manynovel Page 188
Page 188
"Take off!" Lin Ye pressed the start button, and the fighter jet shot off the tarmac like a black lightning bolt, heading towards the battlefield.
The eastern city was now a scene of utter devastation, with dozens of alloy buildings collapsed and billowing black smoke. The Guardian God of War was raising his laser cannon, aiming at a towering energy core tower, one of the energy hubs of the Mechanical Star. If it were destroyed, the entire city would be paralyzed.
"Don't even think about touching it!" Lin Ye roared, maneuvering his fighter jet to fire two armor-piercing rounds. The rounds accurately struck the Guardian God of War's knee joint, producing a loud "clang."
The Guardian God of War whirled around, his electronic eyes locking onto the fighter jet, his voice distorted and manic: "Outsider? Another one coming to die! Those tin cans from last time weren't even enough to fill my teeth!"
"Tin cans? You mean your mech unit?" Lin Ye sneered, maneuvering his fighter jet into a high-difficulty roll in the air to dodge the laser beam fired by the enemy. "Looks like you've not only lost control, but also become stupid, even killing your own people."
"Shut up!" The Guardian God of War was enraged, its arms transforming into laser cannons simultaneously, unleashing two blinding blue beams of light towards the fighter jet. Lin Ye abruptly pulled up the fighter jet, the lasers grazing the wings and blasting two huge craters into the ground, sending debris flying.
"Alice, analyze its armor structure!" Lin Ye shouted while dodging attacks.
"Analyzing... The outer armor is 1.2 meters thick, made of super alloy, with extremely high defensive strength. However, the armor at the joints is only 0.3 meters thick, making it a weak point. In addition, the red crystal on the chest is the energy core, and the energy fluctuations will create a 0.5-second vulnerability every 10 seconds!"
Lin Ye's eyes narrowed, and he maneuvered his fighter jet to circle behind the Guardian God of War: "Now!" He pressed the fire button on the ion cannon, and a dazzling white light instantly gathered at the nose of the fighter jet.
"Boom!" The ion cannon struck the Guardian God of War precisely in the chest, instantly creating a crack in the red crystal. The Guardian God of War roared in pain, turning and grabbing the wing of his fighter jet: "Damn outsider, I'll crush you!"
The fighter jet's hull creaked under the strain, and Lin Ye knew he couldn't just sit and wait to die. A second before the jet crashed to the ground, he decisively pressed the ejection button, and the golden wings on his back instantly unfolded, carrying him out of the cockpit.
"Trying to run? No way!" The Guardian God of War raised his laser cannon and aimed it at Lin Ye in the air.
"Who's trying to run away?" Lin Ye's lips curled into a cold smile as he condensed the power of origin in his body into a spear of light. "I'm here to send you on your way!" Using the force of his fall, he thrust the spear of light fiercely into the crack in the chest of the Guardian God of War.
"No—!" The Guardian God of War roared in despair, and the red crystal shattered instantly. But at that moment, a black mist suddenly flew out from the crystal fragments, darting towards the central control room like a venomous snake.
"What is that?" Lin Ye was stunned.
"It's the virus itself!" Mechanical King's voice suddenly came through the communicator, filled with anxiety. "It's heading to the Central Control Room, the fragment of the contaminated origin! Stop it!"
Lin Ye dared not be careless and spread his wings to give chase at full speed. The black mist was extremely fast, almost instantly passing through the passage and entering the central control room. When Lin Ye arrived, he saw the mist wrapped around a floating blue fragment. The fragment emitted pure mechanical energy—it was the origin fragment of the Third Universe!
"Get out of my way!" Lin Ye roared, condensing the power of origin into a light shield in his palm and slamming it down on the black mist. The moment the light shield made contact with the mist, it emitted a sizzling corrosive sound, and the mist twisted and contracted continuously, seemingly resisting the purification of the light shield.
"Use the energy of the Origin Fragment!" Mechanical King shouted, "The fragment's energy can suppress the virus!"
Lin Ye immediately reached out and grabbed the Origin Fragment, channeling the Origin Power within his body into it. The fragment instantly erupted with a dazzling blue light, and wherever the blue light reached, the black mist melted away rapidly, like ice and snow encountering a raging fire, and finally disappeared completely.
