Seeing that he’d made up his mind, the three women could only nod.
Li Chang’an didn’t dare to linger. He was afraid that if he stayed any longer, he would find himself in another Xiuluo Scene. He got up and left the Li Yang Capital immediately.
...
In the Li Yang Northwest Desert, a vast expanse of the Gobi Desert stretched out.
Li Chang’an entered the valley with practiced ease and walked up to the great tomb where he had first encountered the World-Devouring Whale. He called out, "Senior, I’ve come to visit today because I have some questions for you!"
His voice echoed through the empty valley.
There was no response from the World-Devouring Whale.
Li Chang’an circled the great tomb. The Stone Lion was still half-buried in the ground, projecting a curtain of light.
When he was twenty, this curtain of light had filled him with a lingering dread. But now, Li Chang’an was fifty years old.
To him, the curtain of light was now as fragile as a sheet of paper.
With a casual poke, Li Chang’an shattered the Stone Lion’s protective barrier of light. He then forced the earth and stone apart and strode brazenly into the tomb passage.
The last time he was here, the World-Devouring Whale had manifested as a ferocious Evil Beast, appearing above the stone gate to speak with him, Leng Yanran, and Ran Qingqiu.
But this time, as Li Chang’an returned, the stone gate remained inert.
’What’s going on?’
’Did the World-Devouring Whale run off, or did it croak?’
He walked closer and knocked on the tomb door, but there was still no response.
A sense of foreboding washed over Li Chang’an.
Normally, the tomb’s main gate could not be opened from the outside, but that obviously wasn’t going to stop Li Chang’an. He thrust a hand into the stone gate, wrenched a crack open by sheer force, and then gave a light tug along the fissure.
RUMBLE... The massive ancient tomb began to shake violently.
After the dust settled, Li Chang’an saw an empty tomb chamber.
No...
That’s not right. The chamber wasn’t empty. A tunnel, like a Black Hole, led out from inside it.
The tunnel led deep underground, its depth impossible to gauge.
On either side of the passage, layers of space and time constantly warped and materialized.
For some reason, the tunnel gave Li Chang’an a feeling of déjà vu.
He stood there, stunned, wracking his brain for a long time before he finally recalled it. When he used his Rebirth Mark, he could vaguely sense something familiar, just like the feeling this tunnel gave off.
The only difference was that the sensation from this tunnel felt unstable.
When he used the Rebirth Mark, however, it allowed him to proceed without sensing anything amiss at all.
’So, that raised a question.’
’Where did this tunnel come from?’
’Since it’s in the World-Devouring Whale’s territory, it was most likely the whale’s creation.’
He picked up a rock and threw it into the tunnel.
The rock flew in a parabolic arc. The instant it made contact with the tunnel, its surface seemed to distort and blur, but it didn’t shatter.
He waited for a long moment.
Once he was certain there was no danger, Li Chang’an finally stepped into the tunnel.
The tunnel was long, and walking through it, he lost all sense of space and time. After what felt like an eternity, Li Chang’an saw the World-Devouring Whale lying at the far end.
The World-Devouring Whale resembled the orcas Li Chang’an knew, though it was vastly larger. It appeared to be in a deep slumber, its black-and-white hide crisscrossed with countless scars.
The most severe of these injuries had sliced through the World-Devouring Whale’s skin and bone, faintly revealing the organs within.
Li Chang’an moved closer, one step at a time.
Sensing the presence of a stranger, the World-Devouring Whale’s eyes shot open. It immediately turned, preparing to flee into the deeper reaches of spacetime.
Li Chang’an called out, "Senior, it’s me!"
The World-Devouring Whale froze. It turned to look at Li Chang’an, and after a long pause, it spoke in astonishment, "It’s you? You’re still alive?"
Li Chang’an asked, puzzled, "Why would you think I was dead?"
The World-Devouring Whale didn’t answer.
It hadn’t completely lowered its guard. It asked, "Everything outside is my territory. I laid so many defenses. How did you get in?"
Li Chang’an spread his hands and smiled. "I called for you outside the gate for a long time, but you never answered. I have something urgent to ask, so I had to let myself in. My apologies, Senior!"
The World-Devouring Whale was silent. After a long pause, it finally spoke. "If I recall correctly, the Cultivator should have descended to the Lower Realm by now, shouldn’t they?"
’It had deliberately hidden itself in the Void, precisely so that damned Cultivator couldn’t find it. But now, the Cultivator hadn’t found it, yet here was Li Chang’an, waking it from its slumber. How could it not be utterly astonished?’
Li Chang’an nodded. "Yes. The Cultivator descended to the Lower Realm twenty years ago, but I killed them the very same day."
The World-Devouring Whale: "..."
It didn’t know what to say.
’Even though it was probably that same reckless Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator, they were still a Cultivator! Killed the very day they descended to the Lower Realm... The whole thing sounded completely surreal.’
After another long silence, the World-Devouring Whale spoke again. "You killed him, then you broke my Restriction and barged into the pocket dimension I created. Are you truly not afraid of death in the slightest?"
Li Chang’an shook his head. "Senior, let’s not waste time on pointless words. Of course I’m afraid of death. That’s why I’m still alive!"
’Of course I’m afraid of death, that’s why I’m still alive...’
The answer reminded the World-Devouring Whale of its last encounter with Li Chang’an. The young man had always been a gutsy one.
After calming down, the World-Devouring Whale changed the subject. "You went to all this trouble to find me. What is it you want? Spit it out!"