441: Chapter 376: Traversing Turbulent Currents, Nearly Losing Life Due to Time-Space Folding

The lingering resonance of Yindu's bell still flowed slowly through the Void Realm.

After the first bell of huaxia was taken into the Divine Kingdom Core by Lin Zhou, all of Yindu's Stone Statue Guardians awakened. A thousand bronze warriors lined up on both sides of the high platform, golden flames burning in their eyes. Their halberds and spears reflected a cold light amidst the grayish-white glow, silent and majestic. Standing on the high platform, Lin Zhou looked at this newly joined army, a sense of security welling up in his heart—combined with the three hundred statues from Shushan, he now possessed thirteen hundred rule guardians. This was a force capable of directly contending with Beast King-level existences.

However, the Guixu Projection was still in the distance.

It hadn't been destroyed by the bell, only heavily damaged. Its integrity had dropped by 30%, but its core remained, and it was still slowly absorbing Chaos energy in an attempt to repair itself.

[Guixu Projection · Status (Post-Bell)]

Integrity: 70% (Original 100%)

Repair Speed: 5% per day

Estimated Complete Repair: Approximately six days

Current Behavior: Retreating deeper into the Chaos Star Domain

"It's retreating." Xu floated to Lin Zhou's side, the runes around its body flickering slightly. "Master, it's moving toward the deepest part of the Chaos Star Domain. There is a massive zone of spacetime turbulence there."

"Spacetime turbulence?"

"Yes." Xu nodded. "In the deepest part of the Chaos Star Domain, rules are chaotic to the extreme. Time, space, Karma... all fundamental rules fail there. Even the Guixu Projection doesn't dare enter that area lightly."

Lin Zhou was silent for a moment, then made a decision.

"Pursue it. We can't let it escape inside. If it hides in the Spacetime Turbulence Zone, it will be even harder for us to deal with."

"But that area is too dangerous..." Wen Yuan said worriedly.

"That's why we must be careful," Lin Zhou said. "Xu, sense the boundaries of the spacetime turbulence. We will only pursue it on the periphery and not go deep."

"Yes."

The team left Yindu and advanced toward the depths of the Chaos Star Domain.

The thirteen hundred Stone Statue Guardians lined up on both sides, their bronze and greenish-white fires of Sword Intent intertwining, illuminating the grayish-white mist. The three hundred exploration team members walked in the middle, everyone's expression solemn—they knew the road ahead would be more dangerous than ever before.

[Exploration Team · Status (Leaving Yindu)]

Total Personnel: 300 people + 1,300 Stone Statues

Chaos Energy Concentration: 250 times the outside world

Godhead Load: Average 140%

Mental Pollution Index: 40%

rune armor Durability: Average 80%

After advancing about five hundred kilometers, Xu suddenly stopped.

"Master, one hundred kilometers ahead is the boundary of the Spacetime Turbulence Zone. I can sense that the flow of time there is extremely unstable—some areas are fast, some are slow, and in some areas, time is even flowing backward."

"What about space?" Lin Zhou asked.

"Space is severely folded," Xu said. "Each kilometer might trigger several foldings. Furthermore, the logic of Karma is reversed—the effect comes before the cause."

Lin Zhou frowned.

Spacetime turbulence, space folding, and reversed Karma... this was the most dangerous area in the Chaos Star Domain. Although his river of civilization could stabilize rules, the consumption would be immense in such an extreme environment.

"Where is the Guixu Projection?" Lin Zhou asked.

Xu closed its eyes to sense: "It has entered the Spacetime Turbulence Zone, but it's still on the edge, about two hundred kilometers from us. Its movement speed is very slow; it seems to be hesitating—whether to go in or not."

"What is it waiting for?"

"Waiting for us to chase it in," Xu said. "It wants to lure us into the Spacetime Turbulence Zone and use the chaotic rules to eliminate us."

Lin Zhou sneered.

"Then we go in. But we won't go deep."

He was the first to step into the Spacetime Turbulence Zone.

The moment his foot hit the ground, he felt as if the entire world had changed.

