Chapter 108: Shadows of the Ring
Lian remained on the high floating platform inside the massive storage ring for a long time, staring down at the thousands of motionless figures suspended in preservation fields. The interior space was vast — far larger than anything he had imagined possible. It felt like standing inside a private world. The “sky” above was a shifting dome of dark energy, and the ground stretched out into a wide plain that could easily hold a small city. Rows upon rows of slaves from countless species stood frozen in neat formations: humans, Veyari, Korrak, Dravok, Sylphari, Nethari, and many others he didn’t recognize. Their eyes were empty, bodies perfectly preserved, waiting to be awakened and sold like commodities.
The sight left a bitter taste in his mouth.
He had seen the records. These people had been captured during raids, broken through neural chips implanted in their necks, and turned into obedient tools. They had no free will. No past. No future except what their master decided. Some were fighters. Some were servants. Some were worse. The strong took what they wanted. The weak became property.
Lian’s expression remained cold, but his mind turned darker.
This is the world.
He stepped off the platform and moved through the vast space, observing the different groups. The sheer number was overwhelming. Thousands of lives reduced to inventory. He didn’t free them. Not yet. He wasn’t ready to deal with that responsibility, and releasing them now could cause chaos. For now, they stayed in suspension.
He returned to the real world, pulling his consciousness out of the ring. The cave felt small and quiet in comparison. Elara was still training in the distance, her movements focused as she worked with the heavy white lightning blade. She hadn’t managed to lift it fully yet, but she was getting closer with each attempt.
Lian sat down again and continued sorting through the remaining items. He had already gained an enormous amount of resources — credits, pills, weapons, cultivation manuals, and artifacts. Combined with the contents of this new high-grade ring, their foundation for the next six years had become much stronger.
He glanced at Elara again. She was pushing herself hard, determination clear in every stance. He respected that. He didn’t tell her about the black liquid inside him or the full contents of the ring. Some secrets were better kept until he could control them.
Hours passed.
Elara finally stopped training, breathing heavily as she sat down to meditate and recover. Lian continued working quietly, organizing everything into clear categories. Weapons in one ring. Cultivation resources in another. Valuable artifacts and information in a third. The sheer volume was almost overwhelming, but he felt a quiet satisfaction. This was real power. Resources that could change everything.
When Elara opened her eyes again, she looked calmer, more centered. She walked over and sat opposite him.
Power Scale / Cultivation Realms (Quick Reminder)
Foundation Realm (Layers 1–9): Body forging, no external Qi.
Circuit Awakening Realm (Early–Peak): First Qi loop, internal bursts.
Core Condensation Realm (Early–Peak): External Qi release, short flight.
Stellar Circuit Realm (1–9 Stars): True flight, Qi armor, energy projection.
Nebula Dominion Realm and higher: Domain control, galaxy-level power, etc
Power Scale Reminder
Lian Yu: Stellar Circuit Star 1.
Elara Voss: Core Condensation Middle
Keep it as reminders
