Walker Of The Worlds

Chapter 3638: Sudden Illness

Lin Mu did not dwell on it.

Instead, he focused on his task.

He activated the ship’s arrays, directing their perception toward the planet. Measurements began to form, calculations running through the system as it determined the planet’s exact position in space.

Coordinates.

Angles.

Relative motion.

Everything was processed.

Lin Mu took the data and fed it into the formula provided by the Rune Dwarves.

SHUA

The map above the jade slip responded. The flickering marker that represented the Runweld Barren World shifted and stabilized. Previously, it had been erratic, moving across a wide arc as uncertainty in its position caused it to fluctuate.

Now that arc reduced.

"Half circle to a quarter," Lin Mu observed.

It was progress.

Not yet precise.

But closer.

"We only need the third planet now," he said.

The ship adjusted course slightly.

The journey continued.

Days passed.

The routine remained unchanged.

Then, after nearly a week they found it: The third planet.

It was far.

Even farther than the fourth.

Over eighty million kilometers away.

Yet the telescope immortal tool functioned perfectly.

It extended outward, its arrays activating as it focused on the distant celestial body. The image formed slowly, resolving into a faint but distinct sphere.

Lin Mu captured its position immediately.

The data flowed into the system.

Then into the formula.

The map responded.

This time though there was no flickering. The marker stabilized completely.

A single clear and defined point could be seen.

"That is it," Lin Mu said.

The location of the Runweld Barren World had been determined.

Meng Bai leaned forward, his eyes wide.

"How far?"

Lin Mu checked.

"Around eight million kilometers."

Meng Bai exhaled.

"That still sounds like a lot..."

"It will take time," Lin Mu said. "Approximately twenty two to twenty five days."

Daoist Chu nodded.

"At our current speed, that estimate is accurate."

The ship maintained its course.

Days turned into weeks.

The journey became routine once more.

By now, everyone had adjusted fully to life aboard the ship. Their activities continued as before, each of them occupying their time in their own way.

And then...

On the eighteenth day...

Something changed.

Lin Mu stood at the control point, monitoring their trajectory.

Everything was normal.

Stable.

Then...

"Ha-"

His breath hitched.

It was subtle at first.

A slight disruption.

But it did not pass.

Instead...

It worsened.

His chest tightened.

A pressure began to build.

Heavy and oppressive.

Daoist Chu, who stood nearby, noticed immediately.

"Lin Mu?" he asked.

There was no response.

Lin Mu’s breathing grew uneven.

Then...

THUD

He fell to his knees.

The sound drew immediate attention.

Everyone turned.

"Master!" Meng Bai rushed forward, his voice filled with alarm.

Cattaleya moved instantly, her expression sharpening.

"What happened?"

Elyon stepped closer as well, his gaze focused.

Lin Mu did not answer.

He could not.

The pressure intensified.

It felt as if something immense had descended upon him, pressing down from all sides. His body resisted, but it was not enough.

Every breath became difficult.

His chest rose and fell with effort.

His limbs felt heavy.

Unresponsive.

Daoist Chu extended his immortal sense.

He scanned Lin Mu’s body carefully.

And what he found...

Was troubling.

"His Qi is unstable," Daoist Chu said, his voice growing serious.

Meng Bai’s heart sank.

"Unstable how?"

"It is disordered," Daoist Chu replied. "Some channels are accelerating. Others are slowing. Some have ceased entirely."

Cattaleya frowned.

"That should not be possible."

She was right.

Lin Mu’s control over his energy was exceptional. For it to fall into such disarray without external interference was... abnormal.

Lin Mu struggled.

His thoughts were scattered.

He could not focus.

It felt as if a mountain had been placed upon his back, crushing him under its weight. His senses dulled, his awareness fading in and out as he tried to understand what was happening.

"I... cannot..."

He tried to speak.

No proper words came.

Even the Saintess reacted.

Though she remained unseen, her presence stirred as her senses extended toward Lin Mu. She examined him carefully, her perception far beyond that of ordinary cultivators.

Yet even she could not find the cause.

"This is strange..." her voice echoed faintly.

There was no visible external force.

No attack.

No disturbance in the surrounding environment.

And yet Lin Mu was being overwhelmed.

Meng Bai clenched his fists.

"What is happening to him?" he asked desperately.

No one answered.

Because no one knew.

The pressure continued to build.

Lin Mu’s vision blurred.

His breathing grew heavier.

And then...

A voice spoke.

Within his mind.

Calm.

Ancient.

Unfamiliar in this moment of chaos.

Xukong.

"I see..." the voice said slowly. "I was wondering when this would happen."

Lin Mu’s fading awareness latched onto it.

"What... is... happening..." he struggled to think.

Xukong’s voice remained steady.

"You have reached a threshold." He paused. "What you are experiencing... Is the beginning of something far greater."

Lin Mu’s consciousness trembled under the crushing pressure, his thoughts scattering like fragments caught in a storm. Every instinct urged him to resist, yet resistance alone brought no clarity.

The only steady presence within that chaos was the voice that rose within his mind: Xukong. It was calm, unshaken and anchored his mind. Lin Mu clung to it as if it were the only solid ground left to him.

"What... is happening..." he forced the thought through the haze, his awareness barely holding together.

"Focus," Xukong replied.

There was no urgency in his tone, no panic, only quiet certainty.

"Filter the pressure. Do not fight it blindly. Look beyond it. Find where it originates."

Lin Mu tried.

But it was difficult.

The pressure bore down on him relentlessly, distorting his senses, making even the simplest act of thinking feel like an immense effort. His breathing was uneven, his body heavy, his meridians in disarray.

Around him, the others watched in growing concern.

Meng Bai stood near him, his hands trembling slightly as he tried to figure out what to do. Cattaleya’s sharp gaze remained fixed on Lin Mu, her instincts screaming that something was wrong on a level she could not comprehend.

Elyon stood still, observing carefully, his expression serious. Daoist Chu continued to analyze, but even he had not yet found the answer. Even the Saintess was in the same position and was unable to understand.