Barren Star – Chapter 69

Don’t look back.

Ning Buyi quickly had no leisure to reply to Hil.

The writhing flesh masses covered the entire great plain, gradually merging with the monster after being devoured by shadows. Its tentacles were like branches of a great tree, tightly wound around the trunk. In the tremendous rumbling, golden god-blood and fragments scattered. Compared to these behemoths, the silver-white mecha darting among them was extremely small. However, being “small” had its advantages – at least it could find gaps between those waving bizarre tentacles, slipping through like the wind.

            

The closer they got to that dead great tree, the more horrifying the scene became. The flesh-like surface undulated like living tissue, and gradually, cracks appeared. These cracks tilted outward, transforming into new tentacles. They danced frantically, their tips split open to reveal crimson horrifying eyeballs, staring fixedly at Ning Buyi.

Ning Buyi sat in the mecha cockpit, watching the scene before her expressionlessly. If her mental fortitude wasn’t strong enough, seeing these sights would have driven her mad, let alone controlling the mecha. Sequence Weapons fell ahead, the terrifying explosions stirring up huge gusts of wind, sending shattered flesh chunks flying high before raining down like a downpour. Ning Buyi pushed the mecha to maximum speed, energy bombs falling like scattered flower petals as she followed Hua Zhuoyu’s footsteps, watching the damaged divine temple draw near.

Though the monster was entangled with the enormous dead tree, the temple’s perimeter shown on the screen remained clean – both flesh masses and tentacles consciously avoided that area. Ning Buyi’s side quest was to enter that divine temple, and it seemed she had completed most of it.

            

Having the three of them eliminate all the blood masses in a short time would be an impossible dream, but breaking through the tentacle blockade to reach the temple was within their capabilities. Even so, by the time they finally broke through the layers of blockade and entered the temple, their spiritual energy was nearly exhausted. The silver-white mecha was covered in disgusting tainted blood, taking almost ten minutes of automatic cleaning to wipe away the filth.

“That thing cannot touch this area.” Ning Buyi, disregarding her appearance, sat down on a black stone to rest. Wiping the sweat from her brow, her gaze fell on the ruined temple. In that apocalyptic battle, the magnificent pillars and decorations had long been destroyed, leaving only the domed temple with its tightly closed doors.

“Kris, my dear sister, use your innate ability to open the temple’s sealed doors.” Hil smiled gently.

            

Kris wasn’t an obedient person, but she was sensible. Hil’s gaze was calm, but Kris believed that if she said no, she’d likely be thrown out with those nauseating blood masses. After taking a honey-flavored Spirit Recovery Potion, Kris reluctantly stood up. Her deep blue right eye was covered with an eerie glow when her ability activated, and after a few minutes, with a light “click,” the tightly sealed doors slowly opened.

Except for Kris, Ning Buyi and Hua Zhuoyu immediately entered combat stance at the sound. Only after seeing no strange things surge out from the divine temple did they slightly relax. “Let’s go in and look,” Ning Buyi took the lead. However, Hua Zhuoyu grabbed her hand, straightened her collar, and stepped into the great hall first. Although the Mythical Domain drove away the dark pollution, the pressure from it still constantly tormented them. However, that pain completely dissipated the moment they entered the temple.

“There’s a drop of water above,” Kris suddenly spoke.

            

Actually, describing it as a drop of water was quite inappropriate, as this water-drop-shaped substance was at least the size of a human head. It floated in the center of the great hall, radiating holiness and purity. Thin water threads, like extending spider webs, reached into oddly shaped incubation chambers—inside which lay eggs as identical as if they were copy-pasted.

After seeing that water drop, Hil’s gaze never moved away.

Ning Buyi frowned slightly.

            

Hua Zhuoyu stared intently at Hil and said bluntly, “Don’t move carelessly.”

Hil came to her senses, suppressing the desire deep in her heart, and smiled faintly: “Naturally.” She came to this place of chaos’ origin to find something that could suppress the “Source of Chaos”. She had spent her whole life fighting against “chaos” and was the last person who wanted to fail at the end.

