275: Surgery and unexpected disruption

The ranger was like a leviathan lurking in the shadows of the deep sea, compressing its presence to the absolute limit.

Evelyn's fingertips danced lightly across the control panel, every command precise and restrained.

The optical camouflage modules on the ship's hull adjusted dynamically in microseconds, simulating the reflective characteristics of the surrounding turbulent energy flows, drifting smoke, and the occasional large piece of debris passing by.

The engines were maintained at minimum power, their vibration frequency deliberately tuned to resonate with the battlefield's background noise, like a drop of water merging into a rushing river.

All non-essential systems—including some living quarters lighting, non-core entertainment databases, and even the air circulation in some cabins—were temporarily silenced or reduced to minimum power consumption.

The entire ship seemed to have entered a state of suspended animation, with only the most sensitive detection arrays, the life-support circulation systems, encrypted quantum communication Nodes, and that specially modified, high-precision directed energy guidance and projection system, currently being cautiously preheated, still flickering in the gloom with the faint light representing 'standby'.

Excellence stood in the airlock again.

The form-fitting combat suit made of lightweight composite materials perfectly outlined his lean physique, its surface covered in a layer of dynamic optical camouflage coating that was currently capturing the colors and textures of the surrounding environment in real-time, making him almost merge with the metal bulkhead behind him.

He did not wear a bulky protective helmet, only a lightweight mask integrated with multiple sensing and filtering systems.

On his body, the silver-white Power of Order that had surged during the previous battle was completely restrained, compressed into a layer of shimmering light as thin as a cicada's wing, flowing tightly against his skin as if molten silver were slowly circulating deep within his veins.

This was not just for concealment, but a form of power control under a state of high alert—ready to erupt at any moment, yet appearing as if it didn't exist at all.

His senses extended outward, deeply linking with the ranger's main detection network.

The warship's 'eyes' and 'ears' became a part of him.

It was no longer simple screen images, but a three-dimensional 'Perception' field filled with data streams and layers of information.

He could 'see' the veins of energy flow, 'hear' the shrieking of electromagnetic signals and the broken fragments of encrypted communications, and 'smell' the ozone scent of ionized air, the acrid stench of molten metal, and... the fishy-sweet energy aura emanating from those few juggernauts, like a festering wound.

There were four of them in total, like four moving mountains of steel exuding an ominous aura.

The two units tentatively designated Alpha and Bravo were like tireless battering rams, continuously bombarding the crumbling main energy shield of the Sky Ladder base.

Thick, dark red energy beams, like the breath of a leviathan, caused the translucent shield to ripple violently with every impact, emitting an overwhelmed shriek as if glass were about to shatter.

The building shell in the area where the shield generator was located had already severely deformed, and the internal overload warning lights must have long since lit up in a sea of red.

Unit Charlie, on the other hand, was like a metallic grizzly bear focused on dismantling a den, rampaging on the flank of the base.

Every time its heavily armored giant fist slammed down, it was accompanied by the roar of crumbling concrete and alloy structures; the high-frequency energy blades that popped out from the side of its arms sliced through the shells of automatic turrets like a hot knife through butter, exposing the fragile, sparking innards within.

And Unit Delta, remaining in a relatively rear position, had the most dangerous posture.

It did not participate in the direct bombardment; the dark red core in its chest flickered with a slow and steady rhythm, as if it were taking deep breaths, accumulating power.

Excellence's Perception clearly captured that inside its massive body, energy was being highly compressed and gathered toward several focal points—the target was likely the main energy hub buried deep underground in the Sky Ladder base, or that hemispherical central command Fortress.

This was a premeditated, fatal strike aimed at paralyzing or decapitating the base.

'Priority targets: Charlie and Delta.'

Evelyn's voice came through the bone-conduction headset, as calm as if she were analyzing star map data, but Excellence could hear the taut string beneath it.

'Alpha and Bravo have drawn most of the firepower, and the battlefield energy noise is also the greatest.

Intervening rashly is likely to be affected by stray bullets or scattered energy waves, and their own load is extremely high; forced intervention could lead to uncontrollable energy backlash.

Charlie is relatively isolated, its attack pattern is regular, and there are obvious gaps between energy output peaks and troughs.

Delta is preparing an 'ultimate move,' and its energy core is in a high-compression but 'relatively calm' energy accumulation period.

The balance between the shell's constraint field and the internal violent energy is at its most delicate—this is the best time for a 'minimally invasive surgery' intervention.'

'Understood.

Operating on Charlie first, Delta... must not fail.'

Excellence slowly inhaled, then exhaled slowly, settling his spirit into the most concentrated state.

