They descended for approximately five minutes.
Teacher Yuan led his class to the very end of the staircase, arriving at the lowest level of Tiandu Hall.
No one in the class had ever visited this place before.
Nor had anyone imagined such a mysterious room hidden beneath Tiandu Hall.
Everyone gazed around with immense curiosity.
The perfectly square space was covered in smooth, gleaming tiles, utterly devoid of dust. It seemed to be regularly cleaned.
Along the surrounding walls, enormous silver-white metal doors were embedded, each standing three meters tall and five meters wide.
Above each metal door hung a red digital display.
At this moment, the numbers on all the red displays were static, except for those on the metal doors directly ahead and to the right, which were slowly counting.
“Is this an elevator?” Huang Xiu felt a strange sense of déjà vu. Although these metal doors were unusually large, combined with the digital displays, they strongly resembled colossal elevators.
As she pondered, the red digital display directly ahead counted down from [9] to [8].
*Click*… The metal door slid open to the right, and a throng of people streamed out.
There were only ten individuals, all appearing mature in their demeanor and appearance, certainly not like university students.
Leading them was a burly man with a muscular physique, his skin tanned a deep bronze by the sun. Upon seeing Teacher Yuan, he broke into a wide, dazzling smile, his white teeth particularly striking.
“Zhuang Bu?” Huang Xiu was momentarily stunned. She hadn’t expected to encounter an acquaintance on the fifth basement level of Tiandu Hall. The man was none other than Zhuang Bu, the president of the Jiquan Association.
“Teacher, what a coincidence!” Zhuang Bu glanced at Huang Xiu and the others, his smile broadening. “Are you taking them out to see the world?”
“You rascal, what a coincidence! How was the mission?”
Teacher Yuan and Zhuang Bu seemed to share a very good relationship, both smiling broadly. They exchanged pleasantries before Teacher Yuan replied, “This military training is a bit different. I’m afraid they’d disgrace Tiandu University, so I’m taking them to broaden their horizons and experience things.”
“What else could the mission be? With us brothers around, it was naturally a success!”
Zhuang Bu looked back at his companions and chuckled. “Naturally, a success!”
Bursts of laughter erupted from behind the muscular man.
“Alright, we won’t disturb you, Teacher. Please carry on.”
Zhuang Bu gestured for his group to make way, and everyone moved aside, clearing a path.
Teacher Yuan smiled, patted Zhuang Bu’s shoulder, then turned and waved to Huang Xiu and the others.
“Come on, everyone, into the elevator.”
‘It really is an elevator! Does this mean we’re using the Inter-Realm Transit Station to go to other Void Realms?’ Huang Xiu’s eyes flickered. Being well-informed, she had already grasped Teacher Yuan’s intention.
The Inter-Realm Transit Station was incredibly convenient, indeed the best method for transporting a large number of students to the Void Realm. She just hadn’t expected the elevators to be located at the very bottom of Tiandu Hall.
The thought that many people entered and exited the Void Realm beneath her feet every day without her sensing a thing struck her as quite peculiar.
Zhuang Bu and his group leaned against the wall, arms crossed, watching Teacher Yuan lead the students towards the elevator.
One by one, students walked past them.
However, when Huang Xiu passed by, he suddenly smiled.
“Good luck, Junior Female Student.”
“?”
Huang Xiu was slightly surprised, then quickly realized that he was showing her his attitude. She immediately replied with a smile, “Thank you!”
Over the past eight weeks, besides the Student Union and the Blood Assault Association, organizations like the Jiquan Association, Endeavor Society, and Weapons Combat Department had all approached her, extending invitations.
However, Miss Xiu, afflicted with decision paralysis, had politely declined them all with various excuses like ‘wait and see,’ ‘let me think about it,’ or ‘I’ll consider it later.’
Consequently, she remained a highly sought-after commodity.
The elevator on the fifth basement floor was enormous, easily accommodating all thirty students in the class with ample space to spare.
After confirming everyone had entered, Teacher Yuan pressed the door-close button.
The three-meter-tall sliding single-panel elevator door slowly closed.
“We are now heading to a Void Realm.”
Teacher Yuan’s right hand deftly moved, producing a black card from seemingly nowhere.
The black card was identical to the one Yuan Fei possessed, which Huang Xiu had seen, differing only in the numbers inscribed upon it. Yuan Fei’s card bore [091], while this one had [001].
*Beep*… Teacher Yuan swiped the card.
“This is a special product of the Inter-Realm Transit Station, and the only token for entering it…”
As Teacher Yuan explained, he pressed all the odd-numbered floor buttons on the elevator control panel.
