For the first time in what felt like an eternity, someone was speaking to Han Ming, and he wasn't about to let this opportunity slip away.

"Who are you? Were you the woman in the human world back then? Where am I now? I mean, which world am I in? Why are you following me? What's happening to me? Why did those people capture me? Are you with them?"

The tiny figure frowned slightly; Han Ming had bombarded her with too many questions at once.

"Who I am is none of your concern, and I won't tell you. The human world you speak of is your original world. Here, we simply call it the human world. You are now in our world."

Han Ming had already surmised as much, so the little figure's answer didn't come as a surprise. He pressed on, "You haven't answered my other questions yet. By the way, what's your name? Can you tell me?"

The little figure replied with a hint of annoyance, "Which question do you really want to ask?"

Realizing he was being too impatient, Han Ming chuckled awkwardly and said, "Tell me your name first."

"You can call me Catherine. Your arrival in this world was an accident. You fell onto Kalon's scales and were brought here. By the way, Kalon is that dragon. I was the one who repaired your body and enabled you to communicate with this world. I've been by your side since the moment you arrived, but you couldn't see me. I wouldn't have revealed myself if you hadn't tried to kill yourself, because I still have a use for you."

This time, the little figure—no, Catherine—volunteered answers to several of Han Ming's questions, resolving many of the mysteries that had plagued him. It seemed he had indeed crossed into another world.

"Then... can I return to my own world? What's your purpose in following me? You said you still have a use for me? What is it? Sorry for asking so many questions again." This time, Han Ming showed a bit more self-awareness. He had been isolated for so long that his desire to communicate was overwhelming.

Catherine replied, "Returning is unlikely. Recently, the spatial rifts have been unstable. When I went to investigate, I encountered Kalon and fought him. We both got caught in a spatial rift and ended up in your world. Fortunately, we managed to return before the rift closed. These rifts don't open often. The last time was about five hundred years ago. The next one might not open for several hundred more years, so you probably won't live to see it, barring any unexpected events. However, when I examined your body, I found that your lifespan isn't very long. Living to a hundred would be a stretch. But in this world, humans commonly live past a hundred. The higher the rank of a warrior or mage, the longer they live. Some can live five or six hundred years, even close to a thousand."

Han Ming's jaw dropped in astonishment. Compared to these people, his life was but a fleeting moment. Moreover, warriors and mages were things he had only read about in novels or seen in movies, yet they were real in this world. He couldn't help but wonder if he could become a warrior or a mage himself. The thought excited him.

Catherine observed Han Ming's expression and said indifferently, "You have no chance of becoming a warrior or a mage. Warriors are divided into nine ranks: Warrior, Great Warrior, War Madman, War Soul, War King, War God, and after awakening, Saint Warrior, Saint Soul, and Arbiter. Mages are divided into Mage, Great Mage, Magus, Archmage, Magic Soul, and Magic God, with the awakened ranks being Divine Master, Divine Demon, and Elemental Master—also nine ranks in total. From birth, a person's physique determines whether they can become a warrior or a mage. Battle aura and magic are two entirely different things. Think of it like this: a water jar holds water, while a magic crystal stores magical energy. Both are containers, but what they hold and their forms are different. This means a water jar can't store magical energy, and a magic crystal can't hold water. Your physique is different from both."

Here, Catherine gave Han Ming a meaningful look and continued, "Your body is completely incapable of storing anything. In fact, it inherently rejects both types of energy. Humans from your world are similar. You are born unable to cultivate battle aura or magic. You could say you're insulators to these energies. I once tried to inject magical energy into your body, but it was like throwing a stone into the sea—no reaction at all. All the magical energy was repelled. Based on my observations, battle aura would likely behave the same way in your body. There's also something interesting: every part of your body seems to be an antibody to both battle aura and magic. I tried consuming a small amount of your blood, and strangely, once it entered my body, my magical energy disappeared. This puzzled me for a while, but soon my magical energy naturally restored itself. This is why I've been following you. When I went to investigate the spatial rift, I was already injured, and my fight with Kalon worsened my condition. I reached an unprecedented low, so I've been relying on consuming your blood to hide my magical fluctuations, preventing Kalon from finding me."

Han Ming was astonished by Catherine's explanation. He had no idea warriors and mages were divided into so many ranks. It sounded impressive, but he couldn't help feeling disappointed. It seemed he was destined to have no connection with battle aura or magic.

Humans are like this: when something new and exciting appears, only to be told they can never touch it, they feel an immense sense of loss. Especially when that thing is as alluring and captivating as battle aura and magic.

As for how Catherine had been secretly consuming his blood without him noticing, Han Ming wasn't interested in asking. He was just an ordinary person, and even the ordinary people of this world were stronger than him. It would be all too easy for her to take his blood without him knowing. Han Ming believed Catherine had at least a hundred ways to do it, but he wasn't worried about dying. Right now, death was the least of his concerns. Besides, she wouldn't let him die, would she?

At the moment, Han Ming was most interested in learning more about battle aura and magic. After all, what man doesn't crave power? Even if he couldn't cultivate either, satisfying his curiosity was enough.

"So... is everyone in this world a warrior or a mage?"

Catherine replied, "A person's physique at birth determines whether they can become a warrior or a mage, but that doesn't mean they will succeed. Most people remain ordinary their entire lives. Even if someone has the physique to become a warrior, it doesn't guarantee they have the talent. In theory, anyone capable of cultivating battle aura has the potential to become the most powerful Arbiter, but how many actually reach that level? To my knowledge, none have. A person's achievements depend on their innate talent, comprehension, and later diligence. Take battle aura, for example. More than half of those capable of cultivating it never master it, while a small fraction remain at the Warrior or Great Warrior level. Those with better talent might reach the War Madman level. Achieving War Soul or War God status makes one revered by thousands. As for War Gods, I don't believe any have appeared on this continent. Those who have awakened are even rarer, virtually nonexistent in this world. Do you know how big this world is? I once used my magical energy to explore your world, which is a spherical world, right? If I'm not mistaken, our world is at least ten thousand times larger than yours, possibly even more. Even I can't determine the exact size or shape of this world. Do you understand?"