The faint glow from the stones pulsed rhythmically, their stored Qi flowing into Han Yu like slow streams of light.

Han Yu closed his eyes and began to meditate, focusing on the flow of energy. H

is breathing stabilized, and the spiritual energy in his body began to replenish little by little. He could feel the exhaustion still tugging at his limbs, but the warmth of Qi moving through his meridians was comforting.

Time passed slowly as he cultivated.

The world around him remained silent except for the faint hum of Qi circulation within his body. It took three hours before he finally opened his eyes again. By then, his Qi reserves had returned to full capacity, and his fatigue had faded considerably.

He looked at the pile of spirit stone dust beside him and sighed. "That's five stones gone… and four pills."

Still, the recovery was worth it.

He could feel his core pulsing with energy, stronger and denser than before. Ever since stepping into the early stage of the Core Condensation Realm, his Qi had taken on a new form.

His Dantian held liquid Qi, fluid and flexible, while his newly formed core stored solid Qi, dense and powerful. Together, they created a cycle that felt far more stable than before.

Han Yu could not help but smile faintly. "At least something good came out of that madness."

Once his Qi was settled, he took out some dried meat and spirit grain balls from his pouch, eating quietly. The simple food felt like a feast after the chaos of the past days. He leaned back against the rock again, chewing slowly, his eyes fixed on the distant crimson light.

Despite everything, a part of him still wanted to know the truth behind the tomb and those lights. But another, far louder part of him simply wanted to stay alive. He would rather live a coward than die a curious fool.

After finishing his meal, he packed up his things and stood up.

The air here felt calmer, the forest less oppressive. He adjusted his halberd on his back and began walking away, each step deliberate and silent. The pillars of light still burned in the distance, unchanging and eternal, as if marking the place of some ancient divine calamity.

Han Yu did not look back again. Whatever secrets lay hidden within that tomb, they were far beyond what he was ready to face. For now, survival was all that mattered.

Han Yu continued his journey deeper into the endless forest, moving at a steady, cautious pace.

"Let's see if I manage to find a way out."

He had already rested enough, and after the long hours of cultivation earlier, his body felt light again, his Qi stable and full. The halberd hung across his back, its faint metallic hum serving as a quiet reassurance that he was not entirely alone in this strange realm.

For nearly eight hours he walked without pause, moving through the rugged terrain that seemed to stretch forever in every direction. The forest never seemed to end, yet it was no longer the same oppressive wilderness as before.

The mist had thinned slightly, revealing gentle slopes and scattered boulders among the trees. The air even felt a little fresher, less stifling than the heavy stillness that had surrounded the tomb.

Even so, the silence was absolute. There were no birds, no beasts, and not even the faint hum of insects. The only sound came from the crunch of his boots over dirt and stone, and the faint whisper of wind passing through the branches above.

Han Yu did not dare to fly recklessly again.

The experience earlier had nearly drained him to the point of collapse. Though he could fly for short distances now with relative ease, he chose to reserve his Qi whenever possible.

When he encountered steep cliffs or larger hills, he used the halberd to glide briefly over them, landing softly before continuing on foot. For smaller obstacles, he relied on his agility, leaping from one rock to another, using his spiritual strength to cushion each landing.

The forest gradually turned into a land of rolling hills and shallow valleys.

Some areas were littered with sharp stones and fallen trunks, as though an ancient battle had scarred the land. Yet there was still no end in sight. Han Yu kept moving, driven by a mix of stubborn will and fear of what might happen if he stayed in one place too long.

By the time the sky began to darken again, a faint ache had settled into his legs.

He had been walking since dawn, and though cultivators could endure far more than mortals, fatigue still crept in slowly. The false sunlight above had begun dim, tinting the land in a deep orange hue.

Han Yu paused at the crest of a hill and looked around, hoping for even a glimpse of a boundary or landmark, but all he could see was more forest stretching endlessly in every direction.

"Just how large is this damned inner realm?" he muttered under his breath. His voice sounded small in the empty air. 'The elders were certainly not joking when they said the Inner Realm could be as long as a continent.' he thought.

But just as he was thinking that he felt something.

TREMBLE

He was about to continue walking when the ground beneath him began to tremble.

"Huh?"

At first, it was faint, just a gentle vibration, like the earth breathing beneath his feet. Han Yu frowned, lowering his stance and spreading his senses outward. The tremors reminded him of the ones he had felt when the tomb had first awakened, but these were weaker, less defined.

"Not again," he sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

But the trembling did not stop. Instead, it grew stronger with every heartbeat.

RUMBLE

The pebbles around him began to roll down the slopes, and the nearby trees shivered violently, their branches swaying as the soil cracked beneath them.

TREMBLE

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