143: Chapter 143 Domain Realm, Broken!

At this moment, Lin Zhou, wearing a white lab coat, stepped forward, his gaze behind gold-rimmed glasses filled with scrutiny.

The silver needle at his fingertips suddenly turned into a silver streak, flying past Zhang Wen's ear and pinning precisely into the tree trunk behind him, its tail still buzzing and vibrating.

"Dongmo University's 'Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements'?"

Zhang Wen's brows rose slightly. The opponent's seemingly casual probe actually infused internal force into the fine needle; his control had already reached the absolute Peak of the Penetration Realm.

Lin Zhou chuckled softly and raised his hand to recall the silver needle. With a flip of his fingers, the silver needle suddenly split into dozens of filaments as fine as cow hair, glinting coldly under the sunlight.

"Rumor has it your Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder is peerlessly overbearing. It’s the perfect time to see if my 'Thousand Filaments Armor Piercer' can withstand it."

The surrounding students instantly retreated a few steps, clearing an open space.

A student from Shushan University, holding a battle-axe, raised an eyebrow.

"That kid Lin Zhou is finally showing his true skills. His needle filaments can even pierce the defense of the Early Stage of the Domain Realm. Let's see if Zhang Wen can take it."

Zhang Wen didn't care about the surrounding chatter. He slowly raised his hand, and the sky-splitting startling thunder spear appeared out of thin air in his grasp.

The Coiling Dragon electric glow entwined around the spear's shaft crackled, forming a sharp contrast with Lin Zhou's needle filaments—one was overbearing and blazing, the other feminine and treacherous.

"Make your move."

Zhang Wen stood with his spear, the tip pointing diagonally at the ground, yet the air around him had already begun to stir. Pale purple Lightning Radiance condensed at his feet; it was the starting stance of the "Tremor Step Treading Thunder Marks."

A flash of ruthlessness crossed Lin Zhou's eyes as he swung his right hand violently: "Thousand Filaments Soul Lock!"

Dozens of needle filaments lunged out like living creatures; some aimed straight for the throat, some coiled toward the wrists, and a few even slithered along the ground, targeting the joints of his spear-holding hand.

The sound of the needle filaments cutting through the air was barely audible, yet they carried a sharp force capable of tearing through alloys.

Just as the needle filaments were about to reach him, Thunder Power exploded beneath Zhang Wen's feet!

"Tremor Step Treading Thunder Marks!"

His figure suddenly shifted five zhang sideways, and the circular thunder patterns he brought with him exploded on the ground, instantly covering the entire clearing with numbing electrical currents.

Those slender needle filaments became stiff upon contact with the current, and their trajectories showed slight deviations.

Lin Zhou's pupils constricted. He hadn't expected the opponent to be able to dodge in such a short time, let alone use electrical currents to counter his needle filaments.

He immediately changed his move, forming a seal with his left hand. All the needle filaments suddenly wove into a net in the air, descending toward Zhang Wen, with a faint blue poisonous light flickering between the meshes—clearly, they were coated in deadly poison.

"Good timing!"

Zhang Wen advanced instead of retreating, his sky-splitting startling thunder spear sweeping out violently as the Coiling Dragon electric glow on the spear shaft surged by three feet.

"Myriad Thunders Coiling Dragon Break!"

Indigo Thunder Power gushed out along the spear shaft, condensing into a lifelike thunder dragon that roared as it crashed into the net of needle filaments.

Everywhere the thunder dragon passed, the air crackled from ionization. Those poison-coated needle filaments were instantly incinerated upon touching the Lightning Radiance, without even a trace of poisonous gas being able to spread.

Lin Zhou's expression changed drastically. He could feel the terrifying power contained within the thunder dragon, far exceeding the standard of an ordinary Penetration Realm.

Gritting his teeth, he brought out his trump card, his hands quickly forming seals. All the scattered needle filaments suddenly converged into a silver long spear, its tip flickering with a diamond-shaped armor-piercing blade.

This was his ultimate move, created by compressing a hundred silver needles using the "Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements."

"Armor-Piercing Spear, go!"

The silver spear met the thunder dragon with a sharp whistle. At the moment of impact, the world seemed to fall silent for an instant.

Immediately after, a deafening explosion rang out. Thunder Power and silver light intertwined and erupted, the airwaves sending the surrounding students stumbling back repeatedly.

As the dust settled, everyone saw the scene in the field and gasped.

Lin Zhou's silver spear had snapped into several pieces, scattered across the ground. He himself staggered back several steps, a trace of blood leaking from the corner of his mouth, and the sleeves of his white lab coat were scorched with several holes by the Thunder Power.

Meanwhile, Zhang Wen still stood with his spear. Only his aura was slightly disordered, but the Lightning Radiance at the spear tip remained blazing.

"I lost."

Lin Zhou wiped the blood from his mouth and looked at Zhang Wen with a complex expression. "Your Thunder Power is not only overbearing but also allows for precise range control. I underestimated you."

Zhang Wen stood with his spear as the Lightning Radiance gradually faded. "Good match."

He didn't say much more, turning toward the resource warehouse—compared to the duel, he cared more about how many credit points the Bloodthirsty Vine King could be exchanged for.

A deathly silence fell over the surroundings, followed by even more intense discussion.

"One move! He defeated Lin Zhou in just one move?"

"That’s the top senior from Dongmo University, a master of 'Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements' at the Peak of the Penetration Realm!"

