The metal hatch of the evacuation pod creaked under Long Wu's force, and a hot wind carrying the base's distinctive smell of mechanical oil rushed in.
Lin Yi stepped out of the hatch first, his combat boots making a crisp sound on the alloy floor—this was the base he had designed himself, every steel plate of which had been reinforced, but now it was trembling slightly because of the thirty-seven capital ships approaching from afar.
"Stay close." He turned and glanced at the crowd. Chu Yao's hair was still sticky with the energy liquid from the Mother Nest, and she was wiping it with her terminal with a frown. Xuan Mingzi's Taoist robe had a hole that revealed a bluish-gray lining, and the edges, which should have been charred black, were strangely silvery-white, as if they had been repaired by some kind of power. Long Wu's combat uniform was covered in scorch marks on the front, and half of the intruder's energy crystal was embedded in his left chest, emitting a faint red light with his breathing.
When Chu Yao tapped the screen in the conference room, it lit up, and the projection of thirty-seven capital ships was suspended above everyone's heads.
The surface of those diamond-shaped warships was covered with dark purple patterns that writhed like living things. On the flagship at the very front, the invaders' totem—eight intertwined eyes—was staring intently at the blue planet below.
"All available forces must be concentrated on the front lines." Lin Yi's fingertip swept across the holographic screen, marking the locations of the reclusive masters of ancient martial arts families, the war mechs of the technology conglomerate, and the interdimensional resistance forces as three clusters of red light. "Mythical-level job changers to hold off the flagship, epic-level interceptor frigates, and the rest... guard the twelve energy nodes."
Xuanmingzi's star chart suddenly hummed on the table.
His withered fingers pressed against the edge of the astrolabe, the light and shadow of the twenty-eight constellations twisting into a vortex in his palm: "Young friend, have you calculated the location of the dimensional anchor point?"
"The anchor point is on the far side of the moon." Chu Yao immediately pulled up the data. "But according to intelligence intercepted from the mother nest, the intruders have deployed a triple defense matrix at the anchor point, which will even interfere with spatial teleportation."
"So we need someone to act as bait." Xuan Mingzi's voice suddenly became like sandpaper scraping; when he looked up, fine blood vessels appeared in the whites of his eyes. "Draw away the anchor point guards, then have others destroy the core."
Long Wu slammed his fist on the table with a "bang," causing the energy crystal to bounce up and then fall back down: "Old man, are you crazy?"
We're already short-handed on the main battlefield, so why send people out to attack anchor points?
What if both sides collapse?
"It's not about splitting up forces." Xuan Mingzi's star chart suddenly burst forth with a blinding blue light, making the wrinkles on his face gleam coldly. "It's... just me alone."
The meeting room fell into dead silence.
Chu Yao's terminal fell to the table with a "thud"—she had just been trying to bring up the anchor point defense map, and her fingertips were still frozen in mid-air, as if she had been frozen in place.
Long Wu's Adam's apple bobbed, and he was about to speak when Lin Yi raised his hand to stop him.
Lin Yi stared into Xuan Mingzi's eyes.
This old man, who always said, "I'm just a fortune teller," now had a resolute look in his eyes that he had never seen before, like a red-hot iron, so hot that people dared not look directly at him.
He recalled Su Qing's last words before the conversation ended, "Be careful of Xuan Mingzi—", the dark pattern on the half-key in the bronze box, and the words the shadow said before it disappeared, "His fate should have ended thirty years ago."
"Why you?" Lin Yi's voice was soft, yet it struck like a hammer blow against an alloy wall. "Because you calculated that you wouldn't survive this battle?"
Xuanmingzi's hand trembled violently, and all the stars on the star chart suddenly went out.
He paused for a moment, then pulled a faded copper coin from his Taoist robe—his "Star-Fixing Coin," which he always wore at his waist. A strand of silver hair was now entwined in the coin's hole. "Thirty years ago, in my quest to break through to the Legendary Realm, I exchanged this coin for half of the *Starfall Scripture*." His fingernails dug into the coin's edge. "The price was... every time I used astrological divination, I lost ten years of my lifespan."
Long Wu's fist clenched tightly, his knuckles turning white: "So now you...?"
