Chapter 331: Membrane

Led by Chen Ling, the group swiftly moved in a certain direction into the deep forest.

The good news was that after following Chen Ling for two hours, nothing stranger had occurred. The surroundings seemed to be an eternally silent, dark forest, with an endless rugged mountain path underfoot. Other than the communication and compass failures, nothing was different from when they had started.

After this period of calm, everyone completely relaxed. Recalling what had just happened, they no longer found it particularly strange; perhaps it was just a normal instance of getting lost in the mountains.

Perhaps sensing the oppressive atmosphere, the bespectacled research scholar suddenly asked:

“Dr. Su, do you believe in parallel universes?”

This question immediately drew everyone's attention. Even Lu Xun turned to look at him, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

Su Zhiwei hadn't expected him to suddenly ask her this question. After meeting his gaze, she didn't answer directly but instead countered, “Dr. Lou, are you asking for my personal opinion on this matter… or are you referring to string theory?”

“Both,” Dr. Lou replied without hesitation.

“In string theory, there’s M-theory, also known as membrane theory,” Su Zhiwei said as she walked. “This theory posits that the world is eleven-dimensional, with nine spatial dimensions and one time dimension… We currently only perceive four dimensions: length, width, height, and time.

The other six spatial dimensions are imperceptible to us, but they might exist in the microscopic world. For instance, when we observe an atom with the naked eye, it appears as a point, zero-dimensional. However, if we delve into its interior and observe it from a microscopic perspective, its existence becomes three-dimensional… This suggests that dimensions can change based on the method and angle of observation… Therefore, we generally believe that smaller worlds have higher dimensions.

From this theory, if high-dimensional beings like deities truly exist in the world, they could very well reside within a floating speck of dust or an inconspicuous cell inside us. This is why some religious theories suggest ‘everything is God, and God is everything,’ or ‘a single flower is a world, a single leaf is a Bodhi tree’…”

Lu Xun, listening to this, frowned and asked, “Dr. Su, you just said the world is eleven-dimensional… Where is the eleventh dimension?”

“The eleventh dimension is a ‘brane’,” Dr. Su paused briefly. “All the ‘strings’ that make up our world exist on this brane, meaning our world itself is trapped within a brane. And there are countless such branes in the universe, overlapping each other. The strings on each brane cannot interfere with one another, and these ‘branes’ are what we call parallel universes.”

“So, in string theory, parallel universes exist,” Dr. Lou said, narrowing his eyes slightly.

“That’s right.”

“What about you personally? Setting aside string theory, do you believe parallel universes exist?”

Dr. Su fell silent, seemingly deep in thought about the question. “Dr. Lou, string theory is my field of research, so naturally, I assume it’s true in my mind… In my view, this is how the world operates.”

Dr. Lou gave him a long look. “...I understand.”

“Dr. Su, I have another question,” Lu Xun then spoke up. “If countless parallel universes truly exist, is there anything that can pass through the ‘branes’ and travel freely between them?”

“...Yes.”

“What?”

“Gravitons,” Dr. Su explained. “In general relativity, gravity transcends dimensions, including ‘branes’… However, the existence of gravitons is merely a hypothesis; no one has proven their existence yet. But theoretically, if strings can be made to vibrate at a specific frequency, gravitons could be created, allowing for travel across parallel universes.”

Dr. Su seemed to recall something and looked towards a figure in the corner.

“Dr. Ji, you might know more about gravitons than I do?”

The figure looked up at her and stated calmly, “Dr. Su, you misunderstand. I study Higgs bosons, also known as the ‘God particle’… which are completely different from gravitons.”

Only then did Chen Ling notice this figure, who had remained on the periphery of the team the entire time. He had barely spoken a word since they set off, so much so that Chen Ling hadn’t even realized he was there… But what exactly are God particles?

Chen Ling felt like a struggling student among a group of academic elites. He couldn’t understand any of the topics these people were discussing… all he gathered was that parallel universes exist, and some things can travel freely between them.

Hearing all this, it seemed that Lord Aurora’s professional field was the simplest to grasp… though, of course, it was also possible that he simply hadn’t learned the essence of it.

Chen Ling let out a long sigh.

Just then, he suddenly stopped.

As Chen Ling halted, the others behind him also stopped. They looked curiously at his back, about to ask something, when Chen Ling suddenly bellowed:

“Get down!!”

Before his words fully registered, Chen Ling abruptly turned and tackled Yang Xiao, who was closest to him, to the ground!

Thump—!!

A sound like a dull cannonball erupted from the forest. In the darkness, a colossal, jackal-like shadow sprang up, at least four or five meters long, lunging directly towards the group above their heads!

Fortunately, the others reacted quickly. The remaining eight scientists immediately dropped to the ground without hesitation. The menacing giant shadow swept past barely grazing their heads. By the flickering flashlight beams, they could glimpse its explosively rippling muscles and a pair of black, bat-like wings on its back!

Calamity?!

Chen Ling's heart pounded at the sight of it.

No… The Great Cataclysm hasn't even begun. How could a Calamity be here??

“Open fire!!”

The special operations team protecting the ten individuals reacted with extreme speed. After dodging the monstrous wolf, they immediately raised their firearms and pulled the triggers!

Dada dada dada—

Bullets, accompanied by spurting muzzle flashes, rained down on the monstrous wolf, but they all ricocheted off its seemingly steel-like hide. Dazzling sparks illuminated a corner of the night sky, and everyone’s eyes were filled with disbelief.

With a furious roar from the monstrous wolf, its form surged through the darkness again, instantly pouncing on the two closest armed figures. As its massive maw opened, two gouts of blood erupted!

This incredibly gory scene terrified the cowering research scholars. Although they possessed strong psychological fortitude, witnessing such brutal slaughter still filled them with dread. Fortunately, perhaps because they were lying prone, the monstrous wolf did not charge at them, but instead continued to pounce on the other armed individuals!

Chen Ling's eyes narrowed slightly. As he just got to his feet, his deep blue glowing eyes swept across the surroundings…

At some unknown point, strange, menacing shadows had begun to approach them from deep within the forest.

They were surrounded.