Chapter 1297: Time and Space Disordered, Cause and Effect Inverted

What is a space-time anomaly?

For the vast majority of cultivators, it is incredibly difficult to describe it clearly. To some extent, it seems to be merely a descriptive term.

Literally, it refers to a chaos of time and space, causing a singularity to become infinitely large and infinitely small. Therefore, it also contains infinite possibilities. However, a detailed description is hard to articulate due to the limitations of perception. It’s as if only those whose Constitutions are intrinsically linked to space-time can truly explain its existence.

Xu Qing originally thought the same. Before entering, he believed space-time anomalies would be similar to his "Seamless Art," but vaster and more mysterious. He also presumed that with his Constitution, he would have a better chance of returning from within than others.

However, upon entering, everything exceeded his expectations. The scenes inside left Xu Qing's mind in a state of utter confusion.

Just now, he looked up, his gaze falling upon countless colorful whirlpools. These whirlpools, varying in size and boundless, were sometimes regular, sometimes chaotic, some still, some rotating, and many even intertwined. They formed an abstract and complex starry sky. A single glance would cause a throbbing headache, as if the mind couldn't contain all the information. Prolonged viewing would lead to a sense of fragmentation.

And it wasn't just these visuals that were abstract; Xu Qing's and Er Niu's very states of existence here were also abstract. Xu Qing's body was no longer human. It had transformed into a swarm of glowing insects, composed of countless triangular fragments. Each glowing insect, from birth to death, existed for only one ten-thousandth of a breath. At the moment of its birth, it would amplify its light, forming an extreme light source. After death, it would explode like fireworks, revealing chaotic future scenes, then instantly burn into dust-like ashes, engulfing all light. This cycle repeated endlessly, becoming infinite.

As for Er Niu, due to Xu Qing's changed state, it no longer resided in his hair but appeared externally. Its appearance was even more abstract. It resembled a kaleidoscope made of a million shimmering points of light, its form constantly shifting. The words it uttered also contained an essence of disorder.

Just now, Er Niu's voice echoed. What it wanted to say was, "What's going on, little Ah Qing, where is this?" But as it was transmitted, what Xu Qing perceived was, "Is what so, Qing little emotion, where situation Ah?"

Everything was chaotic, be it time, space, or their very selves. Everything was distorted. It was as if time had no meaning here, and space held no value of existence. Xu Qing was bewildered. This was different from his Constitution!

Even what was considered progress and exploration couldn't be done conventionally. Here, to move forward, one didn't need to physically move; merely conceiving the thought would cause everything around to spin, simulating movement. Investigation was even more so. It was as if everything here laid bare all its secrets. As long as one could see clearly, understand, and endure, then with a single glance, one could know everything.

Just now, as Xu Qing investigated and drifted through this bewildering space-time, he saw his human form in an unknown distance. That "distance" could be the past or future in terms of time, or different layers in terms of space. Furthermore, when his thoughts converged on his distant self, he quickly realized he wasn't seeing one, but countless versions. Countless versions of himself, in countless states.

He even saw liquid planets. Planets transformed into flowing molten iron, drifting past in his perception in distorted forms. Galaxies became worms covered in rotten fruit, flickering past. Star regions, moreover, turned into unknown characters carved on tombstones, seemingly coming alive and battling each other. It also encompassed the universe. But this universe appeared to be a tattered, thousand-holed shroud.

Moreover, the states of existence for both him and Er Niu, under this mental progression and investigation, sometimes manifested as bright, brilliant light, and at other times dimmed as if on the verge of extinguishing. It was impossible to explain. Utter chaos. This was the space-time anomaly.

Xu Qing's confusion deepened. He didn't know how much time had passed; it felt like a thousand years, yet also like an instant. Er Niu's distorted voice, with a strange intonation, echoed once more. "A lot of I drawing once like see look similar similar surface..." "Is before several like I life..." These two sentences, transmitted in a chaotic manner, seemed to be stretched through space-time, landing in Xu Qing's perception as thunderclaps, each more magnificent than the last. The thunder made Xu Qing's insect swarm body rumble. Countless triangular insects disintegrated, releasing more future scenes, causing Xu Qing's consciousness to fluctuate intensely, unable to coalesce. Only light, between brilliance and dimming, formed intense flickers.

After a long time, as the fluctuations caused by these two sentences gradually dissipated, Xu Qing's state slowly returned to stability. As his consciousness reconverged, he could no longer see any trace of Er Niu beside him. Er Niu had disappeared. As for the words it uttered before disappearing, they were now strangely erased from Xu Qing's perception. He distinctly remembered hearing them, but their content remained unknown.

Xu Qing fell silent. He clearly felt his thoughts slowing down, and his consciousness subtly showing signs of dissipation. A sense of impending death arose in his mind. Yet, the usual sense of crisis that should precede death did not appear. This realization also emerged because of his previous self-explosion. Along with it, his body instantly changed from the insect swarm state, returning to human form, followed by the sudden appearance of cocoons woven from his Constitution around his body. Those were his Constitutions.

