Tonight, Alice joins the hunt.

The mystery of the Black Robe Clan has finally been solved. The incarnation that went to verify it finally found Evelyn and O'Connor—although their current forms of existence are somewhat unusual.

Chapter Forty-Eight: The Star Covenant

O'Connor, age 1.674 billion years. Mass approximately 5,000 kilotons. Originated at the westernmost end of the Qinnei star system, born from a supernova explosion.

Imhotep, age 1.993 billion years. Mass 4,300 galactic tons. Originated in the northern part of the Qin outer star system, approximately 26,000 light-years from the actual control zone. Born from a failed nebula aggregation.

When Alice's avatar arrived at the designated celestial region, she received an answer that left her both amused and exasperated.

Ah... she really didn't expect it. She truly had no idea that things would develop this way.

The so-called protagonists, Imhotep and O'Connor, are actually two asteroids with faint intelligence in this trial. One was triggered from the west of Qin, and the other set sail from the north of Qin. After billions of years, they will finally collide in a celestial region that has already been explored!

The celestial realm that was discovered was named Evelyn by the local civilization!

Gan!

Who the hell could have predicted this turn of events!

When Alice's avatar changed form and descended upon this 'Hamunata' region of the sky, she calculated a precise answer based on the current intelligence parameters.

—If left unattended, in about six months… roughly the time calculated earlier, O'Connor will make contact with Imhotep in Evelyn's territory. These two celestial bodies, which have been traveling at near-perfect speeds since their birth, will collide precisely, triggering a chain reaction in a certain inevitable coincidence. The final result will be an explosion powerful enough to tear apart space and create a rift in the universe.

The explosion of the stars shouldn't have been so powerful. But the problem is that these weren't two ordinary stars.

Because both of these celestial bodies possess a faint form of intelligence, they are rudimentary forms of star souls—and all star souls can actually be seen as potential true gods. Even if they haven't achieved true godhood in this world, they generally possess that extraordinary power in other parallel worlds that don't collide with each other!

Hu Hai, residing in the Qin imperial palace, guarded all timelines and parallel worldlines within this single universe. Therefore, even if the true gods completed their ascensions in parallel worldlines within this trial universe, they could not project even the slightest power onto the main worldline. Unless…

[Unless the death in the main world reflects the death in numerous parallel worlds.]

Thus, the collision of these two stars is essentially a full-scale clash of power between two true gods. Therefore, under extremely rare circumstances, triggering a cosmic rift equivalent to a miracle beyond compare, and releasing a trace of energy from the multiverse seas... is not unimaginable.

She rubbed her head… In her vision, she seemed to see countless parallel worlds vying for the title of True God—aside from the main timeline. In all these parallel worlds, O'Connor and Imhotep would grow into fully-fledged, powerful Star Souls at the True God level. And they all unanimously chose this 'Land of Evelyn' as their main battleground!

In other words, it meant that her love for someone distorted the spacetime scale of this main timeline, ensuring that O'Connor and Imhotep remained far apart without ever meeting. She also couldn't prevent the inevitable deaths that would occur in the countless parallel worlds—these two true gods would definitely determine a victor at a predetermined time. And then, with the glory of mutual destruction, they would sound the horn of war!

That's quite a generous gesture.

It's really not easy to be a mere tool in this situation.

Alice landed lightly at the designated landing point, gazing at the two asteroids that were still quite a distance from their destination, and fell into deep thought.

This is a switch. If left unattended, it will trigger precisely six months later. Interrupting or delaying it is impossible. Because the switch itself is merely a device. Its internal structure, or rather, the external environment beyond Alice's control, is the key to triggering the overall operation of the system.

As long as Hu Hai remains in power, no one, including himself, can jump through timelines or travel to parallel worlds.

Similarly, those below the sage level should not attempt to bypass the stable anchor of the imperial palace and thus inject power from the outside.