Mechanical King breathed a sigh of relief, and the data cable on his back slowly retracted: "Thank you, Lin Ye. If it weren't for you, Mechanical Star would be finished." He pressed a button on the control panel, and an energy crystal popped out of the drawer. "This is the Origin Fragment, as agreed, I'm giving it to you."
Lin Ye took the fragment and placed it together with the first one. The two fragments resonated with each other, emitting a soft light. "The crisis on the Mechanical Star has been resolved, but you cannot let your guard down," Lin Ye said solemnly. "Dimensional invaders will soon attack, and this unknown virus is very likely their vanguard."
“We understand.” The Mechanical King’s electronic eyes flashed red. “I have ordered the upgrade of all defense systems and will be closely monitoring developments at the edge of the universe. If you need support, contact us at any time. The fleet of the Mechanical Star is not just for show.”
Lin Ye nodded, turned and walked towards the passage: "Then I'll go first, there are other fragments waiting for me to find."
Watching Lin Ye's figure disappear at the end of the passage, Mechanical King pressed the communicator: "Activate the highest level of alert. At the same time, analyze the residual data of that virus and find its source. Also, closely monitor the movements of Universe Seven. If Lin Ye needs help, immediately dispatch a support fleet."
"Received, Mechanical King."
The spacecraft ascended again. Lin Ye looked at the two Origin Fragments in his hands, a sense of urgency filling his heart. He knew this was just the beginning; even more powerful enemies awaited him in the future universes. But he had no way out. For the Seventh Universe, for life in all universes, he had to continue.
Just as his spacecraft took off from the Mechanical Star, a black code flashed silently on the screen of a backup computer in the central control room, and then disappeared.
Chapter 419: The Magical Labyrinth of the Fifth Universe
As the spacecraft took off from the Mechanical Star, Lin Ye glanced back. The planet, encased in a metal dome, resembled a finely geared machine in the starry sky. However, thinking about the strange black virus from earlier, he felt uneasy.
“Target: Universe 5, course calibrated.” Alice’s electronic voice interrupted his thoughts, and a warning message popped up on the screen: “A high-intensity magical energy field has been detected in Universe 5, which may interfere with the electronic components of the spacecraft. It is recommended to shut down some non-essential systems and land in manual mode.”
Lin Ye frowned and reached out to put the energy storage box into the safe in the cockpit: "Magical energy? Is it the same energy used by the wizards in the Seventh Universe?" He recalled a few wizards he had encountered before. Although their magic was strange, its intensity was not very high.
“Completely different.” Alice pulled up a set of energy graphs. The fluctuation curves on the graphs were distorted and violent. “The magical energy of the Fifth Universe is a branch of the primordial energy of the universe. It has extremely strong plasticity and corrosiveness. Ordinary electronic devices can only maintain normal operation for a maximum of 30 minutes in this environment.”
Lin Ye nodded, pressed the button on the control panel, and turned off the aircraft's automatic navigation system: "Okay, then let's land manually. Has the location of the Origin Fragment been determined? Don't make me go through any more trials, I just want to collect the fragments as soon as possible."
“The signal source has been locked onto; it’s located inside the ‘Magic Maze’ in the core region of the Fifth Universe.” Alice paused for a moment. “However, based on the energy feedback, there is a powerful magical barrier surrounding the Magic Maze. Forcibly breaking through it may trigger the defense mechanism.”
"Barriers and trials all the time, can't these universes be a little simpler?" Lin Ye muttered helplessly, navigating his spacecraft towards the Fifth Universe.
After a day of flight, the spacecraft finally arrived at the edge of the Fifth Universe. As soon as Lin Ye entered this universe, he was stunned by the scene before him—the sky was a deep purple, like silk dyed with ink; countless islands of varying sizes floated in the air, connected by glowing magical bridges; the buildings on the islands were all pointed towers, with gems emitting various colors of light embedded at their tops; the air was filled with a rich elemental aura, and one could feel the primal power within his body slightly agitated with every breath.
"This place is quite beautiful, but I wonder if there are any traps." Lin Ye carefully maneuvered the aircraft, avoiding the magical storm in the air, and finally chose to land on a relatively flat floating island.
The moment the aircraft's landing gear touched the ground, a series of mechanical clicking sounds rang out. Clearly, the magical energy had begun to interfere with the electronic components. Lin Ye didn't dare delay; he pushed open the car door and jumped out.
