Tuat Space

"Truly, hidden dragons and crouching tigers are everywhere!" Chen Beixun could not help but exclaim.

The Universe-level fighter who had battled Chen Beixun would have had almost no trouble reaching the Domain Lord or even Sector Lord realm, provided they did not die prematurely.

What was a Sector Lord? A local emperor.

"Time to go," Chen Beixun said, pinching An Changyan's nose.

"Mm."

The two rose immediately, transforming into streams of light as they flew away from the area.

Slanted Axe Tower contained a total of sixty-four large spaces and nearly a million small spaces. After such a long period of exploration, they had all been given corresponding names.

For instance, the space Chen Beixun was currently in was a large space named 'Tuat Space', named after a Domain Lord. Everyone accepted this name because that Domain Lord had published a map of 'Tuat Space'.

Inside 'Tuat Space'.

"A map." Flying through the air, Chen Beixun glanced at it indifferently. A projection of the map appeared on his arm as he muttered to himself, "I really didn't expect someone to be so kind-hearted."

"Every place has its 'Pioneers'," An Changyan remarked. "This is quite normal."

Hearing this, Chen Beixun smiled faintly. "They just want to end this struggle for territory sooner."

"Right now, the major factions are in constant friction. Ending it early is for the best, as it avoids even greater disputes."

"Here... the major factions and organizations are enemies, but outside, they are business partners."

As time passed, the two arrived at the coordinates where Pavadode's location had vanished.

"No traces at all?" Chen Beixun squatted on the ground, carefully observing his surroundings.

Logically speaking, a battle between Domain Lords would cause a massive disturbance. Yet here, there was not a single trace—not even a drop of blood.

"It's so clean here, it's as if no one has ever been here," An Changyan said.

"Something is wrong!" Chen Beixun stood up.

This area gave Chen Beixun the feeling of a slaughterhouse—a clean, tidy, and systematic slaughterhouse, as if it were managed by someone with 'extreme obsessive-compulsive disorder'.

The more Chen Beixun felt something was amiss, the more he couldn't stop thinking; he felt the surroundings growing dark.

A vague sense of dread hovered over his head, scrutinizing him, looking down upon him.

"No! It's not just a feeling, it's actually getting dark!" Chen Beixun pulled An Changyan to his side, cold sweat breaking out. He felt a rare, instinctive urge to avoid combat.

His body was controlling him, for it sensed that the newcomer was invincible.

"Run!" Chen Beixun grabbed An Changyan, stepped onto his Gold Shuttle, and fled at top speed.

The surrounding environment was darkening rapidly, and that ink-like blackness completely obstructed their vision.

The environment forced Chen Beixun to push himself to his absolute limits.

He moved forward in the darkness with his heart in his throat, relying on Qishan's guidance to barely find a path.

This darkness was too strange; without Qishan's guidance, he feared he would have just wandered in circles.

After some time, light suddenly appeared.

When Chen Beixun had flown a certain distance, he wanted to look back, attempting to fathom what had happened.

BOOM!

A bolt of lightning struck abruptly.

Following the deafening roar came the rampaging electric arcs.

"Demon Island Vine!" Chen Beixun shouted.

Several scarlet vines extended from his back, intertwining in front of him to form a barrier.

The electric arcs landed on the barrier, crackling loudly.

Chen Beixun frowned, then immediately tucked An Changyan into his World Ring.

Now he was left alone, standing solitary on his Gold Cloud Shuttle, suspended in mid-air.

Chen Beixun felt a deathly silence in his heart. He did not know what kind of attack he would face in the next second; he simply waited quietly for the arrival of the Grim Reaper.

An Changyan is from a great family; she shouldn't be... harmed, right? Chen Beixun thought.

He was very calm, wearing an expression that would remain unchanged even if the mountains collapsed before him.

The fear in his heart did not escalate into a frenzy; instead, it simply... lingered quietly within him.

Perhaps, having understood his own fate, a sense of sorrow welled up in him. He felt he had failed Qishan's expectations, the church, and also failed An Changyan's feelings.

"If only... I were a little stronger."

"Then I wouldn't have to be a slave, and I wouldn't have to watch my dearest friend die while being powerless to stop it."

"There is no such thing as a grassroots rise through time-travel; it's just facing reality in a different place."

Chen Beixun raised his head; as for the danger hidden in the shadows, he no longer dwelled on it.

"If I die, Qishan... pick a successor from among those who killed me," Chen Beixun communicated to Qishan via his consciousness.

"Hmph, the path lies beneath your feet," Qishan snorted coldly. "Walk it boldly."

Chen Beixun gritted his teeth and released An Changyan. He demanded the E6-grade weapon he had previously given her, then immediately returned her to the World Ring.

Chen Beixun gently stroked the rectangular, silver-white object in his hand.

The silver-white object suddenly opened a slot, just large enough for an arm to be inserted.

"Heh." Chen Beixun let out a cold laugh.

Wait for death? It would be better to open up and fight grandly; even knowing death was imminent, he would still face it and swing his fist with all his might.

At this moment, a whistling sound came from the distance, approaching from the northwest, drawing closer and closer.

"It's here!" Chen Beixun adjusted his state and raised his left arm, aiming toward the northwest.

Instantly, a violent surge of energy began to gather at the tip of the E-grade weapon on his left arm.

BOOM!

A blue beam of light shot out from the front of the E-grade weapon.

A terrifying shockwave spread out in all directions!

Three seconds before firing, Chen Beixun had severed his own arm, for he had set it to maximum power; the recoil from such an attack was not something he could easily withstand.

A burst of intense blue light flared in the northwest, resembling a star, before changing rapidly, shifting into various shapes as the brightness of the light increased sharply.

The blue light changed, turning cyan. The moment it turned cyan, the intensity of the light dimmed. Now, it looked like a cyan cloud, with countless brilliant rays of light rolling within it.

"Whew~" Chen Beixun stepped out from the dome-shaped structure formed by the Demon Island Vine that was pressed against the ground.

"Dead for sure, right?" Chen Beixun said.

Three seconds was enough for him to escape a certain distance and use the formidable defense of the Demon Island Vine to block the shockwave.

"Hello there!"

A voice struck his mind like a thunderbolt.

"You can go straight ahead, E-grade weapon."

The voice lingered by his ear, yet he could not find the speaker.

"My name is Xiang Zhixing, what is yours?"

"What is your name?"

"What is your name?"

The voice repeated incessantly, each iteration striking heavily at Chen Beixun's heart.

He felt as if he had fallen into a distorted space where time was locked, and everything—absolutely everything—was frozen.

"My name is Chen Beixun, what is yours?" Chen Beixun said.