The golden mist from the crumbling Leo avatar had not yet fully dissipated when the pale blue vector field surrounding Tendo swirled gently, enveloping, dismantling, and annihilating the residual fire law fragments and abyss energy lingering in the void.
Soon, the turbulent energy currents within the surrounding sub-space instantly returned to a state of calm.
Tendo stood suspended in the void, his pale Star Eclipse Heavenly Eyes slowly sweeping across his surroundings. Detecting no further abnormal fluctuations within his sensory range, he finally withdrew his gaze. His expression remained calm, as if he hadn't just slain a Legendary-grade avatar imbued with source power, but had merely crushed an ant.
Though it was perhaps a bit too "deliberate," Tendo, well aware of the importance of "character persona," naturally understood how to maintain his image on the "screen." Regardless of whether it felt forced, the priority was to uphold the "prestige" he currently held in the hearts of his audience.
Just as Tendo expected, the screens on Bilibili were already completely submerged by a dense thicket of bullet comments. Countless expressions of shock and fanaticism surged through the text:
"Holy crap! Ten breaths! He settled the opponent in just ten breaths? Our boy Tendo's strength is already so ridiculous it defies logic!"
"I used to think the Zodiac was so mysterious and powerful, but now they look like a bunch of jumping clowns in front of Tendo! Their avatars can't even survive a single move!"
"The main point is that Tendo didn't just reflect the attack, he added new properties to it? That move was practically a dimensional reduction strike on the level of laws! Leo probably died without even realizing why his own flames turned against him!"
"The ceiling of the Stars truly lives up to its name! While others are still stabilizing their foundations after breaking into the Natural Disaster Realm, Tendo is already slaughtering Legendary avatars. This gap is wider than a chasm!"
While the carnival in the comments section continued, a massive uproar had erupted within the Starry Hall at the distant core of the sub-space. At the moment his avatar crumbled, Leo's true body lunged upward from a throne inlaid with abyss crystals. His chest heaved violently as he uncontrollably spat a mouthful of golden blood onto the armrest, staining the cold crystal a vivid crimson.
The fire laws around him became frantically restless, twisting and warping the space around the throne, yet he remained unable to soothe the chaotic source energy within his body.
"Puh... Good, good, good. It seems I underestimated this fellow."
Leo's voice carried a mix of shock and excitement that he couldn't hide. As the most bellicose member of the Zodiac, his creed was always "combat." As for "death"... that was merely the price one had to pay for losing a fight.
Not paying much mind to his recent "failure," Leo began to analyze Tendo's abilities.
"His vector laws can not only dismantle my fire laws but even tamper with energy properties... This is definitely not simple vector control. He must have fused other characteristics into it."
"Interesting. Truly interesting."
The other nine dark shadows remained silent. Unlike Leo's excitement, the rest of the Zodiac were contemplating Tendo's impact on them. Although the exchange between Leo and Tendo was brief, they could clearly feel the source tremors transmitted from Leo's true body and could trace back the entire process of the avatar's demise through the residual energy imprints.
Tendo's effortless posture and his masterful command over laws made these naturally-born Legendary existences feel a sense of dread from the depths of their souls for the first time.
After an unknown amount of time, the true body of Aries spoke slowly. His voice remained cold, but it carried a hint of gravity that was hard to detect.
"His understanding of laws has already transcended the scope of 'mechanics' and reached the level of 'tampering.'"
"Ordinary Natural Disaster Realm experts compete in the exquisite application of laws, but he can already directly interfere with or even rewrite the core characteristics of other laws. This has already touched the threshold of our Legendary domain."
"The physical limits of a human body are set. I do not believe he can step over that hurdle," a calm voice rang out—the true body of Gemini. Its figure swayed slightly within the shadows as it added: "I am more inclined to believe he possesses some special heritage or artifact. Otherwise, such strength would be impossible. However..."
The true body of Pisces, clutching a wound on its chest, spoke up: "Whether it is a heritage or a secret treasure, the facts are before our eyes."
"My avatar was wounded by him from a distance, and Leo's source avatar was slain in ten breaths. We have lost the qualification to probe him further."
"Sending more avatars would only waste our source essence for nothing; it poses no threat to him."
