Pretending to be a genius starts with the civilization advancement assessment.

Chapter 256 Initial Enlightenment in Space, Deity Descends (4.9K)

"Instruction confirmed, in progress."

Xuanji bowed to Lin Yi and then disappeared.

In the past two years, various treasures gifted by my senior classmates have been delivered through secure channels.

The "Void Shadow Shuttle," which is related to the basics of spatial rules, was naturally included, along with detailed instructions for use.

The instructions clearly explain how to stimulate and guide the mind to wander, as well as the effects such as "intuitively experiencing the mystery of spatial rules" and "greatly reducing the entry barrier".

However, the description only uses the word "brief" to describe the duration of the spiritual journey.

For others, this description is sufficient; after all, whether it's an hour or a day, it doesn't matter.

But for Lin Yi, the word "brief" was too vague.

His original plan was to simultaneously activate the "spiritual enlightenment energy" accumulated in his sea of ​​consciousness when using the "Void Shadow Shuttle" in order to maximize the precious divine travel effect.

If it weren't for the fact that spatial rule-related enlightenment treasures are extremely rare and expensive, and that with his current wealth he would find it difficult to purchase a second one in a short period of time, Lin Yi would have liked to acquire another treasure to further enhance his enlightenment.

Since treasures related to spatial rules are temporarily unavailable, the use of "spiritual enlightenment energy" requires precise control over its duration.

If the time spent traveling in the "Void Shadow Shuttle" is too short, and too much "spiritual enlightenment energy" is consumed, it will be somewhat wasteful.

Conversely, if the spiritual journey ends before the "spiritual energy" is exhausted, the effect will be greatly reduced. Therefore, the exact length of this "brief" period is crucial.

Before Xuanji was upgraded, Lin Yi had tried to get Xuanji to perform a search once, but the massive amount of data exceeded Xuanji's processing capacity at the time. Even if it was done, it would take up a lot of Xuanji's time and affect the processing of other things.

Therefore, Lin Yi had no choice but to give up at that time, and instead focused on cultivating while accumulating spiritual energy, patiently waiting for Xuanji to upgrade.

As expected, Xuanji provided feedback while he was pondering.

"Master, search complete. Public records of user experiences with the 'Void Shadow Shuttle' are relatively scarce, consistent with its rarity and the characteristics of a disposable item. Seventeen valid entries have been selected."

"Comprehensive information shows that the duration of their consciousness travel is positively correlated with the user's soul strength and spatial rule affinity, but the fluctuation range is not large. The vast majority of records, covering the star-vortex level to the ordinary star field level, including humans, spirits, and rock-armored races, all indicate that the duration is concentrated in the range of 4 to 5 minutes."

"Some scattered experiences have mentioned that if used when the spaceship is in warp drive mode, the slight ripples in the space rules caused by the drive itself and the synchronization with the environment may increase the depth and stability of the astral perception by about three to five percent, but the impact on the duration is negligible."

"4 to 5 minutes"

Lin Yi nodded slightly, indicating that he understood.

This was a little shorter than he had expected. He was worried that the spiritual energy he had accumulated over three years would not be enough.

It seems we don't need to wait any longer.

"There's no time like the present," Lin Yi said decisively.

He got up and left the training room, finding Irelia who was handling mercenary group affairs.

"Ellie, I need to go out for a bit to try and understand the rules of space while in warp drive mode on the spaceship," Lin Yi told her succinctly.

Upon hearing this, Irelia's face showed concern: "Captain, do you need me to accompany you as a guard?"

Lin Yi hadn't originally planned to have Ellie accompany him as a bodyguard, since they were just around the fortress and it wouldn't take long.

But since Ellie brought it up herself, Lin Yi didn't intend to refuse.

“Alright.” Lin Yi nodded. “This trip is mainly to use the ‘Void Shadow Shuttle’ that my senior brother gave me. We’ll set off now, it won’t be long.”

Irelia immediately stood up. "Okay."

A moment later, the two boarded Lin Yi's personal spaceship, the "Shanming".