Time no longer flowed uniformly—his left hand was 0.5 seconds faster than his right, his heartbeat was sometimes fast and sometimes slow, and even his breathing rhythm couldn't remain consistent. Space was folding—he was clearly walking forward, yet felt like he was moving backward. He was clearly climbing a slope, yet felt like he was going downhill. Karma was reversed—he heard the sound of an explosion first, and only then saw the light of the blast.

[Spacetime Turbulence Zone · Status]

Time Flow Fluctuation: ±50% (Unpredictable)

Space Folding Frequency: 1-3 times per hundred meters

Karmic Logic: Partially reversed

river of civilization Stabilization Consumption: 2,000 Divine Power per minute (four times the usual amount)

"Everyone, stay close to me!" Lin Zhou expanded the river of civilization, the pale gold water flowing around him, forming a stabilized area five hundred meters in diameter.

[river of civilization · Stabilization Domain]

Coverage: Five hundred meters in diameter

Effect: Stable time flow within range (±5%), space folding frequency -80%, normal Karmic logic

Consumption: 2,000 Divine Power per minute

Under the protection of the river, the team's marching speed increased significantly.

One hundred kilometers... one hundred and fifty kilometers... two hundred kilometers...

The Guixu Projection was just fifty kilometers ahead.

It suspended in the void, the grayish-white light mass squirming slightly. Within the light mass, those twisted faces were wailing, struggling, and being assimilated. Sensing Lin Zhou's arrival, it began to accelerate its flight into the depths.

"Chase!" Lin Zhou accelerated.

But at that moment, the Spacetime Turbulence Zone suddenly rioted.

The fluctuation in time flow skyrocketed from ±50% to ±200%, the space folding frequency surged from once per hundred meters to once per ten meters, and Karmic logic completely reversed.

[Spacetime Turbulence · Riot!]

Time Flow Fluctuation: ±200%

Space Folding Frequency: Once every ten meters

Karmic Logic: Completely reversed

river of civilization Stabilization Consumption: 5,000 Divine Power per minute (Skyrocketing)

"Captain, the consumption of the river is too high!" Wen Yuan cried out in alarm. "At this rate, your Divine Power can only last for one hour!"

"It's enough." Lin Zhou grit his teeth. "One hour is enough to catch up to the Guixu Projection."

He urged the river, expanding the stabilization Domain to one kilometer in diameter.

[river of civilization · Domain Expansion]

Coverage: One kilometer in diameter

Consumption: 8,000 Divine Power per minute

However, the riot of the spacetime turbulence was even more violent than he had anticipated.

A spatial fold suddenly appeared in the middle of the team.

The boundary of the fold split the team in two—half the people on this side of the fold, and half on the other. The boundary of the fold was a visible spatial crack, with Chaos energy gushing out from it, cutting off the connection between the two sides.

[Space Folding · Team Split!]

Folding Position: Center of the team

Split Personnel: Approximately 500 people (including 100 exploration team members and 400 stone statues) split to the other side

Distance: The split team was teleported about fifty kilometers away

Connection: Communication link interrupted

"Wang Meng! Tie Xiong!" Lin Zhou shouted.

There was no response.

There was only static in the communication link.

"Wen Yuan, can you contact them?"

Wen Yuan frantically adjusted the equipment, his face pale: "No, Legion Commander. The space folding has cut off the communication link. Moreover, the split team was teleported to a region with a different time flow—the time on their side is faster than ours. One minute on our side could mean ten minutes have passed on theirs."

Lin Zhou's expression darkened.

"Xu, can you sense their location?"

Xu closed its eyes to sense, runes flickering frantically: "Master, I can. They are about fifty kilometers to the southeast, fighting Chaos Beasts. The spacetime turbulence there is even more severe; the time flow is three times that of our side. One minute here is three minutes there."

"What is their status?"

"They are in a bitter struggle," Xu's voice trembled. "Chaos Beasts are attacking them. There are about five thousand of them. The Stone Statue Guardians are holding them off, but... with the different time flows, it's very difficult for our support to arrive in time."

Lin Zhou grit his teeth.

"Wen Yuan, is there a way to cross the space folding?"

Wen Yuan thought for a moment: "There is. But we need to use 'Spatial Anchors' to stabilize the folded area. The river of civilization can do it, but it will consume a massive amount of Divine Power—at least ten thousand points, and it will take ten minutes."

