Lin Yu withdraws his domain after dealing with the snake and calmly begins to examine the fragments of memory left behind, allowing the impressions to unfold within his mind as if he were watching the entire life of the creature from beginning to end.
At first, there is nothing but instinct and slaughter, endless killing without thought or purpose, driven purely by hunger and survival, but as time passes and the creature continues to grow stronger, something changes within it, and slowly, almost imperceptibly, it begins to develop wisdom.
That wisdom deepens over the years, guiding it toward a new path, a path focused not merely on killing but on the cultivation and refinement of its own power, and Lin Yu watches as the snake undergoes repeated cycles of molting, each transformation not only strengthening its body but also evolving its abilities, until it gains the power to transform weaker creatures into naga-like beings that resemble itself.
These transformed creatures are not only altered in body but also in mind, becoming completely loyal to the snake, believing with absolute conviction that she is their mother, and it is from this point that she begins to call herself the Snake Mother, spreading her influence through both power and belief.
Lin Yu continues to observe, watching how the creature advances step by step, eventually reaching Level Eighteen, and through this process, he understands something far more important than the creature itself.
He understands the method.
The way to perceive the rule network of this world.
One path lies in refining a sub-space and using it as a medium to observe and connect with the underlying rules of reality, while the other path lies in gathering faith, allowing belief itself to become a bridge to authority and perception.
With this realisation, Lin Yu withdraws his attention from the memories and lets his True Spirit descend once more into the cavern in the real world.
He does not return to the leopard's body, instead moving directly toward the Dream Node, his gaze piercing through layers of reality as if they are nothing more than thin veils.
His vision breaks through the dimensional boundary, and he steps into the empty node connected to the cavern.
There, he sees it clearly.
The sub-space.
Runes are carved across its surface, forming a sealing structure, intricate and ancient, as if meant to contain something within.
But Lin Yu shows no concern.
The strength of the seal is insignificant.
It would not even be enough to restrain a fifth-stage cultivator.
And he is a sixth-stage cultivator.
Even in his current condition, with only his True Spirit present, he possesses the confidence to take such a risk.
At worst, he might suffer damage.
He might fall into a deep slumber to recover.
But he would not die.
Even if it takes ten thousand years, he would awaken again.
For him, there is no real danger.
Without hesitation, his True Spirit presses forward, breaking through the seal and entering the sub-space, where he immediately begins the process of refinement.
As he refines it, a sudden beam of light shoots out from the cavern in the real world, streaking toward the east at incredible speed.
Lin Yu notices it briefly.
He recognises it as a fragment of an incomplete True Spirit escaping.
But he does not pursue.
It is not worth his attention.
His focus remains on the sub-space.
On the refinement.
As the process continues and reaches one per cent completion, a change occurs.
For the first time, Lin Yu is able to perceive the rule network of the world.
It unfolds before him, vast and intricate, like an endless web of connections governing all existence.
He begins to refine the sub-space using his digital law, carefully guiding its influence through the sub-space and into the rule network itself.
However, he remains cautious.
He does not reveal the full extent of his digital law.
As a sixth-stage existence, his power is enough to open and reshape a large world.
If he were to release it completely, this small world might evolve into something far greater.
It would be beneficial.
But it would also draw attention.
Attention from outside the world.
Something he does not want.
Not yet.
Not before he fully recovers.
So he restrains himself.
He limits his actions.
Using only the principles of digital law below the fourth stage, he continues refining the sub-space slowly and carefully.
Far away, on the Eastern Continent,
The aura dragon of the Divine Empire suddenly roars.
Its massive body coils across the sky, formed from condensed destiny and imperial fortune, its presence visible to all under heaven.
At that moment, a fragment of incomplete True Spirit descends.
It merges into the dragon.
The sky trembles.
Light spreads across the land.
Everyone looks up.
And they see her.
Within the dragon's body, a woman appears.
Her figure is ethereal, yet undeniable.
Her face,
Unparalleled.
A beauty that steals breath, that silences thought, that makes even the strongest minds waver.
The entire continent falls into stillness.
Outside the imperial palace, the emperor steps forward.
His expression changes the moment he sees her.
Without hesitation,
He kneels.
Before him, before her, before the sky.
Around him, countless officials and guards follow, dropping to their knees in unison.
"Ancestor… has revived."
The words spread.
Whispers turn into voices.
Voices into reverence.
Inside the dragon,
The woman's eyes flutter.
Then open.
At the same time,
Beyond the world,
A palace floats in the void.
Its scale rivals that of a large world.
