Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 980: First Experience in the Dimensional Rift

At this moment, Daji also placed her palm on the massive "stone mountain," feeling the tremor Solomon had mentioned.

She remained silent for a while... The tremor from her palm was slight, but for the Void Abyss Demon, a creature that fears nothing, fear and terror must be unimaginable things.

If it turned out that something, even a person, could make a Void Abyss Demon fear, it would be one of their most significant discoveries since they had been stationed in this dimensional rift.

Fear, that means terror... What could cause such fear? It could only be the existence of a natural enemy.

"But, could there really be something that even the Void Abyss Demon fears?" Daji said skeptically, shaking her head. "In all the time I've been here, I’ve never encountered anything like that."

"There is." Solomon said slowly. "When I was speaking with one of the Lords in the Hall of Thrones, she mentioned the Void Abyss Demon. Daji, what do you consider to be the limit of the Void Abyss Demon?"

"That must have been shortly after I arrived," Daji recalled. "The first time I participated in the hunt for the Void Abyss Demon, it was a total of seven ultimate Void Demons. That battle was quite brutal, and four of our companions fell. Later, I heard that above the ultimate Void Demons, there are even more terrifying Void Abyss Demon creatures, but I've never seen them."

Solomon nodded. "Those are called 'Void Asuras.' The battle you participated in against the Void Demons was just a follow-up to a bigger conflict. About a hundred years before you arrived, we were fighting against a truly terrifying 'Void Asura.' What you fought later was just the remnants of that 'Void Asura.'"

Daji's mouth slightly opened. "Mature Void Abyss Demons, fully formed Void Ancestors, then the ultimate Void Demons... The Void Demon is already at the stage of transcendence for us, so does that mean the 'Void Asura' is...?"

"No," Solomon shook his head. "The power of the 'Void Asura' doesn't exceed that of the 'Void Demon' by much. In terms of power, the two are in the same tier. The difference is that 'Void Asuras' possess intelligence and seem to have a natural ability to dominate 'Void Demons.'""That's quite charming," Daji nodded. "So, what could possibly frighten a fully-formed Void Ancestor? Would it be a 'Void Asura'?"

"Probably," Solomon nodded. "After all, the 'Void Asura' is the limit I’ve seen. But..."

"But what?"

"One of the Lords in the Hall of Thrones once said," Solomon said solemnly, "Even the 'Void Asura' might not be the ultimate limit of such creatures. If there is an ultimate limit, it might be something called 'Void Deity.' If a 'Void Deity' exists in this dimensional rift, then there will be no room for us to survive."

Listening to this, Daji couldn’t help but laugh bitterly. "How come, even after transcending the main world, there's still this much danger?"

"We can see only what we can comprehend. The limits of what we can understand might not even be the real limits... As transcendent beings, don’t you understand that?" Solomon said indifferently. "That’s why we continue to explore, using the Ark's abilities to travel through this dimensional rift, hoping to reach the original world."

This seemed to be a rather heavy topic.

Daji suddenly chuckled lightly. "Maybe a 'Void Asura' just passed by and scared it like this? But if it really encountered a 'Void Asura,' we probably wouldn’t be able to deal with it. So, why are we just waiting here? Let’s not forget, our mission this time... is to capture this Void Ancestor."

"Yes, you’re right." Solomon nodded.

Daji smiled lightly. "To rescue Lord Noah, the Thrones have prepared a great gift for Paradise... I wonder if, when a large number of Void Abyss Demons appear in Paradise, those pure Prayer Seekers, those puppet-like battle angels, will show any interesting expressions?"

Solomon didn’t speak. Before she became a transcendent being, this woman seemed to enjoy seeking amusement like a seductive concubine.

But this was indeed an order from the Hall of Thrones, and Solomon had no intention of disobeying.

He took a deep breath and suddenly punched the massive "stone mountain" in front of him.

...

...

Many floating boulders drifted around them, some as large as a football field, others only a few meters in diameter. These small stones seemed to have split off from a huge wasteland below.

