107: Echoes of the past and the scars of silence
Tracing the source of the rule rust was like searching for a specific grain of sand in an endless desert. Dr. Einstein mobilized all the computational power of the databases accessible through his Cooperative Observer authority, performing massive cross-referencing and correlation analysis of the faint traces of "rust" events scattered throughout cosmic history, comparing them with records of known rule structure changes, energy anomalies, and even the rise and fall of civilizations.
The process was tedious and lengthy, consuming resources sufficient to sustain a medium-sized civilization for tens of thousands of years. The rule energy reserves of the Watchman Nexus once dropped to a critical level, and even some non-core star language nodes temporarily reduced their output to support the calculations. Everyone understood that without finding the source, crises similar to G-817 could erupt again anywhere, at any time, and they might not always be able to arrive in time.
Finally, after several standard cycles of full-power deduction, a vague but convincing model was constructed.
The rule traces of all historical "rust" events did not spread completely randomly; they subtly pointed to a common, extremely distant "radiation origin point". This origin point was not a fixed spatial coordinate, but rather... a "trajectory" moving through spacetime.
Even more astonishing, when the doctor overlaid this "trajectory" with the oldest, highest-permission historical logs in the cosmic rule database (primarily records of the stabilization of cosmic rule structures in the very early universe), he discovered a startling overlap—
This "rust" radiation trajectory highly matched the drift path of a "proto-rule fragment" recorded in the database, which had "detached" from the main rule network shortly after the birth of the universe and whose whereabouts were unknown!
"Proto-rule fragment..." Lin Mo gazed at the faint trajectory on the holographic star map, spanning hundreds of millions of light-years and billions of years, feeling a chill rise from the depths of his consciousness. "Are you saying that the source of this 'rust,' which specifically stifles Possibility, might be... a part of the universe's 'self' that split off at its birth?"
"Highly probable," Dr. Einstein's data stream appeared unusually heavy. "According to fragmented records in the highest-permission logs, during the final integration of the rule network at the end of system initialization, a small portion of rule sets carrying a tendency towards the apex of order failed to merge successfully due to fundamental conflicts with the mainstream evolutionary direction (which allows for moderate chaos and complexity). This fragment detached from the main network, like overly aggressive tissue excised during surgery, and was banished to the edge of the universe."
"But it didn't dissipate," Ling Shuang's psionic perception sensed a cold and stubborn "presence" within that trajectory. "It survived, and during its long drift... it evolved. It twisted its inherent 'apex of order' nature into this aggressive and infectious 'rust,' like an abandoned, resentful child wanting to completely eradicate what it hates as 'imperfection' (life and complexity) from the universe."
This truth plunged the entire Watchman Nexus into silence.
They were not facing an external invader, but a "tumor" buried by the universe itself at its very genesis, a prejudiced "sibling" banished due to ideological differences. It represented the dark side of order taken to an extreme, rejecting all uncertainty.
"No wonder the Architect didn't directly intervene," Wu Yong suddenly realized. "This is an 'historical issue' within the system, possibly even involving some 'mistake' or 'unresolved contradiction' in their initial design. They handed over the 'trouble' they couldn't or wouldn't directly handle to us, the 'Cooperative Observers' who specialize in dealing with 'complexity.'"
Just then, as if to confirm their speculation, the end of the drift trajectory of the "rust" source marked on the star map—the area representing its current predicted position—suddenly blurred. Subsequently, a higher-permission historical log summary from the Shadow of Origin interface was unlocked and transmitted.
"...Proto-fragment 'the apex of order' (tentative translation)... confirmed detachment... its core logic: purity above existence..."
"...Periodic, weak resonance detected with the mainstream rule network... Resonance may trigger rule rejection phenomena ('rust')..."
"...Tracking and containment mission... Priority: pending... Resource demand: extremely high... Conflicts with core research objective (observing complexity evolution)..."
"...Transferred to the Cooperative Observer Network for discretionary handling... Attached: Predicted coordinates of fragment's current hidden area (error range: ± 3000 light-years)..."
The Architect's response was cold and pragmatic. They acknowledged the problem's existence, clarified its root, and, citing "resource conflict" and "objective priority," completely dumped this hot potato onto the Watchers, providing a final "clue"—a vast area of the cosmos to search.
No aid, no guidance, just a single phrase: "discretionary handling."
Pressure descended like a mountain. They faced an ancient entity that had drifted across cosmic scales for billions of years, imbued with the primordial "order" power of the universe, its threat far exceeding that of the Crystal Devourer. The search area was immense, and the entity clearly possessed extremely high stealth and mobility capabilities.
"What... what should we do?" Xiao Li's voice carried a hint of helplessness.
Lin Mo remained silent, his consciousness deeply connected to the Genesis Blueprint, sensing the ancient and cold rule power contained within that trajectory. This was indeed an almost impossible task. But giving up meant placing countless lives in the "Star Language" Network under eternal threat.
His gaze swept across the star map again, over the thriving Star Language Territory, the wondrous Emerald Passages, and the distant G-817 civilization, which had just survived a catastrophe and was rekindling hope.
"We have the star language Network," Lin Mo's voice broke the silence, imbued with an undeniable resolve. "We have countless 'eyes,' countless 'hearts' perceiving rule changes." He looked at Ling Shuang, "Your psionic power can capture the coldness emanating from that prejudiced 'order,' a coldness utterly incompatible with life."
He turned to Dr. Einstein: "Doctor, compile the characteristic frequency of the 'rust' and the predicted coordinates of its source into a special 'warning star language,' and broadcast it across the entire network. Let all our nodes, all civilizations capable of rule perception, become our outposts."
He finally looked at Wu Yong and Xiao Li: "Organize an elite 'tracker' fleet, equipped with the most advanced rule stealth and sensing systems, ready at any time to proceed to the target area for confirmation and... necessary 'contact,' based on network feedback."
His plan was no longer to fight alone, but to mobilize the entire network they guarded, a network full of Possibility, to search for that ancient shadow representing the apex of order.
"We must make that silent cosmos... transparent, through the gaze of countless lives," Lin Mo said. "At the same time, this will also show the Architect the collaborative power that the Possibility network can unleash when facing a threat to its very origins."
An unprecedented, cosmic-scale search operation, spanning the entire Star Language Territory, thus began. Countless consciousnesses were mobilized, and countless sensors pointed towards that distant, dark starfield.
And deep within the rule backend, the Architect's geometric projection remained silent. But this time, a subtle ripple of... attention seemed to stir within that cold stream of consciousness.
What they wanted to see, perhaps, was not just how the Watchers would solve the problem, but also what resilience and wisdom this network woven from Possibility would display when confronting a threat akin to its own "original sin."