97: Static core and the final record

The bridge doors slowly opened, and the scene behind them was not the expected combat Command Center, but rather something more like... a cold mausoleum, or perhaps, a sealed temple.

The vast space of the bridge was unusually empty, with a high-vaulted ceiling. Where the walls should have been covered with control interfaces, they were now coated in a thick layer of crystal-like energy frost. In the center of the bridge, instead of a traditional command seat, stood a massive cylindrical transparent container formed by countless converging blue light paths. The container was filled with a viscous, shimmering light blue liquid.

And in the center of that liquid, a humanoid figure floated.

It was a Guardian draped in blue and gold robes; his expression was peaceful, eyes closed, and hands crossed over his chest as if he had fallen into the deepest sleep. His body was perfectly preserved, to the point where even the fine lines on his skin were visible. Slender energy tubes extended from beneath his robes, connecting to the walls of the container, seemingly maintaining some minimal level of life activity.

Most striking of all, embedded in the very center of his forehead was a small blue crystal fragment, made of a material extremely similar to the glimmer keystone on Sun Zheng's chest, pulsing slowly in sync with the container's shimmering light.

"Is he... still alive?" a marine asked in a low voice, incredulous. The scene before them was too shocking, as if time had frozen here.

"Not entirely," Shadow said, carefully observing the container and the energy flow. "This is a state of deep stasis, similar to hibernation, but the level of technology is far beyond our understanding. His physiological activities have almost completely stopped, and his consciousness is in a frozen state, with only this Stasis Core maintaining the last spark of life."

Sun Zheng approached the transparent container, and the keystone on his chest vibrated with an unprecedentedly strong resonance, even carrying a hint of... sadness? He could feel that the life force of the Guardian inside the container was incredibly weak, like a flickering candle in the wind that could go out at any moment.

"Try to read the ship's logs; let's see what happened here," Sun Zheng ordered.

The technician began operating portable equipment, attempting to interface with the bridge's remaining data ports. Due to the passage of time and the lack of energy, data recovery was exceptionally difficult, but a fragmented stream of information was finally extracted and projected onto a relatively intact wall, forming blurred images and distorted text:

[...Era... immeasurable... "Watcher VII"... ordered to garrison "Silent Outpost"... monitoring abyss movements...]

[...Detected "void whisper" energy anomalies... large-scale shadow fleet... broke through the defensive lines... heading straight for the "Seed Vault" coordinates...]

[..."Watcher VII"... a lone ship facing the enemy... to warn those behind... buying time...]

[...The battle... was brutal... ship hull heavily damaged... crew... all killed in action...]

[...Final command... initiate "Eternal Stasis" protocol... preserve the Captain's (Identification: High Guardian Cassius) consciousness core... waiting for... a possible successor...]

[...Warning... the "whisper" has corrupted part of the "Seed Vault's" outer defenses... "origin spark"... status unknown...]

[...Successor... if you arrive... beware of... "Assimilation"... the true test... lies in "bearing" its weight...]

The log information ended abruptly there, the final record filled with urgency and warnings.

The video also finished playing, freezing on the final frame captured by the ship's external sensors: endless enemy ships composed of Shadows, surging like a tide into the depths of the nebula, while "Watcher VII" stood like a reef, erupting in a final, heroic burst of explosive light amidst the enemy tide.

Silence filled the bridge. Everyone was shaken by this tragic record that spanned a vast stretch of time. This great ship and its crew had fought until the very last moment to buy time for the Seed Vault and to pass on their warning to those who followed, preserving the last shred of hope through this near-Eternal Stasis.

"Assimilation... bearing..." Sun Zheng murmured, repeating the final warnings from the log. This matched the information he had heard in the memory fragments of the Void Corridor. The "origin spark" did not seem to be a weapon that could be used at will; it inherently carried immense risks.

Just then, the blue crystal fragment on the forehead of Guardian Cassius inside the transparent container suddenly lit up! An extremely faint wave of consciousness, seemingly spanning across eons, was transmitted directly into Sun Zheng's mind:

[Holder... of the keystone... you have finally... come...]

[Time... is running out... the corruption of the "whisper"... is spreading...]

[The "origin spark"... requires a pure heart of order... to be mastered... otherwise... it is destruction...]

[The residual energy... in my core... can help you... briefly awaken... the "Seed Vault's" identification system...]

[But... this is... my final strength...]

As this wave of consciousness was transmitted, the light blue liquid in the container began to turn transparent and dissipate at a visible rate. Guardian Cassius's face seemed to become even older and more translucent.

He was transferring the energy that maintained his last spark of life to Sun Zheng!

"No! Stop! Save yourself!" Sun Zheng shouted in his mind. He did not want to gain power at the cost of sacrificing this venerable pioneer.

[This is... my mission... and also... my destiny...]

[order... is eternal...]

A final faint wave came through, and the liquid in the container vanished completely. Guardian Cassius's body turned into tiny blue particles of light, slowly dissipating into the air like stars, leaving behind only the crystal fragment from his forehead, which fell to the bottom of the container with a soft clink.

He had completely vanished, leaving the final hope and warning to his successor.

Sun Zheng silently picked up the still-warm crystal fragment. When the fragment touched the keystone on his chest, it instantly fused into it. The light of the keystone became more solid, and Sun Zheng felt a surge of pure and ancient Order Energy flooding into his body. At the same time, an encrypted piece of information about how to briefly awaken the Seed Vault's identification system appeared in his mind.

Facing the empty container, he gave a solemn military salute.

Shadow and the other team members also saluted solemnly.