In his soul vision, those four juggernauts gradually shed the illusion of their steel shells, revealing their energy essence: clouds of dark red energy, boiling, filthy, and filled with greedy, devouring desires, forced and guided by rough but effective mechanical structures.

And at the core of each energy cloud was a violently pulsating 'Node,' like an evil heart.

That was the 'dead spot' he was looking for, the source of power for these destructive machines, and their most vulnerable fatal point.

'Silent Delivery' ready.

Maintain level three interference field.

Countdown: five, four, three, two, one... Release!'

There was no sound, no flash.

Excellence felt his body wrapped and pulled by a gentle but irresistible force, instantly detaching from the ranger's cabin.

He glided through the chaotic airspace like cosmic dust, precisely 'landing' in the shadow formed by a collapsed antenna tower behind the juggernaut codenamed Charlie.

It was less than fifteen meters from the hydraulic drive joint that was thicker than his body.

The fifty-meter-tall steel giant was swinging its fist at another target, the fishy wind it brought up fluttering the hem of Excellence's clothes, but he remained motionless, his aura completely merging with the shadows, the residual heat of the scorched earth beneath his feet, and the ionic dust permeating the air.

He slowly raised his right arm, extended his index finger, and a tiny, extreme point of silver-white light condensed at the edge of his fingernail.

The light was so dense, as if a star map had been compressed onto the tip of a needle, without the slightest leakage of energy, yet it carried an absolute sense of Order that made the surrounding chaotic energy instinctively 'avoid' it.

This was not the 'Blade of Order' used for frontal assaults, but the 'Needle of silence' specially crafted for this moment.

'Found you...'

Excellence's soul vision locked onto the target like a hawk—on Charlie's back armor plate, a slightly reddened, almost invisible radiator grille gap caused by continuous high-load operation.

This gap was a weak point calculated by Evelyn by comparing pre-war reconnaissance images, real-time battlefield thermal scans, and the speculative structural blueprints of the juggernauts, where energy flow paths overlapped with physical structures—a 'secret path' directly to its core area.

His fingertip trembled imperceptibly.

Whoosh!

A silver thread, finer than a spider's silk and completely invisible to the naked eye, shot out silently and precisely submerged into the red radiator gap!

The moment the silver thread entered its body, Charlie's massive body shuddered ever so slightly, the ongoing smashing action experiencing a lag of less than 0.1 seconds, and the dark red energy halo flowing on its surface also rippled in disorder for an instant.

But all this happened in a flash of lightning, drowned out by the roar it created itself, the explosions of crossfire all around, and the ubiquitous energy turbulence on the battlefield, just like a pebble thrown into a boiling lake of magma, where even a ripple was hard to distinguish.

All of Excellence's focus was connected to that strand of the 'Needle of silence.'

He 'saw' the needle, after entering the interior of the juggernaut, immediately transform into the most agile guide, moving upstream along the crevices of complex pipes and energy channels.

The dark red 'world devourer' energy, like viscous, filthy plasma, impacted this intruder with the instinct of devouring and corrosion, but the 'needle' was too small, condensed, and its attributes were diametrically opposed.

Like a drop of water in oil, it skillfully slid past the scouring of the main energy torrent, rapidly approaching that violently pulsating 'heart.'

Inside the core, the scene was even more horrifying.

Highly compressed dark red energy rotated, collided, annihilated, and regenerated crazily under the constraint of a rudimentary force field, like a miniature, furious nebula.

Maintaining this dangerous balance were several key energy resonant Nodes within the core structure, which acted like sluice gates on a dam, regulating the output and stability of the energy.

Excellence's goal was not to destroy the dam and cause a flood (explosion), but to cause a slight 'malfunction' in a certain gate, leading to energy internal consumption and poor circulation, eventually causing the entire core to slowly fall silent due to 'heart failure.'

Under Excellence's exquisite micro-manipulation, the 'needle,' like the finest cardiac surgery instrument, avoided all violent energy turbulence and gently touched the 'Achilles' heel' of the first and most important main resonant Node.

A trace of Power of Order, pure to the extreme and carrying the concepts of absolute 'silence' and 'harmony,' was injected along the 'needle.'

It was as if a drop of ice water had been dripped into a scalding wok of oil.

Inside the dark red core, the balance that was already in a critical state was instantly broken!

The orderly energy circulation was suddenly distorted, and the violent power lost its guidance, beginning to crazily consume itself and clash.

The light of the core dimmed at a speed visible to the naked eye, the frequency of pulsation dropped sharply, and the output power plummeted.

The first step was a success!

However, just as Excellence concentrated his mind, preparing to manipulate the 'needle' to turn to the next secondary Node to ensure the core could 'sleep' smoothly and thoroughly—

A strong, malicious sense of energy locking, like a cold poisonous snake, suddenly climbed up his spine!

