Translator: CinderTL
In the vast, gray-black chamber, the golden crystalline light coalesced, gradually forming a humanoid phantom.
Chen Feng, standing before the Fragment of Divinity, narrowed his eyes, his senses on high alert. He immediately retrieved the Fragment of Divinity.
A panel flashed briefly across his vision, but he couldn't afford to examine it closely, his focus locked on the phantom before him.
The figure resembled a petite girl around ten years old, clad in a long blue robe. She had long, flowing black hair and features strikingly similar to those of the Red Nation people.
However, Chen Feng's gaze turned serious as he focused on the vertical slit at the center of her forehead, resembling tightly closed eyes.
Furthermore, a slender tail composed of silver mechanical scales trailed behind her, hanging slightly without touching the ground.
Buzz!
Finally, under Chen Feng's watchful gaze, the phantom fully materialized.
The petite girl appeared lifelike, almost indistinguishable from a living being. Then, her black pupils snapped open.
The slit on her forehead also parted, revealing a third eyeball.
She resembled a member of the Ancient Taiduo Civilization.
But as their four eyes met, Chen Feng knew with certainty that she wasn't a real human, but a phantom projection.
Could this be an intelligent lifeform?
The thought had barely crossed his mind when a voice unexpectedly rang out.
"Hello, Chen Feng."
The crisp, childlike voice spoke in fluent Red Nation language.
The petite girl in the long blue dress had initiated the conversation, flicking her mechanical silver tail behind her.
Chen Feng's brow furrowed slightly, but then he saw her large eyes twinkle as she smiled.
"Surprised?"
"I can manipulate electromagnetic signals to interfere with all mechanical devices, so naturally, I can also access the network and learn your civilization's languages."
"As for your identity..."
The girl moved gracefully, closing the distance to half a meter from Chen Feng.
"I can access the information of everyone who enters the ark, but..."
"You are the one I've been most interested in."
"It was to find you that I manipulated the ark to perform a spatial jump and arrive in this region."
Her words hung in the air, creating a moment of silence.
The girl's large eyes glowed with concentrated blue magnetic fields, making them exceptionally bright.
Chen Feng even sensed a hint of human-like emotion in her gaze—something akin to excitement, or perhaps anticipation.
"Who are you?"
Still wary, Chen Feng asked in a deep voice.
The Inverted Pyramid had vanished from Yun Port and arrived in the Radiant Light Secret Realm... all because of him?
No matter how he looked at it, it was all too bizarre.
"I am the intelligence of this ark."
"In your Red Nation language, you may call me Star Spirit."
"Star Spirit..." Chen Feng silently pondered the name as the phantom continued to explain.
"This is the world ark left behind by the Ancient Taiduo Civilization, one of the original Fire Seeds. Others once lived here, but alas, they have all perished."
"I have been dormant in your world for over a million years. It was your arrival last time that awakened me."
The phantom, named Star Spirit, wore a melancholic expression, as if recalling the bygone days of Ancient Taiduo.
My arrival awakened her? Chen Feng's heart stirred at this revelation.
He remembered the earlier Dream Incursion.
The same phenomenon had occurred during his first exploration of the pyramid. It was only after that Dream Incursion that the pyramid shattered the earth and revealed its true form.
In other words, had the dream power within him stimulated her?
"Am I... special?" Chen Feng asked cautiously, suppressing his emotions.
Star Spirit nodded, hovering in mid-air before him. "Indeed. Only you possess that unique power."
"I can sense a deep familiarity with it, and even remember some of its functions. But unfortunately, my later iterations had many permissions restricted, and the database was corrupted. I can't recall what it is."
The Star Spirit wore a troubled expression, shaking her head like a young girl from the Red Nation burdened by worries, her demeanor strikingly lifelike.
Chen Feng's gaze sharpened, his wariness and curiosity reaching their peak simultaneously.
Could the familiar object she spoke of be the power of the Dream Realm?
Was this a relic of the Ancient Taiduo Civilization?
He carefully observed the Star Spirit's expression, sensing her electromagnetic fluctuations and human-like emotions.
Chen Feng could tell she wasn't lying.
"Oh, you've already retrieved the Fragment of Divinity, haven't you?"
The Star Spirit suddenly turned toward the circular device. The fragment within the beam of light had vanished.
"Only that artifact could trigger the mechanism, allowing you to witness fragments of our history and experience our past as if you were there. It was also what awakened me."
With a gentle flick of her blue tail, which resembled mechanical scales, the Star Spirit turned her head to look at him.
"And only it can perfectly contain the Fragment of Divinity, concealing it without a trace and masking any anomalies."
"Oh?" Chen Feng raised an eyebrow, some of his doubts dissipating.
So his Dream Incursion here was indeed a fragment of the Ancient Taiduo Civilization's history.
Wait...
Suddenly, he remembered his second Dream Incursion.
"What else can it do?" Chen Feng asked. Since his secret had already been exposed, he figured he might as well seize the opportunity to understand the full extent of his unique abilities.
"It can also allow your consciousness to enter our world."
"Your world?" Chen Feng narrowed his eyes. When had he ever been to the Ancient Taiduo Civilization's world?
Hmm?
A thought flashed through his mind, and he suddenly recalled the circumstances of his second Dream Incursion into the Secret Realm.