"Three more months." Xuan Mingzi gently placed the copper coin on the astrolabe. "That's enough for me to use as bait."
Chu Yao suddenly grabbed the terminal and started typing rapidly. Xuan Mingzi's vital signs data popped up on the holographic screen—heart rate 32 beats/minute, blood oxygen saturation 67%, all critical values.
She looked up abruptly, her eyes reddening: "You knew all along you wouldn't make it to the final battle!"
So that's why you've been hiding this data?
"I've lived for 137 years, and I've seen enough," Xuan Mingzi said, tugging at a hole in his robe. He suddenly laughed. "Young friend, you always say you want to protect everyone... but some sacrifices have to be made by someone taking the first step."
Lin Yi's palms were sweating.
He gazed at the approaching fleet on the holographic screen, recalling how Xuanmingzi had taken the full force of an intruder admiral's attack to save him three days ago in the mother nest; he remembered how the old man had secretly distributed his longevity pills to the wounded when supplies were scarce at the base last month; he recalled how, in the evacuation pod just now, the three burn sites that should have been fatal had deliberately avoided the heart, dantian, and head—as if it had been planned in advance to leave them alive.
"No." He suddenly stood up, the chair scraping against the floor with a screeching sound. "I'll go to the dimensional anchor point; you stay on the front lines."
"Young friend," Xuanmingzi also stood up, his Daoist robes fluttering in the blue light of the holographic screen, "You are the master of time and space, the core of this battle."
What will happen to the 3 billion job changers if something goes wrong with you?
"What about the 100,000 warriors of the Reality Alliance?" His voice suddenly softened, like when he used to teach Long Wu to box, "You always said you wanted to protect everyone... then protect their hope."
Long Wu stood up abruptly, his muscles beneath his combat uniform taut like iron lumps.
He glanced at Lin Yi's clenched fist, then at Xuan Mingzi's pale lips, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he was about to speak—
The alarm suddenly went off.
Chu Yao's terminal vibrated wildly, and on the holographic screen, the muzzles of the cannons of the thirty-seven capital ships simultaneously lit up red.
On the flagship at the very front, the totem of eight eyes suddenly opened, and a blood-red beam of light pierced the atmosphere, exploding into a mushroom cloud five kilometers away from the base.
"The intruders have attacked ahead of schedule!" Chu Yao's fingers flew across the terminal. "Requesting support for the main battlefield! Spatial rifts have appeared at energy nodes three, seven, and twelve!"
Lin Yi suddenly grabbed the bronze box on the table; the key inside the box made a buzzing sound.
He looked at Xuanmingzi, who was stuffing the astrolabe into his Taoist robe. When he looked up, his eyes shone with a burning light—not the turbid light of a dying man, but the fervor of a warrior before heading to the battlefield.
Long Wu suddenly stepped between the two, using his broad back to block the red light from the holographic screen.
As he turned around, the energy crystal on his combat suit fell to the ground with a "clink" and rolled to Xuanmingzi's feet.
"Old man," his voice was hoarse like sandpaper, "if you dare die at the anchor point, I'll chase you all the way to another dimension and bring you back for a beating."
Xuanmingzi bent down, picked up the energy crystal, and stuffed it into Long Wu's palm: "That old Taoist is just waiting to get beaten up."
Lin Yi's terminal vibrated at this moment; it was a communication request from Su Qing to reconnect.
He pressed the answer button, but his pupils contracted sharply when he saw Su Qing's face—the background behind her was not the base command room, but the intruders' interrogation pod, with an eight-eyed totem branded on the back of her neck.
"Lin Yi, Xuan Mingzi, he..." Su Qing's voice was choked with blood, "His star chart belongs to the intruder..."
\"boom--\"
Another beam of light pierced the base's dome, and metal fragments rained down like a storm.
Lin Yi instinctively pulled Chu Yao behind him. When he looked up, he saw Xuan Mingzi rushing towards the cabin door, his Taoist robe fluttering in the wind like a battle flag about to burn out.
Long Wu wiped the blood off his face and yelled at Lin Yi, "I'm going to chase after that old man!"
"Take Yao Yao to the command center!" He was about to run away when Lin Yi grabbed him.
"Together." Lin Yi shoved the bronze box into Chu Yao's arms. "You guard the data, we'll go bring that old man back."
