I will burn books and slay gods.

Chen Ye was no match for the Nightmare Beast and met his tragic end. A large hole was torn in his chest, and his body slowly grew cold in Lin Su's arms.

However, Chen Ye's remaining consciousness was guided by a powerful and irresistible energy to an extremely warm place.

Chen Ye slowly opened his eyes. The light before him was bright, but not dazzling; it was gentle. The surroundings were pure white, making Chen Ye feel as if he had arrived in paradise.

"We meet again, Chen Ye!"

A familiar and sweet voice came from behind Chen Ye.

The moment Chen Ye heard the voice, he turned around abruptly. Upon seeing her face clearly, he immediately called out her name, "Sanhua!"

After calling out her name, Sanhua was genuinely happy because she hadn't expected Chen Ye to remember her name.

At that moment, a mechanical voice came from above. Chen Ye looked up and saw a clear percentage number: "1%".

Upon seeing the percentage, Chen Ye was initially puzzled, then turned to look at Sanhua and pointed to the percentage above, asking, "Sanhua, what's that?"

Sanhua didn't offer any explanation. Instead, she skipped and hopped over to Chen Ye's side like a child. This time, however, she carefully examined Chen Ye's body and even pinched his cheek.

Before Chen Ye could speak, Sanhua exclaimed, "Grandpa Tree, it's him! He's here!"

"Grandpa Tree?"

After Chen Ye called out "Three Flowers," his brows furrowed, and he looked puzzled.

Before Chen Ye could react, Sanhua grabbed his hand and pulled him forward.

Suddenly, the world spun around, and the sky and earth, which were originally upright, were now upside down.

The ground beneath Chen Ye's feet had turned a vibrant green, like a stream, as if the clouds had parted, making the entire space brighter.

Before Chen Ye could react again, the space was reversed once more, returning to the way it was when he first arrived.

"We've arrived."

Sanhua, who was holding Chen Ye's hand in front of her, gradually stopped and said.

After Chen Ye calmed down, he came to Sanhuadi's side. At this moment, the glowing tree reappeared in front of Chen Yedi.

"Whoosh—"

An elderly figure appeared in front of Chen Yedi in an instant. The old man was leaning on a cane with branches growing on top.

He had a gourd hanging from his waist, but it was unclear whether it contained alcohol. The old man's eyes were squinted, and he was always laughing.

But the laughter was kind and gentle. At this moment, Sanhua, supporting the old man, said angrily, "Why didn't you wait for me? I would have taken him to your place."

The old man smiled and chuckled, looking at Chen Ye and saying, "Don't let my age fool you, I'm in great shape."

Chen Ye didn't know what to say, but just then, Lao Shengsheng, supported by Sanhua, sat down on the glowing tree root.

He looked at Chen Ye and said, "Are you still troubled? Do you have many questions on your mind? Why not tell me and see if I can help you answer them?"

To Chen Ye's surprise, he found that his expression did not show any strangeness, and the old man could even sense that he was preoccupied.

"Where is this place?"

"Why does this scene feel different from the last time I saw it?"

"And am I already dead?"

The three questions, though few in number, were all quite incisive, but the old gentleman did not show any impatience.

Instead, he explained everything to Chen Ye one by one.

"First explanation: This is my consciousness space, a separate space isolated from the outside world. It is no less than profound laws and is not subject to any restrictions. It only follows my will."

"The second explanation is that your future has changed, which has led us to meet here earlier than expected."

"Third explanation: You're not dead yet, just on the verge of death. But since I was able to bring you here, I can save you too."

"but……"

The old man explained Chen Ye's three questions one by one, but he stopped abruptly with his last sentence.

This pause made Chen Ye realize that his arrival here was not accidental, but rather as if it were deliberate. So Chen Ye continued speaking.

"Sir, is there any doubt? I'm fine with it. Please feel free to speak your mind. Just as you explained, I have a general understanding of my situation. Whether I live or die is entirely up to you."

After Chen Ye said those words, the old man no longer intended to "hide" it, but Sanhua grabbed the old man's arm, her face filled with fear, and asked, "Grandpa Tree, do we really have to tell him?"

Seeing Sanhua's worry, Chen Ye couldn't help but feel that something was wrong, and that things weren't as simple as he had thought.

"Don't worry, since he's already said that, it means that whatever I say next, he can generally handle it."

Then Sanhua let go of Grandpa Tree's arm and sat down next to him. Chen Ye saw Sanhua's worried expression, which made him feel panicked again.

"Listen carefully, kid. I need you to become the new master of this sacred tree and take good care of my 'children'."

After the old man said those words, Chen Ye did not stand up in shock, but remained seated in the same place.

After the old man finished speaking, he did not show any surprise. Instead, he remained seated and looked at the old man in front of him.

"Sir, I didn't mean to ask, but it's rather presumptuous of you to ask me to take care of these children on our first meeting."

"Is there something you haven't said? If so, I need you to give me a satisfactory answer, or rather, this task is indispensable to me."

When Chen Ye asked this question, the old man smiled with satisfaction and said, "Child, you have not disappointed me. It seems that my child has made the right choice."

At this moment, the old man, leaning on his cane, stood up again. He slowly turned around, looked at the tree behind him, and said, "I will definitely explain your question to you, because I don't want you to do this favor for me with doubts."

"My body has reached its limit. Perhaps I will pass away soon. When I leave, I need to find the next caregiver for these children."

"I was watching you from the very first time you came to this space. Although I can't say what the perfect answer is, it wasn't me who chose you, but rather your actions that made these children choose you."

"They have their own ideas, but they haven't materialized into something like the Three Flowers yet. Because of this, they will be of great help to you in the future."

"Their wish is to return to their hometown and be embraced by it once again."

Chen Ye stood up and listened quietly to the old man's narration, gleaning an important word from it: "hometown".

"Sir, which hometown are you referring to?"