The moment the Rubik's Cube was fully unfurled, the space within the hall ceased to maintain its original structure. The distance between the floor and the dome stretched to an immeasurable depth, the surrounding stone walls seemed to be pushed away by an invisible hand, and the entire space appeared to be lifted into a container of a higher dimension.
Then the cube suspended in the center suddenly split—not shattered, but "deconstructed in layers." The twelve facades spread out in different directions from the same origin, each no longer confined to a two-dimensional plane, but extending into an independent "Source Realm."
First impressions, thoughts.
Countless consciousnesses flicker within it, each thought born, collapsing, and regenerating like a star. The trajectory of thought transforms into visible rays of light, weaving into a Zhang Hao and boundless web of consciousness in the void. Anyone who approaches will feel their own thoughts being pulled, magnified, and even dismantled into their most primal "thoughts."
The second aspect is skills.
Countless spells were automatically constructed in the air. The generation path, structural core, and collapse nodes of each supernatural power were all materialized. Runes surged like a torrent. Attack, defense, transformation, and sealing evolved continuously at the same moment, as if the foundation of all cultivation systems was being dismantled and rewritten here.
The third aspect is cause and effect.
Fine rays of light permeate the entire surface, each line connecting a segment of the past and the future. New trajectories are constantly generated where they intersect, only to break off on their own in the next instant. All "inevitability" and "chance" are unified here into a flowing field.
The fourth aspect: the soul.
It was a boundless, deep sea where countless spirits floated and sank. Every ripple represented the birth and dissipation of consciousness. Those who entered it would see their souls being peeled away layer by layer until only the most primordial "consciousness of existence" remained.
The fifth side, the source of spiritual energy.
Pure energy flows within it in its most primal form, without attributes or direction, yet containing the potential for all attributes, like the primordial surge before the universe differentiated.
The sixth aspect: dimension.
Space is divided into countless overlapping structures, where up, down, left, and right no longer exist, and past and future overlap with each other. Stepping into it is like falling into an infinite number of layers, with each layer redefining the meaning of "location".
The seventh page is the narrative.
Images are constantly generated and erased; fragments of "stories" evolve automatically in the void. Some end before they even begin, while others are rewritten even after they have already ended. All existence is treated as "objects to be written about."
Eighth side, observation.
Countless gazes converge here, each gaze altering the state of what is being observed. Existence constantly collapses between being "seen" and "not seen," and reality itself is reconstructed through observation.
Page 9, History.
Time unfolds, every moment of the past exists in physical form, and countless eras overlap and repeat themselves here, making the person who enters feel as if they are in the midst of eternity.
The tenth page reveals the root cause.
All forms are stripped away here, leaving only the most primitive "conditions of existence": no matter, no energy, only the initial driving force of "why exist".
Immediately afterwards--
The eleventh aspect: Chaos.
All interfaces began to collapse and overlap. Rules had not yet been established, and structures had not yet taken shape. Everything was in Threshold state of "about to be born." Entering it meant that even one's own self would be constantly rewritten.
The twelfth page, Hongmeng.
The first outline of order emerged from the chaos. The laws were not yet fixed, but they already had a direction for evolution, like the singularity that unfolded in the moment of the universe's birth, both chaotic and complete.
All twelve interfaces were opened, and the entire hall shed its palace form, transforming into a vast Dao Domain constructed from twelve interwoven layers of origin. The scene was beyond everyone's expectations; hundreds of cultivators stood still, their gazes fixed on the floating layers of interfaces, and not one dared to take a step rashly.
Everyone knew that what they were seeing was no ordinary secret realm trial, but a reflection of a much higher level of origin. Making any choice would be tantamount to exposing their own Fate Soul to a certain level of origin rules without any concealment.
After a brief silence, a cultivator at the Mystic Void Realm · Supreme slowly stepped out of the crowd, his gaze fixed on the "Soul Surface".
Without hesitation, I stepped inside.
The instant his feet touched that deep sea, his entire aura suddenly changed. His physical body remained standing in place, but his soul seemed to be drawn away by an invisible force and sank into that boundless spiritual sea.
His eyes slowly closed, and in the next instant, his soul appeared in the sea.
Without a body, without a form, there was only a ball of the purest light of consciousness. The light continued to sink beneath the surface of the sea, and countless unfamiliar fragments of souls swept past him. Some disintegrated, some were reborn, and some were shouting silently. He did not resist, nor did he try to escape. He simply let himself sink deeper into the depths.
His consciousness began to change; his memories were stripped away, his emotions were weakened, and his identity gradually faded.
Until a certain moment, his soul light suddenly stabilized, no longer sinking or floating, but instead resonating subtly with that sea of souls.
His aura suddenly became pure, without any enhancement or explosion, but it became "more essential." In the hall, the gazes of some cultivators suddenly narrowed.
They finally understood that this was not a test, but a "reflection of the origin," and which side you chose meant that you were closest to that origin.
It wasn't about venturing out, but about "connecting and comprehending." The next moment, the second person moved, then the third, then the fourth. Some stepped into cause and effect, some moved towards skills, some entered dimensions, and some chose chaos.
The crowd began to disperse, with figures entering different realms, where they sank, resonated, and changed within their respective origins.
Qin Yu remained standing in place, his gaze calm. He wasn't in a hurry because he knew the real key wasn't in making a choice.
In the instant the Rubik's Cube was fully unfolded after "seeing the essence of choice," the space within the hall no longer maintained its original structure. The distance between the floor and the dome was stretched to an immeasurable depth, and the surrounding stone walls seemed to be pushed away by an invisible hand.
