Defiance of the Fall

The man said something as a sword materialized in his hand , but Zac couldn't make out any sound at all . However , the sword alone spoke volumes , and its sharpness immediately forced Zac to look away . Zac’s still couldn’t see the features of his presumed ancestor from his vantage , but it looked like he didn’t care all too much about the man who barred their path .

The ancestor didn’t summon a weapon of his own , but he rather just pointed at the swordmaster with his left hand . Zac felt the world was ending the next moment as both space and time were ripped apart . An area spanning millions of kilometers was caught up in the storm of annihilation , and not even the vacuum of the void was unscathed .

Zac could somewhat spot the swordmaster struggling within the torrent for a few seconds , but he was soon drowned and obliterated . Neither his body nor his treasure sword survived , and the whole sector of space still hadn't restored its spatial integrity by the time the meteor started moving again .

The vision started to fade as soon as the 'battle' ended , but it still replayed over and over in Zac's mind .

There was one thing that Zac was certain of ; the attack hadn’t contained even a shred of Cosmic Energy . It was a simple outburst of Dao and mental energy , a truly weaponized version of a Dao Field . That fact alone almost made Zac’s mind short-circuit , and one thought remained even after Zac woke up in the silver forest .

Just how powerful was that man’s soul to be able to utterly destroy an area far surpassing a planet just with just his Dao?

Another screen appeared like when he opened his last node , but the text wasn't all that helpful this time around either .

Spiritual Void - An omnivorous mind tempered by the primordial void

He quickly turned his sight inward once more , but not much had changed . The three apparitions still floated about in the center of his soul , and the Hidden Node inside his avatar was still slowly drawing on the energies of the three images . However , the node was properly opened this time around , and Zac figured that this behavior was one of the features of the node .

Part of him wanted to immediately start experimenting with his Daos , but the time that Verun could maintain its corporeal form was quickly running out . He conveyed a couple of orders through the Tool Spirit , and he was relieved to see that most of the remaining wolves blended into the forest the next second .

He had only given two orders to the pack since he was afraid that they wouldn’t be able to follow anything more complex than that . The first was to stay away from the wall at the side with the glasshouse . Secondly , he ordered all but six wolves to go away , to go about their business . The remaining six wolves were just at the Peak F-Grade , and Zac alone could subdue their fighting spirit with his aura even after being afflicted by the weakness of Hatchetman’s Rage] .

Verun turned into a stream of blood that squeezed into the axe a minute later , leaving Zac and the wolves in an awkward stalemate . However , Zac was relieved to see that releasing his aura wasn’t even necessary . The wolves were actually subdued by Verun even after it returned to the axe , and they even followed basic commands by Zac himself .

The group started to walk back the way Zac came from as soon as he had looted the corpses of both the alphas and most of the elites . Zac still held off on experimenting with his Daos , partly because he was afraid that he’d spook the wolves , and partly because he felt that his new hidden node hadn’t completely stabilized yet .

But there were other things to check while he made his way back , and he opened his status screen to see if the recent experiences had changed anything there .

Name

Zachary Atwood

Level

83

Class

E-Epic] Edge of Arcadia

Race

E] Human - Void Emperor (Corrupted , Unawakened)

Alignment

Earth] Port Atwood - Lord

Titles

Born for Carnage , Ultimate Reaper , Luck of the Draw , Giantsbane , Disciple of David , Overpowered , Slayer of Leviathans , Adventurer , Demon Slayer I , Full of Class , Rarified Being , Trailblazer , Child of Dao , The Big 500 , Planetary Aegis , One Against Many , Butcher , Progenitor Noblesse , Duplicity Core , Apex Hunter , Heaven's Chosen , Scion of Dao , Omnidextrous , Eastern Trigram Hunt - 1st , Tyrannic Force , Achievement Hunter , The First Step , Promising Specialist , Tower of Eternity - 8th Floor , Heaven's Triumvirate , Fated , Peak Power , Monarch-Select , Frontrunner , Pathstrider

Limited Titles

Tower of Eternity Sector All-Star - 14th

Dao

Fragment of the Axe - High , Fragment of the Coffin - Middle , Fragment of the Bodhi - Middle

Core

E] Duplicity

Strength

2756 Increase : 91% . Efficiency : 228%]

Dexterity

1312 Increase : 65% . Efficiency : 187%]

Endurance

2338 Increase : 99% . Efficiency : 218%]

Vitality

1552 Increase : 89% . Efficiency : 218%]

Intelligence

584 Increase : 65% . Efficiency : 187%]

Wisdom

1071 Increase : 70% . Efficiency : 187%]

Luck

359 Increase : 91% . Efficiency : 197%]

Free Points

0

Nexus Coins

F] 1 839 996 020

Zac felt a surge of adrenaline course through his body when he saw how much his attributes had improved , almost completely making him forget how exhausted he felt from the backlash . The probable source was easily spotted as well , and Zac quickly opened up his Dao Screen .

Fragment of the Axe (High) : All attributes +30 , Strength +500 , Dexterity +250 , Endurance +30 , Wisdom +110 . Effectiveness of Strength +15%

He had initially been afraid that the series of Dao Visions wouldn't improve his Fragments , but it looked like it was an unfounded fear . The digested Tribulation Lightning had actually allowed him to push his main Dao to the next level just based on his insights back during the Zhix Wars . That was a huge windfall for Zac , and that improvement alone drastically increased his confidence for the upcoming battles . The attributes were a welcome boost , but the true gain was the improvement to the Dao's lethality in battle .

It was a bit of a disappointment that his earlier theory had been wrong though , with neither the All Attributes nor Efficiency doubling at every upgrade . It rather looked like he gained 10 All Attributes and 5% Efficiency at every step . It meant that he would end up with 40 to all attributes at Peak Mastery , as opposed to 80 .

The total amount of gained attributes would still be the same , but the difference meant a loss of hundreds of points in Luck when including all three Fragments . This way it would possibly be easier for him to maintain his lead compared to others though , so Zac figured it might not be too bad . The other two Dao Fragments hadn't improved this time around , though Zac felt he had made some strides just by congealing those two apparitions .

That wasn't the only gain of the battle , as he had actually gotten a new title . Zac eagerly opened his Title Screen to see what the Pathstrider title provided , but the prompt almost made him collapse in despair .

Pathstrider : Form a cohesive Cultivation Path while still in E-Grade . Reward : Marked for further training

This was the second title he got without an actual reward , but Zac inwardly groaned as he felt that this one was even worse than the Terminus title . He knew all too well what the System considered 'training' . This title was essentially a trouble-magnet , and the only thing that Zac felt was missing was the infuriating 'congratulations' that the System extended .

Zac sighed and closed the status screen , which drew a few wary glances from the young wolves . At least the title brought some good news ; his cultivation path had been given a passing mark by the system .

There was nothing else for him to do in this forest for the time being , and he increased his speed toward the glasshouse . The wolves followed in tow , though it looked like every step they took was full of reluctance as they ran further and further from the rest of the pack .

The return trip took him almost an hour thanks to his weakened condition , but he finally reached the area with the camouflaged glasshouse . Zac wasn’t sure whether the others were still around or whether they were on the way back to the base , but his question was soon answered as Billy appeared out of nowhere with his club at the ready .

Wait! I tamed these guys , - Zac explained , but his voice rapidly lost its strength as the group of wolves pounced at the giant without hesitation .

The young wolves were clearly out for blood , and nothing Zac did with Verun’s Bite] could quell their bloodthirst . Zac could only sigh and flash forward , punching the closest one on the side of its head , instantly knocking it out . Billy grinned and followed suit as he bashed the closest one , and a few seconds later all six wolves were lying unconscious on the ground .

Ah , stupid dogs , - Billy muttered . - Need to be trained . -

Exactly , - Zac nodded as he turned to Thea who had walked out from the illusion array while the two dealt with the wolves . - Are you okay? -

Billy was still looking a bit tired , but his wounds were mostly superficial . He would most likely be fine in a few days . However , Thea looked a lot worse for the wear . Her face was completely pallid and her eyes were sunken , and they even seemed to have lost some of their color . The skill she used , Void Piercer] , was able to display a completely shocking might , but something told him that the cost of using it was equally harsh .

She simply shouldn’t be able to release such an amount of power as things currently stood , and Zac guessed that the skill could be considered a Taboo Skill like the escape method she possessed . It either had to cost life force or come with some other huge drawback , something far worse than his current state from using Hatchetman’s Rage] .

It’s nothing , - Thea said with a shake of her head . - I’ll be better in a bit . It’s good to see you’re fine as well , the energy outbursts before were pretty intense . -

… Be careful , - Zac could only say , realizing that Thea didn’t want him to worry . - How’s Emily and Joanna? -

They’re both sleeping , - Billy yawned . - Thea should be sleeping as well , but she refused . -

Emily overdrew her energy to the point that she even used a little bit of life-force , - Thea sighed . - She needs to rest , or it might harm her future cultivation . -

Zac nodded with a grimace , feeling a wave of guilt coming over him . He knew that the teenager needed to spread her wings and join proper missions if she would have any chance of making it on the road of cultivation , but this was probably the wrong place to do so .

Don't blame yourself . No one can predict everything , and she will be fine , - Thea said . - More importantly , we were afraid you would be coming with a thousand wolves nipping at your heels , but you actually tamed a few of them? What’s going on? Why didn’t these guys attack you? -

It’s my Tool Spirit , - Zac said after some thought as he looked down at the pitiable animals , explaining how Verun became the alpha of the pack .

It’s that powerful? - Thea asked with glimmering eyes . - It seems I need to focus even more on my new companion . -

I was hoping they would stay docile even when I’m not around , but It looks like that might take some time . Perhaps the beastmasters have some means to quickly domesticate them tough , - Zac muttered .

The Tal-Eladar , can they be trusted? - Thea asked . - Your relations seem a bit strained . -

They are a business partner rather than an ally , - Zac said after some thought . - They were pretty useless before , but they seem to have come around since they failed to assist during the Undead Incursion . Their ambiguous situation makes them work really hard as well . -

So what are you planning on doing next? - Thea asked , putting the matter of the wolves aside .

I’m going to explore the forest a bit , - Zac said without hesitation . - But I need to do something first . -

As for what that was , it was simple . He still had a storm of Cosmic Energy rampaging about in his body , and he needed to break open some nodes now that he was safe within the glasshouse .

Chapter 588 : Lunar Forest

Zac had considered his next step on his way back , and he decided to take a tour of this place , taking advantage of the fact that his axe had somehow given him a carte blanche of the forest . He had already sensed that there was a lot of valuable herbs in this forest , and only he could pass through these parts without becoming food for the wolves .

Everything pointed toward this place being created for bloodline research , so any plant that grew in this place might be useful for exactly that . Opening his second Hidden Node had been an unexpected gain , but it also cost him one of his two bloodline treasures , leaving him only with the Bloodline Nucleus] he gained during the Tower Climb . It would be best if he could find some plants to make up for the loss .

The Dimensional Treasure wouldn’t wake up for a few days in either case , and his sister seemed to believe that the spatial obstructions would be in place until it did . Now was his last chance to break open his nodes and do some simple exploration . He guessed there would be no time for that afterward .

He also wanted to set out on his own for a bit to get a better understanding of the changes in his body and to get accustomed to his new skills .

So you’re setting off alone again? - Thea asked with a frown .

Bringing these guys was a test , - Zac said as he pointed down at the unconscious wolves . - I can somewhat move among the wolves because I’m connected to my axe , but it looks like that protection doesn’t extend to others . However , I still need your help . -

What are you thinking? - Thea asked , her brows relaxing a bit .

A squad needs to find the entrances to the inner reaches of the Mystic Realm . I tried instructing the wolves to stay away from these parts , which hopefully will allow you to move along the wall toward the center . It might still be extremely dangerous even without the wolves though , - Zac said . - I’ll take a look at the other side to see if there’s another structure like this one over there . -

We’ll go back and update the main group and bring Emily to a safer place to recuperate . Should we bring your sister back here? - Thea said before she gave Zac a pointed look . - She’s the only other one who can open these doors . It’s a bit odd that only the two of you managed to get Tier-4 clearance , by the way . -

I got my clearance through the Tower of Eternity . Kenzie might just be lucky . There can only be one chief caretaker after all . Have Joanna stay in the glasshouse to open the gate for you instead . My sister has enough on her plate , - Zac said after some thought before he looked down at the wolves . - Someone needs to look after these guys as well . -

Billy and Zac carried the unconscious wolves into the oversized stalls next , and Zac was relieved to see that a barrier automatically sprung up , trapping them inside . Not only that , but water was also dispensed and a few light bulbs started to emit the same lunar light as the moons outside . It saved Zac a lot of headache , allowing him to immediately prepare to open his nodes .

It was over an hour since he gained the energy by this point , and he had already lost a third of the energy he gained from the battle . More and more energy seeped through the cracks of his energy trap , and if he didn't use the energy soon it would all be lost .

I need to break open a node . Give me an hour , - Zac said as he sat walked toward one of the adjoining rooms .

What? Break open? Are you crazy? - Thea blurted as she grabbed his arm . - I read that doing so is extremely harmful . It can even kill you! -

I don't have a lot of options as a mortal , - Zac explained with a grimace . - But I'm pretty sturdy . I'll be fine . -

Thea reluctantly let him go , and Zac sat down as soon as the sliding doors closed . The next node was in his leg just like most of the previous ones , though it was a bit further up . It was just below his knee this time , forcing Zac to be extremely careful . He became a little bit more skilled every time he opened a node , but getting wounded was inevitable .

The only thing he could hope to accomplish was to try to avoid letting anything important get destroyed and rather sacrifice his muscles . It hurt just as much that way , but muscles seemed to be the easiest part to restore with healing pills and his Dao . So it was with extreme caution that he pushed more and more of his excess energy into the node , until a surging force erupted twenty minutes later .

A stabbing pain almost made Zac black out , but he clenched his fist with enough force to draw blood from his palms to stay awake . His left leg had almost been blown clean off this time even with how careful he was , and it almost looked like one of the wolves from before had ripped out a part of his calf .

Blood drenched the whole floor , and some had even spattered on the glass walls , and Zac quickly ate a healing pill as he activated Surging Vitality] . For a few seconds there was no effect , but the maimed muscles on his legs started to wiggle and writhe a moment later , almost looking like a pack of snakes as they twisted about .

The pain intensified over twofold , but Zac held on , ignoring both the sweat that streamed down his leg and the large amount of Cosmic Energy that was drained . It turned out that Surging Vitality] could actually utilize the energy he gathered from kills , and one stream after another entered the skill fractal by his Specialty Core .

The energy wasn't transformed into life-attuned energy or something nature aspected like his Dao though , but it rather reminded Zac of his Bone-Forging Dust] . The energy was unattuned , or perhaps flesh-attuned if there was such a thing . The energy entered his mangled leg , and it boosted the natural healing ability of his body rather than traditional life-attuned healing . That was why his muscles were wriggling so much ; they were being forcibly regrown .

Such a process was excruciating though , a far cry from the warm and soothing streams of healing pills or the curing skills of people like Sui . It also only worked on his flesh physical body and not his pathways , though that wasn't a surprise .

What was a bit surprising was how much energy it cost . Using the skill for just fifteen minutes had cost him almost as much Cosmic Energy as the pitched battle before , and it had cost him over half of the accumulated kill energy . The remaining energy was barely enough for him to push his human side to level 84 and start working on his next node .

But on the bright side , it was very effective . Newly grown flesh had replaced the broken mess , and a process that would take even someone like Zac days had been shortened to fifteen minutes . His new muscles still felt a bit stiff and weakened , but he would no doubt get used to it soon enough .

This efficacy alone was reason enough to ditch True Strike] . He would save so much time with the help of the skill in the future . The fact that the healing cost him around half a level was regrettable , but someone like Zac would always be fighting powerful enemies that provided huge amounts of energy .

Mending his flesh was quick , but his pathways were far harder to deal with . He spent another hour making basic repairs after his flesh was fixed , which should allow him to use his Cosmic Energy as long as he didn't use over 50% of his power . Any more than that and he would probably overtax himself like he did during the Undead Incursion . Falling unconscious was fine next to his sister and the Valkyries , but doing so in a foreign forest was another thing altogether .

He slowly got to his feet , causing a series of crackling and popping sounds as the dried blood that covered him started falling off . He saw Thea waiting just outside the transparent walls staring at him with shock .

How are you still standing? That room looks like something from a horror movie! - Thea exclaimed , her face completely pale as she looked at Zac with worry .

Well , I'm used to it by now , - Zac shrugged .

Is this what you have to do every time to level up? - Thea said , her eyes fixed on the pool of blood on the floor . - I've read about it , but I had no idea . . . -

Well , it's not like this when I use pills or treasures to gain levels , - Zac said . - Sorry for making you worry . -

I . . . - Thea mumbled , but she eventually only shook her head with a sigh . - I can't join the squad you mentioned earlier . I need to rest , after all . Should I get the demon instead? He's crafty enough . -

He should be back by now , - Zac agreed . - Have him come over . I'll head out now . -

Thea seemed inclined to stop him , but she eventually just walked next to Zac as he stepped out of the glasshouse again .

The spatial tunnels might close while you’re out . Anything you need to relay to the outside world? - Thea finally asked just as he was about to leave .

I won’t be that long . A day or two tops , - Zac said . - Just let my sister and the other leaders know I’m okay . -

Okay , - Thea nodded . - Stay safe . There’s no guarantee the wolves are the only threat in this place . -

Zac immediately set off , cutting a straight path through the enormous forest . His leg was hurting a bit , but he could maintain a good pace even with a slight limp . Only five minutes passed before he met a small family of wolves , but they quickly backed off when Zac waved Verun in their direction . It somewhat proved that they hadn't just forgotten about his Tool Spirit , at least not yet .

Thea’s final warning echoed in his mind , but he eventually realized something odd after half an hour had passed . She seemed to be wrong about there being other threats than the wolves , almost impossibly wrong . He didn’t encounter a single living being in this vast forest even after running for over an hour , except the occasional spotting of lunar wolves . Confusion marred his face as he looked back and forth , but he couldn’t make sense of the situation .

Didn’t these wolves need to eat?

He knew that it was possible to sustain yourself solely on Cosmic Energy further down the road , but that went for D-Grade warriors and above . They still ate in general though , as high-quality food could provide some benefits . But it wasn’t necessary to survive . However , E-Grade beings shouldn’t have evolved to that point just yet .

Were these wolves perhaps an exception? Or were they rather vegetarians? They definitely didn’t look like animals that lived only on fruits or stalks of grass , so he was more inclined to believe they were able to find sustenance from energy alone . Perhaps that was the true purpose of those artificial moons in the sky , and even the reason why the wolves were brought here .

