I want to tread the heavens

The third node on the port side was temporarily repaired to stabilize the damage and prevent it from affecting navigation. Ling Xiao could feel that the slight energy stagnation had been temporarily suppressed under the forceful channeling and physical reinforcement of the meteorite power, but the slow transmission efficiency was a real fact. This meant that in the upcoming voyage, the Meteorite's maneuverability, especially its left-hand turns and attitude adjustments, would be slightly slower than before, and energy consumption would also increase slightly.

In the perilous "Death Storm Belt," even the slightest delay could be the difference between life and death.

Ling Xiao returned to the cockpit, not immediately accelerating again. He first carefully checked the control system, confirming that all other systems, especially the core power, main shield generator, life support, and most importantly—the navigation module—were functioning normally. The image of the Starfall Compass was projected onto one side of the main screen, its dark red pointer still steadily pointing to the depths of the churning pale gray energy cloud diagonally ahead, marking the only direction for this lone vessel.

"It seems the main functions aren't affected." Ling Xiao secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but he wasn't completely relaxed. He focused part of his attention on the connection with the starship, slowly sensing the mount's every breath, monitoring the movement of that "hidden danger," and adjusting the preset cruise program, adding a compensation algorithm for the sluggish maneuvering on the left. The Meteorite began to accelerate again, following the compass guidance, navigating through the relatively calm turbulent gaps, like a cautious fish, avoiding the more densely visible chaotic areas and drifting wreckage.

Fa Cai seemed to sense the subtle change in the starship's state. It stopped lying on the cushions and instead sat crouching, its gaze darting back and forth between Ling Xiao's focused profile and the bizarre scenery outside the porthole, conveying a silent companionship and vigilance. The shock from the previous encounter with the Stardust Beast and the massive wreckage had made both the man and the wolf understand that this seemingly empty void was actually fraught with hidden danger, allowing no room for complacency.

The voyage continued. The concept of time became blurred under the constant repetition of this bewildering, endless darkness. Only the mileage data and energy readings flashing on the main screen reminded them that they were moving inch by inch away from their old homeland and closer to their unknown destination—"The Minor Realm of Xunfeng".

According to the star map inherited from the Starfall Compass and the jade pendant, the "Xunfeng Minor Realm" should be located on the "other side" of this "Silent Storm Belt," between the desolate star field where the Old Earth is located and the relatively prosperous "Azure Profound Star Road." It is a region that theoretically may have life and is suitable for low-level cultivators to transition to. That is also the place that Uncle Rong deduced, based on fragmented memories, as the most likely place for them to temporarily establish themselves, gather information, and obtain further star charts.

However, as the Meteorite continued deeper into the storm belt, the surrounding energy environment began to undergo some inexplicable and subtle changes.

At first, the "fog" outside the porthole seemed to have become lighter in color, shifting from a murky grayish-white to a distorted state that was almost transparent and shimmered with a very faint colored light. The tearing force of the spatial turbulence fluctuated, but the overall trend seemed to be weakening, as if they were passing through the most violent core of the storm and heading towards the "edge" on the other side.

But then, some anomalies began to appear.

First, the ambient radiation data transmitted back by the remote sensing array showed subtle fluctuations that did not conform to conventional models, like irregular undercurrents hidden beneath a calm lake. Then, the positioning signals of several distant reference stars used to correct the course began to waver, sometimes strong and sometimes weak, as if observing a candle flame through a constantly shaking frosted glass.

Ling Xiao became alert and intensified his monitoring. He suspected that he might have encountered some kind of localized, high-intensity energy interference field, or that there was an undetected, strange celestial body with a powerful magnetic field nearby.

Until—on the main screen, the starfall compass projection, which had been as stable as a rock, suddenly trembled without warning.

Yes, a tremor. It wasn't the pointer that swayed, but the entire compass, including the central dark red gem and the surrounding intricate star-shaped markings, swayed violently and blurred for a moment, like a reflection in ripples on water, before finally settling back down. The red pointer, which had been pointing straight ahead, suddenly deflected slightly and rapidly during this tremor, as if interfered with by an invisible magnet, briefly pointing in another direction before laboriously and slowly returning to its approximate position. However, it was no longer as stable and precise as before, but rather carried a barely perceptible, high-frequency, subtle tremor.

