Restricted Zone
Supernatural Awakening: I Can Become a Demon KingContents
- 1Biodata
- 2Classification
- 3Origins and History
- 3.1The Weird Source
- 3.2Later Sealing Grounds
- 4Seals, Portals, and Upheavals
- 4.1Sealing Formations
- 4.2Added Gates
- 4.3Periodic Unrest
- 5Internal Rules and Hazards
- 5.1Suppression of Outsiders
- 5.2Nightfall in Pseudo-Restricted Zones
- 5.3Souls and the Blood-Colored City System
- 5.4Deeper Dangers
- 6Known Restricted Zones
- 7Resources and Exploration
- 7.1Sacrificial Offerings
- 7.2Other Treasures
- 8Relations with the Mortal World
- 9Final Collapse
Contents
- 1Biodata
- 2Classification
- 3Origins and History
- 3.1The Weird Source
- 3.2Later Sealing Grounds
- 4Seals, Portals, and Upheavals
- 4.1Sealing Formations
- 4.2Added Gates
- 4.3Periodic Unrest
- 5Internal Rules and Hazards
- 5.1Suppression of Outsiders
- 5.2Nightfall in Pseudo-Restricted Zones
- 5.3Souls and the Blood-Colored City System
- 5.4Deeper Dangers
- 6Known Restricted Zones
- 7Resources and Exploration
- 7.1Sacrificial Offerings
- 7.2Other Treasures
- 8Relations with the Mortal World
- 9Final Collapse
Biodata
| Feature | Value |
|---|---|
| Name | Restricted Zone |
| Original Name | 禁区 |
| Alias(es) | Forbidden Zone; Living Person Forbidden Zone, particularly for the six true Restricted Zones 453 |
| Type | Sealed territories and independent spaces containing Weird Objects, Yin Gods, and other ancient beings 455 566 779 |
| Location | Distributed across Blue Star; some occupy spaces separated from the ordinary world 453 455 |
| Classification | SSS-Class true Restricted Zones, SS-Class sub-restricted zones, and S-Class pseudo-restricted zones 453 |
| Origin | The original weird invasion began as a nightmare in a Primordial Universe; later sealing grounds imprisoned its surviving beings 779 829 |
| Status | Destroyed by Jiang Chen in the final battle 834 |
| First Mention | Early disturbances at Fengdu and other forbidden zones are reported through the Underworld App 14 |
Classification
The Mortal World's classification distinguishes three categories. The recorded numbers and survival rules below reflect the information available before Jiang Chen's later expeditions overturned several assumptions 453 691 803.
| Category | Designation | Recorded Number | Entry and Survival |
|---|---|---|---|
| True Restricted Zone | SSS-Class | Six worldwide | Originally described as places that living people could enter but never leave, regardless of strength. Uncle Wei and the Yama King later returned from Fengdu 453 803. |
| Sub-restricted zone | SS-Class | Eight worldwide | Historical records described successful return by an expert beyond King-Level. Later expeditions used the River of Forgetfulness Blood River to enter and leave Blood-Colored City 453 564 638. |
| Pseudo-restricted zone | S-Class | Twelve recorded | Ordinary Kings could explore them, and their strongest known Weird Objects were King-Level. Remaining after nightfall caused disappearance, even for Nine-Step Kings 453. |
- Classification does not fully describe the imprisoned being. Jiang Dijiao claimed that Demon-Prison Hell's comparatively low position in the human ranking reflected its imprisonment of only one Yin God, Weapon Ancestor—not that ancestor's actual strength 768.
- Structure differs between categories. Ghost Prison resembles a stretch of ruins without a complete world's structure, while Blood-Colored City contains extensive districts and a much more developed internal environment 572.
Origins and History
The Weird Source
The earliest revealed form of the Restricted Zones was a nightmare born within a Primordial Universe. It spread through Great Worlds like a virus of the Great Dao, corrupting powerful beings and incorporating conquered worlds into itself 829.
Its advance met exceptional resistance from this world's Immortal Dao Civilization. The five supreme Immortal Lords—Immortal, Buddha, Demon, Devil, and Ghost—joined forces to erase the evil will that had developed after the Weird Source devoured countless living beings. What remained of that source became Dream Country, retaining the power to draw all things into oblivion but no longer possessing its original evil will 829.
The final war devastated both sides. All the Immortals died, and the weird forces lost every combatant at the Immortal level or above. The surviving weird beings were sealed away, but subsequently plundered the dying Heavenly Dao and grew stronger over the following ages 829.
Later Sealing Grounds
After the Immortal-Perishing Era, the six Restricted Zones dominated successive cultivation ages. Later sub-restricted zones and pseudo-restricted zones were created to contain the threats associated with them. Zhou Hei described the Fierce Lands as remnants of the opposing side's ancient forces 779.
The beings imprisoned in later zones were not necessarily minor threats. Ancestor-level figures presided over sub-restricted zones, while Soldier Demon City was established merely to imprison a weapon left outside by Weapon Ancestor 768 779.
