Quickly, Lu Yin arrived.
Yan Gang had grown impatient from waiting. Without Lulu Mebis present, his attitude became arrogant once again.
Lu Yin saw Yan Gang but ignored him, instead casting a glance at Bai Xue. He recalled that before falling asleep, he seemed to have done something.
Bai Xue looked troubled, both because of Yan Gang and Lu Yin. Rumors in the city were spreading uncontrollably, and she couldn't stop them, feeling secretly angry.
"Where is Lulu Mebis?" Lu Yin asked Granny.
Granny replied, "She's gone back to the city."
Lu Yin nodded and looked at Zhang Dingtian. "Are you injured?"
Zhang Dingtian said grimly, "This person is very strong, from the Lianyan Star."
Lu Yin raised an eyebrow. Lianyan Star? He hadn't heard of it. Since arriving in the Canglan Territory, he had gone straight to Earth and wasn't very familiar with the situation there.
Not far away, Yan Gang's gaze turned cold. "Who's in charge here? Come out and speak."
Lu Yin turned to Yan Gang. "What do you want?"
Yan Gang laughed bitterly with anger. "Are you ignoring me?"
Lu Yin's mouth curled into a smirk. "So what if I am?"
Yan Gang's eyes suddenly widened, his body temperature rising and the air around him distorting. But he seemed to think better of it, glanced warily around the city, exhaled, and said lightly, "Enough nonsense, give me Qingyu's stuff."
"On what basis?" Lu Yin retorted sharply, still groggy from just waking up, a state many shared.
A murderous glint flashed in Yan Gang's eyes. "How dare you! Do you know who I am?"
"No, and I don't need to," Lu Yin replied calmly.
Yan Gang was furious. If not for Lulu Mebis, he would have attacked already. The local natives were no match for him. "State your terms. Qingyu's stuff must be taken by me."
Lu Yin had no intention of keeping that stone anyway, even if Sharlo hadn't warned him. That stone's origins were enormous, beyond his possession. But even if he handed it over, he wanted enough benefit in return. "Are you representing Qingyu or the trial students?"
"Qingyu," Yan Gang said coldly.
Lu Yin said calmly, "The stuff can go to him, but all the students he captured must be handed over to me."
Everyone was surprised. They hadn't expected Lu Yin to propose this condition. Remembering Lu Yin's words about using these students to negotiate with the Great Universe Empire, Zhang Dingtian and the others looked more determined.
In truth, Lu Yin cared about the students' Star Energy Crystals; the negotiation was secondary.
Yan Gang frowned. "Why do you want the students? By the way, it seems you've captured quite a few students here. Is Jenniona among them?"
Nowadays, many students had removed their personal terminals, so their information wouldn't appear on the local network. Lu Yin's personal terminal had no name, so some battle reports couldn't be published.
"Seems like there is such a person," Lu Yin replied.
"Release her," Yan Gang commanded sternly.
Lu Yin sneered. "Who do you think you are?"
Yan Gang glared furiously. "Too presumptuous!" He slammed his palms together, producing flames, and leapt toward Lu Yin. The Lianyan Star people were naturally hot-tempered; he had suppressed it well so far, but Lu Yin's words made him strike again.
Everyone was on high alert.
Lu Yin clenched his right fist tightly, light warping around it. He struck a punch from the ground. Yan Gang, rushing toward Lu Yin, changed expression drastically. Although it was daytime, this punch made Yan Gang see night — the switching of day and night — and his body suddenly ached as if caught in a paradox. He let out a low roar. Flames transformed into a long spear that he thrust out, the shockwave crushing the ground.
With a loud boom, Yan Gang was sent flying backward. The flaming spear dissipated, and he retreated several steps midair.
Lu Yin also stepped back, watching Yan Gang solemnly. This person was indeed very strong, even surpassing Mono, definitely a Fusion Realm powerhouse with sealed cultivation.
That White Night Fist was a legacy martial art of the White Night clan. Its power exceeded the Three Star Heavenly Palm and the Seven-Beast Claw, yet this man blocked it without injury. His combat strength was not to be underestimated.
Lu Yin was surprised, and Yan Gang even more so. A mere Explorer Realm warrior had actually made him feel threatened. At the critical moment, Yan Gang had unleashed his full strength. If Lu Yin's attack had been any stronger, he wasn't sure whether Yan Gang would have broken his seal. This native was truly powerful.
Zhang Dingtian squinted his eyes. He had fought Yan Gang before and knew how terrifying he was. That Lu Yin could repel him showed his strength had improved immensely since their first meeting. This person was advancing remarkably fast.
