Chapter 3142: Cutting Corners?

The Infinity Empire had discovered a material that could produce the sharpest blade in their history, and that sword had been given to Regisword. The most durable material had been used to manufacture the Emperor's mecha, Supreme, but some of it had been used to construct the Energy Research Institute.

That was why the institute was regarded as the safest place within the entire Infinity Empire. This was not even mentioning that it was located in the heart of the imperial palace.

They were even protected by Supreme itself.

"When one powerful enemy invaded the empire, they nearly destroyed all of the Pillars of Heaven, and even Regisword was shattered. In the end, only Supreme survived the attack. Despite the ferocity of that battle, the Energy Research Institute was completely unscathed," Hong Nian explained.

Lu Yin followed Hong Nian. The emperor would have never imagined that Lu Yin had already infiltrated the empire’s most valued asset, as well as the one regarded as the most secure.

Ring energy research was the institute's primary focus, with a significant number of experts dedicated to that particular study. They were all located in the institute’s deepest portion.

As Hong Nian led Lu Yin inside, other people acted as though they did not see the two men. The only person speaking was a white-haired old man who was constantly giving out orders.

"That’s the head of the research institute. His teacher was the one who developed the twelve ring energy utilization rate, and his lifelong ambition is to surpass his mentor by developing thirteen ring energy," Hong Nian whispered.

Lu Yin stood with his hands clasped behind his back as he silently observed everything.

Stellular energy was being analyzed by various instruments, and there were constantly people reporting on the observed data. All the while, the old man frowned as he concentrated intently. His dedication to his research bordered on madness, but only such a person could achieve the extraordinary.

The floor trembled, and an alert was announced throughout the institute.

The old man straightened up. "What’s going on? Has this place been breached?"

"It’s Regisword. It sliced through the upper levels of the institute."

The old man shouted angrily, "Has Regisword betrayed us?"

"No, the enemy redirected an attack that sliced through the imperial palace."

The white-haired old man sighed, clearly irritated. "It’s only to be expected. Any universe that can produce energy with the potential of reaching the power of thirteen rings must be terrifyingly powerful. They could even have lifeforms which possess that level of power—no, they definitely have them. If they didn’t, we would have never detected thirteen ring energy.

"While the empire decisively retreated, we were still targeted."

Lu Yin asked, "What should we do? Can the empire survive this attack?"

The old man heaved another sigh. "It will be difficult. If the enemy sends those thirteen ring lifeforms here, the empire won’t be able to do anything. There’s a vast difference between twelve and thirteen ring energies. However, if those individuals aren’t sent here, the empire won’t necessarily lose. Supreme is very strong, and the Pillars of Heaven aren’t weak either."

"Still, it seems like they have quite a few experts. Supreme and the five Pillars of Heaven might not be enough," Lu Yin remarked.

"As long as Supreme isn’t destroyed, there will always be hope-" The old man suddenly stopped himself and yelled, "Who has the balls to speak up? Who is it?"

Everyone turned to look at Lu Yin.

Lu Yin was still standing in place with his hands behind his back as he smiled at the old man. "Pleased to meet you. I am Lu Yin, the Dao Monarch of the Heavens Sect."

The old man stared at Lu Yin and then slowly moved his left hand behind his back.

Lu Yin stared at the man. "Old man, do you have some tricks up your sleeve that you can use to protect yourself? You seem to recognize me."

The old man’s gaze was fixed on Lu Yin. "You are a cultivator."

"That’s right."

"A cultivator from the universe which is currently attacking the empire."

"Correct."

"How did you get in here?" It was only then that the old man noticed Hong Nian. "Did you betray the empire?"

Hong Nian sighed but remained silent.

"According to your empire's standards, such a betrayal shouldn't be any surprise," Lu Yin remarked.

The old man chuckled. "You seem to have some knowledge about our Infinity Empire."

"Just a bit," Lu Yin replied as he studied the old man. "Go ahead and do whatever you need. I won’t stop you. Only after you’ve tried everything you can will we be able to have a proper discussion."

The old man’s eyes narrowed. "You’re very confident."

Lu Yin smiled. "So far, there’s nothing I’ve seen in this universe that can threaten me."

The white-haired man glanced around, but everyone was staring at Lu Yin. Apprehension and suspicion could be seen on every face.

"What are you staring at? Get back to work!" the old man barked.

It was clear just how influential he was, as despite people’s fear of Lu Yin, they all resumed their work.

The floor shook again, and a speck of dust drifted through the air between the old man and Lu Yin.

The white-haired man slowly walked to a corner of the room, speaking as he moved. "This place isn’t without its own defenses. If you can break past my defenses, I will surrender to you, according to the empire’s standards. Please, just don’t damage the Energy Research Institute."

Lu Yin nodded. "Of course."

The Infinity Empire’s strongest defense was the Emperor's mecha, Supreme, but the Energy Research Institute had its own defense mechanisms. Still, the institute could not possibly surpass Supreme. Lu Yin knew this not because of what he knew about the Infinity Empire, but rather based on his understanding of human nature.

If the emperor perished and the institute remained, it would simply serve another. Such a thing was meaningless for the emperor. That was why Supreme was guaranteed to possess the empire’s strongest defense.

If Lu Yin could not overcome the institute’s defensive measures, how could he hope to defeat Supreme? His goal was to completely subdue the Infinity Empire, which was why he did not want any of the five Pillars of Heaven to be destroyed. Even if the empire relied on external power, their mechas were still powerful enough to contend against sequence powerhouses, which was exactly the sort of strength that Lu Yin needed most.

