm fell, black patterns appeared on his body. This was battle-qi—Two-Pattern Battle-Qi, the same level as Van Kleed!
Phanh!
Kuang Wang was once again pressed into the shore by the Black Flame Palm. Xiao Pao shot down, throwing a punch. This blow was enough to decide the victor.
"Xiao Pao, be careful!" Da Pao suddenly shouted.
Xiao Pao, who had just dived into the ground, had his expression change. He unconsciously switched from offense to defense, crossing his arms in front of him. The next second, he was struck by a colossal force. His Two-Pattern Battle-Qi shattered instantly, and the sound of bones breaking came from his arms. His pupils shrank. Through the dust, he saw Kuang Wang's cold smile, and the purple patterns within the black battle-qi on his body. That was—Three-Pattern Battle-Qi!
Xiao Pao had never imagined Kuang Wang had actually cultivated Three-Pattern Battle-Qi. No one in the entire Starry Sky Academy knew. He was struck by an unstoppable, terrifying force and blasted straight into the Purple Sea. The Purple Sea was a place the living could not cross. Falling into it meant death.
Da Pao's face turned pale. He used the force from the Cang Long's claws to retreat a hundred meters, staring in shock at Kuang Wang.
It wasn't just him. Everyone was staring at Kuang Wang in shock. The Heavenly Path's Zone Master... when did he cultivate Three-Pattern Battle-Qi?
Kuang Wang slowly levitated. The purple patterns within his black battle-qi were beautiful, but they also sent a chill down everyone's spine. This was a Zone Master, a terrifying expert far surpassing any Domain Master, a member of the Starry Sky Academy's Student Council, a prodigy qualified to meet the Ten Decablans.
They didn't know about the other Zone Masters, but the one before them made everyone feel despair. An invincible Cang Long, and his own Three-Pattern Battle-Qi. Who could defeat such a combination?
Da Pao and Xiao Pao were already very strong, ranking among the top even among Domain Masters. But even as a team, they were unable to defeat a Zone Master.
Kuang Wang looked at Da Pao and praised, "You two are not bad. I don't like hiding my strength, but unfortunately, the Fifth Academy is full of wastes. No one could force out my true strength. You two managed it. The Tenth Academy... not bad at all."
Da Pao smiled bitterly. "I heard long ago that Zone Masters were freaks, but I didn't think you'd be this much of a freak. And... is this even your true limit?"
Kuang Wang chuckled. "If you have the ability, prove it yourself. You two... are still too weak." With a wave of his hand, the Cang Long roared, and its sharp claws pierced Da Pao's body.
With this, both Da Pao and Xiao Pao of the Tenth Academy had died. Facing a Zone Master, they were unable to win.
But no one looked down on them. To be able to fight a Zone Master to this extent was rare in the Starry Sky Academy. At Uro's level, it wasn't a matter of two; even three or four of them teaming up wouldn't be able to shake Kuang Wang in the slightest. Everyone understood this. These two "recognized" wastes from the Tenth Academy were strong enough to contend with the most elite Domain Masters. The Tenth Academy... was not unmanned.
...
The dark starry sky was as beautiful as ever, with meteorites streaking past. Lu Yin, holding the Giant Emperor's third eye, retracted his gaze from the void.
He had been like this ever since leaving the Tenth Academy: his body covered in battle-qi, observing the cosmos with the Giant Emperor's third eye. He could cultivate his battle-qi and simulate the stars at the same time. The ninth star was becoming clearer and had stabilized. The universe he saw now was completely different from what others saw. He was confident that if he were to Lockbreak in this state, his chances of success would be high.
This time, he was heading to the Umbral-Mist Territory to complete a Lockbreaking mission. He had about a month of free time, after all. It would be good if he could improve his Lockbreaking skills.
In the battle with Uro, the one who had surprised him a_lot was Xia Luo. Uro's full-power attack had been resolved by him. His control over Star Energy was definitely superior to his own. It was unlikely he had comprehended a Domain, but he was very close. This person's talent was incredibly high. He (Lu Yin) had to fuse with Da Lei to grasp Star Energy to the Myriad Changes realm so quickly, yet this person was even faster, surpassing him. It was too terrifying. Lu Yin didn't want to be left behind.
...
Directly ahead of Lu Yin's ship, a medium-sized spaceship was sailing slowly. Onboard were several hundred people, most of whom were Watch-realm cultivators holding weapons. There were few Explore-realm and Melt-realm cultivators. And as for the Limiteer realm... there was only one.
