Chapter 77: A Fragment of the Realm Core 

"Hmm, yes, handsome indeed." Gu Ran nodded approvingly as he stared at a boulder twice his size. This was a work of art, a masterpiece of earth and stone, painstakingly sculpted to capture the essence of... well, Gu Ran - specifically his face that had not so long ago been embedded into it.

"I shall leave it here," he smirked. "Let the younger generation gaze upon this in reverence - it is, after all, an impression of a former Tier 5 Lifeform!"

Then, he dove to the side.

Bang!

The moment he left his spot, a powerful bolt of blue lightning struck the boulder, shattering it! The pieces of stone fell into the river splashing up great amounts of water.

"Oi, the boulder did nothing to you, right?!" Gu Ran shouted to his right, quite miffed that his boulder had been destroyed. It was such a perfect impression too, capturing his likeness with such precision! 

Hiss!!

An electric blue python with a head as large as a king-size bed glared down at him. A sparkling crystal flickered between its eyes - evidently the source of the lightning that destroyed Gu Ran's precious boulder.

On its head, stood a young woman with shoulder-length blue hair. She was clad in naught but her underwear, showing off a great amount of skin - yet that did not seem to bother her a single bit. 

Ye Linglong's cyan eyes glowed strangely as she stared down at Gu Ran warily. She had just been getting ready to take a nice long bath, when this weirdo popped out of nowhere, slammed face-first into the boulder and started spouting some nonsense about Tier 5 and glory. 

Linglong was so stunned that she did not even react for the few moments that he was here! If it weren't for the fact that he was quite far from her and his actions were rather… boisterous, she would have thought he was an assassin!

'He dodged Xiaolei's quickest attack. And so casually too - it did not even look like he was trying…' She stared at Gu Ran with narrowed eyes. As she scanned him up and down. A flicker of light, almost imperceptible, danced within her cyan eyes before fading back to normal.

'And it seems he's extremely powerful.' she concluded.

"Who are you? What do you want?" She spoke loudly, her tone much less calm than she wanted. Her muscles tensed as she got ready to take action at a moment's notice.

Gu Ran sighed regretfully as he stared at the pieces of the boulder floating away with the current before turning to look at the barely clothed woman. He immediately felt a massive headache coming on. 

'Ugh, I should get out before she realises…' He thought, trying to keep his eyes from wandering. 'Damned teenaged body!'

Mustering his most dignified air, he cupped his fist and bowed. "This old man is Gu Ran." 

The first order of business is to establish seniority! After all, an educated person would be well-mannered, wouldn't they? One must always respect their elders - something that went straight over the head of a certain Junior Sister!

And it seemed she wasn't the only one, because he was interrupted. "And, do forgive me I didn't mean to-"

"'Old man'?" Linglong scoffed. She pointed at him angrily, "You look younger than me. How the hell are you an 'old man'?!"

She glared at Gu Ran.

"And what does that make me, who looks older than you? An ancient fossil?!" Linglong snarled, lightning crackling in her palms. "Are you insulting me, you damned brat?!" 

Gu Ran: "???"

He felt utterly confused.

How the hell did we come to this? Wasn't a normal person supposed to introduce themselves in return? Was that not how the conversation was supposed to flow?

Also, I just barged into your private bathing session, aren't you supposed to be getting angry about that, instead? Wasn't that the normal reaction?!

Why, of all the rotten things in the Ghost Emperor's coffin, are you focusing on age?!

However, he wasn't an old fogie for nothing, he quickly regained his wits. "I did not mean that, oh beautiful Fairy - it is the fortune of my 18 lifetimes to have an opportunity to gaze upon your breathtaking visage!" 

He gave her another light bow, "Please, forgive this young one for his lack of eloquence - your beauty had made me muddle-headed!"

'Xiaoran, you must understand this: the most effective way to calm down an angry woman is to simply agree with them and throw a compliment!' Gu Ran chose to follow his late Master's wise words.

And sure enough, the 'young' lady, her cheeks tinged with a faint blush, seemed to deflate slightly. This young man… was quite bold in his compliments, especially given her status. But… she liked it! She had rarely, no, never met such a bold young man! 

She coughed lightly and cupped her fists in greeting, "You exaggerate, Fellow Daoist Gu, someone of your strength must have seen hundreds of beauties - I am hardly worthy of such lofty praise." 

