Void Cultivation-Chapter 258-

A few minutes later, Grey and the Captain were already traveling far into the distance using an earth movement art cast by the Captain. With a subtle wave of her hand and a steady flow of energy, the ground beneath them softened like flowing mud. Their bodies gradually sank several meters underground, swallowed by the earth without leaving even the slightest trace on the surface.

This art allowed them to move stealthily beneath the terrain, gliding through soil and stone as though swimming through water. Above them, countless red tentacles swayed incessantly across the surface, writhing like living serpents searching for prey. However, none of them could sense the two figures passing silently below.

With this method, Grey and the Captain would neither be disturbed by the grotesque forest of tentacles nor be trapped within another tunnel of flesh like the one Grey had narrowly escaped.

Several meters underground, the two of them moved at astonishing speed. The earth parted naturally before the Captain and sealed itself behind them, leaving no signs of passage. The Captain remained silent the entire time, her gaze focused forward as though her eyes could pierce through layers of earth and stone to lock onto their destination.

It was obvious that whatever they were heading toward would not be ordinary. The air around her felt heavier, as though even she was wary.

Grey had already agreed to follow her. Even though he still maintained a measure of caution, he knew she would not fabricate something of this magnitude. This reluctant acknowledgment planted a seed of subconscious trust within him, a trust he did not quite want to admit existed.

After sensing his gaze lingering on her, the Captain finally spoke.

"Your friend landed quite a distance from us," she said calmly. "However, tracking her isn’t too difficult. She may already be heading in the same direction as we are."

Her voice was steady, confident.

Grey simply nodded without responding.

Before long, they had crossed an enormous stretch of land underground and were steadily approaching the direction of the giant head looming in the distance, the same grotesque, colossal face that seemed to breathe malice into the very air.

After a while, the Captain spoke again.

"Grey, did you notice the arrival of the sacred weapons that appeared several days ago?"

Grey was caught off guard. "No," he replied honestly.

The Captain glanced at him briefly before continuing. She explained how several halberds had descended from the sky days earlier, radiating terrifying pressure. She described how their aura shook the land and how their tips had pointed toward a specific direction before suddenly disappearing without a trace.

She even detailed the exact direction they had been facing before vanishing.

Grey listened quietly, but his heart began to stir.

He did not want to believe that their appearance had anything to do with him.

Yet when he recalled how the massive face had reacted... how the entire tunnel of flesh had trembled in fear... doubt crept into his thoughts.

The purple crystal.

It possessed an incomprehensible ability to suppress bizarre existences. Its aura was domineering and absolute. Very few things in this strange prison could withstand its suppression.

He did not want to believe that the sacred weapons had responded to him, or rather, to the crystal within him.

But what happened that day defied explanation.

Grey knew only one thing: the purple crystal had mysterious origins, and whatever its true nature was, it was far beyond his current understanding.

Naturally, he did not reveal anything about the crystal to the Captain.

However, he did tell her about his past encounters, including the existence behind the door. That particular experience was too significant to keep hidden, and for some reason, he did not feel the need to conceal it.

The Captain listened without interruption. Her expression remained neutral, but her eyes grew slightly darker as he spoke.

When Grey finished, she finally responded.

"The existence behind the door," she said slowly, "must be a god that was once worshipped before being imprisoned here."

Her tone was measured.

"As for the small person you saw suppressing it... that one must also be a prisoner. However, he appears to be restraining that ’god.’"

She turned her head slightly toward Grey.

"You were fortunate that the existence did not pay much attention to you. It was likely satiated... perhaps even drowsy." A faint pause followed. "Otherwise, you would not be standing here."

She fell silent for a moment before continuing, as though reluctant to reveal more.

"I too have encountered beings of that level. When faced with such existences, there is only one correct choice, and that is to escape without hesitation."

Her voice lowered.

"Before this being died, her body was used to contain many worlds, while her mind was transformed into a prison to suppress countless gods and bizarre entities. Even in death, it continues to fulfill that duty, suppressing them day and night."

A faint trace of complexity flickered across her eyes.

"It is only natural that, over time, some of them break free from their restraints... like the massive face you encountered."

Grey pondered her explanation and found it plausible. None of the imprisoned beings seemed aware of how much time had passed. Even the small person restraining the existence behind the door had shown confusion in his expression before supposedly departing.

