I'm trapped in a block

Chapter 1243 The Shape of the World

"Have you clearly seen what the starting point looks like?"

During the meal, Lu asked Martin a question.

"No, I just found the location and rushed back."

"Weren't you curious about what the starting point of the abyss is like? With your immense power, didn't you ever think of going to take a look?"

“I wasn’t always this powerful. My abilities are related to my understanding of dreams. As we travel through different worlds, I also come to understand the relationships between dreams in different worlds. That’s why I was able to find the starting point. Before, I simply couldn’t do it; I would have just gotten lost in the dreams of different worlds…”

Martin explained earnestly, and Lu You listened attentively while eating.

"I used to think that dreams from different worlds were like grapes on a bunch, clustered together in a pile, so it was impossible to judge their relative positions. I also thought that dreams were parallel to each other, with no hierarchy."

"But as we traveled through more and more worlds, I discovered that the relationship between dreams in different worlds is not like that. There is a hierarchy between worlds, and there is also a hierarchy between dreams, just like tree roots, intertwined and complex."

"The top-level node, after satisfying its own needs, distributes energy to the next level, and then the next level continues to distribute it, passing it down level by level until the end."

"Depending on their energy levels, worlds take different forms. Some worlds possess an entire universe, while others consist of only a small galaxy like the Milky Way. This results in varying potential for the development of human civilization..."

Martin paused for a moment and looked at Lu Qi.

"Just as you said, it was a flow of 'pigment,' from high to low..."

"The starting point of the abyss is also a node. From that node, the abyss begins to pollute downwards, and the worlds it flows into become abysses."

"It initially only infected lower-level nodes, and then, after it devoured those nodes, it began to spread downwards, step by step, until it reached the end."

"Of course, this so-called 'end' is not the real end. It's just that the abyss has not yet spread there, nor has the dream world, so I can't see any lower-level worlds."

"From a broader perspective, the entire abyss we are in is actually just a small part of the 'World Tree,' and the area I can see is just the area where the dream spreads along with the abyss."

"The abyss is indeed a kind of cancer in the world, but this cancer can only spread downwards with the energy transmission of the world's root system. Even if the entire root system rots, only a small part will rot."

“I don’t know how large the entire root system of the world is, but I guess this small, rotten section won’t have any impact on the entire root system…”

"The abyss is a terrifying cancer for us lower worlds, but for the World Tree, it may just be a tiny bit of decay, and it might even grow back."

"Metabolism and root system replacement: During the growth process, the world's root system may continuously grow new fibrous roots or lateral roots, while older roots will gradually age and die due to functional decline, insufficient nutrient supply, and other reasons, thus completing the natural replacement..."

Listening to Martin's story, Lu Youqi stopped eating, looked up at Martin seriously, and then asked a question:
"You mean the abyss is a natural process of elimination?"

Martin nodded: "That's just my guess. I've seen similar traces in those worlds that have been corrupted and decayed by the abyss."

It's difficult to see the whole picture from just one world, but only an individual like Martin, who can wander among the rotting roots, can have a broader perspective on the whole situation.

However, he could only glimpse a slight clue; the deeper rules of root system replacement were beyond his complete comprehension.

“That’s not something we should be concerned about,” Martin said to Route Qi seriously.

For insignificant humans, the spread of the abyss is already enough to cause them immense trouble...

"I was just curious," Lu Youqi said casually, then picked up his chopsticks and started drawing a tree diagram on the dining table.

Each node, each branch, continues to the end; those invisible strokes seem to depict the truth of the world they inhabit.

"This is quite similar to the previous theories of parallel worlds. Every different subjective choice will generate a node, which will split into two different worlds and go in different directions."

“This is based on the premise that our choices are all subjective,” Martin added from the side. “Do you think our choices are subjective?” Lu You asked Martin meaningfully.

"If it were me in the past, I would definitely answer 'no,' because back then I felt that the world was a novel and every choice was inevitable... But now, I can only answer you, I don't know."

"Haha, you're even more indecisive than you used to be," Lu Youqi chuckled lightly, teasingly.

Martin didn't seem to mind and simply nodded.

His understanding of the world has indeed been constantly changing.

As Lu Qi said, the more he learned, the more "confused" and uncertain he felt.

Almost every moment, Martin's perception of the world changes, and certain events completely overturn his worldview, back and forth, over and over again.

After stumbling time and time again on his quest for the truth, he has become much calmer now. This is a kind of beneficial "numbness," at least he will no longer be startled by any so-called "truth."

"Do you still think the world is a novel?" Lu You asked Martin, tapping the invisible root pattern of the world with his chopsticks.

"Who knows?" Martin shook his head. "Maybe the World Tree was also drawn by an 'author'? Maybe the world is actually a painting?"

Martin reached out and pointed to the spot where he had just drawn the route.

"Then the painting itself is a kind of deception, and beyond the deception lies the real world; beyond the real world lies another work of art; and beyond that work of art lies an even more real world..."

Lu, drawing on his own experience of being scammed, said with self-deprecation.

"You should just eat properly," Martin said with a hint of helplessness. "If the world were a work of art, those who appreciate it would definitely laugh at our conversation."

"What's so funny? They can't see their own world clearly either. In some ways, we're no different from them."

“That’s true.” Martin nodded.

After a moment of silence, as if making some kind of decision, Martin suddenly raised his head, looked up at the sky, and then said something strange:
Do you know the truth about the world?

"Is it a work of art, or a scam?"

Is fate predetermined, or is it subject to change?

"Was your choice subjective?"

"The person looking at me now, is that the one you chose?"

Martin held his glass jar up, gazing into the unseen, as if he were staring at some "non-existent being".

Lu Youqi was stunned. He patted his hand and asked with an expression as if he were looking at an idiot:
"what are you doing?"

"I'm talking to those people who are looking at me. They've been watching me for so long, I have to respond to them..."

Are you planning to thank them?

"right."

Martin raised his head again.

"Thank you for watching, thank you for choosing."

(End of this chapter)