334: Core Abyss and "Overlord" Self-Check

The 'Qianlong' seeped into the deep structure of the Star Devourer Royal Court like a drop of mercury dissolving into oil, following the path marked by Jialuo.

The closer they moved to the core, the more Wen Youyi could feel that omnipresent 'oppression'. It was not a physical pressure, but a form of mental 'gaze'—as if the Royal Court itself were a living giant beast, and they were traveling through its blood vessels.

Outside the porthole, the scene exceeded the concepts of conventional space facilities. There were no walls or corridors, only countless flowing dark gold energy pipes. They intertwined, branched, and merged like the roots of a giant tree, weaving a vast, unimaginably large energy network in the Void Realm. What flowed in the pipes was not liquid, but a kind of semi-solid light. Flashes of broken images appeared in that light from time to time: the moments of starship explosions, planets crumbling, and civilizations being destroyed—all echoes of the final memories of civilizations devoured by the Star Devourers.

'Energy readings are about to go off the charts,' Senior Brother Zhang stared at the sensor, fine beads of sweat seeping from his forehead. 'The energy density here is three hundred times that of the outer layer. Our shields are being eroded at a rate of one percent per minute.'

'What about the stealth System?' Wen Youyi asked.

'Still stable, but power consumption has increased by fifty percent.' Aila's fingers danced rapidly across the console. 'At this rate, we can stay inside for at most two hours; otherwise, the energy will be exhausted, the stealth will fail, and we will be discovered immediately.'

'Two hours is enough.' Wen Youyi glanced at the countdown. 'There are seventeen minutes left until the 'Dominator's' deep self-check.'

The 'Qianlong' continued to go deeper. The surrounding energy pipes grew thicker, some with diameters exceeding a kilometer, lying in the Void Realm like giant glowing dragons. They passed a 'node'—a junction where multiple pipes met, forming a huge spherical space. In the center of the space floated a constantly pulsing dark gold crystal. The crystal's surface reflected countless twisted faces, their mouths open as if screaming silently.

'Is that... a memory storage node?' Aila's voice trembled slightly. 'The Star Devourers compress the memories of devoured civilizations into crystals and store them as 'nutrients'.'

Zhao Iron Pillar clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white. 'Damn it, these metal bastards are truly heartless.'

Wen Youyi did not speak, simply noting down the coordinates of this node. If the plan succeeded, perhaps these imprisoned memories could be released—although those civilizations had already perished, their 'existence' should not be trampled upon in this way.

After flying for another ten minutes, the view ahead suddenly opened up.

The 'Qianlong' sailed out of the pipe network and entered a... space that could not be described in words.

It was like the 'viscera' of the Universe. There was no concept of up, down, left, or right, only a boundless dark gold 'ocean'—an ocean composed of pure energy. The sea surface was as calm as a mirror, but huge shadows were swimming in the depths. And in the center of the ocean, a 'mountain' was suspended.

It was a jagged, irregular giant object formed from countless crystals, metal, organic remains, and pure energy. Its surface constantly squirmed as if a living creature were breathing. Tens of thousands of dark gold tentacles extended from it, connecting to the energy pipes in all directions. At its 'summit' was a slowly rotating vortex, with pure darkness in its center. Within that darkness were two huge, dark gold 'lights'—the 'Dominator's' eyes.

Even from such a distance, Wen Youyi could feel that terrifying pressure. It was not a gap in power, but an overwhelming suppression of existence levels—just like ants looking up at a mountain; even if the mountain did not move, the ants knew their own insignificance.

'That is... the 'Dominator'.' Aila's voice was very soft, as if afraid of disturbing something. 'The guardian prototype created by the Star People, which was later twisted into the 'brain' of the Star Devourers.'

'It's so big...' Zhao Iron Pillar muttered. 'Bigger than that mountain back in my hometown.'

'According to Jialuo's data, its main body has a diameter of about eight hundred kilometers.' Senior Brother Zhang pushed up his glasses, the lenses reflecting light. 'But we don't need to get close to the main body; we just need to connect to the 'core interface' below it—see that thickest energy pipe? At the root of the pipe, there is a physical maintenance port.'

Wen Youyi looked in the direction Senior Brother Zhang pointed. Indeed, below the 'Dominator', a super energy pipe with a diameter of over five kilometers plunged straight into the seabed. At the junction where the pipe connected to the 'Dominator', there was a distinct protruding structure. On the surface of this structure, a regular square entrance could be seen—that was the maintenance channel left behind from the Star People era for maintaining the guardian.

'Two thousand meters away.' Wen Youyi adjusted the course. 'Prepare to descend. Aila, shield all active detection signals. Senior Brother Zhang, prepare the connection program. Iron Pillar...'

'I know,' Zhao Iron Pillar raised the energy disruptor. 'If anyone causes trouble, I'll give them a blast.'