"Compass interference!" Ling Xiao's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately focused most of his attention on the navigation system. He tried switching to the backup calibration mode and connecting to the starship's built-in, more basic inertial navigation and star map matching system, but the coordinate information returned also began to show contradictions and unreasonable jumps. It was as if an invisible hand was gently stirring the spatial scale of this area, confusing all navigation methods that relied on constant reference points.

"Disorientation... dizziness... is the direction spinning?" Fa Cai also sensed something was wrong. It shook its head irritably, its amber eyes fixed on the constantly trembling compass needle, conveying a sense of confusion. Its intuition for direction seemed to have been affected as well.

Ling Xiao forced himself to calm down. Navigating the stars without reliable navigation was like a blind man riding a blind horse, approaching a deep pool in the middle of the night. He had to find a new method of positioning immediately.

"Detect the source of interference! Scan for energy anomalies across the entire frequency band!" he ordered. The Meteorite's detection array was at full power, radiating invisible ripples in all directions.

The feedback was alarming. It wasn't a single point of strong interference; rather, the entire region's void background was permeated with an extremely faint yet omnipresent and strangely shaped energy field. This energy field seemed capable of distorting, refracting, and delaying various forms of energy waves and signals, including spiritual fluctuations, starlight, and perhaps even the structure of space itself. It didn't resemble a man-made array; rather, it was more like a naturally formed, grand-scale cosmic spectacle—or rather, a manifestation of some unknown characteristic deep within the "Silent Storm Belt."

"No wonder this area is marked as dangerous; it's not just the turbulent currents and monsters..." Ling Xiao suddenly realized. This kind of all-encompassing, bizarre navigational interference is enough to completely disorient any starship relying on conventional methods here, ultimately leading to its destruction or loss of life due to either running out of energy or straying into a perilous situation. Did that mysterious wreckage also struggle in a similar environment?

The Meteor Compass was clearly affected. Although its core was related to the power of meteors and its resistance to interference far surpassed that of ordinary magical artifacts, it was not completely immune. The tremors and occasional deflections of the pointer indicated that it was also struggling against the chaotic laws of this area.

What to do? Stop and wait for the interference to pass? Heaven knows how big this area is, or how long the interference will last. Blindly rushing in? That would be a certain death.

Ling Xiao's gaze fell on the slightly warm jade pendant on his chest. Ever since entering this interference zone, the jade pendant had been continuously emitting a warm sensation, not the scorching heat of a warning, but a peculiar, rhythmic pulse, as if resonating with something unseen around him.

"The jade pendant's resonance..." Ling Xiao's heart stirred. This Star Key was left to him by his parents, closely connected to the Starfall Clan's heritage. Perhaps what it sensed wasn't a specific celestial location, but some deeper "beacon" or "path" related to the Starfall Clan?

He tried to calm himself down, no longer relying on his eyes to look at the compass, nor on the chaotic data on the screen. He focused his mind on the jade pendant, silently circulating the "Zhou Tian Xing Chen Dao Da Pian"—not for combat body training, but for the most basic "Star Sensing" method recorded within.

This method aims to initially establish a faint connection between the practitioner and the celestial bodies, guiding starlight into the body. Here, the starlight is distorted and chaotic, making it impossible to guide. However, what Ling Xiao wants is not to guide starlight, but to use this method to amplify and refine his perception of "star-related" energy and meaning.

He closed his eyes, taking the warm pulse of the jade pendant as an "origin," and transforming the vague perception of the universe and stars brought by the "Star Sensing Chapter" into an extended, invisible "tentacle."

At first, everything around was chaotic. There was only the faint vibration of the Meteorite's engine, Fa Cai's steady breathing, and the omnipresent, unsettling background energy field "noise" outside the porthole.

Ling Xiao remained calm and composed, gradually adjusting the frequency of his breathing and spiritual energy flow, attempting to synchronize with the pulse of the jade pendant. He also carefully extended the "tentacles" of "star perception" towards the direction in which the jade pendant was subtly "biased".

Time ticked by. On the main screen, the compass needle seemed to vibrate more violently, even occasionally spinning around briefly and dramatically. The location coordinates given by the inertial navigation had become completely unreliable. Fa Cai shifted uneasily in its seat, but sensing the calm and focused aura emanating from Ling Xiao, it refrained from disturbing him, its silver eyes fixed intently on the outside, serving as a final physical warning.

Suddenly, amidst the endless, dizzying "noise," Ling Xiao caught a glimpse of something different.

