bantayden Chapter 394 - 55 - Cosmic Upheaval
Chapter 394 - 55 - Cosmic Upheaval
Inside the miHoYo building, Wende watched the scene before him with a deep frown. An entire star system was shattered, as if the apocalypse had descended...
A red giant, which had once radiated immense heat, had collapsed under the catalysis of some unknown force into a white dwarf, its surface temperature a mere few thousand degrees, yet radiating a deathly white light.
The planets were fragmented, their spherical forms reduced to dilapidated debris floating in space...
This was the star system that had detached from the star-rail network. Now... it had been utterly destroyed.
The culprit behind the system's destruction was self-evident: the Antimatter Legion. It was also possible that...
Several Lord Ravagers had participated. This was normal; without a Lord Ravager to lead and mobilize the Antimatter Legion, they would not have launched an assault on such a massive scale.
The problem now, however, was that after attacking this system, the Antimatter Legion had completely vanished. Wende scanned the surrounding star systems with his eyes but couldn't find a single trace of them.
Although they were gone, the tragedy of this "extinction" was now laid bare before all life in the cosmos. The great enemy of life, the Antimatter Legion—they had arrived.
After Wende sent this discovery to the Xianzhou Alliance and the Interastral Peace Corporation, both factions quickly disseminated the news, warning all civilizations with self-defense capabilities to ensure their own survival as best they could and await the arrival of rescue.
---o---
Herta Space Station, within the Simulated Universe.
"Ruan Mei, you're quite early today. Screwllum is actually late. I can hardly believe it..."
Herta's projection glanced at the empty seat beside her and shook her head with a hint of helplessness. Who would have thought that the renowned mechanical genius, the monarch of Planet Screwllum, would one day be unexpectedly late? This was the first time such a thing had happened since they had known each other.
"Perhaps he encountered something urgent. Our meeting isn't that critical, is it? I checked the Simulated Universe yesterday; it's running as usual."
Ruan Mei shook her head. Ever since the Simulated Universe had started updating itself some time ago, their control over it remained the same, but they were completely unable to control unexpected occurrences within it. While this was normal in most contexts, for geniuses like them, it was anything but...
"My apologies, Madam Herta, Madam Ruan Mei. I have arrived late."
Screwllum's projection appeared at last, offering a slight nod to Herta and Ruan Mei in apology.
"Planet Screwllum has experienced some fluctuations... but I cannot comprehend them. Conclusion: This may be some kind of omen."
"Hmm?"
Herta frowned at his words, her gaze toward Screwllum filled with doubt.
"Since when have your conclusions been so full of uncertainty? An omen? You mean even you can't analyze its true cause? Is there a problem with the Star-body Differential Machine?"
Faced with Herta's questioning, Screwllum first nodded, then shook his head.
"Madam Herta, you are correct, yet also incorrect. Logic: I am able to analyze its cause, but the result of the calculation is completely different from rational analysis. The things I calculate based on my computational results are mutually contradictory."
"Conclusion: Something is obstructing my thoughts. And it is something we frequently deal with."
Gazing at the two geniuses seated across from him, Screwllum shared his conclusion.
"Obstructing your thoughts... could it be that one?"
Ruan Mei lowered her head in thought, her eyes narrowing slightly. When she looked back at Screwllum, her gaze held a hint of astonishment.
"In terms of probability, that is the case."
Screwllum nodded.
"But why would He suddenly interfere with you? Did you conduct some sort of breakthrough experiment?"
Herta looked at Screwllum, completely baffled. As geniuses, they had dealt with that one on numerous occasions. Whether in their own explorations or in the records left by their predecessors, they could always find traces of Him and his followers, earning the deep-seated hatred of scholars who sought the truth!
"No... That is what I find most incomprehensible. I did nothing."
Screwllum slowly shook his head.
"I merely went to investigate those anomalies, and made a connection..."
"A connection to what?"
"[REDACTED]"
---o---
"System error. Logic... logic failed... Restarting... Restarting..."
On an unknown mechanical planet, a rust-covered machine repeated this phrase endlessly. How long its actions had continued was a mystery... centuries?
Who was it? There was no way to know. This planet had been silent for far, far too long. If it had consciousness, it would have recorded the sky-blotting "locusts" arriving, only to leave in disappointment at the lack of organic matter. It would have recorded the legion symbolizing destruction arriving, only to find the world had already been thoroughly [Destroyed], forcing them to turn their sights toward other things more worthy of [Destruction].
Countless Amber Eras passed in silence. Today... was no different. It was still waiting. Waiting... but for what, it did not know.
Crack...
As if by a twist of fate, a piece of high-strength concrete on the machine, having endured the long march of time and exceeded its duty a hundredfold, finally gave way. It broke off from the machine and fell, landing precisely on a storage-strip-like object beside it.
BANG!
The storage strip, smashed by the block of concrete, exploded instantly... a moment later, the machine beside it flashed with a red light.
And then... the earth began to tremble...
---o---
"Kid, do you feel like something's a bit off?"
It was evening again, and Dragon had arrived to harass Wende with his usual flashbang effect.
"..."
Wende stared with wide-open eyes, his face expressionless, but his gaze was filled with murderous intent.
"Don't look at me like that. You really don't feel anything (ﾟ⊿ﾟ)ﾂ?"
"I feel it. I see you've learned how to use kaomoji. Mmm, very nice, so impressive..."
Wende glanced at Dragon's light screen, his voice dripping with perfunctory praise.
"Tsk (≖_≖ ). That's not what I'm talking about. I'm being serious. Do you feel anything off?"
Seeing Dragon's serious expression, Wende highly doubted he was actually being serious. Was he just trying to get a rise out of him again?