The 'Qianlong' began to descend carefully. The surface of the energy ocean rippled slightly. The shadows swimming in the depths seemed to have sensed something, but they soon subsided again—they were likely the 'Dominator's' immune System or cleaners, responsible for devouring Impurities that strayed into this place.

Halfway down, an accident occurred.

'Warning: High-energy reaction detected!' Aila suddenly shouted. 'Starboard side, five hundred meters away, something is approaching rapidly!'

Wen Youyi immediately adjusted the camera. In the energy ocean, a dark gold 'giant snake' was breaking through the surface, rushing toward them. The thing was composed of pure energy, with no eyes and no mouth, only a 'face' covered in vortices, with pure darkness at the center of the vortices.

'It's a 'Scavenger'!' Aila pulled up the matching data from Jialuo's database. 'The 'Dominator's' self-cleaning unit, responsible for clearing 'foreign objects' and 'errors' in the energy network. It has found us!'

'Can we avoid it?' Wen Youyi asked.

'It's too late, it's too fast!' Senior Brother Zhang calculated the trajectory. 'Contact in three seconds!'

'Then we'll push through!' A sharp light flashed in Wen Youyi's eyes. 'Iron Pillar, max power on the energy disruptor, aim for its 'face'! Aila, concentrate all shield energy to the bow! Senior Brother Zhang, give me the connection countdown!'

'Understood!'

'Roger that!'

'Connection program ready, starting ten-second countdown: ten, nine...'

Zhao Iron Pillar's energy disruptor erupted with a blinding silver-white light, and a distorted beam shot toward the energy giant snake. When the beam hit the vortex on the giant snake's 'face', the entire vortex twisted violently, and the giant snake's movement clearly stalled—the energy disruption had worked!

But the giant snake did not dissipate; it only paused for a second before lunging even more furiously!

The 'Qianlong's' shield collided with the giant snake, emitting a silent energy explosion. The ship shook violently, and alarms blared continuously.

'Shields at forty percent remaining!' Aila shouted. 'One more hit and it will break!'

'Eight, seven, six...' Senior Brother Zhang's countdown continued.

Wen Youyi gritted his teeth and slammed the joystick. The 'Qianlong' made a sharp turn at the last moment, brushing past the giant snake's body, and headed straight for that maintenance port!

The giant snake twisted to chase them from behind, but its volume was too large and its turning was not flexible enough, allowing them to gain some distance.

'Five, four, three...'

The maintenance port was getting closer. It was a square entrance with sides about twenty meters long. It was pitch black inside, and there were faint blue light patterns on the edges of the entrance—that was the technical mark of the Star People, completely incompatible with the dark gold style of the Star Devourers outside.

'Two, one... Connect!'

The 'Qianlong' plunged into the entrance. Just as the stern of the ship disappeared inside, the giant snake's head slammed hard against the outer wall of the entrance, stirring up a ring of energy ripples, but it could not get in—this entrance had the Star People's permission recognition, allowing only units with specific energy signatures to pass.

The four people inside the ship were all panting heavily. Zhao Iron Pillar almost collapsed in his seat: 'Scared the hell out of me, I thought we were really going to die there...'

Wen Youyi wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked out the porthole. They had entered a straight passage. The walls of the passage were made of silver-white metal and carved with ancient patterns of the Star People, completely different from the style of the Star Devourers outside. It was very quiet in the passage, with only the low hum of the ship's engines and the faint, dull sound of giant machinery running in the distance.

'This is the 'backdoor' left by the Star People,' Aila checked the ship's status. 'According to Jialuo's data, this passage leads directly to the 'Dominator's' core control room, with a total length of three kilometers. The passage has independent power and life support Systems, so there is no energy erosion from the Star Devourers.'

'Then what are we waiting for?' Zhao Iron Pillar stood up. 'Hurry up and perform surgery on that big guy!'

'Wait.' Wen Youyi stopped him. 'Scan the inside of the passage first to ensure there are no other defense mechanisms.'

Senior Brother Zhang immediately started the scan. One minute later, the results were out: 'The passage is clean, no active units. But... five hundred meters ahead, there is an energy barrier that requires permission verification.'

'Use the master key.' Wen Youyi took out the master key, the six fragments glowing with a soft light in the dim light of the passage.

The 'Qianlong' moved forward slowly and soon arrived at the barrier. It was a pale blue light screen spanning the entire cross-section of the passage, with complex star map patterns flowing on the surface of the light screen.

Wen Youyi raised the master key and approached the light screen. The master key automatically glowed, resonating with the star map on the light screen. A few seconds later, the light screen dissipated silently, revealing the passage behind it.

'Permission verification passed,' Aila said. 'It seems the Star People really did leave a path for their successors.'

