Chapter 371 The Great Impermanence and the End of the World 1
Is the shadow of a willow tree the Yin and Yang of a mountain?
When I asked this question, the fortune teller paused slightly and then said, "When I mentioned that he was similar to you before, I thought you would first doubt whether he was a successor of the Yin-Yang lineage. How did you suddenly rise to the level of the Yin-Yang lineage?"
As expected, the divination master knew that I was a successor of the Yin-Yang lineage.
"Since you've put it that way, then I'll ask you this first: is he a successor of the Yin-Yang lineage?" I asked.
"No." The divination master shook his head. "The most distinctive characteristic of the successors of the Yin and Yang lineage is that they can only use the magical powers corresponding to the Four Symbols, such as your Vermilion Bird Fire and the Black Tortoise Water. Apart from that, although it cannot be said that they are absolutely unable to use them, they are unlikely to achieve anything worthwhile."
"But Liu Shuying did not use any of the four elements of power, so he could not be the successor of the Yin-Yang school."
Actually, I had some doubts about whether he was a successor of the Yin-Yang lineage, but now I can rule out one possibility.
Then, I answered the divination master's question: "If you had just said that Liu Shuying was a once-in-a-millennium genius, I wouldn't have made the connection to the Yin and Yang of the Mountain, but you said that he has foresight, and that changes things."
According to the information I have, the Mountain Two Elements possess the power of "reincarnation," allowing them to be reborn freely into people of different eras.
The phrase "reborn into different eras" here refers not only to the fact that Shan Liangyi can be reborn from the present to the future, but also from the present to the past.
The willow shadow described by the fortune teller reminded me of the protagonists in some fictional stories about rebirth.
Both protagonists in rebirth novels and those in the future can use foresight to gain an advantage, even sharing the common thread of "gradually becoming unable to predict the future over time." This is because the protagonists in these novels don't always have the ability to foresee the future; they've simply been reborn from the future into the present. Therefore, as the future becomes increasingly distorted and altered due to their repeated acts of foresight, they can no longer make reliable predictions about it.
What the protagonist of a rebirth novel can do, Shan Liangyi can also do. Moreover, if Liu Shuying is Shan Liangyi, it can also explain why he possessed extremely powerful strength from birth.
He became a Great Impermanence within six months, perhaps not because he grew stronger quickly, but because he already possessed power above that of a Great Impermanence from the beginning, and was merely putting on an act to deceive others. Or it's possible that the act of "reincarnation" caused him to be in a weakened state for a period of time, and he later simply recovered his original power.
Although I progressed from debut to becoming a Great Impermanence much faster than Liu Shuying, I may not have the right to speculate about others in this way. However, I actually possessed the power of a Great Impermanence from the very beginning; I just needed a powerful enemy to stimulate me to unleash it. The reason Zhu Shi was able to acquire Great Impermanence-level combat power eight months later was because the Yama Sword already contained readily available Great Impermanence power.
Only someone who possesses the power of impermanence from the very beginning can become impermanent so quickly—I believe my suspicions are reasonable.
“It’s not surprising that you think that way, so let me add something more for you,” the fortune teller said. “Liu Shuying’s mastery of her power is also very fast.”
“You should be very clear about the difference between a newly appointed Great Impermanence and a veteran Great Impermanence. That difference lies in the density of power, or you could say, the ‘skill in manipulating power.’ Yet, in just a few months, Liu Shuying has reached a level on this path that is comparable to that of a veteran Great Impermanence.”
"Over the long years, I have seen quite a few great impermanences, but a genius like him is still very extraordinary. It's as if he was originally a veteran impermanence, and at first he was just acting, but later he gradually stopped acting."
"My eyes can see through the fate of all things in the world. Even if the object is the old Fist God who is known as the most powerful and unpredictable in Luoshan, I can vaguely see part of his future direction. However, there is only Liu Shuying... I can't see through him at all."
Even the divination master had mentioned this, which greatly increased the possibility in my mind that the willow tree shadow represented the two polarities of the mountain.
Considering Liu Shuying's doomsday prophecy, perhaps he actually used the power of reincarnation to be reborn from the apocalypse to the modern world, which would explain why he could describe the chaos of the apocalypse so accurately.
People who came to the modern world from the apocalypse... I suddenly thought of the person from the future who called himself the "Blessed Monk," mentioned in Dr. Silver Mask's documents, who gave Ying Lingyun the prototype of future technology.
Is it possible that Ying Lingyun is secretly connected with Liu Shuying...Shan Liangyi?
