Chapter 7: The Shocking News


    For the first time in what felt like an eternity, someone was speaking to Han Ming, and he wasn''t about to let this opportunity slip away.


    "Who are you? Were you the woman in the human world back then? Where am I now? I mean, which world am I in? Why are you following me? What''s happening to me? Why did those people capture me? Are you with them?"


    The tiny figure frowned slightly; Han Ming had bombarded her with too many questions at once.


    "Who I am is none of your concern, and I won''t tell you. The human world you speak of is your original world. Here, we simply call it the human world. You are now in our world."


    Han Ming had already surmised as much, so the little figure''s answer didn''t come as a surprise. He pressed on, "You haven''t answered my other questions yet. By the way, what''s your name? Can you tell me?"


    The little figure replied with a hint of annoyance, "Which question do you really want to ask?"


    Realizing he was being too impatient, Han Ming chuckled awkwardly and said, "Tell me your name first."


    "You can call me Catherine. Your arrival in this world was an accident. You fell onto Kalon''s scales and were brought here. By the way, Kalon is that dragon. I was the one who repaired your body and enabled you to communicate with this world. I''ve been by your side since the moment you arrived, but you couldn''t see me. I wouldn''t have revealed myself if you hadn''t tried to kill yourself, because I still have a use for you."


    This time, the little figure—no, Catherine—volunteered answers to several of Han Ming''s questions, resolving many of the mysteries that had plagued him. It seemed he had indeed crossed into another world.


    "Then... can I return to my own world? What''s your purpose in following me? You said you still have a use for me? What is it? Sorry for asking so many questions again." This time, Han Ming showed a bit more self-awareness. He had been isolated for so long that his desire to communicate was overwhelming.


    Catherine replied, "Returning is unlikely. Recently, the spatial rifts have been unstable. When I went to investigate, I encountered Kalon and fought him. We both got caught in a spatial rift and ended up in your world. Fortunately, we managed to return before the rift closed. These rifts don''t open often. The last time was about five hundred years ago. The next one might not open for several hundred more years, so you probably won''t live to see it, barring any unexpected events. However, when I examined your body, I found that your lifespan isn''t very long. Living to a hundred would be a stretch. But in this world, humans commonly live past a hundred. The higher the rank of a warrior or mage, the longer they live. Some can live five or six hundred years, even close to a thousand."


    Han Ming''s jaw dropped in astonishment. Compared to these people, his life was but a fleeting moment. Moreover, warriors and mages were things he had only read about in novels or seen in movies, yet they were real in this world. He couldn''t help but wonder if he could become a warrior or a mage himself. The thought excited him.


    Catherine observed Han Ming''s expression and said indifferently, "You have no chance of becoming a warrior or a mage. Warriors are divided into nine ranks: Warrior, Great Warrior, War Madman, War Soul, War King, War God, and after awakening, Saint Warrior, Saint Soul, and Arbiter. Mages are divided into Mage, Great Mage, Magus, Archmage, Magic Soul, and Magic God, with the awakened ranks being Divine Master, Divine Demon, and Elemental Master—also nine ranks in total. From birth, a person''s physique determines whether they can become a warrior or a mage. Battle aura and magic are two entirely different things. Think of it like this: a water jar holds water, while a magic crystal stores magical energy. Both are containers, but what they hold and their forms are different. This means a water jar can''t store magical energy, and a magic crystal can''t hold water. Your physique is different from both."


    Here, Catherine gave Han Ming a meaningful look and continued, "Your body is completely incapable of storing anything. In fact, it inherently rejects both types of energy. Humans from your world are similar. You are born unable to cultivate battle aura or magic. You could say you''re insulators to these energies. I once tried to inject magical energy into your body, but it was like throwing a stone into the sea—no reaction at all. All the magical energy was repelled. Based on my observations, battle aura would likely behave the same way in your body. There''s also something interesting: every part of your body seems to be an antibody to both battle aura and magic. I tried consuming a small amount of your blood, and strangely, once it entered my body, my magical energy disappeared. This puzzled me for a while, but soon my magical energy naturally restored itself. This is why I''ve been following you. When I went to investigate the spatial rift, I was already injured, and my fight with Kalon worsened my condition. I reached an unprecedented low, so I''ve been relying on consuming your blood to hide my magical fluctuations, preventing Kalon from finding me."