They surrounded the massive wasteland like stars. This wasteland was exactly where Luo Qiu had landed.

The wasteland was full of many pits and depressions, seemingly caused by something.

It seemed that a non-human battle had once occurred on this wasteland. Luo Qiu found half of a Void Abyss Demon’s corpse on the ground.

Since there was no concept of time here, the half-corpse had not decayed.

At that moment, a pitiful scream suddenly came from behind a tall stone pillar. Luo Qiu glanced over and quickly walked toward it. As he bypassed the stone pillar, Luo Qiu saw Joan... or rather, one of Joan's forms.

It was Hoodie Joan.

At this moment, Hoodie Joan lay on the ground, her expression twisted in pain—her body, her entire lower half, had disappeared.

To be precise, her lower half was now being consumed by a massive mouth!

This giant creature, similar to a sandworm, had the same aura as the Void Abyss Demon Luo Qiu had encountered when he first arrived—apparently, Void Abyss Demons could have various forms.

The creature’s mouth was circular, with densely packed, sharp teeth exposed. The teeth moved, continuously pulling Hoodie Joan’s body toward its mouth.

"Save... me..."

Hoodie Joan had no idea how much terror she had already experienced, her hand desperately reaching out toward Luo Qiu.

Luo Qiu glanced at her. Alaya had said that once someone falls into the dimensional rift, they would likely become food for the Void Abyss Demon. It seemed that was no mistake.

"Save... me..."

"Many times," Luo Qiu looked at the almost desperate gaze and painful expression on Hoodie Joan's face, "Life and soul are both priceless. But if I had to say, it seems the soul is more important. Life and soul are unequal. So..."

Hoodie Joan's gaze slowly faded.

"Then, having already lost your life, what can you use to redeem your soul?" Luo Qiu said indifferently. "And if you’ve lost your soul, what could you offer in exchange for your life?"

Hoodie Joan’s gaze finally faded, completely giving up the struggle, as her body was consumed by the Void Abyss Demon’s mouth up to her chest.

Her lips slightly moved, seemingly saying something, perhaps "Why?"

"Because there’s no reason."

Luo Qiu looked at her remaining head and sighed. "In time and space, everything should be relative. In these countless time and space dimensions, if there are many unlucky versions of you, then there must also be many lucky versions of you. Just like the multiple dimensions you’ve jumped through, those versions of Joan in those times were probably lucky, living the kind of life people dream of... Since you’ve already experienced happiness once, why continue jumping? If you feel that life was unfair to you in your original dimension, even abandoned you, then... from the moment you first leaped, that was destiny offering you a chance."

At this moment, Joan, wearing a hoodie, opened her mouth and cried loudly, tears instantly flooding her eyes. Her eyes were finally covered by the mouth of the Void Abyss Demon—she had completely been swallowed by the Void Abyss Demon.

"In the end, nothing changed, did it?"

Luo Qiu sighed slowly, remaining silent for a moment.

At this point, the grotesque worm-like Void Abyss Demon, which had just devoured Joan, seemed unsatisfied. Its massive mouth opened, and its dense teeth moved continuously with the help of the jaw muscles.

"After eating, it's time to sleep."

Luo Qiu waved his hand. "Actually, your lives are quite happy. Eat until you're full, then sleep, only coming out to hunt when you're hungry, not needing to worry about too many things."

The Void Abyss Demon suddenly stretched its body. As it rose into the air, it suddenly shot down toward the ground!

Boom—It didn't attack Luo Qiu but instead crashed directly into the barren land. After a short while, it dug itself into the underground earth, leaving behind a dark, deep pit.

Luo Qiu wasn't surprised by the Void Abyss Demon's retreat. He just glanced at the edge of the pit—there was a small point of light that flashed quickly.

It was the Eye of Horus ring.

This must have been Joan's.

Luo Qiu picked up the Eye of Horus ring... Joan must have planned to use the ring’s ability to jump through dimensions.

