Dungeon of Knowledge - Chapter 18: Fire in the Darkness

In the history of geology, more than 500 million years ago, there was a period of the Paleozoic Era known as the Cambrian Period. This period, being the first period of the Paleozoic Era, does not only have a significant meaning for geological research, but also is the most insane, splendid and mysterious period in paleontological history.

Before the Cambrian Period, the Earth’s species were relatively monotonous. When the Cambrian Period started, just after millions of years, which is a relatively short period of time in terms of geology, all kind of species on Earth suddenly evolved wildly. Countless of invertebrates, arthropods, mollusks, brachiopods, annelids etc. have appeared on the planet without any warning, greatly enriching the diversity of the Earth’s species. This million years period is known as the “Cambrian Explosion”. And after billions of evolutionary years, the Earth today blooms with diverse lives.

The cause of the Cambrian Explosion is a huge mystery and also the biggest paradox of Darwin’s theory of evolution.

What if… the Cambrian Period is coming back in this era when human civilization has already conquest the entire planet, and the global species will once again evolve wildly, what kind of challenge will this planet encounter? What kind of fate will humans, who are falling from the top of the food chain, face?

- Description from Novelupdates

Bai Muchen had it all — not only was he the most renowned martial artist of the Nine Heaven continent, he even had the Five Meridians of Tianling and was engaged to Xuan Qingzhu, the beautiful daughter of his mentor. But everything falls apart when he’s set up by his fiancé and mentor during a cultivation session, and he is killed.

Reborn as a young man named Xiang Nan, the heir of a declining family, can Bai Muchen get his revenge?

What if being the protagonist was actually the WORST possible choice?Li Hanfeng thought he'd gotten the short end of the reincarnation stick—transmigrated into a cultivation world with “only” Upper Grade spiritual roots. Sure, he joined the prestigious Shushan Sect, but compared to those Heavenly Grade chosen ones? He was clearly destined to be a background character.Then his golden finger awakened.The Karma Detection System.Suddenly, Li Hanfeng could see the true cost of every “opportunity” before him. That mysterious cave everyone's excited about?[Great Karma: Ancient Tomb][Death Rate: 97%].The beautiful junior sister asking him on a “simple” mission?[Path of Destiny][Triggers: Sect Destruction, Heavenly Tribulation, Outer Domain Demons].Wait... being the protagonist means a 90% chance of horrible death?!NOPE.While other disciples fight over “destiny” and “fortune,” Li Hanfeng discovers something incredible: his system doesn't just detect karma—it “rewards him for avoiding it”. Refuse a death flag mission? Get premium cultivation pills! Skip the mysterious inheritance? Unlock rare techniques! Dodge the protagonist route entirely?His cultivation speed actually INCREASES.“Junior Sister, I'm busy that day.”“Senior Brother, that treasure isn't for me.”“Sorry everyone, I'll pass on saving the world.”[Karma Severed Successfully! Reward: Immortal-Grade Technique]But there's a problem: the more protagonist flags he dodges, the stronger he becomes. And the stronger he becomes, the more the world tries to drag him into main character scenarios.Ancient masters want him as a disciple. Mysterious beauties keep appearing. Evil sects mark him as a threat. Even his own karma system seems shocked by how overpowered his “background character” route is becoming.Li Hanfeng just wanted to cultivate peacefully and avoid death flags.Instead, he accidentally became the most terrifying existence in the cultivation world.The kind of person who's so strong that destiny itself has given up trying to make him the protagonist.

Suddenly exposed on all the top news websites and social media platforms globally, 'Return Order's Notes' leads to a revolutionary virtual reality game.Game Name: 'Dark Sand'Game Type: Oriental fantasy historical theme, featuring a certain degree of soulslike difficulty and roguelike gameplay in a role-playing game.Requirements for recruiting beta players: Good mindset, quick reactions, strong stress resilience, a certain amount of historical knowledge, excellent physical condition.The most crucial requirement: superb acting skills, preferably at an Oscar-winner level!Special Reward: Among the beta players, the one with the most excellent simulated completion performance can undergo the ultimate trial and, after a perfect recording, have it presented to the public in film form, fulfilling your dream of becoming an Oscar winner!Players are complaining, they have never seen a game with such high entry barriers!What they don't know is that their every action in the game will truly affect both history and reality.