After finishing her revisions to the Version 3.0 Plasma Spark Tower technical blueprints, The Herta immediately informed Herman that she had completed the tower's modification. She also gave him a detailed explanation of the Version 3.0 Plasma Spark Tower's capabilities.
Herman could not help but be shocked when he heard this. "The light of the Version 3.0 Spark Tower can not only transform living creatures into giants, but even planets as well?"
The Herta nodded. "Yes. The light of the Version 3.0 Plasma Spark Tower has already become an extraordinarily powerful meme. Anything illuminated by it will become a giant."
"Will giants transformed from inanimate objects receive enhancements from changes in idealistic emotions?"
Herman asked seriously, "After all, Herta, you previously said that giants created by the earliest version of the Plasma Spark Tower would possess a special ability. As long as the people around a Giant of Light felt hope and contributed their light to the giant, the giant would awaken a new miraculous power and defeat evil."
"By the same principle, the more fear the people around a Giant of Darkness feel, the greater the power granted to that Giant of Darkness."
The Herta shook her head. "Giants transformed from inanimate objects do not possess the unique ability to absorb emotions... However, when the Plasma Spark Tower's light awakens a planet and transforms it into a giant, the planet's own output is already extraordinarily powerful. It has no need for assistance from other people's emotions."
"Moreover, should a solar Plasma Spark Tower transform into a giant, its power would come infinitely close to the Emanator level," The Herta said seriously.
"If the light of multiple Plasma Spark Towers were overlaid and the power of billions of suns gathered together, it could even reach the true Emanator level, or perhaps surpass the vast majority of Emanators in existence!!"
Herman realized something upon hearing this. "In other words, you plan to use Plasma Spark Towers to awaken many of the suns throughout this universe and transform them into Giants of Light."
"Mm, I do have that idea." The Herta nodded. "After all, you already said that Plasma Spark Towers are dangerous technology. Technology like this is unsuitable for widespread deployment, but using it on a limited scale... to awaken stars and strengthen our own forces seems quite appropriate, don't you think?"
"That's a good idea." Herman gave her a thumbs-up within his heart as he began thinking seriously.
There were trillions of galaxies throughout this universe!
Should the suns of all those worlds be activated and illuminated using Plasma Spark Towers...
Herta would possess an incomparably powerful force. With a single thought, she could make every sun in the cosmos go dark and plunge the entire universe into darkness.
Of course, were she truly to do so, HooH of Equilibrium would unquestionably become alarmed.
There was naturally another possibility. Herta could control every sun throughout the cosmos and make them move according to an orderly pattern. That would unquestionably constitute a form of Order and might revive Ena of Order. Alternatively, Herta herself might become qualified to ascend as the Aeon of Order and take control of the Path of Order, which had already been torn apart by Harmony and Preservation.
After thinking this far, Herman said to The Herta, "Once the IPC delivers the materials, construction of the Plasma Spark Tower can begin."
"Mm... After constructing the Plasma Spark Tower, I still need to build the Soul Society. In truth, during this period, I have nearly finished researching the technology required to construct it... Very soon, a genuine world capable of housing the souls of the dead will be born within the universe."
The Herta said seriously, "That will be the most powerful counterattack against IX of Nihility. Herman, what reaction do you think IX of Nihility will have when the time comes?"
"Before the Soul Society has actually been constructed, who could possibly know how IX will react?"
"That's why I asked you to guess."
"I am the Research System, not a child. I refuse to guess."
"Fine... Then I'll tell you what I think. I believe IX of Nihility will most likely emerge from Their motionless state and take action to destroy the Soul Society. However, should that happen, the Aeons who do not wish to see the universe reach its nihilistic end will also take action... A war among the Aeons may be approaching."
The Herta paused before continuing, "Of course, there is another possibility. IX of Nihility may remain completely indifferent to the Soul Society's birth... continuing to lie there without doing anything. Or perhaps They will simply continue believing that the Soul Society's existence cannot change the universe's eventual descent into Nihility."
Herman said, "Mm. Once the Soul Society is completed in the future, we will be able to witness the Aeon of Nihility's reaction."
"Right, there is one more thing." The Herta remembered something and asked seriously, "Have my Achievement Points increased?"
"They have, but they are all Legendary Research Points." Herman sensed them for a moment, fulfilled his duties as the Research System, and solemnly explained them to The Herta.
"Galactic Shipgirl, Revelation of the Chase Among the Stars.—Legendary Achievement completed!"
