Chapter 585 The Road to Logout

Although not as ancient as the Divination Master, Xuanming is still a figure of great uncertainty who has existed since ancient times, possessing a life scale and perspective vastly different from ours. Furthermore, he grew up in a cultural context drastically different from modern society, with a completely different foundation of values. Trying to empathize with such a character is indeed too difficult for Xiaowan and me.

Since we are likely to have a direct conflict with them in the future, even if we know it's a reluctant decision, we can only try to understand their mindset by putting ourselves in their shoes. Besides my previous assumption that Xuanming "couldn't stand it," were there other reasons why Xuanming reminded Xiaowan?

For Xuanming, who came from an era that took human sacrifice for granted, if people were captured for sacrifice, both the captor and the captured might know what was going to happen and consider it a legal procedure. But in modern times, it's a completely different story.

From the perspective of someone who maliciously sacrifices others, this might be seen as an era where "ignorant prey are everywhere." However, Xuanming might care more about "the proper state certain things should have been in." That's why he exhibits behaviors that are incomprehensible to modern people, hoping that Xiaowan can possess the most basic self-awareness.

These are just my personal opinions. As I explored this further, I realized more and more that I actually knew nothing about Xuanming. Despite having met him many times, even had brief clashes, and having investigated a lot of intelligence in the past, his image in my mind was still like a fog.

After temporarily ending the conversation, we called Number Seven back from a distance. Just in case, we checked with Number Seven as Xiao Wan had suggested, to see if Xiao Wan's information had been leaked to the Gospel House from him. The result, of course, was no.

"We've worked together on the battlefield, yet you still don't trust me? This is hurting me a bit." Number Seven's tone was more casual than when they first met.

"Let's keep things separate. Since there are conditions for confirmation, then we should do it properly, not just skip it over for the sake of saving face. Besides, we don't really know each other inside and out, do we?" I pointed out, "Or are you already planning to tell us the truth, to reveal your relationship with the Lord of the Divine Seal?"

Upon hearing this, Number Seven immediately changed the subject, saying, "By the way... now that we've obtained the 'Dushuo Mountain' technical data, shouldn't we move on to the next stage? Return to the world of the living and hand over the technical data to Number Five, Yuchi, of the Fazheng camp... But in order to return, we must first infiltrate the headquarters of the Gospel Academy and utilize the Dushuo Mountain formation there..."

"There's no need for that," said Xiaowan.

"What?" Number Seven paused.

Xiao Wan looked at me and said, "Brother Zhuang Cheng, I should be able to point you in the direction of the fifteenth-floor basement and take you to the border between that basement and the afterlife."

"You've mentioned this 'fifteenth-floor basement' before, right? What exactly is it?" Number Seven asked, puzzled.

Since I had already mentioned it to her face before, I certainly wouldn't avoid it now. Even though she was a suspicious collaborator, she was still a collaborator, and there might be opportunities to work with her again in the future. So I explained it to her directly, including the principle of how to travel to the real world through the fifteenth-floor basement.

After hearing this, Number Seven looked stunned and muttered to himself, "...This works? Is this reasonable?"

"Well then... Little Bowl, I'll leave the rest to you."

I turned to look at the little bowl and stretched out my palm. The little bowl raised its tiny hands, cupped my palms, and began to establish a mental synchronization with me.

The feeling of connecting with each other via paper cup telephone once again arose in my heart. The emotional fluctuations in Xiaowan's heart could be faintly heard from the other end, as if she were listening to the sound of waves inside a seashell; I believe she could also hear my heart's voice at this moment.

With business at hand, I didn't allow myself to eavesdrop on Xiaowan's thoughts. Instead, I focused on sensing the candlelight in the basement on the fifteenth floor. Xiaowan, on the other hand, used her power to strengthen the connection between me and the candlelight. It was no different from what we did when we first joined this "apocalyptic era," except that this time, Xiaowan's power was much stronger.

No… describing it as “getting stronger” is inadequate. The power of the small bowl hasn’t increased; to be precise, this power has become more “clear.”

