Welcome to Rewind World Game-Chapter 1472 - 121: "Kitten.

[To the True Friend of my Father’s Father:]

[How much must humanity give up to truly honor independence?]

[If the origin of a seed is a rose flower seed, can it only grow into a rose?]

[Love, happiness, laughter, joy... When one’s vision is limited to these beautiful things, is their mature and ultimate form thereby shaped by these established things?]

[Hatred, pain, torment, abuse... When one’s growth environment and even origin is mud, where could he or she find their pure white roots?]

[The guidance of the elder to the younger, the inheritance from grandparents to grandchildren, the expectations of parents for children, and even further, the leader to the follower, the ruler to the civilian, the controller of rules to the submitter. The latter cannot escape the mold of the former, like one ring after another, creating a radioactive influence, encircling one small group and class after another.]

[As a child, I once heard Kasadia, a friend of my father’s father, talk about the iceberg theory in Satya Family Treatment: a person’s ’self’ is like an iceberg, and others can only see a small part of it—the behavior—while the larger internal world is hidden deep in the ocean.]

[Behavior, response, feelings, perspectives, expectations, desires, self.]

[An individual and their native environment have countless connections, which can influence a lifetime.]

[Once the idea of pursuing self, breaking out of the mold, and cutting off these connections is born, it is regarded as ’rebellion,’ ’transgression,’ ’audacity,’ ’disrupting order.’]

[It’s laughable to think, my whole life has been dedicated to freeing myself from these invisible threads. Like a wild beast, probing, tearing, colliding, venting, until I am bloodied.]

[Though I do not want to admit that my rebellious thoughts come from someone, I must confess they indeed come from that father whose behavior and actions are akin to mine. His rebellion, his pain, his desire for destruction, his inner violence... all structure the backbone of my world.]

[Yet I am still proud, for I possess what he could not—compassion for offspring, empathy for brethren. When someone becomes oppressed, they either oppress weaker others or empathize with them. I’m honored to belong to the latter group, it’s a reason for pride.]

[In the end, when he had the idea to hurt me, I realized what a mirror is.]

[I am a mirror, and he was looking at me.]

[I reflected all of him, but the dust, cobwebs, particles, and water vapor condensations on the mirror... these are uniquely mine.]

[I am the mirror, and he is not me.]

[He is the shadow in the mirror, but outside the mirror lies the greater one beneath the iceberg.]

[I am the mirror, he is the shadow, and beyond the mirror, there are others.]

[If I am fortunate enough to be written about again, I have only one wish.]

[Please do not let me know who the writer is, and do not let me see you again.]

[In this way, can I perhaps dance freely in the spring breeze, slightly away from old constraints?]

[— Qi Zhou]

...

The Devouring Claw flickered with scarlet radiance, consuming the flames, and the temperature gradually dropped.

A book of radiant golden brilliance lay on the desk.

—This is the "Book of General Collection" of Luowasha.

Su Ming’an took a few steps closer, extending his hand.

At this point, countless world tree crystal branches and leaves suddenly seemed to go wild, bursting forth like a tidal wave, surging toward Su Ming’an.

Su Ming’an initially thought these branches and leaves were not malicious, yet he discovered that they were like bloodsucking worms, attempting to pierce his skin and draw his blood.

"Swish!"

He immediately drew out the Amber Knife, slashing through space, instantly creating a three-square-meter void around him, but before the next slash could fall, countless branches and leaves frantically surged again.

"This is..."

He instantly recalled the memory of being drained before, but with the coordination of Yijulai’er, he was clearly in a cooperative and friendly relationship with the world tree...

Wait a minute.

Yijulai’er was dead.

So, the brainless world tree would subconsciously crave its complete seed...

Su Ming’an suddenly felt a shock.

—It seemed he had fallen into a trap.

Was Yijulai’er really good for him?

Her years were so long that she didn’t care about death, but that also meant she cared about no emotions. She could give her life to Su Ming’an for a moment of touch, but what if her actions had other purposes? For instance, providing the world tree with an energy source that could never be exhausted...

"Boom—!"

The Floating Cannon blasted out, and Su Ming’an retreated, but here at the core of the world tree, countless branches and leaves could grow from any corner.

"...Come this way."

