35: The Star Shepherd Awakens! The Oath of the Ship as a Monument!

The moment his fingertips touched the crystal cube interface emitting a soft white light, there was no earth-shattering explosion, no surging torrent of energy. There was only a cold, soul-wrenching pain that, following theTexture imprinted on his left arm, pierced deep into Lin Feng's consciousness!

Boom—!

Before his eyes was no longer the Ark's cold control room, no longer the frozen battlefield. He felt as if he had been plunged into a torrent of light, countless fragmented memories, no longer blurry impacts, but transformed into an incredibly clear, cold, and vast stream of information, like billions of red-hot steel needles, fiercely stabbing into his mind!

[Star Map Injected: Outer spiral arm of the Milky Way, Sector G-0 Y7. Path Coordinates: Spacetime Fold Marker (High-Dimensional Warp Point).]

[Ark Core Control Protocol: Highest Authority Bound—'Shepherd Star Plan Tinder' Genetic Key (Verification Passed).]

['Spacetime Amber' Maintenance System: Energy Core (Nebula Crystal) Output Power 97%, Estimated Remaining Maintenance Time: 71 hours 32 minutes 17 seconds.]

[Warning: External 'Star Eater' is absorbing Amber energy and analyzing it at a rate of 0.8% per minute. Estimated time for it to complete analysis and break through the spatial barrier: 71 hours 01 minutes.]

[Warning: Detected homologous high-dimensional contamination mark (Target: Lin Yue). Contamination mark activity is exponentially positively correlated with the 'Star Eater' entity's energy absorption rate.]

[Warning: Ark structural integrity continues to decline. Hull loss rate: 18%... 19%...]

Cold data cascaded through Lin Feng's consciousness, each number carrying the weight of a death countdown. 71 hours! The Ark's hull was like a cake thrown into strong acid, being devoured and digested by the Star Eater bit by bit! And its speed in analyzing the Spacetime Amber's energy was actually skyrocketing in sync with the activity of the dormant outer source mark within Lin Yue!

Just as this cold information flow was almost freezing his consciousness, another, even vaster and hotter, torrent of information erupted! No longer fragments, no longer laments, but the combined knowledge of countless Pioneers at their final moments—their lifelong research on the outer source, their exploration of the universe, all their deductions regarding the Shepherd Star Plan—poured into Lin Feng's soul like a burning star, without reservation!

[Pioneer Civilization Technology Tree (Partially Unlocked):]

[Spacetime Engineering Technology: Basic Theory, High-Dimensional Anchoring, Local Time Field Manipulation (Amber Principle).]

[Starship Engineering Technology: Ark-class Mothership Blueprint, Deep Space Ecological Maintenance System, Pioneer Alloy Smelting (Complete).]

[Energy Manipulation Technology: Psionic Shield (S-Class), Particle Lance (Ship-Mounted), Dimension Disruption Cannon (Principle and Optimization Path).]

[outer source Research Log (Core Abstract):]

[Form of Existence: High-dimensional information aggregate, no fixed form, with 'entropy increase' and 'order reset' as its underlying logic.]

[Weakness (Hypothesized): Extremely sensitive to 'neg-entropy' and 'high-dimensional order anchors.']

[Ultimate Warning: Origin Land coordinates... missing... critical data... corrupted...]

"Ahhhhh—!" Lin Feng could no longer bear it, letting out a beast-like roar! His body convulsed violently, the fusion core armor emitted a piercing wail from energy overload, and the golden mark beneath his skin erupted with an unprecedented dazzling light! His brain felt as if the weight of a galaxy had been forcibly crammed into it, the wisdom and despair of the Pioneers, the cold countdown data, the ultimate understanding of the outer source... a tsunami of information almost completely overwhelmed and annihilated his personality!

"Captain!" Lei Lie's eyes were bloodshot, and he tried to rush forward recklessly.

"Don't touch him!" Su Jin desperately held Lei Lie back, looking at the blood slowly seeping from Lin Feng's seven orifices and the golden mark that was almost burning. Her voice was choked with tears, "He's... he's fusing! Forcibly fusing the entire Pioneer civilization's legacy! He'll be burned to ashes!"

Just as his consciousness was on the verge of complete collapse, from the depths of Lin Feng's will, torn by agony and chaos, a cold and familiar voice, like a stabilizing needle in the sea, rang out:

[Host consciousness collapse risk detected!]

[Emergency protocol initiated!]

['Deep Blue Hegemony' system underlying permissions unlocked!]

[Taking over information torrent! Performing logical compression and consciousness anchoring!]

(Auxiliary Cognitive Module online!]

It was the system! The "Deep Blue Hegemony" system that had always accompanied him! At this critical juncture, it was no longer a cold exchange interface and mission prompt; it transformed into a resilient dam, forcibly intercepting, organizing, and compressing the chaotic information flow that could destroy planets! The chaotic data was organized into clear tree diagrams, vast knowledge was distilled into core essences, and the desperate wails of the Pioneers were filtered out, leaving only cold logic and... an ingrained hatred for the outer source, verified by countless Pioneers with their lives!

