Ron’s hand slowly moved towards his left shoulder blade, where there was an unusual burning sensation.
The moment his fingertip touched the skin, his face instantly turned as pale as paper.
A crack thin as a hair was expanding on the skin surface.
The shape of this crack was extremely neat, like an eye slowly opening.
When the "eye" fully opened, a faint but clear pulse emanated from it.
Each beat was accompanied by a slight tremor of space, as if sending precise coordinate information somewhere.
"How could this be..."
Ron’s voice trembled, sweat trickling down his forehead:
"This must be a wound caused by the last Time Hound, leaving a mark even after healing?"
He activated the "Hermit’s Knowledge" for deep analysis, quickly discovering the terrifying nature of this mark.
It could penetrate the boundary between the Consciousness Space and the real world.
Transmitting the user’s exact location in real time to those hunters roaming the rivers of time.
"Why didn’t the Pocket Watch’s Time Reset ability clear this mark?"
Ron forced himself to remain calm, carefully recalling every detail of the last battle.
That Time Hound’s stinger indeed pierced his consciousness, leaving a shocking hole.
Although the Silver Pocket Watch’s power healed the wound, perhaps... some deeper "imprint" wasn’t completely erased.
The mark’s pulse frequency began to accelerate, from the initial once per second, gradually increasing to three times, five times, ten times...
Meanwhile, Ron could sense the response coming from afar.
Not one, but seven distinctly malicious forces were rapidly approaching.
Each carried a unique "flavor":
Some cold like the biting winter wind, some lifeless like the decaying air of a tomb, and others piercing like the screech of steel on steel...
"Seven... If I encounter them in their favorable terrain, I fear I wouldn’t last even three seconds."
He clenched his teeth, his brain starting to operate at high speed.
Escaping was unrealistic.
The Time Hound’s tracking ability was extremely strong, and the mark kept sending coordinates.
Unless he could completely block the mark’s signals, escaping to the other side of the continent would be useless.
"Since evasion is impossible... then I can only confront them head-on."
Ron’s eyes revealed a cold gleam, and an unprecedented daring plan began to take shape in his mind:
"But I must not allow them to swarm together; I must create a terrain advantage and turn the battle into one-on-one duels."
......
Taking a deep breath, he began an unprecedented project — transforming his Consciousness Space into a hunting ground.
The capability of "Micro-structure Adaptation" was pushed to its limits.
Magic Power surged out from his Spiritual Core, like a scalpel beginning to carve every inch of the "land" in the Consciousness Space.
The originally flat and open Spiritual Domain began to undergo drastic changes.
The ground erupted like an earthquake, forming countless towering "ridges".
These ridges were arranged with extreme precision, the distances between them meticulously calculated to form narrow ravines that only a single entity could pass through.
"The Time Hound’s shape may transform, but it remains relatively fixed in size during attack mode..."
As Ron continued to modify the terrain, he conducted tactical simulations in his mind:
"The width of these ravines is just enough for a single hound to pass, but it will hinder their ability to coordinate together."
At the key nodes of each ravine, he buried the Energy Core of the "Ring of Brilliance".
These cores, hidden beneath the surface like mines, awaited the right moment to explode.
Light was the greatest nemesis of Time Hounds, capable of eliminating the shadow angles they rely on for attacks.
Next came the more intricate part — the setting of lures.
In the southeast corner of the Consciousness Space, Ron created a region emitting an enticing aura.
There, he placed his most "important" memory projection:
The first meeting with Lady Allen, the scene of the elderly woman teaching him to modulate his first Magic Potion;
Academic discussions at the Black Mist School with Masters Soron, Yuni, and others;
Playing in the Crystal Pool with young Dale, the Sea Siren’s silver hair floating in the water, dreamlike and beautiful;
Afternoons in the garden with Ailan, the Tree Spirit’s verdant branches swaying gracefully in the sunlight;
And the first meeting with Nari, as well as the warm interactions with Eve...
Every memory carefully "seasoned" by him, to emit more intense emotional fragrances.
The pure emotions contained within these wonderful memories were the most delectable food for the semi-spiritual Time Hounds.
"They’ll be drawn to these ’delicious’ memories like sharks smelling blood."
Ron chuckled softly:
"And to feast on these baits, they must traverse the canyon labyrinth I’ve designed."
When everything was completed, the once simple Spiritual Domain had become a labyrinth.
Canyons crisscrossed, traps scattered like stars, and the lure area exuded an irresistible sweet fragrance.
"Come on..."
......
The edge of the Consciousness Space began to show the first crack.
A slit extremely thin, only as thick as a hair, but emitting a horrifying alien aura.
The edges of the crack appeared jagged, like forcibly torn by some extremely sharp claws.
As the crack expanded, a low and rhythmic breathing sound emerged from it.
It was the rhythm of time itself, with each undulation accompanied by subtle spatial twists.
One of them expanded first to a degree sufficient for passage.
The first Time Hound eagerly squeezed through.