Free Falling!!.
That was the closest word Lin Sheng could find to describe what he was experiencing.
Yet it wasn't entirely accurate.
He felt as though he was falling and ascending simultaneously.
Forward and backward no longer held any meaning.
Neither did left nor right.
Even time itself had become vague.
He had no idea how long he had been drifting through the passage.
His eyes remained tightly shut.
Not because he feared what he might see...
But because his senses had yet to adapt to the terrifying environment surrounding him.
His Spirit Platform Realm perception, usually capable of covering eighty-five li, had become strangely compressed. Crystal itself remained silent, devoting nearly all of its processing power to maintaining the stability of the Dharma robes and monitoring the increasingly unstable spatial fluctuations around him.
Gradually...
The dizziness subsided.
His breathing steadied.
Only then did Lin Sheng slowly open his eyes.
The sight before him caused his pupils to contract.
He was inside a gigantic cylindrical passage.
Its walls weren't made of stone or metal.
Nor were they composed of spiritual energy.
Instead...
Layers upon layers of distorted space spiraled around him like an endless transparent tunnel.
Countless streams of dazzling light raced along its surface.
At first glance...
Everything appeared perfectly still.
The lights seemed frozen in place, suspended throughout eternity.
Yet after focusing for several breaths...
Lin Sheng realized the truth.
They weren't stationary.
They were moving so unbelievably fast that even his enhanced vision struggled to distinguish their motion.
Each streak of light flashed past in an instant before disappearing into the endless darkness ahead.
"...So this..."
"...is the Void Tunnel."
Wonder slowly filled his eyes.
This wasn't something recorded within ordinary cultivation manuals.
Even Purple Palace cultivators rarely had the opportunity to witness such a scene.
Only those capable of traversing continents through ancient teleportation formations would ever glimpse the true appearance of the void passage.
His gaze shifted toward himself.
More specifically...
Toward the Dharma robes wrapped around his body.
A faint smile finally appeared on his face.
"My gamble paid off."
Silver runes continuously flowed across the surface of the robes.
Some absorbed the surrounding spiritual energy.
Others converted the energy stored within the robe itself into protective force.
Together, they formed a translucent barrier surrounding his entire body.
The barrier quietly isolated him from the terrifying spatial pressure pressing in from every direction.
Ever since mastering Void Imprinting, Lin Sheng had begun engraving countless runic formations onto every important treasure he possessed.
Weapons.
Armor.
Storage equipment.
Even the spear he carried contained several hidden inscriptions.
The Dharma robes naturally received the greatest attention.
Months ago, Crystal had predicted the possibility of long-distance teleportation.
Since then...
The robes had continuously accumulated spiritual energy within several miniature storage formations, waiting for the moment they would finally be needed.
That preparation...
Had now saved his life.
Crystal's calm voice echoed within his consciousness.
•[Protective barrier stable.
Energy reserves: 87%.
Current spatial pressure within acceptable tolerance.
Estimated remaining travel time: Unknown.]•
Lin Sheng nodded slightly.
Everything appeared stable.
Yet...
The faint sense of dread lingering within his heart hadn't weakened in the slightest.
Instead...
It had become even stronger.
Much stronger.
His brows slowly furrowed.
This wasn't fear of the void itself.
If the tunnel were about to collapse, Crystal would have already warned him.
Nor was it fear of the spatial pressure.
The Dharma robes were functioning perfectly.
No...
This feeling came from somewhere else.
Almost as though...
Something was watching him.
The thought had only just formed.
Lin Sheng's entire body suddenly froze.
His pupils shrank to pinpoints.
Several dozen zhang ahead...
Something appeared.
It hadn't flown toward him.
Nor had it emerged from another direction.
Rather...
It simply... materialized.
As if the void itself had condensed into a living creature.
Crystal reacted instantly.
•[Unknown lifeform detected.
Unable to identify biological structure.
Unable to establish energy classification.
Mental Perception scan: FAILED.
Visual confirmation only.]•
Lin Sheng's heart sank.
His Mental Perception couldn't detect it.
Even now...
The creature stood directly before him, yet his Spirit Platform Realm perception sensed absolutely nothing.
If not for his own eyes...
He would have believed the tunnel remained completely empty.
The creature slowly drifted within the passage.
Its body was unnaturally thin, resembling a dried corpse stripped of all flesh.
Long black horns curved upward from its skull.
Its limbs were elongated beyond reason, ending in razor-like fingers that seemed capable of slicing through space itself.
Most horrifying of all...
It possessed neither eyes nor a mouth.
Its smooth, pale face contained nothing.
No nose.
No ears.
No expression.
Yet despite the absence of eyes...
Lin Sheng could unmistakably feel it.
It was staring directly at him.
Like a starving predator that had just discovered fresh prey.
An icy chill spread throughout his spine.
The surrounding void remained utterly silent.
Neither side moved.
Neither side made a sound.
Only the endless streams of light continued flashing through the cylindrical tunnel.
After several breaths...
Crystal's voice became noticeably more urgent.
•[Warning.
Unknown entity confirmed.
Database comparison complete.
Probability exceeding 99.8%.
Classification: Void Entity.]•
The existence of Void Entities wasn't a secret among ancient powers.
Rather...
It was knowledge buried beneath countless ruined inheritances and forgotten eras.
When the earliest great cultivators first stood at the peak of their worlds, they naturally sought to explore beyond the limits of the heavens.
Mountains no longer satisfied them.
Continents no longer satisfied them.
Eventually...
Their eyes turned toward the endless unknown.
Thus, the first Void Tunnels were born.
Using supreme formations and spatial divine abilities, they tore open passages through the void itself, connecting distant regions separated by millions of li.
