Helping each other with countless me.

Chapter 609 The Eye of the Empire
The clamor of battle gradually subsided.

The soldiers of the sacrificial legion looked as if they had been pulled from a sea of ​​blood; their uniforms and equipment were soaked in dark red, foul blood that had congealed into scabs on their skin.

The high-intensity power gloves emitted a scorching heat, causing their entire bodies to steam with white mist. Under the eerie dark red light, they resembled war machines that had just been forged.

They were panting, gripping their weapons tightly, and scanning their surroundings warily.

The "ground," which was originally filled with twisted monsters, was now a mess. Broken limbs, still slightly twitching chunks of flesh, splattered slime and filthy blood covered every inch of space, and the air was filled with a strong, nauseating smell of blood and burnt flesh.

Although the combined forces' light had dimmed slightly, it remained steadfast, proving that this army still maintained strong combat effectiveness and discipline after such a brutal battle.

Legion Commander Andrew wiped the blood from his face, walked to Li Zhongren's feet, looked up and reported, his voice hoarse with excitement and exhaustion.

"Mr. Zero! All visible active threats in the area have been eliminated! Our casualties are minor and are being tallied!"

His tone was filled with the joy of victory, but when he saw Li Zhongren's still cold face and those deep eyes that were always locked on the huge heart in the sky, his excitement was as if it had been doused with a bucket of cold water.

He followed Li Zhongren's gaze and saw that the heart seemed somewhat different from before.
"Mr. Zero, is there any other question?"

Andrew asked cautiously.

Li Zhongren landed slowly and stood beside Andrew, his gaze never leaving his heart.

“The warm-up is over, Andrew. What you just cleaned up were just maggots clinging to the corpse. Now, the true 'will' that remains in this corpse, or rather, the newborn 'curse' it has conceived, is about to emerge.”

As if to confirm his words, the suspended, mountain-like dark purple heart suddenly underwent a strange change!
It stopped pulsating slowly and began to convulse and contract violently, as if it were struggling to survive!

The thick blood vessels that were originally connected to the surrounding flesh walls withered and broke off rapidly, as if they had been drained, making a cracking sound that made your teeth ache.

The heart itself is also shriveling and shrinking at a visible rate, the dark purple color on its surface is deepening, and even cracks resembling those of a rock or eggshell are beginning to appear.

A far more refined yet more violent energy, filled with both destructive and new ideas, is being frantically drawn back from all directions and injected into the core of the heart.

The entire chest cavity of the Outer God began to tremble violently, with rotten fragments falling from the flesh walls, as if this last remnant was about to completely collapse.

"What is it doing?"

Andrew stared in shock at the apocalyptic scene.

"It's hatching."

Li Zhongren's voice was calm, yet carried a chilling insight into the essence of things.

"This heart is the last life essence of this Outer God, and also the source of its corrupting power. If we take it away directly, it will be like a malignant tumor, polluting our world. But now, it feels threatened, or rather, the time has come. It is concentrating all its power and all its corrupting rules to nurture a brand new 'offspring' or 'divine abomination' that inherits part of its essence."

He turned his head and looked at Andrew and the soldiers who were gradually gathering around him, their faces filled with surprise and doubt.

"For us, this is an opportunity. During this incubation process, its form and rules are not yet fully fixed. We can intervene and influence it! We can use our will and our beliefs to 'contaminate' its incubation process, causing it to transform in a direction that is beneficial to us! We can transform it from an uncontrollable source of pollution into a stable 'artifact core' that can be controlled by the Empire!"

Andrew gasped, instantly realizing the difficulty and allure of the task.

He blurted it out almost without thinking.

"What do we need to sacrifice? Our lives? Our souls? If so, I am willing! For the Empire!"

His eyes were burning with determination. If he could sacrifice himself to participate in shaping a national treasure for the future of the empire, he would surely be remembered in history!
His words caused a stir among some soldiers; some had shifty eyes, while others looked resolute.

However, Li Zhongren resolutely shook his head, his voice clearly reaching the ears of every soldier, carrying an unwavering principle that could not be questioned.

“No, Andrew, the Empire will never ask for, nor will it ever accept, such ‘voluntary’ sacrifices! Once something is started, the foundation of trust will crumble.”

"Future generations will not remember your 'voluntary' actions; they will only see the empire using soldiers' lives to gain power!"

"Today it may be 'voluntary,' but what about tomorrow? Once trust is lost, even the strongest force cannot unite people's hearts!"
"The empire's strength stems from unity and from valuing every fighter who fights for it! What we need is not sacrifice, but victory! Everything we achieve by fighting side by side!"

His words, like the resounding toll of a bell, struck the hearts of every soldier.

