Survival in an apartment, starting with a stroke of luck on a plane

The ninth floor.

One of the first contacts.

I reached the ninth floor, saw the origin, and then returned.

Then he said—there's nothing up there, just emptiness.

A complex mix of emotions welled up in Lin Yu's heart.

It wasn't fear, it wasn't disappointment, but rather a kind of... indescribable emptiness.

He always thought that the higher you climb, the more you'd know and the more answers you'd find. But the person who reached the very top said—there's nothing up there.

Only nothingness.

What is the essence of that system? What is higher-dimensional existence? Does everything ultimately return to nothingness?

Lin Yu stood in front of the stone tablet, silent for a long time.

The wind rustled through the silvery trees, making the leaves tinkle like wind chimes.

He suddenly chuckled.

"Let it be nothingness then," he said softly.

He didn't climb up there in search of the ultimate answer.

He went upstairs simply because he wanted to know.

Even if the final answer is nothingness, it is the answer he found himself, and it is more valuable than anything anyone else tells him.

and……

He looked at the inscription on the stone tablet.

This person said he was "back".

I'm back from the ninth floor.

What does this mean? It means that even after you go up, you can still come down. Those people Mo mentioned who "go up and can never come down" might not be unable to come down, but rather... don't want to come down.

They couldn't accept the empty answer, so they chose to stay on it, deceiving themselves.

And the man who carved the stone tablet accepted it. So he returned.

Lin Yu reached out and gently stroked the inscription on the stone tablet.

"Thanks," he said softly.

Although they had never met, he took this person's advice to heart.

He won't stop.

But he will remember this sentence—there is only nothing above.

That way, when he actually reaches that point, he won't break down because the answer is too cruel.

Lin Yu withdrew his hand and took two steps back.

He took one last look at the giant silver tree, then turned and left.

He didn't linger at that point. He'd seen what he needed to see, and knew what he needed to know. Staying any longer wouldn't yield any further gains.

He took out the Divine Token, preparing to teleport back to the pyramid node—the largest and safest node he had found so far. He planned to rest there, organize all the information, and then decide where to go next.

Golden light shone forth.

Distorted vision.

The next second, he was back in the circular space of the pyramid.

Just as when he left—the eight stone doors were tightly closed, the central crystal panel was dark, and the starlight on the dome flickered faintly.

Lin Yu sat down in front of the central stone pillar and closed his eyes.

He needs to sort through all the information he received today.

The origin of the system—fragments of higher-dimensional existence.

The essence of a crack is a network of channels formed by the spontaneous expansion of the system.

Nine layers of permissions – the distance between those who access the system and the system's core.

1276 worlds—the objects of observation in the system.

Origin energy—pure, attribute-free, and the core substance of a system capable of transforming into any form of energy.

The answer to the ninth level—nothingness.

There are many, many more details.

Lin Yu spent about an hour sorting out this information and storing it in his memory.

Then, he opened his eyes.

"It's time to go back," he said.

There was still a lot of time left in the 72-hour time limit, but he felt it was enough.

His gains from this trip through the Rift Corridor have far exceeded his expectations. He can't possibly digest any more information.

Moreover, he had more important things to do.

— Research how to elevate privileges.

He had a guess.

The Demon-Slaying Sword and the Mountain-Splitting Axe, these two divine artifacts bestowed by the True Lord, may be related to the system's origin. If he can figure out the origin of these two artifacts, he might be able to find a way to access the source—thus fulfilling the first condition for elevating his privileges.

This matter needs to be studied carefully back at the apartment.

Lin Yu stood up, walked to the central stone pillar, and placed his hand on the crystal plate for the last time.

"Go back," he thought to himself.

The crystal plate vibrated slightly.

[Confirm return to the Rift Corridor entrance platform?]

【confirm. 】

A light shone.

This time, the light was not golden, but silvery-white—the same color as the text on the silver metal door.

The light enveloped Lin Yu's body and lifted him upwards.

