Chapter 957: Chapter 957: The Tiline
The temporary world prepared for the Exile Fleet has finally been settled. It is a rich world that has just completed material evolution, with space structure and cosmic material-energy balance already stabilized. The template used is a common variant of the Universal Universe, its structure similar to the universe we are in, featuring light speed limitation, four basic forces, expansion evolution, and galaxy circular structure. The universe is vast, with few commonly used world paraters and a solid structure, virtually immune to law disarray or parater errors except for world-ending level disasters. Unlike the wild universe we inhabit, the newly customized world features two special paraters that were highly praised by the seller. These paraters result in planets being closer together, with interstellar space filled with high concentrations of free energy, creating ideal conditions for a magical world. Perhaps after long evolution, so intelligent beings within this new universe might erge using magic. They might divide their living planet into Heaven, Human Realm, and Hell, with the Light God Sect and Dark God Sect constantly at odds, all believing in the existence of a supre temple in the world, humorously nad the Pantheon Group Buying Website… inadvertently revealing the origin of the entire world.
After all, the universe is vast, and the Exile Fleet neither can nor needs to occupy every inch of the stars. After activating this new world, there will inevitably be a lucky corner where a unique civilization is born. They might evolve as if in a daze, unaware of the world’s dinsions, or ignorant of the Empire and Void Space secrets. When their wise people sit on sacrificial altars pondering the mysteries of the sky, if an Imperial Starship or Exile Fleet spaceship occasionally passes by, it might even beco an apocalyptic prediction. In the infinite possibilities, the occurrence of this scene is never zero. Of course, this could be a matter of millions of years later, and I might still rember the little whimsy of today, wondering if a new civilization has ford in what was once desolate outer space. It’s an intriguing thought.
I find myself becoming more and more artistic—these high-level thoughts are not typically my style.
Yet the first to understand these whimsical ideas is the Rogue Goddess who has been coding all morning in the room. Bingdisi slurped the soy milk Anwina specially reserved for her, mumbling without it obstructing her speech: “It’s normal. Watching a world evolve before your eyes, the sudden burst from a single point blossoming into a cacophony is indescribable. Having such transcendent thoughts just shows you’ve gradually realized sothing broader. Of course, another possibility is that your Void Creature side is maturing. Are you seriously considering things over millions of years now?”
Sitting next to Bingdisi on the sofa, I earnestly help comb Dingdang’s hair with a CPU halved in two, saying without raising my head: “Stop it. My concept of ti is different from you Divine Race, who think of tens of millions of years as a blink. I’m just thinking out loud. By the way, ‘Council’ seems quite satisfied with the situation of the new ho, right?”
After finalizing the new world for the Exile Fleet, Sandora imdiately sent the related information to the Exile Fleet still waiting in the Void. We dared not share the origin of this world but only marked the main paraters and habitable coordinates of the new universe clearly. The feedback was quite reassuring: the Council and other fleet elders were very satisfied with the new ho’s conditions, especially knowing this universe doesn’t belong to the Empire’s territory but is a completely free world acquired from the Divine Race.
“To them, the environnt of the new ho isn’t really important. With a civilization reaching such a level, they can create colonies as long as there’s a stable space. What they need is just a piece of peace. Hopefully, this new ho can sowhat offset the offenses committed by the Old Empire against them.” Sandora’s voice cos from ahead, sitting several ters away by the floor-to-ceiling window. Before her is Yifang’s small table with a cup of BlackTea. Holding the BlackTea gracefully, she appears like a serene princess in the sunlight—if not for the teapot standing over a ter tall behind her, this scene would truly be beautiful.
Lin Xue glanced around and suddenly muttered: “I’m just thinking, what expression will they have when they learn that the new universe was given as a freebie for buying furniture…”
“Pfft—” Bingdisi sprayed soy milk on the spot, unfortunately not over her chest, or it would have been quite amusing, right? “Furniture freebie? What’s going on? How co I don’t know about this?”
Just out from an explosive Hell, Bingdisi is unaware of the morning’s events. I glanced back and saw Monina still silently engrossed in those instructions several ters behind and quietly explained to Bingdisi: “This new universe isn’t from the Imperial Reserve but was a bargain item Monina acquired from the Divine Realm… not even a bargain, just her browsing the mall in a daze later bought furniture for her temple, and got this world as a freebie, reportedly second-hand…”
Saying it out loud, I still find it rather unbelievable, because until an hour ago, I didn’t know the Divine Realm even had group-buying options, including mobile terminal network orders—as a figurative speech. Monina referred to her crystal plate as Star Domain Resonance Crystal, however it’s called, watching Monina pull a tablet computer-like thing from her pocket and order an entire universe left a deep impression on .
