323: Rest, Discovery, and the Choice of the "Sea of ​​Shadows"

Deep in the Dark Matter Turbulence Zone, the "hope" was like a tired giant whale, slowly cruising in a relatively calm "bubble" area. The dark matter density here was low, and energy interference was weak, making it one of the few safe points in the entire turbulence zone.

In the bridge, the atmosphere relaxed a bit for once.

Wen Youyi's left arm was still wrapped in bandages, but he could already move it normally. Mu Wanqing said his wound had developed "Time Aftereffects"—sometimes he would suddenly feel the wound still hurting, but upon unwrapping the bandages, the flesh had completely healed; sometimes he felt the wound itching, as if new flesh was growing. This feeling of temporal dislocation was very eerie, but at least it wasn't fatal.

"Boss, can your arm be used as a predictor in the future?" Zhao Iron Pillar joked while munching on special "Starry Sky Rations"—a block made from a mix of "star rice" and nutrients. "For example, if it suddenly hurts, it means we're about to have bad luck?"

"Then I hope it doesn't hurt now," Wen Youyi said with a bitter smile. "We've already had enough bad luck."

Aila was sitting in front of the main console, analyzing new fragment data brought back from the Forgotten Corridor. After this fragment merged with the master key, the master key's length increased by about a quarter, and many new markings appeared on the star map on its surface. Most importantly, it seemed to have unlocked some previously inaccessible "memory fragments."

[Interesting...] Aila stared at the screen, data streams reflecting in her indigo eyes. [This fragment contains a record of the early history of the Star Devourers. It's not from the perspective of the Star People, but... from the perspective of a certain civilization that was devoured.]

"Which civilization?" Wen Youyi asked.

[A civilization called the 'Light Feather Race.' They were skilled in energy manipulation and mental communication, and were once the guardians of that Star Domain.] Aila pulled up the translated text records. "According to this record, the Star Devourers were not originally pure destroyers like they are now. After being defeated and split by the Star People, they were initially just... 'lost children.'"

"Lost children?" Senior Brother Zhang pushed up his glasses. "That metaphor..."

[It's very fitting.] Aila continued to translate. "'Those dark fragments wandered the sea of stars. They remembered they were once a great existence and remembered they were burdened with the mission of maintaining order, but they forgot how to do it. So they began to devour everything they encountered, trying to find the missing parts of themselves from those civilizations.'"

Wen Youyi said thoughtfully, "So the Star Devourers devour civilizations not just for energy and evolution, but also to... 'piece together a complete self'?"

[Yes.] Aila nodded. [But the problem is that every devoured civilization has its own will, memory, and culture. These fragments are mixed together, making the consciousness of the Star Devourers increasingly chaotic. It's like stuffing the memories of a hundred people into one head; it's a wonder they don't go mad.]

Old K leaned over, his mechanical eye flickering with interest. "No wonder I feel like those iron lumps act very contradictorily sometimes. One moment they're as precise as a machine, the next they're acting crazy."

"So the mothership we saw in the C7 Area attacking the Star Crusher flagship," Wen Youyi analyzed, "was likely because it absorbed too many 'Impurities,' leading to the emergence of a rebellious consciousness within?"

[It's highly likely.] Aila pulled up the energy analysis data from that time. [17% of that mothership's attack patterns match the tactical records of the 'Light Feather Race.' If one of its subsystems was influenced by the residual consciousness of the Light Feather Race...]

"That means the Star Devourers are not a monolith." Wen Youyi stood up and paced the bridge. "There may be various 'echoes' of devoured civilizations within them, and these echoes can interfere with or even rebel against the main entity's will under certain circumstances."

Senior Brother Zhang's eyes lit up. "Then can we... instigate a rebellion among them?"

"Instigating a rebellion might be too difficult," Wen Youyi shook his head. "But at least we can exploit this division. If we can find a way to amplify these 'echoes'..."

Before he could finish, the ship-borne neural network suddenly sent a wave of fluctuations. The ship spirit's thoughts carried a hint of fatigue but satisfaction: [Full ship self-check complete. Structural damage repair progress is at 87%, engine cooling is finished, and energy reserves have recovered to 92%. Suggestion: We can now plan the next route.]

Aila immediately pulled up the star map. [Based on the newly unlocked information from the master key, the location of the next fragment has been determined—it's in the 'Sea of Illusory Shadows.']

On the star map, an area marked in deep blue began to flash. It was an extremely vast Star Domain, filled with spatial rifts and energy illusions. It was said that starships entering it often saw "phantoms" of what they feared or desired most, and many people went mad because of it.

When Old K saw this location, his expression became very grim. "The Sea of Illusory Shadows... that place is even more sinister than the Forgotten Corridor. I knew an old pal who went in once; after he came out, he spent all day muttering about seeing his dead relatives, and finally jumped into the reactor and killed himself."

"But we must go." Wen Youyi pointed at the star map. "The fragment is there, and the Star Devourers surely know it too. If we don't go, they will get the third fragment."

