Inside Herta Space Station.
The warmth that had filled the room after Mobius awakened vanished completely the instant that forced projection unfolded.
In the black depths of space, the enormous screen still hung suspended.
Kallen's cold face, the colossal outline of the Amber Lord behind her, and the suffocating undead figures at her side were all reflected in everyone's eyes.
Of course, aside from Kallen, the Witch of Nihility herself, the figures behind her also drew everyone's attention.
Red Kite, Shuhu, Zulo, Rubert II.
Each of these beings represented a blood-soaked chapter of history.
An Emanator of the Hunt. An Emanator of Abundance. An Emanator of Destruction. Emperor Rubert II.
Now, they stood quietly behind Kallen like loyal servants.
Mm… according to the Witch of Nihility, these were all heroic spirits who had once fought for the world.
Yaoguang was the first to raise her head.
"…General Red Kite."
She did not say much more, because at this moment, Yaoguang was once again boiling with rage.
There was no helping it. As an Arbiter-General of the Xianzhou Alliance, who could see this scene and not lose their temper?
This Witch of Nihility was far too shameless!
She did not have even a shred of humanity left.
Not a villain, but a righteous hero?
Could she really say that without laughing?
With all the things Kallen had done, even if one did not say her crimes were too many to record, she still deserved death ten thousand times over.
And now, she had inexplicably started a broadcast, made an announcement, and thought she could beautifully whitewash herself?
Did she really think the galaxy had no memory?
Moreover, in this Witch of Nihility's mouth, the IPC and the Xianzhou Alliance, the two victims, had instead become the villains.
This madwoman had actually said they were the ones who murdered General Red Kite!
Her fists tightened. They were completely clenched now.
Yaoguang gripped her hands tightly. At this moment, she almost wanted to exhaust the entire power of the Xianzhou Alliance and fire an Imperial Bow arrow talisman directly at that woman.
Of course, Yaoguang was naturally not the only one thinking this.
Jing Yuan, who stood beside her, did not speak immediately.
That face of his, which always wore a lazy smile, had now completely darkened.
"…Despicable."
Jing Yuan squeezed out two words from between his teeth.
"To invert black and white, to confuse right and wrong… I have never heard of such conduct."
"General Red Kite guarded against Nihility for 600 years, and in the end, she perished for the sake of the entire galaxy. Yet this Witch of Nihility dares use her name and twist truth into falsehood!"
By the time Jing Yuan reached this point, his voice was no longer steady.
"Dear friend? Hit it off at first sight?"
"Where did she get the face to say that?"
The air in the space station was so heavy it almost suffocated them.
Herta, standing to the side, was also extremely shocked.
Although she did not speak, the corner of her mouth twitched as well. Only after quite some time did she mutter softly.
"…That woman's skin is thicker than the Amber Lord's wall."
But immediately afterward, Herta's brows furrowed.
Because she noticed something crucial.
In that image, Fu Hua's undead stood beside Kallen. Her Xianzhou military uniform was in tatters, and the scarlet longsword in her hand burned with gray flames.
To others, that scene might only inspire shock and anger.
But to the Lord Jadebearer, who had just been released from the Prison Realm, it likely carried an entirely different meaning.
Almost at the same time as Jing Yuan and Yaoguang, Herta turned her gaze toward Mobius.
After all, the reason Mobius had previously been captured alive by Kallen was that the other party had used a despicable method, disguising herself as Red Kite to deceive Mobius.
And now, Kallen had repeated the same trick. It was hard not to worry about Mobius's mental state.
Mobius lifted her head slightly. Her pink-gray vertical pupils quietly reflected the image in midair.
That calmness, instead, made Jing Yuan's chest tighten.
"Little Dragon Sovereign…"
Jing Yuan subconsciously stepped half a pace forward. A rare trace of hesitation appeared on his composed face.
He wanted to say something, but when the words reached his lips, he did not know where to begin.
After all, she was a child who had only just come out of the darkness, the Lord Jadebearer who had lived through more than a hundred years of solitude.
And the undead being forcibly dragged out as a puppet in the image was the person she had respected and treasured most in her life.
No matter who it was, something like this would be a knife stabbed straight into the heart.
However, before Jing Yuan could organize his words of comfort, Mobius spoke first.
"General Jing Yuan, don't worry. I understand."
She turned her head slightly and looked at Jing Yuan, the corner of her mouth even tugging upward a little.
"That is not my master."
