Chapter 134: Attribute-Free Crystal Core

"Four-dimensional organisms only apply the parsed three-dimensional spatial rules to their bodies when they attack, and then slip back into the sub-four-dimensional space. After all, just the fact that the power of the fourth dimension is imperceptible leaves us flustered and chaotic, let alone anything else."

Dao recalled everything his master had told him about the monsters, only to realize that from beginning to end, his master seemed to have never mentioned how to kill them.

The milky-white energy in Tian Xin's hand gradually dissipated from his fingertips. The horned pupils in Lang Xin's eyes also slowly receded deep into his irises, leaving only faint traces. Ye Bai, leaning against a tree, waited until the wood-attribute power healed the fractured bones in his body, then pushed off the tree he had been resting against. Only the impression of his back remained on the bark.

"Isn't that the exact same situation as before? We can only passively defend and take a beating?" The anger in Tian Xin's eyes grew stronger with every word.

At first, only the ink blade in Dao's hand could injure them or predict where the four-dimensional entities would appear. Believing Dao was trustworthy, Tian Xin had let him lead the way, hoping to escape the zone of the four-dimensional attacks.

However, he hadn't expected that while Dao had led them out of the original attack zone, he had brought them straight into a territory occupied by even higher-level four-dimensional entities.

No one had ever played him for a fool like this since he was a child. A glint of murderous intent flashed in Tian Xin's cold eyes for the first time as he stared at Dao.

Dao looked back up at Tian Xin, completely devoid of any shame for leading them into a more dangerous zone occupied by superior entities. He met Tian Xin's gaze, convinced he had done nothing wrong. Why should he bow his head to the Terran core-dwellers?

The moment Tian Xin issued his interrogation, the atmosphere between the two sides turned bizarre, escalating rapidly into open hostility.

The core-dwellers all stood behind Tian Xin, while Bai Wan'er remained not far from Dao. The rest of the people began slowly gathering around Bai Wan'er, even Wang Jiao, who had been sitting on the ground with her legs folded, struggling to her feet.

"Give us an explanation." At that moment, Lang Xin, standing behind Tian Xin, gently tugged at his sleeve and shook his head, signaling that starting a war with the humans was out of the question.

"Hahaha, it seems the youngsters are running a bit hot-headed today. Brother Xiao, what do you think?" A white-haired elder leaned back on a recliner, watching the flickering images projected above, then glanced at the young man sitting at the desk across the room, a crooked smile playing on his lips.

The young man seemed to have no time to humor the elder lounging in the chair. With piles of documents and data pressed beneath his hands, he finished reading one book and immediately picked up another, not even bothering to raise his head as he snapped back impatiently, "Let the younger generation solve their own problems. You're over two hundred years old, yet you can't even see through something this simple?"

The smile on the white-haired elder's face suddenly froze, but he immediately chuckled again and said, "True enough, let the youngsters handle youth matters. We old fellows just need to steer the general direction."

The elder emphasized the word "old fellows" heavily. The young man at the desk offered a wry smile, looked up at the elder for a moment, and without a word, lowered his head once more to review his documents.

Seeing that the young man refused to engage further, the elder suddenly felt that his petty bickering was terribly dull. The projection above vanished instantly, and the white-haired elder closed his eyes, pretending to fall asleep.

The friction sparked by the younger generation had been witnessed by the elder, inadvertently driving a bloodless conflict between two different races. A confrontation that arose for no reason thus dissipated into nothingness, with its true significance and victor known to no one save the elder and the young man.

"Tian Xin, don't provoke a conflict. It won't look good for us when we report back. Humanity has stood firm on the surface for so many years; they surely possess their own hidden foundations. Besides, the second phase of the Dark Era is fast approaching. Making enemies with humans is truly a poor choice," Lang Xin urged persistently, trying to calm Tian Xin down.

Overall, the strength of the core-dwellers was a tier higher than that of the Purple Star Academy faction. Even if the core-dwellers reduced the Purple Star Academy people to mere dogs and slaves in this space, the humans would have virtually no recourse. Yet Tian Xin had not done so; he treated the Purple Star Academy students as equals and was even willing to protect humanity at critical moments.

Yet he had never anticipated this outcome. He wanted an explanation, and he also wanted to use this opportunity to establish his authority. Even a cornered dog would bite, let alone a tiger.

Of course, Tian Xin had no intention of actually fighting. For one, it was unnecessary; at worst, they would part ways, each walking their own path. He didn't believe the core-dwellers would perish before the people of Purple Star Academy.

On the other hand, he was constrained by the larger situation. Elder Dong had warned them before their departure: once the second phase of the Dark Era arrived, cooperation with humanity would be inevitable. Although the strength of the humans present was modest, as long as humanity's Three Sovereigns stood unbroken, humanity retained its utility. Moreover, the human sovereigns were still young, unlike those of the core-dwellers. Therefore, no matter what, he would not strike first and hand the Purple Star Academy people an excuse.

"Did I say this place was more dangerous? You only knew that the monsters here were of a higher rank and could scare away the lesser ones. But do you know why I brought you here? To feed you to your deaths? Is my life worthless? Or are human lives worthless?"

