Ninefold Strength

Looking at Michelle's alluring back, Lu Yin suddenly asked, "I've heard you're from the Council of Ten Decisions. Can you tell me who the Ten Decisions are?"

Without turning her head, Michelle replied indifferently, "You're not qualified to know," and then disappeared.

Lu Yin's expression remained calm. As expected, the identities of those ten individuals were like a barrier—some people never cross it in their lifetime and remain forever ignorant, while others can only know after crossing it. It's simply about status. The Ten Decisions—the ten individuals who dominate the universe, the ten truly pinnacle figures of the younger generation.

On the other side, as Michelle soared through the sky, feeling the raindrops, she wondered how he managed it. She was sure he couldn't do it when he first enrolled. It had only been a short time since then, and crossing from tangible star energy to the realm of myriad transformations would take even a genius several months. Yet, he had done it. Was he truly a prodigy?

Lu Yin stayed at the Rain Observation Platform for ten days. Every three days, he attempted once more. With his control over star energy, his name should stay intact, but it was just a bit off. This slight gap lay in his own understanding.

He had experienced Da Lei's control over star energy, but that was Da Lei's understanding. He needed his own. This step had taken him ten days.

On the twelfth morning, the sky was still dark green. Lu Yin raised his hand, sending his name, formed from star energy, into the rain curtain. This time, he was confident of success.

The name "Lu Yin" easily surpassed its previous farthest point, rushing through the rain curtain until it crossed the entire Rain Observation Platform before shattering.

Lu Yin stood up, delighted. He had succeeded and earned the recognition of the Rain Observation Platform.

At the same time, a peculiar sensation emerged, and Lu Yin's eyes brightened. He could now break through to the Fusion Realm.

At this moment, the Rain Observation Mentor slowly approached through the rain curtain, appearing before Lu Yin.

Lu Yin bowed respectfully. "Greetings, Mentor."

The Rain Observation Mentor looked at Lu Yin with admiration. "In just a month, your control over star energy has undergone a dramatic transformation. You can be called a prodigy."

"Thank you for the praise, Mentor," Lu Yin replied.

The Rain Observation Mentor nodded. "According to the rules of the Tenth Academy, earning the recognition of the Rain Observation Platform entitles you to personal guidance from a mentor. You can choose to have me help you refine a technique you already possess or obtain a new one from me. The choice is yours."

Lu Yin pondered. The reward of obtaining a new technique from the Tenth Academy was tempting, but he already had many techniques—whether it was the Celestial Star Palm, the Celestial Beast Claw, the White Night Fist, or the Triple Force—they were all suitable for him. Learning more would leave him with no time to practice.

The techniques from the Tenth Academy mentors were certainly powerful, but Lu Yin doubted they could surpass the Celestial Star Technique. Since he already had this top-tier technique, there was no need to acquire more until he mastered it fully.

Thinking it over, Lu Yin looked up and said seriously, "Mentor, I would like you to help me refine my own techniques."

The Rain Observation Mentor agreed, "Very well. Show me."

Lu Yin took a deep breath, faced the empty rain curtain, and struck with his palm. The Triple Force erupted with three successive impacts—this was the Triple Force technique.

He had analyzed his own techniques. The Celestial Star Technique was too advanced, and he didn't know if the Rain Observation Mentor could refine it. The White Night Fist was a White Night Clan technique and couldn't be exposed. The Celestial Beast Claw was already accessible at the Martial Hall, so there was no point wasting this opportunity on it. That left only the Triple Force and the Air Flash. Compared to the Air Flash, the Triple Force seemed less suitable for him. He needed more powerful force techniques.

The Rain Observation Mentor observed Lu Yin's use of the Triple Force and commented, "This is a force stacking technique. I've encountered an exceptional genius in the Inner Universe who mastered force stacking. Alright, I'll help you refine it." With that, he placed a hand on Lu Yin's still-extended arm and pushed toward his palm.

A series of light impacts echoed as Lu Yin felt the Mentor's force—one fold, two folds, three folds, four folds, five folds, six folds. Lu Yin was astonished; it had reached six-fold force. At this point, the Mentor's hand had moved past Lu Yin's palm, stacking the force up to eight folds. "The force I've helped you refine is enough to use until the extreme realm," the Mentor said, then struck the air, producing nine explosive impacts that pushed the rain curtain away with nine waves of force.

Lu Yin's eyes widened. Nine-fold force—the Mentor had stacked the force up to nine folds.

