[Bonus Chapter for 300 golden tickets :) info on how to get more in the author's note below :)]

Dyon's lip twitched at these words.

What kind of concept was a 12th stage celestial expert? Nearly inconceivable! This man had not only reached the pinnacle of celestial cultivation, but he had also done so as a first-grade expert!

Dyon's puppet... The one he had hidden all this time... The one within the spatial ring he had so diligently covered in a concealment array resting on his fingers... It was all useless!

How could a 4th stage celestial puppet that Dyon could hardly control for a brief moment at its pinnacle, fight someone eight stages higher than it!? Dyon didn't even know if his senses could keep up with Patriarch Ragnor at that level of cultivation!

This man was only a single step away from becoming a Dao Formation expert!

What hope was there at this point?...

**

Hours went by as they walked through endless tunnels. It was as though it was a purposefully constructed maze. But, the spatial fluctuations were some of the oddest that Dyon had ever felt. He couldn't tell what path they followed, but he understood it wasn't an ordinary one... If he had to guess, he would think that this form of space will didn't just allow travel through ordinary space, but rather, the space between dimensions themselves.

If that was true... Spatial understanding on that level would have to be at the level of a supreme law. But, the only type of space will Dyon knew only allowed for travel within a single plane of existence. Even when Patia-Neva, for example, hid in a spatial pocket, he wouldn't leave this universe in the strictest of sense...

Space will was just as odd as time. Both were seemingly overpowered and ground breaking wills, but in reality, the restriction of the universe on them was so heavy that they were little better than regular elemental wills. For space will, this was even more obvious.

There were tier separations for the type of space you could break through. For example, it used to be exceedingly difficult to utilize space will in this universe because the laws were so solid and the energy was so dense. However, with the decline of the universe came an added ease in using space will. This was why even someone as weak as Vidar Ragnor, although his faith seed's body was quite powerful, was capable of collapsing space with his fists. It wasn't that he was so outstanding, it was that this universe had truly fallen from its original heights.

Another facet that increases difficulty in the use of space will would be your opponent. Dyon teleportation abilities meant nothing in front of true experts because they had the ability to forcefully control areas with their energy. This worked in much the same way a universe with higher energy density would be harder to learn spatial will in.

With all of this in mind, it made sense how astounded Dyon was by this level of spatial will. To be able to comprehend spatial will to this level was definitely not easy. Dyon even dared to say that whoever forged these tunnels had spatial will comparable to void will!

Because of that will, navigating the catacombs increased in difficulty by a ridiculous margin. Dyon couldn't fathom how Elder Daiyu moved with such decisiveness. Was it because he too had such a grasp of spatial will? Or was it because he already knew the way?

'No, that doesn't make sense.' Dyon inwardly shook his head. Just 'knowing the way' wouldn't help you. In fact, it would have to be that you knew the way AND you understood spatial will to this depth. That was the only way you could accurately link the map in your head to your surroundings...

It was only then that Dyon remembered that Elder Daiyu had claimed to be a former Dao Formation expert. With his dao forcefully shattered, his cultivation had plummeted to low levels of celestial cultivation, but, much of his comprehension should be there, although they would be crippled.

Dyon wanted to silently thank the efforts of his teacher and former celestial deer sect members, but when he remembered how powerful Patriarch Ragnor was, he couldn't help but sigh.

'That's the other thing... When I spoke to my master for the first time and she went through all of my memories, she mentioned the Daiyu as a threat, but not the Ragnor. That means that they must have only become a true part of this plan after the celestial deer sect was gone, or, played a very small role during the war and vastly improved later.'

If it was the former, that meant that somehow the Ragnor had provided the Daiyu with help they sorely needed. It was likely another example of the Daiyu recruiting people utilizing every bit they have. They must have also done the same with the Clyte and the Aumens.

In each case, everyone got something they wanted... The Clyte became a royal god clan. The Ragnors found hope in transcending the laws of the universe. And the Aumens, if Dyon had to guess, likely received flame type legacies. After all, how many could match the Daiyu in such a thing? They were black jade dragons!

**

What seemed like ages later, they finally came to their first dead end. At first, Dyon thought that Elder Daiyu had finally made a mistake, but, in mere moments a dense double light began dancing around the edges of the 'dead end'.

Intricate patterns swirled as the space trembled. Then, flames of red and blue suddenly burst to life, illuminating the once dark walls with streaks of fire that hungrily dove into the intricate patterns of the dead end, swirling and following until they climactically meet in the middle.

The ball of red and blue blasted into each other at the center, spinning viciously and coiling around each other.

Then, that ball slowly turned to a vibrant violet before sinking into the center.

The creaks of parts that hadn't moved in thousands of years rang through the narrow tunnel as a blinding light flooded inward.

In the next instant, Dyon saw something that even he could no longer maintain his indifferent demeanor in the face of...

The dreary catacombs opened way to a matchless lush greenery that extended for miles as far as the eye could see. The 'sun' hung high in the sky and precious flowers that were at minimum on the essence level graced the world with their beautiful presence.

However, there was a single thing out of place. Something that made Dyon's heart shake so violently that he froze, unable to look away at what he was seeing...

A hand...

No. It wasn't just a hand... It was a behemoth of a hand chained to this world by bindings just as unfathomable. Dyon couldn't comprehend how far away it was, and yet it appeared so close and large that he could almost reach out and touch it...

But... Logic told him that if he was even within a thousand miles of this hand, the pressure it was giving off would kill him in an instant... The violent trembling in Dyon's heart... The uncontrollable sweat that poured from him... The near immediate shattering of his one with heart death will...

In that moment, Dyon's mind suddenly understood something he was quite frankly too scared to accept...

The Earth didn't expand to millions of times its normal size on a whim...

It had done so to act as a prison for the enormous thing before him now...