178. The Terrifying Two-Dimensional
Ping———————
Lucite raised his clawed hand and slammed the bio-enhanced soldier's head onto the table. A magical formation lit up in his palm, and parameters quickly adjusted in his eyes.
[Collision model setup – Maximum mass – Element coupling – Ejection velocity: 520 m/s]
[Concrete Coalescence]
A massive amount of concrete was rapidly generated, instantly seeping into the bio-enhanced soldier's flesh. With the quick-drying agent taking effect and smoke dissipating, the bio-enhanced soldier's brain was firmly fixed to the table by the concrete.
[Palm model replication – Gravity release – Model acceleration impact – Initial velocity: 900 m/s]
[Mage's Shielding Palm]
Magic rapidly formed a massive handprint, accompanied by a sonic boom, which smashed onto the concrete. The tremendous kinetic energy instantly shattered the concrete along with the flesh, completely obliterating the bio-enhanced soldier's head.
"Phew… That startled me. Luckily, that gun was purely kinetic, and my armor blocked it directly."
Lucite raised his head, and the bone mask over his face instantly retracted, revealing his honest and earnest appearance. He turned to Hobbs, who was wiping his face:
"Hobbs, are you okay?"
"I'm fine, but this filthy blood is disgusting."
Hobbs wiped off the stains on his face. Just breathing filled his nose with a nauseating, rusty smell.
He shook his head and looked at Lucite: this hulking figure was at least a meter wider than usual. His already intimidating armor now revealed its full menacing form. Sharp dorsal fin spines jutted out like rows of devil's teeth, and his muscles bulged against the armor, making him over three meters tall.
Standing there, Lucite resembled a tank—an academic one at that.
"What is this thing, anyway?"
"I don't know. Let me check."
Lucite crouched down, his figure gradually returning to a normal height of about two meters. He bent over and began dismantling the bio-enhanced soldier's body, taking out his equipment from his backpack to start an analysis.
Hobbs stood by, glancing around at their surroundings. He opened his information rune, trying to contact Leoz, but received no signal at all.
After a while, Lucite made a surprised sound.
"This… How could it be this thing?"
"What is it?"
Lucite stared at the data on the display screen and said gravely:
"It's a bio-enhancement, specifically a Dominator-path bio-enhanced soldier."
"—Damn bio-enhancement!"
Hobbs instantly clenched his fists. Lucite noticed that the ring on his hand seemed to briefly emit a black glow.
But it was only for a moment. As Hobbs calmed down, the ring dimmed again.
Out of concern, Lucite asked:
"Hobbs, your ring—it just flashed."
Hobbs paused, then raised his hand to look at the ring. His expression softened as he gently rubbed it and asked back:
"Are you curious about its origin?"
"If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine."
"Let's wait until Leoz joins us, and I'll share then."
Hobbs shrugged and looked at the bio-enhancement on the ground, his gaze filled with disgust:
"Compared to Lotus—this ring, how did this crap get in?"
Lucite replied matter-of-factly: "The school isn't closed to outsiders. During normal hours, bio-enhancements can easily disguise themselves as tourists and infiltrate the campus."
"No, that's not it—White Candle Interstellar University has a Higgs Field Generator. If it were a bio-enhanced soldier, it would've been exposed the moment it made a move."
Hobbs was clear-headed. He crouched down, took out a mask and gloves from his bag, and began dissecting the bio-enhanced soldier with Lucite.
"The Abyss defines bio-enhancements in two categories: one is [Biochemists'] flesh bio-enhancements used to replace their bodies. For their safety, [Biochemists] usually make these enhancements from their own genetic seeds and use them only for themselves or their custom clients."
Hobbs seemed well-versed in bio-enhancements, explaining as he worked:
"The other type refers to Dominator-path bio-enhanced soldiers. Dominator-path transcendents use Omega Energy as their core. Their bodies are often bio-enhanced, and their souls reside in Omega Energy. This allows them to replace their bodies freely, using Omega Energy marks and genetic seeds to corrupt others, turning living people into their slaves."
"That's terrifying… Can all Dominator-path transcendents do this?" Lucite was shocked.
"Not all… but those with bio-enhanced bodies can generally do it."
Hobbs didn't hide his disdain for the Dominator path:
"The Dominator path is the universe's most evil and monstrous path. They fanatically pursue efficiency and utility, completely disregarding others' feelings. No wonder their main deity Morpheldria and their enforcer Leozi were completely eradicated!"
Lucite reminded him: "Leoz was a good person."
"We're not talking about the same Leoz. Honestly, that name is way too common."
"Fair point."
