In the circular conference room of the central base, holographic projections displayed images of representatives from all parties above the round table.
Long Wu's combat uniform was still stained with blood. He slumped in his chair, rubbing his aching temples. Elder Cangsong of the ancient martial arts family stroked his white beard, his gaze like silver needles tempered with ice. Chen Mo, the CEO of the technology group, pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses and tapped rapidly on the virtual keyboard—a habitual gesture when he was anxious.
"Mr. Lin," Elder Cangsong spoke first, his voice like an old elm tree striking a bluestone slab, "Our ancient martial arts lineage has come out in full force, not to be cannon fodder for the young people."
The Old Gods' fleet will arrive in three hours. What guarantees do you have that you can hold out?
Chen Mo's projection suddenly flickered, and a scrolling data stream appeared in his image: "The Reality Alliance's quantum defense system requires seventy-two hours of preheating. Forcibly activating it will cause a global power grid shutdown." He paused in the motion of adjusting his glasses. "Unless... you have something that can replace the energy source."
Red Rose from the superpowered organization twirled the flame at her fingertips, the firelight illuminating the beauty mark at the corner of her eye: "I've heard that you have four keys."
But something of mythical value... who knows if it might backfire?
Lin Yi sat in the main seat, his fingers lightly resting on the Key of Destiny on the table.
The patterns on the key's surface glowed slightly with his heartbeat, like star trails coming to life.
He could hear the breathing sounds rising and falling in the conference room, see the bulging veins on Elder Cangsong's Adam's apple as it moved, and smell the rusty smell of blood seeping from Long Wu's wound mixed with gunpowder smoke.
"Want to see the backlash?" He suddenly gripped the key, golden light spilling from between his fingers, casting a swirling star map on the table. "Then let's see what it can suppress."
The lights in the conference room suddenly went out.
Everyone's pupils contracted in the darkness—they saw a cloud of purplish-black mist rising in mid-air, a manifestation of the will of the Old God, hissing and devouring the air.
But when the golden light of the key swept across, the mist, like butter being cut by a scalding knife, instantly dissipated into specks of fluorescent light.
Elder Cangsong's beard twitched.
He suddenly stood up, raised his hand and placed it on the ancient martial arts badge on his chest—a gesture reserved only for truly powerful individuals: "Old man, you've been blind."
Chen Mo's data stream suddenly turned entirely gold, the star map reflected in his glasses, and his voice trembled: "This energy... is enough to power ten quantum reactors."
The flame of the red rose has gone out.
She stared at her palms, where the warmth from the golden light still lingered: "I feel... my ability circuits are working smoothly again."
Under the round table, Long Wu nudged Lin Yi's waist with his uninjured hand: "Not bad, boss. You should have shown this trick sooner, so they wouldn't have to keep nagging."
The communicator suddenly vibrated.
Chu Yao's voice came through Lin Yi's earpiece, crackling with static: "The Dragon Team has triggered Xuan Mingzi's defense mechanism and needs backup."
The dome of the Tower of the Abyss is collapsing.
Long Wu swung his sword and cleaved through the last mechanical guard, but the tip of his sword was deflected by a blue light the instant it touched the fourth key.
He staggered a couple of steps, the blood from his wound seeping out even more fiercely, leaving a winding red trail on the ground.
"What a piece of junk!" He raised his knife to strike again, but the key suddenly floated up, and semi-transparent patterns appeared around it—the patterns on Xuanmingzi's Taoist robe.
"Long Wu."
The hoarse voice echoed in the empty tower.
Long Wu's knife clattered to the ground.
He recognized that this was the last trace of Xuanmingzi's spirit left in the key, even though the other party had already turned into data and dissipated into the void.
"The key is the bridge, but people's hearts are the support." The old man in the holographic image coughed twice, his sleeves dusted with stardust from an era that seemed out of place. "Without trust, there will be no success."
Long Wu looked at the team members around him.
Some of them were clutching their broken legs, others were clutching their shields broken in two, but they were all looking up at him.
The tech-savvy team member who always said "save yourself first" was handing a hemostatic spray to the superhuman next to him, while the ancient martial arts disciple who always argued with him was using his belt to tighten the wound of his teammate.
He suddenly laughed, bent down to pick up the knife, the tip of which wasn't pointing at the keys, but at his still-bleeding wound: "Listen up!"
"I'm betting my life on this. Anyone who dares to hold back—"
"Team Leader Long!" A member of the Science and Technology Department interrupted him, shoving the newly repaired locator at him. "The coordinates have been sent to Mr. Lin."
This key... let's take it together.
The martial arts disciple wiped the blood from his blade: "My grandfather said that anyone who can make Elder Cangsong perform ancient rituals is someone you can entrust your back to."
Long Wu's Adam's apple bobbed.
He patted the science and technology team member heavily on the shoulder, then punched the ancient martial arts disciple in the chest, before looking up at the key: "Old man, you're right."
At the same time, in the starship wreckage area of an advanced civilization.
The shadowy figure's trench coat was ripped open in three places by the laser, revealing the bandaged muscles underneath.
He leaned against the rusty engine, a dagger in his hand plunged into the throat of the third spy, blood dripping down the blade groove onto his oil-stained military boots.
"Night Owl's dog, it's quite a leaper." He pulled down his hood, blood still seeping from the wound on his forehead, but he smiled like a wolf that had just hunted its prey.
The communicator suddenly beeped.