This explains why, despite the presence of numerous enemies, including someone like Andromeda who has come out into the open, Alice has yet to make a move, and Luo Ye is merely going through the motions. After all, the idea of ​​defeating a transcendent being with the methods of a true god is utter nonsense. Unless there are exceptional circumstances, it would be difficult to determine a clear winner even if a fight broke out.

When finite omnipotence clashes with finite omnipotence, a stalemate is the natural outcome.

Only when Huhai abdicates and the Qin Emperor ceases to suppress the world will all the opposing forces in this universe be able to unleash their full power without reservation.

That will be the time for the final battle.

That would also be the time when Hu Hai was at his strongest.

So……

What can I do?

Alice stretched out her finger and gently touched the spatial coordinates that should serve as the impact point six months later. She sensed the flaws in the universe itself.

This point... even now, is a flaw.

If she were to use special methods at this moment to project a force beyond the limits of a true god into this coordinate system, a force capable of destroying the very structure of the universe, then war would arrive sooner than expected.

I cannot delay the war.

But I could start a war prematurely.

Ignoring Anubis's script, I will act now, and Sekhmet will skip the pre-emptive waiting phase and descend directly into this cosmic space, becoming my adversary.

This is the only thing I can do.

She withdrew her finger and lowered her eyes slightly.

Ah, that's right. She could instigate a war prematurely. But... that would be detrimental to her. At least for her at this moment.

[At least we need to appease most of our companions and improve the team's combat effectiveness...]

She thought to herself, then slightly shifted her gaze.

Very good, all scenarios are now basically at a standstill. That's good.

The region where Zheng Zha resides is being invaded by extraterrestrials, and traces of Igoronnek are faintly visible on that civilization. This brings madness, but also a shared sense of vengeance. Those protagonists, whose personalities and characters are riddled with flaws and nurtured by a blood-red destiny, are forced to join forces under the oppressive pressure of this powerful enemy. They then unite with the entire world to fight against the evil extraterrestrial force.

In other words, the outcome was still undecided. Zheng Zha remained engrossed in his role-playing. The influence of the crimson aura on him was changing. Because around him, humanity was gradually revealing noble qualities that only manifested under crisis.

Alice suddenly felt a bit like Michael, the villain in a movie called Hellscream. Although the causes were different, the goals and methods were roughly similar. Both were dissatisfied with the decadence of mortals during peacetime and intended to test them with calamities to uncover the truly righteous. The problem was, Michael's ending was far from ideal.

She looked up at the sky, within the field of vision accessible only to information mages like herself. She clearly observed the crimson river flowing across the multiverse seas—it had dimmed considerably compared to the past. But, at least for this moment, it was still functioning properly.

As the river of blood flows on, mortals are destined to be the protagonists. All stories and scripts in this diverse world, even those that are forced or contrived, must be connected to mortals to function legitimately. And once a supporting alien race attacks the mortal group that is the protagonist, the backlash will follow.

This could be a negative factor, perhaps even becoming one of the stumbling blocks to my plans in the future. However…

"...It's better for me to trip over than for others. I'm not so easily finished; if I crash and burn, I can just start over. But it's different for others."

Her gaze shifted again, sweeping over Xiao Honglu's glass case and the space above Zhang Jie's Dream Universe. Undoubtedly, there was virtually no progress there either. Everything was exactly as she had predicted.

The same.

She hates things that are exactly the same.

The plan was proceeding flawlessly, but it left her feeling quite frustrated… She hated everything that followed a set routine, even the routine of her own plans. And now, she craved change.

Change...how does it change?

She conjured up a small, open-air... open-world retreat for herself in the void. She reclined on the soft sofa. She wasn't about to pull the 'switch' right now just to pursue a change. So she decided to suppress the changes within her while waiting.

What will this universe ultimately become?

Or rather... what do I hope this universe will become?

no answer.

There is no way to get an answer.

