Chapter 111 - 110: Is the Universe a Giant RPG Game?

Chapter 111: Chapter 110: Is the Universe a Giant RPG Game?

’Something’s still not right.’

’How long has Buddhism even existed on Earth?’

’Buddhism has existed in this world for over ten thousand years, and the time ratio between this world and my own is one-to-one.’

’Even if Buddhism exists on Earth, it should have been transmitted from this universe.’

’So...’

’During the great calamity ten thousand years ago, did the Immortals and Buddhas of this world flee to Earth? Is that why the Path of Ascension in this world was cut off?’

’Did the Demon Suppression Tower also arrive on Earth at that time?’

’That doesn’t quite add up either. If the Buddhas truly had Divine Abilities, then why, in Earth’s thousands of years of civilization, are all the stories about Buddhas and Immortals just legends?’

’Things like Divine Abilities and martial arts still needed to be brought back by Time Travelers from this universe...’

Besides, every wisp of Demon Qi had told him that they were once incredibly powerful.

Demon Qi could be used to develop various Derived Skills, and each one was extremely potent.

He could even rely on just a few Derived Skills to suppress this entire world in a matter of months.

’It’s not normal. None of this is normal.’

It was fine when he didn’t think about it. But the moment Li Ye tried to sort out the connections between all these things, everything felt off. It was as if a thick fog obscured his vision.

’As expected, he was still too insignificant. And he had far too little information to even begin to glimpse the truth.’

Li Ye subconsciously looked up at the sky. ’Perhaps Time Travelers, Demon Hunters, the Demon Qi that spans two universes, and even Earth itself are all just pieces in a Great God’s game,’ he mused.

’A game where gods toy with the mortals of the world?’

Previously, Li Ye had thought that once he was strong enough, he would use a demon to sever his connection with the Demon Suppression Tower, escape the vortex that was Earth, and find a suitable world in this universe to live freely.

But now, having glimpsed a sliver of the truth, he suspected that this universe might be the real, great vortex—perhaps even more terrifying than Earth.

...

"Besides Amitabha Buddha, are there any other Buddhas?" the Buddhist Sect Leader pressed urgently. "Alliance Leader, do you know of any Buddhist scriptures?"

"I know the names of some sutras, but not their specific contents. The ancient texts I saw were also incomplete," Li Ye said, looking at the Buddhist Sect Leader. "The fragments mentioned that Mahayana Buddhism has five major divisions: the Prajna Division, the Treasure Collection Division, the Mahasamghika Sutra Collection, the Huayan Division, and the Nirvana Division."

"Within these five divisions are countless scriptures, such as the *Mahaparinirvana Sutra*, the *Lankavatara Sutra*, and the *Bodhisattva Treasury Sutra*. That’s all I know..."

"It’s true! The Path of Ascension is really true!" The Buddhist Sect Leader was so excited he was practically dancing.

A moment later, he calmed down, placed his palms together, and performed a Buddhist salute to Li Ye. "Thank you, Alliance Leader, for clearing my doubts. When we arrive at the Buddhist Sect, I will persuade everyone to follow you and join the Wenda Alliance!"

"There’s no need to persuade them. Just trick them into coming out," Li Ye said, glancing at the Buddhist Sect Leader. "You can write a letter right now, telling the people of the Buddhist Sect to reinforce the Sword Sect. Tell them that the Three Evil Sects have joined forces to attack the Sword Sect and that they must hurry to assist..."

As he spoke, he turned to the Daoist Sect Leader. "Old Zhu, you can also trick the Elders of the Daoist Sect into coming out. Star Shifting needs their power to be enhanced. It’s not too late to beat them up first and then recruit them into the Wenda Alliance."

"The Ninth Elder already knows our objective. I suspect he’ll attack the Upper Three Sects before we do. Getting our people out first will help us preserve our strength."

"Yes, Alliance Leader."

The Daoist Sect Leader and the Buddhist Sect Leader replied in unison.

