193: Chapter 193: Reasoning doesn't work? Then let's talk physics.

"Self... self-sufficiency?"

The Inspector murmured to himself, his body made of light flickering violently, like a supercomputer on the verge of burning out.

This concept was far too shocking for him.

In the billions of worlds he knew, the existence modes of lower realms were only two: either depend on the upper realm, receiving the leftover scraps leaked down through that fragile spiritual energy channel, barely surviving and praying for a being to ascend one day to provide fresh blood for the upper realm; or, exhaust all they have over long years and eventually head toward silence and destruction.

There had never been a third possibility.

A lower realm, relying on its own power, establishing an independent, self-circulating energy system that does not rely on the upper realm?

This was no longer just "defying heaven."

This was creating a new "Heaven"!

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" The Inspector's voice suddenly became sharp, with a hint of hysteria, "Mere lower realm beings haven't even stepped into the Soul Transformation Stage, how can they peer into the mysteries of 'Creation'? This must be some kind of ancient forbidden art left behind, a greater anomaly! It must... it must be completely erased!"

He seemed to have found a reasonable explanation for his failure, and his emotions stabilized, but his previous indifference and arrogance had vanished, replaced by a nearly frantic vigilance and killing intent.

He wasted no more words and no longer tried to suppress them through the level of rules.

He would use the most direct and pure power to destroy everything before him that made him feel uneasy!

"Spear of Laws—Annihilation!"

The Inspector's raised right hand suddenly clenched, and the surrounding space instantly distorted as countless golden law lines were forcibly pulled from the void by him, gathering and compressing in his palm.

A golden spear, composed entirely of materialized "rules," took shape in his hand.

Upon that spear, there were no violent energy fluctuations or dazzling light effects; it simply floated there quietly, yet it made the space of the entire world groan under the unbearable burden.

On the instrument screens in front of Special Envoy Wang, all readings instantly went off the charts, and the alarm bells were sharp enough to pierce eardrums.

"Warning! Detection shows the spatial structure is being forcibly dissociated! This isn't an energy attack, this is... this is directly modifying physical constants! Our defense fields are... ineffective!" a researcher screamed in terror.

Boss Wan and the Qingyun Sect Leader were even more scared out of their wits.

They could feel that the spear was locked onto not Jiang Ning, nor any specific person, but the Pillar of the World located deep within the planet's core!

The Inspector thought very clearly: since all the oddities of this world stemmed from that pillar, as long as it was destroyed, everything would naturally return to the "correct path."

"Ancestor Jiang! Watch out!" the Qingyun Sect Leader shouted, losing his voice.

However, facing this attack capable of destroying the world's foundation in one blow, Jiang Ning's face still showed not a hint of fear.

She simply raised her head, looking at that golden Spear of Laws, her eyes revealing the kind of regret a chess player feels when seeing an opponent make a blunder.

"Sigh, if reasoning doesn't work, why resort to violence? No class at all."

She shook her head and then spoke into a communicator on her wrist in an extremely flat tone:

"Company Commander Zhang, initiate 'Planetary Shield' mode. The power doesn't need to be too high, thirty percent is enough; save some electricity."

"Yes!" Company Commander Zhang roared almost subconsciously, and then slammed a massive switch on the control console.

At the very moment the Inspector threw the Spear of Laws from his hand.

"Buzz—"

A low yet world-shaking resonance rang out from every corner of the planet.

Tens of thousands of spiritual energy towers spread across the global continents and oceans lit up simultaneously with an extremely brilliant light. These lights soared into the sky, merging at the highest point of the atmosphere to weave into an incredibly massive energy grid that covered the entire planet.

This grid was the "Merit Spirit Gathering Array" that Jiang Ning had constructed previously.

But at this moment, it was no longer used for organizing spiritual energy; it had become a shield.

A giant shield... with the entire planet as its physical body!

The golden Spear of Laws, moving at a speed exceeding light and ignoring spatial distance, instantly appeared directly above the Pillar of the World.

Then, it collided with that newly formed blue energy grid.

There was no earth-shattering explosion.

There was no world-destroying shockwave.

That spear, capable of annihilating all matter and laws, the moment it touched the blue grid, was like a small pebble dropped into a lake, merely stirring up a circle of insignificant ripples before... it simply dissolved silently.

It was as if all the "rules" it contained had been absorbed, analyzed, and then neutralized by that great net.

Time seemed to stand still at this moment.

The Inspector remained in his throwing posture, his entire being frozen in mid-air.

On his face composed of light, an expression that could be called "blankness" appeared for the first time.

His strongest strike, enough to heavily injure or even kill a Soul Transformation Stage cultivator of the same level, a strike enough to completely destroy the core of a small world... was just gone?

Without even a sound?

"Did you see that?" Jiang Ning's voice rang out leisurely, breaking the dead silence.

"In your eyes, that is the supreme 'Laws.' In my eyes, it is nothing more than a high-energy data stream with directional functions. Your method of attack is to use high-dimensional permissions to forcibly modify the target area's underlying code, causing a system crash."

She pointed to the massive blue grid in the sky.

"And my defense method is to establish a global 'Firewall.' Any unauthorized data packets will be intercepted, scanned, and killed before entering the system. Your 'Spear of Laws,' in the eyes of my firewall, is just a virus-laden USB drive, which I've formatted directly for you."

Jiang Ning spread her hands, looking like it was only natural.

"You call this 'Laws,' I call this 'Physics.' It's just that my physics is constructed from the energy of a planet, a Quantum Computer, and the will of tens of millions of people. Your physics is just you."

"So, you can't break through my 'wall'."

These words, through the amplification effect of the Planetary Array, clearly spread throughout the entire Qingyun Sect.

Those cultivators and Earth experts who were lucky enough to remain conscious all gaped, feeling that their brains had completely stopped functioning.

Firewall? Virus USB drive? Formatting?

They understood all these terms.

But when these terms were used to explain the scene of immortals fighting just now, they felt their worldviews were being repeatedly rubbed into the ground.

So... the end of cultivation is information technology?

So... when immortals fight, they're fighting over code?

Special Envoy Wang leaned against the control console, panting heavily, his eyes flashing with an unprecedented light. He finally understood what a great power Jiang Ning represented.

It was not individual bravery, but the crystallization of an entire civilization's wisdom!

"Sorcery... this is absolutely sorcery!"

The Inspector in the sky finally snapped out of his shock, letting out a terrified scream, no longer possessing even a hint of divine arrogance.

He was afraid.

What he faced was not an "anomaly" that could be easily erased, but a terrifying civilization he completely could not understand, possessing a starkly different power system.

He turned, wanting to flee back into that golden rift.

"Coming and going as you please? Do you think my home is a wet market?"

Jiang Ning snorted coldly.

"You just hit me with a spear; now, it's my turn."

She raised her hand and lightly snapped her fingers toward the massive blue grid in the sky.

"'Planetary Array,' switch to attack mode. Target: high-dimensional lifeform. Coordinates locked."

"Gathering energy... fire!"