The solitude gave him a chance to try some things out though , and he stopped in a secluded valley after having traveled for another hour . The aftermath of Hatchetman's Rage] was completely gone by this point , and the halo of Conformation of Supremacy] appeared behind his body once more . However , this time the avatar didn’t depict the unadorned axe of the axe-man , but rather the insanely powerful shield of the Grand Protector who appeared in the Dao Vision for his second class .

A surge of power filled his body , and Zac could almost feel his mind connect with the ancient cultivator who had sacrificed his life to save his world . However , no fractal barrier appeared to protect his front as he swung Verun’s Bite] . He rather found his strikes gain a tremendous weight , like each of them carried the weight of a world . His attacks were heavy enough to cause scars in the air , but the damage to the ground looked completely different than the long scars before .

This time it almost looked like a small meteor had hit the ground when he swung his axe , with a crater no more than 5 meters wide appearing . It was deep though , reaching twice as far down as it was wide , and Zac accidentally fell into it when it appeared . A slight pain bloomed up when he faceplanted on the ground , but a ten-meter drop couldn't hurt him any longer .

He was more interested in the soil itself . It had become almost impossibly dense , and it took some force for him to dig into it with his hands . It was as though the area had been subjected to a terrifying amount of gravity , packing the soil to the point that it had almost turned into solid matter . Zac jumped out of the pit before he looked back at his new skill with mixed emotions .

The effect of using the shield as a basis for the skill instead of the woodsman's axe was impressive , and it was perhaps a better avatar for a duel , but Zac was disappointed to find that it didn’t work as he’d hoped . In his fight with the wolves , he used a weapon as an avatar , which increased his might . He had hoped that using a defensive treasure with Conformation of Supremacy] would instead create some sort of defensive effect .

But his new skill was true to its nature as a pure Strength-based skill , and it looked like it just took the weight and power of the shield to use it as a bludgeon . It still opened a few new avenues of how he could use it , but it clearly wasn't a one-size-fits-all-type situation where he could use it as everything from a defensive to a movement skill .

The limitation was a bit of a let-down , but not overly so . Partly because Zac somewhat expected such a situation , but mostly because he felt that he finally could use his Dao again .

His new Hidden Node had finally stabilized , and it was time to see what it could do .

Chapter 589 : Tracks

Zac’s new Hidden Node had finally calmed down and the somewhat erratic trajectories of the two circular apparitions had stabilized . The three now formed a stable system , and Zac’s intuition told him that using his mental energy shouldn’t pose a problem any longer . However , Zac still noted that his Hidden Node was still slowly eating the energies from the three Dao projections , though not nearly as frantically as before .

It felt like a small drain on his mind , but his soul was pretty strong by this point , and he was generating new Mental Energy a lot quicker than the speed of consumption of his Hidden Node . It would no doubt slow down his recuperation after a battle , but he still had a pile of Soul Crystals in case he was in a hurry .

He was about to infuse his skill , but a thought suddenly struck him as he activated Primal Polyglot] first . The translation function worked passively just like the Book of Babel] , but the active interpretation of the Dao-based language needed an infusion of Cosmic Energy . He had tried using it a few times before as they traveled through the endless tunnels , but it appeared as though the skill didn’t really help with Technocrat materials .

His vision didn’t change at all after activating the skill , but it still felt like he was looking at something different than before as he gazed at the halo hovering behind him . It felt a bit similar to how two different people could have completely different impressions of a painting or a poem , it gave Zac a completely new outlook as he gazed at the circular fractals .

The skill allowed him to gain a better understanding of how the halo and the apparition were connected , but he didn’t gain any immediate insights into the limitations of his skill though . Zac guessed he would have to experiment with one apparition after another to see what would be useful , and what would be inefficient .

Zac briefly considered using the Chaos Pattern or his Remnants for a huge destructive boost , but he quickly dispelled any such thoughts . He didn’t want to call down the Tribulation Lightning again , even if things turned out pretty good the last time around .

That scene with the endless sea of lightning might even have been a warning by the heavens , so he instead focused on his Dao . He tried infusing Conformation of Supremacy] with the Fragment of the Axe seeing that everything seemed to be in order , but worry gripped his heart when nothing happened .

However , Zac immediately calmed down when he found that he could infuse the skill with the Fragment of the Coffin just fine . It would appear that the choice of projection also impacted what Daos were infusible . The feeling he got from the shield was mostly one of imperviousness and hardness , and his Fragment of the Coffin was the Fragment that best represented that feeling .

A stream of mental energy made its way into the halo from his mind , and Zac noted with interest that the energies seeping out of the hanging coffin joined the mental energy flow , effectively turning it into Dao Energy . The infusion somehow felt a lot smoother from before , like the process had been streamlined . That by itself didn’t really change its power or anything , though the speed of his infusion seemed to have somewhat sped up .

It was only a difference of a fraction of a second , but even such a small boost could prove vital in a pitched battle .

However , another change made Zac’s eyes glisten . A second stream was released from his avatar , or rather the Hidden Node lodged within his body . It was the same pitch-black energy as the one released from the coffin , and the two streams seamlessly merged just before they entered the skill fractal .

Zac initially didn’t know whether this change held any significance , but he quickly realized what was going on . He hadn’t used his new E-Grade skill a lot , but he was almost certain that he was able to instill more of his mental energy compared to before .

Of course , that might be because he had changed the avatar to a shield that really matched the Fragment of the Coffin .

There was a simple way to make sure though , and Zac quickly dispelled Conformation of Supremacy] to instead conjure a fractal blade with Chop] . It was the skill he was most used to , and he knew exactly how much mental energy he could infuse into the blade before it wouldn’t work any longer .

Zac’s eyes lit up as he infused more and more of his Dao into the blade , and he was still using the Fragment of the Coffin . A similar scene took place in his mind this time around as well , as two streams of energies fused just as they entered the skill fractal on his hand .

The fractal blade immediately gained a sinister aura as it was filled with the putrefying part of his Dao Fragment , but the color kept increasing in intensity and power until it almost turned pitch-black .

It didn’t take Zac long to figure out the difference from before . He could suddenly infuse around 20% more mental energy into his skills , which made his attacks around 10% more powerful compared to before if you contributed half his power to his Dao Fragments . It was an amazing boost that seemed to come with pretty much no downsides , apart from a small but constant drain on his mind .

Of course , there was some bad news that came along with the good . Zac had hoped that the Hidden Node in his mind would be related to Dao control and affinity like the general Hidden Node Spirit Gate] , but it rather looked like Spiritual Void] was a combat-oriented node that replaced quality with quantity .

Zac experimenting for a few minutes longer to make sure , but he could quickly confirm that he was still beyond incompetent when it came to things like Dao Braiding . He couldn’t turn his Hidden Node on or off either , though he could somewhat reduce the amount of energy it expelled along with a Dao infusion .

Another change took place a few minutes later , as the additional infusion from his Hidden Node started to wane , leaving Zac with just his own mental energy . He wasn’t too surprised about that though . He had already guessed that the Spiritual Void] acted like some sort of Dao Battery , storing excess energy until it would be released in battle .

The node was a bit unwieldy in the sense that he couldn’t control when to use it and when his own Dao was enough , but his control would probably improve when his bloodline awakened . The boosting effect would probably become even greater in the future as well , and he couldn’t help but think back to the scene where his presumed ancestor crushed his enemy by simply releasing the floodgates in his mind .

Perhaps even more importantly , the node gave him an important glimpse into his Void Emperor bloodline . Things were finally started to make sense , and the lack of affinities no longer felt as detrimental as they once did . His body might be - corrupted’ with a complete lack of affinities , but it appeared that his bloodline was shoring up those weaknesses one by one .

The Void Heart] was related to energy gathering , allowing him to eat all kinds of energies as an alternative form of cultivation . The second node in his soul allowed for an additional outburst of mental energy , replacing Dao Braiding or Dao Arrays with additional force .

It perfectly aligned with his insights back during the Dao Discourse to the point that it made him question whether that epiphany was actually just his bloodline telling his subconscious how to fight .

Zac did fell a few trees with his improved Fragment of the Axe as well , and it had taken a noticeable step forward in lethality . The fragment hadn’t really seemed to gain any new functionality as they sometimes did , but it had rather just become more powerful . It wasn’t too surprising , as the upgrade had been based on war and conflict rather than adding something new like Mental Heaviness .

Seeing that everything was fine even after the drastic changes to his mind Zac set out again , taking a circuitous route through the forest . It took almost 20 hours for him to reach the other side , but he had spent a few hours picking up energy-dense plants .

He didn’t recognize a single one of them , but they all contained the energy of the moon . The combination of specific growth requirements and unique attributes was usually a recipe for a valuable treasure , so he had high hopes that the Sky Gnome could turn these things into piles of cash even if they proved useless in awakening his bloodline .

A few hours were spent on rest and redrawing his pathways as well . He ate a small hill of meat before he set out again , but he finally felt like he had rid himself of the last after-effects of the Rageroot Oak Seed] . His body was in pretty good condition all things considered , with only his pathways causing some issues now .

It was a bit of an annoyance , but Zac knew he couldn’t complain . Most mortals would probably turn green with envy when hearing how quickly he pushed through levels .

Zac kept moving forward after resuming his exploration , and the silver forest finally gave way to the band of grass that ran along the wall . The opposite side of the forest was constructed pretty much the same way as the area they came from , with a thirty-meter tall wall stretching across the horizon .

However , there was one startling difference ; the wall was actually damaged , like it had just endured a siege . The scripts had lost their luster at multiple places , and there were hundreds of cracks . Zac even believed he would be able to cram himself through some of the larger fractures .

Zac’s first guess was that another battle had taken place here just like the one that should have taken place just before Ogras first arrived in the Mystic Realm , but he quickly discarded that thought . The damage was simply too widespread , going on for as far as he could see . If a battle had caused this kind of damage they definitely weren’t at the E-Grade .

But more to the point , Zac sensed the same type of spatial energies in many of the cracks , making him believe that this was rather the result of spatial turbulence .

There were no spatial tears or other dangers for the moment though , so Zac started walking along the edge of the forest in a parallel to the wall , keeping his form hidden among the shrubbery . He was looking for a natural exit like the glasshouse or a gate , but so far there were no clues .

The cracks might provide ingress to the other side , but Zac wouldn’t try that unless he really needed to . After all , the walls were alive , and he didn’t want to get buried alive inside the technocrat alloy . A sudden shudder from his forester’s intuition made him turn his concentration to a patch of the forest ahead of him .

He first didn’t understand what Forester’s Constitution] was trying to tell him as there were no herbs there , but his eyes widened when he noticed something .

There were footsteps , and not something left by the wolves .

Zac bent down to get a closer look , and while he was no expert in tracking he felt the trail was fresh . He hesitated for a second , but his curiosity quickly overcame his caution . He soon took out his axe and he started to follow the tracks , taking great care to not create any sounds .

The tracks came from the depths of the forest before they made a turn at the edge . It looked like a group had taken a shortcut like him , but the droplets of blood on the grass indicated that their passage might not have been as carefree . The trail moved in the same direction as the one Zac already walked , keeping to the edge of the forest all the time .

There was no doubt that the owners of the footprints weren’t far away as the blood on the ground still hadn’t dried , and it only took him fifteen minutes before he spotted some movement ahead . Zac had thought about how to make first contact with the natives a fair bit over the past weeks , but no planning had prepared him for the situation in front of him .

Five werewolves were standing not far from the wall , most of them sporting somewhat severe wounds . One of them even seemed to have lost an arm recently , and he swayed a bit where he stood . But more importantly , one of them was carrying an unconscious human , a girl who looked no older than Zac himself

How were you supposed to react to what looked like a straight-up kidnapping?

His first instinct was to save help the captive out simply based on the fact they both were human , but he quickly discarded the thought . He had no idea what was going on , and getting involved might cause unnecessary trouble . His main goal was to kill the two remaining Dominators to cut off the last two Karmic Links leading to earth .

Anything else was secondary .

However , a burst of annoyance made Zac grit his teeth when an all-too-familiar prompt appeared in front of him .

Damsel in Distress (Training (1/10)) : Rescue the Damsel in Distress . Reward : Reward based on performance at the end of training regimen . (0/1) NOTE : Failure to comply with training regimen will result in loss of two random skills and 9 levels

Chapter 590 : Let's Talk

Zac mutely looked at the quest prompt for a few seconds , realizing that his new Pathstrider-title wasted no time in causing trouble for him . He had been free from any meddling by the System since the battle outside the Tower of Eternity , but it looked like his good days were over .

Not only did the System force him to take a side , but it even said that this was just the first of a series of quests . The failure penalty was almost of grotesque proportions as well . Losing nine levels would put him right back at the start of the E-Grade , and this time he wouldn’t be able to gain most of the levels through pills .

Of course , the real threat was losing two of his skills , and it was something he couldn’t allow to happen no matter what .

The one small blessing was that there was no time limit on the quest , which allowed Zac to stay hidden for a bit longer to spy on the werewolves . The beastkin actually felt a bit familiar to the lunar wolves in the forest with all of them emitting the same sort of lunar energy . Most of them had mottled fur in black and silver , but one who emitted the strongest aura was almost completely silvery-white .

Zac guessed that the silver werewolf was the leader , and he even had a marking on his forehead . It pretty much confirmed Zac’s earlier theory that the werewolves in this Research Base and the lunar wolves were somehow connected through bloodlines . The werewolves might even be normal humans who had the bloodline of the wolves transplanted into their bodies for all Zac knew .

The more pressing issue was how to deal with the situation .

The auras of the warriors weren't weak by any means , but neither did they make Zac feel a lot of pressure . He felt pretty confident in dealing with them without wasting any more of his aces , but that by itself made him a bit wary . The system wouldn't just give him a freebie , making him believe there was some catch to the quest .

So Zac wasn’t in any rush to rush out , especially as the group was doing something that sparked Zac’s curiosity .

They had been standing at a seemingly inconspicuous part of the wall , with one of the werewolves touching and prodding the smooth surface all this while . But it looked like he finally had found what he looked for , and he took out one disk after another and pressed them against the metal . The disks stayed in place like they had suction cups , and the beastkin quickly formed two vertical lines with the help of twelve identical disks .

The werewolf wasn't finished there , but he actually took out a tablet next and he connected it to one of the disks through a cable . It was a bit surreal watching a werewolf deftly using what seemed to be futuristic technology , but perhaps he shouldn't be surprised considering what kind of place this was .

There was still no sign of what they were up to even after the werewolf had been tapping away at the tablet with an almost dizzying speed for five minutes , but then there was finally a change . Zac couldn't believe what he was seeing as a gate started to take form in the wall with the disks acting as the frames .

It looked just like the gates they had passed through to get to this place , though it was only three meters high . It was also looking very rough , but it was gradually transforming into a proper door . Part of him wanted to stay and watch a while longer to see what else the tech-savvy werewolf had up his sleeve , but Zac knew that he couldn't wait longer if he wanted to intercept .

That door might disappear the moment they passed through it , locking Zac outside . There was no timer on the quest , but that didn't mean that he couldn't fail it . He slowly rose from his hidden position , but he had underestimated the senses of the werewolves as even that small movement put them on edge .

Their bodies immediately grew half a size as Zac prepared himself for battle , allowing them to tower over a meter above Zac . Their claws grew longer as well , and Zac felt that they could even match low quality E-Grade Tool Spirits .

Zac’s hypothesis that these beastkin were related to the lunar wolves was further confirmed as they started radiating a cold piercing light that turned the whole area into a blinding white .

But Zac had already figured out the solution to this trick though , so he activated Cosmic Gaze] and Hatchetman's Spirit] which immediately allowed him to spot the trio . They had discarded their captive on the ground and were now rushing straight toward him while the leader stayed behind to observe .

The auras the warriors had grown since they transformed , but it was absolutely not to the point that Zac feared for his life . He still found himself in a tricky spot as he didn't want to kill them in order to not ruin any potential cooperation with these people . After all , the quest had told him to save the girl , but nothing about killing these people .

Wait , let's talk- - Zac said as he lifted a hand to indicate that he didn't want trouble , but he was quickly forced to move his hand away as a series of claws ripped through the air in an attempt to cut it clean off .

The werewolves seemed to have taken his words as a sign of weakness as they looked at him with disdain . Zac was a bit confused about what gave these guys the guts to attack him even if his words were a bit defensive , but he suddenly realized that his aura was actually quite weak at the moment because of his broken pathways .

Not only that , but a lot of his excess spirituality was also swallowed by his Spiritual Void] rather than being passively emitted from his body as an aura . He hadn't realized it before , but these two facts combined probably made him appear like a recently evolved cultivator at best . He still had a hard time deciding on a course of action though , so he was immediately put in a passive state as he started avoiding a furious barrage of claws infused with the power of the moon without trying to expose his real strength .

However , a single sentence immediately quenched his hopes of a peaceful release of the human girl .

Don’t kill him . He’s one of the outsiders , - the leader growled as he spectated the battle . - The others we caught were even weaker than this one . Let’s take him with us to the relay station as well . -

Zac’s pupils shrunk as he immediately realized what the werewolf was talking about . It turned out that it was these werewolves who were responsible for his missing squad . A thick killing intent roiled out from his body , far eclipsing his diminutive aura , causing the pupils of his enemies to shrink into needlepoints .

The outburst was so powerful that even the unconscious human on the ground stirred awake , and the werewolves quickly tried to back away and regroup . However , how could Zac allow for something like that?

The closest werewolf was instantly bisected as Verun’s Bite] emitted a sanguine glow , leaving just four alive . The other two werewolves barely had time to flash away by turning into moonlight before Zac's blade reached them as well , but he was immediately hot in pursuit .

He must be one of their leaders! - the silver werewolf shouted from behind . - Restrain him! -

The silver light in the whole area transformed the next moment as the wolves lit up like beacons , and the radiance was so powerful that the moonlight almost seemed to have turned into a liquid . It felt just like the restriction during his last fight , but perhaps even more powerful . Even worse , the pressure was steadily increasing , forcing him to flash forward with Loamwalker] , finally leaving the forest .

The light put some painful pressure on his still tender leg , but he knew that he simply needed to fight in a melee range to almost completely circumvent its effect . Someone with less Strength than him might have been completely unable to move due to the pressure though . He quickly targeted one of the soldiers at random , and while he seemed surprised at Zac’s decisiveness he still quickly responded by slashing at Zac's throat with his claws .

Zac blocked it with his axe before he rammed him straight on with his shoulder , but he was a bit surprised by the result . He had expected to send the wolf flying with multiple broken bones , but he was actually just pushed back with a grunt . The bodies of these people were clearly extremely sturdy , making Zac wonder just what they had gone through to be in such a wretched state .

The attack had caused a shock to the werewolf's system though , allowing Zac to immediately follow up with a swing of Verun’s Bite] infused with the Fragment of the Axe .

A lunar barrier appeared to block the strike , but this was a High Mastery Dao Fragment . The barrier was cut apart like it was made from paper , and the werewolf's head was lopped off the next moment . Zac didn't get any time to celebrate though as he felt a searing pain on his neck and back as a series of crescent moons hidden in the moonlight slammed into him , instantly drenching his body with blood .

