Star Odyssey

“Those things are sourceboxes that an almighty Lockbreaker arranged to spread an invisible field of danger around the fort. They’ve allowed Seasons Fort to resist the astral beasts’ invasions many times.” A veteran sighed as he walked over next to Lu Yin. After explaining what Lu Yin was seeing in the sky, the soldier bent down and continued to clean up the battlefield. 

Tidying up the battlefield was this man’s job.

Lu Yin was amazed. “Formless danger from sourceboxes? What kind of Lockbreaker did that?”

The veteran shook his head. “Don’t know. It was too long ago.”

“Then why wasn’t it used in the last battle?” Lu Yin asked.

The veteran grudgingly explained, “There’re loopholes in every defensive system, and after so many years, the astral beasts have found gaps in the field of invisible danger zones formed by each sourcebox. They might have been put up there as a form of added protection, but they’re essentially useless. Actually, they’re more important in a symbolical sense than any practical one. Well, unless of course someone can patch up the holes that have formed.” 

Lu Yin thoughtfully looked up towards space. Patch it up? He wanted to try such a thing.

He recalled that the Trialmaster had once said that a Lockbreaker had to at least be a Boundless Advanced Lockbreaker to be able to arrange sourceboxes into an array that possessed any measure of danger. This was something that not even a five-star Perceptive Intermediate Lockbreaker could do, let alone someone like Lu Yin. However, he had his own unique advantage, which was that he could see more clearly than anyone else. If he was the one directing them, then other Lockbreakers may not necessarily fail in their attempts to patch the defenses.

The premise was that Lu Yin could find the holes first, as him simply making claims without proof would not lead Liu Qiuyu and the others to believe him. 

Lu Yin heard a beep from his gadget, prompting him to glance down. His eyes lit up, as he saw that, after the ambush that he had encountered while on his way to Seasons Fort and the battle that he had just participated in, his Ironblood Points had risen to 1,300. He had actually entered the top one thousand of the battle system.

This was a huge sum for a Limiteer, as each Limiteer beast was only worth one point. However, his points had been drastically increased with Liu Zhan sharing the contribution points of killing the Hunter realm Yin Guai with him, receiving 500 contribution points from that alone. Lu Yin had only obtained 800 from his own kills.

Despite spending countless years in Ironblood Weave, there were many Limiteers who were still unable to break through into the next realm. As long as they managed to survive on the battlefield, their kill count would continue to rise. Despite these Limiteers being weaker than Lu Yin, their amount of Ironblood points surpassed his own. However, this was simply a matter of the time one spent on the battlefield. Lu Yin was confident that, with his strength, he could specifically hunt down Cruiser realm astral beasts, which would allow him to quickly enter the upper echelon of the rankings. 

Based on pure power, only Enlighters, Hunters, and a minority of Cruisers were able to surpass him, which meant that there would not be too many threatening opponents on the battlefield, even across the entirety of Ironblood Weave. If the scope was focused on solely Seasons Fort, then there were probably only ten to twenty such opponents that could threaten his life.

Lu Yin looked at the ranking list and saw that it was constantly updating. People were rising and falling all the time, and he could see that the fastest to rise up the ranks were the Enlighters who had recently arrived in Ironblood Weave, such as Nightqueen Qiuyu, Elder Viletree, Wen Qichen, Huo Houye, as well as Granny Chan. 

These powerhouses were able to sweep across an entire area with a single attack, and even Hunters were liable to be torn apart under such extreme force. One battle was enough to propel them straight to the top of the rankings. 

Lu Yin also noticed Puyu’s name. He was ranked towards the top of the list, at around 500. This wasn’t surprising seeing as Puyu was also ranked twelfth on the Top 100 Rankings. Just a few battles would be enough for Puyu to climb to the top of the rankings. There were very few individuals on the battlefield who could surpass his strength. 

While Lu Yin was studying the list, many people from other forts were also studying it, as they wished to know which experts had appeared in Ironblood Weave in recent times. The more experts who came to defend Ironblood Weave, the more confident they became. This was why so many people would browse the list, as it was a way for many soldiers to boost their morale.

