He Yuliang spoke with righteous indignation.

However, as his "good brother," Jiang Ye wasn't exactly able to empathize deeply.

After all, as long as He Yuliang was alive, he would inevitably enter the Confusion state sooner or later.

Reaching a 50% life modification degree was actually quite easy to trigger.

What was truly difficult was achieving a 100% life modification degree to reach the Rebirth state.

What Jiang Ye was more curious about was, "So, did you die during the Confusion state? Or did you achieve the Rebirth state, experience some more things, and then return through rebirth?"

Of course, what he was even more curious about in his heart was—

After returning to this Save File moment, would He Yuliang's life modification degree from before his rebirth be recalculated based on the degree at this moment, or would it be calculated based on his state at the moment of his death in his previous life?

If he died and was reborn while in the Confusion state...

Then his life modification degree should be recalculated.

Because the current him was clearly not in the Confusion state.

And the answer He Yuliang gave was:

"I probably died... during the Confusion state, right?"

"Probably?" Jiang Ye was speechless. "You don't even know when you died?"

As soon as he asked this, Jiang Ye vaguely guessed the answer in his heart.

Sure enough, He Yuliang also explained, "Because during the Confusion state, my consciousness was chaotic."

"During that period, I didn't know who I was or what I was doing."

"Precisely because my consciousness was chaotic, the memories from that time are probably like a garbled mess to me, completely incomprehensible."

"I only know that during that period, I seemed to be completely controlled by an extremely intense emotion, that overwhelming fear that seemed to replace my own self..."

"It was like having a nightmare, feeling utterly desperate and terrified, yet no matter how hard I struggled, I couldn't wake up. And when I finally woke up, I couldn't remember anything."

"The reason I say 'probably' is because I can only confirm that I indeed entered the 'Confusion state,' but I can't confirm whether I crossed over from the 'Confusion state' to reach the 'Rebirth state.'"

"And to be honest, I really don't know when I died or what specifically caused my death..."

"When I first regained consciousness, my mind was still a bit muddled. It took me a good while to realize that I had probably returned to the moment of [Reroll Life]."

As he said this now, He Yuliang's tone was noticeably filled with emotion.

But in truth, the emotion conveyed in his tone was far from expressing the complexity he felt inside.

The "rebirth" he experienced wasn't like a simple game reload, letting everything start over.

The real, personal experience he felt was far more complex than a game reload.

So complex it was difficult to put into words.

This feeling was perhaps like Zhuangzi dreaming of being a butterfly, or perhaps like the dream of the yellow millet...

Even as he gradually adapted to this once-normal physical body, he began to doubt, as if waking from a deep dream—

Was that so-called "previous life" truly something he personally experienced, something that really happened?

Perhaps it was just a dream?

He Yuliang even began to wonder...

Would he, over time, gradually forget that "previous life" just like forgetting a dream?

This feeling made him somewhat panicked and anxious.

That's why he immediately recounted the general outline of his "previous life" experiences.

Of course, he also had some doubts in his heart...

Would his rebirth affect the judgment of the life modification degree in the [Paradox Protection] skill?

Was his current life modification degree calculated based on the moment he used the skill, or based on the moment of his death in his "previous life"?

Judging from the fact that he had now returned to normal from the Confusion state...

It seemed everything had reverted to the moment he used the skill.

But perhaps, it was also possible...

His recovery from the Confusion state to normal itself signified "Rebirth"?

Was it possible that the him from his previous life didn't actually die?

But finally progressed from the Confusion state to the Rebirth state.

And an effect accompanying the Rebirth state was returning to this moment of [Reroll Life]?

Filled with doubts, He Yuliang glanced at his Data Panel. Everything displayed was the same as what he saw after using the skill in his previous life.

Including the current him, who also didn't have any feeling of "Rebirth"...

So it should be that, due to the rebirth, he merely regressed from the Confusion state back to the normal state?

This question might only be answered when the him in this life triggers the Confusion state again?

As he was pondering this, Jiang Ye asked again:

"Do you know why Li Ku wanted to push you into the Confusion state?"

He Yuliang snapped back to attention and quickly replied, "At first, I thought he was greedy for power and didn't want me to die in a normal state and change 'history'..."