The scene went still.
Mobius's gaze then returned to the image once more.
"Master's soul scattered into the Enigmata long ago. What's there is only an empty shell Kallen molded from Nihility."
When Mobius said this, there was no excess emotion in her voice. It was as if she were stating something completely unrelated to herself.
Yaoguang looked at her like that, and her throat tightened again.
Jing Yuan opened his mouth, but in the end, he swallowed the words he had wanted to say.
Not long ago, Mobius had still been deceived by the Witch of Nihility's crude disguise.
But now, she could already face it calmly.
At this moment, the two of them once again remembered one thing.
Mobius really had spent 177 years inside that empty Prison Realm.
Although those 177 years had contained only endless emptiness and loneliness, Mobius was, in the end, no longer the three-year-old child she had once been.
And Mobius was right.
That undead body burning with gray flames in the image did not contain General Red Kite's soul.
Even if the other party truly possessed General Red Kite's power, she was still only a painted skin.
The scene remained quiet for several more seconds.
The first to break the silence was Herta.
"Ahem. Let's return to the matter at hand."
"That woman released that speech and created those undead. What is her purpose?"
"Revenge?"
Herta rejected that idea herself.
"If she only wanted to deal with the IPC and the Xianzhou Alliance, she could have simply attacked directly. Why go to such lengths to stage something called 'Nihility Culling'?"
"And those undead…"
Herta's brows tightened again.
Honestly, whenever Herta recalled Kallen's introduction, she still found it difficult not to laugh.
Those three infamous monsters had actually been called heroic spirits who protected the world by the Witch of Nihility.
What the hell did she mean, fighting for the beauty of the world? Whoever came up with those words should be dragged out and shot.
This woman was so insane. How did any of this resemble a Self-Annihilator of Nihility?
Herta even began to suspect whether the other party was actually some Witch of Elation instead.
But right now, discussing the serious matter was more important.
Herta continued, "Shuhu, Rubert II, Zulo. These were all genuine historical disasters. The fact that she can use the power of Nihility to summon all three of them at once is already inconceivable in itself."
"Moreover, she does not seem to intend to hide this matter."
Herta turned her head and looked at Dan Heng.
"Dan Heng, you spent three days with her aboard the Astral Express. What do you think her true purpose is?"
Hearing this, Dan Heng was silent for a moment before saying, "…Sorry. I don't know."
Even as he said it, he felt somewhat ashamed.
After all, three days was not short. Even if he could not see through all of the other party's schemes, he should at least have gotten some clue.
Yet now, what surfaced in his mind was only the figure who had stood in front of the Express crew and helped them walk out of Nihility.
No matter how he looked at it, that figure did not match the madwoman on the enormous screen before them.
Jing Yuan's brows were also deeply furrowed.
"If she merely wanted to shake the galaxy, she would not need to fabricate these stories. If she simply wanted revenge, she would not need to specifically drag out General Red Kite's undead and wave it in our faces."
"This woman…"
Jing Yuan's voice lowered.
"What she wants is likely not limited to this."
Yaoguang also nodded slightly.
"But despicable as she is, what exactly is she seeking? We cannot guess that by sitting here. Could it be that she is truly just a born villain, and simply wants to spread Nihility?"
If that were really the case, then she was far too evil.
Evil for evil's sake?
At that moment, Herta voiced her own conjecture.
"If she is simply committing evil for evil's sake, then logically, it does not make sense."
"Think about it. Kallen Kaslana, this person—or rather, this existence. What is her essence?"
Herta's gaze swept across everyone.
"She was formed from the shell Qlipoth shed."
"In other words, she is a creation of the Path of Preservation."
The moment those words were spoken, several people present froze slightly.
Herta continued, "A creation of a Path is naturally affected by that Path's philosophy. This is a law that has been verified countless times throughout the galaxy."
"Just like creations of Destruction are born with impulses toward ruin and ending."
"Then what about a creation of Preservation?"
Herta's finger paused.
"She should possess an instinct to preserve."
"An existence born from Preservation as her foundation, even if she later stepped onto Nihility, even if she did many seemingly evil things…"
"At her core, she should not be pure evil."
The scene was quiet for an instant.
Jing Yuan was the first to ask, "Madam Herta, do you mean… behind the Witch of Nihility's actions, there is actually some other logic?"
"I'm not sure." Herta shook her head.
"After all, a Path is a Path, but there are plenty of people who betray their Path as well."
