"Your Highness, let Franze and the others go first. We don't know what danger lies on the other side. I'll follow after you to protect you from behind," Captain Logan suggested.

"Sure," Prince Charles replied casually. He truly did not care.

No matter the arrangement, the result would be the same. He knew exactly where the portal would lead. It would open directly inside his kingdom's Royal Palace. There was no safer destination for him in this entire world. The others might worry about ambushes or other dangers, but to him, this crossing was nothing more than stepping through his own front door.

As the royal guards advanced toward the portal, Prince Charles folded his hands behind his back and began reflecting on everything that had transpired.

It's a pity that many things didn't go as I planned.

Captain Shino was one such example. Shino had clearly done something to the eight hundred people he left behind, intending to retaliate against him. Prince Charles had deliberately refused to take any of them into his faction. Instead, he redirected them to other forces, expecting suspicion, paranoia, perhaps even chaos to bloom from within. He had anticipated unrest spreading like cracks across glass.

But in the end, nothing happened.

It was quite a letdown.

Shino must have realized that none of those eight hundred had actually joined Charles' side, so he just abandoned his retaliation plan.

Then there was Crown Prince Dastan, the two scholars who interfered with his portal, and several other slippery individuals who kept escaping the roles he had prepared for them. These were all unexpected variables. Disturbances in his carefully arranged game. He would have to accept that such variables would always exist and learn to adjust his plans accordingly, refining them to accommodate the unpredictable.

Still, although many events had deviated from his design, he had gained valuable experience. Every flaw exposed was a lesson. Every interference revealed a weakness in his structure. There was much to improve before the next game began.

For now, he would focus on reaching the Nascent Soul Realm. Power was the ultimate guarantee. Once he stood at that height, the board would shrink, and the pieces would move far more obediently.

Hehehe. I'll wait on the other side and see who dares to follow this portal to our Royal Palace.

There was plenty of space in their newly constructed prison. Empty cells waiting patiently. Free test subjects for me. The thought amused him more than it should have.

By the time his reflections concluded, it was already his turn to cross.

"Logan," Prince Charles said lightly, glancing over his shoulder, "before you come through, dismantle the camp and make sure everyone realizes the portal is here. They need to work hard if they want a place in my prison. Sigh… I'm rather sad I won't get to witness the bloody spectacle myself."

As for the Spiritual Vein, he would claim it for himself in the future.

With that, Prince Charles stepped into the portal, a bright smile resting on his face as his figure disappeared into the liquid-like purple surface.

Captain Logan looked baffled. Prison? He failed to understand what Prince Charles's words meant again.

However, he was already used to the lack of important context. Understanding the prince was a futile effort. All he had to do was follow orders.

He stood alone now. The other Royal Guards had already crossed. Only he remained.

He turned and surveyed the empty camp. Tents, supplies, the remnants of their faction's presence. With a wave of his hand, he released his Qi.

Destruction followed.

Tents erupted into flames. Supplies scattered and burned. The ground itself cracked under the force of his attacks. Within moments, the camp that had housed thousands was reduced to rubble and ash.

Smoke billowed into the sky. The glow of fires lit the darkness.

As intended, it attracted attention immediately.

Satisfied that his task was complete, Captain Logan turned and stepped into the portal.

From the direction of Bellion City, heads turned. Eyes widened. Shouts rang out.

"Look! There is the portal! It did not vanish! It is outside the city now!"

"Quick! We should cross right away!"

Since the portal had reappeared at Prince Charles's former camp, it was natural that members of his faction noticed it first. They were closest. They rushed forward without hesitation.

But everyone knew the portal had a limited capacity. Only so many could cross before it deactivated.

The race began.

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Those who feared they might not make it started to hold others back. Pushes became shoves. Shoves became attacks. Attacks became killing blows.

The first wave managed to cross. Around two hundred people slipped through before the situation spiraled completely out of control.

More and more people arrived from all directions. Cultivators from the other factions, from the surrounding areas, from everywhere. The vicinity became crowded, chaotic, and deadly.

Every time someone tried to enter the portal now, they were bombarded with attacks from all sides. Spells, blades, projectiles, everything aimed at anyone who dared approach.

Crossing became nearly impossible.

BOOM! BANG!

CRASH! SHING!

"Out of my way!"

"You think you deserve to go home more than me? Die!"

"Together! Let us push through together!"

"Fool! There is no together! Only the strong survive!"

"Arghhh!"

"Stop! Stop killing each other! We just want to go home!"

"Shut up! If I cannot go, none of you will!"

The area around the portal had transformed into something unrecognizable.

What initially was the intense desire to go home had completely mutated into something else. The battlefield around the portal was now soaked in blood as cultivators became more focused on preventing others from entering than crossing over themselves.

Eventually, those from Prince Ozan and Supreme Alchemist Mujin's camps also started to arrive. The area became extremely chaotic. They could not even see where the portal was anymore amid all the destruction.

Different kinds of Qi clashed all over the place, causing explosions to erupt continuously. The atmosphere grew thick with bloodlust, killing intent, and raw desperation. Thousands of cultivators killed each other as if they had lost their minds.

