"So, do you know what the daylight truly is?" Zhang Rongfang pondered for a moment before asking this question.
"Daylight... It is said that our world has always been suspended on the edge of a colossal opening called the White Pupil. It revolves around it continuously. The daylight is what radiates from the White Pupil.
Ah, this isn’t from me, it was said by someone who fell from above." Di Pa explained roughly while chewing on beef.
"White Pupil... Then what about the Spirit Eye Race you mentioned? Are they people with just one eye?" Zhang Rongfang recalled the corpses he saw on the fourth level.
"Yes, yes, actually it’s not just the Spirit Eye Race, but among the outsiders, they are considered the strongest, having unified and eliminated other forces, then allied locally to try and find a way to fend off the daylight. Unfortunately... it seems now they all failed."
Di Pa shrugged.
"You went up not seeing a single living person, right?"
"Mm... They’re all dead." Zhang Rongfang nodded slightly, somewhat silent.
"That’s for sure. It’s unstoppable; everything is destined for oblivion. The Spirit Eye Race actually went extinct much earlier than ordinary people; they tried to break free from the White Pupil’s bindings.
But it’s said that it exploded as soon as they started, and legend has it that their ships flew up into the sky, then burned like torches, turning to ash." Di Pa shook his head.
"So... what exactly is out there? Do you know?" Zhang Rongfang asked tentatively.
"Outside, it’s just ruins. Remnants, ruins, and then there’s nothing." Di Pa replied.
"You sound so certain?"
"It’s not certainty; it’s the endless daylight from the White Pupil that wipes out all living things. Even if there’s life, you can’t find food or drink; even the air and water are toxic, and you’ll encounter corrosive evil breath, so you simply can’t survive, right?"
Suddenly, he lightly clapped one hand on the palm.
"Oh, right, apparently some clever ones came up with a way for surviving outside."
"What way?" Zhang Rongfang asked.
"Something called the Heart-Burning Furnace, apparently." Di Pa took a sip of wine, "It’s about using the Spiritual Line within oneself, building a core furnace according to the Atlas. Different furnaces can exert various powerful effects, able to resist the evil breath and significantly reduce the need for food and drink."
This guy... how does he know everything!?
At this moment, Zhang Rongfang was already somewhat astonished.
He initially wondered if Di Pa might be Emperor Kun or Chen Junchen, but now... it seems impossible.
Di Pa is even more formidable and mysterious than he imagined.
At least he has existed here for so long, too long. Long enough to be the grandfather of Chen Junchen and Emperor Kun, and perhaps even longer.
"Do you have any more questions?" Di Pa continued. "Oh, since you’re a good person, I’ll tell you something else that was told to me by some Spirit Eye Race who fell down."
"What is it?"
"This Taoyuan, it’s said to be connected with other Taoyuan, like this."
He placed food and drinks on his body and circled his fingers into a heart shape.
"See, the top and bottom, two nodes, are places where all Taoyuan intersect and converge."
"Hm? You’re saying... the top and bottom layers of Taoyuan can link to all other interaction zones of Taoyuan?" Zhang Rongfang quickly reacted.
"Correct, correct!" Di Pa nodded, "So the Sea of Oblivion below buries not just the living beings of this interaction zone, but also the existence across all interaction zones."
Zhang Rongfang became enlightened; the credibility of these words was very high. So far, everything Di Pa had said had never deceived him.
Deceiving him about these common-sense things would not bring any benefit.
He asked many more details, common-sensical questions.
About the construction method of the Heart-Burning Furnace, the composition of the Spirit Eye Race, the source of the evil breath, etc.
The knowledge expanded richer.
Especially constructing the Heart-Burning Furnace, which requires the Martial Arts Atlas.
But where does the Martial Arts Atlas come from? Nobody knows.
Perhaps from the Spirit Eye Race, perhaps a creation of many geniuses attempting to break from paths, seeking hope.
Di Pa wasn’t quite sure, yet he was certain of one thing...
The Sea of Oblivion contained many Martial Arts Atlases.
After bidding farewell to Di Pa, Zhang Rongfang returned to reality.
Now all clues pointed to the outside world, a desolate wasteland long since destroyed.
Moreover, all sorts of gigantic dangers were also present, and if he wanted to venture out, ample preparation was absolutely necessary.
Thus, Zhang Rongfang entrusted all affairs entirely to Meng Qian of the Chrono Reversal Society.
The great ambition of the Chrono Reversal Society was to eliminate all gods and deities, and now, they’ve basically achieved that.
This goal aligns with Zhang Rongfang’s.
Additionally, the Chrono Reversal Society originated and rose from ordinary people, which allows them to supervise each other with the Human Immortal Temple for quite some time.
After arranging subordinates, Zhang Rongfang truly began a thorough retreat, in seclusion, completely withdrawing from worldly affairs, leaving only legends in the rivers and the court.
Time passed swiftly.
Without Zhang Rongfang, the Great Spirit continued to recover rapidly.
But things didn’t go as he wished.
In the blink of an eye, three years passed.
*
*
*
Boom.
A clap of thunder cracked the sky, swiftly transmitting rumbling sounds into the distance.
At a certain port in the Great Spirit.
Waves surged violently under the storm, billowing and roaring.
Ships poorly moored were blown away by the wind and rain, drifting toward the distant sea.
Lightning branched like a tree, frequently splitting the sky, illuminating everything.