Travel that once required decades...
Could now be completed within moments.
For a time...
It was hailed as one of cultivation's greatest achievements.
Until...
The first expedition never returned.
Then the second.
Then the third.
Only after countless disappearances did the ancient cultivators finally discover the truth.
The Void...
Was not empty.
It possessed inhabitants.
Creatures that could neither survive within ordinary worlds nor enter them by conventional means.
They wandered endlessly throughout the boundless void, existing between worlds.
Normally...
They could never cross the barrier separating reality from the void.
But a Void Tunnel...
Was different.
To them, it was an open doorway.
A hunting ground.
Whenever a tunnel appeared, they would instinctively approach it, waiting patiently for unfortunate prey to pass through.
Thus...
They became known as Void Entities.
No one understood where they came from.
No one knew how they were born.
Even their methods of cultivation remained completely unknown.
The only thing ancient cultivators eventually discovered...
Was their behavior.
Void Entities possessed frightening instincts.
They never attacked prey stronger than themselves.
Instead, they relied entirely upon their senses.
If they perceived overwhelming danger...
They simply left.
This discovery eventually gave birth to a solution.
Every long-distance teleportation formation was personally activated or blessed by Rank Five Nascent Soul cultivators.
The lingering aura of those supreme experts remained within the tunnel long after they departed.
To ordinary cultivators, it meant nothing.
To Void Entities...
It was a warning.
The scent of an apex predator.
Few dared approach.
Those that did...
Usually fled before making contact.
It wasn't strength that protected travelers.
It was fear.
...
Unfortunately...
Lin Sheng's ancient altar possessed no such protection.
There wasn't even the faintest trace of a Nascent Soul aura remaining.
To the creature before him...
He was nothing more than helpless prey.
Crystal's warning flashed repeatedly.
•[Threat level: Catastrophic.
Estimated survival probability: 3.4%.]•
Before Lin Sheng could react—
The creature moved.
No...
It didn't move.
Its claw simply appeared before him.
There was no trajectory.
No acceleration.
No warning whatsoever.
Bang!!
The protective barrier surrounding the Dharma robes exploded with dazzling light.
Runes shattered one after another.
The impact threw Lin Sheng violently backward through the tunnel.
Crystal's voice immediately rang out.
•[Barrier integrity compromised.
Energy reserves reduced: 87% → 37%.]•
Half...
More than half...
Gone in a single strike.
Cold sweat instantly soaked Lin Sheng's back.
He was going to die.
His hands instinctively formed seals.
"Void Imprinting!"
Countless silver runes surged outward.
Yet...
The moment they touched the surrounding space...
They dispersed like smoke before a hurricane.
They couldn't anchor themselves.
The void currents were simply too violent.
The technique that had never failed him...
Was completely useless here.
His heart sank to the bottom.
DEAD.
For the first time since obtaining Crystal...
That single word appeared within his mind.
The creature tilted its head.
Though it possessed no eyes...
Lin Sheng could somehow feel its amusement.
It slowly swung one elongated claw.
Almost...
As though mocking him.
A chill colder than death spread throughout his body.
This wasn't terror born from weakness.
It was despair.
Absolute despair.
He had escaped Purple Palace cultivators.
He had survived Heavenly Tribulation.
He had escaped a Rank Five Flood Dragon.
Only to die...
Inside a tunnel no one would ever discover.
Lin Sheng suddenly laughed.
A bitter laugh.
"So..."
"This is how it ends..."
"...F*ck."
His right hand instantly reached into his storage ring.
Twelve black metal spheres appeared.
The upgraded Rank Three explosive orbs.
Without hesitation...
He hurled them toward the creature.
The Void Entity merely floated aside effortlessly.
The spheres missed entirely.
The creature seemed even more amused.
Its claw slowly pointed toward Lin Sheng once more.
As though laughing at such a meaningless struggle.
Lin Sheng sneered.
"I wasn't aiming at you."
The creature paused.
The next instant—
BOOM!!!
The twelve orbs struck the wall of the Void Tunnel simultaneously.
A terrifying explosion erupted.
The deafening roar seemed capable of rupturing eardrums.
The tunnel violently shook.
Then...
Crack.
A tiny fracture appeared.
Followed by another.
Then another.
Within a single breath...
An enormous section of the tunnel behind the Void Entity completely collapsed.
The pressure difference erupted instantly.
Like a punctured vessel suddenly exposed to endless emptiness.
An irresistible suction burst forth.
The creature's mockery vanished.
Its body twisted violently as the surrounding void currents seized it.
For the first time...
It struggled.
Its elongated claws desperately grasped toward the remaining tunnel.
But nothing could stop the infinite pull of the true void.
Without even making a sound...
Its entire body was dragged backward before disappearing into absolute darkness beyond the shattered tunnel.
"It..."
"It worked..."
Relief had barely appeared on Lin Sheng's face...
When his expression froze.
The crack...
Hadn't stopped.
Instead...
It continued spreading.
Faster.
Further.
Like shattered glass.
Everywhere.
The entire Void Tunnel was collapsing.
Lin Sheng's smile stiffened.
"...I'm still f*cked."
There was no time to think.
No time to despair.
He compressed every strand of Mental Flame around his body.
Layer after layer.
Until it formed a blazing cocoon surrounding him.
At the same time, he curled himself into a tight ball, instinctively protecting his head and vital organs.
The tunnel finally reached its limit.
Shatter!!
The entire passage exploded into countless fragments of broken space.
Terrifying void currents rushed inward from every direction.
They surged toward Lin Sheng...
Like the jaws of an ancient beast swallowing everything in existence.
Then—
Before the endless darkness could consume him...
He saw only light.
End of Volume 1