My vision blurred for a moment.

When his vision cleared again, he was already standing on that circular platform.

There was no one on the platform. The other seven legendary players were still in the Rift Corridor and hadn't come out.

The pale blue pillar of light in the center of the platform is still there, but the information at the top of the pillar has changed—it now displays a countdown, with thirty-nine hours remaining.

Lin Yu glanced at the countdown and then walked towards the pillar of light.

The moment he stepped into the pillar of light, he felt a familiar vibration—just like when he came in, as if he had lost his footing and was then caught again the instant he landed.

When his vision returned, he was standing in the living room of the apartment.

Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the curtains, drawing a pale golden line on the floor.

Jin Ling raised her head from the back of the sofa, saw it was him, and then lay back down.

Tangtang sat on the floor, hugging her doll, her big eyes sparkling as she looked at him.

"Big brother, you're back."

Lin Yu hummed in agreement and walked to the sofa to sit down.

He leaned back on the sofa and closed his eyes.

The living room was quiet. The sunlight was warm and gentle, and there was a faint aroma of tea in the air—the scent of purple mist emanating from the Xuandu Purple Mansion.

It was completely different from the dark, quiet, and oppressive atmosphere of the crevice corridor.

This is home.

Lin Yu opened his eyes and looked at the ceiling.

He recalled the inscription on the stone tablet: "There's nothing there, only emptiness."

If one day he really reaches the ninth floor and sees nothingness, will he still want to come back?

Will do.

He gave his answer almost without hesitation.

Because there are things he cares about here. There's the apartment, Tangtang, Jinling, Xuandu Purple Mansion, the insectoids in the small world, his friends from the Balance Organization, and... many, many things.

These things may be nothing in the eyes of higher-dimensional beings, and may eventually return to nothingness.

But to him, they were real.

This is enough.

Lin Yu sat up straight, took out the silver crystal from his storage space, and played with it in his palm.

The crystal gleamed with a faint silvery luster in the sunlight, its primordial energy flowing steadily within, like a miniature star.

"Take your time," he said softly.

The road ahead is still long.

He only has the third level of access; there are six levels above him.

Not urgent.

He has plenty of time.

Lin Yu put the crystal away, got up and walked into the Xuandu Purple Mansion.

A misty purple aura greets you, carrying a warm and pure energy.

The statue of the True Lord stood quietly in the center of the Purple Palace, his face solemn, his three eyes slightly closed, and his body surrounded by a faint golden halo.

He sat cross-legged in front of the statue and closed his eyes.

He had gathered too much information from the Rift Corridor; he needed a quiet place to process it all. The system's origins, the nine levels of authority, higher-dimensional existence, the first contacts… these things were like a tangled mess in his mind, and he had to sort them out.

But he didn't rush to think about those things.

He did something more important first—he checked his own condition.

Since returning from the Rift Corridor, he had been lost in thought and hadn't had a chance to carefully check his body for any abnormalities caused by the teleportation. The connection with his divine body was slowly being restored, but at a slower pace than he had anticipated.

He calmed his mind and looked inward.

The source energy was functioning normally, the mana was abundant, and the meridians were unobstructed, without any blockages or damage. The armor plates of the Heavenly Gang Battle Suit were intact, the dragon scales of the Abyss Dragon Scale Leggings were lustrous, and the spatial energy fluctuations of the Void Walker were stable.

everything is normal.

He then extended his consciousness into the smaller world.

The golden vortex spun slowly, while the energy network at the other end operated smoothly. The creep coverage continued to expand gradually, and the Queen was coordinating the daily operations of the Zerg in the main hive. Qingyuan's aura was also stable; she seemed to be doing something in some area of ​​her divine body—probably continuing to repair damage to her immune system.

No problem.

Lin Yu breathed a sigh of relief and opened his eyes.

He took out the silver primordial crystal from his storage space and examined it in his palm.

