Eye and Worm

It was as though a giant were leaning against the outside of a Petri dish, looking down and gazing at everything within. Under the gaze of that eerie eye, the entire scene flickered unstably like a smashed display screen, broken by mottled patches of color and jagged fractures. The game had glitched: textures flew everywhere, polygons shifted erratically, hitboxes spun out of control, and harsh, screeching sounds tore through the air one after another. Compared to the twisted, deformed sea, the meteor falling from the heavens was nothing more than a spark of firefly light. Under the scrutiny of that pupil, it rapidly turned translucent, fading from substance into nothingness, dissolving into a phantom, and dispersing entirely. In the blink of an eye, the remnants of twilight burned away, and everything plunged back into darkness. BOOM!! In the very last instant before vanishing, the blazing meteor violently shuddered and disintegrated, unleashing a colossal tempest across midair that swept over the entire sea. Violent shockwaves howled in all directions. Detonation! Yet such power was still not enough to tear through the "veil" draped over reality. At most, it merely peeled back a single corner, revealing the grotesque horrors lurking behind the illusion. Corpses—countless corpses. Those translucent phantoms of corpses drifted upon the deathly still surface, bobbing up and down. All the souls across the world whose sense of self had been stolen by Dreamloss Syndrome were now manifested within the sea, drifting along with the current. As if pulled by an invisible gravity, they continued to gather in an endless stream. Innumerable bodies wove into an eerie vortex, silently swirling and slowly converging toward the desolate island in the sea. They crawled and dragged themselves onto the barren beach—hollow walking corpses wearing blissful smiles, singing joyful melodies as they involuntarily converged toward the central high tower. Piled atop one another, squirming continuously, they began climbing toward the very peak of the tower. Fresh corpses kept scrambling up the tower while others plummeted. Even more were dragged down by those beneath them, unable to break free, or torn apart and devoured. Yet even as they sank deeper into the mire, their spirits annihilated, every blissful face still wore a smile. In their eyes lay only a yearning for the tower's summit and a morbid hunger. Not shifting for even an instant. From beginning to end, the Blood Eye high in the heavens gazed down at it all, staring in contemptuous disregard. Snap! A wave of blackness suddenly washed over Ji Jue's vision. His head throbbed with splitting agony; he could barely breathe. His soul shuddered, unable to find peace. For a brief moment, the scene before his eyes seemed to splinter apart once more, replaced by a colossal tree that spanned heaven and earth, and even the rotting carcass of an immense serpent. Then, for another instant, everything vanished, turning into something else. Bubbles, iridescent light, smiling faces, a rotting heart pulsing relentlessly, and even his own mangled corpse... like fleeting glimpses reflected through a kaleidoscope, shifting without end. "Don't look!" Yellowbeard's voice roared by his ear. In his hands, a flamberge and a buckler slammed together with force, bursting into a sharp, shrill metallic resonance. The shockwave rippled outward, jolting all the combatants who had unwittingly slipped into a daze back to their senses. "...The Kingdom of Huaxu?" Yellowbeard's eyes narrowed. Scanning his surroundings from the corner of his eye, he realized in an instant and said decisively, "No, it's the Relic of the Yellow Millet!" The remains of one of the kings of old—the Lord of Huaxu, Master of the Yellow Millet. The final fragment left in the mortal world before the former Paradise of Myriad Phenomena turned to ash. As an essence stripped from Sovereign Virtue and persisting in the mortal realm in physical form, merely peeling back its seal was enough to naturally corrode reality, creating a vortex that drew in all consciousness and desire! Just like... Ji Jue murmured in sudden realization: "—A Celestial-Human's chronowedge?" The Celestial Chosen's four realms and twelve ranks—a long, arduous path that countless Chosen spent their entire lives pursuing without reaching the end—actually had a brutally mocking umbrella term: the "Raw Stone stage." If the Celestial Chosen were merely raw stones compared to Sovereign Virtue, then the existence of a Celestial-Human was the critical step toward transcending the mundane and sublimating toward Sovereign Virtue. Four stages, twelve blessings. After passing through Calling, Metamorphosis, Regeneration, and Exaltation, the Celestial Chosen who completed the final stage would truly become