The week before I stepped into the Dragon Tomb was spent studying the Mirror. Why? Maybe because I wanted to be like that one blindfolded guy I saw in an anime who had a space-time ability. You know who I'm talking about.
No, not Gojo, Kakashi.
Kakashi had Kamui, it would be a nice ability to have, right? Actually, why stop at just Kamui? What if I had both Kamui and Limitless? That has to be cheating, right?
Kamui was an ability, or more accurately, a dimension known as the Kamui Dimension. Essentially, Kakashi could open a hole in space that sucked everything nearby into that pocket dimension. Since it was a space-time ability, it bypassed durability entirely. This meant that if the hole appeared near a vulnerable area, like the forehead, it would be a one-hit kill.
Kamui had another impressive aspect: a passive defense. If harm was about to come into contact with a specific part of the body, that part would instantly be sent to the Kamui dimension, creating the illusion of phasing through all attacks. This ability could also bypass barriers and other forms of defenses with ease.
And once someone with Kamui managed to touch you and pull you into the dimension? It was game over unless you knew how to escape. Otherwise, it was an instant win.
The Limitless was more complex to explain. It was divided into four abilities, the first and most notable being Infinity. Essentially, this ability brought the concept of infinity into reality.
The simplest way to explain it is to consider the numbers 1 and 2. How many numbers exist between them? There's 1.01, 1.001, 1.0001, and so on. An infinite number of values fit between the two, but because we exist on such a large scale, we don't perceive that infinitesimal infinity.
Now, imagine bringing those infinitesimal points into reality—specifically, into the space between yourself and a target. By manipulating the space, you could make the distance between yourself and harm infinite. That was the core of Infinity. Of course, the energy control required to pull this off was astronomical. Fortunately, I met the requirements.
The real challenge, however, was the mental capacity needed to perform the calculations. A normal person's brain would fry under the strain. And yet, once again, I met the requirement.
As for the other abilities within Limitless? They didn't matter to me. All I cared about was Infinity.
Now, imagine combining Infinity with Kamui. Making the space between you and harm infinite while simultaneously phasing out of existence into another dimension? That's not just powerful, that's outright cheating.
A week passed, and before long, I found myself standing among a crowd of 5,000 people gathered to enter the Ancient Dragon Tomb. The Elder generation was the smallest group, as they were unlikely to gain much from the tomb's offerings. The older generation, just below the Elders, made up the largest portion, while the younger and current generations were evenly represented in number.
We stood in tense anticipation as the Emperor and the former Emperor stepped forward together. Using a special technique, they began opening the doorway to the tomb. As the portal formed, a surge of rich Qi erupted from within, washing over the crowd. The sheer intensity of it caused a few cultivators to experience breakthroughs on the spot, their auras spiking dramatically.
But the rush of Qi didn't last. It quickly spilled out in a torrent before subsiding just as abruptly, leaving the air heavy with anticipation as the doorway stood open before us.
"Get going, and remember—we're watching," the Emperor said calmly. Through unique methods, they recorded and broadcasted everything that happened within the Dragon Tomb. Of course, there was a deliberate delay in the feed, allowing them to censor any secrets that might otherwise be exposed to unwanted parties. This broadcasting served a dual purpose: ensuring no one from the older generation bullied members of the younger generation and identifying any intruders who dared to sneak inside.
As we stepped through the gate, we were immediately teleported to random locations within the tomb. The sensation of teleportation was bizarre, and disorienting to many. Some lost all their senses momentarily, vomiting from the overwhelming experience. Others, like myself, remained unaffected, quickly adapting to the strange shift.
"Looks like I have bad luck," I muttered, taking in the landscape around me. A desert.
This pocket space spanned over 3,000 kilometers and contained a variety of environments, from lush rainforests to scorching deserts, and everything in between. Unfortunately, I had landed in the desert—the most useless and, paradoxically, the most dangerous of them all.
Why? Because of the Sandworms. These creatures could reach the strength of a level 7 Nascent Soul, rivaling some Ancestors outside this realm.
I sighed, my senses picking up the tremors beneath the sand. My footsteps had already alerted a swarm of them, their massive forms rushing toward me. Worse, their frenzied movement was triggering even more Sandworms to join the hunt, all of them converging on me with one shared goal: to devour their next meal.
***
Far away, Chu Feng appeared in a dense forest. He glanced around, scanning his surroundings, before letting out a sigh when he realized Lu Lu was nowhere to be seen. He had fought hard to secure her a spot to enter the Dragon Tomb. Lu Lu was strong—stronger than most Core Formation realm experts—but her strength seemed forgotten, buried alongside her lost memories.
He wasn't worried for her safety. Whenever she faced danger, her strength would erupt instinctively to protect her. That's how she had saved his life once, breaking through barriers he thought impenetrable. She had even displayed strength beyond the Nascent Soul realm, effortlessly one-shotting an old Ancestor before collapsing from the strain. Her power was undeniable, and the aura she released when confronting that Nascent Soul expert told him one undeniable truth:
The arrow Lianchen had caught? She could have done it with far greater ease.
But if that was true, her peak strength was above even the Nascent Soul realm. That realization only deepened the mystery surrounding her. Who was she? How had she lost her memory? And what did Lianchen mean when he referred to her as "someone who would fall into his hands"?
These unanswered questions gnawed at Chu Feng, yet the only person who seemed to hold the answers, Lianchen, didn't care to speak.
Chu Feng walked forward, a part of him tempted to simply sit down and cultivate. The Qi in this world was so dense and pure that it was hard to resist the urge. But he knew this place was brimming with opportunities waiting to be discovered—and the forest was no exception.
He had only taken one step when something unusual happened. His Dao trembled, pulling him toward a presence deep within the heart of the forest. Whatever it was had formed a connection with his Dao, an event so unexpected it left him momentarily stunned. After a brief hesitation, he pressed forward, his figure vanishing as he moved closer to the source of the call.
However, his movements didn't go unnoticed. The forest was teeming with demonin beasts, and many turned their attention to him. He was forced to either fight them off or use cunning tricks to slip past. But evading them was no easy task. These creatures seemed determined to keep intruders away from the forest's center.
And so, Chu Feng's goal was set. For the next several months, he would dedicate himself to reaching the center of this forest, no matter the obstacles in his path.
***
"What a strange place… who would've thought Sandworms could help me cultivate," I mused, rubbing my swollen stomach as I glanced around at the skeletons scattered around me. It was odd that they even had skeletons—I had assumed they'd be more like regular worms. But then again, these creatures were far from ordinary. With their sharp teeth and the potent acid they spat, they were uniquely dangerous.
I extinguished the campfire and got to my feet, albeit unsteadily. As a Saiyan, I was used to eating almost anything. From other races to dinosaurs, food was food. Saiyans weren't picky eaters—it was all about energy and survival, as simple as that.
"Should I cultivate now?" I muttered to myself. "It's risky without a guard." Still, the energy I'd consumed was immense. I was certain that if I spent the night refining it, I could reach level 5, or even the peak, of Body Tempering.
Even with that thought, I struggled to walk, my overfilled stomach throwing off my balance. It wasn't every day I ate this much, but the benefits were already undeniable. Barely an hour had passed, and I'd gained so much.
***
"How did a kid manage to eat all that food?"
The outside world watched with a mix of shock and disbelief as they observed Lianchen. The scene was almost impossible to comprehend. Those Sandworms were massive—some as large as ancient trees, with others rivaling the size of small forests. Yet somehow, all of them had fit inside the stomach of a seven-year-old boy.