The red Dragon Head teor tore through the night sky, plumting straight down and crashing into the mountainous illusion.
BOOM!
The mountain range shook violently, and cracks spread rapidly like a spiderweb before the illusion violently exploded.
The intense shockwave blasted the remnants of the inn’s roof into the air and shattered every window.
As a corner of the mountainous illusion burst open, the gravitational turbulence suddenly expanded uncontrollably.
Massive amounts of rapidly spinning dust particles flew out along their original paths. Like lethal shotgun pellets, they silently pierced through stone walls and beams.
The barrier Ji Xingwang and the others had erected beforehand rippled countless tis, barely managing to block all the flying particles.
Before they could even relax, the true danger had already descended.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
At the point of collision between the Dragon Fall Spear and the mountainous illusion, a visible, arc-shaped shockwave erupted.
Wherever the shockwave passed, the brick and stone ground buckled like soft dough, alternately collapsing and bulging before shattering completely.
The Lu Li Academy Doctors, Ji Xingwang among them, instinctively increased their Spiritual Energy output. However, their barrier, like a small boat in a tempestuous storm, struggled desperately for a few monts before ultimately being overwheld by the raging torrent of energy.
BUZZ—
Sensing a lethal threat, the Jade Pendant Chai Chai held high suddenly developed a fine crack, and a vast, heavy aura emanated from it.
Just as the layers of shockwaves were about to engulf Ji Xingwang and the others, they slamd into an invisible barrier.
Then, like waves parting around a reef, they split in two and surged past both sides of the crowd, demolishing the final wall behind them.
All this seed to take a long ti, yet it occurred within just a few seconds.
Their ears ringing, the crowd refocused their gaze and witnessed an unforgettable scene:
A warrior in black armor, wielding a crimson spear, descended from the sky. He pierced the Green Mountain’s projection and ventured alone into the gravitational turbulence.
The Dragon Head illusion swirling around the spear stirred ripples in the gravitational turbulence, advancing slowly but steadily. Its fangs aid directly at the rust-streaked bronze box.
Jin Wusuan and Lu Qingya were stunned. The crowd was bewildered. Dust danced in the air.
Ti seed to stand still at this mont.
The beast’s eyes inside the bronze box slowly lifted, gazing at the figure in black armor.
Brilliance flowed within the Ghost Realm. Collapsed walls righted themselves, broken beams rapidly regenerated, and floor tiles and roof shingles scattered in the distant courtyard flew back of their own accord, spontaneously repairing the damage.
The master of the Ghost Realm attempted to use its authority to return everything to normal.
The inn’s appearance changed rapidly. One mont, it was the dead of night, the hall piled high with tables and chairs. The next, everyone was back in the hall, eating lunch.
The crowd chatted and laughed, completely oblivious to the gravitational turbulence raging beside them.
The scenes flickered faster and faster. The eyes of the Dream Eater in the box shone with a brilliant light as it tried to adjust everything, yet three things remained beyond its control: Chai Cuiqiao’s Jade Pendant; the gravitational turbulence anchored by the Lu Li Sword; and the Dragon Fall Spear, which continued its slow advance.
A thousand years of dormant slumber had severely weakened the Demon God within the box. No matter what corrections it attempted, it couldn’t alter the fact that the crimson spear had locked onto it and was drawing inexorably closer.
At last, when the tip of the spear was only an inch away from the bronze box, the beast’s eyes cald.
It silently stared at Li Ang, flipping through his mories, reading his life.
***
RING! RING! RING!
The alarm blared. A young man, clad in black cotton pajamas, groggily turned over in bed. He fumbled on the nightstand, slapped the alarm button, and silenced the ringing.
The young man yawned and lay there for another mont before reluctantly opening his eyes and throwing off the covers.
Ti: 8:00 AM.
Location: West Yin City, bachelor apartnt.
He slipped on his slippers and headed to the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth.
For morning ambiance, the television played a dull news program about a teorite that had recently fallen into the sea off the coast of Yin City.
A young, beautiful hostess, whose hairstyle made her look ten years older, asked, "Professor Pu, can you explain to us why this teorite exploded?"
A tily caption identified him: Dr. Pu Liuxuan, astrophysicist at Yin City University. Pushing up his glasses, he said, "Actually, your question isn’t quite precise. A teorite refers to the material from a cosmic teor that falls to Earth without being completely burned up during its descent.
"So smaller teors, you see, generate extre heat from friction with the air upon entering the atmosphere and burn up completely.
"Others explode because the intense heat and pressure during their descent disrupt their internal structural balance. The unburnt remnants are what we commonly call teorites."
"I see."
The hostess, feigning ignorance to prompt further explanation, continued, "So, what are the specifics of this teor? Did it, as so netizens claim, have the power of a nuclear bomb?"
Pu Liuxuan replied, "Our research indicates that this teor’s body was roughly conical. It had an original diater of about thirteen ters, was primarily composed of nickel and iron, and weighed approximately ten thousand tons.
"A teorite of that size, had it landed intact, would have been incredibly powerful. Even exploding in mid-air, its yield was equivalent to four to five hundred thousand tons of TNT—nearly thirty tis that of the Hiroshima atomic bomb.
"I also want to take this opportunity to urge the public not to panic. The impact of such a large teorite is a very low-probability event, sothing that might happen only once every few hundred years.
"Furthermore, the teorite fragnts are not, as so people claim, imnsely valuable. After all, they’re essentially just nickel and iron. Their primary significance lies in their scientific research value.
"Therefore, if any netizens happen to find teorite Fragnts, we urge them to contact us at Yin City University..."
The buzzing of his electric toothbrush drowned out the television’s Q&A.
Humming a tune, the young man brushed his teeth while scrolling through his phone. Then, he received a call. The caller ID showed ’Sui Yi’.
PTOOEY!
The young man spat out the toothpaste foam, lowered his voice, held the phone slightly away from his ear, and pressed the answer button. "Hello, Senior Sister?"
"Hello."
A robust voice responded from the other end, "Xiao Li, have you left ho yet?"
"Almost, almost,"
The young man unflinchingly lied, "Just putting on my shoes."
"You’d better get a move on! This trip to Japan to negotiate with the local trading company is a crucial assignnt from headquarters. It’s very important, so don’t screw it up!"
Sui Yi advised earnestly. The young man nodded repeatedly in agreent, all while secretly continuing to brush his teeth.
He finally managed to placate his senior sister—who had graduated from the sa university, worked in the sa departnt, and was now his superior. Just as he hung up, a call from ho ca through.
"Hello, Xiao Ang? Listen, a few days ago when Mom was on that trip, I t this really outstanding young woman. Her na is Qiu Feng, and she’s a doctor at Huashan Hospital. Why don’t you add her on WeChat? What? Too much trouble? You’re not getting any younger, you know! It’s ti you started thinking about settling down. Oh, and speaking of which, do you rember your elentary school classmate, Chai Cuiqiao? I ran into her mother on the street yesterday and we chatted for a bit. It turns out Chai Cuiqiao is quite a well-known painter in the ani community! Maybe Mom can ask about her for you?"
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