On the other side, after listening to Bai Chanyi's narration—
"So, my past self possessed the bearing of an Great Emperor, once crossed immortal mountains and seas of blood, battling numerous immortals and asuras; I also traversed the demon realm, slaughtering countless demon emperors and lords, and even the demon realm itself collapsed into nine layers of abysses because of me?"
Yu Zhibo looked at Bai Chanyi incredulously. If it weren't for the slight familiarity in her eyes, which gave him a sense of closeness, he would have almost believed she was trying to scam him.
It was too amusing. If his past self and Bai Chanyi were so incredibly powerful, capable of influencing the present by crossing the river of time, then what was he now?
A pawn? Or an expendable sacrifice?
Were all his experiences, all his joys and sorrows, under the control of that "chess player" behind the scenes?
Yu Zhibo found this unacceptable.
Even if that "chess player" was actually "himself."
Bai Chanyi looked at Yu Zhibo, who was struggling to accept this, a gentle smile gracing her lips. Her gaze was like that of looking at a lover in their youth, tinged with a hint of indulgence. She parted her red lips and said:
"The river of time is composed of countless spacetime. Each spacetime appears immeasurably vast, but in reality, it is merely a drop of water in the river."
"And those who are said to be able to enter the river of time, the 'Great Luo Golden Immortals,' are merely powerful individuals who have leaped out of a 'water droplet.' They use their abilities to alter the shape of the 'water droplet,' or force them to merge with or devour other water droplets. On the surface, it seems as though they have changed history… but when the old water droplet becomes a new water droplet, it is already an entirely new spacetime."
"This is what is often referred to as 'parallel worlds' in novels."
Yu Zhibo's thoughts raced. After digesting the contents of Bai Chanyi's words, his face still held a look of shock.
The information revealed by Bai Chanyi was simply too astonishing.
High above in the sky, as if the heavens themselves sensed that Bai Chanyi's words touched upon forbidden domains, dark clouds gathered, and lightning danced like electric snakes, as if the world itself wished to erase certain traces.
However, this entire area was enveloped by the gentle radiance emanating from Bai Chanyi, causing the heavenly thunder to brew for a moment before dissipating.
"You mean… the one who gave me this golden finger was another me from a parallel world? Then what was 'he' doing all this for?"
As soon as these words were spoken, a complex expression appeared on Bai Chanyi's face. After a long pause, she lowered her gaze and said faintly, "Probably to mend certain regrets."
"Regrets?"
Bai Chanyi continued, "You only need to know that the you from another parallel world, and I… our childhoods were extremely tragic. Not only that, all our relatives and friends died while resisting 'the darkness.' In the end, when the entire lost world was left with only a few people, how lonely it was…"
"You are him, but you are not him, because your memories and experiences have been completely different since you were sixteen. You don't need to worry about becoming someone else later, because the empty you will not choose to merge with the current you."
Upon hearing this, Yu Zhibo fell silent for a moment before speaking, "Didn't you already step into the river of time? Why did you still live so lonely…"
"Ultimately, there can be no two identical leaves in this world. Even if we could resurrect all our deceased relatives and friends, their soul imprints have been corrupted by 'the darkness.' Even if resurrected, they would merely be hollow monsters. What is the use of such friendship and family ties? Rather than that, it is better to create an entirely new spacetime. Otherwise, do you think you know where you came from?"
Yu Zhibo pursed his lips and asked, "What does 'the darkness' refer to? Even beings like you who have transcended the river of time cannot resist it?"
Bai Chanyi smiled and said, "What if I told you that the river of time has been polluted by 'the darkness'? Grow stronger quickly. We cannot hold out much longer on our own. Once the defense line collapses, endless darkness and chaos will engulf every spacetime."
Yu Zhibo's pupils contracted.
Bai Chanyi continued, "The Eternal Night world you know is the consequence of a wisp of dispersed dark factor falling into a mid-tier world. If we hadn't intervened in time to contain it, your 'water droplet' would have already turned ink-black."
"What can I do?" Yu Zhibo asked with difficulty.
Bai Chanyi chuckled lightly, "'The System' has already issued you a mission, hasn't it? Having reincarnation is a basic condition for a spacetime to purify itself. When a water droplet can continuously purify itself, it will also begin to purify the surrounding water droplets, just as a single spark can start a prairie fire."
"In this world, the path of Dao will eventually reach its end. If one only cultivates demonic arts, it will also lead to self-destruction. Only by cultivating both Dao and demonic arts can one truly break free from constraints and achieve true eternity."
"The arrangements that needed to be made… we have already set them up for you. From now on, everything depends on you…"
As she spoke, Bai Yinchen's body began to gradually fade. In her final moments, she spoke again, "The information I have revealed is not tolerated by this world. If you do not wish to lose this memory, then after I disappear… just… die once! You should understand what I mean…"
Yu Zhibo stared blankly at Bai Yinchen's disappearing figure, murmuring, "Die… once?"
At the same time, he began to feel his memories of the recent conversation rapidly fading.
"Die once?!"
Yu Zhibo repeated these three syllables. Suddenly, the purple hue in his pair of purple eyes faded, and the original Nine-Tomoe Rinnegan turned from purple to scarlet, eventually transforming into the shape of an eerie Mangekyo Sharingan.
The next moment, he raised his slender right hand. With laws swirling, he drew upon the terrifying energy in heaven and earth, and the entire void began to collapse and reassemble.
It was conceivable that if this palm strike were directed anywhere, it could obliterate the laws of the attacked area, turning even the void into dust.
But Yu Zhibo did not strike elsewhere. Instead, he fiercely slammed it towards his own forehead.
"Boom!"
Terrifying energy surged outwards from his skull as the center, and he himself, under this dreadful attack, had his skull shattered, his body disintegrated inch by inch, and finally completely vanished into the void.
As his body dissipated, a flash of red light flickered through his right eye, becoming the last glimmer of light.
"Yo! Died again, huh! Looks like this time you died willingly, not because you were beaten to death."
Yu Zhibo activated Izanagi and entered the dark space of resurrection. Before he could even react, he saw two majestic and noble figures standing with their hands behind their backs in the sky, looking at him with great interest.
"Who are you…"
Yu Zhibo's gaze narrowed as he looked at the two figures in the air with bewilderment.
These two figures bore an exact resemblance to himself and Bai Chanyi, but their auras were vastly different.
Noble, majestic, domineering, like deities.
"Don't be nervous. This is just a trace of our residual consciousness, a fixed program within your resurrection space, if you will," the majestic man who looked exactly like Yu Zhibo said with a smile.
Beside him, Bai Chanyi, clad in a magnificent moon robe, also wore a faint smile.