139 - A Mirror of the Past

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Despite Qin Yun's insistence, he held his weapon tight, frowning as he tried to peer through the scattered thick bushes. They obfuscated most of his line of sight, yet he could feel movement beyond, hiding behind. Whatever they were, they moved silently. The wind could not catch their scent, but they were undoubtedly there.

“Show yourselves!” the man cried, pushing away Qin Yun’s restricting hand.

Qin Yun frowned as the man chose simplicity. Whether that was good or bad for him remained to be seen. Yet, their path was already determined. He only had to walk it.

"We come in peace! There's no need for bloodshed," Qin Yun said in the common tongue. Now that his disguise was breached, he saw no point in keeping up the facade. Besides, they did not know if the inhabitants of this world would even understand either language.

At least the flora here doesn't seem to have been corrupted. Same with the animals.

This felt unsettling. These two worlds were obviously connected, and the breach between them might as well always be open. There was no reason to think the corruption couldn’t have made its way inside a long time ago.

In Qin Yun's mind, there were only two explanations for this. Either the corruption saw nothing of value, or it simply couldn't. The first was almost impossible. Just looking around, Qin Yun saw many things ripe for the picking.

Plants were thriving, rising high into the sky, while animals were aplenty. There were even countless insects all around him. No way the corruption would leave a world so rife with life unattended. It was begging to become a breeding ground, a beachhead for its assault on the Great Barrier.

And yet, there wasn't a trace of it to be found. All around him, Qin Yun saw untouched nature, free from outside interference. Yet, this also applied to the Heavenly Dao. There wasn't a trace of the qi that permeated the world outside.

How could the Heavenly Dao have never left its imprint here? He thought, musing as to the implication.

While this place was now within the realm of the corruption, once upon a time, the Heavenly Dao no doubt ruled here. Why wouldn't vestiges of its existence remain unless destroyed by the inexhaustible passage of time?

How long ago was this all?

As Qin Yun pondered, so did the young man. Yet, his concerns stemmed more from the fact that this realm existed at the summit of the Exiles’ hiding place. He had been here a few times in the past, yet never could fathom such a place was hidden from him. Were they also unaware? Yet, he very much doubted so.

Both men waited, yet no response ever came from the other side. Qin Yun felt countless pairs of eyes resting on them, mostly from many colourful birds perched high up on the branches. They looked at him as if scrutinizing his actions. There was no doubt intelligence was hidden behind those eyes.

Spirit beasts? Here? That should be impossible! How can their spirituality coalesce without spiritual qi to support them?

This was an enigma. Qin Yun had seen many spirit beasts in his time, even some taking human form—Feng Xia being one of them. However, none had ever achieved this state without the Heavenly Dao's assistance, much less its permission. To do so would take Heaven-defying talent—something these creatures obviously didn't possess, yet here they were, right in front of his eyes. He couldn't deny their existence however much he wanted to.

“If I may ask,” Qin Yun began. “Who is sustaining this plane?”

His words rang within the jungle. Although subtle, Qin Yun felt this prompted a reaction from their observers, almost as if they held back a gasp of astonishment. He felt the whole jungle holding its breath. Only the young man turned to face him, confusion in his eyes.

“Think about it," Qin Yun added, loud enough for all to hear him. He spoke as if to address the young man, yet his words were for all, mainly those looking on from afar. "This place is obviously unnatural. There are just too many things that don't make sense. How can a portal be this stable without something to keep it open."

"I've heard that on the Mainland, such places aren't rare," the young man replied. "Some might even say they are quite common."

"Where did you hear this?" Qin Yun asked as he turned to face him. "I thought your people never breached the other side."

"We might not be able to walk the Mainland, but they were people who could. They were fools, thinking themselves invincible. They sought to parade their strength yet felt the might of my people. We learned a great deal at their expense."

“How unsurprising,” Qin Yun lamented. “Many people overestimate themselves. I gather they are already long dead?”

"My people see no value in hostages. The time for bargaining has already long passed. We either take what we need or die trying. There is no third option for us."

“Isn’t that quite bleak?” Qin Yun asked, yet the man only returned him a dark expression. It seemed to say: “Haven’t you seen the world we live in?” There was no denying their way of life wasn’t for the faint-hearted.

“Enough of this," the man said, holding his sword tight. "What did you truly mean by the one sustaining this place?"

“Back on the Mainland, such places are called sub-dimensions," Qin Yun explained. "They are linked to the main one by portals. However, these portals usually shift in and out of existence depending on many factors, but mostly the phases of the moons and the shifting of the Earth's Veins. Some appear at regular intervals—like every century or so—while others randomly. Those are impossible to predict and can only be found through luck and destiny."

“Which one is this, then?”

“Neither," Qin Yun replied decidedly.