"Ten minutes..." Lin Zhou looked in the direction of the split team. "On their side, ten minutes is thirty minutes. Thirty minutes, five thousand Chaos Beasts... can they hold out?"

Xu was silent.

Lin Zhou took a deep breath.

"Wen Yuan, prepare the Spatial Anchors."

"Yes!"

Wen Yuan led the rune smiths of the Research Hall Camp to set up Spatial Anchors at the folding boundary.

[Spatial Anchors · Deployment in Progress]

Location: Space folding boundary

Quantity: Ten anchors

Deployment Progress: 10%... 20%... 30%...

Estimated Completion Time: Ten minutes

Consumption: 10,000 Divine Power

Lin Zhou stood at the folding boundary, looking at the battlefield on the other side.

Over there, the flow of time was very fast. He could see the split team engaged in a fierce battle with the Chaos Beasts—the Sword Intent fires of the Stone Statue Guardians were flickering, and the exploration team's rune armor was glowing. However, there were too many Chaos Beasts, coming wave after wave, seemingly endless.

He saw Wang Meng.

Wang Meng's battle-axe was already notched, but he was still fighting. His body was covered in wounds, his Behemoth Berserk state had faded, and a wave of weakness was washing over him, yet he did not retreat.

He saw Tie Xiong.

Tie Xiong's shield was already shattered; he used his own body to block the lunges of the Chaos Beasts. The Iron Giant Kin roared behind him, building a final line of defense with their flesh and blood.

He saw Qin Shuang.

Qin Shuang's Order Domain had shrunk to a hundred meters in diameter. Her face was pale, her Divine Power almost exhausted, but the Light of Judgment still flickered.

"Hold on," Lin Zhou whispered. "I'm coming soon."

[Spatial Anchors · Deployment Progress: 50%... 60%... 70%...]

Just then, another spatial fold appeared within the team.

This time, the location of the fold was even closer to Lin Zhou.

The boundary of the fold swept past him, separating him from the dozens of soldiers beside him.

"Legion Commander!" Wen Yuan cried out in alarm.

Lin Zhou felt his body being pulled by an irresistible force. Space was folding, time was warping, and Karma was being inverted. He was teleported to another area—an area where the flow of time was extremely slow.

[Lin Zhou · Separated!]

New Location: Approximately thirty kilometers from the original position

Time Dilation: 1/10 of the outside world (ten seconds outside is one second here)

Spatial Stability: Extremely Low

river of civilization Consumption: 10,000 Divine Power per minute

Here, his movements became extremely slow. Raising his hand took ten seconds. Taking a step took thirty seconds. To manifest the river of civilization, he would need a minute.

Meanwhile, in the outside world, time was flying by.

"Wen Yuan! Qin Qing! Xu!" he shouted.

No one responded.

In the communication link, there was only dead silence.

Lin Zhou gritted his teeth and forcibly activated the river of civilization.

[river of civilization · Countering Time Dilation]

Time Flow: 1/10 → 1/5 → 1/2 → 1/1

Consumption: 20,000 Divine Power per minute

Recovery Time: Approximately three minutes

Three minutes in a time-dilated zone felt like three centuries.

Lin Zhou stood in the Void Realm, watching the outside world. He saw Wen Yuan anxiously debugging equipment, saw Qin Shuang commanding the Law Enforcement Team, and saw Xu's runes flashing frantically. Their every move was like fast-forwarding—for every one second outside, he had to watch for ten.

Finally, the river of civilization restored the flow of time to normal.

Lin Zhou leaped up, the zhan nian sword unsheathed, and began Flying Sword Flight!

[Flying Sword Flight · Traversing Spatial Folds]

Speed: 1,000 kilometers per hour

Consumption: 1,000 Divine Power per minute

Spatial Fold Evasion: Real-time navigation provided by Xu

At the speed of Flying Sword Flight, thirty kilometers would take less than two minutes.

However, with the frequent spatial folds, he had to constantly adjust his direction.

A fold appeared in front; he bypassed it.

Another fold appeared to the left; he dodged it.