Chi Ninghua quietly withdrew, distancing herself from the surrounding crowd. Her gaze slowly swept across the twelve floating interfaces, finally settling steadily on the Face of Skills spiritual light surged and energy flowed continuously. She stepped forward, her steps calm and unhurried.
The moment her foot landed, her aura instantly merged with this realm, becoming perfectly harmonious. Without her actively entering, this Source Realm had already begun to circulate on its own, mysteriously opening a path exclusively for her.
The moment she stepped inside, the entire space suddenly changed.
The surrounding palaces and buildings vanished completely, and the presence of others was also completely cut off. All that could be seen was countless supernatural powers and secret techniques intertwining and surging, transforming into a boundless torrent and ocean.
In the void, various spells spontaneously evolved and emerged, each rune carrying a complete and rigorous legal framework. From the initial activation of primordial energy, to the mid-stage structural formation, and finally to the final burst of power and collapse into Annihilation, the entire process of the evolution of supernatural powers was laid out before her eyes, without any concealment or omission.
Her consciousness was instantly drawn into it, and the first spell swept past her eyes.
It was a simple offensive technique, originally just an ordinary Sword Qi, but here it was broken down into countless layers of structure—the source of power, the choice of path, the turning points of nodes, the definition of the endpoint... All the details were magnified infinitely until she could see the essence of "why this sword became a sword".
Then came the second, third, and fourth...
Techniques no longer exist in a single form, but rather overlap, conflict, and merge with each other. One supernatural power is covered by another before it is even completed, and a structure is rewritten the moment it is generated. The entire space is like a "Daoist book" that is constantly writing and overturning itself.
Chi Ninghua's breathing gradually slowed down. She didn't try to grasp any specific supernatural power; instead, her consciousness began to retreat.
From the technique itself, to the logic behind its creation, and then to the "rules" underlying that logic, her perception ultimately settled on a deeper level—the "possibilities" before all supernatural powers had taken shape.
At that moment, her entire aura suddenly changed; it didn't surge or fluctuate, but became extremely pure.
She transcended her inherent identity as a practitioner of supernatural powers, transforming into a primordial node that encompasses all laws and bears the birth of supernatural powers.
The thousands of spells that had been flowing wildly suddenly slowed down within a radius of several feet around her. The chaotic and restless runes shed their disorder and spread out leisurely, following a mysterious trajectory that she could sense.
She didn't need to deliberately comprehend the form and mystery of each supernatural power; she had already reached the fundamental origin of all laws.
This scene caused the pupils of several cultivators outside to shrink slightly. Most of the others who had also stepped into the Face of Skills were now in a different state.
Some people frantically tried to master one of the techniques, their hands constantly moving, but before they could complete it, they were scattered by the next wave of techniques, their internal energy became disordered, their faces turned pale, and they were forced to leave the realm.
Someone tried to memorize the trajectory of every rune, but his sea of consciousness was overwhelmed by the torrent of information, his soul violently trembled, and he fell out of the interface in just a few breaths, spitting out blood.
Some people gritted their teeth and persevered, their bodies trembling slightly, still staring intently at the ever-changing structures, trying to grasp a pattern from the chaos.
Chi Ninghua did not seize them; she "let" them, allowing these supernatural powers to evolve on their own before her, letting them complete their own generation and dissipation within her perception.
Her aura grew increasingly clear, as if she herself was becoming part of the "Face of Skills," while at the same time, other dimensions were also constantly changing.
Within the Face of Thoughts, a cultivator's consciousness was pulled into countless streams of thoughts. He tried to maintain his self, but was covered by layers of thoughts, ultimately unable to distinguish which one belonged to him, and was forced to withdraw, his expression dazed.
Within the Face of Karma, a cultivator saw countless possible futures for himself. He reached out to try and change one of the paths, but all the paths collapsed simultaneously, and he was thrown backward, his breath disordered.
Within the Face of Souls, the cultivator who entered first remained deep within, his aura growing increasingly stable yet also increasingly weak, as if he might completely merge into that spiritual sea at any moment.
Within the Face of Dimensions, someone was trapped by layers of spatial structures. Taking a step forward would lead to another realm, where direction completely lost its meaning. He frantically tried to escape, but was eventually ejected from the interface, his face as pale as paper.
In the Face of Narrative, a cultivator is caught up in countless stories, constantly experiencing different lives, with intense emotional ups and downs, until finally his spirit collapses and he is forcibly ripped out.
In the Face of Observation, a person attempts to stabilize their existence, but loses their "defined" stability the instant they are simultaneously locked onto by countless gazes, their entire being blurring like an image.
History, the origin of existence, chaos, primordial chaos... every aspect is devouring cultivators, and some are rejected as soon as they step in.
Some cultivators gritted their teeth and endured the impact, their bodies trembling slightly, their Fate Soul shaking under the shock of the source; others steadied their minds in an instant, resonating with the source of the floating interface for a moment.
The entire hall was no longer as silent as before; an invisible force of primal pull swirled in the void. The longer one held out, the deeper the primal layers one could reach. At the same time, the pressure on the Fate Soul was also increasing exponentially.
Many cultivators had veins bulging on their foreheads, struggling to stay afloat, yet still refusing to retreat; others had unfocused eyes and broken minds, ultimately being forcibly separated from the realm by its rules. Still many others lingered at the edge of the Dao Domain, hesitant and unwilling to take even a single step.
Qin Yu stood still, his gaze slowly sweeping across the twelve realms, his expression calm, showing no rush to make a decision.
He had already seen through the mystery: these twelve realms were not twelve separate origins, but twelve transformations derived from the same supreme truth.