The initial doubt and sense of tragedy caused by Andrew's words were instantly replaced by a stronger sense of belonging, honor, and high morale.

Yes, the empire values ​​them!
They are not sacrificial offerings that can be discarded at will!
They are the empire's sharpest blade, the warriors who pave the way for the future!

"For the Empire! For the Empress!"

Someone shouted first, and then the thousand people roared in unison again, their morale rising instead of falling, reaching its peak!
Li Zhongren looked with satisfaction at the army whose fighting spirit he had awakened.

"Very good! Remember, everything the Empire needs will be obtained through battle, through our own hands! Now, heed my command!"

He floated up, rising into the air once more, his hands outstretched.

A mental force far more powerful and vast than ever before spread out from him like an invisible storm, instantly merging perfectly with the mental energy field of the thousand soldiers below, connected through the military formation!
At this moment, Li Zhongren became the absolute core and brain of the army. The strength and belief of a thousand soldiers, like countless streams flowing into a great river, were guided, controlled and amplified by him!
"Andrew! Lead everyone, sing the Empire's war song! Sing out your beliefs, your determination to protect your homeland, and your yearning for the future! Don't stop!"

Without the slightest hesitation, Andrew straightened his chest, mustered all his strength, and roared out the first note of the Reid Empire's national anthem!
Immediately afterwards, all the soldiers joined in the singing. At first, it was a bit chaotic, but it quickly coalesced into a majestic, resounding melody full of iron will and glory!
In this eerie and distorted space, this war song belonging to the human empire seemed so out of place, yet so awe-inspiring!
Li Zhongren closed his eyes and concentrated all his mental energy, guiding the immense spiritual power formed by the beliefs, will, and sense of honor of a thousand people. It was like weaving an invisible net or forging a sharp sword of faith, fiercely stabbing into the heart that was violently contracting and cracking, as if it would burst out of its shell at any moment!
The melody of the battle song, the soldiers' resolute gazes, their determination to defend their homeland, their aspirations for the future, and their thirst for power.
All these positive and strong emotions and beliefs, amplified and purified by Li Zhongren's mental power, transformed into an invisible virus full of order and "human" will, which was forcibly injected into the core of the heart that represented chaos, distortion and the echo of the gods!
"Roar!!"

A silent roar, seemingly from ancient times, filled with pain, anger, and a hint of confusion, suddenly erupted from the depths of his heart!

The surface of that withered and cracked "eggshell" was flashing with intense light. The newly born "divine abomination" felt a fierce invasion from another completely different order, and its incubation process was forcibly interfered with!

Li Zhongren's mental power, like the most delicate scalpel, pierced through the violently trembling, cracked, and withered outer shell, reaching deep into the core of his heart.

The interior was not the expected solid structure, but a chaotic, boiling, dark red ocean of energy.

Countless distorted, blasphemous fragments of thought floated and roared within it; they were the madness and resentment left behind by the Outer God, its most fundamental hatred and pollution of life and order.

They instinctively converge, attempting to shape a terrifying form that embodies their destructive will.

However, at this moment, another force is forcibly intervening in this chaos.

The overwhelming torrent of will, forged from the beliefs, sense of honor, and determination to protect their homeland of a thousand of the Empire’s most loyal warriors, was amplified and transformed by Li Zhongren into countless chains of “psychic runes” shimmering with the silver light of order, which pierced fiercely into this dark red ocean!
Chaos is rebelling!
The lingering resentment of the Outer God, like an enraged serpent, lunged madly at the silver chains, attempting to corrupt and tear apart this foreign force of order with its own chaos and madness. Crimson and silver-white clashed and intertwined violently at the heart's core, causing the chaotic flesh to twist and writhe violently, its form flashing wildly between monster and some uncertain symbol.

If it were an ordinary thousand people, no matter how strong their will, they would be like a mantis trying to stop a chariot when faced with the last madness and remnants of a fallen Outer God. They would be overwhelmed and assimilated in an instant.

But Li Zhongren is here.

His mental power acted like a stabilizing force, firmly anchoring the legion's unwavering will.

Feeling the futile impact of the outer god's lingering will, a disdainful smile curled at the corner of his lips.

"A dying ember, how dare you be so presumptuous?"

With a slight thought, an even more vast and essential pressure, like an invisible millstone, gently rolled over that chaos.

Without a deafening explosion, the lingering remnant of the Outer God, which had been roaring and struggling madly, vanished silently and completely, like a candle flame blown by a gale, leaving not even a wisp of smoke.

The very foundation upon which they exist is utterly fragile before this true "deity".

