Having seen through her opponent's nature, Nuwa lost all interest in exploring this "tin can" civilization from beyond the Primordial World.
Their path lay in the ultimate pursuit of "matter."
Her path lay in boundless "life."
Their paths differed; further words were pointless.
Nuwa raised her fair, jade-like hand and lightly pointed across endless void at the diamond-shaped warship spanning the chaos.
"Creation."
The two words left her lips.
There was no sound, no light, much less a torrent of energy.
It was more like an ultimate decree issuing from life's very source.
An invisible will instantly crossed Spacetime and descended upon the cold black warship.
Inside the warship, Gestalt's collective consciousness detected the fluctuation at once.
[Unknown conceptual fluctuation detected.] [Analyzing... Not energy, not matter, not mental interference...] [Fluctuation properties cannot be defined.] [Threat level assessment: Harmless.]
Yet at the very instant that "harmless" assessment appeared—
Rip—
An incredibly faint yet incomparably distinct tearing sound rang out from the warship's indestructible alloy hull.
A tender green shoot forcibly pried open a tiny crack in the black armor, which could withstand the impact of a neutron star, and stubbornly pushed its way out!
The collective consciousness was instantly jolted into action, issuing a piercing alarm!
[Warning! Unknown organic matter has infiltrated the ship's structure!] [Source: Unknown!] [Threat level: Reassessing... Assessment failed!] [Initiating "Purge Protocol"! Executing highest authority: Gamma Ray Storm, molecular-level extermination!]
Buzz!
Gamma rays capable of turning an inhabited planet into a complete dead zone erupted from within the warship, sweeping across the entire hull like an invisible storm.
Any carbon-based lifeform would be completely broken down within one thousandth of a second under such radiation.
But that tender shoot was not.
Nourished by the gamma rays, it was not broken down. Instead, as if watered with divine nectar, it unfurled its first leaf against the storm at a visible speed.
The leaf's veins were distinct, brimming with vitality, as though mocking this so-called "physical extermination."
[Purge... failed!] [Target organic matter... has identified gamma rays as... growth energy...] [Logic... error...]
For the first time, Gestalt's collective consciousness froze for an entire second.
And that second became life's carnival!
The second plant!
The third plant!
The hundredth plant!
Pop! Pop! Pop!
Countless verdant shoots burst forth like bamboo after rain, wildly sprouting from every seam in the warship's armor, every weapons port, every sensor array!
Green vines twisted like dragons, instantly wrapping around the vicious cannon barrels!
Immortal blossoms bloomed, directly plugging the deadly weapon launch ports!
Thick roots ignored the laws of physics, burrowing deep into the cold metal and beginning to frantically drain the warship's energy!
In just a dozen breaths.
A starship representing the universe's pinnacle of technology and destruction became a... massive aerial garden floating amid chaos.
Flowers bloomed atop the cannon barrels, beautiful beyond measure.
Everyone aboard the Civilization was dumbfounded.
"Am... am I seeing things? That iron lump... grew grass?"
"It didn't just grow grass! It bloomed! Look at that biggest cannon barrel—is that a peony growing on it?!"
"This isn't even a divine ability anymore... This is a miracle! This is the art of trampling destruction beneath your feet, then making it bloom!"
Compared to humanity's shock, Gestalt was undergoing an unprecedented collapse.
[Warning! Hull structural integrity has fallen to 82%!] [Warning! Energy lines in Sector A have been pierced by plant roots. Energy leakage: 70%!] [Warning! 93% of weapon systems offline! Cannon barrels physically blocked by unknown plants!] [Warning! Self-repair system failure! Nanobots assimilated into... nutrients!] [Warning! Logic core infiltrated! An indelible "life" concept virus detected!] [Save...]
The cold alarms ultimately became a despairing wail of a single word, then abruptly ceased.
Their fortress, their pride, was being dismantled and consumed from within by a force they could not comprehend.
They could destroy matter and annihilate energy, but they could not kill the very concept of "life."
Because they did not understand life at all.
At that moment, Chen Ran's will rang out within Nuwa's Nascent Soul.
"Your Grace, show mercy."
Nuwa's cool Nascent Soul stirred slightly.
"?"
"This thing is a good coordinate." Chen Ran's will came calmly. "Destroy it, and it will draw more here—perhaps even stronger ones. Leave it. I want to... talk to whatever stands behind it."
Nuwa fell silent for a moment, seemingly trying to understand Chen Ran's logic.
The next moment, her vast Saintly will enveloped Chen Ran's intent, transforming into an irresistible divine thought that descended directly into the diamond-shaped warship's central core, which was on the verge of collapse.
A cold, majestic, unquestionable voice resounded within Gestalt's collective consciousness.
"Now, choose."
"Talk, or die?"
Before you continue