Alex stared at the Sword God with a look of apprehension. "You will help me leave? I thought you said there wasnāt any way."
"I thought there wasnāt, but now there is," she said before her gaze mellowed a little. "I suppose I shouldnāt be saying that. Instead, I will help
you
help
me
leave."
Alex took a moment to understand what she was even talking about. "Have you found a way to leave this world?" he asked. "And do you need my help for it?"
Bladedance nodded. "It may take some time," she said. "Perhaps even a few dozen years, but I think it will be much faster than if I were to try and do it by myself."
Alex narrowed his eyes in curiosity. He looked up where the shimmering sky would be. "I donāt see how I could help you get rid of the wall surrounding Hell," he said. "Not to mention, I just recently learned that it might be a bit too dangerous to try and get rid of it as well."
"Hmm? Oh, Iām not talking about the wall surrounding this world," Bladedance said. "We wonāt leave through it. Weāll take the backdoor instead."
"Backdoor?" Alex asked, still confused.
"You have the Space Dao, right? And you have the capacity to learn the Time Dao," she said. "Put that together, and you have the perfect way out of here."
Alexās eyes widened as he realized what she was talking about.
"The Void?" he asked. "You want us to escape through the void?"
Bladedance finally smiled. "Yes," she said. "That is the only way."
Her words made some sense to Alex, to a point where he wondered why he hadnāt even considered it before. Space and Time were the building blocks of the Void. It was true that he hadnāt yet learned any Time Dao, but he was getting close.
He was close enough that he could use it with his Intent.
However, as with everything in life, there were problems with leaving through the void as well.
"Senior, are there Voidgates in this world?" Alex asked the Guardian Tiger.
"None," the tiger answered. "There were some at the start, but those were closed off long ago when Heaven weakened. The world needed to be protected."
Alex nodded and turned back toward Bladedance. "How do we leave without Voidgates?" he asked.
"We open a way to the Void ourselves, of course," Bladedance said in a tone that said it was an obvious answer that Alex shouldāve realized by now.
Alex shook his head. "Thatās not easy."
"It certainly is easy," Bladedance said. "Have you never shattered space and seen the glimmer of silver and purple through it? Anyone in the Divine realm and above can shatter space with enough power. Space in Hell is certainly more fortified, but itās not something that canāt be blown a hole through. The Void is just an attack away."
The old man was taken aback by their conversation. "Is there such an easy way out of here?" he asked. "Can we leave right away?"
"No," Bladedance said with a frown. "While I could shatter a hole through space, it will reform almost immediately. And thereās no guarantee the hole will even be uniform, or worse, a single one. A single mistake, and youāll tear your body in half."
"Then, itās not really a way out, is it?" the old man asked.
"Thatās where he comes in. He has the Space Dao to keep the hole open and make it large enough for anyone to enter. In a way, I can unlock the gate, but only he can fully open it."
The old man turned toward Alex. "That sounds perfect. So we can leave."
"Itās not so easy," Alex said. "If it were a natural Voidgate, it would be simple. But a void opened through sheer force is not natural."
He sighed and began to explain.
"A Voidgate cannot exist on its own. It needs to have a corridor through the void attaching it to another location, whether in this realm or another. That corridor keeps you safe from the pure space and time aura that churns throughout the void. That corridor is what is most important."
"If it is not a natural Voidgate, there is no corridor, and youāre left at the mercy of all of time and space. Time that slows down, time that flows faster. Space that moves you miles in a single step, space where you can move for miles and wonāt take a single step."
"If you do not have a pre-established void corridor, you are doomed."
"Then make one," Bladedance said. "Do you want to leave or not? All Iām hearing is complaint after complaint."
"Itās not so easy," Alex said. "Of course I want to leave, but without proper preparation, we will all just die. To begin with, I need Time Dao at the very least. Iām still far from learning that."
"There is plenty in this secret realm," Bladedance said. "Learn from here."
"No, itās too weak," Alex said. "I stopped before a Voidgate for years and still barely learned anything. This is just not enough."
Bladedanceās eyes narrowed. "What do you need then?" she asked.
"Well, preferably another Voidgate," Alex said. "But how would we get that?"
Bladedance frowned for a moment before nodding to herself. "I will help you. Iāll carve through space and let you see the Void. So long as you keep it open, it should help you, right?"
"I wonāt be able to keep it open for too long, you know?" Alex said.
"Doesnāt matter. Iāll keep opening it for as long as you need," she said. "Even if it will take years, so long as it is faster than having to wait for my spirit to heal on its own, Iāll do it."
Alex nodded slowly.
"Alright, Iāll do it then," he said. "Iāll need to learn at least one Dao for it, and maybe five other ones. But thatās fine. I can do it."
Bladedance grinned. "Good! We have a way out."