At this moment, a mature yet gentle voice came from the edge of the lake.

A man with green long hair, dressed in white, stood under an apricot blossom tree. It was unclear when he had appeared.

The situation was urgent, and Su Ming’an rushed over in a few strides. Upon reaching the apricot blossom tree, he found that the countless pervasive branches and leaves had not penetrated, and this place seemed like a safe shelter.

"You are..." He soon recognized who this green-haired man was.

"We should be meeting for the first time. But perhaps you have heard my name many times." The green-haired man smiled broadly: "Qiao. A member of the Witch Race, Sique’s adoptive father, Royal Engineer of the Red Tower in the Second Epoch."

"I know you. But I’ve heard that the previous generation of the witch has to die for a successor to arise. And as far as I know, Sique was originally going to die on his eighteen birthday, but history shows he survived and later became both a Magpie and a Witch." The implication of Su Ming’an was clear.

"Well, your information is quite up-to-date." Qiao nodded nonchalantly: "But what if Sique is not Sique?"

"What?"

"Never mind, pretend I didn’t say that." Qiao raised his hands, smiled, and said:

"Back to the previous matter, you saw it, the world tree sees you as an energy source. Ah, this leads to a matter, do you know why Watchers must stay in the world?"

Su Ming’an paused for a moment and said clearly: "Because they are... the heart of the world?"

Qiao smiled calmly and said: "It’s just like humans need a heartbeat to live, Watchers serve this function. It used to be Yijulai’er, with some substitutes like Sique, Su Wenjun, and Qi Zhou... But now, they’re all gone, so the world tree had to turn to you."

"On purpose?" Su Ming’an suddenly asked.

"What on purpose?" Qiao looked surprised.

"You did it on purpose." Su Ming’an’s tone was firm: "You lured me here."

Clearly, Su Wenjun could have snatched away the book earlier, instantly rendering Qi Zhou powerless, so why pretend to fight with Qi Zhou for half a day until he arrived?

Admittedly, Su Wenjun can’t burn all the books, but if he ignores Qi Zhou, he can burn many more.

"Oh..." Qiao’s smile was mysterious: "Can you guess what we talked about?"

Su Ming’an also smiled: "You Luowasha really are a land of talents, each one setting traps for me to fall into, not treating me as an ally at all."

He originally wanted to say "heartless and unfeeling," but then thought, the two worlds are supposed to be in a cooperative relationship, who says they must love each other? It’s just a World Game that turned many unrelated people into close friends. Admittedly, some people from Luowasha originated from Zhai Xing, but the majority are not.

Qiao didn’t deny it, instead he laughed: "Isn’t everyone just trying to survive? It’s just that you saviors love to use sentimental expressions instead of rational ones to inspire most people’s tragic savior spirit. But actually, if there was a chance, to lead everyone into someone’s dream, giving up on Luowasha, you could do it too, I’m sure. I like to speak frankly, I hope you don’t mind."

"I don’t mind," Su Ming’an said. He wasn’t angry at Qiao at all and remained very calm: "So, you want to trap me here. You take the Book of General Collection and lead Luowasha to happiness?"

"I’m a selfish person, I really want to do that." Qiao spread his hands: "But the problem is, we’ve benefited from your kindness. If I really did that, as someone who burns bridges after crossing, I fear I would be condemned by everyone. So, I’m in a difficult position and wanted to have a chat with you."

"I have a question." Su Ming’an looked around.

"Hmm?"

"I just tried, this is the core of the World Tree, the site of the World Rules, where all excessive abilities can’t take effect. So, if I leverage old ties to lure Noel Agnini here..."

Then, he hands over his Watcher’s identity to someone he trusts. That person would be like a new Yijulai’er, using the field advantage and the Power of Heaven and Earth... players, could they take this opportunity to shed their identities and leave?

This plan no longer requires him to sacrifice himself, someone else becomes the substitute for his destiny.

...He seems to understand the reason why Qiao is here.

"What exactly happened back then? Did you pass the witch identity to Sique at the cost of death? Are you dead or alive?" Su Ming’an asked.

"Ah." Qiao said: "Let Sique tell you this last part of the story when she wakes up. Time is tight, so I won’t elaborate."