Lu Yin's strength earned Yan Gang's respect. Yan Gang landed and looked at Lu Yin seriously. "Jenniona is the heir of the Ona family from the Great Universe Empire. If you capture her, you'll bring yourself enormous trouble. After all, this planet belongs to the Great Universe Empire, and the Ona family has a thousand ways to exterminate all humans on this planet. Think carefully."
Lu Yin said calmly, "I understand very well. No need to say more. If you want the stuff, have Qingyu hand over the captured students to me. Otherwise, there's no deal."
Yan Gang reluctantly nodded. "Fine, I'll contact Qingyu." With that, he activated his personal terminal.
While Yan Gang was contacting Qingyu, Lulu Mebis suddenly appeared, startling everyone.
"I knew you inherited the legacy. That punch just now was pretty good. Let's spar a bit," Lulu Mebis said excitedly, staring at Lu Yin.
Lu Yin smiled faintly. "I refuse."
Lulu Mebis blinked. "Refuse? Why? Strong warriors should spar more to improve."
"I'm not a strong warrior," Lu Yin said calmly.
Lulu Mebis shook her head. "In the Explorer Realm, you're pretty good. You're qualified to fight me. No more nonsense, come on."
Seeing a beautiful young woman challenge a man like that, Zhou Shan and the others gave strange looks. This woman was reckless!
Lu Yin felt a headache coming on. He really didn't want to fight this woman. She was very strong—getting hit by one punch wouldn't feel good. Plus, with the speed he gained from that stone, Lu Yin was sure that if they sparred, he would only be on the defensive, unable to catch her. He didn't like looking for trouble.
"Hey, are you still a man or not? Come on, hurry up!" Lulu Mebis shouted.
Lu Yin remained indifferent and looked at Yan Gang.
Lulu Mebis grew anxious, but since Lu Yin didn't move, she had no choice. She couldn't ambush him—she was a lady after all, only ambushing bad guys, not good people.
Suddenly, Lu Yin's mind sparked. He thought of the Heavenly Star Technique—its practice could perceive the variations of the Seven-Beast Claw and thus learn it. So, could he learn Lulu Mebis's speed by observing her movements? It seemed possible. Lu Yin's eyes flickered. Maybe he should spar a little?
Suddenly, Bai Xue cried out. Everyone looked over. She was on a call using her personal terminal.
After a moment, Bai Xue looked up, her face grim. "The Blue Camp has been destroyed."
Zhang Dingtian's eyes darkened. "Who did it?"
Lu Yin also stared at Bai Xue. The Northeast Blue Camp was the force founded by Luo Sheng. He still remembered Zhao Yu was once one of the Blue Camp's three Snow Maidens.
Bai Xue said in a low voice, "It wasn't destroyed by anyone—it was a mutated beast. A massive flying sea turtle."
"A sea turtle?" Everyone was surprised and looked confused.
Bai Xue nodded. "According to the Blue Camp's personal terminal scans, that sea turtle's combat power exceeds ten thousand. They can't measure it precisely."
Everyone was shocked. Over ten thousand? Breaking ten thousand combat power—that was star-walking strength.
The Explorer Realm's combat limit was three thousand. Above that was the Fusion Realm with a limit of six thousand. Above Fusion was the Extreme Realm, capped at ten thousand. Anyone exceeding ten thousand combat power was called an Explorer, a strong being capable of traversing the cosmos. Such a warrior could wander freely among the stars, unconstrained by the universe.
Qingyu was one of those star-walkers with power over ten thousand; otherwise, it couldn't survive on Neptune.
And now on Earth, there was a mutated beast with over ten thousand combat power. Where had it come from?
At that moment, Yan Gang seemed to be talking to Qingyu. He shouted loudly, "Qingyu has—" Before he finished, an overwhelming, boundless pressure came from the east, sweeping over heaven and earth. Yan Gang was blasted to the ground by the force but still tried to speak, swallowing a mouthful of dust. The eastern sky darkened.
Lu Yin and the others stared in shock toward the east. A colossal sea turtle appeared before everyone, its area larger than the entire capital city. This scene stunned millions of survivors. There really was such a gigantic sea turtle in the world? Moreover, it emitted an aura that struck terror into everyone—the power of a star-walker over ten thousand, a strength that could roam the cosmos.
Yan Gang angrily got up to shout curses, but froze the moment he looked up. What kind of freakish turtle was this?
The sea turtle moved swiftly, roaring past. Its enormous shadow covered the capital for barely a second before disappearing westward. Its giant eyes didn't even glance below. To it, Lu Yin and the others were mere ants—ants it could easily crush.