The crystal shimmered with a faint silver light amidst the purple aura of the Purple Mansion, its primordial energy flowing steadily within, like a miniature star. He tried to infuse it with a wisp of purple aura—the moment the aura touched the crystal's surface, it was absorbed, like a drop of water falling into sand, leaving no trace.

The primordial energy within the crystal does indeed contain an extremely minute amount of it.

"As expected, it can convert any kind of energy," Lin Yu said in a low voice.

The value of this thing is immeasurable.

If he could find a way to acquire a large amount of primordial energy, or... directly utilize this conversion property, his strength would increase at a terrifying rate.

But now is not the time to study this.

He put the crystal away and looked up at the statue of the True Lord.

"True Lord..." he said softly, "just who are you?"

The Demon-Slaying Sword and the Mountain-Splitting Axe are both divine artifacts bestowed by the True Lord. If the system is a fragment of a higher-dimensional existence, then what about these two divine artifacts? What is their relationship with the system?

He had a hunch that the origins of these two artifacts were anything but simple.

He tried to communicate with the spirit of the Demon-Slaying Sword.

The sword spirit responded quickly, with a hint of languor—it was sleeping soundly inside the sword and was a little annoyed to be woken up by its master.

Lin Yu asked it if it knew what a system was.

The sword spirit's response was bewildered—it didn't know what a system was. It only knew that it was the Demon-Slaying Sword, forged by the True Lord himself, meant to slay demons and protect all living beings.

When asked about the True Lord's origins, the sword spirit was even more bewildered. It only knew that the True Lord was a righteous god of the Heavenly Court and its creator. As for where the True Lord came from and what his identity was, it knew nothing.

Lin Yu then tested the axe spirit of the mountain-splitting axe.

The results were similar. The Axe Spirit was even more taciturn than the Sword Spirit, answering only one out of every three questions, and always claiming ignorance.

"Two clueless guys." Lin Yu shook his head helplessly.

It seems we won't get anything out of the sword spirit and axe spirit.

He stood up and paced a few steps in his dantian.

Purple energy flowed slowly around him, naturally absorbed and refined by his body, then expelled, forming a tiny cycle. The enlightenment effects of the Purple Mansion were constantly operating passively; even if he did nothing, his cultivation level was slowly increasing.

But he was no longer satisfied with this rate of growth.

The third level of access... there are six more levels above that.

He didn't know the specific conditions for upgrading his privileges, but Mo had said the first condition was having come into contact with a fragment of the system's origin. And he currently possessed a fragment of the origin crystal—although it was only indirect contact, could that count?

He thought for a moment, then took the crystal out again and held it in his hand.

Then close your eyes, concentrate all your mental energy in your palm, and try to "feel" the existence of that origin through the crystal.

There was nothing at first.

The primordial energy within the crystal is very stable and sealed, like an egg encased in a shell. When his spiritual power touches the surface of the crystal, it's like touching a smooth wall; it can't penetrate at all.

Lin Yu did not give up.

He adjusted the frequency of his mental energy, trying to penetrate in a gentler, slower way. Little by little, like water seeping into the soil.

He didn't know how much time had passed—maybe a few minutes, maybe several tens of minutes—but he finally felt it.

It was an extremely faint, almost imperceptible tactile sensation.

It wasn't that his spiritual power seeped into the crystal, but rather... the primordial energy within the crystal actively "touched" him.

Like a curious little animal, it gently touched the outstretched finger through the cage.

Lin Yu's spirits lifted instantly.

He tried to grasp that fleeting sensation, but the primordial energy immediately receded, becoming closed and stable again, and no longer reacted.

He opened his eyes and looked at the crystal in his palm.

"Has self-awareness?" He frowned.

No. It's not self-awareness. It's more like... an instinctive reaction. Just as plants grow towards the light and magnets attract iron filings, primordial energy produced a natural response to his spiritual power.

Why?

Is it because his mental strength is special? Or is it because... there's something about him that's attracting primal energy?

Lin Yu thought for a moment and then took out the Divine Token.

