87: Chapter 88 Divinity Opens the Door

The black-red main core piece just revealed its sharp corner, and the sound of fire in Stele Tooth Ravine changed instantly!

The grey-red fine fire on the Stele Guardian's forehead shrank inward violently. Immediately after, the old patterns on the surrounding broken steles lit up one by one. The pale firelight, like cold coal blown awake, crawled crazily along the stone cracks. The stele energy in the entire ravine was restless!

Qiao Ye's shoulders, which were pressing down on the beast's head, sank suddenly. He gritted his teeth and roared lowly: "It's still moving! The remains are struggling!"

Wen Zhao's expression changed drastically. The three fire lines in his palms were pulled taut, but the ends were trembling uncontrollably—not because of the enemy, but because the aura of the entire Stele Tooth Ravine was crazily sucking air toward the main core piece, even pulling his fire lines off-course!

Lu Jin stared at the main core piece, his fingertips hovering without touching—the authority fragment in his sleeve was already burning like a red-hot nail, pushing outwards frantically, while the main core piece was sucking inward violently. The two forces were pulling against each other across his clothes and the beast bone. Grey-red fire threads circled his palms, nearly burrowing into his wrist bones to gnaw on his meridians!

Grey Pupil's voice suddenly came from the depths of the God Realm, thick and heavy like well-fire hitting a stele: "Place the main core piece in the center, and hang the authority fragment on the outer ring! It can only be illuminated, not consumed, otherwise the God Realm will collapse!"

Lu Jin clenched his knuckles until they turned white, his tone crisp and decisive: "Tell me how!"

"Open the Priest Court, the Grey Stele Post battle map, and the Second Branch Nest Breeding Nest line!" Grey Pupil's speaking speed was extremely fast, each word resonant. "Press the main core piece into the center of the battle map, press the authority fragment onto the outer ring fire buckle. Fire moves along the low lines, sacrifice ascends the middle line, and the empty eye fixes the top!"

Wu Fu's voice immediately cut in, sharp and wary, like a beast protecting its eggs: "The Breeding Nest line can be borrowed, but the egg tray was just replenished; if you draw from it again, it will be empty! Lu Jin, don't use my nest as firewood!"

"Only borrowing the path, not consuming the nest." Lu Jin did not move his gaze, his tone firm. "If one layer is damaged, I will compensate you with two!"

"Two layers must include grey-cavity incubation slots!" Wu Fu immediately raised the price.

"Deal!" Lu Jin agreed without a moment of hesitation.

Grey Pupil gave a low shout in the Priest Court, seemingly scolding yet also approving. The next second, Lu Jin's God Realm lit up instantly—

The black fire main furnace at Furnace Cave Fortress lowered its fire tongue, ready to go; the ancient battle map at the Grey Stele Post fully unfolded, and seventeen old steles broke through the grey soil; the Outer Fire Well sprayed fine fire, and the fire lines spread rapidly along the underground trenches; in the Second Sub-nest Site, Wu Fu pushed a row of egg trays to the inner ring, and the Red-Eyed Rat larvae huddled in the grey cavities, their eyes red, waiting for orders.

At the top of the Priest Court, Grey Pupil personally "invited" the light red authority fragment to the outer ring—his posture was so upright it was almost pious, yet the black fire under his palm was as sharp as a blade, pressing firmly against the edge of the fragment, giving it no chance to burrow around.

Just then, several sounds of wind-breaking came from outside Stele Tooth Ravine! The Pei family's blockade teams had long since retreated, but two forward teams emerged from behind the slope, and there was another Beiyue Academy snatch-point team stopped halfway up the slope. Their team flags were lowered very low, neither approaching nor retreating—they had all seen the light of the main core piece; no one could refuse a treasure of this level!

Qiao Ye cursed, his long shield pressing down fiercely, pinning the Stele Guardian's remains so they couldn't move: "Lu Jin, the people outside are going to snatch it! Take it quickly, I don't have time to mess around with them!"

Wen Zhao stared fixedly at the high entrance, sweat seeping from his temples: "Three teams! Two teams are watching the show, one team is about to press the line! If we drag it out for another half a cup of tea, they will rush in under the guise of 'assisting with sealing'!"