She extended her authority, covering this remote and desolate Qin Outer Heaven Domain under her protection—since she couldn't destroy it, she could only protect it for the time being. And she made a very certain judgment. That was the opportunity she needed to wait for, and the time required for it to become a reality wouldn't be long.

She decided to stay there and continue waiting.

Waiting for that opportunity to become your own strength.

................................................

Do you like stars? Do you like to gaze at the stars alone on a clear night, at the edge of the beach and seaside?

“In my hometown, there was once a prophetic legend. It was said that the world would be destroyed by a calamity in the stars. And only one special person could prevent this calamity from arriving.”

“You are that special person. Although I have no proof, I have a feeling. So…”

"...I will stay by your side and never leave your side."

Fragments of the past echoed in Lin Xi's mind. It was the first conversation she had with Skadi after their first formal meeting yesterday, after exchanging names. Perhaps because the content of that conversation was so sudden, it wasn't until now that Lin Xi's thoughts gradually returned to normal.

Then, Skadi became her second-in-command, and began to help her with various matters...

...Well. It must be admitted that every mortal has areas in life they're not particularly good at. And for Skadi, clerical work might just be one of those areas that cause her distress.

She was bad at paperwork, and even worse at managing the numerous electrical systems within the Rhodes Island. She acted like an old-fashioned person out of touch with modern society. But even so, she still held that enormous sword with her at all times, and every move she made spoke of her desire for battle.

fighting……

However, Rhode Island Pharmaceuticals did not need to face any difficult battles.

The analysis of Oripathy is progressing steadily; there are no particular obstacles, and no fools who can't see the bigger picture. The Reunion Movement has remained just an ordinary rights group for the infected until now.

Without enemies, there is naturally no real battle.

This made Skadi feel slightly down. But after she stayed with Lin Xi for about ten minutes, her mood quietly changed, and she was no longer depressed.

She did as she said. From the moment she met Lin Xi, she quietly stayed by his side, never leaving his side. Whether in the bathhouse, the restroom, or at the dining table, she always maintained a relatively close distance from Lin Xi. She didn't attract attention, nor did she provoke any resentment.

Lin Xi initially intended to send her away, but later realized that keeping her wouldn't cause any problems. So, after a brief conversation, she allowed Skadi to stay by her side.

She asked the question before allowing permission.

"Why me? Why believe in such ambiguous prophetic legends?"

She received a response very quickly.

“Because I saw you in my dream, Miss Lin Xi. You have a scent that I really like. Like the sea, and like the scent of birds.” — That’s what Skadi said back then. “I like you, Miss Lin Xi. I like your scent.”

A straight serve.

Lin Xi didn't know how to answer, and almost ran away. However, after she stopped, she found that Skadi had been quietly staying behind her the whole time.

Quiet, still. Skadi's footsteps were silent.

But when Lin Xi looked at her, his gaze seemed to pass through the surface of her exquisite appearance, and he saw a sleeping girl residing deep within Skadi's heart.

Long white hair, slender figure. Seeing her stirred a strange emotion deep within me.

Such illusions are fleeting, vanishing without a trace in the blink of an eye.

Was it a dream? An illusion? Or some kind of manifestation of knowledge?

"I don't know, but it'll definitely be useful"—Lin Xi looked away. Because during her eye contact with Skadi, she awkwardly realized that the other woman only saw her reflection.

【………………】

Very well, it seems this karmic connection cannot be so easily severed. Although the specifics are still unknown, Lin Xi's intuition tells him that it's best... or rather, there's no need to act rashly.

It's rare to be confused.

Lin Xi pondered this, but she quickly realized that she didn't have much time to be careless.

Chapter 49: All Things Renewed

The world of Terra is undergoing a change.

It's unclear when exactly, but a new trend has begun to sweep through the world.

The barriers between the various races on Earth were silently severed. And the discrimination and oppression of those infected with Oripathy by the healthy gradually disappeared without a trace.