As soon as he landed, three figures emerged from the woods at the edge of the island and instantly surrounded him. All three wore loose robes embroidered with intricate magical runes and held jewel-encrusted wands, the tips of which gleamed faintly.
"Outsider, who are you? Why have you intruded into the magical world?" the leading mage asked, his voice carrying a strange echo, as if countless people were speaking at the same time.
Lin Ye raised his hands to indicate that he meant no harm: "My name is Lin Ye, and I come from the Seventh Universe. I'm here to find the Origin Fragment. The dimensional invaders are coming soon, and only the Origin Fragment can stop them."
"A fragment of origin?" The leading mage frowned, his eyes growing more wary. "That's a sacred relic of the magical world, carrying the magical essence of the Fifth Universe. How can it be so easily handed over to outsiders?"
"It's not being given to me, it's just a temporary loan," Lin Ye hurriedly explained. "Once we defeat the dimensional invaders, I can return the fragment. If you don't believe me, I can make a magical oath."
The short mage beside him scoffed, "A magical oath? You don't even know magic, how can you make an oath? Don't think you can trick people into giving you Origin Fragments with some random excuse. There have been plenty of people eyeing these fragments over the years."
"I didn't lie to you!" Lin Ye was getting anxious. He was about to use the power of origin to prove himself when the leading mage raised his hand to stop him.
"Don't rush into action." The leading mage stared at Lin Ye for a few seconds, seemingly trying to determine if he was telling the truth. "If you really have the ability to obtain the Origin Fragment, then go and pass the test of the Magic Labyrinth. This is the rule of the Fifth Universe: no matter who you are, only those who pass the test are qualified to touch the Origin Fragment."
Lin Ye breathed a sigh of relief: "Okay, it's just a test, right? I accept." He had already overcome the three trials in the First Universe, so what was he afraid of in a magic maze?
The leading mage nodded and pointed towards the center of the island: "That's the entrance to the magic labyrinth. Go in. Remember, the magic labyrinth will create illusions based on your mind. Sincerity brings results, confusion brings illusions—if you can't overcome your own limitations, even the strongest power will be useless."
Lin Ye looked in the direction he pointed and saw a huge stone gate standing in the center of the island. The gate was covered with twisted magical runes, and a faint light flowed between the runes, as if they were alive. Without further hesitation, he walked towards the stone gate.
The stone door slowly opened as he approached, revealing complete darkness inside. Lin Ye took a deep breath and stepped inside. The moment he entered, the stone door slammed shut behind him with a loud bang, plunging the entire passage into absolute darkness and silence.
"What's going on? There aren't even any lights?" Lin Ye muttered, just about to use his Origin Power to illuminate the surroundings, when countless magical lamps suddenly lit up on both sides of the passage. The soft light illuminated the path ahead, but Lin Ye's expression instantly darkened. What lay ahead wasn't a passage at all, but a maze composed of countless branching paths. Each branching path was marked with a different symbol, some resembling flames, some water droplets, and others lightning.
"This is the magic maze? It seems more complicated than I imagined." Lin Ye rubbed his temples and randomly chose a fork in the road marked with a flame symbol and walked in.
He had only taken a few steps when the surrounding scenery suddenly began to distort. The light of the magic lamp disappeared, replaced by familiar white light; the maze walls transformed into office partitions, with mountains of documents piled up in front of him, and his supervisor's impatient voice urging him: "Lin Ye! Why isn't this report finished yet? You have to work overtime to finish it today, or I'll deduct your bonus for this month!"
Lin Ye was stunned—this was his life before he obtained the power of origin, where he was overwhelmed by work every day and spun around like a top.
"Deduct bonus?" Lin Ye scoffed, a cold glint in his eyes. "I'm no longer that pushover who can be manipulated by anyone!" He gathered his Origin Power and punched the supervisor in front of him.
"Bang!" The supervisor's figure shattered instantly, and the surrounding scenery returned to normal. Lin Ye stood at the crossroads of the maze, looking at the scattered magical runes on the ground, and understood—the test of this maze was to make him overcome his past.
