From the end of the world

Chapter 527 Doomsday Basement

In my memory, candles are objects with important symbolic meanings.

Before I became a "superpower", I spent all day pondering all kinds of knowledge and objects related to supernatural powers. For a long time, I also imitated the ancient monks in some classics, staring at the candle wick intently, imagining that I would light it with my eyes, but I never thought that I would actually light it. This was also the beginning of my official transformation from an ordinary person to a superpower.

As for the decisive turning point when I officially entered the weird world, although I really want to say it was the day I met Ma Zao, the first thing that comes to my mind is the night when I entered the basement on the 15th floor alone.

That was not only the first time I encountered a strange incident, but also the first time in my life that I faced death directly. There, I was reborn from a "strange story lover" to a truly enlightened adventurer who could put life and death aside in order to practice his own ideals.

Although I have tried to open the door to the basement on the fifteenth floor many times since then, and have touched the illusory basement on the fifteenth floor in Chang'an's dream, as time goes by, I have gradually accepted the fact that I can't really touch the place that changed my destiny again. I shouldn't always think about that mysterious place, because in the future, there will be more and possibly more mysterious areas waiting for me to explore. I have to look forward.

However, I never expected that I would see the basement on the 15th floor again here, and even see a quietly burning white candle inside that was connected to my soul consciousness.

This was not a dream, nor was it an illusion. The enclosed space filled with gray shelves that appeared in my perception at this moment was definitely the basement on the fifteenth floor. I would never make a mistake.

How could this happen? Why in this place?
Before that, what about this white candle on the ground? Why is the flame burning here my flame? When did I ever light such a thing?

No, wait, let me calm down first...

"Brother Zhuang Cheng?"

Xiaowan's thoughts echoed in my mind. She probably sensed my hesitation, and there was an unexpected emotion in her voice. She asked, "What's wrong with you? I feel like you seem a little shocked. What kind of place is that? How come there are no doors or windows..."

She was apparently also able to perceive the scene in the basement on the fifteenth floor through mental synchronization.

"It's a basement. I've been there a long time ago."

I answered while sorting out my thoughts.

OK...I remember now.

Although I was a little surprised just now, it was indeed me who lit the white candles in the basement on the 15th floor.

After all, I have a photographic memory, so I can still recall it if I really want to. When I entered the basement on the 15th floor, I searched the boxes on the shelves to find clues to escape. Although most of the boxes were empty, there were a few that contained some small items. For example, cartoon stickers, plastic key pendants, and candles.

At that time, in order to help myself concentrate, I cancelled all the fireballs used for lighting and only placed the lit candle in front of me. Needless to say, this candle was lit by the flame I had released myself. Later, I found a way to escape from the basement on the 15th floor and walked out directly. As for the candle, I forgot it in the basement on the 15th floor.

The fifteenth floor basement has a property that the inside and outside of the exit are completely different time and space. At that time, I didn't know how to add preset instructions to let the "firefly" automatically sustain itself with space and air as fuel, so when I stood outside and tried to use the "firefly" to enter and detect, the "firefly" would dissipate on the spot because it was disconnected from me.

It stands to reason that after I leave, the flames left in the basement on the fifteenth floor will be disconnected from me and unable to sustain themselves, but the flame on the candle is a reasonable exception. The candle itself acts as a fuel, and it can continue to sustain itself for a while even after I leave.

The mystery of the origin of the mysterious "fireflies" has been solved here.

Then... a new problem arises.

The last time I entered the basement on the 15th floor was last September. Why hasn’t this white candle burned out yet?
Is it because there is an anomaly in the flow of time in the basement on the 15th floor? So after I left the basement on the 15th floor and went home, I regretted forgetting to use my phone to check whether there was a difference in the flow of time between inside and outside.

Considering that I cannot sense the flame of the white candle in the modern world, but can sense it in the apocalyptic era, it can be judged that the coordinates of the 15th floor basement, which is an alien space, are most likely in the apocalyptic era, and it seems unnecessary to be particularly entangled in the element of "time". To be honest, I am also very concerned about why the ritual array set up by Agent Kong in the first place would inexplicably connect to the basement alien space in the apocalyptic era, but there is no clue at hand that can serve as a hint, so I can only put this issue aside for now and focus on the 15th floor basement itself.

While thinking, I roughly explained to Xiaowan the whole process of my past contact with the basement on the 15th floor.

After listening to it, Xiaowan immediately grasped the most crucial part.

"Since you, Brother Zhuang Cheng, have been trapped in this basement before and found a way to escape and return to the original world, can I understand that..." she said, "as long as you move into this basement now, you can summon a door inside to return to the modern world?"

"..." I answered after thinking carefully, "...Yes, since it was possible last time, there is no reason why it cannot be done this time."

"So, Brother Zhuang Cheng, can you teleport yourself there now?" Xiao Wan asked, "Flame teleportation... wherever your flame is, it is equivalent to where you are, and you can teleport yourself there...right?"

Strictly speaking, this is not the case.

As long as the target location has my flame, I can teleport myself there - this is just a general situation. I have also failed in the past, that is, the independent reality space where the Humanitarian Department's headquarters is located. I can leave my thermal energy mark there, and even observe the changes in the scene there through the thermal energy mark, but I can't send myself there.

After sensing the scene in the basement on the fifteenth floor, I also tried to see if I could teleport, but I encountered the same failure. Not to mention moving there, I couldn't even control the candlelight.

However, it is different from the failure in the independent real space. When I faced that space in the past, I felt like I was blocked outside by an extremely tall and solid wall, or I was facing a difficult math problem that I could not solve with my academic ability. But at this moment, it is difficult to summarize any specific feelings, I simply can't do it.

This feeling is probably similar to when someone asks me to solve a math problem without telling me what the problem is. I just give them a random number, but they don’t tell me how far it is from the correct answer, or even if there is a correct answer. This has nothing to do with academic ability. It is inexplicable and meaningless from beginning to end.

Meaningless, waste of time, nothingness... nothingness, yes, nothingness.

I suddenly understood why I couldn't teleport there. Now I was blocked by nothingness.

I couldn't even tell which direction the fifteenth floor basement was in. The connection with the white candle flame had become clearer, but I couldn't even do this. Maybe it was because of the spatial chaos in the apocalypse that the sense of direction became confused? If so, there was a solution right now.

After telling Xiaowan about my situation, I said, "Xiaowan, I heard from the wandering soul that you can reach the place you want to go even in the apocalypse. This should be what you did with the power of the heaven and earth. Now that you and I share the connection with the candlelight, can you determine the direction of the basement on the fifteenth floor relative to where we are?"

After hearing what I said, Xiao Wan seemed to start trying immediately, then froze for a moment, then shook his head with regret, and said: "No, I can't do it either... Logically, I can identify the direction of the candlelight, but... just like what you said, Brother Zhuang Cheng, it seems to be blocked by a void.

"I'm afraid our initial speculation was close to being correct. That basement is not really in the Doomsday Era. The term 'the border between the void and the Doomsday Era' may also be a bit wrong. To be precise, although it is in the void, it is very close to the space-time domain where the Doomsday Era is located... There may not be the concept of closeness and distance in the void, so we can only describe it this way for the time being.

"That place exists in the 'realm of non-existence', so we can't get there easily."

I remembered my past experience exploring the exterior of the fifteenth floor basement.

Outside the wall, there was an endless darkness without any substance. Thinking about it now, it seemed to be proof that the basement on the fifteenth floor was in the void.

Xiao Wan looked thoughtful and said something that sounded ridiculous: "But... even if 'teleportation' doesn't work, we might be able to move directly to that place by walking."

(End of this chapter)