Collapse Iron: Cosplaying the Near-Death Star, but with a full destiny.

The moment you step into the ruins, the light seems to be swallowed up by some invisible giant mouth.

The original yellowish twilight outside was completely shut out, replaced by a deep, solidified darkness.

Dan Heng immediately turned on the flashlight.

A powerful beam of light shone forward, illuminating the dust particles floating in the air.

The particles seemed to have frozen in time, suspended in mid-air, remaining motionless for a long time.

"It's so quiet..."

March 7th lowered her voice and unconsciously moved closer to Xing.

"There wasn't even a sound of wind; it felt like being in a vacuum."

"Oxygen levels are normal, and air pressure is normal."

Nguyen Mai glanced at the instrument.

"The airflow is extremely slow. The internal structure of this site seems to have created a closed force field."

Xing didn't speak.

She supported Hoshino, walking very slowly.

The further you go in, the more pronounced the vibrations in your chest become.

thump.

thump.

thump.

Heartbeat.

A pulling sensation.

It was as if an invisible thread was tied to her heart, pulling her back from the depths of the ruins.

Xing sensed it.

Of course, Hoshino also sensed it.

And it's even more intense than a star.

"Well……"

Hoshi stopped in his tracks, a layer of cold sweat beading on his forehead.

She felt the power within her body was in complete chaos.

"Nothingness" is devouring.

"Reproduction" is stirring.

"Storage" is attempting to build a defensive line.

"Hunting" is searching for a target.

But all of these were forced to give way in the face of that ever-growing echo of the "end."

It's like the main melody suddenly starting to play in a chorus, leaving the other instruments as mere accompaniment.

hum-

A strange halo suddenly appeared around the body of the star.

It was a dark golden light.

It wasn't glaring, but it carried an ancient and heavy aura.

Followed by.

Beneath this golden light, purple ethereal mist, green lush vines, blue protective ice crystals, and red flames of destruction emerged...

colorful.

Colorful.

It's like a spilled palette.

Or rather...

It's like a prism that contains all the colors of the universe.

Nguyen Mai, who was walking ahead, suddenly turned around.

The detector in my hand emitted a piercing alarm.

"This energy reading..."

Nguyen Mai stared at the screen, where the chaotic curves seemed about to burst through the coordinate axes.

She looked up at the star, which was enveloped in a halo of light.

"The End?"

March 7th didn't understand what the other person meant by those words: "What do you mean?"

After all, everyone knows that the Star of the Thousand Stars has 17 paths of destiny.

Dan Heng was silent for a moment: "Are you referring to the destiny within her body?"

Xing had an "I knew it" expression on her face.

Ruan Mei wasn't that shocked: "That's right, there are 18 life paths within the body of the Star."

A traveler on the path of life.

That word sounds cool.

It even has a bit of a "Dragon Overlord" vibe.

But only Hoshino herself knows.

This is practically a torture device.

It's like having eighteen roommates with different personalities who are always fighting inside your body.

"call……"

Hoshino let out a long sigh of relief.

As the echoes of "The End" subsided, the chaotic lights slowly receded back into the body.

Only that faint layer of dark gold remained, still lingering on the skin's surface.

"so……"

March 7th swallowed hard and cautiously approached.

"You're a super-duper eccentric star god agent?"

"..."

Nihoshi rolled his eyes.

"This name is awful."

"How about we order a family bucket?"

"puff."

Xing couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"A family bucket...that's quite a vivid description. It has all sorts of flavors."

Although this fact is surprising.

But those present had all seen their share of ups and downs.

And there's the "From the Future" universal patch.

People accepted it quite quickly.

After all, they even have Star Core Essence.

Another character with a full destiny path, it doesn't seem so unacceptable, does it?

"Alright, Miss Family Bucket."

Hoshi patted Hoshino on the shoulder.

"Since you have so many cheat codes, then if there are any traps or mechanisms in this ruin, you'll be the one to deal with them."

"Thank you."

"I'm annoyed," said Hoshino.

But beneath this seemingly joking demeanor, Dan Heng stared at Xing, his brow furrowing slightly before quickly relaxing.

Star.

Yes……

The future of stars.

The group continued onward.

The passage is very long.

The ground was paved with huge black stone slabs, and each step made a hollow echo.

The walls on both sides began to change.

It is no longer rough rock.

Instead, it was a black crystal that had been polished to an exceptionally smooth finish.

Under the beam of a flashlight.

