Though Zhou Chen remained wary, he obeyed. Something about the old man’s aura demanded respect, like standing before a mountain that could crush him at any moment yet chose not to.
The old man poured two cups of tea from a clay pot and slid one across the table. The puppy hopped onto Zhou Chen’s lap uninvited, curling into a ball as if it had known him forever.
“Young cultivators like you,” the old man began, “you travel through cities, climb realms, and yet so few understand the very land beneath their feet. Do you know what the Star Lou Continent truly is?”
Zhou Chen hesitated, then shook his head. “I only know it’s vast… and that it holds countless realms.”
The old man’s eyes twinkled. “Vast, yes. But also structured. Imagine an upside-down pyramid hanging in the void. That is the S