No, it was not "as if." Most of them truly had lost their sanity due to the overwhelming atmosphere. In chaotic wars between cultivators, this was a normal occurrence. The mind became easily affected, corrupted by the collective madness.

As time passed, more and more people died. The number of deaths quickly exceeded the number of people who successfully crossed the portal. Some died in direct clashes. Some died from stray attacks. Some were caught in the explosions of others' techniques.

But not all were carried away by the intense emotion to return.

Half of the cultivators outside the city did not participate in the madness. They observed from a distance, watching the horror unfold. They saw how dangerous and terrifying the battleground had become and managed to stop themselves from getting involved.

Inside the city, those gathered were already aware of the chaotic battles at the former location of Prince Charles's camp. Even the tremors alone were enough to alert them. But they still did not know the cause of the war outside.

Only a few people with a far-reaching spiritual sense could glimpse the portal within all the chaos.

Leyvi's eyes widened as realization struck.

"How did the portal end up out there?"

His hands still worked hard, giving Anda the massages needed to calm her down. The atmosphere no longer felt hot and suffocating. The crowd inwardly praised and thanked Leyvi for quelling her rage. But after that, they became depressed again. Their chance to go home was gone.

"What? The portal is out there?" Barcas and Barbara exclaimed at the same time. Now it clicked why there was a sudden war outside.

"It looks like this wasn't a coincidence. Someone likely has the power to manipulate the portal, including moving it around as desired," Anda deduced, her voice steady again. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Hearing this, Bellion frowned. He began suspecting that the portal appearing in the middle of his city was not just a coincidence. It most likely involved people from Prince Charles's faction. It had been done deliberately to make everyone attack his grand formation.

"This was most likely done by someone with spatial affinity. Right, brother?" Barbara said.

Barcas nodded slowly. "I think so too. But I never would have expected their ability to be like this. It far exceeds my expectations." He paused, thinking. "What I had in mind when I said they could move the portal was something like grabbing it and dragging it away. But to just teleport it away..." He stopped mid-sentence.

"Wait, no. Actually, that makes more sense. We are talking about spatial affinity here. It should not be a surprise that someone with spatial affinity could just teleport things." Barcas palmed his forehead, realizing the error in his thought process.

He could not help but sigh. He had been looking for people with spatial affinity to help him with his research for years. Only to discover they existed in this situation, under these circumstances.

While they discussed and observed the war raging outside, their outward calm belied their inner state. Their hearts were restless, anxious, and disappointed. After all, they had almost returned to their world.

A few moments later, without warning, both Barcas and Barbara collapsed at the same time.

Their bodies hit the ground almost in unison.

They began shivering violently. Their eyes were wide open, pupils trembling as if they were staring at something unspeakably horrifying. Their breathing turned ragged and uneven. White foam gathered at the corners of their mouths as their Qi spiraled into chaos.

"Barbara!" Leyvi reacted instantly, catching her before her head struck the floor. He pulled her into his arms, pressing his palm against her back as his Qi flowed into her meridians, stabilizing the violent fluctuations and preventing Qi deviation.

Livana dropped beside Barcas, panic flooding her expression. She called his name again and again, her voice shaking as she guided her own Qi into his body, desperately trying to suppress the turbulence within him.

"They can't hear us!" Livana's voice cracked.

Leyvi's gaze sharpened. "Why both of them at the same time? Who is targeting them?"

His spiritual sense swept across the crowd in a wide arc, searching for hostile intent. There were many frightened faces, but no obvious attacker. No sudden burst of killing intent aimed in their direction.

"They're experiencing extreme, overwhelming terror," Anda said, her tone serious. "Leave this to me."

She closed her eyes briefly and gathered her thoughts. A moment later, a subtle fragrance spread from her body. It was faint yet penetrating, slipping gently into the senses like cool mist drifting through a burning forest. She carefully guided the scent toward Barcas and Barbara, isolating it from the others.

The effect was immediate.

Their trembling began to subside. Their chaotic Qi gradually settled, the violent surges smoothing into something manageable. The white foam at their mouths stopped forming. Their breathing steadied.

Barbara's eyes regained a sliver of focus.

"Ter… terrifying energy…" she whispered weakly, her fingers gripping Leyvi's sleeve. "We… must run…"

Her voice broke, and she fainted in his arms.

Barcas collapsed into unconsciousness almost at the same time.

"Terrifying energy?" Leyvi frowned, wanting to ask more, but neither of them could respond.

Then—

BOOOOMMM!!

The entire city shook.

Leyvi's head snapped toward the battlefield outside. In the distance, an explosion erupted with a force unlike anything he had witnessed before. A massive pillar of light surged into the sky, expanding outward in a violent sphere.

It was purple.

The exact same shade as the portal.

The shockwave that followed rolled across the land like a tidal wave of destruction.

Don't tell me… the chaos caused the portal to explode?

His brows knitted tightly.

Is this the terrifying energy Barbara warned about?