Chapter 7: Inside the City

Lu Yin glanced at Zhou Shan. What he said was true. The so-called Seven Saints of Huaxia, the celestial-level powerhouses, were merely ants in the vast universe. Even an ordinary student possessed celestial-level strength.

Celestial-level, known as "Exploration" in the universe, was only the second step in cultivation. The first step was "Observation," symbolizing fledgling birds that only observed. Lu Yin was at the Observation stage, and after that came Exploration. The third step was Fusion, becoming strong, touching the limits of the human body. The fourth step was Extremum, breaking through the limits of the human body, capable of crossing the void. Beyond that were the Explorers who could freely roam the void. Such individuals were too distant; once they appeared on Earth, they could effortlessly reshape the mountains, rivers, and the entire continent.

However, even Explorers had not reached the level of being able to create a body-molding technique. The path of cultivation was long and vast. For warriors like Zhou Shan, who relied on energy crystals for cultivation, reaching the level of an Explorer was almost impossible. The stronger one became, the more they felt their own insignificance.

"Why am I telling you all this? Come on, let's go out and take a look. By now, Zhao Yu should be facing my Centurion," Zhou Shan said carefreely, leading Lu Yin out of the meeting room.

Lu Yin silently followed and soon arrived at the plaza where they had been before. Through the glass, they could see a Centurion being defeated by Zhao Yu, lying in a sorry state on the ground.

Zhao Yu was dressed in combat attire, displaying decisive and fierce moves. Lu Yin had witnessed her strength before. At this moment, she was pressuring Feng Hong.

Zhou Shan, looking down from above, shook his head. "Even among Earthrealm Centurions, there's a significant difference in strength. Zhao Yu can easily defeat my Centurion without even using battle techniques."

Lu Yin looked down and said in a deep voice, "Her technique uses a plant to induce it."

Zhou Shan chuckled, "Of course. Whether it's Snow Maidens or Saintesses, their ice palms that can freeze the human body all rely on external objects. The human body itself is unable to produce such effects."

Lu Yin squinted his eyes. Unable to produce? Wrong. Powerful techniques and talents could change the natural order. It's just that Earth had not come into contact with them. His Celestial Star Technique could even imitate the rotation of the stars, but saying these things out loud would be unbelievable.

Down below, Feng Hong quickly fell, and then two consecutive Centurions were defeated. No one was willing to step forward.

Zhao Yu raised her head proudly, scanning the surroundings. "I heard that the Centurions in the prison camp are all iron-blooded warriors. What's wrong? Is there no one willing to spar with me?"

Feng Hong and the others wore ugly expressions.

Above, Zhou Shan chuckled. "The three Snow Maidens under the Saintess Lothar are referred to by her as invincible at the Earthrealm level. It seems they do have some skills."

At this moment, Zhao Yu looked up and stared directly at Lu Yin, raising her hand and beckoning with her finger, exuding a heroic air.

Feng Hong and the others looked surprised, then turned their gaze towards Lu Yin.

Lu Yin raised an eyebrow; this was a provocation.

Zhou Shan laughed, "It seems that she's not convinced of your victory over her yesterday."

"I didn't win or lose yesterday," Lu Yin said.

"In that case, go have a match now. We can't let our prison camp lose face," Zhou Shan said.

Lu Yin nodded and turned to leave.

In the plaza, hundreds of evolvers were discussing fervently. Many evolvers looked up to Zhao Yu; a female who could defeat a Centurion was truly an idol.

Seeing Lu Yin coming down, Zhao Yu took a deep breath, her gaze determined. In the battle yesterday, she was indeed unwilling to accept the inexplicable defeat. She had originally been in the dominant position, but she was mysteriously defeated. Now, she really wanted to see that technique again.

From a distance, Feng Hong and the others shouted to Lu Yin, "Be careful. This woman can use the Frost Palm, and she's formidable."

Lu Yin nodded as he approached Zhao Yu. "Go ahead."

Zhao Yu's eyes were filled with fighting spirit. She leaped into the air, raised her hand, and drew out a dagger from seemingly nowhere, attacking like a whirlwind as soon as she approached. The dagger tore through the air, reflecting a cold light.

Lu Yin easily dodged. He was completely different from yesterday; yesterday, he was just a physically strong ordinary person, but today, he was a cultivator who had reached the Observation stage.

Lu Yin's evasive movements were more than sufficient, but it made Feng Hong and the others sweat. Zhao Yu's attack speed became faster and faster. Even the dagger emitted a chill, causing the air temperature to drop.

The ground in the plaza cracked, and Zhao Yu swung the dagger like a whirlwind, sealing Lu Yin from all sides. Strands of qi shot in all directions, piercing through walls, making it difficult for many evolvers to breathe.