Chu Yao gripped the bronze box tightly, tears falling onto the cold metal: "Beware of dimensional rifts!"
I deployed three mechs... Ah!
Another explosion.
Lin Yi felt a sharp pain in his eardrums, and when he opened his eyes again, Xuan Mingzi's figure had already disappeared into the thick smoke.
Long Wu's combat uniform was ripped open, and he was cursing and rubbing his arm, but he suddenly fell silent when he met Lin Yi's eyes—the man who always said "everything is under control" was now filled with a panic he had never seen before.
"Let's go." Lin Yi ripped the shrapnel off his clothes, his combat boots grinding over the energy crystals on the ground. "No matter what... we can't let him go alone."
Long Wu nodded emphatically and drew his electromagnetic blade from his waist.
The moment the blade glowed blue, the two men looked simultaneously at the smoke-filled hatch—there lay their comrades, a promise they had to uphold, and a hope heavier than death itself.
The alarm sounded like a red-hot wire, drilling into everyone's eardrums.
Long Wu wiped the sweat mixed with blood and ash from his face, and the electromagnetic knife clicked back into its sheath—he originally wanted to rush out to chase Xuan Mingzi, but as soon as he turned around, Lin Yi grabbed his arm with such force that it almost crushed his bones.
"Let's go back to the conference room first." Lin Yi's voice was very low, like a piece of iron soaked in ice water. "Even if he rushes to the anchor point now, he can't enter the portal without the complete coordinates." His pupils were still filled with the afterimage of the explosion. Su Qing's words in the communication, "The star chart belongs to the intruder," were like an ice pick, stabbing at the back of his neck.
The holographic screen in the conference room cracked in the explosion, and in the spiderweb of blue light, thirty-seven enemy ships were still approaching.
Xuanmingzi stood before the shattered screen, scorch marks on his Daoist robe still emitting wisps of smoke. The Star-Fixing Coin spun rapidly between his fingers—the copper coin should have made a soft sound with his movements, but now it seemed to be muted, with only the knot of his silver hair swaying slightly.
"Old man, have a seat." Long Wu strode over and placed his broad palm directly on Xuan Mingzi's shoulder.
He used three-tenths of his strength this time, and the old man staggered two steps and fell into the chair, the money clattering onto the table.
Long Wu turned around and tugged at Lin Yi's sleeve, the fabric of his combat uniform ripping loudly. "You sit down too!"
They're practically turning into fighting cocks, why are they still holding back?
Lin Yi was pulled down to his knees.
When he looked up, he saw a scab still clinging to Long Wu's Adam's apple—it was from when he blocked the shards earlier.
This rough-looking man, who always says "I hate talking the most," now has sweat on his nose and dust on his eyelashes, as if he's trying to coax two tantrum-throwing children.
"Old Xuan, I understand you want to be bait." Long Wu dragged over a chair and positioned it between the two of them. "Last time in the lava cave, you fought off the fire giant to save that little nurse, and I carried you for three days; last month, when the supply truck overturned into the ditch, you gave your own compressed biscuits to the wounded and ate tree roots for half a month."
"You fucking can't stand seeing others suffer." He suddenly leaned closer to Xuan Mingzi, the bloodshot veins in his eyes even more intense than before. "But think about it, if you die, who the fuck am I supposed to drink with?"
Who can teach me that Star-Breaking Fist?
Xuanmingzi's fingers trembled slightly on the table.
He stared at the energy crystal still smoldering in Long Wu's palm—it had rolled to his feet earlier and was now burning hot in Long Wu's grip. "Young friend..." he began, but was interrupted by Long Wu raising his hand.
"Brother Lin, don't argue with him!" Long Wu turned and yelled at Lin Yi, his muscles under his combat uniform taut like iron. "You always say you want to protect everyone, but protecting people doesn't mean exhausting yourself like a spinning top!"
"Last time in the void rift, you exhausted your spacetime power to save the entire team, and lay there for three days and three nights; the other day in the Mother Nest, you took a direct hit from a lieutenant general's spatial blade, and the wound on your back hasn't fully healed yet!" He suddenly softened his voice, as if coaxing his own troublesome younger brother, "Old Xuan's life is precious, but isn't yours?"
