Chapter 33: The Sovereign Body… and the Birth of the System
The informational detonation that tore through the skies of Tian Long was not the end of Chu Fan.
It was merely a process of purging obsolete data.
Within the void left behind by the Corrector—deep inside the Lost Celestial Ledger—Chu Fan's soul was undergoing reconstruction through a process that obeyed none of the traditional laws of cultivation.
He no longer required a dantian to store energy.
He no longer needed meridians to circulate essence.
His consciousness itself had become a floating Processing Core, suspended within a vast sea of probabilities.
Reconstructing physical framework…
Primary material: Ancestral Essence
Integrating Corrector Code for dimensional reinforcement…
Completion Rate: 10%
Within Tian Long City, Ling'er stared skyward in stunned silence.
The pillar of light that formed the Spirit Elevator began shifting in color—from radiant white to a deep, profound violet. Countless particles of light converged at its peak, slowly shaping themselves into a humanoid form.
It was not a body of flesh and blood.
It was a body of Logical Crystal.
At times translucent as glass.
At others, black as a singularity.
Imperial Palace — Seven Days Later
Chu Fan awakened in his old chamber.
Yet he felt no gravity.
His body hovered several centimeters above the bed. He raised his hands—perfectly human in appearance. But when he focused, he could see millions of microscopic symbols flowing beneath his translucent skin like streams of blood.
"Master Chu…?"
Zhang Song entered the room—and immediately dropped to his knees.
The pressure radiating from Chu Fan was no longer spiritually heavy.
It was existential.
Standing near him felt like standing before an undeniable truth—something that could not be questioned or resisted.
"Rise, Zhang Song," Chu Fan said.
His voice now carried a faint metallic resonance, yet it was clearer and more precise than ever before.
"I have updated my body. I now operate on a Fifth-Dimensional architecture. The Correctors will not be able to erase me so easily next time."
"Master… the world is changing," Zhang Song said shakily.
"Since you defeated the Corrector, ancient gateways have begun opening across distant continents. The Continent of Secrets… the Sea of Lost Souls… It is said that ancient cultivators who slumbered for tens of thousands of years have awakened. They sensed a fracture in the Cosmic Code."
Chu Fan smiled as he unfolded his fan—now transformed into an instrument forged from Dark Matter.
"Excellent," he murmured.
"I was worried the world might become dull after eliminating a million cultivators. If the ancients are awakening, it means they possess legacy data I require to complete Volume Three."
Deep within the Continent of Secrets — Tomb of the Forgotten Dynasties
Thousands of meters beneath the earth, inside a coffin carved from Starstone, a being opened its eyes.
There were no pupils within them.
Only a dim, eerie green glow.
"It has happened…" the being rasped, its voice corroded by time.
"Someone divided by zero in this sector. Someone dared to touch the Overseers' Firewall."
"The Seventh Lineage must awaken…
We must reclaim the Key—before that boy turns it into yet another equation."
Back to Chu Fan
Chu Fan stood before Ling'er in the palace garden.
She looked at him with fear—intertwined with awe.
"Are you… still you?" she asked honestly.
Chu Fan extended his hand and gently touched her cheek.
It was not cold like metal.
It was warm.
Strangely warm—like a processor running at maximum capacity.
"I am Chu Fan," he replied softly.
"Just a more efficient version."
"Ling'er, our city is now protected by High-Level Encryption. But the continent itself remains vulnerable. I will begin a journey toward the Continent of Secrets."
"There is a fragment of the Lost Ledger known as the Existential Logarithms. It is sealed within the Tomb of the Dynasties. I need it if I am to shield the entire planet from the next Formatting."
"I'm coming with you," Ling'er said without hesitation.
"Of course," Chu Fan replied, lifting a finger.
Space itself folded open, forming a gateway.
"I've already programmed our route. We won't be traveling through mountains or seas… We'll traverse the Folds of Space."
"Prepare yourself," he added calmly.
"The world you once knew is about to become very small."
Chu Fan and Ling'er stepped into the gateway, leaving behind the Tian Long Empire—now an impregnable fortress.
They headed toward the deeper mystery of the Continent of Secrets, where beings who had never heard of logic awaited them—
beings who believed only in Ancient Magic, older than numbers themselves.