NOVEL NEXT Chapter 769: Another Universe
"That's right." Gua Tianshi said solemnly, "After pushing open the Second Door and becoming Impermanence, the Old Fist God's soul contagion power unfolded in the form of Fatian Xiangdi, possessing the strength to cause the humans and even all life forms in his area to develop berserk symptoms.
"Not limited to animals, even plants inexplicably display carnivorous traits, preying on life forms within their range. Even microorganisms and bacteria become more ferocious, mutating into terrifyingly invasive, infectious, and lethal forms.
"Under the premise of being able to observe the Old Fist God, all these berserk life forms will launch attacks towards him; otherwise, they will fight amongst themselves. Lovers who were exchanging sweet nothings a moment ago would tear at each other's throats without hesitation; even parents would succumb to animal instincts, using their teeth to bite the infants in their arms.
"A tiger, though fierce, does not eat its cubs... This is only human nature, which does not apply to the world of the Old Fist God. He is a madman who would, on a whim, kill his daughter whom he painstakingly taught and raised.
"Such insane impulses and emotions, perhaps the Old Fist God can restrain in daily life, but others basically cannot. Once this wave is allowed to spread unchecked, it would immediately transform the society he is in into a true hell on earth.
"The world of the last century has experienced similar situations more than once, some of which were the direct consequences caused by the Old Fist God himself."
After a moment of thought, he continued, "… Now that I think about it, the Mana of the Old Fist God would not disappear because of Shan Liangyi seizing the seeds, it might have shown signs long before then.
"His soul contagion power had indications before awakening Mana, and did not change direction after awakening it. In becoming a Liangyi Inheritor and ascending to Impermanence, Fatian Xiangdi continued in this form, rather than the five elements form that a Liangyi Inheritor should have."
The reason the Old Fist God's power didn't disappear after losing the Power Seed is very simple and easy to understand when re-evaluated now.
Considering the incident where he immediately counter-killed Shan Liangyi after the Power Seed was taken, it's very likely that at the time he had already pushed open the Third Door.
The power of the Impermanence through the Third Door will never truly vanish in any universe, nor in any time and space. The minor issue of "the foundation of power being dug out" is simply not enough to render the Old Fist God, who can warp the principles of the world, powerless.
This extraordinary nature might even have shown some signs on the past incarnation of the Old Fist God in advance.
Perhaps the Old Fist God is the first Liangyi Inheritor to push open the Third Door, so Shan Liangyi probably could not predict this unprecedented development, though having suffered a significant loss to the Old Fist God, surely he will always remember this painful lesson.
Unfortunately, trying to use Fatian Xiangdi to ascertain whether I, as the Vermilion Bird Inheritor, will push open the Third Door in the future is probably pointless. Because after I push open the Third Door, my Fatian Xiangdi could likely take any form, and the soul contagion power can be custom-tailored, so there would be no conflict with the past Vermilion Bird Seed.
"After pushing open the Third Door, the Old Fist God never unfolded his Fatian Xiangdi again," Gua Tianshi continued, "Based on my observation, it's not because he learned restraint, but simply because he became able to control his contagion power at will and lost the necessity to actively unfold Fatian Xiangdi.
"He doesn't want to turn the world into a hell on earth, it's just that he hopes everyone can challenge him. And after becoming a genuine Transcender, he realizes that even the combined efforts of everyone worldwide cannot threaten him, so he no longer does such fruitless things. Hence, I don't know what nature his Fatian Xiangdi has transformed into now."
I speculated in this direction, "Then, if he were to push open the Fourth Door…"
Gua Tianshi said, "I don't know what sort of world the Old Fist God expects, nor what kind of world his power will bring about, but at the very least one thing can be certain, if his plan is to use the power of the Fourth Door to change this planet's worldview, regardless of whether everyone becomes strong enough to threaten him as he wishes, the ultimate reality would inevitably be a bloody hell where everyone is madly slaughtering each other."
Could this also be related to the special ability of the Old Fist God? I pondered this. But it's said that his special ability only manifested after he became the strongest Impermanence on Luo Mountain, while his soul contagion power showed from the very start. Would linking the two be too arbitrary?
Then, I thought of another matter.
"But… there doesn't seem to be anything about the Current World Divine Seal in this," I pointed out, "The Current World Divine Seal came to the hands of the Old Fist God through the wish-fulfilling power of the Third Door... Therefore, the existence of the Current World Divine Seal should be something that 'would aid the Old Fist God's wish'. If merely pushing open the Fourth Door could achieve all objectives, would this item not be unnecessary?"
"…"
Gua Tianshi fell into a brief contemplation, although to me, it seemed more like he was deciding whether to continue speaking rather than re-evaluating his reasoning for flaws pointed out.
Then he spoke again, "If the Old Fist God wants to rely on the power of the Current World Divine Seal on top of pushing open the Fourth Door, then this only suggests he is pursuing an even more complex world."
"Complex?" I asked.