"Achievement description: You created a renowned Xianzhou ship within your home star system. The stars turned their attention toward it, and the sea of stars trembled because of it."
"Even Lan of The Hunt, the lofty Aeon above, has cast Their gaze upon you. They have already agreed to let you join the Xianzhou Alliance and are preparing to bestow the blessing of The Hunt upon the Herta Xianzhou you created, allowing the Shipgirl Herta to become the Xianzhou Alliance's eighth Arbiter-General!!"
After listening to Herman, Herta could not help but complain, "Are you serious? Lan of The Hunt intends to appoint Shipgirl Herta as the eighth Arbiter-General?"
Herman nodded. "According to the achievement description, yes."
"In other words, I am about to gain the assistance of an Arbiter-General. I simply do not know whether Shipgirl Herta will also need to undergo the Rainbow Ordainment after receiving the blessing, endure Lan of The Hunt's nine arrows, or what kind of spiritus she will obtain afterward and which part of Lan of The Hunt it will symbolize..."
The Herta sank into thought. After some time, she once again asked Herman whether she had completed any other new achievements.
"Of course." Herman nodded again. "Herta, you have also completed another new Legendary Achievement: World City, the Focus of the Sea of Stars!—Build one city into a world and merge an entire world into one city!"
"Achievement description: You personally created a new stellar base-city watched by the stars. Through the IPC, countless people throughout the cosmos have now learned of the wonder known as World City within The Blue's star system!"
"Across the cosmos and its endless galaxies... countless people have already packed their belongings and prepared to immigrate to World City! At this moment, World City has already become the cosmos' planet of festivities, the focus of all attention."
"Because you created this metropolis, HooH of Equilibrium has turned Their gaze toward you, while Xipe of Harmony has warmly reached out to you, eagerly wishing to invite you into Their great family."
"—Without question, you have now become the universe's newest legendary artisan!"
After listening to Herman's description, The Herta blinked. "Are there any other achievements I've already completed?"
"No." Herman shook his head, then continued, "However, once you finish constructing the Plasma Spark Tower, you will be able to complete a new Legendary Achievement."
"The Spark Tower? The Spark Tower!"
"A miracle among miracles, the universe's first ray of light will be kindled by you. Giants will emerge into existence and bring sparks of change to this universe!"
Herman paused before continuing, "Moreover, this is not a single achievement, but an entire achievement series."
"An entire series?"
"That's right. There is another Legendary Achievement related to the Plasma Spark Tower: Sublimation of Civilization, Evolution of Energy, the Land of Light!"
"The completion requirement for this achievement is as follows: Use a Plasma Spark Tower to transform every living being within a civilization, turning all members of that civilization into Giants of Light. [Note: Not a single person may become a Giant of Darkness.]"
After hearing this, The Herta said slowly, "Since it is an achievement series, there should be more than two Legendary Achievements, correct?"
"Mm. It is exactly as you have guessed. There is also a Mythic Achievement requiring the giants to establish a nation of light, preserve peace throughout the universe, and become a symbol of universal peace, justice, and even order."
"As expected of a Mythic Achievement, the difficulty is exceptionally high. It actually requires the giants I create to establish a nation and preserve the peace of the universe," The Herta said with a sigh.
"The possibility of completing these achievements in the near future is vanishingly small. After all, there are simply far too many Path-obsessed lunatics in this universe..."
Herman nodded in agreement. "In any case, you currently possess five Legendary Achievement Points. Of those five, two came from constructing World City and developing Shipgirl Herta, the Galactic Shipgirl."
"The remaining three came from the Legendary Achievement Point you obtained by planting trees and cultivating the God Tree in the past, the Legendary Achievement Point you gained by spreading the collective Wisdom Halo of civilization throughout The Blue's star system, and the final point you acquired by crowning yourself and becoming an Emanator."
"Five Legendary Achievement Points?" The Herta narrowed her eyes slightly. "Then use all of them for me. I want to activate World-Shaking Wisdom and obtain inspiration from beyond this universe."
"All right." Herman gave The Herta a deep look. "The IPC's materials have not arrived yet anyway."
As soon as his words fell, Herman ignited all five Legendary Achievement Points!
World-Shaking Wisdom activated!
Four thousand five hundred Research Points erupted!
At that moment, The Herta felt her mind and soul undergo sublimation as an endless stream of inspiration emerged from beyond the universe.
