Chapter 1745: Chapter 89: Monster
[If you’re in a certain scenario, under a certain identity, at a certain time... you can radiate a brilliance that even you find unbelievable, far surpassing those geniuses.]
[You...]
[Will you be content to abandon this extreme potential, satisfied with your current mediocrity?]
...
"Shua—!"
Before Wang Xingkong’s eyes, the swirling blue mist suddenly gathered inward, swiftly sketching out a clear figure—
It was a child, wearing a garland of purple grapes and olive leaves, with a body pieced together from Red Hearts, Spades, Clubs, and Square Cards. Initially, it was a face of childish innocence, with nothing special about it. Until the figure’s hand flicked, a thin membrane like a mask peeled away, revealing the true face.
A face that made Wang Xingkong’s pupils constrict to the extreme.
—A face that bore a seven-point resemblance to Wang Xingkong.
"You... you..." Wang Xingkong’s fragmented consciousness could hardly process this startling information, mouth agape, uttering meaningless syllables.
—Seventh Thrones Eternal Lord Yuritilola.
He looked at him coldly.
...
[He discovered that this formerly annoying enemy actually had a disposition like an ordinary child. When asked why he became high-dimensional, Yuritilola said he lived in an endlessly cyclical campus for a very, very long time, until the end of time. He finally understood the concept of "eternity" and was chosen by the world game, thus becoming one of the organizers.]
...
In the dark abyss, two similar faces facing each other.
One was bloodstained, the other shrouded in blue mist.
—The bloodied boy lying on the ground, short deep-brown hair, dark eyes, skin ravaged in patches.
—The deity standing amidst flowers, wearing a garland of purple grapes and olive leaves, composed of illusions of Red Hearts, Spades, Clubs, and Square Cards with an indifferent divinity. He looked at Wang Xingkong, as if observing a display piece whose trajectory and outcome had long been foreseen.
One destroyed.
One reshaped. In an endlessly cyclical campus, selected by the world game and forged into this powerful and non-human form.
One struggling and vibrant.
One eternal and silent.
The tear-filled eyes of the dying person facing the indifferent deep gaze of the high dimension.
Like a stream about to dry up, full of mud and scars, at the end of life, finally glimpsing the vast river of destiny it might have joined.
"You... are..." Wang Xingkong’s shattered vocal cords squeezed out broken syllables, blood gushing forth.
"Surprised? I am you—a possible version of you that, at the end of time, ascended to the divine throne grasping the authority of ’eternity’—[Yuritilola]."
—The endlessly cyclical campus is precisely Mingxi campus.
Wang Xingkong’s world seemed to freeze.
He suddenly understood why the outside world couldn’t see the Blue Mist Man, because the Blue Mist Man had always possessed him, only that in his eyes, He appeared as an independent blue mist form. He easily took over because He was him.
His action of standing before the door... provided Yuritilola with the best coordinates.
"Time is never a line like you think." Yuritilola looked down at his dying self,
"The Mingxi campus you escaped from is a failed product of the Disciple Game, long abandoned, with no Players visiting anymore, no main storyline progression, all NPCs inside... teachers, classmates, including you... repeat the same dialogues, the same courses, the same exams ad infinitum, like the most precise clockwork dolls... until the end of time."
"And if, on that day, Su Ming’an hadn’t possessed you, hadn’t urged Chen Yuhang over the railing and leapt down, escaping from Mingxi campus, plunging into Luowasha..."
"Then you’d spend 365 days in high school inside an eternal cage. Then time would reset, and you’d do another 365 days. Another ten years, a hundred years, a thousand years, ten thousand years... in an absolute eternal cage."
"After all, a game that no one plays ends in eternal repetition without change."
"As an ordinary life form, what happens in eternal captivity and repetition? When time is long enough, long enough that even madness tires after being repeated billions of times, long enough that consciousness is tempered... ’Wang Xingkong’ in one cycle gradually understands ’eternity’ in endless repetition, and gradually, across ages, ’Eternal Lord Yuritilola’ escapes from the eternal cycle of that forgotten instance."
...
[The dead Player Wang Ran cannot possess [eternity], his traces vanished from this school, like a fleeting star, as if he never existed between these vast timelines.]
[...This is an [eternal] Mingxi Middle School.]
