Even though the ground suddenly moved beneath them, the two cultivators reacted instantly.

Years of cultivation and battle experience made their bodies move almost on instinct.

The moment the earth trembled, spiritual energy erupted from both of them at the same time.

A faint protective layer wrapped around their bodies.

The pressure from above slammed downward immediately after, causing the dirt beneath their feet to crack apart violently.

Zi Yue was also struck by the sudden force.

Her injured body was thrown sideways across the ground before she hurriedly gathered the remaining spiritual Qi inside herself to protect her meridians from collapsing entirely.

Even then, blood still leaked from the corner of her lips.

Her face turned pale.

But her eyes...

Her eyes slowly widened.

Because she understood something.

The Deity had moved.

The Deity was still here.

Fear and awe surged together inside her chest.

"The Deity..."

Her trembling voice echoed weakly.

"The Deity is angry..."

The two cultivators froze.

For a brief moment, both of them looked upward instinctively.

Fear appeared across their faces almost immediately.

Not because they had seen anything.

But because something inside their instincts screamed at them to run.

An overwhelming pressure lingered in the air, it felt heavy, massive and unknowable. Yet the way it pressed against their hearts like invisible mountains was truly thrumming.

Still, neither wanted to believe it.

"No..."

One of them clenched his teeth.

"There is no deity here!"

The other immediately shouted louder, almost as if he was trying to convince himself.

"Shut up!"

"Shut up!"

His voice carried obvious panic now.

He pointed his sword toward Zi Yue violently.

"You are trying to scare us!"

"Yes!"

The second cultivator immediately followed.

"There is no such thing as a deity in this valley!"

But even while shouting those words, both of them continued glancing upward nervously.

Their breathing had already become uneven.

Zi Yue slowly pushed herself backward.

Her injured body trembled continuously.

Yet despite the pain, despite the poison spreading through her meridians, hope slowly returned to her eyes.

Then—

A voice descended from above.

"You two are so loud."

The moment those words appeared, the entire valley froze.

The voice was massive.

It did not sound like ordinary speech.

It sounded like thunder rolling through heaven itself.

The mountains trembled faintly, next the river rippled violently.

The two cultivators instantly lost all color from their faces.

Then—

A massive finger descended from the sky.

It was enormous.

Far larger than before.

The moment it appeared, shadows swallowed the ground beneath them completely.

The two cultivators finally broke.

Fear exploded inside them.

"This is impossible!"

"Run!"

Both of them erupted with spiritual energy instantly.

Their swords flew upward.

Protective talismans shattered around them.

Layers of spiritual Qi wrapped around their bodies desperately.

But it was useless.

The finger descended faster.

The pressure alone crushed the ground around them inward.

Their bodies slowed immediately.

Their spiritual Qi cracked violently under the overwhelming force.

"No!"

"Senior spare us!"

The two screamed at the same time.

Then—

BOOM!

The finger landed.

The earth exploded.

Dirt and blood sprayed everywhere.

The impact echoed across the valley like heavenly punishment.

When the dust finally settled...

Nothing remained of the two cultivators.

Only blood paste spread across the shattered ground.

Zi Yue stared blankly.

Her breathing stopped.

Her mind nearly went empty from shock.

Those two...

Those two were Early Core Formation cultivators.

Experts capable of dominating entire regions.

Cultivators far above her.

And yet...

They died instantly.

No battle, no resistance, no struggle, but just one finger.

Her body trembled harder.

Slowly...

Very slowly...

She lifted her gaze toward the sky.

Toward the massive finger still lingering above.

But the moment her eyes landed on it, fear surged through her again.

She immediately lowered her head.

Her entire body bent deeply against the ground.

"This junior apologizes!"

Her voice shook violently.

"This junior truly apologizes for disturbing Senior Deity again!"

Her forehead pressed against the dirt repeatedly.

"I did not mean to bring trouble into Senior’s sacred land!"

Tears slowly fell from her eyes.

"This junior was desperate! I truly had nowhere else to escape! If this junior offended Senior, then please punish me alone!"

Her breathing became uneven.

"But please... please do not become angry..."

Her fingers clawed tightly into the ground.

"I know beings like Senior stand above heaven and earth themselves. Even this valley probably exists because of Senior’s will. I... I should never have brought outsiders here..."

Her voice became softer.

"But I truly believed nowhere else was safe..."

Inside the classroom, Clayne blinked.

Then scratched his cheek awkwardly.

"...This girl really thinks I’m some ancient god..."

The thought felt surreal.

Still, he leaned closer to the miniature world and whispered quietly.

"Yeah."

Inside the tiny valley, his voice exploded like thunder again.