Compared to Hil’s obvious desire, Kris, who found a place to sit, was much more simple-minded. The water drop didn’t interest her, and the eggs in the incubation chambers were worthless to her. Covering her mouth for a yawn, her gaze turned to the equally bored Little Feng Jiu. Little Feng Jiu was vigilant, and after meeting Kris’s gaze, its feathers all stood up as it shot like a small cannonball into Ning Buyi’s arms. Ning Buyi stumbled, perhaps stepping on something, and with a “click,” an ancient book suddenly appeared before them.

            

Ning Buyi stared at this suddenly appeared book with full vigilance.

Meanwhile, the Mountain and Sea Atlas that had become increasingly active after entering the temple urged her to read this book.

Ning Buyi furrowed her brows as countless troubling thoughts flashed through her mind, such as this all being a scheme of the Mountain and Sea Atlas, but she quickly collected her scattered thoughts and touched the golden-glowing book, rapidly flipping through it. The writing wasn’t in the common script of Da Xia, but when those strange patterns entered her eyes, her mind automatically translated them. Besides the rustling of turning pages, the hall was completely silent.

            

Only after Ning Buyi finished reading the book did she break the silence.

She cleared her throat and pointed at the “great water drop” floating in mid-air: “It’s the Water of Life. Its presence is what prevents the mutated monsters outside from entering the divine temple.”

Hua Zhuoyu raised an eyebrow: “Used to maintain the lifeforms within the eggs?”

            

Ning Buyi nodded and explained: “These lifeforms are lower civilizations of the Divine Court, Seeds of Civilization protected by the gods during the apocalyptic war.” Actually, all destroyed plants and animals were Seeds of Civilization, but they entered the Mountain and Sea Atlas, while these “Seeds” were left in the “Dead Star” temple. According to the Mountain and Sea Atlas, it lacked sufficient energy to take the “Seeds of Civilization” away. These lives, already destroyed in the war, couldn’t significantly impact the universe, so they were left here. Their survival depended entirely on fate.

“Can we take the Life Water Drop?” Hil was more concerned about this.

Ning Buyi cast a sideways glance at Hil without answering.

            

Hua Zhuoyu silently positioned herself before Ning Buyi, guarding against Hil’s potential aggression.

Hil crossed her arms, her eyes flickering with strange light. The thought of plundering flashed through her mind but was ultimately suppressed. She smiled: “Miss Ning, does your intuition tell you what to do next?”

“Find the resurrection device and place the Heart of Life within it,” Ning Buyi shrugged. This was the side quest arranged by the Mountain and Sea Atlas, and also the key to dealing with the monsters. This was the Divine Court, the original place of purification. But after the gods fell, the entire Divine Court lost its order, breeding chaos and malice. If the towering tree in the Divine Court could be revived using the “Heart of Life,” the “purification” efficiency would far exceed their “physical transcendence” [物理超度 | wùlǐ chāodù | term for forceful purification through physical means].

            

Though she said this, Ning Buyi wasn’t in a hurry to find the purification device, instead staring unblinkingly at the incubation chambers. At this point, she wasn’t afraid of Hil and Kris seeing through her. Her hand reached into the incubation chamber, and when she touched the eggshell, the giant egg lying there immediately vanished. Simultaneously, numerous “eggs” appeared in the Mountain and Sea Atlas, with racial introductions available upon selection. In this batch of eggs, except for species capable of asexual reproduction, all came in pairs.

Hil lifted her eyelids, her smile growing increasingly playful: “Ninth Chief Judge of the Star Court?” The variable of the Insect Race would arrive when the prophecy of the “Lord of Endings” was fulfilled, while the resurrection of the Beast Star’s Ancestral God was the Beast Race’s opportunity. As for humans—surprisingly, it manifested in someone outside the Star Court.

Hua Zhuoyu said calmly: “The Star Court’s order will not change.”