She wasn't wrong in the past; the power of aligning with the heavens and earth requires a clear understanding of one's own place in the universe. Someone who doesn't even know who they are cannot fully unleash this power. Even if there's no difference in absolute strength, there will still be some deviation, some disharmony. It's like not finding the right rhythm during a long jump. And now, she has finally made up for that deficiency.

This clear force made my connection with the candlelight in the basement clearer than ever before. It was as if the last layer of paper had been pierced, and a clear sense of direction arose in my heart.

To be precise, this sense of direction didn't originate from my mind, but from Xiaowan's. I merely shared this experience through mental synchronization.

"Great! We've found the way, Brother Zhuangcheng!" Xiaowan exclaimed joyfully.

I could sense a faint unease in her voice. What if even she, in her current state, couldn't find the way to the fifteenth-floor basement and disappointed me? — I could sense that emotion in her through our mental connection. At that moment, she finally breathed a sigh of relief, and the weight on her shoulders eased slightly.

After locking onto our direction, we left the gas station and began moving.

In the afterlife, where even sunrise and sunset and a sky full of stars no longer exist, there is naturally no concept of east, west, south, or north. In addition, the surrounding scenery is constantly changing, so it is not easy for me to use words to explain in which direction I am moving.

With my current understanding of the afterlife's spacetime, I could certainly unleash the power of the Dharma of Heaven and Earth. The Dharma of Heaven and Earth could suppress the surrounding spacetime, preventing it from shifting unpredictably. However, considering our current need for movement, and given that the small bowl's proper placement of the Dharma of Heaven and Earth allows us to continuously approach our desired destination during scene transitions, this chaotic shift in spacetime could actually help us reach our destination faster.

What was initially a bizarre phenomenon that left the post-apocalyptic survivors bewildered and causing them endless headaches has now become a convenient mode of transportation, much like a landlubber transforming into a swimming champion. This remarkable progress gives me the feeling that I am constantly conquering the "post-apocalyptic era."

Considering the undeniable fact that I killed "the Great Demon, the King of the Apocalypse Monsters" and "the God-Human, the Pinnacle of Apocalypse Cultivators," if we were to compare the "Apocalypse Era" to a single-player adventure game, then I have clearly progressed to a fairly late stage.

Perhaps it really is time for me to leave this place… This thought naturally came to mind. Just a while ago I was struggling with whether to stay in the “apocalyptic era,” but now I feel it's not even a question worth hesitating about. Maybe I'm even more fickle than I think.

This might be partly because this "apocalyptic era" isn't the apocalypse I initially thought it to be, and partly because I've learned too many crucial truths, making it impossible to view the world through my past lens. When I first arrived, I faced a land plunged into apocalypse; now, I face the Evangelismos Institution of the afterlife and its human extermination plan, as well as the potential conflict between it and Roshan of the living world.

That's fine, I told myself. What I'm pursuing isn't the destructive outcome of the end of the world, but rather the colorful changes during the process of its arrival. The various conflicts unfolding before me now are precisely the stage I want to see.

However, another voice rang in my heart. It was a mocking voice—I was never a detached spectator, but a member of the stage, and on this stage, there were more than one person I cared about.

As time went by, the number of people I valued grew. Originally, I only had Chang'an as a friend, but now I have Ma Zao, Zhu Shi, Xiao Wan, and also Mr. Zhu and Lu Chan—people who either showed me kindness or pledged their loyalty…

I coldly examined my own heart and tried to ask myself this question: Zhuang Cheng, how long can you maintain this "do-whatever-you-want" attitude? When everything beautiful and important that you have is destroyed by the apocalypse, can you really have no regrets until the very last moment?

Did the realization I had in the basement on the fifteenth floor truly stem from my inner strength, or was it because I didn't have many attachments at the time, which allowed me to display such a carefree and optimistic state of mind?

My self-examination at this moment is not out of hesitation or fear, but rather out of a kind of inquisitive mind. I want to know what colors my soul will reveal in the face of true danger, despair, and death. This is a question that can never be verified in the mundane routine of daily life, but the end of the world can tell me the answer.

As I carefully examined my mind, I clearly sensed that we were getting closer and closer to the location of the fifteenth-floor basement, and the exit to the afterlife seemed to be just around the corner.

(End of this chapter)