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

Chapter 365 Breakthrough, Star Domain Level!

The next day.

The Sacred Tree Secret Realm.

Lin Yi's figure flickered silently among the gnarled branches.

He slightly raised his fingertips, and a highly condensed force of spacetime swept across like an invisible blade, precisely slaying the tree spirit in front of him. Then, he raised his hand and grasped the sacred source fruit it was guarding.

This set of movements is fluid and graceful.

After a moment, Lin Yi slowly stood up.

He silently sensed the growing power within his body and revealed a look of satisfaction.

At this moment, within his body's source sea, nine star vortexes were rotating in an orderly fashion.

"In principle, it is now possible to attempt to break through to the Star Domain level. However, for me, the Nine Stars Vortex is just the beginning."

For Jiuxing Xuan, breaking through to the Star Domain level is just the most ordinary path.

For prodigies, if they can master the laws of beginnings at the Star Vortex level, they can, like those at the Star Core level, use the laws as their core and, with their powerful control, continue to shape the Star Vortex within the Origin Sea.

If one can fully master a law, then theoretically one can reach the perfect state of 99 Stars!
That's his goal.

Because with his perfect control over the two laws of space and time, he fully meets this requirement. At that time, with the foundation of the perfect star vortex, he will break through the star domain. At that time, his total source energy will be comparable to the most ordinary world-level cultivator!
Thinking of this, Lin Yi didn't delay for a moment. He spread his senses like mercury, and all the points around him that contained special source energy fluctuations outlined a three-dimensional energy map in his consciousness.

He quickly locked onto his next target, his figure transforming into a streak of light as he headed straight for it.

Every move he made was precisely calculated, aiming to eliminate the guardian tree spirit with minimal consumption, immediately absorb the Sacred Source Fruit after seizing it, and then find a secluded place to circulate his cultivation technique to restore his source energy, ready to move as soon as it was fully restored.
-
Day 8 of the Secret Realm, afternoon.

Beside the core left behind after the tree spirit's death, Lin Yi was putting away the Sacred Source Fruit.

Within his body, the seventy-ninth star vortex had just condensed and taken shape, and boundless source energy surged within the source sea.

At this moment, the energy fluctuations he naturally exuded with every move he made had already surpassed those of ordinary late-stage star domain level beings.

While searching for a point of energy fluctuation, Lin Yi sensed each other from a distance of several kilometers from another Star-level prodigy who had entered the secret realm.

The opponent's aura was very strong, and his comprehension of the laws was estimated to be around 50%, which was definitely top-tier among the Star-level. He also exuded a kind of battle-hardened aura, indicating that he was a combat-oriented person who qualified for the position through his battle merits.

The man had clearly noticed Lin Yi as well.

Lin Yi could sense the other party's momentary vigilance and scrutiny, but the other party did not show any hostility or provocation. Instead, the other party slightly adjusted its direction and took the initiative to retreat to the side, quickly disappearing from his perception.

This is a very wise choice.

In the secret realm, unless there is absolute certainty or the conflict of interest is irreconcilable, top geniuses rarely clash without cause, especially when both sides are in good condition.

Lin Yi naturally wouldn't cause any unnecessary trouble; his goal was to achieve perfection as soon as possible and then strive for a higher level.

However, just as he was about to absorb the newly acquired Sacred Source Fruit, his movements suddenly stopped.

From the southeast, intense energy collision fluctuations emanated, interspersed with clear rhythmic patterns of laws.

Lin Yi frowned.

In the past few days, he has often sensed the fluctuations of battle, but each time it is a battle between tree spirits. He also often activates the Illusionary Curtain to wait in the back and reap the benefits.

But this time, it was clearly not a battle between tree spirits.

Because one of the two auras in the battle clearly carried the rhythm of the law of time, while the tree spirit was entirely governed by the law of life.

The other one emanated fluctuations of the laws of life, but it was extremely heavy and powerful, and its energy level was clearly far beyond that of the star field level.

"It is the Derivation Realm."

Lin Yi instantly concealed his aura, then secretly sent a wisp of his soul power over.

