Chapter 499 : Land of Sleeping Dragons
Chapter 499: Land of Sleeping Dragons
After a brief silence, the trio’s attention finally returned to the collapsing 【Black Hole】.
"So this is the legendary 【Black Hole】—"
With the barrier of the 【Shadow Barrier】 isolating them, they were finally able to see the true appearance of the 【Black Hole】.
Though it was still an expanse of pure darkness, Janna could vividly perceive the existence of the 【Black Hole】 through her spiritual vision.
It was a cosmic spectacle that could not be described in words—like a gigantic sphere appearing out of thin air upon a vast lake, with rippling waves of distorted light surrounding it, bending irregularly like water ripples.
"If the coordinate position were any closer, we’d probably be sucked directly into the 【Black Hole】———"
As one of the most compact celestial bodies in the universe, the gravitational pull of a 【Black Hole】 was overwhelmingly strong.
Even light itself could not escape its grasp—for within the event horizon, the escape velocity exceeded the speed of light, preventing any light from fleeing and forcing it to be devoured by the 【Black Hole】.
Fortunately, the coordinate information provided by Hela-Helheim was remarkably precise. It ensured they wouldn’t be drawn into the event horizon of the 【Black Hole】 before it completed its collapse phase.
—Thirty-six hours earlier.
When Janna revealed that her 【Spirit Phase Travel】 talent could carry the spirits of the other two directly to the 【Black Hole】’s coordinates, Hela-Helheim swiftly altered her original plan.
Still, to be cautious, before she decided to adopt Janna’s method, Hela-Helheim wanted to conduct a test first.
After all, for Hela-Helheim, 【Light-Speed Jump】—though troublesome—was a relatively reliable method.
As for whether Janna’s 【Spirit Phase Travel】 could surpass 【Light-Speed Jump】, Hela-Helheim was uncertain at the time.
Therefore, before finalizing the plan, Hela-Helheim located a nearby cosmic coordinate to test Janna’s 【Spirit Phase Travel】 ability.
The outcome of that trial had far exceeded Hela-Helheim’s expectations—not only was it efficient, but also incredibly precise.
Thus, Hela-Helheim decided they would arrive at the coordinate twelve hours before the 【Black Hole】 entered its stabilization phase.
By doing so, they would not only have sufficient time for preparations but also gain a time advantage—
preventing any potential miscalculations that might cause them to miss the optimal moment to enter the 【Black Hole】.
As time flowed steadily onward, during the long wait, Janna did not close her eyes in meditation as Louisto-Tulan did. Instead, she kept her gaze fixed upon the 【Black Hole】, studying every subtle change in its form.
"Due to the immense gravitational pull inside a 【Black Hole】, time experiences dilation within it—much like in the 【World Inside the Book】."
It was said that the current Keeper of the 【Law of Wisdom and Knowledge】—the 【Lord of Wisdom】, Victor-Allwise—had once studied the “time dilation” phenomenon within a 【Black Hole】 and, through it, developed the concept of the 【World Inside the Book】—a mental domain.
Though the 【World Inside the Book】 could not physically distort time like a 【Black Hole】, it could accelerate the perception of time within the spiritual consciousness, heightening one’s spiritual sensitivity and achieving a form of control over “time.”
In a sense, the fact that the 【Lord of Wisdom】 Victor-Allwise had devised such a “Mental Witchcraft” merely by observing the 【Black Hole】 was enough to prove what a true genius he was.
"When an object’s speed approaches the speed of light, its relative mass increases, making further acceleration increasingly difficult… it’s as if the reference of time itself slows down—"
As she stared at the ever-expanding event horizon of the 【Black Hole】, a principle from her past life suddenly surfaced in Janna’s mind—the “Theory of Relativity.”
However, she wasn’t sure whether such a principle still held true in a universe where every phenomenon could be explained through 【Laws】 and 【Origins】.
"Someone’s coming."
While Janna was still deep in thought, Hela-Helheim—who had been meditating beside her—suddenly transmitted her voice.
"Two individuals. They appear to be Wizard Apprentices from the 【Land of Sleeping Dragons】."
【Land of Sleeping Dragons】?
Upon hearing Hela-Helheim’s warning, Janna’s curiosity was instantly piqued.
The Wizarding World was divided into two continents—the East and the West. Janna was currently on the western continent.
In the East, there were also several powerful congregations, rivaling those of the West—such as 【Dordogne】, 【Phoenix City】, 【Atlantis】, and 【Florence】. Among them, the 【Land of Sleeping Dragons】 was one of the foremost.
"Have they noticed us?"
Louisto-Tulan, who had also received Hela-Helheim’s telepathic message, opened his eyes from meditation, alertness flashing across his expression.
"I believe they have."
At her words, Janna followed Hela-Helheim’s gaze.
But aside from the thick, unending darkness that seemed to swallow all light, Janna saw nothing.
"No matter. For now, they’ve only sensed our presence—they don’t yet know our exact position——"
Rumble—
Before Hela-Helheim could finish her sentence, a violent shockwave of energy burst forth from the direction of the 【Black Hole】, nearly overturning the trio’s spiritual bodies.
"What’s going on?!"
Louisto-Tulan, the first to stabilize his spirit form, quickly used his wings to steady both Janna and Hela-Helheim while sending a rapid telepathic inquiry.
"It’s the 【Black Hole】! Its collapse phase ended ahead of schedule!"
At her words, both Janna and Louisto-Tulan turned their eyes once more toward the distant 【Black Hole】.
As Hela-Helheim had said, the vortex-like mass that had been devouring surrounding light had suddenly stopped.
The once-swallowed stars now glimmered faintly again, illuminating the darkness of space anew.
"Time really did move faster than expected."
Gazing at the gradually stabilizing 【Black Hole】, Hela-Helheim narrowed her eyes slightly.
"Unfortunately, we now have two troublesome guests."
Roughly a kilometer away, two Wizard Apprentices in spirit form also hovered near the 【Black Hole】, their attention fixed upon Janna’s group.
"So, they’re both apprentices from the 【Bloodline-Side】."
With the aid of her 【Eagle Eye Spell】, Janna quickly made out the figures of the two apprentices from the 【Land of Sleeping Dragons】—