Chapter 493 - 317: Accidentally Revealed Strength: Ninth Transformation Demigod; The View from the Warship’s Viewport

Chapter 493: Chapter 317: Accidentally Revealed Strength: Ninth Transformation Demigod; The View from the Warship’s Viewport

"You can also try it here," Colonel Zhao Feng announced. "Connect to the Divine Realm directly with your consciousness, without relying on a Divine Domain Connection Pod. This warship is equipped with the necessary defensive measures, so it’s perfectly safe for you to try. You are free to manage your own time over the next few days, but please keep an eye on messages from your personal terminals."

With that, the fifty cadets, led by the colonel, filed through the initial chamber, down a spacious alloy corridor, and took an internal elevator to the living quarters prepared for them on the warship.

The cabins were immaculate, each already marked with a cadet’s name. Zhang Yi found the cabin with his name on it and used his personal terminal to open the door.

The interior wasn’t overly large, but it was well-designed. On one side was a neat, comfortable lounge area with a desk; on the other, a washroom with a private bath. Past the living area was a bedroom containing a Divine Domain Connection Pod and a large bed. The most striking feature, however, was the transparent viewport on one side of the bedroom, occupying more than half the wall. At that moment, it offered a clear view of the scene outside.

Zhang Yi walked to the viewport and looked out.

The first thing to greet his eyes was the behemoth they were moving away from, a structure that still dominated his field of view—the Yanhuang Federation First War Fortress! Even though they had left its interior and were now looking down on it from the outside, Zhang Yi was still stunned by its sheer magnificence.

He had spent several months inside the Yanhuang Federation First War Fortress, yet he felt as though he’d never been able to grasp its true scale, like being unable to see the forest for the trees. He only knew that it was massive—larger than an ordinary planet. But as for just how big it was, Zhang Yi had never had a tangible concept.

Now, standing aboard the Blue Star Federation’s active-duty Xuanwu-III Type Integrated Warship, he finally had a rough understanding of the fortress’s size.

To call it a mere defensive fortress built by the Yanhuang Federal Region’s military to counter crises from cross-Crystal Wall System teleportation and mishaps in Subspace was an understatement. It was more like a conglomeration of super-metropolises and hundreds of super War Fortresses—a body forged from steel, Divine Patterns, and Subspace Energy, all suspended in the void. Its surface was covered with innumerable buildings, gun emplacements, docks, and Energy Shield emitters. The lights were as countless as the sands of a desert. The defensive arrays, both large and small, including the colossal ones, were so intricate that even with his power as a Ninth Transformation Demigod, staring at them for too long made his head spin. When Zhang Yi tried to look at the even more critical core regions, his vision was met with a shroud of mist that obscured everything.

Only after the Xuanwu-III Type warship accelerated and traveled for several hours did the Yanhuang Federation First War Fortress finally begin to shrink in his view. It went from consuming his entire field of vision to the size of a basketball, and then to what looked like an exquisite miniature model. At last, the backdrop of the fortress resolved into a single, bright point of light in the deep void.

Zhang Yi then turned his gaze to the deeper void.

Far from Blue Star, the void wasn’t the monotonous black backdrop he had imagined. On the contrary, it was a spectacular sight. Against the black canvas outside the viewport, asteroids of all sizes and brightness appeared from time to time. They weren’t stationary, but their orbits were so slow that to Zhang Yi, they appeared frozen in place. As the Xuanwu-III Type warship accelerated again, magnificent nebulas and asteroid belts occasionally came into view.

This was a sight Zhang Yi didn’t want to enjoy alone.

He went to Lu Mei’s door and knocked gently. Since this wasn’t the Yanhuang Federation First War Fortress where they had lived before, he didn’t have clearance to enter her room. Unexpectedly, it took a while for the door to open.

The moment it did, a puff of warm, humid, rose-scented steam wafted out. Lu Mei, who appeared at the door, had clearly just been taking a bath. Her soft red hair was still wet and draped over her shoulders, with crystal-clear droplets trickling from the ends. A few stray drops traced a path from her hair to her collarbone, sliding down her neck before vanishing into the magnificent swell of her chest, wrapped in a large bath towel.

In her haste, however, the white bath towel only covered the most essential areas. Vast expanses of smooth, delicate skin—her pale shoulders, exquisite collarbone, and straight calves—were exposed, shimmering gently under the cabin’s soft lighting. The steam had softened Lu Mei’s usually cool and aloof aura. Her cheeks held the faint, rosy flush of someone fresh from a bath. Her usually cool eyes now seemed veiled by a mist, their sharp edge replaced by a languid softness and... an almost imperceptible trace of shyness.

Lu Mei clearly hadn’t expected Zhang Yi to come over at this time. After a moment’s hesitation, she subconsciously pulled her towel up a little higher, struggling to maintain her usual composure. "Zhang Yi? What is it?"

Zhang Yi was also slightly stunned. His gaze lingered for a few extra moments on her exposed collarbone and the magnificent, pale swell of her chest just below it. Realizing they were in the doorway where someone might pass by, he unceremoniously pushed past her into the room and shut the door behind him with a sharp BANG!

Only then did he explain himself. "I was looking at the beautiful scenery outside the viewport and couldn’t help but think of you! After all, a beautiful view is best shared with a beautiful woman. Without you by my side, I feel like something is missing!"

Hearing his words, Lu Mei’s face—already flushed from the warm water—turned an even deeper shade of red. When she recalled his gaze lingering on her chest, a flicker of displeasure mixed with a surge of pride. Still, his words had done their job, and that flicker of displeasure quickly vanished.

Lu Mei stepped aside, clearing the path she had been blocking. "Come in," she said. "I’ll go put some clothes on."

As she walked toward the bedroom, Zhang Yi habitually followed her. Once inside her bedroom, he didn’t gawk around like a thief. Instead, he walked straight to the massive viewport, turning his back to give her space.

A moment later, the soft rustle of fabric came from behind him.

Soon, Lu Mei walked over, having changed into a set of loose, comfortable pink loungewear. She had quickly towel-dried her hair, so it was no longer dripping. Though she wore no makeup, the combination of her post-bath freshness and casual attire gave her a soft, gentle charm completely different from her usual demeanor during training.

Zhang Yi and Lu Mei sat shoulder to shoulder before the viewport. The atmosphere grew quiet, but it wasn’t awkward. Instead, there was a natural, unspoken understanding between them.

Then, Zhang Yi noticed that she was wearing the red, nebula-shaped earring he had given her.

"Look over there," Zhang Yi said, breaking the silence.

Following his pointed finger, she saw in the distant void a magnificent nebula, like a spilled vat of red dye. Magenta, orange-red, crimson, carmine—all sorts of different reds were intertwined.

It was just like the red, nebula-shaped earring hanging from Lu Mei’s earlobe, reflecting countless shades of red as it caught the light.