181: The countdown ends and the final battle begins

Lin Mo's words were like a precise surgical knife, cutting through Gu Zhixia's mind, which had been clouded by power and Victory, allowing her to see her most fundamental problem.

Key… she repeatedly chewed on the word, staring blankly at her hands.

The final scene of that simulated battle replayed in her mind.

The Nirvana Divine Thunder, representing “end,” and the World Tree's origin, representing “beginning.”

Death and Life.

Two diametrically opposed supreme laws, at the moment of collision, did not produce the expected violent annihilation; instead, they achieved a strange, higher-level harmony and… completeness.

She vaguely seemed to have grasped something.

But that feeling was like looking at a landscape through frosted glass, blurry and distant.

“I…” She opened her mouth, the pride etched into her bones making her unsure how to respond for a moment.

Admit her ignorance?

For Gu Zhixia, this was harder than admitting her failure.

Watching her, clearly convinced in her heart but still as stubborn as a cat whose tail had been stepped on, a faint, almost imperceptible smile finally appeared on Lin Mo’s lips.

He did not continue the topic but turned and operated the control panel a few times.

“The 'Thunder Dragon's' lawCombing is in its final stage,” he called up the mech's real-time data stream. “Now, it's your turn.”

A huge holographic screen unfolded before the two of them.

On the screen, it was no longer a furious battle, but an incredibly complex energy structure diagram, slowly rotating like a nebula.

Gold, blue, and purple energy streams intertwined and swirled in the diagram, clashing at times, merging at others.

And wisps of emerald green Life energy, representing the “World Tree,” wove through them like countless nimble weavers, attempting to interlace these three unruly forces into a flawless, brand-new web of laws.

“This is the law model for 'Thunder Dragon's' new core,” Lin Mo pointed at the screen. “From now on, for the next twenty-four hours, what you need to do is not fight, but meditate.”

“Use your will to feel it, understand it, and then… become it.”

“Completely synchronize your spirit with this diagram.”

This was a test a hundred times more difficult than battle.

It no longer tested strength but the most subtle comprehension of laws and the ultimate control over one's own will.

Gu Zhixia looked at the law nebula diagram, which was breathtakingly beautiful yet complex enough to make one's scalp tingle, and took a deep breath.

She knew this was the final step Lin Mo had laid out for her.

Only by taking this step could she and “Thunder Dragon” truly become one.

Only then could she truly transform from a “user” to a “master.”

“Hmph, isn't it just connecting dots on a diagram?” She pouted, using a nonchalant tone to hide her inner seriousness. “Child's play.”

After speaking, she ignored Lin Mo, walked directly to the center of the Hangar, sat cross-legged, and closed her eyes.

Without the slightest hesitation, without any dawdling.

Watching her back, which instantly entered a state of self-forgetfulness, a hint of approval flashed in Lin Mo's eyes.

Although this woman was tsundere and sharp-tongued, her will was indeed like a tempered divine metal: tough, pure, and fearless.

Lin Mo did not disturb her but turned and returned to the Bridge.

The Natural Selection also needed its “rest.”

The thunderstorm core brought back from the forbidden zone of the gods had been thoroughly decomposed and purified by fire god's lava heart in the past few days.

A portion of the purest thunderous origin contained within was used to nourish the “Thunder Dragon's” evolution, while the other portion was completely absorbed by the “World Tree.”

Buzz—

On the throne of the Bridge, Lin Mo closed his eyes, his consciousness merging with the entire warship.

He could “see” that in the deepest part of the warship, the “World Tree” rooted in the energy core was undergoing an astonishing transformation.

After absorbing the thunderous law from a higher dimension, dense, golden and blue patterns, like thunderlines, began to spread across its emerald green branches.

Life and Thunder.

These two seemingly unrelated laws achieved a miraculous symbiosis within the “World Tree.”

“Report: Hull energy reserves have been restored to 100%.”

“Report: 'World Tree' system has completed initial evolution, unlocking new ability — 'Law Grafting.'”

“Report: 'fire god' mech core furnace has completed energy synchronization with the 'thunderstorm core,' unlocking new form — 'Crimson Lotus · Thunderflame.'”

A series of system prompts sounded in Lin Mo's mind.

The fangs of the Natural Selection were also sharpened… Twenty-four hours passed in a flash.

When Gu Zhixia opened her eyes again, her entire aura had undergone an earth-shattering change.

If before she was a demonic blade, sharp and brimming with killing intent.

Then now, she was like a bottomless, calm, cold pool.

All her sharpness, all her keenness, were fully contained within her. Her phoenix eyes, which always burned with flames, now became deep and clear, as if they could reflect the ultimate truth of the universe's creation and destruction.

She stood up, said nothing, but quietly raised her right hand.

A wisp of golden wild thunder leaped at her fingertips.

A wisp of blue electric snake coiled around her wrist.

A wisp of purple Nirvana Divine Thunder flickered in her palm.

The three forces no longer clashed but were as docile, harmonious, and full of spirituality as extensions of her arm.

With a thought, the three forces instantly merged, transforming into a small, exquisite, slowly blooming lotus made of three-colored thunder light.

It was breathtakingly beautiful.

And terrifyingly dangerous.