To master all parallel worlds and reach the true timeline, gazing back to the most ancient and forward to the very last... isn't that precisely what the two great consciousnesses, Gaia and Alaya, are capable of?

Lin Luo couldn't help but feel a stir in his heart upon this thought. At their current level, Kaguya and Yoru were certainly no match for Gaia and Alaya. In fact, considering Gaia and Alaya from the Nasuverse, few beings could compare to them unless they had reached the Quasi-Heavenly Rank or above. Even when he had awakened the two great consciousnesses during the Fourth Holy War, he couldn't surpass Gaia and Alaya in terms of power level.

This was easy to understand; after all, his two consciousnesses were merely infants at that time, newly awakened, whereas Gaia and Alaya had existed for an immeasurable duration and had achieved perfection in every aspect... one was in a child's body, the other a complete form nearing the ultimate state. What good was sheer numbers then?

It was only now that Lin Luo dared to guarantee he could crush Gaia and Alaya.

Come to think of it, this world also possessed two great consciousnesses, and they weren't dormant. However, unlike the two lolis from the Nasuverse, they weren't personified; instead, they existed as a hazy, intangible nothingness, imperceptible to sight, touch, or feeling, yet undeniably present.

While Kaguya and Yoru aiming to reach the true timeline was relatively easy—as long as they didn't interfere with the timeline, it would merely be a trip—their ambition to master all parallel worlds was more complicated. This was because all those parallel worlds fell under the jurisdiction of the two great consciousnesses. If they sought to master them, essentially, they were encroaching on territory, and the two great consciousnesses, no matter how faint their presence, could not simply stand by and watch.

Theoretically, if Kaguya and Yoru truly acted on their intentions, they would come into conflict with the two great consciousnesses, and with their current strength, they clearly couldn't contend. Therefore, they needed someone to escort and protect them.

"I understand the situation, but if you need assistance, why not ask ZI? She seems more suitable than I am," Lin Luo asked, perplexed. His abilities lay not in parallel worlds or dimensions... but in creation and destruction. Although all grand avenues lead to the same destination, he hadn't yet reached the pinnacle of that convergence. It wasn't that he couldn't escort them, but he certainly wasn't the most appropriate choice.

It was like in a classroom... Lin Luo was the representative for Chinese, and Kaguya and Yoru wanted to ask about a math problem like P plus ZP equals what P? While he could answer, Yukari Yakumo, as the math representative, was clearly more proficient.

Similarly, with his power, escorting Kaguya and Yoru was not an issue. But if he sought help from the pervert Yukari Yakumo, who treated parallel worlds and dimensions like toys, able to arbitrarily switch people between 2D and 3D, the success rate would undoubtedly be much higher.

The excuse that they needed his help simply because they liked him was something Lin Luo absolutely refused to believe, as Kaguya and Yoru were hardly the infatuated types found in harem anime.

"There is naturally a reason for that," Kaguya stated calmly, raising a finger. "Firstly, Gensokyo does not exist in other parallel worlds. In other words... as soon as one enters Gensokyo, or even becomes associated with it, that person's existence in other parallel worlds immediately vanishes... and most of their power returns to the singular 'Self'..."

I see, so that explained why so many people in Gensokyo possessed 86G capabilities... Lin Luo had never entered the parallel worlds of this current setting, but hearing her explanation brought immediate clarity. If there were a hundred parallel worlds, even if only thirty units of power could be concentrated from a hundred sources, a person's strength would increase substantially. No wonder Gensokyo was full of freaks... This example could even apply to the Hosts: the girls who become Hosts become singular, and their counterparts in other parallel worlds completely disappear, concentrating their power onto the one present self... It was for this very reason that their progress was so rapid.

And the girls of Gensokyo had concentrated so much power, so... wait! Something seemed amiss!

Gensokyo's history spanned only five hundred years, yet most Youkai had existed for far longer, such as Eirin and Yukari. These individuals were impossibly strong a thousand years ago... Even with the concentrated power of their parallel selves, they hadn't grown much stronger!

Even Yoru, before entering Gensokyo, was already a time manipulator.

"You've found the discrepancy, haven't you?" Kaguya looked at him with a knowing, half-smile.

Lin Luo nodded. "If what you say is true, then everyone in Gensokyo's strength should have increased by at least one or two tiers, otherwise, it's illogical."

Kaguya responded, "But what I said is the truth. Furthermore, except for the last couple of years, the power of those in Gensokyo has remained relatively stable. Take myself, for instance; the power I possess now is almost identical to when I was on the Moon. I've been stuck at the same level for over a hundred years—she complained about it herself."

Yoru nodded in agreement. "My progress has also only happened in the last two years. And looking back two years as the endpoint, the Ojou-sama has been treading water for over a century..."