The spaceship silently glided out of the massive airport of the Border Legion headquarters fortress, like a drop of water merging into the deep sea, attracting no attention.

After leaving the fortress's monitoring range for a distance, Lin Yi issued the order: "Activate the highest level of stealth mode, maximize the power of all external sensors, and monitor any abnormal spatial fluctuations or energy signals within 0.1 light-years of the surrounding area."

"Command confirmed. Stealth mode activated, sensor array operating at full power," the spacecraft's intelligent system responded.

"Objective: Random coordinates, set curvature navigation, level: standard cruise speed."

"Route calculation complete. Warp drive activation countdown: 321."

As the countdown ended, the spaceship was gradually covered by the warp bubble, starting from the bow.

Then, the "Shanming" shuddered slightly, and the space in front of it seemed to be gently bent by an invisible hand. The light began to distort, and the stars were stretched into brilliant colored lines.

"Master, the spacecraft has entered warp drive mode stably. The surrounding space environment is stable, and no tracking or abnormal signals have been detected."

Xuanji's voice rang out at just the right moment.

"The time has come."

Lin Yi took a deep breath and first immersed his consciousness into the purple mist space, accurately locking onto the spiritual energy that would last for about six minutes of comprehension.

Immediately afterwards, he took out the Void Shadow Shuttle.

As instructed, he condensed his soul power into a wisp and carefully probed into the tiny dark spot at the core of the token. At the same time, he suddenly inhaled the spiritual energy that he had previously anchored.

Then, with a barely audible hum, the Void Shadow Shuttle suddenly transformed into a soft silver halo, enveloping Lin Yi's entire body.

The next moment, Lin Yi felt as if his soul was gently "pushed" out of his body by a gentle yet powerful force.

His consciousness transformed into an imperceptible speck of dust, attaching itself to the stripped and solidified pure void primordial power, and merging into the spaceship's external curvature navigation space structure.

At first, in Lin Yi's consciousness, he only felt endless chaos and flowing light, as well as spatial turbulence that seemed to be able to tear his soul apart.

If it weren't for the protection of the Void Shadow Shuttle's primal power and the "Spiritual Enlightenment Qi" stabilizing his mind, he would have been lost in an instant.

Lin Yi kept his mind focused and tried his best to adapt.

Then, around the second minute, Lin Yi felt the chaos gradually subside and the mysteries begin to emerge.

With the combined blessing of spiritual enlightenment and the Shadow Shuttle, his perception began to penetrate appearances, and he "saw" the invisible "skeleton" that supported the existence of space.

It was a network composed of countless complex, silvery spatial fundamental rule runes that were constantly being created and destroyed.

Lin Yi "heard" the low humming sound emitted by the space as it stretched and compressed under the drive of curvature; it was a regular rhythm.

Distance, dimension, structural stability—these originally abstract concepts have now become tangible entities that can be intuitively perceived.

As time passed, the Shadow Shuttle's original energy was continuously consumed, and at the same time, the Divine Travel reached its peak.

Lin Yi's consciousness was no longer passively sensing, but actively approaching and analyzing the structure and energy flow of those rule runes.

He felt as if he had personally touched the "texture" of space, and understood why warp drive could exceed the speed of light. It was not that the speed itself was increased, but rather that space was cleverly "deceived" to shorten the actual distance that needed to be traversed.

Countless mysteries about space flooded into his soul like a tide, and were rapidly understood and absorbed.

His understanding of spatial rules started from scratch and skyrocketed like a rocket!

1% 3% 6% 9%
Just as Lin Yi's spiritual perception was reaching its peak, the silver halo surrounding his consciousness began to dim and fluctuate rapidly.

The Void Shadow Shuttle's energy is about to run out.

Soon, his reverie came to an abrupt end.

The feeling of his consciousness being forcibly pulled back into his body made Lin Yi feel as if he were falling from a great height, bringing him a strong sense of dizziness and emptiness.

However, although the Void Shadow Shuttle's time limit had expired, there was still one minute left for the Enlightenment.

