At last, something had changed.
When the thought surfaced, Lin Yi realized he wasn't as tense as he'd expected. Instead, he felt strangely calm.
It was like waiting for the other shoe to drop. He'd waited so long that when it finally fell, he actually felt relieved.
He remained seated cross-legged and didn't get up right away. He simply placed the now-dim Source Essence Crystal Core in his hand on the stone platform beside him.
"What exactly changed? Tell me."
Lin Yi asked.
"Data from multiple detectors shows that the distances between them are gradually and slightly decreasing."
Xuanji reported, "The decrease is small, but it is continuous. All nodes are trending inward, so our preliminary assessment is that the space as a whole is shrinking uniformly."
Lin Yi furrowed his brow.
The distances were decreasing?
The space was shrinking uniformly?
He fell silent for a few seconds, letting the information settle in his mind. "Any other changes?"
"No other abnormal energy fluctuations, disturbances in the laws, or sudden changes to the spatial structure have been detected so far. The monitoring network is functioning normally, and there have been no statistically significant changes in the Blood Mist Beasts' activity or distribution patterns."
"Good."
Lin Yi stood and brushed nonexistent dust from his robes.
He left the meditation room and sent a brief summons over the camp's public communications channel. "Everyone, assemble in the central cavern."
The news of the Secret Realm's changes had already been relayed to Edith and the others.
By the time Lin Yi reached the central cavern, the others were arriving as well.
Soon, everyone had gathered again.
Without wasting words, Lin Yi brought up the monitoring data Xuanji had provided on the crystal platform in the center of the cavern.
A pale-blue holographic projection unfolded against