Chapter 18: Into the Vast
There was no impact.
No ground rushing up to meet him.
No sensation of falling.
One moment Li Chen was inside the pressure chamber.
The next—
He was suspended in darkness.
Not the darkness of a closed room.
Not the darkness of night.
This was absolute.
Endless.
A void so complete it felt like the concept of direction had been erased.
There was no sky.
No floor.
No horizon.
Only a vast expanse of dim, shifting shadows stretching infinitely in every direction.
And yet—
He was standing.
The familiar weight of Level 3 pressure still pressed down on his shoulders like an invisible iron mantle.
His knees bent slightly from the force.
His spine felt compressed.
His breathing remained deliberate.
So the chamber's pressure had followed him.
A pale blue screen flickered into existence before his eyes.
---
Transfer Protocol Successful
Location: Sub-Dimensional Trial Field – Layer One
Trigger Condition: Environmental Pressure Sync Achieved
Purpose: Adaptive Compatibility Assessment
---
Li Chen stared at it.
"…Sub-dimensional what?"
The panel continued.
---
[User's physical structure demonstrated abnormal synchronization with external compression arrays.]
[Result: Trial qualification met.]
[Important Notes:]
External pressure remains active.
Environmental hostility level: Moderate.
Escape condition: Clear all trials.
---
His jaw tightened.
"So I didn't choose this."
No response.
The text shifted.
---
[System Voice Interface: Temporarily Muted During Trial Session]
[Automatic assistance functions restricted]
He blinked.
"…You're joking."
Silence.
No dry retort.
No calm mechanical explanation.
No snark.
Just the faint hum of the screen before it dissolved into nothingness.
The void swallowed him again.
For a brief, unexpected moment—
The silence felt heavier than the pressure.
He hadn't realized how accustomed he'd become to the system's presence.
Its commentary.
Its interruptions.
Its subtle mockery.
It had been… constant.
Annoying.
But constant.
Now—
Nothing.
Just him.
And the weight pressing down on his bones.
A flicker of something unpleasant stirred in his chest.
Isolation.
He exhaled slowly.
"Ridiculous."
He straightened his spine.
Adjusted his shoulders.
He was not a child afraid of the dark.
He was a cultivator.
He brushed aside the faint, unwelcome thought that the system's voice had kept him company more than he'd admitted.
Emotion was unnecessary.
Assessment came first.
He inhaled deeply.
The air existed—but it felt thin.
Cool.
Still.
The ground beneath his feet was solid, though it looked like compressed shadow.
Each step produced no sound.
No echo.
Just silence.
He began walking.
Not quickly.
Not hesitantly either.
Measured steps.
Poker face intact.
Inside, however—
His senses were on edge.
Humans feared the unknown.
It was instinct.
And this place was the purest form of unknown he had ever experienced.
He extended his spiritual sense outward.
It stretched—
And met nothing.
No walls.
No structures.
No immediate life signatures.
Just emptiness.
His heartbeat echoed faintly in his ears.
Then—
A shift.
Subtle.
Behind him.
To the left.
A faint distortion in the darkness.
He turned.
Something moved.
The shadows thickened.
Then separated.
A shape emerged.
Large.
Broad.
Rough.
As if sculpted from jagged stone and crude muscle.
A creature stepped forward into the dimness.
Roughly two and a half meters tall.
Massive shoulders.
Long arms dragging slightly.
Its skin resembled cracked granite.
Glowing amber eyes flickered beneath a heavy brow ridge.
Its tusk-like lower canines protruded upward past its lip.
A low, guttural growl rumbled from its chest.
Li Chen's gaze sharpened.
"Inspect."
The skill activated instantly.
A translucent overlay formed around the creature.
---
Stone Troll – Layer One Variant
(Level: Low-Grade Spirit Entity)
Strength: 4
Speed: 2
Intelligence: 3
Endurance: 3
Defense: High (Stone-Integrated Hide)
Primary Attribute: Earth
(Abilities:)
(Stone Spike Manifestation)
Minor Regeneration (Terrain Linked)
Weaknesses:
(Joint Flexion Points)
(Neck Core Fracture)
Sustained Impact to Cranial Ridge
Threat Assessment: Manageable
Warning: User operating under continuous external compression.
---
Li Chen absorbed the information in less than a second.
Manageable.
Under normal conditions.
The pressure pressing down on his body made each movement slightly heavier.
His muscles were already working harder just to stand upright.
That put him at a disadvantage.
But—
There was no visible exit.
No portal.
No boundary.
The panel had said: Clear all trials.
So this was the path forward.
The troll exhaled heavily.
Then it moved.
