this infinite world

Falling.

It felt like an endless fall.

Beside me was a curtain of turbulent currents; beside me were the strange sounds produced by the friction of material particles.

Space and time lost their inherent form here, churning and twisting like turbulent paint. Countless indescribable colors and unheard-of sounds were forcefully penetrating Yang Yun's long-undisturbed sensory barriers, attempting to overwhelm his consciousness.

This was not the first time Yang Yun had crossed the dimensional barrier and entered the interior of the world.

In fact, with Yang Yun's current strength, he could traverse even a distance measured in "light-years" in an instant; and whether the prefix of the unit is "ten thousand" or "hundred thousand" makes no difference to him... For him, traversing planes in the multiverse is just a trivial matter, at most the same as going to the store near his home to buy a pack of cigarettes.

However, this was the first time Yang Yun had ever traveled through dimensions in the form of a "clone".

Since his power broke through that unspeakable boundary, this experience of having his senses forcibly invaded by the outside world had been a long time coming for him. Perhaps it was the feeling of being out of place in another multiverse, or perhaps it was a problem with this obviously absurd Dark Souls world…

Of course, such intrusion could only be considered a slight "noise," far from enough to shake the foundation of his will. When the azure meteor silently pierced through the dimensional barrier and finally sank into this land still illuminated by the First Flame, the immortal will contained within it opened its eyes like a sleeping ancient dragon.

--call.

The blue flames ignited silently.

That was no ordinary fire, but a tangible radiance that seemed to transcend the concepts of life and death, rising from the very source of rules. As the flames flickered, a figure, indistinguishable from its original form outside the world, steadily stepped out from within.

"Very good, successful landing."

Yang Yun gently stepped on the ancient bricks beneath his feet. Although it was his first time projecting his consciousness in this way, it felt as if he had practiced it countless times. The moment his consciousness awakened upon entering this drop of blood avatar, he understood his state and the power this body carried.

—The fourth stage, or more accurately, the peak of the fourth stage, where one can unleash 100% of their strength, except for the inability to use their own spiritual light.

"He looks a bit like Zhang Jie from before."

Yang Yun slowly clenched his fist, feeling the flow of power within the new container. In an instant, a long-lost sense of powerlessness, bound by rules, returned to his senses.

This strange experience reminded Yang Yun of Zhang Jie, his companion who held the identity of a "guide." Back then, Zhang Jie had exploited a "bug" in the main god's system to gain the authority to unleash his full power… From a certain perspective, he himself seemed to be in a similar "fully unlocked" state. —So, in that sense, my current state is like that of a guide with his own will under the "main god's" command?

This thought flashed by like a streak of light, and was immediately dispelled by the rational light in Yang Yun's mind... After all, the two may appear similar on the surface, but their essence is completely different.

Yang Yun had previously discussed Zhang Jie's situation with Chu Xuan. Their conclusion then was that Zhang Jie's power was a shackle, a curse; while Yang Yun's current "restriction" stemmed from precise self-control, an optimal deconstruction of his great power within the rules of this world. The Supreme God held absolute power over Zhang Jie's life and death, but Yang Yun only obeyed himself.

Moreover, this so-called "powerlessness" is only relative to Yang Yun's unfathomable true form. The core of this body is a highly condensed and pure light of the mind. In a sense, he is currently in a constant state of "manifestation of the light of the mind."

Therefore, if we only consider the realm classification, Yang Yun's avatar can only be defined as the peak of the early stage of the fourth tier. But in terms of actual combat power... even those who have stepped into the middle stage of the fourth tier would probably find it difficult to withstand its attack.

"Is it because my strength has weakened? I'm unconsciously starting to recall things from the past... Oh well, I'll stop thinking about it now."

Gathering his thoughts from the past, Yang Yun raised his head and looked at the distant sky: "However, the principles of civilization in this world are still functioning normally... I didn't realize it when I was outside, but after descending here, I realized that this looks like the end of the world."

No matter how profound one's strength or how keen one's senses, even the most ordinary mortal can clearly feel the almost tangible heaviness in the air.

Dusk had fallen, yet the sky lacked the warmth and tranquility it should possess. The sun still hung high in the sky, its light dimmed like dusty embers, struggling to cast a weak, gloomy halo that bathed the world in a sickly, twilight hue. Shadows stretched long in the ominous light, as if some living thing was silently wriggling as the light faded…

Of course, in Yang Yun's eyes, the distant, dim sun was not a real star, but more like a conceptual imprint forcibly stamped onto the sky, pale and thin. Like a clumsy copy left after the world has forgotten its true light.

As for where the real sun has sunk, that is beyond the knowledge of Yang Yun's current avatar. After all, in a sense, the "Yang Yun" walking in this world at this moment is merely a solidified thought cast by the true self, a phantom with its own will... In the present moment, when the principles of civilization in this world are still complete and the world barrier separates the inside and outside like an invisible cage, even he cannot penetrate this heavy veil to communicate with his true self located outside the world.

"Alright, let's find the Arctic team first. After all, we should look after them. Their evaluation improved significantly because of me. I don't want them to be wiped out in this world that seems so strange from every angle..."

Adhering to the principle of "not dwelling on things for which there is no immediate answer, and setting them aside for now," Yang Yun gently closed his eyes and began to sense the presence of the Arctic Continent team. Although this avatar of his wasn't a dedicated mental power controller, back in the Main God Space, his true body had already imprinted an invisible yet incredibly clear mark deep within the souls of each team member. This was an anchor point set up to quickly locate their positions after entering the mission world. However…

"……No?"

"How is this possible?" (End of Chapter)