It exists alone, suspended within endless darkness, yet radiating a presence that suppresses everything around it.
Inside its throne room,
A woman sits.
Her eyes snap open.
"The seal I placed on Yin Shuling's clone… is starting to break."
Her voice is low.
Cold.
She frowns.
The situation is not simple.
She cannot leave.
The palace itself is not merely a residence.
It is a suppression array.
Beneath it,
A portal.
One that connects directly to the Great Abyss.
She is using the palace to hold it shut.
To suppress it completely.
If she moves,
If her control loosens even slightly,
Creatures from the Great Abyss will flood into the Great Dream World.
The consequences would be catastrophic.
Even she,
A Sixth Stage Great Dream Lord,
Would not escape punishment.
Her gaze darkens.
If her battle-body clone were here, she could have sent it.
But it is not.
It is currently leading an invasion across a small thousand-world cluster.
It cannot return immediately.
She exhales slowly.
Then think.
She needs someone else.
Someone capable enough to investigate.
But not someone who would reveal too much.
Because there is a secret.
A dangerous one.
"Yin Shuling must not know…" she murmurs.
"That I sealed her clone… and stopped her from breaking through to the seventh stage."
If that truth comes to light,
Her fate would be worse than death.
Her eyes narrow slightly.
Decision forms.
She raises her voice.
"Cai Ji, come here."
Her command spreads outward.
It echoes through the vast palace complex.
Through its halls.
Through its layers.
Then beyond,
Into the many small worlds connected to the palace.
Each world is like a room.
Each room is part of her domain.
The palace does not completely suppress the portal.
If it were to apply its full pressure without restraint, the force would accumulate over time until, one day, it would erupt violently and shatter the seal entirely.
So instead, it restrains.
Balances.
Allows a controlled leak.
From the Great Abyss, demons slip through in limited numbers, sent into the countless small worlds connected to the palace, each world like a chamber within a vast structure.
War becomes constant.
In one such world,
Cai Ji stands at the forefront of the battlefield.
Her army spreads behind her, formations broken and reformed under relentless pressure.
Before her rises a monstrous figure.
A Balrog.
A fifth-stage Abyss Demon.
Its body towers over the battlefield, its form a fusion of molten flesh and hardened shadow.
Cracks run across its skin, glowing with burning magma that pulses like a second heartbeat.
Two massive horns curve backwards from its skull, jagged and uneven, as if grown from pure chaos.
Its eyes burn like twin furnaces, radiating hatred and destruction.
Its wings, torn yet vast, spread behind it like a curtain of darkness, dripping embers with every movement.
Each step it takes scorches the ground.
Each breath releases waves of heat that distort the air.
Cai Ji does not retreat.
She stands firm.
Her presence is calm.
Her aura is vast and deep, connected to the Law of Star.
Above her, the sky begins to change.
Points of light appear.
Stars.
Faint at first.
Then brighter.
She raises her hand.
Starlight gathers.
Condenses.
Forms into streams of radiant energy that descend toward the Balrog.
The demon roars.
It swings its arm.
A wave of molten force erupts, colliding with the falling starlight.
The impact explodes across the battlefield.
Heat and light clash violently.
Neither side yields.
Cai Ji moves.
Her figure blurs.
Each step she takes aligns with the stars above, her movements precise, guided by celestial rhythm.
She strikes.
Star energy compresses around her attack, piercing through layers of heat and darkness.
The Balrog counters.
Its claws tear through space, dragging flames with them, forcing her back.
Their battle continues.
Strike for strike.
Power for power.
Neither is gaining the upper hand.
Neither is able to defeat the other.
Time stretches.
The battlefield trembles under their clash.
Then,
A voice descends.
It echoes across the entire world.
Calm.
Absolute.
The moment it spreads,
The world reacts.
The sky shifts instantly.
Stars fill the heavens.
Countless.
Brilliant.
Their light intensifies.
Then falls.
Beams of pure starlight descend upon the land.
Every Abyss Demon touched by it,
Erased.
Completely.
No resistance.
No survival.
The Balrog roars.
Its body is struck.
Its so-called immortal form shatters under the pressure.
Severely injured.
It does not stay.
It turns.
Retreats.
Rushing back toward the portal that leads to the Abyss.
It escapes.
Barely.
The battlefield falls silent.
The war ends in an instant.
Cai Ji stands still.
Her gaze lifts toward the sky.
She understands.
The summoning.
Without hesitation,
Her figure disappears.
The next moment,
She appears inside the palace.
Kneeling.
Before the Purple Empress.