Chapter 304: Tower of Civilization
Lin Ye glanced at his right hand missing an index finger, then continued to insert his middle finger into the gap's interior, though this time he moved very slowly.
As his middle finger contacted the rune array, it began to rapidly alienate, and Lin Ye could clearly perceive the segment-by-segment alienation process of his finger.
Throughout this process, Lin Ye continuously perceived the operation method of the rune array and used the red pigment within his body to gradually adapt to this process.
Only after his entire hand had completed the segmented process did Lin Ye somewhat adapt to the rune array's effects.
Perhaps because Lin Ye's finger had passed through the rune array, numerous sharp points began gathering toward his location. Lin Ye glanced back at the small metal creature still lying on the ground, then leaped into the gap's interior before those sharp points could dismember him.
[Basic Combat Level completed, matching mentor]
[Matching completed]
When Lin Ye regained his senses, he was already standing at the training ground's center. His body remained unchanged - still that severely alienated form missing his right hand.
A woman nearly two meters tall appeared before him. Her body resembled reinforced concrete and rock, and just standing there gave an impression of insurmountable strength.
"Are you the combat guidance mentor? I am..." Before Lin Ye could finish speaking, a fist half the size of his head arrived before his face. If he didn't do something, his head would be pulverized in the next instant.
Boom!
Without any hesitation, Lin Ye instinctively used Blood Burning, sacrificing his entire right arm to propel his body diagonally backward.
Blood and compressed spiritual energy exploded between them. Lin Ye didn't expect this to injure his opponent - he only wanted to buy a little time.
But she gave him no time at all. Her fist tore through the atmosphere, precisely striking his head. To be accurate, his head was shaken into bloody mist even before the fist made contact.
Lin Ye's vision went dark. When he regained consciousness, he had reappeared at the training ground's center, his body completely restored.
The woman moved before Lin Ye again, saying nothing and giving him only one second of buffer time.
Lin Ye tried to use mental energy to perceive information about her, but she shattered his mental energy using something akin to an aura alone. He could only cover his head and retreat.
While Lin Ye was stunned from the mental damage, the woman once again pulverized his head.
Lin Ye's vision went dark, and he reappeared at the training ground's center once more.
This time Lin Ye made no unnecessary movements, directly using mental energy to frantically compress the spiritual energy within his body.
After two exchanges, Lin Ye had discovered that in physical terms, he couldn't keep up with her speed and strength at all, even with rune enhancement.
That left only spiritual competition.
The woman didn't give him much time, throwing another punch his way.
This time Lin Ye didn't dodge. He acknowledged he couldn't avoid this punch, but he wouldn't take the hit without resistance.
Spiritual energy was both energy and matter.
Spiritual energy could be compressed and could also be broken down into smaller units, a technique called spiritual energy deconstruction.
Previously, Little Ye had projected some mental energy usage techniques into Lin Ye's consciousness, including the spiritual energy deconstruction technique.
Spiritual energy deconstruction was a high-difficulty mental energy usage technique.
To use this technique, one first needed to perceive and isolate a basic unit of spiritual energy using mental energy, then forcibly break down this stable basic unit into smaller components using mental energy.
During the deconstruction process, spiritual energy would release extremely high-intensity energy, which would trigger deconstruction phenomena in other spiritual energy, making this technique exceptionally dangerous.
Therefore, Lin Ye had only learned the usage method without practicing it.
This time he planned to practice it, because nobody could keep smashing his head repeatedly.
Lin Ye not only deconstructed the compressed spiritual energy but also ignited all the blood within his body.
He called this move: Spiritual Energy Compression Deconstruction Blood Burning Self-Destruction Technique Version 0.01.
Before the fist could smash his head, he finally used mental energy to forcibly deconstruct one basic unit of spiritual energy within his body.
Boom!
The spiritual energy deconstruction phenomenon triggered. Centered on Lin Ye, all spiritual energy in the entire training ground was activated. The high-energy explosion shredded everything in this space.
Lin Ye refreshed several times amidst the light and heat before being blasted away by the aftermath, but he wasn't killed by the explosion, so he could only lie half-dead on the ground.
Then the woman appeared before him again. She had no wounds whatsoever, not even her clothes were disheveled.
Clearly, the woman had also refreshed.
This time the woman didn't attack Lin Ye. With a wave of her hand, she cleared the aftermath behind her.
"You're quite good. This body of mine represents the relatively strong level among sixth-tier spiritual energy users. Being able to destroy it in just three attempts is already quite impressive."
The woman didn't mind Lin Ye using self-destruction to shatter her body. For her, as long as the goal was achieved, it was fine - she frequently self-destructed too.
"This is sixth-tier? The high-level spiritual energy users I encountered before weren't as dangerous as you."
Lin Ye thought of the two seventh-tier spiritual energy users he'd met during the system event. They were indeed much stronger than him, but not to the point of being completely unresistant.
"If you're referring to those high-level practitioners who advanced through external means like rituals or alienation, then there certainly will be some differences. This is the Civilization Tower, the culmination of rules and knowledge. Could you please not compare us to those beasts?"
The woman's polite tone carried a hint of disdain.
"Civilization Tower? Isn't this the Dreamrealm?"
Lin Ye asked curiously.
"Why can't the Civilization Tower be in the Dreamrealm?"
The woman countered.
"...I thought dreams were another Abyss. It seems there are some differences."
Lin Ye had no fondness for these high-risk Planes. He hadn't expected a place like the Tower, which resembled an academy, to be located within dreams.
"You're correct. Dreams are indeed another Abyss - another Abyss with rules. The Tower encountered some problems, which is why it remains within dreams. By passing the Basic Combat Level, you automatically become one of the candidates to handle these problems."
The woman spoke as directly as her appearance suggested.
"Why should I become a candidate?"
Lin Ye didn't dislike such straightforward people.
"Because of benefits. The Civilization Tower internally stores vast amounts of knowledge belonging to various civilizations. The Tower Library can even be compared to that ancient library said to contain all past books. Candidates can not only enter the Tower to study advanced courses but also gain access to the library's first level, though reading books requires consuming Tower Points."
The woman spoke very casually.
"Sounds good. What do I need to do?"
Lin Ye was quite interested in the Tower's knowledge.
"Grow stronger, then help the Tower solve problems at a certain moment."
The woman replied.