Zac grunted with pain , but he was more surprised that the attacks managed to hide from the omnipresence of Hatchetman's Spirit] . He wildly looked around with Cosmic Gaze] to spot the source of the attacks , and he realized that another werewolf had appeared from the forest . But Zac was even more surprised to see that the newcomer was ignoring him after the first barrage , and instead was rushing straight toward the gate .

Not only that , but the others were doing the same , even leaving behind their tools and backpacks on the ground .

Run! Run! - the leader shouted as he kicked the girl on the ground , which launched her body into the arms of one of the others . - Open that god damn thing even if the algorithms are imperfect! -

Zac could sigh at how different these guys were compared to their frenzied cousins as he set out in pursuit .

Two combatants were already down , which left three more to go , not counting the wolf who was still desperately working on opening the door . Zac was starting to feel a bit woozy from fighting in his current condition , but it wasn’t like he had any option but to keep going .

It was a bit risky , but he started pushing energy into the skill fractal of RapturousDivide] as a fractal blade appeared in front of his axehead . Zac knew he would need to take them out before they opened that door so he wanted to catch them all in a close-range swipe . However , a series of spatial tears suddenly appeared out of nowhere , almost cutting him to ribbons .

Zac desperately jumped out of the way as he looked for the source of the attack . It was the backpack that one of the werewolves had discarded earlier . It was actually a booby-trap , but Zac had ignored it because it didn't emit even a hint of Cosmic Energy , and his danger sense didn't warn him either .

He quickly tried to find his footing and resume his pursuit , but a sense of foreboding suddenly came over him . However , he didn't even have time to make a move before a hand appeared from the moonlight and pressed a small mechanical item against his chest .

Terror filled Zac's heart when he thought he was about to get ripped apart by a bunch of spatial tears , but one fear was replaced with another as he found his body completely restrained . That little thing that looked like a toy had somehow taken control of the Cosmic Energy in his body , and his body had locked itself into place .

He tried to struggle free , but moving was completely impossible .

Shit , the outsiders have some formidable people , - the silver werewolf spat as he emerged out of the moonlight , and he lifted Zac by his neck before started to walk toward the others . - But that's good . This one should know a lot more than those scouts . -

Zac wasn't even able to respond , but he was suddenly filled with hope as he noticed something . His Specialty Core wasn't restrained at all by the odd item latched to his chest , and it had even started its transformation . The werewolf was thankfully completely oblivious to that fact as he was more focused on the wolf dealing with the gate .

He didn’t get any further than ten meters though as the massive cage of death sprung up around him , trapping all the remaining werewolves along with the human captive . The cable connecting the werewolf's tablet to the wall was ripped apart by the barrier of Profane Seal] as well , effectively stopping his work .

The weird Technocrat restraining tool fell to the ground as Zac's hand punched through the chest of the werewolf leader . The bindings before had made him drop Verun's Bite] , but his hand still had terrifying penetrating power since it was infused with his recently upgraded Dao Fragment .

The werewolf leader looked into Zac's abyssal eyes for a second before his head rolled over , and Zac felt a surge of energy entering his body . The pitch-black armor of Vanguard of Undeath] covered him the next moment as he turned toward the remaining werewolves , and over a dozen chains stabbed toward the disbelieving targets as Zac started to advance on them .

The unexpected close call was enough for him to completely clear his head , and Zac immediately started his customary grinding down of his targets with newfound zeal . The werewolves tried to turn into motes of light to escape again , but their moonlight was completely overpowered by the combination of Winds of Decay] and Fields of Despair] .

Just a few seconds later only one enemy was left alive , the werewolf who had been responsible for summoning the gate earlier . Zac figured that he would be able to answer some questions in case the human girl didn’t know , for example where that relay station was . He left the werewolf utterly restrained by his sets of chains , but he couldn’t help but feel a headache coming on as he turned his abyssal eyes toward the human .

She had been shocked awake by the kick earlier , and she had witnessed everything that came afterward . Him getting locked down and then transforming to a Draugr . He knew that his unique situation would be exposed to the world sooner or later , but it was still too early . If this girl was allowed to return to her clan , then he would sooner or later be exposed . Not even a contract felt like a surefire way to protect the secrets as Catheya had explained .

But could he really kill her to protect his secret? That would definitely be crossing a line .

Don’t kill me . I won’t tell anyone , I swear on my Clan’s name , - the girl hurriedly said , clearly understanding what kind of thoughts were running through Zac’s mind .

I won’t harm you , - Zac eventually said after some pause . - But I can’t just let you go either . At least not for the time being . What you saw can get both me and my people in trouble if it spreads out . You will need to sign a contract and stay with me for a while . -

I understand your predicament , I really do , - the girl sighed . - But I have too many people depending on me . I cannot let that happen . But don't worry . You risked your life to save me , so I'll keep my word . -

Alarm bells immediately went off in Zac’s mind when he heard her response , and Zac immediately erected every defense he had while launching every single free chain at her . She was planning something , something dangerous . The feeling of alarm only intensified as the girl’s eyes turned white , and Zac fought a strange feeling that enveloped his mind as he tried to restrain her before it was too late .

Zac desperately jumped out of the way as he looked for the source of the attack . It was the backpack that one of the werewolves had discarded earlier . It was actually a booby-trap , but Zac had ignored it because it didn't emit even a hint of Cosmic Energy , and his danger sense didn't warn him either .

He quickly tried to find his footing and resume his pursuit , but a weird mental nudge pushed him back a step .

Behind you! - the human girl screamed in warning , and Zac’s reaction was instantaneous .

Chapter 591 : The Hero's Journey

Zac spun around , just in time to see a hand materialize out of nowhere a meter away from him . It held some mechanism in its hand , but Zac slapped the thing out of the furry paw before he swung his axe twice in quick succession .

The clouds of Rapturous Divide] spread in the area in front of him as a surprised-looking silvery werewolf was cut apart by the spatial divide . It was the werewolf leader who had been caught by surprise . He had somehow managed to hide completely in the moonlight , tricking both Zac’s senses and his Danger sense .

Thankfully he had the tables turned on him because of the early warning , and the werewolf helplessly fell on the ground as his blood flowed like rivers . Zac didn’t immediately target the other wolves , but he rather stopped for a second and looked down at the dying warrior . He didn’t know why , but Zac felt an eerie sense of déjà vu as he saw the hand just now .

It’s you! - the werewolf coughed as he bled out , but his two blood-red eyes were actually staring at the girl fifty meters away rather than at Zac . - You weren’t restrained! -

Zac looked over in confusion and was surprised to see that the young woman was in an extremely precarious condition for some reason , with blood freely running from her eyes , nose , and ears . She couldn’t even respond to the werewolf’s accusations , as she puked out both her dinner and a bucket of blood before she fell in a heap .

You used the eyes of time to meddle! Don’t think this will save you! You hold the key to immortality , and the Lunar Tribe will not be stopped! We will- - werewolf raved until the light in his eyes died .

The dying words of the werewolf leader rekindled the feeling of wrongness , but he was more concerned about dealing with the remaining werewolves . He left the dead leader where he was and instead focused on the last two as he rushed toward the gate . However , he couldn’t believe what he was seeing when the werewolves actually made a 180-turn , rushing straight toward him .

Did that werewolf leader hold such a big position in their hearts that they were ready to throw their lives away to avenge him? Zac’s state was pretty bad from fighting so soon after node-breaking , but these remaining wolves were absolutely not his match .

Zac prepared to meet their assault head-on , but he found himself swinging his axe through empty space as the wolves suddenly disappeared . He immediately sensed where they had appeared though ; right next to the girl and the fallen corpse of their leader .

A wave of anger surged in his mind when he thought of the wretched state of the former captive . She was clearly on the verge of death . Had the wolves decided to retaliate against her instead of him when realizing they couldn’t deal with him?

Rage bubbled in his heart when he saw her pitiable state , and he once more pushed himself beyond what was safe , instantly appearing next to the closest werewolf . The beastkin desperately reached for a pouch on his leaders’ waist as his body turned into moonlight , but the process was interrupted in the middle as Zac punched clean through his head with an Axe-Infused jab .

The other werewolf actually appeared right next to him before his attack was even finished , snatching the satchel and disappearing . But his camouflage was nowhere near the level of his fallen leader , especially not when most of the moonlight in the area had dissipated by now . He might as well have skipped using the skill as Zac could see his outline perfectly with the help of Cosmic Gaze] .

Zac caught up with him with the help of Loamwalker] and ended his life in one swing . He looted the stolen pouch without losing his momentum before he appeared right next to the smallest werewolf who was still desperately typing on his tablet . Despair flooded his eyes when he saw Zac appear next to him , but a hint of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes as he pushed a button at the corner of his tablet .

A surge of danger screamed in Zac’s mind , allowing him to barely dodge a metal spike as the wall came alive , ruthlessly stabbing at both himself and the werewolf . One attack after another was launched in quick succession like a crashing wave of liquid metal .

A painful wound was ripped open in Zac’s side as the wall almost had turned into a terrifying maw that tried to swallow him whole , but he pushed through the pain as he ran for his life . The werewolf was even worse off as he was instantly killed by an alloy spike that pierced his head . Zac risked it to look behind , just in time to see the corpse being dragged inside the wall itself .

The scene only boosted Zac’s desire to escape , but he still stopped for an instant to snatch up the wounded girl before he ran into the forest . He felt the spikes pierce into the ground right behind him even after reaching the edge of the forest , and only after running for another minute could he confirm that the wall wasn’t hunting him any longer .

The girl had already gone unconscious again , and Zac sighed as he fed her some of his better healing pills for both the body and the soul before dealing his own wounds . She was his ticket to learning about this base , and he couldn’t let her die after going through all that trouble .

A sudden wave of dizziness threatened to push him into the embrace of unconscious just like the last time he fought while still over-doing it right after breaking open a node , but he couldn’t risk it in this place . A burst of pain jolted him awake as he stabbed himself in the leg , and the shock to his system pushed the drowsiness away .

His body was still in a pretty pathetic state though , but it slowly improved over the next two hours . The wound in his side was purely physical in its form , which allowed him to quickly heal it up with the help of Surging Vitality] . It cost him most of the energy from his battle , but it wasn’t all that much anyway .

Only the leader was powerful , but his aura was pretty unstable even before the fight . The energy rewarded by the System took things like that into account , so he didn’t get nearly as much energy from this battle as from the one against the wolves .

The whole fight made him wonder what the purpose of this training session was . He hadn’t really learned anything new from the battle , and it definitely hadn’t pushed him beyond his limits to make some sort of breakthrough .

Was it more about setting a series of events in motion?

A second quest prompt quickly answered his question for him .

The Hero's Journey (Training (2/10)) : Rescue your scouting squad before they are moved from the relay station . Reward : Reward based on performance at the end of training regimen . (0/7) . 04 : 34 : 22] NOTE : Three deaths count as failure . Failure to comply with training regimen will result in loss of two random skills and 7 levels

Zac quickly read the quest , and a sense of relief filled him when he saw that the punishment had lessened . However , the loss of skills was still there , meaning that he definitely couldn’t skip it . Then again , he had no plans to do so anyway .

He had already decided to rescue his people the moment the werewolf leader opened his mouth , so the quest didn’t really change anything this time around . The problem was that there was a time limit for this quest .

Four hours wasn’t little , but it wasn’t a lot either . The relay station was definitely on the other side of the wall , but the gate had disappeared when that smaller werewolf somehow triggered the defenses of the wall .

The encounter had also proved that there was even more about this place he didn’t understand than he had anticipated . He took out a small trinket from his Spatial ring and he turned it over a few times before stowing it away again . It was the thing that the Werewolf leader tried to attack him with before he was killed , but Zac couldn’t figure out how it worked or what it did at all .

Who knew how technocrat weaponry and tricks these werewolves had? Zac was afraid that he would just get himself killed if he stormed the relay station blindly . Perhaps they could control the walls freely , easily trapping him in a corridor before flooding it with spatial tears . Not even he would be able to escape something like that .

Zac’s eyes slowly turned to the unconscious girl lying next to him . She was the key to this mission . He felt a bit bad about bringing her with him on a rescue mission in her wounded state , but he didn’t have a lot of options . He couldn’t risk failing the quest , and she would definitely increase the odds of success thanks to her knowledge of this place .

At least the girl’s situation seemed to have stabilized thanks to his pills , though she was still unconscious . He looked down at her curiously , feeling for some reason that they had met before . But that was obviously impossible since she clearly wasn’t someone from his force . She was wearing what looked like a technocrat uniform , but she was definitely a cultivator judging by the aura she unconsciously emitted .

Zac couldn’t be certain , but it felt like she had recently evolved to the E-Grade , which was pretty impressive considering her young age and the somewhat lacking cultivation environment . Then again , the girl might look 20 , but she could be 100 years old for all Zac knew .

Normally Zac would have been happy to recuperate a while longer while waiting for the girl to come around , but the timer left him restless . He was in decent shape in any case , and he hadn’t used any of his long cooldown skills during the battle . It was time to start looking for a way to get to the other side of the wall .

He got up to his feet and slung the girl across his shoulder before he made his way back toward the wall as he kept vigil of the surroundings . There might be more werewolves lurking in the area , or some other hidden traps initiated by the werewolf technician . But it looked like the alloy had returned to normal , and an unmoving wall met his eyes when he reached the edge of the forest .

Even throwing anything from boulders to corpses at the wall elicited no response , and Zac finally dared to personally move closer . He let the girl down on a patch of grass before he started to prod the wall , but there was no sign of the gate at all . A quick survey of the immediate section of the wall exposed a pretty huge crack a few hundred meters away , but Zac was extremely hesitant to use it .

The wolves hadn’t even tried using those cracks as a means of escape when facing death , making Zac believe that the jagged scars in the walls were deathtraps . But he had no idea what to do next . He had found a few technological gadgets along with a spare tablet in the werewolf leader’s cosmos sack , but he had no idea how to use it .

The tablet wouldn't turn on , and the disks wouldn't stick to the wall no matter how hard Zac pushed . Three minutes passed without him making any progress , and he finally couldn’t wait any longer . He walked over to the unconscious girl as he took out a bottle of water . However , an idea struck him and he released a burst of killing intent aimed at her . It actually worked . The girl groaned as her eyelids fluttered , and she woke up a second later .

Her bleary eyes peered back and forth until they finally found Zac . Her pupils constricted for a second , but she quickly calmed down as she slowly got up to a sitting position .

Thank you for saving me . I’m Leviala Cartava , - she said with a weak voice .

Chapter 592 : Datamancers

Zac once more got a weird feeling when he looked into Leviala's eyes now that she had woken up . Of course , that might be because of the way they looked . The girl looked like a normal , albeit frail , Caucasian girl , with a both short and lithe frame . However , her eyes dashed any chance of mistaking her for some random Earthling .

One of them was normal , though it seemed to contain impurities , small spots of darkness peppered about her sclera and green iris . But the other eye was completely white , to the point that it seemed that she was born without a pupil at all . In its place was an extremely dense fractal , and trying to understand it with Primal Polyglot] could only provide him with one hint .

It was a curse , one aimed at the girl herself .

I’m the one who should be thanking you for the warning before , - Zac shrugged as he handed her the bottle of water , trying to not appear weirded out by the odd appearance of the eye . - Are you okay? I didn’t know what was wrong with you , so I simply gave you a couple of different healing pills . -

My soul is wounded , but whatever you gave me is really helping . The outside is really full of marvelous things , - she said with a weak smile .

So I’m guessing you’re from Clan Cartava? - Zac said . - How did you end up getting captured? -

The Lunar Tribe have kept a lot of secrets over the years it seems , - Leviala sighed . - We’ve always thought them muscleheads with limited understanding of how this world works . But they managed to sneak all the way to our domiciles without triggering any of our alarms . They used pathways that we had no idea existed and killed my guards before the elders had a chance to react . -

Zac slowly nodded . It wasn’t too surprising if the native forces finally started to make use of hidden aces they had accumulated over the past millennia now that the world was changing . No matter if it was to get out of this place or to seize the treasures of this Mystic Realm , now was the time to go all out .

It was a bit odd that these werewolves had wasted this opportunity on this girl in front of him though . It was almost a suicide mission to infiltrate a hostile faction like that , and he couldn’t see anything on her that was worth the effort . He had already searched her for Cosmos Sacks or other spatial tools , and there simply wasn’t anything on her .

The most likely reason was the parting words of the werewolf leader , but Zac had no time to worry about the key to immortality . He had a quest to complete . But there were some things he needed to understand before setting out .

What is this thing? - Zac asked as he took out the small mechanism that he almost was struck by before . - A weapon? -

No , they’re called restraint modules , - the girl said with a shake of her head as she took out an identical one from within her robes . - It locks your Cosmic Energy in place , which also restricts your movement . It was used to restrain research subjects long ago . -

So it was something like that , - Zac whistled , though he wouldn’t completely take her word for it . - Then how are you free? -

They lose their efficacy over time as the body adapts . But my parents also implanted me with a hidden blocker at birth and only told me and my grandfather . It contains an algorithm to deactivate restraint modules and some other things , and enough Base Power to connect with items outside my body , - Leviala said . - I was waiting for an opportunity to escape , but those werewolves were too vigilant . Luckily you came along . -

Base Power? What’s that? - Zac asked as he put away the small mechanism .

It’s the energy that this base runs on . All the tools we’ve looted in this world runs on Base Power , and it’s also required to interface with the base itself , - Leviala explained .

Is that why this tablet won’t start up? - Zac said as he waved the thing he looted from the werewolf leader .

Yes , these things require a fresh stream of Base Power to operate , - Leviala nodded before she looked at the disks lying next to Zac with a frown . - What are you doing? -

I need to get to the other side , but the door those werewolves summoned is gone . You should have heard them before , they have captured one of our squads . I want to get them back , - Zac said . - How do I get that door to open again? -

You shouldn’t go there . The Wasteland is in that direction , - Leviala said , her face turning a shade paler . - Besides , they should have been taken to the relay station . There are probably multiple squads waiting there to cross the Wasteland together . Not only that , the base might be protected by other means as well . I’m afraid that it’s impossible to save your friends . -

Let me worry about that , - Zac shrugged as he poured out everything from the werewolf's Cosmos Sack on the ground . - Where can I get this Base Power? Does anything among these items contain it? -

Listen to me , it’s a shame about your people , but we need to get out of this world . We are about to be trapped again in just a few days . The world is ending . Getting caught inside will only doom both our Clans , - she said as her odd eyes bore into his .