It was not from the Charlie in front of him, but... from behind!

That Delta juggernaut that had been accumulating power—who knew when its scarlet compound eye sensor had already locked onto Charlie's back—or rather, locked onto the point where Excellence's 'needle' had entered!

It abandoned the base target it had originally locked onto, its massive body turning sideways with a swiftness that belied its size.

The dark red energy that had accumulated to a dangerous level in its chest was not fired, but... suddenly shrank inward, and then, a jet of energy, condensed to the point of turning black and carrying a sharp whistle, struck without warning toward Charlie's back, precisely hitting the core area where the energy was in chaos!

'A sneak attack from behind?!'

Excellence's pupils contracted sharply.

This was not friendly fire!

The trajectory, timing, and intensity of the energy jet all clearly pointed to the same goal—either to use a stronger external energy impact to forcibly 'suppress' or 'reboot' Charlie's abnormal core, or more viciously, to want to use a violent explosion to wipe out any possible 'source of interference' along with Charlie!

The people of the Burning Furnace had discovered it!

And they were so decisive, even willing to sacrifice a precious juggernaut!

'Evasive maneuvers!!'

Evelyn's scream exploded in the headset, and at the same time, the ranger's emergency tractor beam had already been activated.

But Delta's attack was too fast, too close, and too unexpected!

In a split second of life and death, Excellence's combat instinct overwhelmed all thought.

He forcibly cut off most of his connection with the 'needle,' pouring almost all his mental power and Power of Order into the heart-clearing pendant on his chest, while simultaneously crossing his arms and pushing them forward suddenly!

Hum—!!!

A translucent shield, as solid as crystal, with complex silver runes flowing on its edges, instantly unfolded in front of him, protecting not only himself but also Charlie's decaying core area behind him.

The moment the shield appeared, it even caused the surrounding light to distort slightly.

Boom—!!!!

The pitch-black energy jet slammed solidly onto the Order shield!

There was no earth-shattering explosion, but there was a teeth-grinding, high-frequency hiss of energy annihilation.

The shield vibrated violently, the silver runes on its surface flickering and flashing crazily, and even fine spiderweb-like cracks appeared!

The tremendous impact sent Excellence, along with the shield, flying, crashing like a cannonball into a pile of twisted vehicle wreckage behind him, the sound of tearing and twisting metal piercingly loud.

Excellence felt a sweetness in his throat, a bloody taste surged into his mouth, but he swallowed it back down hard, his internal organs feeling as if they had been shaken out of place.

And the aftermath of the energy jet, weakened by more than half by the shield but still powerful, still blasted into Charlie's back armor, creating an even more violent chain reaction with the energy inside that was already in chaos due to the intrusion of the Power of Order!

Wuu-ao—!!!

The Charlie juggernaut let out a shrill howl that was by no means mechanical, mixed with metal friction and energy shrieks!

Its entire massive body spasmed and twitched violently, the dark red energy on its surface expanding and gushing out like out-of-control volcanic magma!

At the core in its chest, the light flickered sharply, the frequency of flickering so fast it almost merged into one, and the energy fluctuations emanating from within became extremely violent and chaotic, full of destructive instability!

'Core overload critical! It's going to blow!'

Evelyn watched the frantically jumping readings on the screen, her face pale.

This explosive yield was enough to wipe out half a hillside along with Excellence on it!

"Initiate 'Fortress' protocol! Maximum power Order containment field!"

Excellence coughed up a mouthful of bloody saliva, enduring the excruciating pain in his chest, and forcibly mustered the remaining power within his body.

A silvery-white light surged from him once again; although much dimmer, it was more condensed, attempting to construct the smallest possible force field cage around the Charlie core to forcibly contain the explosion.

He knew this was likely futile, but he absolutely could not stand by and watch!

However, at the very moment the subtle "singularity"—the fleeting, almost non-existent "energy vacuum" created by the violent collision and annihilation of the Power of Order and the "world devourer" energy—arrived, just as the turbulent energy of the Charlie core climbed to its peak and the flash of destruction was about to erupt.

"Oh my, oh my~ It seems the chef's special 'mildly spicy seasoning' was accidentally spilled outside the pot, goodness me~"

That cloyingly sweet, comical voice with exaggerated rolled r's rang out once again, without rhyme or reason, in Excellence's ears—or rather, directly in the depths of his consciousness.

Immediately after, at the very center of Charlie's boiling, about-to-explode dark red core, space itself seemed to turn into soft playdough in a child's hands, poked gently by a mischievous finger, silently opening a fist-sized hole with edges shimmering with the luster of pink macarons.

Then, a hand wearing a snow-white, spotless chef's glove reached out from that hole.