Lu Jin didn't even lift his head, his tone icy: "Let them wait!"

"They might not be willing to wait!"

No sooner had the words fallen than a black military order dropped from high above. The command token exploded into an iron-colored light curtain. Instructor Han Tiecheng's rough voice rolled out from the light curtain, carrying the smoky scent of the front lines, crushing the entire scene: "All forward teams, retreat three hundred paces!"

The several teams at the high entrance froze instantly, no one daring to move—Instructor Han Tiecheng's words were military orders on the front line!

"The Stele Guardian is to be broken by Lu Jin's squad, the main core piece is to be temporarily sealed into war merit!" Instructor Han Tiecheng's voice continued, carrying indisputable authority, "Whoever reaches out, whoever is dealt with for snatching war spoils, will be executed on the spot!"

A captain on the slope had an ugly expression, but he cupped his hands with a stiff scalp: "Instructor Han, the main core piece has a risk of contamination; we only wanted to assist with the sealing!"

"Assist?" A cold laugh came from the light curtain. "If you pull your hand back, it's cleaner than any assistance!"

The captain fell silent instantly, his face turning green and white.

Instructor Han Tiecheng's tone turned to Lu Jin, carrying a bit of impatience: "Kid, don't play deaf and dumb! You can break through the rank, but if you dare to blow through the three forward points, I'll scratch you off the war merit roll first!"

Lu Jin raised his eyes, a flash of sharpness in his gaze: "Give me a quarter of an hour."

"Half a quarter!" Instructor Han Tiecheng didn't concede an inch. "No one lays out a soft cushion for you when you rank up on the front line. Once you take the main core piece, suppress the situation on the spot! If you can't suppress it, the main core piece will be sealed away, and don't even think about keeping the authority fragment!"

Lu Jin suddenly gave a low laugh, short and rebellious: "Listen to that, quite reasonable."

Qiao Ye almost choked—what time was it, and he was still joking!

The light curtain was silent for half a breath, then Instructor Han Tiecheng's angry scolding came through: "Stop talking nonsense, start!"

The iron-colored light curtain suddenly sank, turning into a circle of Military Court blockade lines, sealing the outer entrance of Stele Tooth Ravine tightly—the people outside couldn't get in, but the fire in the ravine was completely out of control!

The residual bone on the Stele Guardian's forehead shattered with a bang, the black-red main core piece floated up half an inch, and grey-red fire threads sprayed from the back, like countless fine hooks, hooking Lu Jin's palm on one side and the authority fragment in his sleeve on the other, the force becoming more and more violent!

Lu Jin didn't dodge or avoid, pressing the black fire in his palm to the lowest level, while his other hand suddenly pulled out the authority fragment—the moment the light red fragment saw the main core piece, fine old patterns lit up on its edge instantly, like living things scrambling to stick onto the main core piece!

"Drop the center!" Grey Pupil's roar came at the right moment.

Lu Jin pressed his five fingers down fiercely, pressing the black-red main core piece firmly into the center of the Grey Stele Post battle map!

Boom—

All the old steles in Stele Tooth Ravine hummed simultaneously, vibrating the ground until it went numb! The first fire line from the Outer Fire Well shot into the sky. In the Second Sub-nest Site, Wu Fu immediately pushed a grey-cavity egg tray into the inner ring. The Night-Wing Scout Hunters retracted their wings from high altitude, forming a triangular formation, their eyes reflecting the dark fire of the Main Stele Area; the Red-Eyed Rat Tide lay prone in the low trenches, tails touching the ground, breathing in sync, like death soldiers waiting for orders!

Grey Pupil raised his hand, black fire supporting the light red authority fragment, hovering on the outer ring of the battle map—the fragment tried to burrow into the center several times, but was knocked back by his staff, his tone carrying an inviolable piety: "Old fire has its place; those who overstep will receive ash!"

In the Priest Court, ash fell from the zenith, each grain carrying black fire, pressing firmly on the edge of the authority fragment. The fragment finally settled down, like a fire buckle nailed to the outer ring, steadily locking the battle map's aura.