Taking advantage of the lingering moment of enlightenment, Lin Yi firmly locked in the clearest and most profound understanding of the rules during the final moments of his spiritual journey.

He frantically deduced and analyzed the rules, runes, structures, and rhythms imprinted on him during the final stages of his divine journey.

The remaining minute of "spiritual enlightenment" time was perceived as being infinitely extended.

Every instant brings a new flash of inspiration, deepening our understanding of space.

As the last wisp of "spiritual enlightenment" dissipated, Lin Yi suddenly opened his eyes. Countless tiny silver runes seemed to appear and disappear within them, and a subtle sense of control over "distance" and "dimension" arose spontaneously.

With a slight thought, a pen on the table in front of him vanished without a sound and reappeared at the other end of the cabin the next moment. The whole process did not cause any energy fluctuations, as if it was always meant to be there.

"Spatial rules."

Lin Yi focused his mind and sensed it for a moment, and finally a satisfied smile appeared on his face.

Twelve percent!
It far exceeds the ten percent agreed upon with my senior brother!
This warp drive, combined with enlightenment, yielded results far exceeding expectations.

Having achieved the established goal, Lin Yi did not rush to make any more attempts. Suppressing his excitement, he ordered the "Shanming" to exit warp drive and turn back to the fortress.

The initial understanding needs time to settle and consolidate; this is not a place to linger.

Soon, Lin Yi returned safely to the Border Legion headquarters fortress. He thanked Irelia and excitedly told her about his fruitful gains. However, Lin Yi noticed that Irelia didn't seem surprised at all, as if it were expected.

Unable to find the shocked expression Lin Yi expected, he returned to his cultivation room dejectedly.

He first regulated his breathing and meditated to recover the large amount of energy he had consumed due to intense concentration and enlightenment.

Once his mental state had returned to its peak and his mind had completely calmed down, Lin Yi sent a communication request to his senior brother through the virtual network.

The request was answered quickly.

"Senior Brother," Lin Yi said respectfully.

"Junior Brother," Zhenyu's calm voice rang out, "What is it?"

Lin Yi reported in a deep voice: "Senior Brother, I have successfully fulfilled my mission and completed the agreement. Currently, not only has my domain entered the second level, but my comprehension of spatial rules has also reached ten percent."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the communication.

Immediately, the voice of the prison rang out again, still peaceful.

"Oh? Much faster than expected. Very good."

Then, he paused for a moment and asked directly:

"Junior brother, where are you now?"

My location?

Lin Yi's heart skipped a beat.

What does the eldest brother mean? Could it be...?
He dared not be negligent in the slightest and immediately answered truthfully: "Reporting to Senior Brother, Junior Brother is currently in the K-77 star field, at the headquarters fortress of the 93778th Legion on the border of the Star Realm Army."

"it is good."

Zhenyu only replied with one word.

Then, the communication was abruptly and decisively cut off.

Two minutes later, outside the fortress, in the vast and cold depths of space, a figure appeared out of thin air.

Zhenyu did not deliberately hide its existence.

Therefore, as soon as he appeared, the Border Legion headquarters fortress, with its ultra-long-range composite defense array capable of monitoring the entire K-77 star field, immediately issued the highest level of warning.

"Warning! An ultra-high-energy aggregate has been detected at a distance of 0.003 light-seconds from the outer perimeter of the fortress!"

"Energy level fluctuation. Determined to be at the Eternal God level!"

"Identification foes signal forced verification. Verification in progress. Verification passed! Identifier: Human! Identity verification: Verification passed! Identity: Top Secret!"

"Highest level alert! Repeat, highest level alert! Our race's eternal deity has descended upon the defense zone!"

The piercing alarms and cold electronic notifications echoed wildly in the fortress command center.

Everyone who received the information paled in shock.

Eternal God!

For the vast majority of soldiers stationed on the border, this is a legendary pillar that protects the human race's territory, a living epic, and they may never see one in their lifetime.

Now, such a being has unexpectedly arrived at this fortress, which is not a strategic core.

"Quickly! Notify the general immediately!"