We know , - Zac said , ignoring the discomfort of the stare . - About the trapped thing , that is . -

You know? Why are you people still staying here then? The space treasure? You don’t understand the horror of that thing , - the girl said with fear in her eyes , a fear that didn’t seem faked to Zac . - Our Clan is ready to form an alliance with your leaders , provided that you help us out of this place . We left you a map to this forest before the storms returned . If you open a specific gate from your side , we can all- -

I’m sorry , but we aren’t going anywhere , - Zac said with a shake of his head . - And neither are we letting anyone out . Now , these things , how do- -

Why not? - Leviala blurted , and it was obvious she felt that Zac was a lunatic for wanting to stay in this place . - We know that your world is newly introduced to the world of cultivation , and we can help . There is much we have lost while locked in this place , but we can help each other to face the threat of outsiders . -

Various reasons . But most the most important task our faction is dealing with is to hunt down a group of insectoid humanoids , - Zac sighed , slightly annoyed at the delay .

He knew that he needed the help of this girl if he wanted to use these machines though , as there was no time to go get his sister . So he quickly calmed down so that he could explain what was going on . He took out a picture of Void’s Disciple that they had captured when the Dominator had entered Site 17 .

Unless this man dies , then everyone , including the people of your Clan , will die . The same probably goes for a group of cultists that have entered this place . They need to be taken out as well . I don’t really care about that treasure , but our enemies do . That’s our way to hunt them down . -

Blank incomprehension was written all over Leviala’s face , but even more-so despair . Zac guessed that she had expected to finally be able to leave this prison of theirs pretty soon , but that door had suddenly closed right in her face .

I cannot speak for my elders… But if what you’re saying is true , then Clan Cartava might be able to help you locate these threats . But can you explain what’s going on? I’m willing to act as a liaison between our forces , - she said after some thought .

Zac immediately explained the threat of The Great Redeemer and the Church of Everlasting Dao in broad strokes , about the Karmic Ties that needed to be severed for their planet to remain hidden . This was not some secret intelligence , after all , but rather something that was generally disseminated by this point . Of course , a lot of people believed it was just a ruse by him and Port Atwood to seize control .

A Deviant Karmic Cultivator , at peak D-Grade at that? - Leviala blanched . - It seems the outside isn’t all that safe either . -

We all have our problems , - Zac said with a wry smile . - Now , the door? -

A Datamancer is needed to open this thing , along with the specific key-code . This whole world is full of hidden pathways like this , but we know of less than one percent of them . Forcing the gate-protocol to activate is almost impossible without the prerequisite knowledge . -

A Datamancer? What? - Zac asked .

That’s what we call those who can interface with this base . Only they can rewrite protocols and bypass the restrictions . You should have people like this as well . Opening the gate to this forest was a test of sorts . Unless you have people extremely skilled in data manipulation you wouldn’t be able to pass that gate , let alone let us out , - Leviala explained .

Hackers? - Zac muttered . - I’m sorry , but that’s not how we got here . -

What? - Leviala said with confusion . - Did you manage to break the door open? Do you possess such powerful means? -

No . One of my friends almost got himself killed trying that , - Zac snorted . - I have clearance high enough to open the door . -

Clearance? Wait… You’re part of the Builders?! - she shrieked as she tried to get away .

Zac was a bit surprised at the strong reaction , but he couldn’t let the girl get away . He instructed Love’s Bond] to snatch up the running girl , which wasn’t too hard considering how weakened her current condition was . She didn't even get to her feet before she fell over again , only making it three meters in her escape .

Using the chains was as much to help her get up as to prevent her from escaping . It was a bit of a safety measure though as he was afraid Leviala possessed some sort of escape treasure or skill .

Calm down . I’m not part of any builders , - Zac said after Leviala had stopped struggling against the bindings . - The terminal where we arrived gives out clearances left and right . Most people got Tier-2 or Tier-3 clearance , but I managed to get Tier-4 clearance thanks to an item I acquired off-world . That’s how I got in here . -

Of course , Zac suspected that he tenuously could be considered part of the - builders - , provided that Leviala was referring to his mother’s Clan . But he wasn’t about to divulge that sort of information seeing her strong reaction . Still , her reactions just now had divulged a lot . Not only did the natives completely lack clearances , but Clan Cartava didn't seem to know as much about them as he'd feared after seeing the signpost left behind .

What? Such a thing is possible? I've never heard of a terminal giving out clearances . Is it because you’re outsiders , perhaps? It seems a lot of our assumptions about you were incorrect . - Leviala mumbled with a slight frown before her eyes lit up . - You have traveled between worlds? How is it? What kinds of places exist out there? -

I’ve been off-planet a few times , yes . There are all kinds of worlds out there , but I can't tell you about it right now . I’m a bit strapped for time , - Zac said . - So , the Base Power? Anything among these things that has it? I want to activate the tablet . -

It felt like Zac had over a hundred questions rattling around in his head , but he needed to prioritize his quest for now .

These things are called chargers , - Leviala eventually said as she pointed down at a cylindrical item . - Press the sheer side against the bottom of the tablet for a few seconds to instill it with power . -

Zac followed her instructions and it worked just as described . The tablet turned on after two seconds of charging , though that didn’t help Zac much . Rows and boxes full of illegible text covered the screen , and Zac couldn’t make heads or tails of it .

Do you know how to work these things? - Zac asked .

No , - she said with a shake of her head . - I can read the language , but I don’t know how these things work . It takes decades to learn these things , and only the Datamancers can make use of this information in any case . You would have to find the line for activating the door , and then bypass the security protocols . -

Zac thought for a second before he showed her the tablet .

Let me worry about the security checks . Can you tell me if one of these boxes is related to gate opening? -

It’s either that or climbing through one of the cracks , - Zac added .

That’s even more impossible! - Leviala said . - There are security protocols in place to trap research subjects . You’re almost guaranteed to get trapped inside the Memorysteel if you try to enter through one of those places , and there are no builders to let you out . Not a single one who has been caught inside a wall has ever made it out as far as I know . -

Zac simply stared at her in response as he held the tablet toward her . She eventually sighed in defeat before her eyes started darting back and forth for almost a minute . She finally pointed at one of the boxes , though hesitation was written all over her face .

Perhaps this one? It seems to mention something about a security check , which is always performed when opening a door . The other algorithms seem to be more related to the general operation of the wall itself , - she said . - But just finding the right program isn’t enough . -

Zac nodded in thanks before he took the tablet . He honestly had no idea what to do from this point on , but he gained some confidence from the simple fact that he got the quest by the System . It seemed to believe he would have a chance to complete it , meaning he should be able to open the door .

He didn’t even try to understand what he was looking at since it was too far beyond his understanding and he simply pressed the box Leviala indicated . However , he did take one precaution though . He had taken out his mother’s token from his Spatial ring , and he held it against the same spot as the charger when he pressed the button .

Wait , what are you doing?! You will alert the security protocols! - Leviala screamed when saw Zac’s impetuous actions , but her words got caught in her throat when the gate started forming without issue , and at a much greater speed than when the werewolf was trying to conjure it .

Chapter 593 : Old Friends

I’m in , - Zac said , his mouth tugging upward as he felt like the lead in an 80’s movie about hackers .

This was obviously lost on the Cartava scion though , and she blankly looked back and forth between him and the gate .

Wh- How? - she eventually sputtered , looking like a lifetime of common sense was rapidly being upended .

I have my ways , - Zac smiled as he stashed away the talisman again before the Cartava scion could spot it .

The talisman didn't contain any clear hints of its origins as far as Zac could tell , but it was obviously a technocrat Tool if you knew a bit about them . Even Ogras could discern the truth at a single glance , and someone like Leviala could probably glean even more . He obviously wouldn’t divulge his secrets to this stranger , even if she was cooperative so far .

The door slid open a second later , exposing the interiors . The state of the base on the other side was far worse than even the war-torn wall . The walls of the corridor had completely crumbled , and even the roof was missing at spots .

Only an endless black could be glimpsed through the cracks , making it seem as though the research base was hurtling through space . But the darkness that Zac could see through the cracks rather reminded Zac of the bleak blackness of the Abyss he could glimpse through Rapturous Divide] rather than the empty darkness of outer space .

The truth probably wasn’t quite that sinister though . Mystic Realms were pocket sub-dimensions , and they had to have an end somewhere . What he saw was probably the void between dimensions , the place where one would end up if you fell through a spatial tear . However , he still got an oppressive feeling when he looked , so Zac's instincts told him there were other dangers lurking in the darkness .

The scene gave Zac some pause , but he quickly roused himself . There was no telling how long the door would last even if he used his mother’s token .

Okay , let’s go , - Zac nodded as he started walking , but Leviala looked at him like he was crazy .

What? You want me to go? - Leviala almost screamed , her face a mix of horror and confusion . - I am no good to you . You’ve seen the state I’m in , I’ll only be a burden . I’ll rest up before returning to my clan instead . That way I can warn them about those enemies of yours so that we can start prepar- -

There’ll be plenty of time for that later , - Zac said as the chains of Love’s Bond] once more lifted the aghast Cartava scion into the air . - I’m sorry but I’ll need to bring you along as a guide . You’ve already proven you’re essential to rescuing my people by helping me with the tablet . -

I’ve never been to this section of the base! I’ll be of no use to you! - she exclaimed as she vehemently struggled against the restraints .

But Zac ignored her complaints as he stepped through the gate which soundlessly closed behind them . A few seconds later it had turned into another piece of broken corridors that ran along the wall . Strangely enough , there was no telling that a vast forest stood on the other side of the wall after passing through , not even after peering through the cracks . Only a murky haze could be seen on the other side , making Zac believe the cracks were actually filled with spatial anomalies .

No wonder the werewolves refused to take a shortcut .

So much for not being captured . It was all for nothing , - Leviala muttered with a hint of despair from her chain cocoon , and Zac could only apologetically smile in response .

She was right . She might have gone out of the ashes into the fire from her perspective , swapping a known captor to a more powerful unknown one . Not only that , but Zac was also fumbling in the dark in this dangerous place , which put them both at risk . But there was nothing to be done about the situation . The System gave him no choice in the matter .

I really am sorry about all this , - Zac coughed as he stepped further inside , dragging a clearly unwilling Leviala along with his chains . - You could say my hands are tied . -

Stop , STOP! - she screamed . - Alright , I'll help you . But stop walking ahead randomly or you'll get us both killed! -

What , really? - Zac said , but he still stopped in his tracks . - Help me with this matter and I’ll make it up to you . Is there anything you or your Clan needs? I can send for it before the pathways to this world close . -

Like what? - Leviala asked curiously as she stropped struggling against the restraints , confirming Zac’s guess .

This girl was full of curiosity about the outside world and its marvels , which wasn’t too surprising considering her situation . Hopefully , he would be able to use that to keep her cooperative .

I have no idea what you guys are lacking in this world . Pills? Manuals? Attuned Crystals? -

Land , - Leviala said without hesitation . - I’ve heard that planets have spots with greater energy density compared to others , treasure lands where you can cultivate at twice the speed at half the effort . Can you provide us with such a thing? -

There are a few such places on Earth , - Zac slowly nodded . - But those places are extremely valuable strategic resources . Being my guide for a few hours isn’t worth a Nexus Vein , no offense . -

I also saved you from being captured by werewolves by warning you , but fine . We’ll revisit this matter later , - Leviala sighed . - Our first priority should be staying alive in this place . -

Good . Now , how do I find that relay station? - Zac asked .

I don’t know where it is , but it shouldn’t be too far in from this gate . Half an hour away at the most . Any further and the station would be inside the Wasteland itself , and no permanent structure can survive in there . But make no mistake , our lives are in peril every second even here at the edge . -

What’s the Wasteland? - Zac asked with a frown . - Another Biosphere like the forest before? -

No , - Leviala said with a shake of her head . - Something much more dangerous . It will take some time to explain , but you need to understand the dangers to not get us both killed . -

Give me the abridged version , - Zac reluctantly agreed , though part of him just wanted to set out .

The windows into the void looked pretty unsettling , but the atmosphere was intact and there was no suction dragging items out through the cracks . As for spatial tears , Zac figured his Luck had proven a pretty good early warning system . But seeing Leviala's exaggerated reactions there were probably more dangers than what met the eyes .

Our people were taken here over fifteen thousand years ago and experimented on for millennia , - Leviala began , but was interrupted by an impatient Zac .

Is this really the short version? -

Just listen , - Leviala said with a glare . - We were taken here because of our bloodlines , but there was an incident that put an end to the experiments around five thousand years ago . A mystical item appeared out of nowhere , rippling through the spatial barriers like they didn’t exist .

It slammed into this base like a meteor , completely ripping apart a large section of it . It hit the base from the east , annihilating the subjects who were experimented on there . Only by digging through data did we find out that the subjects there was a clan of Titans , renowned for their physical prowess . -

Zac’s heartbeat sped up a bit when he heard the mention of Titans , although he had already been somewhat certain that this place was the source of Billy’s heritage . However , it seemed more likely that Billy’s ancestor somehow managed to reach Earth through a spatial tear or something , rather than the whole clan escaping .

The object made its way into the core of the base , presumably killing all our captors as well , - Leviala continued .

Presumably? You don’t know if they were killed? - Zac asked with confusion .

What followed after the impact was over a hundred years of spatial chaos . We call the event the Cataclysm . You should have encountered those rifts by now , right? Those kinds of things raged across the whole base , wreaking havoc . We lost most of our people during those days . But one day it just stopped and the base woke up again . By that time our captors were all gone , and we slowly managed to eke out a living here , - Leviala said .

Do you know who was it that captured you? - Zac asked curiously .

They called themselves the Tsarun Clan , - Leviala said .

WHAT?! - Zac exclaimed . - Those guys? -

You know of them? Are they still around? Do they know of your planet? - Leviala said , fear shining in her eyes . - Our elders were peak D-Grade , but they were all slaughtered by those people when they came for us . They are terrifying . -

They’re around , and they are still extremely powerful . They have a pretty unsavory reputation as well , and no one wants to make an enemy out of them . There are also rumors of them working with unorthodox forces to become more powerful . So I guess it’s not too surprising they started messing around with a Technocrat Research Base , - Zac explained .

Leviala looked shook that their captor was still around and living well .

You don’t need to worry about me selling you out though , - Zac added when he saw the fear in her eyes . - They probably are more interested in capturing me than they are in capturing you . -

What? Are you carrying a unique bloodline as well? - Leviala blurted .

No , we are enemies for other reasons . A small disagreement ended up with them losing one of their main-branch descendants and getting publicly embarrassed , - Zac slowly said , his voice somewhat decreasing in strength after seeing the mounting horror in her eyes . - Anyway , I guess we have a common enemy? So what happened afterward? -

When my ancestors realized they were left alone in this place they immediately started looking for an escape . But movement in this place is always highly restricted , and we never found a way out . However , we managed to find a few tablets left behind by the Tsarun Clan and that’s how we learned the methods of the Datamancers , - Leviala said .

Unfortunately , only a few of our people can become true Datamancers as they can’t be registered as research subjects by the AI of this place . Only one out of a thousand might have the ability to become a Datamancer , and even then it’s highly random their degree of success , - Leviala said .

People without bloodlines , - Zac muttered .

Exactly , - Leviala nodded . - Our clan was essentially bred and experimented on for millennia with the sole purpose of purifying and strengthening our bloodline , and it was the same with the other clans . For someone to be born without it after all that it is extremely rare . I guess there are a lot more potential Datamancers among you outsiders . -

In either case . We found out about the fundamental rules of this base through reading the Tsarun Clan reports . As you mentioned , they didn’t build this base . They rather stumbled upon it during an exploration trip outside of integrated space . They spent tens of thousands of years slowly gaining control over the basic functions , but we believe they never managed to get a hold on the core secrets of this place , - Leviala continued .

What do you know about the original creators? - Zac asked , straining to keep his face impassive .

Not much , - Leviala said with a shake of her head . - We know they were terrifyingly powerful , far greater than the Tsarun Clan . We think they finished their research then left this base , though we don’t know why they didn’t repurpose this place . The Tsarun were only digging through the scraps for their own project . -

Zac sighed and nodded . He wasn’t sure she was telling the truth or kept the secrets about his mother’s clan to herself , but there was still ample time to find out the truth .

This is all valuable information , but what does this have to do with the Wastelands? - Zac asked , returning to the main subject .

I needed you to understand how dangerous it was during the age after the cataclysm , where less than five percent of our Clan survived . Because the wasteland never healed . It is the sector where the dimensional treasure passed through before hitting the core of this base , and the laws of space are still in flux here . The rest of this world has found an equilibrium and is bound by the rules of the Builders , but the wasteland is in a permanent state of turmoil , - Leviala sighed .

So what? If the werewolves can pass it , so can I , - Zac said .

We have spent millennia mapping the spatial storms , but that knowledge holds no sway in the wastelands . A spatial storm can descend on you at moment’s notice , and that’s not all . This area is full of spatial holes , and sometimes things fall out . Dangerous things , - she said , her eyes inadvertently darting toward the ominous scars in the ceiling .

Dangerous things? - Zac said with a frown .

There are weird dimensional beasts hidden in the darkness . They can’t survive in our environment for long , and they cause massive destruction in their attempts to return to the void . Encountering those things almost always results in death . But other things can fall out as well , like a mountain getting dropped on your head . You never know , - Leviala said .

Then how can the Lunar Tribe pass it? -

They live the closest to the wasteland , so they understand it the best . Their bodies are also very strong , and their lunar skills allow them to briefly pass through spatial storms unscathed . I’ve heard they also maintain routes where they have left protective measures , like small safe bubbles powered by Base Power , - Leviala said .

Don’t your clan have something similar? - Zac asked with a frown .

No . We never go here . Treasures sometimes fall out of the void , but the dangers far overshadow the potential gain . Besides , passing the wasteland only leads to the Lunar Tribe , and you’ve seen how our relationship is , - Leviala said .

So , the relay station? - Zac asked .

It’s probably a base where the scouting units gather to cross the wasteland together . Powering those safe bubbles require a lot of Base Power , and each squad can’t pass alone . Besides , there is safety in numbers . I’ve also heard that they make the troublemakers and the elderly take the vanguard , so they’ll somewhat block the spatial storms with their bodies if one arrives unnoticed , - Leviala said .

Okay , we hopefully won’t need to worry about that . Which way? If you don’t know , just follow your instincts , - Zac said .

Leviala looked into the eyes of Zac for a few seconds before she sighed as a small glimmer activated in her eyes . Her one remaining good eye turned milky white the next moment , eliciting a strong sense of unease in Zac's mind . However , it soon returned to normal , though Leviala looked even more sickly than before .

That way , - she said as she nodded at a route as blood started to flow down her nose again . - Now , can you rearrange these chains to something more comfortable? -

Chapter 594 : Bubbles

Zac frowned when he saw that Leviala's condition seemed to have worsened even further , instead simply nodding in thanks . He went down the corridor that Leviala indicated , maintaining a pace just slow enough so that his Danger Sense would be able to pick up any hints of spatial tears in time .

