Chapter 857 - 35: Absolute Truth
Chapter 857: Chapter 35: Absolute Truth
The Gate of Truth stood quietly, that portal manifesting through “concept,” akin to the silent gaze of the universe itself. The stars that revolved and faded on the door, interwoven with light and shadow of rules, emitted an irresistible pull that seemed to point directly at the core of all things.
Lynch’s gaze was firmly fixed on this door, and on that eye that slowly opened, seemingly formed of pure reason and endless wisdom—the “Eye of Truth.” That eye had no pupils, only streams of light that continuously flowed, analyzing the data of all things. It was cold and indifferent, like the embodiment of cosmic laws, examining each being before the door.
The gaze first fell upon Vanessa, who still held her giant sword tightly, her battle intent not yet dissipated.
Light flashed, seemingly dissecting her soul’s essence, source of power, life trajectory, and even numerous future possibilities in an instant.
“Individual life form: Carbon-based transcendent life (Swordsman variant). Energy system: The ’Fighting Spirit’ derived from the essence of life and will.”
“Potential evaluation: Mid to upper. Affinity and capacity for ’Truth’: Insufficient. Adaptability to ’Rules’: Limited. Conclusion: Does not meet basic ’Truth Vessel’ qualifications. Access denied.”
A cold, emotionless stream of information surged directly into everyone’s consciousness.
Vanessa stiffened all over, seemingly repelled by an invisible force, involuntarily taking half a step back, her face turning slightly pale—not from injury, but from the feeling of being thoroughly seen through and judged as “unqualified.”
Following this, the gaze of the Eye of Truth shifted to Void, who was trying to hide amidst space fluctuations. “Individual life form: Carbon-based transcendent life (Space affinity variant). Energy system: ’Void Power’ based on talent and perception.”
“Potential evaluation: Superior. Affinity for ’Truth’: High. Adaptability to ’Rules’: Excellent. However, the essence of life carries ’uncertainty’ and a core defect of ’self-doubt,’ with soul stability not reaching the threshold for ’Truth Carrier.’ Conclusion: Does not meet ’Truth Seeker’ constant standards. Access denied.”
The ripples around Void instantly calmed, revealing her figure. The playful smile she commonly wore disappeared, her brows furrowing, and a hint of defiance and deeper contemplation flashed in her eyes.
The scrutiny of the Eye of Truth did not stop and shifted to Erodion. Erodion, though in a sorry state at this moment, had eyes burning with an almost frenzied desire and determination, staring intently at the Gate of Truth as if it were his sole meaning of existence.
“Individual life form: Carbon-based transcendent life (Rule Wizard, heavily mutated). Energy system: ’Power of Faith’ based on group consciousness aggregation and Spiritual Imprint (highly polluted variant).”
“Potential evaluation: Due to mutation and pollution, potential ceiling has been locked. Desire for ’Truth’: Extremely strong. Destructive and subversive tendencies toward existing ’Rules’: Extremely high. Soul state: Obsessive, chaotic, carrying massive amounts of impure information. Yet, behaviors of ’desire’ and ’sacrifice’ fulfill specific ’key’ standards. Conclusion: Meets ’temporary visitor’ qualifications. Access granted.”
Erodion’s face displayed a mingling of ecstasy and distortion.
Finally, the gaze fell on Lynch. Lynch calmly met the gaze, with the rules of time, decay, and space naturally flowing around him, unassuming yet deeply rooted. “Individual life form: Carbon-based transcendent life (Rule Wizard, initial integration of multidimensional rules).”
“Energy system: Composite (Magic Power, Soul Power, Time, Decay, Space, etc.). Potential evaluation: Unable to accurately determine (with indications of higher-dimensional interference). Approach to ’Truth’: Rational exploration combined with empirical evidence.”
“Soul state: Stable, resilient, possessing high autonomy and adaptability. Rule compatibility: Diverse and growth-oriented. Conclusion: Meets ’Truth Seeker’ qualifications. Access granted.”
Evaluation complete, the Eye of Truth slowly closed.
In the next moment, the ancient door rippled slightly, not opening, but extending countless semi-transparent ’tentacles’ from within, seemingly made of pure information flow and rule strings. These tentacles ignored spatial distances, appearing instantly beside Lynch and Erodion, gently but irresistibly entwining around them.
“Lynch!” Void and Vanessa exclaimed, wanting to step forward, but an invisible barrier blocked them outside, leaving them to watch helplessly.
The tentacles retracted, and Lynch and Erodion’s figures, like reflections being absorbed into the water surface, effortlessly merged into the Gate of Truth and vanished. The door continued to stand silently, as if nothing had occurred.