The fingers were slender, the movements elegant, and the fingertips held a small pinch of glittering "powder" that seemed to be a mixture of icing, rainbow sprinkles, and some indescribable shimmer.

That finger flicked gently at the extreme, violent dark red energy core, just like a top-tier pastry chef applying the final decoration to a cake about to come out of the oven.

Snap.

The fine, glittering powder drifted down and sprinkled into the center of the boiling energy vortex.

Time seemed to have been pressed with a slow-motion button.

The violent energy, capable of vaporizing steel and melting rock into liquid glass, was instantly enchanted the moment it touched the glittering powder; its churning speed visibly slowed down, and its color began to undergo a bizarre change—fading rapidly from a murky dark red, brightening, and turning into some kind of... tender, watery, pearlescent... color.

Immediately after, the texture changed too.

It was no longer a violent, formless flow of energy, but began to solidify and aggregate, becoming bouncy, soft, sticky, and glossy...

When the flow of time returned to normal (or rather, after Excellence blinked), what he saw was:

On the chest of the Charlie "juggernauts", at the position of the core that was originally about to explode, there was now embedded a huge lump, over five meters in diameter, pink and translucent, wobbling slightly with the trembling of the "juggernauts" body, and emitting a rich, cloyingly sweet strawberry aroma...

A giant pudding.

Yes, a pudding.

The smooth surface reflected the dim daylight of the battlefield, and a few drops of tempting "syrup" had condensed on top, looking extremely fresh, and even seeming to emit faint wisps of steam.

The battlefield fell into a silence even deeper and more thorough than before.

Even the infantry in the distance, who were locked in life-and-death exchanges of fire, and the armored units spitting tongues of flame, seemed to have forgotten to pull their triggers in that instant.

Countless gazes were cast blankly toward the steel giant that had fallen to its knees, with a large piece of pink pudding "growing" eerily from its chest.

The "juggernauts" movements froze completely, its scarlet "eyes" flickering rapidly, revealing a dense sense of "bewilderment" belonging to a mechanical construct.

Then, its massive body, as if drained of all strength—or rather, drained of all will for "destruction"—crashed to its knees with a boom, shaking the ground.

The remaining dark red energy on its body surface disappeared rapidly like a receding tide, revealing the rough, scarred primitive armor underneath.

Only the tender, wobbling pudding on its chest formed an absurd, mind-numbing contrast with the cruel scene of war around it.

Excellence knelt halfway in the ruins, maintaining the pose of constructing the force field, his mouth slightly open, having forgotten to close it.

He felt as if his thought processor had been gummed up by that pink pudding, completely ceasing to function.

What... just happened? That messenger... "Giggle"? It came again? Turning the "world devourer" energy core that was about to explode... into a pudding???

Cooking? On-site dessert making? Or some kind of "harmless treatment" that was high-end to the point of absurdity and beyond his understanding?

Inside the bridge of the "ranger", the expressions of Evelyn and several core crew members were frozen on their faces; some subconsciously rubbed their eyes, while others had their mouths open but could not make a sound.

On the main screen, the close-up of that huge, pink, bouncy pudding challenged everyone's bottom line of cognition.

Just then, that pink space expanded slightly, and "Giggle," wearing that ridiculous white-and-red striped chef's uniform and a towering chef's hat, poked more than half of its body out from inside.

The painted smile on its face was still exaggerated; it first examined its "work" with satisfaction—the pudding embedded in the steel chest—and even extended a finger to poke it gently (soft ripples spread across the pudding's surface), before turning its head, accurately "looking" toward the ruins where Excellence was hiding, and shouting in that sharp, comical tone that could pierce through the battlefield noise:

"Temporary add-on Order! Battlefield flavor limited edition—'world devourer energy pudding (mildly spicy special version)' is complete! Dedicatedly presented by the 'Court of Revelry' chief (intern) messenger 'Giggle', exclusive recipe!"

It waved a small silver bell it had produced from who knows where, jingling and jangling, "The texture is guaranteed to be bouncy and smooth, with rich layers of flavor (retaining the stimulating aftertaste of the original 'devour' concept, while cleverly incorporating the sweet theme of 'revelry'), it is definitely a surprise choice for all warriors to clean up the battlefield and replenish energy! Trial portions are free, don't be shy! Remember to give a five-star review! Giggle-Giggle-Giggle~"

After saying this, it even blew a kiss toward Excellence's direction with its white-gloved hand, before satisfiedly retreating back into that pink, which, just like when it appeared, closed silently, as if it had never existed.

Leaving behind on the battlefield a steel giant with a large pink pudding embedded in its chest, kneeling as if repenting for its sins, and a silence more suffocating than a vacuum.

Excellence: "..."

Evelyn: "..."

