Chapter 475: The Last Cube

At the border between Zhongzhou and Nanzhou, in Duqin, Shanan City.

An armed unit was racing through the desert, kicking up yellow sand like a dragon behind them.

Leading the way was a massive armored vehicle. Curiously, a crude Spirit Power Rapid-fire Cannon was mounted on its roof; it looked like a budget version of a ship-borne Spirit Power Rapid-fire Cannon, yet it had been installed on such a specialized armored vehicle.

Shanan City could be faintly seen ahead.

Shanan City was still under the control of Lanya. The Dukin Government Army and the Watcher were still fighting a guerrilla war against Lanya. Fortunately, although the superpower Lanya was far stronger than Duqin, considering costs and opposition both at home and abroad, their investment in Duqin was becoming less and less. Relying on their local advantage, the Dukin Government Army and the Watcher had begun to gradually recover lost territory.

It was just that Shanan had significant strategic importance, and Lanya had stationed heavy troops there. The government army and the Watcher had never dared to provoke them there; they had always adopted a strategy of recovering other regions to force Lanya to withdraw from Duqin.

But for some reason recently, Lanya had suddenly ceased fire. Facing their attacks, they rarely fought back, either retreating or only defending and counterattacking.

It was rumored that the Lanya government was discussing a withdrawal.

It was also rumored that in a certain Forbidden Land within Lanya, a light had inexplicably lit up, and reeds had begun to grow around it.

"Swish!"

The convoy came to a stop.

The yellow sand was blown away by the wind.

A figure stepped down from the second armored vehicle. He wore a loose, earth-yellow combat uniform, his leather boots were covered in dust, his skin was tanned dark, and a short, stubbly beard grew on his face. He squinted as he looked ahead.

In front of him was a giant pit, not yet buried by the wind and sand.

Even though it was a desert with no water, this sand pit and its surroundings were covered in reeds, as if a small oasis had been conjured out of thin air in the desert.

Behind him, another person dressed in local Duqin attire stepped down.

"Crown Princess, this is the place. I was leading the convoy past here at the time and saw with my own eyes that a pit had appeared here, then a person flew out, and then I saw reeds growing from the ground. In just a few moments, they grew this tall and this lush."

"Mm."

The person addressed as Crown Princess was a Prince of the Duqin royal family.

Before Duqin became a chessboard for great powers, it was an absolute monarchy. The King was the supreme leader of the government and the military. However, in reality, the King, the government, and the military often kept each other in check. When the royal family was strong, they could naturally lead everything; when the royal family was weak, they were more like puppets.

Later, internal strife broke out in Duqin, the royal family weakened, and half the country was controlled by the military government while the other half was controlled by the Watcher's armed forces.

Later still, Lanya launched a strong invasion. The military government and the Watcher's armed forces joined forces to resist Lanya, and the royal family actually regained some status. Coupled with the fact that this Prince had been secretly fostering his own forces, the military government and the Watcher were gradually coming under his control.

As for the original King...

He had long since hidden abroad with his concubines.

The Prince ignored the reminder from the person beside him and reached out to touch the reeds.

They were no different from ordinary reeds.

He wanted to pull one up, and his hand had already grasped the reed stalk, but he stopped. He only dug a hole in the ground to see if there was water underneath.

Actually, it didn't matter anymore.

He already knew the answer.

With his own knowledge, his research into Duqin's history and legends, and the rumors he had heard while lurking on the Deep Net for years, he could already make a judgment.

"Crown Princess!"

Someone ran over quickly from behind.

"Just received news, Lanya has decided to withdraw! Unconditional withdrawal! Unconditional withdrawal!"

The Prince turned to look.

This was a middle-aged man with a big beard, dark skin, and a sturdy build, giving one a sense of steadfastness. At this moment, however, he was shouting until his voice almost cracked.

The others were also shocked, then ecstatic.

The Prince withdrew his gaze and looked silently at the patch of reeds.

A country like Lanya, no matter how great the opposition at home and abroad, and even if their military operations in Duqin had become a losing business, could not possibly withdraw so suddenly and readily. Therefore, there was only one possibility—

The gods from Duqin's historical legends had returned.

Years of war ending in this way was naturally a good thing, but it always felt surreal.

Nanzhou, Beast Ancestral Court.

Chen Shu had been living the same way these past few days, continuing his Daily Cultivation, only allocating more time to study Spells, and occasionally sparring with others, using the Great Blazing Sun Art to whip everyone into a frenzy of competition.

It wasn't just cultivation that required effort; in the time outside of cultivation, one should also practice the combat capabilities of their respective systems and study fighting methods more.

There are 24 hours in a day; after finishing cultivation, there are still 20 left. Sleeping for an hour or two is completely enough.

An Eight-Tier Practitioner, afraid of sudden death?

Quickly increase the intensity of the grind.

At the same time, Chen Shu would occasionally ask Ning Qing a few questions. Some could be answered, while others were things even they hadn't figured out yet.

The universe is too big and too complex, with too many mysteries.

