Chapter 1395: Countermeasures

The training ground fell silent.

It was a debate of ideas, a contest of martial prowess. This had truly become a magnificent clash of strategies between the two sides. Countless people held their breath; it was simply too spectacular. Both sides deployed an endless array of tactics, terrifying and disruptive trump cards, and competing philosophies, engaging in a strategic game. What appeared to be a battle was, in reality, a simulation by the ancient, great powerhouses of both sides, using this to deduce future trends and determine victory in a vast sandbox calculation. Two major races debated from on high.

Everyone knew this outcome was critically important; the winning race would undoubtedly see a surge in morale and secure a significant advantage in the future.

The "Planet Head Plan" of the Three Pillar Gods of Buddhist-Daoist Civilization. The "Stars All Over the Sky Plan" of the Dao Lord of Mother River Civilization. These were methods for their respective civilizations to survive in the future universe, each an invisible Noah's Ark embodying boundless wisdom! Yet, now, the opposing side had surprisingly offered a counter-solution to this very strategy.

"Cloud layer?"

"We create stars, and they create clouds?"

"Damn it! Are they destined to be the protagonists of this era, and we have no way to go against the tide? To break the universe's destiny? Are we merely to be eliminated by post-primordial humans, like the ancient primordial gods and demons?"

It was also clear that their opponents' average intelligence, combat power, and physique were far superior to theirs. It was like the difference between humans and monkeys.

"Come to think of it, this world is truly bizarre! We were originally meant to fight, yet unexpectedly, through our continuous exchanges and struggles, we have progressively refined the ultimate mature form of the universe!"

"Yes, we became fungi, and they produced physicians; we became stars, and they transformed into clouds... The rules of this universe are continuously being established, constantly improving!"

They pondered. It was as if it were destiny, truly astonishing.

However, some soon raised objections, believing that while stars were feasible, a cloud layer held little practicality. Someone directly stated: "Ridiculous! Their bodies are so massive, their mass so heavy. Can something of that tonnage escape gravity and fly? Remember, the Mother River Civilization had to materialize into semi-elemental beings, minimizing their mass, just to barely stay afloat and roam the skies."

The greater universe naturally had its rules: universal gravitation. The immense gravitational pull generated by the vast mass of the universe would absorb any matter attempting to escape it. For those colossal humans to escape the surface would be incredibly difficult. It was comparatively simpler for them, the bacteria.

"The universe has granted them immense power; they are the darlings of this era. But the universe will also not permit them to leave. The sky is their forbidden zone," even Zhiji said so.

Emperor Zun nodded and looked at the others beside him, "What do you think?"

"Establishing a cloud layer is indeed unrealistic by common understanding! If they manage to succeed, it would surely be a miracle martial art unique to them!" Kuangtu laughed. "First, their immense size prevents them from flying! Second, the engineering scale is too vast. We are myriad stars, drifting everywhere. But them? A cloud layer would have to protect every single point at all times. That workload would be countless times greater than that of our myriad stars! Third, even if it were truly built, such a vast cloud layer would inevitably suffer from attenuated defensive capabilities. If we were to make pinpoint surprise attacks and breakthroughs, the opponent simply couldn't defend; it would very likely just be a facade."

Everyone else agreed wholeheartedly with these remarks. A cloud layer seemed appealing, but it was impractical! Stars are just scattered points. For a cloud layer to cover the entire sky of the universe, that's incredibly difficult.

"This depends on how Tu Xin approaches it," Emperor Qi said, gazing into the distance. The opponent was clearly not foolish. Since he proposed it, he must have a counter-measure. But if he truly managed to overcome these impossible difficulties, wouldn't that mean his genius was such that he could easily perfect a miracle martial art?

At this moment, Tu Xin remained calm. He rose from his chair, his hands clasped behind his back, looking up at the sky as if seeing the myriad stars of the future, and softly chuckled:

"We don't need too many clouds; patrolling each region will suffice. Although even such a number would still be tens of thousands of times more than your stars, capable of defense, with an average of ten thousand clouds defending one star... we have abundant resources. As the protagonists of this era, occupying the boundless lands of the Nine Provinces, how could we ever lack resources?"

The others remained silent, their expressions calm. Sitting in his elevated position, he calmly continued: "Your Excellency, you cultivate elemental martial arts... why shouldn't we? Just like Bos here, one could expand their body countless times, transforming into a giant sky-cloud, patrolling and moving about in the low altitude. With such a cycle, there would be countless clouds. As for energy replenishment, we will establish countless Pillars of Heaven, towering from the ground, transmitting energy to the clouds on the front lines. From now on, our new human race of the earth, upon reaching a certain age, will all serve in the military. They will transform into clouds in the sky, go to the front lines, fight and slay enemies, and patrol the skies. And once you approach the low-altitude layers, nearby Pillars of Heaven will sound an alarm, smoke signals will rise, and countless clouds will converge in awe to repel the enemy!"

He continued to speak, and a complete and vast strategic landscape unfolded before their eyes. Everyone felt a shiver down their spine; according to Tu Xin's description, it indeed seemed plausible to resist the myriad stars, by drawing energy from the ground.

At this point, Kuangtu couldn't help but say: "For your new humans, cultivating 'quantum expansion' and floating in the sky is torture, a tremendous damage. Floating as clouds in a quantum dispersed state for hundreds of years would likely leave you almost crippled, causing unimaginable physical harm!"

"So what if there's physical harm?" Tu Xin chuckled faintly, "When fighting on the front lines, how can one expect to emerge unscathed? Does my race lack courageous, hot-blooded youths, national heroes who aren't afraid of death? We won't care about after-effects; protecting our people is our bounden duty. Besides, we only need to use conscription for a period of time to intercept and starve all of you 'stars,' the remnants of the old era! Such a short-term cost is well within our means."

Tu Xin's words silenced everyone. After all, if what he said was true, what did it matter if their cost was high? We would exhaust the strength of our entire race to forcefully intercept you, but it's you who couldn't afford to sustain it! In the sky, could such a vast myriad of universes, constantly sustained in such a harsh void without energy replenishment, truly endure?

"So, the deduction of stars versus clouds brings us back to the beginning..." Tu Xin said, looking at the two individuals in the training ground: "It's merely a battle between the 'stowaways' and the clouds." He looked at Dao Lord and Bos before him: "You two can also begin a scenario simulation. One of you will be responsible for the 'stowaway' infiltration and connecting with the earth, and the other will play the role of the clouds. How about that?" He pointed to the sky. "In that case, your current battle will take place in the heavens."

The surroundings were utterly silent. Tu Xin's words were very pertinent; this entire conflict had ultimately devolved into a battle between these two individuals. The two divine-demonic forms of the 'stowaway' battling the defensive wall of clouds – this was the key that would directly influence the future landscape.

"Enough talk. I will create a Pillar of Heaven for you, Bos, to draw energy in the clouds and engage in battle." Tu Xin slammed his hands down hard on the ground.

With a rumble, a massive, majestic totem pole slowly rose from the earth, piercing the clouds. Everyone was stunned. Such power, capable of effortlessly creating a colossal pillar hundreds of light-years tall, was beyond description—it was a true miracle.

"This is... alchemy," the Four Quantum Grandmasters murmured from afar, their expressions grim. "This terrifying man has actually learned our martial art?"