boyutpedia Page 126
Page 126
He turned and rushed out of the passage, sunlight streaming down his face, yet it seemed distorted by some unseen force. In the distance, thick smoke billowed over the city, a greater crisis brewing. Lin Ye knew that this time, he faced not only the enemy's conspiracy, but also the destiny deep within his own bloodline.
After he left, a figure in a black cloak quietly appeared in the shadows of the factory. He removed his hood, revealing a face that bore a striking resemblance to Lin Ye, except that his pupils were an eerie dark red.
A pureblood from the Zero Boundary... He licked his lips, a cruel smile playing on his lips. The game had begun.
Chapter 293: The Truth Gradually Emerges
Lin Ye's figure stood like a towering mountain atop the ruins. The reinforced concrete beneath his feet trembled under the force of the energy, cracks spreading like a spiderweb three meters away. The golden energy surrounding him rippled with fine waves, each pulse causing a muffled boom in the air. The long-haired man's back stiffened under this invisible pressure, his Adam's apple bobbing, his fingers digging desperately into the wound on his palm, blood dripping from between his fingers and mingling with the dust to form a dark red clump.
His men behind him were already slumped on the ground, the water seeping from the crotch of the short, stout fellow spreading dark stains on the gravel and slowly trickling down the slope. The tall, thin man huddled behind the broken wall, his shoulders trembling violently, his suppressed sobs like a cat whose tail had been stepped on: "Big brother... I don't want to die..."
"Shut up!" the long-haired man snapped, his eye twitching uncontrollably. He knew leaving alive today was harder than climbing to heaven, but years of pretense had made him habitually put on airs. "Lin Ye, don't be so smug! We're just small fry on the surface; the real bosses can crush you with a flick of their fingers! Let us go today, and we'll keep to ourselves; otherwise—"
"Or else have your backers come and collect my corpse?" Lin Ye took half a step forward, his aura suddenly surging. The long-haired man felt as if he had been struck in the chest by an invisible giant hammer, violently spitting out a mouthful of blood mist, staggering and crashing into a concrete pillar behind him. The pillar, which took two people to encircle, snapped in two with a crash.
A bluish-gray vortex rose from Lin Ye's outstretched palm, causing the surrounding rubble to begin spinning counter-clockwise. The long-haired man felt his internal organs churning, his body tilting uncontrollably forward. His henchmen, sprawled on the ground, screamed like pigs being slaughtered, their bodies pulled by invisible ropes, flying towards Lin Ye along with the rubble.
"Bang!"?
Five people were pinned half a meter off the ground, their limbs twisted at bizarre angles, the cracking of dislocated joints echoing throughout the room. Lin Ye slowly walked to the long-haired man, the energy swirling around his fingertips drawing fine beads of blood from the man's neck: "Speak now, and you'll suffer less."
The long-haired man's temples bulged with veins, sweat mixed with dust stinging his eyes. He glanced at his subordinate beside him, whose eyes were already rolling back and whose tongue was lolling out, then suddenly spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, which splattered onto Lin Ye's shoes: "Dark Star Cluster! Ever heard of it? We're their outer vanguard!"
“Never heard of it.” Lin Ye applied slight pressure with his fingertips, and a crisp sound of bones grinding against each other immediately rang out from the long-haired man's neck. “This name is never on the Cosmic Alliance's wanted list.”
"Cough...that's because your vision is too shallow!" The man coughed violently, his eyes bloodshot from lack of oxygen. "They're hiding in the cracks of the cosmic dust belt, unknown even to the Kree Empire and the Shire Federation! When they reveal themselves, the entire multiverse will have to kneel!"
The moment Lin Ye frowned, a memory flashed through his mind of the black crystal he had discovered three months ago at the Martian ruins. That thing had emitted a faint, corrosive energy, and the test report showed its molecular structure was incompatible with any known civilization. Now, thinking back, that energy fluctuation bore a subtle resemblance to the aura emanating from these people before him, only a million times weaker.
"Attack on Earth is just an appetizer." The long-haired man suddenly burst into maniacal laughter, his laughter filled with madness. "The Seventh Universe's protective barrier relies on a hundred key planets, and Earth is the weakest point among them! Once we destroy this place, cracks will appear in the entire universe's defense network! Then the Dark Cluster's fleet can sail straight in and burn you self-righteous guardians to ashes!"
"Where are those monsters?" Lin Ye increased the pressure on his hand, causing the long-haired man's neck to creak painfully. "Genetic technology? What is the source of your technology?"