The young man turned back to face him, his confusion apparent. Yet, just as he was about to inquire, Qin Yun explained further.

"There's also a third type, but this one is sustained artificially. By pouring a large amount of resources—objects possessing countless amounts of qi such as artifacts or even spiritual stones—one can stabilize these portals so that they do not fade, even when the Earth Veins run out."

“I’m not that well-versed when it comes to the qi that you people use, but doesn’t that require an insane amount?”

“Indeed,” Qin Yun replied. “More than an individual can ever imagine. Even within what people call the Western Outerlands, such portals can be counted on one hand. Not even my family can claim to have one perpetually open. At most, it can be entered once a year.”

“Your family?” the man exclaimed. “Are you some kind of bigshot over there?”

“That's not important," Qin Yun cut him off. "You need to know that something—or someone—is artificially keeping this portal open. It may even be responsible for maintaining this whole dimension."

"Wait, wait," the man glanced toward Qin Yun while still facing the bushes. "Isn't that farfetched? What could possibly possess that kind of power?"

“Who knows?” Qin Yun shrugged. “Usually, the Heavenly Dao would be the one maintaining these dimensions, yet its influence cannot be felt here. There’s no traces of qi, after all.”

Only then did the weight of it all crash upon the young man. It was as if realization suddenly slapped him in the face. He couldn't help but look in the distance, past the numerous bushes and majestic trees rising up to the sky, hoping to glance at this mysterious entity, yet all he saw was peacefulness—an eerie peacefulness.

“Why aren’t they doing anything?” the man asked, slightly uneasy.

He could feel their stares on his skin—the stares of whatever that was. It remained noticeable from the first time they arrived here until now, never fading yet growing any stronger. It felt much too stable to have come from any type of lifeform.

“Who knows?” Qin Yun replied with a smile. “Why not find out?”

Without waiting for an answer, Qin Yun nonchalantly walked toward the bushes, not even bothering to keep his guard up. He knew that if whatever creature in charge of this dimension was hostile to them, there was nothing he could do, as it should be at the immortal level or close to it.

After weighing the pros and cons and fighting the urge to run out of this place, the young man chose to follow him despite his better judgment. They both dove into the thickets without ever looking back.

The jungle was lush and dense, but surprisingly, Qin Yun felt strangely light, almost as if the force of gravity was slightly lesser than in the main world. Qin Yun took a deep breath and tasted the air, letting it fill his lungs to the brim before exhausting them until they were empty.

Somehow, the air itself tasted sweet. Almost as if it was saturated with volatilized sap. But, there was something else laced within—something he couldn't quite put his finger on, yet he believed this had something to do with the size of the flora around them. Even for this world, the trees were much too grand. Some reached over a hundred meters, while their trunks were over five meters in diameter. He recognized the species, yet they shouldn't even be a quarter of those numbers. Even the bushes rose to over two meters high.

Think. I know there’s something wrong, yet why can’t I find the answer? Am I getting old?

Qin Yun bent to the ground, examining the soil beneath his feet. He found it teeming with life, much more than it should. However, what truly surprised him was the size of some of those bugs feeding on scattered leaves and other forest waste. They were at least five times what they should be.

What could prompt them to grow so big? Wait... Oxygen! The proportion of oxygen is way higher than it should be!

Qin Yun should have realized such a simple change already, yet he was too preoccupied with the one maintaining this space. Upon closer look, it was easy to see that his body burned at least twice as much energy as it should.

Qin Yun had tuned his body to extract as much oxygen from the atmosphere as he could, being extremely efficient with every breath. Years of doing so had made this process second nature, allowing for much more explosive strength while also allowing him to better manage his qi expenditure, as he didn't need to use quite as much to produce the same effect.

But now? With over twice the concentration, his body felt much stronger than it should, but this came with many downsides. He was already getting famished. Without the use of his qi, Qin Yun needed to rely on food for his needs, yet it had been a while since his last fulfilling meal. Even the man at his side felt the strain of their environment. He could hear his stomach growling.

However, this also means that the native fauna should be much bigger. The question is... how much?

The answer to this question was soon to come.

Qin Yun saw two red eyes radiating from beyond the bushes. He prompted the man to stop, and they both waited, weapons ready. Yet, even more eyes appeared in quick succession. Finally, their foes chose to show themselves. However, it wasn't quite as Qin Yun expected.

A bipedal lizard sprung from the bushes, exposing its green, rugged body covered in feathers that shone under the sunlight. In its maw were rows of sharpened teeth while large, pointy talons adorned its large hind legs. Its front legs were much scrawnier. They were barely a threat, yet three claws could be found at each end, sharp enough to dismember any adult man.

Its form was very distinct—so much so that Qin Yun recognized it at a glance. He had seen records of this creature in the world from which he originated. They were considered long extinct, yet here they were in the flesh.

Velociraptors!

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