Han Yu's expression hardened. "What now?"
WHOOSH
He leaped onto a nearby boulder, trying to get a better view, but the ground convulsed suddenly, throwing him off balance. The earth below began to split open, forming jagged fissures that spread like lightning bolts across the landscape.
The air filled with the deep groaning of shifting stone.
KACHA
A loud crack erupted behind him, and Han Yu barely turned in ti to see a massive tear open in the earth. It was nearly eight ters wide, running straight through where he had just been standing.
His eyes widened, and he shouted instinctively, "Fuck!" before jumping forward, channeling Qi into his legs.
He soared across the fissure in one powerful leap, landing hard on the other side.
THUD
The ground continued to quake beneath him, forcing him to keep moving. More cracks appeared, slicing through the hills like the jaws of so invisible beast trying to swallow the land whole.
Each step was a gamble. Han Yu dodged falling stones, jumped over newly ford ravines, and occasionally used short bursts of flight to avoid being swallowed by the earth. His breath ca fast, not from exhaustion this ti, but from pure adrenaline.
"What kind of realm is this?" he shouted in frustration as another fissure split open before him. "Is the whole place collapsing?"
He did not stop to find out. His instincts scread at him to get off the ground.
WHOOSH
With a sharp breath, he summoned his halberd once more, gripping it tightly as he leaped into the air, granting him greater lift.
Next the weapon responded instantly, quickly shifting beneath him as he began to rise.
Han Yu did not push for speed this ti.
He flew at a controlled pace, hovering just high enough to stay out of reach of the collapsing earth while conserving as much Qi as he could. The tremors below had turned into full-blown earthquakes.
RUMBLE!! RUMBLE!!
Entire hillsides were crumbling, trees toppling in clusters, and great plus of dust rising into the air. The land itself seed to be splitting apart.
Looking down, Han Yu could see the chaos spreading for miles. The sight sent chills running through his spine. He felt small and insignificant before the sheer power of it. If this truly was the collapse of the inner realm, then no place here would be safe.
"I need to get out of here," he muttered through clenched teeth.
He pushed the halberd faster, ignoring the ache starting to build in his arms and legs. The wind tore at his hair, and the tremors below seed to chase him across the horizon. For a while, it seed like the earth itself was trying to swallow him whole.
THUD
But then, just as he began to build montum again, sothing slamd into him with invisible force.
"GAH!!"
Han Yu's body jolted violently, pain rippling through him as if he had run headfirst into a wall. The halberd spun out of control, and for a brief mont, he was weightless and then... plumting.
"Fuck!" he scread as the ground rushed up to et him.
He managed to regain his grip on the halberd at the last mont, twisting his body and channeling the remaining Qi into his weapon. The halberd responded, slowing his descent enough that he only hit the ground with a heavy thud rather than a fatal crash.
THUD
He groaned loudly, rolling onto his back and staring up at the misty sky.
His ribs ached, and his left shoulder felt bruised. "What the hell did I hit?"
There was nothing visible in front of him. No wall, no barrier, no structure... just empty air. Yet the pain in his forehead was proof that he had struck sothing solid. If it were not for his stronger body and higher cultivation, he might've just cracked his skull.
Slowly, Han Yu stood up, brushing the dirt from his clothes. He summoned his halberd back into his hand and walked forward cautiously. When he extended his arm, his fingers t resistance in the air.
Hummm
He frowned and pressed harder. The air shimred faintly where his hand touched it, rippling like disturbed water before going still again.
"So there really is sothing here," he murmured.
He tried moving to the left and then to the right, tracing the invisible surface. It extended as far as he could reach, both vertically and horizontally. No matter where he turned, the barrier remained solid.
An invisible wall.
SHUA
Han Yu placed his palm flat against it, sending out a pulse of spiritual sense.
WOONG
It rippled outward but was abruptly reflected back, as if the wall rejected his attempt to probe through.
He stepped back and looked around. The barrier was invisible, but now that he knew it was there, he could faintly sense a strange energy humming behind it. It was not aggressive, but it carried a weight... a feeling of separation.
'Could this be the edge of the inner realm?' The thought sent a spark of hope through him, though it was quickly followed by doubt.
If this was a boundary, then it ant he had reached the edge. But if he could not pass through, then he was trapped.
Han Yu clenched his fists. "No… there has to be a way."
He summoned his halberd and swung it gently against the barrier.
Thud
The weapon made contact with a muffled thud, like striking tal wrapped in silk. Sparks of faint light appeared where the blade touched the invisible surface, then vanished without a trace.
There was no damage. No reaction. Nothing.
He exhaled slowly, lowering the halberd.
'This certainly can't be the edge of the inner realm, as the tomb would not be located here. This is probably the barrier protecting the real tomb instead.' He guessed.
His mind churned with thoughts, but one thing was clear, the inner realm was not rely a space of illusions and traps. It was sothing sealed, contained by a power far beyond anything he could currently comprehend.
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