In general—

Spatially speaking, this is a Great Plane Hive Universe. The universe is like a beehive with many cells, and each cell is a Plane. These countless Planes make up the spatial structure of this universe. The planet Chen Shu is on is located in one of these Planes. This Plane has two life-bearing planets, which are the planet Chen Shu is on and the planet the beasts originated from, with a total of thirty-two gods.

In terms of mechanism, it also has a Pre-Universe and a Post-Universe, both composed of countless Planes, so every Plane is also divided into a Qianweimian and a Rear Plane.

The cosmic mechanism dictates that the two Planes are exactly the same, so their historical development is also similar. Occasionally, there are deviations, which are corrected by Spiritual Power. Without special circumstances, the Rear Plane is always the same as the Qianweimian, but lags behind in time, looking like a subject and a shadow. Therefore, the Plane that walks in front is called the Subject Universe, and the Plane that walks behind is called the Shadow Universe.

They can also be called the Pre-Universe and Post-Universe, or Qianweimian and Rear Plane; it is just a matter of terminology.

When Chen Shu traveled to this universe, due to the characteristics of the universe itself, he was also divided into two parts, with one part in both the Pre-Universe and Post-Universe.

This involves three Planes.

They are the current Plane, the second Plane that opposed the current one and eventually withered, and the third Plane that competed with the current Plane for the origin of the second Plane.

In this battle for supremacy, the current Plane of the Subject Universe was defeated by the third Plane and was eventually destroyed. However, Chen Shu and Ning Qing from the current Plane of the Subject Universe used a Space-Time Item from the New Saint to travel to the current Plane of the Shadow Universe, and Chen Shu's Crystal was used for emergencies. An accident occurred midway; even with the Crystal, it could only allow one person to come to the Shadow Universe. In the end, the one who came here was the more powerful Ning Qing.

This is Qingqing's original words—

"Because the other you felt that the other me was stronger than you."

I always feel she looks down on him.

Currently, it is a struggle between the base Plane of the Shadow Universe and the Third Plane of the Shadow Universe; barring any accidents, the Third Plane of the Shadow Universe will continue to follow the trajectory of its Subject Universe, with a certain possibility of slight deviations, but not too many, and it will go to war with the base Plane.

This is the second chance for the Plane where Chen Shu is located.

According to the New Saint, Space-Time Items are extremely rare among certain universes; it is incredible that their Plane can possess two at the same time. Therefore, unless someone in the Third Plane of the Subject Universe also possesses a Space-Time Item, they lack someone capable of traveling between different universes and observing them, and it is highly likely they do not know of the existence of the Shadow Universe and the Shadow Plane. Even if they did know, without a Space-Time Item, it would be very difficult for them to come to the Shadow Plane.

It sounds like the win rate is actually quite high.

If the base Plane loses again, it will be completely extinguished, equivalent to being eliminated by the mechanisms of this universe.

If it wins, it will gradually return to the Subject Universe after crossing the original timeline of destruction, and over the long years, it will once again divide into two.

This is the result observed and calculated by the New Saint.

As for whether the base Plane will accelerate in time to catch up to the original timeline or remain unchanged and fall behind neighboring universes after returning to the Subject Universe, the New Saint did not provide an answer to this question. Perhaps this is meaningless to begin with; that time span is too long, exceeding the vitality of most civilizations, and the time between various Planes is inherently complex. The time ratio of each Plane is different and constantly changing. By that time, perhaps the civilization of this Plane or the civilization of the Third Plane will have already headed toward destruction for other reasons.

At the same time, after the base Plane wins, the Third Plane in the Shadow Universe will be destroyed and, under the influence of the Third Plane of the Subject Universe, be reborn.

However, before it is born, if the Third Plane of the Subject Universe also suffers a devastating blow, it will have no chance of rebirth.

Chen Shu heard many things about the New Saint traveling to other universes; every universe is different, and he always feels it is indescribably romantic. Sometimes, the thought of going to see other universes in the future arises in Chen Shu's heart.

……

The fifteenth day since arriving in Nanzhou.

Chen Shu had a dream.

A rare dream.

In the dream, he saw the Chen Shu of the Subject Universe; the two stood facing each other, looking at one another.

There was no language, and no need for language; they understood each other too well. What he would do is what he would do; the thoughts he would have are the thoughts he would have. Everything was understood without words.

After waking up, it was a sunny day.

Chen Shu walked out of the stone cave and, through the giant stone pillars, looked far away toward the other side of the Nanzhou center line.

There stood a Square Body.

Chen Shu had long had a premonition—

That is the eighteenth Square Body.

After passing the verification of the fellow villager beside other Square Bodies, Chen Shu saw there were eighteen Mijing; seventeen of them could be easily obtained by him, only the one containing the city model had some restrictions, as if it wanted him to go there in person.

This premonition was also confirmed by Qingqing.

This is that one.

