Reverse flow of the Yellow Springs

Chapter 143 Chosen by Fate
As the feeling of weightlessness and the white light before his eyes disappeared, Li Yelai successfully arrived inside the Ark.

The hall in front of me was still magnificent and brightly lit.

Through the windows of the hall, one can see the eerie and mysterious scenery of the virtual realm, including a dazzling and beautiful vast starry river, as well as bizarre, enormous beasts that appear as large as stars.

Inside the hall, luxurious tables and chairs, along with mysterious paintings, adorn the space.

Wait, a hanging painting?
Li Yelai looked at the huge painting on the wall of the hall with some suspicion. There were no such things when Li Yelai entered the Ark before.

"Copper Mask? You're still alive after all." A voice rang out, and a figure walked up to Li Yelai's vicinity—it was Lang Tu!

Looking at the wolf image a few steps away, Li Yelai felt a surge of malice.

This wolf image was one of the main culprits behind the creation of the Fantasy Band.

I learned last time that he was still in Border City No. 2, and his current location is unknown.

'Damn it, one day I'll send you to see Mr. Shadow!'

"Lord Langtu, it's been a long time," Li Yelai replied.

Even if he's cursing inside, he can't show any emotion. Instead, he has to stick to the persona of the bronze-faced character.

"Yes," Wolf said with a voice that sounded both male and female, "When I learned that the No. 71 Disaster Fog had appeared in Border City No. 3, I was worried that you might still be in the city. You were affected again at the last gathering, so I knew you had really been hit. Fortunately, you survived and it seems you're about to awaken to the fourth level?"

Wolf Map seemed to have noticed Li Yelai's psionic state and couldn't help but laugh, "I remember you only recently reached the third awakening stage. It seems you've experienced a lot in the disaster fog."

"But I was lucky to survive," Li Yelai replied. "I held out until the Old Mad King intervened during the swarm's attack."

"The old Mad King was naturally a genius, but his passing was inevitable. When he falls, he will nourish all things like a whale fall, and what we need to do is to acquire as much benefit as possible in order to survive the great calamity to come," Wolf Map said calmly.

"A massive disaster?" Li Yelai asked in confusion, as such topics seemed to be absent from Jin Jia's mind.

Could it be that I missed some information? Or did something happen at the gathering I was absent from?
Wolf Map looked at the huge painting on the wall and said, "This was hung up at the last gathering you missed. It's a sign that a great disaster is about to befall us."

There are now thirteen images on the wall.

Ten of the images are blank.

The remaining three images present stunning scenes.

In the first scene, amidst a shattered city, the insect lord, a figure both beautiful and eerie, leads billions of insects, seemingly about to break through the screen and enter the real universe. Opposite the insect swarm, countless humans fight fiercely, while a figure seated on a golden throne hurls a three-pointed, double-edged sword.

The artwork is incredibly realistic, vividly portraying the beauty and eeriness of the insect lord, the danger and bloodlust of the swarm, and the bravery and despair of the human warriors. It makes the observer feel as if they are on a battlefield amidst the swirling fog.

As someone who experienced it firsthand, Li Yelai couldn't help but hold his breath, his muscles tensing.

The second image is even more bizarre and dangerous.

It was a giant city full of Western-style buildings, but the scenery inside was terrifying.

Veins and muscles appeared on the walls, and the trees twisted and became indescribable.

Countless corpses were stripped naked and hung on streetlights. These were not the capitalists who hung them on the streetlights, but men, women, and children who had been tortured and murdered.

Their expressions were terrified and pained, their bodies contorted or mutilated. Their internal organs were pulled out and hung from the road, where they were devoured by people lingering under the streetlights.

The bodies of those who devoured entrails also began to twist and contort in bizarre ways; some grew a third hand, others a second face from the back of their necks. The streets were a scene of utter chaos and depravity. People seemed to have lost all reason, engaging in humiliation, torture, cannibalism, self-harm, and suicide. The scene was filled with a disturbing frenzy.

In some corners of the scene, blond-haired, blue-eyed, or dark-skinned humans are fighting with these madmen.

But their numbers were too small, and they seemed utterly desperate under the endless onslaught of madmen.

In the center of the image, a demon with purple skin and fleshy wings, dressed in priestly robes, is kneeling and praying, holding a golden scepter.

