Wu Hen still couldn't forget that day, like a person who gave the weather forecast to the public every morning.
This person had very high authority, and everyone believed in his predictions about the world.
But that day, as if struck with madness, he suddenly announced to the whole world that the world was virtual. Since then, everyone seemed to have fallen into a nightmare, experiencing some kind of difficult and painful cycle.
"He's at the station here?" Wu Hen asked Wang Rui.
"Yes, do you want to meet him? He was once a big figure, just like you are now," Wang Rui replied.
"Sure, I actually want to ask if he was drinking fake alcohol that day."
"Hahaha, he usually acts like he's drunk on fake alcohol," Wang Rui laughed immediately.
Infinite Port was composed of many Infinite Islands that were not very far apart. These islands had no greenery at all, resembling bare meteors. Sometimes, the red tides turned into gentle ripples, seeping between these islands to form crisscrossing water alleys, water streets, and water plazas within Infinite City, varying in depth.
The station wasn't far; after crossing a tall suspension bridge, the two arrived at a market-like area.
It was bustling with people, with all kinds of uniquely designed flying devices, exotic mutant beast mounts, fully armed people, and species that looked human but weren't... and in this triangular water market, Wu Hen saw countless products he had never seen before.
The most displayed items were those that emitted a glow similar to Yuan You minerals. They seemed to be rare gems collected from all over the world, dazzling and making Wu Hen unaware of their purposes.
Wang Rui explained to Wu Hen that the black ones were suitable for making Emperor Mecha, being flexible materials; the white ones could be applied to the skin, providing defense comparable to wearing a steel armor; the small round ones were a type of Evil Stone that could absorb life energy. With a high enough craftsmanship level, artificial Yuan You could be extracted from them.
Wu Hen felt dizzy and quickly gnawed on a piece of Spirit Meat Dried his father had packed to calm down.
After returning to his body, Wu Hen easily got hungry, like a Desert Dust baby starved for food. However, its growth speed still comforted Wu Hen. Although he was still at the Second Rank, he was evolving toward the Third Rank.
Once his physique reached the Third Rank, all his other abilities would get a qualitative upgrade as this weakness got compensated.
"You should eat some vegetables occasionally. Look at this lotus root-like thing, it's a specialty of Red Port, called Chi Ou..."
"Chi Ou, Chi Ou, eat it and become ugly?"
"Yo, you haven't forgotten your rhyming skills, huh? Let's rap again someday!" Wang Rui got excited, Wu Hen's cold humor awakened his long-forgotten passion for rap!
"What's its use?" Wu Hen asked.
"It's considered a universal food. If your vehicle runs out of fuel, throw Chi Ou in the fuel tank, and it can go for a few dozen more kilometers."
Hearing this, Wu Hen lost his appetite, deciding to stick to meat, as he was still growing.
They arrived at a Stone Camp. From some of the decorative touches, one could tell it was indeed a human settlement.
However, these people seemed to have lived here for some time, appearing unaware of what had happened back home, showing little reaction upon seeing Wu Hen.
Entering a hollow stone hall, Wu Hen saw Li Feng, who looked like a researcher on an outdoor expedition.
He wore a simple white robe, looking thin and a bit desolate, holding a strangely shaped stone and studying it.
If not for Wang Rui's introduction, Wu Hen would have thought the man was an obsessional archaeologist who never saw the light of day.
"Uncle Li, I've brought the person," Wang Rui said.
"Is it Wu Hen?" Li Feng finally put down the stone, a bit surprised and somewhat nervous.
"Chief," Wu Hen greeted.
"Oh, please don't call me that. I'm not worthy. You're a hero of all humanity, a presence on par with the gods. So, over these five years, your soul journeyed very far, right? Did you discover anything different? Any clues about the Human Holy Realm? Or did you encounter unknown beings?" Li Feng asked.
Wu Hen scratched his head.
Was this guy schizophrenic? Complimenting him one moment and talking wildly the next.
Wu Hen himself wasn't clear whether the place his soul wandered to truly existed or if he had entered an ancient mythical scroll.
Fortunately, Li Feng didn't press for answers. He briefly introduced to Wu Hen what he understood about the Otherworldly Dust rules.
"Actually, we discovered that the otherworldly realm shares some similarities with the universe we used to explore," Li Feng said.
"Uncle Li, you're lecturing again. I was hoping to show Brother Hen a good time," Wang Rui whined as if he heard this a million times.
"The otherworldly realm is finite but limitless," Li Feng said.
"What does 'finite but limitless' mean?"
"Similar to gravity, planets have gravity, a solar system has gravity, and a constellation has its mighty gravitational pull. This gravity confines all matter and life within certain bounds. To break free, one must surpass this force, yet the gravitational force is vast, beyond the reach of an individual or even life clusters—unless power and technology ascended to a critical point," Li Feng explained.
Hearing this, Wu Hen recalled the Evil Soil he once visited with his aunt.
The Evil Soil grew with a certain speed, and in that place where all electricity failed, a measure had to be taken, that was, moving at a certain speed.
His aunt had a clear mind, finding an old train.
Using that train, they escaped the Evil Soil.
This seemed similar to Li Feng's concept of finite but limitless!
"Can you explain more?" Wu Hen got interested. He indeed needed to view the Otherworldly Dust more broadly.
"Just like the ancients who walked on land, they believed that one day they would walk out of this world, only to discover that the end of the continent was an ocean, where humans couldn't survive.
"With the rise of wisdom and the development of technology, they invented ships.
"After entering navigation, they tried finding the world's edge, only to discover the planet was round. Though their travel methods and speed reached the limit, they realized they lived on a spherical world, unable to walk off this land.
"Since they couldn't exit the land, they looked up and explored the skies.
"But humans couldn't fly.
"Finally, in a certain era, technology allowed flight, only to face a new setback—planets had gravity.
"This gravity completely extinguished humanity's zeal for further exploration. I can imagine the despair of the scientists who invented flying devices, just like the ancient's despair upon seeing the boundless ocean!"