Except for Huang Xiu, everyone in the class listened intently. It was their first time encountering the Inter-Realm Transit Station—such a wondrous Void Realm.
Many gazed at the black card with curiosity, but soon, a strong sense of dizziness overwhelmed them.
Their feet became unsteady, and they began to stumble in various directions, bumping into nearby classmates. A chorus of groans and exclamations immediately filled the air.
Ying Zhiyu was among them, her eyes seeing stars as she stumbled backward, muttering incoherently. Just as she was about to fall to the ground, a pair of fair, slender arms reached out and pulled her back.
It was Huang Xiu.
She had fallen for this trick once before. This time, although she was tempted to see how long she could endure, she stopped herself the moment she felt she was reaching her limit.
“Thank you, Miss Xiu. I don’t know why, but I suddenly feel so dizzy.”
Ying Zhiyu shook her head.
“It’s nothing, just a normal phenomenon.”
Huang Xiu turned to look at her classmates, who were clutching their heads with pained expressions, and couldn’t help but smile to herself. ‘Sure enough, I wasn’t the only one to fall into this trap.’
Teacher Yuan then proceeded to explain the cause of the recent phenomenon, but Huang Xiu’s mind was somewhat elsewhere.
‘I lasted over twenty seconds longer than last time. Does this mean I’m stronger than before, or does it mean my resistance is greater the second time around?’
She stroked her smooth chin, unable to find an answer. However, another doubt in her mind had been resolved: the Touchpoint on the moon was likely accessed by the senior students through the Inter-Realm Transit Station.
“Alright, that’s it,” Teacher Yuan concluded his explanation, returning the black card to his pocket.
Huang Xiu gazed longingly at the pocket where the black card was stored. The effect of this elevator card was truly powerful, and she wondered how one could acquire such an item.
‘Zhuang Bu and his team use the elevator and the Inter-Realm Transit Station for missions, which means they must also possess one. So, students can also have this card.’
Huang Xiu decided that after returning, she would ask Yun Ning how to get her hands on one.
The elevator ascended slowly; Teacher Yuan had pressed the button for the seventh floor. Unlike Huang Xiu’s previous trip, this time the elevator only opened once during its ascent, on the fifth floor.
Outside the elevator, a vibrant, flower-filled grassland stretched out, and the faint, ephemeral scent of blossoms wafted through the air.
Despite having been informed of the precautions, the students dared not make any rash moves, observing silently.
Huang Xiu, however, found it somewhat strange. This Void Realm clearly had an abundance of plants, many of which were likely special Void Realm flora with unique effects.
‘If only I could go in and collect some seeds,’ she thought.
“There will be other opportunities,” she consoled herself.
The elevator ascended quickly, the red digital display showing “7.”
“Alright, we’ve reached our destination.”
As the elevator doors opened, Teacher Yuan stepped out. The students immediately followed, fearing that if they lagged even a step, the doors would close, leaving them stranded in the Inter-Realm Transit Station.
It was everyone’s first time in a Void Realm, and they eagerly looked around with great curiosity.
Huang Xiu stood amidst the crowd, swiftly surveying the Void Realm Teacher Yuan had brought them to.
Though it was daytime in the Void Realm and the sky was bright, there was no sun. Instead, three star-shaped, rotating crescent moons hung in the heavens.
The ground was dark brown, resembling rich black soil, yet much of it was muddy, like a swamp in the Present World.
As Huang Xiu observed her surroundings, she noticed that many plants grew in this Void Realm, but their forms were so varied that she recognized none of them.
Overall, aside from the crescent moons in the sky, this Void Realm had no particularly striking features—at least, in Huang Xiu’s opinion.
‘But as long as there are plants, that’s enough!’
She bent down and plucked a small handful of orange-yellow plants that resembled ping-pong balls from the ground, stuffing them into her pocket. ‘Plants growing in the Void Realm must be stronger and more receptive to Void Energy than those in the Present World!’
She planned to take them back to the Present World and research whether they could be cultivated.
Teacher Yuan looked up at the sky, seemingly orienting himself. After a moment, he lifted his leg and began walking to the left.
“Follow me!”
He seemed to have no immediate intention of explaining this Void Realm.
“Teacher, what about this elevator?” A student, looking at the open elevator doors, hesitated. The elevator looked strange now, with only a single door hovering in the air, lacking any visible upper or lower structure.
She was worried that if they left and the doors closed, they would be trapped in this Void Realm. After all, that’s how it always happened in novels.
“Don’t worry, I brought you out, and I’ll bring you back,” Teacher Yuan reassured them.