“Honestly, I think Monina shares the sa style as mine in my earlier years, though she seems more gentle.” Bingdisi pointed at her chin seriously, “Never thought even second-hand worlds could be grouped bought now, similar to buying and selling second-hand houses. Have the policies loosened over these tens of thousands of years…”
I listened in astonishnt, wondering what kind of people these are in the Divine Realm, could their daily lives be any more colorful? Just as this thought erged, Dingdang jumped from my palm onto the coffee table, bringing another surprise: “Loosened, loosened! Second-hand items and free gifts have loosened! The World Tree’s new Entropy Value Adjuster installed a few days back ca as a freebie when Dingdang bought candies!”
I always thought Dingdang managing the world with a seven-handed World Tree scavenged from flea markets was shocking enough, but now I learn sothing even more shocking, that is, the critical Divine Artifact ensuring universe order on the World Tree was a free gift with candy… I dared not continue asking what other such items are on the World Tree because Dingdang doesn’t seem like one who can save money…
Compared to the Exile Fleet’s new ho, we still count as lucky. Their universe is kitchenware purchased by so Goddess with the furniture.
And it was second-hand, too.
“From now, Monina will be the Managent God of that new world,” I suddenly rember this fact and speak in a conflicted tone, “I always thought being a Managent God was a glorious na; now it seems so hasty?”
“That’s the way it is. The Managent God is essentially a landlord,” Bingdisi touched the corner of her mouth, “Staying idle at ho, occasionally inspecting the house, collecting water and electricity bills, at best diating tenant disputes, sounds a bit like property managent. Right, the Managent God also handles repairs, like cosmic parater adjustnts, if the tenant collapses the wall, we exhaustively fix it promptly—that might be due to so advanced civilization developing mathematical rule devices causing world collapse—you need approval to penalize tenants, it’s a tricky, dads-pitiful job…”
I listened in utter confusion, the first ti hearing from the Divine Race perspective the comntary on the prestigious position of Managent God, it’s truly a fresh experience. I never thought the supre sacred and majestic God in mortal eyes regards themselves as a hapless fee collector, also employed as a handy repairman and community elder. This might reveal the disparity in realms between mortals and True Gods, the latter generally less grounded…
“What’s the deal about fining tenants?” Qianqian, who had unknowingly joined, listened and asked curiously for clarification.
“Great Catastrophes,” Bingdisi waved her hand arrogantly, “Of course, mortals would classify severe ones as Doomsday. Sotis mortals cause much trouble, like moral decay or aimless developnt of Law Weapons, the forr affecting God’s comndation, the latter readily collapsing the entire world. Generally, Managent God would intervene, issuing warnings or guidance, or directly instruct them on the correct use of cosmic laws. However, in extre instances, so mortal races ignore advice, leading to various catastrophes as a final ergency brake. But this asure requires scrutiny, cumberso. Sotis it undergoes ten years of review during peak periods, often before disasters descend, they have already wrecked themselves…”
I looked down at the little thing, Dingdang, bouncing on the table, hopping around a chessboard like it’s hopscotch. Noticing my gaze, she gleefully looked up to greet , enthusiastically inviting to join her in jumping around. It’s hard to imagine her with a stern face, applying to higher-ups to trigger the apocalypse. Seems like we’ll have to hope the World Tree crashes or her operating system trial expires in 2012…
Whether Dingdang will start the apocalypse, I don’t know. What I do know is that the little thing seems obsessed with chess now. I don’t even rember who brought this set back originally; it’s been in the living room for ages, set up with a stalemate scenario that Lin Xue and Qianqian concocted: a standoff between a general and a marshal. Who knows how those two amateur players managed such a setup. Now Dingdang is trying to jump from the “general” to the “marshal” without using her wings. After an hour of attempts, she’s still face-first on the Chu-Han border. Considering her height-to-jump ratio, it’s an impressive long jump, but I still think this little thing is just full from eating too much. I figure if she bumps into this board a few more tis, it might beco a divine artifact, with the characteristic law of “divine beings inevitably tripping over once they touch it…”
“I’ve been pondering sothing since yesterday,” I said thoughtfully, adopting a national-concerned tone, “I feel like there’s sothing off about the Fallen Apostles.”
“What have you thought of now?” Bingdisi yawned, glancing at . “You don’t usually think about such things.”
“Why didn’t they continue pursuing back then?” I pondered slowly, picking up Dingdang, who had again fallen in front of , and gently nuzzled her, making the little thing ecstatic. “When they were chasing the Exile Fleet— you know, the Xyrin Apostles are a kind that won’t stop until their goals are achieved. They won’t give up on sothing unless ordered by the Emperor or if it loses its initial value, and chasing down enemies they’d already defeated should offer no good reason to stop midway. Yet, according to known intelligence, the Fallen Apostles suddenly abandoned their pursuit of the Exile Fleet back then.”
Bingdisi thought for a long mont, then shook her head seriously: “Damn, I don’t know— you forgot I didn’t go with them back then?”
: “…Then why were you looking so serious! I thought you had figured sothing out!”
“I was just setting the mood,” Bingdisi nonchalantly waved her hand and then yelled for Sandora to co over. I explained my perplexing thoughts, and Sandora seed to beco a bit interested too.
