Catastrophe Containment Facility
Chapter 709 - 699 Not the Lucky One

Chapter 709: Chapter 699 Not the Lucky One

Midlife Wen Wen, facing a much younger version of himself, was full of emotions.

In that instant, he realized many things. The past decade’s experiences were but an illusory dream under the power of the Jianzhen Spring.

Upon reflection, there were actually very few events from those years that he could remember, and the only things he clearly recalled were a few significant choices.

He looked at his hands, scarred and calloused, and said with emotion, "In this lifetime, I didn’t end up in that mental hospital, and thus missed my connection with the Sanctuary. I am no longer a special superpower user."

"Yet I still ended up on the same path as before, just entering the same realm more than a decade later..."

"Perhaps this is the Enlightenment of True Self."

The so-called True Self is finding one’s true identity. Eight or nine out of ten superpower users in the world rely on something to achieve their current strength.

It could be their own Superpower, a stroke of luck, a Containment Item, but Wen Wen’s main reliance was the Sanctuary.

The ability of the Jianzhen Spring is to let superpower users live through a dream that is both real and illusory.

However, this time, the life journey lacked the support that helped superpower users reach their current realm; everything had to rely on the superpower users themselves.

If under these circumstances, a superpower user could still tread the same path and reach the same realm, they could naturally break free from the constraints set by the limits of Remnant Spirits, breaking through the shackles of Strength and entering a new Realm.

That is... the Enlightenment of True Self!

Wen Wen’s lips curled into a smile. His mood was now unexpectedly clear, and he had a new outlook on the Sanctuary.

The choices he made in the dream, the accomplishments he achieved told him that his current strength was inevitable. The Sanctuary simply expedited this process.

Wen Wen wasn’t just someone who luckily gained the Sanctuary’s favor; even without it, he wouldn’t be totally unsuccessful. He would still strengthen himself and ensure his own safety in this unreasonable world.

"It seems those superpower users who left after just a few hours probably made the wrong choices, missing out on this opportunity."

As he pondered, middle-aged Wen Wen saw the young Wen Wen draw a longsword, flowing with blood-colored energy, his Qi firmly locked on him.

His eyes brimming with fighting spirit!

With a hearty laugh, the middle-aged Wen Wen held an old-fashioned revolver in his left hand and a military shovel in his right, as blood-colored energy surged around him in a frenzy.

"It seems a fight is necessary to end this..."

"Then bring it on!"

No sooner had he spoken than the military shovel and the Blood River Sword collided, the surging Energy causing the Jianzhen Spring to churn continuously.

Afterwards, the two exchanged blows and revealed their trump cards, causing the water of Jianzhen Spring to turn wildly.

Yet, Wen Wen sitting in meditation with his eyes closed and immersed in the water, had a slight smile on his lips.

In the underwater reflection, one young and one middle-aged; both were Wen Wen, yet neither were Wen Wen.

The consciousness of the actual Wen Wen was constantly switching between the two bodies, observing himself from another perspective, rapidly deepening his understanding of himself.

The young Wen Wen had the boost of the Sanctuary, possessing various abilities, while the middle-aged Wen Wen lacked flashy powers but had a better foundation and more combat experience.

The fight lasted three days. In the end, the Blood River Sword pierced through the middle-aged Wen Wen’s chest, and a bullet from the revolver entered the young Wen Wen’s eye socket. Both lost consciousness simultaneously.

At the same time, the Wen Wen sitting in the Jianzhen Spring opened his eyes, which seemed to carry an added depth of experience.

He stood up, his body devoid of any liquid, glanced at the giant creature made of light and shadows, and slowly gave a bow.

This journey of the Enlightenment of True Self did not grant him a direct increase in power, but there was no doubt his mindset had subtly shifted from before.

Wen Wen looked around and saw that he was the only one left in the hot spring room; it seemed that everyone else had already left.

"How long have I been sitting here? It must have been over ten years," he muttered to himself as he followed a little strawberry girl out of the strange hot spring room.

After waiting for a while, he flew out from the dried-up lake and landed on the ground.

At first glance, the tranquility on the back of the giant whale bore no resemblance to the noisy scene during the exchange meeting.

It looked like the ten-day exchange meeting had ended and everyone had gone, which was good for Wen Wen since he hadn’t wanted to participate in such a large event anyway.

Tao Qingqing jogged over and stopped beside Wen Wen, her eyes filled with a hint of surprise. She had thought Wen Wen might have died inside the belly of the giant whale during his many days of absence.

Wait, that would have been a good thing for her.

But Wen Wen, who had just come out, didn’t seem as fierce as he had been before entering the whale’s body. Being alive seemed better.

Tao Qingqing was no longer as reserved as she had been before and began to chatter beside Wen Wen’s ear.

After listening to her, Wen Wen realized that he had actually spent an entire month sitting in the Jianzhen Spring.

He felt somewhat relieved; at least it hadn’t been over a decade.

Other superpower users had spent at most fifteen or sixteen days inside the giant whale’s body, making Wen Wen the one who stayed the longest.

Qiao Feiya emerged from there a dozen days before with unstoppable golden sword light radiating from her body. She had surmounted the bottleneck of the Upper Sequence and become a superpower user of the True Order Realm.

Wen Wen wasn’t surprised by this at all; Qiao Feiya’s strength had always been among the very best in the Upper Sequence, and with sufficient preparation, passing that threshold was almost inevitable, provided she didn’t make any wrong choices.

Apart from Qiao Feiya, one superpower user from the U.S.-Canada District and another from the Yingua District also successfully advanced, and around a dozen others had made considerable gains.

Wen Wen felt a slight pang of regret; his own strength was only in the Middle Sequence. If he had had the top-tier strength in the Upper Sequence like Qiao Feiya, perhaps he could have broken through to the True Order Realm this time.

...

In the hot spring room that Wen Wen had left, the mono-eyed creature composed of light and shadow, sat quietly on the ground, closing its large single eye.

For the next three years, no living thing would enter this place, and it would not reopen until a new hot spring restored tranquility.

However, it didn’t notice that the surface of the Jianzhen Spring where Wen Wen had previously left suddenly calmed down again at an extremely fast pace, smooth as a mirror.

A figure in a black robe stood upon the silver mirror-like surface where the two Wen Wens had fought, an air of anticipation in his eyes.

"This is indeed an interesting place. Could it grant me a second life too..." he mused.

He closed his eyes, his mind seemingly traveling back to the moment he was born, countless years ago...

A few seconds later, the whole room began to tremble, issuing a strained creaking noise.

The mono-eyed creature suddenly stood up, mixing anger with panic, an abnormality that had never happened here before.

The Man in Black Robe opened his eyes and gave a wry smile.

"So even seeking solace in the sanctuary of fantasy is not allowed, haha..."

"Sigh..."

The Jianzhen Spring returned to tranquility once again, as if nothing had ever occurred.