an existence that transcended the mortal realm. The so-called Celestial-Human. Not only would they harmonize with the tapestry of Sovereign Virtue and become nearly one with it from that point on, but when going all out, they could even resonate with the grand tapestry that Sovereign Virtue represented across time. Like driving a nail through the magnificent patterns of silk to fasten it to a wall, they could temporarily superimpose the portion of the "tapestry" they resonated with onto reality. Put simply, they forcibly overlapped specific changes—either "what had occurred in the past" or "what would occur in the future"—with reality, creating a unique manifestation! And as manifested here, it was as if a corner of the ancient Kingdom of Huaxu had reappeared in reality. This was a chronowedge. Wedge? The word flashed through Ji Jue's throbbing head, but before he could ponder it, all his thoughts dissolved into haziness. At the same time, the spine-chilling sensation began to fade. He breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, what formed all this was not a living Celestial-Human, but merely a remnant left behind by one of the kings. They had noticed early enough. As long as they didn't get close, they naturally didn't have to worry about getting dragged in. The unfortunate part was that while a Celestial-Human had to exert their full strength to sustain a chronowedge, for this remnant that had tainted the entire forbidden zone, it was nothing more than natural radiation. Like the magnetic field of a magnet, it emanated distortion and corruption at every waking moment. It might be even harder to deal with than a Celestial-Human! "Heh, what a setup..." Yellowbeard sighed softly in his projection, looking back toward Ji Jue with a mocking smirk. "Director Ji, with the situation this absurd, you don't expect us to mount a frontal assault, do you?" Regardless of who their opponent was, now that they had used the Relic of the Yellow Millet to corrupt the forbidden zone, established such an enormous domain, and secured home-field advantage... This forbidden zone had long since overlapped with dreams, like the reappearance of the Paradise of Myriad Phenomena. Even if its scale was limited, no matter how small or bounded, it was still a part of that paradise. Anyone who charged in recklessly would likely be corrupted by the chronowedge of the Yellow Millet's relic. As if trapped in an illusion, they might forget their name and purpose in an instant, or even become puppets within nonexistent memories and illusory dreams, turning their blades against their former companions! Unless... There was a power strong enough to instantly disperse the corruption of the Yellow Millet's relic, blowing away the mist like a gale and shattering the chronowedge's erosion of reality. Ji Jue spoke slowly. "Speaking of which, the Northern Realm is, after all, the powerhouse of the Northern Permafrost. With such deep pockets built over so many years, illustrious martial exploits, and a reputation that strikes terror throughout the Thousand Islands..." "Stop!" Yellowbeard cut him off impatiently. "Cut the crap. Get to the point." There was no helping it; he had learned through bitter experience. Whenever a creature like Ji Jue opened his mouth, he started barking. The sweeter his flattery sounded now, the uglier his true face would be when revealed. The more buildup he gave, the warier Yellowbeard grew, wondering what kind of scheme the kid was cooking up. Ji Jue shrugged regretfully and sighed. His wind-up had failed, so he might as well cut straight to the chase. "—Got any fusion bombs?" [?] For a moment, Yellowbeard nearly laughed out loud. Out of pure rage. Did you even hear the madness coming out of your mouth? Fusion bombs? What the hell are you thinking? Do you really think those things are jellybeans you can pick up on any street corner, tossing them out by the handful? "We Northerners are upstanding people!" Yellowbeard retorted categorically. "How could we possibly have something that dangerous?!" A forbidden weapon strictly prohibited by international agreements was not a toy anyone could casually pull out. Once detonated, regardless of how minute the yield might be, it was enough to trigger alarms across every city-state and the two global superpowers—a harbinger of total destructive war... In the armistice signed a century ago between the Empire and the Federation, it was explicitly stated: during the truce, any fusion detonation not deliberated upon and approved in conference with necessary conclusions reached, and lacking the dual seals of both the Federation and the Empire, constituted a provocation and declaration of war of the highest order against both powers. An express train to hell, guaranteed to plunge the user into eternal