Given the nature of his soul, as long as he doesn't swagger right up to you, he shouldn't be discovered by a Tree Spirit of the Derivation Realm level.

Soon, Lin Yi was able to see clearly which side was fighting.

A silver streak of light was fleeing at high speed in a rather disheveled manner, closely pursued by a huge, dark green shadow.

The silver light occasionally turned back to scatter patches of silver light in an attempt to slow it down, but the dark green shadow, surrounded by surging green light, easily broke free of its restraints and closed the distance once again.

Lin Yi's eyes narrowed, and he immediately recognized the silver streak of light.

It's Edith.

She was clearly not in good condition at the moment; her exquisite silver combat uniform was torn in several places, there were traces of blood at the corners of her mouth, and her long silver hair was slightly disheveled.

However, her movements remained swift and decisive. Each counterattack was timed precisely when the shadow was about to launch a fatal attack. She alternated between slowing down time and accelerating in certain areas, her tactics clear: to delay and buy herself space to escape.

That dark green shadow was indeed a tree spirit.

On its rough trunk, blurry and distorted facial features vaguely emerge, and with dozens of vines dancing wildly, each strike carries a heart-pounding surge of energy.

That was no longer ordinary energy, but rather possessed distinctly special properties.

"The power of the world. It is indeed at the level of the Derivation Realm." Lin Yi sensed the intensity of the power's fluctuations and the essence of its laws, and quickly judged in his mind, "Judging from the fluctuations, the comprehension of the laws of life is definitely over 20%. This is a tree spirit that is close to the mid-stage of the Derivation Realm."

When a Star Domain advances to the Derivation Realm, and the inner world is condensed, the source energy will be purified by the inner world, and its power will be elevated to a higher level, becoming the power of the world.

At this moment, Edith, who was fleeing for her life, also noticed Lin Yi's presence.

Her gaze swept briefly over Lin Yi's location, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes.

Instead of calling for help, she suddenly changed direction and flew swiftly towards the flank opposite Lin Yi's position.

Lin Yi raised his eyebrows slightly.

That's just like Edith's personality.

However, just because Edith doesn't ask for help doesn't mean he doesn't need to.

After all, he was the president of the Star Origin Society, and he naturally couldn't stand idly by while members of the Star Origin Society were being hunted down, given the circumstances.

Moreover, Edith had previously revealed a lot of information to him, so he owed her a favor.

Of course, this is only if he has the ability to intervene. If going up there would be a waste of time, he naturally wouldn't blindly rush in for a buy-one-get-one-free deal.

Lin Yi quickly conducted a mental assessment of the combat strength.

"I now have seventy-nine star vortexes within my body, with a total source energy roughly equivalent to a typical seventh-tier star domain, but my law realm far surpasses that of this tree spirit who is only proficient in the law of life. In actual combat, I can largely compensate for the difference in energy level by leveraging the advantage of my laws."

"Edith's comprehension of the laws of time is at least 70%, and her source energy fluctuations are at the sixth level of the Star Domain. In other words, the number of star vortexes in her body is about sixty to seventy. This is the fundamental reason why she was able to hold on against the Spirit of the World Tree."

"If you consider it that way, the two of them working together aren't without a fighting chance."

Thinking of this, Lin Yi immediately used telepathy.

"Join forces."

In the distance, Edith, who was using the laws of time to accelerate her escape, trembled almost imperceptibly.

Without uttering a word, she suddenly twisted her body and pressed down with both hands in a feint during another dodge of the vines' lashes.

"Congeal!"

A burst of brilliant silver light erupted, instantly enveloping the tree spirits that were closing in from behind.

The tree spirit's massive body suddenly sank, its movements visibly slowing and stiffening, its pursuit speed dropping by nearly half.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Edith changed direction again, transforming into a silver arrow that pierced the sky and shot straight towards Lin Yi's location.

"Roar!"

The tree spirit let out a deep, angry roar, its dark green world power surging violently around it, and the laws of life vibrating, forcibly counteracting the constraints of the time field. Although its speed had not fully recovered, it still stubbornly chased after it.