Unfortunately, the remaining power of the ring was already very weak. Not only could it not allow them to leave this dimensional rift, but even within Luo Qiu’s current time and space, it could no longer perform a successful jump.

Luo Qiu put away the ring.

Three people fell into the dimensional rift from the mirror world. Now, Joan, wearing a hoodie, had been devoured by the Void Abyss Demon, leaving only the white-clad Joan and Paul.

However, this dimensional rift had countless strange passages... These passages seemed to connect different places within the rift—there was no fixed coordinate in this rift, and places seemed to be in a state of overlap and separation.

The place they were at now might seem close, but in the next moment, they could be in a very distant location.

Since this is a dimensional rift, it means there are roads leading to many different spaces and times. Just like how Alaya, with the number 003, could open a passage from the mirror world to let Joan and Paul fall, there might be ways to open passages to different times and spaces here as well.

"You're not from here, are you? Did you just arrive?"

Suddenly, a soft voice came from above.

Luo Qiu calmly turned around and looked up. He seemed to see a vivid red flower—a figure as bright as a red blossom.

Charming and graceful, with flowing posture, long hair reaching his waist, dressed in red, with skin whiter than snow, a sword at his waist, its tassel hanging down, and a double-fish jade pendant—he appeared elegant and heroic.

But... this was a man.

There was no doubt about it; this was a man because he had an adam's apple, and he was wearing ancient clothing.

"Mm, I came here to find something. Once I find it, I'll be heading back," Luo Qiu answered, looking up.

The handsome man showed an interested look. He lightly leapt down from the stone pillar where he was standing and walked toward Luo Qiu. He casually hung his hand on the sword at his waist, looking relaxed, yet also quite alluring.

Is this really a man?

Luo Qiu couldn't help but look at him for a second time.

"Very few people come in here on their own," the beautiful man smiled. "Those who come in, either can't stay in their original place, or they're exiled criminals. Which one are you?"

Luo Qiu shook his head and thought for a moment. "Probably neither... Are you that kind of person?"

"Now, yes. In the past, no. As for the future..."

He paused, fiddling with his long hair while gazing at the dim and endless expanse. He softly said, "The future, who can say? This place has countless paths leading to other times and spaces, some of which might be the same, others might not be. But no matter what, you can't find anything here that can help you. Do you know why?"

Luo Qiu just shook his head. The man's gaze was very special—so special it reminded Luo Qiu of some unpleasant memories and someone who had awakened his killing intent.

That vampire pervert, Cythacyl, whom he encountered in the labyrinth of the wine cellar in Tu Shenyi's estate.

"Because even though there are countless versions of you in all these other spaces, they still aren't you," the man laughed softly. "Only yourself is eternal."

Luo Qiu somewhat agreed with the man's words.

However... was it really appropriate for this man to suddenly appear and say all these things?

Luo Qiu wasn't sure if it was because he'd had too much time off recently, but it seemed like his old sense of awkwardness was starting to resurface.

He suddenly felt like he wanted this man to leave as soon as possible.

"I'm glad to meet you."

The man smiled slightly, like a graceful young master or a stunning beauty, making it hard to tell if he was male or female. "My name is Longyang. I didn't ask for yours."

"Oh... Lord Longyang," Luo Qiu nodded. "Lord Longyang?"

Isn’t this the famous figure from Chinese history, the first recorded person known for the Longyang's Affection?

"You've heard of me, young man?" Lord Longyang's eyes brightened, and he took a step closer to Luo Qiu.

"Probably..." Luo Qiu casually responded, then glanced at where this so-called Longyang was standing.

If he took one more step forward, it might already be time to be fully on guard—based on his previous experience with Cythacyl's attack.

Emmmmm...

龙阳 (Longyang) refers to a historical figure from ancient China, often associated with the term "Longyang's Affection" (龙阳之癖), which refers to a man’s romantic or sexual attraction to another man. In the historical context, 龙阳 (Longyang) was a noble figure who was known for his close relationship with a king, and their affection was used to describe a form of male-male romantic attachment in Chinese history.