He would have preferred to transform Love’s Bond] to its defensive form as well , but it turned out that was impossible because of Leviala . She could barely stand at the moment , let alone keep up with him . He instead had to fashion some sort of chair out of two of his chains , allowing him to carry her to his side . Carrying her on his back would have been a lot more convenient , but he definitely wasn’t about to let a complete stranger have her arms around his neck . That was a good way to get yourself killed or captured .

The path they followed looked much very much the same as the area where they entered , with a state of decay that far exceeded anything Ogras described in his report . Occasional flickering in the scripts on the wall indicated that the area wasn’t completely disconnected from the base , but it apparently wasn’t in any state to repair this place . Or perhaps the Base AI had simply deemed it too costly what with the spatial turbulence .

They continued down the corridor for a few minutes before they reached a huge crack in the wall . It was wide enough for five people to enter together , and it seemed to be heading in the direction of the wastelands . Zac tried to peer inside , but it was completely pitch black apart from some light at the end of the tunnel , making it a possible shortcut .

Do you think they entered here? -

I can’t activate my eyes again , I will end up in a coma , - she said as she peered into the darkness . - But it’s doubtful . I don’t think the Lunar Tribe would use these kinds of paths unless absolutely necessary . The corridors are still connected to the base and they follow most of the rules , but anything can happen in a crack like this . I think we should continue down the road . -

Zac nodded and kept walking without hesitation . He felt a vague sense of threat from that dark ingress anyway , and he probably wouldn’t have entered even if he traveled alone . Something dangerous waited inside .

A minute later they reached a crossing , with a proper path heading the same way as the eerie crack from before . Zac looked at his reluctant guide again , but she still shook her head .

No , not that way either , - Leviala said . - That corridor is the start of a looping spiral , a dead end . Cracks might have created a new path in there , but perhaps not . We would waste almost an hour going this way . -

A looping spiral? - Zac asked .

These endless corridors follow certain patterns and we have learned to somewhat intuit some of them after living in them all our lives . I’m almost certain that this will corridor is a dead end , but I can’t actually explain how I know it . It’s a vague sense based on the direction we’re walking , proximity to the forest , previous corridors , and so on . -

Is it your ocular bloodline? - Zac asked .

No , everyone born in this place can somewhat do this , - Leviala explained .

Zac guessed that it was a naturally nurtured equivalent to his recently gained sense from Forester's Constitution] unless she was hiding something . Perhaps she could tell based on the inscriptions on the wall or some other small sign that Zac couldn’t notice . Either way , he felt it was better to go with her instincts unless his own Danger Sense started to rail against them .

The state of the base gradually worsened even further as they proceeded until Zac suddenly froze before he activated Loamwalker] , moving himself and Leviala back where they came from . Not even a half a second passed before an extremely dense storm of spatial tears passed right through the corridor , seemingly both exiting and entering through the Memorysteel walls .

You see? - Leviala sighed , her face ghastly white . - We were lucky this time , but things will only get worse from here on out . You can’t sense these sudden storms either , so it’s imposs- -

She didn’t get any further before Zac moved again , once more narrowly avoiding a weird fluctuation that appeared from one of the cracks in the roof . It almost felt like the spatial tears from before had summoned something .

-ible to completely avoid . Wait , how are you doing that? - Leviala asked as she looked down at Zac with confusion .

Zac didn’t immediately answer , but rather kept his eye peeled at the situation ahead . The thing that had appeared clearly was of a spatial nature , but it was something else than a tear . It almost looked like a soap bubble , but it actually reflected a blue sun rather than the surroundings . The bubble was almost two meters across , and much smaller spheres surrounded it like satellites .

It only remained a few seconds before it destabilized with a pop , causing an extremely powerful implosion that made Zac’s hair stand on end . There was no way that he would have survived it if he hadn’t moved away in time .

What was that? -

We call them Void Bubbles , - Leviala said with a sigh . - It’s actually a pretty rare sight . We don’t really know what they are . Some believe that they are the result of the dimensional layers temporarily weakening , giving a glimpse of the outside . More than one desperate cultivator has jumped into those bubbles in hopes of escaping this place , but I doubt anyone actually survived . -

Zac nodded in agreement . He could somewhat the power brewing in the center of that bubble , and it was definitely not something any random E-Grade cultivator could survive . However , he suddenly froze with realization . Triv seemed certain that quite a few people had escaped from this base because there were so many high-quality corpses on Earth . Was this the method they used?

Is it always that blue sun? - Zac asked to make sure .

No , the scene is always different . Most of them picture outer space though , - Leviala said . - Seeing one depicting land is very rare . -

Zac nodded , feeling that his theory wasn't completely without merit , but something she said piqued his curiosity .

You guys know what space is? - Zac asked curiously .

You know , we’ve lost much , but we’ve only been in this place for a couple of millennia . My great grandfather was born in the Zecia Sector , - she said with a scathing glance .

Alright then , - Zac coughed and started walking .

He felt a bit stupid hearing her explanation , and his plans for exchanging information of the outside for information on the inside died in its cradle . She might know even more than himself about the Zecia sector for all he knew since the Cartava Clan was seemingly a proper cultivation clan before they were captured .

They kept going further from their starting points , and the spatial anomalies only grew more and more common . Zac’s Danger Sense kept doing wonders though , and seeing that Zac really was able to somewhat predict the spatial tears made Leviala calm down a bit . It allowed her to relax before she started explaining the base patterns in greater detail .

Zac felt he learned a lot , though he knew that he simply couldn’t gain an intuitive feel for the place just by hearing about patterns such as - Downstream Wing’ and - Fierce Otodon’ . But it did give him a glimpse into how these native forces functioned , which might be even more valuable .

We should turn here , - Leviala eventually said as they reached another crossing . - This should be the main path leading toward the Wasteland , and if we go any further without turning we’ll reach the Outer Divide . I doubt that the Outer Divide is breached even this close to the Wasteland , so going there is a waste of time . -

Zac nodded in agreement , but they only proceeded a hundred meters before Zac’s mind once more screamed of danger . However , this time it was to the point that Zac almost fell over from the shock to his mind , with only thoughts of escape remaining . He scrambled out of the way like his life depended on it , completely forgetting about Leviala .

The Cartava scion was dragged along thanks to the chains of Love’s Bond] , barely missing a massive claw that suddenly appeared from one of the cracks in the roof . It slammed into the ground with a devastating force , shredding the sturdy alloy like it was nothing . Zac desperately scrambled to his feet to keep backing away , and he looked at the hand with fear . He didn't even dare to think about attacking that thing out of fear that it would sense his killing intent .

The hand emitted energy waves almost at the level of Greatest , meaning that the beast should be somewhere in the late D-Grade .

The hand looked both corporeal and energy-based , and it twisted and distorted as it tried to grab hold of something in the corridor . It almost looked like a hologram if not for the deep scars that were caused in the walls . However , the runes on the walls suddenly lit up , and dozens of Memorysteel spears stabbed into the hand .

But seeing the result only made Zac even more certain of the power of the creature . He had been on the receiving end of those things , and the still tender flesh in his side was a poignant reminder of how powerful they were . But the spears were actually completely unable to harm the claw , and it easily crushed them like they were made out of paper .

The claw had its own problems though , and it kept distorting more and more until it was barely recognizable any longer . Only then did the hand recede into the void again , leaving an utterly decimated hallway that seemed unable to restore its previous form ,

It’s a dimensional creature , - Leviala whispered , her face pallid . - I never expected to see one in person . We're lucky to be alive . -

Where the hell did it come from? - Zac muttered as he peered into the darkness .

We believe they live in the void . But I have no idea how that's possible , - Leviala said .

Why did it attack though? - Zac muttered .

They are drawn here by the dimensional treasure , but they can’t enter this type of dimension freely . So they skulk around the cracks in space , sometimes reaching in to attack people . A few of the smaller ones sometimes fall through completely , but that only happens in the wasteland and the core region where the cracks are larger , - Leviala said .

Zac grimaced when he heard the mention about the core section where the Dimensional Seed was located . It sounded like the sector itself was just as dangerous as the Wasteland , perhaps even more so . Void's Disciple and the zealots might be the least of his worries when he reached that place .

What now? - Zac muttered . - Is there an alternative path? -

The beast should go away if we wait a few minutes . But be careful , - Leviala said . - I already overdid it by activating my bloodline twice . You’re on your own now , I can’t warn you again as I did during the battle against the werewolves . -

That’s no problem , - Zac said . - But while we’re at the subject , just how did you manage to warn me before? You've seen how sharp my senses are , but I didn’t sense a thing . More to the point , you shouted out before Hevastes had even reached me . Are your clan members Karmic Cultivators? -

Leviala’s warning was as good an opening as any , and Zac finally couldn’t hold back his curiosity after having walked these broken hallways for almost an hour . He had replayed that battle over and over in his mind , and Karma was the only explanation he could think of . He still remembered that odd feeling of déjà vu , and it made him think of his battle with the Hayner Patriarch more than anything .

He knew that Karmic Cultivators were exceedingly rare , but it really looked like she had divined the future before , warning him of something that was about to take place . The backlash also matched with what he knew of divination . There was always a price to pay to peer into the future , and even a powerful monk like Lord 84th wasn’t an exception .

Perhaps the Tsarun clan wanted the power of precognition for themselves and had tried to extract that capability from the Cartava clan . Or perhaps they wanted to breed a bunch of seers , forcing them to write divinations day in and day out until they were killed by the heavens . There was no doubt that such a power would prove immensely beneficial for a power-hungry man like the Tsarun patriarch .

No , - she hurriedly said as she shook her head with such force that she almost fell out of her chair made out of chains . - Our clan has nothing to do with Divination or Karma . -

Then why such a strong reaction? - Zac said as a frown spread across his face . - Our planet does have a grudge against a Karmic Cultivator , but that doesn’t mean we’re enemies with all of them . But let me be clear ; if I find out that you’re lying , then your clan will have to find another way out of this place than through me . I can’t have another group of people manipulating Karma against me or my people . You better tell me right now what's going on . -

Chapter 595 : Karma and Time

No , I swear I’m not lying! - Leviala exclaimed with a pale face . - You’re not the first one to make that deduction . Our clan was constantly harassed because a lot of forces believed us to manipulate Karma for our profit . I only reacted strongly because our clan suffered a lot of harassment because of this . -

If not Karma , then what? - Zac asked .

You have probably realized that my clan has an eye-based bloodline after seeing me , - Leviala eventually said . - That’s why we were caught and brought here . -

Really? Just because of that? - Zac asked , skepticism written all over his face . - There’s no way the Tsarun clan would capture you because of that . -

It wasn’t without reason Zac had that sort of reaction . He had learned a thing or two about bloodlines from gathering missives by now , and he wasn’t completely clueless any longer . The most common types of bloodlines were combat-oriented , with the second most common being affinity-related , either boosting cultivation speed or Skill Control .

Ocular Bloodlines were a lot rarer than those types , but not to the point that it was exceedingly rare . But more importantly , they were generally not seen as too useful since they mainly focused on scouting or helping with things like inscriptions and crafting .

There was no way that the power-hungry Tsarun-clan would waste so much effort on something useless though . Those wolves had gained a pretty decent boost to their combat strength when their bloodlines awakened , surpassing the general estimates of common bloodlines . There had to be something special about Clan Cartava to warrant their capture .

Our clan has nothing to do with Karma , really . Our bloodlines provide us with scouting abilities and some suppression , - Leviala repeated once more .

Then why did that guy say that you’re the key to immortality? - Zac asked with a frown , feeling he was being taken for a ride .

Zac’s gut told him that the werewolf threw out that last line with his dying breath to cause trouble , but that didn’t mean that he was lying . These werewolves had fought in the Outer Ring against the humans , and now they had managed to somehow capture one of them . The fact that the werewolves worked so hard against the humans rather than trying to escape meant they possessed something even more valuable than freedom .

Immortality was one such thing . Even a pig would become an overlord given enough time , so it was definitely an alluring concept for most cultivators . Perhaps the werewolf believed Zac would feel the same and torture the girl for her secrets . However , Zac wasn’t personally all that interested in the prospect of immortality .

He grew up expecting to live around 80 years , so his current lifespan approaching the thousands was already shocking enough . Who would want to walk the universe until the end of time? It sounded torturous more than anything . The girl seemed reluctant to say anything more though as she looked around back and forth . Zac had an idea of what she was worried about , and he took out and activated an Isolation Array .

No one can hear us now , - Zac said . - I normally wouldn't pressure someone like this , but you're simply acting too suspiciously . I can't have anything going wrong in this place . Billions of lives depend on it . -

…Fine , - Leviala eventually sighed . - You have to swear on your path of cultivation to not divulge what I’m about to say , and not to experiment on me or my clansmen . -

I swear to not divulge anything as long as you don’t move against me or my force , - Zac nodded . - And I would never experiment on people . -

Leviala looked at Zac for a while longer , before she eventually nodded .

Our bloodline really isn’t anything more than a decent ocular heritage . But that wasn’t always the case . Our founding ancestor’s eyes were different from ours . They contained the power of time itself . Not only did he live five times longer than a normal cultivator at his stage , but he was able to glimpse into both the past and present to some degree , - Leviala said . - His children never inherited his gift though , but the ancestor's actions started the rumors about us being a Karmic Clan .

Eventually , the rumors died down though and our lives started to return to normal . However , the Tsarun Clan found out about the true nature of our founding ancestor’s eyes through a traitor . They wanted that power of time for themselves . I don’t know why , but I think it was for the same reason as the Lunar Tribe . They want to extract the power in our eyes to increase their longevity , - Leviala said .

And you have the same types of eyes as your ancestor , - Zac deduced before he looked at her with exasperation . - All that talk , and it’s still related to Karma after all? -

You seem to have a flawed understanding of the Dao of Karma . Karma and Divination are completely separate from the Dao of Time . Karma is an understanding of the interconnectedness of everything in the universe . It’s understanding causality , and in some cases deliberately influencing the future by taking some seemingly inscrutable actions , - Leviala explained .

They are unable to see the whole picture as normal cultivators though , so they connect with the omnipresent Heavens for a short moment to borrow its omniscience , all the karmic ties and relations . But ultimately , they are still not actually peering into the future or the past , - she continued . - Furthermore , Karma is just one type of Divination . There's also the Numerology of the Dao of Order , and some oracles even enter contracts with strange beings of other dimensions who can show them glimpses of the unknown . I'm sure there are even more types out there . -

So they aren't actually able to see the future . But you are? - Zac said with a frown .

Timeline altering seemed extremely overpowered , especially for someone in the E-Grade . Getting your soul wounded and a bleeding nose could barely be considered a backlash for something so heaven-defying . The brand on her eye looked a lot more worrisome , but how could that compare to altering the past?

No . I can just glimpse fragmented images , and generally just the from past . When I chose a direction before I looked into the past and saw werewolves coming from this corridor , - Leviala explained . - But during your battle , I felt a sudden urge to peek into the future , and I saw a hand holding a restraint module behind you . I knew that we both would be in trouble if that really happened , so I called out .

As you saw , looking into the future is a lot more dangerous than the past , because even just looking will invariably change the future . Besides , I can only see a short image , but there’s no guarantee that I would understand what I saw . This time I was lucky since I knew that you getting sealed would be bad for me , but the risk of receiving the backlash and gaining nothing in return is high , - Leviala said . - The backlash is also extremely harsh , every usage comes with a permanent cost . -

Zac slowly nodded . He couldn’t pinpoint what , but he felt that there was something odd with her description of the events . Perhaps it was the - sudden urge’ to peek into the future that was the most suspect . Then again , he often got those sorts of urges thanks to his high Luck , and perhaps she had a similar ability .

So you got a glimpse of a bad future , and warned me to prevent it? Can everyone in your clan do this? - Zac asked .

No , - Leviala said . - Just a select few . -

Thank you for letting me know . And don’t worry , I have no interest in your time eyes , - Zac said as he picked up the isolation disk . - I don’t want to be hunted down by the old monsters in the sector for holding a key to increased longevity . -

Leviala could only weakly smile in response , and the two set out a few minutes later after there was no sign of the Void Creature returning . Zac wasn’t joking when he said that he would keep the secret to himself . Part of it was the reason he just said . He didn’t want to live a life where he was hunted by powerful factions , like Yrial or the Eveningtide Asura .

But part of it was definitely because of her situation . She hadn’t said it outright , but warning him had definitely come at a cost . He had noticed that Leviala had repeatedly reached for her branded eye as they traveled along the corridors , and he guessed that the curse was a direct result of peering into the future .

After all , if meddling with the strings of Karma came at a sharp price , then the same would probably hold for meddling with time . The System or the real Heavens protected the fundamental rules of the universe it seemed . Otherwise things would turn extremely chaotic with people jumping back and forth through timelines as they pleased .

The minutes turned into two hours as they progressed further and further from their starting position , though they had to backtrack a few times after encountering completely crumbled sections of the corridors . Perennial spatial storms were swirling about in these places , making it completely impossible to pass through .

But finally , there was a change as they heard a loud argument in the distance . They had moved in complete silence after the first 30 minutes out of fear of alerting the sensitive werewolves , with Leviala only giving directions with her hands . Two gruff voices echoed through the corridors , making the two freeze in position . Zac once more took out the isolation array , hoping that the energy fluctuations wouldn't alert anyone .

The two listened for a bit , and it quickly became apparent it was an argument between two squad leaders . One of them wanted to set out immediately sine he believed something had gone wrong . The other wanted to wait for Hevastes as he carried a lot of the Base Power required to power the safe bubbles placed in the Wasteland .

They couldn't hear everything though , and the voices stopped after a minute .

It should be just up ahead , - Zac said with a low voice . - Stay here . -

You’ll come pick me up , right? - Leviala said with worry . - I’m don’t think I can get back alone . I should tell you ; I hold some weight in my clan , things will get a lot easier for you if you have me assisting you from the inside . I doubt my people would be ready to head for the depths of this place rather than the exit if my grandpa doesn’t tell them to . -

Of course , I’ll help you , - Zac assured her as silvery tufts of hair started to grow from his face .

A blinding agony spread through Zac’s body the next moment as he activated Million Faces] for the first time . The fit with his pathways wasn't any better with the upgraded skill , which meant that every minor adjustment was accompanied by the feeling of his bones being crushed and reformed . And Zac wasn’t planning on a minor adjustment .

His face elongated while his body grew a few decimeters as he donned a hunched-over posture with his arms hanging low . Sharp claws grew out from his hands and he felt his teeth growing sharp as well .

How do I look? - Zac grunted a minute later , though he had some problems forming words properly with a canine snout .

Just what are you? Can you turn into anything? - Leviala whispered in shock .

It’s a transformation skill , - Zac snorted . - Do I look like a werewolf? -

Honestly , you look like a failed miscreation , - Leviala said , and she clearly had problems looking in his direction .

Zac sighed when he saw her disgusted face , and a wave of disgust hit him as well when he took out a mirror . The only way he would be mistaken for a werewolf was if the werewolf not only suffered from a severe case of mange but also a series of birth defects .