    Han Ming was astonished by Catherine''s explanation. He had no idea warriors and mages were divided into so many ranks. It sounded impressive, but he couldn''t help feeling disappointed. It seemed he was destined to have no connection with battle aura or magic.


    Humans are like this: when something new and exciting appears, only to be told they can never touch it, they feel an immense sense of loss. Especially when that thing is as alluring and captivating as battle aura and magic.


    As for how Catherine had been secretly consuming his blood without him noticing, Han Ming wasn''t interested in asking. He was just an ordinary person, and even the ordinary people of this world were stronger than him. It would be all too easy for her to take his blood without him knowing. Han Ming believed Catherine had at least a hundred ways to do it, but he wasn''t worried about dying. Right now, death was the least of his concerns. Besides, she wouldn''t let him die, would she?


    At the moment, Han Ming was most interested in learning more about battle aura and magic. After all, what man doesn''t crave power? Even if he couldn''t cultivate either, satisfying his curiosity was enough.


    "So... is everyone in this world a warrior or a mage?"


    Catherine replied, "A person''s physique at birth determines whether they can become a warrior or a mage, but that doesn''t mean they will succeed. Most people remain ordinary their entire lives. Even if someone has the physique to become a warrior, it doesn''t guarantee they have the talent. In theory, anyone capable of cultivating battle aura has the potential to become the most powerful Arbiter, but how many actually reach that level? To my knowledge, none have. A person''s achievements depend on their innate talent, comprehension, and later diligence. Take battle aura, for example. More than half of those capable of cultivating it never master it, while a small fraction remain at the Warrior or Great Warrior level. Those with better talent might reach the War Madman level. Achieving War Soul or War God status makes one revered by thousands. As for War Gods, I don''t believe any have appeared on this continent. Those who have awakened are even rarer, virtually nonexistent in this world. Do you know how big this world is? I once used my magical energy to explore your world, which is a spherical world, right? If I''m not mistaken, our world is at least ten thousand times larger than yours, possibly even more. Even I can''t determine the exact size or shape of this world. Do you understand?"


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    Han Ming was deeply shocked by this answer. Ten thousand times larger? How big was that? Someone once flew nonstop around the Earth in a plane, taking sixty-seven hours—nearly three days and nights. If that were the case here, it would take thirty years of nonstop flying to circle this world, assuming it was only ten thousand times larger. But based on Catherine''s words, that was a conservative estimate. Han Ming believed this world was also a planet. He couldn''t imagine a world in the universe that wasn''t spherical. All celestial bodies were spherical due to gravity. But if this world was so large, its gravity should differ from Earth''s, yet he felt no difference. He decided not to dwell on it; it was beyond his comprehension.


    He also gleaned another piece of information: Catherine had mentioned they called this world the "human world," implying there were other realms. When he asked, she confirmed it.


    Catherine explained, "There are two known realms in this world: the current world and the underground demon world. Deep beneath the surface, a powerful seal separates the demon world from the human world, preventing contact between the two. But nothing is absolute. Some areas in the human world have unstable barriers. For example, a small region in the Wild Forest serves as a tunnel to the demon world. This tunnel doesn''t lead directly to the demon world but rather to an intermediate layer. When the spatial rift began to change, I initially thought the barrier had been breached, which is why I encountered Kalon, who was also investigating. But I later realized the situation was far more complex. The barrier wasn''t the issue; instead, the spatial rift reappeared, leading to your world—a completely different plane from ours. Unfortunately, I didn''t have much time to explore it in detail. However, there are records of your world in some of our ancient texts."


    Catherine paused, noticing Han Ming''s eager expression, and smiled before continuing, "Long ago, someone from our elven race traveled to your world through a spatial rift, but the records are vague, with only a few notes. When that elder returned, he was severely injured." Here, Catherine gave Han Ming a meaningful look and said, "That elder brought back something interesting—a longsword. The texts don''t provide detailed descriptions of the sword, but there are rumors it was a magical flying sword. The people of that world could control such swords to attack and even ride them to fly. However, those extraordinary people likely no longer exist. At the time, that world was embroiled in an indescribably brutal war. Countless sword-riders perished in the conflict. Too much time has passed. I don''t know if the elder''s destination was the same as your world, but perhaps you''ve heard of his name."


    Han Ming could barely contain his excitement. Trembling, he asked, "What was the elder''s name?"


