Swallowing the Stars: Starting with Panlong

Chapter 132, Third Test

Lin Yun walked towards the Guangmen Gate.

His pace was neither fast nor slow, a stark contrast to those around him who rushed towards the portal. Some practically ran in to gain the upper hand; others hesitated, lingering before the portal. Lin Yun walked past them, his gaze calm, his heart undisturbed.

The portal was like a giant mirror, its surface shimmering with a milky-white light, obscuring the view inside. Standing before it, he could sense a faint fluctuation of the laws of light emanating from the portal itself. This fluctuation was gentle, non-aggressive, and simply existed quietly.

Lin Yun took a deep breath and stepped into the portal.

In a flash, the world around me changed instantly.

He found himself standing in a completely unfamiliar space.

All around him were countless light screens, some smooth as mirrors, some convex as lenses, some shimmering like water, and some refracting rainbows like prisms. The light reflected and refracted constantly, creating countless illusions. He saw his own reflection in these light screens, distorted and layered, dazzling the eye. Some screens reflected his face, some his profile, and some his back, as if countless "himself" were watching him from all directions.

There was no sky above him, no earth beneath his feet. He floated in the void, surrounded only by light curtains and rays of light. These light curtains varied in size and shape, some only the size of a palm, others tens of meters high. They floated in the air, drifting slowly, the distance between them constantly changing.

Strange sounds filled his ears—the sound of wind, whispers, and the resonance of some musical instrument. These sounds, sometimes near, sometimes far, sometimes high, sometimes low, constantly interfered with his judgment, making him increasingly agitated.

"This is the Labyrinth of Light," Lin Yun murmured.

He looked around and found no signs or sense of direction in the space. What appeared to be paths between the light curtains often led to dead ends; what seemed like walls might actually be pathways. It was a maze entirely made of light, and only by finding the correct refraction path could he find his way out.

"No wonder Xiao Lan said that only those who have comprehended the Domain of Light have a chance of passing through," Lin Yun thought to himself. "Those without the Domain of Light won't even be able to find their way here."

He closed his eyes and stopped relying on sight.

In this labyrinth, vision is the most unreliable thing—the refraction and reflection of light create countless illusions, making it impossible to distinguish between reality and illusion. The light curtain he sees may be real or an illusion; the path he sees may be a way out or a dead end. If he is deceived by his vision, he will be trapped here forever.

Lin Yun spread his mental energy outwards, using his senses to "see" the world.

His Law of Light had already stepped into the threshold of the fundamental laws. In this labyrinth, his perception was amplified several times over. His mental power, like invisible tentacles, extended in all directions, touching every light screen and sensing the trajectory of every ray of light.

In his perception, the world had become completely different.

The light curtains were no longer smooth surfaces, but were composed of countless tiny fragments of the laws of light. Each fragment vibrated constantly, emitting waves of different frequencies. Some fragments vibrated quickly, some slowly; some emitted strong waves, some weak ones. These waves intertwined, forming a complex network.

The refraction of light occurs within this network.

When light travels from one light screen to another, its path depends on the refractive indices of the two screens. The higher the refractive index, the greater the angle of deflection; the lower the refractive index, the smaller the angle of deflection. The refractive index, in turn, depends on the vibration frequency of the light-law fragments within the light screens.

"I see." A sense of understanding welled up in Lin Yun's heart.

When he cultivated the laws of light in the Panlong World, his understanding of the mysteries of refraction mainly stemmed from the perspectives of "angle" and "speed"—light travels at different speeds in different media, causing its direction of propagation to change. However, in this labyrinthine realm, the Lord of the Light Realm used fragments of the laws of light to construct a microscopic model, presenting the essence of refraction in the most intuitive way.

This is not a simple change in angle, but an interaction at the level of laws.

Lin Yun's mental energy continued to extend, capturing the trajectory of every ray of light. In his consciousness, a huge roadmap was gradually taking shape—which light curtains were real, and which were illusions; which light curtains could be passed through, and which could not; which paths were correct, and which were dead ends.

"I see," Lin Yun thought to himself once again.

The Lord of the Light Realm has a much deeper understanding of the refraction of light than he does. The arrangement of these light curtains contains profound mysteries of the refraction of light—not just simple refraction, but also multiple refractions, total internal reflection, dispersion, interference, diffraction... Every phenomenon is displayed in its purest form within these light curtains.

"If I can comprehend these things, my Law of Light will at least advance to another level," Lin Yun thought to himself.

Instead of rushing to find an exit, he slowed his pace, imprinting the arrangement of the light curtains in his mind as he walked. He silently recorded in his heart the refractive index of each light curtain, the trajectory of each ray of light, and the formation principle of each refraction phenomenon.

