Ssshhh!
Under everyoneâs gaze, aside from Brother Huo, the other three Hibernation Pods popped their lids almost at the same time. Surging Dark Energy Fluctuations burst out like theyâd slipped their leash, making the pod bayâs lighting system start flickering abnormally.
The rolling mist was blasted aside. The few people nearby immediately backed off to stand by Lin Xianâs side. Lin Xian swept his power armor radar across the room, only to see an invisible gust wave outward. Ryuji, wearing his black mask, was slowly floating in midair, gulping in huge breaths. Without his power armor on for once, he was actually revealing a pair of silver-blue eyes.
Right now Ryujiâs whole body seemed to be pulsing with a faint microwaving glow, like he was wrapped in a spent-shell Defense Shield. At the same time, the dust motes and tiny parts inside the Hibernation Pod were all floating up as if out of control, like living things being controlled by Ryuji.
"Told you this guyâs Telekinesis wasnât the same deal as KIKIâs. Now that Iâm feeling it from the Dark Energy Fluctuation angle, itâs even more obvious."
The one speaking was Qian Deli, who had just sat up from his Hibernation Pod. Loud floral shirt, beach shorts, bare feet, steam rolling off his whole body; he was rubbing his head as he squinted over at Lin Xian. "How longâs it been, around ten hours too?"
"Close to thirteen." Lin Xian glanced at the time, then asked, "What do you mean by âfeeling it from the Dark Energy Fluctuation angleâ?"
"I mean I can sense the flow of Dark Energy in the air, like I can âfeelâ the presence of the air itself." Shu Qin spoke up from beside Lin Xian. She looked at the distant floating Ryuji and said, "The stuff heâs controlling isnât the same as KIKIâs. If KIKIâs is formless control, Ryujiâs more like heâs generated some kind of invisible Dark Energy threads or tentacles to grab onto controllable objects."
"Thatâs exactly it." Monicaâs eyes narrowed slightly as she looked toward KIKI.
"Looked at that way, yours counts as Telekinesis, while his..."
"Feels more like some kind of witchcraft that controls objectsâ movements."
Hearing that, KIKI frowned slightly, arms folded, and said in confusion, "And? Iâm not hearing that big a difference."
"It is different."
Just then, the floating Ryuji slowly descended from midair. His aura began to stabilize, and all the tiny parts heâd been controlling dropped to the floor with a clatter. He flew over, eyes full of gratitude as he looked at Lin Xian.
"Lin, thank you. Iâve made huge progress."
Lin Xian nodded.
Then Ryuji stepped up to KIKI and said, "What I command is inorganic matter control. In some basic applications I can do things similar to your Telekinesisâgrabbing, moving, releasing Shock Wavesâbut itâs more complicated for me. I have to sense, then imbue, then issue orders to the imbued objects. Those inorganics will then change according to my will."
"But for my power to draw out greater potential, I canât follow the same usage route as you. This round of Crystal Grid Evolution drove that home for me."
"Oh?" KIKI looked at him with interest. "Youâve got a deeper understanding of your Superpower now?"
"Thatâs right."
Violet electric light flashed in Ryujiâs eyes. In an instant, all the tiny parts that had fallen behind him, along with the steaming mist in the air, condensed together, rapidly assembling by his side into a human-shaped Magic Puppet the same size as him. Freakiest of all, every movement of the Magic Puppet was identical to Ryujiâsâhe turned, and the puppet turned with him.
"My manipulation power is alive; it carries my conscious thought. After perceiving Dark Energy, I realized this power can be used for sustained control over a short span, not just instant bursts. That means my combat style and offense shouldnât be limited to a single Shock Wave. I can continuously expand my control to marshal more matter as my âweaponsâ in battle. Thatâll let me fight much more freely."
"Yo, that sounds like Mind Control, or like turning objects into Summoned units you direct." A yellow flash flared, and Qian Deli appeared beside Ryuji in an instant, like a flicker of light. He moved so fast that none of their power armor radars caught it, and the instant he arrived he kicked off a massive burst of electromagnetic pulse, making the electronic systems of everyoneâs power armor flicker crazily.
"Hey, watch it."
"What was that?"
"Sorry, sorry!" Qian Deli scratched his head and waved it off. "Still not fully in control, almost zapped my own team."
"Iâm saying Ryujiâs Superpower development route is actually pretty interesting. Iâve seen tons of movies; your ability might let you Creation a bunch of rock men, or giants made of combined metal birds or whateverâas long as itâs lifeless inorganic stuff mashed together for combat. You think thatâs possible?"
Hearing that, KIKI immediately laughed. "Oh, I get it now. I was wondering why it felt so familiar."
Ryuji thought for a moment, then said, "Thatâs very close to my own ideas. Developed that way, I could provide scalable support on the battlefield."
"Youâre not wrong. This power would be terrifying against a Monster Tide." Lin Xian analyzed with a serious look. "You could even forge large-scale weapons right on the battlefield, not any weaker than Mecha. And you can repair them anytime, no fear of damage. As long as your Dark Energy doesnât run dry, the inorganic lifeforms you control are practically endlessâundying and unkillable."
Hiss~
Hearing Lin Xian push the idea to that insane extent, everyone around widened their eyes and sucked in a sharp breath.