Chapter 613 - 608: Dark Void Of Aeternal Sky
The trip to the Elementus Domain from the edge of the Nine Worlds Domain was a long, arduous journey through the Dark Void. While the option to use a Void Gate to travel was there, the price was disgustingly obscene. Due to the Mystic Radiance Belt, the fixed space was infused with a mystic power, strengthening it in every aspect.
The function of Void Gates was to establish a tunnel between the folds of fixed space, exiting out at a certain set coordinates, establishing a stable connection between two points in space. This was why Void Gates were affixed to certain locations as well, requiring an extremely powerful and stable foundation to pierce through fixed space, creating the tunnel and connection.
It was this very characteristic that allowed the various forces to establish preventive measures even in the Everlore Starfield. By strengthening the fixed space around the planet via a planetary formation, it would prevent others from tunneling through unannounced. Yet certain Void Disks and Void Gates would allow permissible travel, freely passing through ever-shifting purposefully weakening areas of the formation.
Others would find it a difficult venture, but not impossible if enough power was used.
However, with the entire Aeternal Sky Starfield's fixed space being strengthened by thousands of times, traveling using Void Gates needed thousands of times more power, which translated to requiring thousands of times more resources/wealth. But the distance between Domains were utterly vast, even some Domains exceeded the entire length of the Everlore Starfield, and for every kilometer of distance traveled via a Void Gate, a certain amount of spatial resources or spatial energies were needed to be consumed to facilitate.
The solution to this problem was the construction and utilization of Voidships to sail across the Dark Void in a cheap, yet time-consuming manner. While practical and affordable, the journeys were oftentimes perilous and long.
Voidships functioned on essence stones, some spatial materials, but primarily can also be used with one's own innately cultivated energies. The last detail solidified its requirement in vast starfields, reducing the needed price considerably, allowing all cultivators in the Astral Core Realm to safely travel.
They became the main means of travel and transportation throughout the Grand Cyclic Stellar Region, constantly improved upon in form, function, and fuel efficiency. The various forces even created entire military fleets, a navy of sorts, with weaponized versions of Voidships.
The greatest manufacturer and the pioneers of new versions of Voidships was the Yu Clan, one of the eight Noble Clans. They established themselves off this earned title, obtaining an incredible amount of wealth and stability from it. But what solidified their status further was their connections with the Golden Life Pavilion and Godforge Association.
With the absurdly high price tag to journey across Domains, Lin Ming, Lin Xianxei, and Bai Yuxi were forced to proceed their journey using the several thousand year old, greatly outdated, Voidship. The Voidship's top-speed was rather lacking in comparison to the new ones, but it was still sufficient for long distance travel.
Because of this, it took them three full months before they reached the edges of the Nine Worlds Domain to the edge of the Elementus Domain. Throughout their travels, they had an escort—Exalted Yu.
At first, the trio was displeased and annoyed by the tail, but after encountering interception a few times by unsavory characters seeking to fatten their wallets, and shorten other's lives, they were reminded of the dangers that the Dark Void had besides astronomical phenomena and disaster—Void Pirates. Those characters turned tail quickly after seeing 'Spiritwalker' at the hull of their escort.
In the Dark Void, just like any civilization with a vast territory that was impossible to oversee at all times, even for cultivators, those with the intentions to earn off the misery of others were present. They sailed, hid, and waited in unregulated areas awaiting their next mark.
It was a dangerous profession, but most travelers in the Dark Void using Voidships were in the Astral Core Realm. Furthermore, they were oftentimes not even Realmlords, being at the middle-phases of lower-phases of the Astral Core Realm. Why? Because they were simply the majority, and Voidships were as common as beast mounts.
It was even said that there were certain Corsair Companies, which were organized pirates for the Imperial Clan's various factions or other Domain leaders. They raided other pirates and foreigners of Domains, yet it was an accepted reality. It was similar to raising spiders to kill flies.
Lin Ming was completely new to this type of complex civilization, while Lin Xianxei and Bai Yuxi had never made the trek across the starfield before. They were awed after seeing entire fleets of Voidships filled with passengers travel through the Dark Void. Some of those passenger fleets carried Qi Condensation cultivators! There were also patrolling fleets of various territories, circling certain planets or lunar satellites.
Even Bronze-rank forces protected their airspace, or voidspace, the area directly above their territory in the Dark Void. Unable to monopolize a planet, they could only share it alongside other forces and stabilize their territory, including that above. There were a few times when combat-type Voidships had launched long distance beams of concentrated power and devastated cities or sects from the Dark Void. The art of warfare had more dimensions than the non-cultivator world.
Despite Lin Xianxei and Bai Yuxi having special statuses, capable of using their backings to pay the high price for Void Gate travel, neither of them chose to. For them, as privileged cultivators, every second of cultivation was afforded to them, so how could their backers allow them to waste time like this in the Dark Void, an environment with very little cultivation opportunities?
They didn't usually have to waste time navigating the depths of the Dark Void, finding out these exotic dangers, or experiencing the various disasters such as Stellar Rain or Vanishing Points. The former was like condensed, crystallized sunlight that traveled at such a light speed with a high density. You might not even realize you're dead before it hits you. The latter being strange locations where space was chaotic, twisting and turning and collapsing all forms of matter that entered it.
They call those areas Vanishing Points because anything that enters them vanishes, and there's no sign of its existence after. These two phenomena were relatively rare, yet not even in the top three of the greatest dangers within the Dark Void. Those dangers required true Ascended to have even a remote chance of surviving.
