Chapter 170 | The Otherworld Journey That Starts From a Slime

A crimson spatial gate opened in front of Zhang Ye, and he immediately threw a stone through it.

Just as the stone was halfway through, the spatial gate snapped shut, slicing the stone in two in an instant!

“Beautifully done, Xi Ya!” Zhang Ye gave her a thumbs-up in encouragement.

Xi Ya's small face was covered in fine sweat as she panted slightly. It was clear that executing a spatial gate severing placed quite a heavy burden on her, but a joyful smile quickly bloomed on her face.

S-Success!

After two hours, she had finally succeeded!

At this moment, little Xi Ya almost burst into tears.

Just as Zhang Ye had said, she already mastered the spatial gate, and spatial gate severing was simply a matter of removing its 'safety.' Thus, under Zhang Ye's guidance, she successfully mastered spatial gate severing in less than two hours!

“Thank you, Ye-ge!” Xi Ya looked up, a heartfelt smile on her face.

Zhang Ye smiled and waved his hand, then his expression turned serious. “However, there's one thing you must keep in mind.”

Hearing this, Xi Ya immediately became serious as well.

“The principle behind spatial severing isn't that your own mana produces the cutting effect. Rather, because the spatial gate closes, the laws of this world take action to close that space. Such a severing power is difficult for even Saint-tier existences to withstand, and it's very hard for humans to control.”

“So you must be extremely careful. We are in the academy. If you slip up and the spatial gate cuts a classmate, losing an arm or a leg would be the least of their worries, understand?”

“I... I understand!” Xi Ya immediately nodded.

“Mm, if you use 【Spatial Gate Binding】 well, it should be more than enough for you to pass the Monthly Test,” Zhang Ye said with a smile.

Xi Ya nodded, her gratitude toward Zhang Ye growing even deeper.

If not for Zhang Ye, she wouldn't have known a spatial gate could be used like this. This was undoubtedly a massive help to her.

As night fell and everyone prepared to return, Zhang Ye looked at little Xi Ya and couldn't help but ask, “Is it okay for you to walk back alone? Do you want me to walk you?”

This girl was simply too endearing and fragile.

Hearing this, Xi Ya's small face flushed, and she shook her head. “N-No need to trouble you, Ye-ge. I can go back by myself.”

“Alright then, be careful on the way.”

Xi Ya nodded and walked toward her dormitory. But after taking just two steps, she turned around and bowed deeply to Zhang Ye.

“Thank you!”

Zhang Ye smiled.

Watching Xi Ya leave, Zhang Ye stretched and returned to the dormitory.

Nan was leaning against the wall and suddenly remarked, “You really look after her.”

Zhang Ye nodded and smiled. “Yeah, she's very introverted, so of course I should look after her a bit more. Just like how I look after you.”

Nan froze, his face flushing. “W-What do you mean, look after me? Do I even need you to look after me?”

Zhang Ye chuckled and waved his hand as he walked toward his room. “Fine, fine, you don't need it. Let's go, time to cultivate.”

Nan immediately followed him. “What do you mean 'fine, fine'? Make yourself clear!”

“Hahaha!”

On the bed, the two sat facing each other.

“I feel like I'm about to break through to Tier Eight late stage,” Zhang Ye said. “And you need to comprehend the laws to break through to Tier Ten. Why don't we take a day off tomorrow and focus on breaking through?”

The cultivation speed of the three circulation routes was extremely fast. Over the past few days, both of them had made massive progress.

One month!

Breaking through from Tier Nine mid stage to Tier Nine Peak in such a short period of time was a speed Nan had never even dared to dream of.

Hearing this, Nan nodded. “Sure.”

Zhang Ye immediately contacted Leona through his badge to explain the situation, and Leona readily agreed.

Then, he contacted Lina to let everyone know they should grab breakfast at the cafeteria tomorrow.

With everything arranged, the two immediately entered meditation, striving to break through as soon as possible.

With the Monthly Test drawing near, the stronger they were, the better.

Time ticked by, second by second.

As time passed, Nan felt an increasing sense of comfort spreading through his body, almost making him groan aloud.

Suddenly, his body trembled slightly as faint laws swirled around him, and he slowly opened his eyes.

He had comprehended another sliver of the laws, leaving him only a single step away from Tier Ten!

The mana in his body restored itself at a frantic pace, causing him to let out a comfortable hum.

Then he looked at Zhang Ye, only to find that Zhang Ye's eyes were still closed, humming softly as he utilized sound mana to cultivate.

Checking the time, it was already almost noon.

Seeing that Zhang Ye was still cultivating, Nan did not disturb him. Instead, he just watched him quietly, his gaze gradually softening.

This idiot, looking after me?

Hah!

As if I need you to look after me...

But this... is actually quite nice.

The joy of comprehending the laws made the corners of his mouth curl up unconsciously, a beautiful smile appearing on his face.

Suddenly, a glow began to emanate from Zhang Ye's body.

Nan raised an eyebrow.

Is he about to break through?!

This guy really was a monster. When Nan first met him, he had only just broken through to Tier Seven Peak. In less than a month, he was already breaking through to Tier Eight late stage.

And because of him, Nan had also broken through to Tier Nine Peak, just a step away from Tier Ten Newly Advanced.

Such a speed was something Nan could never have imagined before.

In high spirits, looking at the smiling Zhang Ye, a playful urge suddenly welled up inside Nan.

You're afraid of the dark, aren't you? Hehehe...

Countless mana threads shot out from Nan's body, instantly drawing a magic circle above Zhang Ye's head—【Five Senses Deprivation】.

