78: Chapter 77 Heart Crystal

Deep inside the "Bi'an Flower" laboratory, a new isolation chamber was activated. This place was called the "Chamber of Carving." In the center hovered a mass of silver-blue light mist, constantly shifting shape and bound by complex force fields—it was a high-concentration "spiritual pivot condensate" condensed and purified from the differential equilibrium zone through the guidance of the "Star Ring" and high-precision consciousness manipulation. It was not matter, yet it possessed a fluid-like appearance and plasticity.

Professor Chu Yunshen, Academician Chen Qiming, Gardener Representative Qi and Gardener Representative Cheng, as well as Lin Shen (projection) who had rushed over from the spiritual pivot, were watching with bated breath. Directly responsible for the operation were Dr. Elena Costa and Kevin Li—the former was in charge of guidance, relying on her keen perception of "spiritual rhythm," while the latter used his powerful consciousness harmonic tuning ability to stabilize it.

"According to the theoretical framework provided by the Gardener and the sporadic records in the 'Cradle' index, the 'carving' of the 'civilization memory crystal' is essentially 'writing' highly ordered collective consciousness imprints, like holographic encoding, into the stable structure of this spiritual condensate." Academician Chen Qiming explained in a low voice, "It requires extreme focus, clear and intense 'imagery,' and absolute consciousness synchronization. Even the slightest deviation could cause the condensate to collapse, or even backfire on the operators."

Elena closed her eyes, her hands hovering over the control interface, fine beads of sweat seeping from her forehead. Her consciousness connected to the light mist through a special interface, feeling the majestic and chaotic spiritual flow within. "I can 'hear' its 'voice'... like countless subtle, disordered buzzes. We need to give it a 'main melody,' a stable 'core structure'..."

"Imagery ready." Lin Shen looked toward the connection chamber on the other side. Max Costa was already in position. His task was not technical manipulation, but to provide that "core imagery"—the most vivid, stable, and positive memory scenes of Sarah Chen. At the same time, Nuwa would assist by injecting abstract cultural memes about "guardianship," "inheritance," and "resilience" extracted from the Dragon Country Civilization database and the s-07 protocol.

"Mr. Max, please begin." Dr. Su Qing instructed.

Max took a deep breath, discarding all distracting thoughts, and immersed his consciousness completely in the warmest and most solid memories of being with Sarah: not the pain of parting, but an encouraging look during joint training, the relaxation of sharing a bag of space ice cream after their first spacewalk, the pure light sparkling in her eyes when she explained the starry sky. These images were simple, yet filled with real emotion and power.

At the same time, Nuwa transformed the refined civilization imagery—the Great Wall standing in wind and snow, the torch being passed down from generation to generation, the resilient figures rebuilding after disaster—into a flow of pure consciousness symbols.

Elena guided Max's emotional imagery and Nuwa's civilization symbols, like the most delicate embroiderer, "weaving" them into the core of the spiritual light mist. Kevin Li exerted all his effort to maintain the stability of the light mist as a whole, resisting any fluctuations that could cause the structure to collapse.

Time passed second by second. The light mist began to change. It no longer rolled and shifted in a disordered manner, but gradually converged inward, its brightness increasing, and its shape began to approach a regular geometric body—a polyhedron, with a gentle, moon-like silver luster flowing on its surface.

"The structure is stabilizing! The order index is climbing!" The light and shadow of Gardener Representative Qi fluctuated with obvious excitement. "Imagery fusion successful! It's crystallizing!"

Suddenly, the light mist shrank violently, bursting out a circle of soft, silent energy ripples that swept across the entire "Chamber of Carving." After the instrument readings jumped violently, they quickly returned to stability.

Floating in the center of the force field was no longer a light mist, but a thumb-sized crystal with twelve smooth facets. It was translucent silver-blue throughout, with nebulae seemingly rotating slowly inside. Looking closely, the patterns of the "nebulae" vaguely formed tiny, flowing images—there were outlines of people standing side by side, phantom images of winding city walls, and burning and reborn flame totems.

"Success..." Elena leaned back in her chair, exhausted, and Kevin Li was also panting heavily.

Gardener Representative Cheng immediately scanned the crystal: "Stability exceeds expectations! Consciousness imprint fusion is excellent! It is not just a 'container,' but an 'amplifier' and a 'resonator'! It should be able to resonate perfectly with Dr. Sarah Chen's consciousness fragments and provide a powerful stable anchoring effect!"

A stone in Lin Shen's heart fell to the ground. The key "container" was obtained.

"Prepare for the fusion test with Dr. Sarah's fragments immediately." He ordered.

The "Heart Bridge" platform was activated again. This time, the crystal named "heart crystal" was placed in the center of the platform. Max still connected as an emotional anchor, but the intensity was reduced. Elena and Kevin Li were responsible for guiding the energy of the "heart crystal."

When Sarah's scattered silver-blue light spots appeared again, attracted by Max's emotional resonance, the "heart crystal" seemed to be awakened. The nebulae inside accelerated their rotation, emitting resonance waves that were at the same frequency as Sarah's fragments, but more stable and softer.

A miracle happened.

Those originally manic and easily scattered light spots, like moths to a flame, actively and orderly threw themselves toward the "heart crystal." The crystal absorbed the light spots one by one like a sponge absorbing water. With each absorption, the light inside the crystal brightened a bit, and the flowing images became clearer and more coherent.

There was no violent conflict, no information storm. The whole process was incredibly peaceful.

