Chapter 2103: Time and Space Laws

Zu An was still full of doubts. "But if one can travel through time, wouldn't that mean changing history, leading to even more ethical paradoxes, and the entire world collapsing?"

"Changing history is not that simple. The laws of the River of Time are the most mysterious and untouchable laws in all the realms. They contain many taboos. For example, if you even slightly attempt to alter well-known historical events, no matter how powerful you are, you will be erased by the laws of time." Mi Li seemed to enjoy his bewildered, novice-like expression and patiently explained.

"Besides those famous historical events, you also cannot change anything that has already happened concerning yourself. If you cause a temporal disturbance, you will be erased by the laws of time."

"I can't even change things related to myself?" Zu An frowned at her words.

"Exactly. The reason you exist now is because of these past events. If those events were gone, the premise of your existence would be compromised, and the temporal laws would erase you as an anomaly," Mi Li explained.

"Furthermore, there's an ironclad rule in the laws of time: two versions of you cannot meet at the same point in time. If they do, the laws of time will destroy the time traveler, or even both versions."

Zu An nodded. That made sense. It would be terrifying to imagine multiple versions of himself appearing simultaneously.

Although Chu Yan and Xue Nu previously existed on this timeline simultaneously, their forms were different, and they never met, which prevented them from being directly erased by the laws of time.

"As for your concern about the world collapsing, you needn't worry. While there are many unimaginable beings across the various realms of the universe, almost none possess the ability to travel through time. They typically rely on special treasures that existed before the dawn of chaos, making them exceptionally rare and precious," Mi Li added.

Zu An said gravely, "But aren't stronger beings more likely to acquire such treasures? Take the entity that appeared during the Heaven and Earth Sacrifice last time, for example. I don't believe anyone could snatch something from them."

Mi Li shook her head. "Treasures of this caliber, born of heaven and earth, cannot be simply seized by force. What's more important is fate or destiny. It's not just people choosing treasures; treasures also choose people. If you are destined for it, you might obtain it. If not, even if you're incredibly powerful, the treasure won't manifest, and you won't get it."

"Take, for instance, the fragment of the Jade Disk of Creation in White Jade City. Many seniors in White Jade City's history, far more powerful than Chu Yan in cultivation, investigated it, yet found nothing. But the moment Chu Yan touched it, it was activated. This proves her destiny with the treasure."

Zu An sighed. "I almost wish she hadn't had that destiny."

"You shouldn't think that way. What seems like a misfortune to her now might, when you look back from the future, turn out to be an incredible opportunity for her. By then, she might even be grateful for such a chance," Mi Li said softly, sensing his sadness.

Zu An couldn't help but glance at her. "I didn't expect you to be so good at comforting people."

Her words indeed lifted his spirits significantly.

"I was merely stating the truth." Seeing his change in expression, Mi Li's lips curved slightly upward.

At this point, Zu An asked again, "But after countless ages, it's impossible that none of those top-tier beings found such a treasure, right? If even one of them did, wouldn't it be easy to collapse the timeline?"

"Treasures capable of traversing time are inherently extremely rare, so it's normal for them not to find any. And even if they did, they couldn't use them," Mi Li replied.

"Why?" Zu An was taken aback, never expecting that answer.

"Because they are simply too powerful," Mi Li's expression grew particularly solemn. "They are so strong that their every word and action becomes history. They are entangled with too many people and events, carrying too much karma. Once they travel through time, even if they try to act discreetly, they cannot. It would inevitably cause massive disruptions to the timeline, and they themselves would then be erased."

Zu An nodded, seemingly understanding yet not fully, and fell into thought.

After a while, he suddenly spoke.

"If history is destined not to be changed, then what's the point of time travel?"

Mi Li waved her hand, conjuring the image of a book. "Look at this. What is it?"

Zu An glanced at it. "This is the historical record of the Meng Dynasty, the previous human empire."

Mi Li flipped through the book in her hand as she replied, "Although the Meng Dynasty didn't last for an extremely long time, it existed for over a hundred years. During that period, countless people and events emerged, and billions of common folk lived under its rule. Yet, this historical book, only a few hundred thousand characters long, records the lives of a few hundred people and various major events. Do you think it covers everything that happened in the entire Meng Dynasty?"

