Chapter 328: Breaking the Barrier, Piercing the Sky, Unraveling the Secret

Zhang Cheng took a deep breath and suppressed the unease in his heart.

"Zhizhe, we must find a way to break through this barrier!"

Xingyun Zhizhe's brow furrowed tightly as his fingers flew across the control console, lines of data cascading down like a waterfall.

"The barrier's energy fluctuations are extremely stable. My analysis program cannot crack its structure."

"Then let's try brute force!" Xingji Xiake roared. The energy weapon in his hand erupted with dazzling light, and a thick energy beam slammed fiercely into the barrier.

However, the expected explosion did not occur. The energy beam was swallowed as if consumed, silently vanishing into the barrier's surface.

The barrier trembled slightly, and then a counter-shock force struck, knocking Xingji Xiake back several steps.

"It's useless," Professor Karl shook his head. "This barrier's defense mechanism is extremely powerful. Ordinary energy attacks cannot shake it at all."

Everyone began trying various methods.

The psychic Li li released an intense psychic shock, but it was like a stone sinking into the sea; Interstellar Warrior Mark piloted his mech, using the hardest alloy drill bit to strike the barrier, but only left shallow scratches; even the Xingling tried using their unique mental power to communicate with the barrier, but received no response whatsoever.

Every attempt ended in failure, and each attack provoked a counterattack from the barrier. Everyone gradually grew exhausted and frustrated.

"Are we really trapped here?" Mechanic A li slammed his fist on the control console and growled in frustration.

"No, there must be a way," Xingling xue zhe analyzed calmly. "Although the barrier's energy composition is complex, it must have some kind of weakness."

"Weakness? Easier said than done! Why don't you tell us where this weakness is?" A li retorted irritably. "I've already checked all the equipment—there are no clues!"

"You're only looking at the problem from a mechanical perspective," Xingling xue zhe said with a hint of disdain. "The essence of this barrier is energy. We need to re-analyze it from the perspective of energetics."

"Energetics? What use are your theories? They're not as effective as my hands-on operation!" A li refused to yield an inch.

The two argued more and more fiercely, on the verge of coming to blows.

Zhang Cheng rubbed his temples with a headache and was about to speak up to mediate, when he saw Guangming Shizhe rise to her feet, wearing a mysterious smile…

"Perhaps," she spoke slowly, "I have a bold idea…"

Guangming Shizhe smiled mysteriously. With a wave of her slender hand, a complex energy spectrum materialized in the air.

"My idea is to convert Li li's psychic energy into a special frequency, then amplify it through A li's mechanical device to create an entirely new energy wave. It might resonate with the barrier's energy, thereby dismantling its structure."

The idea sounded far-fetched, but it won the support of Xingyun Zhizhe and Xingling xue zhe.

Xingyun Zhizhe pointed out that psychic energy itself was a high-level form of energy. If its frequency could be precisely controlled, it was indeed possible to achieve resonance with the barrier.

Xingling xue zhe added that although the barrier's defense mechanism was powerful, it still obeyed the law of energy conservation. As long as the correct frequency was found, it could be dismantled with minimal energy consumption.

Although A li scoffed at Xingling xue zhe's theory, Guangming Shizhe's proposal ignited his enthusiasm for modification. He immediately set about retrofitting his equipment to channel Li li's psychic energy into it.

Li li also cooperated fully, controlling her psychic energy within a specific frequency range.

With a hum, the mechanical device emitted dazzling light, and a strange energy wave shot toward the barrier.

The barrier fluctuated violently, as if a giant stone had been hurled into a calm lake.

Everyone held their breath, watching tensely.

Suddenly, cracks split open across the barrier's surface, and light leaked through.

Just as everyone was cheering with joy, countless mechanical puppets poured out from the barrier's cracks. They gleamed with a cold metallic luster, the weapons in their hands buzzing as they charged at the group.

"Damn it! What the hell are these things!" Xingji Xiake roared, brandishing his energy weapon as he charged forward.

Interstellar Warrior Mark also piloted his mech into battle. Though his mech was sturdy, it struggled under the puppets' siege.

The puppets' attacks were precise and ruthless, every strike aimed at vital points. Xingji Xiake and Mark gradually found themselves unable to hold the line.

"Their attack pattern… seems… to have a rhythm…" Mark said laboriously while fending off the puppets' attacks.

A li narrowed his eyes, staring fixedly at the puppets' movements. Suddenly, he snapped his head up, pointed at the back of one puppet, and shouted: "There! There seems to be something there!"

Before A li's words had even faded, the psychic Li li had already darted out like a bolt of lightning.

She was nimble, weaving through the gaps in the puppets' attacks, and in the blink of an eye arrived behind the puppet A li had pointed out.