Lu Jin's chest sank suddenly, and the threshold of his God Realm was forcibly pried open by a narrow gap—so narrow it could only accommodate a single line of black fire, but the power of the main core piece, authority fragment, front-line branch nest, Outer Fire Well, and Priest Court all squeezed into this gap at the same time, the forces colliding chaotically, exploding into a mass the moment they touched the threshold!

Lu Jin's vision went dark, and all the images overlapped instantly: the gnawing sound of the Red-Eyed Rats, Wu Fu's low roar of protecting the eggs, Grey Pupil's chanting of the Fire Ritual, the sound of the Night Wings flapping, and a low beast roar coming from deep within the Main Stele Area—the moment that roar arrived, the main core piece nearly flipped over, the black-red firelight in the center of the battle map surged, three old steles at the Grey Stele Post cracked on the spot, and the fire line from the Outer Fire Well curled backward, pouring straight into the Furnace Cave Fortress!

"The fire is inverted! If it inverts again, I'm closing the Breeding Nest line!" Wu Fu's scream pierced the chaos.

Grey Pupil also lost half his composure, sternly shouting to wake Lu Jin: "Lu Jin! You are the Lord of the God Realm, don't let the main core piece lead your God Realm!"

Lu Jin bit his tongue hard, the bloody taste instantly dispelling the chaos! He forcibly compressed the overlapping images into one clear battle map: high-altitude Night Wings, middle-layer Grey Stele Fire Wells, low-layer rat tide and branch nests, and the black fire main furnace in the deepest part—previously, to move troops, he needed to issue orders one by one; now, the entire battlefield was like it was held in his palm. Where it bulged, where it collapsed, where it was about to break, he knew at a glance!

Lu Jin raised his hand, his five fingers hooking down fiercely, his voice as cold as ice: "High altitude, fix the perimeter!"

Three Night Wings shrieked simultaneously, their wing bones drawing black lines, instantly pinning three fire eyes above Stele Tooth Ravine, stabilizing the aura!

"Low lines, close the mouth!"

The Red-Eyed Rat Tide swarmed out from the bottom of the trenches, not pouncing or biting, but circling the base of the broken steles. Each rat bit onto the gaps where the grey-red fire threads were trying to drill out, sealing the loopholes tightly!

"Middle segment, suppress the fire!"

The Bone-Armor Furnace Guards stepped into the remaining frame of the old fire gate, shields overlapping, furnace patterns glowing white, forcibly pushing the inverted fire lines back to their original path, unmoving!

"Priest Court, buckle the outer ring!"

Grey Pupil brought his staff down, and the authority fragment made a crisp cracking sound—it didn't shatter, but was steadily pressed into its proper place in the outer ring, echoing the main core piece from afar!

In the center of the battle map, the black-red main core piece slowly sank. The threshold of the God Realm within Lu Jin was finally pried open—from one inch to one foot, black fire surged out from within the gate, spreading along the battlefield layers he had pre-set, passing through the Furnace Cave, the Post Station, drilling through the ravine entrance, and returning to the branch nest, orderly and disciplined, without a single explosion!

Wu Fu stared at the Breeding Nest line, her eyes growing brighter and brighter, her previous wariness turning into excitement: "Eh? This fire doesn't snatch the nest food, it's even sealing the edges of the egg trays! A little more, just a little!"

"Greed leads to disorder!" Grey Pupil scolded coldly.

"I know!" Wu Fu retorted unconvinced, "I just want what I'm owed!"

Lu Jin had no time to pay attention to the two of them bickering, his temples throbbing, his gaze locked on the high entrance—outside the Military Court blockade, twelve or thirteen native hard-bone Night Beasts were attracted by the scent of the main core piece, rushing down from the back of the slope. The moment they stepped into the slope entrance, he saw through the weaknesses in their charge!

The first one had high shoulders and a hollow abdomen, the second one charged too fast and became disconnected, the one on the far right stepped on a loose crack in an old stele—in the past, he would have needed to split his focus to issue orders, but now, he just raised his hand and pressed down toward the slope entrance!

