Swallowing the starry sky, my clones can evolve infinitely.

Chapter 129 Comprehending All the Changes of the Two Laws of Space and Time

"1800 is not a long time."

With a thought, Shen Mu entrusted the original core to the Azure Dragon clone and then sent the Azure Dragon clone into the World Ring.

With the World Tree clone's 100x acceleration within the Time Palace of the World Ring, it will only take 18 years to create this World Tree clone.

"Eighteen years. Use this time to temper your will."

Not studying the laws within Chaos City would be an extreme waste, since most people have limited time to cultivate there.

However, Shen Mu had already obtained the right to reside permanently in Chaos City.

Generally speaking, to qualify for permanent residence in Chaos City, one must at least possess the Law Mastery of the 18th level of the Sky Bridge.

Of course, there are exceptions, namely becoming a personal disciple of the Lord of the Universe.

The main problem is that 18 years is too short a time. Even if Shen Mu devotes himself to comprehending the laws of space, he may not be able to comprehend even the most basic changes in the laws of space.

But things will be different once the World Tree's clone is born.

The World Tree possesses terrifyingly high innate abilities in the two fundamental laws of time and space.

In terms of gene multiplication rate, there were some things in the primordial universe that were even higher than the World Tree.

However, when it comes to the compatibility of the two fundamental laws of spacetime, apart from the eight innate universe masters, none of them can match the World Tree in terms of sheer power.

With Shen Mu's current talent in the laws, it would take him at most 5000 years to comprehend the two transformations of sealing and strangulation.

Of course, this refers to 5000 years in the original universe. In Chaos City, this time would be shortened to a mere 500 years.

However, once the World Tree clone is conceived, this time will be shortened to a maximum of 50 years.

The World Tree's innate talent for laws, its powerful mental processing speed, and its state of oneness with nature—all these combined make Shen Mu's progress in the laws far slower than that of the original World Tree.

With a thought, Shen Mu connected his consciousness to the virtual universe and entered the Illusionary Sea Plane.

……

The endless black ocean surged and roared, with waves tens or even hundreds of meters high constantly crashing down.

"The last time I ventured into the Illusionary Sea was at a cosmic level; I think I got stuck on the tenth island."

Perched atop the cliff, Shen Mu gazed at the isolated islands on the sea, which seemed poised to be swallowed by the endless waves at any moment.

Things are different now. Back then, Shen Mu's true realm was only at the Domain Lord level, his mental state was only at the first level of Enlightenment, and his will level was only at the Realm Lord level.

However, thanks to his powerful mental state at the time, although he only possessed the will of a World Lord, he was comparable to a true immortal god in resisting illusions and the pressure of consciousness.

Shen Mu's current realm has truly reached the limit of the Realm Lord level, and with the support of various soul levels, his consciousness strength is comparable to that of a King-level Immortal.

In terms of mental state, Shen Mu also reached the second level of mental state mentioned by Hong: "harmony between man and nature, childlike heart, and perfect mental state".

In addition, Shen Mu's illusion resistance and soul defense have been stacked to terrifyingly high levels time and time again. Even Shen Mu himself doesn't know the exact limit.

"Let me see what the current limit really is."

Shen Mu's figure transformed into a streak of light and flew over the islands.

Starting from the eleventh island, they passed through ten islands in a short time and arrived at the 21st island.

Boom!

The moment Shen Mu stepped onto this floor, an endless, terrifying shockwave swept over him.

This is a genuine shock to the consciousness of a supreme being of the universe. Even a being who has just entered the Immortal Realm could very well have their mind annihilated under this shock.

Despite such a powerful mental shock, Shen Mu's eyes remained perfectly clear.

Under the control of Shen Mu's mind and will, his own soul consciousness became extremely concentrated, as if it had transformed into a dazzling cosmic crystal, forcefully withstanding the powerful impact of consciousness.

After the shock to consciousness ended, what followed was an illusionary attack that liked to confuse newly-entered Venerable level experts.

However, Shen Mu almost completely ignored the illusion and flew directly to the next island.

The 21st to the 23rd islands all correspond to the will of ordinary cosmic venerables.

For Shen Mu, getting through these three islands didn't require going all out at all.

However, starting with the 24th island, Shen Mu had to take things seriously.