All the "Burning Furnace" and "Gears and Anvil" soldiers who witnessed this scene: "..."

This silence lasted for less than three seconds.

"What... what the hell is that thing?!"

"Pud-pudding? Am I hallucinating? Did I inhale too much smoke?"

"Is it a new type of biochemical weapon? A mental pollution weapon?"

"No! Unit Three's energy signature... has disappeared! It... it seems to have stopped moving!"

"Whatever it is! Attack! Destroy that paralyzed mech!"

The defenders of "Gears and Anvil" were the first to react from their shock; although they couldn't understand it, one of the enemy's most powerful weapons suddenly losing combat capability in such a comical way was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

In an instant, artillery fire of various calibers and energy beams, like a flood finding an outlet, poured toward that "pudding juggernauts"!

Meanwhile, in the "Burning Furnace" command channel, there was a chorus of panicked and furious roars: "What's wrong with Unit Three?! What is that pink thing? Where is the energy signal?! Attack! Destroy that disgusting thing for me! Don't let it fall into enemy hands!"

The remaining three "juggernauts"—Alpha, Bravo, and the Delta that had just launched a sneak attack—also seemed to have received new Orders.

They temporarily abandoned their suppression of the "Sky Ladder" base and turned their massive bodies and dangerous firepower toward the glaring pink patch on their former comrade's chest.

Boom! Boom! Boom-boom!

The light of explosions lit up the battlefield once again, but this time, most of it was concentrated on that pink pudding.

A jaw-dropping scene occurred: the seemingly soft and smooth "pudding" actually displayed incredible physical properties!

Energy beams hitting it were mostly deflected and scattered by the bouncy surface, turning into harmless halos; physical shells hitting it were like falling into a highly resilient non-Newtonian fluid, their speed dropped sharply, their kinetic energy was largely absorbed, and then they were gently "spit out" and rolled to the ground.

Only continuous high-energy focused fire could leave a tiny scorch mark on the pudding's surface, but it would quickly "heal" with that slight wobble.

And the "pudding juggernauts" itself seemed to have truly become a huge, oddly decorated sculpture, kneeling there motionless, letting the hail of bullets and rain of shells wash over it, while the pink pudding on its chest just wobbled leisurely with the shockwaves of the explosions, emitting a sweet aroma that was completely out of place on the battlefield.

Excellence was dragged back to a relatively safe observation position by the "ranger" using a tractor beam while the opportunity presented itself.

He slumped in his seat, his chest still aching, but his brain hurt even more.

"What... exactly is this supposed to be?" He looked at Evelyn, his voice filled with a sense of powerlessness.

Evelyn took a few deep breaths, forcing herself to look away from that mesmerizing pudding, and pulled up the quick analysis data, her voice a bit floaty: "Energy scan confirmed, the 'world devourer' energy core inside Charlie... has been completely 'converted'."

"It is no longer a highly active, unstable energy aggregate, but has turned into some kind of... colloidal polymer with extremely unique physical properties and extremely high energy inertia."

"The internal structure is completely stable, with no risk of chain reactions or explosions."

"Its defense mechanism... is preliminarily judged to be a combination of ultra-high energy dispersion and material buffering; the principle is unknown, but the effect... you've seen it."

She paused and added: "As for the taste and aroma... they might be pure sensory information projections incidental to the conversion process, lacking an actual material basis, but... they have enough 'presence'."

"Unique physical properties..." Excellence looked at the pink pudding on the screen, feeling at ease amidst the gunfire, and felt the muscles at the corner of his mouth twitch uncontrollably. "This defensive power is more than a notch stronger than its original composite armor, right? The 'Lord of the Grand Feast' can just flick some 'icing' and turn destructive energy into this thing? And it even has flavor and aroma?"

"I'm afraid that is the case. And," Evelyn switched to several other surveillance feeds, her expression becoming even stranger, "look at the other three."

In the footage, after Alpha and Bravo continued to attack the "pudding" to no avail, their movements clearly showed hesitation.

Their scarlet "eyes" kept shifting between the wobbling pink target and the base, and their attack rhythm became disorganized.

And Delta, the "hunter" that had just launched a cold sneak attack, was the most abnormal in its behavior at this moment—it had even temporarily stopped its long-range attacks, its huge metal head tilted slightly, one mechanical arm raised, and its giant finger slowly extended, as if... it wanted to touch that pudding?

"They... have been interfered with." Excellence understood immediately. "It's not just the energy core being attracted."

"The power of the 'Lord of the Grand Feast' carries intense 'conceptual' and 'emotional' pollution."

"This pudding itself is a huge 'information source' radiating concepts of 'absurdity,' 'cloying sweetness,' and 'playfulness'."

