Shen Yuan descended swiftly into the depths of the rift, his black robes fluttering like a shadow cutting through the air. Above him, Jin Dong and his lackeys hesitated, backing away with wary expressions. Clearly, they were planning to take the safer route down—through proper slopes and roads, rather than risk a reckless descent like him.
With a slight twist of his body mid-air, Shen Yuan landed gracefully on the ground, a loud thud echoing through the silent gorge. Dust billowed around him, but he paid it no mind, brushing his robes as he observed his surroundings.
A dense forest stretched in every direction, a crystal-clear lake fed by a majestic waterfall cascading down jagged rocks. The scene was serene—too serene. Not a single spiritual beast lurked in the shadows, no rustling of leaves betrayed hidden creatures. It was unnatural.
His gaze sharpened.
A place with such strong spiritual power should have been teeming with life, yet it was eerily lifeless. More unsettling was the nature of the spiritual power itself—it didn't flow from one particular direction but seemed to saturate the entire space, even from deep beneath the ground.
Shen Yuan closed his eyes and activated his divine sense.
Like an unseen tide, his consciousness spread outward, scanning for anything unusual. But to his shock… every path, every direction felt exactly the same. There was no disturbance, no fluctuation in energy—just an overwhelming uniformity that made him uneasy.
"How is this possible?" he murmured.
Even areas with dense qi or powerful illusions should have some form of distortion that divine sense could pierce through. Yet here, there was nothing to pierce through. It was as if the entire space was naturally suppressing perception.
Then, an idea struck him.
He didn't just possess his own divine sense but he had something far superior.
His lips curled into a smirk as he sat cross-legged and exhaled slowly. A dark pulse of Yin Qi radiated from his body, chilling the air. With a low hum of energy, he opened his eyes—only now, they weren't their usual deep purple.
They were crimson.
Snake-like vertical slit pupils shimmered with an ominous glow, the unmistakable mark of the Nether Dragon Scripture's divine sight.
This time, when he looked around, the world shifted.
The extra paths—mere illusions. Their structure was far more intricate than normal mirages, but his enhanced vision tore through their deception with ease. And then—he saw it.
Behind the waterfall.
A hidden flow of qi, faint yet distinct, surged toward the rock face and simply… vanished.
His smirk deepened.
Without hesitation, he stepped behind the waterfall, his boots splashing against the wet stones. Extending his hand, he let his Nether Dragon Scripture's aura resonate with the qi before him.
Whoosh!
His body phased through the solid rock as if it were mist.
As he emerged on the other side, his confidence wavered for the first time.
This… was no ordinary hidden cave.
The air felt boundless.
Instead of dark stone walls or enclosed chambers, he stood in an endless space, filled with swirling cosmic energy. Distant stars and planets shimmered in the vast distance, their silent glow illuminating the endless void.
It was like he had stepped outside of the planet itself.
Just as he was processing this, a golden light ignited before him.
A heavy voice rumbled through the air.
"So… you are the one who dares step into this place."
Shen Yuan's expression darkened. "Who's there?"
But before he could demand an explanation, the golden light began to shift, taking on a humanoid form. As the shape solidified, his eyes narrowed.
It looked exactly like him.
The only difference was its ethereal golden glow and eyes—crimson with slit pupils, just like when he activated the Nether Dragon Scripture.
The spirit let out a deep chuckle. "Your surprise is only natural."
Shen Yuan asked, weary of the situation, "What are you? Speak, or I won't hesitate to attack."
It gazed at him for a moment before nodding in approval. "You are an impatient kid, wait and you will get all your answers. You are the first in a millennium to set foot here. Though, I must admit… It is mostly thanks to the Nether Dragon Scripture. Still, you have come this far on your own merit."
Shen Yuan's expression remained unreadable, but his mind raced.
"Just what was this place? And how does this thing know about the scripture?!"
The spirit continued, its voice reverberating with ancient authority. "Now that that is out of the way let me introduce myself, I am a fragment… a remnant memory of the World Devouring Dragon."
Shen Yuan's eyes widened. "A memory?"
"Yes." The spirit gestured around them. "This sub-space is not a mere hidden realm—it is a memory-made-reality."
That revelation sent a ripple of unease through Shen Yuan's heart. Creating spatial realms using pure spatial power was already a feat only powerful cultivators could achieve. But creating an entire sub-space out of one's memory?
That… was far beyond normal.
The spirit's gaze bore into him. "Now, let us speak of what truly matters."
Shen Yuan listened in silence.
"Yes I know why you are here. You want the ability, but before that you must complete a trial and must know The Nether Dragon Scripture you cultivate—its power does not stem from any ordinary source. No, it comes from one being alone."
"The Mother of All Draconic Beasts."
A heavy silence followed those words.
Then, the spirit's voice deepened, its next words shaking Shen Yuan's very soul.
"Even the strongest mortals—those at the legendary Origin Descent Realm, capable of obliterating entire universes and all their possibilities with a single attack—are nothing but ants before her."
Shen Yuan's breath hitched.
He had expected the scripture to be something rare… something extraordinary. But this?
If what the spirit said was true, then all those years ago—when he had obtained the Nether Dragon Scripture—he had stumbled upon something far greater than he had ever imagined. He had hit the jackpot.
Yet, the spirit wasn't finished.
"You are only at the beginning," it said. "Once you reach even half completion of the Nether Dragon Scripture, the Mother of All Draconic beasts' memories will begin to influence you. If your will is not strong enough… she will kill your spirit and incarnate within your body."
Shen Yuan plainly look at the spirit and said, "That's child abuse."
Hearing his nonchalant joke, the spirit would feel frustrated and think, "Why in the gods name, is this kid making jokes!"
Shen Yuan then composed himself as his expression turned grim. "Is memory really that powerful?"
The spirit nodded. "Memory is as powerful as one's akasha."
"Akasha is the fundamental information from which the soul is composed. But memory—memory is one's own concept of life itself. Even if one's akasha were erased, their memory alone could bring them back to existence… as long as the memory still exists, though at great cost."
Shen Yuan's mind swirled with countless thoughts from all the information dump.
But before he could speak, the spirit's voice cut through the silence.
"Enough talk. It is time for your test."
The golden figure extended its palm. Understanding the gesture, Shen Yuan placed his hand upon it. Putting aside the thought about all the new stuff, he got to know.
Ancient words echoed through the void.
A strange sensation filled his body.
When he opened his eyes—
He was no longer in the sub-space.
Instead, he stood before his long-lost home.
His heart pounded. His mind spun.
Was this real?
Had everything… his entire cultivation journey… been nothing but a dream?