Chapter 65: Mending Heaven

"Lord, why don't we take advantage of now and launch a full-scale attack to wipe out humanity? Is that mysterious World Tree really that powerful?"

"Because of Heaven."

"Because of Heaven?"

"Because this Heaven wants humanity to win."

……

At the Earth's core, Chén Chén is slowly regaining the power and existence of the "Id."

Chén Chén dares not move too fast, for if his speed is too great, his will shall be struck by the "Id," and many of his thoughts shall fall into sync with the "Id," which would also suit the "Id" just fine.

The avatar controlled by the "Id" is a pawn in Chén Chén's plan to control monsters, so Chén Chén has known of this avatar from the very beginning.

However, Chén Chén himself does not possess the avatar talent like Ā Yún, so the "Id"'s avatar began merely as a projection, much like the "Qian" in the human world, and has always relied solely on the power of Earth itself, not being an embodiment of power in its own right.

But for this moment, the "Id"'s avatar has secretly altered the permissions of the Life Link, using the monsters' revolving energy to forge a new avatar with the "Id"'s projection as its vessel.

Though it possesses no unique power, it can gain the leverage to "fairly converse" with Chén Chén and avoid being directly erased by Earth's own permissions.

Chén Chén's physique grows stronger due to the power accumulated by the "Id," and the will from the "Id" gradually enters his mind like a memory.

"I am merely a reflection in the water, while he is not."

He does not need the power of the myriad peoples, but I do.

……

While Chén Chén of humanity searches the world for talents to build the World Tree, the "True Self" also relies on similar methods to seek out desirable materials in the monster world.

The monster world is one of the weak preyed upon by the strong, with mutual slaughter unfolding daily; seeking suitable seeds in such an environment is far easier than for Chén Chén of humanity.

The "True Self" first found a salted fish and a mole, two fellows who clearly bear grudges yet have never managed to kill each other.

It found an octopus elder who loves only shrimp and despises jellyfish, and a sea star that loves nothing at all.

A "sparrow" that is clearly a raptor but has a timid heart.

A sea snake that likes to feign calm but actually enjoys venting.

Cultivating some monsters is part of "his" plan, so naturally it has not drawn "his" attention.

However, "he" is a cautious person; though unaware of my existence, he has always been vigilant against the flaws born of himself.

As for how "he" resolves these flaws, it is also simple: he uses that one girl related to "Chén Chén" to contaminate "himself" into what he does not wish to become.

Even I cannot tell whether "he" is using that girl or truly fond of her.

I myself often fall under "his" influence, frequently beginning to yearn for his ordinary life; if this continues, I shall sooner or later become like him.

No, perhaps from the very beginning, I was never as I imagined…… and I cannot resist the emotions he conveys to me.

Thus I began urging the salted fish and mole not to fight, often forcing the octopus elder to join me in hunting jellyfish, often taking the sparrow to train its courage, and telling cold jokes to the calm sea snake.

I know I too shall be contaminated, and this is also the result I desire, for pure power cannot defeat him—I understand.

Afterwards, I also realized, this may not be contamination.

This too should be part of what constitutes us.

It is only that he is too biased.

He trusts the Nature Spirit, he pampers humanity, yet uniquely refuses to believe in more living beings.

Heaven and earth, all things, cycle in order; as a rule, as the Heaven of this world, he may choose to have feelings, but if he so chooses, he ought to love all the beings he loves.

……

Chén Chén watches the figure in the reflection slowly fade, leaving only the faint influence he left behind and that pitiful name.

"Mending Heaven"

Chén Chén let out a faint sigh, knowing he is still being subtly influenced by him.

He no longer exists, but the seed he wished to leave has already been sown.

Unintentionally, "Mending Heaven" has already walked a completely different road, and unintentionally, Chén Chén also begins to reconsider whether his original plan was correct.

————

The outside world.

The war between humans and monsters continues.

In the blink of an eye, it will soon be a year since the war reignited; spring 2058 is passing, summer just arrived.

Hǎi Shēn Wēi Tuōkè ultimately fell, but fortunately, before that, with the assistance of the World Tree, most of the city's residents had already been evacuated.

