"Cluster."

A trace of luminous purple flame danced at the World Master's fingertips, the silver-white mask reflecting a layer of bright, warm light.

"I poured you some tea, didn't you drink it?" the World Master suddenly glanced at the table.

Su Ming'an glanced at the tea permeated with the fragrance of wisteria, "Is there any need to drink it?"

Who knew what the World Master added to the tea, they were meeting for the first time.

"This is my assured creation," the World Master said, "If you have the desire to cooperate with me, it would be best to drink this cup of tea. Of course, equality is mutual; you drink this cup of tea, and I will also show my sincerity."

Su Ming'an thought of Noel. In Qiongdi, when Noel disguised himself as the Saintess, he conveyed a lot of information through drinking tea. Did the World Master want to imitate that?

The World Master knew the World Game and players so well, it wouldn't be surprising if he replicated Noel's actions. He is currently the person most connected to the main storyline.

Su Ming'an said, "Fine. But you must promise to let me meet the Goddess of Life, Lotasha."

The World Master promptly agreed, "Alright."

Su Ming'an nodded, signaling the cat and fish on his shoulder to be on guard, and picked up the porcelain cup on the table.

What the World Master didn't know was that [SSR·Xiao Ming] and [SR·Su Jingtang] had long been summoned by Su Ming'an and were crouching on the palace eaves, ready to leap down should Su Ming'an encounter trouble.

Su Ming'an raised the teacup; the tea was cool upon entry, leaving a sweet aftertaste, no different from the black tea brewed by Sique in his dream.

What followed was a dreamy sensation, as if surrounded by rainbow bubbles, footing on clouds, and all senses around began feeling unreal...

"What did you add?" Su Ming'an's voice became airy. The black cat on his shoulder instantly arched its back, bristling, aiming to attack the World Master.

The World Master placed his fingertip on the wing of the goddess statue, softly saying,

"Pain suppressant."

"...Or maybe 'final dream' would be more appropriate?"

His golden eyes gazed deeply, looking down at the trembling purple flame on his fingertip.

At that moment, Su Ming'an seemed to understand what the World Master intended to do.

Suddenly, the luminous purple flame in the World Master's hand enlarged instantly, soaring towards Su Ming'an with the speed of lightning.

"...I hope you enjoy such a surprise, Su Ming'an. If I guessed wrong, then we'll both perish together."

A heatwave surged forth, yet brought no pain, reminiscent of the final peaceful dream Su Rin had once woven for Su Ming'an. The warmth from the flames was like a cozy hot spring, making him feel as if rolling in a golden sunflower field.

In that moment, staring into the World Master's eyes that bore no murderous intent, Su Ming'an used his gaze to stop Xiao Ming and Su Jingtang from the eaves above from rushing down.

This process took less than three seconds.

From the moment the tongues of flame touched Su Ming'an to it spreading over his entire body and finally engulfing his breath, it took merely three seconds.

The World Master had already stood up, swathes of orange-red sunlight streaming through stained glass, outlining his long hair like wisteria flowers, with a few strands drooping on the statue. There were no signs of madness in the golden eyes beneath the carved high windows.

Standing against the light, his eye color sank into dim shadows, the thin silhouette resembling a flickering candle flame, stretched long under candlelight.

——As if he was defying the god, opposing the heavenly light.

Beneath layers of pure white sheer curtains, the goddess statue remained standing, gazing mercifully and compassionately at the happenings within the hall, as if witnessing something significant.

A voice echoed in the hall, entering Su Ming'an's ears within three seconds:

"...Give me a flower, Number One Player."

...

Su Ming'an opened his eyes.

Pink hair brushed across his face, large snow-white wings spread before him, with the sound of rushing wind in his ears.

"...I am very strong, and will only become stronger in the future. The World Tree has chosen me, so I'm destined not to be a nobody." Pudding's clear voice echoed in his ears as she carried Su Ming'an, flying all the way.

Her attire was still neat and clean at the front, as yet unstained by blood.

...The timeline had reversed.

It really had reversed.

Su Ming'an felt a sense of regaining something lost, as it was his first time experiencing a timeline reversal in this Eleventh World. He had already mentally prepared for a one-life-clear victory.

The Lighthouse Jellyfish will resurrect with a trace of flesh left, but if the whole is utterly destroyed... whether consumed completely, corroded away, or burned out, it will lead to death.

