bullyxtreme Chapter 498 The Gaze from Beyond (1)
Chapter 498 The Gaze from Beyond (1)
Four-colored streaks of light pierced the chaotic ocean of energy. The wings on the Guardian's back left afterimages as it flew at high speed. Golden, dark purple, gray, and white patterns intertwined to form a spiral of light. Wherever the light passed, the forming energy network melted away like thin ice in the warm sun. The fused figure stood beside him, their clasped hands constantly overflowing with the power of balance, weaving a temporary protective net behind them. The runes of the Observer's emblem flickered at the mesh of the net, intercepting all the black spots that seeped in from the edge of the cosmic network.
“These spots are absorbing the power of the energy network.” The fusion entity’s voice was solemn. She flicked a white beam of light from her fingertip, which struck a black spot on the protective network. The spot emitted a piercing shriek and dissipated into a wisp of black smoke, leaving behind a deeper energy void in its place. “They are like viruses, disintegrating the basic structure of the cosmic network.”
The Guardian looked down at the Observer's badge on its chest. The black spot at the center of the rune had expanded to the size of a fingernail. The four originally harmoniously flowing lights had become chaotic around the spot. The golden and dark purple energies stirred restlessly like a school of startled fish, while the gray and white lights tried to envelop the spot but were constantly eroded. A line of tiny characters appeared on the surface of the badge, symbols never recorded by the Observer civilization. These symbols twisted and writhed, as if conveying some kind of warning.
As they drew closer to the blurry outline above the ocean of energy, the surrounding space began to exhibit a strange folding pattern. They flew over a zone composed of shattered spacetime, each fragment reflecting a different scene: in some fragments, the cosmic network was completely covered by the energy net, and all life had turned into gray stone statues; in other fragments, specks of primordial consciousness were entangled by the energy net, emitting painful pulses; and in still other fragments, twelve colorful planets split apart again, only to turn into black powder the moment they hit the ground.
“This is a possibility for the future.” The Guardian’s voice was somewhat hoarse. He recognized his own figure in one of the fragments, holding the gray longsword and standing in the center of the energy network with an empty gaze. “The energy network is weaving the final script for all universes.”
The blurry outline gradually became clear. It was a figure dressed in a gray robe, the robe's material like flowing smoke, its surface imprinted with the same patterns as the energy network. The gray longsword in his hand was not a solid object, but rather woven from countless gray threads, each thread wrapped with tiny black spots—the very energy seeping from the Observer's badge.
When the four-colored streaks of light stopped a hundred meters in front of the gray-robed figure, the Guardian suddenly felt the four powers within him simultaneously freeze. His wings froze in mid-air, the patterns on his feathers resembling solidified magma. A sharp pain shot through the fused body's palm, and the runes on the observer badges clasped together suddenly lit up, projecting a star map into the air—a map of the primordial galaxy distribution before the formation of the cosmic network. At the very edge of the map, a blank area enclosed by a red circle was marked.
“You shouldn’t be here.” The figure in the gray robe spoke, his voice like countless consciousnesses speaking at once, both old and young, both majestic and humble. “This is not a realm you can comprehend.” He raised his gray longsword, the tip pointing to the emblem on the Guardian’s chest. “This mark was originally a firewall for the cosmic network, but now it has become our key to enter. How ironic.”
The merged entity's consciousness suddenly fluctuated violently. She seemed to remember something, a flicker of terror crossing her eyes: "You are the 'Webweaver'? The forbidden being mentioned by the primordial consciousness before the split!" Her body began to tremble slightly. "The opposition between the Creator God and Nothingness wasn't about experiencing the meaning of existence, but about jointly resisting you!"
A figure in a grey robe let out a low laugh, the sound rippling through the surrounding space. Eyes hidden within those ripples blinked simultaneously, revealing pure grey pupils: "Resistance? Your so-called universe is nothing more than one of countless networks we've woven. The splitting of the primordial consciousness is merely a variable that makes this network more interesting." He brandished his grey longsword, and a portion of the energy network suddenly descended, forming a sealed cage around the Guardian and the merged entity. "When you chose the third path, the firewall of this network failed."
On the walls of the cage, countless gray threads began to writhe, each thread revealing the rise and fall of different universes. The guardian saw the books of the Forgotten Library burning on these threads, the reflection of the Mirror City being sliced into fragments, and the memory crystals of the Origin Ruins turning to dust. These threads contained a peculiar power, capable of both devouring energy and deciphering laws. The four forces within the cage were like mired in quagmire, their circulation slowing ever slower.
