Chains erupted from Apollyon's hand.
They were not metallic, nor were they made of light.
They were something in between. Conceptual, and absolute.
They entered Neo's body without resistance, passing through flesh and soul alike, and then spread outward.
Into his Cosmos'.
Into his Nine Heavens.
They bound everything thoroughly. Like a lock clicking into place.
The function of the chains was simple.
To not let anyone go beyond Third Step.
This was the answer Apollyon had found.
Not destruction. Not escape.
But prevention.
If the Calamities could not use higher realms as puppets, then they would lose their greatest leverage.
After the chains finished sealing Neo's path of progress, they did not stop.
They moved.
They spread through the True Blessed Land, wrapping around every Cultivator, Martial Artist, mortal, every structure, every Path that still existed.
Then they tore through the boundary itself and moved beyond.
Into the Elemental Cosmos.