Next, Lin Ye tried other forks in the road. At the fork marked with a teardrop symbol, he returned to the moment he was defeated by Frieza, watching his companions fall in pools of blood, despair washing over him once more. But this time, he did not back down. Instead, he gathered the power of Origin and charged towards Frieza's phantom: "This time, I will not lose again!"
At the crossroads marked with lightning bolt symbols, he witnessed the devastation of Earth by dimensional invaders. Countless people cried out, and cities were reduced to ruins. He clenched his fist, and the power of origin formed a golden shield around him: "I will stop this! I will never let this happen!"
After walking for an unknown amount of time, Lin Ye finally navigated all the forks in the road and arrived at the center of the maze. Here stood a vast circular hall, its dome adorned with a star map, the stars twinkling faintly. On a high platform in the center of the hall, a green fragment floated in mid-air, surrounded by dense magical energy—the very origin fragment of the Fifth Universe!
"Finally found it!" Lin Ye was overjoyed and quickly walked towards the platform.
Just as his hand was about to touch the shards, footsteps suddenly echoed from the shadows of the hall. A figure dressed in black robes emerged from the shadows, his face covered by a silver mask, revealing only a pair of cold eyes. In his hand he held a black wand, the tip of which emanated an evil aura.
"Outsider, you're quite impressive, managing to pass the labyrinth's test," the mysterious figure said, his voice hoarse and deep. "But if you want to take the Origin Fragment, you'll have to defeat me first."
Lin Ye frowned and clenched his fists: "Who are you? Why are you stopping me?"
"I am the guardian of the magical labyrinth, and the last line of defense for the Origin Fragments." The mysterious figure raised his wand, the light at its tip growing ever brighter. "Only those who defeat me are worthy of obtaining the Origin Fragments. Are you ready?"
Lin Ye gathered the power of origin, forming a lightsaber in his hand: "Enough talk, bring it on!"
The mysterious man snorted coldly, waved his wand, and chanted, "Entangle me, thorny vines!"
Suddenly, the floor of the hall cracked open, and countless thorny vines surged out from the fissures, attacking Lin Ye like venomous snakes. Lin Ye swung his lightsaber, severing the attacking vines one by one, but the number of vines increased rapidly, quickly surrounding him, the thorns almost piercing his skin.
"It's no use. My vines are endless. You'll be worn down sooner or later," the mysterious man sneered, waving his wand again, causing the vines to grow even faster.
Lin Ye didn't give up. He took a deep breath and mobilized all the Origin Power within his body, forming a golden protective shield around himself. The vines sizzled as they struck the shield, but they couldn't advance even half a step further.
"What?" The mysterious man's face showed surprise, clearly not expecting Lin Ye to have such a powerful defensive ability.
"It's my turn!" Lin Ye shouted, and the protective shield suddenly exploded, the golden energy wave shattering all the surrounding vines. He seized the opportunity to gather the power of origin, forming a huge spear of light, and thrust it fiercely at the mysterious man.
The mysterious man had no time to dodge and was struck squarely in the chest by the spear of light. He groaned and staggered back a few steps, his mask falling off to reveal an old face covered in wrinkles, but his eyes were still bright and piercing.
"I didn't expect you to be so strong, much stronger than I imagined." The old magician gave a wry smile and put away his wand. "I lost. Here's a fragment of origin; you can have it."
Lin Ye took the Origin Fragment, placed it into the energy storage box, and asked, "Old Mage, the dimensional invaders will be attacking soon. Is the Fifth Universe prepared to deal with them?"
The old mage nodded: "We have sensed abnormal energy fluctuations at the edge of the universe and are working with all the mages to draw a defensive magic circle. If you need help, we will send a magic legion to support you."
"That's good." Lin Ye breathed a sigh of relief and turned to walk out of the hall. "Thank you for your trust. I won't let you down."
Watching Lin Ye's figure disappear into the passage, the old mage spoke to the air: "Pass down the word, speed up the drawing of the defensive magic circle. Also, closely monitor the movements of Universe Seven, and immediately activate the support plan if Lin Ye needs help."
A slight magical fluctuation rippled through the air before returning to calm. Meanwhile, Lin Ye had already piloted his spacecraft away from the Fifth Universe. Inside the energy storage box, three Origin Fragments emitted a soft glow, as if echoing each other.
Lin Ye looked at the starry sky outside the window, his eyes resolute: "Nine fragments left, keep going!"
