Return and the New Order

The moment the Gatekeeper transformed, a deep, muffled rumble rose from the depths of the Definition Sea. It was not a wail, nor a roar, but a newborn's first cry—filled with confusion, curiosity, and its first gaze upon this world.

Lin Ye withdrew the hand pressed against the embryo's surface. The eight billion stars on his cloak—no, eight billion and one now—shone steadily. The final dark-red star pulsed quietly at the edge. It was called "Loneliness."

For the first time on the journey back, Harmonic Leaptone's fifty layers of harmonics fully unfolded, and she discovered a problem.

"Tuner, the flow rate of the returning definitions is wrong."

Lin Ye did not turn around. His multicolored pupils remained fixed on the uterine wall ahead, which had begun to dissolve. "Speak."

"Although the Gatekeeper has begun returning definitions to all universes, the speed is too slow." Harmonic Leaptone projected the scan data into everyone's consciousness. "At the current rate, the Iron Curtain Universe will need three hundred eras to fully restore the Definition Sea. The Ember Era is doing better, but it will still need fifty eras."

Iron Curtain—the former Iron Curtain Overlord—walked over from behind. The newly appeared motley colors within his silver-white outline were especially glaring beneath the faint glow of the Definition Sea. His voice was no longer arrogant, carrying instead a practical calm that was almost ruthless. "Three hundred eras? My civilization cannot wait that long."

Myriad Faces spoke from within a shattered mirror. Its true body was covered in cracks, but an intact reflective surface remained at the center. A complex structural diagram emerged upon it—the connection topology between the Definition Sea and the various universes.

"I have a proposal," Myriad Faces said, each word echoing with the tremor of the mirror's surface. "Establish Definition Channels between