A third fold appeared beneath his feet; he leaped over it.

[Spatial Fold · Evasion Data]

Folds Encountered: 12

Successful Evasions: 11

Caught in Fold: 1 (Teleported five kilometers off course)

By the time he finally reached the location of the separated team, fifteen minutes had passed in the outside world.

But over there, the time flow was three times faster, so forty-five minutes had already passed.

The battlefield was a scene of tragic carnage.

Nearly a hundred Stone Statue Guardians were lost, and over half of the exploration team were casualties. Wang Meng was covered in blood, kneeling on one knee with his battle-axe planted beside him. Tie Xiong's Iron Giant dependents were almost completely wiped out, and he himself lay on the ground with a wound on his chest deep enough to see bone. Qin Shuang's Order Domain had vanished; she leaned against the ruins, still clutching the Sword of Judgment, but the light on the blade had already gone out.

[Separated Team · Status]

Original Numbers: 500 People + 400 Stone Statues

Remaining: 200 People + 250 Stone Statues

Chaos Beasts Slain: Approximately 3,000

Chaos Beasts Remaining: Approximately 2,000

Time Flow: Three times that of the outside world

"Wang Meng!" Lin Zhou rushed over, the zhan nian sword shattering two Chaos Beasts that were pouncing on Wang Meng.

Wang Meng looked up, saw Lin Zhou, and smiled.

"Captain... you're here..."

"Don't talk." Lin Zhou channeled the Fire of Civilization into Wang Meng's body to stabilize his injuries.

Then, he turned to face the remaining two thousand Chaos Beasts.

The zhan nian sword was unsheathed, and the green lotus sword was unsheathed.

Two swords: one Zhan Nian, one Qinglian.

"Civilization Sword River—Ten Thousand Swords Return to Origin!"

The Civilization Sword River surged out from the Divine Kingdom, transforming into countless sword shadows that shot into the swarm of Chaos Beasts!

Twelve thousand Flying Swords flew out from the Sword Tomb, interlacing with the sword shadows to form a devastating rain of swords!

[Ten Thousand Swords Return to Origin · Spacetime Turbulence Version]

Sword Shadow Count: Approximately 20,000

Flying Sword Count: 12,000

Total Attack Power: Full strike of Mid-Tier Divine Power Peak × 10

Consumption: 50,000 Divine Power

Spacetime Turbulence Impact: Attack range -30%, but Sword Intent remains sharp

The rain of swords fell, and the two thousand Chaos Beasts were cleared out!

The battlefield finally fell silent.

Lin Zhou landed back on the ground, his body swaying slightly.

[Lin Zhou · Status]

Divine Power Reserves: 150,000 → 80,000 (70,000 consumed)

river of civilization Level: 90% → 85%

Godhead Integrity: 100%

Mental State: Extremely fatigued

"Wen Yuan, tally the losses," his voice was raspy.

Wen Yuan's face was pale, his fingers trembling as he operated the detector.

[Post-Battle Statistics · Spacetime Turbulence Encounter]

Exploration Team Losses: 300 people → 180 people (120 killed in action)

Stone Statue Guardians Losses: 1,300 → 1,100 (200 lost, including 50 Shushan statues and 150 Yindu statues)

Chaos Beasts Slain: Approximately 8,000

Guixu Projection: Escaped into the depths of the spacetime turbulence, track lost

Lin Zhou's Divine Power Consumption: Approximately 100,000

Lin Zhou fell silent.

One hundred and twenty brothers, gone.

Two hundred stone statues, shattered.

The Guixu Projection, escaped.

"Captain..." Wang Meng struggled to stand up, "I'm sorry, I failed to..."

"It's not your fault," Lin Zhou interrupted him. "It was my error in judgment. I shouldn't have pursued into the Spacetime Turbulence Zone."

He turned and looked into the depths of the spacetime turbulence.

There, within the grayish-white mist, the aura of the Guixu Projection had vanished.

"Let's head back first," Lin Zhou said. "Rest and reorganize. Then we'll find another way."

"Yes."

The team slowly retreated, returning to Yindu.

No one spoke along the way.

There was only the heavy footsteps of the Stone Statue Guardians and the suppressed groans of the wounded.