"Haha, those 'Flerkens' are our masterpiece!" The man's face revealed a morbid excitement, drool dripping from the corner of his mouth. "We fused the genes of a hundred kinds of interstellar beasts, then injected dark energy for catalysis. Even if they're beaten to a pulp, they can regenerate! Last month in the Andromeda Galaxy, a single juvenile devoured an entire colony fleet! We originally intended for them to wear you down, but we didn't expect you, this monster, to be even stronger than them..."
The words abruptly stopped.
A chilling aura, a hundred times colder than Lin Ye's, swept in like a frigid tide, instantly freezing the distant clouds into inky black ice crystals that crashed to the ground with a crackling sound. Lin Ye's pupils constricted, and the energy core in his dantian suddenly trembled violently, as if it had encountered a natural enemy. He abruptly turned his head to look at the northeastern horizon—where space was distorting, like the surface of water rippled by a stone thrown in, spreading out layers of black ripples, and a gigantic shadow writhing behind a dimensional barrier could be vaguely seen.
"Let's call it a day, you useless lot."
A hoarse male voice, as if squeezed from rusty iron, produced a teeth-grinding, grinding sound. As the words fell, a jet-black beam of light tore through the sky, striking precisely the five people controlled by Lin Ye.
"My lord!" The long-haired man's face had barely lit up with wild joy when his body began to melt away like a wax figure. His skin turned into black, sticky fluid that dripped down, revealing his stark white bones. He didn't even manage a proper scream. The other four also turned to dust within the black pillar of light, leaving only wisps of acrid black smoke drifting in the wind.
A golden aura erupted from Lin Ye, forcefully blocking the corrosive dark energy three meters away. At the point where the aura collided with the black energy, crackling arcs of electricity crackled in the air. When the dust settled, a figure shrouded in a black cloak stood atop the broken building a hundred meters away, viscous black mist still slowly dripping from the hem of the cloak.
The man wore a bronze taotie mask, its patterns seemingly flowing, each groove oozing a viscous black mist that corroded holes the size of copper coins upon landing. Most bizarrely, his eyes—behind the mask's eye sockets, there were no pupils, only two flickering dark purple flames. Each flicker of the flames inexplicably dimmed the surrounding light.
"Lin Ye, you destroyed three of our gene banks in the Alpha Galaxy three months ago. That debt needs to be settled." The mysterious man raised his right hand, and as his fingers curled, the reinforced concrete in the surrounding ruins began to writhe eerily, climbing up his arm like living things, quickly coalescing into a two-meter-long bone blade, its surface gleaming with metallic luster.
Lin Ye's heart trembled violently. He had always thought he had handled the Alpha Galaxy matter flawlessly. To destroy those unfinished bio-weapons, he had deliberately taken a thirty-light-year detour and erased all traces of energy. Not only did the other side know he was responsible, but they even knew the exact time. This meant his movements had long been exposed to their surveillance.
"Who are you?" The energy within Lin Ye's body began to circulate rapidly, golden light flowing across his skin like awakening golden dragons. "A core member of the Dark Star Cluster?"
The mysterious figure let out a low, sneer, the bone blade twirling lightly in his hand, the resulting air currents rippling through the surrounding space: "Core member? You're not worthy to know my codename. But you can remember, the one who killed you came from 'Shadow Palace.'"
"Shadow Palace?" Lin Ye quickly searched his memory for the name. The Interstellar Federation's top-secret files recorded thirty-seven cosmic-level dark organizations, but this name wasn't among them. Was it a newly rising force, or a more deeply hidden entity?
"Looks like those lowlifes from the Dark Cluster didn't tell you much." The mysterious figure took a step forward, his form appearing ten meters away in an instant like a ghost, black ice crystals instantly forming on the concrete beneath his feet. "Fine, I'll let you die with your doubts. Oh, right, I forgot to tell you—"
He suddenly accelerated, the shrill sound of his bone blade slicing through the air causing a sharp pain in the ears, tearing the air in his path into spiraling currents. Lin Ye blocked with his arm, a golden energy shield instantly forming in front of him. The moment the bone blade collided with the energy shield, the ear-piercing metallic scraping sound almost shattered a skull. Lin Ye felt a chilling, bone-chilling force travel up his arm, forcing him back three steps, each step leaving a half-foot-deep footprint in the ground.
"The Earth you protect was planted with the 'Seed of Annihilation' ten years ago." The purple flames behind the mysterious man's mask flickered violently, as if he had heard something extremely interesting. "The person in charge of planting it said that this planet's energy field was very special, making it a suitable breeding ground for the seed. Now it seems he was right—"
He paused deliberately, enjoying Lin Ye's sudden tense expression.