Faster than expected.
Its heavy foot stomped forward—
The ground rippled.
A sharp crack split the shadow-floor.
Stone spikes erupted upward in a jagged line, racing directly toward Li Chen's position.
Not random.
Targeted.
The trajectory aligned with his abdomen and chest.
Vital areas.
His brows lifted slightly.
It understood targeting.
Interesting.
He shifted his weight.
The pressure resisted the motion, slowing him by a fraction—
But his Qi surged.
He pushed off the ground.
The first spike burst up beneath where he had been standing.
He twisted mid-air
Another spike tore past him, grazing the fabric of his sleeve.
He landed lightly, knees bending to absorb both gravity and the relentless pressure bearing down on his body.
The troll charged.
Massive arms swung outward as it roared, the sound vibrating through the void like grinding stone.
Li Chen's eyes sharpened.
His dantian spun.
Qi surged through his meridians—
But instead of gathering in his fist—
It flowed downward.
Into his legs.
His silhouette blurred.
(Shadow Step)
The pressure resisted him for a fraction of a second—
Then he vanished from where he stood.
The troll's heavy arm smashed down onto empty darkness.
A split second later—
Li Chen reappeared inside its guard.
Too close.
Far too close for a creature that relied on heavy, sweeping blows.
The troll's amber eyes widened slightly.
It hadn't expected that speed.
Li Chen's palm rose.
Qi condensed instantly.
Not scattered.
Not explosive.
But layered.
Compressed.
The energy spiraled tightly at the center of his palm, vibrating with restrained force as he activated Crushing Palm.
He stepped forward and drove his palm directly into the troll's chest—slightly below the cranial ridge, targeting the core junction identified by Inspect.
There was no dramatic explosion.
Only a deep, concussive impact.
A dull, resonant crack echoed outward.
For a split second—
The creature froze.
Then fractures erupted across its stone body like lightning splitting rock.
The force didn't blast outward—
It imploded.
The troll's internal structure collapsed under the compressed Qi, its core shattering from within.
The massive body disintegrated into chunks of broken stone that scattered across the dark ground.
Silence returned instantly.
Li Chen lowered his fist slowly.
A blue panel appeared.
---
Layer One Entity Defeated
Experience Gained: +30 XP
---
Another notification followed almost immediately.
The scattered fragments from the beast core dissolved into faint particles of amber light.
They rose gently into the air.
Then streamed toward him.
He didn't flinch.
The particles passed through his skin like cool mist.
His dantian warmed faintly.
---
Beast Core Absorbed
Additional Experience: +10 XP
---
Another screen flickered.
---
Current Status Update
Level: [5]
Total XP: 75 / 250
Strength: [8]
Agility: [7]
Endurance: [10]
Intelligence: [3]
HP : 83/100
Skills :
Inspect ( non-combat skill ): Level 2
Shadow Step ( combat skill) : Level 2
Crushing Palm ( combat skill) Level 1
Available stat points : [0]
---
He exhaled slowly.
Forty experience from one entity.
Efficient.
If all enemies in Layer One were similar—
Then this trial was less about survival and more about endurance.
But the panel had warned of environmental hostility.
And something about this place felt…
Off and eerie.
He scanned the darkness again.
Still.
Silent.
Too silent.
Then—
A sound.
A low rumble.
Behind him.
Another from the right.
Then the left.
Then ahead.
Multiple distortions formed in the void.
The shadows thickened again.
One shape.
Then two.
Then five.
Then ten.
Massive silhouettes stepped forward from every direction.
Amber eyes ignited in the dark like scattered embers.
The guttural growls layered over one another.
He counted quickly.
At least a dozen.
Maybe more further back.
All Stone Troll variants.
All staring at him.
All under the same environmental enhancement.
Li Chen rolled his shoulders slowly.
The pressure bore down harder than ever now that adrenaline had faded.
His muscles already felt the earlier exertion.
His breathing remained controlled.
But this—
This was not going to be quick.
He flexed his fingers.
Qi circulated smoothly despite the constant compression.
Good.
Very good.
He allowed himself a small sigh.
"…So it's going to be one of those."
The trolls began advancing.
Not charging blindly.
Spreading slightly.
Encircling.
Primitive.
But coordinated enough.
He shifted his stance.
Lowered his center of gravity.
If escape required clearing these trials—
Then retreat was meaningless.
Fine.
He would adapt.
He would endure.
He would break them.
One by one.
The first troll lunged.
Two more flanked.
Stone spikes began forming beneath the surface again—
Li Chen stepped forward instead of back.
And the darkness erupted into motion.
The long haul had begun.