The old man arrived in a corner and turned back to look at Lu Yin. Seeing that the young man really had not tried to interfere, the old man’s heart sank. This young man was either very confident or very arrogant. Regardless, it indicated incredible strength. The old man was not accustomed to feeling so intimidated.

Let's see if you're actually confident or merely arrogant

, the old man thought to himself as he made a few adjustments. Dots of light started to appear throughout the Energy Research Institute, and they moved to gather around Lu Yin, where they formed a barrier that resembled a prison, trapping both Lu Yin and Hong Nian.

These points of light could be manipulated to appear anywhere within the institute. This was their means of self-defense.

Hong Nian was startled. "Light barriers? I thought they said that that research failed!"

The old man sneered. "Since the empire has a policy of surrendering when defeated, of course we also have measures in place to protect ourselves from those who have betrayed us after surrendering. This light barrier is just one such measure. If you can get out of there with your own power, I will submit to you."

Hong Nian lost all confidence.

Lu Yin looked over. "What's going on?"

The man internally cursed Lu Yin for being careless, though Hong Nian was too scared to show his true feelings. He explained, "This light barrier is the most advanced technology that the empire discovered in another civilization. I can’t explain the specifics, as I'm not part of the research teams, but this light barrier once managed to withstand a combined attack of three twelve-ring mechas. It took Regisword twenty-nine attacks to break through this barrier. While this might not be comparable to the defenses of Supreme, it is the closest out of anything that the empire possesses.

“Only something as sharp as Regisword’s sword can break through this barrier."

The old man nodded in agreement. "That’s quite accurate. This light barrier’s defensive abilities are second only to Supreme, and even then, it isn’t much of a gap. If you can break through this barrier, then it means that you have the ability to defeat Supreme as well. If that’s true, then the entire Energy Research Institute will surrender to you."

Lu Yin placed his hand on the light barrier and started pushing, but it never budged.

Interesting.

He gradually increased the amount of strength he used until he reached the maximum he was capable of without using Infinity or any visualization method, but the light barrier still did not show any reaction.

The old man appeared to be quite pleased. The light barrier was a technology that had only succeeded after decades of research. While this technology did not surpass the twelve ring energy that the old man’s mentor had developed, it was still a noteworthy achievement, as the old man had introduced a new defensive ability to the empire.

While the light barrier had not yet become widespread, it had the potential to significantly enhance the empire's strength.

Hong Nian nervously watched Lu Yin. The young man had to break out, or else they would be in serious trouble.

The light barrier was able to withstand any attack weaker than Regisword’s. Not even the powerful cultivators who had arrived in the empire with Lu Yin were guaranteed to be able to break through the barrier.

Hong Nian did not want to be punished for his betrayal.

Lu Yin praised, "This is quite the impressive defense. Honestly, it's difficult to break through. Even a sequence powerhouse would struggle."

Lu Yin’s comment did not reassure the old man at all. Instead, he felt even more nervous than ever. Lu Yin's calmness was not what a person who was supposed to be captured should have.

The more composed Lu Yin appeared, the more frightened the old man became.

Lu Yin glanced at the old man before taking out a number of weapons from his cosmic ring. The weapons were of all different sizes and shapes, and many of them had bizarre appearances and looked unwieldy. They were all weapons that Lu Yin had acquired from Progenitor Guai’s armory.

Progenitor Guai had used his unique abilities to create many weapons from the rarest of materials. Such materials had been regarded as priceless treasures by even the Daosource Sect. Lu Yin had retrieved the weapons from the Progenitor’s armory, which he had left at the bottom of the Astral River.

Lu Yin had intended to Disassemble all of the weapons, but he had not found the chance to do so yet.

Some of the weapons were enormous, while others were tiny, but all of them were impractical to actually use.

Lu Yin started testing the weapons, striking at the light barrier with each weapon.

While it was possible for him to break through the light barrier with brute strength, Lu Yin did not know if he could do so without damaging the Energy Research Institute. Since he had these weapons, he decided to try them instead.

The old man, Hong Nian, and all the researchers present watched in stunned silence as Lu Yin tested each weapon.

He slashed with one and then stabbed with another. Despite the weapons’ odd appearances and seeming impracticality, one of them managed to pierce the light barrier.

The old man gaped in disbelief. How was this possible?

Hong Nian was equally shocked. The light barrier was something that only the empire’s sharpest blade, Regisword, could breach. And yet, it had just been pierced by one of these strange weapons.

Lu Yin smiled. "Sorry, but I have quite a few weapons, some of which are rather sharp."

The old man had already anticipated that Lu Yin might be able to break through the light barrier by using overwhelming strength or some extraordinary weapon. Either scenario would have been impressive, but not really surprising. However, the actual outcome almost felt like Lu Yin had cheated.

Does this even count?

the old man wondered.

Even Hong Nian felt that Lu Yin had simply gotten lucky by having such a sharp weapon on hand.

Lu Yin put away Progenitor Guai’s weapons. He knew that he had another weapon that was capable of effortlessly slicing through the light barrier: the God of Death’s scythe. Lu Yin had no idea what sort of material that weapon had been made from, but it was incredibly sharp, and it far surpassed Regisword.

If Lu Yin had used the God of Death’s scythe, he would have been able to slice through the barrier as though cutting through paper.

However, that would have been overkill.

No matter how sharp a weapon might be, it would be useless without someone skilled enough to wield it. Enemies would not simply stand still like the light barrier. If they did, there would be no reason for anyone to cultivate, as they could simply focus on gathering the right materials.