Within Seven Paces, the Gun Is Accurate and Fast

"You?" Sonia asked, somewhat bewildered, looking at Yaxiu with clear doubt in her eyes. Throughout a sorcerer's life of cultivation, exploring the Void Realm was without a doubt a crucial part—one might even say the single most important part. The vast majority of fortuitous encounters, breakthroughs, and advancements in this world took place within the Void Realm. Countless sorcerers were willing to spend their entire lives exploring it. Compared to the Void Realm, reality was merely a stage where sorcerers showed off in their spare time. Yet despite its immense importance, to this day there was no definitive guide for exploring the Void Realm. Perhaps one existed, but with Sonia's current status, she was nowhere near qualified to access it. During her afternoon class, Sonia had specifically asked Professor Trozan if he had any helpful tips regarding the Void Realm, but Trozan had simply thrown up his hands and admitted he had none. "The reason sorcerers enjoy equal standing is precisely because we are equally ignorant within the Void Realm." Sonia knew how much Professor Trozan valued her, and she could tell he was a typical swordsman—far too proud to bother lying or patronizing a novice like her. If even a Three-Winged Sanctuary Sorcerer lacked an effective guide, Sonia naturally harbored no high hopes for the Watcher. "The Void Realm is dangerous," Sonia cautioned. "If I die here, it'll take me three full days back in the real world to recuperate my spirit." Sorcerers could die in the Void Realm. The most common manner of death, naturally, was drowning. Whenever a sorcerer attempted to explore the deep sea or remained motionless in the water, they risked being submerged and swallowed by the Sea of Knowledge. That was why Sonia had been so astonished by the small boat—it meant they were completely spared the danger of drowning. Dying in the Void Realm inflicted severe trauma upon one's soul. The stronger the sorcerer, the graver the damage, and the longer the recovery period. A rookie sorcerer like Sonia needed only three days to recover, but an official Silver Sorcerer required at least fifteen days, a Gold Sorcerer's recovery was measured in months, and it was said that Sanctuary Sorcerers and Legendary Sorcerers could take years to heal. Being unable to explore the Void Realm meant that one's growth rate plummeted by ninety percent. Consequently, sorcerers held vastly differing philosophies on Void Realm exploration: some prioritized conservatism, aiming for steady, risk-free progress, while others favored gambling—if they won, they would live like royalty in luxury clubs; if they lost, they would end up working in those clubs themselves to pay off their debts. Previously, Sonia had leaned toward taking risks because she had nothing to lose. Now, however, she preferred caution. After her swordsmanship talent came to light, Professor Trozan had appraised her: "Reaching Gold within twenty years will be no problem, and Sanctuary is well within reach within forty." In the Starry Country, a Two-Wing Gold Sorcerer was a figure of respectable stature, easily capable of attaining minor nobility—an achievement that would fulfill Sonia's life goals. And if she could advance to Three-Winged Sanctuary, she could establish her own noble house and make a name that echoed far and wide. Therefore, Sonia's bourgeois pragmatism was perfectly natural. It was not that she was unaware of brighter prospects, but harsh reality had taught her to clutch desperately onto what she already held. "The world is a fine place and worth fighting for"—she could only agree with the second half. Still, no matter how cautious she was, Sonia had to explore the Void Realm; staying in place simply was not an option. Countless school instructors, and even Professor Trozan himself, had specifically warned her: never linger in one spot. To this day, no one knew what happened if one remained in the same place for too long, but those who entered the Void Realm and froze in place soon suffered cardiac arrest in reality. Not even healing sorcerers could revive them, because their souls were no longer in their bodies. Thus, there was a saying: if you stop moving in the Void Realm, your body will assume you are dead and drop dead on the spot. "I've heard that on your first trip into the Void Realm, heading toward the thinnest white fog is the safest," Sonia said. This could hardly be called a guide; at best, it was a rule of thumb passed down by senior sorcerers of Sword Flower University. Even then, the success rate was under sixty percent, with the other forty percent encountering danger. Yet on this utterly uncharted sea, a sixty percent chance was well worth gambling on. "No, we're going over there." Yaxiu pointed toward the area where the white fog was thickest. One could not see through it at all, and just looking at it inspired a sliver of dread. Sonia was about to object, but the boat began sailing toward it on its own. Her attention shifted immediately. "You can control this boat? Did you bring it here?" "Yeah." "Then why did you trick me into jumping into the sea earlier?!" Seeing Sonia grip her wooden sword tightly once more, Yaxiu quickly explained, "I only just realized I could control the boat! When I told you to jump into the sea before, I was being totally sincere!" "Sincere about making a fool out of me?" "Sincere about wanting to see you soaked... Whoa, calm down, calm down! We've entered an uncharted area, and danger could strike at any moment!" With the white fog rolling toward them and unknown perils lurking ahead, Sonia had no choice but to sit down in indignation. Yet as they sailed through layer after layer of white fog, Sonia felt something flowing into her body. Her consciousness grew clearer, her skin took on a silvery luster, and a wealth of swordsmanship knowledge suddenly flooded her mind. This was precisely why sorcerers had to explore the Void Realm. As long as they moved within the realm, they automatically absorbed its knowledge, condensing their own understanding into silver sorcery power! Once a sufficient amount of silver sorcery power settled and condensed, it formed the symbol of a Void-Wing Sorcerer's strength: Silver Wings! Sonia suddenly understood why sorcerers loved immersing themselves in the Void Realm. The feeling of acquiring knowledge every second, of growing stronger with every passing moment, was as intoxicatingly satisfying as that first luxurious stretch upon waking in the morning. While Sonia was relishing the euphoria brought by knowledge, Yaxiu was behaving like an unruly slacker covertly goofing off in class, eyes glued to the map on his light screen. In the center of the map was a small boat, surrounded by eight squares. Right now, the boat was moving into the upper-left square. Indeed, this was the "Void Realm Exploration" mode provided by the game. Whenever Yaxiu moved the boat in the game, the boat in the Void Realm moved in tandem. In addition to navigation, Yaxiu could check information regarding each of the eight squares: [Pointless Effort], [Courting Death], [Pointless Effort], [Pointless Effort], [Pointless Effort], [Worth a Visit], [A Bit Troublesome], [Best Not to Go]. Among the eight prompts, "Pointless Effort" clearly meant the tile was empty, "Courting Death" meant danger, "Best Not to Go" was an unknown risk, and "Worth a Visit" was an obvious recommendation from the game. Before long, after cutting through thick layers of white fog, an island shrouded in heavy mist appeared before them. At this sight, Sonia suddenly recalled: wasn't the place where the Watcher had conducted the dream trial with her practically identical to the Void Realm? No wonder the Watcher was so confident. If he could even use the Void Realm to run trials, exploring it was naturally child's play for him! The boat came to a gentle halt. The moment the two stepped onto the island, the dense fog abruptly dispersed, revealing a hunter wearing a wide-brimmed hat and holding a long gun. "Beyond seven paces, the gun is fast." The hunter raised his gun and aimed it at the two of them. "Within seven paces, the gun is accurate and fast!"