Chu Yao's terminal emitted a soft beep at this moment.
She had repaired the holographic screen sometime during the night, and the strategic map unfolded again above everyone's heads—red enemy ships, golden energy nodes, and green friendly forces, like a tangled ball of yarn. "I compared the simulation data for both sides," she said, her voice nasal, clearly having just wiped away tears. "The win rate for concentrating forces on the frontal battlefield is 63%, while the win rate for splitting forces to destroy anchor points is 58%."
But…” She traced her fingertip over the anchor point, where a flashing purple marker suddenly appeared. “According to the logs intercepted by the Mother Nest, the intruder’s dimensional anchor point experiences a thirty-minute energy fluctuation every twelve hours—specifically, at 9:17 PM tonight.”
Xuanmingzi's star chart suddenly vibrated inside his Taoist robe.
He abruptly threw open his shirt, and the light and shadow of the Twenty-Eight Mansions seeped from the bottom of the plate, casting a distorted star map on the table. "During the fluctuation period, the defense matrix will have a vulnerability." His voice suddenly became clear, as if he were back to the mornings when he explained astrology to Long Wu. "This old Taoist can intervene the moment the vulnerability appears, using the 'Star-Picking Hand' technique from the Starfall Scripture to lock onto the core... in just ten minutes."
"But your current physical condition!" Chu Yao suddenly checked Xuan Mingzi's vital signs. His heart rate curve looked like a line about to break. "Blood oxygen 59%, myocardial enzymes are 17 times above the standard!"
Even if you manage to reach the anchor point, the Star-Picking Hand needs to mobilize all the star power in your body; your heart simply can't handle it!
"So what?" Xuan Mingzi suddenly laughed, blood seeping from the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes—shrapnel from the explosion had grazed his brow bone. "This old Daoist has lived for 137 years. I've seen people exchange children for food during famines, I've seen people cannibalize each other during nuclear winters, I've seen my closest junior brother stab himself to death for a piece of bread." His fingers traced the cracks on the astrolabe. "But now I can stand here, side by side with you fools who are willing to risk your lives for complete strangers... That's enough."
Lin Yi's nails dug deeply into his palm.
He recalled the attack that Xuanmingzi had taken for him three days ago in the Mother Nest—that spatial blade should have pierced his heart, but the old man had blocked it with his star chart, and the chart still bears a charred gash.
He recalled that last month in the medical ward, he overheard a nurse saying that Xuanmingzi had ground his longevity pills into powder and mixed them into the porridge of the wounded.
The unfinished words Su Qing had spoken in the communication felt like a thorn stuck in his throat.
"I have a compromise," Chu Yao suddenly spoke, her terminal flying across her hands. "Long Wu will lead two elite squads to escort Senior Xuanming to the outer perimeter of the anchor point, using electromagnetic barriers to disrupt the defense matrix; Lin Yi will remain on the front lines, but will retain three time-space reversal opportunities—if anything goes wrong with the anchor point mission, time can be reversed immediately." She brought up a simulation animation, showing blue dots branching off from the front lines to form a protective shield around the anchor point. "This way, we can ensure the success rate of the anchor point mission without excessively dispersing our main combat force."
Long Wu's eyes lit up: "That works!"
"I'll lead a team, and you, Old Xuan, will sit in the co-pilot's seat of my mech. I'll smash my way through you in my 'Tyrannosaurus'!" He patted his chest, scorch marks from his combat suit dripping down. "If you dare sneak out to be a lone hero, I'll tie you to the pilot's seat with the Immortal Binding Rope!"
Xuanmingzi watched the simulated animation on the holographic screen as the vibrations of the star chart gradually subsided.
He reached out and touched Long Wu's hand—those hands were calloused, and the teeth marks from their last close-quarters combat remained at the base of his thumb. "Young friend's plan...is feasible." His voice was as soft as a sigh, "But the fluctuation period only lasts thirty minutes; every second counts."
"Fight for it, damn it!" Long Wu slammed his hand on the table, making Dingxingqian jump up. "I can reach the outer perimeter of the anchor point in eight minutes with my 'Tyrannosaurus'!"
Old Xuan, get your Star-Picking Hand ready! Brother Lin, you keep an eye on the time in command center! Yao Yao, you get the electromagnetic barrier's parameters set to the highest level!