"After all, the three of us, relying on our pure black version bodies, possessed strength far exceeding that of ordinary players. And Li Ku had even gathered a group of loyal subordinates, built a powerful force, and almost took control of the entire Exile City!"

"However, later on, I thought about it carefully. The specific details of the [Paradox Protection] skill are something even I myself haven't fully figured out."

"So Li Ku probably couldn't be sure either whether I, reborn from the Confusion state, would definitely remain in the Confusion state or lose the memories from my normal state..."

"Plus, setting aside the fact that Li Ku deliberately accelerated my entry into the Confusion state, there actually wasn't any real conflict between me and Li Ku."

"Although he reached the peak of power, he didn't deliberately target me or Du Yuheng. He was even quite friendly towards us..."

"So, his reason for pushing me into the Confusion state probably has nothing to do with [Reroll Life]."

"Combined with the special circumstances at the time, I clearly felt that—"

"Li Ku's goal was definitely to make me enter the Confusion state before the 'maximum eclipse' phase of the 「solar eclipse」."

"So I speculate that perhaps my 'Confusion state' is related to something he wanted to do during the maximum eclipse phase of the 「solar eclipse」?"

Worried that Jiang Ye might not understand solar eclipses, he added, "According to descriptions from veteran players in Exile City, the 「solar eclipse」 phenomenon in this world is also divided into five phases, which are—"

"First contact, second contact, maximum eclipse, third contact, fourth contact."

"And the 「solar eclipse」 in this apocalyptic world lasts a full 30 days."

"The five phases last 3 days, 7 days, 10 days, 7 days, and 3 days respectively."

"The longest phase, the maximum eclipse period, is when the sun is obscured the most by the moon."

He Yuliang went on to share some more information about the world's 「solar eclipse」.

Jiang Ye listened attentively while simultaneously guessing in his heart what the future Li Ku was actually up to.

If he could guess, then Li Ku himself naturally could too.

After all, the key to realizing his dream lay in the 「solar eclipse」!

He just always felt that his dream was still far away.

Perhaps in some future 「solar eclipse」, he could realize his dream.

But he never expected that this "some future" one would be the very next one!

So he was actually this close to his dream!

Of course, what he was even more curious about in his heart was—

Did the future him actually achieve his dream?

Unfortunately, according to He Yuliang's description, he had already fallen into the Confusion state before the maximum eclipse of the solar eclipse.

And the him in the Confusion state couldn't perceive the outside world, so naturally, he couldn't know whether his dream was realized...

Thinking of this, Li Ku felt an unbearably itchy restlessness, wishing he could help He Yuliang recover the memories from his Confusion state period.

But he could probably guess in his heart—

The reason he forced He Yuliang to enter the Confusion state before the maximum eclipse of the 「solar eclipse」 was probably because He Yuliang in the Confusion state could serve some purpose during the maximum eclipse period.

It's just such a shame that He Yuliang himself, while in the Confusion state, just so happened to lack the memories from that very state.

This was equivalent to missing the most crucial piece of information!

Li Ku sighed inwardly with regret, while also having to notice—

Their free dinner time was running out!

They couldn't afford to waste any more time chatting like this!

The information from He Yuliang's previous life, and Du Yuheng's Reincarnation dream...

These could all be discussed after they reached Exile City.

After pondering for a moment, Li Ku still offered a subtle reminder to Jiang Ye:

"I'm afraid it won't be long before new and veteran players start arriving at the auditorium one after another..."

As he spoke, he cast a meaningful glance at those relief sculptures.

As for that pair of black wings...

There was no doubt that Jiang Ye, now aware of He Yuliang's "previous life," would not use his skill on them again.

At least not now.

But to be honest, Jiang Ye felt it was very strange—

According to its description, the [Grudge Memory] skill was merely for probing a segment of memory.

Why did using it on this pair of black wings cause the entire wings to burn?

Even the heat burst from the burning was so terrifying that it didn't even leave a corpse behind...

This...

Although [Grudge Memory] is rated SS-tier, it's almost purely a probing-type skill, meant only for information gathering.