[—Memory Clip 93: "I finally... waited for you."]
...
["Please let me in this world without death... become the sole [eternity]."]
[What Wang Xingkong wants is merely the false notion of "living," just to exist as a string of data, in a forgotten world, becoming repeated [eternity].]
[—Memory Clip 100: "TE · Radiant Future"]
...
["Take Seventh Thrones Eternal Lord Yuritilola as an example. He is the luckiest among us—even though he started as a lowly life, due to the long passage of years, forcibly comprehending the concept of ’eternity’, he was luckily summoned by the ’Source Point’, ascending in a single step to high dimensions. This sudden transformation in life essence is truly astonishing," Xiao Love said.]
...
Named an instant of eternity.
Named eternity of an instant.
Until the end of time—He finally fully understood the authority called "eternity," then was chosen by the world game, becoming one of the organizers.
He looked at his shocked wordless younger self, their soul essence at the root was the same river at different points in time.
One cannot even empathize with their former self; He looked at this silly Wang Xingkong, wiped his face again, reverting to a child’s appearance: "So I gave you a hand, stopping you from falling into the Source Point, trying to save you. I hoped you would retreat when faced with difficulties, stop obstructing Noel brother’s matters. Who would have thought... who would have thought despite being so incredibly scared, despite being as weak as an ant, you grit your teeth and stood here for thirteen rounds of games. Until oil ran out and lights dimmed. Until I didn’t dare to wait any longer—to not set a trap to disturb Su Ming’an, he’d almost absorb the Demon Mother Goddess and emerge. I had to act."
"And you actually..." Yuritilola looked at the weaker and weaker young self on the ground, at the eyes even in dissipation continued to persist on something. He almost couldn’t empathize with this timid yet passionate, fearful but brave, young man who dared shoot at himself.
"...You actually had the guts to shoot yourself."
"You made it impossible for me to manipulate your actions anymore."
Wang Xingkong could barely hear the words that followed.
The overwhelming information, the dying agony, the chilling quick loss of life... made his consciousness flicker like a candle in the wind. But he understood the most crucial part—turns out the Blue Mist Man was his future self. If he hadn’t escaped Mingxi campus, he’d become a deity in its eternal cycle.
Turns out the so-called "potential" pointed to this powerful deity.
He suddenly found it amusing.
Turns out he really had such strong potential, as long as it endured long years, as long as it repeated eternally thousands of times.
He just needed to shed his former self.
He just needed to discard human weakness and the physical shell.
Finally, to satisfy the high-dimensional desires and instincts, turn the sword point towards his once admired Brother Ming’an.
"My future self... you got one thing wrong. You thought that by saying ’I am you,’ I would disregard everything and lie at your feet, wagging my tail in supplication... yearning to become someone like you..." the young boy said weakly.
... Isn’t that so? Noel looked over.
... Aren’t people like you the most eager to become strong? To leave the Eternal campus and become a real life.
"But I don’t think you are me." The boy looked at Her, with an emotion in his eyes that Noel couldn’t understand,
"You’re not me at all. I wouldn’t harm my homeland... nor would I persecute my past self... Doing so would make my parents sad... I don’t want them to have their backs criticized for having a traitor son in their old age..."
Because of such reasons?
Noel felt as if something was pressed inside her heart. What she heard wasn’t righteousness or greatness, just fear of having their backs criticized, still for fame, for profit! She was a vulgar person, such awareness made Her feel repulsed.
"You don’t want to become me?" The future self said.
"I don’t want to become a monster." The young self said.
...
"Monster."
"Su Ming’an is a monster."
Su Ming’an opened his eyes, in his daze, he saw these two comments.
These comments were just fleeting, merely drifting by, quickly drowned by countless refutations and reproaches. Most people still stood by Su Ming’an, after all, he was there to protect them.
[Shut up!]
[Wouldn’t you feel comforted seeing this!]
[We must help him hold on now, or we’ll be done for! Look how tough the fox is, it should be incredibly difficult.]
[I apologize... I’m really a bit scared... I’ll leave first.]
[From human to High Dimensions... such a tremendous leap.]
[It’s all because there’s no moderator in this live broadcast room, if the United Group took over, it wouldn’t be this chaotic now.]
[Keep going!]
