Chapter 76

76. Chapter 76: Dragon-Elephant Breakthrough (In Honor of Our Beloved Xiao Qin, Alliance Master)

Yucai High School.

Class 2, Grade 11.

Cultural Studies.

Fang Xing sat in his chair, staring intently at Teacher Lan Fei as she lectured.

The other students were equally serious, for as they grew older, the closer they drew to senior year, the closer they drew to the battlefield.

Lan Fei’s lectures now included extensive battlefield knowledge.

If you don’t work hard now, you’ll be dead in a year and a half!

Real, life-or-death studying!

“As everyone knows, the Federation’s space technology has yet to catch up with the Outer Demons; we remain in a defensive, counterattacking posture within the Imaginary Space...”

Lan Fei’s expression was solemn; behind her, a projection of dimensional void materialized.

To Fang Xing, it resembled a “honeycomb” structure.

“This is our constructed space defense position... while the Outer Demons infiltrate by smuggling their ‘arks’ through the honeycomb’s gaps—we call these ‘Mystery Realms,’ ‘Illusion Realms,’ and so on...”

Fang Xing found it confusing, but he still took careful notes.

“In simple terms, the Outer Demons construct a temporary ‘space bubble,’ slip it through the honeycomb’s gaps into our space, then release the demonic followers within the bubble...”

“Our defense in Imaginary Space differs from that in the universe. In the main universe, we have orbital cannons, aerospace fighters, space fortresses, and mecha masters... but in Imaginary Space, we struggle to detect ‘Mystery Realms.’ Even if we do detect them, our Xukong technology prevents direct destruction—we must send warriors deep inside to slay the demonic followers...”

“The reason the Outer Demons bear the word ‘God’ is because they wield nearly ‘creation-level’ authority—even over tiny Mystery Realms. For instance, they can restrict entry to beings no higher than the External Manifestation stage of martial cultivation... or require entrants to be at least one major realm below the realm of the followers. Twenty-seven years ago, their Xukong authority was even stronger: many Mystery Realms allowed only warriors two major realms below the followers to enter... But thanks to our space technology’s advancement, such conditions no longer occur. Today, the strongest follower you’ll face in Imaginary Space is only one major stage above you.”

“Teacher, doesn’t that make us invincible?”

Ouyang Qianqian raised her hand: “Not only do we outnumber them, but if it were me, I’d wear military mecha, arm myself with every weapon and round, and unleash total fire coverage the moment I enter—three rounds of artillery bombardment first...”

“That’s a tactic for the main universe, but Mystery Realms are different... these small spaces are profoundly ‘mind-dependent’; most are bound by divine laws forbidding technological devices from entering...”

Lan Fei sighed.

Ouyang Qianqian’s face turned pale.

Fang Xing’s expression darkened as well.

‘So that’s why the Federation needs so many cannon fodder—they really do go in and hack at followers with swords?’

“So are mecha masters useless now?”

Bai Lang’s face turned ashen.

“It depends. Have you forgotten your own martial will? That’s our greatest weapon against the Demons. Your mind’s size determines the stage’s size—if your will is strong enough, you can defy the Demons’ laws and bring more into the Mystery Realm. It’s a profoundly mind-dependent space. If you believe your sword is part of your martial path, you can bring it in. If you believe your mecha is part of your path, you can bring the mecha in too... But achieving this is extremely difficult—very difficult. Few low-rank martial artists in the entire Federation have succeeded.”

Lan Fei shook her head: “Many martial artists enter battle unarmed, without even a single alloy blade...”

“As for true ‘mecha masters’? Low-rank mecha masters are forbidden from entering Mystery Realm battlefields—that’s suicide. Most cannot bring their mecha and are left helpless... But is mecha really so inconvenient? Once you reach high rank, you awaken ‘Mindlight’—your mecha fuses nearly with your body and can be sent into the Mystery Realm. Yet at that point, you’re often suppressed by the Realm’s rules, because high-rank mecha masters are too powerful to enter most Mystery Realms. Only the largest, where Demonic offspring or even avatars reside, permit entry—usually signaling a major Xukong battle.”

“Thus, by Federation convention, mecha masters typically fight only in the main universe and rarely join Imaginary Space campaigns...”

Listening to Lan Fei’s explanation, Fang Xing suddenly understood.

★?????★￠〇

No wonder the Federation needs cannon fodder—Mystery Realms are unique environments that reject technological artifacts, becoming stages for martial artists and psychics who rely solely on their own strength!

More crucially, many Mystery Realms restrict cultivation levels, allowing only low-rank cannon fodder to enter!

This is the Outer Demons’ open strategy: if unchecked, their servants would flood human territories, spreading across countless planets and overwhelming security with unimaginable pressure.

