Is That A Wisp?

Obviously, Krune didn't tell Lila or Kalame since Mental Energy was supposed to be a secret. But Krune told Iem since he also had the Soul Cultivation Technique. It's just that he wasn't at a high enough level to use Mental Energy yet.

'Hum? This thing can eat Mental Energy? What does that mean?'

Krune shook his head.

'I have no idea. First of all, this thing is a new cultivation system that wasn't supposed to exist. But now I'm in doubt if this really is the case. Of course, it might be just a coincidence that whatever is inside happens to react to Mental Energy.'

Iem nodded.

'I understand. However, our Divine Sense also can't tell what is happening in there. Mental Energy will be eaten if you try to use it too. We don't have another choice. Let's enlarge the hole so that we can look inside.'

Krune then looked at Lila before asking.

"Did Senior Lila find anything through this gap? Iem and I only fell into deep darkness when we tried to check with our Divine Sense. However, Senior Lila's Divine Sense is definitely several times stronger, so you might have noticed something."

Lila shook her head in response.

"Nothing. I also fell into that darkness you talked about. I feel like it has nothing to do with its strength or how far the Divine Sense can go. At the moment, I can't even tell whether there is some kind of Sealed Space inside or if the chamber's size is really just that."

Krune already expected that answer.

"Alright, then. We already opened a tiny hole, so we just need to enlarge it now. Of course, it will also take a long time to do so."

Lila didn't mind.

"Take as long as you need. A few years makes no difference to someone at my or Zuitou's level."

Krune and Iem nodded.

"Very well, we will continue then."

The work continued after that. As the hole became bigger, the slower it became to spread the aperture. In the blink of an eye, another year went by. It has now been a year and three months that they initiated this job. The hole finally got large enough so that they could use other methods to check the contents.

Zuitou left for a few minutes and then returned. This time, he had a small camera attached to a cable. Since Divine Sense didn't work, they thought about using physical objects and technology. Even if the camera broke, the Kalame Sect wouldn't mind. If not, they might be able to take a look behind that darkness. 

"Alright, I'm sending it in."

Krune and Iem kept the hole stabilized as the camera passed through. Zuitou was also careful to not touch the Purple Lightning and Black Flames on the surroundings, using his own Godly Energy to 'coat' the camera. The cable connected to the outside had the link to transmit what they could see and a small gap around the electrical part for Zuitou to use his Godly Energy. Like that, he could keep the camera afloat inside.

Everyone paid attention to the monitor as the camera passed by that black wall. There was no problem with the link as the camera transmitted all the images from inside. Zuitou then turned the light on the camera, but everything was still dark. It was as if there wasn't a wall on the other side of the chamber.

"Does it mean that there is really a sealed space inside? Otherwise, the camera should have illuminated the walls there."

"That might be the case. But it is also easy to check. Zuitou, there is a lot of cable remaining. More than enough to send the camera all the way to the other side of the chamber and touch the wall there. Try to make it fly straight ahead. If you run out of cable, then we know it is a sealed space."

"Yes, Ancestor."

Without wasting any time, Zuitou controlled his Godly Energy to send the camera further. Sure enough, they were right. Zuitou ran out of cable while flying the camera straight forward, but the camera did not reach the end of the chamber. That meant that the space inside was much larger than it looked from outside.

"So it's a sealed space. The only doubt is how big it is. There is no other choice. We need to send someone in to check it for us. Zuitou, I'll leave the arrangements to you."

"Certainly. However, we will need to hole to be a little bit larger. At least enough to fit a fist. In that case, I can send a reasonably strong demon beast to check."

"Which kind of demon beast?"

"A snake type, of course. We have a few demon beasts in our sect that can control their size at will in their real forms. Still, there is a limit to how small they can become. As you know, a demon beast's real form size increases as his cultivation progress, so it also affects how small they can become. If I want to send one at least in the Mortal Rejection Realm, a fist-size hole is a must."

"Can't you simply send a Semi-Divinity Realm one?"

"Well, I can. But Semi-Divinity and Divinity Realm ones can't even fly. I still prefer to have one that can at least explore the space inside fast enough."

Lila agreed with Zuitou.

"Indeed, that's the best case. Alright, just continue to increase the size of the hole. As I said, time is not an issue."

Krune and Iem didn't mind as they continued to work. The hole was already almost at the right size anyway, so it wouldn't be a problem. It would only take a little longer.

Just like that, Krune and Iem spent another nine months working on it. In the end, they took a total of two years to open the hole to a size big enough for the demon beast. Although Krune kept cultivating during his time, his cultivation stayed in the same 4th Stage. Krune wasn't surprised by that. As mentioned before, he had already calculated that speed. Only Iem had some progress. When he arrived in this place two years ago, he was already at the peak of the 1st Stage, so he successfully entered the 2nd. 

Zuitou, of course, already found someone for the job. Just as he mentioned before, he ended taking someone at the Mortal Rejection Realm. It was a Karanun Python called Vorin. Karanun Pythons had originated in the Godly Path Realm, so it was the first time Krune saw one.

The chamber was a secret, so the guy didn't know anything until he was finally brought to this place. Only then did Zuitou explain to him what they wanted him to do. Of course, he also offered rewards, etc.

To be safe, Lila also put a restriction in his soul so that he wouldn't tell anyone else about it. The guy wasn't anyone important in the Kalame Sect to start with, so not only he wasn't afraid, he faced the situation as a huge opportunity. 

"Don't worry, Sect Master! I'll do my best to check everything inside."

Zuitou nodded, satisfied.

Krune then looked at them before saying.

"This hole is already at the size you asked. Vorin can enter anytime he wishes."

Lila, Zuitou, and Vorin nodded. Before entering, he also activated a Soul Flame so that Lila and the others would know if he was alive or dead. Vorin then returned to his Karanun Python form and controlled his Godly Energy to reduce his own size. He kept going until he reached a limit that was around the same size as the hole.

Still, he had to squeeze himself with a lot of difficulties to pass through that. He even left a lot of his scales back in the process. He then turned around and looked at the Sect Master and the others before saying.

"Well, then. I'm going."

Lila and everyone nodded. Vorin once again turned in the direction of the black wall and touched it carefully. Only then did Krune and the other noticed that the surface of that thing looked like a black liquid. Once Vorin touched it, the surface rippled as if a stone was thrown into a calm lake.

Vorin then took a deep breath and entered, disappearing inside. Lila and everyone else's Divine Senses also lost contact with him after he entered it.

Vorin already knew what to do. He was to enter and not spend more than 10 minutes inside. Regardless of what he found, he should first go back to tell what he saw. But in the end, there wasn't even a need to wait for ten minutes. That's because the chamber began to react not long after.

Several lines began to appear around it, making the chamber look like it was made of several cubes. Those lines then shone with golden light that intensified as time passed. Lila and Zuitou immediately touched Iem and Krune, protecting them with their own Godly Energy. They didn't want Krune and Iem to stop using their power to prevent the hole from closing. But if things turned sour, they would bring the two of them out of there straight away.

It was then that they all began to hear...

*clack, clack, clack, clack...*

It sounded like several locks were being opened one after another. Finally, the chamber began to dismantle itself. Turns out that the chamber was really made of square-shaped cubes. They all began to float away from each other, finally revealing what was inside.