I'm Trapped in the Block

Where did the ancestors of humanity come from?

How did cells first appear?

This question had long plagued the humans of two different worlds, and it had been a constant torment for Liang Zhi.

Especially after he discovered that he might be the only person who knew of the existence of two types of cells.

A sense of mission arose in his heart.

Or perhaps it was just a curiosity that stemmed from the depths of life itself.

He began to search for the organism he theorized about—the origin cell.

The common ancestor of both types of cells, and also the common ancestor of humanity in both worlds.

Liang Zhi believed this cell was most likely to appear in the border region between the two forms of life—near the Big Tree Cave.

So he began to continuously explore the Big Tree Cave, and slowly, he established a life for himself in this world.

He even came to know a group of companions from this world.

In the process of interacting with the humans of this world, Liang Zhi increasingly felt that there was no difference between the two forms of life.

Finally, after a routine exploration, he discovered these strange eggs filled with a transparent liquid somewhere underground near the Big Tree Cave.

He felt that the liquid inside these strange eggs was a strong match for his hypothesis about the origin cells.

But near these strange eggs, there was a type of zone that could accelerate the evolution of Theseus Cells, a zone that made it impossible for him to advance.

He also discovered that because of the stability of normal cells, these strange eggs had no effect on them.

In other words, all he needed was to find a human with normal cells, and he could obtain the liquid from within the strange eggs.

But Liang Zhi chose not to do so. Having spent so much time in both worlds, he knew exactly what would happen if humanity learned of the existence of another type of cell.

Prejudice and arrogance would bring the research to a standstill and might even jeopardize his personal safety.

So he chose to do it himself.

If he could just find a relic that could alter his own cellular structure, he would be able to enter the accelerated evolution zone directly.

The Druid’s Spine—a very useful relic—caught Liang Zhi’s eye.

He went to great lengths to find one, and then he paid the price.

The spine burrowed into his body, and through it, he gained the ability to transform into other creatures, including normal-cell lifeforms.

He returned, full of joy, to the place where he had first found the strange eggs, but something odd happened.

The strange eggs were gone.

Along with the entire accelerated evolution zone, the strange eggs had vanished as if they had evaporated, leaving no trace behind.

Liang Zhi frantically searched the entire area but still found nothing.

So he began to search for the strange eggs relentlessly.

A long time passed with no success, but then something even more unfortunate occurred.

The Theseus Cells were discovered.

Just as Liang Zhi had expected, everyone’s attitude toward these cells was one of fear, worry, and even outright hostility.

Prejudice was immutable. High walls were quickly erected, and the Hunter units at the outposts were swiftly deployed.

The area he could once enter freely soon became a heavily guarded "restricted zone," and even he could no longer come and go as he pleased.

Even though he had become the station chief of the 7th Monitoring Station by this time, he still had no way to change everyone’s perspective.

And so, he could only go with the flow, hiding his own opinions and pretending to be deeply concerned about these cells as well.

During a major inspection at the monitoring station later on, he once again used the Druid’s Spine to turn himself into a human, passing the inspection and living a life of disguise ever since.

But the desire to seek the truth cannot be disguised.

He began to frequent the restricted zone, using the study of Theseus Cells as an excuse.

But every time he came to the restricted zone, large groups of Hunter Squads and researchers would follow him.

The outpost’s checks for entry and exit were also extremely strict. Even research equipment and materials required official reports and records to move in or out of the restricted zone.

Not even the station chief of the monitoring station was an exception.

Thus, the plan to find the strange eggs stalled once again.

So he began to explore other avenues, attempting to use creatures from the other world for his experiments.

The Red Rope Worm was one of them.

He tried to use the Red Rope Worm’s homing abilities to find the location of the strange eggs, but unfortunately, the experiment ultimately failed and even caused the Vibrating Beasts to rampage.

Through his research on relics, he discovered the "Ugly Duckling Phenomenon," an unknown phenomenon that could be used to track a species of origin.

But how could he create a species that exhibited the Ugly Duckling Phenomenon?

The answer was mutation.

In the other world, the Ugly Duckling Phenomenon was known as the "Mutant Offspring Massacre Phenomenon."

A very straightforward name. This phenomenon only occurred in bizarre-looking offspring, who would first slaughter their own parents and then kill every other creature they encountered.

The more bizarre-looking offspring that appeared, the more frequently this phenomenon would occur.

Only after coming to this world did Liang Zhi realize that the mutant offspring were simply identifying their species of origin as Theseus Cell Life, which is why they slaughtered indiscriminately.

This also led to the phenomenon manifesting completely differently in the two worlds. It took him a very long time to connect these two relic phenomena that had completely different names.

So he began to think of a way to induce large-scale mutations.

Thinking of his Druid’s Spine, Liang Zhi came up with a plan.

He first modified a Tree Transformation, giving it sentience, and then instilled in its mind the obsession to use the Druid’s Spine to save its kind.

Then, he threw it into the Big Tree Cave, allowing it to return to the other side.

And then, he made use of the voice of God.

At this point, Captain Su interrupted him, asking, "The voice of God can be used?"

Liang Zhi smiled and said, "That was never the voice of a god."

In their world, this relic phenomenon was called "Mind Broadcasting." They had even researched its cost and were able to use it.

Mind Broadcasting could twist and amplify the thoughts of one creature and then broadcast them to all other creatures within a certain area.

It would compel other creatures to carry out the actions in those thoughts and would kill those that disobeyed, causing them to simply vanish.

This was also knowledge from the other world. Liang Zhi had cleverly exploited the information gap between the two worlds.

"Do you know, on the West Bank of the Jordan River, when the voice of God first appeared, whose thoughts it was amplifying?"

Seeing that no one answered, Liang Zhi continued his explanation:

"A cicada."

A cicada larva typically lives underground for two to three years, or as long as five to six years.

After its long life underground, the cicada larva finally digs its way out, leaving small, round holes in the ground, and begins its seven-day life as an adult.

It is from the very day it prepares to emerge from the ground that a thought appears in the larva’s mind—Let there be light.

Once the cicada emerges from the ground, painstakingly climbs onto a blade of grass or a treetop, and sheds its pale yellow nymphal skin, it finally becomes a winged cicada.

After molting, it began to enjoy the fresh air, and so another thought appeared—Let there be breath.

It wanted to drink, and so the thought "Let there be water" appeared in its heart.

With all preparations complete, it began its journey to find a mate, giving rise to the notion, "Let there be movement."

During its journey, the ubiquitous predators caused the thought "Let there be hiding" to appear.

And the frequent human activity in the outside world made the cicada think, "Beware the humans."

Finally, when it had at last completed its task of continuing the species, it felt it could find a place to die in silence.

Thus, the thought "Let there be death" was born, and it ultimately became the root of despair.

Mind Broadcasting twisted the cicada’s instinctive, insectoid thoughts into sounds that humans could understand and broadcast them out.

The adult cicada’s life is only seven days long, yet within its short life cycle, it created the "voice of God" through Mind Broadcasting, bringing a devastating catastrophe upon the humans of that time.

No one would have ever imagined.

That God... was a cicada.