Edith was beside Lin Yi in the blink of an eye. Her breathing was slightly rapid from continuously using secret techniques. She quickly explained:

"To the southeast, there is a cluster of Sacred Source Fruits, with at least sixteen high-quality fruits. The guardian was originally just a Star Domain-level Perfected Tree Spirit. Just as I was about to make a move, this World-level creature came down from the upper area, instantly killed the Star Domain-level Perfected Tree Spirit, and then set its sights on me."

Lin Yi nodded, indicating that he had received the message.

He looked at the pursuing tree spirit, the seventy-nine star vortexes within his body glowing faintly, and the power of spacetime subtly flowing over the azure battle armor on his body.

Because weapons made of star-domain level materials can hardly withstand the infusion of law power multiple times, he simply fights empty-handed, relying on source energy and law power to fight his enemies.

As for the Starfield-level battle suit, he actually wore it as just ordinary clothing.

Because its defensive power is comparable to that of ordinary clothing, compared to the defense provided by his own laws.

Other prodigies, especially those at the Star-level, such as Edith, were all like this.

"I'll take the lead, you support, disrupt its world power and vine attacks," Lin Yi quickly assigned tasks.

"clear."

Edith responded briefly, her ten fingers moving rhythmically as if playing a piano. Silver chains of time appeared out of thin air, wrapping around the most ferocious main vines lashing out at the tree spirit. It wasn't a forceful control, but rather an application of distorted time flow to disrupt the synchronization of its attacks.

Lin Yi's figure suddenly vanished from the spot.

The fusion of space and time brings not only power, but also a deeper understanding and application of dimensions.

In the next instant, he appeared a hundred meters away from the tree spirit's left, his right hand clenched, and highly compressed spacetime power gathered wildly, forming an invisible force field that was constantly twisting and cutting through the surrounding light.

This is a technique he can only use after his source energy reaches the star domain level: "Space-Time Disruption".

"go with!"

Lin Yi pressed his palm forward, and the invisible force field shot out silently. At first, its trajectory was clear, but it suddenly split when it approached the tree spirit, quietly eroding the tree spirit's body from different angles.

The tree spirit reacted quickly; green light surged across the surface of the trunk, instantly covering it with a layer of energy armor densely covered with wood grain.

"chichichi"

Most of the spacetime disturbances were blocked by the armor, causing ripples, but a few of them seemed to have a life of their own and found their way in, exploding at the weak points where the armor was not yet fully solidified. Although they did not cause any real damage, they successfully disrupted the energy flow rhythm of the tree spirit.

Just as the tree spirit's vines retreated to defend its trunk and the power of the world fluctuated slightly, a flash of silver-gray light appeared in Lin Yi's eyes, and he pressed down with both hands!
stagnate!

It's not about stopping time on a large scale, that would consume too much energy.

He simply applied the power of spacetime precisely to the world core at the center of the tree spirit's body, causing a very brief pause in its energy flow.

Almost simultaneously, Edith shouted, her hands tracing mysterious paths, and a strange fluctuation of the laws of time enveloped the tree spirit.

Under the resonance and guidance of her time law, the power of stagnation that Lin Yi exerted suddenly increased by nearly 30%, and its duration was also subtly extended!
This is precisely the wondrous synergy that can arise from being fellow controllers of the laws of time.

The tree spirit's massive body stiffened abruptly, the flow of world power became noticeably sluggish, and the waving vines slowed down a beat.

"Now!"

Lin Yi's seventy-nine star vortexes shone brightly at the same time, pouring a massive amount of pure source energy into his right fist without reservation.

His entire right arm was completely enveloped in silver-gray spacetime power, the power highly compressed and condensed, to the point that the space around his fist began to distort slightly.

Lin Yi flashed again, instantly appearing in front of the tree spirit. Then, he twisted his waist, thrust his shoulder, and threw a punch!
The highly restrained fist force, concentrated at the tip of the fist, transformed into an incredibly solid drill, which slammed in fiercely.

The tree spirit's trunk and the dark green World Power shield dented violently, and then spiderweb-like cracks spread wildly from the point of impact.

"Awooo!!!"

The tree spirit let out its most shrill and painful howl since the start of the battle. Its massive body arched backward, and all the waving vines froze for a moment, bringing the pursuit to a complete halt.

