Chapter 1368: Terrifying Truth of the Earth

Chu Feng couldn't help but be shocked. Everything on Earth—its cultural heritage, place names, and historical trajectory—had all appeared before, and now they were experiencing it all over again?!

His heart grew cold. Why was this happening? How could it be?

His hair stood on end, and goosebumps covered his skin. He felt as if his very marrow had been frozen by the cold!

If the entire Earth was cycling through reincarnation, then who was he? What did the people of this generation amount to?

Who possessed such immense power, capable of affecting heaven and earth?

It was already astonishing for someone to embark on the path of reincarnation with their memories intact, but for an entire planet to repeat its past—that was far more terrifying.

"Some people... they truly are audacious beyond belief!" the young monarch said, his eyes deep. After his initial shock, he had already begun to form a theory.

Chu Feng was startled. What had this young man realized?

"Because that planet is quite special, having directly and indirectly given rise to two supreme peaks, some individuals might want to re-enact that environment. Are they trying to cultivate something like a 'gu' worm?" the young monarch hypothesized.

Chu Feng's expression immediately changed, and he broke out in a cold sweat. This was truly unsettling. Was all of this under someone else's control?

Was Earth like a jar, where insects were being cultivated, awaiting the emergence of a king insect?

All of this simply because an Emperor of Heaven had once appeared there, along with two supreme peaks? And someone wanted to try and cultivate an… ultimate being in a similar environment?!

At that moment, half of the young monarch's face was bathed in the morning glow, while the other half was in shadow. His eyes flickered like candlelight in the deep night, appearing profound.

He spoke, "Someone stands behind you!"

Chu Feng froze, a chill running down his spine.

But soon, he understood.

The young monarch sighed softly, "There might be one or more unseen manipulators behind you, orchestrating and propelling all of this. You need to break free from this scheme."

Chu Feng, of course, had already grasped the implications of what he said; how could he not be alarmed? Those one or more beings who wished to reshape Earth's environment and recreate its past conditions would likely be watching the "Earth jar," waiting for a special insect to spin a cocoon, then emerge as a butterfly!

Such a life was truly pathetic. Perhaps from birth, he had already been an insect in someone else's game, in someone else's jar?

It wasn't just him; since the entire Earth was like this, the birth of all life served a single purpose: to be a seed planted in a jar by others.

Some were waiting for the seeds to sprout and grow, waiting for the insects to break free from their cocoons and transform into butterflies!

However, upon closer thought, the hidden beings, those supreme existences, must have paid a considerable price to cultivate a suitable "Earth jar."

After all, thousands of years of history, cultural accumulation, and so on, all had to unfold, requiring a significant amount of time and a long wait.

"They have infinite lifespans, they have patience!" Chu Feng sighed. How could such beings care about time? Perhaps for them, it was but the blink of an eye.

The young man said, "Don't despair. The beings behind this may not necessarily have malicious intentions. Perhaps they truly need a special seed to emerge there."

At this moment, Chu Feng thought of Number Nine. Back then, Number Nine had also spoken of someone potentially re-enacting Earth's history. At that time, everything had already been subtly hinted at.

Chu Feng remembered Number Nine's complex expression, as if about to speak but then holding back. Number Nine had clearly seen all of this but couldn't bear to fully reveal the cruel truth to Chu Feng.

Given this background, the best-case scenario was that benevolent beings wanted to cultivate powerful individuals.

Perhaps it was due to a severe crisis, or terrifying warfare, or for strategic reserves, carrying a glimmer of hope to "hatch" another "supreme peak."

The worst-case scenario, of course, was that some beings were maliciously orchestrating all of this, wanting to harvest special seeds, wanting to capture the butterfly-transformed insects born from historical coincidences.

A more neutral scenario was that someone, out of boredom, simply acted on a whim, leading to all of this.

However, no matter the scenario, none of them were good for Chu Feng. He had grown up under constant observation, under the gaze of those who oversaw the "jar."

"You're overthinking it," the young monarch said. "Great beings aren't that dull. While their time is vast, they aren't bored enough to constantly stare at that planet. They are simply waiting for the day a special being might emerge from there; that's when their harvest season begins."

The young monarch's words left Chu Feng unsure whether to feel relieved or frustrated.

"Given your current level of evolution, you are still far off. Especially since you have already left that place, if you have any special mark on you, eliminating it in the Yang Realm might completely free you from this predicament."

Chu Feng fell silent upon hearing this.

He felt that, for now, he might have escaped from those one or more pairs of hidden eyes.

He said "might" because he wasn't sure if the stone jar's level was high enough to evade detection from those hidden eyes.

After all, the stone jar had fallen onto Earth and was obtained by him. With such an item, he believed it could conceal any heavenly secret!

Moreover, as his strength continued to grow and the stone jar's unique qualities became more apparent, he would become increasingly calm and composed, undetectable by anyone.

There was just one concern: what if the stone jar had been placed on Earth by those very individuals? That would be truly terrifying.

He thought about it again and again, concluding that it was unlikely. The stone jar was too mysterious; it seemed to have traversed several civilizations and appeared on various evolutionary paths.

Such an item was undeniably beyond any ultimate artifact, not beneath it. If it were truly owned by someone, how could it have been casually discarded in Kunlun?

Chu Feng guessed it had ended up there by accident.

And in its early days, it was truly ordinary, with no anomalies. Not even the strongest beings would have paid attention to it; this was the so-called "celestial object concealing its brilliance."

