Book 3, Chapter 136: World Ring

Chen Chuan looked down and picked up the agreement to read its contents. It had all the non-disclosure clauses for the conversation.

He wasn’t completely banned from saying anything. If he wanted, he could reveal certain details to his family, though that depended on the situation, and his family had to sign the NDA too. The number of people he could share it with was limited to two.

There were plenty of clauses in the NDA. They had considered all the possibilities.

Chen Chuan could also see some barely noticeable arrays at the bottom of the agreement. They had to have even used a legalized ritual when drafting the agreement.

If they used such means to keep people quiet, this was definitely very important. Chen Chuan had reason to believe that it pertained to the real secrets of Central City.

Part of the reason why he had used a much shorter time than other people to enter Central City and become a Third Limit martial artist was because he wanted to seize the opportunity that might or might not exist.

Now, the information hidden under his nose was within his grasp. The door was right in front of him, and the moment he opened it, it was going to be revealed to him. He could not miss it.

Without any hesitation, Chen Chuan set down the agreement, picked up the pen beside him, and signed his name.

His second self blurred out a little, and that effect stayed, as if he was now under permanent surveillance, but it didn’t do him any harm.

So, he ignored it and looked at the two people before him.

The woman picked up the signed agreement and scanned it with her Realm Pass, as if to record it. Then, she handed it to Special Officer Liang.

He checked it as well before handing it back to her. The woman then went to the side and locked the agreement in a metal box.

Special Officer Liang turned to Chen Chuan, and his expression turned stern. “Officer Chen, since you’ve signed the agreement, please listen carefully to what I have to say.

“A huge crisis is in the making for our world. Another world is getting closer to ours.”

Chen Chuan’s eyes narrowed in brief surprise. “Another world?”

Special Officer Liang nodded. “Yes. Another world. Based on our understanding of that place, we can only call it another world for the time being. Even though we’ve been fighting against it for a long time, our understanding of it is still very limited.

“Both worlds are attracting and guiding each other to close the gap between them.”

Just then, Chen Chuan remembered something. He had seen a huge whirlpool in the sky when he reached the Third Limit. Could it be that thing?

After pondering over it for a while, he looked up and asked, “What’s this world like? When did it start getting closer to our world?”

“This other world didn’t show up out of the blue. This isn’t the first time it has contacted our world either,” Special Officer Liang explained.

“Really?”

“Yes. Let me give you an example. The two worlds are like celestial bodies that are close to each other and attract each other. Sometimes, they get very close to one another, while sometimes, they move further away. When the other world is further away, its effects are weaker. When it’s closer, the effects are stronger.”

Then, his voice turned grim. “The rise and fall of dynasties and civilizations in the past were all related to the effects that world has on ours.

“When it gets close to us, we call it the era of change. When it’s far away, we call it the era of dormancy.

“Now, some things have changed. That world is getting closer to us than ever before, and the era of change is stretching out longer and longer, as if it’s not going to end.

“Based on our observations, if this continues, some day, that world might just collide with ours.

“We don’t know when that will happen, but it’s certain that we will be facing an unprecedented danger. For now, we’re calling it the Great Crash.”

“The Great Crash...” Chen Chuan echoed, and his heart trembled. From the name alone, he could imagine what was going to happen.

“How much time do we have until the Great Crash?”

“We can’t tell for certain, but the era of change’s usual length has already been surpassed by at least two hundred years.

“Based on long term observations and deductions, if we don’t do anything, it’ll happen within two to three years. If we work to stop it, it might happen in twenty years.”

“Are you saying we can salvage the situation?” Chen Chuan asked.

“Dangers also bring about opportunities. When we get closer to that world, our world goes through unprecedented changes.

“In order to maintain their rule, the empire in the old era poured vast amounts of resources into investigating and researching the possible collision between the two worlds, but they weren’t expecting it to lead to another outcome. The revolution happened within a hundred years of them starting the research.

“Over the past hundred years, our technology has evolved rapidly. The appearance of high-energy algae and the Algae Sap Revolution has led to multiple changes in the political situation. Many empires that had ruled over their countries for centuries or millennia crumbled, and their research results were taken over by the countries that were built upon their graves.

“The new era came immediately after. The countries and companies that toppled the old empires formed a mega alliance.

