From the end of the world

Chapter 679 The crisis is coming
The city center was so far away from where we were that it was impossible to see with the naked eye, but I could still perceive it with my senses. The chaotic, dark "wall of the outside world" in the distance looked like dark stains on a glass window that had been washed away by a storm, quickly dissolving and sliding off, finally revealing the architectural landscape of the city center.

In this southern city, the city center's buildings and roads are the last relatively intact parts. Although there are many traces of the attacks from Peach Blossom Village there, the rest of the area has been turned into a desolate wasteland by my battle with Xuanming, where no trace of human activity can be observed. It seems that only geological and archaeological methods can prove that there were once urban buildings here. The city center has become like an isolated island of civilized society, a stark and jarring sight.

Xiao Wan could also sense the changes over there, and she exclaimed, "It's like another world..."

After all, that place was previously like another universe.

While we are still busy dealing with the apocalyptic events happening on Earth, Meng Zhang, the master of Peach Blossom Village, is working on building a new universe—I once again felt that his actions were on a completely different level from everything that was happening on Earth, and I shared this feeling with Xiao Wan.

"Perhaps they are not on the same wavelength, but in terms of scale, they are not that far apart," Xiaowan said. "It's the same principle as black holes."

"Black hole?" I didn't understand the description for a moment.

"It is said that at the center of the Milky Way, there is a supermassive black hole, which is the core of the Milky Way. Just as the eight planets revolve around the sun, everything in the Milky Way revolves around that galactic black hole," Xiao Wan said. "At the same time, using the Large Hadron Collider, humans can now create miniature artificial black holes that are extremely small in scale and have extremely short lifespans."

"Human beings, still confined to the celestial body of Earth, have already created beings that can dominate the Milky Way. However, the magnitude of artificial black holes is many astronomical units different from that of the black hole at the center of the Milky Way. And the new universe designed to accommodate all of humanity is likely to be even more vastly different from the boundless universe we inhabit today."

It's still a matter of scale.

Even if we can simulate things that are conceptually similar or identical, it doesn't prove that humanity is as great as the Creator. Without a vast accumulation of matter and energy, simply manipulating concepts and rules is nothing more than a petty trick of spreading rumors. I have experienced this principle that Xiaowan mentioned countless times.

The "Shangri-La" certainly possesses overwhelming power, but that is in comparison to an individual like myself. Compared to the vastness of the real universe, the "Shangri-La" is but a tiny speck of dust.

"—In any case, now that the 'Wall of the World' has disappeared, you can no longer stay here."

I first stood up, then turned to Xiaowan and said, "It's highly unlikely that Meng Zhang, the Lord of Peach Blossom Village, will come out, but the Dog and the Black Tortoise of the Water Army can move freely. This place will soon become a battlefield, so I'll send you out now."

Looking at her empty knees, Xiao Wan said with a hint of regret, "If I could, I originally wanted to completely heal Brother Zhuang Cheng's injuries..."

"All that's left now are minor scratches. From a battlefield perspective, there's nothing to criticize," I said.

“I understand.” Xiao Wan nodded obediently. “Then, if possible, I would also like to trouble Brother Zhuang Cheng to find a medicine to heal Sister Ma Zao’s soul.”

"Of course, I will remember to negotiate with the Navy's Genbu."

As I spoke, I tried to move the small bowl outside the city's boundary while cautiously observing the changes in the city center. The small bowl also stood up to cooperate with me, ready to move to the outside world.

Just then, I suddenly noticed something was wrong.

The city center area is not only home to Meng Zhang, the lord of Peach Blossom Village, and Xu Gou, but also to the antagonistic Water Master Xuanwu. It's illogical that the buildings there have retained their original shape. It's impossible that Water Master Xuanwu hasn't clashed with Meng Zhang and Xu Gou even once in the past twenty-odd days, maintaining a hidden posture all along. Keep in mind that a fully-fledged Water Master Xuanwu at the Great Completion level could destroy a mountain with a single, reckless attack; their battle would inevitably destroy everything there.

Or perhaps it has also undergone countless restarts, and the naval commander Xuanwu was already killed by the other two?

An inexplicable thought arose in my mind—the downtown area I observed seemed like an illogical illusion, existing only within my field of vision, creating a feeling that the boundary between reality and illusion was blurred.

