216: The mystery of the star map and the call of "beacon Gamma"

Successfully killing The Foundation's "Assassin"-class Stealth Ship earned the morning star a hard-won period of relative tranquility in its journey. Inside the ship, the constant tension of being watched by a viper slightly eased, but the crew did not lower their guard. Instead, they used this precious time for deeper rest, training, and research.

Excellence dedicated most of his energy to analyzing the captured enemy equipment, especially the Spatial Tracker based on leaked The Weave technology. He cross-referenced and deeply integrated this with the spatial Perception ability he gained from beacon alpha, and the massive amount of fragmented information about the watchers' network architecture acquired from beacon beta. This process was extremely complex, like assembling a cosmic jigsaw puzzle spanning hundreds of millions of light-years, with most of the pieces missing.

Aided by Evelyn's powerful computing capabilities, after several standard days without rest, they finally achieved a breakthrough. Excellence stood before the main star map on the Bridge, his eyes gleaming with insight. With a wave of his hand, the points of light representing the known locations of beacon alpha and beta on the star map were connected by bright lines. Subsequently, countless virtual lines conforming to a complex Topological Model extended from these two points, forming a faint, grand network phantom that enveloped the known star domain.

"Look here," Excellence said, pointing to several key network Nodes on the star map, whose geometric positions appeared particularly unique. "The distribution of the beacons is neither random nor a simple linear path. They are critical Nodes of a massive spatial structure. This structure... resembles the projection of a higher-dimensional geometric model onto the three-dimensional universe—an Invisible Network that maintains some kind of cosmic balance or is used for grand communication."

Evelyn quickly ran the calculations, a look of astonishment on her face: "The model match degree is 87.4%! This network structure is incredibly complex and elegant; its mathematical foundation far surpasses our current understanding. beacon alpha and beta are situated at the network's Peripheral Fulcrums, and based on the model prediction, the next critical Node, beacon gamma, should be located at..."

The star map quickly zoomed in, focusing on an area marked deep red on the Alliance Star Map and affixed with numerous Skull Warning Signs. The background of the star map in that region appeared abnormally distorted, as if unable to bear the spatial structure there.

"Void Corridor." The Captain pronounced the name solemnly, his tone carrying obvious apprehension.

Terrifying legends about the Void Corridor have long circulated among explorers and route planners. It is a known forbidden navigation zone. Conventional probes experience signal disruption or even complete loss of communication upon entry. More than one well-equipped Exploration Fleet has vanished without a trace there. Reports indicate that the spatial structure of the area is like a broken mirror clumsily glued back together, full of unpredictable gravitational anomalies, Spacetime Folds, and Spatial Turbulence said to be capable of tearing atoms apart.

Su Mu leaned over, looking at the bizarre and colorful region on the star map, and couldn't help but stick out her tongue: "It seems these watchers predecessors all like to hide their treasures in places of extreme danger. Couldn't they have chosen a location with better scenery and safety?"

"Quite the opposite," Evelyn said, adjusting her glasses and analyzing, "The more dangerous and inaccessible a place is, the more it signifies its importance, and the better it protects the beacon from being easily discovered or destroyed. Based on the network model we just analyzed, the location of beacon gamma is likely a crucial hub within this regional network, perhaps even an important Information Exchange Center or Energy Relay Station. The information it stores might be more central than what we obtained from alpha and beta, potentially touching upon the fundamental purpose of this network's existence."

Excellence's gaze was firmly locked onto the coordinates of the Void Corridor, his eyes sharp as an eagle's, without the slightest hint of retreat: "Even if it is a dragon's pool and a tiger's den, we must venture in. This is a crucial step for us to understand the watchers' legacy, confront 'The Devourer,' and ultimately understand the universe itself. Prepare to adjust course, and the entire ship is to enter Level One Alert Status. Target—Void Corridor!"

The morning star once again became a lone sail in the sea of stars, resolutely heading toward that terrifying Forbidden Star Domain.