"For these rudimentary control systems that rely on 'world devourer' energy (which itself carries negative concepts like chaos, paranoia, and consumption), this kind of diametrically opposed, yet 'seductive' conceptual interference might be more effective than a direct physical attack."

"Just like... a moth seeing a flame?"

"Very likely. And," the voice of "White Elder" came from the base, carrying unprecedented gravity, "the 'Lord of the Grand Feast's' move this time, while seemingly comical and absurd, is in fact intriguing in every step."

"First, He has once again, and more intuitively, demonstrated His terrifying power to toy with rules and twist reality and concepts, easily converting 'destruction' into a 'harmless' (and even slightly 'cute') creation."

"Second, His actions have completely disrupted the battlefield focus, attracting the attention of all 'juggernauts' and soldiers, effectively creating a breathing space for the precarious defenders, and also... resolving a fatal crisis for you."

"Third, both times He appeared, it was highly 'coincidental' with the mission you were executing."

"Fourth, this 'pudding' itself is a huge, living billboard for the concept of 'revelry,' a 'bait' to attract fire, and a 'source of pollution' continuously radiating chaotic information."

"Bait? A source of pollution?" Excellence rubbed his throbbing temples.

"That's right." Evelyn took over, her expression serious. "Attracting the 'juggernauts,' attracting everyone's gaze, creating greater chaos and uncertainty... and perhaps even attracting the attention of other 'observers' or entities lurking in the shadows."

"He seems... to be enjoying it, relishing the process of dragging everyone and everything into His absurd 'drama'."

Excellence felt a deep sense of exhaustion and unease.

The "Lord of the Grand Feast" was like the most brilliant yet most unreasonable "director" and "audience" combined; the script followed His mood entirely, and the wishes of the actors (including Excellence himself) were inconsequential, as long as they could provide "drama" and "fun."

And being "watched" or even "helped" by such an entity was by no means a blessing.

"So what now? The remaining three are a bit 'distracted,' but the threat is still there, and the 'Sky Ladder' base has only caught a temporary breath." Excellence looked at the main screen.

Delta was still curiously trying to approach the pudding, while Alpha and Bravo seemed somewhat restless, their attacks wavering between the pudding and the base.

"Opportunity!" Excellence's eyes sharpened. "While their attention is divided, execute the original plan! Prioritize Delta; it's the most 'distracted' right now! Evelyn, don't use the 'Stingers'; they make too much noise. Use the 'Gummy' jamming shells on the ship, combined with my close-range energy intrusion!"

"Understood! 'Gummy' jamming shells ready! Target: the periphery of Delta's energy core. Fire!"

Several special warheads with garish paint jobs (rumored to be Evelyn's personal taste) shot out silently, tracing eerie, low-trajectory arcs, and precisely plastered themselves onto the armor of the core area on Delta's chest.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

The warheads burst—no shrapnel, no fire, only great globs of sticky, iridescent, dreamy-colored gelatinous substance that rapidly spread and vaporized, releasing strong interference waves and chaotic data streams targeting specific energy frequency bands. These "Gummy" jamming shells were one of Evelyn's "little inventions," designed to paralyze rather than destroy precision energy systems.

Woo—!

Delta's massive body shuddered violently, as if its head had been struck by an invisible heavy hammer. The dark red light on its chest fluctuated wildly, flickering on and off, and its movements instantly became stiff and uncoordinated, like a rusted marionette. The mechanical arm it had been trying to grab the pudding with stopped in mid-air, swaying aimlessly.

"Now!"

Excellence was launched again, this time landing directly on Delta's massive metal head, which was sparking with chaotic electricity! He slammed both palms down, and the vast, pure Power of Order, no longer concealed, poured forth like a cool waterfall, surging through the gap opened by the "Gummy" interference directly into the "brain" and energy pathways of this steel behemoth, rushing straight at the struggling core!

This time, there were no unexpected interruptions. The Power of Order, with overwhelming force, quickly located the weak point in the core's resonant Node, injecting, disrupting, and overturning its balance.

The dark red light rapidly dimmed and extinguished. Delta, the juggernaut, remained in its comical reaching pose, its massive body swaying for a moment before collapsing forward like a doll with its power cut, crashing into the ground and raising a cloud of dust. The energy core on its chest had completely turned into a piece of lifeless, charred metal.

"Second one, neutralized." Excellence caught his breath, feeling a bit lighter than before. Team coordination and tactical deception were indeed much more efficient than fighting head-on alone.

"Nice work! Alpha and Bravo seem even more agitated. They seem to have realized something is wrong and are consciously moving toward each other, while refocusing their main firepower on the base!" Evelyn reported.

"Pick them off one by one! Take out the relatively isolated Bravo first! Same tactics!"