Every word of Dao's speech struck home, mercilessly direct. In truth, since the core-dwellers had turned hostile first, they could not blame him for lacking sentiment.

"Oh? Does that mean the four-dimensional entities here can be killed?" Hearing Dao's words, Tian Xin slowly calmed down, shelving his anger for the moment.

A faint smile touched the corner of Dao's mouth, though it was impossible to tell whether it was mocking or something else. "As I said before, the monsters cannot be killed."

Instantly, the expression on Tian Xin's face tightened again, but he forcefully suppressed his urge to erupt.

"However, rather than saying they parsed three-dimensional space, it is more accurate to say that the rules of three-dimensional space force them to manufacture physical bodies capable of existing in our realm. And we can destroy these physical bodies, plunging the four-dimensional entities into a state of weakness."

Dao began to slowly explain to everyone why he had led them here. "Those lower-level monsters from earlier were too difficult to parse three-dimensional space; they didn't have physical bodies at all. They remained entirely in their four-dimensional form—undetectable and unattackable. But it's different here. I trust you all saw those green-skinned monsters earlier? That is their three-dimensional shell. They can be seen, and they can be attacked."

"Are you saying the four-dimensional entities here can be 'killed' by us?" A sudden glint of excitement flashed in Tian Xin's eyes as he stared at Dao, having seemingly grasped something new, instantly reverting to his polite, gentlemanly demeanor.

"Theoretically, their three-dimensional shells can be killed." Dao swallowed half of his intended sentence. He had wanted to add, "If my master was right," but upon seeing Bai Wan'er before him, he restrained himself.

"Yet so much time has passed, and the four-dimensional entities haven't shown themselves again. How are we supposed to kill them?"

Ever since that single ambush, the four-dimensional entities had completely vanished. They acted like hunters, lurking in the sub-four-dimensional space, waiting for their prey to let down their guard before striking with fatal precision.

"Bait." Dao spat out a single word. The moment he finished speaking, he used the ink blade in his hand to slash across his arm. Freed from the restraint of skin and flesh, fresh blood instantly welled up from the wound and dripped onto the ground.

"Not everyone is qualified to casually act as a monster hunter. Only one hunter can survive in any given era. A hunter's constitution is one in a hundred million. To three-dimensional creatures, a hunter is no different from an ordinary person, but in the eyes of monsters, a hunter is a rare and supreme delicacy."

Crimson blood dripped onto the earth, striking the weeds. Under the weight of the droplets, the blades of grass bowed their heads before the blood sank into the soil below.

"Lang Xin, Huixin, Zixin, Yuxin." Tian Xin walked toward Dao and said, "His safety is in our hands."

At last, Tian Xin realized he had wronged Dao. He stepped forward to show goodwill, which also served as an indirect apology.

"No need. You don't need to worry about my safety. But regardless of anything else, these monsters are not creatures of our space; the spoils must be split evenly fifty-fifty." Dao rejected Tian Xin's goodwill, presenting a counter-demand instead.

Tian Xin looked back at the other four, nodded, and said, "Very well. However, the people from Purple Star Academy must stay far away to avoid getting caught in the crossfire of the upcoming battle."

Dao looked toward Bai Wan'er and nodded gently. Bai Wan'er's lips parted several times as if she wanted to say "be careful," but the words refused to come out, because saying "be careful" implied that danger was imminent.

Dao sat quietly alone in the spot, the blood on his arm already clotting into a scab. Not a single person remained around him; both the core-dwellers and the students of Purple Star Academy had retreated out of sight.

"Drip." A drop of sweat rolled down Wang Jiao's smooth chin. She frowned, gritting her teeth to suppress any sound.

"Whoosh—" Simultaneously, a gust of wind swept through the air. In an instant, the ink blade in Dao's hand seemed to answer a summons; pitch-black threads began to emerge from the previously unblemished blade, winding around it strand by strand, layer by layer.

Dao did not look up, yet he was intimately familiar with the unseen attack. Since the exact same tactical maneuver was being deployed a second time, a flicker of silent mockery toward the incomprehensible mindset of the monsters crossed his mind. The attribute energy within his body surged frantically into the ink blade.

No falling leaves drifted from the sky this time, but the howling wind had long since betrayed the position of the four-dimensional entity.

"Hummmmm." The black threads on the ink blade grew denser, nearly wrapping Dao entirely within them. Yet Dao remained completely motionless. The wooden club in the green-skinned monster's grasp was now perilously close to Dao—so close that in less than the blink of an eye, Dao's skull would shatter like a melon dropped on the floor.

Yet at that exact moment, a five-colored radiance suddenly blossomed around Dao. The five-colored light erupted instantly from the ground, intertwining seamlessly to shroud him within its core.

Following that came a crisp snap, and a white crystal nucleus materialized, floating amidst the five-colored brilliance.

At that moment, the core-dwellers emerged from behind a nearby tree, Tian Xin's eyes filled with utter astonishment, as if he were beholding something utterly miraculous.