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Chapter 504 Welcome to the Eternal Divine Kingdom

Inside the golden hall, it was so quiet that even breathing could be heard clearly.

Lin Chuqiao slowly looked around, her eyes filled with unconcealed shock.

Hundreds of stone pillars, each as thick as two people could hug, pierce the arched dome tens of meters high, supporting a magnificent space that is beyond compare.

Sunlight streamed through the ornately decorated stained-glass windows, casting dappled patterns of light and shadow into the hall.

As her gaze moved, the light and shadow seemed to come alive, intertwining into a flowing river of light.

This place resembles a sacred and solemn religious temple, yet it also exudes an aura of royal majesty, inspiring awe in those who are not in awe.

Even though she came from a prestigious family and was used to luxury and grandeur, everything before her eyes was still beyond Lin Chuqiao's comprehension.

She tentatively reached out and gently touched a stone pillar beside her with her fingertips.

It is cold, hard, and you can even feel the rough texture of the rock surface.

The incredibly realistic touch sent a shiver down her spine.

This is not an illusion, nor a vague dream, but a real space.

"Welcome to my world."

A gentle and familiar voice came from above, echoing softly throughout the hall.

Lin Chuqiao suddenly raised her head.

At the far end of the hall, at the top of the ascending steps, stood a tall golden throne.

The man who haunted her dreams sat upright on it, quietly looking down at her.

The golden light surrounding him slowly receded, revealing his sharply defined face with a faint smile on his lips.

"Brother Cheng?!"

Lin Chuqiao exclaimed in surprise, disregarding her usual ladylike image, she lifted her skirt and quickly ran up the steps.

It wasn't until she stood in front of Fang Cheng, reached out and touched his warm palm, and felt his familiar pulse that she was convinced that it was all real.

"Is this...is this your spiritual realm?"

Lin Chuqiao's beautiful eyes widened as she surveyed the magnificent palace, her voice filled with undisguised amazement:
“That’s incredible! I originally thought that the new meditation method you mentioned in the car this afternoon was just a simple exchange at some level of consciousness.”

"Establish a mental link just like before, only a little further apart."

"I never expected... that it would pull me directly into such a realistic secret realm."

Seeing Lin Chuqiao's agitated state, Fang Cheng smiled slightly, took her hand, and stood up.

"To be precise, this is an inner world constructed by my will, and you are now entering here in the form of a consciousness."

"It's just that the environment here is so realistic that it gives you the illusion of being there."

He didn't explain too many obscure details, but simply used a metaphor:

"Hmm, it sounds rather mystical. You can think of it as a subspace that exists between reality and illusion, and has certain growth characteristics."

"Or rather, it leans more towards the special dimension of Night City, which exists in the cracks of the world."

"Subspace... Night City..."

Lin Chuqiao muttered to herself, as if she had remembered something, and suddenly looked up at Fang Cheng:

"Just now, when I was meditating at home using the method you described, I felt as if I had fallen into a pitch-black abyss."

"All around was a thick, impenetrable fog, and only a faint light could be seen hanging in the distance, just like the sun you described."

"But the light was so faint, dimmer than the stars in the sky."

"I followed the direction and tried to grope my way forward, but I kept going around in circles and couldn't get closer to that light."

"Moreover, there is a kind of... terrifying sense of oppression in my heart, as if there is a force that is constantly preventing me from getting close to you, and even trying to drag me back."

"At that moment, I almost thought I was going to get lost inside..."

The feeling of being bound by an invisible force and almost suffocating still makes Lin Chuqiao shudder when she thinks about it now.

"That is the power that is imprisoned deep within your bloodline."

Fang Cheng listened patiently to her story and calmly explained:
"To bring you here, we must first break that barrier and dissolve that power."

"So, I used a slightly 'tougher' approach, but I didn't scare you, did I?"

Lin Chuqiao shook her head, her eyes suddenly lighting up:
"So that golden light piercing the darkness was you... No wonder that warm feeling felt so familiar."

She then looked up, gazing thoughtfully at the deep, star-like dome:
"Ordinary spiritual realms are often structurally unstable, unable to accommodate external consciousness for long periods of time, and also unable to handle too many people online at the same time."

"Moreover, the spiritual connection between them is very fragile and easily disturbed by external factors."

"But this place feels very different."

She gazed intently out the window, her eyes glimpsing the outside world through the stained glass:
"The laws seem complete, and the spatial structure is incredibly stable."

"It's not like a dream that could collapse at any moment, but more like a small world that is evolving on its own and has its own independent rules."

At this point, Lin Chuqiao's gaze sharpened as she turned to look at Fang Cheng:
"Brother Cheng, do you know what this means?"

"Tell me."

Fang Cheng looked at her with great interest.

