From the end of the world

Chapter 755 The Creation of the Universe

Nothingness is absolute darkness, where even the concept of "darkness" doesn't exist, let alone simple, easily understood spatial concepts like length, width, and height. Just as one cannot find even a single natural number among all negative numbers, no matter can possibly find a place in such a place. But in fact, I brought my own body in, brought it into this darkness.

If you ask me to describe what this scene was like, I don't know how to explain it. First of all, nothingness is a realm that cannot be described in words, so I can only tentatively say that my body was suspended in darkness.

I can feel my body constantly tending towards death, as if telling me, "I shouldn't be here." But with the power of the third gate, I can defy this trend without any logic.

Even so, it's still quite challenging. While maintaining this state could last as long as desired, ultimately, the void is not a place for the living. It's said that humans go mad after a short time in a space without light and sound—perhaps this example isn't quite appropriate, as the void and that kind of space are on completely different levels. In short, the spirituality of any life form should be unable to take root and endure in such a void.

Once combined with the power of manifestation, that feeling of strain will disappear. In terms of adaptability to nothingness, most of the Great Impermanences who have opened the third gate are far inferior to me. Although, throughout history, the total number of Great Impermanences who have opened the third gate might not even be counted on one hand.

Even so, perhaps I also have some kind of temporarily unknown limit. A spiritual realm achieved with "adventure" as its guiding principle cannot truly transform into a perfect adaptability to "a place where there is nothing." I also find it hard to imagine what principle could possibly match it. Fortunately, what I can be certain of for the time being is that my activity limit will likely be extremely, extremely, extremely long, so long that even I can't see the end of it yet.

I tried to move my body with my mind. It was the same as always; in the void, with no reference points, I didn't know if I was actually moving, or even the concept of "movement" existed here. Looking forward, I couldn't see the real world; looking back, I couldn't see the afterlife.

Aside from these two worlds, the Void Realm should also be "connected" to other worlds. I wonder if, if I keep "moving" within the Void Realm, I could travel to other worlds like the Two Elements of the Mountain?

I can't help but be tempted, but for now, I should focus on the real world.

Once again, I tried to perceive the connection between myself and the real world. Besides the "fireflies" I had previously set up in the real world, I could also perceive other things. I still carried the blessing of the small bowl within me, and through this medium, I could also perceive the existence on the other side.

The little bowl should still be alive. At least the blessing on me isn't in the pattern of "the source is dead, yet the blessing is still maintained under the influence of the obsession with death." Because I've also simulated a child of divinity, I can make some judgments.

If you're worried that Yama Ryougi might kill Kobo in revenge, then it's best to use this blessing as the main medium to return to the real world. That way, you shouldn't accidentally end up in a future timeline where Kobo is already dead.

However, the future of Xiaowan's death is also possible. Since all time is the same for observers outside the world, how is this calculated? Or is it like how I would inevitably find Xiaowan in the afterlife in the past, because of the power of fate, that I am more inclined to connect with "the time when Xiaowan was still alive"? Or is it because the natural will of the planet connects the two worlds, and there are some rules hidden in this that I am unaware of?

After reaching the realm of spiritual manifestation, I seemed to feel that there were actually more things I didn't know and couldn't do. Someone once compared the "known" to a circle, and the "unknown" to everything outside that circle; the larger the circle, the more unknowns one encounters. Therefore, the wise always have more questions than the foolish, sometimes appearing even more foolish. The world, far from becoming clearer to me, has become increasingly unknown.

Following this line of thought, a strange idea arose in my mind—if one could truly become an omniscient and omnipotent being, would that also mean becoming an ignorant and incompetent being at the same time?
I've encountered the concept of the "Great True Spirit" more than once in the past, and I've pondered it seriously, but I've never heard of it ever doing anything. It seems to simply exist, and sometimes even its existence seems questionable. Many people treat it merely as a hypothetical object.

Regardless, one thing I'm certain of: becoming a manifest witness doesn't mean I've reached an end. Perhaps it's actually a completely new beginning. Countless unsolved mysteries, like treasures, await my exploration both within and outside the universe.

Furthermore, I cannot let my guard down just because I won't travel back to the time of Xiao Wan's death. Since Shan Liangyi knows my power, he can most likely predict my current actions. It wouldn't be good if I had to confront him again before I could fully digest the Vermilion Bird Seed—he might take Xiao Wan hostage based on this idea.