"Of course not!" Zu An's heart stirred. "Are you saying..."

"Exactly," Mi Li nodded. "So-called history is destined to record only major events, and even then, these major events often only record outcomes, with many unclear details regarding the precise processes. It's like the vast universe: the recorded events are like the shining stars in the night sky, while the unrecorded events are the remaining dark void."

"Do you think there are more stars or more dark void?"

"Naturally, there's more dark void." A faint smile appeared on Zu An's face; he had roughly understood what she meant.

Mi Li nodded with satisfaction. "The reason those overly powerful beings cannot travel through time is precisely because they themselves *are* the stars; they cannot hide, even if they wish to. But someone like you is different. As long as you're careful not to touch those 'stars,' there's plenty of room for you to act within the dark void."

"I see," Zu An said, looking at her thoughtfully. "Why do you understand so much about this? Have you traveled through time yourself?"

A hint of nostalgia flickered across Mi Li's face. "These are not my own insights or experiences; someone once told me about them."

"Who told you? Was it Qin Shi Huang?" Zu An asked instinctively.

"Him?" Mi Li shook her head, a flicker of disdain in her eyes.

Zu An grew increasingly doubtful about whether she was truly Qin Shi Huang's empress, or if 'empress' was merely one of her past identities.

Suddenly, something occurred to him, and he asked with some tension,

"Aren't you afraid of certain entities discovering that you've revealed these secrets?"

Before, she had always been cryptic, seemingly wary of certain beings in the void. Yet this time, to help him save Chu Yan, she had spoken so much.

A faint smile touched Mi Li's brow. "It's good of you to consider that. But you needn't worry about this point. Why do you think I just asked for so much Rage value? It was, of course, to obscure some heavenly secrets."

"Then I'll earn more Rage value for you in the future, and you can tell me more secrets," Zu An quickly said.

Mi Li rolled her eyes. "It's not that simple. Although what I just told you counts as a secret, this knowledge is also known to beings of a certain status across the various realms of the universe, and it doesn't involve any specific powerful entity, so it's not truly a taboo."

"However, many things you want to know would be perceived by certain unparalleled powerful entities the moment I speak, and that would only bring complete destruction."

In the past, Zu An might have been skeptical, but after recently seeing Pawnshop Number Fifty-Eight and the even more powerful entity summoned by the Heaven and Earth Sacrifice, he believed her words. There truly were some beings in the world who, if merely mentioned, would sense it and descend.

"So, how can I save Chu Yan next?" Zu An couldn't help but ask. Although Qiu Honglei was also in critical condition, her situation was relatively more understandable, and a cure could always be found. Chu Yan's predicament, however, was truly thorny.

"There are two ways," Mi Li replied. "The first is to wait. As Chu Yan mentioned earlier, as long as the Great Snow Mountain endures, she will continue to exist. You'd have to wait thousands or tens of thousands of years for the Great Snow Mountain to reshape her body."

"What's the other way?" Zu An's brows furrowed. This method was definitely not an option. Apart from whether he could live that long, even if he could, he couldn't possibly leave her alone for so many years.

"The other method," Mi Li paused, then finally said, "is that he who ties the bell must untie it. Since she was taken away and traversed time and space by a Jade Disk of Creation, you must find another Jade Disk of Creation and follow her path, looking for a way to change things."

"But Chu Yan already took the Jade Disk of Creation," Zu An said, a little anxious. He had learned from the elders of White Jade City that their jade tablet had long since vanished.

"Didn't I tell you before? Their piece was just a tiny fragment of the Jade Disk of Creation. When the Jade Disk of Creation shattered back then, countless fragments scattered across the myriad realms of the universe. You can absolutely go and search for another fragment."

A hint of worry flickered in Mi Li's eyes. There were some things she didn't explicitly say. Although there were many fragments of the Jade Disk of Creation, the concept of the myriad realms was vast. To find one fragment among them...

Searching for a needle in a haystack would be child's play by comparison.

Zu An's eyes, however, lit up. "At least there's a direction for my efforts!"

He knew that previously, he had been at a complete loss on how to save Chu Yan. Now, though difficult, knowing how to strive was the difference between zero and one!