Chapter 123: Water Without a Source, Fish of the Void

Within moments, under the astonished gaze of Elder Dong, several bizarre-looking fish tumbled out from the Sourceless Water.

Elder Dong flicked his wrist, and several silken threads shot from his sleeves, ensnaring the strange fish before they could hit the ground. With a practiced, fluid motion—a sequence repeated countless times, though rarely with such profound gravity—he tossed them into a fishing bucket, where they transformed into intricate carvings.

Although the stream seemed to flow from the azure sky, Elder Dong appeared to perceive something entirely different. His expression shifted between light and shadow, and after seemingly confirming his suspicions, a ripple surged through the air. Once it subsided, only his fishing gear remained.

"Xiao Mu, have you opened the Divine Wood Secret Realm recently?"

The southernmost foot of the Green Forest Main City is a place that the city's inhabitants both yearn for and fear. To ordinary people, it is a forbidden zone; to those who possess elemental powers, it is a sacred ground—a place where opportunity and peril coexist.

At dawn, while most ordinary citizens and Star Core Warriors were still asleep, even the menial servants here—all of whom were entry-level Star Core Warriors—were already busy with their daily cleaning and maintenance.

Suddenly, a streak of blue light cut across the sky, descending toward the Main City Prefecture, the residence of the Sky Wood King.

A peak entry-level servant, sweeping the ground, watched the blue light with growing astonishment. Throughout the world, both humans and high-level mutant beasts knew that the three Royal Prefectures were restricted airspace. And yet, just now...

"Did someone just fly over?" Servant A asked, using a pair of giant shears forged from wood-elemental energy to prune a mutant flowering tree several stories high.

Servant B, who possessed earth-elemental powers, felt his energy stir as he manifested a vehicle on the ground to collect the pruned branches. "It seems so."

In Servant B’s memory, there were only a handful of occasions when anyone had dared to fly over the Royal Prefecture. He recalled that during the Great Catastrophe of Green Forest Main City, the Sky Sand King and the Sky Sea King had flown through this very sky.

"Don't tell me something major is about to happen again." Servant B’s hands trembled so violently that he nearly dropped the branches he had just picked up.

Very few individuals on Earth could claim the title of King. Out of respect, almost every race, human or mutant, avoided flying over a King's territory unless they intended to provoke them.

Servant B, still rattled by the memory of that past event, voiced his trepidation to Servant A. But Servant A, focused on tending to the trees, merely smiled. "There hasn't been a large-scale mutant beast invasion in decades; we haven't even seen a King-level beast. Besides, our Sky Wood King is still here. What could possibly happen? You’re just too sensitive. We just need to take care of these trees; we don't think about or ask after anything else."

Having finished his work, Servant A stepped back to admire his handiwork. Satisfied, he landed beside Servant B.

"Perhaps I am being too sensitive," Servant B murmured, head bowed as he gathered the branches. He looked up at the sky and added, "I hope so."

Dragon-Ink Jadeite is a precious mutant wood found in the mid-levels of the Divine Wood Mountain Range, accessible only to those who have reached at least the peak of the Growth Stage.

This wood is roughly divided into two layers: the outer layer is as crystalline and clear as emerald, while the inner layer possesses natural red patterns reminiscent of a crimson dragon. With a little polishing, it becomes breathtakingly beautiful.

Wealthy noblewomen often spend a fortune on pieces of Dragon-Ink Jadeite to be crafted into bracelets. One could choose the emerald-colored outer layer or the red-patterned inner layer, but the most coveted pieces combine both to create the "Jade-Star Flowing Dust" bracelet.

It is said that the only one of its kind in the world is worn by the Princess of the Angry Sea Main City, a gift commissioned by the Sky Wood King for the Sky Sea King upon the birth of his daughter.

The Jade-Star Flowing Dust bracelet requires the craftsman to use elemental energy to forcibly invert the inner and outer layers without damaging the material. The finished piece features red dragon-scale patterns on the exterior and emerald star-beads on the interior, which, when viewed through sunlight, appear like stars twinkling in the night sky.

The entire Sky Wood Palace is constructed from Dragon-Ink Jadeite. It lacks excessive ornamentation, yet it remains strikingly eye-catching.

In the Sky Wood King’s study, as he picked up a dossier on pollution sources, he suddenly felt the space around him become unstable.

"Why are you here?"

In the Sky Wood King’s memory, this man only appeared when the Divine Wood Secret Realm was due to open. He placed the documents on his desk, pinning them down with his hand before asking.

"Have you opened the Divine Wood Secret Realm?"

The visitor was Elder Dong. He showed no sign of reverence despite standing before the Sky Wood King, maintaining an air of equality. After all, few dared to address the Sky Wood King by his given name.

