Centered on the mark, the density increased in a circular pattern toward the surroundings. The affected area had a radius of roughly one foot, and the density value rose by about ten percent. The surface color of the enhanced area was slightly deeper than the surrounding Light Membrane, like ground that had been trampled many times and was firmer than the rest. Its surface texture appeared denser than the surrounding areas, while its gloss reflected slightly less light.
He rose to his feet, walked over to the mark, crouched down, and lightly touched its edge with the pad of his right index finger.
In the tactile feedback, the sense of spatial direction extending northwest from the mark remained continuously discernible, like the magnetic sense at a compass needle remaining linked to the magnetic pole after north had been marked.
At the point of contact beneath his fingertip, that sense of direction was clear and stable. It did not vanish when he withdrew his finger, nor did its angle shift when he stood up and changed height.
He withdrew his finger and stood still in the side hall for a moment, using the newly established anchoring reference as a guide to sense the spatial state beyond the northwestern edge of the Turbid Source Land.
That space existed in his perception as a pale gray backdrop. There was no change in law density, no fluctuation of energy, and no scattered particles of chaotic residue.
Its state was like a sheet of paper that had been smoothed flat but had yet to receive a stroke of ink. It contained nothing, yet possessed the potential to be written upon. The fibers of the page were arranged at an even density, awaiting the first drop of ink.
He confirmed that the space currently had no