How could using it on the auditorium reliefs and the black wings produce flames and dark energy?

That terrifying dark energy was probably inherent to the reliefs and wings themselves.

And the [Grudge Memory] probing skill acted as the fuse that ignited the dark energy?

Wait!

Probing-type skill...?

Jiang Ye suddenly realized...

Perhaps he shouldn't look down on so-called probing-type skills so much.

Because don't forget, he has a clone that surpasses even special permission identities, the most unique clone of all...

Not the mutated clone with the pure black body.

But that clone without even a physical body, in the [Existence Negation] state... the [Observer] clone!

The [Observer] clone itself has even lost its name.

It was directly named... Observer!

And in the hypothetical thought universe Jiang Ye imagined in the Mine, the most crucial element was undoubtedly the observer!

The entire operation of the thought universe relied on the intervention of the observer.

Just like the key to determining the life or death of Schrödinger's cat lies with the observer who opens the box!

So...

An unobserved relief and an observed relief...

Unobserved wings and observed wings...

Manifest as two completely different forms!

So...

This probing skill that Jiang Ye considered useless...

Perhaps truly deserves its SS-tier rating!

From this perspective, Du Yuheng's [Heart's Voice Externalized] is also a form of observation.

It's just that his observation-type skill can only be used on living beings.

While Jiang Ye's observation skill can be used on any individual!

However, considering the "previous life" revealed by He Yuliang...

He would probably have to be much more careful when using this observation-type skill in the future.

After all, each use is like opening a Schrödinger's cat box.

It's even more like forcibly stopping a constantly spinning Dice of Fate!

From this perspective...

No wonder the clone that forcibly stopped the [Dice of Fate] and then survived became the [Observer] of fate...

For a moment, Jiang Ye felt somewhat dazed.

Meanwhile, Li Ku beside him kept hinting that time was running out.

After snapping back to reality, Jiang Ye indeed had no intention of using his skill directly on the black wings like He Yuliang did in his previous life.

However, he also didn't plan to take the path from Du Yuheng's dream.

After pondering for a moment, he still equipped that pair of wings and flew up to the ceiling of the auditorium where the reliefs were.

To be precise, he flew to the location of the two small fish that had turned black.

According to Du Yuheng's description, he had an inexplicable sense of connection to the blackened reliefs.

Jiang Ye wasn't a dark-type creature, so naturally, he didn't have that dark-type creature's sensitivity to dark energy.

However, when he approached the two small fish, he did feel a scorching aura...

Looking more closely, there indeed seemed to be a layer of black ash covering the black small fish.

It looked like ashes from something that had burned.

Jiang Ye didn't have a Glyph Pattern Ability, so naturally, he couldn't absorb this dark energy.

However...

When he got closer and closer, spending over a minute carefully observing that pair of small fish.

Very inexplicably, he felt as if something had enlightened him, suddenly experiencing a moment of profound insight, a feeling of inspiration striking his heart.

Under this strange sensation, he felt somewhat dazed...

Then, as if guided by something, he moved closer and closer to those two "small fish"...

Until his entire eyes were completely pressed against the "small fish"!

In an instant, the layer of black ash covering them surged violently into his eyes!

That faint, almost imperceptible burning sensation stabbed at his eyes as if they were on fire, producing a fiery, scorching pain!

He even felt that fire burning from his eyes all the way to his throat, to his heart.

He violently coughed out several mouthfuls of black smoke, tears streaming uncontrollably from his eyes...

Yet in such a painful state, the most famous line by the poet Gu Cheng suddenly surfaced in his mind—

"The night gives me black eyes, yet I use them to seek light..."

In his daze, Jiang Ye's entire pair of eyes were firmly stuck to those two "small fish" as if by a magnet.

He forced himself to endure the burning pain, straining to keep his eyes wide open, staring into that layer of black ash...

For a moment, whether it was an illusion or not.

Within his blurred tears, it seemed he truly glimpsed light hidden within the darkness.

Of course, this could also be light from another direction refracted through his tears...

But hadn't he wondered before?

Why was this Grand Auditorium without any lights so bright?

Thinking from this angle...

The two completely blackened "small fish" truly contained light within!