The extent he could change his body was a lot greater with his new skill , but turning into a werewolf was clearly overreaching . But he still wanted to get a small advantage this way . Leviala believed that the Relay Station was in what she called a chokepoint chamber , a large warehouse with one entrance and one exit .

It would be the only path to get to the other side , and it was easily defended . Most settlements in the Mystic Realm were built in these kinds of chambers , or series of such warehouses , and sometimes they could even control the barriers leading in and out . Leviala guessed that they wouldn’t have too great a control of the base this far from their real domain , but she couldn’t be sure .

The Lunar Clan had already provided her with plenty of surprises .

He thought for a second before he had an idea to improve the disguise . He took out a couple of bandages next and covered over half his face and hands , with the uneven tufts of silver hair sticking out between . He took out the dead werewolf leader next and pushed his bisected body against the bandages , drenching them with blood .

Leviala seemed ready to vomit at the macabre display , but Zac had long turned numb to these kinds of grotesque actions . What did it matter if he got a little bloodied if he could complete his quest and save his people? Next , he put on a spare set of the clothes he found in Hevastes’ Cosmos Sack , finishing the makeshift transformation .

What about now? - Zac said as he spun around .

I guess you can pass as Hevastes from a distance , but you won’t be able to infiltrate them this way , - Leviala said .

That’s fine , I just need to get through the door , - Zac muttered .

You know , Hevastes and the others were weakened after they killed my guard , but I don’t think the other squads are in that bad a shape . And there might be quite a few of them , - she exhorted . - You might not- -

I have to do this , - Zac said as he stood up and cracked his neck . - Wait here , we’ll be back in a few minutes . -

Zac started making his way toward the source of the argument earlier , and he took on a shuffling walk to make it look like he was wounded . He wanted to create the illusion of Hevastes returning alone in defeat after failing his mission . He soon enough reached a proper arch that was blocked with a familiar red barrier .

Lord Hevastes , is that you? - a hesitant voice emerged from the other side as a werewolf stepped forward , looking at Zac's appearance with shock .

Get the fuck out of the way , - Zac growled , trying to make his voice mimic the gruff timbre of the werewolf leader .

A surge of relief hit Zac a second later as the barrier flickered out , and Zac wasted no time .

Wh- - the wolf said with wide eyes , but he didn’t get any further before Zac’s hand snapped forward , gripping the werewolf by the throat and cracking his neck .

A surge of Cosmic Energy confirmed the kill , and Verun's Bite] appeared in his hand as he started to transform back to normal .

We’re under attack! - another guard screamed just before Zac managed to end his life as well .

Zac had never expected to enter the open space unnoticed with his wretched disguise . Cosmic Energy churned through his body as he was primed for an all-out assault .

Chapter 596 : Hands

Who are you?! - a bulky werewolf roared as he produced a large spear that seemed to be made from the same material as the walls , and a quick estimate by Zac indicated there were around fifty werewolves in the emptied-out storeroom .

It was a bit more than Zac had hoped , but he knew that he couldn't back down now . Zac's only response to the inquiry was unleashing a roar at the top of his lungs , reinforced with his aura and billowing killing-intent . The very air in the room vibrated , and two large screens that displayed some unintelligible data actually cracked pressure the pressure .

The sudden outburst made the werewolves freeze for an instant like they had been faced with a dangerous predator , giving Zac a brief window to scan the large warehouse that had been outfitted into what looked a bit like a campsite . He immediately found what he was looking for ; a group of dirty and bloodied humans and one demon huddled in a corner chained to the wall .

All of them carried somewhat serious wounds , with two apparently being unconscious . The pathetic state of his people ignited another surge of fury in his heart , and any hesitation flew out of his head as he threw out over a hundred items while activating Nature’s Punishment] .

The werewolves had already regained their bearing after the surprising outburst , and they started to radiate lunar light one by one . The room was over two hundred meters across , but it was still a lot more confined compared to the earlier battles in the forests . More importantly ; the walls were reflective , and Zac worried what would happen if they were allowed to completely unleash their Bloodline War Array .

However , the cold moonlight was overpowered before it even had a chance to stabilize as the whole area erupted in an unceasing cascade of elemental eruptions .

Huge flowers wrought from flame bloomed as icicles as long as five meters fell from the sky . Lakes of thunder covered the ground and torrential winds full of hidden blades cut at the flustered werewolves . It was as though an army of elementalists had descended upon Relay Station , intent on ripping it apart .

There obviously were no mages assisting Zac in his rescue attempt though , but the commotion was rather the result of throwing out a full stack of low and medium-grade talismans at the cost of a decent chunk of his Cosmic Energy . These low-quality offensive talismans would normally not be able to kill even a peak F-Grade warrior , let alone these werewolves with powerful constitutions .

But packed together in a confined space like this they could cause some serious harm . More importantly , they emitted almost blinding light while the explosions made any attempts of organization impossible .

A storm of Spatial Tears erupted the next second as Zac’s hidden ace , a Void Ball] , detonated right where the most powerful-looking werewolves were fending off blasts from every direction . A few werewolves were immediately cut into ribbons , but most of them suddenly turned into light , allowing the tears to pass right through their intangible form .

Zac had already learned about this bloodline ability though , so he wasn't surprised to see them materializing almost immediately with various degrees of wounds . There were still a lot of chaotic Spatial Tears around them as well , forcing the werewolves to find another way to protect themselves . Most of them were suddenly enclosed in red barriers as they jumped out of the way .

The shields were obviously of the same source as the ones he had seen in this base before , but the werewolves had managed to construct portable defensive mechanisms .

However , it looked like the barriers shared one inconvenient trait with the barriers of the base itself . The spatial tears seamlessly entered the shields themselves , melding with them into one entity . Zac couldn't be sure , but he felt that it was no way that some portable device would be able to lock in and contain a spatial tear .

As expected , the leaders quickly grabbed small machines hidden in various pockets and threw them far away , and a series of small explosions soon after as the machines erupted into what looked like weakened copies of the Void Ball] itself . The werewolf leaders had managed to save their hides , but Zac had already achieved his purpose .

The chaos caused by the Void Ball] and explosive talismans had caused complete disorder amongst the ranks of the werewolves , and their Lunar War Array had almost completely fallen apart .

Zac knew they would be able to restore order soon enough , but the confusion had given him just enough time to conjure the enormous wooden hand hovering by the ceiling fifty meters up in the air . Zac didn’t waste even a second before the large emerald array appeared , and a small branch started to descend the moment it appeared .

Above! - a werewolf shouted , but it was too late .

The branch rapidly grew as innumerable branches sprouted , each of them shooting for a werewolf . Transcendent lights rose to meet their descent , and smoke rose from Zac’s hand as the damage was transmitted from the avatar in the sky . However , the wooden punishment contained an almost boundless vitality , and that effect was only boosted even further thanks to the Fragment of the Bodhi and his newly acquired Spiritual Void] .

His strike was chock-full of Dao , and bark rained down from the sky as it was ripped off and regrew in a rapid cycle of growth and withering . Zac's consumption of energy was enormous to withstand the hastily erected War Array , but their defense had one fatal weakness ; it didn't actually provide any physical defenses .

A massive surge of Cosmic Energy filled his body as one werewolf after another was speared through . Over ten branches were aiming for each werewolf , and they could only maintain their intangible form for a short while . Over half the werewolves died from the blitz attack before the War Array finally managed to exhaust Nature's Punishment] to the point that Zac could no longer maintain it .

Just under twenty werewolves remained at this point , some of them maimed or even grievously wounded from fending off the branches of the bloody tree that now stood in the center of the Relay Station like a cursed effigy adorned with carcasses for offerings . Surrounding it was the spectral forest of Hatchetman's Spirit] , and together they had turned the sci-fi interior into a fey forest .

The attack was a huge success , but Zac still couldn't help but worry as he glanced at the enormous cracks that had appeared on the walls . The powerful Memorysteel normally wouldn't have been damaged to this point from the battle , but the metal in this section clearly wasn't being provided enough Base Power to recover . He knew that he would have to end this quickly unless he wanted to bring the whole roof down on his head .

Join together! - one of the leaders desperately screamed , but Zac was relieved to see that six of the remaining warriors completely ignored the call as they fled through the gate on the other side .

But there were still twelve werewolves to deal with , each of them powerful enough to withstand the strike of Nature’s Punishment] . Certainly , none of them came out of the clash unscathed , but they still carried a great fighting spirit as they moved together . A radiant silver moon had already appeared behind their backs as they howled toward Zac , causing dense lunar energies to stream out of their bodies .

The moonlight congealed into an enormous Lunar Wolf that immediately lunged at Zac , and he felt a huge pressure bearing down on him . He didn’t hesitate to activate the defensive charge of Hatchetman’s Spirit] , but the shimmering barrier was quickly whittled down by an extremely piercing radiance that radiated from the spectral wolf’s forehead .

Four chains shot out from the coffin that had appeared on Zac’s back and they launched forward like black spears full of corrosion as Zac flooded them with the Fragment of the coffin . They pierced into the intangible wolf with enormous momentum , but it was like he was hitting a cloud . However , the radiant luster of the wolf somewhat dimmed from the black gases that spread from the chains , and the invasion caused a slight pause in the beast's advance .

The reprieve was enough for Zac to charge up his next massive skill , and a golden cloud spread out in a wave as a fifty-meter fractal blade swept out . The wave was rapidly diminished by the moonlight , but a second wave came crashing into the first just as the four chains slid out of the way . The two opposites of Rapturous Divide] emerged in the warehouse the next moment , and both gold and black started competing with the silver for dominance .

The collision caused the whole room to shake , and cracks in the wall grew even further as Zac's newly erected corpse tree was cut in half and fell onto the ground with a deep thud . A few pieces of the wall and roof were actually completely dislodged from the shockwave , but they didn't fall down as Zac expected .

They rather were sucked up into the Void , leaving gaping holes just like the ones that were everywhere in the corridors . The scene intensified Zac's worries , but it seemed to have a far more profound impact on the few remaining werewolves as over half of them started running for their lives even if the spectral wolf managed to cancel out most of Zac’s attack .

That left just four beastkin who seemed to be in a state of conflict between duty and fear , but Zac felt no such turmoil as he pushed forward . A brutal melee where Verun’s Bite] and the chains of Love’s Bond] turned into a dizzying blur resulted in the last of the werewolves , including the leader who had spoken up at the start , lying dead on the ground .

Zac sported some minor wounds and a nasty scar across his throat , but he was still in decent shape . His victory was all thanks to his initial blitz this time around . Zac had thought about the battle on the way over here , and he realized something while talking with Leviala . These natives had a lot of weird items that Zac didn’t understand , but that worked the other way as well .

The fat stack of talismans and the Void Ball] had essentially put them in a reactive position while breaking their Lunar War Array , the greatest threat to Zac’s large-scale attacks . After that it was just a matter of time before Zac was the last man standing . The werewolves weren't even given a chance to launch any of the technological weapons or traps they should have prepared in this place .

This wasn't the time to wallow in self-congratulatory revelry though , and he quickly snatched up the closest corpses of the werewolf leaders before he rushed over to his scouting squad . The walls of the room were all creaking ominously by this point , and Zac got a bad feeling when he remembered the fear in the eyes of the werewolves as they fled .

He had thought the fear was directed at himself in the heat of the battle , but he now had a feeling that he was overestimating his importance .

Are you guys okay? - Zac panted as he started ripping apart the bindings that held the group in place .

The scouts were bound by Memorysteel chains that were fused with the walls themselves , but they definitely didn’t contain the same restraining capabilities as the odd gizmo in his possession . Then again , the material was extremely sturdy by itself , and even Zac had to strain a bit to break the chains .

We’re fine . We knew that you’d come for us , - one of the two Valkyries said as she got to her feet .

Zac could only weakly smile in response , too shamefaced to admit that he only found out about their situation by a coincidence . He could only redouble his efforts in freeing everyone , urged on both embarrassment and a mounting fear as the cracks in the walls kept spreading .

We should hunt the last ones down before they bring back more people! - a man that Zac didn’t recognize huffed as Zac broke apart his fetters . - Better yet , we should invade them… right …back . -

The man had begun speaking with surging momentum , but he barely managed to squeeze the last words out as Zac silenced him with a glare . The others looked at Zac with confusion , but there was no time to explain the mounting danger he felt .

Wha- - the man stuttered .

Just shut up and run , - Zac said as he freed the last scout , the demon warrior .

However , it was too late .

A series of odd explosions erupted all along the roof , and Zac guessed it was the remaining Base Power in the wall that had been become unstable as the chamber had lost the last of its structural integrity . The blasts were the straw that broke the camel’s back as the roof was ripped clean off and swallowed by the void . The atmosphere was still intact , but Zac didn't care about that as he felt a very familiar dread gripping his heart .

Not only that , but an immense pressure weighed down on him like a restrictive array had been activated .

Run! - Zac screamed as he grabbed one of the scouts with his free arm while his chains grabbed another four .

Only the demon warrior was able to stand , and he carried the last scout on his back . However , the two only managed to take a few steps before a horrifying scene entered their eyes . Two tentacles reached down from the void , making their way toward Zac and the Demon warrior . The scene was scary enough by itself in conjuncture with the immense aura the appendages emitted , but Zac's terror reached even greater heights when he realized what the vines were made of .

Hands . Thousands of hands stitched together .

Chapter 597 : The Collector

Zac felt like his brain was about to short-circuit when he saw what he was dealing with . It was one thing to see the distorting claw of the Void Creature before , but just what kind of eldritch horror would have these kinds of appendages? The sinister aura of this thing was far beyond the earlier creature as well , and Zac believed the only reason he could even stand was that the being was greatly restrained when entering the dimension of the Mystic Realm .

But there was no time to ponder what he was dealing with as the ropes made of hands were extremely quick and nimble . He desperately activated Loamwalker] to flash out of the way of one of the two appendages , but he could immediately see that the demon wouldn't be able to do the same .

The ground cracked under Zac's feet as he hurriedly changed direction , forcibly tackling the demon from behind . The demon coughed up a mouthful of blood and the Valkyrie's wounds seemed to worsen , but the push was enough to throw the two away , allowing them to avoid the first grab .

The demon's face was pallid , but he understood what was at stake . He grit his teeth as he got up to his feet , and Cosmic Energy surged through his body as he sprinted toward the red barrier . This was Zac's only hope ; that the Base would block this thing as a security measure . He had already learned from Leviala that the barriers worked just like normal defensive arrays ; usually just blocking passage from one direction . But hopefully it would detect the Void Creature passing through the barrier , and move to intercept it .

Zac activated Loamwalker] once more to follow in the demon's footsteps , but horror gripped his heart when his skill was forcibly deactivated mid-step . One of the appendages had managed to grab hold to one of the unconscious scouts hanging from one of Love's Bond's] chains , and Zac shuddered when he realized that the hands could actually move like normal as they grabbed the scout's legs and arms .

Desperation welled in his heart as Zac tried to drag him free only to find himself completely unable to match the power of the being still hidden in the void . He quickly found himself being lifted off the ground , utterly incapable of resisting . Guilt welled up in Zac's heart , but he could only release the scout before it was too late , and dropping toward the ground barely allowed him to dodge the second appendage .

The poor unconscious scout was quickly being hoisted into the darkness as the hands passed him along , but Zac resolutely looked forward as he activated Loamwalker] again . The demon had already managed to escape through the barrier with one of the Valkyries , and the appendages completely ignored him after that .

The scene somewhat confirmed Zac's guess , and not having to worry about the demon gave Zac at least some reprieve . If he only could make it through the barrier he would be safe as well .

However , Zac was gripped by despair when a third rope of hands suddenly descended from the sky , barring Zac's escape . He was forced to immediately stop , as another step with his movement skill would put him right in range of the outreached hands . He frantically ran in a different direction as he started charging up his most powerful remaining skill , Deforestation] . If he couldn't run out , then he would need to fight his way out .

The brief pause caused by the appearance of a third appendage was all that the eldritch horror needed though , and it effortlessly snatched up a second scout . This time it simply yanked him free , causing cracks to spread all over the links of Love's Bond] . The body of the scout obviously couldn't withstand such force either , and just the upper body of the poor man was taken away while his legs fell on the floor .

The only consolation was that the scout was already severely wounded before , and losing both his legs was just too much to endure . The shock immediately killed him , sparing him from being alive for whatever the Void Creature had in store .

Sweat beads streamed down Zac's face as he desperately dodged the lightning-quick vines as he prepared his Hail Mary attempt to get out of the Relay Station . He definitely feared for his life , but now there was yet another reason for him to worry ; his training quest still hadn't been completed .

Two people were lost to the horrifying appendages in an instant . Losing a third one meant failure to his quest , and he couldn’t let that happen no matter what . He moved the Valkyrie under his arm into one of his chains to free up his movement , and he kept the three scouts tight on his back to avoid another snatching .

But whatever the thing on the other side of the Void still didn’t seem satiated as the three vines reached for him as he dodged back and forth in the refitted warehouse in an attempt to find an opening . Zac could even sense a palpable hunger coming from the void even if he couldn't see the main body of the creature .

Deforestation] was finally charged up though , and the woodsman's axe emerged before it released a wave of destruction toward the sky . Zac didn't even pause to see the result as he rushed for the exit , but he immediately found himself blocked again . The vines were only pushed back a bit from the strike as shallow wounds that looked like spatial tears appeared on the hands , but they were still able to move around freely in the room .

An odd undulation rocked Zac's mind for an instant , but he shook his head and immediately followed up with the second swing . The Axe of Felling had not really hurt the creature , but it had at least stopped it for a second . Perhaps an opening would show itself if he kept pushing , so Zac unhesitantly unleashed a fiery wave of Axe-infused destruction toward the void .

The flames were unfortunately restrained as the air was almost non-existent in the chamber by this point , and it didn't seem like this creature was weak to fire either like one could have hoped . The cutting fire glommed onto the vines like napalm , but it was as though the hands absorbed their energy , quickly extinguishing them before they shot out toward Zac again .

However , Zac didn't completely give up hope as he saw that the appendages had started distorting just like the claw from before . It seemed like his attacks had increased the pace at which the Void Creature was expelled from the Mystic Realm , and if he could cause enough damage he might be able to flee . Luckily , there was one final card up Zac’s sleeve , and the ominous Axe of Desolation made its entry .

A wave of darkness almost completely filled the Relay Station , engulfing all three appendages in a darkness that seemed a shade blacker than even the Void itself . A series of powerful implosions could be heard within , and Zac's eyes lit up as he started rushing for the exit again . However , a scream of danger made him stop in his tracks , allowing him to barely dodge a badly mangled hand that grabbed for his throat .

An instant later the full tentacle emerged through the desolation , proving that even his strongest strike had failed to take out the tentacles .

