The meteorite iron array in the sealed chamber was still humming, and purple light flowed across the metal surface like a living serpent.
Lin Yi knew that meteorite iron, this special metal, possessed strong resistance to time and space, which was why they risked their lives to steal fragments of meteorite iron from the Shadow Altar.
Lin Yi pressed his fingertips against his temples, and Chu Yao's holographic projection flashed rapidly beside him, with data streams pouring down like a galaxy: "According to the energy spectrum analysis of Shadow Erosion, its essence is the 'erosion and replacement' of three-dimensional matter by dark matter from another dimension. Conventional energy barriers can only delay it, not block it. The spacetime resistance of meteorite iron may be the key to our fight against Shadow Erosion."
Lin Yi's gaze swept over the pile of cold-looking metal in the corner—the fragments of meteorite iron they had stolen from the Shadow Altar, their surfaces still bearing the scorch marks left by the Shadow.
"But can meteorite iron completely resist the erosion of time and space?" he wondered to himself.
Chu Yao's projection suddenly froze, and the blue light at the tips of her hair suddenly brightened: "Advanced civilization markings have been detected within the meteorite iron! This is... a stabilizing material for the spacetime anchor!" Her voice was filled with barely suppressed excitement. "If we fuse the meteorite iron with the shadow crystal and then reactivate it with your spacetime engraving, we might be able to construct a reverse energy field! You see, the shadow crystal contains special dark energy, which might produce a wonderful reaction with the spacetime resistance of the meteorite iron."
"Shadow Crystals?" The white-bearded man wiped the blood off his face and poured out a few dark purple crystals from his storage ring. "I picked these up outside the altar just now. That thing was chilling to the bone when you touched it; it might be useful as a medicinal ingredient. These Shadow Crystals feel icy cold to the touch; they might be able to neutralize the intense heat of the meteorite iron."
Lin Yi's eyes lit up.
He picked up a shadow crystal, and the power of spacetime seeped into it from his fingertips. Spiderweb-like cracks immediately appeared on the surface of the crystal, but the moment it touched his skin, it was stained silver-purple.
"Chu Yao, calculate the fusion ratio!" He pulled out the tactical backpack from his waist, which contained rare materials collected from various dungeons—mithril threads, phoenix feather ash, and even half a piece of the Elf King's Blessing Stone.
These materials each have their own unique properties, and they may play an unexpected role in the fusion process.
Time slips through our fingers.
Lin Yi's forehead was covered in a fine sweat. He held the Starfall Iron Chisel in his right hand and the Shadow Crystal in his left, adjusting the angle using the formula that Chu Yao updated in real time.
As the first ray of silver and black light burst forth from the point of contact between the two materials, Long Wu suddenly leaned over and said, "Boss, hey, my dragon scale armor got a hole gnawed in by Shadow Erosion, can you get me a new one too?"
"What's the rush?" Aizen's ghostly flames danced at his fingertips as he leaned against the wall of the secret chamber, a half-smile on his face. "Do you think this is some roadside jewelry stall?"
"Shut up." Lin Yi didn't turn his head and precisely carved the third spacetime pattern on the meteorite iron with his chisel.
As the final stroke concluded, the entire meteorite iron suddenly floated up, swirling and merging with the shadow crystal in mid-air, emitting a clear and melodious sound.
"It's done!" He caught the fused metal block, its surface shimmering like a shattered starry sky. "Chu Yao, activate the resonance program and imprint this pattern onto everyone's equipment."
Twenty minutes later, gasps of breath echoed throughout the sealed room.
The white-bearded man touched the newly branded silver-black emblem on his chest, then plunged the Thunder Sword into the ground. Electricity instantly enveloped the blade, and even the nicks previously corroded by the Shadow Erosion began to heal. The moment Long Wu put on his wrist guards, dragon flames erupted from his fingertips, their color three shades darker than before. "Damn! This thing makes my dragon blood boil!"
Aizen's ghostly flames, originally a deep blue, now glowed with a purple light. He reached out and touched the shadow fragments beside him, and the dark shadow screamed and vanished as if it had encountered its natural enemy. Su Qing's necklace now had a meteorite iron pendant. She gently pressed it to her chest, and her originally pale face finally regained some color.
"All, listen to my command." Lin Yi tossed the last talisman to Chu Yao, whose projection immediately became more solid. "Dismantle the spacetime barrier and counterattack."
As the light of the Key of Time and Space dissipated, the scene outside caused everyone's pupils to shrink slightly—the Shadow Force, which had been temporarily blocked, had now gathered into a vast black ocean, with the leading Shadow Lord surrounded by nine dark runes, making him the elite of Night Owl's direct line.
Everyone felt a chill; they had just finished fusing their protective gear and were about to face such a powerful enemy.
"Well done." Whitebeard's thunder sword hummed as he charged out first. Wherever his sword passed, the shadows seemed to be torn open, revealing the open space behind them. Long Wu's dragon flames transformed into a giant dragon phantom, directly smashing three shadow warriors to pieces. The scorched ground hissed and emitted blue smoke, even evaporating most of the shadow erosion energy. Aizen's ghostly flames wove a fire net in the air, and any shadow that touched the net let out a sharp scream, even its regenerative ability was suppressed.
However, just when everyone thought the first battle was going well, a sinister chuckle suddenly came from afar.
Everyone was startled; the rhythm of the battle seemed to be about to be disrupted.