Lu Yin focused on Zhao Yu, suddenly raised his hand, and crossed paths with her. The wind was light, and the clouds were faint. In his hand was a dagger emitting a chilling aura.

Everyone held their breath, quietly watching the scene. Zhao Yu was stunned; her hands were empty, and her dagger was gone.

Feng Hong and the others were surprised. "Good job, Lu brother!"

"Lu brother is amazing!"

…

Lu Yin turned to face Zhao Yu, and the dagger danced in his hand. He casually threw it back to Zhao Yu. "Want to continue?"

Zhao Yu stared at Lu Yin. "How did you do it?"

Lu Yin shrugged. "Keen eyes, quick hands. Both are indispensable."

Nonsense, everyone thought.

Zhao Yu sighed with a complicated expression. "You won. Being able to snatch my dagger without a scratch in the Earthrealm is probably beyond anyone's ability. You're strong."

Lu Yin laughed. These people had low perspectives; even these Earthrealm fledgling birds without formal battle techniques were at the bottom in the vast universe. However, what Zhao Yu said was right. Lu Yin was confident that there was probably no one in the Observation stage who could match him on Earth.

Zhao Yu felt somewhat dejected as she put away her dagger. At this moment, she noticed that Lu Yin was different from yesterday. "Did you exhaust your energy yesterday?"

Lu Yin did not explain and turned to leave. He wanted to take a stroll outside; there wasn't anything he was looking for in the deserted mountains. Perhaps it was hidden in another direction.

Zhao Yu watched Lu Yin leave, wanting to ask about the technique he used yesterday. However, battle techniques involved personal privacy, and she couldn't bring herself to ask.

Feng Hong and the others were quite surprised. They hadn't expected the newly appointed Centurion to be so powerful. The rumors were true; he really killed that extraterrestrial being. After all, that extraterrestrial was a celestial-level powerhouse, even though he was severely injured.

Even though Lu Yin had no real power as a Centurion, he was given command of a hundred soldiers in the prison camp to deploy as he pleased.

Stepping out of Zhongshan, Lu Yin beckoned, and a young evolver soldier approached. "Commander, please give orders."

Lu Yin casually said, "Do you know where Jinling's former weapons depot is?"

The soldier replied, "In the northwest direction."

Lu Yin took out a map. "Mark it for me."

The soldier took out a pen and drew a circle on the map.

Lu Yin looked at it. "You can all go back. I'll go there by myself."

The soldier hesitated. "Commander, the weapons depot was destroyed at the beginning of the apocalypse, and the remaining few weapons have already been moved. If you need anything, you can apply to the Punisher."

Lu Yin nodded. "Alright, I know. You can all go back," he said, and then went towards the northwest alone.

These soldiers were sent to him by the prison camp. On the one hand, they were under his command, and on the other hand, they were there to monitor him. However, Lu Yin had no intention of hiding his tracks. What he was looking for was hidden very securely. Blindly searching would be useless; he could only shake the grass to startle the snake. Since he was now openly searching, with his celestial-level strength, it wouldn't cause too much concern. Maybe he could even find it.

Lu Yin guessed correctly. As soon as he left, someone reported to Zhou Shan.

Zhou Shan's eyes narrowed. "Weapons depot? What is he looking for there?"

The bespectacled woman walked over and pushed up her glasses. "The weapons depot was destroyed long ago. What he's looking for probably isn't firearms, but I'm not sure exactly what."

"Let him be. We don't have any secrets here," Zhou Shan smiled, not concerned.

Jinling, centered around Zhongshan, radiated outwards. The closer one was to Zhongshan, the better the geographical location and the safer it was.

This city no longer had the planning of the peaceful era. People lived everywhere—on the streets, in flower beds, and even in river channels. They lived in constant fear, day after day.

On the contrary, some people lived very happily. Their moral bottom line had collapsed, and they did whatever they pleased. Along the way, Lu Yin saw many evolvers bullying survivors. Even if the Punisher's soldiers wanted to intervene, it was often too late.

This was the state of the world. For Earth, everything was still vague, but Lu Yin knew that this was evolution. One civilization evolving towards another came at a considerable cost.

The sky darkened, and soon, it started pouring rain, washing the ground. Red bloodwater spread along with the rain, mixed with various debris.

Lu Yin found a relatively clean restaurant and sat down. The entrance of the restaurant was crowded with survivors. Every time the restaurant brought out food waste, it was frenziedly looted.

"Scram, scram, scram! Stay away. Remember, wash the bucket and return it clean, or else next time, someone else will clean it," the restaurant waiter shouted loudly, clearly an evolver.