Countless thoughts raced through the Human Emperor's mind as he braced himself to haggle with Yang Kai. He'd already resolved that if this fellow made any outrageous demands, he could play along for now—as long as he didn't try to seize the position of Human Emperor, everything else was negotiable. First, keep him calm. Then figure out a way to deal with him later.
"Tell me about the history of this Human Emperor City and the Reincarnation World."
"Hm? What?" The Human Emperor blinked, wondering if he'd misheard.
In his current position—as the fish on the chopping board—this outsider could do whatever he pleased, yet instead of making demands, he'd asked for something as simple as this. The Human Emperor had been ready to bleed for the guy, but the other party had only plucked a single hair... No, it wasn't even that.
"You really are getting old. Going deaf and blind, are you?" Yang Kai stared at him coldly, clearly displeased with the reaction.
Only then did the Human Emperor confirm that Yang Kai had genuinely made just such a simple request. He silently pondered the other's intentions while gathering his thoughts, then spoke: "Since the honored guest wishes to know, this emperor shall—"
"Hm?"
"This old man will just talk casually." An awkward expression crossed the Human Emperor's face. He'd spent his whole life with others watching his every expression—never imagining that one day he'd be the one watching someone else's.
"What this old man knows is limited. If there are any gaps, I ask that the honored guest not take offense."
Yang Kai waved his hand. "Cut the chatter."
The Human Emperor gave a dry cough, then began: "Truthfully speaking, the Reincarnation World is actually a part of the Star World. Of course, back then the Star World wasn't called the Star World. I'm not entirely sure what the ancestral homeland was called. The ancestors called themselves the Barbarian Tribes, and sorcery flourished among them. The people gathered together, living and multiplying in tribal units. Though there was internal strife, the human race thrived."
As he spoke, he covertly studied Yang Kai's expression and noticed it had grown somewhat strange, as though lost in nostalgia. Not sure which words had struck a nerve, he didn't dare stop and continued: "Then one day, the sky shattered and the earth cracked open. A massive hole appeared in the heavens, and from that void emerged powerful beings who invaded the Barbarian Tribes. Those beings from the unknown realm called themselves the Demon Race. The Demon Race had countless powerhouses, slaughter was their nature, and the many tribes suffered devastating casualties. Faced with such a powerful enemy, the ancestors naturally refused to sit idly by. They rallied the entire might of the Barbarian Tribes to fight back."
"The war between the two races was fiercely brutal. That battle seemed to have lasted many years, with staggering losses on both sides. And the battlefield of that war is what became the Reincarnation World."
Yang Kai raised an eyebrow in surprise. "The Reincarnation World was a battlefield? Then based on what you've said, why did it separate from the Star World?"
The Human Emperor replied: "The honored guest may not know, but the reason the ancestors were able to win that war seemed to have something to do with the Sacred Tree. According to the ancient texts, the Sacred Tree sacrificed itself to seal the channel through which the demons invaded. Unfortunately, in the end, something unforeseen occurred. The laws of the Star World and the Demon Domain clashed violently, casting the entire battlefield into the void—and thus the Reincarnation World was born. The humans and demons who survived the battle remained here ever since. In the beginning, the two races continued to war with each other, but the laws of this place were extremely peculiar, causing the human race to suffer greatly. The laws of the Reincarnation World shift. For a time, they resemble those of the Star World, and during those periods we humans can move about freely without being affected. But at other times, they become connected to the Demon Domain, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth is converted into demonic energy, making it impossible for humans to survive. In the end, it was the Sacred Tree that allowed us to gradually establish Human Emperor City, giving the human race a foothold. It has now been over a hundred thousand years."
Yang Kai nodded slightly, his gaze complex as he looked toward the towering ancient tree.
Qing was still alive. He wasn't that wise old man from back then, but he was indeed still alive—having preserved that last wisp of his will, using his own body to shelter the remnants of the human race. Without him, there would be nowhere left for humanity in the Reincarnation World.
Because when the laws suited demonkind, demonic energy ran rampant and humans simply could not survive.
Conversely, when the laws shifted, the demons weren't particularly restricted. Having endured such harsh conditions for so long, they were naturally unaffected even in more hospitable environments.
Much of the information the Human Emperor had revealed corroborated what Yang Kai had experienced in the Thousand Illusion Dream Realm, proving that neither the Human Emperor nor the Butterfly had lied. However, reality and illusion weren't entirely the same—at the very least, the illusory realm Yang Kai had experienced hadn't included the birth of the Reincarnation World, and Qing had completely perished in that battle.
He wasn't sure if it was the Butterfly's records that were inaccurate.
"So you're saying the Reincarnation World exists in a spatial rift?" Yang Kai asked with a frown.
The Human Emperor nodded. "That is correct. The ancestors had many speculations about the location of the Reincarnation World, but most agreed that it exists within a rift—one situated between the Star World and the Demon Domain. That is why the laws here are so unpredictable, sometimes influenced by the Star World's laws and other times saturated with those of the Demon Domain, splitting between two extremes."
Yang Kai nodded gently. Many of his doubts had now been explained.
When he'd been swallowed by that cold tide in the frozen wasteland, he'd felt fluctuations in spatial law. Thinking back on it, that cold tide was merely an entrance to another space—passing through it led to the Reincarnation World, similar to teleporting through a spatial formation, which naturally involved spatial law fluctuations.
The difference was that this teleportation wasn't between cities, nor between regions—it was a transmission across planes.
"Have you never considered leaving the Reincarnation World and returning to the Star World?" Yang Kai asked.
The Human Emperor gave a sheepish smile. "The ancestors did consider it. But the spatial barriers are impossibly sturdy. Not only are they nearly impossible to find, but even if one were found, who could break through?" At this, the Human Emperor's expression suddenly shifted, and he hesitated as he looked at Yang Kai. "The honored guest seems to be skilled in the power of space?"
He had previously asked Yang Kai how he'd managed to enter Human Emperor City without the Human Emperor's Seal.