The figure, without waiting to hear Xuan’s excuse, suddenly vanished from his eyes.

He felt a chill down his spine, and thus, he turned his body slightly.

It was a miracle he did, because not even a second later, the giant greatsword struck the ground beside him. The ground cracked, and half of the courtyard shattered in two. One side floated in space, while the other was strangely stable.

Naturally, Xuan void stepped to the stable side, and he was immediately met with another attack from the black armored figure. It was a fast attack, but nothing he couldn’t handle.

Weaving under the greatsword, he stomped the ground, trying to disorient the figure. However, all that managed to do was piss the figure off as it began swinging its sword even faster.

The sword connected several times, drawing blood from Xuan. However, Xuan made sure to cover his blood with Poison Qi and Demonic Qi, slowly corroding the sword.

Eventually, he realized that the ground had been destroyed to the point where they were only standing on a 10 by 10 meter platform.

Knowing that he had to step his game up, Xuan tried to activate his Domain. However, no matter how many times he sent the Qi to his brain and expelled it, nothing happened.

Is it because I’m already technically in space? Xuan thought, avoiding an attack. Or maybe it’s because this place is already someone’s domain?

Glancing at the small cracks on the greatsword, he let out a relieved breath.

I should end this.

As another attack came his way, Xuan, instead of backing off, void stepped forward. The figure was at least five meters tall, so he had to be in the air to reach its head. Almost as if the figure was expecting him to do that, it struck its head backward, trying to hit Xuan.

But Xuan wasn’t really an amateur. With armor that heavy and loud, every movement was easy to read. So, when it brought its head back, Xuan suddenly void stepped in front of the figure, and with a sharp slash of his fingertips, he cut half of its neck in one go through the gap in the armor.

Black blood gushed out as the figure staggered, and in a last-ditch effort, swung its greatsword down at Xuan.

Yet Xuan didn’t budge. As the greatsword neared him, he took a deep breath, and then, he gathered nearly a billion Void Qi into his fist.

So when the greatsword was only a few inches away from him, he threw a punch, shattering the greatsword in two and blasting the figure’s head off.

Despite its head soaring through the sky, the figure stepped back, almost as if it were alive. Then, to his genuine surprise, the figure kneeled in his direction and stabbed what remained of its sword into the ground.

And when its head finally landed on the ground, Xuan saw the notifications pour in.

[Ding!]

[First Level Spirit Master - Void Sentinel slain]

[No Void Qi is granted.]

It was only a First Level Spirit Master? Xuan thought, shocked. This guy’s power was definitely above Foyan’s. So how...?

Before he could finish that thought, a more ominous set of notifications appeared.

[You have disrupted the Void Lord’s slumber...]

[The Void Lord acknowledges your presence...]

[The Void Lord detects your tribulation...]

[...]

[The Void Lord extends an invite to you.]

When the last pop-up appeared, Xuan felt a sting in the back of his mind.

Focusing on it, a faint trace of Void Qi left his body, heading in the direction of the main keep of the castle.

He stared at the main keep for a few seconds, and after letting out a sigh, he made his way there.

.

.

.

(2 hours later...)

Just like earlier, the main keep was much further away than it looked. Even then, when he reached it, he was met with an open door, through which the smell of a baked apple pie reached his nose.

"..."

Xuan cautiously approached and stepped inside the main keep. Despite how large it was, the entire first floor was just one giant kitchen, with hundreds of tables.

Yet Xuan didn’t worry himself about that, and instead, he walked over to the source of the smell, spotting a man, nearly a head taller than Xuan, baking pies.

He had black hair, which was tied with a hair tie so it wouldn’t get in the food. His crimson eyes scanned the apple pies carefully, acting as though he didn’t know Xuan had already arrived.

But Xuan’s next words made him freeze.

"Cute pink apron you got there. Definitely matches the whole vibe you’re going for."

"..."

"Anyways... You’re the Void Lord, right?" Xuan continued. "I can’t feel anyone else in the castle. Only you."

The man slowly turned around, his eyes fiercely locked onto Xuan.

After a silent exchange, the man spoke.

"You’re very reckless."

"If it’s about that guard I killed, I’m sorry," Xuan replied with a slight bow. "It attacked me first. I just defended myself."

The man shook his head. "You should know that’s not what I’m talking about."

Xuan thought about it for a moment, but he came up blank. That was when the man explained further.

"Rejecting the will of heaven is brave, but very reckless. More so, you decided to go through a heaven’s tribulation right after making an enemy of them? Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

"Heaven’s tribulation?" Xuan raised a brow. "I just want to reach the other realm."

The man stared at Xuan, then facepalmed.

"Your world is considered the Heavenly Faction’s territory. Going through a tribulation on their faction’s grounds counts as a heavenly tribulation."

He rubbed his neck and picked up an apple pie, placing it right in front of Xuan.

"You’re both an enemy of the Demonic Faction and the Heavenly Faction. Seriously... I haven’t met someone like you in a very long time."

"..."

As crystal clear as it was, Xuan was now unnervingly wary.

The man smiled, cutting up the pie into several pieces. After that, he plated the apple pie and pushed it closer to Xuan.

"Every time you go through a tribulation in a faction’s territory, they’ll be alerted. Since you’re their enemy, they might send someone down to kill you."

Hearing that, Xuan froze, his heart rate increasing.

He hadn’t picked up on the hints earlier because he was too focused on the tribulation.

But he was in here for nearly four hours, which meant...

"My companions... they were protecting me before I vanished. Are they alright? They left, didn’t they?"

"..."

The man quietly scooped up a piece of the apple pie and took a bite, then another, and another. Each bite made Xuan more anxious, until finally, the man finished the entire slice.

He met Xuan’s gaze, and in a composed voice said:

"Do you want the good news or the bad news?"