Its blurry, distorted features turned toward Lin Yi and Edith, its dark green eyes flashing with a fierce rage, but deeper still, a hint of apprehension surfaced.

Using the force of the recoil, Lin Yi gracefully retreated to Edith's side, his chest rising and falling slightly. That punch had consumed nearly 30% of his source energy, but the effect was significant.

The penetration of the power of spacetime is far more deadly than a simple energy impact. Although that attack just now did not shatter its core, it must have caused damage to its inner world.

Edith's face paled further, and beads of sweat appeared on her forehead. She whispered, "This tree spirit's core is badly damaged. It needs to consume a lot of its essence to repair itself. Continuing to fight will not do it any good either. It is weighing its options."

Lin Yi nodded, took a half step forward, and stood side by side with Edith. He no longer adopted an offensive stance, but the spatial and temporal power around him was held back, subtly influencing the surrounding light and spatial structure, forming an invisible deterrent.

A silent threat can sometimes be more powerful than a roar.

The tree spirit remained frozen in place, the green light on the damaged parts of its trunk flickering and slowly healing. Its thick vines retracted slowly, assuming a defensive posture, clearly wary of Lin Yi's sudden attack.

Its dark green "eyes" scanned back and forth between Lin Yi and Edith, and finally let out a low, muffled roar filled with resentment and warning.

Then, it turned around and flew away into the distance, and the suffocating pressure of the Transcendent Realm level gradually faded away and eventually disappeared completely.

Only after confirming that the tree spirit had truly retreated did the two secretly breathe a sigh of relief.

Edith quickly took out a diamond-shaped crystal with a silvery-blue luster and held it in her hand. Pure source energy fluctuations emanated from it, and her pale face regained a rosy hue at a visible speed, and her disordered breathing gradually stabilized.

She looked at Lin Yi, a slight smile playing on her lips, "Thank you for your help. This is the location of that Sacred Source Fruit grove."

As he spoke, a mental imprint containing precise coordinates and information about the surrounding environment was transmitted to Lin Yi.

Lin Yi accepted it calmly.

It wasn't that he was particularly short of those dozen or so Sacred Source Fruits, but rather that he knew exactly what kind of person Edith was, which is why he didn't refuse.

He also took out a high-grade source energy crystal to replenish his energy, and said, "Then I won't stand on ceremony. By the way, after my Star Vortex reaches perfection in a couple of days, I'll be exploring higher-level areas. I imagine you're not in a rush to break through to the Star Domain level, are you? What are your plans next?"

Upon hearing this, Edith's silver eyes flashed with understanding, and she nodded slightly.

She really doesn't plan to rush into a breakthrough.

Before entering the secret realm, she planned to accumulate as many Sacred Source Fruits as possible at the Star Swirl level to take out, while also searching for other auxiliary treasures.

She also wanted to see if she could push the laws of time to a higher level at the Star Swirl level, or even touch the threshold of perfection, so as to lay a more solid foundation for the future.

Without breaking through to the Star Domain level, exploring the upper levels would obviously be a hindrance. Lin Yi pointed this out at this time, both to inform her of the plan and to subtly inquire about her future intentions.

At the same time, she understood Lin Yi's subtext: they could join forces to repel the enemy this time, and he would go on the subsequent exploration alone.

"As planned, continue searching for Sacred Source Fruits and other potentially useful resources, and take as much as possible out," Edith replied decisively. "I also intend to attempt to break through to the Star Vortex Extreme Realm."

Lin Yi nodded; this choice suited Edith's personality perfectly.

In his view, Edith had reached the pinnacle at the Star Core level, and her understanding of the laws at the Star Swirl level had reached 70%. With a long lifespan ahead of her, it was impossible for her to easily break through to the Star Domain level.

"Okay. I'll go deal with that fruit bush first. Take care."

"Take care of yourself."

Edith nodded, said no more, and transformed into a silver streak of light, heading in a direction different from Lin Yi's and that coordinate, and soon disappeared.

Lin Yi watched her leave, then, based on the coordinates in his mind, his figure transformed into a streak of light and sped towards the forest containing the sixteen Sacred Source Fruits.