"And please do forgive my earlier outburst - I was just a little wary that someone had barged into this place without alerting anyone, so I lashed out, please do forgive me."

Gu Ran's mouth twitched slightly. Riiight~, of course! 

However, he, very wisely, chose not to expose her. It was not because of her pointed glare at all, though - not at all! It was because he, Gu Ran, was a magnanimous man indeed. So, he waved his hand casually and laughed, "Ah, haha, that's not a problem at all. It is entirely my fault for barging in like this - I did not know this was occupied by Fellow Daoist. I shall go elsewhere to practise my Techniques."

With that, he pivoted on his heel and bolted. Because, soon, she would realise her state of undress and then… and then, there was nothing. He had neither the wish nor the patience to deal with the outburst of this woman. 

"Wait-!" Yu Linglong shouted, but he had already disappeared. 

"Ah," she dropped her extended arm to the side and pouted, "what a shame. Such a handsome young man, I thought I had finally found my spring. Alas, no one wants an old hag like me."

The serpent under her feet hissed lightly as if to say something.

"Huh? What do you mean 'look at yourself'?!" She bristled! "I was just saying stuff, I didn't actually mean it!

"Dammit Xiaolei, you also look down on… oh." She trailed off as she looked down at her own, very much undressed, form

"So, he's shy! Hehe!" A sly smirk appeared on her lips. "Strong, handsome, eloquent, bold, polite and shy! Such a perfect young man! I can't let him go!"

Straightening up, she perched regally on the serpent's head and pointed forward, "Xiaolei, sniff him out!"

Xiaolei the Blue Serpent hissed irritably.

"What do you mean you're not a dog? What's the use of you if you can't even find me a husband?!

"Ahh, let's chase him!" 

***

Somewhere not too far away, Gu Ran felt a chill run down his spine as he sped through the valley. He sensed a powerful aura shoot towards him at a terrific pace.

'She must have realised!'

He increased his speed even more. 

'Dammit, if my Cultivation Base hadn't dropped so much, I'd have nothing to worry about!' Gu Ran screamed inwardly. To be chased around by a mere 7th Disaster Cultivator - when had he, Gu Ran, ever suffered such grievances?! 

His previous life didn't count!

Thinking about his previous strong and sturdy Cultivation Base before the trip to the Mystic Realm, painful and rather weird memories surfaced.

***

Just after Xiao Hong had been dragged away by the Spatial Void, Gu Ran had managed to calm down and made his way towards the swirling abyssal Void.

As he shot towards the Void, a brilliant golden light struck his chest. 

"What the..?!" He jumped before realising that it was Song Siying's aid. "Well, that solves the problem of survival outside the Realmspace."

Then, he continued flying towards the Void, following the summoning from deep inside his Cultivation Base. 

Suddenly, the terrifying explosions, the groaning of the earth, peals of thunder, screeches of the wind and general noise of cataclysm disappeared. An utter, absolute, silence took its place. His sense of touch, smell and taste all disappeared as though they had never existed. 

Gu Ran shivered, feeling his hair stand on end. He gulped slightly and circulated his Qi, hoping to suppress the primal involuntary fear. Calm down, calm down, me. It is only the natural reaction of a lower Lifeform outside the Realmspace. With Elder Song's Divine Ability, I will be fine!

Taking several deep breaths, he sliced through the Void as fast as he could - he would take what he needed and get out as fast as possible. A puny sub-Tier 5 Lifeform should just obediently stay inside the Realmspace instead of wandering around here.

After a short travel, he stopped by releasing a small shockwave forwards. He stared forward, eyes glittering with both anticipation and wariness - whatever it was that made his Cultivation Base show such desire was just up ahead.

He released a shockwave, aiming it backwards, causing him to shoot ahead.

Woom! He felt as though he had just stepped into his warm air-conditioned bedroom from the freezing winds outside. 

A gigantic ball of seven-coloured light floated illuminating the absolute darkness of the Void, glowing dimly. Thin spectral filaments, like the tentacles of a jellyfish, extended from it in all directions. The globe of multi-coloured light expanded and contracted rhythmically like a heart. Bursts of light surged through the filaments like blood through veins with its expansions and contractions.