"Welcoming team, follow me to greet them immediately!"

Ruger reacted extremely quickly. As the fortress's supreme commander, he suppressed the turmoil in his heart and immediately issued a series of orders. At the same time, his figure transformed into a streak of light and rushed out of the fortress first, followed closely by several high-ranking generals.

They had to express their respect for the human gods immediately, even if they knew the gods might not care at all.

However, when they rushed to the coordinates indicated by the alarm, there was only an empty starry sky, as if the previous high-energy reaction was just an illusion.

Only the lingering echoes of the laws that made their souls tremble slightly proved that the being had indeed lingered there briefly.

At that moment, the moment Zhenyu appeared next to the fortress, he locked onto Lin Yi's location. Then, ignoring the layers of physical and energy barriers of the fortress, he stepped directly inside.

In the training room.

Lin Yi felt the space around him ripple gently like water.

The next moment, that familiar and awe-inspiring figure stood silently in front of him.

He was still wearing that long black robe that seemed to be woven from countless shadows and fragments of starlight. He wasn't particularly tall, but he seemed to be the absolute core and foundation of the entire space.

His arrival brought no wind pressure or energy shock, but the originally active cosmic energy in the cultivation room instantly became extremely docile, flowing around him on its own, not daring to overstep its bounds in the slightest.

"Big Brother!"

Lin Yi felt a chill run down his spine and quickly bowed in respect.

Although he had anticipated that his senior brother might take some action, he never expected that the other party's actions would be so direct and swift!

One second they were communicating across star systems, and the next second their true forms had already arrived.

Is this the power of an eternal deity who wields the laws of space?

Zhen Yu's gaze fell on Lin Yi.

He didn't exchange pleasantries or ask about the process; he went straight to the point.

"Demonstrate how to leave traces of spatial rules."

Be brief and get straight to the point.

Lin Yi's heart tightened, knowing that this was the most crucial moment.

The eldest brother's personal arrival was clearly to verify the extent of his understanding of spatial rules, which was related to whether the agreement to move the star system could be fulfilled.

Lin Yi dared not be negligent.

He slightly adjusted his thoughts, forcibly suppressing the instinctive awe and tension he felt when facing the true form of the eternal god for the first time, and focused all his attention on his own understanding of the rules of space.

Then, Lin Yi slowly raised his right hand, put his index and middle fingers together, and gently drew a line in the empty space in front of him.

There was no dazzling brilliance, no violent energy fluctuations.

However, along the path traced by his fingertips, space itself seemed to be imbued with substance, like the finest silk being cut by a sharp blade.

A thin mark, about a foot long, quietly appeared.

This mark is not simply a distortion of light or residual energy.

It presents a strange "emptiness" texture, as if nothing exists there, yet it also seems to contain all the mysteries of space.

At the edge of the traces, extremely fine silver runes appear and disappear like living things, constantly demonstrating the basic characteristics of space such as "folding", "extension" and "stability".

It is not static, but rather healing itself at an extremely slow rate, far slower than the self-repairing ability of a normal space.

Even more astonishingly, this spatial trace itself exudes a faint but undeniable sense of presence. It exists independently of the surrounding space, like a miniature slice of another dimension embedded in reality.

It interferes with the light in the vicinity, causing it to be subtly deflected. Even the stable energy flow in the cultivation room will experience a slight, almost imperceptible stagnation and detour when it passes by.

This is precisely the kind of rule-leaving trace that can only be achieved after one's understanding of rules reaches the Star-Spinning level.

Zhenyu watched quietly as the spatial trace slowly healed, his gaze lingering for a moment on the silver runes that appeared and disappeared on it, before nodding slightly.

"very good."

He only said two words, but Lin Yi could feel that the invisible space around him, which seemed to have frozen, instantly resumed its flow.

Lin Yi felt a sense of relief; he knew he had passed his senior brother's test.

Zhenyu's gaze fell on Lin Yi again, this time with obvious approval.

"get ready."

He said calmly:

"Three days later, when we move the star system, I will come to find you again."

(End of this chapter)