99: Chapter 98 The Moment of Judgment
The "Rift" hovered above the battlefield, its interwoven light of milky white and pale gold resembling an exotic eye, calmly watching the chaos and slaughter below. Time had not truly frozen, but the movements of both sides showed a distinct sluggishness—this spectacle beyond comprehension forced all intelligent beings to re-evaluate the situation.
In the Cradle control center, Lin Shen's command was the first to break the stalemate: "Zhao Yan, continue suppressing the units attacking 'Kunlun' Station and stop them from approaching the Rift! Elena, scan the Rift's energy signatures and internal structure with everything you've got, especially that Dark Red Symbol! Sarah, try to use the successor protocol imprint to establish a stable connection with the Rift and confirm if it's under control!"
After a brief pause, the Pruning Faction vanguard units abruptly changed their behavior. Of the four units attacking the Cradle, two continued to pin down the defenses, while the other two turned without hesitation and charged straight toward the Rift at maximum speed! Their goal was clearly not destruction, but... entry!
"They want to enter the Sanctuary area!" Elena exclaimed in shock. "I'm detecting high-intensity protocol probe beams being emitted from them, targeting the Rift's internal structure!"
In Earth orbit, that calm but unignorable conscious communication from Stargazer 742 was transmitted clearly to the receivers of all warring parties (including the Pruning Faction) via the public broadcast channel:
【This is Stargazer 742, an observer under the Galactic Council. I have detected undeclared high-dimensional information structures interfering with physical space, as well as armed conflict between multiple civilization units. According to Chapter 7, Article 3 of the Provisional Articles for Contact and Conflict with Emerging Civilizations, all conflicting parties are required to immediately cease hostile actions and provide an explanation for the spatial anomaly. Repeat, cease all actions immediately.】
The Pruning Faction units charging toward the Rift did not slow down or respond in the slightest. The units attacking Kunlun Station and Earth orbit also continued to fire.
"Stargazer, we are under unprovoked attack and are currently acting in self-defense!" Professor Chu Yunshen responded quickly on behalf of humanity through the same channel, his tone urgent but clear. "The spatial anomaly is related to the local ancient civilization heritage, the Cradle. It was accidentally triggered by the current attack and an energy anomaly on Earth; we are currently attempting to understand and control it. We request that the observer record the facts of this assault!"
Near the Cradle, Sarah's consciousness had established an extremely fragile connection with the Rift. The Rift was indeed a projection of the Sanctuary of Choice, but its open state was highly unstable, with its internal structure constantly twisting under the erosion of physical laws. That Dark Red Symbol was part of a sealed "record monument" deep within the Sanctuary, and its information encoding... shared over 40% homology with the Pruning Faction's core protocol base language!
"That symbol... records a failed 'Order Purification Experiment' within the civilization of the builders!" Sarah's voice was full of shock as she quickly shared information through the consciousness link. "A segment of the builders believed that the 'sowing' philosophy—which emphasized diversity and embraced contradiction and uncertainty—was inefficient and could lead to uncontrollable 'contamination.' They advocated for a more radical and unified 'Order Reconstruction' plan, attempting to 'prune' away the 'redundancies' and 'divergent paths' in civilizational development. That experiment sparked a civil war... the Dark Red Symbol is the emblem of the Order Reconstruction Faction! The Pruning Faction... are very likely the descendants or ideological successors of the exiled Order Reconstruction Faction after they lost that civil war!"
The truth was bone-chilling. The so-called Pruning Faction were not simple cosmic Scavengers; they, the sower heritage, the Cradle, and the Gaia Network all originated from the same fractured ancient civilization! What they hated was exactly the "sowing" path ultimately chosen by the mainstream of the builders, and the humans who had inherited that path's legacy!
Just then, the two Pruning Faction vanguard units reached the edge of the Rift. The dark red patterns on their surfaces resonated intensely with the Dark Red Symbol inside the Rift, their outer shells deforming as if they were about to merge into it.
"Don't let them in!" Lin Shen shouted sternly. "If they obtain deeper permissions or information from within the Sanctuary, the consequences will be unthinkable! Elena, can you interfere?"
"I'm attempting psionic frequency interference... the effect is poor! Their protocol resonance has very high priority!" Elena said anxiously.
At this critical moment, the portion of the East Sea peak energy that Sarah had previously diverted to the iron lotus in Tibet and the genesis in the Amazon seemed to complete some kind of cycle. Two purified and transformed energy streams, gentler but massive, quietly fed back into the Cradle system through the Gaia Network's hidden connections. Following Sarah's link with the Rift, they surged into the unstable portal!
The Rift shuddered violently, erupting with light! Its internal structure instantly became several times clearer, and a repulsive force field exploded from the Rift, slamming hard into the two Pruning Faction units that were about to intrude!
The units were sent flying, their dark red shields flickering wildly as a harsh noise of structural damage echoed from within. The Rift itself also became more unstable due to this energy injection and repulsive burst; its edges began to blur and dissipate, looking as if it might close at any moment.
"The Rift is repelling them!" Sarah shouted. "The energy feedback from the iron lotus and genesis reinforced the Sanctuary projection's 'original protocol.' It identified the descendants of the Order Reconstruction Faction as 'unauthorized visitors'!"