He recalled the World Master's gaze before the time reversal... There was no madness, no envy, no anticipation, only calm.

For the World Master, this did not count as a gamble. If he guessed wrong and Su Ming'an died, he could switch to other players for cooperation. If he guessed right, it would be a great success for him. Even if replacing Su Ming'an with Noel, the World Master might still do so.

His emotions were consistently stable, with assured confidence that everything was under control.

"Pudding, let's stop fleeing and talk with the World Master." Su Ming'an said.

Pudding showed a disapproving expression, "What could that ruthless sovereign want to discuss with you? I reckon he's just missing a dish on his dinner table."

Su Ming'an's gaze was firm, "Trust in my eloquence and trust in my strength and luck as the Male Protagonist."

Pudding met his gaze, the white wings behind her trembled, "If you truly have confidence, I won't stop you... Alright, we're halting."

After they stopped, Su Ming'an glanced behind him; Hui Bai was still not here.

Pudding crouched down, washing her white wings with the clear water by the river, clearly cherishing her wings.

"You just mentioned the World Master being ruthless?" Su Ming'an asked.

"His ruthlessness... is renowned far and wide. A sovereign who can stand firm in the Central Continent, with eyes and ears spread across thousands of kingdoms, commanding dozens of surrounding kingdoms to forcibly believe in the Goddess of Life... the number of lives he directly or indirectly killed is no less than six figures." Pudding cherishedly brushed the white feathers, posing like a grooming ragdoll cat.

Su Ming'an gazed at the lake's surface, his white hair slightly swaying in the ripples, resembling blooming daffodils.

He hadn't expected the World Master to be of such temperament; indeed, anyone who could deal with the World Game wasn't a good person.

"Swish——!"

At that moment, a swift flying sound came from behind.

Wei Bai swiftly flew in, ready to throw a spear at Pudding. When he saw Su Ming'an and Pudding by the stream, his movements with the spear paused, surprised that Su Ming'an and Pudding had stopped.

Seeing Su Ming'an looking over, Wei Bai awkwardly put the spear away behind his back, smiling as if nothing was wrong, "Liujin, glad you're okay. I just saw Pudding taking you away and thought she wanted to harm you, so I rushed over to protect you."

Su Ming'an: "..."

Su Ming'an: "Take me to see the World Master, don't harm us."

Pudding suspiciously stared at Wei Bai, "A mere malicious antagonist, how could he harm me?"

Wei Bai modestly said, "Indeed, my skills are still lacking; otherwise, I wouldn't have helplessly watched Liujin being captured by the Celestial Clan at Red Tower Kingdom."

Su Ming'an: "..."

With Wei Bai's continuous concern, they arrived at the Central State Carnas. With the knights seeing them off, Su Ming'an leisurely walked into the hall.

What Su Ming'an didn't see was that in the corner of the shadows, Wei Bai looked faintly at his back, raised his hand, and removed the blue contact lenses from his eyes, revealing a pair of emerald-green eyes.

...

"You're here."

Under the stained glass window, sunlight poured in, and the young man with purple hair continued to sit like a boneless figure at the top, his long hair entwining the statue of the goddess.

A purple grape rested on his forehead, swaying back and forth on his mask, as if playing a balancing game.

When Su Ming'an arrived, the World Master stared at Su Ming'an's empty hands for a moment; his golden eyes quickly became lazy:

"Nice to meet you. Su Ming'an, please sit."

Su Ming'an sat down as instructed.

"The reason for inviting you is to cooperate with you..." The World Master's voice remained indifferent.

"World Master." Su Ming'an calmly interjected. Under the World Master's gaze, Su Ming'an extended his right hand, palm up, holding the Immortal's Talisman.

"...I heard you worship the Goddess of Life, so I wish to present a flower to the goddess."

A white daisy, animated by Su Ming'an through the Immortal's Talisman, appeared in his palm, shimmering and dazzling.

The World Master's eyes flickered slightly, reaching out to take the white daisy, placing it in the hair of the adjacent goddess statue.

"The goddess feels your sincerity; she will bless every devout lamb," the World Master said with a smile.

In the exchange of glances, Su Ming'an seemed to understand the unspoken words of the World Master.

—I have received your "flower."

—I have also received your sincerity for cooperation; otherwise, after time retrospection, you would have moved away from the Central State and not returned again.

