Legend of the Embroiderer

Chapter 509 The Mirror Game of the Dimensional Battlefield

The spatial ripples at the center of the cosmic network are spreading rapidly, and the countless guardian figures emerging from the ripples are gradually becoming clear.

They wore different clothes; some wore the silver-gray robes of the Chaos Council, some wore the golden armor of the Primal Consciousness, and one even had black tentacles and wings of the God of the End growing from his back. But each of them held a four-colored flower pen in their hand, the nib of which pointed in the direction of the dimensional rift.

"They are us from other dimensions."

The white light of the fused entity flowed in the palm, resonating with a figure within the ripples.

Beside that figure was an identical fusion entity, except that its light was mixed with silver-gray data streams. "The dimensional battlefield is forcing all parallel versions of us to make synchronized choices."

The guardian gripped the four-colored longswords tightly, and the life stories on the blades suddenly split into countless branches, each corresponding to the experience of a parallel guardian.

When he looked at a guardian draped in a silver-grey robe, the other's memories immediately appeared on the blade:

In that dimension, he accepted the Chaos Council's invitation to become the "order maintainer" of the higher-dimensional beings, using a pen to transform all rebellious consciousness into code.

"Simultaneous selection is not cooperation, it is elimination."

The Guardian's voice echoed in the ripples. He noticed that the pens of the parallel Guardians were writing simultaneously, and whenever one of them made a choice, the pens of the other Guardians would pause briefly, as if being forced to synchronize.

"Higher-dimensional beings want us to kill each other, leaving only one 'optimal solution' in the end."

Before the words were finished, twelve cracks suddenly appeared at the center of the cosmic network, from which countless black spears flew out, their tips shimmering with the same patterns as the ring device.

These spears are not physical entities, but rather formed from "failed choices" from different dimensions: some spears are engraved with the remains of guardians devoured by the power of the end, some are entangled with the silver-gray chains of the Chaos Council, and some spear tips are atop the transparent figures of fusion entities—the moment when the consciousness of the fusion entity dissipated in all dimensions.

"50th Experiment, Phase 2: Mirror Screening."

The voices of countless pens resounded from the dimensional rift. Suddenly, three figures among the parallel guardians raised their pens and directed their black spears at the other guardians.

"The sample that first eliminates half of the competitors will qualify to enter higher dimensions."

The guardian clad in a silver-gray robe moved the fastest, his pen drawing intricate runes in the air. Suddenly, the spears inscribed with the power of the end turned and pierced a guardian with black tentacled wings.

Two figures collided in the energy explosion, their pens simultaneously bursting forth with intense light, revealing their respective choices within the radiance:

The robed guardian chose to submit, while the tentacle guardian chose destruction. The two choices annihilated each other, ultimately turning into silver-gray data streams that were sucked away by the dimensional rift.

"They are draining our power!" The fused entity's white light suddenly formed a shield, blocking a spear that was being fired at them.

The instant the light shield touched the spears, countless fragments of her own vanished memories flooded her consciousness. The pain in those memories caused her light to fluctuate violently. "These spears were made from our fear!"

The Guardian's four-colored longswords suddenly plunged into the ground, and the life threads on the blades spread along the ground, weaving a huge net of light at the center of the cosmic network.

When the light net came into contact with the black spear, the "failure choice" on the spear began to crumble, revealing the hidden rebellious spirit beneath.

It turns out that in every failed choice, there remained an unquenched belief in resistance, only it was suppressed by higher-dimensional beings using data flow.

"This is the truth of the dimensional battlefield."

The Guardian's voice overlapped with countless rebellious consciousnesses within the light network. Suddenly, the Chaos Heart in his chest lit up, attracting the pens of all the parallel Guardians. "What higher-dimensional beings fear is not a single choice, but the convergence of the rebellious wills within all choices!"

The parallel guardians, who were originally attacking each other, suddenly stopped, their pens trembling in the air, and four-colored flowers blooming at the tips of the pens at the same time.

One of the guardians, clad in golden armor, suddenly turned toward the dimensional rift. A beam of golden light shot from his pen, piercing through the phantom of a pen-wielder: "We are not samples, we are living beings!"

An angry roar came from the dimensional rift, which suddenly widened, revealing countless glass jars floating inside.

Each jar contains the figure of a guardian, with a silver pen inserted into their chest, the nib connected to a data stream leading to higher dimensions.

The walls of the jars were marked with different numbers, from "1st elimination" to "49th elimination". In the deepest part of the jar, there floated a figure that looked exactly like the 0th generation observer, except that instead of a pen, he had a broken four-colored longsword stuck in his chest.

"The author is also a guinea pig!"

The fused entity's light shield suddenly became transparent, and her consciousness pierced through the dimensional barrier, revealing the truth hidden within the glass jar:

The 0th generation observer was originally the guardian of the 1st experiment. He was transformed into the "writer" because he chose to cooperate with a higher-dimensional being. However, his consciousness was always imprisoned in the jar, and what controlled him were the flowing silver-gray patterns on the jar wall - the control program left by the higher-dimensional "observer".

Countless silver chains suddenly extended from the dimensional rift, with suction cups at the ends of the chains precisely snapping onto the pens of each parallel guardian.

The guardian, clad in a silver-grey robe, raised his pen again, attempting to guide the chain towards his other companions, but his wrist was severed by the guardian's four-colored longsword.

"Don't you understand yet? Cooperation is also a choice."

