Quentin Wood said, "When the universe was first divided, the part of the Chaotic World that was broken open was only a corner of the vast cosmos. In the vast universe, there are countless Chaotic Worlds that have not been broken open. Back then, when Morgan Du escaped, it was by using one of these newly opened Chaotic Worlds to hide himself."
Charlotte Ling was beginning to understand. She asked, "Senior, could it be that the Lost Dao Domain we are in is also one of those Chaotic Worlds that hasn't been broken open...?"
Quentin Wood nodded, "You guessed right. Back then, after the many powerful cultivators joined forces with Morgan Du to kill Dominic Du and his seven disciples, they suppressed Morgan Du together, trying to force him to hand over the Five Elements Essence and the World Tree. The result was a great battle, and after being severely wounded, Morgan Du opened up an unopened Chaotic World and hid inside."
At that time, everyone knew that if Morgan Du managed to fuse the Eight Genesis Resonances in the Chaotic World and return, none of them would be able to escape. So they gathered millions of cultivators to bombard the space where Morgan Du had escaped, hoping to break open the Chaotic World he entered.
In the end, they did break open a vast and boundless Chaotic World, but it was not the one Morgan Du was in. I think you understand now—this Chaotic World is the place we are in. When this world was opened, it was filled with endless peerless treasures, overflowing with chaotic energy, Third-Step Dao Fruits, innate artifacts..."
Charlotte Ling stood dumbfounded, feeling the Dao resonance in the air around her. Although she sensed that the rules here were complete, she always felt something was missing...
Quentin Wood looked at Charlotte Ling and said, "You must have noticed, right? The laws of heaven and earth here are complete, but there is no Dao. That is to say, after you come here, your cultivation will gradually decline, and your Dao will remain forever stagnant."
Charlotte Ling frowned and said, "That can't be right..."
But after saying just those three words, Charlotte Ling immediately said, "I understand now."
The reason she said it wasn't right was because when she arrived, she was only at the early Dao Fusion stage. If there was no Dao here, how could she have advanced to the middle Dao Fusion stage?
But she quickly realized that her breakthrough to the middle Dao Fusion stage had nothing to do with the Dao here. It was due to the Chaotic Magma and the Sacred Sun Pearl. Without either, she could not have advanced. In other words, if she parted from the Sacred Sun Pearl and continued cultivating here, she would likely make no further progress at all.
Quentin Wood did not ask what Charlotte Ling had understood. He simply pointed in a direction and said, "Never go over there. That is the residence of the peerless experts of the Lost Dao Domain. If you go, not even your bones will remain."
"Thank you, Senior." Charlotte Ling bowed respectfully, feeling that Quentin Wood was not deceiving her.
Quentin Wood nodded, then took out a jade slip and handed it to Charlotte Ling. "You are new to the Lost Dao Domain, so I am giving you a map jade slip. It marks some places you can try your luck, and others you must not go to. I have marked them all."
After thanking him again, Charlotte Ling asked, "Senior Wood, so many experts are gathered here—why don't they leave?"
Quentin Wood gave a self-mocking smile. "Do you think leaving is so easy? Once you enter a Chaotic World, you must surpass the Third Step to leave. Back then, Morgan Du sealed himself in a Chaotic World, and he couldn't get out either. Unless an unrivaled force breaks open that Chaotic World, no one can leave. Most cultivators who come here are only at the Third Step. Many, like me, have already regressed to the Second Step. Soon, I will regress to the First Step. When my cultivation finally declines, I will perish here. If those people had known that they'd never be able to leave once inside, I wonder if any would have come at all."
At this point, Quentin Wood looked at Charlotte Ling and said pointedly, "You said you entered through a void rift. I know that's impossible. If those people find out the Lost Dao Domain has gained an outsider like you, they'll go mad trying to tear you to pieces, searching for how you got in. Because everyone here is desperate to get out."
Charlotte Ling had already developed a respect for Quentin Wood. If not for the matter of the Sacred Sun Pearl, she would have told the truth. But because of the Sacred Sun Pearl, she could not be honest with Quentin Wood.
"Senior, did you also take part in the siege against Dominic Du?" Charlotte Ling changed the subject.
Quentin Wood gave a self-mocking smile. "When the universe was first divided, ants like me weren't even qualified to meet Dominic Du, let alone join the siege. Do you think the powerful cultivators Dominic Du killed were kind? In truth, they were just like him, only weaker. If they sat in his place, they'd have done the same things he did."
Back then, those powerful cultivators suddenly broke open an unopened Chaotic World, and millions of cultivators surged in. I was just an ancient tree at the time of world creation, and only because I sensed the aura of creation did I transform into a Dao body and cultivate to the Third Step. At that time, I too was blinded by the endless treasures and rushed in with the others."
"Logically, an unopened Chaotic World shouldn't be like this. Why did it turn out this way? Senior, you said there are treasures everywhere here." Charlotte Ling even overlooked the fact that Quentin Wood was a tree transformed into human form.
Quentin Wood explained, "For the Dao to persist and continue in the universe, there must be vitality and inheritance. Without inheritance, there is no vitality. The Lost Dao Domain was forcibly opened by those cultivators; it did not experience the aura of creation and thus has no inheritance rules. Once we use up the chaotic energy here, there will be no more vitality.
After those powerful cultivators entered and were trapped, they finally understood this truth, but it was too late. The Dao, like those treasures, will disappear with time. In the Lost Dao Domain, no matter who the Dao companions are, none can have descendants. Of the millions who entered, less than one percent remain. That I am still alive is a miracle, perhaps due to my original form."
Charlotte Ling fell silent. She finally understood why the Lost Dao Domain seemed so desolate. It was once overflowing with treasures, but after so many years with no new life born here, even the best things are eventually exhausted.
Charlotte Ling sensed Quentin Wood's sorrow and suddenly said, "Senior Wood, maybe someone will break open this place and let us out."
Quentin Wood smiled, "Stay here for ten million years, and you'll know it's just a fantasy."
"No," Charlotte Ling suddenly said, "maybe someone really will come in. I believe that if he comes, he'll find a way to break open this world and leave."
"Who is it?" Quentin Wood asked in astonishment.
Charlotte Ling was thinking of Joe Di. She wondered, if Joe Di tried to rescue her, would he enter the Chaotic Magma as she had, letting it carry him here? She vaguely knew that Joe Di had a world of his own, and that world might not be inferior to her Sacred Sun Pearl.
Thinking of this, Charlotte Ling suddenly shivered. She realized that if Joe Di's world was not as miraculous as the Sacred Sun Pearl and was melted by the Chaotic Magma, what then? She had seen Joe Di charge into the Chaotic Magma and strike at Qianfu Yan with his blade.
Quentin Wood sensed Charlotte Ling's anxiety. He shook his head and was about to speak, when his expression suddenly changed. He urgently said to Charlotte Ling, "We must leave immediately, or it'll be too late."
With that, Quentin Wood's figure flickered and vanished into the distance. Charlotte Ling quickly gathered her thoughts and rushed after him.
......