He waved his right hand, and the apricot tree disappeared.

Instantly, branches and leaves surged up like ravenous vampire worms.

Qiao proactively stretched out his hands.

The branches and leaves found a new target and immediately drilled toward Qiao, greedily absorbing his blood, no longer focusing on Su Ming’an.

Su Ming’an stood aside, watching this scene.

...What a primitive bloodthirsty desire.

Nature is inherently primitive and cruel, as is the World Tree, it’s just a spirit tree with survival needs, following natural laws, filtering memory clips. Humans are merely sentimentally touched and bestow it with all kinds of praise.

"If I don’t agree to lure Noel Agnini, it would be me being drained by the branches and leaves right now," Su Ming’an said calmly.

Qiao’s face was pale, he squeezed his eyes: "A savior is a smart person, why ask such obvious questions. You’re great, but I’m a rational guy. I hope you won’t resent all of Luowasha because of this, I’m just one very selfish person among them."

"Aren’t you afraid I’ll agree and then run away?" Su Ming’an asked.

"I am, but as a small person like me, I can only pray for a promise from a ’big person.’ Besides this, there’s no other way, right?" Qiao said with a smile: "And also, please don’t take the Book of General Collection, just leave it here. The control over Eden is better left to the people of Luowasha, no need for you to trouble yourself."

He stroked the branches and leaves of the World Tree around him, as if stroking a kitten licking milk.

Blood dripped to the ground, only to be greedily licked by the branches and leaves.

Su Ming’an glanced at the Book of General Collection, knowing he couldn’t take it away, and there’s no need to. He crouched down, cut off a piece of Qi Zhou’s cat ear hat, placed it in his backpack, and turned to leave.

"Hope you’re still holding on when I see you next time."

Although Qiao’s every word was about interest, Su Ming’an didn’t hate such a person.

"Rest assured, my life force is tenacious, and the World Tree knows restraint, it’s just a gluttonous kitten..." Qiao’s voice drifted behind him.

The lake water flowed, the branches and leaves swayed, the wind carried the lingering scent of charred wood.

Su Ming’an walked a few steps and took out "Xiber’s Tracking Compass."

Previously, during the confrontation with Noel, he secretly left a mark, not knowing if it can accurately locate Noel. Logically, someone of Noel’s level should have mastered the method to block positioning.

The compass displayed a coordinate (2891, 7281, 121), uncertain if it’s correct.

"This coordinate is in..." Su Ming’an suddenly tightened his heart: "No.1 Experimental City?"

Isn’t Noel confronting everyone near the World Tree? Why does it show Noel in No.1 Experimental City?

...

No.1 Experimental City.

Current air temperature: 41 degrees.

A mass of white gelatin floats in the air.

God, the highest being, Artificial Lin Clan, World Ruler... It is the darling of this world.

It opened its eyes, coldly gazing at everything.

"You... why did you suddenly explode just now!" Ran Bo hysterically shouted: "You killed Liu Yan— you killed Liu Yan!"

The white gelatin calmly lowered its gaze, seemingly not understanding why its "father" was so angry, as it still lacks human emotions.

Even though Yijulai’er is gone, her fragment Xiao Bai still survives, Xiao Bai pressed Ran Bo: "Calm down!"

"How can I calm down! This thing that’s neither human nor ghost. It, it caused..." Ran Bo took a deep breath, trying to steady himself.

Suddenly, he felt pain, could it be that Sique was right? The experiment he persisted on ended up harming others.

"No, the experiment was successful. Its prototype is already very complete, just lacking a soul of justice and goodness, and a body full of energy." Suddenly, a voice full of laughter came through.

Xiao Bai instantly became alert. This is the Domain formed by the Time authority, outsiders cannot enter, who is this sudden voice?

She turned around, but suddenly felt her body weaken...

Simultaneously, Ran Bo also felt weak all over and fell down.

"Tap, tap, tap."

A black-robed man walked in slowly, looking up at the white gelatin in the air.

A few strands of golden hair floated up, revealing a pair of dark blue eyes.

He curled his lips, looked at the white gelatin, his eyes sparkled with a stunning light:

"What a masterpiece..."

"Lord of the Rin Clan, welcome to this world, would you like to become my true friend?"