"Then, what is the actual reason? We should have become stronger by concentrating the power of our parallel selves, yet there has been no change. Why is that?" Kaguya looked at Lin Luo, but a hint of impatience now shadowed her face; clearly, she already held the answer.

Lin Luo stated solemnly, "There is only one answer... You became stronger from the very beginning."

Yoru confirmed, "Although we were influenced by Gensokyo, the time we started becoming stronger wasn't when we entered it, but much earlier... much, much earlier, we had already received the power from our parallel selves."

Kaguya smiled. "The reason this inversion of causality occurred is also singular..."

Evidently, all three had reached the same conclusion and spoke in unison: "Reverse Causality!"

"Ahhh~ This is certainly troublesome," Lin Luo sighed heavily. There was relief in having his doubts cleared, but also a doubling of the burden. He had always known that he would encounter Reverse Causality in Gensokyo, but he hadn't expected to become connected to such a terrifying entity so quickly.

Kaguya mentioned, "Originally, we considered asking Yukari Yakumo for help, but after she explained the pros and cons of Reverse Causality to us, combined with our own realizations, we gave up on her assistance... Alas, Reverse Causality truly is a frightful existence."

"The most unsolvable part is that no one knows when it might erupt," Yoru added, still feeling a lingering fear.

Lin Luo understood this point better than anyone. If viewed from a gaming perspective, Reverse Causality was like a universal piece of equipment with no restrictions... For example, a Level 10 item might be garbage to a Level 30 character, and a Level 50 item might be too high-tier to utilize. But Reverse Causality was an item usable by any character; it would be a divine artifact in the hands of a Level 10 character, and still a divine artifact for a Level 100 character. The only uncertainty was which 'god' it belonged to. One wrong step could easily lead to total annihilation.

At this moment, Lin Luo finally grasped why Kaguya and the others hadn't sought Yukari Yakumo's help. As one of the creators of Gensokyo, Yukari Yakumo clearly harbored far more Reverse Causality factors than anyone else. If she were merely treating parallel world travel like a game, there would be no issue. But if she were to directly engage with the two great consciousnesses, the Reverse Causality factors within her could erupt at any moment.

It was even possible that the two great consciousnesses would hesitate to interact with someone carrying such an unstable time bomb.

But then again, didn't he himself carry more unstable time bombs than Yukari Yakumo?

"So, am I truly suitable?" Lin Luo asked cautiously.

Kaguya nodded. "Since we have recognized Reverse Causality, we naturally consider all aspects of the issue. Although you possess more Reverse Causality factors, your establishment of Gensokyo was not directly related, and you are not a native resident of Gensokyo. Therefore... as long as you do not touch the timeline, your Reverse Causality will not erupt."

"How can you be sure?" Lin Luo frowned, his expression stern. After all, the potential danger of this matter was immense. Back in Artoria's era, it was manageable; at least then he knew what his Reverse Causality line was connected to. But here, he had no idea who his Reverse Causality line was tethered to, making him hesitant to make any major moves.

Because one careless step could easily result in a total party kill (TPK). Therefore, he had to be meticulous, and unless a sufficient safety coefficient was confirmed, he wouldn't agree even to Kaguya and Yoru's request.

"I cannot be certain, but Yukari Yakumo can," Kaguya stated seriously.

"Zi?" Lin Luo felt a jolt in his heart. "Did Zi tell you this?"

"Yes."

Immediately, Lin Luo fell silent, closing his eyes to ponder... Earlier, Kaguya mentioned the timeline, meaning his Reverse Causality was temporarily unrelated to the world line, with the focus being on the time line. Then Yukari Yakumo must be on this line, and judging by past evidence, the overlap wasn't in the future, but in the past. Then... No! He couldn't think any further!

Lin Luo suddenly realized the danger and immediately stopped his train of thought.

He had reason to believe that if he were to speculate about events yet to occur in his life, and even guessed correctly, it could trigger unpredictable consequences... much like fortune-tellers who face heavenly punishment for leaking heavenly secrets. Except, if he leaked heavenly secrets, the punishment wouldn't come from Heaven, but from Reverse Causality, which was a thousand, perhaps ten thousand, times more terrifying.

However, one thing was certain without speculation: he and Yukari Yakumo definitely had an intersection in the past. Since she said it was fine, it should be fine... After all, this involved the life and death of everyone; neither Kaguya nor Yukari Yakumo would joke about something like this.

"Fine, in that case, I naturally accept this responsibility without reservation," Lin Luo opened his eyes, nodded his agreement to their request, and then asked, "But I have one more question: once you master the parallel worlds, what do you plan to do?"