During the long voyage, Excellence did not rest. The continuous crises and high-intensity use of his abilities acted like a catalyst, stimulating the further awakening of his potential after fusing with beacon alpha. He began to attempt and gradually master a new, more refined technique—"Energy Premonition."

This was not divination or prophecy in the traditional sense, but rather a hypersensitivity based on his Perception of the underlying energy flow of the universe, especially the "Stress" and "Curvature" changes inherent in the spacetime structure itself. The universe is not a dead vacuum; it is filled with various background energy flows and microscopic spacetime fluctuations, just as the ocean has invisible currents and undercurrents. Excellence could now capture these extremely subtle energy ripples and, through their patterns, "perceive" large-scale spatial structure changes ahead of time.

For example, before a small-scale Spacetime Fold forms, the background energy flow in that region exhibits specific characteristics of "stagnation" and "rotation"; before an invisible Gravitational Trap is triggered, it emits an extremely faint "tremor," like a string being pulled taut. Excellence can capture these precursors to issue early warnings and execute evasions.

Once, during Routine Navigation, Excellence suddenly awoke from meditation and sharply ordered: "Hard to port! Full reverse thrust! Now!"

Although The Pilot didn't understand why, the trust in Excellence's commands was already a conditioned reflex, and they executed immediately. Less than three seconds after the morning star completed a sharp maneuver and deviated from its original course, the space in the area they were supposed to pass through was violently twisted and folded, as if suddenly clenched by an invisible hand, forming a Spacetime Fold that was brief but sufficient to tear apart a small warship! The ship barely grazed the edge of this death zone, and the violent spatial disturbance caused ripples across the Shields.

Everyone on board broke out in a cold sweat. Post-incident analysis confirmed that had it not been for Excellence's critical few seconds of early warning, the ship would have plunged straight into the fold, with unimaginable consequences. This event filled all crew members with genuine admiration and trust for Excellence's miraculous Energy Premonition ability. He seemed to have become the ship's invisible, yet vital, Cosmic Compass, guiding them away from hidden reefs.

After several weeks of extremely cautious navigation, requiring Excellence to constantly use Energy Premonition to correct the course, the morning star finally reached the outer edge of the Void Corridor.

The sight before them surpassed the limits of any language or simulated image. Space itself here seemed afflicted by some sickness, presenting a pathological and bizarre form. Distant starlight was no longer stable points of light but was stretched into grotesque, constantly shifting arcs, spirals, or even broken bands of light, as if viewing the universe through a massive, cracked, and melting lens. Visible spatial ripples undulated like crumpled silk. Light in some regions was severely deflected, forming distorted, mirage-like illusions. Even more terrifying were the invisible Gravitational Vortices, which, like cosmic vampiric leeches, greedily tore at the surrounding void. Occasionally, an unfortunate asteroid or cosmic dust cloud that stumbled in was instantly ground into fundamental particles by unseen forces and vanished without a trace. In the dead silence, one could almost hear the higher-dimensional groan of the spatial structure itself buckling under the strain.

"The spatial structure here is extremely unstable, and Physical Constants may fluctuate regionally," Evelyn warned with unprecedented seriousness, staring intently at the wildly fluctuating sensor readings. "Conventional propulsion methods are extremely inefficient, and the engine's energy output could easily become the trigger for large-scale Spatial Jumps or Gravitational Collapse, randomly throwing us into unknown dimensions, or... simply tearing us apart."

"Shut down the Conventional Main Engine and switch to 'Resonance Warp' mode," Excellence ordered decisively, his expression also becoming grave. "We will proceed using the lowest power, ultra-short distance, high-frequency jumping method. It's like walking on ice covered with cracks: every step must be light, fast, and accurately placed. I will handle Real-Time Navigation. Evelyn, you monitor the overall status. Su Mu, ensure all system redundancy backups are online, ready to handle emergencies at any moment."

"Understood!" the two replied in unison.