The "Gummy" jamming shells struck gold again, plastering Bravo's face. Excellence followed the same procedure, and the Power of Order intruded precisely. The third juggernaut, while attempting to rendezvous with Alpha, slowed its pace more and more until it finally stood frozen, the light on its chest extinguished, becoming a pile of expensive scrap metal.

"One last one left! Alpha!"

However, just as they locked onto the last one—the Alpha juggernaut, whose attacks were the most violent and persistent—a change occurred, erupting in the most intense way possible!

In the command channel of the Burning Furnace, the commander's completely insane, hysterical roar came through, even leaking onto the public channel with harsh static: "All units! At any cost! 'Furnace Core', overload startup!! For the eternal burning of the 'Furnace'! Destroy the 'Sky Ladder'!!"

The moment the Order was given, the Alpha juggernaut—the largest and most scarred of them all—emitted a deafening roar, as if its metal skeleton were wailing! The dark red energy core on its chest instantly brightened to a level that was impossible to look at, its color shifting from dark red to a blinding, ominous blood-red with black edges! The energy readings soared wildly like a runaway horse, breaking through all safety thresholds! It completely abandoned its defenses, ignoring the pink pudding nearby and its fallen companions. Its massive body sank slightly as it frantically gathered all its energy toward its chest, aiming at the most core area of the 'Sky Ladder' base—the location of the main energy hub and the primary underground bunkers!

Self-destruction! The most extreme, most insane mutual annihilation! If it succeeded, triggering the geothermal well complex, the consequences would be unimaginable!

"Stop it!!!" Excellence's eyes were splitting with rage; all calmness and planning were thrown to the back of his mind. The Power of Order erupted behind him, forming two pairs of more solid, silver-white wings with edges like blades of light, propelling him like a silver meteor as he charged desperately toward Alpha! The ranger also pushed its power output to the limit, its tractor beam pulling Excellence to accelerate, while the small-caliber high-energy particle cannon at the bow began to charge, even if it could only interfere for one-hundredth of a second!

Distance! Time! It was all too tight! The blood-red light on Alpha's chest was already thick as substance, the pulse of destruction about to burst forth!

Just at this critical moment, when there wasn't even time for thought—

"Oh my, oh my~ Such a grand 'Grand Feast', how can the main course exit early on its own? Dessert time isn't over yet, you must wait patiently for the main meal~"

That sweet, comical voice rang out for the third time.

This time, the source of the voice was directly above the head of the Alpha juggernaut.

Space rippled with pink waves, like a lake surface into which a stone had been thrown. A fissure opened, and the comical figure of Giggle appeared, riding directly on top of the fifty-meter-tall steel giant that was about to turn into a giant bomb. In its hand, it held a huge, gleaming, silver hemispherical serving platter lid decorated with ornate acanthus patterns...

Then, with Excellence's figure in full-speed dash, Evelyn's terrified gaze, and the dazed stares of all survivors on the battlefield, Giggle raised that silver serving platter lid with both hands—which looked light and ridiculously small compared to the juggernaut's size—and aimed it at the Alpha's chest core, which was radiating destructive blood-red light. Just like a housewife covering a freshly stewed pot to keep it warm, it moved gently, precisely, and even with a hint of thoughtfulness...

And clamped it down.

Clang————!!!

A clear, melodious, and massive sound, like the tolling of a giant bell with a metallic vibrating tail, swept across the entire battlefield, temporarily drowning out all explosions and roars!

The silver serving platter lid clamped perfectly onto the chest of the Alpha juggernaut, firmly sealing that destructive blood-red light underneath.

The red light vanished.

No, not completely vanished. Excellence could clearly perceive that beneath the lid, the extremely violent energy was still clashing wildly, attempting to erupt. Each impact caused the silver lid to emit a low hum, its surface even slightly bulging and then flattening. Yet, that seemingly thin, even somewhat comical silver metal acted like a seal from mythology, firmly "smothering" all the destructive power inside, preventing even a single shred from leaking out.

The Alpha juggernaut's movements froze completely, remaining in its charging posture for the self-destruction, standing frozen in the center of the battlefield like a massive, modernist sculpture with a silver "pot lid" clamped to its chest.

Giggle stood on top of the "pot lid," stood on tiptoes, turned elegantly, and then, facing the direction Excellence was rushing from (its positioning this time was hair-raisingly precise), performed a dramatic, chest-clutching bow, and announced with that sharp voice that pierced through all noise:

"The main course has been kept warm and served for you~! Today's special—'Furnace-Flavored Braised Destruction Energy (Extreme Spiciness)'! Personally watched over by the 'Court of Revelry's' Chief (Intern) Messenger, 'Giggle'! Please enjoy slowly, and be careful not to burn your mouth~!"