The disappearance of the "Wall Beyond the World" not only exposed the area but also seemed to release some inexplicable force field. An unknown danger appeared to be rapidly enveloping the area where I and Xiaowan were; things couldn't continue like this. I grabbed Xiaowan's shoulder and gently pushed her. Normally, this push would have sent her directly outside the city's boundary, but now I only saw her take a step back, still standing perfectly fine in front of me.

Xiao Wan paused for a moment, then checked her feet and quickly looked around, her expression changing.

I also sensed the unusual changes in my environment.

The state of time and space has become inexplicably chaotic. Previously, the spacetime within the city's barrier only felt unstable, like the deck of a ship on water swaying slightly; but now, spacetime is like a small boat on a stormy sea, as if it will be overturned and swallowed by the storm at any moment.

Even more bizarrely, this feeling of being powerless amidst the storm only intensifies when I focus my attention on it; and when I try to distract myself, the feeling disappears as if it were a hallucination. However, the disorder of spacetime is real and will undeniably hinder the small bowl's escape.

This contradictory and bizarre feeling reminded me of dreams. If a person is consciously aware that they are dreaming while in a dream, the dream will become precarious; conversely, even if the dream has many flaws, the person in the dream will believe that everything that happens in the dream is vivid and real.

There are no "wake up" or "exit" options here; the person involved can only face a chaotic stage.

This disorder is different from the chaotic post-apocalyptic spacetime I've experienced. Although the latter is based on the spiritual nature of the afterlife, it simulates the real state of the material world after the apocalypse, and its chaos is stable—although talking about stability in the context of chaos is somewhat contradictory, as long as you understand the meaning. But the spacetime here feels completely illusory to me.

Staying where I am isn't a good idea, so I took Xiaowan's hand and tried using spatial teleportation again. This time, I wanted to move with Xiaowan to the suburbs, keeping our distance from the city center. If I were alone, it wouldn't be a problem, but who knows what might happen there? I needed to avoid taking Xiaowan into danger as much as possible.

This spatial transfer was both successful and unsuccessful.

The success lay in the fact that I managed to move away from my original location with the small bowl, while the failure was far more unacceptable than the success. After the scene changed, I was surprised to see a relatively intact cluster of buildings around me, normal street surfaces under my feet, a large number of abandoned vehicles parked around me, and patches of dark, decomposed blood on the ground.

We've actually moved to the city center!
It's highly likely that the chaotic spacetime caused my spatial transfer to a random location, while the jinxed force that was entangled in my fate took advantage of the situation and drastically adjusted the randomness of the landing point, making it easier to land closer to the center of the event... That's the only speculation I can make.

Next, I used the blessings from the small bowl to enhance my analytical and adaptability skills, and tried to explore and decipher the hidden patterns in this chaotic space-time.

However, this also failed.

It's not because the current spacetime is more chaotic than the post-apocalyptic chaotic spacetime, but because I sensed a targeted approach. No matter how chaotic the post-apocalyptic chaotic spacetime is, it won't react in any way to prevent being countered just because someone tries to adapt to or break it; but this illusory spacetime clearly has a program specifically designed to counter those who try to break it.

In just a second, I tried to decipher its pattern from no less than dozens or even hundreds of angles, but every time I was just about to catch the beginning, the other side would suddenly change its mind and change its answer.

The little bowl seemed to be analyzing and adapting to the space and time here with its own abilities, and then it showed a frustrated expression.

The power of the Heavenly and Earthly Branches in the Direct Position is not an antagonistic force, but rather a force for dialogue and communication. As the saying goes, "The weapon of criticism cannot replace the criticism of weapons." When faced with an overwhelmingly powerful opponent exhibiting clear and unwavering malice, dialogue and communication become ineffective. In the past, when facing the Great Demon of Disaster manipulating the power of fate to lock onto and pursue them, even the small bowl, who could also draw upon the power of fate, could only delay the inevitable; it could not improve the situation on its own.

I observed my surroundings with extreme vigilance.

The situation is bound to get worse. Since the power of the jinx is likely involved, it will inevitably evolve in that direction. Even Xiaowan's current inability to escape the city's barrier is probably because she is deeply affected by the power of the jinx.

Then, the magical power of Meng Zhang, the lord of Peach Blossom Village, suddenly descended.

(End of this chapter)