So, if I participate in the campaign proposed by Fazheng to destroy the Humanitarian Affairs Bureau and have a decisive battle with Ying Lingyun, is it possible that I will directly encounter the Mountain Two Elements in the process?
And... the fortune teller said that Liu Shuying debuted four years ago...
Four years ago, I remember this was also the period when the Soul Loss Syndrome was just beginning to spread. And since there's a direct link between the Soul Loss Syndrome and the apocalypse, and the willow shadow might originate from the apocalypse… Is there a potential connection between the Soul Loss Syndrome and the willow shadow? Or is it merely a coincidence in timing?
I feel like I've gathered a lot of clues all at once, but I lack more specific, corroborating evidence that connects them, so I can't draw any more conclusions right away.
“In my opinion, you and Liu Shuying are quite similar,” the fortune teller said, looking at me. “It’s not about the speed of your power growth, or anything else complicated… Your temperaments are very similar. Perhaps you’ll have a lot in common after you meet.”
“If he really is the embodiment of the two elements of the mountain, then we are mortal enemies,” I said.
The fortune teller simply smiled and said, "Well then, that concludes our discussion on the doomsday prophecy. Do you have any other questions for me? Take this opportunity to ask them now."
"No, it's not over yet..."
I glanced at Mazao. After learning that the one who proposed the doomsday prophecy was not the Diviner, but Liu Shuying, Mazao seemed to have lost the motivation to speak up again in this situation. But I was thinking of other things and continued, "Although you didn't propose the doomsday prophecy, you are still a master of prophecy, and I don't think you are inferior to Liu Shuying in this respect."
"Regarding the impending doomsday, you... or rather, you and the other Great Impermanences, you must not be completely indifferent, right? And you yourself should have made some observations about the future."
"Are you trying to get a prophecy about the end of the world from me?" the fortune teller said. "Then I'll have to disappoint you. As I said before, in this increasingly chaotic world, the ability to predict the future will only become more and more blurred, and even I am no exception."
"Especially when it comes to predicting the end of the world, it's all shrouded in darkness. To be honest, I don't quite understand why Liu Shuying can predict the end of the world. Maybe the only way to explain his predictions is that he actually experienced the end of the world."
"However... I didn't come away empty-handed. I did manage to find some useful clues about the impending apocalypse."
As he finished speaking, the old man revealed a wicked smile once again.
He still likes to use the tactic of praising by first criticizing, saying that he cannot meet our expectations, and then suddenly throwing out an irresistible bait from a different angle.
Mazao was already a little frustrated. If she had cat-like ears on her head, she might have slumped down just now. But at this moment, her eyes immediately regained their sparkle, her expression became focused, and her unseen ears stood up in an instant.
I took her place and asked, "What clue is it? Can you tell us?"
"The girl next to you is really nice."
The fortune teller first uttered a nonsensical sigh, then replied, "My result is somewhat different from Willow Shadow's prophecy. He predicted that the end of the world would come within the next ten years, but I believe that the end of the world has already come."
"To be precise, the end of the world did not happen in the future, but in the past; it just happened to finally manifest itself in the future."
"It's like some diseases; when they reach the stage where they manifest on the body and can be felt by the human sense of pain, they are already in a terminal stage. We must respond as soon as the disease starts to appear, but now it's too late, and there may be no cure."
Seeing his nonchalant tone, I said, "You make it sound so easy... Once the end of the world comes, even the Great Impermanence won't be able to stay out of it."
“That’s right. As long as we stay in this world, even the Great Impermanence will be transformed into a great demon by madness. That’s what Liu Shuying predicted…” the Divination Master said. “But… Zhuang Cheng, how big do you think this ‘world’ of the ‘end of the world’ is exactly?”
"—Hmm?" I suddenly realized my blind spot.
"Do you think this apocalyptic event will be a catastrophe that destroys the planet we live on, or a catastrophe of the magnitude of the Great Collapse or the Great Rip that will destroy the entire universe?" the fortune teller asked.
I don't think it will be the latter.
Whatever the source of the apocalypse, even if it were a divine seal capable of granting all wishes, I don't believe it has the power to change the entire universe. The difference in magnitude is too great. Even though I'm now more accepting of fantastical ideas, I still can't believe that a divine seal could simply overcome such a vast difference in magnitude through its unique characteristics.
Even if we consider other sources, at least in the information I have received so far, the apocalypse has not exhibited the characteristics of an astronomical event.
An event of the magnitude of "Earth's destruction" is not enough to threaten the Great Impermanence, which has the ability to travel between stars.
(End of this chapter)
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