Just what in the world is this thing?

Did this thing have something to do with Lin Xi?

Nangong Weiyang didn’t sense anything different, but she suddenly became nervous. She didn’t even know why she became nervous.

Lin Xi’s eyes returned to the cowhide scroll in his hands.

“I do have some ambition in this world…” He began to read quietly again. Even Qin Xiyue felt a type of illusion, as if Principal Zhang was sitting precisely across from Lin Xi and just chatting with him. “When I mysteriously arrived in this world and discovered that everything was different from our world, I also felt despair… Others might not be able to understand, but you should be able to. The despair doesn’t come from a fear that we won’t be able to adapt to this world, but rather because everything that belonged to us has been ruthlessly stripped. All of our loved ones, all those who we long for, dream about, everything we used to struggle for… all of this was ruthlessly stripped away. We became orphans abandoned in this world… There are many things that we wanted to do in that world that we’ll never be able to do again, becoming eternal regrets. We will even start reminiscing about those we previously found annoying. When I first arrived in this world, I'd even thought to myself that if I was given a chance to return to our previous world, even if it was just for ten minutes, even if it was just to say some goodbyes, I would be willing to take that…”

Lin Xi’s voice was shaking.

He had experienced this period of endless darkness and despair. He obviously understood the emotions behind Principal Zhang’s words.

“But the people of this world are lovely, they are pure and innocent… that was why even though I rejected them in the beginning, I began to grow fond of this world. Then, my ambition grew… I wanted to change this world. I wanted most of these lovely and sincere people to live good lives. I wanted more people to be able to stand up straight, learn to think, to know what they want to do, and then make their own choices on what kind of impact they want to leave behind on this world…”

“I’ve encountered many unforgettable people, but also lost many unforgettable people… I’ve paid a great price, but what left me satisfied is that I’ve indeed seen some of the fruits of my labor… I was able to witness the birth of a peaceful empire, a world where most people knew what was right and what was wrong.”

“But just like what I said to you before, I am not truly unrivaled in this world. That is why I came here in search of greater power… I suffered an ambush here, which further strengthened my resolve. However, the only thing that was left here were runes and diagrams I couldn’t figure out even if I devoted my entire life to them. There weren’t any divine weapons as powerful as Big Black, no countless powerful secret manuals like I imagined…”

“That is why everything here only symbolizes the bitter defeat of this cultivation civilization… I do not know if they were able to take down their enemies at the end of this battle, but I am certain that the most powerful Immortal Devil Age has already long been erased.”

“If there are no cultivation methods, no powerful soul weapons, then even the most powerful cultivation remains meaningless for me… If I cannot obtain what I need, then I can only truly remain a traveler, I can only go back.”

“Going back… this is extremely simple. But where would I return to? This became the biggest issue.”

Nangong Weiyang, Gu Xinyin and Qin Xiyue’s eyes gathered towards the shining icy blue whirlpool again.

“I spent a long time researching that thing… All other sources of power in this Green Luan Palace, regardless of whether it is the power that erupts from the frozen valley’s great formation, the battlefield’s scars, or the power that blasted all soul weapons and armors into dust, even though this power is still unimaginably great for our modern world of cultivation, it can still be contended against. Only this thing is on an entirely different level.”

“This thing’s power… if I used the word ‘energy’ that is easier for us to understand, is not on the same scale of magnitude as Green Luan Palace’s civilization remains at all. Together with how it reacts to me, I can’t help but wonder if this thing exceeds the Immortal Devil Age.”

“Later on, I even began to suspect that this entire Green Luan Palace… perhaps it was only because some of their earlier cultivators discovered this thing, worshiping it as their deity and building around it, that Green Luan Palace became established. The most powerful so-called immortal cultivators established sects and giant palaces in a way that praised this thing.”

Everyone became more and more shocked. However, as they got closer and closer to the final answers, no one wanted to stop now.

Lin Xi was the one who understood Principal Zhang the best. He continued to quietly read, “Later on, my suspicions were confirmed by some of the diagrams and murals left behind here. The greatest confirmation was that those Immortal Devil Age powerful cultivators seemed to call this world of ours the ‘Sea of Mountains’, and then they called this thing ‘The Void’.”