The Starry Hall fell back into a deathly silence as the nine shadows fell into their own silent calculations. Their plans had already been delayed for a long time due to Enite's existence; now, with the emergence of the formidable Tendo, their original deployments were completely disrupted.
Continuing to target Tendo carried too much risk; giving up on targeting him brought the fear that once he grew further, he would become a threat even more terrifying than Enite. This dilemma made these Legendary existences—who had dominated the sub-space for countless years—feel truly challenged for the first time.
Meanwhile, in the sub-space outside the Martial Capital, Tendo had already withdrawn his vector field. With a shift of his body, he transformed into a streak of pale blue light, instantly piercing through the sub-space barrier and returning to the cultivation room of the Martial Capital.
The moment he landed, he sat cross-legged and closed his eyes, beginning to organize the insights gained after slaying Leo's avatar.
"Tampering with law characteristics... It seems there is still further room for the application of my vector laws."
Within Tendo's sea of consciousness, countless law runes collided and reorganized at high speed as the details of the battle with Leo's avatar resurfaced.
"The core of fire laws is 'combustion' and 'expansion.' While I changed the energy flow trajectory through vector force lines, I injected reverse 'contraction' and 'annihilation' vectors, which caused the flames to backfire."
"This kind of tampering requires an extreme understanding of the core structure of the target law. The observation ability of the Star Eclipse Heavenly Eyes played a pivotal role."
With a thought, a faint pale blue light shimmered around Tendo again. Countless minute vector force lines extended from his body, weaving into a dense vector network in the void. Within this network, a faint trace of fire energy was forcibly stripped away. Under the manipulation of the vector lines, the flames that originally expanded outward actually began to contract inward and annihilate, finally dissipating into a wisp of blue smoke.
This attempt was even smoother than during the actual battle. Clearly, that combat experience had deepened his understanding of "tampering with law characteristics" by another level.
"The energy supply of Tendo Cells, the precise observation of the Star Eclipse Heavenly Eyes, and the ultimate control of vector laws—only when these three complement each other can such an effect be achieved."
Tendo slowly opened his eyes, a flash of realization crossing them.
"To completely crush the true bodies of the Zodiac, merely touching the threshold of the mid-stage Natural Disaster Realm is not enough. I need to further refine this 'law tampering' ability and make it one of my core combat strengths."
Just then, the alloy gate of the cultivation room was gently pushed open, and Lei Xiao and Shi Jian walked in side by side. As they stepped into the room, they felt the faint residual pressure of the laws in the air, and their expressions immediately became profoundly respectful.
"Tendo..." Lei Xiao looked at him, his tone carrying undeniable curiosity. "We sensed the terrifying energy fluctuations from the sub-space just now. Did you slay another Zodiac avatar?"
Tendo nodded and replied, "It was Leo's source avatar. It's been dealt with."
"Leo's source avatar?"
Although Shi Jian wasn't entirely sure what "Leo" was, considering the mysterious powerhouse they had encountered in the Abyssal Heavens Organization previously, he quickly deduced that this so-called Leo was no ordinary existence—it was certainly a top-tier figure among the Natural Disaster-class.
He recalled that when he had first broken into the Natural Disaster Realm years ago, forget about easily slaying others of the same level; being able to hold his own was considered quite an achievement. Laws rarely had a simple hierarchy of strength; it was all about "counters" and "degree of mastery."
That Tendo could so easily slay a Natural Disaster-class existence, and do so multiple times, proved that despite having just broken through, his development and mastery of his own Star Source had reached an inhuman level. Thinking of this, Shi Jian couldn't help but steal a few more glances at Tendo, as if trying to figure out where this monster had come from.
Tendo didn't pay much mind to Shi Jian's strange looks. After a brief rest, he spoke up: "How is the progress of the subsequent cleanup of the Meteorite Ruins?"
Turning to official business, Lei Xiao and Shi Jian immediately gathered their thoughts and provided an answer.
"It is nearing completion. The remnant forces of the Abyssal Heavens Organization have been completely purged. We have cleared over three thousand tons of various Star Source ores and one hundred and twenty-seven Star Artifacts, including several semi-finished Natural Disaster-class Star Artifacts."