Subsequently, his mind became somewhat calmer.

"You can tell me the details about Earth. I'll analyze it, and perhaps we can find some clues," the young monarch said.

He even thought that, looking on the bright side, it might turn out to be the work of an old acquaintance.

In fact, Chu Feng himself was pondering who was behind all of this. He didn't know much about entities like the Soul River or the Four Poles' Floating Earth, let alone other forces, about which he knew even less.

The heavens were too vast, the myriad realms too immense, and the Upper Realm too distant. The only masters he knew were the Big Black Dog's owner and the so-called Empress.

Was it their doing? He strongly doubted it was possible!

Because these individuals had either died, disappeared, or departed, each meeting an unexpected fate.

Chu Feng recounted Earth's history and its various anomalies over the past few centuries.

The young monarch listened intently. Then, he nodded and said, "That period of history is several epochs behind me, but I've looked into it because of a certain individual. From what you've said, it has deviated from its original trajectory."

"The post-civilization era..." the young monarch mentioned this term, which was, in fact, what Chu Feng had said.

This so-called post-civilization era had several centuries more history than the normal trajectory.

This was the anomaly.

After a long period of contemplation, the young monarch said, "For you, perhaps it's a good thing, because if it had unfolded normally, they should have failed. No 'insect transforming into a butterfly' would have emerged."

In the original trajectory, there should have been no mushroom cloud explosions.

After the nuclear war, it took centuries of recovery to gradually return to normal; this was the post-civilization era.

"The truth closest to reality is that they failed in their 'gu' cultivation and, under the guise of Earth's nuclear weapons, semi-destroyed the place, thus adding a period known as the 'post-civilization era'," the young monarch stated, adding, "To think that supreme peaks could emerge this way, how is that possible?!"

Chu Feng didn't know whether to breathe a sigh of relief, feeling liberated, or to feel angry, as his homeland was being manipulated at will.

He pondered carefully: the eras of Yaoyao, his father, and his grandfather should have been normal developments.

However, for the purpose of 'gu' cultivation, everything there was artificially cleared, creating a vacuum, allowing an even older period of history to re-enact, leading to Earth's reshaping and a past bloody incident.

If one thought about it closely, it seemed cruel and terrifying. Many innocent beings were affected, their original progression interrupted, their destinies rewritten.

Moreover, Chu Feng suddenly realized that when Earth was annihilated back then, while it seemingly was the work of the Celestial God Race and the Netherworld Race, behind the scenes, it was most likely propelled by other terrifying beings.

After much thought, Chu Feng understood that previous events were not isolated but interconnected, with deeper underlying reasons.

He increasingly felt that the people behind the scenes were not benevolent beings; otherwise, how could they be so domineering, bloody, and utterly cruel?

In the end, Chu Feng did not mention the stone jar. He felt he had already revealed too much to this young monarch, almost exposing his full hand, and should not say anything more.

Furthermore, this was merely a prisoner confined to the Underworld, now just out for a brief respite. While pitiful and deserving of sympathy, he himself had said that this might not be his true self. If he were to return to the Underworld and unknowingly reveal anything, the consequences would be severe.

"Who is orchestrating this scheme?"

The young monarch asked himself, his expression serious, for the truth behind it was terrifying. He increasingly felt that all of this was merely a glimpse of the truth behind a grand curtain.

Between all the heavens, the myriad realms, the Upper Realm, and the Underworld, there was an invisible standoff, a game of strategy. The curtain was about to be fully raised in this era; the most terrifying collision was imminent, and everything was about to surface!

He believed this would be an unprecedentedly terrifying era. This generation might see a reckoning, or an end; there would be a final outcome.

That meant this collision was destined to be unprecedented and utterly tragic, with the tumultuous events of countless eras erupting and burning brightly in this one generation!

"I should go back," the young monarch said, feeling a sense of melancholy, bewilderment, and reluctance to leave.

Because this era had nothing to do with him. What was he? A wandering soul, perhaps not even truly himself, but merely an incomplete replica.

Even the Underworld and reincarnation were part of the scheme.

He felt truly pathetic. Back then, he had reigned supreme for ten generations, a hegemon, yet in the end, he was a confined prisoner, now only out for a brief reprieve.

"I truly wish to go to the Underworld, reassemble my old troops, and fight another era!" he roared softly.

He was deeply disheartened and sorrowful, yet everything that belonged to him had already concluded, even though he had once been one of the strongest in the world!

"I'm leaving. I've been summoned, and I have no choice but to return." The young monarch, filled with an unprecedented sorrow and profound loss, soared directly into the sky and departed.

At the same time, Chu Feng heard a unique sound: the Tribulation Crossing Melody of Chaos!

One of the three strongest profound arts in history!

It was actually just for a summons. How deep were the waters there? Chu Feng's hair stood on end!

With melancholic zither music, the figure, forlorn and desolate, rapidly vanished into the distance, never looking back. He was forced to leave!

"To those who once walked by my side and went ahead of me, I hope you will come one day and release me! I still want to fight another era, ah..." The young monarch roared, his hair disheveled, a mix of sorrow and madness in his voice, and then he disappeared.

Chu Feng silently watched the receding figure until it was out of sight.

And he, too, should set out on his journey, to rise up against the current from this point forward!

At this very moment, in the heavens and on Earth, shadowy figures and lonely wandering souls, one after another, all set out, heading in a certain direction.