Reassured by his promise, everyone relaxed and followed Teacher Yuan deeper into the Void Realm. They observed their surroundings with curiosity along the way.
Their first Void Realm expedition filled them with anticipation, hoping to encounter some of the Void Realm’s native creatures.
However, nothing happened on their journey. After about ten minutes, a fortified settlement-like structure appeared in their line of sight.
This “settlement,” constructed from corrugated iron and a dark, deep-black wood, was built on flat ground. Its walls were exceptionally high, a full ten meters, and it covered a vast area. Huang Xiu’s gaze couldn’t even reach its edges.
“Is this a building? Are we about to encounter intelligent Void Realm creatures? Are we going to fight them?”
Some students immediately grew excited, while many others became nervous and gripped their weapons tightly. Fighting intelligent creatures was clearly much more difficult.
“You’ll know once we’re inside.”
Teacher Yuan gave a mischievous grin, the words “F*** your paralysis” on his arm glistening under the moonlight. Seeing this ‘harmonious’ smile, Huang Xiu immediately had a bad feeling.
“Open up! Open up!” Teacher Yuan stopped shouting before he even reached the settlement’s gate.
“Does Teacher know the people inside? This way, we don’t have to worry about fighting them.”
A student in the class sighed in relief, but the next second, someone spoke up to refute his idea.
“What if Teacher is just shouting to provoke them?”
The student, who had just managed to let out a breath of relief, almost choked himself trying to suck it back in after hearing that.
While the classmates were still discussing and speculating, a head popped up from the settlement wall.
“It’s Teacher! I’ll open the door right away!” The person on the wall was actually a Tiandu University student!
‘So, this is Tiandu University’s stronghold in this Void Realm?’ Huang Xiu believed she had once again arrived at the correct answer.
However, once the settlement gates swung open, and they all entered, seeing the scene inside, she realized just how incredibly wrong she had been.
The settlement was divided into several sections by corrugated iron and log walls. Each section contained a large group of black-haired pigs with three heads, wallowing in mud pits.
The air was thick with an unbearable stench of pigs.
Many senior students from Tiandu University, wearing masks, were carrying bucket after bucket of offal and bloodied meat to feed the pigs.
“This is actually a pig farm! This was a completely unexpected development beyond their wildest predictions.”
“Hahaha, you didn’t see that coming, did you?”
Seeing everyone’s astonished expressions, Teacher Yuan was overjoyed, holding his stomach and roaring with laughter until tears and snot bubbles streamed from his face. After a long while, he finally stopped laughing, casually wiped away his tears, and composed himself with a serious expression.
“Alright, enough small talk. Welcome everyone to one of Tiandu University’s largest Void Realm creature meat supply centers, the [Three-Month Swamp] Void Realm.”
Teacher Yuan pointed at the three-headed wild pigs in the pens.
“These are the primary source of the Void Realm creature meat you eat in the cafeteria—the Three-Month Pigs. They grow rapidly, their meat is delicious, and each one contains the Void Energy level of a Mercury Rank Awakened individual.”
A student asked, a hint of disbelief on their face, “Aren’t we supposed to have combat training today? Why are we at a pig farm? Are we going to have combat training with these Three-Month Pigs?”
“Haha, you guessed it!” Teacher Yuan clapped his hands.
“Today is exactly the day these Three-Month Pigs are to be released from their pens. The school was already planning to slaughter them.”
“So, your mission today is to battle the Three-Month Pigs with the weapons in your hands. Don’t underestimate these pigs; they can be quite formidable when they charge!”
Huang Xiu was speechless. To think she had been so full of anticipation, only to find out they were fighting pigs. She looked around.
Each area was filled with mud and piled-up excrement. The Three-Month Pigs were dark and covered in mud, looking both smelly and dirty. A wave of disgust immediately rose in Huang Xiu’s heart; after her transformation, she had become much more fastidious.
“Attention!” Teacher Yuan’s voice grew louder. “For this combat training, no abilities are allowed. You can only use weapons. Everyone must participate, working in groups of three. Also, this training will be recorded in your course grades.”
Before his words even finished, a chorus of groans erupted from the class. The Three-Month Pigs were still Void Realm creatures, despite being pigs. Without their abilities, relying only on weapons, the students truly felt uncertain.
After delivering the harsh news, Teacher Yuan immediately offered an incentive. “Of course, to motivate you this time, I’ve also applied to the school for a small reward. Whoever slaughters the most Three-Month Pigs will receive ten kilograms of Three-Month Pig meat afterward.”