Chapter 506 - 503: Stars and Consciousness

Chapter 506: Chapter 503: Stars and Consciousness

"Every star believes itself to be independent. They think they can follow their own orbits, shine with their own starlight forever, and ignore all other stars."

"But the so-called ’independence’ they pursue cannot actually escape the influence of other stars."

"Their supposed orbits are just the gravitational whirlpools of other stars. They’re merely traveling on a pre-established cosmic web of gravity, following paths laid out for them by other stars long ago."

"What they think is moving forward is just the pull of gravity. What they think is moving away is just being flung into the distance by a gravitational whirlpool."

"They arrogantly believe they are galloping through the vast cosmos, thinking the endless void is filled with freedom, never realizing that the reins of gravity have long been fastened upon them."

"Their supposedly independent starlight is nothing but the afterglow of a greater star. They reflect the light of others, yet proclaim themselves free."

"Planets are pulled by stars, and those stars are pulled by even greater stars. In the end, none can escape the control of the cosmic center."

The voice’s narration seemed to pull Zhou Dynasty to the very center of the stars, where the countless celestial bodies were nothing more than puppets, all revolving around a single point.

No matter how breathtaking the nebula, it cannot escape the mutual entanglement of gravity. Their orbits are already fixed; they are only struggling in vain.

"Consciousness is the same. A tiny consciousness thinks it can walk an independent path, but that path has already been laid out."

"What they believe to be brilliant, independent thoughts are things other consciousnesses have thought long, long ago. The inspiration they think has just struck them has already sparked countless times in others."

"They think they can escape their cage, not understanding they have long been locked into a predetermined orbit, their starlight merely the afterglow of another."

"Clinging to pointless persistence, they march toward the abyss of hubris."

"Humans always believe themselves to be independent. But from the moment they are born, they are already under the gravity of others, constrained by the thoughts of others. Things they’ve thought, others have already thought. They think they’ve broken out of their orbit, but they remain within the starry sky."

Hearing this, Zhou Dynasty suddenly realized something was wrong and shot back, "You know I’m human?"

The voice didn’t answer directly, but sighed with a touch of helplessness:

"This is the arrogance of humanity. You think your consciousness is loftier than others, but consciousness itself has no hierarchy. Only the vessels they inhabit do."

"What difference do you think there is between your consciousness and that of the soil?"

"A planet thinks it’s unique, but in the vast cosmos, there are countless others just like it. A consciousness thinks it’s unique, but perhaps at this very moment, countless other consciousnesses are having the exact same thought."

The voice spoke with disappointment, as if it were pouring out its emotions onto Zhou Dynasty.

"Why can consciousnesses gather together? Because they are fundamentally no different. Varying experiences are merely the result of different vessels; the core within each vessel is the same."

"Stars are the same. No matter how special they seem, they are all the same kind of thing."

"The pursuit of self is like a baby looking in a mirror. What it sees is only an illusion. This perceived independence is just moving along with the reflection’s actions. You think you’re controlling the person in the mirror, but the person in the mirror is you."

Zhou Dynasty listened, utterly shocked.

He could sense that although the voice repeatedly condemned human arrogance, it wasn’t targeting "humanity" specifically. Rather, it felt a genuine sense of helplessness. It desperately wished for all consciousnesses to let go of their prejudices and merge, but most were incapable of doing so.

Moreover, Zhou Dynasty intuitively sensed that this voice held a strange emotion toward humanity.

’Could it be...’

"You’ve met humans?" Zhou Dynasty asked hastily.

"Yes, many times. Humanity is a persistent race," the voice replied.

Zhou Dynasty immediately thought of his strange teammates. ’Could their original consciousnesses also be in this sea of stars, with their bodies being controlled by other consciousnesses?’

The thought, once sparked, became uncontrollable. Zhou Dynasty quickly began to carefully sense his surroundings, wanting to find his former teammates. But the points of light in this starry sky were incredibly dense, and the voices were a cacophony, making it impossible to find anyone.

These consciousnesses all looked identical, and their voices were indistinct. Unless he could truly empathize with them, it was impossible to tell one from another.

Looking at the points of light, Zhou Dynasty was in a difficult position. He didn’t want to have too much contact with these consciousnesses, but there was no other way to search for his teammates.

His anxious emotions were transmitted to the point of light beside him, and the voice said helplessly, "Let me help you look."

After that, the voice fell silent, seemingly having begun the search for him.

The river of stars churned as an endless stream of light points surged in from all directions. This Sea of Consciousness grew more and more crowded.

"I couldn’t find them..." After a while, the voice spoke again, addressing Zhou Dynasty wearily.

Although he didn’t know if it had truly searched, Zhou Dynasty still expressed his gratitude.

"Don’t thank me. I can feel the trouble in your heart. Your trouble is my trouble. I will do my best to help you resolve it."

Hearing this, Zhou Dynasty felt a bit helpless. He could tell the voice sincerely wanted to help him, but their philosophies clashed. He couldn’t just let his guard down as the voice suggested.

However, he could still glean from its words that not all consciousnesses in this Sea of Consciousness had let their guards down. There were still many independent ones, unwilling to share their thoughts and feelings with others.

’Perhaps my teammates are among them.’

’Maybe they were also washed here by accident...’

At this thought, a sliver of hope rose in Zhou Dynasty’s heart.

"Can I leave after the void in consciousness is filled?" Zhou Dynasty asked the voice.

"Yes. You can leave whenever you wish."

"Then when will it be filled?" Zhou Dynasty was confused. The voice said the gathering was complete, but the river of stars was still flowing, with an endless stream of light points pouring in from afar, crowding into this Sea of Consciousness.

"It’s being filled right now, but..." The voice’s tone grew solemn. "This void... it seems it can’t be filled at all."

Hearing this, Zhou Dynasty suddenly remembered the Block-shaped voids he had seen in the great lake of consciousness before.

’Could those be the "voids in consciousness" the points of light were talking about?’

’Or is it something else?’

"What does the void look like?" Zhou Dynasty asked curiously.

"A perfect cube."

’Just as I thought...’

Zhou Dynasty recalled what had happened earlier in the Starlight Forest:

Li Luo’s Block relic had absorbed all the points of light from the animated resin, triggering a raging torrent.

It seemed that this reappearing void in consciousness was also related to that Block relic.

However, Zhou Dynasty knew very little about the relic and had no idea what had truly happened.

’I don’t know where Li Luo is. If only I could ask her...’