Just as his spacecraft was leaving the edge of the fifth universe, a black shadow suddenly darted out from the cosmic dust and quietly followed behind the spacecraft, its eyes flashing with an eerie light.
Chapter 420: The Echoing Corridor
The blinding white light of Bulma Labs stung Lin Ye's eyes. He sat bolt upright, the tearing pain in his chest still lingering from the system crash. The instruments on the lab table were still beeping, and the garbled characters flashing on the screens seemed to mock him—traces left from his last attempt to connect to the system.
"Awake?" Vegeta leaned against the wall, arms crossed, his crimson eyes sweeping over Lin Ye, his tone laced with his usual sarcasm. "I thought you'd lie there like a spineless wretch for three days and three nights."
Lin Ye rubbed his throbbing temples, Alice's last message before disappearing echoing repeatedly in his mind, fragmented like pieces of paper scattered by the wind: "Warning... Higher Dimension... Anchor Point... Fluctuation..." He tried to call out to the system interface as before, but all he saw was a blank screen.
"Don't waste your energy." Vegeta scoffed, walking to the lab bench and picking up a report. "Bulma has already checked; your so-called 'system' has completely vanished, leaving not even a trace of energy."
Lin Ye ignored Vegeta's taunts. He closed his eyes and focused on sensing the changes in his body. Suddenly, a familiar coolness spread from between his brows, and the world before him instantly changed. Energy particles flowing in the air were clearly visible, metal molecules in the laboratory walls were moving slowly, and he could even "see" the boiling gas within Vegeta's body.
"The Eye of Time...is still there?" Lin Ye opened his eyes in surprise, instinctively reaching out to touch the energy flow before him, feeling a faint sensation at his fingertips. Even more surprising, he could vaguely sense the flow of cosmic energy around him, like finding a faint band of light in the darkness.
"Oh? Interesting." Vegeta noticed Lin Ye's change and raised an eyebrow. "Looks like you're not completely reliant on that crappy system. But don't get too excited. Before, the system helped you analyze data and plan tactics; now it's all up to you. If you can't keep up, don't blame anyone else if you die."
“Vegeta is right, but your current senses might be of great help to us.” A gentle voice came from the doorway. The Supreme Kai entered with Kibito, his face grave. “Ever since the war with the Time-Space Administration Bureau, I’ve felt that something is wrong with the fundamental rules of the universe, like a discordant melody mixed into a harmonious piece of music.”
"Noise?" Lin Ye frowned, trying to sense the fluctuations in the rules the Supreme Kai had mentioned using his Eye of Space-Time. Sure enough, in the flow of cosmic energy, he detected subtle disturbances, like ripples spreading across a calm lake after a pebble has been thrown in.
"These chaotic fluctuations are very weak, but they cover a wide area, as if they appeared simultaneously from all corners of the universe." The Supreme Kai walked to Lin Ye's side, extended his hand, and a soft light enveloped him. "Can your Spacetime Eye see the source of these fluctuations?"
Lin Ye focused his mind, and the light from the Eye of Time grew brighter and brighter in his eyes. He traced the chaotic fluctuations and discovered that they all ultimately pointed in the same direction: an abandoned industrial area on the outskirts of Xidu.
"Over there!" Lin Ye suddenly opened his eyes, pointing out the window. "The fluctuations are strongest there, like a giant vortex absorbing the surrounding energy."
Vegeta put down the report, a faint blue light emanating from his body: "Finally, something to do. Whatever's causing this, I'm going to blow it up!"
The three immediately set off for the abandoned industrial area. It had been deserted for many years; most of the dilapidated factory buildings had collapsed, the ground was riddled with cracks, and the air was thick with the smell of rust and dust. Lin Ye's Eye of Time flickered continuously, guiding them towards the center of the industrial area.
Lin Ye stopped before a massive rift. The rift was bottomless, emanating an eerie suction force that slightly distorted the surrounding spacetime. Even stranger, the energy fluctuations around the rift were extremely chaotic; fragmented images could even flash through the air: scenes of him fighting alongside Goku, Vegeta transforming into Super Saiyan Blue, and some he had never seen before: a person in black armor standing on ruins, a massive planet reduced to ashes in an explosion.
"Where is this?" Vegeta stared warily at the crack, his inner energy surging. "What...what are these images?"