…
After a brief sensation of weightlessness and sensory detachment, Lynch abruptly opened his eyes.
He found himself in a “space” that couldn’t be accurately described by words.
There was no up or down, no stars or moons, and not even matter in the usual sense.
Beneath his feet was void, above was also void, yet the field of vision was not dark. Countless “light clusters” of varying sizes and brightnesses floated quietly, slowly drifting like the original nebulae of the universe at its inception, or perhaps like an unimaginably vast library filled with limitless possibilities?
Each light cluster emitted a unique aura and glow. Some were stable and gentle, exuding the charm of basic laws; some flickered violently, containing the forceful information of destruction and rebirth; others continuously shifted colors and shapes, seemingly demonstrating endless mysteries.
Lynch tentatively reached out, touching the nearest fist-sized, warmly glowing orange light cluster.
The instant his fingertip made contact, it wasn’t a tactile sensation but a stream of information clearly, completely, directly imprinted into the soul:
[Knowledge Number: Fundamental-7732]
[Content: The seventeen excitation states and efficiency conversion model of basic flame element particles in a standard magic field]
[Verification Status: Confirmed by 97.41 million independent observations and experiments, Confidence Level: 99.99997%]
This was a nearly perfect knowledge about the essence of flame! The formulas and models contained within were exquisitely crafted, far surpassing any flame magic books Lynch had ever seen.
With a thought, he let go of this orb of light.
Immediately, a question naturally arose in his mind: “What is the fundamental essence of the Time Rule?”
Almost the instant this thought emerged, a silver-white orb of light in the distance, flowing with an hourglass-like illusion, seemed summoned. It broke away from its original drift trajectory and, at a speed far surpassing other orbs, flew directly towards Lynch, merging into his brow.
A torrent of massive information swept in! This time the knowledge was even more profound, more grand, directly touching on the fundamental settings of the time dimension, the roots of differences in time flow rates across different planes, and nearly essential explanations on the influence of “observers” on the timeline.
Though unable to fully comprehend it instantly, Lynch felt that given time to digest, his mastery of the Time Rule would leap to a whole new level!
“This place… is truly where all the answers to the world are recorded…” Lynch was shocked in his heart. He could feel that as long as he posed a question, if a corresponding “answer” existed in this knowledge repository, the appropriate orb of light would automatically respond.
His gaze was naturally drawn to the “center” of this strange space.
Amidst all the floating orbs of light, there was a mass whose volume was not the largest, but its “brightness” and “presence” far exceeded the sum of all other orbs—a pinnacle light source!
It was like the sun of this knowledge universe, emanating a pure, gentle yet unignorable glow, seemingly the source and destination of all knowledge, attracting all “gazes” and “desires for knowledge.”
Lynch instinctively flew towards that brightest orb of light. Countless knowledge orbs around him seemed to have a consciousness of their own, making way for him.
As he gradually approached that core orb of light, he discovered that another figure had already arrived, silently floating before that pinnacle of light, none other than Erodion.
However, at this moment, Erodion was a far cry from the previous frenzied, ambitious “Father God.”
His back was hunched, and the wild joy and desire on his face had long vanished without a trace, leaving only a deep-seated, bone-marrow-deep bewilderment and despair as if his faith had utterly collapsed.
His eyes were empty, staring fixedly at that core orb of light, his lips moving silently, his body even trembling slightly, as if he had seen something more terrifying and unacceptable than death.
Lynch’s heart sank slightly, and he sped up, arriving at Erodion’s side, also casting his gaze at that light that emitted ultimate attraction.
Inside the orb of light, there were no specific knowledge formulas or model demonstrations, only an incredibly concise, yet seemingly encompassing the ultimate essence of the universe…”description” or “definition.”
The moment Lynch’s gaze and consciousness made contact with it, that segment of information directly imprinted itself deeply into his soul, vividly clear, indelible.
Upon seeing the content of that information, even with Lynch’s seasoned and rock-solid mind, he couldn’t help but have his pupils contract sharply, his face showing an unprecedented mix of extreme shock, sudden understanding, absurdity, and a trace of icy enlightenment!
He finally understood why Erodion appeared so despondent, utterly despairing.
What was recorded within that orb of light was not a method for harnessing some formidable power, nor a specific universal constant.
But—
The true reality of this world, this world’s—
Absolute Truth!
[This universe, designated as ’Observation Experimental Field-Number: θ-7’. Core Setup: Energy and soul total constant cycle. Experiment Objective: Observing competition modes within a cluster of intelligence and the path of individual breakthroughs under limited resources.]