However, they from the Subject Universe did not come to Nanzhou to fight Cao Ci. When the Chen Shu of the Subject Universe came to open the Square Body, Nanzhou had already been suppressed. At that time, he came alone. As for what was inside, even Ning Qing of the Subject Universe only knew roughly and did not care about every detail.

Chen Shu had long wanted to go check it out.

Before, he wasn't very anxious; he felt that since the otherworldly power in Nanzhou had been suppressed by the Calamity-Responding Buddha, the threat was temporarily not great. Plus, the Spirit Power on his body could fully support him to spend some time on the other side of the center line; it was the same whenever he went.

But now he discovered that the otherworldly power in the air was still slowly increasing, and the Calamity-Responding Buddha's suppression effect on it seemed to be gradually weakening. If he dragged it out any longer, he might have to wait until the Reed God revived before he could go.

Chen Shu made up his mind.

Just then, footsteps came from behind.

Ning Qing's voice sounded:

"I want to go too."

Chen Shu turned his head to look at her, seeing her cold face without any expression, and couldn't help but smile—it was "I want to go too," not "I'll accompany you." This tone was like when she was little, with a feeling of being clingy and acting spoiled.

Or perhaps it was his illusion.

"What are you smiling at?"

"Nothing."

"Liar."

"Emmm..."

"When are we leaving?"

"Soon."

"Shouldn't we tell them?"

"Let's tell them."

Chen Shu still decided to notify them so they wouldn't worry, but he didn't plan to take them with him—

Firstly, it might involve the secrets of the fellow villager and himself, and he didn't want them to know. Secondly, there were many cultural relics in the Square Body and Mijing, and he was afraid these unprofessional silly group friends would accidentally break something.

He would just use the second point as a reason to refuse them.

Chen Shu walked out of the stone cave and, along the corridor, notified them one by one.

About two hours later.

The two had arrived in front of the Square Body.

The otherworldly power here was stronger than on the other side, much stronger than at the Beast Ancestral Court, but it was still under the control of the Calamity-Responding Buddha. The Divine Power provided by the mark in Chen Shu's body could completely block it out.

There was not much danger here anymore; previously, under the vigorous clearing of the beasts, those powerhouses among the "humans" had already died off.

"How do you feel?"

Chen Shu cared for Qingqing beside him.

"What is in my body is her power, Divine Power formed by fusing Space-Time Energy," Ning Qing said calmly to Chen Shu. From her expression, one could see that although she didn't say it explicitly, she already revealed the meaning of "this is trash."

"Good."

"You start."

"I'll take a nap."

"Mm."

Ning Qing stood in place, looking up.

This Square Body was placed flat and level on a plain, covered in much rain-washed mud, with grass and trees growing upon it; at a glance, the first impression it gave was that it had existed here for many years, like a ruin left behind by a prehistoric civilization.

The patterns on the stone wall could be vaguely discerned.

They were simple dragon and phoenix patterns.

Ning Qing withdrew her gaze, but when she looked toward her side, she saw that this person was still standing there, staring at her longingly, then his gaze moved downward, signaling to her with his eyes.

"..."

Ning Qing took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, and finally sat down cross-legged in resignation.

Only then did Chen Shu use her thigh as a pillow and close his eyes.

Soon, he saw a familiar scene.

A hillside with gentle curves, it was the early spring season; the city skyline in the distance was blurred by fog and dust, the snow-capped mountains behind were dyed a rosy hue by the setting sun, and amidst the warm breeze, a voice rang out:

"I urge you to drink one more cup of wine?"

"West of Yang Pass, there are no old friends."

"Who knows how many dreams of the past?"

"Awakened at night by wine all at once."

"Betting on books, the fragrance of spilled tea?"

"At the time, I only thought it was ordinary."

This world seemed to stop turning all at once, quiet without a single sound, and the air also solidified.

Subsequently, someone spoke to him, seemingly ringing right by his ear, yet this sound did not feel like a sound; he could not attach any label to this voice, simply feeling that someone was speaking to him:

"Fellow countryman, I have waited for you for a long time.

"I hope you are indeed my fellow countryman, for I would be very happy; if it is merely the mechanism I left behind that has been cracked, I shall feel very regretful."

"I am your fellow countryman."

Chen Shu replied subconsciously.

Naturally, he received no response.

The voice continued:

"I hope there is no one else beside you, because in this final Square Body, my ashes remain—if you can return to our homeland, please take my ashes back with you and scatter them on the soil of our homeland, anywhere will do.

"They are placed on the stone platform.

"At the same time, in the Mijing, there are also some things I have left for you; you will know where they are once you enter, and I hope they can be of some help to you.

"There are also some things and secrets regarding me; you may keep them for me, or you may destroy them, everything is up to you.

"When you wake up, this Square Body and the Mijing will open; they are not locked.

"Goodbye, fellow countryman.

"May you be able to return to our homeland."

Chen Shu could not help but whisper:

"Goodbye."

After a few short seconds, this world shattered into countless pieces, turned into light dust, and vanished before him.

Chen Shu also woke up.

"Boom—"

The Square Body in front opened.

It was like an old friend opening their door to him.