About ten minutes later, he arrived at the coordinates, then calmed his breathing and looked down.

Below is a relatively open platform, in the center of which grows a small tree with a flowing golden-green luster.

Unlike the single fruit trees I've seen before, this sacred tree has sixteen Sacred Source Fruits hanging prominently among its branches and leaves!

Moreover, the energy fluctuations emitted by each one were no less than those of the Sacred Source Fruits he had obtained before.

In addition, scattered around the open space were some broken pieces of wood, and the air still held the lingering traces of the laws left by the battle, as well as a trace of the soul aura of a Star Domain-level Perfected Tree Spirit that had begun to dissipate.

Clearly, Edith's words were true; the Starfield Perfection Tree Spirit had been killed.

Lin Yi used his soul power to scan the area again carefully, but found no other threats.

Then, he flashed to the side of the Sacred Source Fruit, and with a wave of his hand, the power of spacetime gently severed the thin stem connecting the fruit to the branch.

The sixteen Sacred Source Fruits fell one by one into a specially made storage box that he had prepared in advance. The space inside the box was divided by a special force field to ensure that the energy of each fruit did not interfere with each other.

The moment the Sacred Source Fruit left the tree, the small Sacred Tree also quickly lost its luster, its branches and leaves withered, and it turned into ashes.

The harvest was enormous.

Lin Yi felt a slight stirring in his heart, but did not take it immediately.

Since there were quite a few, he needed to find an absolutely safe place to process the fruit.

Lin Yi quickly left the open space and flew towards a hidden tree hole he had discovered earlier.

That was the backup rest point he had marked during his previous exploration. The entrance was hidden, the interior space was large enough to accommodate several people, and the energy aura was completely integrated with the surrounding environment, making it difficult to detect.

After entering the tree hollow and setting up a few simple spacetime disturbances as early warning barriers, Lin Yi sat down cross-legged.

He took out a newly acquired Sacred Source Fruit and put it in his mouth.

The fruit melted in the mouth, and a torrent of pure and powerful energy erupted instantly. The source sea within the body trembled slightly, emitting a joyful hum, and frantically devoured this power.

The number of stellar vortices has begun to increase steadily.

80, 81, 82
Lin Yi proceeded methodically, absorbing one pill, taking a short breath to regulate his breathing, and once his condition stabilized, he took the next one.

When the energy of the sixteenth and final Sacred Source Fruit was completely absorbed, Lin Yi slowly opened his eyes.

Inside his body, the ninety-fifth star spiral had already taken shape and stabilized.

Only four more are needed to reach the Ninety-Nine Star Extreme Realm!
A surge of power filled my body, and the total amount of energy had made a qualitative leap compared to before.

Lin Yi silently got up.

"Almost there. The only goal now is to fill this last gap."

He completely let go of his inhibitions.

With the immense source energy brought by the ninety-five star vortexes and the absolute control over the perfected dual laws of space and time, he could roam almost unchecked in the areas where star-domain-level tree spirits were active.

Even a fully-fledged tree spirit in an ordinary star field couldn't withstand a single move from him.

The power of spacetime is unpredictable and difficult to defend against; often, before the tree spirit can react, its core has already been breached.

The harvest was also extremely bountiful.

He achieved his goal in less than half a day.

At this moment, Lin Yi had just put away the core of a peak Star Domain level tree spirit.

And right next to it, a Sacred Source Fruit was growing.

Lin Yi breathed a sigh of relief after picking the radiant Sacred Source Fruit.

"After taking this pill, I should be able to reach the perfection of the Ninety-Nine Stars!"

Lin Yi felt a surge of excitement.

The road to the extreme is nearing its end.

After confirming that there was no immediate threat in the surroundings, he sat down cross-legged and put the Sacred Source Fruit in his hand into his mouth.

boom!
A tremendous amount of energy surged toward that final void.

Lin Yi's soul seemed to hear a call from the very source of life, and all ninety-eight existing star vortexes within his body simultaneously emitted a strong attraction and resonance.

"Now!"