"Now, it's time to let it sprout."
Alarm bells rang in Lin Ye's mind. Ten years ago was the time when he had just awakened his supernatural abilities and was undergoing training at the interstellar wanderer base. During that period, Earth did experience several inexplicable energy fluctuations, which the Federal Academy of Sciences concluded were due to abnormal solar activity. Could it be...?
Just as he was about to ask something, he noticed the other person's aura suddenly become extremely unstable. The mysterious man abruptly looked up at the sky, the black mist on his bone blade beginning to swirl erratically, like flames being whipped by a gale: "Tsk, I didn't expect the inspector from the Seventh Universe to arrive so quickly. I was originally planning to grind you to dust before leaving."
He glanced at Lin Ye, a strange amusement in his voice, and the dark purple flames on his bone blade suddenly surged three feet higher: "Remember this feeling, Lin Ye. When the Seed of Annihilation sprouts, you will hear the beautiful melody of billions of people screaming simultaneously. Next time we meet, I will let you watch this planet turn into cosmic dust."
Before the words were even finished, a dense black mist erupted from the mysterious figure, and he vanished like a drop of water merging into the ocean. The buildings the black mist touched were instantly corroded, revealing massive holes in the steel skeletons beneath. Lin Ye touched the ground with his toes, his figure transforming into a golden streak of light as he gave chase, but he only managed to catch a wisp of lingering black mist.
A needle-like stinging pain shot through his fingertips as the wisp of black energy struggled violently in his palm, emitting a faint, bloody scent—not human, nor from any known interstellar creature; its aura was ancient and savage, seemingly originating from the chaos of the universe's very beginning.
Just then, Lin Ye's communicator suddenly rang urgently, the piercing alarm making his heart sink. After connecting, his assistant Xiao Ai's tearful voice came through, accompanied by the shrill sound of explosions in the background: "Brother Lin! Giant rifts have suddenly appeared all over the world! The rift over the Pacific Ocean is already hundreds of kilometers wide! So many... so many winged monsters are crawling out of them! Their claws can easily tear through tank armor!"
Lin Ye abruptly looked up at the city center, where a black rift, stretching from heaven to earth, was slowly widening. The edges of the rift shimmered with a dark purple light identical to the mysterious human bone blade. From the depths of the rift came the faint buzzing of countless flapping wings, and the excited howls of some creature; the sound waves even shattered pieces of glass curtain walls in the distance.
He clenched his fist, his knuckles turning white from the force, the stinging pain in his palm a reminder of the eeriness of the black aura he had just witnessed. The mysterious man's words exploded in his mind like thunder—could the seed of annihilation planted ten years ago be related to these suddenly appearing cracks? What exactly was that so-called seed?
What unsettled him even more was the nature of the "Inspectors" the mysterious man had mentioned—were they friend or foe? If they were guardians of the Seventh Universe, why hadn't they appeared until now? Or was their arrival the beginning of another catastrophe?
The distant air raid sirens grew increasingly frequent, mingling with the roars of monsters and the screams of humans, creating a symphony of despair. Lin Ye took a deep breath, golden energy once again filling his eyes as he gazed at the ever-expanding black crack.
No matter what he faces next, he must protect this planet.
Chapter 294: Fierce Battle Against a Mysterious Master
Chapter 294: Fierce Battle Against a Mysterious Master?
The mysterious man stared at Lin Ye's tense profile, a low, guttural laugh rumbling from his throat. The patterns on his bronze mask pulsed with each laugh: "You? You think you can defeat me?" He raised his black-gloved left hand, his five fingers making a grasping motion in the air. Instantly, the surrounding rubble was crushed into powder by an invisible force. "Today, I'll show you just how terrifying the true power of the Dark Star Cluster really is."
Before he finished speaking, the black aura surrounding him suddenly surged like boiling water, and the thin mist that had enveloped him instantly expanded into a black vortex ten meters in diameter. The ground beneath Lin Ye's feet began to tremble, and the broken billboard in the distance cracked and creaked under this oppressive force, its metal frame bending into an eerie arc.
This energy… Lin Ye's pupils constricted sharply, and a sharp, needle-like pain suddenly shot through his dantian. He could clearly feel that the opponent's aura had tripled in just three seconds; the dark energy, which had been like a stream, now possessed the force of a surging river.
drink!?
The mysterious man roared, his figure transforming into a streak of black lightning as he charged forward. His footsteps left a trail of smoking footprints, and the hard concrete sizzled as if corroded by strong acid. Lin Ye didn't even see his movement; he only felt a stench of blood rush towards him, and a fist was already upon him.