The bio-enhanced soldier's body was incredibly durable. Though classified as Gamma-tier, its combat capabilities were entirely at Delta-tier levels. It took them a long time to dismantle it and even longer to understand its mechanisms.
"The neural program is in the brain, but the heart has been modified into a bomb. If the body sustains critical damage, the heart bomb will detonate."
Lucite turned over the heart, revealing a blue Remaining Moon mark.
"Damn it! Remaining Moon!" Hobbs' eyes burned with fury, and he gritted his teeth: "A major felon of the Abyss, an interstellar pirate, and the mastermind behind the raid on Trivira three years ago—he dares to come back!"
"You seem to have a personal grudge against him… But considering even his bio-enhancements are this strong, his personal power can't be far behind," Lucite reminded him.
Hobbs shook his head, trying to calm himself:
"I know… I'm not stupid. Remaining Moon, at Zeta-tier, can only be dealt with by official powerhouses."
Seeing Hobbs unable to settle down, Lucite changed the topic:
"To handle this thing, we can't destroy the heart directly, or the bomb will detonate. This includes… uh."
"Remaining Moon."
"Right, Remaining Moon's Omega Energy storage," Lucite said, pondering: "Do you know how his Omega Energy works?"
"He possesses the sequence Omega Energy [Remaining Moon], allowing him to manipulate dimensional changes to a certain extent."
Hobbs described in detail and demonstrated:
"You and I, no matter what, are three-dimensional beings. Remaining Moon, however, can reduce weaker targets into two-dimensional space—like paper, a blackboard, or a wall, any flat surface."
"That's just…" Lucite twitched an eyebrow.
"Yes, utterly terrifying," Hobbs said, drawing a stick figure on a piece of paper. "When you're reduced to two dimensions, you lose all perception. There's no time or space. You seem to exist in 2D, but you're actually stuck on the paper's surface—and all I need to do is make a single cut on this layer."
Slash!
The pen tore through the stick figure's head, splitting it in two.
"The real you would be finished too. Completely powerless. I suspect that the bomb's Omega Energy mark, once triggered, would produce a similar effect. Considering the properties of 2D space, the explosion should create a vertical plane, isolating surrounding barriers. Its height and depth would be limited, not infinitely spreading."
Lucite looked up and saw outside—a large tree in the forest had been neatly sliced in half, its missing portion lush and thriving on the ground.
"…Those dimensional barriers have already spread widely."
Hobbs exhaled deeply, his gaze heavy:
"While dimensional powers are terrifying, Remaining Moon isn't invincible… His Omega Energy only works on beings weaker than himself."
"That's great! We just need to contact the school authorities and high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Education to take Remaining Moon down!" Lucite said excitedly.
"But… Remaining Moon has been at large for three years. Even the Ministry's Kappa-tier minister couldn't find him."
Hobbs wasn't optimistic:
"I think Remaining Moon, while unable to harm the strong, can hide in the second dimension, making him virtually untraceable—that's likely his true power."
"The second dimension is so disgusting?" Lucite said disdainfully. "This ability is ridiculous. Doesn't it mean anyone below Zeta-tier is helpless against Remaining Moon?"
"That's the nature of sequence Omega Energy."
Hobbs said coldly:
"These Omega Energy holders are a blight on the world. They recklessly rewrite universal laws and exploit their privileges however they please."
He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth:
"The power we earn through hard work and training, they achieve effortlessly by pleasing the universe and gaining favor from the Star Abyss."
Hobbs spoke bitterly, lowering his head to kiss his ring, seemingly drawing strength and resolve from it:
"Why is the world like this? I hate these Omega Energy users. They don't work or strive yet receive countless privileges and favoritism, simply because they have outstanding appearances…"
"Hobbs…" Lucite said with concern. "Your heart is too troubled. Even without Omega Energy users, those with extraordinary beauty and charisma would still be favored—it's natural law."
"We are civilized beings now. Why must we adhere to natural laws? Lucite, you're a good person—strong, kind, passionate, and intelligent. Yet, just because you're an armored type, no one pays attention to you. Everyone focuses on Leoz far more than on you. Those girls are even worse; they discriminate against you because of your appearance. But Leoz is now passionately mingling with someone like Diaran, a beauty."
"Leoz is a good guy. He deserves it," Lucite said unhappily.
Hobbs replied coldly:
"But not every charismatic person is as good as Leoz. Most are selfish and egocentric. Honestly, if Leoz weren't our friend, I wouldn't even want to associate with someone like him—he already enjoys the universe's favor. Why can't he stop and let those of us who work hard, study diligently, and sacrifice our youth for exams have a fair chance?"