Night Owl emerged from the shadows, two clusters of eerie green flames flickering in his pupils, the shadow energy swirling around his fingertips ten times more concentrated than before: "You think you can win with such petty tricks?" He snapped his fingers, and suddenly countless black cracks appeared in the ground, from which nine figures shrouded in dark gold light crawled out—each exuding an aura comparable to a Gold-level advanced class, their shadow energy increasing exponentially.
“Shadow Elites!” Chu Yao’s voice trembled for the first time. “Their Shadow Erosion ability can directly erode the soul! The protective gear is only effective for half an hour, and there are still... seventeen minutes left!” Upon hearing this news, everyone’s hearts sank, and the situation of the battle became even more severe.
Whitebeard's lightning sword struck the Shadow Elite, only sending up a few sparks; Ryuu's dragon flames reached the opponent's feet, only to be swallowed up by the flames; Aizen's ghostly fire melted away as soon as it touched the dark gold figure, like ice and snow meeting the blazing sun.
The most dangerous one was Su Qing. Her life chain had just become entangled with the Shadow Elite when it was corroded by the dark gold energy, creating black holes in her body. The pain caused her to break out in a cold sweat.
"Su Qing!" Lin Yi pulled her behind him, his spatial power condensing into a blade in his palm. However, he found that this blade, which had once cleaved through space, only left a shallow mark on the Shadow Elite.
His heart began to race—this was the first time he had felt so powerless since he had awakened to be the master of time and space.
"Retreat!" he roared. "Back to the secret room to readjust the protective gear parameters—"
"No need." Su Qing suddenly pulled her hand away from his.
Everyone looked at Su Qing in surprise, wondering what she was going to do.
A jade-green light shone deep within her pupils, and fine golden lines appeared on her neck—marks that had never appeared before.
Actually, Su Qing had occasionally shown some mysterious reactions in some minor incidents before, but no one paid any attention to them.
With a light tap of her fingertip, a green light shield spread out from her center. All the Shadow Elites suddenly stopped within the shield, and their dark gold energy shrank like water being drained from a spring.
But the next second, Su Qing's knee slammed heavily onto the ground.
Her face was almost transparently white, blood was spilling from the corner of her mouth, and the golden lines on her face were beginning to fade.
"This is... something my mother left me..." Her voice was as soft as a sigh, "...it can only last three minutes..."
Lin Yi's breath hitched.
He suddenly remembered the few words he had seen in ancient books before—emerald light, golden bloodline marks, those were the marks of the legendary "Guardians of Time and Space".
Before he could think it through, Night Owl's laughter rang out again: "Very good, let me see how many more trump cards you have left." The shadows behind him suddenly surged, and a black shadow several times larger than any of the Shadow Elites slowly rose up. Was that... the manifestation of the Shadow Origin?
Lin Yi's protective gear suddenly became hot.
He looked down at his wrist; the silver-black patterns were fading at a visible rate—Chu Yao's warning rang in his ears: "Protective gear energy remaining 5%! Time remaining... thirty seconds!"
As the shadow of the source of darkness descended, Lin Yi could clearly feel his spacetime power being frantically devoured.
He gritted his teeth and raised the Key of Time and Space, only to find that the light on the key had dimmed.
At this moment, he suddenly remembered what Xuanmingzi had said when he first awakened: "The true power of a mythical profession is never given at the beginning."
Cold sweat trickled down the back of my neck and into my collar.
As Lin Yi gazed at the approaching Shadow Origin, at Su Qing kneeling on the ground, and at his teammates who were still holding on, a metallic taste rose in his throat.
His pupils suddenly contracted to slits—at the core of the shadow's origin, he saw a familiar silver-purple light, which was... the fluctuation of a spacetime rift?
"Chu Yao, locate the rift coordinates!" His voice was filled with a desperate resolve. "Whitebeard, protect Su Qing! Ryuu, Aizen, buy me ten seconds!"
Whitebeard felt a chill run down his spine and shouted, "Don't worry, boss!" Then, his Thunder Sword unleashed a series of lightning storms, creating a defensive line for Su Qing; Long Wu took a deep breath, and his dragon flames transformed into a wall of fire, blocking the approach of the shadows; Aizen's eyes hardened, and his ghostly fire wove into a tripwire, binding the shadows' steps.
Ten seconds was enough for Lin Yi to stab the Key of Time and Space into his palm.
Blood splattered on the key, and the silver-purple light surged instantly. A clear sword cry rang in his ears—it was the original summoning of the ruler of time and space.
The shadow of the source of darkness suddenly paused.
Lin Yin could sense that some kind of dormant power deep within his soul was awakening.
He gazed at the increasingly terrified face of the night owl, a bloodstained smile spreading across his face: "You think this is the end?" His voice held an inhuman clarity. "No, this is... my true beginning."
The shadows of the source of darkness began to tremble violently.
For the first time, panic appeared in the owl's pupils. He turned to run away, but was pinned to the spot by a streak of silver-purple light.
Lin Yi's figure suddenly appeared above the source of darkness, and twelve spacetime vortexes emerged behind him, each vortex containing the trajectory of stars.
"Chu Yao, calculate the overload parameters." His voice was terrifyingly calm. "Tell them... to prepare to face the wrath of the Time-Space Ruler."
In a place unseen by the others, the meteorite iron in the corner of the secret room suddenly floated up, and the spacetime patterns on its surface connected as if in response to something.
In the distance, a faint crack appeared in the sky, from which came an ancient and majestic whisper: "Mythical class... is it finally about to awaken?"
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