With the support of the second mental state, Shen Mu was able to achieve harmony between yin and yang, and balance between strength and gentleness in the face of this terrifying pressure of will. He could withstand the force when necessary and defuse it when appropriate.

With just the boost of his mindset, Shen Mu's willpower was greatly enhanced, allowing him to easily pass through the 26th island and reach the next one.

Boom!

The sudden surge of consciousness pressure, increasing several times over, struck Shen Mu's soul like a heavy hammer.

In an instant, a terrifying illusion swept over Shen Mu's mind.

……

This is the Milky Way galaxy, Earth.

An incredibly terrifying behemoth appeared under the starry sky, its aura causing even the laws governing the universe to falter.

The entire Earth was like a marble toy in the face of that behemoth.

"Humans, you all should die!"

The roar of the behemoth shook the primordial universe, and with the crashing of its massive claw, the entire Earth began to be annihilated.

Countless wails and cries of anguish echoed across the earth.

Shen Mu witnessed all his relatives and friends being completely annihilated at that moment.

Under the influence of the illusion, an incredibly intense emotion swept over him, burning and extreme, trying to shake Shen Mu's mind.

Shen Mu remained unmoved by this scene.

"How could illusions of this level possibly shake my mind?"

Just as Shen Mu was trying to break free from the illusion, the scene before him changed again.

The vast starry sky transformed into an endless hell, just like the 18 levels of hell in Earth's mythology, where countless people suffered all kinds of torment.

"elder brother!"

"Little Chen!"

"Amu!"

"Brother Mu, it's me!"

Shen Mu saw the figures of all his relatives and friends from his three lifetimes of reincarnation... and saw their suffering.

"It seems my state of mind is still not perfect."

Shen Mu withdrew his gaze.

Even knowing that it was all fake, Shen Mu couldn't calmly face it all, or witness the endless suffering of the people he cared about.

"Divine Eye, open!"

Pure soul radiance surged from Shen Mu's body, and rings of soul halos appeared behind his head, with a single eye slowly opening.

His gaze was like a candle, illuminating endless illusions.

The scene before me has transformed back into those isolated islands.

Shen Mu walked on air, his soul radiating a clear light, passing through island after island.

The 27th, the 29th...

Finally, on the 30th island, facing the illusions and consciousness attacks of a universe master, Shen Mu once again fell into the torture of endless illusions.

However, this time, even with Shen Mu's best efforts, he was unable to break through the illusion.

Every living being has people and things they care about, and scenes they don't want to see.

The principle behind this illusion is to induce the scene that the challenger least wants to see, to trigger the most terrifying moment for the challenger.

Only when the challenger succumbs to the emotional torment of this endless illusion and fails can they exit the illusion.

But Shen Mu's endurance was too high. He was able to maintain his clarity at all times, knowing that everything in front of him was an illusion, but he was unable to escape from the illusion.

In the illusionary world, Shen Mu himself also experienced endless torment.

Shen Mu was forced to experience all sorts of the cruelest punishments in the universe.

Along with Shen Mu, everyone he cared about also suffered.

A hundred years, a thousand years, or even ten thousand years...

Shen Mu didn't know how long he had been on the illusionary island.

In short, by the time the illusion dissipated, even with Shen Mu's composure, a great deal of negative emotion had accumulated in his heart.

"Phew... I failed again."

The virtual universe determined that Shen Mu could not break free from the illusion and had not truly crossed the 30th island.

"My mindset is still flawed... Right now, I just want to vent!"

Shen Mu exhaled a long breath, then his consciousness left the Illusion Island and entered the Killing Space.

In the killing space, Shen Mu began a frenzied slaughter, with endless alien powerhouses randomly generated by the virtual universe system.

Perhaps Shen Mu killed countless people, or perhaps Shen Mu was overwhelmed and torn apart by countless people.

In this process filled with violence and killing, Shen Mu's pent-up negative emotions were also released.

"Master, Hong, Luo Feng, and Thor are looking for you."

The sound of scrambled eggs interrupted Shen Mu's process of indulging in the release of his emotions.

……

Virtual universe, Qianwu Continent, Black Dragon Mountain Island, Light Source Star Manor.

In a corner of the manor, Hong, Lei Shen, and Luo Feng were having a barbecue.