With a wave of her slender hand, a blade of psychic energy sliced across, and the puppet's back armor split open, revealing complex internal circuitry and a crystal glowing with red light.

"That's it!" A li shouted excitedly, pulling out a peculiar-looking device from his toolbox. "This is a jammer I designed based on Xingling xue zhe's energy theory. It should be able to destroy its control hub!"

He aimed the jammer at the red-glowing crystal and pressed the activation button.

The jammer emitted an ear-piercing shriek, and an invisible energy wave spread outward.

The red-glowing crystal flickered a few times, then went dim.

Almost at the same moment, all the puppets stopped moving, as if a pause button had been pressed, frozen in place.

The energy barrier also trembled violently, and finally a massive breach appeared.

"Quick! Now!" Zhang Cheng made a decisive call and led everyone through the breach.

The world beyond the barrier was not an easy path; instead, it was even more fraught with danger.

The moment everyone stepped in, bizarre energy patterns lit up beneath their feet.

"Traps! Energy traps!" Professor Karl cried out in alarm, nearly stepping on one of the patterns.

Xingyun Zhizhe immediately began his analysis. His gaze burned like torches as he rapidly scanned the surrounding environment, murmuring to himself: "Energy flow trajectories… frequency changes… activation conditions…"

"Three steps left, then five steps diagonally forward, then two steps right!" The alien scientist Professor Karl also quickly calculated a safe route based on his own experience.

Under the guidance of Xingyun Zhizhe and Professor Karl, everyone carefully navigated between the energy traps.

However, the traps grew denser and increasingly complex. Even Xingyun Zhizhe and Professor Karl began to struggle.

"This won't work—at this rate, someone will step on a trap sooner or later!" Xingji Xiake shouted anxiously.

Just then, the ground suddenly began to shake violently. The once-stable energy patterns became chaotic and disorderly. More traps surged up from the ground, surrounding everyone.

Zhang Cheng felt a powerful energy wave surging from beneath his feet. His expression changed and he shouted: "Bad! These traps are going to explode!" He grabbed Guangming Shizhe's hand…

…pulling her behind him while bellowing: "Xiake, cover us!"

Xingji Xiake roared. The energy weapon in his hand erupted with dazzling light, and energy beams wove into a dense net of fire, intercepting the incoming energy shockwaves one by one.

The shockwaves from the explosions knocked everyone off balance, but they escaped without substantial harm.

"Zhizhe, think of something quickly!" Zhang Cheng shouted anxiously while fending off the aftershocks of the explosions.

Xingyun Zhizhe's expression was grave, his eyes tightly shut, as though performing some complex calculation.

A moment later, he snapped his eyes open, pointed toward a relatively calm area ahead, and shouted, "There! Where the energy fluctuation is weakest! We charge through!"

Everyone charged without hesitation in the direction Xingyun Zhizhe pointed.

Shockwaves from the explosions struck wave after wave, as if intent on devouring them.

Xingji Xiake and Interstellar Warrior Mark fought to clear the path, using their own bodies to shield everyone from the lethal energy impacts.

Psion Li li released intense psionic shocks, disrupting the operation of the energy trap and buying precious time for everyone.

With everyone's combined efforts, they finally broke out of the trap zone and reached a relatively safe clearing.

However, before they could even catch their breath, an enormous energy structure loomed before them.

The structure was spherical, its surface flickering with an eerie purple glow, countless complex energy patterns flowing across it and radiating a suffocating pressure.

It hovered silently in the air like a slumbering behemoth, yet gave a dangerous sense that it could awaken at any moment.

"What is this thing..." Mechanic A li muttered to himself, his eyes filled with fear.

"It looks like some kind of energy core..." Xingling xue zhe frowned, a trace of gravity in his tone, "And its energy intensity... is beyond imagination..."

Just as everyone wavered between shock and doubt, the purple glow on the energy structure's surface suddenly grew even more dazzling, the complex energy patterns accelerated their flow, and a powerful energy fluctuation rippled outward in all directions.

"Not good! It's about to attack!" Professor Karl cried out in alarm.

Zhang Cheng pulled Guangming Shizhe behind him in a single motion, his gaze fixed on the energy structure, and said in a low voice, "Everyone, be careful!"

Guangming Shizhe looked up at Zhang Cheng's resolute profile, a warm current surging in her heart. She gripped Zhang Cheng's hand tightly and said softly, "You be careful too..."

The energy patterns on the surface of the structure suddenly converged to a single point, forming an enormous energy ball that radiated an aura of destruction.

Zhang Cheng felt a sense of crisis unlike anything before. He drew a deep breath and said in a low voice, "Prepare for battle!"

Xingji Xiake and Interstellar Warrior Mark also readied themselves for combat, the weapons in their hands emitting a humming sound.

Just then, an icy voice suddenly rang in everyone's ears...

"Foolish intruders..."