The comments began to flood the screen. Even those who normally found Su Ming’an displeasing would not go against the flow at this moment. Some who feared the strong and bullied the weak chose silence, no longer dissenting. They feared being held accountable afterward, after all, they were too insignificant compared to Su Ming’an.
This 19-year-old youth... had truly reached the cosmic scale, becoming a massive existence capable of roaming the Star Sea. He was no longer confined to the World as a deity; his "Devouring" authority was threatening to the civilization’s scale.
Pulaya, he can take on hundreds in his Soul Hunt stance.
Ruined World, he can confront thousands using Floating Cannon and Judgment.
The World of Old Days, he suppresses all of humanity in his deity stance.
Now... he can stand equal to civilization, becoming High Dimensions.
——Anyone who sees him at this moment would inevitably feel awe and reverence in their hearts.
Like a giant tree rooted in black water, countless lustrous white tendrils extend from the trunk and roots, flickering with fine specks akin to diamond dust, as if molded by eternal Moonlight and Condensation.
Pale, serene, vast.
Unconsciously, Su Ming’an seemed to drift off to sleep; in his gradually blurred consciousness, he saw a phantom.
A sunlit small town, fountains bubbling, white doves pecking at bread crumbs on the ground. On the bell tower, the white-haired, white-eyed Deity looked silently over.
"I admire you," the Deity raised Its head, "it’s a pity the God of Intelligence who could help you isn’t me, I hope that ’I’ can bring you a chance to win. I wish you a happy vacation before this great battle... yet you always declined me before."
"It’s hard not to decline you," Su Ming’an said.
"Hmm, my methods were incorrect," the Deity said, "if I had thought of a way to enter Dao Ya City from the start..."
... That would be even more incorrect!
The Deity looked at him and suddenly said, "Your current state is improving..."
"Improving?" Su Ming’an hesitated, making sure it wasn’t becoming scarier?
"From our perspective, it’s very beautiful," the Deity said, "of course, you have the right to retain your opinions. Honestly speaking, I’m glad you made this decision; your potential isn’t limited to humanity, it’s more fitting to directly absorb the Demon Mother Goddess to stimulate your potential— I believe, you’ll reach a very high position."
"Do you know why I can see you?" Su Ming’an asked.
"It’s because of the brain’s protective mechanism." The Deity said, "In your state of extreme pain, even approaching death, a mechanism in your soul activated, akin to a form of palliative care, letting you have a dream of meeting old friends."
... Turns out he was so close to dying from pain that he had such a dream. Notably, his body indeed didn’t hurt much while dreaming. Did Su Rin plant something, triggering it at this very moment to alleviate the pain.
"So, you’re all dreams..." Su Ming’an mumbled.
The Deity extended Its hand, a white dove landed on Its fingertip, It softly said: "Go, go... I won’t hold you anymore, may you also witness Dawn..."
...
The phantom of Lü God.
The white hair, green-eyed man stood beneath a expanse of black water.
"... It seems you’ve made a firm decision." Lü God looked over, gazing at Su Ming’an, "From now on, you will thoroughly say goodbye to ’human’ form, overlooking the World with the essence of High-Dimensional life... I have to say, even within my incomplete memory, not many have made it this far."
"Do you have anything to tell me?"
"You are right."
"That’s it?"
"Hmm."
"Well then, it’s enough."
What he sought was simply a "correct." He feared his obsession spiraling into Evil, dragging the entire World into the Abyss.
"I’ll be waiting for you before the end." Lü God closed his eyes, "You certainly are the one who can end everything..."
...
Half-awake and half-asleep, Su Ming’an forcibly submerged into dreams to avoid the pain.
In his daze, he dreamt of a golden flower field, he rolled in the golden flowers, sunlight fell upon him... fell upon his non-human shaped white tendrils. For a moment, he caught sight of people outside the flower field, far away from him, gazing at him with awe, fear, and panic. They both longed for his salvation and feared his non-human form.
"Su Ming’an will soon become High Dimensions..."
"Can he still maintain Rationality? Can he still ensure Emotion? I remember when he became a God in the World of Old Days, he personally cut off his Causal Line. This time it’s different, he’s become much stronger, he doesn’t need to pay that kind of price... But, is he still the same Su Ming’an?"
"Please save us..."
...
[Absorption progress: 60%]
...