The massive Conventional Engine nozzles at the stern of the morning star dimmed. In their place, subtle, water-like spatial ripples appeared around the hull. The ship began to advance in a "flickering" manner—vanishing instantly, reappearing moments later at another point several kilometers or even hundreds of kilometers away, staying for a very brief time to perform an environmental re-scan and calculate the next jump coordinates, before vanishing again.

This process was an extremely brutal drain on Excellence, who served as the navigation core. He had to constantly maintain Energy Premonition at full capacity, his focus intensely concentrated, like scouting a path through a minefield for an army behind him. His brain had to process massive amounts of spatial Curvature data, predict the next safe "landing point," and accurately transmit the coordinates to the Warp Engine. Fine beads of sweat quickly covered his forehead, and his face was slightly pale from the rapid depletion of his mental energy.

Su Mu quietly stood guard beside him, holding a soft towel to absorb sweat and a Nutritional Fluid to replenish energy. She dared not speak to disturb him, only offering silent support through her actions. Whenever Excellence completed a complex jump sequence and briefly closed his eyes to concentrate, she would immediately step forward, carefully wipe the sweat from his brow, and hand the straw to his mouth. Her eyes were full of worry and trust, as if saying: "You can do it. We are all here."

Evelyn, acting like the operator of the most precise instrument, closely monitored every parameter of the ship—the spatial Stress endured by the Shields, the stability of the Engine Core, and subtle changes in structural integrity. She occasionally issued brief commands, fine-tuning the energy distribution to ensure the ship remained in optimal readiness, preventing any minor error from being infinitely magnified in this perilous environment.

This was an incredibly nerve-wracking journey. The ship struggled to traverse the twisted spacetime, sometimes narrowly avoiding suddenly appearing Spatial Fissures, and sometimes executing daring tangential jumps at the edge of a Gravitational Vortex. Once, they even encountered a small-scale Spatial Dimension Collapse. The ship instantly plunged into a directionless abyss, and all instruments briefly failed. It was entirely thanks to Excellence, relying on his Perception of the beacon's energy, that he forcibly "tore open" a path back to normal dimensions.

Finally, after enduring what felt like hours long enough to cause mental breakdown (the actual duration was hard to measure, as the flow of time here was not constant), the morning star completed its last short warp and burst out of an extremely complex, kaleidoscope-like Gravitational Labyrinth.

The view before them suddenly cleared.

They seemed to have broken into the interior of a massive Cosmic Bubble. Outside was the bizarre, violently chaotic Void Corridor, but here was a relatively calm and stable Spherical Void. Suspended in the center of this stable region was the goal of their journey.

It was not a regular crystal like beacon alpha, nor a scarred prism like beacon beta, but a creation... that could not be defined by conventional geometric shapes. It resembled a Complex Geometric Body, constantly flowing and changing, condensed from the purest, softest light. Countless subtle light threads traversed, interwoven, separated, and recombined within it, forming endless patterns imbued with profound mathematical beauty. It floated silently, emitting powerful yet contained energy fluctuations. The light was not dazzling, but seemed capable of penetrating matter and shining directly into the observer's soul—this was beacon gamma.

In stark contrast to the steady composure of alpha and the cautious closure of beta, the first feeling gamma conveyed was... active and insightful, full of curiosity and vitality. It seemed to have sensed their arrival long ago, perhaps even "observing" their entire transit through the Corridor.

Just as the morning star stabilized its posture and slowly approached, a clear and gentle Wave of Thought, like a warm current, actively swept over the ship and was transmitted into the heart of every crew member, especially Excellence.

[Interesting Inheritors... you have finally arrived. During the long wait, I sensed the awakening and choice of alpha, the stirring and inheritance of beta... and the vibrant changes in you, which are both similar to and distinct from the Ancient Blueprints... This is truly... a pleasant surprise. Come closer, do not be afraid. Let us... talk properly.]

The initiative and openness of beacon gamma exceeded everyone's expectations. Was this sudden friendliness a genuinely unreserved welcome, or a more sophisticated form of trial? New discoveries and dialogues were about to unfold, and the deeper secrets of the universe might slowly be unveiled to these brave Inheritors within this flowing geometric body of light.