Chapter 134: The Unbeatable Thought Seal (Two-in-One)
“By the way, Mr. Silver.”
“The next Era Echo that I am preparing for should not only be my personal task but also qualify as an official task of the institute, right?”
“In other words, I should be able to apply for resource support from the Ruins Institute and Ashen Academy this time, correct?”
Rast did not stay in the Tower of Secrets for long. After a brief rest, he walked straight out of the Tower.
The information regarding the “Civilization Epic Event Line”—about this unique mechanism in the Night World—is incredibly rare, even when considering the entire history of Night World exploration in the current era.
Perhaps past Night Travelers had occasionally triggered the “Civilization Epic Event Line,” but at that time, the recording and dissemination of information were not as advanced as they are today.
Even if some information was preserved, it mostly consisted of vague lines of text with little reference value.
Thus, even Rast and Mr. Silver could not determine how long the so-called “Historical Node Lock” mentioned in the Night World’s prompts would last.
According to the Night World’s hints, this should be akin to a save point in a game instance.
If taken literally, Rast could completely hide in the present world until he became a sixth-tier and spend decades achieving legendary status… training himself into a sword master of Ten Mile Slope before emerging to continue the main storyline of the “Battle of the Broken Coast” in the Era Echo.
However, the situation he faced this time is different from a purely strategy game.
Akshia, as a Night Traveler, is currently trapped in the Era Echo of the Night World.
The passage of time in the Night World is not aligned with that of the present world.
Sometimes, hundreds of years pass in the Night World, while only a few days go by in the present world… or vice versa—anything is possible.
Therefore, no one can be certain about what Akshia will experience in the Night World when Rast is in the present world…
She is not a native resident of the Night World and historical echoes… but an outsider as a Night Traveler, incongruous with both the Night World and the historical echoes themselves.
If trapped for an extended period in the Night World, it is highly likely that unforeseen events would occur.
Akshia’s current predicament in the Night World made Rast recall when he was trapped in Deep Blue Harbor.
At that time—he was also lost in the nightmare of infinite resets in Deep Blue Harbor as an outsider not belonging to the Night World.
The entire world was looping in cycles, with only his memory preserved… If not for Canaan and Xiao Ai’s presence, Rast would have likely self-destructed in those hundreds of years.
It is highly probable that a similar situation could recur with Akshia.
Thus, under the premise of being fully prepared—
Rast’s next entry into the Era Echo to continue the Civilization Epic Event Line of the “Battle of the Broken Coast” could not come soon enough… Any delay would exponentially increase the chances of an incident occurring in Akshia’s Night World.
Though he had just escaped from the Night World, Rast had no time to relax or goof off.
“Of course—”
Mr. Silver remained in the hall of the Tower of Secrets, looking at the boy walking towards the exit of the Tower not far away, and replied.
“After all, while the main reason for Xiya’s current situation is our insufficient understanding of the End of the Night World and the Era Echo—even more bluntly… it’s because we were fooled by that cunning Night World.”
“But strictly speaking, if it weren’t for my and Ophelia’s decision, Xiya wouldn’t be trapped in the historical echoes now.”
He wagged his fluffy white tail: “Every Night Traveler entering the Night World has already made the resolution to surrender to darkness and become a brilliant star on the Obelisk.”
“However, this does not mean that the lives of Night Travelers, or the term ‘companions’ in our eyes, can be casually discarded.”
Mr. Silver’s tone became more serious, no longer conveying the previous lazy demeanor of playing dumb and acting cute.
Perhaps when the Starry University was first established, it resembled a ruthless military machine operating without any humanity.
It trained Night Travelers into cold, indifferent consumables and killing machines; these materials could be casually discarded in order to conquer the Night World.
However, that old principal—
Used his lifetime to gradually transform the Starry University from a cold, ruthless killing machine when he took over into what it is today.
“Not to mention that Xiya, as the current number one in the Obelisk’s rank and the top of the Round Table, has made countless contributions in exploring and conquering the Night World.”
“Even if she were just an ordinary student, we would never abandon any companion if it were possible.”
“Moreover, the Era Echo you are preparing for—the upcoming ‘Battle of the Broken Coast’—is not merely about saving Xiya.”
Mr. Silver’s gaze became quite solemn then.
At this moment, he no longer resembled a long-time lazy ferret, but rather possessed the dignity of the head of the Magical Creatures Research Institute and the uniqueness of being a long-standing holder of the “Moon” sequence.
“The first Night World appears from the Sixth Epoch until now; it has already been several decades.”
“During these decades, with the pioneering and explorations of generations of Night Travelers… our understanding of the Sixth Epoch’s complete history has deepened continuously.”
“However, the past Night World mostly focuses on the early to mid-stages of the Sixth Epoch, the golden age of rapid civilization development… at that time, the extraordinary system of the Sixth Epoch had not genuinely germinated, and the era’s backdrop was primarily about the development and progress of science and technology.”
“And starting with the emergence of the Evil God in Deep Blue Harbor… after the Catastrophic Era, the Night World and historical echoes appeared on a large scale in the latter half of the Sixth Epoch, which happened after Tina and the others entered Starry University.”
“We know very little about the history of the Sixth Epoch after the Catastrophic Era, but this period is the most crucial segment in the entire history of the Night World… it is the closest to our current era, making it the most valuable reference.”
As Rast approached the exit of the Tower of Secrets, he and Mr. Silver grew further apart.
