On the return journey, the atmosphere on board was so oppressive it was almost frozen. The monks rarely spoke, and occasionally someone would look up at the window, their eyes filled with undisguised fear. That absolute emptiness, and the silent "erasure" by the Emissary of Returning to Silence, were like a thorn in everyone's heart—more terrifying than destruction itself was the complete loss of even the memory of being "destroyed."
Xiao Yan locked himself in the cabin, his fingertips repeatedly caressing the transparent Samsara Flower. The Seed of Creation slowly circulated within the Heart of the Flame Realm, releasing a soft light in an attempt to repair the "blank" on the petal, but could only barely stabilize it and prevent it from expanding further.
"What, then, is the essence of 'existence'?" he murmured to himself. If even memories and traces can be erased, then what is the basis for so-called protection?
Images flashed through his mind: the resolute stance of the Blazing Sun Realm Lord before the Balance Tower; the dejection of Qing He when she lost part of her sword intent; the worry of A Yao holding the translucent flower... These vivid images suddenly lit up in his mind like sparks.
"It's memory." Xiao Yan suddenly opened his eyes. "It's those remembered moments, those emotions and bonds intertwined with time, that form the foundation of 'existence'."
Those Who Return to Silence can erase the traces of laws, but they may not be able to completely annihilate what is "remembered by countless people." Like a Samsara Flower, if only one person has seen it, it may be easily forgotten; but if millions of people have witnessed its bloom, its existence will be engraved in the collective memory, indelible.
He immediately summoned the leader of the Star Patrollers: "Can your database store the 'key memories' of all living beings in the All Heavens and Myriad Realms?"
"Theoretically feasible, but it requires enormous energy support, and the integrity of the memories cannot be guaranteed." The metallic creature's blue light flickered. "More importantly, 'memories' contain emotional variables, which could lead to database corruption."
"I have a way." Xiao Yan took out a fragment of the Seed of Creation, a remnant of the "Seed of Order" he brought back from the Ruins of Laws, which he had never been able to fully fuse with. "Use this as the core. The Seed of Creation itself contains the imprint of the order of the heavens, which can stabilize the emotional fluctuations in memories."
He handed the fragment to the Star Patrollers: "I need you to create a ' Memory Core ' to back up all important memories—whether it's a battle, the rise and fall of a civilization, or the life of an ordinary person. Even if the physical body is erased, at least these memories will remain."
This is a massive undertaking, but also a necessary line of defense against " Return to Silence." The leader of the Star Patrollers paused for a moment, then the blue light on the crystal head hardened. "It conforms to the logic of 'continuation of existence,' and we will cooperate fully."
When the fleet arrived at the All-Heavens Hub, even worse news arrived— the Balance Tower had developed cracks.
When Xiao Yan arrived at the foot of the tower, he saw that a spiderweb-like pattern had appeared on the side of the crystal tower that connected "existence" and "non-existence." There was no energy flow within the pattern, only a faint blank space, exactly like the "absolute blankness" brought by the Emissary of Returning to Silence. Even more strangely, some of the cultivators guarding the Balance Tower had forgotten "how to operate the Cycle Formation," and some even muttered to themselves while looking at the tower, "Was this tower... originally here?"
"It's the aura of Return to Silence seeping in." The Grand Elder's expression was grave. He pointed to the pillar of light at the top of the tower, whose once stable gray-gold glow had now dimmed somewhat. " The Balance Tower is connected to the Abyss of Nothingness, and it was the first to be eroded by the 'Void.' If it's not stopped in time, the entire tower will become a phantom of 'non-existence.'"
Xiao Yan reached out and touched the crack in the tower. A cold "void" sensation came from his fingertips. The power of the Seed of Creation surged in, which could only slow down the expansion of the crack, but could not completely repair it.
"Ordinary Power of Order cannot stop this erosion," he said in a deep voice. "We must use 'memory' to reinforce the tower."
He immediately convened the council and proposed a bold plan: to have all the cultivators who had participated in the guardianship battle and all the beings who had witnessed the rise and fall of the heavens inject a trace of "memory imprint" into the Balance Tower. These imprints may be weak, but when gathered together, they can form a " Wall of Memory " to resist the emptiness of Return to Silence.
"This is too risky," an elder objected. "Memory is linked to the soul; if it is corrupted by the aura of Return to Silence, the consequences would be unimaginable."
"There's no safer way." Xiao Yan looked at the crack at the top of the tower. "If the Balance Tower collapses, the aura of Return to Silence will flood into all the heavens like a tide. At that time, we won't even have a chance to implant memories."
Ultimately, the council approved his plan. Three days later, beings from all over the world gathered at the foot of the Balance Tower —there were white-haired veterans, historians recording history, ordinary people rebuilding their homes in the ruins, and even children who had just learned to speak.
Xiao Yan stood atop the tower, channeling the power of the Seed of Creation into its body. Silver light flowed along the cracks, outlining a massive rune array on the tower's surface.
"Infuse your deepest memories into the formation." His voice echoed across the plaza. "Whether it be joy, sorrow, the passion of battle, or the determination to protect, all are welcome."
The first to step forward was the old man who had received the jade slip in the Shattered Galaxy; he was now the leader of the rebuilt star system. He placed his palm on the tower, and countless images flashed through his eyes—the despair when the star system shattered, the hope when the Samsara Flower bloomed, the moment when his people smiled again... These memories transformed into a pale golden stream of light and merged into the rune array.
Then, the white-haired veteran poured in "days and nights of fighting against the Shadow Clan," the historian poured in "records of the rise and fall of civilizations across the heavens," and the child, in his innocent voice, transformed the memory of "seeing the Samsara Flower for the first time" into a faint ray of light...
Countless streams of light, like streams flowing into the ocean, surged into the rune array of the Balance Tower. Nourished by these memories, the cracks in the tower began to slowly heal, and faint colors gradually emerged in the blank spaces—colors belonging to "existence" woven from countless memories.
As the final memory was injected, the Balance Tower suddenly burst forth with dazzling light. Within the gray-gold pillar of light, countless blurry figures and images emerged—a microcosm of all the important memories from the All Heavens and Myriad Realms. The light from the top of the tower shot straight into the sky, forming a massive " Veil of Memory " in the void, enveloping the entire All-Heavens Hub.
"It's a success..." A Yao held the Samsara Flower King in her hands, tears glistening in her eyes. The Flower King she had cultivated was now suspended atop the tower, its petals clearly imprinted with countless fragments of memories, becoming the core of the " Wall of Memory."
Xiao Yan stood atop the tower, feeling the warmth emanating from it—the warmth of countless memories converged. He knew that this defense was not eternal, and the threat of Return to Silence still lingered, but at least for now, they had used the power of "remembering" to block the erosion of "forgetting."
As night fell, the cracks in the Balance Tower had mostly healed, with only a thin line still shimmering, like a scar, reminding everyone of the silent threat.
As Xiao Yan watched the crowd gradually disperse below the tower, he knew in his heart that this was only the beginning. The "correction" of the Those Who Return to Silence would not stop, and their "memory protection" must continue indefinitely.
He took out a new seed from his pocket—a " Seed of Memory " formed by fusing fragments of the Seed of Creation with countless memory imprints. The seed's surface shimmered with a faint light, as if it held the stories of countless worlds.
"Next, it's time to let this seed take root in even more distant places."
He looked up in the direction where the Star Patrollers spaceship was docked, where the construction of the " Memory Core " was proceeding at full speed. And in the far reaches of the universe, that absolute emptiness still watched all of this like a silent eye.
The way to protect has changed from "confrontation" to "remembering". And this path is destined to be longer than ever before.