Chu Yao's voice boomed from inside: "Turn left three meters, there's a backup energy capsule!"
Their locator is on your left boot heel, I'm now tracing it in reverse—
The dark figure suddenly rolled forward.
The spot where he had just been was scorched by the laser, leaving a blackened hole.
He touched the microchip on the left heel of his boot, crushed it to dust with his fingers, and at the same time, following Chu Yao's instructions, smashed open the door to the energy cabin.
\"boom!\"
The explosion sent starship wreckage raining down.
The shadowy figure squinted at the distant flames, and Chu Yao's soft laughter came through the communicator: "Done."
Also... I hacked into Night Owl's communication network.
The holographic screen suddenly unfolded in front of him.
Inside was Night Owl's face, talking to someone wearing an ancient martial arts badge—Elder Cangsong's most valued closed-door disciple.
"I see." The dark figure pulled the hood back up, bloodstains spreading along the edge like a grotesque flower. "No wonder Elder Cangsong was so resistant at first."
Inside the conference room of the central base, Lin Yi had just finished listening to Chu Yao's report when the image of a dark figure suddenly appeared on the holographic screen.
His hood was still dripping blood, yet he grinned like a child who had received candy: "Mr. Lin, do you need me to clean house for you?"
Elder Cangsong's face turned deathly pale instantly.
He abruptly stood up, the ancient martial arts sword at his waist flashing three inches from its sheath: "Traitor!"
"No need." Lin Yi pressed down on Cangsong's wrist, his gaze sweeping across the entire room. "True allies don't need to be eliminated."
What's needed is... to get to know each other again.
He walked up to the high platform in the center of the conference room.
The golden light of the key rose from beneath his feet, like a staircase leading to the starry sky.
Long Wu's image appeared on his right, holding the fourth key in his arms, his wound still bleeding but smiling brightly; the image of the shadowy figure was on his left, his eyes under the hood shining like two stars; Chu Yao's data stream wrapped around his arm, condensing into a semi-transparent humanoid shape beside him.
"Three hours from now, the Old Gods fleet will arrive in Earth's orbit." Lin Yi's voice wasn't loud, but it struck everyone's heart like a heavy hammer. "What they want isn't conquest, but erasure."
Erase our civilization, our memories, every single moment of our existence.
He raised the key, and a sudden burst of golden light illuminated the faces of every representative: "But they don't know—"
"We have the key to connect the past and the future!" Long Wu's roar exploded from the video.
"A dagger capable of piercing through starship wreckage!" The shadowy figure flicked the still-dripping knife in his hand.
"A brain capable of cracking any code!" Chu Yao's data stream wrote lines of golden text in the air.
"More importantly—" Lin Yi's gaze swept across the entire room, "we have each other."
Elder Cangsong suddenly drew his sword, the tip lifting his robe to reveal the ancient martial arts totem on his chest: "The entire ancient martial arts lineage is at your command!"
Chen Mo shut down all data streams and placed his hands on the table: "All the energy resources of the Technology Alliance are at your disposal!"
The flames of the red roses reignited, this time a pure gold: "Ability users, fight to the last one!"
Cheers surged forth like a tidal wave.
Some people were pounding on the table, some were brandishing weapons, and some were laughing like madmen with tears in their eyes.
In the video, Long Wu tossed the key into the air and caught it steadily; the shadowy figure stuck the dagger into the table in front of him, the hilt still vibrating; Chu Yao's data stream turned into a flag, with the four characters "Alliance of Fate" embroidered on it in gold thread.
The alarm suddenly pierced the air.
"Border defenses under attack! Night Owl Vanguard Fleet breaches the first quantum barrier!"
Lin Yi's pupils contracted.
He raised the key, and golden light surged forth as if it were real, forming a defensive matrix on the holographic screen in the conference room.
Long Wu's image suddenly vanished, leaving only the words: "I'm going to cut off their heads and use them as footballs!"
The shadowy figure's hood fluttered in the wind: "Traitors to advanced civilizations will be dealt with by me."
Chu Yao's data stream instantly filled all communication channels: "Defense system has taken over, energy supply increased to 200%."
Lin Yi stood on the high platform, watching the artillery fire from the border defense line fall like meteors on the holographic screen, only to be deflected one by one by the golden light shield.
He could feel the key getting hot, and he could feel countless gazes passing through the screen and falling on him—trusting, expectant, and desperate.
When the final wave of attacks was repelled, cheers erupted in the conference room.
But Lin Yi knew that this was just an appetizer.
The main fleet of Night Owl is still lying in wait behind the clouds; the wrath of the Old Gods has not yet truly descended.
He looked down at the keys in his hand.
During the battle, a pattern he had never seen before flashed inside the key, like some ancient language, or... the rhythm of a heartbeat.
"Chu Yao," he said softly, "open the door to the resonance chamber."
Chu Yao's data stream condensed into a nod beside him: "All permissions have been cleared."
Do you need me to accompany you?
"No need." Lin Yi touched the "Lin" character on his key, turned, and walked towards the hidden door at the back of the conference room. "There are some things... I need to see for myself."
The hidden door slowly closed behind him.
The golden light of the key illuminated the inside of the door, stretching his shadow long and long, as if it were extending into another time and space.
On the other side of the door, in the seven-hole recess in the center of the resonance chamber, four keys were gently vibrating.
Their light intertwined, forming a blurry human figure—the silhouette of Su Qing, facing his back, silently uttering two words.
Don't be afraid.
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