"If I were a Wanderer of the Door pathway now, just by staring at this being I could probably digest the potion and advance with ease."
Sighing, Hastur kept his gaze fixed on the mysterious star.
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Even after observing for so long, he still couldn't discern where the mysterious existence's figure was. He could only see ripples of space constantly radiating outward, and the surrounding scenery shifting again and again.
Could it be that He was space itself?
Or perhaps His true self was hidden within the layers of space-time ripples?
Hastur pondered as he observed.
At last, his focus locked onto the Great Old One, the High-Dimensional Overseer!
The so-called multiple space-times should be superimposed dimensions, and the Overseer was concealed deep within those different dimensions. That's why simple observation could never reveal His true form.
The more Hastur thought about it, the more certain he became: this must be the High-Dimensional Overseer. Who else among the Great Old Ones could so effortlessly shift space-time, darting endlessly through the cosmos?
With the authority He wielded, He overlooked all lower-dimensional beings from His lofty height.
Yet now, He had instead become the one being watched.
That explained His violent reaction.
After all, existences who hold the same authority are natural enemies.
What's more, Hastur could observe Him, but He couldn't observe Hastur. If the roles were reversed, Hastur knew he would also be filled with vigilance, constantly attempting countermeasures.
Unfortunately for Him, Hastur was like a spirit shadowing His back, no matter how He tried to hide, Hastur could follow closely behind.
Hastur put himself in His shoes: walking down a street with an invisible man trailing behind, never speaking, never making contact, only staring.
The most terrifying part was, he could feel the gaze, but every time he turned around, there was nothing to see.
Tsk, tsk. That really was a chilling thought.
The scene shifted once again. Around the rippling space-time appeared a familiar figure, The Mother Goddess of Depravity!
The High-Dimensional Overseer had actually entered Her domain?
Hastur had observed the Mother Goddess of Depravity many times and was quite familiar with the starry region She resided in.
Could it be that the Overseer sought Her help to uncover Hastur's presence?
But alas, even the Mother Goddess of Depravity herself couldn't trace the threads leading to the Hall of Stars, how could She possibly aid Him?
For safety's sake, Hastur pulled his perspective back further, in case the Mother Goddess of Depravity really did notice him.
He couldn't see any exchange between Them, nor did the Overseer manifest a form.
Still, they must have communicated, though Hastur had no way of knowing what words passed between Them.
The Overseer did not linger with the Mother Goddess of Depravity. The scenery shifted once more.
Through His journey across the endless starry sky, Hastur caught a true glimpse of the universe's vast reality.
After a while, the Overseer halted again, arriving at a new expanse of stars.
Gray mist spread everywhere, mingled with countless fragments of shattered celestial bodies.
In the depths of the mist, there seemed to exist a golden, formless fog.
Could this be the other half of the Son of Chaos, the Uncertain Mist?
Before Hastur could examine it closely, the golden fog, sensing it was being observed, instantly darted deeper into the cosmos and vanished from sight.
The Overseer lingered there for a time, then once again began traversing the starry sky, seemingly intent on seeking out the next suspicious Great Old One.
Hastur's gaze grew complicated. He couldn't help but remark with genuine feeling: "The High-Dimensional Overseer really is like a wide-angle lens."
Jest aside, Hastur had to admire His speed at finding the Great Old Ones. In so short a time, He had already discovered both the Mother Goddess of Depravity and the elusive Uncertain Mist.
Perhaps He usually leaves His marks near the domains of other Great Old Ones, then uses His authority to peek into their daily lives?
Hastur imagined the scene:
An empty room filled with dozens, even hundreds, of LCD monitors, each one live-broadcasting the daily affairs of a different Outer Deity.
Wasn't this just surveillance cameras brought to life?
Of course, given the Overseer's means, He wouldn't do something so crude, but the essence couldn't be far off.
No wonder no legends of the Overseer existed within the Barrier.
Perhaps to Him, observing the lives of the Great Old Ones was far more interesting than risking His existence inside that barrier.
Had He gathered here from the depths of the universe simply because so many Great Old Ones resided nearby?