The Sky Wood King was not offended. He smiled faintly and said, "No. The time for the secret realm to open has not yet arrived, and I would not open it privately. Besides, you are the one guarding the entrance; you know better than anyone whether I have opened it or not."

Then, recalling a scenario that had not occurred in decades, the Sky Wood King added solemnly, "It couldn't be that the Divine Wood Secret Realm..."

Before he could finish, Elder Dong interrupted. "If it wasn't you who opened it, then I suspect there is only one other possibility."

"Let us go and assess the situation. Perhaps this anomaly in the Divine Wood Secret Realm is a blessing, though it remains to be seen what level of transformation this is."

"Agreed." Elder Dong vanished on the spot. The Sky Wood King gave the documents a cursory glance before disappearing as well.

"It is here."

Elder Dong and the Sky Wood King reappeared in the deep boundary between the Sky Wood Academy and the Purple Star Academy. The Sourceless Water continued to bubble and flow; no one knew what this water was or where it came from.

The Sky Wood King had entered the Divine Wood Secret Realm before and had never encountered a water source like this. It felt like the water of the Heavenly River from ancient mythology—weightless and intangible, as if it flowed in another dimension while they could only observe from this one.

However, one could clearly sense its presence through elemental energy, and it was possible to catch the fish within it.

These fish could not be killed—or rather, they could not be touched. Elemental energy could capture them, but if one tried to envelope them with that energy, they would pass right through. Thus, they could only be sealed.

For nearly a hundred years, Elder Dong had remained here to seal the fish flowing from the Sourceless Water. Both the bucket and the fishing rod were composed entirely of pure elemental energy, a feat only possible for those at the King level.

In the brief time Elder Dong had been away, the monsters flowing from the Sourceless Water had nearly covered the entire "Illusionary Ground."

The Sky Wood King watched the strange fish, unfazed; he had experienced this more than ten times, though the scale varied each time.

Once the strange fish left the water and hit the ground, they vanished, leaving behind silver-white markings. These markings traced the paths the fish had taken, but soon, they began to expand like inflated balloons.

As countless fish hit the ground, their overlapping trails merged, slowly forming a sealed space.

"What level do you think this is?" the Sky Wood King asked, watching the fish continue to emerge, unable to gauge the extent of the anomaly.

Elder Dong walked to his fishing gear and gently touched the expanding space, then looked at the size of the fish flowing from the water. "It should be the Fetal-Infant level."

"Oh? Is that so?" The Sky Wood King’s uncertainty eased. "Evacuate everyone within a ten-mile radius."

Elder Dong was not surprised by the order; this was not their territory, after all.

"How long do you think it will take for this space to fully form?"

"No more than a week." Elder Dong gathered his bucket and rod and began to walk toward the edge of the Illusionary Ground.

Before leaving, he added, "After one week, I will bring my people to explore this new space. From then on, life and death will be up to the fate of the younger generation; neither you nor I shall interfere. Is that agreed?"

"Agreed." Upon hearing the Sky Wood King’s consent, Elder Dong transformed into a streak of golden light and soared into the sky, departing the Green Forest Main City.

"A Fetal-Infant level space? A Fetal-Infant level space! Should I send people from the Sky Martial Hall or the two academies to participate in this exploration?" the Sky Wood King muttered to himself as he walked.

The fish that emerged from the Sourceless Water were known as "Space Fish." Upon hitting the ground, they dissolved into white threads, drawing boundaries to form a self-contained space. Every Space Fish, regardless of size, created a closed pattern once it merged with the ground.

These patterns eventually formed small, distinct spaces. Thousands of fish had already merged into the ground, and though the time had not yet come and the space had not yet fully expanded, if Elder Dong was correct, a new space would manifest within a week.

They categorized new spaces into three levels based on the number of Space Fish that merged: Fetal-Infant, Infant, and Adult.

To date, only Fetal-Infant and Infant level spaces had appeared on Earth. As for the Adult level, according to Elder Dong’s clan, those were spaces that only Emperors could explore.

Infant-level spaces were the most unpredictable, containing threats ranging from the Growth Stage to the King level. Fetal-Infant level spaces could be explored by those from the Body-Forging Stage to the Foundation-Building Stage. Regardless of the level, everyone feared encountering space rifts within these newly formed dimensions.

The Sky Wood King stepped out of the Illusionary Ground and flashed back into his study. "Come in."

"My King." The steward of the Sky Wood Palace, who had watched the King’s son grow up, entered and bowed respectfully.

"Command the Sky Wood Academy and the Purple Star Academy to each select five candidates between the Growth Stage and the Foundation-Building Stage. They will participate in the exploration of a new space in one week."

"As you command, my King." The steward bowed and exited the study.