"To think...to think...I truly…" The 'avatar' of Yri words were a mess, her eyes and lips displayed distinct contradictions. This 'avatar' had a chaotic emotional state as her eyes were shrouded in raw disbelief and her mouth held the happiness and hearty smile imaginable.
Yan Zaizen sighed. Rising, he turned to Yri. When he first scanned her, he felt that Yri was an avatar left behind with a predetermined set of timed messages, but he was wrong. No, it would be best to say he wasn't entirely correct.
The situation wasn't as expected and even he felt it slightly ludicrous, but with his comprehension of the heavenly laws, it only took some clues to figure it out.
"When are you from?" His abrupt question caused the 'avatar' to turn silent for a long, very long moment. Yan Zaizen didn't force it.
"...Thirty-seven billion years." Yri responded calmly, her previous chaotic emotions were doused by shock. Her eyes no longer revealed pure excitement or disbelief, but deep seriousness as she looked towards Yan Zaizen. "Truly befitting the title of a Non."
Yan Zaizen's eyes flashed profoundly. He knew that her words referred to his perception, deducing her true situation, but also likely how he completed her trial. Now he knew that the moment he awoke in her falsely real world, this Yri had noticed.
"Time is fascinating, no?" Yri chuckled, her voice was like soft cotton. It was remarkably pleasing to the ears unlike before, filled with stiffness and fanaticism.
"Indeed, it is." Yan Zaizen naturally agreed. After all, this disconnected world was a temporal void. It was devoid of all laws except time. After all, without time laws, there is no progression. The moment he realized this, he garnered some clues. Yri didn't 'exist' in the present but the past. Using this temporal void where time was undefined, she was currently 'alive' thirty-seven billion years ago.
The her here was her true self. If what Yan Zaizen did earlier was create a time remnant for his present self, then Yri was doing the same but in a location where the 'present' wasn't defined so easily. There would be no true point in doing this as a temporal void would just be emptiness, limiting one to operate solely in the temporal void.
However, it was truly ingeniously done. With how her situation was, her 'present' self thirty-seven billion years won't be forced to follow this 'path' and it could exist indefinitely in this small gap of existence.
"I now know my art is possible. I must thank you." Yri calmly said. However, Yan Zaizen shook his head. Yri may know this, but she wouldn't be able to truly know unless she can live thirty-seven billion years. Only then would she learn of this information, but that was impossible. After all, he only exists thirty-seven billion years later.
A time remnant wasn't an Astral Remnant or clone, and it had deep limitations in regards to knowledge and 'paths'. Even in undefined areas of time like this temporal void.
"I will survive," Yri decisively said.
Yan Zaizen deeply looked towards this woman. He didn't reply. Whether she could survive that span of time or not had nothing to do with him. "What is a Non?"
"..." Yri looked calmly at Yan Zaizen's eyes for a long moment. Only after a very long time passed did she nod slowly as if making a decision. "Three questions. This will be my repayment for your risk.."
Yan Zaizen's eyes brightened considerably when he heard this. It was exceptionally rare to be able to hear from a being who existed thirty-seven billion years ago, literally speaking across the vast river that was time. He did risk his very life to attempt her art, so it was only fair.
"Okay," Yan Zaizen agreed.
"A Non...is a Child of the Non-Verse," Yri answered.
"...what?" This question hit Yan Zaizen like a sneak attack. A child of the Non-Verse? What the hell? There are records of Non-Entities being born in the myriad realms, likely even more so in the thirty-three heavens, so how could it be a child of the…
Then, it clicked.
The Non Universe & Vast Expanse, Thirty-Three Heavens, False Heavenly Universe, Border Expanse, and the spiritual entities.
Holy shi…
Yan Zaizen, for the first time, felt like the world truly was battered by thunder!
The Vast Expanse was a sea, the thirty-three heavens were like islands on this sea, and the Border Expanse contained creatures of spirituality. Long ago, he suspected that the Border Expanse was the remnants of a collapsed universe!