"But I can't quite understand why, after deviating from Preservation, she would move toward this kind of Nihility."
"I mean, I don't think Nihility is supposed to be like this either."
Those words carried no small weight when they fell into everyone's ears.
That was right. Kallen's behavioral logic had indeed always been a mystery.
As a natural-born Emanator of Preservation, even if there was no goodness in her heart, she still should not be this wicked.
Could it be that this witch had once been bullied by someone, and now, in a moment of fury, she had become a great villain?
Hiss… That possibility was not nonexistent. In fact, it was not low.
But that speculation was far too vague. Without more clues, no one could make any further judgment.
However, just as everyone was immersed in their own thoughts—
Creak.
Everyone's gaze turned over at the same time.
The door was pushed open.
A battered figure appeared in the doorway.
Welt Yang.
The strongest man aboard the Astral Express had awakened.
At this moment, Welt's left arm was still wrapped in thick bandages, and his face was as pale as someone who had just crawled back from death's door.
Oh no, that was not quite right. He had indeed just crawled back from a space garbage recycling station.
Even so, he still dragged his half-crippled body here.
"Dan Heng."
Welt's gaze first landed on Dan Heng.
Then, he swept his eyes over everyone in the testing ground.
Herta, Jing Yuan, Yaoguang, Kiana, Mobius.
Finally, he took a deep breath and slowly spoke.
"I know Kallen Kaslana's purpose."
Hearing this, everyone was shocked. All eyes turned toward him.
"You know?" Herta was the first to react.
"How do you know?"
I mean, aren't you not close with Kallen at all?
If you were close with her, would she have thrown you into a garbage station?
Jing Yuan's expression also changed.
This most senior Nameless aboard the Astral Express should, logically speaking, know even less about Kallen than the others.
"Because she told me herself."
Welt adjusted his cracked glasses.
"Before she acted aboard the Astral Express, she once said some things to me."
"Everything Kallen has done, whether it was betraying the IPC, slaughtering the Xianzhou Alliance, spreading the Nihility Plague, or staging this farce in front of the entire galaxy today…"
"All of it was for one person."
"A person named Bianka Kaslana."
The atmosphere became subtle.
Jing Yuan and Yaoguang frowned.
Bianka Kaslana?
Why was there another Kaslana?
Their gazes could not help turning toward Kiana.
In truth, after arriving at Herta Space Station, they had already wanted to properly ask Kiana about this matter.
But because of Mobius and Kallen, the matter had been temporarily delayed.
And now, Welt had awakened that memory once more.
Herta's expression, however, was somewhat normal.
Bianka Kaslana.
This name was not unfamiliar. She had once heard it from Kiana.
That little girl seemed to be the orphaned daughter of Akivili, the Aeon of Trailblaze.
But because of certain unspeakable reasons, she seemed to have had a poor relationship with Akivili and had long wandered outside.
After that, Cecilia had apparently found the girl and likewise bestowed the Kaslana surname upon her.
Therefore, in that sense, this Bianka was Kiana's adoptive older sister.
Mm… rounding up, that made her Herta's adoptive daughter too!
"Mr. Welt."
Herta was the first to speak.
"Can you explain in more detail?"
Welt nodded.
Then, he repeated everything Kallen had said aboard the Astral Express from beginning to end.
Bianka was the descendant left behind by Akivili.
In order to prevent Trailblaze from heading toward Finality, she had chosen to die of her own accord.
"She wants to revive Bianka," Welt finally concluded.
And Kallen, because she could not accept Bianka's death, had from that point onward stepped onto the Path of Nihility.
"Everything she has done is not to destroy the galaxy, not for some grand ideal, and not to take revenge against anyone."
"She is only…"
Welt was silent for an instant. An extremely complicated bitter smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
"She is only doing it for love."
The testing ground fell into deathly silence.
Such a plain and unadorned reason left everyone stunned.
Good grief. So the reason she took the Kaslana surname was also because of love?
Jing Yuan was the first to speak, his face full of confusion.
"Wait, Mr. Welt. You mean…"
"Everything the Witch of Nihility has done to the entire galaxy… the destruction of Yuanqiao, the betrayal of Preservation… all of it was to revive one person?"
Welt did not speak. He merely nodded.
"This…"
Jing Yuan was momentarily at a loss for words.
He had fought wars for nearly a thousand years and had seen all kinds of madmen. But this was truly the first time he had seen someone turn the entire galaxy upside down in order to revive one person.
