We agreed to set sail, so you'd become the ruler of the deep sea?

Chapter 351 The King of Cinder's Background! A Glimpse into History!
[The Flame of the Past]?
what is that?
Before Xia En could think any further, the dazzling flames completely engulfed his vision.

The color of this flame was unlike any other flame he had ever seen.

It appears to be just white, but in reality, it looks like it's made up of countless colors mixed together, ultimately forming the white shape.

If I had to describe it, this would probably be what is called "a colorful white".

next moment.

The sound of grand church bells seemed to echo in Shane's mind, and a series of wondrous scenes slowly unfolded before his eyes.

Steel warships sailing on the icy sea dispersed from the torrent;
Countless ships that had come in reversed and left;

Glaciers and sea levels continued to recede, and the entire icy sea returned to its former desolation...

Upon seeing this, Xia En was greatly shocked.

These scenes seem to be things that could only happen if time were reversed in the far north.

Or perhaps, this is a reversal of history!?
Clearly, this rewinding scene is not limited to the period from the time the "Great Flood Prophecy" was first proclaimed to the present.

The sun rises and sets, clouds drift and gather in the sky, tides rise and fall in the ocean, and ice sheets separate and merge...

Time continues to move towards even more ancient eras.

As the floodwaters receded and sea levels dropped, a vast expanse of land appeared before Shane's eyes.

On that land, there was a ruin engulfed in raging flames.

The scene was one of devastation and scorched earth.

Then, the flames disappeared, and the outline of the Great Yan Kingdom at its peak came into Xia En's view.

Soon after, the city turned into scattered villages, and then into desolate wilderness.

The first inhabitants, referred to as "criminals," were exiled to this harsh and desolate land...

From the present to the past, endless images swept through Shane's consciousness.

Unbeknownst to him, Xia En felt an extremely intense heat around his body, as if he were in an environment with extremely high temperatures.

Xia En turned around to look.

An endless, fiery red color burst into his eyes.

The rock walls illuminated by the firelight, the uneven rocks, the continuously escaping gray gas, and... the gurgling lava!

Almost instantly, Shane recognized his surroundings.

here it is……

The deepest part of a volcano!

Suddenly, Xia En sensed something and looked down at the lava below.

In the flowing, scorching lava, lay a human baby!

His body was covered with countless dark red patterns that flickered in and out of the lava, as if he were drawing nourishment from the volcano.

"He is... Yan Yan?"

"Is this the volcano where Yan Yan was born?"

A guess formed in Xia En's mind, but what made his heart pound was...

At that moment, the baby lying in the lava suddenly opened its eyes and stared intently at him!

In those dark red eyes, Xia En could not see any human emotions.

Yes, but it was an indescribable indifference.

To put it simply, it was as if the gods treated humans, as beings that were like ants.

One could even say that Xia En saw something in this baby...

Divinity!
It was only then that Xia En suddenly realized something he had overlooked.

The legend that the Lord of Cinder was born from a volcano is not exactly a secret in the Seven Seas.

However, most people only see this as a manifestation of the King of Cinder's "innate divinity" without delving into the reasons behind it.

Now, after seeing Yan Yan in its newborn form, Xia En has come to a conclusion—

Yan Yan might not even be human in the true sense of the word!
He might be a deity, or some other strange being from the [Secret Sea], a projection formed in the [Seven Seas World].

They chose to grow and exist in human form simply to adapt to the environment of this world.

This explains the [divinity] that Yan Yan possesses at this moment, as well as his extraordinary immortality and fire-based secret power.

Of course, this is just Xia En's guess, and it is too early to draw any conclusions.

As numerous thoughts flashed through Xia En's mind...

The baby in the magma underwent some strange change.

The aloofness of his divinity was rapidly dissipating, replaced by humanity.

The little face even furrowed its brow, making an expression that seemed to show confusion or contemplation.

Surprisingly, Xia En found these expressions somewhat similar.

