The moment the light vortex swallowed him, Gu Xiuyuan thought he would die.
The tearing sensation was stronger than last time – body stretched, compressed, twisted, as if shoved into an invisible mold repeatedly kneaded. Before his eyes, endless light streams – red, blue, purple, gold – like countless ribbons intertwining, rapidly rushing past. Ears filled with sharp roaring, too piercing, eardrums aching, consciousness trembling.
He tried to struggle, to shout, but couldn't make a sound. He felt compressed into a ball, then stretched into a line, then twisted into a knot. The pain was indescribable – not pain, but a feeling of his entire being shattering.
Time unknown.
Perhaps an instant, perhaps ten thousand years.
Suddenly, everything became still.
Tearing vanished, roaring vanished, light streams vanished. He felt as if falling into warm water, gently enveloped by something.
Then he lost consciousness.
---
Time unknown, Gu Xiuyuan opened his eyes.
Before him was a completely transparent world.
He lay on a huge crystal bed – no, not bed, but a platform carved from whole crystal, surface smooth as mirror, pale blue light showing through. Surroundings all crystal: walls crystal, floor crystal, ceiling crystal, even furniture-like things crystal.
Those crystals weren't completely transparent, but with faint colors. Walls pale blue, floor milky white, ceiling pale purple, layered colors interweaving, impossibly beautiful.
Light came from all directions, refracting and reflecting through crystals, casting the entire space in multicolored hues. Red, blue, purple, green light spots dancing on the floor, as if alive, changing shape with his breathing.
Gu Xiuyuan struggled to sit up, looked down – body intact, clothes still there, pocket items also there. Jade slip against chest, cool touch; those reagent bottles still there; crystal cores and spirit stones from the mine also there. He checked – sulfuric acid bottle still had one-third, sodium carbonate half a bottle – must use sparingly.
He sighed with relief, then began observing surroundings.
A modest room, all crystal walls, no door, no window. But walls not completely enclosed, some areas transparent, showing outside – pale purple sky, and some huge crystal buildings.
He stood, approached a wall, touched the crystal.
Cool touch, smooth as mirror. He saw his reflection deep in the crystal, layer upon layer, infinite, like countless selves watching him. He tried pushing – the wall didn't budge.
"Where is this place..." he murmured.
As he spoke, crisp sounds came from behind, like crystals gently colliding, or wind chimes swaying.
He spun around.
At the doorway – no door there before, but now a humanoid outline appeared. The outline grew clearer, finally becoming a...
A what?
A humanoid existence, but definitely not human. Pure crystal composition, completely transparent, inside visible countless tiny light points flowing. Those points rotated rhythmically, like a miniature galaxy, glowing softly. Its body slender, angular, with head, torso, limbs, but "face" had no features – no eyes, no nose, no mouth.
Yet it was clearly "looking" at Gu Xiuyuan.
Gu Xiuyuan froze, momentarily unsure what to do.
That crystal being spoke. Its voice was like crystal wind chimes swaying in the wind, crisp and pleasant, yet with rhythm. The sound echoed in the room, then——
Gu Xiuyuan understood.
"Outsider," the crystal being said. "Where do you come from?"
Gu Xiuyuan froze. Not because it could speak, but because he understood it – just like understanding Old Stone. Those sounds entered his mind, automatically converting to meaning.
The jade slip. That jade slip, while imparting knowledge, had etched something into his consciousness, allowing him to understand any language.
"I..." Gu Xiuyuan began, voice dry, "from Ganyan Star. This place is?"
The crystal being was silent a moment, those light points rapidly spinning – seemingly thinking.
"Ganyan Star?" it said. "Never heard of it. This is the Crystal Wall Realm."
Crystal Wall Realm.
Gu Xiuyuan silently repeated. Another never-heard-of world.
"How did you come?" the crystal being asked.
"Teleportation array," Gu Xiuyuan said. "An ancient one."
The crystal being's light points spun again.
"Teleportation array..." it murmured. "That one? No one has used it for thirty thousand years."
Gu Xiuyuan's heart stirred.
Thirty thousand years?
"You know that array?" he asked.
"Know," the crystal being said. "Crystal Wall Realm history records it. Thirty thousand years ago, an outsider came from that array. He stayed seven days, then left. Before leaving, he said one thing."
"What?"
The crystal being thought, light points flowing slower – as if recalling.
"He said: 'Later comer, if someone with Purple Flame Heart comes from afar, tell him: the road is long, don't stop.'"
Gu Xiuyuan froze.
Him again.
Another message like this.
"What did he look like?" he asked.
The crystal being shook its head: "Couldn't see clearly. Always shrouded in light, we only saw an outline. But his speaking tone... somewhat like yours."
"Where similar?"
"Likes asking 'why,'" the crystal being said. "He asked many questions. Why do crystals glow? Why do light points flow? Why is Crystal Wall Realm's sky purple? Some questions we also don't know answers."
Gu Xiuyuan was silent.
Who was that person?
How many clues did he leave?
What was he looking for?
The crystal being looked at him, its light points flowing faster.
"You also want to ask questions?" it asked.
