Five hours later, Xi Yue opened her eyes again and wiped her forehead. She suddenly thought of something and checked her clothes were still on, sighing in relief when she found they were.

“Hey, what are you looking like that for? Do you really think I’m a pervert? Even if I was, who’d be interested in a washing board like you?” Lu Yin ranted.

Washing board? What washing board, they were clearly quite big? Xi Yue glared at Lu Yin angrily. Wait, what was she thinking? This PERVERT!

Even Lu Yin felt like he’d gone a little overboard, but he quickly dismissed that thought. She clearly had a superiority complex for no reason; she wasn’t as beautiful as Bai Xue, nor as elegant as Michelle; not as alluring as Mira, or even as innocent as Coco. Where did her confidence come from? At best, her voice was alright. This was the first time he’d encountered any musical battle techniques.

“When will the next gale arrive?” Looking at her gadget, Xi Yue realized that it had likely been spoilt when they fell through the desert. She looked up and glared; she wanted to leave this pervert’s side, but couldn’t withstand the gale without him. This was detestable; the Young Mistress of the Souldream Tribe had to rely on someone else?

“One minute,” Lu Yin answered casually.

“I’m not joking,” she frowned.

“I’m not either,” he retorted, watching as she took out Melder-grade ring armor from her cosmic ring. He wondered whether such external objects would be of use here, but before he could think further, the gale was upon them again. Xi Yue’s plan to be independent of him backfired immediately, the truth bringing her to despair; the ring armor was blown away, and her clothes were torn apart in moments to reveal her fair skin once more. Things would have gotten worse if he hadn’t pulled her into his arms again.

“Don’t look down!” she shouted anxiously.

“Then you can endure it on your own.”

“No!”

“Then why should I help you?”

“I… I can pay you.”

Lu Yin’s eyes gleamed the moment he heard the word pay, and he hugged Xi Yue so tight she felt like her neck would break. She promptly changed into new clothes once the storm ended, heaving a sigh of relief when she saw that he truly wasn’t looking.

“Are you done?” he asked eventually, and once she confirmed, he smiled, “Get ready, it’s coming again.”

Determination filled Xi Yue’s gaze this time, her pale face staring into the depths of the dark desert as the gale swept past. The terrifying mental pressure almost caused her to collapse, but fortunately, she managed to will herself through it. However, she noticed something on Lu Yin amidst her suffering, and her eyes widened, “Battle force?”

“Battle force?” A confused Lu Yin followed Xi Yue’s gaze and looked at himself. The two had already spent twelve hours down here, having gone through 144 gusts in total. Having been awake the whole time, he had endured it all. There were visible traces of battle force on him, threads of energy surrounding his body that he could cover himself with at will.

This was battle force? Battle force was one of the greatest powers in the Innerverse; although he’d hoped to learn something about it in the Sand Ocean, he hadn’t expected it to happen so quickly. Xi Yue was stunned as well; fewer than ten people across all of Astral-8 could use battle force, which was deemed one of the highest skills in the universe at large. This pervert had actually acquired it successfully!

BANG! He smashed his palm into the sand with excitement, the air separating around his hand. He suddenly felt like everything was in his control. Before this, a palm strike used 80% of his strength and he could recover 20% of what energy he’d used up. Now, he could go to 120% with the same recovery; this was a direct boost to both attack and defense. He could already feel the destructive power behind this energy that could pierce most things.

“So this is battle force, that’s great,” he marveled excitedly.

Xi Yue was filled with disbelief and shame. This pervert had managed to accomplish something she couldn’t. It was so embarrassing, really embarrassing!

“Do you have it too?” Lu Yin asked with a curious gaze, but she grunted and turned around, refusing to look at that annoying face. This left him confused; what was wrong now? This woman was crazy.

Up on the surface of the desert, the Sandmaster was stunned, “He only took twelve hours to learn battle force. Guanyu was right; this kid’s body is incredible. He should be from a powerful family, is it from the Innerverse? Or…”

……

Back at the trial zone entrance, Schutz walked out of the ported battle zone with an ugly expression. Although he’d improved over the course of his training, he was still nothing compared to the powerhouses he faced. He’d even been defeated by a Sentinel! Thinking of this, he recalled Lu Yin who’d entered the Academy at the same time and wondered how he was currently doing.

“Senior Big Pao, who has the best results currently in the ported battles?” he asked.

“Hmm? Lu Yin, I guess,” Big Pao said after a moment of thought.

“Lu Yin? Isn’t he a Sentinel?” Schutz was surprised.

