272: Heart of the Universe

Thump!

There was no sound.

Yet it was like the loudest, most primal war drum in the Universe.

That heart of the universe, forged together by billions of starlight and endless darkness, completed its first beat.

An invisible ripple, with Li Dong as the center and this ultimate blind spot as the Origin, fiercely spread in all directions across the entire Universe, into the past and future, every dimension, and every corner!

Li Dong closed his eyes.

He "saw" it.

He saw that ripple brush past the withered and silent galaxy; the chains of Law, which had been stiffened by Absolute Equilibrium, became flexible again, full of elasticity, like willow branches brushed by a spring breeze.

He "heard" it.

He heard those cosmic veins that had long ago lost their energy and were heading toward heat death, under the infusion of this heartbeat, once again emitting a joyful hum of energy flowing, like a parched riverbed welcoming its first stream of sweet spring water.

He "felt" it.

The entire Universe had come alive!

It was no longer a cold, precise program heading toward its end.

It had become a life form.

A breathing, incomparably massive life form!

And Li Dong was the master of this heart.

The next instant, the will of the Universe's Origin, that "prisoner" who had been imprisoned for endless years, let out a deafening cheer that had been accumulating for billions of years!

This cheer transformed into a vast energy that could not be measured by any unit, a golden torrent composed of the purest Origin and "gratitude," rushing into Li Dong's body of will like a bursting dam!

It was not an infusion of power.

It was a reshaping!

Li Dong's Divine Soul, his Laws, and every concept of his existence were instantly crushed under the scouring of this torrent, then recombined into a higher-dimensional form!

Pain and ecstasy, destruction and rebirth, intertwined and played out in his perception.

The Attunement Law was thoroughly brought to Perfection in this unprecedented baptism.

If Li Dong before had been a surgeon holding a scalpel, performing surgery on the Universe.

Then now.

He was the supreme Dominator of the Universe's own immune System, nervous System, and circulatory System.

His single thought was the Universe's self-healing.

His will was the Law of the Universe.

The Universe Doctor!

"Impossible... impossible..."

"What... is this... logic..."

In the distance, those Hand of Order judges, who had just barely recovered from a logic crash, watched everything in sheer terror.

They could not understand.

In their program settings, life and Variables were inherently bugs that needed to be cleared.

But now, the underlying logic of the entire Universe was cheering for this biggest bug!

Their attacks, their proud "erasure" Law, shot into this area covered by Dynamic Equilibrium, were like clay oxen entering the sea, unable to even stir up a single ripple.

On the contrary, every beat of that heart of the universe was an irresistible System shock to them!

"Retreat... retreat immediately!"

"This Variable... can no longer be cleared... redefining threat..."

Accompanied by extreme unwillingness and cold determination, the forms of the dozens of judges began to shatter under the impact of the new Law, eventually turning into streams of data and fleeing in a panic into the deeper parts of the Void Realm.

They were routed.

Thoroughly, from concept to power, they were completely crushed.

"Host..."

A familiar yet slightly strange stream of data gathered and formed beside Li Dong.

It was the Observer.

But at this moment, it was no longer the cold "archiving program" from before.

In its data stream flowed seven-colored brilliance, full of life's agility and the rhythm of evolution.

It had connected to the brand new heart of the universe, gaining unprecedented authority and computing power.

It would no longer just record history.

It would become a super-intelligent brain that guides the evolution of the Universe and deduces infinite futures.

"I can feel... your greatness." For the first time, the Observer's voice carried an emotion called "awe."

Li Dong did not respond; his mind was in the deepest connection with that heart of the universe.

A brand new authority was opened to him.

He could clearly perceive every breath of the Universe and touch the pulse of every Law.

As long as he wished, he could instantly mobilize the power of the entire Universe, making a star bloom in his palm or causing a Star Domain to fall into silence.

This was the authority of the Universe's core!

Just then, the heart of the universe actively transmitted a vast stream of information to him.

It was its "memory."

It was everything that the "True Lord" had erased and recorded with Absolute Equilibrium over endless years.

The birth and destruction of countless cosmic eras.

The rise and fall of countless powerful civilizations.

The tragic songs of countless brilliant beings who tried to resist the "True Lord" but were ultimately assimilated and erased.

These memories unfolded before Li Dong's eyes like a vast epic.

He saw how that "primal Variable spark" was born at the beginning of the Big Bang.

He also saw how the "True Lord" had forcibly suppressed it in pursuit of absolute "stillness."

Furthermore, in the gaps of these endless memories, Li Dong caught a glimpse of some extremely blurry images that made his Divine Soul throb.

That was... a scene from outside the Universe!

It was a darkness deeper and more indescribable than the Void Realm abyss he had entered before.

In that darkness floated some "concept fragments" that did not belong to this Universe, emitting a completely different aura of Law that made even him feel palpitations.

A new threat!

Li Dong instantly understood.

Just then, from the gentle pulse of the heart of the universe, he sensed some weak yet tenacious Soul fluctuations.

Very familiar, yet very strange.

That was... the lingering echoes of ancient civilizations once suppressed and erased by the "True Lord."

Their Divine Soul fragments were imprisoned by Absolute Equilibrium.

And now, with the birth of the heart of the universe, these lingering echoes were given the possibility of rebirth.

Streaks of weak light drifted out from the depths of the heart of the universe, following the unseen Karma, drifting toward all corners of the Universe.

They might become the spark of civilization for some new world, or they might turn into a flash of inspiration in the mind of some infant.

Li Dong did not interfere.

This was Dynamic Equilibrium.

Where there is destruction, there is rebirth.

He slowly opened his eyes, his gaze penetrating the dimensions, overlooking the entire brand-new Universe.

He had clarified the ultimate goal of his Attunement Law.

It was no longer just about curing illnesses and saving people.

It was to make this Universe constantly evolve and become stronger to meet those unknown challenges from outside the Universe!

It was guidance!

It was creation!

It was creating infinite possibilities!

With a thought, under his guidance, the pulse of the heart of the universe became gentler and more prolonged.

Streams of energy full of vitality, like the gentlest spring rain, sprinkled into every corner of the Universe, repairing the countless scars left behind by the "True Lord."

The withered galaxies regained their vitality.

The broken Laws began to heal themselves.

The entire Universe, after experiencing long illnesses and a surgery that scraped the bone to remove poison, had finally entered a brand new...

phase of recuperation.

And Li Dong, as the creator of this change and the guardian of this heart of the universe, stood quietly at the source of the Universe.

His gaze had already been cast toward that deeper, more distant darkness.

New trouble, it seemed... was already not far away.