"What the hell is that?! Aaaaagh!!!!"
That was the first thing he heard the moment he found himself back inside his spiritual world, on the island encompassing his dao foundation.
As soon as he arrived, he saw all three of his minions cowering at the edge of the island, staring into the distance. He immediately turned to look, and witnessed a bizarre scene.
About a kilometer away from the border of his island, two lamp-like orbs were blinking at the island. Each of these orbs had to be a dozen meters in radius or more. An eerie mixture of purple and lava-red glow pulsed within the orbs, and each time the orbs flickered, the glow got brighter and brighter...
"Snap out of it," said a voice in a commanding tone, jerking Xuhan's consciousness. Suddenly, he realized that at some point, he had floated right to the edge of the island, a mere few feet away from crossing the borders of his island and touching the colored seawater.
When had he moved forward?! Had he been under some sort of hypnotism?
Not only him, but even his minions had been made to walk forward in a suicidal march, it seemed. Han Xuhan barked the same command at them to wake them up from the stupor.
They hurriedly scrambled back from the shoreline and saw the demon standing nearby, focused on the faraway orbs. He was the one who alerted Xuhan!
"Thanks for that, buddy. What the hell is that thing?" The fear seeping into his tone was so apparent that he felt a bit embarrassed to speak.
"That's a youngling Tupshu," the demon said.
"...A what?" Xuhan had never heard that word in his life. It didn't even sound like a word belonging to his language.
"The progenitor race of all arachnids. These little cuties don't live in your macrocosm. It's natural that you don't know what it is."
"...Arachnids?! Why is it in the sea?" Han Xuhan said, growing even more confused.
The demon sent him a disdainful look.
"First of all, that sea has no water in it. It's just a projection of this spiritual realm. And secondly, I didn't say it's an arachnid. It's a Tupshu, a race far, far more complex than those spiders and scorpions in your macrocosm. A Tupshu in its prime can turn the biggest oceans on your planet into a desert of alien elements with just a thought. You can't be stupid enough to think that only humans are capable of cultivation, right?"
Han Xuhan swallowed some insults, hoping to use the opportunity to dig for more information.
"I thought the human body is ideal for cultivation, with our sophisticated meridian system and affinity toward controlling qi..."
The demon rolled his eyes, looking even more insulted than Xuhan himself was feeling.
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"That principle holds true only in your macrocosm. Well, most macrocosms conquered by humans are pretty similar in terms of cosmic laws. Otherwise, humans wouldn't be able to conquer them at the expense of the native species in those worlds. But primordial races like Tupshu are so ancient that when their civilization was at its peak, the laws of the universe hadn't even developed to perfection. After reaching the critical threshold of concentrated growth, the primordial universe gave birth to countless Macrocosm, Totalities, and fragmented realms. The primordial races began to grow distant from each other, and division after division was created within these races, breaking down their complex existence into simpler units. The macrocosm you exist in is one such world. The arachnid creatures there are lifeforms that have lost most of their connection to their progenitor race."
"So that's how the current universe has formed?" Han Xuhan marveled aloud. It sounded incredibly complex, and at the same time, irresistibly interesting!
"What's this critical threshold of concentrated growth you mentioned just now? Why did the primordial universe give birth to-"
The demon harrumphed, interrupting him midway.
"That entire explanation was a freebie. From now, for every question you ask, I'll only answer if you pay me the remuneration."
"Damn, you really had me hooked there for a moment. You must've forgotten that I never purchased a single premium membership of any software on Earth. What makes you think I'll do it here?" Han Xuhan said.
"...." This time, the demon became speechless. Struggling for a moment, he said, "Well, you must have forgotten that the knowledge can save your life here, unlike the premium membership of any software. And it's not like I'm asking you for money."
"What is it, then?" Han Xuhan was curious. If he got to know what it was, then it would be a card he could use against this demon in the future.
"Control of your body. For each question, I get to take over at a time of my choosing, for the duration of a certain task. It can be anything, depending on what I'm trying to do."
"That is an awfully high price, demon. You probably know I wouldn't agree with it."
"Yeah, figured. The price is open for negotiation," the mental demon said grudgingly.
"Maybe next time. Now, all I want is for that Tupshu thingy to not come any closer," Han Xuhan said dismissively.
Just as he was about to float back toward the center of the island with his minions, the demon cleared his throat loudly.
"Buddy, you just had to jinx it, huh?"
As the words registered in his mind, a sensation of dread settled in. Han Xuhan didn't have physical eyes in his current state. But he could still use his corner vision to look. And when he looked in the direction the Tupshu had surfaced...
In the place of two orbs, more than a dozen had risen up. Each of them was burning as brightly as a bonfire, their purple-orange hue adding to the color of the sea of light.
Slowly, but surely, the orbs had started to float forward. Perhaps this entire kilometer of distance would be crossed by the creature in less than an hour.
"Can it enter our island?" Zhanxian said in a hushed voice. "Didn't the sect master say it can?"
All of them looked at the demon for answers, who didn't quite look as tense as they were.
"Each dao foundation that appears in this Totality could be treated as nourishment for beings that swim within the primordial sea. They thrive in the realm of spiritual projection. Each of our existence here is much alike newborn fruits on a delicate tree. This young Tupshu might merely be the first of many to see us and be attracted to the scent of delicious food. Hell, it might not even be the first. More powerful beings hidden deep beneath the surface may have noticed us the moment we appeared here. They are just much more cautious, too experienced to rush over to something new."
"Why the hell are you so calm?" Han Xuhan asked, growing a bit suspicious.
"I'm calm because even if it devours me, I'll just end up as a mental demon to it as well. Getting eaten by it wouldn't change a thing for me... unlike you four," the demon answered, flashing them a confident smile.
As they were speaking, Han Xuhan noticed that the speed of the Tupshu was getting faster and faster. The fiery orbs were now creating tall waves of water on their sides. In fact, the orbs weren't the only parts of the creature visible now. He could vaguely see the outline of something gigantic floating beneath the surface of the water.
"It's getting closer..." Tun Shi Tian realized it as well. Even the usually fearless minion's voice had a crack.
"Tupshus, Tupshus, let's see," the demon began to mutter to himself. "Younglings can have up to a hundred eyes, each representing a skin-shedding cycle. The concentrated gaze of all eyes can completely disable the mind of a creature without Soul Enhancing cultivation."
More and more orbs began to pop into existence. Purple ceased to be the only color, with some orbs containing blue dancing flames, and some touched by the faintest hint of azure amidst orange fire.
Han Xuhan was once again jerked out of a reverie when the demon's voice entered his ear. He had been hypnotized again!
"A young Tupshu can have up to nine stings, all of them visible. The stings of a young Tupshu can dissolve all organic molecules. Any prey with a cultivation less than the peak of Physique Transformation would not survive one sting. The adult Tupshu's stings are numerous, most of them invisible, enveloped by unstable cosmic laws, and can ignore spatial distance spanning thousands of miles to sting a target. Even a dao domain can be dissolved down to its origin elements, making Genesis Realm humans incapable of defending their existence against it."
Suddenly, a faint tremor began to roll through the island. Floating a few inches above the sands, Han Xuhan couldn't sense it. But he could hear the vibrations coming from the depths of the soil.
"And most importantly," the demon continued, "Young Tupshus rarely hunt alone."