In a moment of haste, Lin Ye crossed his arms to block, and the two balls of energy exploded into a blinding ball of light upon contact. He was thrown backward as if hit by a speeding truck, his back snapping three steel bars before he landed heavily on the ground, carving a three-meter-long trench.
Cough, cough... Lin Ye coughed, clutching his numb right arm. The blood that seeped from between his fingers evaporated the moment it hit the ground. That punch was not only incredibly powerful, but it also carried a chilling energy that coursed through his arm's meridians, freezing the flow of energy wherever it passed.
Feeling threatened? The mysterious figure slowly withdrew his fist, the black mist on his glove gradually seeping into his skin. This was just the appetizer. You so-called guardians, always spouting righteousness, do you really think you can stop us with just words?
He suddenly slid to the side, his knee whistling as it hurtled towards Lin Ye's chest. Lin Ye ducked sharply, the knee grazing his nose and leaving a black afterimage in the air.
"You dodged pretty quickly." The mysterious man sneered, stomping his foot heavily on the ground. Suddenly, spiderweb-like cracks appeared in the ground centered on him, and dozens of black bone spikes burst forth, coiling towards Lin Ye's limbs like venomous snakes.
Lin Ye leaped backward, his toes barely touching the ground, while simultaneously pushing forward with both palms. Golden energy surged forth like a tidal wave, blasting the bone spikes into countless fragments. But before he could regain his footing, the mysterious figure appeared behind him, his elbow whistling as it struck Lin Ye in the back.
"Is this never going to end?!" Lin Ye whirled around, his left arm deflecting the opponent's elbow, while his right fist, streaking with golden light, slammed towards the mysterious man's face. This punch concentrated thirty percent of his inner energy, the force of the blow even distorting the surrounding light.
Bang!?
The fist slammed solidly into the bronze mask, sending the mysterious man staggering back two steps. Lin Ye was about to press his advantage when he noticed the Taotie patterns on the mask suddenly glow red, making it impossible for his fist to retract, as if stuck in quagmire.
"Fool! Dark energy excels at devouring!" The mysterious man seized the opportunity and kicked Lin Ye in the stomach. "The stronger your energy, the easier it is for you to be assimilated by my power."
Lin Ye grunted and flew backward, crashing into the dilapidated exterior wall of the building. He looked down at his right hand; a thin layer of black mist covered his fist, spreading along his skin towards his forearm, sending a burning pain through wherever it passed.
This power… Lin Ye gritted his teeth and circulated his inner energy. Golden light flowed in his palm for half a minute before he could barely force back the layer of black mist. It could erode his energy channels and even mimic his opponent's energy fluctuations?
"You do have some knowledge." The mysterious man cracked his neck, the sound of bones grinding together coming from beneath his mask. This was the corrosive power condensed from the negative emotions of a hundred star systems; you guardians raised in greenhouses have never even seen such power.
He suddenly transformed into several afterimages, attacking Lin Ye from different directions. Each afterimage carried a real aura of attack, the black fist shadows weaving into an impenetrable net in the sunlight.
Lin Ye took a deep breath, a dragon-like roar emanating from his chest. Suddenly, a dazzling blue light erupted from his body; his short, originally black hair instantly turned azure, his golden pupils were tinged with a deep blue, and energy patterns like ripples flowed across his skin.
Super Saiyan Blue? The mysterious man's afterimage paused for half a second. "I didn't expect you to have this hidden trick up your sleeve."
"I gave you three moves, now it's my turn." Lin Ye's voice had a metallic quality, and his figure suddenly vanished from his spot. The next second, he appeared behind the mysterious man, his fist, enveloped in blue light, grazing the man's cloak, the force of which shattered a glass curtain wall a hundred meters away.
The mysterious figure reacted with lightning speed, lunging forward while simultaneously unleashing three black energy blades with a backhand motion. Lin Ye lightly touched the air with his toes, spinning like a top to dodge the attacks. The energy blades struck a distant tower crane, instantly corroding the tens of tons of steel structure into piles of black powder.
"Speed is good, but not enough!" Lin Ye's voice came from all directions. His azure figure moved at high speed above the ruins, leaving a trail of afterimages. "Is this all you Dark Star Cluster can do? Only hide behind and launch sneak attacks?"
"Stubborn to the end!" the mysterious figure roared, spreading his arms wide. Black energy erupted like a volcano, shrouding the entire area in shadow. "Take this if you dare!"
Countless black tentacles emerged from the energy vortex, writhing and coiling towards Lin Ye like living creatures. These tentacles corroded buildings upon contact and left plumes of white smoke in the ground, turning the entire battlefield into a paradise of dark energy.
