Worldline

Biodata

Nature and Structure

• A worldline is an evolutionary outcome of the same underlying world under different circumstances. Its fundamental essence remains similar to other worldlines, though individual histories and outcomes can differ greatly 147 372.
• Divergence produces history unique to each worldline. The worldline studied by Scholar Stone diverged from Shi Tiexin's original worldline after 1919 72.
• Shared underlying traits can persist despite divergent lives. Shi Tiexin recognizes alternate selves and familiar individuals by qualities deeper than appearance or experience 368 1013.
• On the World Star Map, a worldline appears as a line. From afar, such lines seem small, but each contains a vast and immeasurable world 436.
• The Main Worldline is depicted as a trunk, while parallel worldlines extend like branches 436.
• Worldlines normally coexist without interfering with one another. Though they may appear adjacent on the Star Map, they remain independent and do not intersect without exceptional circumstances 436.

Interlayer Mist

The Interlayer Mist separates worldlines, obstructing observation, communication, and the transfer of power or information. Its density differs between individual worldlines, producing uneven connection quality 436 437.

• Beings within a worldline ordinarily cannot observe another worldline through the Mist or reconcile their respective temporal rules 436.
• Worldlines occupy different temporal strata. Information and energy crossing between them can be delayed, distorted, or lost 436.
• The Scholar Stone Worldline is clearer to observe than the Black Venerable Worldline, whose thicker Mist makes cognition blurred and transmission unreliable 437.
• Completing Destiny Missions reduces mutual-support losses and disperses portions of the Interlayer Mist 437 758.

Worldline Atlas

The World Star Map, also called the Worldline Atlas, is the transcendent map through which Shi Tiexin observes connected worldlines.

• It displays worldlines as intersecting or parallel lines within an immense void 436.
• Shi Tiexin can see the connection between his main body and an Avatar as a faint line of light; his initial link to Scholar Stone resembles a fragile spider silk 436.
• The Atlas can reveal abnormalities affecting an entire worldline. A tiny purple spot on Black Venerable's worldline signifies a potentially catastrophic event on that world's scale 758.
• The Ten Rings of the Heavenly Bell resonated through the Atlas, sending a wave outward from the golden worldline into its depths 999.

Known Connections

Temporal Relationships

• Time does not inherently pass at the same rate in every worldline. Shi Tiexin's three months in the Fengming First High School worldline correspond to only one night in the Main Worldline before their connection strengthens 625.
• After the third Destiny Mission, the Fengming and Main Worldlines become largely synchronized; spending a day in one roughly consumes a day in the other 625.
• Strengthened synchronization improves communication and lowers the difficulty of projecting Shi Tiexin's main consciousness into another worldline 625.
• Completion of the Fourth Destiny Missions eventually makes travel between worldlines as easy for Shi Tiexin's selves as visiting neighbors 1004.

Major Events

Divergence and early traversal

A worldline's divergence can reshape culture, institutions, careers, and individual circumstances. In the Scholar Stone Worldline, reforms during the strengthened New Culture Movement alter social titles and examination systems from those of Shi Tiexin's original world 72. Shi Tiexin later begins consciously traversing worldlines, arriving in worlds with unfamiliar identities, missions, and technological conditions 166.

Discovery of the World Star Map

While exploring the void in spirit, Shi Tiexin first clearly perceives the Star Map and the thin connection linking his main body to Scholar Stone 436. This discovery lets him understand that differences in temporal layers and Interlayer Mist account for distorted support between worldlines 436.

Destiny Mission synchronization

Destiny Missions become the means by which Shi Tiexin's worldlines establish clearer, more efficient links. Their completion reduces transmission loss, opens channels for thought and consciousness, and allows increasingly direct cooperation among Shi Tiexin's alternate selves 437 625 758.

Heavenly Bell resonance

After Shi Tiexin and Shi Tie Zhu achieve the unprecedented Ten Rings of the Heavenly Bell, the bell's resonance spreads across the Worldline Atlas rather than through ordinary physical space. The Black Venerable Worldline receives an echo that shakes away part of its Black Obstruction 999.