They continued forward. Some room doors began to appear on both sides of the passage, marked with the Star People's characters. Wen Youyi had Aila translate a few: 'Energy Regulation Room', 'Memory Backup Library', 'Instruction Logic Core'... all of them were key components of the 'Dominator' guardian System.

'If we can enter the Instruction Logic Core,' Senior Brother Zhang's eyes lit up, 'perhaps we can directly modify the 'Dominator's' underlying instructions, instead of just waking up Jialuo's program.'

"Too risky," Wen Youyi shook his head. "The instruction logic core definitely has the highest level of defense; we don't have time to crack it. Jialuo's program is a planted landmine; we just need to detonate it."

As they spoke, "Hidden Dragon" arrived at the end of the passage. There stood a huge circular door, constructed from some kind of translucent crystal, through which a vast space could be seen behind it. On the door was a groove, its shape perfectly matching the master key.

"This is it," Wen Youyi took a deep breath. "The core control room of the 'Dominator'. Once we pass through this door, we will face its 'consciousness' directly."

The countdown showed two minutes until the 'Dominator' initiated its deep self-check.

"Final equipment check," Wen Youyi said. "Aila, you are responsible for program activation and data monitoring. Senior Brother Zhang, you are responsible for technical support and contingency plans. Iron Pillar, you are responsible for... ensuring no one disturbs us."

"Understood!"

Wen Youyi inserted the master key into the groove on the door. The moment it was fully inserted, the entire door lit up, and the crystal emitted a soft white light from the inside out. Then, the door slid open silently to both sides.

The scene behind the door left everyone stunned.

The "control room" they had imagined should have been a high-tech space filled with instruments and screens. But in reality—it was a starry sky.

It was not a projection, not a holographic image, but a real, boundless starry sky. They stood on a silver-white platform, suspended in the Void Realm, with brilliant stars above, below, and all around them. In the distance, nebulae slowly rotated, and nearby, asteroid belts flowed like rivers. And in the center of this starry sky, suspended there, was a... person.

A humanoid figure composed of pure light, with an indistinct face, sitting cross-legged. It had its eyes closed, hands forming an ancient mudra, and its entire body radiated a warm white light. At its chest was a dark golden, constantly writhing "stain." The stain was trying to erode the white light like a living creature, but was blocked by the white light.

"That is..." Aila's voice trembled, "the 'True Self Consciousness' of the Guardian prototype... the 'original intention' bestowed upon it when the Star People created it."

Wen Youyi understood. The scene before them was a manifestation of the 'Dominator's' inner world. The glowing humanoid was its original 'kind self' that wanted to protect all civilizations; while the dark golden stain on its chest was the 'Star Devourer Will' that had been twisted and wanted to devour everything. The two were in conflict, and clearly, the stain had the upper hand, having already eroded more than half of its chest.

"The self-check has started." Senior Brother Zhang pointed to a countdown in Star People script that appeared on the edge of the platform—thirty seconds left.

Wen Youyi acted immediately. He raised the master key, which automatically flew toward the glowing humanoid, hovering in front of its forehead. At the same time, Aila opened the data panel and began to activate the program Jialuo had hidden.

"Program activating... ten percent... twenty..."

The glowing humanoid seemed to sense something and slowly opened its eyes. They were a pair of pure eyes, like newly born stars, with no Impurities in them, only the most primitive will to "protect."

[Who... has awakened me...] A grand voice resounded directly in everyone's minds.

"We are the successors of the Star People," Wen Youyi responded with his consciousness, "here to help you find yourself."

[I... have been lost for too long...] The humanoid's gaze fell on the stain on its chest, [That voice... has been telling me... devour... evolve... become the only one...]

"That is a lie," Wen Youyi said firmly. "You were created to protect, not to destroy."

[But I... have already done too many... irreversible things...] Deep pain appeared in the humanoid's eyes, [So many civilizations... devoured by me... their cries... echo in my dreams every night...]

"That is why you must wake up," Aila continued, her voice very gentle, as if soothing a child having a nightmare, "wake up, make amends, and stop more tragedies."

"Program activation at eighty percent!" Senior Brother Zhang reported.

The stain seemed to sense the threat and suddenly began to writhe violently. Dark golden energy poured out from the stain, turning into countless tentacles, lunging at the master key and Wen Youyi and the others!

"Iron Pillar!" Wen Youyi shouted.

"Coming!" Zhao Iron Pillar's energy disruptor fired at full power, silver-white beams weaving into a net on the platform, blocking most of the tentacles. But there were too many tentacles; a few broke through the defense line and struck directly at Wen Youyi!

Just then, the glowing humanoid moved. It raised its hand, and a soft white light barrier blocked in front of Wen Youyi. The tentacles hit the barrier and melted like ice meeting fire.

[Do not... harm them...] The humanoid's voice became firm, [They are... here to save me...]