The vicissitudes of endless time had been reflected in his eyes.

However, neither Grey nor the Captain realized a terrifying truth.

The small person Grey believed had left to pursue the massive face had never departed at all.

He was still seated within Grey’s purple moon.

Inside the vast expanse of Grey’s sea of consciousness, the small figure sat cross-legged upon the surface of the glowing violet moon. His small eyes were open, quietly observing. He had listened to every word the Captain spoke.

After some time, he slowly closed his eyes and became motionless, like a statue carved from ancient stone.

His level of power was unfathomable.

If he wished to deceive Grey, he would not need to exert the slightest effort. Altering perception, distorting memory, reshaping events, these were trivial matters to him.

He had subtly modified both Grey’s memories and those of the massive face, planting the illusion that he had pursued it.

In truth, he had never left.

To this being, whose cultivation once rivaled that of true gods, even as a fragmented soul remnant, deceiving others was effortless.

It did not matter whether the target was a broken divine existence or a monstrous entity born of madness.

All would be deceived.

And none would realize it.

Seated upon the purple moon, the small figure slowly opened his eyes once more.

"I see..." he murmured softly.

"Some of my memories are returning."

His voice was calm, ancient, and heavy with intent, as though it did not belong to this era. It echoed through every corner of Grey’s sea of consciousness, yet not a single being reacted.

The Mosasaur continued to swim through the vast spiritual ocean with a blank expression.

The Soul Devouring Bird remained perched, silently nourished by Grey’s subconscious energy.

A faint flicker of the Life Demon art surfaced briefly, stabilizing before fading once more.

None of them heard the ancient being’s words.

And outside, Grey continued moving forward, completely unaware that the greatest existence within him had never left at all.

Several hours later, the earth concealment art the captain had used to hide them gradually began to fade. The dense red soil that had swallowed them earlier hardened once more, and the subtle distortion in the ground that concealed their presence slowly dissolved. Within moments, their hidden forms became visible again, as though the world itself had decided to acknowledge their existence.

Seeing this, the captain lifted her head slightly and said in a calm but firm voice, "We continue through the sky."

Grey nodded without hesitation. A second later, both of them shot upward, bursting out from the crimson earth like twin streaks of light. The red soil shattered and scattered beneath them as they ascended rapidly, cutting through the air and rising high into the vast, oppressive sky.

From above, the desolate landscape stretched endlessly in all directions.

In the distance stood the giant severed head.

Two of its massive eyes were open. They did not blink, neither did they did not move.

They simply stared.

Yet even from this far away, Grey felt an unsettling sensation crawl along his spine. It was as though those enormous eyes were focused on something far beyond his perception, something neither he nor the captain could see. No matter how long he observed it, no matter how much he narrowed his gaze and focused his spiritual sense, he could not deduce what the giant head was staring at.

Was it watching an enemy? A memory? Or something that had yet to arrive?

In the end, Grey withdrew his gaze and released a quiet sigh.

That giant head was likely an existence that once stood at the very peak of this world, perhaps even beyond it. The sheer pressure it exuded, even in death, was enough to suppress entire regions. As for why such a being had been beheaded and placed in this strange world like some grotesque monument, Grey had neither the knowledge nor the strength to investigate.

After all, he was merely a low-level cultivator.

His current goal was painfully simple.

Survive.

Nothing more.

He had no luxury to dwell on matters that towered far beyond his comprehension. Compared to that colossal head, he was less than dust, very insignificant and fragile.

And yet...

Grey did not fully remove the matter from his mind.

Instead, he shifted his gaze toward the captain.

Her expression remained solemn. Her brows were slightly furrowed, and her eyes carried a cold determination that bordered on obsession. There was no hesitation in her movements, no doubt in her direction. She was moving forward with absolute intent.

’For the captain to be this persistent...’ Grey thought inwardly. ’Then whatever she’s after must be extremely important.’

It could not merely be a missing piece for some future scheme.

No.

This felt different.

This felt personal.

The air around her carried a weight that had nothing to do with cultivation or pressure. It was the heaviness of unresolved history. Of something unfinished.

Grey could almost feel it. A faint echo of something from her past that had not healed.

His gaze softened slightly.