damnation! All parties would unite to obliterate them, no questions asked. And if that didn't kill them, they'd beat them within an inch of their life until it did! Of course, if you asked whether a massive enterprise like the North Wind Workshop possessed such things... they did, brother, of course they did. But Yellowbeard would rather die than admit it. I don't have them. Absolutely not. So you'd best hope I don't, either. "Tsk..." Ji Jue couldn't help but shake his head. "Are you guys useless or what? You don't even have a fusion bomb." Right here, right now, inside a forbidden zone, right next to the corruption of the Yellow Millet's relic. Only heaven, earth, you, and I would know. What's the harm in pulling one out for use? Did you think I'd keep it as dirt to report you later? Acting with practiced speed, Ji Jue muted the comms. All he could see in the projection was Yellowbeard with his beard and hair bristling, his lips flapping at rapid-fire speed like a clappertale performer. Unfortunately, not a word could be heard. What a shame. Only when Yellowbeard was nearly done did he leisurely restore the volume, catching Yellowbeard mid-sentence: "...Of course, if you, Director Ji, are so mighty and capable of breaking the deadlock, that's another story. Otherwise, if you expect the Dragon Bone Fleet to do all the heavy lifting, I think the terms we agreed upon earlier might need some revising." If North Wind claimed the MVP while Ji Jue just coasted along for the carry, then naturally the spoils would go to whoever did the work. As for Punabantu afterward, don't even dream of getting a piece of the pie—put on your golden circlet and go sit in a corner! So if you've got any real tricks up your sleeve, show them off already. Stop slacking off, dammit! "Patience, Master, patience." Ji Jue shrugged and sighed, casting a glance at the mutated world in the distance. Finally, he turned back, looked up toward the sky, and pointed a finger: "Can I borrow this to play with?" "..." Yellowbeard's expression shifted slightly in surprise, his brows instinctively furrowing. He had a feeling this punk was up to no good. At this moment, outside the forbidden zone, the sky above the Dragon Bone Fleet was covered only by a thick blanket of light gray clouds, with continuous lightning and rumbling thunder. Those were the thunderclaps and rainclouds gathered by the Dragon Bone Fleet. Beyond serving as a power source when needed, they could also provide meteorological enhancements and cover for large-scale operations, or even be wielded as a weapon... Unfortunately, they hadn't brought several accompanying Heavenly Works on this excursion, rendering them largely useless. "Do as you like." Yellowbeard crossed his arms and eyed Ji Jue sideways. He wanted to see what kind of foul scheme this bastard was cooking up. Chuckling sarcastically, he asked, "Need a hand? The scale is pretty big. I can unlock the controls and restraints for you on my end first..." Even though his words were mocking, he didn't realize that, without noticing, he had already placed this bastard on equal footing with himself. Yet faced with Yellowbeard's rare goodwill, Ji Jue acted almost shy. He waved his hand. "Oh, no need to go to all that trouble." He offered an embarrassed, bashful smile. "Ahem... I've already started..." At that instant, Yellowbeard's smile froze on his face. Only now did he realize that, without him noticing, the heavy thunderclouds overhead had completely ceased responding. They were beyond his control, giving no feedback whatsoever. All that remained were terrifying spiritus fluctuations erupting from the bursts of thunder and fire. Amidst the endless thunder and lightning, a brilliant speck of silver light quietly emerged, then erupted like a geyser. In the blink of an eye, it spread everywhere. Radiant silver glow surged, filling and overtaking the void-like clouds, swallowing the thunder. The moment Yellowbeard snapped his head up, he seemed to see a faint face emerging from the boundless clouds, indifferently lifting its eyes to glance toward the illusions and the Blood Eye dominating the distant sky. Immediately after, countless threads arose by the tens of thousands, intertwining with one another like petals unfurling layer upon layer, blooming like a lotus as they hungrily stretched out in every direction! A tempest suddenly erupted! Surging tides formed from the circulation of massive spiritus churned violently. With the expansion of the silver glow, a bottomless black hole manifested within the clouds, ravenously devouring everything in sight. In an instant, it churned the seawater and whipped up raging winds, transforming into a natural disaster amidst gales howling louder than thunder! The Crown of Isis! No—Specialized Type: Nether Sea Worm, incubation complete!