The lower five strongholds did not face attacks as fierce as the front four fortresses, but this also meant that they had a small bit of time to train soldiers for Ironblood Weave.

During one such grooming period, a group of soldiers had gathered there and were excitedly discussing the new arrivals. “Another Enlighter’s joined the fray. Look! They’ve already made it to the top fifty of the list.” 

“That’s an Enlighter powerhouse. It doesn’t matter how many astral beasts they face—they’ll never have enough to kill. It’ll only take them a few battles to get into the top twenty.”

“There’s not just one Enlighter, but quite a few of them all of a sudden. Why are there so many? Aren’t the Innerverse and Outerverse separated right now?” 

“I heard that there was a bunch of Enlighters who got stuck in the Outerverse because they were all out here fighting over some material. And now, they can’t get back.”

“Lucky for us. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be able to have them as reinforcements.”

“With so many Enlighters arriving, Ironblood Weave will definitely be able to fend off the invaders.”

…

A determined-looking soldier suddenly shouted, “Hey brothers, don’t just pay attention to the Enlighters. They’re way beyond us and completely out of our reach. Look, a bunch of new Limiteers have also shown up, and that’s who we should target.” 

“Look, there’s Puyu, a super expert! He’s ranked twelfth on the Top 100 Rankings. He’s come as well.”

“There’s Wendy Yushan as well, who’s eighteenth on the Top 100 Rankings.”

“Don’t get so excited. Ironblood Fort has the person ranked tenth.” 

“An expert has also arrived at our own stronghold,” one soldier commented excitedly. He then looked towards the top of an abandoned wall that wasn’t far away from them. Atop the wall, there was a stunning beauty gazing at the starry sky. Her face contained complex emotions, but she seemed to be completely unapproachable as she silently sat there, illuminated by the starlight. 

The other soldiers looked over as well, and they also became mesmerized. Few beauties appeared in Ironblood Weave, and this woman seemed like a deity from the stars.

“That’s Yue Xianzi, the young mistress of the Innerverse’s Frostmoon Sect, as well as a student of the Astral Combat Academy. She’s famous throughout the Innerverse, and she recently broke through to the Explorer realm. Under the light of the cold moon, she looks so beautiful that it’s impossible to look away from her,” one soldier muttered. All the while, his brothers surrounding him also stared at the girl. 

“Yue Xianzi is a genius who’s innately gifted. She’s killed a Cruiser before, and she’s also someone from the Ten Arbiters Council. Such a goddess is truly unbelievable, and who knows who the lucky bastard to marry her will be,” another soldier commented enviously.

From atop the abandoned wall, Yue Xianzi’s gaze swept across the group of soldiers, and they all panicked and hurriedly looked away.

She diverted her gaze and looked up at the sky once again. She had been in Ironblood Weave for some time now. Actaully, she had been here ever since the Outerverse had been cut off from the Innerverse, as the seniors of her sect had actually summoned her to join them in Ironblood Weave. 

It had been Elder Shuang who had summoned her to the battlefield, and this sect elder was also Yellowsoil Fort’s commander. However, Yue Xianzi had been placed in one of the lower five strongholds since they were relatively safer. Elder Shuang’s objective was to polish the younger woman since she had only recently broken through to the Explorer realm.

“Eh, look! This Limiteer’s rising so fast! He’s already in the top 1,000 after just arriving, which is really impressive.” The group of soldiers continued to discuss the newcomers.

“Let me see. Lu Yin? It’s him!”

“Who?” Some of the soldiers were lost.

“Idiot! When I told you to look at the news more, you ignored me. Lu Yin is the strongest Limiteer in the entire universe, and no Limiteer can beat him. It’s said that he’s even killed Cruisers.”

The surrounding soldiers broke into an uproar, as it sounded like complete fantasy for a Limiteer to kill Cruisers. 

At the top of the abandoned wall, Yue Xianzi also heard their discussion, and she opened the list in shock. She saw Lu Yin’s name. “You were drafted as well? The unrivaled Limiteer... Who knows how big the gap between you and me is right now. The Innerverse and Outerverse are separated, so the Ten Arbiters Council is as good as gone. Also, I don’t need to follow my sect’s orders and follow you around anymore. Goodbye.”

