Zhang Dingtian and Bai Xue stared in disbelief."Liu Shaoge, you're not dead?!"
Liu Shaoge smiled faintly and bowed respectfully to Qing Yu."Young Master, I have taken control of all the captured students — seventy-two in total. It's enough."
Qing Yu nodded and looked arrogantly toward the sky."Your trial is over. If you want these seventy-two students to live, let me go."
"Liu Shaoge, why?!" Bai Xue shouted, glaring at him in fury.
Liu Shaoge chuckled calmly."Xiao Xue, Earth is too small. I long for the stars."
"You betrayed us! What about Wang You? Tong Zhan?" she yelled.
Liu Shaoge shrugged."They're really dead. People who don't know their place aren't worth pitying."He looked at Bai Xue gently and said,"With your talent, you should go to the stars too. Give it up — with your Iceblood talent, as a natural cultivator, your future shouldn't be confined to Earth."
Zhang Dingtian's eyes widened as he bit through his lip.
Lu Yin's gaze was icy. The pain Qing Yu had caused him and Earth was nothing compared to what Liu Shaoge had done. At the beginning of the apocalypse, Liu had ordered an entire city — full of survivors — to be burned to the ground. Lu Yin had been scarred by the flames, experiencing extreme agony. It was the first time he had ever felt such pain — unforgettable for a lifetime. He thought he would never get a chance for revenge. Yet now, Liu Shaoge not only lived, but stood before him.
Qing Yu waited silently for a response from the stars. Liu Shaoge faced Bai Xue.
Lu Yin closed his eyes. In his right palm, a die appeared. He crushed a Star Energy crystal, and the die frantically absorbed its power. This was his only chance — he could only hope for a miracle.
Outside Earth, aboard a massive spaceship, Siken Mardo sighed."It's over. The trial mission — total failure."
No one argued. Against someone of Qing Yu's caliber, who was unmatched among his peers, no one could win.
Torona lamented,"If only that girl from the Mebis Clan had gone too. With the terror of the Mebis bloodline, maybe she could've rivaled Qing Yu."
Sharo Tree sneered."Mebis is Mebis. The Great Yu Empire is the Great Yu Empire. Even if the Mebis Clan defeated Qing Yu, would that girl have become one of us?"
Torona stayed silent. That was the truth.
Siken Mardo turned to Mira."Miss Mira, I'm sorry you had to witness a failed trial."
Mira smiled faintly, a flicker of red flashing in her pupils as she stared at the screen."Failure? Is it really over?"
Siken Mardo nodded helplessly."I'm sorry."
Mira smiled again."Let's wait a little longer. Who knows — there might still be a turnaround. A trial is meant to find life in a desperate situation, isn't it?"
Torona spoke bitterly,"Qing Yu is from the White Night Clan. He's a fugitive wanted by them. His strength far exceeds his peers — and even more so against these Explorer-level students. On Earth, he's nearly invincible, even with his power limited to Explorer level."
At the mention of the White Night Clan, even Mira's expression grew more serious."What's your plan to deal with him?"
Siken Mardo replied,"The White Night Clan wants him alive if possible. If he dies, they still want his body returned. Their ancient inheritance stone must be recovered."
Mira nodded."So whether alive or dead, you're not letting him go."
The group fell silent. They were all considering whether to kill Qing Yu. His attempt to exchange the lives of seventy-two students for his escape was out of the question. The pressure from the White Night Clan far outweighed the value of the students' lives.
"Let's wait a bit longer," Mira said. "According to the Youth Council's rules, as long as there are trial-takers who haven't lost combat ability, the trial isn't over. Look — isn't someone still fighting?"She pointed to the screen, where Lu Yin was just crushing a second Star Energy crystal.
"Liu Shaoge!" Zhang Dingtian roared, blood soaking his shirt as he swung his blade through clenched teeth.
Liu Shaoge was surprised."You're not dead?"He slowly raised his hand, a ray of light blooming from his palm and blasting toward Zhang Dingtian. His slash was easily shattered along the way.
Bai Xue appeared in front of Zhang Dingtian, raising layers of thick ice in an attempt to block the blow. But facing Liu Shaoge — who now wielded the terrifying power of the Upper Three Saints — the light easily crushed through, sending both Bai Xue and Zhang Dingtian flying.
Gleis and Baralo, having just awakened, stood up, initially preparing to act — but immediately stopped.This Earth native... was clearly no ordinary foe.
"That woman — don't damage her," Qing Yu's cold gaze swept across them as he said sharply.
