Chapter 954: Inner world collapses!

Right after Li Qi obtained this answer, his Inner World collapsed.

Inside Li Qi's body, a Dao Orthodoxy struggle began.

Long ago, when Li Qi made a Breakthrough, he had simulated an 'Ultimate Great Dao' within his body (see Chapter 295 for details).

Because at that time, Li Qi faced a dilemma: he had both Human Dao and Shaman Dao within him, and the two were in conflict, as incompatible as fire and water. For Li Qi to accommodate both, he needed a solution.

Otherwise, he would have self-destructed.

So, borrowing a concept from the Daoist Sect, he simulated an 'Ultimate Great Dao'.

At the time, Li Qi's definition for this thing was:

"Dao Orthodoxy," or "Law," "Reality," or any other name, is merely a title bestowed upon it by the myriad living beings for their own convenience; it cannot be described, and all descriptions of it are incorrect.

"It" can unify all levels—microscopic and macroscopic, wave and particle, time and space, reality and illusion.

All things and matters revolve around the "Dao Orthodoxy" with utmost respect; everything is established around the "Dao Orthodoxy." There is no paradox in the entire world's existence because of it, and no theoretical conflict. "Its" existence is the cornerstone of all rationality.

All worlds are its presentation from different perspectives, much like an irregular geometric shape that appears as different forms when viewed from different directions, but in reality, it has never changed.

This 'Dao Orthodoxy' is the ultimate metaphysical existence, the ultimate concept above all physical forms.

With this, Li Qi was later able to accommodate Buddha and Demon, Human Dao and Shaman Dao, and even other Dao Orthodoxys. He was able to easily utilize the techniques of many Dao Orthodoxys because of the mediation of this 'Ultimate Great Dao' within him.

He hasn't self-destructed until now because of the existence of this 'Ultimate Great Dao'. And this answer of an Ultimate Great Dao was also the reason why Li Qi's perception of 'physical' existence began to become illusory.

At this moment, Li Qi negated the existence of an ultimate ontological entity.

He made another answer.

Thus, without the existence of the 'Ultimate Great Dao', his Inner World began to disintegrate accordingly.

The principles of Human Dao, Shaman Dao, Buddha, Demon, and the Heavenly Evolution of Reason—the many Daos—became entangled, twisted, and fought within him!

Li Qi's Inner World collapsed in an instant!

Li Qi had been worried for many years. He had been immersed in the Dao Orthodoxy struggle within his body, hesitant and at a loss. These were the source of his power, but also the reason his attitude toward the world had always been wavering.

Consequently, after becoming stronger, Li Qi had neither passionate feelings nor vigorous Life Qi toward Mortals.

These thoughts had unconsciously suppressed his passion for Mortals. 'Dao Orthodoxy' is the standard by which a person views the world; if it has already taken shape, and he has even used it to become a Third Grade, then he truly cannot escape it. This ideology has already bored into his soul.

So, during these hundreds of billions of years, he agonized over this. When facing the blockade of Human Dao, he sensed this terrifying future.

Everything the Third Grade Zhongwei Bird faced back then had now descended upon Li Qi's head.

But Li Qi made a decision.

He had realized what all things were, even though it meant the complete collapse of his Inner World.

At this instant, Shen Shuibi realized something. She immediately grabbed Li Qi, her usual composure completely gone, as she let out a wail: "Don't—"

"Protect yourself well, take care of the children. This way, no matter what, you and they will be safe." With a gentle squeeze from Li Qi, Shen Shuibi instantly lost her ability to speak. She could no longer say anything or take any action; she could only stare desperately at Li Qi.

But her gaze was enough to say many things.

Don't!

No, let me go with you!

I beg of you... you don't have to go... don't go, don't go!

Just for my sake—

Her face turned ashen because of this. Rather than being the world-renowned beauty she once was, her face looked more like that of a dead person.

Li Qi used a technique to prevent her from speaking because he had to force himself to be resolute.

If he let Shen Shuibi say those words, he might... choose to back down.

To give up his history so they could 'stay together forever'.

As long as Li Qi was willing to be trapped in time with Shen Shuibi, he wouldn't die.