As for the relocated city, it is not another Siberian city, but rather a more distant yet safer place; the World Tree lies east of Hǎi Shēn Wēi Tuōkè, currently the only city standing on the sea in the world—Fēng Dū.

Over the past year, the wars around the three major battlefields have gradually entered a white-hot phase, and the monsters seem inexhaustible, launching one suicidal attack after another.

During this period, two wars directly pointed their swords at the World Tree's location, especially the relocation of one of the three major battlefields to Fēng Dū.

It was also during this war that the World Tree displayed world-shaking power.

Or perhaps it was the power of the Nature Spirit clan.

The World Tree is an organization formed jointly by the "Nature Spirit" and humanity, and only from this battle did it become widely known.

On humanity's side are the legendary figures who can contend with "Hóng": "Qián," who alone guards Longmen and once drove back two Beast Emperors single-handedly, and the rising leader of the World Tree's humanity in the past year, known as "Jūn."

Humanity, long viewing things from a human perspective, has overlooked this power.

The greatest existence of the World Tree is the divine tree connecting heaven and earth—Jian Mu.

Perhaps because the World Tree is truly being taken seriously, the sea beasts launched a month-long, uninterrupted assault on Fēng Dū, eventually even deploying three Beast Emperors.

Yet the final result was that Fēng Dū suffered zero casualties.

As for the monster side, countless below King-rank, three dead and one wounded among those above King-rank, one of whom was still Emperor-rank.

All the sea beasts' attacks were utterly blocked by the roots and branches enveloping the entire city.

Beast-soldier-rank had leaves casually sliced in half, Beast-general-rank were endlessly pierced by lush branches, Beast-lord-rank had their chests pierced through by branches, King-rank were torn apart in the air by massive lateral roots, and Emperor-rank was sucked dry by the main root at the seabed, becoming Jian Mu's final meal.

This was a one-sided victory; the people of Fēng Dū cheered, and outsiders were stunned.

People marveled at the strength of the World Tree and began to long for its protection.

Yet among all the shocks, what was truly expected was the monsters who launched this suicidal assault.

The first to die for "Mending Heaven" was not the "Earth Rat" who spoke first when leaving, but the black snake that had remained silent.

And this operation called "Mending Heaven" had only just begun.

As long as the war between humans and monsters continues for one day, the grudges entrusted to the monsters will become nourishment for the seed left behind by "Mending Heaven"—this is a suicidal yang plot.

And it is a move that Chen Chen must receive.

————

Over the past year, the most unfortunate A Yun finally completed the curtain call of the "Earth Net" with slow-cooked small fire.

Because the World Tree bore the war supplies of all countries in external wars at an extremely low price, the plans of the HR Alliance and the two countries came to nothing. Added to the fact that humans gradually gained the upper hand on external battlefields, the two countries' notion of using external pressure and benefits to stabilize public sentiment also came to nothing.

Yunmze also began to exploit intermediary relations to stir some eager families in the HR Alliance into placing bets.

Either issuing orders regarding important figures on the front battlefield, or using formerly allied families as "credentials of loyalty."

The more desperate humans became, the more foolish they were; once all evidence was in hand, it was merely the final act of the curtain call.

Using the trial of Li Yao and his wife entering Longmen as an entry point, the World Tree also launched an investigation into their criminal liabilities.

Concerning their identities, the forces backing them, and their ties to the "Earth Net."

Under the joint investigation of various countries, the "Earth Net" was finally uprooted worldwide, and part of the undestroyed entrusted information gradually surfaced.

And this basin of dirty water had long been destined for a certain person.

The two countries, already seething with public resentment, directly mutinied.

(A Yun: Of course, this time it wasn't me who did it).

Nevertheless, they were ultimately suppressed by absolute force.

The two countries still had one last fig leaf: not letting the country suffer war.

However, other countries currently at war had long been filled with curses.

With the "Earth Net" matter settled, the two countries' follow-up moves were already fully in grasp, and A Yun could finally devote all his thoughts to the acting duty.