The golden patterns on the token's surface gleamed warmly in the purple aura. He placed the token and the crystal together and examined them closely.

There was no obvious interaction between them. They neither attracted nor repelled each other, like two completely unrelated things.

"No." Lin Yu shook his head.

The Divine Decree is a product of the system, and the Primal Crystal is the core substance of the system; there cannot be no connection between them.

He just hasn't found a way to contact them yet.

The third level of access is still too low.

He put both items away and decided to put them aside for the time being.

There's no rush to elevate privileges. Instead of just thinking about it here, let's do something practical first.

He walked out of the Xuandu Purple Palace.

In the living room, Tangtang was sitting on the floor building blocks, while Jinling was dozing off on the back of the sofa. Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the curtains, drawing a thin golden line on the floor.

Everything was peaceful.

Lin Yu sat down on the sofa and opened the system panel.

The rewards for the legendary special game haven't arrived yet. As is customary, rewards for this level of mission are distributed all at once after the mission ends, which may take a few days.

He turned off the control panel, leaned back on the sofa, and closed his eyes.

The journey through the Rift Corridor was very fruitful, but it also left him with many more questions. The nature of the system, higher-dimensional existence, the first group of contacts, the nine layers of authority... these things were like a fog, shrouding him before him.

But he was not confused.

We must walk one step at a time, and find the answers one by one.

What he needs to do now is to improve his strength and authority, and then climb the ranks step by step.

Until we reach the ninth floor, we will see for ourselves what that "nothingness" really is.

-

The peaceful days lasted only three days.

On the evening of the third day, Lin Yu was fighting an epic opponent in the life-or-death arena.

His opponent was a samurai wielding two swords, incredibly fast, with cunning and ruthless swordsmanship. This was the fifth opponent he had encountered today. He had defeated the first four; this was the strongest.

Lin Yu did not use his full strength.

He was practicing with his sword—or more accurately, with his blade. The Demon-Slaying Sword danced in his hands, golden sword energy crisscrossing the arena, deflecting his opponents' blades one by one.

The samurai's attacks grew faster and faster, his twin swords transforming into two silver afterimages, slashing at Lin Yu from all angles. But Lin Yu stood still, deflecting all the attacks with just one hand while gripping his sword.

It's not that the opponent is too weak, it's that he's too strong.

Legendary-level players versus epic-level players is an absolute stomp.

But Lin Yu did not end the battle immediately. He was using this opponent to hone his sword skills—the Demon-Slaying Sword has three Demon-Slaying True Techniques, and he has only comprehended the first one, "Demon Slaying," while he has no clue about the second one, "Void Breaking," and the third one, "Heaven-Slaying."

He hoped to find inspiration in battle.

After several dozen more rounds, the samurai finally revealed a weakness—his right shoulder was wide open when he slashed with his twin swords in a cross pattern.

With a flick of his wrist, Lin Yu unleashed the Demon-Slaying Sword from an unbelievable angle, its tip aimed directly at the opponent's throat.

The samurai's body froze.

The sword tip stopped an inch in front of his throat; a fraction more and it would pierce his neck.

"You lost," Lin Yu said.

The samurai was silent for a few seconds, then sheathed his sword and knelt on one knee. "I lost."

The arena lights came on, and the samurai's figure gradually faded, disappearing in a beam of light. At the same time, a reward message appeared before Lin Yu—some game currency and a platinum-level piece of equipment.

Lin Yu didn't even look at it before putting it directly into his storage space.

He left the arena and returned to the living room.

He sensed something was wrong as soon as he came out.

The air in the apartment... has changed.

It wasn't the temperature that changed, nor the smell; rather, it was a more subtle, indescribable feeling—as if something had invaded the apartment space and was spreading silently.

Lin Yu's pupils contracted slightly.

He immediately began to use his senses.

Everything was normal in the apartment—Tangtang was sleeping in her room, Jinling was on the sofa, the purple energy in Xuandu Purple Mansion was flowing steadily, and the vortex in the small world was rotating smoothly.