Gu Xiuyuan snapped back, thought, then asked: "What's your name?"
"Name?" the crystal being paused. "We don't have names."
"Then if I need to address you?"
The crystal being thought, light points rapidly spinning.
"You can call me 'Qinghe,'" it said. "That's our language for 'the one whose light points flow fastest.' Your arrival has accelerated my light points, something never happened before."
Gu Xiuyuan nodded: "Qinghe. Good."
He looked towards the doorway – through that transparent crystal door – no, there was no door, but after Qinghe appeared, an exit materialized in the wall. Through it, he could see countless huge crystal buildings outside, towering into the pale purple sky, refracting myriad colors.
"Can you show me this world?" he asked.
Qinghe's light points accelerated – that was its happiness.
"Yes," it said. "But first you must tell me, what is your world like?"
Gu Xiuyuan thought, a slight smile curving his lips.
"Lots of houses built from dead plants," he said. "And stones that don't glow, water that flows, small creatures that fly... You'd definitely find it strange."
Qinghe's light points flowed faster.
"Interesting," it said.
Gu Xiuyuan paused, then smiled.
"Let's go."
---
They walked out of that room – no, crystal building. Gu Xiuyuan realized the entire building was carved from a single huge crystal, no seams, no joints, integrated into one.
Outside was a plaza, floor milky white crystal, smooth as mirror. The plaza was surrounded by countless crystal buildings, some like spires, some like domes, some like blooming flowers. Tall ones hundreds of feet, short ones fifteen to thirty feet, each refracting different colors under the pale purple sky.
Many crystal beings were on the plaza – like Qinghe, transparent bodies, internal light points flowing. Some floated, some conversed (light points rapidly spinning), some just stood silently, as if thinking.
Seeing Gu Xiuyuan, all crystal beings stopped, looked at him. Their light points began flowing violently – that was their surprise. They had never seen such a life form: opaque, no light points, full of "impurities."
Qinghe communicated with them using light points. Gu Xiuyuan couldn't understand, but sensed their curiosity and goodwill.
"They ask who you are," Qinghe said. "I said you're an outsider from the teleportation array. They welcome you."
Gu Xiuyuan nodded slightly in acknowledgment.
Qinghe led him across the plaza towards a distant huge crystal mountain. That mountain was too conspicuous – taller than all surrounding buildings, completely transparent, inside visible countless light points flowing like rivers, from base to summit, dense and numerous.
"What's that?" Gu Xiuyuan asked.
"Crystal Core," Qinghe said. "Source of all light in Crystal Wall Realm, also source of our life. Every crystal being when born, receives part of light points from the core, forming independent consciousness."
Gu Xiuyuan stared at that mountain for a long time.
Drawing closer, he noticed the mountain's surface wasn't perfect – fine cracks, from base extending to mid-slope. Those cracks were shallow, but numerous, like a spider web covering the mountain.
"What are those cracks?" he asked.
Qinghe's light points suddenly slowed.
That was its silent state.
"Dislocations," it said. "We call them 'dislocations.'"
"Dislocations?" Gu Xiuyuan paused. This word was too familiar – in materials science, when atoms in a crystal lattice are misaligned, it's called a dislocation.
"When did they start?"
"Three hundred years ago," Qinghe said. "At first very few small ones, no one noticed. But later they multiplied, spreading faster. Now, the entire core is disintegrating."
It paused, voice deepening: "At current rate, in another hundred years, the core will completely collapse. Then, Crystal Wall Realm will lose its light source, all crystal beings will slowly die."
Gu Xiuyuan was silent.
He looked at those cracks, at the light points flowing inside the core, at this strange world of crystal.
Ten billion lives.
All would die.
"Can it be repaired?" he asked.
Qinghe's light points flickered – expressing complex emotion.
"We've tried for three hundred years," it said. "All methods. Energy infusion, filling with other crystals, spiritual guidance – none worked. Those cracks move on their own, avoiding our healing."
Gu Xiuyuan thoughtfully.
Moving cracks?
He approached the mountain, reached out to touch those cracks. Cool touch, but faint vibration felt, as if something struggled inside.
He hesitated, then activated elemental vision – just two seconds.
Lattice here was shifted. Originally perfect atomic arrangement, disrupted by some external force. In shifted areas, light points couldn't flow normally, accumulating into blockages. Blockages worsen, cracks spread faster.
Indeed, dislocations.
And severe ones.
He deactivated vision, rubbed his temples. Two seconds consumption, Purple Flame Heart down another 1%.
Qinghe looked at him, its light points flowing fast – that was its hope.
"Can you help us?" it asked.
Gu Xiuyuan didn't immediately answer.
He recalled that passage in the jade slip – "I simply wish to know what happens when this way of thinking collides with the rules of the cultivation world."
Now, he faced his first "collision" opportunity.
A world entirely of crystal, a crystal core that was "dying." If his chemistry knowledge could prove useful here——
He looked at Qinghe.
"I need to study it," he said. "First understand the dislocation distribution and patterns. This may take many days."
Qinghe's light points suddenly accelerated.
"You'll help us?"
Gu Xiuyuan nodded.
"I'll try."
---