C1- Cardinal Crystal.

Vexnox Universe...

The Chaldå Void...

Twenty hundred and fifty-four thousand light-years away from the nearest inhabitable planet...

*Rumble* *Rumble* *Booom*

In the infinite expanse of Space were two young men floating steadily and unmoving without any discomfort. In their sights was a crystal ten times their size that seemed to violently react or clash against Dark Energy in their vicinity.

They gazed at the entire process with varying expressions and thoughts as they withstood shockwaves powerful enough to shatter any planet regardless of size.

"I hope this works. I've been searching for a way home for eons and this could... might be my only hope..."

"There's no need to worry so much. If the coordinates you gave me are correct, then I'm 100% certain in my research that this would work. A lot of work was put into this after all "

"Of course, I trust your research, Bellum. Your use of Aether, Duct, and what was referred to as God particles to create this Cardinal Crystal is never done or seen before. I just fear that the aftermath of the Cardinal War has brought some changes to my Universe or the Omniverse "

"Mhm... we could only try, Qiu Jinchi my friend. If you had a way to get in touch with your home then we would have solved this uncertainty but alas... it is what it is "

"I wouldn't have missed home this much if I could just hear their voices once in a while. The ending to the war was so abrupt that--"

*Rumble!* *Spark!!* *Spark!!* *Tzzzzzt!!!*

Jinchi was interrupted by violent and explosive sounds that echoed even in the vacuum of Space.

The entire Universe shook as it was angry?... afraid?... in pain?... trying to warn them of their actions?... Nobody knew or understood.

Communication with the consciousness of the Universe hasn't been achieved since after the War. It only conveys certain things through bizarre phenomena like this.

One could see a pattern here. This Cardinal War was an Omniverse-changing event that cut off a lot of opportunities for Higher Existences and you will know why.

And in place of the crystal, materialized an ethereal door the size of an average planet which didn't go unnoticed by other powerhouses considering the various Celestial phenomena happening with the door as the center.

After a little jubilation, Bellum and Jinchi hurried through the door to see a pathway that was both far and yet near but it wasn't something bizarre to them. The door closed behind them before they took flight at full speed.

After a few minutes of flight, the two came to a stop seeing the end of the corridor which was blocked by another door.

Jinchi hurriedly opened the door in excitement and another expanse of Space was all they could see but something was different and they felt it in a myriad of ways.

Bellum felt the fundamental Rules and Laws of this expanse were different from his Universe and this excited him. This was the reason for the millions of years of constant research to create the Cardinal Crystal... this was a success in his pursuit of strength.

"Hiek... it worked. It worked!!"

Jinchi shouted with genuine joy, tears, and happiness. He's finally back home, everything was the way it was when he left. He's finally out of the hellhole which is Vexnox, he can finally breathe easy knowing all is well.

"It seems it did. Well, friend, I've brought you home but I can't give such honors to you alone. Who knows if there might be a reward for the first outsider after the War? So how about moving in together"

Jinchi agreed and they both took a step out of the door which closed behind them.

But then something happened. The moment they stepped into this Universe, unknown dreadful and ghostly chains manifested around them out of nowhere but they had different functions on them.

The chains that manifested on Qiu Jinchi shook for a while before breaking like crystal glass and a sudden burst of pressure, energy, and power emanated from him like a phoenix undergoing Nirvana.

While this was happening, Bellum was facing a problem. The chains that manifested seemed immune to whatever powerful blast of Laws and power he had accumulated over years. His Spatial and Temporal movement abilities could cover hundreds of light-years in seconds and couldn't escape it.

Even his Spatial Barrier which withstood Ruination for minutes seemed like air to the chains that wrapped around him before disappearing without inflicting any physical injuries whatsoever.

"What's this thing?... ...Jinchi! Why does it seem like you've had it for a while and I'm now knowing about it? What have the chains done to me?!!"

Bellum cried out to Jinchi whose entire demeanor seemed to have made a 360 as he looked at Bellum with ice-cold eyes.

"Shut it!! You're ruining the moment" he said before shouting his lungs out. "Haaa~ I'm now free!!! I'm no longer at the absolute mercy of others. All thanks to you, Sprout!"

From this short monologue and a brief analysis of his body, Bellum could at least deduce the functionality of the chains in general as he lacked Information.

When he first met Qiu Jinchi back in his Universe, he was only a Star System powerhouse and from all the years they've been together he never improved so he thought he had exhausted his potential or something along those lines.

But with the power he was radiating right now, he might be a Black Hole powerhouse which mind you was nothing but an ant in front of Bellum's full power.

The chains which were unseen but could be felt with their power suppression functions were gradually sending Bellum down from the Universal tier > Supercluster tier > Cluster tier and further.

"You're feeling it, aren't you? Supposedly that's the Universal Chain of Causality. It became a thing after the war... to keep the status quo. If an outsider that threatens the Universe or just any outsider steps in, it appears to reduce their threat level depending on the Universe's Will. As long as you have it you can't grow stronger"

"Chains of Causality... am I to assume it's a derivative of the Supreme Law of Causality? "

"As expected of the Genius Abomination but it's not a derivative, the Universe weirds it so it's at a Conceptual level. Like all Supreme Laws, this is not accessible to all... not even you with all your talent could have come across this or break it"

"Is this all you have planned? You should know better, old friend "

"Wow~ I'm shivering here. That coldness in your voice would have been twice as effective if you weren't in this state..." He then pulled out a worn-out violet jade tablet and spoke to it.

"I'm here, it worked"

As soon as he said it, Bellum saw numerous light sources closing in on their location and when it came to a halt, humanoid figures could be seen in full battle mode as they gathered around Qiu Jinchi.

"Is this the Sprout that was always brought up during your reports?"

Bellum looked at the woman who spoke with the attitude of a powerhouse of an organization and was able to know a little about them.

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