Because when reclaiming the avatar, he absorbed many martial artists' lifetime learnings, A Yun had many means at his disposal when controlling the "Chen Chen" avatar.

But the same skill, once used multiple times, would always reveal its tell.

When using top-tier swordsmanship, many praised him as resembling a blood-stained sinner, after all, top-tier swordsmanship had once been a "celebrity."

Many top martial arts on Earth had once spread in certain circles; being able to easily resolve king-level martial arts, what Xiao Yun mastered was also little, and sometimes it was only a matter of one verification apart.

To avoid exposure, Xiao Yun could only play with variations, but as the number of strikes increased, the floral techniques in his hands would have to be used up.

Worse still, there were not a few people around Father who understood him.

In earlier years, those taken in first, like Cang Yue Er and Chen Yang, had not only received direct guidance from Chen Chen, but were also the nourishment when the Having a Name Dao was first formed.

A Yun, who deeply understood this, even dared not strike in front of them.

Next came Mother.

Since leaving Longmen, she had been tracking "Chen Chen"'s whereabouts, and in A Yun's single attempt to meet her, she saw through him.

Although she was Mother, being seen through for the first time in this life still dealt a heavy blow to Xiao Yun.

One could only say Xiao Yun still underestimated Mother's understanding of Father; he thought avoiding Father's hints would suffice, but in the end, he still revealed a flaw in martial arts.

Chen Chen's Having a Name Dao is the Dao of one being all things; all things are form, one is the Dao; no matter what technique is cultivated, its essence is the derivation of one; no matter how reversed, the direction pointed to is always unique.

And what "Chen Chen" displayed in just one year, many things were too pure; derived things could not show purity on other paths.

At least, in Jiang Jiang's range of experience, this was the case.

Moreover, after seeing through him, Mother continued to ask a question about "Chen Chen"'s identity.

"Do you know a person called Yun Zhongjun?"

"I owe her a favor."

A Yun guessed, guessed correctly, and thus this favor was no longer owed.

No one knows why, but since Father left, Mother has become somewhat different; even Xiao Yun, who understands human nature well, can't quite fathom her thoughts.

Perhaps back then, one shouldn't have answered that question.

If not for being certain that Yun Zhongjun and Chen Chen's names were related, she could not have guessed it.

"Huff, I wonder how Father is doing?"

"When can he come back?"

"But the earlier Father returns, does it not also mean……"

"Father has failed, hasn't he?"

Yun Zhongjun was thinking when he heard the voice of the response:

"Do you want our family's Xiao Yun to wish for which Father to succeed?"

Yun Zhongjun still had the appearance of the original human, a seventeen-year-old handsome youth, handsome yet still bearing a touch of heroic spirit.

Upon hearing Chen Chen's voice, Yun Zhongjun revealed an awkward yet not lacking awkward smile:

"Hehehe, of course we hope Father succeeds, hehe."

"Moreover, Xiao Yun will never and cannot go against Father's wishes."

"Heyo~"

A substantial bump appeared on A Yun's head.

"You're clever."

Just as Chen Chen guessed upon discovering the existence of "Mending Heaven," A Yun had long known of "Mending Heaven"'s existence and had always known but not reported.

Although A Yun exploited a loophole, what he said was indeed true.

"Mending Heaven" is also Chen Chen, so he wants A Yun to help him, and A Yun will not refuse.

Since Chu Chen himself had not discovered "Mending Heaven," he had never inquired about this matter, so the order to keep "Mending Heaven" confidential overrode the priority of sharing information with the human Chu Chen.

"Tell me about what happened during my absence."

"I have a new plan."

Since the war began, the layout across the entire Earth has changed, so the initial plan has also changed, and Chu Chen has had to respond to the contingency left behind by "Mending Heaven."

The increasingly brutal and uncontrollable war, along with the monsters' mess, due to some hidden dangers left by A Yun's substitute duty, and the fact that the starry sky behemoth's egg has already arrived on Earth.

Of course, these are all minor issues.

The biggest problem is that Chu Chen intends to personally overturn his original plan and establish a more perfect world.