About ten minutes later, the last light particle sank into the crystal. The crystal was no longer just silver-blue; at its core, a warm golden light lit up, like a lit wick.

Immediately after, a clear, stable, albeit still weak but no longer broken, consciousness signal was transmitted from the "heart crystal." It was no longer chaotic fragments, but formed a relatively complete "thought thread":

"Max... thank you."

"And... everyone."

"I... feel a bit more stable."

"That crystal... is very warm. Like home."

It was Sarah's voice! The "voice" converted directly through consciousness harmonics carried her unique gentleness and rationality, despite being full of exhaustion.

Max burst into tears instantly, choked with sobs and unable to speak. In the laboratory, many researchers also had red eyes.

"Dr. Sarah, this is Lin Shen. How do you feel now? Can you engage in logical communication?" Lin Shen suppressed the waves in his heart and asked calmly.

After a brief silence, Sarah replied: "Yes... but it's very slow. My memory... still has many gaps and is out of order. But some key parts... because of the 'guardianship' and 'inheritance' imagery in the crystal... have been reinforced. Especially... about the 'sower', about the 'Cradle', and... the underground 'anchor point'."

"How much do you know about the 'successor protocol'?" Lin Shen pointed directly to the core.

Sarah's consciousness signal showed obvious emotional fluctuations (worry, urgency): "The protocol... is in the deepest part of the 'Cradle'. A place called the 'Chamber of Inheritance'. It's not data... it's a 'scene', a 'trial'. It requires... keys and qualifications."

"Are you the key?"

"I am... a part. Incomplete. The complete key... requires the 'confirmation' of the Inheritor. And the qualifications... require a comprehensive evaluation by the 'Cradle'. What you have done recently... it is all watching. Contacting the s-07, activating 'Qingtian', discovering and attempting to communicate with the γ-07 anchor point... are all evaluation items."

As expected. Everything was under the observation of the "Cradle."

"What is the evaluation result? Do we have a chance?"

"It... didn't say explicitly. But it gave positive feedback on your 'protocol handshake' with γ-07. Regarding your creation of the 'heart crystal'... it just now... emitted a very strong 'appreciation' harmonic. You might be... approaching the threshold." Sarah's voice was encouraging, "However... the 'Pruning Faction'... they are also getting closer. I can feel... the 'Cradle's' early warning system is upgrading. It is also starting to... get anxious."

"We need to conduct the 'Inheritor trial' as soon as possible. Can you guide us?"

"I can... try to point to the entrance of the 'Chamber of Inheritance'. But after entering... I can't help much. The content of the trial... varies from person to person. It could be technical problems, it could be civilization choices, or it could be... a test of consciousness. Historically... many candidates failed." Sarah's worry was transmitted, "And, once the trial begins, the 'Cradle' will enter a semi-closed state, and its connection with the outside world will weaken. If the 'Pruning Faction' launches an attack at that time..."

The risk is huge. But the opportunity is equally huge.

"If we succeed, what can we get?"

"The complete 'successor protocol'. That means... high-level access to all civilization heritage within the 'Cradle', initial command authority over the Earth's 'Planetary Defense Anchor Network', and... possibly triggering deeper hidden functions of the 'Cradle' that even the Gardener doesn't know about. Most importantly... the 'Cradle' will mark human civilization as a 'key sowing object', pouring in more resources and attention." Sarah paused for a moment, "But it will also... completely enrage the 'Pruning Faction'. They will view humans as the 'greatest mutant' that must be eliminated immediately."

Life or death. There is no middle ground.

"Is there a time limit for the trial?" Academician Chen Qiming asked.

"The 'Cradle' hasn't set one. But the 'Pruning Faction' fleet... will not wait." Sarah said softly.

Lin Shen fell into deep thought. A moment later, he looked up, his eyes sweeping over everyone's projections and the personnel on site.

"Prepare to locate the entrance of the 'Chamber of Inheritance'. Synchronize and accelerate the verification of the 'Qingtian' project safety plan. Once passed, restart it immediately; we need as much space infrastructure as possible. Strengthen the early warning network on the periphery of the Solar System, especially monitoring for possible small-scale infiltration units of the 'Pruning Faction'. Gardener Representative, I request the 'Guardian Faction' to provide any historical data or experience regarding the 'Chamber of Inheritance' as much as possible, even if it's just legends."

He looked at the "heart crystal" flickering with warm light: "Dr. Sarah, please stabilize yourself with all your might, and try to recall details related to the trial as much as possible. Mr. Max, please continue to accompany her."

Finally, he looked at the endless void, as if he could penetrate the dome of the laboratory and see the silver-gray celestial body hanging in the sky.

"We have no other choice. The door of the 'Cradle' must be opened, and we must obtain the power inside. Before the 'Pruning Faction's' big scissors fall, we must make ourselves hard enough."

"Notify everyone, 'Operation Dawn' is beginning preparation. Target: Moon, 'Cradle' core, 'Chamber of Inheritance'."

The order turned into radio waves and spread in all directions. A gamble that would determine the fate of civilization entered a countdown. The heart crystal pulsed slightly in the force field, like the first powerful heartbeat of a civilization.

And on the edge of the distant Solar System, behind a seemingly void interstellar dust cloud, several hidden, non-natural light points simultaneously adjusted their posture, aiming at the direction of the inner Solar System. They had received the increasingly clear spiritual activity signals from the direction of Gabon and the "Cradle".

The Pruner's scissors had already opened quietly.