After speaking, it blew an exaggerated kiss, then leaped backward like a diver, "gracefully" vanishing into the reopened pink fissure.

Leaving behind on the battlefield one juggernaut kneeling in "repentance" with pink pudding embedded in its chest, two completely silent juggernauts collapsed on the ground, and the last one, still in its self-destruction charging pose with a huge silver pot lid clamped to its chest, frozen like a monument.

And a battlefield more deathly silent than the deep cosmos, filled with the thick scent of absurdity and collective cognitive dissonance.

The ranger's tractor beam slowly pulled Excellence, who was still in his forward-charging posture with a blank face, back into the cabin. He landed on the deck, forgetting even to steady himself, stumbling, and only managed not to fall by bracing against the wall. He stared blankly at the surreal scene on the main screen—the pink pudding, the silver pot lid, the fallen steel giants... He felt as if his own brain had been smothered by that silver pot lid, completely ceasing to function.

"This... this is fucking..." Excellence opened his mouth, finding his vocabulary so impoverished that he couldn't describe his current mood at all.

In the communication channel, Evelyn's ethereal voice, filled with a heavy sense of nihilism, came through:

"This probably... counts as the 'Lord of the Grand Feast's'... full-course delivery service? Including cooking instructions (special blend), dessert (pudding), and... takeout (pot lid)?"

Excellence: "..."

He now had only one crazy thought: could he apply for a transfer from this godforsaken observation zone? Or was there any way to block the 'Lord of the Grand Feast's' messenger channel? This job was simply impossible to do!

However, before he could recover from this extremely absurd shock, the flat electronic voice of the sentry-7391b Node rang in his ears again, in a tone that was almost "mechanically numb":

"Observer Excellence, update on the execution of the temporary preventive intervention mission."

"Core mission objective: Eliminate the uncontrollable catastrophic risks that might be triggered by the juggernauts units."

"Target 1 (Charlie - Pudding): Risk eliminated. Handling method: Forced intervention by a high-dimensional 'Court of Revelry' conceptual entity (Messenger class) and 'converted/neutralized'. Result: Target lost its aggressiveness and explosion risk, converted into a highly inert, defensive exotic substance. The handling process involved high-dimensional unauthorized intervention, but the result meets the risk elimination requirements."

"Target 2 (Delta), Target 3 (Bravo): Risk eliminated. Handling method: Successful execution of 'Power of Order intrusion - forced silence' by you. Result: Target completely lost functionality. The handling process meets the temporary authorization requirements."

"Target 4 (Alpha - Pot Lid): Risk eliminated. Handling method: Forced intervention by the same high-dimensional entity and 'restrained/neutralized'. Result: The target's destructive energy was forcibly restrained within an exotic container, temporarily losing the risk of diffusion. The handling process involved high-dimensional unauthorized intervention, but the result meets the risk elimination requirements."

"Comprehensive conclusion: The preset catastrophic risks have been temporarily resolved."

"Note: During the execution of this mission, a high-dimensional 'Court of Revelry' conceptual entity twice actively and unauthorizedly intervened in the affairs of a primary civilization's war zone, performing high-spec reality distortion operations. This behavior seriously violates the 'Basic Interaction Code for Pan-Dimensional Civilizations'. Relevant records and impact assessments have been encrypted and uploaded to the Seventh Sub-bureau Headquarters, the highest Arbitration Court, 'Clear Mirror' investigators, and the conceptual regulatory department."

"Your performance evaluation for this mission will be comprehensively reviewed, combining the risk elimination results with the uncontrollable factors of high-dimensional intervention. The report submission deadline remains unchanged."

"Subsequent instructions are now given: Immediately depart from the current high-dimensional interference active zone and return to the preset safe observation point. Due to the continuous intervention of high-dimensional entities, the situation in this area has been upgraded to a 'Highly Uncertain Observation Zone', and conventional observation protocols are suspended. Your safety is the priority."

"Additionally, based on the resource advance application you submitted earlier and the actual consumption accounting for this mission, your current personal account contribution point deficit is: 5127 points. An installment repayment agreement has been automatically generated, and the first repayment and interest will be deducted in thirty standard days. Please check your account notifications."

Excellence: "..."

He silently closed the Node communication and cast his gaze once again toward the absurd battlefield outside the porthole. The pink pudding faintly reflected light amidst the smoke, and the silver pot lid stood motionless in the distance, like a performance art exhibition full of twisted humor gifted to him by this crazy universe.

He let out a long, deep sigh and buried his face in his palms.

This observer job not only required him to risk his life defusing bombs and dealing with crazy civilizations, but also to play wits with unreasonable high-dimensional "trolls," and in the end... he actually ended up in debt?

Exhausting, really. Can this universe ever be normal?