Chapter31-Beyond Dimension

"It can begin now."

A voice from behind startled Claire, but she quickly composed herself, taking a deep breath. "Owen?"

"It's me. Let's find a quiet place."

"That's easy enough, but give me a moment."

Claire nodded slightly and then turned to the others from Fenrir Academy, speaking in a deep tone, "It's about time to leave."

"Chief, are we leaving so soon?"

"Yes, too many unusual things have happened in the Tower this time—Lawrence's death, and those people who suddenly appeared, claiming to be from the Ascended Dimension. These things must be reported to the headmaster. If you really don't want to leave, it's fine. I'll leave the Tower and report this to the headmaster first."

"Chief, we'd rather leave with you."

"Don't worry. Even if I leave, Raymond will lead the team. Besides, there are fewer people left in the Tower, so there shouldn't be anyone who can pose a threat to you."

With that, Claire turned to Raymond, patted his shoulder, and said solemnly, "Raymond, I'm counting on you to lead the team. Can you handle it?"

"Don't worry, Chief. I'll make sure everyone returns safely to Fenrir Academy!"

"Good. I'm going to say goodbye to a few old friends; there's no need to see me off."

Claire waved her hand and turned to leave.

"Tch, so hypocritical."

"You don't get it. Unlike you, I don't have absolute authority within the team. Many people are eyeing my position. One mistake, one slip-up, and the position of Chief won't be mine anymore."

"With the likes of Fenrir Academy's lot? Although you're not much, I can only say they're even worse. Even if they replace you, they'd still end up captured by me."

"Why do you have to involve me when you're talking about them?"

Claire glanced at Owen, sighing, "I don't understand. How can there be such a gap between people? Did you grow up eating mana stones to be this monstrous?"

"Are you jealous?"

"Hmph, I'm green with envy! If I had your strength, I can't even imagine."

"Enough chatter. Take out the jade stone and open the passage to the seventh floor as soon as possible."

"I know, I know. You're so impatient. I need to prepare first, okay?"

Claire leisurely took out the jade stone and began carving a complex and intricate formation on the ground, chanting words that seemed to be in a more ancient scale. Although Owen could hear clearly, he couldn't understand the meaning.

"It's starting!"

Claire embedded the jade stone into the formation, and a blinding light instantly enveloped the two of them. The formation forcibly tore the space apart, swallowing Owen and Claire whole.

Owen felt his surroundings change dramatically, the world spinning, and even his consciousness becoming hazy. When he came to his senses, he found himself in a completely unfamiliar space, one that had never been described in the original work.

Everywhere he looked was pitch black, with visibility barely extending ten meters ahead. Even using [The Eye of True Sight], Owen couldn't discern the nature of this world.

"Is this... the seventh floor of the Tower?"

Owen furrowed his brow, a trace of confusion in his eyes.

Rather than the seventh floor of the Tower, this place seemed more like a raw, unrefined fragment of space. Even with [Light Illumination], it was difficult to increase visibility.

"Claire, what's going on? Where exactly are we?"

"Sorry, Owen, I lied to you."

Claire lowered her head with a bitter smile, casually crushing the jade stone in her hand.

"There is no seventh floor of the Tower. It was just an excuse to lure you to the Beyond Dimension."

Hearing this, Owen couldn't help but feel shocked, but he quickly calmed down.

"Was this a mission given to you?"

"You're right. The headmaster gave me this task, to lure you to the Beyond Dimension at the cost of my own life, and wait here for the arrival of void death."

"And you agreed? To exchange your life for mine?"

"I had no choice. The headmaster took my sister. If I refused, she would have no chance of survival. If I do this, the headmaster promised to give her the best resources and the best mentor."

Owen understood then.

His mentor had kidnapped Claire's younger sister. Claire must have felt utterly desperate.

On one hand, his beloved sister; on the other, his own life. No matter how he chose, he would likely regret it.

But...

"You should know that escaping the Beyond Dimension isn't impossible."

"Yes, you can indeed break through the space and return to the dimension, but the chaotic currents stirred up by the space fragments can devour even master-tier powerhouses. Only those who have reached sage-tier can walk freely in the Beyond Dimension, isn't that right? Sorry, Owen, this is all I can do, so as payment, my life is yours to take."

With that, Claire dropped her sword, spreading her arms in a posture of surrender.

"Forget it. Rather than killing you outright, it's better to let you live and endure the absolute void."

Owen couldn't bring himself to hate Claire. After all, from the moment she entered the Beyond Dimension, her life was already forfeit—it was only a matter of time.

But Owen was different.

Unknown to Claire, Owen's true power had already reached sage-tier level 9. For him, returning to the dimension was no difficult task.

"True, considering that for the next few centuries, it might just be you and me here."

"Correction: I never said I'd stay here."

"Are you planning to break through the space? With your diamond-tier level, you'd surely die if you come into contact with the chaotic space currents."

"When did I say I was diamond-tier?"

Owen smirked, fully unleashing his suppressed power, and Claire watched in stunned silence as Owen's level climbed from diamond-tier to master-tier, and even further to sage-tier!

By the end, Owen's aura was far stronger than that of his mentor!

Seeing this, Claire was rooted to the spot, too shocked to speak.

"This... how is this possible? You... you're a sage-tier?!"

"That's right, the youngest sage-tier in history, unprecedented and unrivaled. I thought you would have realized it by now. Beyond Dimension—I've been here more than once."

"...Are you even human?"

"As real as it gets. Since you were honest with me, I'll grudgingly agree to spare your sister when I take my revenge on Fenrir Academy."

Owen patted Claire's shoulder with a smile, and before she could react, he effortlessly tore through the space and plunged into it without hesitation.

As she watched the space rift slowly close, Claire swallowed hard. After a moment of silence, she suddenly burst into laughter.

"Hahaha! Haha... So, I was just digging my own grave."

She had thought the worst outcome would be exchanging her life for Owen's, trapping him forever in the Beyond Dimension. But she never imagined that Owen had been hiding such terrifying power.

It's no exaggeration to say that at this moment, Owen could crush Fenrir Academy's Headmaster Leonard with little effort!

But...

As Owen traveled through the void, he suddenly felt a chill run down his spine, a creeping sense of dread. Instinctively looking back, his face turned pale.

At the edge of the chaotic space currents, a giant eye had appeared out of nowhere, seemingly merging with the currents, staring straight at Owen.

The pale eye was bloodshot, with a deep black pupil like a bottomless black hole, as if it wanted to swallow everything in the world. Owen felt his vision blur, nearly losing consciousness!

"What... what is that thing?"

In the original work, there was never any mention of encountering such a creature while traversing the space currents!

Owen forced himself to stay calm, taking deep breaths before using [The Eye of True Sight] again.

This time, the chaotic space currents gradually blurred and faded, and everything around him turned into overlapping lines.

But the eye remained, glaring at Owen with a terrifying gaze!