He quickly realized what was happening—

He felt a resemblance because the baby was mimicking his own expression at that moment!
Similarly, what the baby is imitating is the divinity within Shane.

Realizing this, a huge wave of emotions surged within Xia En once again.

What he is experiencing now is clearly just a fleeting moment in history.

He was merely an observer of these recurring historical events.

In theory, Shane should be unable to interfere with these historical events.

So, is the baby's imitation of his actions just an illusion, or something that actually happened in the past?

Could it be that when Yan Yan was first born, she saw her future self and thus began to possess some humanity?
But, how is this possible?

In any case, this speculation is far too shocking.

Even Xia En found it incredibly unbelievable.

However, the strange changes before Xia En's eyes were not over yet.

As the lava surged, the stagnant time began to roll back forward once more.

The baby closed its eyes again, and its body gradually shrank, and shrank even further...

He went from being an infant to an embryo, and then to…

A cluster of flames?
Yes, it was a cluster of milky white flames!
Upon seeing the flame, Xia En immediately thought of the wooden box he had opened earlier.

The flames that leaped out of the wooden box were clearly of the same origin as this fire.

"So, this is Yan Yan's true form?"

Xia En murmured to himself, "The flame he gave me was actually a wisp of his primordial fire?"

"But why would he do that?"

At this moment, the words that Xia En had not been able to see clearly before reappeared.

[The Flame of the Past]

[Quality: Myth]

Type: Unknown

[Description: A wisp of fire from the depths of the "Secret Sea".]

It was born in the most ancient times when the "Secret Sea" was first opened, originating from the first civilization within the "Secret Sea"!

That untraceable, dark, and ancient era is called—The Old Days!

The use of fire is a symbol of civilization.

The desire for fire is the yearning for civilization.

[As long as a single spark of light continues to burn before being swallowed by darkness, this civilization is not completely destroyed.]

The torch is passed on, never to be extinguished.

After reading these descriptions, Shane was once again shocked.

The "mythical" quality seems insignificant in the face of these descriptions.

Shaen suspected that the reason why the quality of this [Old Flame] was "Mythical" was not because its quality was only Mythical, but because the quality cap of items on the panel was Mythical!
"The ancient era when the [Secret Sea] was created...the past?"

"The first civilization born in the [Secret Sea]..."

"The flame that has been passed down through countless generations?" Xia En murmured in awe.

"So, this is Yan Yan's true origin?"

Xia En had previously guessed that Yan Yan's true identity must be extraordinary.

Only after he truly learned about Yan Yan's background did he realize that his previous guesses were too conservative.

"But what does it mean to be... 'swallowed by darkness'?"

Soon, Shane noticed something else.

The civilization in the [Secret Sea] is definitely more powerful than the civilization in the [Seven Seas World].

Even these civilizations seem to encounter some terrible disaster, causing them to be swallowed by "darkness".

The remnants of these civilizations, like the spaceships in the "Spark Project" in science fiction, can only escape to other "secret realms".

Presumably, this is why Yan Yan came to the Seven Seas World.

Thinking of this, Xia En's expression became somewhat strange.

"So, does that mean Yan Yan is an alien... no, I should say an extraterrestrial? An extraterrestrial god?"

However, regardless of Yan Yan's true identity, in Xia En's heart, he will always be a crew member on his ship.

Moreover, Yan Yan himself probably already considers himself a person of this world, the King of Cinnabar of the Great Yan Kingdom.

That's why he'll do everything in his power to save this world that's been targeted by the [Foul Fate].

Before Xia En could think any further.

That mysterious and unique power once again burst forth from the [Old Flame] before them.

This time, Xia En felt a sudden sensation of weightlessness.

My consciousness and soul are constantly falling.

Until they broke through a certain invisible but real barrier.

Xia En was all too familiar with this feeling.

This is the sign that you have entered the [Secret Sea].

Sure enough, when Shane opened his eyes again, what he saw was a deep, dark sea filled with starlight and streaks of light.