At another stronghold, one of the lower five as well, An Shaohua also saw Lu Yin’s name on the list, but he was not very shocked. Since he had been drafted, he did not find it strange that Lu Yin had been drafted as well. An Shaohua felt slightly lost when he considered whether he should continue following Lu Yin or create his own path. Watermoon Villa did not have much of a foundation in the Outerverse, so if he went at it alone, it was possible that he would accomplish nothing. As he pondered his future, An Shaohua’s eyes became determined, and he decided to follow Lu Yin. Although Lu Yin had offended too many almighty Enlighters, he had also killed many of them. He was a true freak. 

Many knew about Lu Yin, but since he had only risen to the top 1,000 on the list, he wasn’t noticed by everybody.

Ironblood Fort was the cruelest battlefield in the entire Ironblood Weave, and this place was also known as Dead Man’s Pass to the command post. This nickname came from the fact that only the dead could pass through the stronghold, but it was also a reference to the fort’s commander. 

At this moment, there was a rare period of calm with Ironblood Fort not engaged in battle. Enlighters like General Fei, Featherking, and Meng Ningge had personally strengthened the stronghold’s defenses. Within Dead Pass’s command center, there should have been many experts gathered, but instead, there was only a Limiteer youth standing leisurely in front of the screen. This screen displayed a star chart of the entire Ironblood Weave, as well as a bit of the region in front of Ironblood Fort, which was a part of the Astral Beast Domain. 

“Reporting.” A male Hunter appeared outside of the command center.

The Limiteer youth continued to stare at the screen before quietly saying, “Enter.”

The Hunter entered and respectfully said to the youth, “Master Jun declined to come.”

The Limiteer youth didn’t show any sign of surprise. “The more privileges these Lockbreakers gain, the more they cherish their lives. They end up caring less and less about the border warfront. It’s too disappointing.” 

The Hunter looked at the floor and did not speak. This scene seemed very out-of-place, as a Hunter was actually acting so respectful and demure before a Limiteer, and his gaze even seemed to hold genuine emotions. Many youths were able to use powerhouses for personal use by leveraging their backgrounds, but these experts would not show such a respectful expression to them. This was something that could only be earned by one’s personal achievements.

Even Lu Yin could not suppress a Hunter with his personal strength, as he was forced to rely on external objects. Xueshan Auna feared and respected Lu Yin only because of such objects. Without them, not even Lu Yin could command respect from Hunters.

However, this youth could do so. It was even more important to note that this youth was not exceptionally strong. He was merely an average Limiteer, and he had only recently reached this cultivation level.

“Send a message to the Outerverse’s Lockbreaker Society for them to immediately send their top-notch Lockbreakers to report to Ironblood Fort. Otherwise, they will be convicted of the crime of rebellion.” The youth suddenly appeared ruthless as he spoke these words that carried a numbing message with them. This young man wanted to strike at the Lockbreaker Society, and the Hunter looked astonished.

“Yes,” he said before hurrying away.

Not long after, General Fei entered Dead Pass and walked over to the youth. “Ah Wen, what’s going on?”

The youth was called Wang Wen, and although he was an ordinary Limiteer, he was one of the most important people in the entire Ironblood Weave. With his almost monstrous level of intelligence, he had spent countless years analyzing the circumstances of the battlefield, and by doing so, he had managed to find patterns in the beasts’ invasions. He had helped the various strongholds of Ironblood Weave make preparations in advance. Not only did his efforts help them lower their casualties, but it had also led to the Astral Beast Domain suffering heavily, which caused them to cease their assaults for half a year. 

This was something unimaginable, and because of this feat, Wang Wen’s name had long since been placed high up on the Celestial Vanquisher's List. He had greatly surpassed Lu Yin and the others to the point where he was practically on the same level as the Ten Arbiters.

All matters of Ironblood Weave were handled in an orderly manner by Wang Wen. With his own capabilities, he had weaved the nine great strongholds of Ironblood Weave together and allowed them to display an even more powerful united front than ever before.