The Immortal Dao Civilization also left a countermeasure: a surviving remnant soul of one supreme Immortal Lord and an Immortal Source Secret Treasure capable of plundering the Restricted Zones' power in return. Its purpose was to restore that Immortal Lord and eventually eradicate the weird Restricted Zones 829.
Seals, Portals, and Upheavals
Sealing Formations
- Independent space: Su Ling describes the Fengdu region as part of Blue Star that was separated long ago into an unstable, independent space 455.
- Self-repair: The breach into Blood-Colored City closes after the Blood River enters. Its repair prompts a debate over whether the sealing formation was natural or man-made 557.
- Selective containment: When the Blood River departs Blood-Colored City, Mortal World visitors can ride it out. Native Weird Objects instead face sealing power that suppresses or destroys them according to their strength 638.
- Internal support: A sub-restricted zone is generally sustained by one or two Forbidden beings. The permanent death of one causes upheaval comparable to the death of the Mortal World's Heavenly Dao 818.
Added Gates
The visible gates are later additions rather than the Restricted Zones' original seals. Ancient cultivators used extraordinary treasures to reinforce these entrances; Barren Earth's Immortal-Burying Platform made it the most securely sealed of the six 746 747.
For a period, the gates completely prevented the inhabitants from emerging. That approach failed when several Forbidden beings jointly bombarded them, contributing to a calamity that devastated ancient Dao orthodoxies. Later generations instead opened the gates during weakening periods, assembled their strongest fighters, and killed a wave of emerging Weird Objects 747.
Periodic Unrest
- Early warning signs: Fengdu's yin energy begins rising more than a year ahead of its expected unrest cycle, alongside premature disturbances elsewhere 14.
- Escalation: Tang Yi warns that the Restricted Zones will open successively within half a year and that Yin Gods may emerge 367.
- Guard duty: Once the Yin Qi eruption begins, King-Level fighters are required to guard Fengdu's openings 399.
- Weakest period: During upheaval, the zones' seals reach their weakest point. Combined attacks from outside and within can briefly crack even an immense self-repairing prison formation 821.
Internal Rules and Hazards
Suppression of Outsiders
Restricted Zones possess denser, stronger rules than the declining Mortal World. Outsiders therefore cannot assume that their ordinary destructive power will remain available inside 566.
- Severe loss of effective strength: Injured Four-Step King Jiang Chen finds his available power reduced toward blood-clad ghost level upon entering Blood-Colored City 566.
- Experience matters: The black-dressed woman and Flood Dragon suffer less suppression because they have experience with multiple Restricted Zones 589.
- Resistance is costly: The Blood-Armored Knight consumes soul fragments refined from three adult Flood Dragons to block the rules temporarily, restoring his full Nine-Step King strength for only two actions 606.
- Rules can change: Tie Zhu's breakthrough alters local time and makes the surrounding world's rules several times more solid 670.
Nightfall in Pseudo-Restricted Zones
- Recorded rule: Anyone who remains inside after nightfall mysteriously disappears and does not return; Nine-Step Kings are not exempt 453.
- Known casualties: Zhao Dayuan and more than a dozen Imperial Guards vanish during an expedition into Soldier Demon City after failing to withdraw before nightfall 545.
- Deliberate exploitation: The Previous Yama King uses the rule to lure a former Nine-Step King of the Dark Alliance to his death 453.
- Explanation: Er Leng identifies emerging Yin Gods as the danger that appears after dark 498.
Souls and the Blood-Colored City System
- Absorption: Secondary-level zones and above can draw ghosts and living souls out of the Mortal World. Ghosts with exceptionally deep resentment may be dragged inside by an inexplicable force 569.
- Distribution: Ancient records describe Blood-Colored City's entry mechanism as a means of assigning departed souls to different locations according to their resentment 559.
- Separation on entry: Independently conscious companions and objects are transported to different locations when Jiang Chen enters Blood-Colored City 566.
- Environmental danger: Yin Baleful Qi crystals coat the black high-rises. Jiang Chen estimates that a B-Rank visitor's soul would gradually freeze merely by remaining there 575.
- Resentment harvesting: Jiang Chen deduces that Evil Selves drive their originals toward madness while buildings strip away excess resentment, replenishing the zone's Yin Qi and preventing its ordinary inhabitants from freely growing stronger 575.
- Possible theft of fortune: Jiang Chen suspects that selected living souls carry the potential to revive families, clans, or communities, allowing their abduction to drain the Mortal World's fortune. He proposes investigation rather than treating this as proven 571.
Deeper Dangers
- Blood mist: Blood-Colored City's mist recreates scenes from a person's memories and traps them in illusions 587.
- Outsider hunter: A monster approaching or exceeding Supreme Powerhouse strength hunts sufficiently powerful Outsiders in the Blood-Colored Building Region 659.
- Grave Region: Its hazards include Broken Steles, Broken Graves, Old Graves, and Red Graves. Jiang Chen warns that entering without a Supreme Powerhouse's protection is nearly certain death 601 659.
