Everyone's playing Red Giant? I, Black Hole, devour everything!

The moment those words were spoken, Lin Tian's pupils contracted sharply.

Filter.

This term is mentioned in the last few paragraphs of the Ayers database.

It is filtering.

It is being phased out.

Now, this survivor of the Ayr race has described the essence of the cosmic will in a more straightforward way.

Not the giver.

It's a filter.

What are we filtering?

Eliminate what?

Why do we need to screen?

Why eliminate it?

These questions flooded Lin Tian's mind like a tidal wave.

But the Ayr observer in the footage did not immediately provide an answer.

Lin Tian had no choice but to continue watching.

"We, the Ayrs, are observers chosen by the will of the universe."

"It gives us the identity of observers, allowing us to start from a primordial star, constantly devouring, evolving, and growing."

"Our civilization has developed rapidly in this process."

"We pursued gravity, the power of spacetime itself, and pushed this path to its extreme, building a vast empire spanning hundreds of star sectors."

"We've even started pursuing wormholes."

Wormhole.

The two words landed in Lin Tian's mind, causing his heart to tremble.

What is a wormhole?

That's the Einstein-Rosen bridge, a tunnel connecting two different points in spacetime.

In theory, wormholes could enable instantaneous travel across cosmic scales.

From one star sector to another, from one end of the Milky Way to the other, even from one universe to another.

In the astronomy of my previous life, wormholes existed only in mathematical equations and were never observed or created.

But this Ayrs observer said that they had already begun experimenting with wormholes hundreds of millions of years ago.

"Wormholes are shortcuts in spacetime. Through wormholes, you can cross tens of thousands of light-years in an instant and reach the other side of the universe. This is the ultimate goal that our Ayrs race has pursued for countless eras."

"We almost succeeded."

"It really... almost succeeded."

His voice wavered slightly here.

"But just when we were at our peak—the will of the universe brought down disaster."

Lin Tian's consciousness suddenly tightened.

disaster.

These two words coincided with the scattered records he had seen in the database of the collection station.

"The will of the universe has given us everything, and we believe it to be the giver, the mentor, and the guardian of the universe."

"But we were wrong."

"In the eyes of the cosmic will, every observer civilization is merely a candidate."

"It is observing us, evaluating us, testing us, and waiting for the most powerful civilization among us to emerge."

"Then, a trial will descend."

"We, the Ayrs, call this trial—the Great Elimination."

"All observer civilizations caught up in the Great Elimination will be forcibly pulled into a closed spacetime at the same time. In that spacetime, there is no way out, no rules, and no mercy."

"Only devour."

"Civilizations must devour each other, observers must devour each other—until only one remains."

At this moment, Lin Tian felt his consciousness trembling.

The Great Elimination – this is the true purpose of the cosmic will.

It is not about training observers at all.

It is being raised.

They nurtured countless observer civilizations like Gu worms, then let them devour each other in a sealed jar until only the strongest Gu worm remained.

"Our Ayr race lost ninety-nine percent of its observers in that great elimination."

The observer's voice finally trembled slightly.

Ninety-nine percent.

What kind of number is this?

A vast civilization, a super-civilization spanning dozens of star sectors and controlling countless quasars, was wiped out by 99% in a selection process.

The remaining one percent were all defeated and remnants.

"In the end, the surviving members of our tribe fled here."

"With their last bit of energy, they sealed this primordial quasar, leaving behind this warning."

He paused here for a moment.

It was as if she was sorting out her last thoughts.

"We, the Ayrs, have failed, but the selection process will not end; it will continue until the final victor is born."

"After us, you will be next."

These words struck Lin Tian like a thunderbolt.

The next group to be selected will be a new generation of observers, including humans.

Lin Tian's thoughts raced at that moment.

He recalled the moment a hundred years ago when the will of the universe descended upon Earth.

I was reminded of those who were given the identity of observers by the will of the universe.

It reminded me of all the conflicts humanity has had in the online universe over the past century.

Everyone is desperately trying to improve their strength, striving to achieve a higher ranking in the star sector competition, and fighting for a higher overall strength score for their country.

Everyone thought it was just a game.

A fair and just competition presided over by the will of the universe.

But who would have thought—this wasn't a game at all.

This is a selection process.

A selection process that has lasted for countless billions of years.

Humans are just the latest batch of Gu worms thrown into this jar.

The observer continued.

"I don't know how much time you have left, because the trigger for a major elimination is never time."

"Instead—when a sufficiently powerful individual emerges among the new generation of observers, the will of the universe will initiate a selection process."

"Just like our Ayers tribe back then."

These words were like a cold awl, piercing deep into Lin Tian's consciousness.

A sufficiently powerful individual.

He suddenly remembered the test of cosmic will that he had just passed.

That assessment has only occurred four times in its 100-year history.

The first three triggers were all top observers of that era, and without exception, they all perished.

He was the only one who passed.

He was the only one who survived.

The reward for passing the assessment is the title of "Universal Recognition".

What do you approve of him for?

Does this mean he is qualified to be screened?

A chill ran through Lin Tian's heart.

"To those who come after you, I know what you're thinking."

The observer's voice suddenly softened.

"You may feel scared, angry, or resentful. We all had these emotions back then, but they are useless."

"The will of the universe will not spare you because of your fear, and the great elimination will not be delayed because of your unwillingness."

"All you can do is become stronger, stronger than us, stronger than all other civilizations, stronger than the Great Elimination itself."

"Only in this way... will you have a chance to survive."

"This is a lesson our Ayrs race learned at the cost of our entire civilization."

The observer in the image slowly raised his head.

His gaze seemed to pierce through hundreds of millions of years of time, through the virtual space constructed by the gravitational imprint, and landed directly on Lin Tian.

"You who came after us, you have inherited our legacy, merged with the primordial quasar, and walked the path that we did not finish walking back then."

But that's not enough.

"Quasars may allow you to roam freely among ordinary observers, but in the face of great elimination, they are merely the minimum passing grade."

"You need greater power."

He raised his hand.

An extremely complex set of data emerged from his palm.

The sophistication of those data structures and the density of their information far surpassed anything Lin Tian had ever seen before.

"This is the ultimate theory that our Ayr race deduced on the eve of its demise, using the last wisdom of our entire civilization—the wormhole construction theory."