After spending a few minutes playing with the void creatures and getting a feel of their combat style, Alex disposed of them and turned to look in a particular direction.
Even with how vast the distance was, he could always tell which way was home. The next moment, his figure disappeared and reappeared outside the boundaries of his universe.
And the moment he arrived, he sensed multiple void creatures trying to break the boundaries of his universe to gain entry. Naturally, that wasn't possible — not when all laws regarding spacetime fabric were strengthened.
The creatures began disintegrating the moment they turned to face Alex — they were erased before they could utter threatening growls or screeches.
Alex focused his attention on the disk-shaped spiral before him, appreciating the unique appearance of his universe. Around this spiral was an invisible barrier that prevented any form of light from seeping out.
The universe blended seamlessly with the surrounding energies, making it appear as though there was nothing there.
'It looks smaller on the outside and is barely visible.' Alex noted with a calm smile. 'No wonder it's difficult finding a universe via the true void.'
The closest thing he could compare the size of the universe disc to was a human standing before the sun — that was huge. Even then, it was a drop in the bucket compared to the inside.
Recalling his vision of the universes back then, Alex knew his universe was in the lower strata of the universe rankings. That meant there should be more universes like this one closer together.
He spread his senses far and wide, in an attempt to see if he could spot any other universes around. Safe to say he was disappointed — it wasn't so easy spotting a universe you have no connection with.
Not that he was interested in finding and venturing into other universes. Besides, he was expecting some visitors and couldn't leave his universe alone for too long.
'But how do I find the direction to the multiverse core…?'
There was no up or down in space and this was the same for the true void. Any direction he faced was the same in his perspective.
Since universes could connect with each other through the occasional veil tears, then it stood to reason that the universes must be connected to the multiversal core in some way.
The knowledge he received from his universe core included how universes were extensions of the bigger core, programmed to carry out specific tasks borne of nothing. But there was nothing on how that connection was maintained and through which medium.
It was sort of like how a parent shared a connection with their child. There was no tendril of energy connecting them, but everyone who knew the child would know the parent.
'There's no use thinking about it now… Not when I'm still not powerful enough.'
A shiver ran down his spine — it never got old.
With nothing else to do and no visitors around, Alex moved towards the universe and slowly phased through the fabric.
He materialized in the universe centre, right beside the core that welcomed him with a soft dance around.
"Yeah… It's good to be back."
Alex grabbed the core and showered it with a few rubs before letting it go. The core continued to dance around Alex, still trying to get him to fuse with it.
"Sorry, buddy…" He shook his head as he sat down in the void. "Being alone is more helpful to me than you think…"
With that, he closed his eyes and delved into his inner realm. Alex intended to learn and experiment with his white essence until he was proficient in using it.
'And I can't keep calling it white essence…'
...….
Julia looked to her left when she noticed Alex reveal a slight smile. She raised her brows in curiosity as their situation had nothing to smile about.
"What are you smiling about?" Julia asked, snapping Alex out of his thoughts.
"Nothing…" Alex's lips curled slightly. "Just looking forward to exploring this new region."
"Hmph!" Julia was not buying it. "You're literally the one who made this entire thing. At least come up with something more believable."
"Fine," Alex revealed a knowing grin. "I just recalled one of the expressions you made when we were doing you know what…" He winked at her.
"Ouch!" A slap on the shoulder shut him up. Of course, it was all worth it.
Julia's face flushed red in embarrassment. She couldn't believe Alex would say something like that when they were around others — awakened people at that!
"Why would you be thinking about that at this time?" She couldn't figure her man out.
However, as she thought more about the activity, she understood more or less why Alex's thoughts wandered in that direction. She ended up deepening her own blush with her own thoughts.
"Hehehe…" Alex chuckled at her cute expression and drew her into a side hug. "I was just messing with you…"
His earlier smile was just his relief in knowing his main body was back. The connection had been restored earlier, however, Alex was only able to relax when the main body returned to the universe.
"Come on, Ross and the others are waiting for us…"
They quickly made their way to the exit bay of the colossal spaceship they boarded. Sometime later, they arrived at the bay and spotted Ross talking with a few others.
"What kept you guys…?" Ross asked the moment he saw them approaching. "Forget I even asked." The redhead sighed and shook his head. Seeing Julia's reddened face was more than enough reason.
Julia had to take several seconds to regain her steez while the awkward silence passed. After what felt like hours, someone broke the silence.
"We're ready to head out. All hunters — get ready."
Everyone turned their heads as the giant hatches opened, exposing the view of their destination — a field of rogue planets teeming with newly discovered resources and an equally large sea of void creatures.
"I hope you two are ready…" Alex said as he and his friends walked over to the edge. "This place will be where you ascend to the next level…"