Senior Brother Li said worriedly, "But our current state hasn't fully recovered. Moreover, the Sea of Illusory Shadows requires special protection—not physical protection, but mental protection. Most of our crew are Immortal Cultivators, and their Mental Energy is stronger than that of ordinary people, but it's not strong enough to be immune to illusions."

At this moment, Wang Wu, who hadn't spoken much, suddenly raised his hand. "Um... I have an idea."

Everyone looked at him.

Wang Wu rubbed his hands nervously. "Didn't we get the 'record of civilizational rise and fall' from the Starlight Sanctuary? It records the complete history of seventeen civilizations. While I was helping organize the data these past few days, I found a civilization called the 'Heart Mirror Race.' They specialized in studying consciousness and illusions and had a complete set of mental protection technology."

Aila's eyes lit up. [Right! The Heart Mirror Race! I remember now, they had unique insights into illusion identification and defense. Although their civilization eventually perished, the technical records should still be there!]

She immediately pulled up the chapter on the Heart Mirror Race in the "record of civilizational rise and fall." Sure enough, it detailed the principles of their "Mind Shield" technology, construction methods, and even several simple mental training methods.

Senior Brother Zhang scanned it quickly. "These technologies... seem like they can be combined with our immortal cultivation civilization's 'Heart-Clearing Incantation' and 'Mind-Settling Curse'! If we can design a hybrid protection System, we might be able to withstand the illusionary influence of the Sea of Illusory Shadows!"

Wen Youyi immediately made the decision. "Then let's do it! Senior Brother Zhang, Aila, you're in charge of technology Fusion. Senior Brother Li, take a team to modify the ship's mental protection System. Wang Wu, you continue studying the 'record of civilizational rise and fall' to see if there are any other technologies we can use."

"Then what do I do?" Zhao Iron Pillar asked.

"You..." Wen Youyi thought for a moment. "You're in charge of supervising everyone's 'physical training.' The Sea of Illusory Shadows also places a heavy burden on the body, so everyone must stay in peak condition."

Zhao Iron Pillar grinned. "I'm good at that! I guarantee I'll have them howling from the training!"

For the next three days, the "hope" entered a period of intense modification and training.

Senior Brother Zhang and Aila worked almost without sleep, combining the Heart Mirror Race's "Mind Shield" technology with the immortal cultivation civilization's meditation methods to design a "Starlight Mental Protection System." This System used Star Core energy as a base and projected through the neural network into each crew member's consciousness, automatically activating protection when an illusion intrusion was detected.

Senior Brother Li led the technical team to install new energy nodes at key locations throughout the ship. These nodes would emit a special fluctuation to interfere with the illusion generation mechanism of the Sea of Illusory Shadows.

Wang Wu was like a sponge, frantically absorbing knowledge from the "record of civilizational rise and fall." He not only found the Heart Mirror Race's technology but also discovered records of a civilization called the "Dream-Building Race"—they were experts at weaving and analyzing dreams, which would be very helpful for understanding the operational principles of the Sea of Illusory Shadows.

Zhao Iron Pillar's training plan was simple and crude but effective. Every morning, everyone on the ship who could move had to gather in the open space by the ecological dome for two hours of "Starry Sky Gymnastics"—which was actually a hybrid training combining Immortal Cultivation Body Refining Techniques and interstellar survival skills. Although exhausting, the results were significant, and the crew's Physique and mental state improved noticeably.

Wen Youyi, while recovering from his injuries, studied the newly unlocked information in the master key. He discovered more details about the Star People and the Star Devourers, and one record in particular caught his attention:

"Before the Guardian Prototype split, it set a 'Final Command': When the seven fragments are gathered again, an 'Ultimate Choice' must be made—either restart the Guardian program and return to the original intent of maintaining order, or completely destroy all fragments and end this mistake."

This record did not specify who would make the "Ultimate Choice," nor did it explain the specific operation. But Wen Youyi had a faint feeling that this might be the key to countering the Star Devourers—perhaps when all seven fragments were gathered, a mechanism would appear that could solve this trouble once and for all.

But the problem was that the Star Devourers were also collecting fragments. What would they choose? Restart? Or destroy?

On the evening of the third day, the modification and training were basically complete.

The internal structure of the "hope" now had many more silver-white energy pipes, which were part of the newly installed mental protection System. Every crew member was equipped with a small "Heart-Protecting Talisman"—actually a miniaturized protection node that could be worn close to the body.

On the bridge, Aila was performing final tests. [Protection System activated. Star Core energy output is stable. Neural network load... 32%, within the safe range. Simulating Sea of Illusory Shadows phantom attack... estimated protection efficiency is 87%.]

"Is 87% enough?" Wen Youyi asked.

[There is no 100% protection,] Aila said honestly. [But combined with the crew's own mental resistance, it should be able to withstand most illusions. However, the most dangerous thing in the Sea of Illusory Shadows isn't ordinary illusions, but... 'Real Phantoms.']