"Additionally, we discovered a new hidden teleportation array in the depths of the ruins. Preliminary judgment suggests it is a channel connecting to the sub-space. We have dispatched personnel to blockade it while awaiting your instructions."
"A teleportation array?" A sharp light flashed in Tendo's eyes. "Take me to see it."
"Yes!"
Subsequently, Tendo followed Lei Xiao and Shi Jian. With a flash of their figures, they appeared in the shipyard of the Martial Capital. Within the port, countless starships were entering and exiting in an orderly fashion, staff were busy, and a scene of prosperity unfolded. The three boarded a small starship and soon arrived at the Meteorite Ruins.
In the depths of the ruins, a massive teleportation array stood before them. It was forged entirely from black abyss crystals, and the array patterns held a dense concentration of abyss energy. It was clearly the channel through which the Abyssal Heavens Organization communicated with the Zodiac.
Tendo walked forward, his pale Star Eclipse Heavenly Eyes glowing faintly as countless law runes swirled within his pupils. In just a moment, he saw through the core structure of the array.
"This array connects to a transit station in the sub-space. Through that station, one can reach the Zodiac's sphere of influence."
Tendo said indifferently, "However, the array patterns contain the law imprints of the Zodiac. Once activated, they will sense it."
Lei Xiao frowned slightly. "Do we need to destroy it completely to avoid any future risks?"
"No need." Tendo shook his head, his lips curling into a meaningful arc. "This array is perfect for setting up a few arrangements."
As the words fell, Tendo pressed his hand lightly against the array. Countless pale blue vector force lines surged from his body, burrowing into the array patterns like venomous snakes. These lines moved rapidly through the patterns, reorganizing them and completely erasing the Zodiac's law imprints, replacing them with his own vector laws.
"From now on, I control this teleportation array," Tendo said softly. "As long as someone enters the New Federation territory through this array, I will sense it immediately. Furthermore, I can use this array to directly project my vector field to cover the transit station in the sub-space."
Lei Xiao and Shi Jian were once again shaken by Tendo's strength. Tampering with the laws of a teleportation array and seizing control of a cross-spatial channel—such methods were far beyond their understanding of the Natural Disaster Realm.
Meanwhile, back in the Starry Hall at the core of the sub-space, the nine shadows currently discussing strategy suddenly changed facial expressions simultaneously. They clearly felt that the law imprints they had left in the Abyssal Heavens Organization's array had been completely wiped out by a powerful force of vector laws!
"It's Tendo. He has taken control of our teleportation array," Leo's true body said calmly, no longer showing his previous impulsiveness.
The true body of Aries remained silent for a moment before speaking slowly: "It seems we must accelerate our plans."
"Send out the orders. Tell all the forces lurking around the New Federation to go into dormancy for now. Do not act rashly."
"Meanwhile, put all effort into finding that thing. As long as we find that thing, we will hold the key to solving the Enite problem."
"As for that human named Tendo... leave him be for the time being."
"It is the only way."
The nine shadows nodded one by one, then transformed into streaks of light, disappearing from the Starry Hall. Clearly, they had completely abandoned any idea of targeting Tendo in the short term, pivoting their focus back to Enite.
In the Meteorite Ruins, Tendo sensed the change in energy fluctuations from the sub-space, and the smile on his face deepened.
"Trying to solve Enite first before dealing with me?"
"A pity. You seem to have underestimated a certain old fellow."
Having settled the matter of the teleportation array, Tendo returned to his cultivation room in the Martial Capital. This time, he didn't rush back into training but began to organize his current strength and trump cards.
The ultimate control and tampering of vector laws, the energy supply and self-healing of Tendo Cells, the precise observation and deduction of the Star Eclipse Heavenly Eyes, plus the protection of the 'Pale Blue Star' matrix and the captured cross-spatial array—his current strength was enough to handle the vast majority of threats.
"The next step is to completely perfect the 'law tampering' ability."
Tendo sat cross-legged and closed his eyes, the pale blue vector field rising around him once more. In the cultivation room, the law runes began to shimmer and fade again as the faint pale blue light enveloped Tendo's figure.
And his legend, amidst these successive breakthroughs and demonstrations of power, continued to write new chapters, echoing throughout the Stars.