Facing an Ancient God for a Year

Chapter 1975: Chapter 1970: Mathematical Nirvana (31)

This must be what’s called enduring hardship without complaint.

All kinds of sensory perceptions seem to remain, but the ability to process information is almost lost.

In the spiritual torture of a thousand cuts, the only shred of energy left in Fu Qian is just enough to discern that the Tomb Guardian hasn’t left his line of sight.

But that’s all; further verbal communication is beyond him.

Fortunately, it seems that upon witnessing my pursuit of enlightenment, the Tomb Guardian merely sighed without much to say.

At the same time, each second appears to grow incomprehensibly long.

It’s no illusion; after mentally slicing his brain into nine blocks of coconut jelly, Fu Qian realizes he hasn’t completed even one breath.

Truly... magnificent.

Although the origin of this transformation is still uncertain, even compared to time itself. This high-frequency mental operation maximizes the savoring of pain—which isn’t necessarily bad for a project that races against time, saving it like this.

It also reduces the probability of being disturbed by the Tomb Guardian during this process.

Of course, these are merely details; the crucial thing is what will happen when pain reaches its peak, and bliss leaves no trace—whether a rewarding opportunity will appear.

Now that moment isn’t too far away; Fu Qian has no doubt he will ultimately reach it.

...

Your sun... has set.

Every accumulated bit of pain makes the eradication of bliss even more difficult, like extracting the last molecule of air in a vacuum.

Yet, at a certain moment, Fu Qian realizes that the balance of yin and yang is utterly lost, leaving his nerves connected only to grotesque darkness.

So much so that they’re insufficient even to feel a shred of achievement in this grand endeavor.

What makes this darkness even deeper is suddenly, time itself seems to have stopped, and this pain will last for eternity.

But Fu Qian still doesn’t yearn for ”bliss,” merely cherishes the opportunity to savor this feeling meticulously, organizing a bit of logical thought.

For instance, from past experiences, the slowing of time seems to proceed in tandem with the fading of bliss.

This, to some extent, again proves the transcendence of the concept of ”bliss” relative to this second heaven.

Thus, this apparent dead-end could instead be interpreted as a sign that the ladder to the third heaven is likely correctly found.

In response to this good news, Fu Qian’s strategy is to maintain the status quo, not giving ”bliss” any chance of resurgence.

No matter how enticing that feeling might be in his current situation.

No matter whether enduring this torment in a time-frozen state holds any meaning.

...

Within the darkness, the torture has become innumerable.

But looking on the bright side, Fu Qian clearly knows that, at most, only a legendary instant has passed.

Doing the math, the ratio of perception speed to time has nearly reached infinity.

This rare experience should count as spiritual wealth, right?

Using logic to derive a sliver of optimism for himself, Fu Qian unwaveringly sticks to his established path.

With information processing ability completely obliterated, although Fu Qian believes his vision and hearing remain, even a freeze-frame can’t be presented.

Undoubtedly, it’s an alternative form of Black Box, reminiscent of the Sweet Dream Cage in the warehouse.

[It’s said that perfect self-isolation can nurture the Wisdom of the Divine]

This item note seems quite fitting for the current scene, though who knows if the result will also be optimistic—it will.

At a particular moment, Fu Qian fully believes he hasn’t given bliss any chance, but amid ”Darkness,” a flicker of ”light” seems to appear.

It is a different kind of ”light,” unlike ”bliss.”

Softer, more genuine... he is very sure of this.

It quickly fills his consciousness, dispelling darkness, even soothing that pain slightly—now visible.

At a certain moment, Fu Qian realizes he has regained his visual ability, and his thinking becomes as smooth as if oiled.

But what about the church?

...

Although the hues are somewhat muted, what lies before his eyes bears a slight resemblance to the City of Bliss in terms of style.

However, the long-sought White Head Holy Church leaves not a trace.

In a narrow alley, Fu Qian looks at himself in a different outfit, momentarily lost in thought.

The style is older, but the skin appears more radiant; obviously, he’s in a new form, lying in a particular posture on the ground.

”Are you alright?”

More than one pair of hands tries to help him up, gently asking, it seems he just fell.

Meanwhile, in this town, the Luminous Glass is no more, replaced by a more genuine light and warmth.

Also wandering within his heart.

The painful removal of bliss, in the blink of an eye, has been well soothed.

This alternative light, although not as intense, feels much more real.

So after enduring the torture of extreme darkness, has he truly encountered the light?

Is this the third heaven?

Though the underlying logic is still unclear, no SAN Point depletion prompts appeared.

But remember, last time upon awakening in the second heaven, there were no clear prompts of SAN depletion either.

Theoretically speaking, the previous overly pessimistic assumption could be partially disproven.

Leveraging professional research accumulation and extra execution efficiency, he has once again with amazing efficiency completed this Shattering Void.

Was the choice of ”bliss” as a route the correct one—is it?

”I’m fine, thank you.”

Thoughts and the scene before him flash across his mind like lightning, and the next moment, Fu Qian courteously thanks, directly locking onto this new ”light” in his consciousness, applying the same technique to forcibly expel it.

Utterly ignoring whether his nerves, just slightly nourished, are crying out in agony.

...

Sorry, experts never easily become optimistic.

The previous train of thought indeed conforms to logic, but conversely, if each heaven does require SAN Points as a ticket, doesn’t that also imply this is an illusion?

The more natural and beautiful it appears, the more malicious it is behind the scenes.

Don’t forget; so far, the operation of those eyes has yet to be seen.

And if it’s the case that he was overly sensitive and this really is the third heaven, truly guided by the light emerging from this darkness?

Then let it guide again.

The new sensation replacing bliss still resonates in his mind.

Replicating the last success to expel it again might have a chance to consecutively leap, aiming directly for the fourth heaven, no?

All in all, regardless of the possibility of a real or fake third heaven, the choice of applying the same technique again is correct.

Our study of game theory was not in vain.