It was a brilliant, beautiful sight.

At this moment, however, it looked extremely dim, the filaments looked like withered branches - dry and without an ounce of vitality. They curled up into themselves or into the ball of light itself. Only a few dozen filaments that extended far into Void towards the Great Mystic Realm were still bright. Yet even those got dimmer as it closer to the ball of light.

Gu Ran froze in his place. He blinked. He blinked again. He wiped his eyes and blinked again. 

After a long time, he screamed, "That's a fucking Realm Core!"

Closing his eyes, he carefully sensed the direction of the strange sense of desire. 

He opened his eyes. 

"Sure enough, it is the Realm Core!" Gu Ran was dumbfounded. 

'This thing requires a Realm Core?!'

'I'm just at the Divine Sea level and it already wants a Realm Core of a Subsidiary Realm?! What a fucking massive appetite!' He screamed inwardly in outrage! 'If it's like this now, won't it be an entire Lower Realm's Realm Core when I reach Essence Soul?!'

He held his head and stared at the Realm Core in desolation, "How the fuck am I supposed to achieve that?! Even the Immortal Ancestor would be fucked if he tried to pull something like this!"

Gu Ran suddenly felt that… these Supreme-grade Cultivation Methods were actually bombs in the guise of good fortune! 

'Do I have to change my Cultivation Method…' Just as he was wallowing in despair, the entire ball of light shuddered and split apart. There was no light show, no dramatic quakes, no shockwave. Nothing. The Realm Core just split into several smaller versions of itself - some big, some small. These balls of multi-coloured light simply shot off in every direction!

"Huh?" He stared at the scene intently. Suddenly, an idea struck him. "Wait… What if the Heavenly Abyss Scripture only required a small portion of a Realm Core? After all, even a fragment of a Realm Core is still a Realm Core - given their homogenous nature."

His eyes brightened. "Now that is feasible!"

Gu Ran immediately began flying around searching for pieces. 

"Not this one… not this one either… that one's too big, won't fit… that one's too small, won't fit the gaps of my teeth… Aha!" His eyes lit up when he saw a fist-sized fragment flying just a few dozen metres away. "That's the one!

Reorienting himself by sending small bursts of Qi from his palms, he shot forward in a path that would intersect with his chosen fragment.

After travelling a short length, he sent a few more bursts of Qi, effectively stopping his motion. Then he turned around and stared at the oncoming ball of multi-coloured light. 

He took a deep breath, and a serious look flashed in his eyes. This was the core of a Realm, after all. Even if it was only an incredibly small piece, probably not even one ten-thousandth of the whole, it was still something far beyond the means of a puny Disaster Stage Cultivator. 

So, he needed power beyond one! 

Letting out a shout no one could hear, a huge burst of golden light surrounded him like a miniature sun, dwarfing the glow of the Realm Core Fragments for a moment!

He pointed at the Realm Core Fragment and intoned, voice resonating through the Void, despite there being absolutely no medium for his voice to travel through, "[Grand Void Heaven Seal!]"

Thousands of thin golden threads burst out from his palm and shot towards the Realm Core Fragment, binding it. In a few moments, the entire thing had been completely enveloped in a football-sized cocoon. 

"Haha! Gotcha!" Gu Ran grinned as he held the glowing ball of light in his hands. He had never expected to get his hands on an actual fragment of a Realm Core! What a delight! "As expected, the Heavens really favour me!"

He was rejoicing at the successful capture of the Realm Core Fragment when suddenly, the entire place froze completely as if an invisible hand pressed the pause button. The fragments of the Realm Core froze. Even Gu Ran was frozen.

A boundless, unfathomable Will descended on the shattered Realm Core. It quickly spread out from there, live a ripple on a still pond. It wove itself through the very fabric of Reality. It spread like a bottle of ink poured into clear water, overtaking the Fragments of the Realm Core, freezing them in place. 

And then, it reached Gu Ran. It paused, as though not expecting him there.

Gu Ran's face paled, feeling the majestic 'gaze' of the Will of the World. The Will of a World was something he could not contend with even if had the strength of his previous life. Even a Tier 6 Lifeform like a Yuan Opening expert would not be able to resist, alright?! A weak Void Refining Cultivator like him couldn't do jackshit to the Will of a World - even when facing the weakest World in all of Existence! And this one was definitely not the weakest!