To be honest, no matter how many times he has seen it, every time Xia En witnesses this vast, boundless, and mysterious "Secret Sea," he is always amazed by the sight.

That feeling is probably similar to the awe-inspiring experience when humans first looked up at the stars.

But soon, Shane realized that the feeling of falling was far from over.

His body seemed to be pulled by some force, constantly approaching a phantom light bubble in the [Secret Sea].

Unlike the light bubbles I'd seen before, this one seemed to flicker, giving it an unreal feel.

in a blink.

Xia En then crashed headfirst into the light bubble.

Below it appeared a vast and boundless continent.

On the mainland, towering spires radiating blue-purple light stand tall.

Those spires are unusually tall, with many reaching hundreds or even thousands of meters in height.

It is inlaid with some kind of special energy crystal.

Shane saw a power in the crystal that was similar to magic.

Inside the spire, countless people, like magicians, were diligently working.

Shaen couldn't help but think of the so-called "Mage Tower".

The civilization within this "secret realm" seems to be supported by these mage towers.

Shaen stood high in the sky, like an observer, silently watching the evolution of this civilization.

As new spires were built and ancient ones were destroyed, the strange patterns carved on them became increasingly advanced and mysterious.

The owners of the spires also frequently waged war against each other.

The most severe war affected almost the entire continent, destroying at least 70% of the "Mage Towers".

But then, new spires were rebuilt, and new powerful figures once again stood atop the world.

Civilization found new life amidst destruction.

However, one day suddenly...

Darkness has fallen over the world.

It just happened very simply, without any warning.

From that time on, the sky never lit up again.

Disaster struck.

Without any precautions, darkness and cold claimed the lives of half the world's civilians in a very short period of time.

And then……

The darkness grew ever deeper, and more and more people died in it.

Finally, the darkness even blocked Shane's view as an observer, preventing him from learning about the civilization.

At this moment, Xia En also suddenly realized what was happening.

What he saw was not the real "secret realm," but rather the afterimage left behind after the "secret realm" was destroyed.

Or rather, this is just a part of history that happened in the past.

Just like the starlight people see when they look up at the night sky, some of the starlight may have traveled countless light-years to reach Earth, while the star itself may have already been destroyed.

What Shaen was seeing was the light projected from that already destroyed star.

Having figured this out, Shane's body returned to the deep [Secret Sea].

The previously illusory light bubble vanished completely, like a bubble disappearing into thin air.

Suddenly at this moment.

A message flashed across the panel.

[Career compatibility +10%!]

Xia En suddenly came to his senses and couldn't help but show a happy expression.

Yes.

To improve his compatibility with the profession "Secret Sea Traveler", he needs to continuously travel through the "Secret Sea".

For some time now, Shane has been using the Deep Sea Dive to travel to the Furnace Realm.

However, the affinity gained from the same [Secret Realm] decreases as the number of times he visits it increases.

This is why Shane has been unable to reach the threshold of the sixth-order advancement ritual for so long.

The current "Remnant of the Past" is undoubtedly an excellent opportunity.

Xia En has realized that the sights and the secret realms that the [Old Flame] led him to are actually its past history, the path it came from.

As stated in the description.

The civilizations carried by the "Old Flames" are by no means just one or two.

as predicted.

In the blink of an eye, a similar pulling force came from the [Secret Sea].

Another illusory bubble of light is getting closer and closer to Shane.

Subsequently, Shane followed the path from which the [Old Flame] had come, arriving at one destroyed [Secret Realm] after another.

Different civilizations were born in these [secret realms].

There is a civilization where people live and grow together with their pets;

There was a civilization where people cultivated their qi and blood, practiced martial arts, and the martial arts flourished.

There are also civilizations that use technology to transform the world without revealing their extraordinary powers...

Shaen, on the other hand, travels through the [Secret Sea], observing the rise and fall of these civilizations with a detached perspective, watching their triumphs and demise...

(End of this chapter)