Zhao Ling's gaze stayed fixed on Chen Fan, a rare flicker of shock breaking through her usual icy calm.He's actually absorbing the雷元… all of them?
She didn't voice her doubts, but the question hovered in her mind. There were too many雷元—enough to obliterate a battleship, enough to kill a dozen third-rank espers. Could he really swallow that much raw, violent power?
For years, Chen Fan's progress had crawled forward painfully slowly. Not because he lacked talent—no, his affinity for lightning was monstrous—but because he lacked one thing every esper needed: energy. High-grade star-source stones were expensive, missions barely paid enough, and he often had to pause cultivation simply because he couldn't afford it.
But this…This was a feast.A once-in-a-lifetime chance to devour power without restraint.
雷元 after雷元 melted into him, and each surge of violent lightning flowed into a second, expanding雷霆 web. One layer became two, two became three—then four, five…
Five minutes later, an enormous fifth net flickered to life, stretching across the warship like a living lattice of violet lightning. Densely packed雷元—thousands, possibly tens of thousands—were trapped inside like fireflies caught in a storm.
"Is he insane!?"
The black-clad young man—previously disdainful—now stared, mouth half open, as the ship swelled in size from the sheer mass of雷元 clinging to it. His bravado evaporated, replaced by pure disbelief.Behind those widening eyes was a raw truth:Chen Fan terrified him.
But Chen Fan himself paid them no mind. Every shred of his focus was locked inward. Rivers of energy roared through him, filling, compressing, transforming. His body drank the power greedily—like a starving man finally tasting food after years of famine.
The battleship continued its descent.雷元 thinned as they neared the lower atmosphere, and the ones clinging to the ship melted like frost under sunlight—each dissolution releasing a burst of pure power that funneled straight into Chen Fan.
His aura surged. Grew. Thickened.
The scent of breakthrough was unmistakable—sharp, aggressive, ready to erupt.
"Damn… he's about to advance. His luck is ridiculous."Even stoic Tian Yong couldn't help feeling a stab of envy. Why couldn't he have lightning powers?
But then—The pressure paused.
"His energy stopped climbing? Even after that much雷元? Is this guy even human!?"The black-clad boy felt his scalp numb. Anyone else absorbing this much power would have exploded or reached the next rank instantly. Chen Fan?He hadn't even crossed the threshold yet.
When the last雷元 vanished into Chen Fan's networks, the ten-minute mark arrived.For the others, those ten minutes had felt like an eternity—like they had lived and died several times in the span of a single descent.
"We're almost out!"Tian Yong's shout broke the tense silence. Relief washed through the cabin. Faces softened—some even trembled slightly—as the oppressive雷云 finally thinned and the shimmering surface of Inkstar emerged below.
They'd survived. Barely.
"Sis Ling, I told you—Chen Fan's got this," Zhao Ying said with absolute faith.
SHOOOM—The battleship tore out of the雷云. The last wisps of destructive lightning rolled off the hull. At that moment, Chen Fan's eyes flew open—two sharp, electric-blue blades cutting through the dim cabin. Lightning danced inside them like caged serpents.
So many雷元…His lightning affinity had grown frighteningly fast, and he knew—just a little more cultivation, a few hours of stabilization—and he would break into Rank Three, a full-fledged high-class esper.
The energy he'd absorbed in ten minutes equaled what he usually gained in an entire month of brutal training.
"We're really out already?"Chen Fan licked his lips, frustration and longing mixing in his gaze.That rush of power—That thrill—He wanted more.
"You want to stay in that雷云?" Zhao Ling shot him a rare side-eye, cold voice laced with disbelief. Then she refocused, ordering sharply,"Activate stealth mode. Ultra-low altitude flight. Find a safe landing zone."
"On it!"
At Tian Yong's rapid keystrokes, a veil of refractive light washed over the ship. The battleship shimmered—then vanished completely. No radar or naked eye would detect them now.
Minutes later, a landmass came into view. Smaller than Mars's Flame Territory, but covered with towering, ancient trees—hundreds of meters high, their vines dragging across the ground like massive ropes. A wild, primeval forest, untouched and dangerous.
"Captain, there's architecture below—definitely human structures. Looks like we found our target."A hidden city appeared on the display, swallowed by the jungle. Low buildings, minimal heat signatures… if not for aerial view, no one would have found it.
"That's it."Zhao Ling's eyes sharpened, her commander's presence returning instantly."Find a concealed landing spot. Then we track the signal."
Five minutes later, the ship touched down in a secluded clearing.
Fresh, humid air washed over them as they stepped out. Chen Fan inhaled deeply, body buzzing with residual thunderous power.
"Yong, you guard my sister. Liu Feng—you're with me. We search for the signal source."Zhao Ling's eyes shifted to Chen Fan.
"I'll check out the city," he said casually. "If that drug is inside, I'll bring back samples."
"Good. Ying, you stay here. We'll return by nightfall if everything goes well. At worst, no more than a week. Tian Yong will protect you."
"I know, Sis. Just be careful…"
"We move."
Zhao Ling and Liu Feng vanished into the jungle, silhouettes flickering between the massive vines. Chen Fan hesitated only a moment before heading in the opposite direction—toward the mysterious walled town.
Ten minutes later, he reached it.
The city was completely encircled by immense walls—smooth, metallic, seamless. Like a fortified arena, round and impenetrable. No gates. No windows. No visible entry.
Strange… who builds a town like this? Where's the entrance?
A faint tremor rippled beneath his feet. Instantly, Chen Fan slid behind a tree, breath shallow, senses sharp.
Then—Something incredible happened.
A portion of the smooth wall—two meters wide—began to rise. Silent. Mechanical.
A hidden door.
So the city could only be opened from the inside.
"Interesting…"Chen Fan narrowed his eyes, pulse steady.
He didn't rush in.No—he waited.
Because whoever opened that door…
Was either coming out—or letting something else in.
And Chen Fan intended to see exactly who—or what—it was.