Lu Yuan did not rush to shout a second time.
He first checked his own state.
After his consciousness was projected into this place, his physical sensations became very faint. He could feel the hardness of the shattered platform beneath his feet, but temperature and touch were blurry, as if separated by a thin layer of something.
He tried to activate Timekeeper.
His intent went out, but it met nothing.
There was no response, no vibration, nothing at all. Timekeeper had been fused with his body for so long that he had almost forgotten it was essentially a physical symbiosis. Since his body was still crouching in the pipe network, Timekeeper naturally remained there as well.
He tried the Knowledge Worm’s symbiotic link again.
This time, there was a response.
It was extremely weak, as if across a vast distance, barely catching a single thread. The connection was intermittent, and the sensory input was so blurry it was almost unrecognizable.
The Knowledge Worm was outside, building a bridge to maintain the passage, and most of its power was dedicated to that bridge, leaving almost nothing for the symbiotic link.
You’ve really screwed me over; is this your "solution"?
Lu Yuan cursed the worm in his mind.
Then, he felt deep within his left eye.
The Key was still there—the teardrop-shaped object embedded behind the insect’s body, suspended quietly, unchanged from before he entered.
Lu Yuan breathed a sigh of relief. As long as the Key was there, he could get out. He had seen the deterrent power of this thing; if even this couldn't protect him, he probably wouldn't have any hope of escaping anyway.
He steadied his mind and began to look down.
The greyish-white void was bottomless, and grey mist filled every gap. Intermittent rock platforms floated at different heights and in various sizes, the largest being only a few paces wide. Further away, everything was obscured by a uniform grey.
In a certain position below, he could faintly see the outline of a larger rock platform through the gaps in the grey mist. A figure seemed to be standing on it.
Lu Yuan shouted once more.
“Lake!”
The voice traveled less than a few meters before being swallowed by the grey mist.
It wasn't that it didn't travel far; it was more like the sound itself was being sucked away by something, leaving not even a vibration behind.
He tried to move downward. The shattered platform was only one person wide, and the surrounding floating platforms were scattered. the nearest one was about two steps away diagonally below, but it was smaller than a palm, not even enough to fit half a foot.
The ones further away were even more out of the question.
Lu Yuan crouched down and surveyed his surroundings again. The flow of the grey mist was rhythmic, not like a natural air current, but rather as if something was controlling its density and direction.
This space was actively devouring sound, and the distribution of platforms made movement impossible.
...
Lake heard the first shout on the rock platform below.
It was very distant, sounding as if it had passed through several walls. Most of it had been consumed, leaving only the final syllable to drift into his ears.
But he heard it clearly.
It was Lu Yuan’s voice.
Lake snapped his head up, but he could see nothing in the grey mist, only the churning greyish-white.
He opened his mouth to respond, but his voice was likewise swallowed by the grey mist, vanishing the instant it left his throat.
The second shout came from above. It was even blurrier than the first, with only a single syllable barely recognizable.
Lake finally confirmed that Lu Yuan had indeed entered. He began to feel a sense of urgency.
Why had Lu Yuan come in? He shouldn't be here! This place was the domain of The Man on the Wall, where transcendent power was completely stripped away. Trapped on this rock barely three or four paces wide, he couldn't even jump away. What could Lu Yuan do now that he was inside?
Thus, Lake did not intend to just wait.
Several shattered platforms floated around the rock platform at different heights. The nearest one was a step away diagonally above; it was much smaller than the one beneath his feet, but it should be enough to stand on.
Lake did not hesitate. He bent his knees and jumped, reaching out toward that shattered platform.
But his body slammed into something invisible.
The grey mist itself had condensed into a thick resistance, forming an invisible cage at the edge of the rock platform. Lake was bounced back, his heels stumbling as he retreated to the center of the platform, nearly losing his footing.
He looked around. The grey mist floated quietly, as if nothing had happened.
The Man on the Wall had not only retreated but had also locked him onto this rock.
Lake clenched his teeth, preparing to try again.
Just then, a brief gap suddenly appeared in the grey mist, as if a wind had blown from somewhere, tearing a hole in the thick greyish-white.
Through the gap, Lake saw him.
Above him.
A figure stood on a floating shattered platform, looking down.
It was Lu Yuan.
At that same instant, the grey mist surged back violently, its density suddenly increasing several-fold. The mist was pushed forward, blocking the gap as if it had a mind of its own, flooding the space between the two men and cutting off all contact. Even his sense of direction began to blur; Lake could no longer tell if the figure had been directly above or diagonally above.
The Man on the Wall did not want them to speak.
After the grey mist surged, the rock platform beneath Lake’s feet began to vibrate.
It was a faint, continuous tremor, as if something were burrowing beneath it.
Then, the grey mist split open before him.
Half of a giant face emerged from the grey mist, and that greyish-white, pupil-less eyeball appeared before Lake, occupying most of his field of vision.
