Lin Qiye took a deep breath and pushed open the archaic door engraved with drifting star paths.
The scene inside overturned every expectation he had.
This was not a damp prison.
It was a vast, boundless void of space.
Countless stars drifted slowly through the darkness. Some burned bright like distant lighthouses, while others flickered weakly like dying candles.
Each star radiated a powerful yet lonely energy, as though it carried the weight of endless ages of silence.
The moment Lin Qiye stepped inside, he felt like a speck of dust.
Insignificant.
Unworthy of mention.
There was no wind.
No sound.
Only endless silence and a crushing sense of isolation.
At the center of the star-filled void floated a throne carved from pure black crystal.
Its surface was smooth like a mirror, yet deep like an abyss that devoured all surrounding light.
Seated upon the throne was a figure clad in pitch-black armor.
The armor bore no metallic sheen. Instead, countless specks of starlight drifted across its surface like living particles.
The points of light flowed slowly across the armor, as though the wearer had draped an entire galaxy across their body.
An indescribable pressure radiated from the figure.
Lin Qiye felt as if his chest were being crushed. Breathing became difficult.
Even more terrifying was the loneliness that emanated from the figure—an eternal solitude, as if the being had waited through endless ages.
Lin Qiye's mind trembled.
He had never encountered such an ancient and massive presence.
Not even Slaanesh had felt like this.
Driven by curiosity, he instinctively extended his mental power, attempting to glimpse the true face beneath the armor.
His consciousness stretched outward like delicate threads, cautiously brushing against the armor's surface.
The moment it made contact—
The world twisted.
Lin Qiye felt an irresistible force drag him forward.
In an instant, he was plunged into a literal sea of stars.
Billions of stars were born and died before his eyes.
Stars exploded.
Black holes devoured matter.
Galaxies collided violently.
Time and space collapsed into chaos.
A single second felt like a billion years.
A single step stretched across light-years.
His consciousness began to dissolve.
The vastness of the cosmos crushed his soul like grinding sand.
"Kid, if you keep staring like that, your soul is going to get wiped out."
A lazy, amused voice suddenly echoed beside him.
A firm hand grabbed his shoulder.
His fading consciousness was violently dragged back to reality.
Lin Qiye jolted awake.
Cold sweat soaked his clothes.
He tried to retract his mental power—but it was too late.
Pain exploded in his brain.
It felt as though thousands of steel needles were stabbing into his skull.
A violent wave of dizziness swept over him.
His newly restored mental energy collapsed instantly.
The world went dark.
His body slumped forward uncontrollably.
His consciousness began to fade.
The mental energy inside him poured out like water from a broken dam.
Just before he lost consciousness—
The armored figure moved.
A faint flash of light appeared.
Something warm and smooth was placed around Lin Qiye's neck.
The moment it touched his skin, a cool and gentle energy flowed into his depleted mental sea.
It was like soft rain falling onto parched land.
The energy nourished his exhausted mind and repaired the damage to his soul.
His drained mental power began recovering rapidly.
Within seconds, his condition returned to the state it had been in before he entered the prison.
But something else happened.
Even after his mental power recovered completely, it continued growing.
His cultivation remained at the peak of the Pool Realm.
Yet the strength of his mental energy had clearly increased.
It felt as though he had taken half a step into the River Realm.
Lin Qiye forced his eyes open.
His gaze fell upon the object hanging from his neck.
It was a thumb-sized blue gemstone.
Tiny specks of starlight swirled inside it.
A name appeared instantly in his mind.
[Soul Stone]
Lin Qiye's mind jolted.
Something was wrong.
He had tested this before.
Ordinary objects never displayed names.
And this familiar system-style prompt…
His head snapped upward.
He stared at the armored figure in shock.
The figure casually lifted a hand and removed the helmet.
Despite its cosmic appearance, the helmet seemed weightless in his grip.
Underneath it—
Was a face Lin Qiye knew very well.
"Yo, Qiye. Recovered?"
Yang Yi smiled casually, swinging the helmet lightly in his hand.
"You almost died just now. Learn anything interesting?"
Lin Qiye froze.
His brain completely stopped working.
Seeing that Lin Qiye didn't respond, Yang Yi continued speaking to himself.
"So? Not bad, right?"
He gestured toward the endless starry prison around them.
"I spent quite a bit of effort building this place."
His tone carried a hint of pride, like someone showing off a newly built playground.
Lin Qiye finally snapped out of his shock.
His mind was blank.
He pointed at Yang Yi.
Then at the empty throne.
His mouth opened and closed several times before words finally came out.
"Brother Yang...?"
His voice trembled.
"This... this second Evil God prison..."
He swallowed hard.
"Why are you the one locked inside?!"
Yang Yi shrugged casually.
The helmet slipped from his hand and floated in the void beside him, completely unaffected by gravity.
"Relax."
His tone remained carefree, but his eyes flashed with a mysterious light.
"The Evil God Prison exists to imprison Evil Gods."
He tilted his head slightly.
"As a veteran player from my world, do you really think someone at my level doesn't qualify as an Evil God?"
He chuckled.
"Besides, sometimes it's fun to switch roles."
"An administrator playing the role of prisoner."
"A prisoner experiencing life as the administrator."
His words sounded casual.
But they carried layers of hidden meaning.
Lin Qiye felt his entire worldview collapse.
He had always believed Yang Yi was merely a special administrator of the Asylum for the Gods.
He had never imagined that his relationship with the imprisoned Evil Gods was so... complicated.
But when he thought about it—
Someone who could dig through the world at will...
Someone capable of destroying half the map—or even collapsing the entire world—after installing a powerful mod...
Wasn't that basically the definition of an Evil God?
Yang Yi observed Lin Qiye's stunned expression with obvious satisfaction.
He loved that look.
The look of pure shock when someone's understanding of reality was completely overturned.
That was the favorite expression of a true provocateur.
And now...
He was already thinking of new ways to have even more fun with Lin Qiye.
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