He closed his eyes and carefully sensed his own body and the surrounding energy, but he found nothing out of the ordinary.
"I don't feel anything."
"Hiss... that's strange. Why do I feel like something's missing? What's going on (°ー°〃)?"
---o---
Kshhh... kshhh...
Innumerable tentacles caressed a statue, producing a horrifying, skin-crawling sound. Points of light from dying insects merged into the sculpture. From within the bodies of the dead insects, brand new ones burst forth, tearing their way out to once again depart in all directions.
---o---
"Hello, ghost from the future. Why have your words become so frequent lately? Oh~ I know, it's because you're feeling lonely at this moment... or is it that you're about to be born?"
"Hahaha, look! It is a child from the future, ignorant and unknowing! Look! It knows everything, from the very moment of Its birth!"
"Yes, It was never an enemy, but... but a symbol... As long as that moment does not arrive, it will not be born! Hahahaha! That moment is about to be born! It's coming!"
BANG!
Shatter...
A figure quietly departed from the body of the dead researcher. Sometimes, an appropriate concealment is also a form of protection, is it not?
The next day, a researcher from the Intelligentsia Guild committed suicide at home. The cause was unknown. According to reports, this was already the sixth researcher to have committed suicide at home in this period.
---o---
[The first: a calamity for life.]
[The second: the origin of all things.]
[The third: the end of us all.]
The [Aeon], whose appearance was that of a colossal machine but whose substance had already transcended form, produced three new prophecies from its calculations.
The instant the three prophecies descended, somewhere in the universe, a nine-colored glazed lotus blossomed in the cosmos, storing them within its [Memory].
"..."
Two deities gazed at each other. No words were exchanged. Then, His form vanished, as if it had never been there at all.
"Hahahaha... HAHAHAHA!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"
Manic laughter echoed through the universe. A flurry of masks flashed past, and the figure behind them revealed, for a fleeting moment, a face of pure [Elation].
---o---
Gulp...
"What... what is that thing..."
On a certain planet, all living beings simultaneously looked up at the sky. The star that had been hanging there perfectly fine... now seemed to be being devoured by something!
"Look! Something's falling from the sky!"
Someone pointed at the sky and shouted. A dense swarm of black dots was descending, blotting out the heavens.
VWOOM... BOOM!
The planet's defense systems activated in an instant. Countless planetary defense installations targeted the "visitors from beyond" and opened fire. In a flash, the planet's green sky was streaked with all manner of energy beams and missiles.
"Enemy attack!! Everyone, get underground!!"
The guards responsible for maintaining order hurriedly directed the crowds to take shelter underground. And then...
A behemoth in the atmosphere took aim at the planet below.
BOOOOM!!!!
A colossal beam of light erupted from the behemoth's mouth. The energy of destruction instantly scoured everything on the surface clean!
WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!
The attacks from the surface continued, indicating that the planet's underground defenses were their most reliable shield.
Unfortunately, the Antimatter Legion loves to pry open such tin cans, watching as the "food" inside slowly succumbs to despair, then becomes a part of [Destruction] amidst fear and indignation...
---o---
"Beep... beep. Do you need to reroute? Beep... beep. Do you need to reroute?"
On an unmanned intelligent airship, the AI endlessly repeated this sentence. Its passenger had long since been turned to ash and annihilated by its engine.
On another planet located on the frontier, under the influence of some power, all intelligent machinery suddenly went on strike, and as if possessed, began to indiscriminately attack their masters...
"What's going on? Buddy, say something!"
The owner of a traditional coffee shop stared dumbfounded at the scenes unfolding outside his window, shouting at the inorganic lifeform on the other side of the counter.
"...Apologies, my brain is not processing this fast enough. Closing the main gate."
The inorganic shop assistant paused for a moment, then quickly shut the shop's main door and windows.
Fortunately, this coffee shop adhered to the principle of creating everything with heart and soul, without using any of that expensive machinery. Otherwise, it would have likely shared the same fate.
"Sir, I feel a little sleepy."
The inorganic shop assistant looked at its own hands and spoke to the owner with a bewildered expression.
"Sleepy? You're an inorganic lifeform! Is your power running low? Anyway, don't fall asleep now!"
Hearing the cries and screams from outside, the owner instantly panicked, shouting at the very drowsy-looking inorganic employee.
"My apologies, sir. I am truly very tired..."
The employee's electronic eyes gradually dimmed, and its entire body fell powerlessly to the floor.
An hour later, the people who had just dealt with the rampant machines by cutting the power and jamming the signals let out a sigh of relief, only to discover that the sky had, at some unknown point, suddenly darkened.
They looked up and saw a planet forged of metal hurtling towards their own! In an instant, gravity became unbalanced; the earth shook and the mountains swayed!
And on that mechanical planet, an old machine was flashing with red light.
---o---
"Bugs! So many bugs! Help me! Help! AHHHHHH!"
A terrified scream.
Squelch... Squelch...
The sound of feeding.
SCREEE!!! THWIP!
A shriek, accompanied by the sound of flesh being torn apart.
Countless insects invaded a planet. They devoured every living thing they saw, and through consumption, produced even more of their "kin."
Trillions upon trillions of insects, like a plague of locusts, plundered the entire planet. Before the swarm descended, this world was a vibrant, green planet where plants and animals coexisted peacefully. It was once a "holy land" yearned for by planets suffering from severe pollution. After the swarm's arrival, all life on this planet, be it animal or plant, would become a "part" of the swarm in another form...
CRUNCH...
A massive mandible crushed bone, then delivered it into a mouth filled with sharp teeth.
"Gu-uuuu!"
SPLAT!
After absorbing all the nutrients from its mouthful, a new life was born from its body...