Chapter 1208: Speculations on Alien Species

"Can we stack it again!?"

"With infinite stacking plus the acceleration effect, wouldn't that let one accumulate dozens of seconds of destructive power in a single second, then burst out instantly?"

"To verify his hypothesis, Lin An took a deep breath and summoned an arcane ball again."

"In an instant, endless light seemed to spread out; the arcane ball compressed to the limit looked like it was collapsing, first compressing inward, then rapidly expanding outward."

"Boom!!!"

"As a stellar fission-like explosion erupted, the surging arcane power slammed him hard against the wall."

"Pfft"

"A sweetness welled up in his chest."

"Caught off guard, Lin An sat down on the ground, his face pale; his entire right hand was a bloody mess, revealing stark white bone."

"Played too big..."

"A few seconds later, feeling that he had lost a quarter of his vitality, Lin An gave a bitter smile and had no choice but to silently begin restoring his ruined right hand."

"What terrifying power."

"He never imagined that the first time he'd been injured in so long would be from his own explosion."

"If it weren't for his already strong defenses and half an Eternal Body."

"Without a doubt, he estimated that the blast would have cost him half his life."

"Can only compress two?"

"Over-compressing, the spacetime stacking effect actually isn't a black hole but a nuclear bomb?"

"First a fusion reaction, then fission..."

"Pouring in more spiritual energy, wouldn't that be equivalent to hand-rolling a spiritual energy nuclear bomb?"

"He clicked his tongue inwardly."

"Lin An staggered to his feet, continually assessing the power of the earlier explosion."

"Even a Third-Stage peak wouldn't die from the blast, only be seriously injured, and killing a Third-Stage advanced would be no problem."

"With his spiritual energy reserves, producing ten or so is no problem... reaching Fourth Stage..."

"A flicker of astonishment crossed his eyes."

"Lin An looked at his healing right hand with a complex expression; this rule clearly could also apply to other abilities."

"Just crudely compressing the Arcane Torrent has this effect; what about compressing other things? What would that effect be?"

"After exhaling, Lin An suppressed the urge to test other skill stacking and still planned to examine the last two abilities."

"Rule Power, indeed insane.."

"He just doesn't quite grasp the principle of spacetime stacking... Surely if he understood it firsthand, the effect might be even more insane.."

"\"Fourth Clause, Eternal Life... \""

"\"Ignoring the weakness brought by the loss of vitality, before death one always remains in peak condition... \""

"Looking at the incomplete Fourth Clause rule, Lin An frowned slightly in disappointment."

"Awakened Ones' bodies also age; even with a Third-Stage lifespan of three to four hundred years, once they reach about 70% of their life cycle, their combat power naturally declines."

"This rule, in a sense, is a Spirit Skill that can maintain eternal youth."

"But for Lin An, this skill feels a bit pointless... In the apocalypse, who dares say they can live long?"

"From his rebirth to now, only about a year has passed..."

"\"It's not very meaningful; maybe it'll be useful in the future, but it's too far off. \""

"\"Next Clause, Fate\""

"\"Distribute the attack received at the present moment to the past and future. The maximum distribution limit is plus or minus twelve hours. \""

"\"Please note, this rule should be used with caution. \""

"\"If damage is distributed to the past, and the sustained damage exceeds present plus past vitality, then instant death occurs, and all effects you caused are erased. \""

"\"If damage is distributed to the future, and it exceeds present plus future vitality, then upon reaching the future, immediate death occurs. \""

"Looking at the last ability, somewhat familiar yet different, Lin An pondered briefly and roughly understood this rule's capability."

"An uninterrupted super-enhanced version?"

"In time, more leeway is gained, no longer limited to nine seconds."

"Moreover, it can also be distributed to the past..."

"Such a strange causal relationship is practically the most incomprehensible ability he has ever seen."

"\"Is this cheating...? \""

"\"Unless I can simultaneously create past, present, and future versions of myself, theoretically I would be undying... \""

"\"Unfortunately the span range is still a bit short... \""

"Under extreme-effect thinking, Lin An suddenly thought of a use for this rule."