The hands on the appendage had turned completely pitch-black from the attack though , and a large number of them had seen their finger turn into ash that drifted toward the void . Its form was rapidly distorting back and forth as well , and it was clearly about to be booted out of this space . However , a weird rune suddenly lit up on the back of all the hands , and the tentacle flashed forward with unprecedented speed , immediately snatching up Zac by his waist .

A crushing pressure threatened to grind his pelvic bone to dust , but Zac ignored the pain as he desperately cut into the hands with everything he had . The sanguine glow of the first rune on Verun's Bite] had already been activated again , quickly burning through the small amount of E-Grade blood he had managed to gather since the battle with the Lunar Wolves .

Every swing contained enough force to turn a Middle E-Grade Warrior into paste , but the only effect was small scars like the earlier ones appearing across the hands . But the barrage also increased the speed the appendage destabilized , and Zac suddenly found his axe striking air as the appendage disappeared with a pop , just like the Void Bubble from before .

The implosion made Zac helplessly hover in the air for a short moment before a huge force exploded outward , slamming Zac into the Memorysteel wall . However , luck was on Zac's side one final time as he had been thrown right next to the gate . He quickly crawled through the barrier while dragging the chains with him .

It was just in time as well since the last two tentacles finally managed to break through the cloud of desolation just as Zac passed through the red barrier . His whole body was hurting , but he arduously got up to his feet in case the hands tried to force their way through the gate . He didn't want to use it , but he still had the second skill of Love's Bond] to block the path in case that happened .

But the tentacles stopped right outside the barrier before they started to retreat into the void again .

A surge of relief almost made Zac pass out , but his eyes suddenly widened in shock when he saw that none of the three scouts he had carried on his chains was moving . Blood was streaming down his mouth because of internal injuries , but he ignored his own state as he frantically reached for the people on the ground .

Thankfully it turned out that none of them were dead , but they had rather been rendered unconscious some time during the battle . It was no wonder considering the speed Zac had moved around to avoid the grasping hands . Just the g-force alone would probably have been enough to kill a normal human .

Add to that the scout's conditions , the sparse oxygen , and intense pressure from the Void Creature and it was almost a miracle they were still alive . The demon and the Valkyrie he carried outside were sitting just a few meters away , and he was blankly staring at the Void through the barrier like his soul had left his body .

Zac threw a Cosmos Sack full of first-aid items to the demon , dragging him out of his blank state before he quickly fed all the unconscious scouts healing pills himself . Their complexions quickly improved , and a few of them even started stir like they were about to wake up . A prompt appeared the next moment , allowing Zac to breathe out in relief .

He had passed the quest , albeit barely .

It seemed like the Void Creature really didn't dare pass through the red barrier for some reason . Of course , the terrifying tentacles were on their last legs because of the Axe of Desolation , and it was possible that the creature simply didn't want to lose two more appendages and cut its losses .

Seeing that he had escaped death once more Zac simply slumped down on the ground , a wave of exhaustion hitting him like a punch to the face . However , he knew that he still was at the edge of the Wasteland , and a new horror could appear at moment's notice , quest or no quest . He quickly took out a healing pill and two D-Grade Nexus Crystals to restore his energy as quickly as possible .

The first of the unconscious scouts roused themselves a few minutes later , prompting Zac to open his eyes again . It was the man who had spoken up just before the Void Creature appeared . He blankly looked around like he was surprised to be alive for a few seconds before he spotted Zac seated against the wall .

I- Ah , I’m Jonas , Jonas Marshall , - the man said with a hoarse voice . - Thank you for saving us , from the wolves and that . . . thing . I didn’t mean to order you about earlier , I- -

It’s fine , - Zac shrugged , his voice equally hoarse . - I simply sensed something was wrong . -

Of course , that was only part of the story . Another reason for the scathing glare was the fear this guy had put him in harm’s way . He thought the training quest finished at that point and was afraid that the call for revenge would trigger the third part of his training regimen .

But no prompt had appeared as a result of the man’s words , which was a huge relief .

The next logical step would have been to enter the Wastelands , and Zac was in no mood to risk his life against spatial storms and Void Creatures . He knew the System’s preferences , and he wouldn’t have been surprised if it kept escalating the conflict through quests until he had eradicated the whole Lunar Tribe before it turned him toward the Core Sector .

And we can’t follow those werewolves as we are , even if that monster wasn't around , - Zac added as he got to his feet with a grunt . - A place called the Wasteland is in that direction and we don’t have the equipment or understanding to cross it . It's apparently full of the things we just encountered . -

The others visibly paled at that as they threw a few fearful glances toward the barrier . The horrifying appendages were gone for now , but that didn't mean there were even more of them waiting in the darkness .

Let's go , - Zac said . - We can't stay here any longer . We’re returning to our base camp . -

The scouts were more than willing to comply and they immediately got themselves ready to travel even in their pitiable states . The demon wordlessly kept carrying one of the unconscious scouts on his back , while Zac carried another two on his chains . The last 2 managed to walk by themselves , albeit barely .

None of them were in any mood to talk , and neither was Zac . This encounter had been much too close for comfort . Worse yet , this was just the second of ten quests . He didn't even dare to think what fresh hell the System would put him through next . So it was in an oppressive silence the group scurried away from the Relay Station , following the same route that Zac took on the way in .

They quickly reached the alcove where Zac had left Leviala , and the Cartava Scion was still sitting there , fretfully peering around the corner . When she saw Zac's and the others' states her eyes widened in shock as she got up to her feet .

What happened? - Leviala hesitantly asked as her eyes peered at the group behind Zac .

I managed to catch them off-guard and things worked out against the werewolves . A weird Dimensional Creature made from thousands of hands popped up though , and we lost two of our people , - Zac sighed as he formed the chain-chair again . - Let’s go . -

However , Leviala didn't move , but simply looked at Zac with horror .

Thousands of hands? You met the Collector? - Leviala said , her voice barely a whisper .

What? The Collector? I don't know . It had tentacles made from thousands of hands sewn together . I managed to destroy one of the tentacles , allowing us to escape , - Zac said .

YOU HARMED IT?! - Leviala shrieked as she scrambled onto the chair . - We need to go! NOW! -

Chapter 598 : The Hero's Burden

The Hero's Burden (Training (3/10)) : Avoid the Collector while leading your followers to safety . Reward : Reward based on performance at the end of training regimen . (0/1)

NOTE : Failure to comply with training regimen will result in loss of two random skills and 5 levels

Zac barely had time to take in Leviala's exaggerated reaction before the prompt in front of him appeared . Zac quickly scanned the quest with some exhaustion . He wasn't completely wrung dry just yet , but he was also far from an optimal condition . But the quest acted as a warning of sorts , and Zac knew there wasn't anything he could do except keep going .

The quest didn't have a timer , and neither didn't have any restrictions . But that might actually not be a good thing , since it might mean that a single death would result in failure . The punishment for failing had decreased once more at least , though the punishment was still far too rich for Zac's tastes .

Let's keep moving . If you're unable to move any longer , tell me and I'll carry you , - Zac said before he turned to Leviala who was already sitting on her chair . - Is it safe to talk? -

It can't hear us , but it can sense us , - Leviala whispered with fear in her eyes as she gazed at the cracks in the ceiling . - It'll pounce if we stop for just a moment . -

Zac nodded in understanding as he set out , keeping as high a pace as he dared in this chaotic place .

What do you know about that thing? - Zac asked .

The Collector is said to be the second greatest source of deaths during the Cataclysm , only lacking compared to the spatial storms themselves . It's not necessarily the strongest Void Creature , but it's definitely one of the weirdest . But more importantly , it's unusually resilient to our dimension . You saw the claw before . It deformed by itself in seconds . But the Collector's hands can stay for hours as long as they're not attacked , - Leviala said .

The Collector is also extremely crafty , and it's even able to enter the research base through Spatial Tears . There have been reports of people being snatched all over the base , even in sectors thought to be safe , - she said as she held her hands against her chest . - But I don't understand . It's been gone for thousands of years . It left a few centuries after the Cataclysm , and there have been no sightings since . -

Well , I guess it came back now that the treasure is maturing , - Zac sighed . - Why do you call it the Collector? Does it actually collect hands? -

That's our guess , at least . We think it somehow attaches them to itself to better withstand this dimension . That's why it's so dangerous to attack it . It really treasures its collection , and it will hunt you down if you harm the hands , - Leviala said , looking almost ready to cry . - And now we're in a sector full of breaches . -

Uh , well , - Zac muttered , but he didn't get any further before a sense of dread filled him . - RUN! -

The others didn't hesitate at all as Cosmic Energy surged in their bodies as they rushed down the corridor . It was just in time as well , as a tentacle suddenly rushed out of a crack in the ceiling just behind them .

It's really the Collector , - Leviala said ai . - We're doomed . We're doomed . It's either the Collector or getting bisected by Spatial Tears . -

Shut up or I'll use you as a shield , - Zac growled as he kept running .

Another sense of danger filled his mind the next moment , and he stopped just in time to avoid running straight into a Spatial Tear . A piece of his robes was cut apart though , telling just how close he had come to getting split open like a melon . The others quickly stopped in their tracks as well , barely avoiding the spatial storm that emerged from the void the next second .

Zac's nerves were taut as a bowstring , but there was no way to force himself through the storm . But waiting for the spatial storm to pass was obviously not an option either with the Collector in pursuit .

Left! - Leviala screamed , and Zac immediately turned down another corridor , the others desperately following in tow .

The hands were too close though , and the slower Valkyrie was about to get snatched up .

Shit! - Zac growled as he stopped in his tracks before he shot forward like a cannonball as his free chains slammed into the memory steel in the opposite direction .

A barrage of five-meter fractal edges slammed into the hands of the Collector the next second , each carrying a tremendous force . Small scars appeared on the hands , but Zac's normal F-Grade Chop] could barely slow the tentacle down as it grasped for the deathly pale Valkyrie . Zac saw no option but to go in himself , and he appeared right behind his follower just as the hand was about to grasp her neck .

A tremendous shockwave caused cracks to spread across the whole corridor as Verun's Bite] collided with the palm of the slightly larger hand at the end of the tentacle . A weird scar appeared on the skin as the fingers on the closest hands spasmed and bent in impossible angles , perhaps an indication of pain .

Zac wasn't much better off though , a weird sinister energy had entered his body the moment the two opposites clashed . Zac felt his vision blur for a second , but a thud from his chest woke him right up , just in time to avoid getting snatched up by a second grab . Whatever energy had entered his body just now , his Void Heart] had swallowed it . If that was a good or a bad thing , only time could tell .

The all-out Axe-Infused swing had only left a flesh wound but Zac didn't care as he fled , dragged away by two of the chains he had embedded in the wall before rushing back . The collision had fulfilled its purpose as the Valkyrie had already moved a hundred meters away , and Zac sighed in relief when he saw the Collector retracting its appendage .

Those things were only so long , so if Zac could obstruct it a second or two he would be able to keep his people safe .

Argh! - the demon suddenly screamed from the vanguard , immediately proving Zac wrong .

The group had kept running while Zac stalled the Tentacle , and this time they didn't have Zac's Luck to keep them safe from the spatial tear .

A huge wound had opened up in the Demon's side , and blood already pooled on the floor beneath him .

Eat this , - Zac said as he threw out one of his top-quality private healing pills .

Thank you , - the Demon said as he swallowed the pill , but Zac's eyes widened when a flame appeared in his hands .

However , the Demon wasn't targeting him or anyone else , but rather used a fireball spell to quickly cauterize the wound , leaving a nasty burn instead .

I can keep going , - the demon said with a ragged breath , but Zac saw that his whole body shook .

Zac nodded , but he still took the unconscious Valkyrie the Demon had been carrying . The demon actually stretched out his hand to take her back , but he reluctantly stopped himself after looking down at his wound .

You can carry her when the pill has restored you a bit more , - Zac said as he started running .

Thank you . . . Jana is . . . my wife , - the demon said . - Save her first if it comes down to that . -

Zac's brows rose , but now wasn't the time to ask for details . The group kept running down the unknown corridor , led by Leviala's expertise and guesswork . It was clear their speed wasn't enough to avoid detection though , as the tentacles of the Collector kept appearing through the cracks in the walls or ceilings . It felt like they were one bad turn away from disaster at every moment .

They thankfully weren't all that far from the gate though , and Zac knew that he would only need to keep it up for another 15 minutes if they kept this pace . He could do it .

However , disaster finally struck after they had been forced down yet another unknown corridor by the emergence of another tentacle . What should have been a normal pathway had turned into a dead-end because of a collapsed wall some distance in , with a massive number of spatial anomalies making it impossible to climb across the rubble .

The Collector's tentacle was actually still around as well , like it knew that they were trapped .

It's over , - Leviala said as tears streamed down her face , her eyes slowly turning toward the spatial tears . - Better the tears . . . -

I told you to stop talking like that , - Zac muttered as a terrifying aura exploded out from his body , and he felt how a series of black fractals appeared across his face .

He was out of options , so he could only blast his way out . And the only card he had that could deal with this monstrosity was his Annihilation Sphere . A surge of destruction coursed through his body as the energy of Oblivion seeped out of his soul like steam on a cold day . His avatar had stopped fighting as well , and instead stretched out its two hands in front of it as a surging river of Dao was released from it .

The coffin was the same , releasing a small amount of Coffin-Dao that blended with the energy of the Splinter of Oblivion , though the amount it released was somewhat lower because of the infusion of Oblivion . The streams entered his pathways and Zac started to feel his mind blur , but he couldn't let himself go into a trance in a place like this , against an enemy like this .

He desperately held on to his sanity as he pushed his two hands forward meeting the outreached hands of the Collector head-on .

The world froze for an instant before the tip of the tentacle simply disappeared , taking dozens of hands with it . A half-meter sphere of nothingness replaced the tip , and Zac looked at it with wonder as he was thrown back . He didn't know why , but that small ball of Annihilation was infinitely beautiful , like it contained the ultimate truth of the universe .

The sphere only existed for a fraction of a second though before it disappeared , leaving a frozen and maimed tentacle behind . However , the tentacle didn't remain unmoving for long as a series of shudders spread through its hands . One implosion after another erupted next as the whole tentacle seemed to fall apart .

A single Annihilation Sphere had done more harm to the creature than all of Deforestation's] swings combined , and the thing immediately lost its ability to stay in this dimension . Leviala looked at Zac with blank incomprehension , and the others in the group weren't any better . Even the Valkyries looked at Zac with a mix of awe and horror , like Zac suddenly had become even more terrifying than the eldritch horror hunting them .

Are you okay , - one of the Valkyries asked , but she didn't dare to walk over .

I'm fine , - Zac coughed as he got back to his feet with some difficulty .

It wasn't completely true though . Using the Annihilation Sphere so soon after having gone through a heated battle had put an immense strain on his mind , and he was barely holding on to his consciousness . He could also feel that the cracks that ran down his neck had worsened this time around , making Zac feel some helplessness .

The cracks had never really healed since the last time he used his Annihilation sphere . His flesh had mended , but the odd energies had stayed on like hidden tendrils lodged in his body . Not even the lava bath had managed to expel them like the rest of his impurities , and neither was his Void Heart] able to gobble them up .

He had no idea what the long-term ramification was of using the bronze flash over and over , and he could only pray that he would find some solution sooner rather than later . Because it wasn't like he could stop using the remnants even if he wanted to . They were his final card when everything was hopeless , when it was either do or die .

Wh- - Leviala wheezed , seemingly struggling to form a coherent sentence .

Looks like I had to go all-out again , - Zac wryly smiled in response as he started running back the path they came from now that the tentacle was gone .

What kind of- - the Cartava scion stuttered , but she was interrupted as a massive earthquake rocked the whole corridor with such force that she fell out of her chair .

Zac's tried to make his mind focus up as he turned around , but he immediately realized that he wouldn't be able to do anything against what was coming , even if he was in perfect condition .

At least twenty tentacles had forced their way out of the rubble of the collapsed corridor , and they madly pushed toward them , destroying everything in their path . The Memorysteel walls were ripped apart and deformed , exposing a series of worn-down tubes and contraptions hidden inside the walls .

It looked like a tide of hands were coming for them , no longer caring about playing it safe .

No orders were needed this time around as the group ran for their lives , not caring about anything but moving as quickly as possible . But the tentacles were too quick , especially since they didn't bother taking the same winding path as Zac's group . They rather just crushed the walls in the way , forming a new path for themselves .

Zac was out of ideas . He was exhausted and out of aces . He still had Love's Bond] , but he didn't believe for a second that his Spirit Tool's skill would be able to block the Collector's path . It would probably just end with his Spirit Tool getting damaged and Alea's soul getting wounded even further .

But a radiant light suddenly filled the corridor as the decrepit scripts on the walls flared into life . An endless series of clanking sounds echoed from within the walls the next moment , like someone had turned on the machines inside . Dozens of red barriers sprung up next , the closest one right in front of Zac's group .

Zac and the others passed through effortlessly though , allowing them to breathe out in a collective sigh of relief . Of course , one single barrier wasn't enough for Zac to feel safe considering that the sounds of destruction from behind hadn't abated at all . The group kept running through one barrier after another , barely maintaining their footing .

The Administrator is intervening! - Leviala suddenly cried with joy .

A huge surge of power made Zac's hair stand on end the next moment , and he quickly looked back to see what was going on . He could quickly determine there was no immediate threat , but what he saw still made him want to run for the hills .

Was this the true form of Collector?

Chapter 599 : Horror

Seeing the scene behind them almost made Zac forget the primal fear the tide of hands had elicited just a few seconds ago . The whole base had simply disappeared just a hundred meters behind them , replaced by a Void that stretched into infinity . It looked like the series of red barriers had been erected to maintain atmospheric pressure to the base .

There were no stars or nebulae in the Void , yet it wasn't completely dark . A thin strand of light stretched across the horizon , like a beam of light that had squeezed through a crack . Zac had no idea what that crack was , but he figured that it perhaps was a path to a real spacetime rather than the void between dimensions .

The scene was pretty shocking , but it was nothing compared to the appearance of the Collector .

The disgusting hand-tentacles were horrifying enough , but its main body easily topped it . Zac had imagined some sort of Lovecraftian horror after seeing the tentacles , but he wasn't sure whether the real Collector was better or worse . It almost looked like an ashy-gray blob of yarn floating in space , but the more he looked the more horrific it became .

Its form was a slightly uneven sphere that spanned thousands of meters across , making it a creature far larger than anything Zac had ever encountered before . He initially thought it was covered with coarse skin or short-haired fur , but a second glance actually revealed that they were just more body-parts sewn onto its real form . However , it wasn't just hands on its main body , but everything from legs to whole torsos and heads .

Worse yet , the bodyparts moved in everything from lackluster swaying to frantic clawing . Zac even spotted a head-and-handless torso desperately clawing at its midriff with its two stumps , probably trying to rip itself off from the Collector's body . The scene made him gape in horror , and an intrusive thought pushed away everything else .

Were the collected bodies still alive?

