Chapter 172: Dark Star

Swallow slightly raised her eyebrows, while Mu Ze continued in a deep voice, seemingly indifferent to her reaction.

“Because of that mission, we encountered those couple of people we had a chance meeting with on the official road again, and took this opportunity to establish a temporary cooperative relationship to venture into this Endless Ruins Sea together.”

“I remember after that mysterious Miss Vilyric saved you, you immediately went over to thank them in person… it’s reasonable, but precisely because it’s too reasonable, it makes me feel strange.”

“Afterward, I inquired about the details of what happened in the tomb, and found that the entire route was planned by you. Although you performed admirably in battle and suffered consequences as a result, still… with Swallow’s true abilities, would you really fail to notice that crisis that was practically within reach?”

Teacher Mu slightly narrowed his eyes, a glint of sharpness shining in his pupils.

“There is only one explanation: you did it on purpose. Entering the tomb, encountering the enemy, getting hit by that strange power—it’s all the result of your covert manipulation and guidance. While I’m not quite sure what you want, it must be related to that Miss Vilyric who is directly connected to this matter, am I right?”

The black-haired girl with a ponytail looked up and nodded slightly.

“You may continue.”

“… Once I understood this point, I began to pay attention to Miss Vilyric in my daily life. I found that not only does she have the same black hair and elemental vein as you, but unlike the first time we met on the official road, she now seems to have a jade pendant hanging from her waist.”

“You know, I once traveled to the Fairy Island through the Four Saints Selection Tournament and spent some time cultivating there. I have some acquaintance and understanding of the legendary Lingyin Clan, so I can tell this item is closely related to the Fairy Island.”

“However, with my eyesight, I still couldn’t discern what this object really signifies, so I quietly sketched a blueprint and sent it via secret technique to my sect, asking them to identify it…”

At this point, Teacher Mu smiled slightly.

“Guess what astonishing reply I received from the sect leader?”

“Or let me rephrase that: Ever since the Open Heaven Gate was destroyed and sealed away for a hundred years, its ruins suddenly opened in the Endless Ruins Sea, accompanied by peculiar phenomena seemingly related to the Spiritual Fox Priestess—could this truly be a coincidence?”

“If not… then who is behind it?”

“…”

Swallow remained silent for a long time, finishing with an ambiguous question.

“Is this your intention, or the sect leader’s?”

“It’s the sect’s intention. You know, many people are looking for her… At this moment, with storms approaching, the Ancient Spirit Realm desperately needs her power, even if just as a beacon, as far as a bright moon—if people can see her, it can change many things.”

“The Eastern Yuan Holy Sect, huh…”

Seemingly having made some decisions, the ponytailed girl nodded again.

“Teacher Mu, you were right; Miss Vilyric indeed has some close connection with the Spiritual Fox Priestess. It seems she has no intention of hiding it, otherwise she wouldn’t wear that… jade pendant so visibly.”

“I know some inside information about this matter, but it’s only partial and shouldn’t be carelessly revealed. How about this: as long as the sect is willing to assist Miss Vilyric, when we return, I can share some intelligence about *her* with you. It will surely satisfy the big shots up top, what do you think?”

The two, ostensibly teacher and student, exchanged glances in the air, and Mu Ze appeared slightly surprised, then came to a realization.

“I see, so this is a deal proposed in your personal capacity, or… related to Lingyin Fairy Island?”

Swallow merely shook her head with a faint smile.

“Let’s consider it a collaboration between the Seven Hidden Stars’ Xuanzhao and the Eastern Yuan Holy Sect.”

…

“Be careful, the space here seems to be getting a bit unstable.”

Three figures descended through the slightly dim curtain of rain, and as soon as they landed, the Cat Daughter quickly alerted her companions.

“Hmm… it seems the internal and external environments are vastly different. What on earth did those people at the Open Heaven Gate do to end up like this?”

Muttering a few complaints, the Priestess looked around again.

The ruined streets had long collapsed into a pile of debris, with not a trace of greenery in sight—only the increasingly torrential rain connected this place to where they had been before.

Without the trouble of opening an umbrella, Vilyric deployed Radiant Protection to form a basic defense against outside elements.

In this ancient town, or rather deep within the Open Heaven Gate ruins, energy fluctuations were very chaotic, as if something containing massive energy existed at the center, emitting an aura over many years akin to alternative nuclear radiation, making this area unsuitable for living creatures.

Perhaps because of the influence of this power, this ancient town had spawned countless earthbound spirits, and it seemed that the secret of this ruin lay in that something.

Vilyric initially intended to fly directly to the core of the ruins to see what was hidden there, but just as she had observed in the sky earlier, the core area was enveloped by a bizarre force akin to a dark star, making it impossible to discern the internal situation.

If it were only the Priestess, she could certainly attempt to force her way in relying on her superlative defensive capability, but under the current circumstances, she had to consider her companions.

Thus, Vilyric ultimately chose to land near the core area, advancing step by step from the outside to investigate.

This caution was soon proven necessary.

“Swish!”

A pitch-black crack suddenly appeared beside the silver-haired girl, and before she could react, the most sensitive to spatial changes, Miss Xiao Kong, reflexively raised her hand and clutched it in a cat paw grip.

Some silver glow that lingered around her paw caused the flash of the spatial crack, which should have vanished instantly, to solidify in place, allowing the three girls to take it all in, as if it were a specimen.

“What is this?”

The Priestess showed curiosity.

“It’s a spatial crack. Vilyric, haven’t you seen plenty of spatial magic before?”

“I have seen, but…”

Scratching her head with a smile, the black-haired girl directly asked a question.

“But spatial cracks shouldn’t appear only when powerful energies collide or when spatial magic tears the fabric of space, right? Why is this one flickering around randomly? Could it be some array or barrier effect?”

“You really don’t understand at all…”

The Cat Daughter helplessly explained.

“What you described are merely triggers for the appearance of spatial cracks, not their essence. If you understand space as a medium, and large masses of this medium cluster together, forming a realm called the *world*, then beyond that medium, there must exist an even more hollow void, that is the so-called *subspace* or *world’s gap*.”

“When the spatial medium is damaged by external forces, subspace will seep in.”

Miss Xiao Kong casually flicked the terrifying pitch-black crack that should instill fear like a tiger.

“Did you see that? It’s this thing.”

“Usually speaking, the spatial medium cannot be easily destroyed. Even if it does break, it will behave like air or water, moving to fill in the gaps. But if the spatial medium isn’t sufficient to fill the entire area, such chaotic fluctuations will occur.”

“This is what you call spatial instability, got it?”

“Oh! As expected of Miss Xiao Kong, I completely understand!”

Vilyric immediately applauded the logically meticulous explanation of the expert and then posed a crucial question.

“Then, Miss Xiao Kong, why has the spatial medium here decreased?”

“No idea, how would I know?”

   

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