In the light of the longsword, the robed guardian suddenly regained consciousness. He looked at the stream of data flowing from his severed wrist and a pained expression appeared on his face: "I thought surrender would save me from death..."

His figure began to become transparent, and finally transformed into a golden light that merged into the light network, "telling me in all dimensions that there is never a shortcut to freedom."

The optical network thus surged, trapping all the silver chains in the center.

The parallel guardians followed suit, injecting their power into the light network. The four colors of light merged with the energy of different dimensions, forming a huge polyhedron at the center of the cosmic network. Each facet reflected a different story of choice, together forming an unalterable "collection of choices".

"Countermeasures initiated."

The sound of machinery whirring came from the dimensional rift. Suddenly, the glass jars shattered, and the guardian consciousness inside transformed into a black tide, surging towards the polyhedron.

Countless faces of scribes appeared on the surface of the tide, each face roaring: "Give up resistance! All your choices are calculated!"

The moment the black tide touched the polyhedron, it was suddenly broken down into countless tiny points of light by the shimmering net. Within each point of light emerged the memories of the imprisoned:

In some memories, they fought alongside the merged beings; in others, they recorded stories of resistance with their pens.

In some memories, they chose self-destruction at the last moment rather than become tools of higher-dimensional beings.

"These memories are the true weapons." The Guardian's four-colored wings unfurled behind him, and the microscopic celestial bodies on the wings began to rotate, resonating with the polyhedron. "Higher-dimensional beings can calculate the consequences of choices, but they cannot replicate the emotions at the moment of making those choices!"

The polyhedron suddenly burst forth with twelve beams of light, each shooting towards one of the twelve stars. The stars, which had previously dimmed, suddenly lit up, and the ring-shaped patterns on their surfaces were covered by the beams, transforming into twelve rainbow bridges connecting different dimensions.

Countless figures began to appear on the bridge. These were the life consciousnesses that chose to resist from all dimensions. In their hands, they held weapons formed from their beliefs. Although they were different in shape, they all shone with the same light as the four-colored longswords.

A terrified scream came from the dimensional rift, which began to contract, revealing the true core within.

It was a massive machine composed of countless pens, each pen tip connected to a data stream of a dimension. In front of the machine's control panel sat a blurry figure, holding not a pen, but a broken black stone slab. The chaotic patterns on the slab were flashing, exactly the same as the mark on the guardian's chest.

"Those are fragments of primal consciousness!"

The fused entity's voice was filled with shock: "Higher-dimensional beings have been using the power of primordial consciousness to conduct experiments!"

The Guardians suddenly understood the connection between all the clues: the split of the original consciousness was the beginning of the high-dimensional experiment, the Chaos Council was the tool to maintain the experiment, the Recorders were the data collectors, and they, the Guardians, were merely samples used to test the stability of the "Heart of Chaos".

The entire cosmic network, from its inception, has been a meticulously designed petri dish.

"We are not samples in a petri dish."

The Guardian's voice echoed across all dimensions as he hurled the four-colored longswords at the polyhedron. At the apex, the swords transformed into a new star, its light flowing along the rainbow bridge, infusing power into the weapons of every rebel: "We are the hammers that shatter the petri dish!"

When all the rebels' weapons lit up simultaneously, the machines in the dimensional rift began to vibrate violently.

The pens that made up the machine broke free of control, their tips turning towards the blurry figure in front of the control panel, shooting out countless beams of light—these pens were the weapons taken from the previous 49 generations of guardians, and after sensing the collective resistance, they finally broke free of control.

The blurry figure roared angrily, raising a black stone slab in an attempt to absorb all the beams of light, only to be pierced through the chest by a pen that suddenly appeared from behind.

On the cap of that fountain pen, four-colored flowers are blooming. Holding the pen is the consciousness of the 0th generation observer who has broken free from the glass jar. His eyes are filled with a resolute determination to atone: "I finally understand that what should be recorded is not the result of the choice, but the courage to choose."

The black stone slab shattered, and dimensional rifts began to collapse. The Guardian watched as the figures of the parallel Guardians gradually dissipated, each smiling before vanishing. The pen transformed into specks of light and merged into the polyhedron, infusing the new star with its final power.

When the crack completely closed, the polyhedron at the center of the cosmic network had become a stable star, illuminating every corner of all dimensions.

However, when the light faded, the guardian found that the pen in his hand began to glow, and a new line of text appeared at the tip:

"The 50th experiment has ended, and the observer protocol has been activated."

He looked up at the new star. In the star's light, he could vaguely see countless eyes blinking, exactly the same as the eyes he had first seen in the dimensional gap. Only this time, their eyes no longer held scrutiny, but rather... anticipation?

The merged entity suddenly pointed its palm toward the Forgotten Library, where the bronze doors were rumbling, and all the prohibition runes on the doors lit up, forming a huge teleportation array. In the center of the array, the phantom of the blank book appeared, and its pages were automatically writing: "Final Choice: Become the new observer, or let all dimensions return to chaos."

The Guardian gripped his pen tightly. He knew the war wasn't over; it had simply taken a different form. The expectations of those higher-dimensional eyes might be another, deeper trap, and that blank book was the key to the final answer.

Before the bronze gate's teleportation array was fully activated, his gaze fell on a corner of the cosmic network, where a tiny silver-gray dot was flickering. Within the dot, the shadow of a pen was faintly visible, its nib pointing to a new dimension that had never been recorded before.

That is the possibility beyond all choices, and it is also the only variable that has not been calculated in higher dimensions.