“Exactly, there’s been this point of confusion from before, but this event seems to make things clearer now,” Sandora nodded in agreent. Dingdang, perched on my shoulder, mimicked her nodding, though she was more of a cute background piece here, just being an adorable creature. “Since the Old Empire’s downfall, after which the Fallen Apostles ford, up to when they resud activity, and then until Ah Jun, you awakened, there seems to be an implicit titable, a crucial part of which is — the Fallen Apostles had a very long hibernation period!”
I noticed Bingdisi’s eyes lit up montarily, as she seed to understand too: “Are you saying that the group was in a dormant state from the Old Empire’s fall until Chen Yi’s awakening as Emperor, and the Exile Fleet escaping the Fallen Apostles was the start of this dormancy?”
“You could basically see it that way,” Sandora nodded. “Not underestimating anyone, but I’ve seen the Exile Fleet’s configuration, and even in their pri, it was impossible for them to totally lose the Fallen Apostles’ pursuit. The enemy clearly halted midway during the pursuit. According to ‘Council’ records, the Exile Fleet took a thousand years to shake off the chase. While they occasionally encountered unfortunate cases of the Fallen Apostle ambushes afterward, those were no longer large-scale pursuits. Those were just small squads coming out for ‘fresh air.’ The Fallen Apostles’ large-scale activity suddenly stopped a thousand years after the Exile Fleet’s voyage.”
“So during that ti, the Star Domain didn’t find any traces of the Fallen Apostles, nor did it notice the absence of news from the Xyrin Empire for a long ti… simply because the disaster area was eerily quiet. The Fallen Apostles made a fuss for a bit and then suddenly quieted down!” Bingdisi clapped her hands, prompting Sandora and to roll our eyes vigorously: describing a thousand-year span as a blink of an eye reflects what kind of fascinating sense of ti!
The three of us combined our thinking for quite a while, finally sorting out this titable hidden beneath many events, evident yet neglected by everyone. The information brought by the Exile Fleet turned this originally vague plan into concrete data, gradually clarifying the abnormal activity patterns of the Fallen Apostles.
I usually refer to this as dramatic developnt.
“Let see, Old Empire sleeps, followed by a very short chaotic period,” Sandora had moved her little tea table and the towering teapot over. Bingdisi crude as ever, used her finger to doodle on the table with red tea that supposedly cost how much silver per gram. “During this ti, the Imperial Army was entirely out of control. Even the newly converted Fallen Apostles had no self-awareness. In their unconscious state, they leveled the Empire and started attacking all surrounding civilizations. According to the Exile Fleet’s reports, the precise data from this period is about two to three hundred years, followed by each world collapsing in turn, and the exile fleets gradually rging to form today’s Fourth United Fleet. From there, it was a relentless thousand-year-long hunt. During this period, the Fallen Apostles remained uncontrollable. Based on the Council’s intelligence, they had no traces of Imperial Army rationality, acting in the sa madness as ordinary Abyss Monsters.”
I nodded: “Bellavilla’s recollection of this period was also chaotic. It seems she was in a state of frenzy for so ti after leaving the Holy Hall. At that ti… the infected apostles probably weren’t even considered Fallen Apostles.”
The Fallen Apostles, although infected by the Abyss, retained the ability to reason and often behave like normal intelligent beings, aside from their world-ending obsession. Yet, according to the ‘Council’ records, the original Imperial Army chasing the Exile Fleet acted with the madness of Abyss Monsters, unlike the subsequent gradually recovering Fallen Apostles.
“Later on, the Fallen Apostles suddenly went into hibernation,” Bingdisi continued to ss with Sandora’s precious black tea, sketching an erratic tiline on the table, “Their activity intensity clearly decreased, if not saying they entirely vanished from the Main Material Plane. During this period, everything seed to calm down. This hibernation lasted a long ti, and with ti in the Void being unmatched, we won’t bother calculating how many years have passed. All that’s finally confird is—they resud activities around the sa ti as Chen’s awakening…”
“Uh, but there seem to be many years apart, probably over a hundred,” I scratched the back of my head, feeling a chill run over . “I talked to Bellavilla about it. She perford the task of collecting Hearts of the World over a hundred years ago. That should be marked as the start of the Fallen Apostles’ active period…”
Bingdisi suddenly rapped the table, interrupting , her eyes fervently looking this way with a severe expression: “Chen, you might have overlooked sothing: The whole historical tiline spans across tens of thousands of years, a few hundred years can be negligible, and your Void Creature nature is of a passive being, possibly reacting to a stimulus only after a few hundred years. In other words, your awakening and the Fallen Apostles’ large-scale operations could be considered simultaneously occurring!”
“Ah Jun! You’re squeezing Dingdang too hard!”
The tiny protest from my hand brought back to my senses, and I hurriedly placed the scrunched God on the table, while still feeling uneasy. anwhile, Sandora suddenly stood up: “I’m going to find Bellavilla!” (To be continued. If you enjoyed this work, feel free to visit Qidian (qidian) to give your recomndations and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
Reviews
All reviews (0)