437: Chapter 437 Cosmic Catastrophe

The view outside the windows of The Ark was the same as always.

Deep darkness, dotted with countless twinkling stars.

Qin Lin stood on the Bridge, looking at the star map on the holographic screen, feeling that everything was normal.

Ling Xi sat on the chair next to him, eyes closed, as if sensing something.

"Qin Lin." She suddenly opened her eyes. "There are abnormal energy fluctuations ahead."

Qin Lin pulled up the scan data. "What type of anomaly?"

Ling Xi stood up and walked to the window. "It's like space is being compressed, like a piece of paper being crumpled up."

Qin Lin looked at the data on the panel. "Space is curving, as if some kind of massive object is forming ahead."

Ling Xi looked at him. "That's not mass, it's a fissure, but it's unlike any fissure I've ever seen. It's expanding, but not outwards—it's collapsing inwards."

Qin Lin was silent for a moment. "Like a black hole?"

Ling Xi nodded. "Similar, but it isn't devouring matter; it's devouring space itself. The surrounding space-time is being sucked into it, like water flowing into a drain."

Qin Lin took a deep breath. "Can we avoid it?"

Ling Xi looked at him. "No, its gravitational field has already covered a large area, and The Ark's course is right on its edge. If we don't change course, we will be sucked in before long. If we do change course, we need to pass through the edge of the gravitational field. There may be twisted spatial rifts there, which are just as dangerous."

Qin Lin calculated quickly on the console. "Two paths. One is to turn and pass through the edge of the gravitational field. The second is to accelerate and dash through before it fully forms."

Ling Xi looked at him. "The risk of passing through the edge is the possibility of being torn apart by spatial rifts; the risk of dashing through is the possibility of being captured by gravity and unable to escape."

Qin Lin was silent for a moment. "Which path is safer?"

Ling Xi thought for a moment. "Dash through. If we can pass before it fully forms, we have a chance to escape. The Ark's protective shield can withstand extreme gravity for a short time."

Qin Lin nodded. "Then we dash through."

He set a new course on the console. The Ark's thrusters changed from dark blue to bright blue, and the ship shuddered slightly as it began to accelerate.

The stars outside the window began to move, shifting from stationary to flowing, and from flowing to arcs of light.

Su Yuran ran in from the living room. "Qin Lin, what's wrong with The Ark? I felt a vibration."

Qin Lin looked at her. "There is a spatial collapse ahead; we need to accelerate and dash through."

Su Yuran's expression changed. "Is it dangerous?"

Qin Lin looked at her. "A little, but The Ark can handle it."

Han Yurou also ran in. "Brother Lin, what's going on outside? I see the stars moving!"

Qin Lin looked at them. "Everyone go back to the living room, The Ark is about to accelerate."

Han Yurou wanted to say something more, but Su Yuran pulled her away.

The Ark's speed increased rapidly.

The starlight outside the window changed from arcs of light into long, thin bands of light, like stretched threads.

The Ark's protective shield began to glow, changing from pale purple to deep blue, and then to bright gold.

Qin Lin saw the energy consumption rate of the protective shield rising rapidly.

Jumping from 5% to 15%, and from 15% to 30%.

"Ling Xi, how long can the protective shield hold?" Qin Lin looked at the data, his voice tight.

Ling Xi stood beside him. "At maximum power, it can hold for a while, but if the gravity continues to increase, the time will be shorter."

Qin Lin nodded. "Then we must dash through before it gives out."

He pushed the thruster power to the maximum, and The Ark accelerated again, the hull beginning to tremble slightly.

In the living room, everyone had fastened their seatbelts.

Han Yurou held Qin Yue, who was wide-eyed in her arms, looking out the window without crying.

Su Yuran held Qin An, who sat quietly in his mother's arms.

Li Ying leaned back in a massage chair with her eyes closed.

Liu Ruyan held her child, humming softly.

Yeying sat by the window, her hand on her belly, her tail quietly hanging behind her.

Guangyao and Forest Lord Cui Yin sat together, eyes closed, as if using energy to sense the situation outside.

The Ark's trembling became more and more intense.

On the holographic screen, the space ahead was twisting, like a piece of crumpled paper.

Light bent within the distortion, forming strange arcs of light, as if countless mirrors were reflecting starlight simultaneously.

Qin Lin saw that the energy consumption rate of the protective shield had jumped to sixty percent.

He gripped the handrails on the console, feeling a massive force pulling at The Ark, as if an invisible hand were trying to tear it apart.

"Ling Xi, how much longer?" Qin Lin's voice was tight.

Ling Xi looked ahead. "Almost there, just hold on a little longer."

The Ark accelerated again, and the hull began to emit a low rumble.

Qin Lin felt the gravity changing; his body became heavier, as if something was pulling him downwards.

Ling Xi reached out, a ball of golden light dancing in her palm. "The Ark's energy field is being affected; gravity is distorting it."

Qin Lin saw the energy consumption rate of the protective shield had jumped to eighty percent. "If this continues, the protective shield won't last long."

Ling Xi looked at him. "Then we go even faster."

She pressed the light in her hand onto the console.

The golden light surged into The Ark's energy System. The data on the holographic screen jumped, and the glow of the protective shield shifted from bright gold to incandescent white.

The Ark accelerated again.

The scene outside the window began to twist, as if a massive mirror were shattering.

Space itself split open, countless cracks spreading in the darkness, like a pane of glass breaking.

The Ark passed between those cracks, the light on the surface of the protective shield flickering violently.

Su Yuran felt Qin An's hand trembling slightly, and she lowered her head to hold him tighter. "It's okay, The Ark will protect us."

Qin An nodded in her arms without speaking.

Han Yurou held Qin Yue, who was quietly watching out the window, her eyes bright as if she were watching a strange movie.

Qin Lin saw that the space ahead had begun its Recovery, the color of the starlight shifting from twisted colors back to normal white.

The Ark's trembling slowly subsided, and the energy consumption rate of the protective shield dropped—from eighty percent to sixty percent, and from sixty percent to forty percent.

"Ling Xi, we are about to dash through."

Ling Xi stood beside him. "There is still a distance to go, and The Ark's energy is still being consumed."

The Ark shuddered again, and a violent shockwave struck from the side, as if it had been hit hard by a giant fist.

Qin Lin's body slammed into the back of his chair; he gritted his teeth, gripped the handrails, and steadied himself.

There was a cry of surprise in the living room; someone had fallen, and someone had cried out.

Qin Lin glanced back and saw Han Yurou picking Qin Yue up from the floor.

Qin Yue didn't cry, just opened her eyes and looked at her mother.

Han Qing stood up from her seat and walked over to the person who had fallen to check for injuries.

The Ark's protective shield flickered violently, the energy consumption rate briefly jumping to ninety percent before falling back to seventy percent.

The hull emitted a low drone, the metal creaking slightly under the pressure, as if the entire Ark were groaning.

Qin Lin's voice spread to every corner of The Ark through the communication channel. "Everyone hold on, we are about to dash through."

His voice was steady, bringing a sense of reassurance.