But before that, he made Shen Shuibi shut up. Li Qi gathered all his will and overcame his hesitation.

The sound of his Inner World cracking began to spread across the timeline.

Remember the 'Third Grade Battle' mentioned before? (See Chapter 887 for details).

One creates various extreme environments they are skilled in, and then, within those extreme environments, finds the 'paradox' in the opponent's interpretation to defeat them.

At this moment, the hundreds of billions of years of illusory life Li Qi encountered was the 'extreme environment' created for him by Human Dao.

And now, the weakness of Li Qi's chaotic Dao Orthodoxy path was being exploited to the fullest.

A serious Human Dao was terrifyingly beyond belief.

What 'targeting nodes'? Ha, Li Qi's entire life was their target of attack!

And they succeeded.

Therefore, Li Qi had to face it; he could no longer remain trapped in the timeline war.

He discarded all his Dao Orthodoxy foundations from the Seventh Grade until now!

Such was his determination that he could not allow any interference from Shen Shuibi, nor could he listen to her pleas. If she spoke, Li Qi might... however... at this moment, he suddenly saw the ashen-faced rabbit reach out her hand toward him.

Li Qi seemed to sense something.

Li Qi lifted the restriction.

Shen Shuibi regained her ability to speak, but she did not say words begging Li Qi to stay.

She simply pulled out her hairpin and waved her hand, cutting her beautiful, hip-length hair from behind her neck.

Shen Shuibi's hair was extremely beautiful, and she usually took meticulous care of it, but now it was cut short, and she could no longer wear a hairpin.

All her hairpins were gifts from Li Qi. Li Qi had said that starting from the Ninth Grade, he would give her a new one for every grade she reached.

Then, she grabbed the cut hair, handed it to Li Qi, bit her lip, and said in a raspy voice: "Until you return, I will not wear a hairpin. And... if you must die, don't expect me to just go on living."

As expected, Shen Shuibi was definitely not that kind of woman.

She wouldn't stop Li Qi, even though Li Qi could see her heart was twitching.

Li Qi took a deep breath, his eyes shining brightly as he looked at Shen Shuibi, his wife.

He solemnly took the lock of hair, wound it around his wrist, and then disappeared from this timeline.

After Li Qi disappeared, Shen Shuibi collapsed weakly to the ground.

——————————

Human Dao rejoiced.

Li Qi's Inner World began to collapse; their plan had worked.

They knew that Li Qi would likely eventually give up protecting his own history; Li Qi would give up the 'Ultimate Great Dao'. This was the result deduced by the The Axis of All Realms.

Now, Li Qi's Inner World was beginning to collapse.

This wasn't just the Li Qi of a certain period, but the Li Qi of all timelines, all falling under a heavy burden.

Human Dao's offensive began.

The Eclectic School Old Ancestor, this Second Grade, showed a cunning smile: "Then, can the next steps proceed?"

The Shamanes' expressions were solemn.

Their burden increased. Li Qi's own combat power began to fade, which meant the Shamanes would lose their geographical advantage.

"Shamansan, what should we do next?" the Second Grades asked Shamansan, who was above them.

"Continue, follow the plan," Shamansan said indifferently.

Shamansan's steady attitude reassured the other Second and Third Grades. They no longer strictly guarded Li Qi's timeline but instead began temporal interspersing.

What is interspersing?

It's quite simple. Previously, all the wars were confined to Li Qi's life, and all the struggles revolved around Li Qi's nodes.

But it wasn't actually necessary to do it that way, was it?

The Shamanes began to descend into the history of Human Dao, interspersing themselves into their past to start the battle.

Human Dao had to divert part of their energy to deal with their own history instead of focusing on Li Qi.

At the same time, a nine-headed serpent burst into the battlefield.

It was Xiangliu!

Besides Xiangliu, there were other Third Grade Earth Deities, all from the lineage that advocated for the 'Extermination of Mortals' line.

Clearly, Li Qi's previous schemes had also begun to take effect.

As for Li Qi himself... at this moment, he was unable to join any battle.

Because the destruction of his Inner World had already caused him to lose all his power.