\"bite--\"
Chu Yao's terminal suddenly emitted a piercing beep.
On the holographic screen, the cannons of thirty-seven enemy ships turned simultaneously, and the originally red energy bar suddenly surged into a dazzling purple.
On the flagship at the very front, the eight-eyed totem cracks with spiderweb-like patterns, like some living thing awakening.
"Enemy ship's energy response is abnormal!" Chu Yao's fingertips almost pierced the terminal. "They initiated the dimensional anchor point connection procedure ahead of schedule!"
The period of volatility...has arrived early!
Xuanmingzi suddenly stood up, his Taoist robe sash flipping over the star chart on the table.
The starlight swirled erratically on the ground, like a swarm of startled fireflies. "We must set off now!" He grabbed the star-fixing coin and shoved it into Long Wu's hand. "Young friend, keep this safe for me—if we don't return, consider it compensation for your drinks."
"You old bastard, how dare you!" Long Wu lunged forward to grab him, but Lin Yi stopped him first.
Lin Yi gazed at the light flickering in Xuan Mingzi's eyes—it wasn't the murky light of a dying man, but the light he had first seen in the newbie village when Xuan Mingzi shielded a stranger from a monster's attack.
"I'll go with you." Lin Yi's voice was soft, yet like a ballast stone. "Time travel requires my presence, and the spatial turbulence during the fluctuation period also needs the Time-Space Dominator to stabilize the coordinates." He pulled the bronze key from his neck and placed it in Chu Yao's palm. "You guard the command center; all combat forces are at your command."
"No!" Xuan Mingzi cried out in alarm, the celestial disc emitting a sharp buzzing sound from within his Daoist robe. "You are the core—"
"Without you, the core can't protect anyone." Lin Yi interrupted him, his combat boots already stepping onto the starlight-like shadows on the ground. "Let's go."
Long Wu suddenly burst into laughter, and the electromagnetic knife sprang out of its sheath with a "whoosh".
The blue light from the blade made the scabs on his face shine: "Count me in!"
The co-pilot of the Tyrannosaurus Rex mech can't fit two old men, so I'll be your trailblazer!
Chu Yao watched the three figures rushing towards the cabin door, the terminal in her hand so hot she could barely hold it.
She wiped away her tears, her fingers flying across the control panel—the electromagnetic barrier parameters were set to maximum, the Tyrannosaurus Mech's thrusters were powered to full capacity, and the combat power on the front lines was redistributed.
On the holographic screen, three beams of light burst through the base's dome and sped toward the anchor point on the far side of the moon, like three swords piercing the darkness.
The alarm was still blaring, but the tension in the conference room suddenly eased.
It wasn't until the hatch slammed shut that Chu Yao heard her own rapid heartbeat—a sound mixed with a certain unease, like a stone sunk to the bottom of the sea.
She pulled up Su Qing's call log, her finger hovering over the line "Xuan Mingzi's astrological chart is an intruder's...", but she didn't dare to press the replay button.
Meanwhile, in the sky outside the base, three fighter jets were cutting through the clouds.
Xuanmingzi sat in the observation pod of the Tyrannosaurus Mech, watching the city lights below gradually shrink, and suddenly said softly: "Young friend, if a fight breaks out later... remember to protect Long Wu first."
That kid's afraid of pain.
Lin Yi piloted the space-time fighter and glanced back at the thruster exhaust of the Tyrannosaurus Mech.
He didn't say anything, but quietly adjusted the number of time reversals to five—enough to save two lives.
The wind rushed in through the fighter jet's porthole, carrying with it the sounds of explosions from afar.
Long Wu's laughter rang out from the communicator: "Old man, who the hell are you cursing?"
Later, I'll riddle the anchor point guards with bullets, and you'll have to sing me the Star Song for three days straight!
As Xuanmingzi gazed at the ever-approaching shadow of the moon, he suddenly pulled out the Star-Fixing Coin from his pocket.
The silver hair in the coin hole fluttered in the wind, like a ray of light about to dissipate.
He said softly, "Okay."
But no one noticed that the star chart under his Taoist robe was showing the same dark purple patterns as the invading flagship as the anchor point approached.
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