“Yet human martial will not only resists demonic corruption—it can even defy the Demons’ own laws... Though it’s extremely difficult, the martial path doesn’t seem so simple as just being a cannon-fodder system...”

Still, hearing Lan Fei recount famous Imaginary Space battles, Fang Xing’s scalp prickled.

Many martial artists, bare-handed or wielding only swords and blades, fought demonic followers in enemy territory with nothing but their flesh and blood—truly chilling.

Even when their rank was lower!

Had the Federation not broken through in space technology and gained numerical superiority, the Imaginary Space front would have collapsed long ago.

“No wonder the Federation’s martial arts are so... at low ranks, the techniques are astonishingly powerful—they’re designed to train warriors who can fight above their level. Only such warriors qualify as interstellar soldiers! Rank may be restricted by the Demons’ laws.”

But low-rank, high-output power can bypass these Realm rules.

Though... the ideal way would be using tech equipment, letting ordinary people easily kill fourth- or fifth-rank martial artists.

But that path was long ago blocked by the Demons—in Mystery Realms, tech is almost always forbidden.

You say your martial will is strong enough to bring tech inside?

If your will were truly that strong, you’d probably kill the demonic followers bare-handed anyway...

Ding ding ding!

The bell rang, signaling the end of class.

“Goodbye, Teacher!”

Fang Xing bowed sincerely, watching Lan Fei’s projection vanish.

The classroom fell into a somber silence, clearly shaken by the bloody casualty and loss ratios in her examples.

‘Even with numerical superiority, we often lose many martial artists to kill just one demonic servant...’

Fang Xing recalled his only encounter with a demonic follower—the ‘Moon Worm’ attack!

Even in the main universe, with home-field advantage and overwhelming weapons and cruise missiles, Gu Renwang—the fourth-rank martial artist—still died!

‘Saying martial arts are a cannon-fodder system might be right... In a Mystery Realm, you can’t even bring a nanofiber suit...’

‘Clearly, I should first attend university for further study, then decide whether to join the battlefield...’

As Fang Xing drifted in thought, Xia Long strode into the classroom: “Sweat more in training, bleed less in battle... Everyone, get up and train now!”

His voice boomed like a temple bell, jolting every student into immediate action.

Xia Long scanned the room, then nodded in satisfaction: “Fang Xing, step out!”

“Teacher!”

Fang Xing stepped out and faced Xia Long.

“How’s your Dragon-Elephant Art going? I know it’s hard—even zero progress is normal. Don’t get discouraged... What problems did you have in martial arts over winter break? Any advancement in your realm?”

For this prodigy student, Xia Long’s tone softened considerably, forcing a small smile.

Fang Xing said nothing, simply raised his right hand—waves of internal qi, primordial true energy, surged forth.

“This... cough!”

Xia Long jumped back: “You... already reached Puyu?”

“I refined my bones by the end of last semester, and with the top-tier scholarship, reaching the peak of Bone and Sinew stage isn’t unusual, is it?”

Fang Xing answered matter-of-factly: “Thanks to you, Teacher, for laying such a solid foundation in every minor stage—I pushed my skin, flesh, sinew, and bone to their limits. After bone refinement became as hard as steel, I simply sat in stillness, and internal qi naturally arose, breaking through to Puyu.”

“Unusual? Unusual your head!”

Xia Long glared: “When I reached the peak of Bone and Sinew, I couldn’t grasp the slightest spark of internal qi for years! Only after learning the ‘Turtle Breathing Art’ did I barely generate it and break through to Puyu...”

He’d expected Fang Xing to reach the peak of the second realm over winter break, then taught him Turtle Breathing Art this semester to naturally break through to Puyu, then enter the Hundred Star Exam at the third realm for a top ranking...

Unexpectedly... his entire teaching plan was shattered.

Though... it was a pleasant surprise.

“I see, Teacher. After listening to Teacher Lan Fei’s lecture, I realize how weak I still am. After Puyu, I should be able to learn an S-class martial art, right?” Fang Xing began hinting desperately.

“What? You want to learn ‘Great Golden Vajra Divine Power’?” Xia Long glared: “Have you even mastered Dragon-Elephant Art?”

“I think so...”

Fang Xing wasn’t sure if Xia Long’s definition of “mastery” matched the “mastery” level on his attribute panel.

“What do you mean ‘I think so’? Don’t be overambitious! When I was young, I was the son of a martial artist, and I barely mastered an S-class technique... Though the Federation encourages low-rank students to learn high-rank techniques, still...”

Xia Long was about to say more when he saw the true energy on Fang Xing’s right hand weaving into dragon scales and elephant armor—he froze.

When he snapped back to reality, he immediately grabbed Fang Xing, stepped into empty air, and vanished.