As the lingering resentment dissipated, all that remained was the most primal and fundamental life instinct of that chaotic mass of flesh and blood: to survive, to devour, and to evolve.

This instinct remains powerful, full of wildness and uncertainty, but it no longer carries the specific, malicious will of the Outer God.

Now, it is an almost blank canvas.

And the will of the Empire's legions is the painter who wields the brush!
Without the direct confrontation with the lingering will of the Outer God, the pressure decreased sharply, but the primal instinct to resist still remained.

Like a raging beast, it relentlessly battered the silver chains of faith, attempting to repel this foreign force of order.

This is exactly what Li Zhongren wanted.

"Hold on! With your will, etch the mark of the empire upon this chaos!"

Li Zhongren's voice echoed in the minds of every soldier.

The pressure remains, but it is no longer an irresistible force of destruction; rather, it is a well-placed whetstone.

The soldiers' battle songs grew louder and their eyes more determined. They could feel that their beliefs were directly clashing with some primal and powerful force!
Each successful "engraving" seems to temper their spirit, making it more solid and resilient.

Silver chains of conviction weave through the chaotic flesh and blood like silver shuttles weaving a net, forcibly engraving and weaving concepts such as "loyalty," "courage," "order," "protection," and "progress" into them in the form of telekinetic text!
The dark red, chaotic flesh and blood began to undergo a fundamental change under the penetration of the silver light.

Its movements were no longer random, but gradually took on a certain rhythm!
Its color is no longer purely sinister; a cold, metallic luster begins to shine through the dark red!

Its primal instincts began to be guided, constrained, and reshaped by the collective will of the empire!
Finally, when the last psychic character was successfully imprinted, all the silver chains suddenly contracted and merged!
The enormous mass of chaotic flesh and blood emitted a final, violent contraction and hum, all the light collapsing inward, its form rapidly solidifying and shrinking.
When everything calmed down, what remained suspended in place was a huge eye, about the height of a person, that looked like it was carved from the finest obsidian!
The pupils of the eyes are not round, but rather a complex emblem composed of countless miniature, ever-flowing silver psychic characters. It is the symbol of the Red Empire and the embodiment of the Legion's will.

It hovered there silently, exuding an aura of coldness, rationality, and all-knowing insight, while maintaining an invisible spiritual connection with the sacrificial legion below.

Li Zhongren reached out and gestured, and the giant black eye slowly floated down to his side.

"From this day forward, your name will be 'Eye of the Empire'."
-
Dividing line

In the real world, inside a top-secret experimental field.

The energy rune array maintaining the entrance flickered intensely, and the spatial passage opened steadily once again.

Under the tense and expectant gaze of Queen Isabella and all the guardians, figures stepped out one by one from the dark red void.

The first to return were the soldiers of the sacrificial legion.

Although they were covered in blood and exhausted, their eyes were as sharp as eagles, and their aura was even more refined and fierce, like a thousand sharp blades that had just drunk blood and returned to their sheaths.

Their appearance brought with it a strong stench of blood and a chilling, menacing aura.

Next came Legion Commander Andrew, his face filled with excitement and reverence, following closely behind.

Finally, Li Zhongren took a step forward.

However, when his figure appeared clearly in front of everyone, the scene fell into a deathly silence of astonishment.

When he entered, he was a thin, handsome young man, only reaching the Queen's chest in height.

And standing there now is a young man with a tall and straight posture, broad shoulders and a narrow waist!

His face had fully matured, becoming almost perfectly handsome, yet possessing an unassailable majesty. His short black hair seemed to have grown a bit longer, casual yet orderly.

He stood there, naturally becoming the center of the entire space. An indescribable aura of awe and longing swept over you, as if he himself were the embodiment of some sublime rule.

His height was now similar to that of Queen Isabella. When the two stood together, there was no longer the sense of difference between a child and an adult; instead, they seemed to be equals.

The guards were dumbfounded, almost unable to believe their eyes.

An interdimensional expedition, where time flows differently?
still is
Only Queen Isabella, after the initial shock, showed a hint of understanding and complexity in her beautiful eyes.

She sensed the deeper, more essential aura emanating from Li Zhongren and sighed softly in her heart.

That's the taste of God.

More complete, more beyond question.

Her gaze passed over Li Zhongren and landed on the tranquil, eerie black giant eye, the "Eye of the Empire," that floated behind him.

Neither of them said anything. Isabella didn't even know the name of the eye. However, the tacit understanding they had developed over the past five years told her that her god had once again brought back unimaginable miracles and power for her and for the empire.

Furthermore, this time, the Empire's extraordinary war machines will be fully activated under the guidance of this eye, speeding forward at breakneck speed.
(End of this chapter)