Was there logic in this matter?
Fine. There was no logic at all.
What did it even mean to plunge the entire galaxy into Nihility in order to revive one person?
What relationship did these two things have?
None at all!
Although Jing Yuan knew there must be some hidden details in this, when he first heard Welt say it, he still felt somewhat dazed.
Yaoguang's expression was also complicated.
She understood the pain of losing a loved one, and she also understood the obsession of wanting to bring someone back at any cost.
But understanding was one thing. Accepting was another.
"But even so…"
"For the sake of one person, she would make the entire galaxy accompany that person in burial?"
"General Red Kite died for the sake of the galaxy, yet she drags out General Red Kite's remains and uses them as her chess piece."
"Such behavior, no matter the starting point, cannot be forgiven."
Hearing this, Welt slowly said, "Ahem. I am not defending her."
"I am merely telling you what her motive is."
Herta had been listening quietly from the side the whole time. Only after Welt finished did she speak again.
"Reviving someone who has already died…"
"To be honest, what concerns me is not that reason."
"What concerns me is: why does Kallen Kaslana think she can do it?"
"What method has she grasped to make her so certain?"
No one present could answer that question.
"Since we cannot guess it… then let us ask someone who can."
Jing Yuan looked at Herta.
"Madam Herta means?"
"Nous."
Herta spoke that name.
"Akivili, Bianka, Trailblaze, Nihility, Preservation… There are too many things involved here. It is not something we can understand just by sitting here."
"But Nous is different."
"As the Aeon of Erudition, even if he is not omniscient, he can absolutely resolve our doubts."
Yaoguang's brows furrowed slightly.
"Nous? Does Madam Herta have a channel to communicate with Nous?"
Although Nous had left many traces throughout the galaxy, and the members of the Genius Society did indeed have some connection to the Path of Erudition, directly conversing with an Aeon was not something just anyone could do.
However, the instant Yaoguang finished saying this, she remembered the memory of the Enigmata that Aha had stirred up back on the Luofu.
In that opening, it seemed that this very Madam Herta had found the first clue through a conversation with Nous.
Herta explained, "During previous research into the Simulated Universe, I made some progress."
When Herta reached this point, her tone became somewhat vague.
"Simulated Universe?" Jing Yuan asked in doubt.
"Mm." Herta nodded.
"The Simulated Universe is a simulation system built by me and several colleagues to study Aeons. As for more details, I won't explain them here."
Herta's gaze drifted almost unconsciously toward Kiana.
"Ahem. Not long ago, with the assistance of a certain special individual, I made a tremendous breakthrough in the Simulated Universe."
"Although it is far from complete, if it is only to briefly establish a one-way information channel and attempt to ask Nous a question…"
"It may not be impossible to try."
Instantly, several people present exchanged glances.
Jing Yuan was the first to nod.
"Since Madam Herta has confidence, we have no reason to refuse."
Yaoguang also nodded.
Welt's tone was very serious.
"If we can understand Kallen's true method and the full picture of her plan, perhaps we can find a way to stop her."
Dan Heng did not speak, but he nodded slightly. That was his stance.
Herta looked around at everyone before finally setting her gaze on Mobius.
The emerald-haired girl had not participated in the discussion from beginning to end. She had only stayed with Kiana in the communication channel, both of them silent.
Hiss… What was wrong with these two?
Why were they not saying a single word?
Mobius was one thing. Herta was not familiar with that child.
But Kiana did not seem like that kind of character, did she?
Ahem. There was nothing that could be done about it. The situation on Kallen's side was simply too spectacular.
The two of them had long since become absent-minded and were merely idling here.
Never mind Kiana and Mobius. At this moment, everyone's perspective was on Kallen's side, watching the show.
Who could possibly resist?
"Ahem. Then it's settled."
Herta withdrew her gaze, turned around, and walked toward the door.
"All of you, follow me."
Soon, after a brief emergency, the space station had been completely cleared out.
Whether ordinary researchers or a lead researcher like Asta, everyone had left the space station.
At this moment, inside Herta's private office—
This room, located in the core area of the space station, was now entirely different from usual.
The desktop that had previously been covered in various research instruments and data projections had been completely cleared.
In their place were puppets.
Puppets modeled after Herta when she was young.
Countless puppets.
And now, everything was ready.
Kallen Kaslana.
The Witch of Nihility.
Everything about her was about to be revealed.
Join here to read ahead.
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