This time, the World Master's conversation grew more profound.

"What do you think is the essence of the World Game?" the World Master asked at last.

This question, Su Ming'an had seen many times on the World Forum.

Some say the World Game is a device wandering unconsciously in the Universe, originating from the Big Bang, formed by chance with star fragments and primordial life. Some say the World Game is a blade jointly crafted by High Dimensions to invade worlds, utilizing some universal rules to override civilization's barriers and forcibly draw people into the game. Others say the World Game is a protective shield of civilization, allowing everything to fight in the form of a game, reducing the bloodiness and cruelty of civilization competition.

Su Ming'an did not adopt any of these interpretations, instead saying:

"[I believe the essence of the World Game is the World Game itself.]"

The World Master's eyes widened.

Su Ming'an said, "The World Game is just the game itself, without any additional significance, because a game itself has no meaning. A game is a natural instinct developed by humanoid or intelligent beings in the process of evolution; even as far back as the Cambrian period, creatures were inherently playing with stones. Even cats or fish lacking high-level intelligence feel the urge to play."

"If the universe were a cat, a vast, endless black cat, then the creation of the World Game is like [a cat developing an urge to play on a cat climbing frame] during its growth; the World Game is this instinct itself."

"In my understanding, the universe is alive; even though it may not have self-awareness, in some sense, it can [breathe], have a [heartbeat], and develop [instincts] similar to life forms."

"Among them, [breathing] may refer to a complete cycle of the universe's revolution and rotation, [heartbeat] could be the sudden collision of an asteroid with a planet. And the [game instinct] that comes naturally at such a moment internalizes into the [World Game] drifting within the universe."

After Su Ming'an finished speaking, the World Master fell into contemplation.

After a long while, the World Master spoke:

"Your unique [Cosmic Cat Cat Study]...is quite interesting."

...Is that the critical point?

Su Ming'an was taken aback. His focus was on the universe being alive, and the game being an instinct internalized into existence. It wasn't about the universe being a cat!

"Your ideas are insightful, and you may be right. However, listen to my thoughts," the World Master said.

Su Ming'an lifted a porcelain cup.

The World Master started speaking with a smile:

...

"—I believe the essence of the World Game is [a book]."

...

"Every world has its unique characteristics; Pulaya's features are sea monsters and magic, the Ruined World's features are technology and calculation, and The World of Old Days is known for talismans and shields."

"Luowasha's characteristic, on the other hand, is the Genesis Power."

"To survive, one must master each civilization's unique characteristic to the extreme. Just like the Dawn System of the Ruined World or The Republic of The World of Old Days, which embodies the pinnacle of their respective eras."

"And in Luowasha, the Sique of The Third Epoch was the ultimate master of Genesis Power, his pen power so exceptional it could manipulate Luowasha, creating trans-era technologies and magic that originally shouldn't exist, even creating life, forcibly pushing civilization forward by several strides."

"So, my hypothesis is… the World Game is such an enormous, boundless book, all creation-made. As long as we find a way to tear it apart, we can bring it to an end."

"Your Cosmic Cat Cat Study is based on your perception in Zhai Xing, while my Cosmic Literature is based on my identity as a native from Luowasha."

"So, the key is how we can kill this [cat] or tear apart this [book]." Su Ming'an remarked.

"Indeed."

The dialogue between wise individuals was concise.

At this moment, the World Master seemed to sense something, glancing out the window.

"I believe I have touched upon something too core." The World Master smiled and said, "Someone is coming to kill me."

Su Ming'an suddenly recalled that on the world chessboard, even the Ocean Angel perceived someone approaching, choosing to flee.

...Who is that person? Someone whom even the Ocean Angel and World Master dare not face.

"I trust you, Number One Player."

Violet flames flared up, under the dazzling stained glass window, the young man with purple hair once again extended his hand towards Su Ming'an, palm outward.

"I want to gift a white daisy to the goddess." His voice was as beautiful as poetry:

"I want to gift a vibrant red shawl to the goddess."

"I want to gift a magnificent crown to the goddess."

"When a passing traveler delivers these to me, I will invite him to pay homage to the goddess together."

...

Purple flames blossomed like flowers.

The statue stood steadfast as before.

Amid the poetry infused with the fragrance of wisteria,

The traveler stepped into the next segment of the river.

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