【Five Senses Deprivation】 was a low-level spell that worked on those of a lower rank than the caster, stripping away their five senses. Of course, it could not deprive them of Divine Sense perception or mana perception.

In the next instant, light flashed on Zhang Ye's body, and his aura surged violently.

Tier Eight late stage!

Zhang Ye immediately opened his eyes, his face filled with joy, wanting to share this happiness with Nan.

However, in the next second, his smile froze on his face.

His eyes were open, but... why was everything pitch black?

What was going on?

The smile slowly faded from Zhang Ye's face. He turned his head to look around, but it was still pitch black.

In his eyes, there was nothing but darkness.

Panic gradually crept onto his face.

He opened his mouth and called out, “A-Nan...”

But no sound came out.

He couldn't speak?!

An ever-deepening dread washed over him. Zhang Ye's heart beat faster and faster, and the expression on his face grew increasingly terrified.

Suddenly, he remembered something and hastily released his Divine Sense.

Everything in his surroundings appeared in his mind, and the fear in his heart finally began to slowly dissipate.

But when he perceived Nan's smiling face through his Divine Sense, Zhang Ye's heart suddenly trembled.

And then, it sank into loneliness...

Seeing the terrified look on Zhang Ye's face, Nan had been chuckling to himself, feeling quite a sense of accomplishment that he had actually scared him.

This guy really is afraid of the dark, haha...

But then, his smile suddenly vanished.

His perception was extremely sharp, and he could suddenly feel the heavy... oppression radiating from Zhang Ye at this moment.

Fear, despair, sadness... at this moment, Nan could only feel these emotions from him.

The usual sunlight, joy, and warmth on Zhang Ye seemed to have vanished without a trace.

Even if it was only for a fleeting instant, he discovered that the expression on Zhang Ye's face was so helpless, so panicked.

He wasn't faking it.

When he said he was afraid of the dark, he hadn't been joking...

For some reason, Nan's heart panicked, and he hastily lifted the spell's effect from Zhang Ye.

Zhang Ye stared blankly ahead, then slowly turned his head to look at Nan.

He didn't speak, just quietly staring at him.

Nan suddenly felt an unspeakable panic in his heart. He stammered, “I... I was just... playing a joke...”

“A joke...” Zhang Ye murmured. Suddenly, a smile appeared on his face. “Making a joke out of something someone else fears isn't funny. Please don't do it again in the future, okay?”

“Okay!” Nan said hastily.

Zhang Ye nodded, then got up to take a shower and cook. At noon, everyone arrived, and they ate lunch together.

However, everyone could clearly feel that something seemed off with Zhang Ye today.

Usually, Zhang Ye would chat and joke around with everyone. But today, he rarely spoke. Although he still wore a gentle smile and responded to everyone, the feeling he gave them was entirely different.

It was depressing.

Everyone felt a heavy oppression emanating from Zhang Ye.

Nan looked at Zhang Ye, his hands clenching tightly involuntarily.

“Ye-ge, what's wrong?” Looking at Zhang Ye, who was mindlessly shoveling food into his mouth, Lina couldn't help but ask. The others also looked at him with concern.

“It's nothing,” Zhang Ye smiled.

In the afternoon, he taught Xi Ya as usual. Today, he helped her learn 【Spatial Lock】. This was also because Zhang Ye cleared up her doubts and deepened her magic theory, which, combined with her previous accumulation, made learning Spatial Lock a natural progression.

However, Xi Ya noticed today that Zhang Ye's smile didn't seem as bright and sunny as before.

“Ye-ge, what's wrong?” Xi Ya couldn't help but ask as well.

But Zhang Ye still shook his head with a smile. “It's nothing.”

Even when evening came, everyone still felt that Zhang Ye was acting very strange.

Normally, he would go to the library or the research institute in the afternoon. But today, aside from teaching Xi Ya, he did nothing but hold Gujiu and stare blankly while sitting on the sofa.

“Ye-ge, what's wrong with you today? Did something happen?” Lina asked again, her tone laced with deep concern.

“Nothing's wrong,” Zhang Ye still just smiled and shook his head.

But the more he said that, the more everyone felt that something was indeed wrong.

“Ye-ge...” An uneasy feeling swirled in everyone's hearts, and they didn't know why they felt this way.

Nan looked at Zhang Ye and finally couldn't take it anymore. He grabbed Zhang Ye's hand, dragged him out of the dormitory, ran all the way, and finally arrived at the forest training ground.

Zhang Ye looked at his surroundings and asked, “What's wrong, A-Nan?”

“I...” Nan looked at Zhang Ye.

At this moment, Zhang Ye still had that gentle smile on his face, but it felt like something was missing.

“Hmm?” Zhang Ye looked puzzled.

“I...” Nan looked at Zhang Ye, finally gritting his teeth. “I-I'm sorry!”

Zhang Ye was stunned, then let out a faint smile. “What are you apologizing for?”

“I... I shouldn't have... scared you... Please forgive me!” Nan bit his lip, his face red as he spoke with a trembling voice.

But the moment he said those words, the light in Zhang Ye's eyes returned.

“It's fine!”

A brilliant smile bloomed on his face once more, and that uneasy atmosphere vanished. Looking at Zhang Ye's radiant smile, the tension that had gripped Nan's heart finally loosened, and he felt completely relieved.

Suddenly, Zhang Ye shivered. Grabbing Nan's arm, he looked around and trembled. “Oh my god, it's so dark out here! A-Nan, you're the one who dragged me out, so you have to bring me back!”