Only after all this appeared did a seemingly belated thought form in Xu Qing's mind. "I should use my Constitution to create a Seamless state for myself, to resist the external space-time chaos."

"Fight chaos with chaos!"

As this thought arose, Xu Qing's mind jolted. He abruptly opened his eyes, gazing at the cocoon of Constitution enveloping him, a solemn expression in his eyes. The normal sequence would be for him to have the thought first, then implement it. But here, it was reversed. Causality and logic were chaotic here. Or more precisely, there was no logic here, and cause and effect were inverted.

"What a space-time anomaly..." Xu Qing murmured. Only now, isolated from the outside within the cocoon formed by his own Constitution, did his existence tend towards normalcy. His thoughts also regained a degree of logic. Consequently, he thought of Er Niu's disappearance.

"Normally, I should have activated my Constitution the moment I entered here..." Xu Qing pondered, searching his memory for why he hadn't immediately woven his Constitution from the start. He gradually felt a sense of daze.

"Everything, in fact, was just an instant," Xu Qing murmured. He recalled that everything he had felt and perceived before – including his confusion, his exploration, Er Niu's voice, and even his own action of forming the cocoon of Constitution – all happened in the very instant he entered this space-time anomaly. It was just that too many things occurred simultaneously in that single instant. Simply put, the moment he entered, everything from different timelines was happening in sync, overlapping. And in that single instant, they all burst forth simultaneously.

Xu Qing was silent. But soon, a strange light gleamed in his eyes. He looked up at the cocoon of Constitution before him, and scenes from his previous experiences outside resurfaced in his mind. "Everything here is chaotic, illogical, and has inverted causality, yet its existence is reasonable. To some extent, this is actually another manifestation of time."

"It surpasses my Seamless Art..." Xu Qing was thoughtful. He suddenly understood why he had been able to achieve enlightenment amidst space-time disorder in the Pain God's illusion. "Because this space-time disorder itself is actually a higher-level manifestation of a space-time Constitution!"

A sharp light flashed in Xu Qing's eyes. "It's hard to leave this space-time chaotic place quickly. Senior Brother's whereabouts are unknown, and I can't stay outside right now. Then I'll try to hone my insights here, using this anomaly! But first, I need to understand what a space-time anomaly is, and how it relates to and differs from my Constitution! Only by understanding can I transcend."

Thinking this, Xu Qing sat cross-legged. As he closed his eyes, his consciousness merged with his external Constitution. Within this space-time anomaly, he was like an isolated island in the ocean, unmoving amidst the crashing waves. Only his thoughts were infinitely open. Externally, this manifested as countless dense hairs growing on the cocoon formed by his Constitution. They were bizarre manifestations of Xu Qing's thoughts within the chaotic space-time; despite their appearance, they functioned like synapses, transmitting external perceptions into Xu Qing's awareness, becoming nourishment for his enlightenment.

And time, within this Constitution cocoon, slowly flowed. In reality, this flow had no lasting value; everything was limited, and outside the cocoon, it couldn't be concretely manifested. Just as Xu Qing, in his contemplation, consistently found no lead. He couldn't find an orderly thread or a point of entry in the chaotic space-time outside. Without finding this point, it was always like "seeing flowers in a fog" or "gazing at the moon in the water" – unclear. So the hairs growing on the Constitution cocoon continuously lengthened, spreading out into the chaotic space-time, attempting to probe deeper. But the outcome remained the same.

Xu Qing opened his eyes, frowning deeply, looking outwards. "It's a tangled mess; I can't sort out my thoughts. Like countless broken puzzle pieces, without a reference image, it's impossible to put them together... I need a reference image to clearly see the essence of this space-time anomaly." Xu Qing murmured. "The purpose of this reference image is to be a point of entry, a thread to clearly see this space-time chaos... So, what kind of reference image would be suitable..." Xu Qing pondered.

"This space-time anomaly is uncontrollable, containing all possibilities, yet it seems to be subject to invisible limitations, much like destiny..." Xu Qing's mind suddenly stirred.

"Destiny?" A light instantly shone in his eyes. The next moment, he raised his right hand and waved it across his body. In the blink of an eye, a brilliant divine spark appeared in Xu Qing's palm. That divine spark was a gift from Young Master Miming! The power contained within it was precisely destiny!

Gazing at the divine spark, the light in Xu Qing's eyes grew even more intense. "Using destiny as the blueprint, I will piece together the space-time anomaly, making it my point of entry for study!"

And destiny is abstract, just like this space-time anomaly. If the space-time anomaly were seen as countless puzzle pieces, then on this blueprint of destiny that he intended to assemble, the first piece... Xu Qing chose himself.