This is the great city in the West that was corrupted by chaos.
Li Yelai was shocked by the madness depicted in the scene. An entire megacity—even if its population wasn't as large as Border City No. 3, it was still a megacity with a population in the millions. Yet, it was completely twisted and corrupted, with only a few psionicists barely clinging to life. The power of chaos was terrifying!

Compared to the real threat of the insect swarm, the power to corrupt all minds is far more threatening.

My family and friends have all turned into some kind of madmen, completely degenerating into monsters of desire!

"The dangers of chaos are really this terrible?" Li Yelai said in a deep voice. He recalled the giant he had seen in the Void Realm, and the 'Blood God' mentioned by the giant. Was he a being from the side of chaos? If he had accepted the Blood God's conditions back then, a similar scene would probably have occurred in Border City No. 3.

"Chaos is terrifying; it's the greatest enemy of all living things," Wolf Map chuckled in response. "That's why we should strive even harder to become stronger. That's also the philosophy of the Ark."

"The Spark?" Li Yelai thought to himself. From Lang Tu's words, it seemed that a terrible disaster was about to befall them, and the Ark Chosen would obtain various resources and intelligence through the Ark to become stronger and escape the catastrophe, becoming one of the few survivors.

Then, Li Ye looked at the third picture, which appeared unusually abstract compared to the previous ones.

It seemed to be an unfinished picture, with blurry lines outlining a bloody battlefield. The battlefield seemed to be under the starry sky, where demonic warriors bathed in blue flames descended upon it.

"What is this?" Li Yelai asked in confusion.

"This is something that hasn't happened yet, or rather, something that's still happening," Wolf Map responded. "It foreshadows that the power of the Fifth God of Chaos is infiltrating this world. He will bring despair to the entire world."

"Azure Flames?" Li Yelai recalled the captain who sacrificed himself in the calamity fog. Before his death, he had also unleashed a powerful force, ignited by azure flames. In his final moments, to protect the humanity behind him, he threw himself into chaos, into... the Fifth God of Chaos?
In fact, this is not unusual for the authorities.

There was a case where an official handler transformed himself into a new demon in an attempt to kill it.

In the most desperate moments, even if it means plunging into chaos, humanity will still fight to kill any enemy it faces.

This is the most helpless choice: to kill as many of humanity's enemies as possible before dying, and perish together with them!

Perhaps, when Mr. Shadow goes offline one day, Li Yelai may also have to choose this path.
"These empty paintings represent events that haven't happened yet?" Li Yelai asked.

“That’s right. Once all the events depicted in the thirteen paintings are revealed, a great catastrophe will ensue.” Wolf Map responded, “Currently, the events have progressed to two and a half stages. The power of that Chaos God has not yet fully descended, and its corrupting influence is far less than that of the other four gods. But it won’t be long before His power affects the physical world. At that time, humanity will have to face an even stronger Chaos. Before that time arrives, strive to become stronger.”

Li Yelai nodded and wrote down all the information.

He then said, "Lord Wolf, if you need insect swarm materials, you can trade with me."

"You two certainly made a lot of money while you were here," Lang Tu nodded and smiled. Then, the two returned to their respective seats.

The remaining Ark voters also arrived at the Ark Hall one after another.

Li Yelai saw 'Camellia', or rather, Jing Lin.

He was dressed in a blue and white suit of armor, exuding a chilling aura, and sat on a seat in the outer ring, chatting with the voters next to him.

Li Ye glanced at him but did not approach him.

As everyone gradually arrived, Li Yelai saw the black umbrella, the mysterious 'Chu He', and the person holding the book.

Soon, a mysterious voice rang out, and the gathering officially began.

Jin Shan was the first to speak, his gaze fixed on Li Yelai: "Copper Face, it's a pleasure to see you again."

Black Umbrella also spoke up: "You actually survived, Copper Mask, you're lucky."

"It's been a long time, Lord Jinshan, Lord Black Umbrella," Li Yelai replied.

Some Ark voters had their eyes gleaming.

The forces of the Copper Mask and Golden Armor were located in Border City Three, a fact known to Ark. Therefore, when Li Yelai was absent, Ark was certain that he had been swallowed by the Calamity Mist.

As for Camellia, that is, Jing Lin, some people speculate that he may also be in Border City No. 3, because he attaches great importance to the intelligence on Disaster Fog No. 71 and also missed the last gathering.

Now, the two who were believed to have been swallowed by the disaster fog have returned to the Ark, which surprised some of the Ark's voters.

