Tang ignored the System's frantic roars and dark, creeping whispers, as well as the theater core's calm and peaceful, 'just kill me already,' 'oh yeah, sure' attitude of giving up.
He first floated to his body, wanting to touch it, but as expected, he passed right through, as if in a different space.
Tang then looked at the System and the theater core, floated over, but his hand also passed through them without causing any reaction.
"Not in the same space..."
He began to examine himself.
A state similar to a spirit body, yet unable to communicate with the System and the theater core, unable to lift the sun scepter, an item mixed with his own spirituality, and unable to return to his body.
The System and he were bound in terms of spirit body. There were countless connections between body, mind, and spirit. The collision between the Knowledge Wilderness and the Chaos Sea had 'thrown' his spirit body out, but the System couldn't find Tang's spirit body starting from the 'body'...
No, whether it was the collision of the two Primordial Ones that caused his spirit body to be thrown out was uncertain now... Was it intentional or unintentional? The System also didn't come out with him.
The System served as a carrier for a portion of the Knowledge Wilderness's power and remained in his body. And even though the Knowledge Wilderness had withdrawn, his spirit body showed no intention of returning.
"Spirit body ejection is not a ritual effect, so I can't return by dispelling the ritual. This state should be no better than a Sequence Five Wraith without protection, perhaps even worse."
But facing the impact of the two Primordial Ones directly without going mad on the spot—was it because the Knowledge Wilderness and the Chaos Sea weren't targeting him?
No, with insufficient level, even if they weren't targeting him, as long as he 'saw,' the result would only be death beyond death.
The terrifying gap between levels would instantly submerge him in contamination!
The reason why he was still intact and not submerged now was because the level gap had been filled, and he couldn't be affected by such superficial channels as 'seeing.'
And thinking about the things he could recall, plus the fact that the connection established solely by 'seeing' couldn't contaminate him... perhaps his own level had been raised.
His current state was a fundamental change brought about by the increase in level.
"The System can use 'Knowledge Devours the Person' to raise its own level. Similarly, when the System separates from me, my own level can receive the same increase, liberating the special nature of my spirit body."
Could the System and the suppressor be equated?
Then, why?
Tang looked around. The huge theater was clear at a glance, just like before when he saw the various mysteries hidden in the countless mad knowledge of the Knowledge Wilderness. The turbid power of the Chaos Sea surged from the depths. In his current state, however, he could see countless marionettes hidden by the black curtain, see the theater core, see the countless spirit threads and the mad knowledge dotted on the curtain.
The inner thoughts and communication between the System and the theater core were equally prominent in his eyes, with no secrets.
Like a 'bystander,' Tang thought.
"Somewhat similar to the Audience, but more than the Audience, able to 'see' more essential things."
"However, the Audience can influence the development of the play, while my current state is a more objective observation, unable to touch or influence anything that happens."
His level in this state was high enough.
But the danger was also great enough.
Tang thought of the scenes he had once seen but forgotten.
He had observed those scenes, but could those beings of the same level as him, or even higher, also detect his prying in reverse?
If they did detect him, then with only Sequence Five Extraordinary power, he couldn't resist. Would he be instantly contaminated, becoming something like the Bound Angel?
High level wasn't necessarily a good thing. Having level without power was also courting death.
The System suppressing Tang's level was also indirectly protecting him, preventing him from encountering certain terrifying things prematurely.
"This kind of golden finger is worse than none..." he muttered.
Without the System's suppression, he estimated that he would be instantly contaminated upon landing, after observing the essence of certain things above the starry sky and being detected by the other party in reverse.
The state of 'Knowledge Devours the Person' being able to elevate his level was not only due to his own special nature and those ancient knowledges. The level represented by 'mad knowledge' was equally important, preventing him from facing those things with only level and no ability to resist.
"Try to exhaust my spirituality and see if I can return to my original body by relying on the instinctive reaction of spirituality."
Tang let out a breath. Having understood these things, he prepared to try to return to his body.
Tang hadn't researched the spirit body too deeply. The Master of Marionettes' operations focused more on spirit threads. The spirit body was the main field of pathways like the Audience and the Death. His current state was an area that his mystical knowledge couldn't temporarily reach.
Regarding this, Tang tried to poke around his spirit body again to see if there were any System remnants.
For example, a sub-system attached to the spirit body, connection lines, etc. Then he really found some things within the depths of his spirit body that didn't belong to him.
Those were the characters that carried civilization, those were the mad knowledge.
[Spirituality exhausted, return possible]
When he saw those symbols, Tang's spirituality subconsciously interpreted the content contained within them.
Seeing this, his heart also subconsciously settled down.
"As expected, it's mad knowledge."
It was the Knowledge Wilderness that triggered this state of mine. What did the Knowledge Wilderness want to do? What did it want to get from me?
...Ah no, it feels like I'm about to grow a brain.
"No matter what it wants to do, I'm not on the Knowledge pathway. Even if it wants to cultivate me as a potion, it won't be afraid of the Lord of the Mysteries waking up inside it after eating me."
Choosing the Seer pathway instead of the Knowledge pathway was also due to such concerns.
So he didn't listen to a single word the System said about switching pathways.
"Then, since 'mad knowledge' is present, perhaps I can try to observe..."
He knew that his 'observation' could also rapidly consume his own spirituality.
Tang slowly floated out of the theater, through the huge curtain, and arrived in a forest.
Then, he saw a scene he would never forget in his life.
"!!"
Tang was momentarily too shocked to articulate.
In this perspective, the sky was no longer the sky.
The entire foundation of Tingen was turning over. The distant places that should have been impossible to see twisted upwards, rising from the ground, as if countless stones and earth had turned into large bowls, inverted over the starry sky above!
They rolled, twisted, flowers and trees, stone buildings, walking crowds, hawking vendors, all hung upside down or perpendicular to the raised ground like a drawing paper, completely putting the entire Tingen into Tang's sight!
A scene that should have been absolutely impossible suddenly appeared before him!
(End of this chapter)