Liu Shaoge bowed slightly in response, then looked calmly at Zhang Dingtian and Bai Xue."The so-called Seven Saints are nothing but a joke. Wang You and Tong Zhan were both captured by me; they were too weak. Zhang Dingtian, if you could fight me at your prime, what are you now? You never truly knew my strength."
Zhang Dingtian spat out blood, barely able to hold his blade.
Bai Xue glared with bloodshot eyes, her gaze freezing cold.
Not far away, Lu Yin was frustrated. The first time he rolled the dice, it showed two points — allowing him to decompose objects. He immediately crushed a second cubic Star Energy crystal. This time the dice rolled a five. He glanced at the proud Qing Yu and Liu Shaoge, who had just crushed Zhang Dingtian, then took a deep breath and tried again.
As the dice stopped spinning, five faces disappeared, leaving only one number — four. Lu Yin's excitement surged. This was it.
In the next moment, Lu Yin entered the gray-white space — a time-stopped dimension.
He took all the Star Energy crystals from his Condensation Void Ring and threw them all at the number. Instantly, the number increased from 259200 to 436800. Five days — he had spent all his remaining Star Energy crystals to gain two extra days. Then he began healing his wounds while pulling out his star map and immersing himself within it. Five days were enough to simulate the fourth star. How strong would the Heavenly Star Palm with four stars be? Could it hold against Qing Yu? He had to give it a try.
Within the gray-white space, five days was a long time. There was no sound, no scenery — only solitude.
By the end of the third day, the wounds on Lu Yin's hands had healed considerably, and the fourth star of the Heavenly Star Technique became clearer.
By the end of the fourth day, the fourth star had appeared.
When the fifth day ended and the number turned to zero, the scene before Lu Yin changed. He left the gray-white space. Real time had not changed. Qing Yu still stood proudly, looking up at the sky. Liu Shaoge remained calm and indifferent, looking down on everything. Bai Xue and the others were filled with hatred. Around them, many students lay severely wounded.
"Not planning to answer me? Do you really want to kill me?" Qing Yu shouted loudly. His figure vanished and suddenly appeared in front of the captured students. Raising his hand, he grabbed Huo Xiaoling's red hair and sneered, "She will die with me."
Huo Xiaoling was furious. Terrifying energy swirled around her; she was about to break through her seal.
Qing Yu sneered coldly, "Want to break through? Think carefully. An Assimilation Realm expert failing an Explorer trial — do you really think you can join the Starfield Academy?"
That sentence drained the color from Huo Xiaoling's face. Qing Yu had said this to her many times before. That was why she willingly allowed herself to be captured. A proud Assimilation Realm expert, a natural talent, had failed the Explorer trial. To the Starfield Academy, such a student was worthless trash.
Not only the Starfield Academy, but other top universities in the universe wouldn't accept her either. This failure would be her greatest disgrace for life.
Huo Xiaoling closed her eyes and retracted her Star Energy. Death or not, she could not break through.
Outside Earth, Siken Mardo grew anxious."Miss Mira, we can't wait any longer. Huo Xiaoling must not die."
Torona and Sharo Tree also stared at the screen. If Huo Xiaoling died on Earth, the Great Yu Empire would be shaken. The Huo family was not to be trifled with — they would all be in trouble.
Mira did not pay attention to Huo Xiaoling — a mere noble from a fringe planet was not worth her notice. She kept watching Lu Yin. From the start, something about him was off — he seemed different, most obviously because his wounds were healing. So fast? Talent? The dice? They had all seen Lu Yin's talent dice. At first, it was strange, but talent was unpredictable. They hadn't thought much of it. Now it seemed unusual.
"Miss Mira," Siken Mardo urged.
Mira smiled faintly and pointed at the screen. Everyone looked again, their eyes filled with shock.
On Earth, Qing Yu — who had originally been threatening Huo Xiaoling — was now more than ten meters away from her. Just moments ago, he was blasted back by a fierce palm strike. He was actually pushed back? Ridiculous. Qing Yu looked up and glared ahead.
Not just Qing Yu — everyone stared in disbelief at that spot. Lu Yin stood in front of Huo Xiaoling, retracting his hand.
"You seem to have forgotten me."
Everyone's eyes turned to Lu Yin. This man — he actually pushed back Qing Yu?
Gleis swallowed hard.
Granny was deeply shocked. Since following this man, her worldview had been completely overturned. Qing Yu swept through all the students — yet he was pushed back by him.