"What exactly do you want?" The Guardian roared, channeling the four powers into his fists and unleashing a four-colored energy wave towards the wall of the cage. The energy wave struck the wall but was instantly absorbed by the gray threads. In the history of the rise and fall of the universe on the threads, a new scene suddenly appeared: he and the fusion gradually turned into gray stone statues in the cage, and the runes on the Observer's badge were completely swallowed by black spots.
A soft laugh came from beneath the hood of the figure in the gray robe: "We are the embodiment of order, responsible for cleaning up all out-of-control networks." His figure suddenly appeared a hundred meters outside the cage, his gray longsword pointing at the huge, colorful planet. "This cosmic network has deviated from its preset trajectory and must be reset."
As he spoke, twelve gray beams of light suddenly descended from the energy network, striking twelve nodes on the surface of the giant, colorful planet. The planet trembled painfully, and the new life forms that were being nurtured suddenly stopped growing. Gray patterns began to appear on their bodies, and the free light in their eyes was gradually replaced, becoming empty and numb.
"Stop!" The fused entity's figure suddenly became translucent. Her consciousness spread along the gray threads of the cage, attempting to establish contact with the primordial consciousness points on the colorful planet. When her consciousness touched a thread, she suddenly let out a cry of pain. Countless fragments of painful consciousness emanated from that thread—the final screams of all the remnants of the universe swallowed by the energy network.
The Guardian suddenly felt a burning sensation in his chest, as if a fire were burning within him. Looking down, he saw that the previously inconspicuous black spot in the center of the rune on the Observer's badge was now ignited, bursting forth with an intense light. The light was so dazzling that he could barely look at it.
In this dazzling light, the guardian's body and the entity that had merged with him were enveloped. His vision instantly turned completely white, and he could see nothing. However, just when he thought he would be swallowed by the light, some blurry images began to appear in his mind.
The images gradually became clearer, and he saw a completely unfamiliar scene. It was a pure gray space, devoid of any color, only endless gray. Floating within this gray space were countless energy spheres, like a cosmic network. Each energy sphere emitted a faint light, and they intertwined and entangled with each other, forming an intricate energy network.
Around these energy spheres were countless gray threads, which appeared to be some kind of energy link connecting the spheres. Even more surprisingly, within this gray space, there were figures dressed in gray robes moving among the energy spheres.
These figures in grey robes moved with practiced ease, carefully slicing apart the "out-of-control" energy spheres like gardeners pruning branches, then readjusting their positions and connections. Each cut and reset was accompanied by fluctuations in energy and flashes of light, as if the entire grey space trembled slightly with their movements.
"I see." A flash of understanding crossed the Guardian's eyes. He suddenly released the fused body's hand and poured all the white light within him—the power of life's will—into the Observer's Badge. The badge erupted with unprecedented light, the black spots burning fiercely like oil meeting flames, releasing a massive amount of devoured energy. This energy condensed into countless tiny points of light within the cage, each representing a life's will.
"This is impossible!" The figure in the gray robe showed surprise for the first time. He watched as the tiny specks of light pierced through the walls of the cage and flew towards the huge, colorful planet like fireflies. "How can the will to live fight against the laws of order?"
The points of light landed on the surface of the colorful planet, and the eyes of the new life forms, which had been eroded by the gray patterns, suddenly shone again. They stretched out their hands, and the same light emanated from their palms. These lights converged into twelve beams, colliding with the gray pillar of light. The patterns on the surface of the colorful planet began to reverse, and the nodes struck by the gray pillar of light were revitalized. Points of primal consciousness surged from within the planet, rushing towards the energy network like a fountain.
Cracks appeared in the cage under the impact of the belief in life. The guardian seized the opportunity and simultaneously injected golden and dark purple energy into the fused body: "Use the power of balance to connect the belief in all life!"
The fused form stretched out in the air, her consciousness transforming into a ribbon of light interwoven with gold and dark purple, connecting the tiny specks of light into a vast network. This network overlapped with the cosmic network, yet remained independent, like a free realm carved out within the framework of order. The instant the two networks completely overlapped, the gray longsword in the gray-robed figure's hand suddenly emitted a crisp sound, a thread on the blade snapping.