"First and foremost is security."

Lin Chuqiao's eyes flickered slightly, and she said with certainty:
“If we can come and go freely here, then members of the Illuminati will not need to worry about being eavesdropped on or having their secrets leaked when holding important meetings.”

"There are no electronic signals, no physical surveillance, and not even mental probing can get in here. It can be said to be the safest gathering place in the world."

Seeing Fang Cheng nod in agreement, she perked up, thought for a moment, and continued:

"Secondly, it's about convenience."

"No matter where we are in the world, as long as we simply visualize the sun, without needing a quiet environment or meditation, we can instantly assemble here to exchange intelligence and deploy tactics."

"This zero-latency communication and command capability is likely to be our greatest strategic advantage in the future."

"Not only that."

Fang Cheng smiled and continued her sentence:
"Here, the flow of time, environmental changes, and even physical rules can theoretically be adjusted by me."

"Although we can't do that much right now, using it as a training ground to cultivate members, or to practice tactics and improve members' abilities will definitely be twice as effective."

Of course, there is another crucial function, which Fang Cheng has not yet revealed.

That is to directly send one's consciousness into the other person by inputting one's own spiritual energy, and even temporarily take over the other person's body.

This ability is too domineering, and could even be described as somewhat evil.

Even with the closest companions, it still involves an infringement on personal privacy and free will.

Moreover, Fang Cheng himself had not yet fully grasped the risks involved.

Unless faced with a life-or-death emergency, he would not easily use it on Lin Chuqiao, and he had no intention of revealing this secret now.

Even so, Lin Chuqiao was still quite shocked.

Even with her extensive knowledge, she couldn't help but be alarmed by this idea.

She knew all too well what such extraordinary abilities meant to an organization.

This is almost like having a portable base.

"Come on, let me show you around."

Fang Cheng led the still excited Lin Chuqiao on a stroll through the magnificent palace.

The sound of their footsteps echoed in the empty hall.

Lin Chuqiao was like a young girl who had just entered the Grand View Garden, showing unusual curiosity the whole way.

Sometimes I would stroke the exquisite reliefs on the walls, and sometimes I would carefully observe the mysterious painted patterns on the dome.

He even ran to the edge of the main hall, trying to push open the French windows to see the outside world.

"Did you create all of this?"

Lin Chuqiao turned to look at Fang Cheng, her eyes overflowing with admiration and affection.

In this world that belonged only to the two of them, she no longer hid her inner thoughts:
"Brother Cheng, how many secrets are you still hiding?"

"I feel like you're a huge iceberg. Every time I see even a small part of you, I realize I don't know you well enough..."

Fang Cheng smiled but did not answer. He walked to her side and stood beside her. At this moment, the two of them stood on the high palace corridor, overlooking the entire golden hall.

This scene looks just like a king and queen inspecting their territory.

The surroundings were rather empty, lacking the grand spectacle of officials surrounding the area.

“This is just the beginning…”

Fang Cheng turned his head, gazing into Lin Chuqiao's eyes, openly enjoying this trust and admiration:
"In the future, this place will become more lively and more complete, truly becoming a real world."

"And you are the first person to witness all of this."

Lin Chuqiao's cheeks flushed slightly, and a sweet feeling welled up in her heart as she thought about how she could enjoy such an honor all to herself.

After a moment, Fang Cheng withdrew his gaze and gently patted the back of her hand:

"Alright, that concludes our tour for now. We have another guest waiting to pick us up."

Although Lin Chuqiao was somewhat reluctant, she knew that business was more important, so she obediently nodded and stepped aside.

With the experience of the first success, the subsequent operations went much more smoothly.

Fang Cheng returned to the high platform and sat back on the golden throne that symbolized absolute power.

His eyes narrowed slightly as he mobilized the full power of his inner world, using the same method to perform a spiritual resonance.

The true fire of the sun, under his will, coalesced into an indestructible arrow of light.

The next second, the golden arrow of light was released and shot precisely at the star that represented Ye Zhiren.

Soon the dark void was illuminated, and another dazzling pillar of light crashed down in the center of the hall.

As the light faded, Ye Zhiren's figure appeared.

Compared to Lin Chuqiao's excitement, this S-level mental ability user's reaction was much more composed, almost like an occupational hazard.

As soon as he appeared, he immediately pushed up his glasses, his gaze scanning the surrounding environment like radar.

"The spatial structure is very stable... the concentration of spiritual particles is extremely high... and I couldn't even sense the boundary..."

He muttered to himself, bent down, gently tapped the ground with the back of his hand, and listened to the echo.

When he looked up and finally saw Fang Cheng and Lin Chuqiao standing beside the throne, he was so surprised that his mouth dropped open:

"President? Chu Qiao? You... you're in too?"