Lin Zhou walked at the very front of the team, the zhan nian sword at his waist and the green lotus sword on his back.

His back was as straight as ever.

But in his eyes, there was an added trace of weariness.

After returning to Yindu, Lin Zhou settled the wounded in the palaces of Yindu.

Yindu's rule stability was relatively high, and the Chaos energy concentration was only ten times that of the outside, making it suitable for the wounded to recuperate.

[Casualties · Data]

Severely Wounded: Approximately 80 people (Requires purification by Fire of Civilization)

Lightly Wounded: Approximately 100 people (Treated)

Killed in Action: 120 people (Confirmed)

Lin Zhou used the Fire of Civilization to purify the severely wounded one by one.

His Divine Power reserves dropped to 50,000 points, and the river of civilization level fell to 80%.

But he did not stop.

Because he knew these brothers had shed their blood for him.

After handling the wounded, Lin Zhou walked alone up to the high platform of Yindu.

On the high platform, the first bell of huaxia had already been taken into his Divine Kingdom Core, but the platform remained. On the bluestone slabs of the platform, inscriptions were carved: 'The people are of supreme importance, the altars of the gods of earth and grain come next, and the ruler is the least important.'

He sat on the edge of the high platform, looking at the grayish-white mist in the distance.

In the mist, Chaos energy surged and spacetime turbulence roared.

The Guixu Projection was hidden inside.

"Captain, what are you thinking about?" Qin Qing walked over and sat beside him.

"Thinking about the brothers who sacrificed themselves," Lin Zhou said. "One hundred and twenty people. I haven't even memorized their names yet."

"Then memorize them," Qin Qing said. "Carve them onto the Heavenly Pillar."

Lin Zhou was stunned for a moment, then nodded.

"Alright."

He closed his eyes, his consciousness sinking into the Divine Kingdom Core.

On the Heavenly Pillar, countless names were glowing. He found a blank area and carved the names of the one hundred and twenty fallen brothers one by one.

[Heavenly Pillar · New Names]

Quantity: 120

Location: Middle section of the Heavenly Pillar

Effect: Heavenly Pillar Stability +1%, river of civilization level +1%

After carving the last name, Lin Zhou opened his eyes.

"Captain, the Guixu Projection is still there," Qin Qing said.

"I know."

"How do we deal with it?"

Lin Zhou was silent for a moment.

"It's hiding in the depths of the spacetime turbulence; we can't get in. So, we'll force it out."

"How?"

"Destroy its source." Lin Zhou stood up. "The energy source of the Guixu Projection is Guixu itself. And the entrance to Guixu is in the deepest part of the Chaos Star Domain. If we can find the entrance and seal it, the Guixu Projection will lose its energy and dissipate on its own."

"But, it's too dangerous..."

"I know," Lin Zhou interrupted her. "But it's the only way."

He turned to face Wang Meng, Tie Xiong, Wen Yuan, Qin Shuang, and the surviving exploration team members.

"Brothers, the Guixu Projection has fled into the Spacetime Turbulence Zone. We can't chase it in. Therefore, we're going to change our approach—find the entrance to Guixu and seal it."

"The Guixu entrance is in the deepest part of the Chaos Star Domain. It is even more dangerous there than the Spacetime Turbulence Zone."

"But we must go."

"Because if the Guixu Projection recovers, it will bring even more Chaos Beasts to assault Dragon City again."

"Are you willing to come with me?"

The crowd was silent for a moment.

Then, Wang Meng raised his battle-axe.

"Captain, wherever you go, I go."

Tie Xiong raised his shield: "My life was saved by the Legion Commander. I'll give it back to you."

Wen Yuan pushed up his glasses: "The Research Hall Camp is on standby at any time."

Qin Shuang gripped the Sword of Judgment: "The Administration Hall Battalion is willing to follow the Legion Commander on this expedition."

The surviving exploration team members shouted in unison: "We are willing to follow the Legion Commander on this expedition!"

Lin Zhou looked at them, his eyes slightly reddening.

"Good."

He turned and looked into the depths of the Chaos Star Domain.

"Tomorrow, we set out."

"Target—the Guixu entrance."