Li Ye had revealed many of the Buddhist Sect’s long-lost secrets, and the two men no longer had any doubt about his origins.

The two Sect Leaders of the Daoist and Buddhist Sects each wrote a letter, took out their personal tokens from their Storage Pouches, and dispatched men to their respective Sects to rally their forces.

After they finished, the Daoist Sect Leader asked, "Alliance Leader, what do you know about the Daoist legacy?"

"We’ll talk on the way. Speed is crucial in war. We need to integrate the Upper Three Sects before the Ninth Elder makes his move," Li Ye said with a smile, signaling for everyone to set off.

They flew into the sky.

Everyone gathered around Li Ye, eager to hear the secrets of the Ancient Cultivation Realm from him.

Li Ye looked around at the crowd and smiled. "In the world I originally came from, the loss of ancient legacies was even more severe. At least in your world, you can still cultivate. In the world I was born in, even the legacy of the Martial Dao was extinguished."

"I suspect the calamity ten thousand years ago affected more than just one or two worlds."

"Among the ancient texts I found, there wasn’t much about Daoism, but I do know that Daoism has its own Celestial Court, and above the Celestial Court are the Three Pristine Ones..."

Li Ye selectively recounted some myths and legends he knew to the group. When he finished, he asked, "Old Zhu, from which Immortal’s lineage does the Daoist Sect of this world descend?"

"Daoist Monarch Changran," the Daoist Sect Leader replied. "Alliance Leader, have you ever come across the Daoist Monarch’s name in the ancient texts?"

"..." Li Ye shook his head. "No, I haven’t. The ancient texts I found were also incomplete."

"Alliance Leader, have you ever seen the name Zhou Qingyun?" the Sword Sect Leader asked from the side. "The Sword Sect’s lineage comes from Elder Qingyun."

’Zhou Qingyun?’

Li Ye was suddenly stunned. "A woman?"

"Was our Elder a woman?" The Sword Sect Leader was taken aback, frowning. "We only know that the Sword Sect’s lineage descends from Elder Qingyun, but we don’t know if our founder was a man or a woman. Please, Alliance Leader, tell us more."

"I have indeed seen the name Zhou Qingyun." Li Ye’s expression was a little strange. "She was a disciple of the Emei Sword Sect and, along with Li Yingqiong, Yan Renying, Yu Yingnan, and Qi Lingyun, they were known as the ’Three Yings and Two Yuns’."

"If your lineage comes from a Zhou Qingyun, it could only be her. Her flying sword was the famous Cyan Rope Sword. In that case, the Sword Sect’s lineage should descend from the Emei Sword Sect."

Li Ye’s mind was in turmoil.

’It’s one thing for Amitabha Buddha to show up, but how did Zhou Qingyun appear too? Zhou Qingyun is clearly a fictional character from Huanzhu Tower Master’s *Swordsmen of Mount Shu*!’

’Is this universe even real?’

’Could it be that some programmer just coded it into existence?’

’Is the entire universe actually a massive RPG, like one of those wuxia chronicles, and are they all just NPCs in the game?’

’The simulation hypothesis exists on Earth!’

’If I look at it from that angle, all the problems related to time can be explained...’

’But if they’re NPCs, then who are the players?’

"The Emei Sword Sect, you say?" the Sword Sect Leader mumbled, then sighed. "In the great calamity ten thousand years ago, we lost far too much."

"You all keep mentioning the great calamity ten thousand years ago. What exactly happened during it?" Li Ye asked, temporarily abandoning the hypothesis that the world was a game.

"No one knows how the calamity started, or how it ended," said the Daoist Sect Leader. "We only know that it happened over ten thousand years ago. At that time, the mountains and rivers were shattered, nearly all living beings were wiped out, the major Mountain Gates were reduced to Ruins, and our legacies were severed."