"Stone Mask, Red Stone of Aja, Arrows... Stands, Ascending to Heaven!"
"Shendu, dragon, talismans, a concept representing one-eighth of the world's Bagua..."
"Power of Existence, Fuzetsu, Reiji Maigo..."
"Campione, slaying gods, the ritual for seizing divine authorities..."
"The What-If Phone Booth, creating new possibilities, opening the door... the concept of parallel universes!"
...
Five concepts and bodies of knowledge from beyond the universe were rapidly absorbed by Herta's soul and mind.
Her heart shook because of them.
Stands, Arrows, Ascending to Heaven... Most importantly, according to the information she had received about Stands, there was a Stand called Made in Heaven that could accelerate time without limit until it reached a new world!
In other words, should Herta truly reproduce the Arrow within the Honkai: Star Rail universe and obtain that Stand, she would likewise be capable of accelerating time without limit.
Of course, should she actually do so, the Aeons standing high above at the pinnacle of the universe would certainly oppose her... After all, the Aeons would not wish for the universe to race toward the Four Apocalypses so quickly.
Then there was Shendu, the concept representing one-eighth of the Bagua of the universe... This was likewise extremely important because the Aeons themselves also represented concepts.
As long as Herta thoroughly researched the otherworldly concept of Shendu's Sacred Fire, she might be able to reproduce the concept of Sacred Fire within the Honkai: Star Rail universe and extract that concept... Then she could determine whether fusing with it would allow her to ascend to godhood!
There was also the Power of Existence. The Herta felt this was another exceptionally important power because, according to the knowledge she had obtained from beyond the universe, once a living being's Power of Existence was completely exhausted, that being would vanish from the universe.
This meant that as long as Herta fully mastered this technology and perhaps even developed a method of observing the Power of Existence, she might be able to observe the remaining lifespan of the Honkai: Star Rail universe—
—And determine how much time remained before Finality.
Should she create a Reiji Maigo capable of resetting the Power of Existence every night at midnight, she could attempt to use it to increase the Honkai: Star Rail universe's Power of Existence, granting the universe a longer lifespan and distancing it from Finality...
As for the Campione ritual for slaying gods and seizing divine authorities, according to the knowledge Herta had obtained, someone in another universe had slain a Heretic God and genuinely acquired divine authority through the ritual.
A Campione is a conqueror capable of slaughtering the gods and seizing and wielding their supreme powers!
A Campione is a king capable of obtaining and exercising divine authorities, ruling over anyone upon the earth.
A Campione is also a demon king because no one living upon the earth can resist his power!
—The Campione ritual could seize divine authorities in another world. Then could it also seize the authorities of this universe's Aeons?
The Herta herself was deeply curious about the answer.
After all, there were more than a few Aeons within this universe who were suspected of having fallen or had unquestionably already fallen.
For example, The Herta had learned from Herman that a portion of Oroboros, the Aeon of Voracity, was sealed within Planarcadia. If she killed it... could she use the Campione ritual to seize the power of Voracity?!
Finally, there was the What-If Phone Booth. According to the otherworldly knowledge, it was a miraculous technological device capable of creating parallel universes.
Should she succeed in constructing this technology, Nous, the Aeon of Erudition, would no longer be able to converge every possibility and completely anchor every moment... because at that time, she, The Herta, would possess the ability to create infinite parallel universes.
In conclusion, The Herta was entirely certain that the five pieces of knowledge and inspiration she had obtained from beyond the universe through this activation of World-Shaking Wisdom were all extraordinarily precious.
Within the first body of knowledge, the combination of the Stone Mask and Red Stone of Aja, which could grant immortality, was unimportant. Herta had already become a long-lived being long ago.—The truly precious object was the Stand Arrow. Though it appeared perfectly ordinary, it might create a Stand capable of accelerating the universe without limit.
As long as she fully understood the second concept, Shendu's power, it would become Herta's staircase toward Aeonhood.
If she fully deciphered the third concept, the Power of Existence and the Reiji Maigo, she might be able to extend the universe's lifespan!
The fourth involved slaying gods and seizing their powers... which meant that Herta might be able to hunt the remains of Aeons and obtain their abilities in advance.
Last of all was the What-If Phone Booth. As long as she constructed this technology within the Honkai: Star Rail universe, this universe might ascend from a single universe into a multiverse containing parallel worlds... This technology possessed the potential to elevate the entire universe!!