"In the Outer Universe, force stacking techniques exist but usually only up to nine folds. Nine-fold force should suffice until you reach the extreme realm. For now, you should stick to six-fold force to avoid overexertion," the Mentor advised before stepping back into the rain curtain and leaving.

Lu Yin bowed slightly toward the rain curtain, feeling a bit puzzled. Was the Rain Observation Mentor really only at the Hunter level? It was rumored that the mentors at the Sky Academy were at least Hunters, but could a Hunter achieve this? Could they easily refine the Triple Force to nine-fold force?

He remembered Tianming mentioning that the Hao Yuan Domain had tales of nine-fold force. If Hunters could refine this, then the nine-fold force wouldn't just be limited to the Hao Yuan Domain; it would be widespread in the Cang Lan Domain as well since the Unyielding Universe Mountain was also of the Hunter level.

Or perhaps the Rain Observation Mentor was more than just a Hunter?

This question flashed through Lu Yin's mind briefly. It was too early for him to ponder such things. What he needed to do now was quickly master the nine-fold force technique.

With the Celestial Star Technique and having experienced the Mentor's nine-fold force technique firsthand, mastering it wouldn't be too difficult. Even so, with his current physical condition, he could only handle up to six-fold force. The Mentor was right; the nine-fold force was sufficient until he reached the extreme realm.

Several days later, Lu Yin shouted and struck with his palm. Six explosive sounds echoed, pushing out six waves of force. He had mastered the six-fold force.

Looking at the blood in his palm, he thought, "Six-fold force is quite strenuous, but it's manageable. If I combine it with my physical strength and the sixfold Wave Palm, the power should be considerable."

After resting for half a day, Lu Yin pondered whether he could incorporate the force stacking into the Celestial Star Palm. He had thought about this when he mastered the Triple Force but hadn't attempted it. Now, he wanted to try. If he could indeed incorporate it into the Celestial Star Palm, his power would significantly increase.

The more he thought about it, the more excited he became. Lu Yin raised his palm, and stars appeared. He was about to strike, incorporating two-fold force, but just as he was about to complete the move, the Rain Observation Mentor stopped him, grabbing his arm and sternly saying, "Do you want to lose this hand?"

Lu Yin was puzzled, "Mentor?"

The Mentor released his arm, speaking seriously, "Were you trying to incorporate force stacking into that move?"

Lu Yin's eyes flashed, "Yes."

"That's suicidal. Recklessly incorporating force stacking into a technique will only harm you. The stronger the technique, the less it can accommodate additional force. Otherwise, everyone would use multiple attacks. Force stacking would have been hailed as the supreme technique long ago," the Mentor said coldly.

Lu Yin realized he had been too greedy. If the Celestial Star Palm could incorporate force stacking, then any technique in the universe could. The universe would be filled with people using force stacking.

"Harming yourself before harming others—that's the result of integrating force stacking with techniques. Many geniuses in the universe have tried but none succeeded. It's impossible. Each powerful technique has its unique operation. Changing it isn't something a novice like you can achieve. If you had executed that move just now, your arm would have been ruined," the Mentor continued.

Lu Yin quickly expressed his gratitude, "Thank you for the guidance, Mentor."

The Mentor nodded slightly, his tone softening, "Some people can initially use force stacking to enhance their techniques, but the more they progress, the greater the harm to themselves. In theory, the Wave Palm isn't considered a true technique, just a power exertion method. You can incorporate force stacking, but don't try it with genuine powerful techniques."

"Yes, Mentor," Lu Yin gratefully replied.

The Mentor seemed satisfied with Lu Yin's attitude and glanced at his hand. "That technique of yours is quite interesting."

Lu Yin was surprised but kept his composure. "Have you seen it before, Mentor?"

The Mentor glanced at him, "No, but it feels quite extraordinary. How many stars can you activate?"

Lu Yin decided not to hide it. Since it had been noticed, continuing to conceal it would seem petty. Besides, even if he wanted to, he couldn't hide it. This was the Tenth Academy. "Six stars."

"Six stars, huh? That's not enough. This technique should be complete, and six stars aren't enough for that. Maybe nine stars would be sufficient," the Mentor mused aloud.

Lu Yin was puzzled, "Complete? I don't understand."

The Mentor waved his hand, "You don't need to understand now. 'Complete' means perfectly utilizing the technique's power. All the techniques you've mastered

 are just rudimentary. Only that move, if executed with nine stars, could be considered complete. The power would be unimaginable."