- Dream Country's loops: Entrants become trapped in repeating worlds, sinking progressively deeper until they become part of the Restricted Zone 829.
Known Restricted Zones
| Zone | Classification | Notable Features |
|---|---|---|
| Dream Country | SSS-1; true Restricted Zone | Considered the world's deadliest zone despite never releasing a Weird Object. Its internationally maintained barrier prevents entry rather than escape. Later revealed as the Weird Source after its evil will was erased 545 566 829. |
| Fengdu Forbidden Domain | True Restricted Zone; world's second-largest | Its characteristic upheavals produce rule-like phenomena rather than powerful Weird Objects. Interior regions include Red Sand, White Water, Corpse Mountain, the Sea of Blood, and the Land of Forgetting 733 803. |
| Barren Earth | True Restricted Zone | Located in the White Elephant Nation; sealed by the black, jade-like Immortal-Burying Platform 746 747. |
| Heaven | True Restricted Zone | The Big Dipper enter disguised as Spectral Angels, retrieve an ancient reserve, and later stand guard outside it 800. |
| Blood-Colored City | Sub-restricted zone | Contains black high-rise districts, Blood-Colored Building Regions, the Grave Region, and a bone altar holding the Death Book 575 601 638. |
| Ghost Prison | Pseudo-restricted zone | Rich in ruins and Sacrificial Offerings; used by Shenji and other Reincarnators as a trap for visiting Kings 475 477. |
| Formless City | Pseudo-restricted zone | Guarded year-round despite releasing no Weird Objects. Tunxiang resides within, and Jiang Chen later destroys its Buddha statues and captures its worshipper manifestations 453 691. |
| Soldier Demon City | Pseudo-restricted zone | Imprisons Weapon Ancestor's weapon. Weapon Ancestor eventually shatters it to retrieve that weapon 768 824. |
| Demon-Prison Hell | Ranked thirteenth in the Mortal World's classification | Imprisons Weapon Ancestor, whom Jiang Dijiao claims could single-handedly fight any sub-restricted zone 768. |
| Newly exposed zone near the Polar Bear Empire | Pseudo-restricted zone | Accidentally made public when a Reincarnator's opening method fails, attracting competing international factions 453 454. |
Resources and Exploration
Sacrificial Offerings
- Uses: Restricted Zone Sacrificial Offerings can heal wounds, avert disasters, increase strength, and extend life 449.
- Prototypes: Ghosts inside Blood-Colored City leave Sacrificial Offering Prototypes containing strong wish power, though these lack finished offerings' versatility 571.
- Concentration: Denser ruins indicate more Sacrificial Offerings—and greater danger—in a pseudo-restricted zone 477.
- Strategic value: At the time the new zone appears, roughly eighty percent of the major countries' stockpiles come from initial explorations of pseudo-restricted zones 453.
Other Treasures
- Resources unused by natives: Items useful only to Mortal World cultivators can remain plentiful because local Weird Objects have no use for them. Uncle Wei identifies this as a major reason powerful explorers accept the risk 803.
- Soul-Restoring Grass: A Fengdu treasure used by the Yama King to restore Uncle Wei from a remnant soul 803.
- Death Book: Removed from Blood-Colored City's bone altar by white jade skeletons accompanying the Blood River. Observers fear its removal will break the seal, but the seal remains intact 638.
Relations with the Mortal World
The Restricted Zones' inhabitants are not a unified faction. They comprise distinct races and individuals who can oppose one another or cooperate with Mortal World figures. Their natural opposition to living beings does not require personal hatred 764 803.
- Nine Provinces: Maintains garrisons and King-Level guards at dangerous openings. Some installations include nuclear weapons as a final measure if all other defenses fail 257 399.
- Dark Alliance: Attacks the SS-08 Blood-Red City garrison alongside a Ghost King, opening a crack and extracting a dangerous being. Escaped ghosts can rapidly strengthen by killing living people 257.
- Reincarnators: Seek offerings to recover strength and pursue godhood. Some hope that a successful ascendant can shelter others from the approaching catastrophe 493 498.
- Fierce Lands: Divide between resistance and accommodation. Several trade with the Restricted Zones and prepare to become Yin Gods rather than continue opposing them 779 800.
- Zhao Qingyi and the Previous Yama King: Become a Forbidden and a half-step Forbidden respectively within Fengdu, yet protect and guide Uncle Wei and the Yama King 803.
Final Collapse
As the Heavenly Dao declines, the ancient sealing measures reach their limit. Restricted Zone phantoms manifest directly above the world, and five Weird Ancestors emerge from the five remaining true zones 833.
Five additional ancestors later emerge and overwhelm the defenders' expectations. Jiang Chen returns as thirty Dao Masters prepare to sacrifice themselves, destroys the newcomers, crushes the Restricted Zones, and kills the Weird Ancestors and the beings beyond them. He then repairs the Heavenly Dao and resurrects those who died fighting the Restricted Zones 834.