At this moment, Thorne was oblivious to Shelley's predicament, fully immersed in the changes occurring within him. The mysterious, enigmatic aura filled him with both a trace of fear and an inexplicable yearning.
It was the power of space—one of the most mysterious forces, immensely destructive. Yet, under the system's control, it was remarkably tame, being molded in a unique way, like building a house, into an invisible yet tangible space.
However, this space was still highly unstable, wobbling precariously. Occasionally, stray wisps of spatial energy veered off, forming turbulence. It was just one or two such wisps that had injured Shelley earlier.
Finally, the system placed the Void Stone at the center of the space. All the spatial energy seemed to stick to it, unable to break free, and the space gradually stabilized.
"Congratulations to the host for creating a standalone space. Rewarding 10,000 energy points."
"Note: This space can currently only store inanimate objects. Living beings entering it require energy points to sustain survival."
From the memories Thorne had absorbed, most people on this continent lacked treasures with independent spaces. Wealthy cultivators typically used storage scrolls, which had limited uses—high-end ones lasted about ten times and absolutely couldn't store living things.
During his talks with Shelley, through guesses and probing, Thorne learned that beyond this Divine Demon Continent existed higher worlds where permanent storage treasures existed—like the pearl on Shelley's chest, likely a storage artifact.
But the consensus in the cultivation world was that storage spaces couldn't hold living beings, whether scrolls or other treasures.
Though Thorne's system space shared this limitation, it could temporarily store living beings by consuming energy points—a defy-the-norm, heaven-defying feature.
Once the space fully stabilized, Thorne gleefully experimented, moving water in and out of it. He tested it with a small fish from the lake, tossing it in. The system instantly began deducting energy points, consuming over 1,000 in mere minutes.
"What a loss! My energy points!"
Watching the fish, dazed and swimming erratically before recovering and chasing its companions as if nothing happened, Thorne genuinely ached.
Still, he now had over 30,000 energy points—enough for an upgrade.
Just as he prepared to level up, he noticed Shelley lying unconscious on the shore.
"What's this? What happened? Why's she passed out there?"
Scanning with his perception, he found no magic beasts nearby. The Huang Tribe members in the distance were setting traps to hunt a wild ox.
"Did I do this?"
Thorne recalled that after obtaining the Void Stone, he'd eagerly built the system space, captivated by the system's creation process. The spatial energy had disrupted his perception, so he hadn't noticed when Shelley was injured and collapsed ashore.
"Whatever. It's not her first time fainting. She doesn't seem in mortal danger. While she's out, I'll upgrade."
An upgrade caused quite a stir—better she didn't see it, lest he struggle to explain.
"System, I want to upgrade."
"Upgrade successful. Congratulations to the host for reaching Level 6 Lake."
It had been over two months since his last upgrade—a fast pace for this world's cultivators. From Level 1 to 6 in under half a year was remarkable.
Yet Thorne wasn't satisfied; this progress felt too passive, reliant on finding energy points rather than generating them himself.
This upgrade expanded his size and perception range. He faintly sensed distant roars of countless magic beasts—likely the beast tide orchestrated by the elves.
"Maybe I can cash in big on this beast tide?"
The daring, dangerous idea took root in Thorne's mind and wouldn't fade.
A beast tide was a prime chance to hunt magic beasts en masse, but it would expose him directly to the elves' scrutiny.
"Wealth lies in risk. With careful planning, if I can take out the elven mastermind behind the tide, they won't know I exist for a while."
"But what about these Huang Tribe folks?"
He couldn't protect them during the chaos. Sustaining them in the system space would cost an astronomical number of energy points—a losing deal.
"If push comes to shove, I'll have to abandon them. Hopefully, the elves spare them, considering they're under their command."
It wasn't cruelty—just the impossibility of safeguarding so many weak Huang Tribe members amid a ferocious beast tide. Besides, he had no real bond with them.
"System, use Spring Breeze Rain."
For three consecutive days, torrential rain poured over the lake and its shores.
The Huang Tribe members knelt at the edge, loudly praising Thorne.
Bathing in this spiritual water greatly benefited their bodies, boosting their loyalty to him significantly.
Shelley had just woken up, glaring at Thorne with fury.
"What were you messing with? You caused spatial turbulence and nearly killed me!"
It was indeed Thorne's oversight. He apologized profusely.
"You—how did your water area grow so much? What happened while I was out?"
Shelley stared in shock at the now vaster lake.
"Uh, during the three days you were unconscious, it rained heavily nonstop, so my area expanded."
The excuse was flimsy, but Shelley had little choice but to accept it.
She eyed the water shield around her—clearly Thorne's doing to keep her dry—half-convinced, half-doubtful.
"Was it really just rain? What about the spatial turbulence and ice laws? Could this lake be some big shot's avatar?"
Her own theory startled her, but it was the only way to explain what she'd witnessed lately.
Unbeknownst to Thorne, his recent feats had led Shelley to suspect he was the avatar of a supreme powerhouse.
"The Divine Demon Continent sure runs deep. I need to be even more cautious."
Thorne, puzzled by Shelley's wary look, had no idea why.