Zhao Yan keenly seized this opportunity. Controlling a set of hidden, long-charged heavy orbital cannons on Kunlun Station, he fired a precise volley the moment those two damaged units lost their balance! A blinding torrent of energy swept through the void, blowing one unit into a brilliant, silent fireball in mid-air, while the other was also heavily damaged, tumbling away as it fled.
Meanwhile, in Earth orbit, the damaged Taishan, under the cover of the Great Wall and coordinated with another emergency reinforcement defense ship, finally repelled the intruding Pruning Faction units, temporarily holding Tianshu Station and the Qingtian node.
On the lunar battlefield, the remaining Pruning Faction vanguard units seemed to receive some kind of command. They suddenly abandoned all attacks and began a high-speed retreat, showing no desire to linger. They left behind the wreckage of their destroyed and heavily damaged companions, vanishing into the shadows of the lunar far side like a receding tide.
The battle came to an abrupt temporary halt within two minutes of Stargazer 742 issuing its warning.
Only the slowly dissipating Rift and the debris scattered across the Moon and Earth's orbit bore witness to the fierce battle that had just occurred.
Stargazer 742's communication sounded once more, its tone still calm and level, but its content carried heavy weight:
【Preliminary observation records have been archived.】
【Confirmed facts are as follows:】
【1. The local civilization 'Humanity' is currently suffering an armed assault by an unknown force calling itself the 'Pruning Faction.'】
【2. The attackers utilized high-level law-interference weaponry and possess a correlation with specific identifiers within the local spatial anomaly (preliminarily identified as a 'sower' civilization heritage).】
【3. The local civilization demonstrated self-defense capabilities during the attack and maintained controllable interaction with the anomaly (guiding energy, repelling unauthorized units).】
【4. The spatial anomaly was accidentally formed due to multiple energy interferences and is currently in an unstable state of dissipation.】
【Based on the above facts, and according to Chapter 11, Article 1 (Right of Self-Defense) and Chapter 5, Article 8 (Provisional Protection for Heritage-Associated Civilizations) of the Articles, a provisional ruling is hereby made: Until further investigation is complete, the defensive actions of the human civilization within this star system are confirmed to be legitimate. The unilateral assault by the 'Pruning Faction' has been recorded. Human civilization is requested to submit a detailed non-classified report regarding the status of the 'sower' heritage in this system and its association with it within 24 standard hours to complete the preliminary filing.】
【Stargazer 742 will remain in the outer orbit for continuous observation. Communication suspended.】
The ruling was in humanity's favor! At least within the framework of the Galactic Council, humans had gained a temporary status of "legitimate self-defense," and the Pruning Faction's attack was officially on the record! This was undoubtedly an important diplomatic shield.
"Our thanks to Stargazer 742 for the impartial observation and ruling. We will prepare the report as soon as possible," Professor Chu Yunshen responded immediately, breathing a long sigh of relief.
The Rift finally dissipated completely into the void as if it had never existed. But the information brought by that Dark Red Symbol from within the Sanctuary was now deeply imprinted in the hearts of the three Inheritors.
Inside the control center, there was a silence following the chaos. The alarms gradually ceased, replaced by the sounds of various units reporting damage and repair progress.
"The East Sea peak has begun to recede, and energy levels are stabilizing. The guiding protocol is running normally and did not place a significant burden on the iron lotus and genesis anchor points," Sarah reported, weary but relieved.
"Kunlun Station's external facilities sustained 37% damage, but the core is intact. Personnel casualties are... minor." Zhao Yan's voice carried a hint of subtle raspiness.
"The core lattice of the anchor point one prototype Model B has shattered and cannot be repaired. However, the data is complete, proving its value in actual combat," Elena summarized.
In Earth orbit, Tianshu Station was secured, and the Qingtian channel structure sustained minor damage, requiring several days of maintenance.
A sudden storm had ended in a pyrrhic victory for humanity, the exposure of more ancient secrets, and the acquisition of a preliminary endorsement from the Galactic Council.
Lin Shen walked to the observation window, looking out at the lunar wilderness as it slowly returned to peace and the azure planet in the distance. He felt the imprint of the successor protocol in his consciousness grow slightly warm; it represented not just authority, but a heavy responsibility that spanned billions of light-years.
"What we just repelled might only be the tip of the iceberg of the Pruning Faction's true strength," he said softly to the projections of Sarah and Elena beside him. "Now we know they are not just enemies, but the 'shadow' split from the sower civilization. Their obsession with the heritage likely far exceeds our imagination."
"Furthermore, the Sanctuary projected into reality because of an accident..." Elena mused. "This shows there is a deep linkage between the Gaia Network, the Cradle, and the successor protocol that we don't yet fully understand. A single peak from the East Sea Node could trigger such a chain reaction; the potential—and the risk—of the entire network is terrifyingly vast."
Sarah's light-shadow flickered gently. "But we also have our own path, our own allies (even if temporary), and the time we've won for ourselves. Stargazer 742's ruling at least gives us room to maneuver within the rules."
Yes, time. Though pressing, it was no longer pure despair.
They had crushed a swift "pruning."
They had made preliminary contact with the "Order" of the galaxy.
They had caught a glimpse of the "split" behind the heritage.
They had proven their own qualifications and resilience as Inheritors.
Authority in hand, the beacons of war momentarily dimmed.
And in the deep space, more eyes had opened.
Human civilization, after its baptism of blood and fire, finally stumbled forward, officially stepping onto the galactic stage filled with ancient stars and thorns.