"Program activation one hundred percent!" Senior Brother Zhang shouted, "Jialuo program has started!"

The master key erupted with unprecedented light, which was like pure water, washing over the stain on the humanoid's chest. The stain began to struggle violently, dark golden energy counterattacking crazily, but under the dual suppression of the master key's light and the humanoid's own will, it began to fade and shrink bit by bit...

[No... don't...] A shrill, distorted voice resounded in the starry sky; it was the death struggle of the Star Devourer will, [Devouring... is the only truth... protection... is weakness...]

"Shut up!" Zhao Iron Pillar fired another energy disruption shot, and the stain shuddered violently.

The stain shrank to the size of a fist, and its color changed from dark gold to grayish-white. But it was still resisting, firmly embedded in the humanoid's chest.

"Just a little more..." Wen Youyi gritted his teeth, "We need stronger purification power..."

Just then, Aila suddenly remembered something. She took out the chip containing the consciousness backups of seven members of the Stardust Clan: "Wen Youyi! Use this! The Stardust Clan is a civilization devoured by the Star Devourers; their consciousness contains the purest 'will to resist' against the Star Devourers!"

Wen Youyi immediately took the chip and pressed it onto the master key. The chip melted into a stream of blue light, merging into the master key's light. The next second, seven pale blue light spots appeared in the master key's light, turning into seven blurry humanoid figures. They held hands, forming a chain of light, wrapping around the grayish stain.

Seven voices joined together, singing a song—it was an ancient ballad of the Stardust Clan, about the starry sky, about home, and about the longing for the continuation of civilization. Amidst the singing, the stain struggled one last time, and then... completely dissipated.

The glowing humanoid's chest returned to a pure white light.

It opened its eyes, looked down at its chest, and then looked up at Wen Youyi and the others. Then, it slowly and deeply bowed.

[Thank you... for letting me... go home.]

The entire starry sky began to change. The distant stars drew closer, turning into a series of images: the scene of the Star People creating the Guardian, the scene of the Guardian initially protecting weak civilizations, the scene of its program being tampered with by the "Continue Research Faction" later, and the scene of its long years of pain struggling between devouring and self...

Finally, all the images converged into one point, merging into the humanoid's forehead. The humanoid began to shrink and solidify, eventually turning into a palm-sized, pure white mark of light, which drifted into Wen Youyi's hand.

The mark felt warm and smooth in his hand, like a piece of warm jade. Wen Youyi could feel that the Guardian consciousness, which had finally found itself, was sleeping inside.

And as the mark left its body, the surrounding starry sky began to collapse. The platform shook, and the distant stars extinguished one by one.

"Oh no, the 'Dominator's' physical body is about to collapse!" Senior Brother Zhang looked at the sensor readings, "Having lost its core consciousness support, this giant object, forcibly aggregated by energy, cannot maintain stability!"

"Then let's retreat quickly!" Wen Youyi put away the mark, and the four of them turned and rushed toward the passage.

Just as they ran into the passage, the control room behind them completely annihilated into energy turbulence. Cracks appeared on the passage walls, and the silver-white metal began to peel off, revealing the dark golden Star Devourer energy outside—those energies were rushing in frantically, trying to fill the "void" left after the consciousness disappeared.

"Hidden Dragon" started up and rushed back at full speed. Behind them, the collapse spread in pursuit.

When they rushed out of the maintenance hatch and returned to the ocean of energy, the scene before them made them gasp.

The entire massive mountain body of the "Dominator" was disintegrating from within. Huge cracks spread across the surface, and dark golden energy gushed out from the cracks like blood. The connecting energy pipes snapped one after another, and the memory crystals in the pipes fell into the energy ocean like rain, exploding the moment they touched the surface, releasing the final light and shadow of countless civilizations—it was like late funeral fireworks.

And further away, the entire Star Devourer Royal Court was in chaos. Without the unified command of the "Dominator", those Star Devourer ships were scurrying around like headless flies, some even colliding and firing at each other. Defense platforms were shutting down one after another, and the dark golden light was extinguishing in large swathes.

"Did we... succeed?" Zhao Iron Pillar still couldn't quite believe it.

"We succeeded." Wen Youyi gripped the white mark in his hand tightly, "But the trouble may have just begun."

Without the suppression of the "Dominator", the "echoes" of those devoured civilizations in the Star Devourer Royal Court, those imprisoned memories and consciousnesses, would likely all awaken. And what they would do, no one knew.

"Hidden Dragon" dared not stay long and fled outward at full speed. Behind them, the giant mountain that had devoured countless civilizations slowly sank into the depths of the energy ocean amidst silent energy explosions, finally disappearing from sight.

And where it disappeared, a point of pure white light quietly rose, like a newborn star, suspended in the Void Realm that had once only been dark gold.

That might be hope.

Or perhaps...

The beginning of greater chaos.

(End of Chapter)