Chapter 1424: Losing across the board

“Whoosh– Whoosh–”

The sound of the tide grew from gentle to loud, and the salty humidity in the air became gradually clearer.

“Whoosh– Whoosh–”

Although Noland Lee could not yet open his eyes, his senses were rapidly recovering.

He smelled the distinctive fishy scent of the ocean, heard the surging of nearby waves, and saw faint blue light swaying left and right behind his closed eyelids.

His cognitive abilities returned somewhat faster than his senses, and the question of where he was occupied his thoughts and mind.

“It seems I’ve left space, now on a beach, not far from the spray and sea water. There are no bird calls, no sounds of human activity, and it seems as if there’s no wind at all… What place is this?”

With questions in mind, Noland struggled to regain control of his body and managed to weakly raise his right hand to rub his face a few times before he could open a tiny slit in his eyes.

“Is.. is this the ocean?”

Noland clearly saw the scene before him and took a deep breath involuntarily, which inadvertently triggered the injuries inside him.

The pain stimulated his brain, instantly awakening all his senses.

This place was not the sandy beach he had envisioned.

It was a peculiar zone consisting of weightless sea water.

Water-blue liquid floated in the air in globular, blocky, and strip-shaped forms, colliding and merging with each other, producing sounds like the rising and falling of tides.

And Noland was not lying on a sandy beach; beneath him was a piece of glowing flooring that was strikingly out of place with the surrounding environment, emitting a dim yet profound gray glow.

Noland struggled to his feet, just about to use Magic to detect the space around him, when a familiar voice came from a ripple-laden block of sea water:

“You’re awake.”

Noland recognized the owner of the voice, none other than the Escape Core of the Plane that had rescued him from the clutches of the Void Spears:

“Thank you for your help, Your Excellency. Where am I?”

The figure of ‘Escape’ floated out from the sea water block, appearing before Noland in the form of a water-blue liquid figure:

“This is a safe house I built in the Barren Universe, located in the middle region of the Barren Universe, about forty million light-years from the Inner Cosmos.”

Noland heard the words “safe house” and felt some of his sense of crisis dissipate, his curiosity prompting him to look around.

‘Escape’ explained:

“These are liquid biota I found on an ocean planetosphere. They can float in the air unaffected by gravity, simulating the sounds of the ocean, and they also have very good protective abilities. I used these liquid biota as building materials to construct this safe house.”

Noland paused:

“You just said these are liquid biota? I thought they were just clusters of weightless water…”

‘Escape’ chuckled lightly and said:

“When I first saw them, my thoughts were similar to yours. It wasn’t until I found that I could communicate with them that I realized this seemingly simple mass of water was an extraordinarily structured liquid life form. I have wandered the Barren Universe for so long, always finding things that broaden my horizons. The ecology and creatures of this place are just that incredible.”

Noland curbed his curiosity and tried to call out to the Snow-winged Cat, sensing the kitty was a vast distance of a hundred thousand eighty thousand miles away, and their soul connection had never been so fragile.

“What happened before?”

As Noland tried to discern the cat’s precise location, he asked in confusion:

“It seems my Magic Messenger is still in Outer Space, but how did I end up in the Barren Universe?”

‘Escape’ replied:

“I forcibly interrupted the Quantum Leap Channel you were in, causing spatial turmoil. In the spatial turmoil, being randomly cast to any position in the universe is a minor matter; losing your life is a serious matter. You were lucky, I found you before you fell into a star in the Barren Universe, and transferred you here to the safe house. As for your Magic Messenger, its spatial abilities were stronger than I anticipated, and it managed to break free from the spatial turmoil on its own.”

“So that’s what happened…”

But Noland’s questions did not dissipate with ‘Escape’s explanation.

He had too many questions in his mind.

Why did the Void Tribe suddenly appear near the Players’ “Reality” planetosphere, and why did they destroy the planet with such ferocity?

Were Senati, Order Plane’s Core, and Assassin Angel safe like him?

What was happening with the Players?

What was the situation in the Inner Cosmos?

Had the Scroll Angel also been suddenly attacked?

Questions like these urged Noland to act.

He first tried to activate his soul connections with the various parties and then planned to take out ritual materials to set up an Array on the spot to contact the Scroll Angel.

This was ‘Escape’s safe house.

Using an Array here required the consent of ‘Escape’ first.

Noland inquired about ‘Escape’s opinion, expecting a positive response but was surprised when ‘Escape’ sighed lightly and said in a regretful tone:

“I’m sorry, Noland, but I must tell you a series of bad news.”

“Bad news? What bad news?” Noland’s heart skipped a beat.

‘Escape’ said:

“The Command Plane’s Core has been captured by the Extraterrestrial Eternity. Assassin Angel and Senati have been seriously injured, and they are now clinging to life somewhere unknown to us. The barriers of the Inner Cosmos have completely collapsed, and all the barrier channels leading in and out of the Inner Cosmos have been sealed. Whether it’s Angels, Deities, or Mortals, it’s impossible to enter the Inner Cosmos, and there’s no way to know what’s happening inside.”