It was different from before.
When He had been “Stating a Wish” earlier, The Man on the Wall’s attitude had been urgent, waiting for Lake to speak, waiting for him to make a wish, waiting for the transaction.
This time, He was extremely calm, like a host watching a guest walk to his door on his own.
Lake could read no emotion in that greyish-white eyeball.
He was simply watching him, like watching a matter that had already been concluded.
“Your price has been paid.”
The overlapping voices fell heavily, making the rock platform tremble slightly.
Lake was stunned.
What price? He hadn't made a wish, nor had he given anything up. If The Man on the Wall said the “price has been paid,” then what exactly was that price?
Before he could speak, The Man on the Wall said a second sentence.
“The Right to State a Wish is granted to you. You may state it at any time. If I permit it, it shall be granted.”
Lake’s pupils contracted.
The rock platform beneath his feet shattered instantly.
Without any warning, the entire rock platform was smashed from within, turning into grey dust that scattered in all directions. Lake lost his support, and his body plunged into the greyish-white void.
The grey mist surged from all directions, wrapping around him as he fell. His speed grew faster and faster, as if pushed downward by some force.
The sound of wind rushed into his ears, and the grey mist streamed past him.
Lake strained his eyes open during the fall.
He saw it.
In the moment the grey mist parted, the full view of this space was exposed to him for the first time.
It wasn't a void.
It was a massive rock wall that had been carved out.
The rock layers looked as if they had been split by some force from the middle, forming a rift whose depth was unfathomable. The rock platform he had just stood on was merely one of the countless fragments suspended within this rift.
The surface of the stone wall was rough and ancient, covered in certain carvings that were obscured by the grey mist.
And further below.
Steps were recessed into the stone wall, level by level.
But most of the steps were empty; only a few had silhouettes on them.
There were several of them, blurry and in various postures—some standing, some appearing to be kneeling. The grey mist obscured their faces and details, leaving only their outlines visible.
Lake didn't have time for a second look.
The grey mist closed again, swallowing everything.
His consciousness began to be withdrawn. The sensation of falling vanished, replaced by a feeling of weightlessness, as if being fished out of water.
Immediately following that was darkness.
In the final instant before losing consciousness, Lake also realized why The Man on the Wall had let him leave.
He hadn't paid any price. The Man on the Wall said it was “paid.”
Lu Yuan’s voice had come from above. Lu Yuan had entered this space.
The person The Man on the Wall had been unable to pull in had delivered himself to the door.
The Man on the Wall let him go because He had obtained something He wanted even more.
...
Lake snapped his eyes open.
The copper wall of the pipe network. The light from the march lamp. Cold air flooded his nostrils, carrying a faint scent of bronze.
He was back.
Lu Yuan was crouching in front of him, one hand pressed against his forehead, his posture unchanged.
But Lu Yuan’s pupils were out of focus, his breathing steady, and his body was motionless.
Clearly, his consciousness was not there.
A colored light hovered above the point of contact between the two of them; that should be the knowledge-derived insect. It seemed Lu Yuan had used the knowledge-derived insect and some other means to force his way in.
The extremely thin bridge formed by the tri-colored light on the knowledge-derived insect was still pulsing at a steady frequency, showing no signs of weakening.
The suspicion in Lake’s heart was confirmed.
His first reaction was to reach out and sever this bridge, grab the insect, and break the connection to forcibly pull Lu Yuan’s consciousness back.
But he suppressed that thought.
If a connection at the Sanity level was forcibly torn, it could lead to mental trauma at best or consciousness tearing at worst. Furthermore, the other end of the connection was that entity’s space; he couldn't judge what the consequences of a forced disconnection would be.
Lake checked Lu Yuan’s breathing; it was still stable.
His pupils, though out of focus, had not dilated.
Looking at it this way, Lu Yuan was not in immediate danger for the time being.
Lake didn't dare move, fearing that any movement would break the link. He then pulled a communication crystal from his robes and injected a faint transcendent fluctuation into it.
The surface of the communication crystal lit up, humming for two seconds before Kraus’s voice came through.
“Lu Yuan’s consciousness is trapped. In the pipe network layer, near the copper wall area.”
Lake kept his voice low and spoke quickly.
“I have no way to help him. Get over here.”
...
The grey mist closed.
The space became quiet once more. The brief vibration from before had vanished, and something had been ejected from this space.
Likely Lake.
Lu Yuan wasn't sure what had happened, but he could feel that the trace of an aura that had faintly come from below was gone. Lake was no longer here.
Just as he was considering whether to try shouting again.
The grey mist moved.
The mist in front of him slowly parted to both sides, like a curtain being pulled back by invisible hands. It was silent, without a single sound.
Where the grey mist dispersed, a giant face emerged directly in front of Lu Yuan.
It was level with his gaze.
Rate on N.U.