"Captain, a signal from up ahead. Another ship is approaching, and it's fast," in the command room, a roguish-looking man turned and reported, his eyes shining with excitement.
The "Captain" was a middle-aged man with a vicious gaze, holding a dagger. He didn't look like a good person. Hearing the report, his eyes lit up. "How fast?"
"At least seven to ten times the speed of our ship," the man said.
The middle-aged captain was overjoyed. "Good! Prepare immediately! We'll rob him! Looks like a fat sheep."
"Yes, Captain!"
As the order was given, the several hundred people on the ship bustled. They were pirates. A newly formed, unprofessional pirate crew that hadn't even completed five jobs. Though unprofessional, their strength wasn't bad; at least they had one Limiteer-realm expert.
Generally, many small-time pirate crews didn't even have a Limiteer expert. Only professional, large-scale pirate organizations had them, or even Star-wanderer experts. In the "unprofessional" field, this crew wasn't bad. Of course, precisely because they were unprofessional, their eyesight was terrible. At least, they didn't recognize the Starry Sky Tenth Academy's logo on Lu Yin's personal ship.
'Warning, warning, ahead is blocked. Warning, warning, behind is blocked. Please prepare, please prepare...'
Lu Yin was surprised. He looked outside the ship. Blocked?
Pirates had many ways to blockade space. Many pirate ships were modified to seal off a region of the void. They wouldn't be able to rob anyone without such methods.
A voice came through the comms, and Lu Yin heard the middle-aged captain's voice. "Friend, give up resisting. You should have guessed who we are. Cooperate, and I guarantee I won't harm you. Listen, immediately dock your ship inside mine. I said immediately. Don't make me say it a second time."
Lu Yin was stunned. He... was being robbed. He turned to look at the medium-sized ship hovering in space. Its exterior looked quite ferocious, with strange emblems. A pirate ship.
All around, strange vibrations pulsed. It was these vibrations that were blockading the void. If he tried to cross, he would be hit, disrupting the ship's systems and forcing it to stop.
"Friend, are you testing my patience? Dock your ship. Now!" The middle-aged captain's voice was much deeper now.
Lu Yin took a deep breath and piloted his ship into the pirate vessel.
With a jolt, the ship stopped steadily. The cabin door opened. More than ten Star Energy guns were aimed at him. Dozens of pirates were in ready formation, including at least five in the Melt-realm.
"Out!" someone shouted, glaring at Lu Yin.
Lu Yin stepped out of his ship. A vicious-looking man tried to search him.
Lu Yin frowned. "Brother, I don't have a habit of being touched by men."
"Behave!" the man shouted, reaching for Lu Yin. At the same time, another man tried to enter Lu Yin's ship.
Lu Yin sighed. He raised his foot and kicked the man in front of him, sending him flying. At the same time, he kicked back, sending the other man flying as well.
Instantly, the dozen or so Star Energy guns were aimed at him again. "Don't move! Kid, you dare to resist!"
Lu Yin glanced at his personal terminal. It showed the highest combat power here was 7,000, a Limiteer, but not a peak Limiteer. The corner of his mouth curled. "Sorry, you've picked the wrong trouble." With that, he released his Star Energy, instantly knocking all the surrounding pirates unconscious. He raised his foot and walked toward the ship's command room.
At this moment, in the command room, the middle-aged captain was staring at the screen. Beside him, the roguish-looking man was dumbfounded. "Cap-Captain... this kid is no joke. Looks like you'll have to handle him personally."
The middle-aged captain's face twitched. He had noticed a detail: the kid had glanced at his personal terminal before acting, and a terminal could detect combat power. His own combat power was never hidden; the kid definitely saw it. To dare and act anyway proved one thing: the kid wasn't scared. He wasn't afraid of him. He was clearly a Melder, but he could fight above his level? Such people were called "Realm-locked" experts in the universe. They were rare, but all were geniuses.
The middle-aged captain was already regretting it. He shouldn't have provoked this kind of genius. A saying circulated in their pirate circle: "Never mess with a young man traveling alone or an old man who looks like he's about to die." He had forgotten it before, but now he remembered. It seemed he had just poked one of them.
"Captain, he's here!" the roguish man shouted in panic, a trace of fear in his eyes.
The middle-aged captain gritted his teeth and walked out of the command room. The feud was already started. The only question was how to resolve it.
The captain didn't wait long before he saw Lu Yin. Behind him... was a pile of unconscious pirates.