Chapter 102: A Great Upheaval Unfolds! A Foreboding and Mysterious Realm!

Even Lin Yi’s ears were buzzing from the roar.

A fierce wind began to sweep through, stinging the face painfully. Lin Yi’s clothes fluttered wildly in the gusts. Zhang Xu, filled with regret, couldn’t help but think that Lin Yi’s brother had been absolutely right—he was a fool. Now, the only way to survive was to cling tightly to Lin Yi’s thigh!

Ahead of them, a leather ball bounced erratically, seemingly about to collide with Lin Yi. Lin Yi remained unfazed, but Zhang Xu, already dizzy and disoriented, shivered and darted behind Lin Yi. The terror plastered across Zhang Xu’s face was so vivid it could be captured and sold as reaction memes.

Lin Yi stretched out his hand. Despite the howling wind around them, nothing could disrupt the pure, blazing, and fierce energy unleashed by Lin Yi’s “Great Void Classic.”

With a thunderous explosion, the leather ball burst into black smoke—it was merely an illusion.

Lin Yi admired this—it was typical of these demons and spirits. Regardless of their strength, even those not yet masters possessed remarkable psychic talents, weaving illusions as skillfully as Zhang Ruofeng and the old principal Gu Leiming. Their gifts surpassed ordinary mortals by far.

This low-level vengeful spirit child’s illusion was so convincing that, if you didn’t watch closely, you’d believe the ball was real. Lin Yi’s eyes were among the sharpest short of a master’s—without channeling the “Great Void Classic” energy into his sight, even he might miss the black smoke emanating from the ball. Zhang Xu certainly couldn’t discern its true nature.

Comparing these beings’ talents to humans born with cultivation potential—who are akin to immortals—was disheartening. Without the red mist that stirred latent gifts like Pang Wudi’s, humans might even seem weaker.

Lin Yi doubted the old tales claiming demons and spirits took ages to grow powerful. Most gifted demons cultivated rapidly and were formidable.

“Brother... I kindly invited you to play ball with me, why did you break it? Brother, you’re so mean...” mourned the rattling skeletal spirit child before dissolving into black smoke and vanishing. Part of the ominous energy dissipated.

Lin Yi smiled. This ghost child was quite interesting. Remarkably, it had never killed anyone. Without a message from the “Nerve Severance” app, Lin Yi might not have believed it. Yet, given its mischievous nature and the fact it had stolen Bai Ke’s phone, Lin Yi felt compelled to study it more closely—to decide if it needed to be eliminated.

If the ghost child were truly kind, it wouldn’t have led Lin Yi and Zhang Xu into this shattered barrier pocket.

“The Rebirth of the Turbulent Era”

“Hmm, this ghost child might be the missing child from Group Ten of Shanghe Village. If so, it’s normal it hasn’t killed anyone since it just became a ghost. If not, that’s also plausible—perhaps few have ventured into this pigeonhole cave to kill it...”

The ghost child disappeared, transforming into a dark energy cluster that drifted downward as pale smoke into the broken barrier pocket below. It had entered just ahead of Lin Yi and Zhang Xu.

Though dragged into this fragmented pocket, Lin Yi remained calm. At worst, he could enter the mysterious space of “Nerve Severance” and survive long enough—what was there to fear?

This foray into the broken barrier pocket was primarily for scavenging, a proactive move by Lin Yi. Otherwise, he would have moved as soon as “Nerve Severance” relayed information about the space.

Moreover, Lin Yi could always retreat to the “Nerve Severance” space to avoid danger. But he didn’t want to leave just yet.

He longed for the Flaming Fire Talisman, a deadly weapon against ghosts and demons—one toss could wipe out countless fiends. The thrill of scavenging was exhilarating, but currently, he had none.

Apart from “Nerve Severance,” Lin Yi only possessed the Buddhist relic, the Fierce Tiger Ghost-Headed Blade, and the Black Snow Sword—nothing else.

If anything, he only had the oil lamp on the stone table inside the “Nerve Severance” mysterious space. Sometimes, when the app flipped a page, the lamp would light up; other times, it remained dark. If Lin Yi could ignite the lamp and spill its oil, he reckoned it would incinerate a vast number of demons.

“If that doesn’t work, I could use the spirit water from the sacred well. Maybe if the ominous energy collides with the spiritual energy in the water, it could shatter the bad energy... hmm, no, that might backfire since the demons probably prefer spiritual energy. It might not repel them at all. Plus, it’s wasteful. Better to just kill those demons with my fists and feet myself.”