Hastur mused for a while, then set aside his distractions, for the Overseer had found yet another Great Old One.
This one was hidden within a star. When the Overseer arrived, the star's surface split open to reveal a mouth large enough to swallow planets, along with a pair of eyes so insignificant compared to the mouth they were nearly invisible.
After a brief exchange, the Overseer departed once more, resuming His journey to seek others.
Over the course of His wanderings, He discovered eight Great Old Ones in total.
Hastur could only vaguely guess the identities of two, one might be the Primordial Hunger, and another the Undying Murmur.
But in the book, only nine Great Old Ones were introduced, while the actual number in the cosmos far exceeded that.
So even when he encountered Them, Hastur often didn't know how to address Them.
One disappointment: the Overseer never found the King in Yellow.
Otherwise, Hastur could have taken advantage of His perspective to see where the King was hiding.
Perhaps frustrated by the lack of results, the Overseer turned back from the cosmic depths.
This time, He arrived in the domain of the Mother Tree of Desire.
Hastur immediately realized that this starry journey might be coming to a temporary close.
The Mother Tree of Desire might, in answering His questions, reveal the existence of the Hall of Stars.
If the Overseer knew where the watching gaze came from, He wouldn't need to search so urgently.
Of course, the Mother Tree of Desire might also withhold the truth deliberately, simply to watch Him flail.
Sure enough, the Mother Tree of Desire lived up to Hastur's expectations. The Overseer clearly gained nothing useful from Her, and once again slipped into the depths of space.
This time, He arrived at a region where countless shattered space-times overlapped, distorted, chaotic, filled with the collapse of both time and space.
Here, time and space lost all meaning.
Ripples spread out in layers, forming a transparent cocoon around Him, an attempt to block out prying gazes.
The cocoon crystallized and stood still amid the chaotic void, like a lifeless husk.
"So this is the Overseer's method of self-defense?" Hastur mused.
He watched a while longer. When he realized the Overseer had no intention of continuing His journey, he withdrew his gaze.
Instead, Hastur turned his sight toward the brightest star.
He stared at it from afar for a long time, waiting until he had adjusted to its intensity before drawing closer.
As the star grew in his vision, Hastur was stunned to discover that within this star was another star,
A dazzling white star, akin to a small sun.
At its core blazed a mass of condensed radiance, compressed to the utmost extreme, as if it might explode in the next instant.
The Supernova Dominator!
That was the first name that leapt to Hastur's mind, and it fit this being perfectly.
In the face of Hastur's gaze, He didn't care in the slightest, not even bothering to open His eyes.
He seemed immersed in deep slumber, a sleep that could last until the end of time itself, unless the universe itself exploded.
Perhaps He had long grown accustomed to the stares of other Great Old Ones. As long as He wasn't threatened, He couldn't be bothered to respond.
As for being spied on in daily life? He could easily sleep through tens of millions of years. Let anyone watch if they wished.
This was the polar opposite of the Overseer's reaction.
One ran about tirelessly, while the other couldn't even be bothered to glance back.
What a fascinating pair, perhaps even more intriguing than the True Creator and Adam.
A pair, appearing together?
A strange thought flickered through Hastur's mind, but quickly faded.
He lingered a while longer, confirmed that the Supernova Dominator had no desire to open His eyes, and withdrew his sight.
For the next member of the Gathering of Stars, Hastur had made his choice:
The Supernova Dominator!
He was eager to see how one who slept through all disturbances would behave when summoned to the Hall of Stars.
The True Creator and Adam were far too dangerous, best to leave Them until he was stronger.
As for the Overseer, Hastur wasn't in a rush to summon Him either. His curiosity rivaled that of the Mother Tree of Desire, and one day He would surely break free from His cocoon to continue roaming the stars.
When that happened, Hastur could once more borrow His perspective to better understand the world beyond the skies.
Hastur lingered a while longer in the Hall of Stars, then logged off and went to sleep.
Following the Overseer's journey had consumed immense spiritual power, and he needed rest to recover.