"Real Phantoms?"

[Those are illusions generated based on your deepest memories and emotions; they will be incredibly real and may even interact with you,] Aila explained. [The protection System's effect on such illusions will be diminished because, in a sense, they are a part of you.]

Wen Youyi was silent for a moment. "Then we can only rely on willpower."

Just then, an encrypted signal suddenly came from the communication console. After Wang Wu decoded it, his expression became strange. "It's... from Captain Raymond."

"What did he say?"

"He said he heard news at the 'Gravel Market' that there seems to be major chaos within the Star Devourers." Wang Wu read the message. "Right after we tricked that fleet of theirs, three Star Devourer sub-fleets suddenly mutinied and attacked several nearby Star Devourer outposts. Now the Star Devourer high command is conducting an internal purge, and many units are being forced back into the forge for remodeling."

Wen Youyi and Aila looked at each other.

"It seems the attack of that mothership in the C7 Area was no accident," Wen Youyi said. "The 'echoes' within the Star Devourers are more active than we imagined."

Aila nodded. [This is an opportunity. The internal strife of the Star Devourers will distract them. Our journey to the Sea of Illusory Shadows might be a bit safer.]

But Old K threw cold water on them. "Don't get happy too soon. When the Star Devourers purge their ranks, they often become even more frenzied. Those units sent out on missions will work harder than usual to prove their 'loyalty.'"

These words made everyone's heart tighten.

Just then, another signal came from the main control console—this time from the passive detectors of the "hope." The detectors had captured the afterimage of a starship passing quickly at the edge of the Dark Matter Turbulence Zone.

It wasn't the Star Devourers' style.

It was an ancient-looking starship covered in cyan scales, moving extremely fast and flashing by in an instant.

Aila saw the image, and her pupils shrank. [That's... a scout ship from the 'Sky Patrol' civilization! Someone has come from the direction of the home planet!]

Wen Youyi's heart tightened. "Friend or foe?"

[Uncertain.] Aila's expression was complex. [The Sky Patrol civilization is split into many factions; some advocate for fighting the Star Devourers, while others advocate for isolation and self-preservation. If it's the former, they might be here to support us; if it's the latter... they might be here to stop us from 'inviting trouble.']

The situation was getting more and more complex.

Wen Youyi took a deep breath and made a decision. "Regardless of who they are, we proceed as planned. Tomorrow morning, we set out for the Sea of Illusory Shadows."

"We need to find the next fragment before anyone else finds us."

The night was deep.

Wen Youyi sat alone in the captain's quarters, watching the dark matter turbulence flowing outside the window. Under the display of special detectors, those invisible currents showed brilliant colors, like an abstract painting.

His left arm felt a strange pain again—it wasn't a pain from the present, but seemed to come from the "future."

A knock sounded at the door. It was Aila.

She came in carrying a cup of special medicinal tea—prepared by Mu Wanqing using several calming divine herbs, which helped with Wen Youyi's Time Aftereffects.

[Can't sleep?] Aila asked.

"Yeah." Wen Youyi took the tea. "I was thinking about the Sea of Illusory Shadows. What kind of 'Real Phantoms' do you think will appear there?"

[It depends on what you can't let go of most in your heart.] Aila sat down across from him. [It could be the relatives you've lost, the wishes you haven't fulfilled, your greatest fear... it's different for everyone.]

Wen Youyi was silent for a moment. "I'm a little afraid."

[Afraid of what?]

"I'm afraid of seeing those compatriots from the Ranch World who haven't escaped yet dying before my eyes," Wen Youyi said softly. "I'm afraid of seeing Zhao Iron Pillar, Senior Brother Zhang, you... everyone, sacrificed because of my wrong decisions."

Aila looked at him, her indigo eyes appearing exceptionally deep in the dim light. [Then you should go all the more. Only by facing these fears can you overcome them.]

She paused. [And you are not alone. We have the whole team, new technology, and the knowledge inherited from the Star People and those perished civilizations. We are stronger than ever.]

Wen Youyi smiled and took a sip of the tea. The tea was bitter, but after drinking it, his heart indeed felt more settled.

"Aila, what do you think will happen if we really gather all seven fragments?"

[I don't know,] Aila said honestly. [But at least we will have the power to choose. Instead of just fleeing like we are now.]

Choice.

This word stirred Wen Youyi's heart.

Yes, wasn't escaping from the Ranch World all for the sake of choice? To choose not to be harvested, to choose freedom, to choose one's own destiny.

Now, they were one step closer to this goal.

"Alright." He put down the teacup. "Tomorrow, we go to the Sea of Illusory Shadows."

"Let's go take back our right to choose."

Outside the window, the dark matter turbulence rotated slowly.

And deep in the distant starry sky, the Sea of Illusory Shadows waited quietly.

Waiting for the brave who dared to face their inner phantoms.

Waiting for... the ownership of the next fragment.

(End of Chapter)