Death... and me

Chapter 1539 - Yeah, I know

Back in the underground area, Rean was told about the intricacies of the formation and how the cultivators and demon beasts there planned to make it work. Only with that could he finally get the full picture of the thing. 'It's quite obvious that they lack the necessary knowledge for formations. They had to combine many formations together to obtain the result of a single more sophisticated one. This kind of thing is visible everywhere in the formation.'

However, he had to praise the people there for their ingenuity. He understood why it took thirty years to get to this point. That's because they didn't have the knowledge to make things like this. They had to discover everything on their own. 'If I was here thirty years ago with my knowledge right now, it wouldn't have taken more than three months to get the same result. Then again, I don't know if I could do what they did if I was in their shoes.'

Nevertheless, there was a problem. Rean could finally tell how they would escape the Upside Down World, as well as why it was so secretive that information about it couldn't get out. Of course, Roan, who was watching everything through their connection, didn't understand what was happening, so Rean had to explain to him.

'Basically, what they're trying to achieve is a forced breakthrough,' Rean explained. 'A big part of the formation itself will create a temporary shield. It has been accumulating Divine Energy for a long time and should be enough to withstand even the continental barrier for quite a few minutes.'

Rean continued, 'However, the real trick is the way they'll pass through the barrier of this Upside Down World. Just think of it like they're shooting a cannon. The rest of the formation is also accumulating Divine Energy to launch the cultivators inside the shield through the barrier. I've gone into the hole in the center of the formation that is connected to the barrier of this world. After analyzing the barrier's power for a moment, I've reached the conclusion that this formation would most likely shoot the people and demon beasts inside to a distance of a few hundred kilometers.'

Roan couldn't help but ask, 'Is it enough to pass through the formation?'

Rean thought about that as well. 'That's the point. My answer to that is I don't know. The Formation Masters here have no idea as to how far the barrier that covers the Upside Down World extends. If this place is really a dimensional realm, then it might extend thousands of times further.'

Roan denied that notion, saying, 'The system exactly wants us to stop them from trying this thing. That means that they most likely can pass through the barrier.'

Rean then mentioned, 'That depends. Do you remember that you mentioned that the cultivators and demon beasts here might just be feeding the Upside Down World? Perhaps the Soul Gem System just doesn't want the Upside Down World to lose its food.'

However, Roan didn't think it anymore. 'That's most likely not the case.'

'How come?' Rean asked in response.

Roan then explained, 'Simple. You said that this formation can only shoot a limited amount of people. You also told me that this project is being kept secret to the point of even using Soul Binding Contracts. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe this formation wouldn't be able to shoot anyone a second time, right?'

Rean was surprised that Roan deduced that. 'That's true. From what I can see, once the formation activates once, all the runes will overload. In fact, the overload of the runes is also part of the reason why the formation can shoot so far into the barrier. Once it's done, the formation will be destroyed in the process. Without a doubt, the guys in this project don't want other people and demon beasts to know since everyone would want to leave with them. There's no way this formation can support too many passengers. I would put the maximum capacity to around 300 or so members.'

Roan nodded in response. 'That's the reason right there. 300 cultivators and demon beasts would change almost nothing in the Upside Down World. If everyone in this world is really being used as a means of feeding something, there's no need to care about these ones escaping. The purging itself would get rid of hundreds or thousands of times more cultivators and demon beasts than the formation will let escape outside.'

Rean understood where Roan was coming from. 'I see... if there's no need to care about such a small number of cultivators running away, there's no need for the Soul Gem System to start this quest either.'

'Exactly.' Roan confirmed Rean's words, nodding. 'However, the quest did start. That means the problem is with what will happen when the formation activates. Perhaps it'll break through the barrier and the beings inside will reach someplace they were not supposed to. Perhaps they'll pass through the barrier, and it'll break something in turn. Who knows? The Upside Down World might simply explode because of that.'

Rean agreed with Roan when he heard that. 'Whatever the reason may be, the goal is to not let this formation work.'

Roan then warned Rean about something else. 'Don't forget, the quest just said to stop the cultivators and demon beasts of the Upside Down World from escaping. The Soul Gem System has never said that the formation you're taking part in is the thing that will accomplish it. Of course, given the chances, this is most likely the one, but we better be ready if something else happens. After all, the purging organization's members aren't the only ones who want to leave this place.'

Rean bitterly smiled in response. 'If this isn't what could bring them out, then I have no idea what it could be. For now, I'll focus on this one.'

Roan nodded and then asked something else. 'So, do they have everything they need to succeed?'

Rean shook his head, saying, 'No. At the actual stage, they would all die, but they know that. However, they're very close to getting it to work, albeit poorly due to their lack of knowledge of formations. It's just that they haven't noticed it yet.'

'In that case, it's your job to make sure they don't realize it,' Roan replied. 'Instead, make sure this formation becomes useless. Understood?'

Rean sighed as he replied, 'Yeah, I know...'