    Catherine replied calmly, "The people of that world called him Satan."


    Satan!!!


    Han Ming collapsed to the ground, his mind in chaos. Satan!? The King of Hell?


    And those sword-riders—were they the immortals from his world''s legends? Yes, they must have been immortals! But why would Satan and the immortals clash? Wasn''t Satan the demon king from Western mythology? Wasn''t he the son of God? Why, then?


    And more importantly, did this mean all those legends were real? Did immortals truly exist? Where were they now? Why had he never seen any?


    Catherine watched Han Ming''s complex expressions with indifference before dropping another bombshell: "It seems that world is indeed yours. From what I know, your world wasn''t always this small. Something catastrophic must have happened. I must say, those sword-riders from your world were formidable. Even our elven elder, a Divine Master—second only to Divine Demons and Elemental Masters—returned severely injured. According to the sparse records in ancient texts, his only remaining ambition was to invade your world. That was ten thousand years ago. Interestingly, this elder had a falling out with many of our elders over this matter and eventually left in anger. No one knew what he experienced, but when he returned years later, he had become a Divine Demon. Moreover, he had undergone a transformation, no longer an elf. His body was filled with death energy, and he led an army of dead elves, humans, and even dragons. His actions enraged everyone. For the first time, elves and dragons joined forces to banish him and his followers deep underground, where they created a massive seal."


    Catherine then smiled and added, "Rumor has it he''s still alive. I even suspect he''s behind the recent spatial rift, using some unknown method. This might have been a test. He''s never abandoned his desire to invade your world, though the reason remains a mystery. But that mystery may soon be solved. What are your thoughts on this?"


    Han Ming asked nervously, "Aren''t you going to stop him?"


    Catherine looked at him with a faint smile and said, "Why should we?"


    Han Ming was stunned. He was genuinely worried about his world being invaded. After his dark experiences, he had developed a deep sense of attachment to his family, friends, and fellow humans. Being in a foreign land, his thoughts naturally turned to his homeland. When abroad, seeing a fellow countryman feels comforting, and one''s heart always yearns for home. Some people even wish to have their ashes buried in their homeland. It''s a universal sentiment, and now, in this foreign world, the human world was his homeland. He felt an overwhelming fear—his family, friends, and loved ones were all there.


    With great difficulty, Han Ming managed to utter, "Don''t... don''t you have any sense of justice? How can you be like this?"


    Catherine was taken aback by his words. She paused, then burst into laughter, her wings fluttering as she said, "You''re quite amusing. But don''t worry. Although some elders share his views, many others oppose him. Most people disagree with invading your world. There are many factors to consider. Spatial rifts are highly unstable. Those who enter might never return or perish in the spatial tunnel. Even if they safely reach your world, maintaining such a massive rift would come at an unimaginable cost. Most importantly, what would be the point of invading your world? Would it even be worth it?"


    Hearing this, Han Ming finally breathed a sigh of relief. Tentatively, he asked, "What about you..."


    He carefully observed Catherine''s expression, anxiously awaiting her response.


    Catherine said, "I belong to the faction that opposes the elder. So you can rest easy. I''ve already told you enough. I saved you because I still have a use for you. I''ve spoken so much because I was a bit bored here. Now, I don''t want to talk anymore. Unless it''s something important, don''t speak to me again."


    With that, Catherine fluttered her wings and vanished.


    The surroundings returned to darkness.


    Han Ming sat in a daze, struggling to process everything Catherine had told him. He hadn''t expected events in this world to be connected to his own. He also didn''t know if immortals still existed in his world. The likelihood seemed slim. Although immortals were rarely seen, myths suggested they occasionally interacted with human society, even recruiting disciples. But in the past few hundred or even thousand years of recorded history, there had been no trace of immortals. The only remnants were in mythological stories.


    Han Ming had witnessed the ferocity of this world''s beasts. What left the deepest impression was the city guard—his speed, strength, and combat prowess were astounding. To compare, the guard was like a slender version of the Hulk! And he was only a second-rank warrior. Who knew how many more like him existed? Imagining thousands, even millions, of Hulks rampaging through his world was a nightmare. Humanity wouldn''t stand a chance.


    At that moment, Han Ming resolved to do everything in his power to prevent such an invasion, no matter how futile his efforts might seem. He would not allow his homeland to be conquered.