            

Ning Buyi, not paying attention to Hil and Hua Zhuoyu’s conversation, stored the eggs in the Mountain and Sea Atlas. Seeing the massive dark pollution storage, she decided to release all of Aurora City’s settings. After purchasing a batch of seeds, she finally looked up to search for the resurrection device in the empty divine temple.

“There’s a door there,” Kris spoke up.

In Ning Buyi and the others’ vision, besides the “main entrance,” there wasn’t a trace of any “doorway.” But Kris’s Spectral Eyes were different, capable of seeing through illusory locks. Seeing all three pairs of eyes on her, she slowly stood up and walked toward the eastern corner. Her red eyes dissolved the invisible lock, and with a click, a person-high passage appeared. However, unlike the temple’s tranquility, this passage was far from simple—countless tentacles sprang forth, and beneath a white membrane pulsed red, green, and pale golden meridians. In a flash, Hil yanked Kris behind her.

            

The black passage quickly filled with strange tentacles, emanating an eerie purple-black thick fog. They recklessly rushed into the temple, but fortunately, the “Life Water Drop” was effective—at least for now, no fog could penetrate the hall.

“If it’s not in the temple, could it be in that passage?” Hil cast a doubtful look at Ning Buyi.

Ning Buyi: “…” Under these circumstances, could the “resurrection device” even exist? She called out to the Mountain and Sea Atlas in her heart, only to receive “I don’t know either after so many years,” causing her to fall back in exasperation.

            

“If this doesn’t work, we’ll follow the original plan,” Hua Zhuoyu spoke after a moment’s consideration, patting Ning Buyi’s shoulder reassuringly while fixing her gaze on Hil, “Take the Life Water Drop.”

The lifeforms from the incubation chambers had already been collected by Ning Buyi; they no longer needed the Life Water Drop’s energy for survival.

Hil glanced at Hua Zhuoyu, saying cheerfully: “Thank you.” Anyone here had the capability to take the Life Water Drop, but Hua Zhuoyu’s words meant she wouldn’t compete for it.

            

The Life Water Drop dispersed the thick fog, forcing the tentacles to retreat. But they seemed unwilling to accept this, and after a brief rigidity, they charged forward fearlessly. Ning Buyi wielded an Energy Sword, striking down any tentacles that advanced. The passage wasn’t actually long, but countless filling anomalies slowed their steps. After half an hour, they finally reached a dark chamber, or rather, a tree hollow.

There was no Life Water Drop here, but like the temple, there were no tentacles or thick fog invading.

Ning Buyi scanned the tree hollow filled with bizarre devices and found a manual in a dusty corner.

            

“There’s a box in the middle, and we just need to put the Heart of Life in it? Seems too simple…” Ning Buyi said. The Mountain and Sea Atlas’s side quest was nearly complete, but a strange intuition made her remain vigilant, and she didn’t take out the Heart of Life as described in the manual.

“After inspection, there’s no sign of damage to the device. This place seems like a…” Hua Zhuoyu thought for a moment before finding the right words, “Life Space”. When facing civilization’s destruction, not everyone was willing to accept that fate, so they tried various ways of self-preservation at the final moment. When Da Xia excavated traces of ancient civilizations in the past, they found evidence of such attempts. This was a “Mythical Relic”, so their preservation methods might be more advanced.

“Now that the entire great tree is occupied by monsters, what if this place was breached before?” Ning Buyi suddenly spoke. Her speculation was just one possibility, but if true, and the Heart of Life was devoured by monsters born from divine corpses, what would it evolve into? What threat would it pose to the Greedy Wolf Star System and the entire universe? Such speculation made Ning Buyi’s hair stand on end, and she quickly cut off these thoughts.

