Stellar Steps

Chapter 12 - The Tenth Academy of the Starry Sky

The range of Asta’s personal terminal detection was unknown to Lu Yin, but it should cover at least ten miles.

Following the strength indicator, Lu Yin pursued in the direction, gradually distancing himself from the toll station.

As the long-haired zombie departed, the agitated zombie horde began to calm down, returning to their aimless wandering. This sight brought relief to Xu San and the others.

The foul-smelling ditch meandered off into the distance, with green eyes occasionally glinting from the shadows of the grass before vanishing once more.

Lu Yin tread carefully through the grass, glancing now and then at his personal terminal, which displayed the position right nearby.

If he didn’t deal with this long-haired zombie, future military operations along this route would face extreme danger. A zombie king with intelligence could potentially bring disaster to Jinling itself.

Crunch, crunch...

The sound of chewing reached Lu Yin’s ears. He followed the noise, looking toward the ditch below, where a dark red light glimmered faintly. Clouds parted, and moonlight fell, illuminating a flash of red and two crimson eyes.

Lu Yin’s eyes narrowed. Was it a fire crystal? This zombie king was devouring fire crystals?

With a roar, the long-haired zombie king leaped high, swiping its dark red, searing-hot claws at Lu Yin.

Lu Yin dodged, the scorching claw raking the grass, filling the air with the scent of burnt foliage.

Several fire crystals tumbled from the zombie king’s body, landing among the grass, instantly igniting flames that illuminated the earth.

Lu Yin used his evasive technique, slipping behind the zombie king, grabbing the iron rod still lodged in its back, and driving it hard into the back of its head.

The zombie king froze, his body trembling before slowly collapsing. A dark red color spread from within, and flames engulfed the corpse from the inside out.

Lu Yin hadn’t expected that this zombie king could consume various energy crystals to develop abilities. For humans, gaining a special ability was a rarity, but this zombie king could achieve it simply by eating. Who was the true higher species? Lu Yin felt momentarily disoriented.

The zombie king was soon consumed by flames, and the fire gradually died down around it.

Lu Yin went to the spot in the ditch where the zombie king had been devouring the fire crystals. There was a hole, and when he shone his light into it, he was stunned by the sight of a dark red glow. "Is this… a fire crystal mine?" Excitement surged through him.

Energy crystals were highly valuable in the universe, whether they contained pure star energy or natural elemental energy like fire or water. He hadn’t expected to find a crystal fire there. Even if he didn’t know the exact quantity, this was undoubtedly a treasure trove.

Feeling exhilarated, Lu Yin took a few crystals, then carefully covered the hole and disguised them to prevent others from finding them. Like Xu San, this place was a hidden asset for his future.

As he was about to leave, a dark red glint appeared at his feet. He bent down, brushing away the soil, to reveal a crimson vertical eye. It wasn’t a real eye, but an artificial one made of some strange material.

Lu Yin picked it up, feeling a chill down his spine. Turning it over, he saw a grinning skull staring straight at him.

At the sight of the skull, Lu Yin’s scalp tingled, and he instinctively wanted to discard it. Yet, he resisted the urge and placed it in his storage ring.

After stowing, it away, he felt his heart racing, unable to believe what he had found. What exactly was this object? Why was it here? Clearly, it was artificial. Had someone been here before? A single item could make him, with his current strength, feel so unsettled. He realized he’d stumbled upon something extraordinary.

Exhaling deeply, Lu Yin left swiftly.

Returning to the toll station, he found the zombie horde had mostly retreated, with stragglers leaving over time.

An hour later, the horde had entirely dispersed.

Outside the toll station, bodies piled up, emitting a sickening stench that attracted swarms of mutated rats, gnawing away and unsettling everyone.

“Lu Yin, where did you go?” Luo Yun approached him, frowning with disapproval.

Lu Yin replied calmly, “I found a zombie king with intelligence. It was the one that stirred up this horde.”

“What? Are you serious?” Luo Yun gasped in shock.

Lu Yin continued, “Report to the Criminal Saint immediately. The emergence of such a zombie king means zombies are no longer just a mindless horde; they can produce powerful individuals. Tonight, at least fifty soldiers lost their lives to that zombie king.”

Luo Yun understood the gravity of the situation and immediately reported it to her superiors.

“Boss, are you alright?” Xu San asked. He wasn’t genuinely concerned about Lu Yin; without him, Xu San held no status in the Criminal Camp.

Lu Yin replied indifferently, “Handle the aftermath. I’m going to rest.”