“I spent a long time researching this thing here, and then I returned to the warm lake, thinking to myself… the trips back and forth used up three years of time… In the end, I felt like since those incomparably powerful cultivators called this world the Sea of Mountains, The Void connected to the Sea of Mountains should also be a world on the same level. I sensed more and more clearly that this thing’s energy and the energy within our bodies had a type of mysterious connection. Perhaps the reason why we could cross some type of time-space boundary was only because of its existence, perhaps the transmigrations only happened because of this thing…”

“I cannot explain this with any logic, but I felt more and more certain that this thing was ‘drawing’ us here. I don’t know how you think… but in the end, I decided that this powerful energy mass might be a passage that transcends time and space. Perhaps by entering through, there is a chance of entering another world. Maybe it’s even connected to our previous world.”

“I might be trying to think through something I have no business messing with. I don’t want you to be affected by my thinking, I hope that you can make your own choice… I wanted to go through this thing. Perhaps I can obtain greater power from a different world, perhaps I can return to that world of ours.”

“The more something is unknown, the greater the temptation. Moreover, when I realized that there was a chance of going back, that world I thought I could already completely abandon suddenly appeared ever so real before my eyes. I could not control my emotions at all, I really wanted to go back and complete many things I was never able to do. I really want to go back and see how those I care about are doing, perhaps even tell them some parting words… You can interpret this as my own selfishness.”

…

“That is why in the end, he couldn’t hold himself back and entered this thing?”

Lin Xi raised his head to look at this icy blue whirlpool.

Gu Xinyin, Nangong Weiyang, and Qin Xiyue understood what ended up happening. They looked at the shining whirlpool. For some reason, even though they felt grief and disappointment, they could understand Principal Zhang’s choice.

“I hesitated for a long time. However, when I thought about how Yunqin and Green Luan Academy still had to get used to an age without me… I’ve fought so many battles, I’ve suffered so many serious injuries… I am but an ordinary person, I can’t live forever… That is why I decided to go in and give it a try. I hope that this truly is a passage that traverses time-space, that it is a gate.”

“I want to go back, even if it is just saying goodbye to some people. I also want to come back with even greater power, live a bit longer, make this world a bit more beautiful… If I can return after entering, then I’ll definitely be back… If the only thing you find here is that metal trunk and you do not see me, then I have no way of telling you what lies beyond this thing, what is behind this gate. This can only mean that even though the two of us possess a unique ability, there is no chance of returning after entering this place.”

𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

“If that is the case… then I’ve already truly left this world… but thankfully, I can still say my goodbyes.”

“I wonder what kind of choice you will make after coming here, after seeing these ruins, after seeing that… but regardless of what choice you make, goodbye, friend from the same hometown…”

“Lastly, what I want to say is… You are more fortunate than me, because you came after me. At the very least, you have me to tell you some things, tell you that there is no chance for you to return once you enter this thing. The point at which you are at before making this decision will be different from me. Everyone wants the ability to choose… I do not want to interfere with your decision, but if your decision is to remain in this world, there is one more important matter I need to tell you.”

“I’ve wandered this warm lake for many years. During these years, I’ve obtained many breakthroughs in my cultivation. If you’ve come to Green Luan Palace to seek some help just like me, to seek more powerful cultivation methods, you do not need to feel despair over Green Luan Palace not having those legendary techniques. You need to remember that for us, all power can be understood as originating from energy. Energy must come from somewhere, it cannot be created out of nothing or destroyed. When you are truly willing to pay the price in this world, you will naturally receive something in return. This is also true for human life. I believe you definitely understand these words.”

…

“That’s it?”

Even though Lin Xi already remained silent for a while, even though Nangong Weiyang was sure that Principal Zhang didn’t leave behind anything else, she still couldn’t help but ask this.

From a certain perspective, she wasn’t willing to see Principal Zhang’s age end before his eyes just like that.

Lin Xi looked at her, Gu Xinyin and Qin Xiyue, giving them a nod. Then, he quietly said to this friend from the same hometown, towards his true intimate friend in this world, “That is why the reason you left is because there were too many things you couldn’t let go of, because Yunqin needs to get used to a world without your existence.”