Strange marks began to appear on those crystal walls.

"etc."

Nguyen Mai, who was walking at the front, suddenly stopped.

She raised the portable analyzer in her hand and pointed it at the wall.

"What is this?"

On March 7th, I went over to take a look.

"Scribbles?"

All I could see was the smooth surface of the wall.

It was covered with countless scratches.

This doesn't look like text or a pattern that has been carefully carved with tools.

more like...

The marks left by a creature scratching wildly with its claws or some sharp object in a state of extreme pain or madness.

Some are deep, some are shallow.

Some are long, some are short.

The lines are twisted and crisscrossed.

At first glance, it seems to have no pattern.

But if you stare at it for too long...

This can cause a strange feeling of dizziness.

The lines seemed to be slowly wriggling, like countless intertwined snakes, or... insects.

"Is this written language?"

Dan Heng asked.

He had seen the writing systems of countless civilizations in the think tank, including ancient languages ​​that had long been extinct.

But he had never seen anything like it before.

"Unable to resolve".

Nguyen Mai frowned slightly as she looked at the red "ERROR" message that appeared on the analyzer.

"This is not hieroglyphics, not phonetic script, and not any known logical symbols."

"even……"

She reached out and gently touched the edges of the scratches with her fingertips.

"This is not a way of expressing any kind of intelligent civilization at all."

"Not belonging to intelligent civilization?"

Xing countered with a question.

"Could it have been caused by those insects scratching it?"

"Possibly."

Nguyen Mai did not deny it.

"But if it was an insect scratch, why do these marks...contain some kind of energy fluctuation?"

Energy fluctuations.

Hoshino moved closer.

Although the "intellectual" destiny within her was very weak, at this moment, it seemed as if she had been pricked by a needle, producing a slight reaction.

She looked at the scratches.

The messy lines began to rearrange themselves in her vision.

It doesn't look like text.

It's more like... some kind of recorded electroencephalogram?

Or is it a personification of a certain emotion?

despair.

fear.

hunger.

There is also a... deep, incomprehensible longing.

"These scratches..."

Hoshi reached out his hand.

The fingertip stopped one centimeter away from the wall.

zizi.

A faint crackling sound of electricity rang out.

A faint blue light appeared between her fingertips and the wall.

"Be careful!"

Dan Heng grabbed her wrist and pulled her back a step.

"seal."

Ruan Mei stared at the light screen, her eyes sharpening.

"These traces have been sealed away."

"Some kind of power...some extremely high-level power, has locked this information here."

"I don't want people to see it, or rather... I don't want this information to get out."

"Who would seal off such messy scratches?"

The mystery of March 7th remains unsolved.

"Could there be some unparalleled martial arts technique hidden inside?"

"It's not necessarily a divine skill."

Staring at the lines, Xing felt a little dizzy.

"It could also be some kind of... curse."

"Or it could be a distress signal from some unlucky person."

Hoshino looked at the scratches.

The guess in my mind became clearer and clearer.

If this really is the future.

If these traces were left by the civilization destroyed by the swarm.

So...

Could what seals it away be the "end"?

Or perhaps... the source that caused all the destruction?

"Nguyen Mai".

The star turns its head.

"Can it be untied?"

Nguyen Mai attempted to crack the code several times using the instrument.

But the light curtain remained completely still.

It even rebounded a burst of energy, cracking the analyzer's probe.

"no."

Nguyen Mai put down the instrument and shook her head.

"This is beyond my area of ​​expertise."

"This is not encryption at the level of science and technology; it is absolute suppression at the level of destiny and power."

"Unless the corresponding key is found, or a stronger force of destiny is used to forcibly break through."

A stronger destiny force.

All eyes fell on Hoshino at the same time.

Miss Family Bucket

Here's one that's already there.

㳉星：……

Don't look at me.

She took a step back.

"With my small frame, if I try to break through, I'll probably drown first."

"Too."

Xing looked away with some regret.

"It seems I can only write this down and have the Black Tower study it when I get back."

Although it cannot be deciphered.

But the existence of these scratches is the biggest clue in itself.

This is not a dead end.

This place once had... a history that is unknown to most people.

"Let's keep going."

Dan Heng looked at the even deeper darkness ahead.

"The road is not over yet."

The sound of five people's footsteps rang out again.

Wandering through this deep, secluded passage.

Accompanying them were those twisted scratches on the wall that seemed to be watching them.

Extending into the unknown depths.