“Understood, boss,” Xu San responded.

The zombie horde had brought nearly a hundred casualties. It seemed brutal, but everyone had grown numb. Since doomsday, no one knew how many had died. Soldiers had become used to seeing their comrades replaced one after another.

Lying on the toll station roof, Lu Yin couldn’t help but touch his space ring. The crimson skull-eye inside unsettled him. The material and the feeling it gave him didn’t belong on Earth. Had one of those students brought it down? But what kind of student would carry something like that?

Luo Yun leaped onto the roof, her enchanting face weary, and sat beside Lu Yin. “The Criminal Saint has ordered us to make contact with the frontline as soon as possible, preferably establishing a line with the capital to report this incident.”

Lu Yin chuckled. “The capital? They probably already know.”

“Why do you say that?” Luo Yun asked, surprised.

Lu Yin shook his head. “Just a guess. If a zombie king could appear in Jinling, it could appear elsewhere too.”

Luo Yun hugged her knees, staring blankly into the distance. The dark night sky was deep and boundless, and as she looked up, the moonlight illuminated the heavens—until clouds quickly covered it again.

“When do you think Earth will return to peace?” Luo Yun murmured.

Lu Yin didn’t answer. Night brought loneliness. At this moment, Luo Yun seemed entirely different from her daytime self. But so what? The apocalypse wouldn’t end just because someone felt lonely or afraid. The evolution of the planet had a long way to go, and the trials had only just begun. Only he knew that—or perhaps the Seven Saints did too. Those students were the ones who would ultimately decide Earth’s fate.

Asta and Orton were just students of an ordinary academy in the Great Yu Empire. They might be considered elites, but they were nothing compared to the true elite institutions. The true elites at top academies all possessed powerful combat skills, far superior to those of people like Asta. When it came to these trials, those true elites were the protagonists.

Reflecting on this, Lu Yin touched his space ring and looked at Luo Yun. “Go get some rest. I’ll take the night watch.”

Luo Yun nodded and gave Lu Yin a smile. “Actually, if you’d tried to comfort me a moment ago, maybe something would have happened between us.”

Lu Yin chuckled indifferently. She wasn’t his type.

After Luo Yun left the roof, soldiers around them continued their monotonous cleanup. In the distance, Xu San was shouting orders.

Lu Yin took out Asta’s personal terminal and turned it on.

Although he had dismantled the positioning device on Asta’s terminal, he remained cautious. He hadn’t dared to connect to the cosmic network while still in Jinling, but now that he was outside, he decided to check.

A personal terminal was akin to one’s identity. For instance, Asta’s terminal contained all his personal information, including his friends, family, and background.

Lu Yin connected the terminal to the network, only to see a message indicating that the network was unavailable.

Though he’d expected this, Lu Yin still felt a hint of disappointment.

All the students participating in the planetary evolution trial were registered. If they died, their terminals would be automatically disconnected from the network, meaning Asta’s death had already been recorded.

Exhaling, Lu Yin looked up at the stars. He wasn’t concerned about his killing of Asta being discovered. The planetary evolution trial was crucial, supervised by the Great Yu Empire’s Youth Council, with no interference allowed. To the Great Yu Empire, Earth might have been a primitive, pre-spaceflight planet, but it was still part of the empire. The trial was not only for the students but also for Earth’s people.

This was a fair trial, and Lu Yin’s killing of Asta wouldn’t surprise the Youth Council. In fact, it might even earn him some approval. That was part of why Lu Yin had killed Asta without hesitation. He wanted to attract certain people’s attention.

The students who were on Earth were unable to contact anyone outside the planet; they could only observe. That was the trial—an iron-blooded trial where death was commonplace.

Lu Yin checked the terminal’s screen, finding no valuable information. However, he did notice three saved notifications.

“Asta, if you fail to complete the task within three months, the Council will send a second group of trial students. Please give it your best.”

“The Cosmic Youth Council has decided to dissolve the Great Yu Empire’s Youth Council. Reorganization time to be determined.”

“The Cosmic Youth Council has decreed that the Tenth Institute of the Starry Sky will be established in the Outer Universe’s Canglan Region. May your martial journey be prosperous.”

Three notifications had been saved, two of which were related to the Cosmic Youth Council.

Lu Yin stared at the screen, surprised. He hadn’t expected the Great Yu Empire’s Youth Council to be dissolved, nor that the Tenth Institute of the Starry Sky would appear in the Canglan Region.

(End of Chapter)