“In order to fight the upcoming crisis, we’ve gathered our resources at the contact and vulnerability points of both worlds and formed cities and defense positions in these areas. It’s all in order to get first-hand information about the possible collision of the worlds as well as accept or isolate the things that might come from the other world.”

As Special Officer Liang spoke, the world’s map appeared around him and on the wide arc-shaped wall. Chen Chuan could see the outline of all continents. Then, various spots all over the map lit up.

“Those are the Central Cities of the world. They are built upon the anchor and guiding points of the two worlds. They’re front lines and fortresses of our resistance. Jibei Road’s Central City is one of them.”

Chen Chuan turned to the spots of light on the map. The Great Shun Republic could be said to be located in one extreme of the world and had more than one-fifth of the Central Cities in the world, which was due to the size of the country.

Special Officer Liang turned around and looked at the spots of light. With a rather regrettable expression, he said, “It’s a pity that the mega alliance collapsed within less than thirty years. Now, it exists in name only and is nothing more than a communication platform between the countries and mega corporations.”

Chen Chuan observed the map for a while more before asking, “What does the other world look like?”

“No one knows. It’s different from our world that we’re familiar with. I believe you know about the abnormalities,” Special Officer Liang said.

“I do,” Chen Chuan confirmed. The government said that abnormalities included supernatural beings and all things rituals could mobilize. Both of them were categorized under the same umbrella.

“A portion of them are born from the effects of the two worlds getting closer. Some of them are reflections of that world. I believe this will give you a better grasp of what the other world looks like.”

After some thinking, Chen Chuan could somewhat understand what Special Officer Liang was saying.

“I mentioned just now that up to this point, we don’t know much about the other world. Perhaps we will only gain a deeper understanding of it when the Great Crash finally happens, but I don’t want to see that day arrive.” Special Officer Liang’s voice was grim.

The room fell silent. None of them said a thing. Only the spots of light on the map remained shining.

After a while, Special Officer Liang turned around and said sternly, “Alright. You’ve learned the secret. Let’s talk about you now. I’m going to tell you the restrictions and responsibilities you must face as a Third Limit martial artist.

“As the other world gets ever closer, a middle line has appeared between the two worlds. You can think of it as a transitional border. Perhaps due to the effects the worlds have on each other, our world, which is the physical world, becomes really fragile and weak upon closeness.

“After long periods of observation, we’ve confirmed that by weakening the onslaught from the other world, we can slow down the arrival of the Great Crash. As our technology improved, we’ve also found more ways to fight against this upcoming unprecedented change.

“We’ve used technology to set up a barrier at the middle line, which we call the World Ring. It’s also known as the World Curtain. Its goal is to slow down the arrival of the Great Crash and stop certain existences from the other world from coming over.

“But this barrier isn’t airtight. The other world keeps pressing against it, and sometimes, some of the creatures spill over.

“Due to the transcendence of the mind, Third Limit martial artists often actively or passively come into contact or sense the creatures from the other world. Some people are unable to differentiate between what’s in our world and what’s in that world, so they end up confused and lose their minds. Some of them also fall for their temptations and try to destroy the World Ring in order to come into contact with the existences in that world.

“Hence, our first rule is that the Third Limit martial artists are forbidden from personally seeking out those existences. You are also required to be examined regularly. We’ve set up strict checks on the World Ring as well. If we find anyone going over or trying to break the World Ring, we will immediately arrest them and kill them.

“At the same time, martial artists who have signed the NDA and learned the truth must accept the country’s summons when it needs your service. Your organization will determine what exactly you need to do.”

As Special Officer Liang watched Chen Chuan sink into contemplative silence, he added, “There’s more. At your limit, you won’t be able to find certain training medicine in the market. Only martial artists participating in the World Ring Defense System and having a certain number of achievements are allowed access to it.

“That’s why we don’t force the martial artists to participate, but you should think about what you should do.

“I’ve already told you everything you need to know, so this is the end of our conversation.

“You can go back now, Officer Chen.”

The woman walked over with a polite smile. “This way, Officer Chen.”

Chen Chuan cast one last glance at the world on the map before turning to Special Officer Liang. “I never got your name, sir.”

“Liang Guanghai, special officer stationed in Jibei Road’s Central City, and World Ring representative of the Great Shun Republic’s National Defense.”