Lin Yu stands in a luxurious room, head bowed, body held utterly still. His nose catches the scent, rich and intoxicating, and lust stirs in him before he crushes it down—any slip of disrespect here could mean instant death. He swears the next emotion he erases will be lust.
A jade-white hand rests on his chest. Nails pierce through his thin uniform, cutting cleanly into his flesh, drawing out black blood. The hand withdraws, crimson-stained, and silence stretches before a voice, soft yet merciless, echoes around him. "You do not have a Nether Thunder constitution, and your control over Nether energy is insufficient… so how did you transform it into thunder?"
Lin Yu slowly raises his head. Before him stands a woman of otherworldly beauty, flawless like a divine weapon forged by the heavens—every line, every curve perfect. This is not the woman who escorted him here—this one is different, radiating authority and power, very likely an inner disciple. So when she questions him, Lin Yu does not hide.
In his palm, a miniature Nether Thunder Rhino manifests, black lightning crackling across its form. "Miss, with this," he says.
The woman takes the tiny beast from his hand, her gaze sharp for only a moment. "You used your Nether spirit to seize the Nether Thunder Rhino's body," she remarks flatly, then returns it to him as if already bored. Interest fading, she turns away and sits down gracefully. "Tomorrow, you will go with me to a place."
Lin Yu doesn't ask where or why. He only bows. "Yes."
The woman's voice carries lazily across the chamber. "Ziyan, Dianlan—come inside."
The woman who brought Lin Yu earlier and another young woman stepped into the room, both bowing low. "Ziyan, put him in one of the rooms," the woman orders. Ziyan signals with a glance, and Lin Yu quietly follows her out.
Once they leave, hesitation flickers across Dianlan's eyes. The woman notices immediately. "Dianlan, speak your mind."
"Miss," Dianlan bows again, her voice cautious, "are you really taking that man? You could easily select someone stronger from the outer sect disciples… or even a slave."
The woman's gaze stays calm, unshaken. "I checked him. He carries the law of storm. In the secret land that grants him an edge. And since I must seal my strength down to the Immortal Lord realm, a stronger outer disciple or slave could become a threat. They might bite me back."
Dianlan frowns. "That man could also bite back. With storm law and Nether thunder, his strength in the secret land will at least double."
The woman smiles. "Don't worry. I have a solution."
"You could use that solution on others, too," Dianlan presses.
"I will bind him with a fate thread," the woman replies. "There is a way to cut it, but Lin Yu won't know how. He's from the lower world, and after arriving here, he never joined any major force before we captured him."
Dianlan nods slowly, accepting the reasoning. "If neither of us advances to the Immortal King realm… or learn thunder magic… one of us could still enter the secret land with you."
"It doesn't matter," the woman says calmly. "You and Ziyan reaching Immortal King have helped me the most." Her eyes harden slightly. "Now go fetch me thunder magic spells. I must be prepared."
Dianlan mutters as she bows, "That damned Space Temple… releasing the news of the secret land only days before it opens, leaving no time to prepare." She leaves the room.
Lin Yu stands at the doorway of the room he has been told to enter. He turns to Zilan and asks, "Senior, where would I go tomorrow?" Zilan answers flatly, "You would know when you go there. Now stay in the room and don't come out without my permission." With that, she shuts the door behind him.
Left alone, Lin Yu sighs and wonders what kind of trouble he has been dragged into and why that woman chose him. He sits on the bed, thinking for a long moment, but no answer comes to him—he simply knows too little. At last, he mutters to himself, Let's stop thinking about it. Instead, I should increase my strength.
He releases the Nether Thunder Rhino, the creature he had taken over yesterday. Claiming its body had been part of his plan ever since he learned about the Nether Spirit. Not many people can use a Nether Spirit to take over another body. Normally, once a Nether Spirit leaves its owner, there is always the risk of rebellion; if left outside too long, it may even bite back at its master. But by seizing a physical body for the spirit to inhabit, that danger becomes constant—the Nether Spirit always remains external, its rebellion more likely with every passing day.
Yet Lin Yu can manage what others cannot. Thanks to his inner dream world, he can house the Nether Thunder Rhino inside it. And since that dream world lies within him, keeping the rhino there is the same as keeping the Nether Spirit inside his body. It is a dangerous gamble, but one only he can afford to take.
Lin Yu closes his eyes, and thunder erupts from his body and the Nether Thunder Rhino's as they practice the Thunder Armour technique, an innate skill of the Nether Thunder Rhino clan.
An array appears in the room, energy barriers forming over every surface—even the bed Lin Yu sits on. The array protects the materials in the room from his destructive power. On Lin Yu's body, an oversized black thunder armour takes shape, crude and bulky because his skill in the technique is still lacking. Once mastered, the armour would cling like a second skin, offering far greater defensive power, and it would look like a hero's body suit.
He doesn't attempt the fifth stage of the Nether Body technique; he doesn't know where the woman plans to take him, and the safest option seems to be strengthening himself. For now, the Thunder Armour is the only way forward.
As he continues practising, vague markings begin to appear on the armour. He feels his understanding of transforming Nether energy into thunder energy is deepening, though not enough to manage it without the Nether Thunder Rhino.
He practices until dawn, stopping only when a knock sounds at the door and Zilan enters. "Let's go. Miss is ready to leave."
Lin Yu follows immediately, stepping into a sleek flying boat. Within minutes, it rises from the ground and begins heading east. After some time, the boat soars over the vast ocean.
The woman walks to the deck, her gaze calm and commanding.
"You must be eager to know who I am and where we are going," she says. Her voice carries authority yet hints at a hint of elegance.
"My name is Cai Liyun," she continues, a name complex and dignified, echoing with subtle power. "We are heading to enter the Thunder Shadow Secret Land."
Lin Yu nods, and Cai Liyun says, "You can keep anything you find in the secret realm, but you must help me enter the Thunder Pool inside it."
Lin Yu nods again. Without warning, Cai Liyun takes a red thread and shoots one end toward him. Helpless, he watches as it sinks into his body, slips into his sea of consciousness, and wraps tightly around his soul. The other end embeds itself within Cai Liyun's body.
Hesitation colours his voice as he asks, "What is this?"
Cai Liyun's expression remains calm, her tone precise. "A fate line. Now you will never be able to harm me, and I will never be able to harm you."
Lin Yu bows his head, voice low and firm. "I would never dare to harm you."
Cai Liyun says, "It doesn't matter. I don't trust you."
Lin Yu doesn't answer; he doesn't trust her either.
Some time later, the flying boat hovers above a vast sea, the skyline crowded with floating instruments circling an empty space. A day passes, and the empty space ripples like water before shattering like glass, revealing a gaping void.
Cai Liyun's aura fluctuates wildly, then stabilises at the peak of the Immortal Lord realm. She takes Lin Yu's palm in one hand, and with the other, she shatters a token. A golden bubble envelops them both.
With a sudden surge, the golden bubble shoots toward the gap, and alongside hundreds of other golden bubbles carrying pairs of people, they enter the void.