Lin Yi's will was like a blade, drawing all the remaining energy towards the last predetermined location, Han, in the void of the Origin Sea!

hum! ! !
An indescribable, perfect tremor resounded from the depths of my soul and spread to every corner of my body.

The ninety-ninth stellar spiral was born amidst a dazzling display of energy.

Its size, rotation frequency, and energy flow rhythm are perfectly synchronized with the previous ninety-eight star vortices.

The moment it stabilized completely, the entire network of ninety-nine star vortices suddenly lit up, and the energy connections between them reached an unprecedented level of closeness and harmony!

Ninety-nine Star Realm Extreme Realm, achieved!

"It's time."

Having achieved his goal, Lin Yi showed no lingering attachment or hesitation.

Staying at the Star Swirl level is meaningless; higher realms, greater power, and a wider upper area of ​​the secret realm await him.

breakthrough!

With a thought, the ninety-nine celestial spheres within his body simultaneously rotated in reverse, their speed suddenly increasing!

The advancement of Xingxuan to the Star Domain is essentially another qualitative change and sublimation of the energy structure within the body.

For Lin Yi, who is pursuing the path of limits, this step is not a simple condensation, but the fusion of ninety-nine independent star vortices that have reached their peak into a star field that is as good as a whole!

This process is extremely dangerous even for ordinary nine-star Xuan cultivators, and for those at the pinnacle of the ninety-nine-star Xuan realm, it is like dancing on a knife's edge, requiring incredibly exquisite control.

However, Lin Yi possesses the perfected realm of the two laws of space and time, and his control over energy has reached an extremely subtle level.

"Congeal!"

The power of the soul transforms into an invisible forging hammer, and the laws of space and time become the most stable framework.

As the ninety-nine stellar spirals rotate in opposite directions at high speed, their boundaries begin to blur, and their energies intermingle and permeate each other.

It was as if a miniature cosmic collapse and rebirth was taking place within Lin Yi's body.

The energy was compressed to its limit, transforming into "source energy crystal paste" that shimmered with starlight.

A blurry, polyhedral crystalline phantom slowly emerged in the center of the Source Sea.

It continuously absorbs the surrounding energy crystals, its volume slowly increases, its structure becomes more and more complex, and mysterious patterns begin to appear on its surface.

The Singularity of the Starfield is taking shape!
The entire process lasted approximately one standard hour.

The moment the last trace of energy crystalline slurry merged in, and the stellar singularity was completely formed—

boom!
Centered on this nascent stellar singularity, ninety-nine miniature star spirals began to slowly rotate in specific orbits.

The source energy flows endlessly within it, carrying a sense of perfect completeness.

An immense pressure, far exceeding that of a Star Vortex, spread uncontrollably from Lin Yi, causing the surrounding vines to rustle and the space itself to ripple.

Starfield level, achieved!
Lin Yi slowly stood up, feeling the earth-shattering changes within his body.

strength!

An unprecedented sense of power filled my entire body.

The total amount of source energy has undergone a qualitative leap. If the previous ninety-nine star vortexes were a vast lake, then the current star-domain level source energy is like an endless ocean!

He tried to mobilize a sliver of source energy, and a dazzling silver-gray light immediately shone from his fingertip. The energy intensity contained within it far exceeded the full-force attack he had delivered at the Star Swirl level.

"My current source energy intensity should be comparable to that of someone who has just entered the Derivation Realm, although it's the most ordinary kind," Lin Yi assessed his condition.

This is the terrifying foundation that comes from advancing further after reaching the Star Core Extreme Realm and using the Ninety-Nine Star Cyclone Extreme Realm as a foundation.

Lin Yi took a short time to adjust to his newfound power and familiarize himself with the operation of the star field singularity within his body.

A moment later, a glint flashed in his eyes, and he turned his gaze upward to the higher area shrouded in pale green mist.

That is the true core of the Sacred Tree Secret Realm, where both opportunities and dangers will increase exponentially.

Lin Yi felt the even more powerful, and more dangerous, energy fluctuations coming from above, and a smile appeared on his face.

Then, with a light step, he transformed into a blurry streak of light and resolutely flew towards a higher level along the roots of the sacred tree!

(End of this chapter)