The frenzied starlight and shattered visions in Lin Feng's eyes suddenly paused! The chaotic roar caught in his throat. In his bloodshot eyes, the violent pain was replaced by a deeper, colder... absolute rationality. It was a cruel, overarching perspective, elevated to a superhuman level, like a supercomputer.

He slowly, stiffly, raised his head. The golden mark on his forehead slowly receded, leaving only a faint burn mark beneath his skin. His gaze swept over the horrified Su Jin and Lei Lie, over the teammates still fighting the remaining contaminated entities at the end of the corridor, and finally returned to the silent golden guardian, and to the crystal cube interface in the guardian's hand, which still emitted a soft white light.

"Deep Blue," his voice rang out, no longer hoarse, no longer filled with pain, but like two ice crystals rubbing together, with an inhuman calm and penetration, clearly transmitted through the armor communicator, "Report external situation."

Chen Hai's voice immediately came through, trembling with the relief of survival and a deeper fear: "Captain! You... are you alright? The Star Eater is still devouring the Ark's hull! Loss rate 21%! Our attacks... are completely ineffective! The Deep Blue Watcher fleet... only three ships left! Deep Blue's shields remaining 32%! Dimension Disruption Cannon cooldown still 23 hours!"

"Understood." Lin Feng's voice was unruffled. His gaze turned to the constantly shifting nebula crystal floating beside the golden guardian—the energy core of the Spacetime Amber. He raised his left hand, and this time, his movement was steady and precise, no longer a touch, but... a cover!

His palm completely covered the crystal cube's interface! The dormant golden mark in his palm instantly lit up, perfectly merging with the soft white light emanating from the crystal cube!

Boom—!

An invisible ripple spread out from Lin Feng! The nearly stagnant time field within the entire Ark, like water disturbed by a pebble, suddenly rippled outwards with a clear wave! The eternally frozen Pioneer remains on both sides of the corridor seemed to... tremble ever so slightly in this ripple?

[Ark core control authority acquired!]

['Shepherd Star Plan Tinder' protocol activated!]

[Highest command authority confirmed: Lin Feng.]

The cold system prompt echoed in Lin Feng's consciousness.

"Instruction one: Release the 'Spacetime Amber' freeze on the Pioneer Engineer (ID: ARES-7) remains." Lin Feng's voice was like he was declaring cosmic law.

Buzz!

In front of the golden guardian, the Pioneer Engineer's remains, hunched over a control panel with fingertips almost touching a button, had the thick "ice crystal" covering its body instantly disintegrate and dissipate! The slender crystal-shelled body, as if a play button had been pressed, moved extremely slowly, with a grinding stiffness, coming to life! Its jewel-like compound eyes rotated with extreme difficulty, finally focusing on Lin Feng, on his hand covering the crystal interface. A faint but clear wave of consciousness, filled with endless sorrow and final release, like a flickering candle in the wind, transmitted over:

[Guar...dian...]

[Key...]

[Mis...sion... completed...)]

Immediately, the light in its compound eyes completely extinguished, and its body, as if its last shred of support had been exhausted, silently collapsed, turning into a pile of no longer shimmering crystal dust on the deck.

It had completed its final watch, handing over control to the new Shepherd Star Plan.

"Instruction two: Retrieve the Ark's energy network topology map, locate external erosion points ('Star Eater' consumption areas)." Lin Feng's voice had no pause.

Buzz!

A giant holographic star map instantly unfolded in the main control room (or rather, in Lin Feng's consciousness at this moment). On the massive Deep Blue light cluster representing the Ark, a dazzling, constantly expanding blood-red stain was clearly visible, precisely the area being consumed by the Star Eater. And at the edge of the stain, countless Deep Blue light streams representing energy were being forcibly twisted, drawn away, and merged into that blood-red area!

"Instruction three: Overload all secondary energy nodes in the target area, execute... energy backwash." Lin Feng's voice was as cold as iron.

[Warning: This operation will cause the target area's structure to completely collapse!]

[Execute confirmation?]

"Confirm."

Boom—!!!

At the Ark's bow, in the area being greedily devoured by the Star Eater, the internal Deep Blue energy light streams suddenly erupted with an unprecedented dazzling brilliance! Like a powder keg forcibly ignited!

Boom!!!!

It was not a silent annihilation! This time, it was a deafening, terrifying roar of matter and energy being simultaneously detonated! That section of the hull structure, nearly a quarter of which had been devoured, exploded outwards, shattered, and transformed into a death storm of metal and energy sweeping through the void, as if billions of bombs installed internally had been detonated at once!

"Roar—!!!"