There weren't only humans attached to the body either , but Zac quickly spotted hundreds of werewolves as well . But that wasn't the extent of it as he could easily discern at least thirty different races in short order . It looked like the Research Base wasn't the Collector's only hunting ground , which would explain why it had disappeared for so long .

As for the tentacles , there were hundreds , most of them randomly swaying about in the void like strands that had come loose from the ball of yarn . Only a few of them actually had bodyparts covering them though , with the rest appearing to be made from something that looked like an oily liquid . Om fact . there were large patches of bare parts on the main body as well , meaning that the Collector wasn't done with its horrifying undertaking .

The Collector only had one additional feature , a weird hole in the middle of its body that seemed endless , like it led into a dimension of its own . Just looking into the depths made Zac's soul shudder , immediately forcing him to look away . He had actually felt a pull on his soul , like the maw of the Collector had some sort of spiritual pull .

A clanking sound dragged Zac out of his muddled state though as a series of enormous metal rings floated out in the void . There were over a hundred of them , each covered in dense scripts and thrumming with power . Zac quickly realized that the rings were made out of Memorysteel , and it was likely this 'Administrator' who had chosen to completely transform a section of the base to defend against the Collector's attacks .

The rings were of varying sizes , with the smallest ones being just ten meters in diameter with the largest ones being at least a few hundred meters across . The rings moved themselves to form a series of uneven tubes aimed at the creature before they started spinning with increasing velocity . The rings had turned into a blur in almost an instant , easily having reached tens of thousands of rpm .

Radiant motes of light soon appeared out of nowhere in the center of the tubes , likely somehow generated by the spinning . It was hard to tell whether the lights were made from extremely condensed energy or if they were an actual liquid , and it made Zac think of the experiments on plasma he had read about years ago .

However , this definitely wasn't something that would have been possible to create in some Earth lab , but rather some high-tiered energy that definitely exceeded anything he had seen aboard the Little Bean . Zac knew that he would instantly be turned to ash if he even got close to those things , and he kept backing away as he gazed at the accumulating lights with trepidation .

Suddenly one of the blobs of light turned into a ten-meter wide streak , hitting the Collector's main body like the discharge of a rail gun . Cascading lights illuminated the Void , and Zac felt a series of small wounds appearing on his soul from just looking at the spectacle . The Collector shuddered from the collision , but it clearly wasn't dead as dozens of tentacles shot toward the still-accumulating energy weapons .

Run! Just being witness to a fight like this is a death sentence , - Leviala screamed , blood streaming down her nose .

Zac wordlessly nodded , no longer daring to stay on to watch the result of the clash between Void Creature and the base itself . He snatched up the scouts who had all fallen unconscious as he rushed back where they came from , barely keeping himself upright after a series of shockwaves that meant that the battle had started in earnest .

The base was at least occupying the Collector's attention now , allowing Zac to only worry about the spatial tears as he ran for his life . However , that was easier said than done since the epic struggle was causing serious damage to the already weakened section . It looked like the whole place could collapse at moment's notice , with pieces of wall and ceiling falling all around them .

The spatial tears constantly poured through the cracks , and Zac was forced to jump back and forth like a monkey to avoid getting himself and his people cut into ribbons . On top of that , there was the constant threat that the Collector would return full of vengeance after having been blasted by the base's energy weapons .

Zac's heart was beating like a drum when they finally reached the inconspicuous part of the wall that led back to the forest , and he quickly took out the tablet , his shaky hands barely able to maintain a grip on it .

The gate the was conjured same way as last time , with Leviala being much too distracted to even care about how he did it . She kept a constant vigil to their back in case the tentacles returned , and she only turned back when she heard the sound of the gate sliding open . Zac didn't wait for even a second as he rushed out .

Seeing the lush forest felt like a stay of execution , and he unceremoniously fell down in a heap on the grass as he dumped his followers on the ground . He didn't know why , but it felt like the enormous wall would be able to keep the monster at bay , and the System apparently agreed as he suddenly got a prompt that he had completed the third part of his training regimen .

A wave of exhaustion hit him the second he saw the prompt , but he barely managed to keep himself from falling unconscious . His pumping adrenaline had kept him going even after unleashing the power of Oblivion , but his debts had come back to haunt him as a searing pain spread from his head down to his shoulders .

He quickly ate a series of pills , ranging from soul-mending to fasting pills to provide nutrients , and he took out both a Soul Crystal and a D-Grade Nexus Crystal to start restoring his condition . The scouts started to come to one after another as well , and they quickly sat down and focused on recuperation as well after having taken in their surroundings .

Three hours passed before Zac sighed and opened his eyes again , having barely reached a combat-ready state . New flesh had once more covered the cracks formed from unleashing the Annihilation sphere , and his mind didn't feel like it was full of cotton any longer . However , he knew that he was spreading himself too thin at the moment , and he wasn't sure how many more training quests he had in him .

It felt like the difficulty had taken a sharp spike after the first one , but he didn't know if that was just because he was unlucky enough to run into the Collector . It was hard to tell whether the System created its quest as things progressed , or whether it had foreseen everything that would happen . If it was the former , then he could only blame his bad luck and pray that his hardships would be taken into account when he finished the quest chain .

If it was the latter , he could only once chalk it up to the System being a real asshole .

He suddenly heard some shuffling next to him , and he looked over to see Leviala getting to her feet to stretch . It looked like she finally had regained some of her strength after using her Taboo Bloodline Skill .

I don't know whether to call you lucky or unlucky , - she muttered as she glanced at Zac with a complicated look . - Getting attacked by two different Void Creatures is some misfortune , they're not that common . But we still managed to survive somehow , even being saved by the base itself . -

Well , I often find myself asking that as well . Luck and misfortune seem to be two sides of the same coin in the multiverse , - Zac said with a wry smile .

What happened there at the end , though? - Leviala asked with a frown . - Why did the Collector become so angry that it directly attacked the base . Did you do something? I must have blacked out for a second . -

I just damaged one of its tentacles a bit again , - Zac shrugged . - Perhaps it got angry because it happened for a second time . -

Hmm , - Leviala said , suspicion written all over her face .

Actually , Zac wasn't surprised at her reaction . He had learned something peculiar from talking with Thea some time ago . She was actually unable to remember exactly what Zac did when he killed Harbinger back during the Zhix war . She only remembered him stretching out his arms , then seeing the Zhix lying destroyed on the ground . Everything in between was just a blank .

It turned out that his Annihilation Sphere actually messed with the minds of others , somehow deleting or destroying the memories of witnessing it . He didn't know if it was because of the System's meddling , or rather if it was because normal people couldn't withstand that kind of high-tiered concept .

Zac was actually leaning toward the latter as the oddity reminded him of him seeing the Chaos Pattern during his battle with the dragon . He could still somewhat remember a sense of complete understanding of the universe for an instant , just like how he had felt when seeing his Annihilation Sphere just now .

But any actual understanding had gradually disappeared , and he couldn't remember a single feature of the Chaos Pattern by the time he left the Tower of Eternity . This weird phenomenon was partly why he dared to use the Annihilation Sphere in front of others . He even believed that the only thing awaiting Leviala if she used her Bloodline Skill to see what happened would be a shocking backlash , especially considering the Collector was involved as well .

Well , now what? - Leviala asked , making Zac freeze in fear .

But it looked like the System was giving him a breather this time around , with no new prompt appearing .

None of us are in great shape , - Zac eventually said as he took out the backpacks of the werewolves . - Let’s rest a bit longer before we get going . -

He had only managed to snatch one Cosmos Sack and two backpacks back at the Relay Station , but all three belonged to squad leaders , meaning they should hold the best stuff . Now was as good a time as any to see if there actually were any returns from almost getting killed a dozen times over .

However , Zac's face scrunched up when he noticed the sacks were mostly full of food and first-aid items , along with some gadgets that mostly looked like more of the same as what he had looted off of Hevastes . He noted with interest that there was not a single pill or Nexus Crystal among their possessions , and it was the same with Hevastes’ bag .

Instead , there were a few vials of a milky liquid that had healing properties according to Leviala , but the effect was a lot worse compared to his healing pills . That wasn’t to say that his mother’s family was unable to create proper remedies . The problem was rather that these vials essentially contained run-off of the real thing , siphoned off the base by the natives .

Seeing there was not much of interest he turned his attention to the gadgets . There were two charges similar to the one he looted from Hevastes , but they both were not only smaller , but they also looked homemade . His best guess was that Hevastes’ charger was looted somewhere on the base while the other two were created in its likeness to the best of the werewolves’ abilities .

Still , it was an impressive feat to reverse-engineer a piece of equipment like this , and it proved that the natives weren’t simply scavengers in this place .

There were also two tablets identical to the one in his possession , and Zac simply put them aside as he honed in on a tablet that looked a bit different compared to the others .

What’s this? - Zac asked as he turned to the Cartava Scion .

A mapper , - Leviala said as she leaned over , and Zac could see some desire in her good eye . - It’s used to record safe paths . You can also add comments about security measures , spatial traps in it , creating detailed maps . -

Zac’s eyes lit up as he looked down at the smaller tablet in his hands . Wasn't this exactly what he needed right now?

Chapter 600 : Mapper

Zac looked down at the rough tablet in his hands like it was a priceless treasure , and he immediately infused it with some Base Energy as he kept Leandra’s token hidden in his palm . It hummed a second later as the screen lit up , making Zac feel a surge of success . No matter what the true intentions of his mother were , it was undeniable that she had provided him with a huge advantage by leaving behind the token .

It was starting to look like it was some sort of ghost key in this place , working on almost everything . Of course , the thing was clearly not infallible as the walls held no compunctions about attacking him , and neither did it remove the barriers in the corridors .

It's unlocked! - Leviala said with wide eyes , and it almost looked she would drag the tablet out of his hands . - How could this intelligence be unsecured?! This is top-secret information for a faction . Look , this! It’s their route through the Wastelands . And these paths , they’re completely new! They’re taking advantage of the spatial expansion to find new routes through vents and even some pipes . -

Zac let her keep talking as it helped him a lot as well . The maps Leviala browsed through almost looked like schematics for circuitry to him , and he had a hard time understanding all of them . His sister or the scientists would probably be able to figure the thing out , but learning from a native would save a lot of time and effort .

Look at these ones! They’re circumventing so many natural blockades . A few of them even might even be able to reach the Inner Labs! Just what is the Lunar Tribe planning? - Leviala added with grudging respect mixed with a hint of confusion . - And why are they going in that direction? All the pathways out of here seem to be at the edges of the realm . Aren’t they trying to escape? -

Zac was about to ask a few questions , but he froze as the dreaded prompt had appeared once again . He threw Leviala an exasperated look even though he knew it wasn’t really her fault before he focused on the blue screens that had appeared this time .

Man Versus Nature (Training (4/10)) : Reach the core of the Wasteland before Dimensional Seed matures . Reward : Reward based on performance at the end of training regimen . (0/1)]

Man Versus Machine (Training (4/9)) : Enter 'Inner Lab 16' before Dimensional Seed matures . Reward : Reward based on performance at the end of training regimen . (0/1)]

NOTE : Failure to comply with training regimen will result in loss of one random skill and 4 levels . Choosing second option will disqualify trainee from highest reward tier

It turned out that Zac had been given a branching quest this time , likely based on the large number of maps in his new mapper . Zac was about to immediately discard the one that would lead him into the Wasteland , but he stopped himself . At first glance it felt like the first option was suicidal , but perhaps that wasn't the case .

As long as the Collector had been pushed back from the direct vicinity of the base , then he had everything he needed to succeed . He had the map and a lot of Base power , and the ability to discern Spatial Tears before they appeared . Meanwhile , the second quest indicated that he might come in direct conflict with the base itself , which could complicate things when trying to deal with the Dominators .

It wasn't that Zac wanted to enter a place like the Wasteland , but the note at the end gave him pause . Judging by the difficulty of the training session so far , the reward would probably be at the level of the 8th floor of the Tower of Eternity or even higher . Getting a customized top-tier reward at this stage would be huge , considering that all Zac's greatest assets , from Love's Bond] to the Creator Shipyard and the Dao Repository , came from these kinds of rewards .

This difference was further exemplified by the fact that the Man Versus Machine-quest decreased the quest chain to 9 total quests . The punishment had decreased as well , and it looked like completing 6 quests essentially was a 'passing grade' , with every subsequent quest improving the reward .

Stopping at the 9th quest instead of the 10th might be a massive blow , like how huge Zac's loss would have been if he had stopped at the 7th floor instead of the 8th in the Tower of Eternity .

But Zac also had to think of the big picture . He wasn't here to gain rewards , but to complete a specific task . He wasn't sure whether passing through the Wasteland or heading to these Laboratories was the best course of action to deal with the Dominators .

What’s the inner labs? - Zac asked , turning to the Cartava descendant for guidance .

What? Well , that’s… - Leviala said , hesitation clearly written all over her face .

I should tell you that Port Atwood controls more than half of the world outside , including almost all top-quality cultivation sites and high-value resources . If Clan Cartava wants a good domain to rebuild your clan on the outside you need to give something in return , - Zac said .

Jonas and the other scout that weren't from Port Atwood looked a bit miffed at the domineering proclamation , but they held their tongues . Zac's words were a bit boastful , but they were essentially true if you counted the whole second continent as his own . There were certainly a lot of Nexus Crystal Mines and other resources strewn across the planet , but most of the really valuable deposits received an Incursion next to it , meaning they now belonged to him .

Well , it’s not really secret knowledge among the people in here , - Leviala said after some hesitation . - Each faction in here has managed to take control of some laboratories or unique technology in their area , and each of them provides something valuable . For example , Clan Cartava owns a series of unique greenhouses with various valuable fruits for Race Upgrades and even upgrading your constitution . -

Zac's eyes lit up when he heard about race upgrades . Perhaps they even had some herb that worked on his undead constitution , allowing him to keep working on his Draugr Race now that he had almost run out of Bone-Forging Dust] .

The most valuable of the outer laboratories are arguably controlled by the gemlings on the opposite side of the base , - Leviala continued after some thought . - They contain something called bloodline vats . I hear that bathing in that stuff can help forcibly awaken a bloodline . The bloodlines of the gemlings are apparently notoriously hard to awaken naturally , but thanks to these vats they are able to have as many bloodline warriors as the rest of us . -

Then what about the inner laboratories? - Zac asked curiously .

The outer laboratories contain great things , but they were ultimately used for large-scale experiments . The materials are helpful , but not without limits or side-effects . However , the inner laboratories were made for more valuable experiments . The number of resources that can be found there is much scarcer , but their quality is conversely higher . Quite a few skirmishes have erupted for the things that can be found there over the past millennia , - Leviala sighed .

Who controls the inner laboratories now then? - Zac asked .

No one . Or perhaps the Administrator , - Leviala said . - The inner laboratories are normally not accessible , but every few decades a lot of the barriers in this place disappears . We believe it’s the base that shuts down some functions for routine maintenance or energy conservation . That always gave us a brief window to rush to the inner areas and loot the valuables .

However , no one who has chosen to stay behind when the barriers reappeared has ever been found alive again . We think the Administrator kills them when it wakes up , - she continued . - But it usually gave us a month of searching for opportunities and trading or fighting with the other factions . -

So the lunar tribe wants to snatch the good things in this base before escaping , - Zac muttered . - What can be found in the inner labs that the werewolves have targeted here? -

I don’t know , - Leviala said . - It’s actually random . The core of the base is running as though it was never abandoned by the Builders . The Administrator prepares all kinds of experiments and scenarios , completely changing the layouts of the inner labs between gatherings . I… managed to enhance my Bloodline at an inner lab fifteen years ago . -

Zac’s eyes lit up at the piece of news . His mouth was almost frothing at the mention of bloodline vats and race upgrades , but it sounded like there were even more valuable things waiting in the inner labs . He was first a bit hesitant when the System mentioned better rewards by heading to the Wasteland , but it sounded like these labs provided a different set of opportunities instead .

Of course , he understood that the quest wasn’t a complete freebie , and he had just been given a glimpse of the Administrator's powers just a few hours ago . Still , the second quest seemed to take him in the direction he needed to go , whereas going through the Wasteland was a gamble .

When is the next time the base will enter maintenance mode or whatever? - Zac asked after some thought .

Not for a few years at least , unless something changes due to the dimensional treasure , - Leviala said . - I guess that’s why the Lunar Clan has been working so hard to find an alternative route . -

Zac nodded and made his decision , causing the prompt about the Wasteland to disappear . He didn’t immediately set out though , but rather stayed and rested with the others . There was no timer for this quest , and he planned on taking his people back to the glasshouse before setting out again . Judging by the maps he would have a few days to spare even if he returned , and he wanted to use that time to recuperate and deal with any matters waiting back at the base .

The group rested for another two hours , and even Leviala could walk by herself by that point . They didn’t enter the forest though out of fear of running into the wolf pack . However , they didn’t walk along the wall either , as the walls sometimes malfunctioned according to the Leviala . They could suddenly launch an attack out of nowhere .

That’s why they traveled just at the edge of the forest just like the werewolves did , taking the long route back .

We crossed parts of the forest to save some time , - Jonas Marshall ventured , clearly anxious to get back . - The werewolves burned some sort of herb with an acrid smell as we moved . I think it was a beast deterrent . -

This stuff? - Zac asked after rummaging about in one of the backpacks he had looted .

Exactly , - Jonas nodded .

We’ll still go around , - Zac muttered . - I don’t want to risk running into the wolf pack inside again . I’m not sure I can protect you all if these things don't work . -

Again? - Leviala asked with surprise , turning toward Zac . - You fought the lunar wolves? -

Yeah , - Zac nodded as he stowed away the herbs . - They’re pretty tough , they only relented after I killed their alphas . -

Leviala looked at Zac for a few seconds , her mouth forming words but no sounds coming out . She eventually just released a resigned sigh and turned away , not prying into the subject any longer . Zac smiled a bit before he turned toward the scouts . It wasn't just a random comment of his , but rather a conscious decision to tell Leviala .

He needed to build up an image of Strength in her mind , which would hopefully result in easier negotiations with the elders of the Cartava Clan down the road . Meanwhile , there were some other things Zac wanted to know .

Do you know why the werewolves kidnapped you? - Zac asked .

They took us because they wanted intelligence on how to get out of this place . Apparently , they had visited our biospheres multiple times before , but there were no spatial anomalies back then . They thought we had some sort of tool or technology to open a passage , - Jonas added . - I think their plan was to steal that machine and then take it to their town . They didn't believe us when we said that was impossible . -

Zac frowned a bit , but he didn't comment on it . Their theory was wrong , but not overly so . Zac guessed that it was the System that cracked open the pathways during the Integration . Before the pathways had been blocked or hidden , either because of the Tsarun Clan or the Dimensional Seed wanting to protect itself .

It was a problem if the werewolves thought that he or the other leaders of his coalition carried a teleporter on their person though . That meant they might get in the way during the battle for the Dimensional Seed .