But that feeling that something was wrong grew stronger and stronger.

It's not inside the apartment.

It's outside...

Lin Yu walked to the window, lifted a corner of the curtain, and looked down.

The streets below were deserted, not a soul in sight. The streetlights were on, their dim yellow light casting long shadows on the pavement. The distant city walls were brightly lit, just as they always were.

But it was too quiet.

It was unusually quiet.

At this time of day, there should still be patrolling balance team members and some late-night pedestrians on the street. But right now, the entire street is deserted.

Lin Yu frowned.

He opened the system panel to see if there were any notifications. Everything on the panel was normal; there were no task prompts, no alerts, nothing at all.

wrong.

He closed the panel and turned to walk towards the door.

"Big brother?"

Tangtang's voice came from the room. She was awake, probably woken up by Lin Yu's noise.

"It's okay, go back to sleep," Lin Yu said.

"oh……"

Tangtang responded with a sound, then fell silent.

Lin Yu walked to the door, put his hand on the doorknob, but did not open the door immediately.

He first looked out through the peephole.

The corridor was deserted, the motion-activated lights were off, and only the green indicator light for the emergency exit was lit in a corner, emitting a faint glow.

Everything seems normal.

But Lin Yu knew that abnormal things were often hidden beneath normal appearances.

He took a deep breath, turned the lock, and opened the door.

The moment the door was opened a crack, a chill rushed in.

It wasn't the kind of cold you feel in winter, but a chilling cold that seeped into your bones and carried the scent of death.

Lin Yu's eyes narrowed.

He pushed open the door and went out.

The temperature in the hallway was at least ten degrees lower than in the apartment; you could see white mist in your breath. A thin layer of frost had condensed on the walls, gleaming with a bluish light under the lamp.

This is no ordinary cold.

It was caused by some kind of energy—an energy that carries the scent of death and decay.

Lin Yu walked forward along the corridor, his footsteps light and almost silent.

The Voidwalker automatically adjusted his center of gravity, making him stick to the ground like a feather.

He stopped at the end of the corridor and looked down from the stairwell window.

There was a person standing on the street downstairs.

A person wearing a black robe.

The long robe trailed on the ground, completely enveloping the person and obscuring their face. The person stood motionless under the streetlight across the street, like a statue.

But Lin Yu could sense that the person was watching him.

Even from a height of more than ten floors, separated by a pane of glass, that person's gaze landed precisely on him.

Legendary.

And it's not just any ordinary legendary-level item.

Lin Yu's heart skipped a beat.

This person's aura... is even stronger than the Burner's.

Legendary peak?

He immediately shrank back and leaned against the wall.

The Hand of Ashes?

Very likely. Last time, the Burner and the Bandaged Man attacked and suffered heavy losses; the Burner escaped with a broken leg, while the Bandaged Man was captured alive. It's not surprising that they sent an even stronger one this time.

But what's strange is—why is this person standing downstairs and not coming in?

With his legendary peak strength, if he were to forcefully attack the apartment, Lin Yu could hold him off, but it wouldn't be an easy task. Yet he simply stood there, neither making a move nor speaking, just standing there.

What are you waiting for?

Lin Yu thought for a moment, then turned and walked back.

Instead of returning to his apartment, he walked to the other side of the corridor and looked down from another window.

The person was still standing in the same spot, without changing their posture.

But Lin Yu noticed something—the ground beneath the man's feet was freezing at a visible speed. Frost spread from his feet outwards, covering everything in its path—the road, streetlights, trees—with a layer of dark blue ice.

Moreover, the ice layer is still spreading upwards—the tree trunks along the roadside are already half-covered in ice, and the lampposts are also covered with a thick layer of ice.

He's in the field of diffusion?

No. If it's a domain, the area shouldn't be this small, and the diffusion speed is too slow.

It's more like... he's gathering his strength.