They weren't grilling any rare, cosmic ingredients; they were just the most ordinary grilled skewers from before Earth's Great Nirvana.

It was mostly beef and mutton, along with some vegetables. Thor, who prefers stronger flavors, even grilled some "nutritional supplements."

There were also several bundles of ordinary beer and drinks next to it.

hum!

Ripples spread through the space, and Shen Mu's figure appeared out of thin air.

"Third brother!"

"Amu."

"Senior brother!"

Shen Mu looked at the three brothers in front of him and a smile appeared on his face.

"Second brother, are you any good at cooking?" Shen Mu asked with a smile as he leaned closer.

Thor snorted twice, raised his shiny bald head, and said, "You and Luo Xiaosi are both young people after the Great Nirvana, you don't understand at all."

"Big Brother was an assassin back in the day, and his cooking skills are top-notch. When it really matters, we still have to rely on you, Brother Lei!"

Shen Mu chuckled and said, "Alright, alright, I'll try my second brother's cooking today."

A lively barbecue completely dispelled Shen Mu's gloom.

A short while later, Hong sat down next to Shen Mu, looked at Thor who was teaching Luo Feng how to barbecue not far away, and said with a smile, "Amu, are you in trouble?"

As they were talking, Hong tossed Shen Mu a bottle of beer, a new product from Kyushu Company.

As a master of mental states, Hong keenly sensed that Shen Mu's emotions seemed to be somewhat problematic.

"No, it's just that I feel... there's something missing in my mindset."

Shen Mu smiled and didn't hide anything, recounting his experience of being tormented for a long time in the Illusionary Sea.

At that time, Shen Mu's situation was such that he could withstand the illusion and not completely succumb to it, but his own consciousness could not break free from the illusion.

Hong chuckled: "Just give up resisting and get kicked out of the illusion by the virtual universe, won't that be better?"

Shen Mu shook his head and said, "My purpose is to hone myself, how could I choose to give up the fight?"

"Since it's my own choice, what's there to be upset about?"

Hong was indeed a master of mental state; he had a very open mind.

But Shen Mu didn't have that mindset. Even though it was all his own choice, he couldn't remain completely unaffected after experiencing such extreme and cruel mental torment.

"Brother Hong, how can I reach the third level of my mental state?"

Faced with Shen Mu's question, Hong pondered for a long time before saying, "I can't explain it clearly either. I only gained some understanding after reading some ancient books and experiencing various changes."

Hong laughed and said, "As the saying goes, 'He who has no desires is invincible.' The ancient sages also said, 'It is precisely because he does not contend that no one in the world can contend with him.' These two sentences were the opportunity for me to step into the third state of mind."

Then Hong told Shen Mu a lot, mostly describing what the third state of mind was.

It generally means having a heart that embraces everything and maintaining a calm and composed attitude towards all things.

Shen Mu smiled and said, "Being free from desires makes one invincible. Isn't this just being open and uninhibited, not caring about anything else?"

Hong thought for a moment and said, "It's true that you're talking about opening up the market. But the 'opening up' that young people are talking about is only one aspect."

"If you can maintain a calm and tolerant attitude towards everything, that is the third level of mental state."

At this point, Hong continued, "Of course, the above is only the third level of my state of mind."

"Everyone is an independent soul and personality, especially in terms of state of mind. My insights may not be suitable for you."

"Perhaps it's definitely not suitable for you."

"What suits you best is the best."

……

Chaos City, Iceberg Courtyard.

After regaining his consciousness, Shen Muyao gazed at the surging and changing patterns of laws on the horizon, lost in thought.

A moment later, Shen Mu withdrew his gaze, and a virtual light screen appeared in front of him.

Before long, Tang Yongqing's face appeared on the screen.

"Amu!" Tang Yongqing seemed very happy.

Shen Mu rarely contacts her or her parents, usually only once every few decades.

After arriving in Chaos City, they only contacted each other once every hundred years on average.

Shen Mu smiled and said, "Sister Yongqing, I missed you all."

"Hey... why are you suddenly saying something like that?"

Shen Mu's words made Tang Yongqing jump for joy.

Over the years, Tang Yongqing has noticed that Shen Mu is rather detached in matters of the heart and rarely says things like that.

"It was just something I felt compelled to say."