However, the voice of the ferret director resonated directly in Rast’s heart as “Whispers Under the Moon.”
“And the Era Echo you are entering this time is the forefront of the current world for exploring the Sixth Epoch.”
“In the past, no Night Traveler ever advanced the timeline to the point of the [Battle of the Broken Coast] within the Sixth Epoch’s Night World echoes.”
“Though it has not truly erupted yet, it can already be confirmed that this will inevitably be a war involving two… or possibly more legends; the outcome of this war could directly determine the future direction of Sixth Epoch civilization—if not, the Night World wouldn’t define it as a ‘Civilization Epic.'”
“And for us, the intelligence from this Battle of the Broken Coast carries unimaginable significance—if we can take this opportunity to investigate the truth behind the fall of Sixth Epoch civilization…”
“Then it will greatly aid us when facing the End Echo from conquering all seventy-two Night Worlds.”
Though Mr. Silver’s words were not fully articulated, Rast already understood their meaning.
After all, at the close of each of the past six epochs, a cataclysmic disaster that brought about the collapse of civilizations was born.
So, it is unreasonable for the present world, or rather the end of the Seventh Epoch, not to experience similar disasters.
Since it is already known that the cataclysm that ends the civilizations of epochs will inevitably arrive, gathering intelligence and preparing in advance is what the Night Travelers of the present world must do.
Perhaps some can face the end of their epoch calmly, waiting peacefully for the day of judgment… but such individuals are not the majority.
Even knowing that hope is slim and that countless civilizations have perished in the past, despite the precedents of epoch metamorphoses… it is worth the effort to fight.
In this regard, both the Guardian of the Shore Organization of the Sixth Epoch and Starry University share the same principle.
“So, go ahead and prepare.”
“I will apply for the highest level of authority for you at the institute… as long as it is for the purpose of conquering the Era Echo, resources from both the Tower of Secrets and Ashen Academy will be unconditionally open to you, with no upper limit.”
Mr. Silver gazed at Rast’s figure: “I know you have witnessed the unique power of legends in this Era Echo…”
“However, you do not need to feel disheartened because of it.”
“The path to legend does not rely on external assistance… in terms of the number of legendary strongmen, compared to the accumulation of several eras in the Night World, we may indeed be lacking.”
“But our civilization has advantages that past civilizations did not have.”
“The [Mechanics]—this is a product unique to our time.”
“Past failed civilizations mostly halted in their technological advancement at the critical junction of the [Steam Era], and with the arrival of some disaster, civilization shifted from prosperity to decline, and technological levels came to a standstill.”
“However, this epoch is different; as soon as our civilization’s flame was just beginning to spark… the emergence of the Night World allowed our Night Travelers to gain insight into many future technologies through historical echoes in advance.”
“The technological level of our era far exceeds that of any past epochs… with the power of technology, even an ordinary person without any strength can potentially k*ll high-tier extraordinary beings or even legends.”
Mr. Silver began to speak slowly: “Although the use of technological weapons in the Night World is quite limited…”
“Within the Ashen Academy, there indeed exist mechanical constructs designed with legendary strongmen or even ‘deities’ as hypothetical adversaries—”
“For example, the Judgment Spear—Damocles’ Sword—currently targeting our position in low Earth orbit above the Tower of Secrets.”
“Of course, most of these mechanical weapons are still in the design phase, but a few have already reached the prototype and testing stage.”
“If necessary, I will notify the Ashen Academy to grant you access to this part of the authority.”
…
“You misunderstood, Mr. Silver.”
Rast’s voice also resonated through “Whispers Under the Moon,” directly sounding in Mr. Silver’s mind.
“You don’t need to worry that I lost confidence in our civilization after witnessing the power of legends and said these things to me.”
“I have never doubted this point from the beginning—”
“[We will surely win].”
“[And the cycle of epoch shifts, the fall and rebirth of civilizations must come to an end in our era].”
“This belief is like a thought seal, imprinted deep within my soul from the very start.”
“Whether outsiders call it ignorance or arrogance, it doesn’t change the essence…”
“But if I were to betray this belief, then Rast would cease to exist.”
He did not turn back but merely waved his hand behind him.
“I will enter closed-door training for about a month before I next enter the Era Echo, likely staying in the Ashen Academy during this time.”
“During this period, I would trouble Mr. Silver to help collect the materials and extraordinary items I need…”
The young boy’s slender figure kept retreating until he quickly reached the exit of the Tower of Secrets.
“Sigh, being young is great—pure, determined, and unyielding.”
“No wonder Little Ferret has such high hopes for him; the old principal would probably like him too if he returned.”
Barba Rosa’s powerful voice suddenly rang in Mr. Silver’s ear.
Mr. Silver glanced at the old gorilla professor beside him, who was acting all wise, and couldn’t help but curl his lip.
If this brute knew Rast’s true psychological age, he wouldn’t know what expression to make.
“However—”
Mr. Silver’s gaze returned to the exit of the Tower of Secrets.
“That unfinished fairy tale…”
He watched the boy’s diminishing silhouette, which was already barely audible.
Mr. Silver had observed Akshia’s first-person live broadcast, so he naturally knew exactly what Rast meant by that unfinished fairy tale.
“So, not only Little Xiya, but even you have taken it seriously.”
“The fairy tale is fake, but is love real?”
“However, if it were you…”
“Maybe you really could write a conclusion that meets everyone’s expectations for that unfinished story.”
(End of Chapter)