While these skills cannot be immediately converted into strength, they will be extremely valuable information when you comprehend them in the future.

Lin Yun opened his eyes and walked in the direction he sensed.

He passed through layers of light curtains, navigating around illusions. Some light curtains appeared to be paths, but turned out to be dead ends—the refractive index of those curtains didn't match his body, so he couldn't pass through and had to detour. Other light curtains appeared to be walls, but turned out to be passageways—the refractive index of those curtains matched his body, so he could pass through easily.

His steps were firm and composed, without the slightest hesitation. His mental energy, like radar, scanned the surrounding light screen, calculating every possible path. He knew there was only one correct path; all others were dead ends.

As Lin Yun walked, he suddenly stopped.

Before him stood a massive screen of light. Unlike other screens, it neither reflected nor refracted light; instead, it absorbed it. Its surface was pitch black, devoid of any luster. Standing before it, Lin Yun felt his spiritual energy being sucked into it.

"This is... the critical state of total internal reflection?" Lin Yun's pupils contracted slightly.

According to the laws of light, when light travels from a medium with a high refractive index to a medium with a low refractive index, if the angle of incidence exceeds a certain critical value, the light will not be refracted but will be entirely reflected back. This is total internal reflection. And this black light curtain is precisely the critical point of total internal reflection—the light is completely absorbed, with no reflection or refraction.

"The Lord of Guanglan Realm has even simulated this phenomenon." Lin Yun was shocked.

He carefully observed the black light screen, trying to grasp the mysteries of total internal reflection. Although he hadn't specifically studied total internal reflection in the Panlong World, his understanding of light laws had already reached the threshold of fundamental laws, and his comprehension of light was already quite profound. Now, before this light screen, his understanding of total internal reflection was rapidly deepening.

"I see," Lin Yun realized.

The essence of total internal reflection is not that light is "blocked," but rather that light undergoes complete internal reflection at the interface between two media. When the angle of incidence is large enough, the refracted light disappears, and all the light is reflected back into the original medium. This is actually related to the mystery of refraction—both are the behavioral patterns of light propagating in different media.

Lin Yun lingered in front of the black light screen for a long time, until he had completely imprinted the mystery of total reflection in his mind, before continuing on his way.

After passing through several more layers of light curtains, Lin Yun arrived at a colorful area.

The light curtains here are no longer a single white, but multicolored—red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet, the seven colors of light intertwining together, as magnificent as a rainbow. Each light curtain refracts a different color of light, and the light weaves between them, forming a breathtaking picture.

"This is dispersion." Lin Yun's heart stirred.

Dispersion is a special phenomenon of light refraction. Different colors of light have different refractive indices in the same medium, and therefore refract at different angles. When white light passes through a prism, it is broken down into seven colors; this is dispersion.

The Lord of the Radiant Realm used these colored light screens to demonstrate the phenomenon of dispersion in the most intuitive way. Lin Yun could see a beam of white light shooting from afar, passing through a prism-shaped light screen, and being broken down into beams of seven colors, each shooting in a different direction. Those colored beams then passed through other light screens, refracted and reflected again, and finally disappeared into the depths of the maze.

"The mystery of dispersion..." Lin Yun murmured.

In the Panlong World, his understanding of dispersion was limited to the level of "different colors of light have different refractive indices." But in this enigmatic realm, the Lord of the Light Realm used fragments of the Law of Light to construct a microscopic model, allowing him to see the essence of dispersion—fragments of the Law of Light of different frequencies interact with the medium at different intensities, resulting in different refractive indices.

"The higher the frequency, the greater the refractive index," Lin Yun concluded in his mind. "Violet light has the highest frequency, the largest refractive index, and the largest deflection angle; red light has the lowest frequency, the smallest refractive index, and the smallest deflection angle."

He kept this realization in mind and continued on his journey.

After walking for about fifteen minutes, Lin Yun saw a unique light curtain ahead.

The light curtain was entirely silver-white, its surface as smooth as a mirror, without a single ripple. It floated silently in the air, emitting a soft glow, completely out of place with the surrounding light curtains. While the other light curtains were constantly drifting and changing, it remained motionless, as if it had never changed since time immemorial.

Lin Yun probed the light screen with his spiritual power and sensed its refractive index—which perfectly matched his body.

"This is the exit," Lin Yun thought with certainty.

He stepped forward and passed through the curtain of light.

In a flash, he found himself in another space. But before he could even observe his surroundings, a beam of white light descended from the sky, enveloping his body. Xiao Lan's voice echoed in his mind: "First trial passed. Second trial—the Trial of Wind—is about to begin."

Lin Yun took a deep breath and clenched his fist.

First hurdle passed.