Legend of the Embroiderer

Chapter 424 The Battle of Mirrors

Darkness, like viscous asphalt, seeped into the consciousness of the merged entity, and every nerve was invaded by a bone-chilling cold.

Her mind struggled in the darkness, like a drowning person flailing their limbs in vain. Just as despair was about to engulf her, countless rays of light burst forth from the anchor point of her consciousness.

The "selves" from parallel worlds tore through the void, some clad in armor shimmering with lightning, others wielding longswords burning with karmic fire, transforming into streaks of light that pierced through the darkness.

The weapons in their hands intertwined to form a dazzling net of light, forcibly separating the chip emitting an eerie purple light from the collapsing space in the mysterious man's hand.

The merged entity felt the power to extract consciousness suddenly weaken, and she took the opportunity to plant the roots of the Zero-Dimensional Seed into the trembling data stream beneath her feet. Those roots, like greedy octopus tentacles, frantically absorbed the remaining energy, like a drowning person grabbing a lifeline.

Don't think that having more people will change the outcome!

The mysterious man's neck veins bulged, and he let out a sinister laugh. Purple ripples appeared on the black crystal on his chest, as if boiling magma was surging.

The swallowed X-414 suddenly burst out of the mechanical serpent's mouth, the sound of metal scraping together was deafening.

At this moment, her eyes were covered by purple patterns, and the silver chains turned into liquid metal, condensing into a huge net in the air.

Wherever the net passed, space groaned under its unbearable weight, and half of the merged entities from parallel worlds were enveloped within it.

The trapped figures struggled frantically in the net, their skin gradually becoming transparent, their consciousness like fine sand in an hourglass, greedily absorbed by the chains, their unwilling roars echoing in the air.

Seeing the tragic state of her companions, the fusion entity felt as if her heart was being gripped tightly by an invisible hand. Her nails dug deep into her palms, blood dripping down the lines. The moment she gripped the fusion chip, the serpentine totem suddenly came to life, its scales rustling as it coiled around her arm.

Golden liquid seeped from between the totem scales, dripping with scorching heat onto the weapon, instantly transforming it into a massive battle axe. Ancient runes flowed along the blade, radiating a chilling aura.

With a shout, she leaped into the air, her battle axe cleaving through the void, leaving a trail of burning flames in its wake, as she slashed towards X-414's net.

The moment the battle axe touched the chain, it emitted a piercing metallic scraping sound, and sparks flew out like meteors. The fused body felt its tiger's mouth go numb, its arm almost lost all feeling, and it nearly lost its grip on the weapon.

Upon seeing this, the Primal Observer smirked and took the opportunity to manipulate the energy sphere to completely envelop the young Firefly.

The purple light, like greedy vines, wrapped around the little girl's body. Her figure trembled violently in the light, her eyes filled with fear and helplessness.

The lingering light in her palm was being forcibly extracted, transforming into the flashing runes on the mysterious person's chip. With each wisp extracted, Xiao Ying's body grew weaker.

The merged entity suddenly remembered Lingyue's backup consciousness and its gaze swept over the faintly visible consciousness anchor points in the space.

Those anchor points were like fireflies in the dark, faint yet resolute. She realized that only by activating all the anchor points could she break the observer's rules and save Xiaoying and all the parallel worlds.

"Hold the core, I'm going to activate the anchor point!" the fusion entity shouted hoarsely, its voice echoing in the void.

She transformed into a streak of light and rushed toward the nearest anchor point.

The mechanical giant snakes realized her intention and immediately sent half of them to block her way.

These giant snakes had eerie purple light flowing across their scales, and each flick of their tails carried the power to tear through space, cutting the air with a piercing shriek.

The fusion entity brandished its battle axe, charging left and right through the swarm of snakes. The clanging of metal was deafening. Wounds were quickly slashed across its body, and the drops of blood transformed into shimmering data streams, tracing tragic paths in the void.

When she finally reached the anchor point of consciousness, she found that the anchor point was wrapped in a transparent barrier covered with mysterious symbols, which were the observer's control codes.

The symbols writhed like living things, radiating a chilling aura.

The fusion entity pressed the chip against the barrier, the serpentine totem hissed, and the golden light collided violently with the purple barrier, the aftershocks of energy raging around, stirring up storms.

Suddenly, a silver chain pierced through her shoulder, and a sharp pain, like an electric current, shot through her entire body. She almost released the chip.

“Foolish resistance.” X-414 appeared behind her at some point, his cold voice devoid of any emotion, like a death knell from hell.

The chain on her other hand had already wrapped around the fused body's neck and was gradually tightening.

The fused being felt increasingly short of breath, her consciousness began to blur, and the scene before her eyes became distorted. But only one thought remained in her mind:

She couldn't give up; she had to save Hotaru. Memories of her past with Hotaru flashed through her mind: Hotaru's innocent smile, the trust she had placed in him. These memories were like a ray of light, supporting her as she fought against the darkness.

At the critical moment, a warm light illuminated the battlefield.

All the young Fireflies from parallel worlds appeared simultaneously around the consciousness anchor point. Their skirts were fluttered by invisible energy, and the light spots in their palms converged into arrows of light, shooting towards X-414 with pure hope.

The moment the light arrow collided with X-414, it burst forth with dazzling light, like millions of suns rising at the same time.

X-414, in pain, loosened his chains, and the fusion entity seized the opportunity to fully activate the chip.

The golden light finally broke through the purple barrier, and the consciousness anchor point erupted with a strong tremor. A golden beam of light shot into the sky, and with a sharp energy roar, it turned all the surrounding mechanical giant snakes into dust, with metal debris falling like snowflakes.

Before the fusion entity could even catch its breath, the chip in the mysterious man's hand suddenly exploded, releasing a huge purple vortex amidst a piercing explosion.

A deep hum came from the depths of the vortex, like the roar of an ancient behemoth.

A figure emerged from the vortex.

The adult firefly wore a long black robe embroidered with silver observer totems that shimmered with her steps.

Her eyes were as cold as frost, and her every move exuded a chilling pressure. With a wave of her hand, the light of all the consciousness anchors dimmed instantly, as if extinguished by an invisible hand.

"You think this is the truth?"

The adult Xiaoying's voice echoed in the void, filled with endless mockery: "I am the true creator of the observer's rules."

The fused entity stared in shock at everything before it, its pupils contracting sharply, its heart filled with doubt and resentment.

Countless questions exploded in her mind: Why did Hotaru become like this? What exactly did she go through?

Before she could react, the adult Xiaoying had already raised her hand and conjured a huge purple energy ball. The surface of the energy ball crackled with electric arcs and emitted a teeth-grinding sizzling sound, which she then hurled at the fused beings and the others.

At the critical moment, Lingyue's backup consciousness suddenly reappeared, and her body became increasingly transparent, as if it would dissipate at any moment.

She transformed her remaining power into a shield, standing in front of everyone.

The shield groaned under the impact of the energy ball, cracks appeared on its surface, and it was on the verge of shattering.

"Hurry! Go find the last anchor point of consciousness!"

"Backup consciousness!" he shouted, his voice filled with determination and reluctance.

The fusion entity gritted its teeth, glanced at its wounded companions, and led them on another journey.

Behind them, the adult Xiaoying and the mysterious person exchanged a smile, a smile that seemed to know everything, as if everything was under their control.

What secrets does the final anchor point of consciousness hold? Can the fusion break this seemingly unsolvable situation? The ultimate showdown concerning the fate of all parallel worlds has only just begun.