"The First Door, the Second Door, the Third Door... as you become stronger step-by-step, the process of influence on the world is traceable. Although I have never seen a powerhouse who has pushed open the Fourth Door, based on the trajectory of strengthening through the first three doors, perhaps some nature of the Fourth Door can be inferred," Gua Tianshi said, "Firstly, the power of the Fourth Door, although likely capable of comprehensively altering our worldview like a divine seal, should not be able to change anything at will like a divine seal.
"The way you distort the world always conforms to the shape of your soul, manifesting a worldview held within your heart. Suppose the Old Fist God pushes open the Fourth Door, he might turn the world into a hell on earth filled with conflict and bloodshed, but he could hardly create a paradise where all life coexists harmoniously. That doesn't align with the core of his soul.
"So, if he insists on using the Current World Divine Seal to realize his wish... the direction it leads to might be a world he vaguely knows but cannot clearly depict."
"For example?" I felt that Gua Tianshi might know the answer.
"The Old Fist God once said that before awakening mana, he dreamed of entering a city that did not exist anywhere in this world, where he discussed martial arts with a strange young man." Gua Tianshi slowly said, "The young man demonstrated the martial arts he longed for. Upon waking, the Old Fist God tried with all his might to recreate it, only to awaken his mana through Yin Mountain Liangyi at the last moment, narrowly missing his ideal martial arts realm..."
I've heard of this too. Coincidentally, both the Old Fist God and I had strange dreams before our mana awakening and awakened mana through Yin Mountain Liangyi, missing our own quest for 'growth'.
Now I have taken that crucial step, and the Old Fist God is also pursuing his once-elusive target in his own way.
"The Old Fist God can no longer escape his mana now, and nothing he does seems to matter—this is an absolute fact. However... he might want to meet that young man again and obtain some answers from him." Gua Tianshi said.
"Does he want to go directly to the world he dreamed of?" I asked.
Dreams are incredible things. The world we inhabit could be a dream of the Great True Spirit. When people dream, they might journey into the vastness of the sky, catching glimpses of past or future clues, or even dream of different times and spaces. "Dreams" often become elements of prophecy and divination, clearly showing that they are not entirely products of illusion and chaos.
Therefore, what the Old Fist God dreamed of might not be his imagination but another real existing universe. The mysterious young man he discussed martial arts with could indeed be a real person in another universe.
In fact, the martial arts the Old Fist God encountered in his dream were clearly not completely fictional either but could be divine skills that can be recreated in the real world. Even the Great Unpredictable Qilin has been exploring astonishing moves on the path to recreating it. Her skill of accelerating herself to above one-tenth the speed of light seems to be adapted from it.
Gua Tianshi smiled slightly and said: "The number of otherworldlies is as numerous as the stars in the heavens, and perhaps even Shan Liangyi, with the mastery of the Power of Reincarnation, may not be able to freely choose the next world to reincarnate into. If that target is an otherworldly he has never visited before, it would be even more challenging.
"The Old Fist God's purpose might be to directly create the unknown world he once dreamed of in the world he resides in. Although this idea is quite absurd, with the power of the Fourth Door and the Current World Divine Seal... combining the two gives a chance to achieve it.
"Of course, whether this behavior is essentially 'world creation' or 'worldline alteration' is subject to some debate."
"That seems better than the previous hell on earth." I said.
Gua Tianshi sternly countered: "Is that really so?"
Hearing this, I recalled that Gua Tianshi intended to stop the Old Fist God's attempt because, with his identity as the Impermanence of foreseeing the future, he sensed a very frightening future.
If the world the Old Fist God intends to realize is indeed the one where the young man he dreamed of resides, it would mean that it is a world extremely dark and twisted.
"Regarding the Old Fist God, predictive abilities don't usually work properly. I barely managed to get this vague premonition because no one surpasses me in anticipating the future in this world... I possess this level of power." Gua Tianshi said, "But... Yama also got the same premonition.
"He is not specialized in foreseeing the future as the Impermanence, but he is particularly sensitive to 'death'. In many demon hunters' belief systems, the Impermanence is always seen as a symbol of death, and Yama stands out in this regard. In mythological stories circulated in the common sense world, Yama is often depicted as 'the first deceased' due to this specific legacy.
"Since he has the same intuition as me... it would mean that the world the Old Fist God is about to realize could very well be a 'world brimming with death'.
"For instance... it might be a world far worse than any super ancient civilization or post-mortem world, where the death of the Earth Core gathers without restraint, ultimately brewing a god of decay to destroy everything—a Doomsday World."
Midway through listening, I noticed a flaw in Gua Tianshi's words, but since he willingly exposed it, I did not question it.
Instead, I asked, "Pushing open the Fourth Door is by no means an easy task. How do you think the Old Fist God will complete this challenge?"
"He should, as always, seek the 'Great Renunciation', but obviously, that's something he cannot accomplish with his own power." Gua Tianshi said, "Therefore, he must pursue an incredibly strong external pressure to force himself into making the ultimate decision. Specifically, this 'external pressure' would probably be formidable opponents like you and Shan Liangyi."