The entire battlefield segment sank along with it, the troop lines automatically falling into place: Night Wings dove, bone feathers nailing into the first Night Beast's eye socket; the Red-Eyed Rat Tide drilled out from the cracks, biting off the second one's hind leg tendons; the Bone-Armor Furnace Guards shifted their shields, the old fire side-swiped, swallowing the loose soil under the far right one's feet, causing it to fall on the spot!

The charge of twelve or thirteen Night Beasts was dismantled the moment it formed!

Qiao Ye's eyelids twitched wildly, sitting by the broken stele and panting heavily: "Holy crap! This works too? You don't have to issue orders one by one?"

Wen Zhao retracted his fire lines, staring at the dark red fire patterns under Lu Jin's feet with a shocked expression: "He is suppressing the rhythm of the battlefield, the troop lines are finding their own positions—this is the power of a Divinity User!"

The gate of the God Realm in Lu Jin's chest opened more and more steadily, black fire spreading along his feet. The grey soil of Stele Tooth Ravine was pressed down a layer, the fire threads in the cracks of the old steles bowed down one after another, as if meeting a king!

The main core piece sank completely into the center of the battle map, the authority fragment firmly locked onto the outer ring, the seventeen old steles of the Grey Stele Post lit up one by one. The moment the last one lit up, the main furnace of the Furnace Cave Fortress vibrated violently—a certain shackle within Lu Jin snapped!

There was no system prompt, no drum roll to cheer him on, only all the dependents in the depths of the God Realm kneeling down simultaneously: Grey Pupil knelt on one knee in the Priest Court, staff across his chest, shouting in a deep voice, "Main fire returns to its seat"; Wu Fu held the egg tray with sealed edges, not forgetting to mutter, "The nest food and incubation slots need to be recorded."

Lu Jin exhaled slowly, a circle of pale red appearing on the edge of the black fire in his eyes—the shell of the Apprentice God Realm Controller's perfection was completely pried open from the inside by him!

Early stage of Divinity User!

As this aura dissipated, the several forward teams outside Stele Tooth Ravine fell into instant silence. They couldn't see the God Realm battle map, but they could see that circle of restrained and orderly fire lines. The Night Wings, rat tide, furnace guards, and Sacrificial Fire were connected into one, like a mobile God Realm taking root on the front line, the pressure rushing toward them!

On the slope, the Beiyue Academy captain quietly retracted his foot, and the person beside him exclaimed in a low voice: "Just broken into Divinity, and he can suppress the entire battlefield? This Lu Jin is too freakish!"

In the light curtain, Instructor Han Tiecheng was silent for a moment, only spitting out two words: "It's done."

Qiao Ye moved his long shield away and sat down, his chest heaving: "Next time you break through a rank, tell me in advance so I can stay far away. I was almost pressed to the point of passing out by this aura!"

Lu Jin glanced at him: "If you hide, no one will press the beast head."

Qiao Ye's mouth twitched: "So I'm destined to be the one who suffers?"

Wen Zhao walked over, his expression grave: "The people outside will re-evaluate you, there won't be a shortage of trouble in the future."

Lu Jin looked down at the black fire restrained in his palm, his tone indifferent: "Let them calculate. What I want has never been to hide or conceal, but the strength to suppress every situation."

Just as he was preparing to withdraw the God Realm pressure, a dull bell sound suddenly came from the direction of the Main Stele Area—Dong!

After the bell rang, the wind in the No. 7 Rift Zone stopped for half a breath. Everyone looked up simultaneously toward the Main Stele Area: deep in the black mist, that mass of silent dark fire slowly expanded. Instead of falling, it climbed step by step, the black-red firelight circling the Main Stele Area, turning into a ring of dark red fire, hanging beneath the sky of the Rift Zone!

The moment the fire ring lit up, the main core piece in Lu Jin's God Realm trembled gently. Grey Pupil looked up at the sky, his voice so low it was only a breath: "The Main Stele... has woken up."

In the light curtain, Instructor Han Tiecheng's heavy breathing was clearly audible, then he said in a deep voice: "All forward teams, retreat to your respective points immediately—the Main Stele Area has opened its ring!"