After much thought, Lin Yi noticed the howls and wails grew louder, but the dizziness that plagued him and trembling Zhang Xu vanished. Instead, a sensation of weightlessness enveloped them, as if they were falling into a vast abyss.

Looking around, Lin Yi saw a great hole beneath them—they were falling down!

It was clear now: they had been sucked into the broken barrier pocket.

In the next moment, they plunged into a black void.

The sky above had darkened completely. The ghostly screams that had filled their ears faded into faint whispers.

Yet, within the darkness, ghostly figures gathered from all directions, even passing close to the falling pair.

These specters took myriad forms—some resembled animals like wild boars, tigers, wolves, and giant snakes; others were human spirits missing limbs. There were also strange shapes that looked like flowers, trees, or oddly shaped stones.

An astonishing variety, as if every living thing could be transformed into a demon or ghost, all converging in the sky.

As they fell, their descent suddenly slowed, followed by a thud as they hit the ground.

Lin Yi was fine, but Zhang Xu lost his footing and fell face-first into the dirt, mouth full of earth. Still, it was better than dying.

Surrounding them was pitch darkness.

Suddenly, the sky shimmered with iridescent light, resembling the aurora borealis—ribbons of colorful light twisting and swimming across the sky, bathing the space in dazzling hues.

With this illumination, the ghostly figures they had seen while falling became even more distinct.

“What’s going on? Why are there so many ghostly shapes? These aren’t just shadows of demons and spirits; some resemble plants and flowers. This is very unusual... It’s different from the grayish images in ‘Nerve Severance’ and also unlike what the elders described about the broken barrier pocket...”

“I recall ‘Nerve Severance’ once warned that this shattered pocket space is extremely prone to explosions and very dangerous. It’s best to leave quickly. Well, I have the mysterious space from ‘Nerve Severance’ to fall back on, so I won’t die, but Zhang Xu might not be so lucky. I need to find a way to get him out.”

Coughing and spitting dirt, Zhang Xu got to his feet and surveyed their surroundings.

He gasped, “My goodness, this place...”

Scrambling, he hurried to Lin Yi’s side before standing upright.

As soon as they landed, a cold, eerie wind began to blow.

Waves of thick ominous energy rippled outward like water, each wave intensifying until the malevolent power thickened beyond description.

Then, this dark energy transformed into black smoke that surged toward Lin Yi and Zhang Xu, striking them.

The corrosive sound signaled the energy’s attempt to infiltrate their bodies.

Lin Yi quickly activated the “Great Void Classic,” and Zhang Xu followed suit, their auras surging to repel the assault.

The ominous energy grew denser and stronger, its intensity rising like the resistance Lin Yi felt from “Nerve Severance.”

The broken barrier pocket was rejecting both Lin Yi and Zhang Xu.

This was inevitable. They were not demons or spirits; they lacked the tainted energy that allowed those beings to thrive here. Instead, they carried pure, refined power, making them targets.

Lin Yi glanced around and saw how much the broken barrier pocket had changed.

Countless ghostly figures and the vibrant ribbons of light all symbolized concentrated streams of ominous energy.

Demons and spirits relied on this energy to cultivate more of their own. This allowed them to dwell in the broken pocket without being repelled.

Something was shifting.

Some of the energy took the form of ghostly apparitions, while others followed the large breach in the barrier like a black hole.

If Lin Yi hadn’t seen the images from “Nerve Severance,” he might have missed the significance.

Where the other dark energy clusters and ghost figures were headed in the center remained unknown.

According to the gray-scale pictures from “Nerve Severance,” this should have been a self-contained world.

Despite the dense ominous energy, demons had territories they defended, sustained by the energy, living in a seemingly real realm.

But now, with the barrier pocket shattered and part of the ominous energy leaking out through the breach, the place had grown even more desolate.

Though the ominous energy was abundant, it was chaotic.

This likely explained why many demons had lost their consciousness, becoming mere ghostly shadows drifting numb toward the breach or the center.

It was no longer a self-contained world.

Lin Yi felt the “Great Void Classic” inside him draining steadily.

Though the depletion was gradual, it was unsustainable.

Luckily, Lin Yi’s cultivation was based on the “Great Void Classic,” which somewhat mitigated the drain.

Zhang Xu, however, was clearly struggling, trembling like a leaf.

His eyes darted nervously all around, filled with fear.

Countless pairs of eerie green eyes watched them from near and far.

Some were downright chilling.

Each eye belonged to a demon or spirit.

They varied in size and shape, some bright, others dim.

The surroundings were desolate—trees and plants charred as though burned, and the soil beneath their feet was pitch black.