However, now he had a theory. A theory so absurd that it could very well be true! What if, hear this thought out, the Non Universe was truly the sea that the thirty-three heavens were built on!! Then, those minor clues seem to connect.
If so, then what about the spiritual creatures of Border Expanse? Simple! They came from the Non Universe!
Wait…
No, that didn't feel right.
Yan Zaizen went into deep thought. Those spiritual creatures didn't exist in the Non Universe and he should know, he devoured a large portion of its laws, constructed his own sub-realm, and there was nothing surrounding creatures of that degree, but…
But…
Yan Zaizen grew more confused. So confused in fact that he couldn't even think properly.
The Non Universe could give birth to a truly pure physical existence absent of mortal taint and a soul...a Non-Entity. This aligned perfectly with the Non Universe's core laws. If the thirty-three heavens were within the Non Universe, then this was a logical conclusion. However, that was only one piece of the grand puzzle. It doesn't explain the Border Expanse or the Thirty-Three Heavens.
He only understood why it would be called a 'false' heavenly universe, but then...what's a 'true' heavenly universe? What about the Earths and Skies, both below and above?
Was there a universe above a universe? A universe below all other universes?
Then, what the hell is the Thirty-Three Heavens?!
The Non-Universe obviously hadn't collapsed, so what about the spiritual existences in the Border Expanse?!?!
In frustration, he ruffled his hair. "My second question! What is the Border Expanse?!"
Yri had calmly looked at Yan Zaizen go through an array of thoughts, but she remained calm and even slightly amused. A Non who didn't know they were a Non! That was truly interesting. It was like a human being born on earth but not knowing they were born by other humans.
However, when Yan Zaizen asked his second question, her eyebrow rose in response. Border Expanse?
"I...don't know what that is." Yri was someone from thirty-seven billion years, only existing in this isolated temporal void. She had no idea what Yan Zaizen was speaking of.
This caused Yan Zaizen to be shocked. How could she not know? Wasn't she born beneath the heavens?! How could a powerful being NOT know?
"You...what about the thirty-three heavens, what is the thirty-three heavens?!" Yan Zaizen asked.
"...Thirty...three...heavens?" Yri grew even more confused. From what she knew, there were only nine heavens, not thirty-three. "I only know of nine heavens in my time."
"!" Yan Zaizen was shocked by her words, visibly so. "You know I'm a member of the Non Universe, then answer this: Where did you set up your trial?" He had some theories as to why Yri was ignorant.
"Heavenly Origin Grounds, Third Layer." Yri frowned. She didn't count the other two questions she couldn't answer, so this was Yan Zaizen's second legitimate question.
"Heavenly Origin Grounds...Third Layer…" Thinking about this, he wanted to ask how many layers were in the Heavenly Origin Grounds, but he decided against it. That was...because he had a very frightening theory. He suspected the Heavenly Origin Grounds were a set of nine!
If he delved deeper, it didn't seem uncommon for other universes to enter these Heavenly Origin Grounds, considering she took him as a Child of the Non Universe so calmly. This was indicative of a greater realization! In her time, many different universes often interacted and they had humanoid appearances!
"You have one last question, then I'll strive towards my goal." Yri impatiently spoke. The more she heard about the future, the more she became intrigued and wanted to set off the mechanism to alert her 'present' self.
"Fine. Then, my last question: what is your cultivation level?" With the discrepancy of thirty-seven billion years, there wasn't much he could ask for besides answers, but that was unlikely. He also decided not to waste questions on his earlier musings about the falsely real world and Yan Linzen. Regardless of the answer to them, he couldn't take action against someone who's likely long dead.
Yri was shocked at this question which was completely unrelated to the first two questions. "Celestial Monarch, Ninth Phase." After saying that, she didn't elaborate, but vanished into thin air.
The temporal void grew distorted as Yan Zaizen felt an attractive force and was rapidly carried upwards. The blackness distorted like swirling water before Yan Zaizen's vision swam momentarily. When it ended, he returned back to his cave.
Ignoring the sudden shift in environment, he slowly spoke, "A Celestial!"