About a month in, the trio saw a Voidship riddled with tiny, very tiny holes that added it until the entire structure looked like it was chewed by a monster with many teeths. It seemed they had gotten caught by Stellar Rain. It was relatively old, likely decades. There were even corpses infected and degraded by the Chill of the Dark Void.
Lin Ming marveled at the sight, thinking about traveling there to loot the corpses that were visible, still wearing their spatial rings, and even Bai Yuxi wanted to, hopeful of finding a solution to her soul state, but Lin Xianxei threw an astral weapon towards the ship.
When it reached roughly a hundred miles from the, strange droplets of light lit up on the ship and explosively flew out, riddling the astral weapon with holes. There were hundreds of thousands of lights. It was just a heap of destroyed metal almost immediately. And the lights then returned to the devastated ship, becoming entirely unnoticeable.
The duo were appalled!
They both screamed with curiosity and horror, and the answer turned their hearts cold.
"Stellar Rain isn't produced by Solar Stars, but are unique lifeforms birthed in the Dark Void, feeding off the solar energies they give off. You can't call them demons, but they're also like demons, more parasitic than anything. They exist as entire swarms. They lack a certain level of intelligence, and they automatically attack targets that enter their territory. If you're not prepared, sensing them out beforehand, then you'll be pierced through and through."
Lin Xianxei calmly explained, causing them to feel horror. While Lin Xianxei hadn't traveled the Dark Void, she was extremely well read regarding aspects of the Dark Void.
"These little creatures also move locations. While in transit, they truly take the form of sunlight-like rain. According to what I read, its extremely beautiful, but their relocation takes place at least once a century. It's like flowers that are blown, but much more dangerous.
"But they are not without their benefits. The experts of the starfield capture Stellar Rain to extract their uniquely refined solar energies to produce certain alchemical products that can help fortify a cultivator's Star Core or to help create Solar Stars. But even Ascended would find it difficult to capture them. They're really fast."
Lin Xianxei's explanation left the two in even more awe as they looked at the destroyed ship. The dangers of the Dark Void also had its miraculousness. These life forms could reap life away, but also create Solar Stars that could allow life to flourish.
The trio didn't see any vanishing points on their three-month long journey, but they saw planets of all types of sizes and colors. There were small-sized medium-sized, large-sized, and even gigantic-sized planets. According to Lin Xianxei, these planets weren't fixed in size. The experts that live there periodically infuse the planet with energies to enlarge them.
A planet's size directly correlated to the size of their Star Core, which translated to the strength of its essence refinement ability, thus creating a healthier and richer environment. Furthermore, the added space allowed these locations to become dedicated fields of herbs, ores, produce, or other materials to be cultivated via methods.
The Elementus Domain and the Nine Worlds Domain was divided by the Everlore Domain. This was why travel was relatively easier, faster, and less chaotic for them.
"We're finally here," Lin Xianxei said as their ship bypassed the Elementus Domain's Border. There was a slight frown on her face as she observed the various planets and lunar satellites within the expanse that was the Elementus Domain. There was a tinge of conflict within her eyes.
Lin Ming felt his heart racing rapidly after arriving here, his eyes were bright, his fists were clenched, and his mind were filled with explosive activity. This was the first step of the rest of his life!
Bai Yuxi's spatial ring started to flare with a faint blue glow. Her hand fiercely trembled as she grasped it, her expression palling somewhat. These past three months of traveling with Lin Xianxei and Lin Ming were filled with happy memories that made her relaxed and at ease, yet the ring broke her out of her fantastical dream. Her expression paled even further.
Lin Xianxei noticed this. Swiftly, she touched Bai Yuxi's shoulder and used her spiritual force to stabilize her bodily situation. Due to her damaged soul, not only was her mind hectic and fragile, but any stimulation from her body can invoke all sorts of physiological reactions. At the moment, she was at the precipice of a heart attack.
Bai Yuxi's eyelids slowly closed. With a faint, waning voice, she said: "Li-Lin Ming…you can…" However, she was unable to finish her words before she fell unconscious. Her delicate body was light, falling into Lin Xianxei's arms.
Lin Ming snapped out of his thoughts as he turned to her. "Is she going to be okay?" He asked Lin Xianxei.
Lin Xianxei sighed, but nodded. A damaged soul was not an easy thing to recover from, but with her status, she will. The issue wasn't if she could recover, it was the trouble that would result from her situation being made known, especially the reason for it. She never feared Bai Yuxi's dying, she feared the result of not solving her predicament themselves.
Yet Wei Wuyin wasn't even in the Grand Cyclic Stellar Region! So they couldn't exactly search the entire world for him, right?
Exalted Yu sent them a spiritual message: "The Tang Clan is here."
The both of them lifted their eyes towards a certain area outside of the Elementus Domain, and the stars in the distance were distorting! Their eyes widened as, like an abrupt blip, a Voidship simply appeared a few hundred miles from them. At its hull was a unique symbol of a Vermillion Bird of mythical legend! It was animated, flying around the hull freely, releasing artistically designed flames that made it look like a painting every moment.
Yet the beauty did little to calm the hearts of the two.
Before they could even react, a figure appeared directly above their Voidship. The figure floated within the Dark Void, standing on space as if it was flat ground, looking at them with a sharp light in their eyes.
Lin Xianxei's expression grew unfathomably dark after recognizing that figure. She gulped heavily, "Lord Guardian, I…"
Lin Ming's heart grew icy-cold. This was the first time seeing his Senior Sister Lin filled with fear and dread! This figure that existed in the Dark Void without a Worldly Domain unleashed, he had to be an Ascended!