"If the time span were a month, damn it, couldn't he distribute damage to the Fifth Stage during his fight with the Corpse Emperor!?"

"Distributing to the future would definitely be more than he can withstand now!"

"\"Wait a moment.. \""

"\"Actually there's another use! \""

"His eyes flickered; when Lin An regretted the time span being too short, an idea suddenly struck him."

"\"Before battle, frantically absorb vitality; even if it can't be stored, it's fine. \""

"\"During battle, directly transfer damage to that state—wouldn't that be equivalent to replenishing vitality while fighting? \""

"\"How much damage one can withstand depends on how much 'energy' was prepared beforehand... \""

"His breathing grew slightly ragged."

If before he didn't quite grasp how powerful Rule Ability was, then now Lin An already had a rough understanding of the Fourth Stage.

No wonder the Fourth Stage is so strong!

Each of these Rule traits could be invincible; the difference is in how you use it!

As long as the rule isn't broken, truly, under the Fourth Stage everyone is like ants; no matter how many Third Stage, they can't do anything against a Fourth Stage!

Within the Huaxia Military's area, Lihao frowned tightly and couldn't help retorting.

"Let Lin An hand over part of his points!? Do you think he'll agree?"

"Besides, what reason do we have to make him hand them over?"

He showed some rare resistance.

Lihao slightly clenched his fists, and the artificial sun on his chest seemed to flash continuously in his excitement.

Just a few minutes ago, several high-level military officials, smiling, approached him, wanting him to bring Zhang Yong to ask Lin An to 'borrow' some points.

They 'don't want much'—just a hundred thousand points.

The points they wanted were to exchange for a Fourth Stage card; the military still lacked some points to redeem the second one.

"Whether you agree or not, let's bring this up first."

"General Lihao, no matter what Lin An says, I'm also part of our war zone. As the military, we've helped him share the pressure, and he alone can't use all those points—why not lend them to us first?"

"Next is the crucial showdown; our opponents are the elite forces of the larger war zone!"

"Lin An is just one person, oh, plus that bear. No matter how strong he is, doesn't he still need our support?"

"Overawing those weak Third Stages is fine, but which of the upcoming Third Stages will be weak?"

"If we borrow points from him, we'll be more confident in the showdown! Worst case, we just return them later! As the military, we certainly won't default on this debt!"

The leading high-level officials spoke indifferently.

If they could borrow, great; if not, they'd lose nothing. The main thing is...

Not noticing the odd looks in their eyes, Lihao felt a surge of indignation, thinking it utterly absurd!

Yes, what those high-level officials said is correct, but he doesn't have the face to say it!

Doesn't the military know how it treats Lin An?

They barely stopped short of treating him as an enemy, and now they want to speak as if he's one of their own!?

Seeing Lihao seemingly about to defy orders, the several high-level officials exchanged a glance and, in unison, spoke coldly:

"General Lihao! Soldiers obey orders as their duty!"

"Is your so‑called face more important than our mission?"

"If Lin An gives, we gain a bit more assurance; if not, we lose nothing!"

"We've heard you've had multiple contacts with the Long An faction! Of course we believe you, General, haven't broken any regulations, but you must have helped Long An quite a bit, right?"

Hearing the high-level officials' subtle pressure, Lihao's heart sank, and after a moment he had no choice but to agree.

The military needs him to act; even if it means death, he will go forward without hesitation!

Watching Lihao turn and stride toward Long An's back, the few officials exchanged another glance and began to communicate silently.

"Will doing this confirm whether Lin An has consumed his points?"

"Give it a try; if they're used up, that shows he's truly reached the Fourth Stage! Otherwise there's no reason to exchange so many points for something else."

"Attributes, skills… I don't believe he'd lack them!"

"If he's not exchanging equipment or supplies, besides Rule Fragments, what else could he trade for?"

"Once confirmed, what then? Think of a way to kill him?"

"The personnel we're sending in this time might not be able to kill him…"

"These idiots are still guessing whether Lin An is a high‑level Third Stage; in my view, he's absolutely at the peak of the Third Stage!"

"I'm afraid that once he goes out, he'll be a Fourth Stage!"