Big Pao laughed, “He’s advanced, but his results were the best even when he was still a Sentinel. He got to three wins in a row back then, and his record is six now. His total result is 31-46.”

31-46? That was getting to an equal win rate! Schutz was astounded. His own record was 4-76, a win rate of only about 5%. This was miles apart from Lu Yin’s; what made him so successful? Or was he really that powerful? Those who hadn’t experienced the ported battles could never imagine how cruel they were. The people inside were all insane geniuses of the Innerverse; he was quite powerful by Outerverse standards, but he was nothing compared to those people. However, Lu Yin had already surpassed him.

……

Underneath the Sand Ocean, Xi Yue hid behind Lu Yin indignantly. Still unable to withstand the gusts, this was all she could do.

“Don’t forget the reward you promised,” Lu Yin reminded her.

“Here, take this!” Xi Yue groaned, giving him a Mavis card, “2k star crystals.”

“Thank you, thank you. I didn’t know you were so generous.” Lu Yin was elated. He only had the 10,000 star crystals he’d gotten from the three wins for now, and that was nothing compared to what he needed if he rolled Possession. He had to earn more money, and the woman in front of him was clearly rich.

“Protect m—” she was suddenly interrupted by a new gale, but the now-experienced Lu Yin covered himself with battle force and protected her. When the gust came to an end, she panted heavily and grew enraged at the sight of him being completely unaffected. “Protect me so I can learn battle force as well; I’ll pay you 20k when I’m done.”

“20k? Are you from a rich family?” Lu Yin was stunned.

Xi Yue ignored him, would she need money from her family? She was the most famous star in the Innerverse, and any album of hers could command an astronomical price. She had so much money that she didn’t even know her bank balance; she was a purple card holder with the Mavis Bank. But she wouldn’t tell this bumpkin such things so he wouldn’t scam her.

“So do you agree?” she asked coldly.

Lu Yin considered it for a while with a gleaming gaze.

Xi Yue frowned, “30k.”

“Deal”,” Lu Yin agreed immediately. This was 30,000 star crystals; ten times what he’d get by recycling without rest for two days. Although he didn’t know how long it would take for her to finish learning, this was much easier than breaking down machinery. He just had to block the winds for her, and that had no effect on him once he had battle force.

Once the deal was completed, Xi Yue didn’t even bother talking anymore. She had him turn around and act as a wall while she sat down and endured the constant pressure. With Lu Yin’s protection, the bodily gusts were not a threat anymore. She only had to endure the mental pressure.

Twenty more hours passed by, and Lu Yin’s battle force strengthened while Xi Yue’s hadn’t started to form at all. He started asking impatiently, “Why haven’t you learned it yet? You’re too slow!”

“Do you think it’s that easy to learn battle force? Everyone from the Innerverse would be an expert at it!”

“Then why did I learn it so quickly?”

Xi Yue was left speechless at his lack of tact. No matter what, she was still a beauty; he was such a bumpkin to not even recognize her.

“I’ll give you ten more hours, I’m going to leave if you still haven’t learned it by then,” Lu Yin said.

“I’ll add 20k more,” she snorted.

“Nevermind, you can take it slowly. I’m in no rush.”

“Don’t look at me. Wall.”

Lu Yin pouted and turned his back on Xi Yue. Moments later, he thought of something, “Who are you? Why are you in Astral-10?’

“I’m a student from Astral-8, I came here to train,” Xi Yue explained, but still felt like telling someone her name was humiliating.

“Astral-8? From the Innerverse? Isn’t there a place to learn battle force there? Why’d you have to come all the way here?”

“None of your business.”

“Haha, did you get pushed out? Must be, your personality is so bad.”

Xi Yue gritted her teeth and refused to answer, but Lu Yin continued to ask curiously, “Right, how do I improve my battle force?”

“Either endure enormous pressure or fight constantly.”

“Enormous pressure? So it improves with more?”

Xi Yue frowned, “Tell you what. I’ll give you some information about battle force, but you shut up afterward. Deal?”

“Huh… Ugh, whatever, I’ll keep quiet.”

Xi Yue licked her chapped lips and thought of something. She took out a drink from her cosmic ring and took a sip, saying with a thoughtful gaze, “Battle force comes from a person’s heart, and its source is the foundation of the human body. The body has infinite potential; the greater the pressure you endure, the greater the battle force you achieve. But it’s just like a spring; you either bounce back or collapse. The best way to improve is constant battle. Battle force is categorized by the number of lines, and nine lines is the most powerful. You’re at the first level…”

Lu Yin’s eyes gleamed. Nine-lined battle force? Was that the rumored peak of battle force that could crush the skies?