Ye Jin told Little Wei a great deal. After all, this would soon become an area she’d need to patrol—most of Leap Void Corporation’s business came from these systems.
"You can access the system spaces from here too, just by will alone. But the systems are all working, so I’d advise against disturbing them. Once you take over my role, you can visit those spaces, though."
Ye Jin shrugged and lightly patted Little Wei’s shoulder.
"Alright, seen enough? Or do you want to check out the outside world?" Ye Jin asked with a rare smile.
Honestly, he couldn’t wait to retire.
Being a workhorse was no fun—lying low in the future sounded just fine.
"I really do want to see it. I’m pretty curious about the world out there."
Little Wei truly wanted to know—just what kind of place was the Void?
"It can be dangerous out there. Not exactly a fun spot," Ye Jin warned.
"No worries, I’ll protect my bro," Gu Yu said, ever the loyal one.
"Is that how you got in?"
As Ye Jin walked ahead, Little Wei trailed behind, whispering to Gu Yu.
"Yeah, but it’s just a mechanism. Totally avoidable," Gu Yu replied, amused.
Hearing that, Little Wei felt a bit more at ease.
So those fierce winds were meant to keep intruders out. Made sense—a peaceful place like this would surely attract plenty of unwanted visitors.
"What about Chi Mu? Why hasn’t he moved here?" That part confused Little Wei.
Sure, that kid could be a bit of a brat, but Chi Mu had helped her out last time. She still owed him a good meal.
"Ah, him. I saw him recently. There aren’t many deities left in the Canglan Divine Realm, but they’re considering relocating. Problem is, they still need to oversee Canglan Continent, so they’d have to keep going back and forth. It’s a hassle. Hopefully, they’ll figure something out."
Like shifts, for example. That’d make things much easier.
By then, the trio had stepped outside, where the violent winds nearly tore their clothes apart in an instant.
"Whoa, this place is intense—kilometers of these winds!" Little Wei recoiled, startled.
"Yep. Necessary, though. Keeps the reckless Void creatures at bay," Ye Jin said with a nod before turning to Little Wei. "Told you it wasn’t much to look at."
And he was right.
"Let’s head back."
Ye Jin took Little Wei to a few more spots. The Void Realm was vast, and its cities were nothing short of dazzling.
Once she’d gotten a decent grasp of the place, the hosts finally settled their competition.
"Here’s your reward." Ye Jin placed a transparent glass vial in front of Little Wei.
She shook it lightly, eyeing the contents skeptically.
"Just this blue liquid?"
"Yep. Normally, there wouldn’t be this much, but I figured you wouldn’t need anything else, so I converted it all into soul energy. Don’t let the small amount fool you—this is equivalent to seventy or eighty worlds’ worth."
Little Wei’s hand trembled, nearly dropping the vial.
Holy crap. That was a terrifying quantity.
Wonder if this stuff could cure kidney deficiency.
Wait, no—she wasn’t deficient. Just low on soul energy.
With that in mind, she popped the cap open, but this time, the soul light didn’t merge into her body.
Huh?
What the heck?
For a second, she thought she’d misjudged it—until Ye Jin took the vial, diluted it with water in a few cups, and handed them back.
Little Wei could only admit she was a country bumpkin.
Ugh. So uncultured.
She was such a noob.
"Like this. It’s too concentrated to absorb directly," Ye Jin explained, sliding the cups toward her.
"Just… drink it?" Little Wei was baffled.
"Yep."
She grimaced. Even if it was liquid, it was still part of a human soul, right?
As if reading her mind, Ye Jin chuckled. "It’s not from human souls. Think of it like essence from minor worlds. Hard to explain the exact origin."
Relieved, Little Wei downed it without hesitation.
Gulp, gulp.
Tasted like slightly sweetened mineral water.
Not bad. After finishing, she looked up at Ye Jin with hopeful eyes.
"Got any more? This stuff’s kinda addictive."
Ye Jin: "…"
"Nope. It’s not a beverage. One round’s enough," he said flatly.
Little Wei let out a disappointed "Oh" but didn’t push it.
"So… that’s it? I can ascend now?" She felt like she hadn’t even done anything yet.
"Yep. You can head in now. Want to walk in yourself, or should I send you?" Ye Jin pushed open the door behind him, raising a brow with an eerily pristine smile.
Little Wei’s lips pressed into a thin line.
Ugh. That smile was downright sinister.
She couldn’t even look at him.
"I’ll walk." She wanted zero physical contact with Ye Jin. The guy was trouble.
Last time he’d shoved her, the experience had been horrifying enough.
She was a scaredy-cat—what if she peed herself in fear?
Would Si even wash her pants for her?
Nah. He’d probably just tell her to scram.
"I wasn’t gonna do anything," Ye Jin muttered under his breath.
Little Wei seriously wanted to kick him.
If he pulled any stunts, she’d peace out—screw this stupid throne.
The moment she stepped inside, her vision cleared, and she felt like she’d returned to Canglan Continent. Except the storm clouds overhead were way darker than the day Gu Yu got struck. Definitely not the same place.
This was brutal.
She was on the verge of tears. She wanted to go home. She wanted Si. What kind of hellhole was this? Even dogs wouldn’t come here.
But the door had already shut, and the thunder descended upon her.
The whole ordeal was so miserable that she crawled out afterward, nearly sobbing.
Felt like she’d been run over by life.
Literally wrecked.
She emerged covered in grime, looking like she’d been dug out of a dumpster.
Case in point—Si didn’t even recognize her.
When Little Wei stumbled out, Si completely overlooked the soot-covered figure in front of him, peering past her instead.
"Where’s my Wei?"