Lin Ye's eyes sharpened, and he formed a hand seal in front of his chest: Kamehameha!
A surge of azure energy erupted from his palm, colliding with the black tentacles. The shockwave from the energy clash sent debris flying and even shattered the clouds in the sky.
"That's all the energy?" The mysterious figure scoffed, increasing its energy output. The black tentacles suddenly grew rapidly, beginning to devour the energy of the Kamehameha. "Let me tell you a secret," the mysterious figure said, "your righteous energy is a great source of nourishment for us!"
Lin Ye frowned, suddenly withdrawing his attack and stepping back. Just as the black tentacles were about to wrap around him, he abruptly turned around, his hands forming an energy sphere the size of a basketball behind his back. The surface of this energy sphere flowed with a soft white light, but countless points of light could be faintly seen flickering within—it was a Yuan Qi blast, condensed from the surrounding life energy.
You think changing the energy source will work? The mysterious man clasped his hands together, and black energy gathered above his head into a constantly rotating energy sphere. The sphere's surface was covered with dark red, vein-like patterns. "Try this—the Dark Destruction Sphere!"
A black energy sphere, trailing a long, fiery tail, hurtled towards Lin Ye, distorting space in its path. Lin Ye took a deep breath and unleashed the energy blast he had condensed to its maximum potential: Whether it works or not, we'll only know after we try!
Two energy spheres, one white and one black, met in mid-air. Initially, neither could suppress the other, forming a clear energy boundary. But soon, the dark sphere of destruction revealed its corrosive nature, and black spots began to appear on the surface of the white energy sphere.
Haha, see that?! Before absolute darkness, so-called life energy is utterly useless! The mysterious man laughed maniacally, increasing his output. Once this sphere explodes, the entire city will become our incubation ground!
Lin Ye gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead. He could feel the energy blast being eroded, but he didn't give up. Instead, he closed his eyes and poured even more mental energy into it. The previously dormant points of light suddenly lit up, as if responding to a call to action, and began to stir.
"Impossible!" The mysterious man's laughter abruptly stopped. He stared in horror as the Spirit Bomb suddenly erupted with a dazzling light, and the black spots began to fade. "How could your energy...?"
Because you don't understand. Lin Ye opened his eyes, his pupils reflecting two violently colliding energy spheres. This energy didn't come from him, but from every life form on this planet. If you want to destroy them, you'll have to ask them for permission first!
The words had barely left his mouth when the Spirit Bomb suddenly tripled in size, forcefully pushing the Dark Destruction Sphere back. The mysterious man's confidence instantly turned to fear; he tried to retract his energy, only to find his power was out of control.
No--!?
The deafening explosion sent a cloud of white and black energy billowing into the air, forming a massive mushroom cloud. The shockwave spread from the blast center, leveling buildings within a kilometer radius and even causing the earth's crust to tremble slightly.
Lin Ye was thrown back by the blast wave and crashed heavily to the ground. He struggled to his feet, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, his blue hair somewhat dulled, but his eyes remained as sharp as an eagle's.
From the smoke and dust not far away, a black figure staggered out. The mysterious man's cloak had been blown to shreds, and his clothes were torn open, revealing pale skin. Most striking was his face—his bronze mask was shattered on the ground, revealing a bloodless face, with a dark red scar running from his forehead to his chin on his left cheek, as if he had been scratched by some wild beast.
"You...you actually managed to block my Dark Destruction Sphere!" The mysterious man coughed, clutching his chest, his voice filled with disbelief and terror. "This is impossible! No one has ever been able to block this attack...?"
Lin Ye wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and walked step by step towards the other person: "Your dark power is indeed very strong, but you've forgotten something."
"What?" The mysterious man instinctively stepped back, his right hand stealthily reaching for his waist.
The power of protection is always more resilient than that of destruction. Lin Ye's voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable force: the crimes you committed on Earth today must be paid for.
The mysterious man suddenly revealed a sinister smile. He abruptly ripped open his collar, revealing a black tattoo on his chest—a star map composed of countless twisted lines, now faintly glowing.
The price? Perhaps. His body began to turn transparent, black particles seeping from his skin. But you think it's over? Let me tell you, the Shadow Palace's kill order has been issued. From this day forward, you and this planet will live in endless fear...?
Lin Ye rushed forward to grab him, but only managed to grasp a handful of black particles. The mysterious figure vanished completely into thin air, leaving only a sentence drifting in the wind: ?
We'll meet again soon, Lin Ye—when the Seed of Annihilation blossoms...?