            

“Perhaps we can place Sequence Weapons here,” Hua Zhuoyu slowly said. Though they’d used some earlier, she still had plenty left, enough to form a “Sequence Array”. If Ning Buyi’s speculation was correct, no place would be more suitable for weapon placement. Hua Zhuoyu’s suggestion gained everyone’s approval, and she began arranging the “Sequence Weapons,” focusing energy above the entire “resurrection device.” As the “Sequence Array” gradually formed, a web of sparks seemed to connect between each weapon, displaying its contained energy.

“Give me the Heart of Life. Little Feng Jiu and I will stay here; you all return to the starship first,” Hua Zhuoyu added.

Ning Buyi stared at Hua Zhuoyu, showing hesitation; she wasn’t comfortable leaving Hua Zhuoyu here.

            

Meeting Ning Buyi’s gaze, Hua Zhuoyu calmly said: “I need to stay to activate the Sequence Weapons. Later, Little Feng Jiu will use her Spatial Transfer ability to move us out. One more person means one more burden for Little Feng Jiu.”

Little Feng Jiu in Ning Buyi’s arms shrunk her neck, chirping “jiu jiu” twice, sounding somewhat weak. Despite being afraid, she still jumped from Ning Buyi’s arms to Hua Zhuoyu’s shoulder, flapping her wings as if making a promise.

Hua Zhuoyu: “After leaving the Heart of Life, you’ll need to rely on the Life Water Drop and Elpis Reagent to drive away dark pollution. Move quickly, and no matter what happens, don’t look back.”

            

Ning Buyi: “…” She sounded even more worried.

Hua Zhuoyu drew Ning Buyi into her embrace, kissing the corner of her eye and saying earnestly: “Trust me, I will return.” The predetermined dead end had been undone by Ning Buyi’s existence. She lacked nothing now—how regrettable would it be if she weren’t there when flowers bloomed across the stars?

Ning Buyi’s heart raced, mostly from worry and tension. Having come this far, there weren’t many choices left. She bit her lip, forcing herself to nod: “Alright.” Gripping her sword hilt, she cast one deep look at Hua Zhuoyu before charging outward.

            

After Ning Buyi left, Hua Zhuoyu let out a long breath, stroking Little Feng Jiu’s head while chuckling softly: “Scared?”

Little Feng Jiu trembled all over: “Jiu, not scared.”

Hua Zhuoyu nodded: “After we return, this achievement will be worth boasting about for a hundred years.” With that, she threw the Heart of Life into the resurrection device. The long-sealed device activated instantly, emitting a rumbling sound. Jade-green light burst throughout the tree hollow, but immediately after, tentacles began crawling along the device like pulsing blood vessels.

            

The resurrection device had been corrupted by the monster.

Outside, the swelling flesh masses retracted their tentacles, piling up and surging toward the divine temple in waves. Ning Buyi, Kris, and Hil who had escaped were no longer its targets.

“They’ve made their move.” Ning Buyi’s heart tightened as she piloted her mecha toward the hovering starship. With the Mountain and Sea Atlas, she naturally wasn’t concerned about dark pollution, but Kris and Hil were different. By the time they rushed back to the starship, a striking white light exploded in the distance, instantly illuminating the dark planet like daylight. The rising and falling sounds of artillery fire stirred up massive air currents, thunder rumbled, and the trembling ground roared in response.

            

However, the white light didn’t last long—the starship’s screen only captured a rapidly collapsing Black Hole! It was like an eternally unsatisfied abyssal maw, devouring everything around it. Warning bells rang in Ning Buyi’s mind as she could only drive the starship into a wild rush outward! The annihilating black hole would devour the entire planet!

A thin layer of sweat appeared on Hil’s forehead, fear rising from deep within her heart. She steadied herself and looked at the distraught Ning Buyi: “Is this the Chief Judge’s special ability?” With such terrifying power, neither the Insect Race nor Beast Race could threaten Da Xia Imperial Star. Hua Zhuoyu could disregard the chaos and disorder of the Insect Race.

Ning Buyi’s face remained tense, brows tightly furrowed, the sounds at her ears like howling gales.

            

She was waiting for that figure to emerge from the annihilation.

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