Chapter 1100: Teacher Ye

Chen Ling was slightly startled.

The light in his eyes was unmistakably dim, and he lowered his head, falling into silence.

The Chen Ling of the past had the courage to face the Red Dust Domain alone because he knew he had the Ancient Treasury of the Play Path backing him; the Chen Ling of the past could recklessly make Lu Xun clear the way for him because he had comrades and brothers by his side, with a limitless future and high spirits... But now?

Now, he was just a homeless stray child, and everything that had once been his foundation had left him.

Capturing the change in Chen Ling's gaze, Teacher Ye paused for a moment and spoke again:

"Mr. Chen, actually I can understand you... No one in this world can always have smooth sailing, no one can always advance in high spirits. There are peaks and there are valleys, and it is precisely because of the valleys that people climb to higher peaks.

Zhao Yi has already sent me a letter in advance about your situation. No matter what confusion you have or what plans you have for the future, you can treat the Fusion Faction as a safe harbor. You can stay as long as you want, and when you have thought it through, we will not stop you if you want to leave...

In short, I hope you, like everyone else, treat this place as your own home, rather than some so-called 'organization'."

Chen Ling looked silently at the steaming tea cup before him. After a long time, he nodded:

"...Thank you."

"By the way." Teacher Ye suddenly thought of something and asked in confusion, "According to the time Zhao Yi sent me the letter, you should have arrived half a day ago... Was there something that delayed you?"

"Yes, we ran into Storm Island on the way."

Hearing the four words "Storm Island," Teacher Ye's eyes suddenly narrowed.

"Calamity of Thought... hmm... let me guess, did you make eye contact with it?"

Chen Ling was startled. "How did you know?"

"It likely sensed your aura, which is why it approached." Teacher Ye answered calmly. "The Calamity of Thought is a Calamity hidden in thoughts, without a physical body, so it is the most low-key among all World-Ending Calamities... But at the same time, it is related to all World-Ending Calamities.

The Scarlet Master of the Ghost Mockery Abyss has been missing for so long, and suddenly appeared deep in the Grey Realm. After it sensed it, it would naturally be curious to come and see you...

But don't worry, the relationship between the Calamity of Thought and the Calamity of Mockery is not as bad as that between the Calamity of Breath and the Calamity of Mockery. It shouldn't directly provoke you. But you should also be careful in the future; don't think about it when you have nothing to do. After all, as long as you think of it, it will have a sense of it, and may even directly intervene in your mind."

Teacher Ye's words left Chen Ling stunned on the spot...

He couldn't help but ask:

"Teacher Ye, do you... have a lot of research on World-Ending Calamities?"

Teacher Ye's words seemed to have thoroughly researched these few World-Ending Calamities, even knowing that the relationship between the Calamity of Mockery and the Calamity of Breath was not good. In Chen Ling's eyes, this plain-looking teacher was already shrouded in a layer of mystery.

"Me?" Teacher Ye smiled slightly. "It's not considered particularly deep research... However, I should be the first person in the world to start researching them, and also the one with the longest research duration... I have researched their abilities, territories, and offspring. Among humans, there probably isn't anyone who understands them better than I do."

In the early years, to help other researchers better understand the characteristics of the various World-Ending Calamities, I even summarized a short annotation for each of them.

What was the annotation I wrote for the Calamity of Mockery back then... Oh, I remember now: "The lonely nightmare of the storm of eternal slumber, the bizarre phantom at the end of all thoughts."

Chen Ling’s mouth hung open in shock.

"Those annotations... they were written by you? And their names, and the names of their territories..."

"I named them all." Teacher Ye used the lid of his teacup to gently scrape the foam from the surface of the tea, a look of reminiscence flashing in his eyes. "It’s all in the past now... By now, the human domains have likely struck me from their records. Those young scholars probably don't even know someone like me exists."

Chen Ling’s thoughts raced.

The leader of the Fusion Faction was an expert in the study of World-Ending Calamities—this news excited him. After all, his purpose in coming to the Fusion Faction was to better control the Calamity of Mockery. Originally, he had only held a sliver of hope for the Fusion Faction, but now, seeing Teacher Ye, that hope grew even stronger.

"Teacher Ye, to be honest..." Chen Ling got straight to the point. "I came to the Fusion Faction hoping to use your strength to control the Calamity of Mockery."

Teacher Ye was not surprised by Chen Ling’s goal. He rubbed his chin with one hand, lost in thought.

"Control the Calamity of Mockery, you say... That won't be easy. To be honest, if anyone in our Fusion Faction had this idea, I would tell them to give it up immediately. But you... you are different."

"Why am I different?"

"The Calamity of Mockery is not what people think of as a 'single calamity'; it is a collective of calamities that possess self-awareness and individual pursuits. It’s like an anthill: the queen is the brain that issues commands, while the other ants are its blood vessels and limbs. You can view a colony of ants as a cluster composed of hundreds of individual ants, or you can change your perspective and see them as a single, complete individual—an individual with thoughts and absolute executive power.

The power of the Calamity of Mockery is the strongest among all World-Ending Calamities. If not for its 'cluster' nature, which often leads to internal cannibalism and infighting, it might have already unified all the calamity territories and become the true King of Calamities... Therefore, for anyone to try and control even a sliver of the Calamity of Mockery's power is a delusion.

But you are different... because you yourself are one of the individuals that make up the 'Calamity of Mockery'... aren't you?"

Teacher Ye’s gaze locked onto Chen Ling’s eyes. This single sentence sent a violent shock through Chen Ling’s mind!

The world might know that Chen Ling was the Calamity of Mockery, but the fact that he was one of the audience members—a part of the Calamity of Mockery—remained a secret... Aside from himself and the Red King, no one should have known. Yet, Teacher Ye had seen through Chen Ling’s essence with just a single glance.

"How... did you figure that out?" Chen Ling was incredulous.

"As I said, no one can control the power of the Calamity of Mockery... but you have managed to do it. The only possibility is that you are one of the 'Calamity of Mockery' entities that has developed self-awareness." Teacher Ye paused for a moment.

"As for how you developed this consciousness, I cannot understand it. In my view, it is an absolute impossibility... but you have managed it nonetheless. That is why I have always wanted to meet you."

Chen Ling fell silent.

Chen Ling knew very well that this wasn't something he had achieved at all; it was the Red King’s doing...

"So, do I have any hope of controlling the Calamity of Mockery?" Chen Ling asked.

Teacher Ye pondered for a long time before nodding uncertainly.

"Perhaps... it’s worth a try."