However, he was not panicked or busy; instead, he began to analyze the reasons for the non-existence of the 'Ultimate Great Dao'.

Obviously, even to deny something, one needs to provide proof; this is called 'falsification'.

Otherwise, you cannot deny it.

Suppose there really exists an 'Ultimate Ontology,' which we call the 'Real World.'

Then, this 'Real World' could evolve other worlds.

Therefore, a conclusion can be logically derived.

We call the 'Real World' the 'Level Zero World.'

Then, from the Level Zero World, a new world evolved, which we call the 'Level One World.'

When intelligence begins to appear in this simulated evolved world, the resources required by the Level Zero World are small. But as the evolution becomes more complex, life and intelligence appear, and the amount of information grows larger and larger, similar to the increase of entropy.

At this point, the load on the 'Level Zero World' would significantly increase.

Then, when the intelligent beings in the Level One World also possess the 'ability to simulate worlds,' much like the power of a Fourth Grade to create Heavens.

So, they begin to create their own 'Heavens,' performing creation and evolving a 'Level Two World.'

Obviously, both the Level Two World and the Level One World are rooted within the Level One World.

Evolving the Level Two World through the 'Dao Orthodoxy' actually means all the evolutionary power at this time is provided by the Level Zero World, because the Level One World is simulated by the Level Zero World, and the computing power and upper limit of the Level One World can never exceed those of the Level Zero World.

Simply put, you cannot use a computer with a computing power of one billion to evolve a world with a computing power of ten billion. So, this nesting mechanism cannot be infinite. Moreover, with each layer of nesting, the information and complexity of the next level's world are smaller than the previous layer's, until the complexity is too low to evolve intelligence.

Therefore, the existence of the Level Zero World can be easily identified, and one can keep searching until the location of the Level Zero World is found; every layer is clearly distinguishable.

Now, let's change the premise.

If, suppose, the Level Zero World can create a Level One World, and the computing power of this Level One World can reach the level of the Level Zero World.

That is to say, for the Level One World, the life within it can create a virtual world exactly the same as the real world. Since the virtual world is identical to the real world, the people in the virtual world can also create a virtual world identical to theirs. This cycle can be nested indefinitely. In the end, there will be countless virtual worlds, but only one corresponding real world.

When this cycle begins, how can one confirm they are in the 'Level Zero World'?

The answer is, there's no way to confirm.

Because the Level One World and the infinite levels of worlds below it are all the same, or even superior, the Level Zero World cannot be identified.

And because the Ultimate Great Dao of the Level Zero World is the only reality, and other worlds are necessarily rooted in the Level Zero World, it becomes even harder to distinguish.

Continuing this cycle, the result is that infinitely many simulated worlds will appear.

If 'I' must be in one of these worlds, and we are at the first layer of this cycle chain, the probability of being the Level Zero World is one over infinity, which is 0.

So, if we can create a virtual world exactly the same as the real world, the probability that the world we are in is also virtual will be 100%.

The same hypothesis, with a slight change in premise, leads to two different answers.

So, for Li Qi, which answer did he get?

The answer is... it doesn't matter.

Regardless of the premise, they both reveal the same hidden fact—

That is, the Level Zero World is parallel to the other worlds.

The so-called Level Zero World is not the 'Real World' as spoken of. No matter how it derives, the Level Zero World and all the Level One, Two, and Three worlds are in the same situation, and no changes occur due to the nesting.

Thus, Li Qi got his answer.

Shatter the Inner World, complete destruction!

Then, the Desire Realm within him! Expand!

This thing should be used here.

Since he's going to gamble, he might as well gamble thoroughly. Cast aside all concerns—Heavenly Demons, Human Dao, put them all behind him!

Li Qi wanted to use the Desire Realm to reshape his Inner World.

Not just occupying a part of it, but after shattering his Inner World, completely replacing it with the Desire Realm, much like putting in an artificial heart after removing the real one.

During this time... Li Qi could temporarily curb the side effects of the Inner World's collapse, though he didn't know how long he could hold on.

At the very moment he did this—

A voice rang in the ears of everyone on the battlefield.

"Today, we exterminate Buddha."