'Dammit, why is the World's Will here all of a sudden?! It is merely a subsidiary Realm, why the hell would it care about something it has in billions?!' He nearly cried. Feeling the 'gaze', he stammered out, "H-h-hello, Mr. World's Will. I-I-I did not expect you to - urgh."

Just when he began to explain his presence to the World's Will, it swept over him. In a few breaths' time, the World's Will scanned him from top to down, left to right and front to back. It read his entire Being, parsing every bit of information on the individual named 'Gu Ran'. It inferred and extrapolated the cause and effect of his entire Existence, within a few breaths.

Though, unlike the plump Mage Aaron, the World's Will was extremely gentle with Gu Ran. He barely even felt a breeze, despite having the entirety of his Existence stripped bare and read like a book. If one were to compare, the time Mage Aaron was read like a horny teenager scanning adult magazines with lustful eyes, while Gu Ran was savoured like a classical work, every page turned carefully and with great care.

'This is so damn weird,' Gu Ran shuddered in relief as the World's Will retracted its 'gaze'. The feeling of being scanned by the World's Will was utterly terrifying and left him feeling utterly helpless, even if it was gentle.

A burst of information appeared in his mind.

"Huh?!" Suddenly, Gu Ran raised his head abruptly, eyes widening so much they nearly got lost in the Void! 

"I-I know, It's not mine, I shall return the Fragment of the Realm Core…" he nodded so quickly, even woodpeckers would throw up their wings in defeat!

Another burst of information appeared in his head.

"Huh? I can keep it? You don't need the Realm Core…? Eh? You can repair the Subsidiary Realm without it? And you'll even help me digest the Realm Core?" Gu Ran's jaw wanted to follow its eyeball cousins and go on a great adventure in the endless Void!

"And all I need to do is help you when you need it?" He felt his brain could not keep up anymore. 

He was utterly confused. Since when could the Will of a World have so much autonomy? How the hell could it even hold a conversation?! Was he chucked into a whole other universe?

He had thought this Realm was just a little odd, but this… this was smack in the face. It might as well hold up a sign and yell, "I'm a super-duper special Realm, please notice me!"

It was only when he was urged by the World's Will that he snapped out of it. He took a deep breath and nodded, "Alright, I agree. But you must understand this - I can only do something within my capabilities. I cannot and will not do anything beyond it." 

He stared into the Void, pretending he was looking into the World's Will's eyes.

After a moment, Gu Ran grinned, "Very well then, let's do this!"

***

'The damned thing never mentioned a drop in Cultivation Base when it threw me the deal!' He roared inwardly as he circulated his Movement Arts, with his… peak Divine Sea Stage Cultivation Base.

Gu Ran gritted his teeth in frustration, 'I hate this World! First, I get tricked by a little girl not even out of her teens, and then I get scammed by the fucking Will of the World! Ugh!'

He would have popped a blood vessel out of sheer anger if it weren't for his Cultivation Base! 'This World is a nightmare for honest people like me!'

After cursing the entire Great Mystic World to spontaneously implode, he calmed down. 

'Though, I'd never have expected that those annoying Magi would set their sights on this World.' An inexplicable light flickered in his eyes, as he recalled how the Will of the World showed him the exact reason the Demon Beast Haven Realm collapsed. 

Brows furrowing lightly, he wondered, 'Why, though? The Magi were never really the type to-' Just when he was wondering about what could make the Magi pull an Immortal Cultivator move on this Realm, a familiar voice echoed in his ears, causing him to nearly fall out of the sky! 

"Aha! There you are! How dare you run away after casually staring at this Princess' body?!" Yu Linglong shouted, her Zhenqi-powered voice spreading across the river! "You have to take responsibility now that you've seen all of me!"

"'All of you', my foot! You were clearly in your undies!" Gu Ran shouted back. Although, he felt a little confused about her choice of words. Wasn't she supposed to be screaming bloody murder rather than clamouring about responsibility?

"In the Radiant Star Empire's culture, they are the same!" Yu Linglong screamed back. 

Gu Ran just shut up and ran with all his might. Thankfully, he did not know Yu Linglong's true intention - he might have lost a few more Stages of Cultivation otherwise!