At the same time, he looked at the book holder with a somewhat mocking gaze. At that time, the book holder had confidently stated that only a very small number of humans who were swallowed by the No. 71 Disaster Fog had survived, including some psionic geniuses.

Therefore, many people believe that the copper-masked, golden-armored, and camellia figures that were swallowed up are already dead.

However, although the third border city suffered heavy losses, more than 70% of its population survived, which is far from the situation described by the book's author.

Both the copper mask and the camellia reappear.

This is a slap in the face to the book's owner.

But the person holding the book didn't care about that. Instead, he looked at Li Yelai and said, "Lord Copperface, I need information about the No. 71 Disaster Fog."

"Information about the Disaster Fog?" Li Yelai was somewhat surprised by the book holder's initiative in contacting him, but he still calmly asked, "What do you want to know? Do you need privacy?"

"Private".

Soon, the surrounding sounds disappeared.

Li Yelai asked, "What do you want to know? And what is the reward?"

"Reward. You seem to be on the verge of fourth awakening. I can provide you with three fourth awakening potion recipes. How about it?"

"Oh?" Li Yelai's heart skipped a beat, and he asked, "What kinds are they?"

"Netherworld Path - Shadow Blade. Myriad Path - Spread Wings. Spirit Eye Path - Focused Gaze." The book holder said calmly, "How about it? If you don't find what you need, I can get another batch."

Was he testing his own path? Li Yelai wondered to himself, "How did he find a new formula for all things so quickly?"

I could take one of the wings, but I don't know if it's suitable. But I can't let the other party notice anything.

Li Yelai responded, "Our organization currently has no psionicists using the Netherworld Path. Could you provide me with a recipe for the True Martial Path?"

"I understand. The Shadow Blade will be replaced with True Martial Path: Vajra Body."

Actually, both of these recipes are available from the official sources, but as a character with a "copper face," he cannot obtain them.

As a bronze-faced individual, he should pursue the recipe of the True Martial Path.

Li Yelai then let out a silent sigh of relief and nodded. He was pretending.
Then, Li Yelai organized his words, and the official arranged for him to pass through the disaster fog with a 'bronze mask': "But I have to tell you, we were barely surviving in the shelter, and even the shelter was breached. We fled in panic under the siege of the insect swarm. I killed countless insects to barely survive. Perhaps you don't have the information you want."

After a moment of silence, the person holding the book replied, "How did the authorities kill the Insect Lord?"

“I do know about this; it was a big commotion,” Li Yelai replied. “They went deep underground to locate the Insect Lord, and then the Mad King made his move and killed the Insect Lord.”

"Wasn't a psionic phased array used?" the book holder asked.

Li Yelai's heart stirred. The Spiritual Energy Control Array was a plan proposed by Jian Kuang. However, the cost was greater, so based on Li Yelai's misfortune, it was changed to the Maze Corner Plan.

"I don't know, just surviving is a struggle for me," Li Yelai replied.

Could it be that, in the original plan of the book holder, the authorities intended to use a psionic phased array to penetrate the ground and the flesh barrier? That's why the losses were so great?

No! Even if a psionic phased array were used, it wouldn't have resulted in the sacrifice of nearly two million people.

Is it that the official used the psionic phased array again after the first decapitation operation failed due to the insect lord's feigned death?
The remaining official psionicists were used again, employing a larger-scale and more powerful psionic phase array, which resulted in the near annihilation of official forces and heavy losses for humanity before the insect lord was finally defeated.
Doesn't this mean that Li Yelai changed the book holder's calculations?

Is it because of Mr. Shadow's existence? Or is the misfortune that befalls me beyond the book holder's calculations?

Li Yelai was shocked, but he didn't show it.

The book-holder fell silent upon hearing this, then said, "You killed the Insect Lord without using a psionic phase control array. Is there some internal turmoil within the Giant City government? Hmph, well, Copper Face, you've actually benefited from this misfortune and grown a lot. Keep growing. I look forward to seeing how you change."

"You mean...?" Li Yelai showed some surprise.

"In the original course of destiny, you should have remained unknown, but some force changed that. You and some unfamiliar code names appeared on the list instead, becoming geniuses who rose to prominence in this calamity." The book holder smiled indifferently.

He slightly raised his hand, and three parchments appeared out of thin air. A quill pen quickly wrote potion recipes on the parchments. Then, the three parchments appeared in front of Li Yelai.

"You have been chosen by destiny!"

(End of this chapter)