Chapter 635 - 394: Tier Nine Time Magic

Chapter 635: Chapter 394: Tier Nine Time Magic

Time, the distance traveled, the intensity of the fire in the hearth, and the corresponding colors of the paintings on the wall.

’The time when I entered this ruin...’

"Do I still need to give you a hint here?"

"With your own intellect, you should be able to grasp the key to the problem easily."

It was all just related to time.

"As for Aikator."

"I already told you, He is just a legendary being."

"All I know is that He once left behind a few harmless ruins and a world-shaking Divine Artifact."

"A Divine Artifact named the Ring of Stillness."

"I’ve heard that whoever possesses this Divine Artifact can stop time at will. Other people’s time is frozen, but the wielder can still move freely."

’Sounds a lot like my Heaven-Ascending Realm of Perfection.’

’The only difference is that the Heaven-Ascending Realm of Perfection only lets me act for a brief second.’

’I wonder how many seconds that Divine Artifact lets you act. If it’s just a time stop of about five seconds, it doesn’t seem all that powerful.’

’Hmm...’

’I think I’m getting a little full of myself.’

’To think I’d call an ability like stopping time "not that powerful"...’

Lu Cang listened to An Su ramble on about the legends of Aikator while observing all the decorations around him.

He had more or less figured out the pattern of the decorations on both sides of the corridor.

They changed based on the distance traveled.

The way out should also be simple: find the anomaly that didn’t follow the rules.

Lu Cang’s Perception had already locked onto a clock in the distance.

Hundreds of clocks in its vicinity all followed the pattern Lu Cang had deduced, their hands pointing to the corresponding marks.

But that one clock alone pointed to a mark that broke the pattern.

He took a single step.

TAP—

In an instant, Lu Cang appeared before the incorrect clock.

He took the wall clock down.

"The wrong time."

He felt a ripple spread out...

In the corridor, the pointers on all the other wall clocks began to spin wildly.

WHIRRR—

KLAK KLAK KLAK KLAK KLAK—

The scenery before him blurred. The passageways on either side grew narrow and constricted.

The wall that was once in front of him transformed into a spiraling path leading forward.

Everything above, below, left, and right was a hazy expanse of gray and white. Only the spiraling road ahead pointed into pitch-black darkness.

A faint call and soft sobs came from the distance.

It sounded like someone was crying.

’What is this, some kind of ghost story?’

Lu Cang couldn’t help but think of crying children and babies, a classic trope straight out of a horror movie.

SHHHHH—

But soon, white noise, like a staticky TV screen, sounded in his ears.

The distant darkness was obscured by encroaching whiteness.

The scene before him began to take shape once more.

When the scene finally cleared...

Lu Cang found himself in a field that was both familiar and strange.

Here in this field, every blade of grass was exceptionally clear, his Perception was incredibly sharp, the clouds in the sky were layered and dense, and the sun was huge and close.

Ah.

’I remember now.’

’This is... the Realm of Secret Knowledge.’

Lu Cang didn’t turn around.

Because he figured that if he looked back, he would see the Root Source directly, which might just make his brain shut down.

And right now, he wasn’t in his Future Preview state.

Lu Cang tried to activate his preview here.

But something happened that he had never encountered since obtaining the Future Preview Talent.

The preview wouldn’t activate.

’Sigh...’

’Did they just throw me in here to make me face the Root Source and have my brain crash?’

’My strength now is indeed far greater than it was back then.’

’If I turn around and look at the Root Source now, maybe it won’t be as bad as last time. Besides, can a small ruin really simulate the complete Root Source?’

Lu Cang shook his head, thinking it was impossible.

He mulled over all sorts of possibilities.

But suddenly, his Perception picked up a slight disturbance.

Lu Cang whipped his head to the side and saw a figure with the brim of his hat pulled low.

He held a Magic Staff and walked toward him, radiating an immense, oppressive aura.

"Iz..."

"You’re everywhere, aren’t you?"

"You really are my Heart Demon," Lu Cang said, as if possessed.

Only after saying it did Lu Cang snap back to his senses.

’That last thought wasn’t my own.’

Lu Cang’s gaze fell upon the person before him...

Divine Level - Deepest Truth

Lu Cang’s Talent allowed him to see through to the truth.

Whether it was an Illusion Realm, a virtual reality, or a simulated projection.

But...

This time, Lu Cang felt only a sense of calm.

His Talent gave no feedback indicating falsehood.

The Izparut before him was real.

It wasn’t just Izparut; every blade of grass, every tree, the air, the Elements... all of it was real. It wasn’t an Illusion Realm or any kind of simulation.

’Are you... kidding me?’

"That’s right, Lu Cang."

Izparut lowered his hand from the brim of his hat, finally raising his eyes to meet Lu Cang’s gaze.

They were familiar eyes, but now they were filled with solemnity.

"I truly don’t want to admit that I made such a mistake back then."

"If I hadn’t trained you, perhaps today’s mistakes would never have happened."

Lu Cang frowned.

"Iz, what are you talking about?"

"I don’t understand."

"Listen to me. I entered a ruin related to Time, and after clearing the first area, I just happened to see you."

If the Iz before him were an illusion, Lu Cang wouldn’t have bothered wasting so many words on him.

But he wasn’t.

The Iz before him was real.

He hadn’t fully grasped the situation yet, but Lu Cang felt it was best to avoid any misunderstandings for now.

"I think we can talk this through and clarify the situation... Maybe someone is misleading us. We shouldn’t be blinded by a misunderstanding."

However, Iz’s eyes were filled with regret.

"No..."

"There’s no longer any need to talk. I already know everything."

"Destroyer of the Secret Sea, toppler of the World Tree, polluter of the Moon Sea, releaser of the Abyss... Lu Cang, you have been too deeply corrupted."

"The reason you are here is because I summoned you."

"Tier Nine Time Magic—Historical Extraction."

"This is the only way to stop you, before all of this happens."

Hearing Iz’s explanation...

Dread slowly rose in Lu Cang’s heart as he finally understood what was happening...

’This is... a future timeline?’

’The person before me is the Izparut of the future...’

’Tier Nine Time Magic summoned me from my own timeline to his?’

’What the hell?’

Other people become Immortal Emperors and then erase the karma of their past.

So how, when it was my turn, did I become the one being erased by someone else?

A faint killing intent radiated from Iz.

It wasn’t strong, but it was enough to prove his resolve.

Lu Cang gripped the War Spear in his right hand.

"Master Iz."

"Everything you’ve talked about hasn’t happened yet. If you’re really going to kill me, at least let me understand why."