Based on my understanding of his personality and the information I've heard from others, he's unlikely to come up with some scheme like "If you want her to live, just stand there and take my hit"... He most likely wants to defeat me fair and square with his own strength. However, he could also use the hostage to force me to stay away from her for a period of time, and then kill her without hesitation after that period.

It's not just the Mountain and Yin that need time; I also need time to continue evolving and iterating my soul structure. My soul hasn't stopped growing yet. Ideally, I should push my power to its current limit before seeing the Mountain and Yin again. Unfortunately, the concept of time doesn't exist in the void. Although it seems like a period of time has passed, upon reflection, it feels like only a fleeting moment, and then I feel it's all just my illusion.

Time, time...

Oh right, I think I have a solution?
My power can simulate and recreate all things in the universe... not limited to any matter or energy. As long as there's the will, I should also be able to create time and space. At the very least, I can indeed simulate spacetime-related magical power.

I began to wield my magic in the void. The void doesn't even have the concept of "magic power," yet it's possible to forcibly use magic power even in a realm without such a concept—this is one of the essences of the Third Gate.

Orange flames ignited on my body, then gradually dimmed and died out. However, the power did not truly disappear; instead, it transformed into something intangible and insubstantial.

I felt the flow of time.

"Time" was created by me in a void.

So, what about space? I tried again. Soon, though invisible to the naked eye, the concepts of length, width, and height appeared around my body; a vacuum of space was created in nothingness. Then I continued to make changes, and the color of concrete appeared around me.

Not long after, I used my magic to simulate and create a space exactly like the old fifteenth-floor basement in the void.

A second later, the basement space shook violently and collapsed. The Void clearly did not welcome this space and did not allow such a thing to exist. Even the Great Impermanence could not survive in this realm, let alone a mere basement room.

Preventing the collapse and destruction would be easy. Since it was created with my magic, I can simply increase the force and use the power of the third gate to resist it, or utilize the power of manifestation to "coexist" with nothingness, or even add some true spiritual power... The real fifteenth-floor basement is probably only temporarily maintained by the fragments of the divine seal, and I can do the same thing.

Following this trend, perhaps I could even create a "universe" in the realm of nothingness? Although compared to the real universe, which has a diameter of 93 billion light-years in its observable range, the size I could create would be so minuscule that it wouldn't even qualify as microorganisms, it would still be a magnificent feat of creating a universe.

The fifteen-story basement in front of us can be regarded as a universe the size of a room.

Unlike Meng Zhang's "Shangri-La," my place is essentially just an accumulation of magical artifacts. It cannot be considered a separate great true spirit, nor does it have the protection of a "wall of seclusion," and it does not help in improving my own power...

So, would it be enough to simply create a large number of new life forms to fill the void? I continued to ponder. For example, could I create a vast number of humans, connect their consciousnesses together, and form a dream network? But right now, I can only create paradoxical life forms, and wouldn't such a universe quickly descend into apocalyptic chaos?
I let the void devour the fake fifteenth-floor basement, retaining only the element of time within myself. A universe was destroyed just like that—I don't know if that's an exaggeration.

As my power gradually grew, I pondered the subject I had just discovered, occasionally simulating various material and soul structures.

After a long while, I finally came to some conclusions.

Although I knew the principle behind Meng Zhang's creation of "Shangri-La," it was just a theory I'd heard about. "Shangri-La" was a great miracle that even the Lian Shan Liang Yi (a legendary martial arts master) admired and believed they could never replicate, no matter how much effort they put in. What supported it was probably not some simple method that anyone could understand, but rather the unparalleled talent of Meng Zhang, the master of Shangri-La.

The principles of the atomic bomb can be found online, but that doesn't mean that anyone can turn raw materials into an atomic bomb.

It likely also incorporates the special properties of the legendary creation, the "Seed of Mengzhang," especially the power of cultivation... Since it involves parts related to the power of the true spirit, it's unrealistic for me to replicate it using the power of manifestation.

Unlike the power that has been growing within me, in this place where there is nothing, I cannot expect to make any significant evolution in terms of knowledge. I can only put this topic aside for now and focus on improving my own power.

I continued to drift in the void, not knowing how much time had passed, when suddenly a gray mist appeared in front of me.

(End of this chapter)