A terrifying roar, as if from the abyss of the universe, mixed with pain and fury, exploded deep within everyone's consciousness! The writhing dark projection of the Star Eater was for the first time violently pushed away by this sudden internal explosion! The area it had "digested" was like a piece of flesh forcibly torn off, revealing deeper, more complex layers of the ship's structure! The projection violently rolled and twisted, its surface darkness seeming to dim by several shades!

"Effective! It's injured!" Chen Hai roared excitedly from Deep Blue! Deep Blue's main cannon seized the opportunity to roar, fiercely striking the Star Eater's rolling projection, creating an even larger ripple!

However, Lin Feng's face showed no joy. His gaze was fixed on the Ark's internal structure exposed after the explosion. There, amidst the twisted and broken massive alloy girders and the exposed energy pipes shimmering with dangerous light, he saw... countless enormous, egg-like dark chambers embedded within the ship's structure! The transparent observation windows of the chambers were long shattered, and they were empty.

"What are those?" Lei Lie also saw them, his voice tinged with coldness.

"Breeding pods..." Su Jin's voice trembled with fear, "They're the outer source contaminated entities'...hatchery! They... they didn't chase us in! They grew... from inside the Ark!"

The truth was like cold venom injected into his heart! The Ark, this ship carrying the Pioneers' last hope, the Shepherd Star Plan Ark, had already been infiltrated by outer source contamination during its escape across the stars! Those contaminated entities were not pursuers, but... cancer growing within this giant ship!

"Instruction four: Activate Ark's final defense protocol—'Quietude Barrier'." Lin Feng's voice remained calm, yet carried a chilling resolve. His left hand, covering the crystal cube, the golden mark again became dazzling.

[Final Defense Protocol: 'Quietude Barrier']

[Description: Detonate the Ark's core engine and backup energy, generating an absolute spacetime singularity covering the entire ship, erasing all matter and energy within the range.]

(Warning: This protocol is a self-destruct command, irreversible! Upon execution, the Ark will be completely annihilated!]

[Execute confirmation?]

"Captain!" Su Jin shrieked, "This is our only legacy! The foundation of the Shepherd Star Plan! We can't..."

"Confirm execution." Lin Feng interrupted her, his gaze sweeping over the dense, empty breeding pods, over the solidified remains of the Pioneers scattered on the floor, and finally, through the Ark's massive breach, looking out at the Star Eater's dark projection in the void, which, enraged by its injury, was regrouping its strength, preparing to launch an even more terrifying attack.

"Foundation?" Lin Feng's voice for the first time carried a hint of almost mocking coldness, "A tomb already contaminated and rotting from within, is it worthy of being called a foundation?" His hand covering the crystal interface suddenly tightened, as if to crush the pure white light!

"Deep Blue!" His voice, like a judgment of cosmic ice, exploded through the communicator into everyone's ears, "'Shepherd Star Plan' final revision!"

"Abandon the construction of 'Origin's Radiance'!"

"All Deep Blue Watcher fleets, immediately disengage from the battlefield and converge on Deep Blue!"

"Deep Blue engines at maximum power! Target—the breach in the Ark's hull directly above the core control room!"

"Execute... impact procedure!"

Silence!

Absolute silence enveloped the communication channel, enveloped the Ark's control room, and enveloped Deep Blue's bridge!

Impact?! Use Deep Blue... to impact the Ark?!

"Captain! Are you crazy?!" Chen Hai's roar was filled with incredulous horror, "The moment of impact, we will be erased along with the Quietude Barrier!"

"No." Lin Feng's gaze pierced through layers of deck, as if he saw Deep Blue, carrying humanity's last hope, "The impact coordinates are locked on the Ark's weakest internal structural point—the concentrated area of the contamination breeding grounds. The impact kinetic energy will serve as the... final piece of the puzzle for the Quietude Barrier's activation."

His voice suddenly rose, carrying a burning, soul-like resolve and tragedy, echoing in the Ark's silence, and reverberating in the ears of every warrior on Deep Blue:

"Deep Blue! All crew!"

"This is not a retreat! This is a charge!"

"Our bow will pierce through the decaying tombstone!"

"Our engines will ignite the flames of quietude!"

"Our existence will become the first inscription to light up deep space and bury the darkness!"

"Target—Ark core!"

"All ships! Charge!!!"

Deep Blue's massive hull suddenly changed direction in the void! Its tail engines erupted with an unprecedented, blazing torrent of light, like a supernova! It abandoned all evasion, all defense, like a meteor burning with humanity's last madness and hope, rushing forward without hesitation, with a self-destructive momentum, crashing towards that massive and decaying deep-space tombstone—the Ark!

Lin Feng stood in the control room, his left hand covering the crystal interface, the golden mark blazing like the sun. He watched Deep Blue's ever-enlarging, unyielding ship silhouette in his vision, watched the Star Eater's projection in the void, temporarily halted by this mad act, as if in shock, and slowly, a cold, almost martyred curve appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"Brother," he whispered, his voice only audible to himself, "If this is the fate of the 'Tinder'..."

"Then let this tombstone..."

"Become the first spark to ignite deep space!"