Extremely faint, extremely distant, like the last embers of a candle flickering in the wind. It wasn't light, heat, or any specific energy fluctuation, but rather a… "feeling." A feeling of a grand, orderly, and steadily functioning "framework," starkly different from the surrounding chaotic and distorted background field, like a boiling pot of porridge. It was like, on a stormy, foggy sea, suddenly "feeling" the presence of solid land represented by a distant, ever-burning lighthouse.

This sensation did not come from the "directly ahead" that the compass needle was pointing at the moment, but from a slightly off-center direction, and it was sometimes strong and sometimes weak, but always present, in rhythm with the pulsation of the jade pendant.

Ling Xiao suddenly opened his eyes, fine beads of sweat already seeping from his forehead. This kind of pure, high-precision perception is extremely taxing, not only on spiritual energy but also on mental energy.

"I've found a bit of... 'anchor point' feeling." His voice was slightly hoarse as he quickly said to Fa Cai, who was looking at him, "But it's blurry and far away. And..." He glanced at the Starfall Compass pointer, which was still trembling but whose general direction wasn't too far off from the "anchor point" he had sensed, and a startling guess came to his mind.

"Get rich! Do you still remember the original destination the compass was set for?"

"I remember, 'Xunfeng Xiaojie'... It has spiritual energy and can live." The thought of getting rich came, and its memory of the destination's name was simple and direct.

"Yes, 'Xunfeng Minor Realm'." Ling Xiao's eyes were sharp as he quickly traced the star map with his fingers, comparing the direction of the vague "anchor point" he had just sensed with the direction the compass was pointing when it was stable, as well as the rough markings of "Xunfeng Minor Realm" on the inherited star map.

"The compass was previously pointing steadily in the correct direction to the 'Xunfeng Minor Realm,' or rather, the 'exit' direction from which we could reach the 'Xunfeng Minor Realm' region after passing through this storm belt," Ling Xiao slowly analyzed. "But now, the compass is being interfered with, and its direction may have deviated. And that 'anchor point' I just sensed..."

He paused, a flash of realization crossing his eyes: "That feeling... is far more grand, stable, and vast than the 'atmosphere' one would expect from the 'Xunfeng Minor Realm'! It doesn't seem like a suitable transitional 'minor realm,' but rather more like... a true, vibrant, and lawfully stable main continent, or the core of a vast star field!"

"If my intuition is correct, if the jade pendant and the guidance of the 'Starry Sky Sensing Manual' are correct..." Ling Xiao's heart raced slightly. "Then, the 'Xunfeng Minor Realm' might not be an independent destination at all, or even our final destination. It's more likely just... one of many outposts or gateway regions located on the other side of the storm belt, leading to this true 'main continent' or 'core star region'!"

Just like the "Border Crossing" in the old and desolate land, it is only one of the countless entrances to the "Azure Profound Continent"!

The meteor compass initially pointed to the portal region (Xunfeng Minor Realm) that was closest to them and most likely to allow "smugglers" like them to settle down after passing through the storm belt. However, what the jade pendant and the cultivation technique sensed was the real, much wider world that the portal connected to!

This realization invigorated Ling Xiao, but also made him more cautious. If his guess was correct, then they were about to enter a world far more complex, dangerous, and full of opportunities than the "Xunfeng Minor Realm."

"Get rich. From now on, we can't completely rely on the compass for the time being," Ling Xiao said in a deep voice, his gaze fixed firmly on the direction of the "anchor point" he sensed. "I will try to use the jade pendant's sensing as the primary method, supplemented by the compass's indication, combined with the starship's basic inertial data, to correct our course. This path may be more tortuous, but the goal should be bigger."

Fa Cai seemed to understand the seriousness in Ling Xiao's words. It stood up, shook its fur, and said with a firm resolve, "You guide the way, I'll keep watch. Big places are better, more meat."

Ling Xiao chuckled, shook his head, and refocused his attention on sensing the jade pendant and controlling the starship. Under his guidance, the Meteorite began to slowly adjust its course, no longer completely following the trembling compass needle, but cautiously and firmly heading towards the depths of chaos, towards that grander "anchor point" that only he could vaguely perceive.

A temporary solution has been found to the navigation crisis, but the road ahead remains a maze of unknowns. The only reliable forces are the resonance of blood ties and the instinct to move forward.