I'm Trapped in the Block

Chapter 453: Chapter 450: Wreckage of the Mirror Surface

”The sky... it’s so beautiful.”

The giant bird soared through the sky, thin layers of clouds brushing past its feathers.

Sunlight pierced the tightly shut prison of fragments, reflecting the light of freedom.

’I wonder if they can see this.’

The giant bird did not lose itself in the world before it.

’There are still countless companions waiting for us to save them.’

They could see the sunlight above the clouds only because of the selfless sacrifices of their companions.

An Outer God had sacrificed its life to lead them away from the fragments, and their companions had sacrificed their freedom to send them into the sky.

’There are more important things to do.’

Transcendence has no end.

The giant bird took a long, deep look at the shimmering Sea of Creation, then slowly flew off into the distance...

The sea was vast. As they came to know this world, they searched for a way to allow all their companions to achieve transcendence.

In the process, they also slowly came to understand the origin of their own race:

The mirror-like surface of the Sea of Creation was alive. All the fragments had undergone simulations. Though they could no longer remain whole, they could still perform their original function.

Thus, each small fragment would simulate a small world.

But without the control of the Sea of Creation, these small worlds would manifest the original appearance of the mirror surface. The shape of each world was determined entirely by the shape of its fragment, making them monotonous and dull.

And their race was composed of the various surviving creatures from those once-complete simulated worlds.

They could have originally been any species. As the complete worlds shattered into fragments, they became the sole living beings within those fragmented worlds.

It was for this very reason that they possessed knowledge from some unknown origin.

The function of these simulated ”remains” was incomplete, and so their knowledge was also fragmented.

During their journey, they also found a way to mend this ”incompleteness.”

By injecting ”color” into the fragments.

Once they had color, their glass-like companions would revert to their original forms and begin to recover their former memories.

The mirror worlds, now possessing color, would become less monotonous. These world remnants would display their original appearances based on the colors.

Although this still couldn’t save their trapped companions, it could at least make their lives a little more interesting.

The knowledge mended thereafter could also help them explore this world.

And so, the originally transparent and monotonous glass fragments became vibrant and colorful.

However, even after recovering much of their knowledge, they still hadn’t found a way for them all to completely transcend.

But all knowledge pointed to the same method—making a wish to the Sea of Creation.

’To create a god to achieve their goal.’

And so, after a long and winding journey, they returned to the Sea of Creation, the place of their birth...

...

After listening to the Lego Bird’s memories, Li Luo was lost in thought for a long time.

She stared at the high mountain of fragments, contemplative.

Gently touching one of the smooth blocks, Li Luo asked cautiously, ”Are your companions still in here?”

”Of course.”

The block didn’t feel like glass at all; on the contrary, it was very rough.

”They don’t feel like glass. They feel like wood,” Li Luo said, expressing her confusion.

”Glass is too brittle,” the Lego Bird explained. ”We used a relic to change the fragments’ material. This allows them to transform and combine better, and it also reduces wear and tear.”

”Doesn’t that affect the companions inside?”

”Of course not. Those fragment worlds are simulations, not real. They are merely attached to the fragments. As I told you before, the mirror surface of the Sea of Creation is like a display screen, and these fragments are like individual glowing pixels. The worlds are just illusions being displayed.”

Li Luo nodded as she listened to the Lego Bird’s explanation.

”So, when you inject ’color,’ you’re just making the glowing pixels light up again, kind of like running a current through them?”

”A very fitting description,” the Lego Bird praised.

Although Li Luo couldn’t fully comprehend their methods, she could roughly guess the principle behind them.

What she didn’t understand was how the Outer God had managed to turn the images inside the ”television” real.

But she didn’t dwell on it. She was more concerned about the connection between the Block and them.

”Are you certain that the Block is the divine object of your race?”

”Of course. Nothing could be more suitable,” the Lego Bird replied without hesitation. ”That is true transcendence.”

At the mention of the Block, the small head excitedly popped out again.

”Human! You need not question our understanding of transcendence!”

”But why are you so certain?” Li Luo still didn’t understand.

Seeing Li Luo press the issue, the head extended two shriveled arms and scratched its head in frustration.

”I don’t know how to explain it to you! It’s just a feeling. It’s like when you see blue and red—you don’t have to think about it to tell them apart.”

”When you humans go to a temple to worship a god, you only bow to the statue of the god, not the threshold at the temple gate. Why is that?”

Li Luo thought for a moment and replied, ”Because we know the specific image of the god. We know a statue is a statue and a threshold is a threshold. We make independent judgments about these concepts.”

”We have the same kind of judgment about transcendence. We know it when we see it. But if you insist on asking why, it’s like asking us to explain why a ’threshold’ is a ’threshold.’ We really can’t explain it.”

The shriveled head spread its hands and said helplessly.

”Transcendence is special. It’s irreplaceable. Our feeling can’t be wrong! A statue is a statue, a threshold is a threshold, and transcendence is transcendence. Nobody can change that!”

The more the head spoke, the more agitated it became, wobbling back and forth on the Lego Bird’s back.

Seeing this, the Lego Bird quickly pulled it back and stuffed it among the blocks.

After hearing the head’s explanation, Li Luo had nothing more to say.

She could only look down at the canyon filled with fragments, her thoughts drifting far away.

The fragments on the ground shimmered. Li Luo thought she saw some small, block-shaped fragments among them, but when she looked closely, she realized it was just an illusion. They were just some very similar-looking pieces.

As she stared at one spot, she thought she glimpsed more block-shaped fragments in her peripheral vision.

When she turned her gaze toward them, the fragments she had just seen vanished again.

Li Luo rubbed her eyes in confusion and looked into the distance.

The outline of the canyon, formed by mountains of fragments, resembled a perfect square.

The piles of fragments on the ground also happened to form a perfect square.

Even the Lego Bird’s circling flight path had become a square.

’What’s happening?’

Li Luo closed her eyes and shook her head.

A gentle breeze blew past, and she felt that the wind itself was like a smooth, cut plane, like the flat surface of a block.

She snapped her eyes open and looked around in astonishment.

But everything before her suddenly became a little blurry. Li Luo had been in this canyon on the Lego Bird for some time, yet she suddenly felt that the canyon had become unfamiliar.

And yet, also somewhat familiar.

”The Block?” She suddenly felt as if the Block were right behind her, but when she turned to look, she saw nothing.

It wasn’t here, yet it seemed to be everywhere. The Shadow of the Block was all around.

Faint, indistinct outlines flickered in Li Luo’s peripheral vision. She subconsciously felt the Block was still there, but then she would suddenly remember the fact that it wasn’t.

This contradictory feeling made Li Luo frown.

She looked doubtfully toward the distant sky.

There, it seemed a strange gaze was fixed upon her.