Chapter 318: 176 Strange Rules

From outside the valley, the interior didn’t seem very spacious, and one could see the end at a glance. Upon entering the crevice, I immediately felt that something was off.

Just like the Ten Thousand Fox Well before, it was as if I had entered another space. The lush trees seemed to spread far and wide, and the silence everywhere made one’s heart flutter anxiously.

As I looked around, Zhang Xuan shook his head.

Without a strong connection, the first thing to do wasn’t to look for artifacts but to find people.

Although Yu Xiaoyu and Hong Yi had not yet broken through to the Galaxy Realm, as long as they did not run around recklessly, the danger should not be too great. It seemed like a good opportunity for them to hone their skills.

I leaped onto the treetops. There was no sun, no moon, and no stars in the sky, yet the entire space was exceptionally bright, as if the sky itself were a huge screen. All the light seemed to originate from there.

There were no birds or Primordial Beasts in the sky, which made it seem quiet.

But Zhang Xuan didn’t let his guard down. A nascent Heaven Mandate Domain like the Ten Thousand Fox Well had the Qinghu, a Galaxy Realm Primordial Beast, so this place might have even more terrifying beings.

There was Heavenly Mandate Vitality floating around everywhere, but sitting and absorbing it would, at most, gather a few hundred or a thousand strands in a day, which obviously wasn’t very cost-effective.

“The places where Yuan Power is more abundant are definitely closer to the center…”

Quickly, Zhang Xuan chose a direction and flew silently in that direction, but after a while, he stopped.

Because he saw a familiar tree. It was the very same tree he had climbed up earlier to observe his surroundings.

At the Galaxy 3-dan Peak, running at full strength, I should have covered more than ten miles in this while. The fact that the same tree appeared before me again was clearly not right.

After hesitating for a moment, Zhang Xuan formed a sword with his finger and stabbed towards the tree, leaving a huge gouge.

After doing this, I sped up and continued forward.

Minutes later, the sound of rustling footsteps reached my ears, and Zhang Xuan stopped again, his expression turning somewhat somber.

“Indeed, I’m back here again…”

It could be said that I was mistaken before, but now, the tree in front of me still bore the mark of my own sword qi, which was definitely not a fabrication.

In other words, what I always considered moving forward was actually going in circles and returning to the start.

When had I gone astray?

With my cultivation level and strength, not to mention a forest, even in the midst of a Beguilement Formation I wouldn’t turn around, yet I kept returning to the start twice in a row, which was obviously not right.

After hesitating for a moment, without rushing forward, I drew the Cold Nether Sword and stabbed towards the air.

The Youqing Sword Technique was executed, creating a mist in the air, and soon, Empyrean Kong shi’s voice came through.

“Teacher Zhang, you’ve arrived!”

Since I was already here and had encountered a problem, it was natural to directly seek Empyrean Kong shi for advice.

The fact that he could rush from the outskirts into the core and trigger the Divine Domain Flowing Colors meant he must have an in-depth understanding of this place, far surpassing that of ordinary people. This was also my biggest reliance upon entering here.

“I have arrived…”

Zhang Xuan detailed his situation and asked, “Is this a Beguilement Formation?”

“No!”

Empyrean Kong shi’s voice rang out, “This is a rule of the Heaven Mandate Domain!”

“A rule?” Zhang Xuan questioned.

Empyrean Kong shi explained, “That’s right. The Heaven Mandate Domain is similar to a small world, where its rules are set by the creator. No matter which direction you go from, you’d return to the same place. It’s not because you’ve hit a ‘ghost hitting the wall’ phenomenon, nor that you’re just running in place. It’s because… you’ve violated one of the special rules…”

Quickly, Empyrean Kong shi explained in detail, leaving Zhang Xuan dumbfounded.

As creators of a world, they naturally knew what these so-called rules were, like building a skyscraper—from its inception, one must follow the designated blueprints and cannot make unauthorized alterations.@@novelbin@@

Rules are the foundation, the framework, which cannot be violated.

The Heaven Mandate Domain is different; some provisions can be decided purely by the likes and dislikes of the domain creator. For example, in the real world, cars must travel on roads and boats must be in water, but in the domain, it can be the complete opposite.

Empyrean Kong shi stated, “Breaking out of this situation is quite simple, you just need not to use skills to run; that is, you can only rely on the strength of your physical body without channeling zhenqi!”

Zhang Xuan blinked, “Wouldn’t moving around be terribly slow then?”

The vastness of this place surpassed imagination. Running at full strength and trying to reach the end, I didn’t know how long that would take if I were just to run…

“Yes, but in fact, it can also be seen as a good thing. In this way, 6-dan experts who wish to kill you won’t have it so easy…” Kong shi said.

Zhang Xuan came to a realization.

Once I started running with zhenqi, I would end up back where I started; even if someone strong wanted to kill me, they could only compete in terms of speed and stamina… It seemed nobody really could surpass me in that.

“What about fighting then? You can’t use zhenqi in combat either?” Thinking of something, Zhang Xuan asked.

“That’s not the case. When fighting, you can give it your all. It’s only when moving forward or fleeing that you can’t use it!” Empyrean Kong shi said.

Zhang Xuan blinked.

Competing was allowed, but not traveling… What kind of rules were these?

Seemingly understanding his confusion, Empyrean Kong shi smiled and said, “Don’t be surprised. Each domain is different, and the rules are different. For example, you cannot shout loudly; once the volume of your voice exceeds a certain level, you will be constrained and punished! You cannot relieve yourself wherever you wish, you cannot eat casually, and when there are many people, you cannot whisper to each other…”

After listening for a while, Zhang Xuan was thoroughly convinced.

I had thought this place was like the Ten Thousand Fox Well, somewhat odd but still understandable. Now it seems, it was not the case at all.

“If you don’t follow the rules, what kind of punishment might there be?” Unable to contain his curiosity, Zhang Xuan asked.

Empyrean Kong shi replied, “It depends on the severity of the situation. For example, shouting, the first time, might only temporarily restrict your strength, preventing you from channeling zhenqi for one or two breaths. The second time, you might be afflicted with a ‘wind-knife calamity,’ subjecting you to a certain punishment; the third time water and fire calamity; the fourth time… is very likely to result in direct eradication!”

“Same goes for eating. If you eat quietly, it’s not a big problem. But if you smack your lips, you might also be punished… Of course, taking off shoes, farting, and such, are also not permissible!”

“The punishments seem quite severe…” Zhang Xuan frowned.

To be eradicated by the fourth offense, and even eating required caution—it’s no wonder that the strong who had come here before were mostly never seen again. There was indeed something wrong with this place.

Without prior knowledge, it would be easy to stumble, and one might even die without knowing how.

“No, wait!”

Reflecting for a moment, and suddenly coming to a realization, Zhang Xuan’s eyelids twitched and he couldn’t help but ask, “Empyrean Kong shi… what exactly did you do? How did you figure out all these peculiar rules? Could it be… taking off shoes, farting, relieving yourself… you’ve done all that?”

“…” Empyrean Kong shi.