"Welcome, Professor."

Fang Cheng smiled and nodded in acknowledgment.

Lin Chuqiao then stepped forward and briefly explained to him what had just happened.

Upon learning the details, Ye Zhiren, who was usually calm and collected, couldn't help but twitch his brow.

"I also have my own mental sanctuary, which is called the 'mind hut'."

He surveyed the vast palace, light gleaming behind his glasses:

"But it is an extremely private and small space. If you want to invite others in, you must provide them with a complex mental key, that is, a voice password."

"The other person needs to repeatedly recite in deep meditation to adjust their brainwave frequency until they achieve perfect synchronization with me before a fragile channel can be barely established."

"That method is inefficient and risky. If you are not careful, it can be interfered with and exploited by the outside world, becoming a vulnerability to be attacked."

"But President, here..."

Ye Zhiren took a deep breath, his tone filled with disbelief:

"It seems to have completely ignored the restrictions and forcibly seized our consciousness."

"This not only requires a massive spiritual level, but also indicates that the status of this inner world should be far higher than that of ordinary spiritual realms."

He paused, his gaze falling on the tightly closed main entrance of the hall, a look of doubt on his face:
"Moreover, I can feel that the air here is flowing, and I can even smell the wind... It seems like there's still room to extend here?"

Fang Cheng sensed his doubt, smiled slightly, and waved his hand.

"Rumble--"

The heavy palace doors then slowly opened to both sides.

In that instant, the bright sunshine, the fresh air, and the rolling green hills and clear waters in the distance unfolded before the three of them like a painting.

Ye Zhiren and Lin Chuqiao were completely stunned.

They originally thought that this magnificent palace was everything, or at least occupied most of the interior world.

Unexpectedly, there was a vibrant and boundless world outside.

"This...this is real life force?!"

Ye Zhiren reached out his hand, trembling, and caught a fallen leaf that had been blown in by the wind.

The realistic touch from his fingertips sent shivers down his spine.

He couldn't imagine how Fang Cheng had managed to do it.

Did they have some extraordinary, miraculous encounter? Or did they devour some legendary rare treasure?
Or perhaps... he himself is the reincarnation of some ancient god?

It should be understood that even the "inheritance secret realms" created by those aristocratic families that have been passed down for thousands of years and have spent countless resources are nothing more than demi-planes that exist in reality.

They simply cannot create life out of thin air in such an illusory way.

Because this already involves the level of creation...

"It is still growing."

Fang Cheng strode to the door, gazing at the distant greenery, his tone calm yet exuding a boundless and majestic spirit:

"If it continues to develop, it is not impossible that one day it will completely transform from an illusion into the real world."

"From the virtual to the real..."

Ye Zhiren pondered these four words, his heart filled with turbulent emotions.

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. His mind raced as he began to analyze the value of this world from a strategic perspective:
"President, your inner world is of immense significance!"

"It solved the communication and assembly problems among Illuminati members, making it an absolutely safe haven."

“We can hold secret meetings here in the future, avoiding interference and the risk of leaks from the outside world.”

"and……"

Yeh Chih-jen closed his eyes and focused on feeling for a moment:

"The environment here is extremely special. I feel particularly relaxed and my thinking becomes much sharper when I'm here."

"If members of the Illuminati can conduct spiritual cultivation or deduce techniques here in the future, the efficiency will definitely be much higher than outside."

"Professor, Cheng just mentioned this idea."

Lin Chuqiao also recovered from her initial shock and smiled as she continued the conversation:

"With such a special training facility, our organization's development speed will definitely be greatly improved, and we can get through the most dangerous early stage of establishment as soon as possible."

"Not only that, but more importantly..."

Ye Zhiren suddenly opened his eyes, his gaze flashing with a sharp light.

He looked at Fang Cheng, his tone becoming more solemn than ever before:
"If in the future you can truly realize the transformation from the virtual to the real, and bring physical materials, or even your actual physical body, here."

"Then this place is not just a base, but an eternal divine kingdom that exists independently of reality."

"As long as this world exists, the Illuminati will forever remain invincible!"

At this point, Ye Zhiren's voice trembled slightly, and he could no longer contain his excitement.

If he had previously harbored a certain degree of resolute determination when facing the powerful, almost demonic man of "Utopia," then...

Now, standing on this land full of infinite possibilities, those gloomy clouds have been completely dispelled.

Instead, there was unprecedented confidence and ambition.

The three stood at the entrance of the main hall, bathed in the sunlight of the inner world, and contemplated the organization's development.

Fang Cheng listened to the two discussing enthusiastically, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly.

That was the right move.

From this moment on, the future of the Illuminati truly has a foundation!

(End of this chapter)