"The current cultivation world was rebuilt from the rubble of the various sects and schools. The Cultivation Technique Secret Manuals and the like are incomplete, and even the Path of Ascension was cut off. We only know of the glorious state of ancient cultivation from the few texts that survived..."

’A world-destroying war between Immortal Gods?’

Li Ye fell into deep thought.

’A world-ending calamity, a civilization that rose from the ruins... the backstory sounds more and more like a game setting.’

’The calamity happened over ten thousand years ago. On Earth, civilization has only truly taken shape for a few thousand years, and we can’t even figure out things that happened three thousand years ago. How could we possibly understand what happened here ten thousand years ago?’

’The people of this world have probably already scoured every bit of information they could find.’

’Though he knew the hope was slim, Li Ye still decided that after dealing with the Ninth Elder, he would personally go through the ten-thousand-year-old records of each sect. Maybe he could find some connection between this universe and Earth...’

...

Reversing time by four minutes had taken the wristwatch more than two full days to recover from.

The wristwatch had also been grumbling incessantly in Li Ye’s mind for two days.

It complained that it shouldn’t have exhausted its Demon Qi, which made it feel very vulnerable and insecure.

Li Ye couldn’t care less about its feelings. In the last world, he couldn’t actively control the Team Emblem at all, from start to finish.

But the wristwatch could actively adjust time by turning its dial.

This was a new discovery.

But when the wristwatch’s Demon Qi had recovered, and Li Ye tried turning the dial again to see what would happen if he advanced time, he found that the clicking hands of the watch had stopped again. The dial was as if it had been welded shut; he couldn’t turn it at all.

’Can I only control time when the watch’s hands are moving?’

’That’s fine too. Sooner or later, he would have to take the wristwatch back to Earth. Once it was returned, the thing wouldn’t belong to him anymore.’

’Having such a ridiculously overpowered demon that could manipulate time be controlled by someone else would also make Li Ye feel insecure. It was a good thing that the wristwatch could control itself.’

After setting up the Eight Gates Locking Array again, Li Ye tried to coax the wristwatch in a friendly tone, "Hey, Bro Watch, how about you start ticking a little?"

"No," the wristwatch said coldly. "I’m not going to let you drain my Demon Qi again. Li Ye, I’m warning you, when you go back to Earth, don’t leak any information about my functions. I can replenish my Demon Qi here, but those idiots on Earth will only consume my stored Demon Qi. It takes me a very long time to recover."

"I know, I won’t tell anyone. If I expose you, wouldn’t I be selling myself out too?" Li Ye chuckled. "If the Demon Suppression Tower found out I was colluding with a demon, would I even survive? I’m counting on you guys to help me get stronger!"

"Good that you know. The Demon Suppression Tower is no saint either," the wristwatch said. "It’s just using you all."

"Using us for what?" Li Ye asked calmly.

"How should I know?" the wristwatch retorted irritably. "But I know it’s definitely up to no good. Otherwise, after suppressing us for so many years, why would the seal suddenly loosen?"

’That’s right!’

’After being suppressed for so many years, why did the seal suddenly loosen?’

’And what’s more, the Demon Suppression Tower and Pandora’s Box are conveniently located one in the East and one in the West, and they even come with instruction manuals. It’d be weird if there *wasn’t* a conspiracy behind it all...’

Li Ye let out a soft laugh and said, "Bro Watch, I know your Demon Qi is important to you, but our top priority right now is to work together and take out Puppet Silk, isn’t it? We still have to stay here for at least another seven or eight months."

"You know what I’m capable of. With this much time, are you really worried I can’t help you build up your Demon Qi? I guarantee that when you go back, you’ll be full to the brim. If you die, you lose everything."

"You promise?" the wristwatch asked.

"Of course. There’s no benefit for me in tricking you," Li Ye said. "You also need to use me to understand your own abilities. In the future, when you go to other worlds with other Time Travelers, you can guide them if they don’t understand, so you don’t end up getting screwed for no reason."