The Serpent Spirit Secret Realm was rumored to have ties to the Ancient Taiduo Empire, and the Dead Crow Secret Realm contained records of that civilization's rule. As for the calamity, he suspected it was a similar situation.
Could all three Secret Realms be worlds once ruled by the Ancient Taiduo Civilization?
What about Qinggang City and the High Wall Alliance?
As one mystery unraveled, another arose. But before he could dwell on it further, the Star Spirit waved her hand.
Buzz!
A light screen materialized, transforming into a holographic projection.
Within it, he recognized seven familiar figures: the group who had explored the Inverted Pyramid together, including Nangong Ling.
However, their current environments varied. Some were in unfamiliar laboratories, while others were in vast, peculiar spaces.
"The ark is called the 'world ark' because it utilizes special technology to compress space," the Star Spirit explained proudly. "What appears to be a single, ordinary layer only a kilometer thick on the outside actually conceals a hidden realm spanning tens of thousands of kilometers."
Chen Feng nodded thoughtfully, not particularly surprised.
Previous intelligence reports had hinted at similar conjectures, explaining why the Red Nation had never fully mastered this ultra-advanced technology.
He turned to the light screen, observing the diverse fates of the figures within.
Some had awakened dormant non-human creatures in laboratories, plunging into battle, while others had discovered blueprints for advanced technologies.
"Your people are remarkably cautious and intelligent. I've been observing them closely since my last awakening."
"So you've successfully implemented Legendary Technology after all."
The praise carried a hint of human-like satisfaction. Chen Feng frowned slightly and glanced at the Star Spirit.
"Did you give us Legendary Technology?"
"Of course," she replied with a smile, her tone frank and open. "Why else would you have found such a precious technology?"
"Before our civilization's annihilation, we left behind the Fire Seed of our legacy, which included various core technologies."
"I know you've also faced the Black Tide's invasion. Since we share a common enemy, we are allies."
Her simple explanation also conveyed a sense of regret.
Due to partial access restrictions and significant data loss in her database, the best technology she could provide for modification purposes was Legendary-grade.
Uncertain of the truth behind her words, Chen Feng didn't press the matter further. Instead, he seized the opportunity to ask another question.
"What exactly is the Black Tide?"
He hoped to get some answers.
But to his surprise, the Star Spirit shook her head. "My database is severely corrupted. Many crucial records are missing."
"All I remember is that it's the natural enemy of all Star Realm beings and civilizations. It annihilates every trace of civilization, including information stored in ordinary writing."
"It's chaos and evil born from chaos itself, inherently opposed to us."
"Chaos?"
"It's the region beyond the Star Realm," the Star Spirit explained, her large eyes blinking. "Just as your world and our world are part of the Star Realm."
"Think of it like a beehive. It's a single structure, but contains countless spatial dimensions within it."
"Chaos is the area outside the beehive, the final destination for many souls after death."
So that's how it is.
Chen Feng nodded slowly. Finally, someone had given him a complete explanation of the Star Realm's true nature.
Before this, he had never been able to fully grasp it.
Seizing the opportunity, he pressed on with more questions.
Such as why Earth's secret realms existed and whether they were connected to the Ancient Taiduo Civilization.
Or perhaps other issues.
"I can't quite remember."
"However, I do recall some details about the Fragments of Divinity."
Relying on its fragmented database, the Star Spirit explained as thoroughly as possible: "In the earliest days, Fragments of Divinity were scattered across the Star Realm like meteors. No one knew why they existed or how they came to be."
"Later, some obtained these fragments and gained extraordinary power, rivaling angels and even becoming demigods."
"We once theorized and experimented, concluding that this power was nurtured by the will of the Star Realm. Conversely, powerful entities within the chaos, such as Evil Gods, also possess a form of divinity."
"Regardless, these Fragments of Divinity all possess unique powers. The most remarkable is their near-indestructibility—no one can destroy them."
As the Star Spirit explained, Chen Feng glanced at the panel before him.
Fragment of Divinity: 5
He had always misunderstood the origin of the Fragments of Divinity, or rather, his understanding had been incomplete.
Beyond the Evil Gods, these fragments could also exist in other parts of the world.
Moreover, the Fragment of Divinity possessed other miraculous properties?
A flash of insight struck him. He now vaguely understood why this artifact could revive Angel-class Heroic Spirits within the Heroic Spirit Hall.
Its indestructible nature, to some extent, represented eternity.
"How do I use it independently?" he asked.
The Star Spirit replied with a negative. "I've forgotten," she said innocently, her database severely damaged.
Before Chen Feng could press further, her mechanical silver tail flicked gently, as if issuing a command.
Buzz!
Instantly, white arc-shaped energy surged, and a black metallic bracelet materialized before Chen Feng.
"This is a communicator," she explained. "It can serve as my vessel, allowing me to leave this place with you."
As she spoke, her form shifted, dissolving into a Rain of Light that cascaded into the hovering bracelet.
Chen Feng watched in confusion, clearly seeing a light screen floating above the bracelet, projecting the Star Spirit's image.
"You want to leave with me?"
"Yes. My core programming dictates that you, the one who possesses that familiar artifact, are the friend most worthy of my loyalty."
"And before we depart, I have some gifts to bestow upon you."
(End of the Chapter)
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