Zi Yue’s body trembled violently.

"You gave me a ring with some buzzing cultivator inside saying he wanted to take over my body."

Clayne frowned slightly while speaking.

"He was too little and noisy so I swiped his soul into dust."

The valley fell silent.

Zi Yue’s eyes widened instantly.

Her breathing stopped.

"Soul... possession...?"

Fear spread across her face immediately.

Then the massive voice continued.

"Do you know that annoying fly too?"

Zi Yue’s face lost all color.

"No!"

She slammed her forehead into the ground again.

"This junior did not know!"

Her entire body trembled badly.

"I swear this junior truly did not know!"

She sounded terrified now.

Because if what the Deity said was true...

Then she had unknowingly handed a dangerous soul artifact directly to a supreme existence.

Even if the Deity killed her right now, nobody could say it was unfair.

"I could not open the ring myself!"

She hurriedly explained.

"It remained sealed no matter what methods I tried!"

The massive voice thundered again.

"Are you kidding me?"

Zi Yue almost stopped breathing.

Fear overwhelmed her completely.

Immediately, she raised one trembling hand.

"I swear to the heavens!"

Her voice echoed loudly.

"If this junior knowingly tried to harm Senior, then may my cultivation shatter and my soul be destroyed forever!"

The oath formed instantly.

A faint ripple passed through the sky.

Only then did the pressure above lessen slightly.

Inside the classroom, Clayne slowly relaxed.

"...Good."

Honestly, if Zi Yue really knew about that soul earlier, he genuinely did not know what he would have done.

After all, he’s surrounded by undead. So he badly needed her right now.

Down below, Zi Yue continued apologizing repeatedly.

"If this junior knew such danger existed within the ring, then even with ten thousand lives, I would never dare offer it to Senior Deity!"

Her voice remained filled with panic and guilt.

Clayne sighed softly.

"Enough of that."

The tiny world became quiet immediately.

Then he leaned closer slightly.

"I want to ask something about cultivation."

Zi Yue immediately straightened slightly while remaining kneeling.

"Please ask anything, Senior."

Clayne thought for a moment before speaking.

"...Cultivation earlier felt weird."

He slowly explained what happened.

How he followed the cultivation method.

How he suddenly sensed energy moving inside his body.

How everything felt smooth and natural despite him never cultivating before.

Then he described the invisible energy entering his body from outside.

The strange warmth spreading through him.

The feeling of becoming lighter and stronger afterward.

Finally, he spoke about the black dirt.

"A lot of disgusting black blob stuff came out of me afterward."

His face twisted slightly.

"And after cultivating for a while, I felt dizzy."

Zi Yue listened carefully.

The more she listened...

The more shocked she became.

Because every single thing he described matched cultivation perfectly.

No mistakes.

No confusion.

No deviation.

It sounded as though heaven itself personally guided him through the process.

Her heart trembled slightly.

As expected of a Deity.

Then she slowly lowered her head respectfully.

"Senior Deity, what happened earlier is completely normal."

Her voice became calmer while explaining.

"When mortals first begin cultivating, their bodies absorb spiritual energy for the first time. Spiritual Qi enters the meridians, circulates through the body, and cleanses impurities that have accumulated since birth."

She continued carefully.

"The black substance expelled from Senior’s body are impurities and toxins forced out by spiritual energy. The stronger the cultivation method, the stronger the cleansing effect becomes."

Her eyes carried admiration now.

"Ordinary cultivators usually require months or years before their bodies become purified to such a degree. Yet Senior accomplished this immediately."

She took a slow breath.

"As for the dizziness..."

Her expression became thoughtful.

"That is likely because Senior cultivated too quickly while lacking proper rest. Absorbing spiritual energy places pressure upon the mind and soul during the beginning stages. New cultivators often become exhausted afterward."

Zi Yue continued explaining in great detail.

She spoke about the meridians.

The dantian.

The importance of stabilizing spiritual Qi after breakthroughs.

She explained how cultivators strengthened themselves little by little over time while refining both body and spirit together.

Then she explained why the Five Elements cultivation method felt unusually powerful.

Because destructive element cultivation methods naturally possessed greater force than ordinary techniques.

"However..."

She lowered her head respectfully again.

"For someone like Senior Deity, these minor symptoms are completely harmless."

Her voice became softer.

"So Senior does not need to worry."

Inside the classroom, Clayne nodded slowly.

"...Alright then."

His eyes narrowed slightly afterward.

"How do I cultivate faster next?"

The moment those words left his mouth, Zi Yue instinctively opened her lips to answer.

But suddenly—

Her face turned deathly pale.

"Puah!"

A massive mouthful of blood exploded from her lips instantly.