After Shen Mu finished speaking, he thought for a moment and said, "I will probably stay in Chaos City for about three hundred years, and then I will go home for a while."

At this moment, Tang Yongqing also noticed that Shen Mu seemed to be acting strangely, but she didn't ask any questions and just smiled gently and said, "Okay."

……

In the blink of an eye, 18 years have passed.

Within Shen Mu's inner world, a divine tree, approximately 6500 million kilometers tall, hangs high in the void.

This sacred tree is entirely emerald green, and its canopy is like a magnificent canopy, with a maximum diameter of a staggering 1.2 million kilometers.

Each leaf is crystal clear, like a carving of a crystal, like a piece of emerald green jade. Endless life force gathers into a dazzling light, surging on every branch and leaf.

"Life genes are a little over a thousand times, approximately 1008 times."

"Besides controlling space and time, the innate secret technique also includes a natural 36 times the amplitude of the soul and divine body."

"Let me test this ability to control time and space first."

Shen Mu's consciousness, through the World Tree clone, could sense the incredibly clear spacetime fluctuations.

Not to mention using secret techniques to control space and time, even the space and time around the World Tree becomes incredibly stable.

"Control space and time, activate!"

boom!

The boundless power of the world burst forth from within the World Tree, transforming into an invisible domain that enveloped an area of ​​approximately 120 billion kilometers.

The scope of the World Tree's secret techniques for controlling space and time depends on its own size and cultivation level.

During the Realm Lord stage, the range of spacetime control is about 10 times the maximum diameter of one's own tree canopy.

The immortal realm is about a hundred times larger, and when one reaches the realm of a cosmic sovereign, the scope of control over space and time can reach a thousand times the size of one's own tree canopy.

The strongest World Tree, for example, has a canopy diameter of over 1 billion kilometers and controls a spacetime range of over 10 trillion kilometers, which is in no way inferior to the spacetime control exerted by a newly ascended universe master.

"This feeling is wonderful."

The universe and spacetime seem to be completely under its control. The most fundamental principle is that it can mobilize the power of the laws of spacetime, an ability bestowed upon it by the primordial universe.

The same principle applies to the universe's mastery of spacetime; it's not that they possess this ability themselves, but rather that it's a privilege granted by the primordial universe.

Within the realm of controlling spacetime, the fundamental forces of time and space in the universe change entirely according to Shen Mu's will.

This feeling is so special that it greatly reduces the difficulty of comprehending the laws of space and time under these conditions.

"We can begin our seclusion now."

Shen Mu went into seclusion once again.

With the blessing of the World Tree's avatar, those obscure and profound laws of spacetime became infinitely simple and easy to understand.

After 42 years of seclusion, he gained profound understanding of the spatial barrier.

After 89 years of seclusion, he has gained profound insight into spatial strangulation.

After 138 years of seclusion, time has accelerated my understanding.

……

In the blink of an eye, more than two hundred and thirty years have passed since Shen Mu's World Tree clone was born.

At this point, he had thoroughly understood the three major changes of the laws of space: teleportation, strangulation, and blockade; and the laws of time: stillness, acceleration, and deceleration.

However, the final step of the superior law is also the most difficult to comprehend.

At this point, it has little to do with innate talent for laws; it all depends on comprehension and opportunity.

With a bit of luck, a sudden epiphany might bring you to the bottom of it.

Those who are unlucky may not be able to take the final step even after tens of thousands of epochs.

……

Chaos City, Iceberg Courtyard.

Shen Mu, who had been sitting cross-legged for over two hundred years, slowly opened his eyes.

At this moment, there is a peculiar galaxy symbol between Shen Mu's eyebrows. It is a special symbol that has received the highest recognition from both the two laws of spacetime.

"My understanding of the laws is now quite profound."

"What we need next is to truly apply the laws and create a sufficiently powerful secret technique."

However, there's no rush to create secret techniques; we can take our time.

Shen Mu now vaguely senses that his state of mind may be about to advance further.

So Shen Mu planned to go home and take the opportunity to study the most brilliant essence of Earth's civilization, those ancient books about the state of mind.

I spent nearly a thousand years in Chaos City this time, while more than three thousand years had passed in the primordial universe.

Including the nearly one thousand years he spent cultivating in the battlefields beyond the realm, more than four thousand years have passed since he last returned home.

(End of this chapter)