As the Principal conveyed those words, the churning black mist rising around him suddenly seemed to come alive, turning into countless miniature mouths that gnawed at the edges of his body...
And amid wave after wave of fluctuations, the Principal's body actually became a human silhouette seemingly composed of countless bubbles. Without a close look, it appeared heavily pixelated, resembling the Principal, but upon closer inspection, it looked profoundly disjointed, as though it had been assembled from separate pieces...
Lin Yi could be certain that the figure before him really was the Principal, but he had no idea why the Principal had become like this.
As the Principal spoke, his golden eyes suddenly began to turn. His pupils split into two, then four, dividing endlessly until countless pupils filled the whites of his eyes, like eggs laid by a frog.
"I can no longer return..."
"But... I found the answer..."
"You were right... all of you were right..."
"They are no longer themselves... I must remain here... leave the brand upon me here forever..."
"There are coordinates... on my body..."
"Only by staying... can I annihilate these coordinates..."
"It may take a very, very long time, or perhaps... they can never be erased..."
"So... I can no longer return..."
"Go back and tell them... no, you too..."
"You need not trust a single word I say now... but... I will always stand on humanity's side..."
"Always stand on... the side where the first great ones... once shone..."
"Go... go..."
"If you don't leave now... then... then..."
"Then-stay!!!"
The Principal's body suddenly convulsed. Countless broken fragments began to lose their individual boundaries, staining his body like spreading ink. At the same time, an aura that did not belong to the Principal at all suddenly awakened within his carapace!
"This is bad!"