"SSS-Rank Talent... truly unfathomable!"

The girl from Shushan University looked at Zhang Wen's back, her hand gripping her battle-axe tightening as a flash of excitement crossed her eyes.

"Interesting. It seems I'll have to wait until I break through to the Domain Realm before I can properly spar with you."

Zhang Wen was deaf to all this. He walked into the resource warehouse and placed the main trunk and inner core bag of the Bloodthirsty Vine King on the counter.

The teacher in charge of registration counted with trembling hands. After a long while, they looked up, their voice shaking.

"To... total is 58,000 credit points... H-here is your credit card."

Zhang Wen took the card, his fingertips moving slightly.

He didn't linger, turning toward the barracks—next, he needed to consolidate his Late Stage of the Penetration Realm cultivation.

The discussions outside the camp continued, but his figure had already disappeared into the barracks entrance.

"Ding! Congratulations to the host for gaining reputation. Reward: one cultivation advancement card and one Domain-Breaking Pill (Top Grade)!"

The System's voice suddenly rang out. Zhang Wen hurriedly sat cross-legged on the stone bed in the barracks, holding that translucent white Top Grade Domain-Breaking Pill between his fingers.

The Medicinal Pill felt warm in his hand, its surface flowing with fine light. Up close, he could smell a crisp scent of vegetation.

Just inhaling a trace of this scent caused a slight numbing warmth to rise in his Dantian.

He took a deep breath, cleared his mind, and ran his finger across his brow, channeling the Spiritual Qi that had just been pushed to the Peak of the Penetration Realm by the cultivation advancement card.

At this moment, the Spiritual Qi was like boiling lava, surging through his Meridians, yet it was firmly trapped by the barrier of the Penetration Realm. Every collision caused his Meridians to throb with pain.

"It's starting," he whispered, placing the Domain-Breaking Pill into his mouth.

The pill melted instantly, turning into a warm current far more majestic than imagined, sliding down his throat and into his Dantian.

Unlike ordinary violent Medicinal Pills, this power was gentle yet extremely penetrating, like a sharp blade soaked in warm water, softly slicing open the gate of the Spiritual Qi torrent.

"Ugh..." Zhang Wen groaned, and the air around him suddenly stagnated.

The Spiritual Qi at the Peak of the Penetration Realm was already in a saturated state. Now, pushed by the power of the Domain-Breaking Pill, it instantly slammed into the Realm barrier like a bursting flood.

That invisible barrier standing between Penetration and Domain gradually softened under the envelopment of the warm current, yet it still stubbornly resisted.

Time passed, minute by minute.

On the first night, fine beads of cold sweat broke out on his forehead. The backlash from the Spiritual Qi collision caused a thread of blood to leak from the corner of his lips, staining his collar like a blooming red plum.

The medicinal strength of the Domain-Breaking Pill was released slowly, each cycle bringing a clear, moistening power that repaired his damaged Meridians, allowing him to remain conscious amidst the intense pain.

On the morning of the second day, the first crack finally appeared in the barrier.

Zhang Wen suddenly opened his eyes, a sharp light flashing within them. He exerted all his strength to drive the Spiritual Qi forward—with a soft "crack," the fissure spread like a spiderweb, only to stop at the final inch.

His chest heaved violently, most of his Spiritual Qi consumed, and a hollow ache came from his Dantian.

Just then, the lingering resonance of the Domain-Breaking Pill surged from the depths of his Dantian, turning into a fine pale-gold thread that precisely drilled into the deepest part of the crack.

"Now!"

He bit the tip of his tongue, using the pain to gather his final strength, compressing all his Spiritual Qi into a needle and piercing toward the barrier along the golden thread.

This struggle lasted another full two days.

On the third night, when the moon was high in the sky, the barrier finally shattered completely under the continuous assault.

"Boom—" A blinding white light erupted from Zhang Wen's body. Spiritual Qi poured back like a tsunami, scouring out a brand-new meridian path within him.

He could clearly feel the energy between heaven and earth beginning to respond to his breathing.

With every breath, wisps of Spiritual Qi surged into his body through the gaps in the doors and windows, converging into a rotating vortex in his Dantian.

The "Domain" unique to the Domain Realm began to take shape. With him as the center, the tables and chairs in the barracks levitated slightly, and the dust in the air traced regular paths within the flow of Spiritual Qi.

He raised his hand and made a grasping motion; a sliver of moonlight was actually caught in his palm, turning into a physical silver thread coiling around his fingertips—this was "drawing the power of heaven and earth for one's own use," something only possible in the Domain Realm.

It wasn't until the morning of the fourth day, when the first ray of sunlight hit his face through the window lattice, that Zhang Wen slowly finished his cultivation.

He opened his eyes, which seemed to hold the stars. The pale gold Domain surrounding him gradually receded, revealing a more condensed and penetrating Spiritual Qi fluctuation within.

"Domain Realm..." he whispered to himself, summoning the sky-splitting startling thunder spear. The spear shaft was instantly entwined with Thunder Power several times thicker than before.

Every bolt of lightning carried a vibration that drew upon the energy of heaven and earth.

The shouts of morning practice came from outside the barracks. When he stood up, his footsteps were as light as the wind.

Yet they carried a pressure sufficient to shake the surrounding energy field—this Breakthrough, which had taken four days and four nights, finally allowed him to truly step into a brand-new Realm.