Prelude to the End

The log of "Messenger Two" added 730 new records in three years.

Tang Nian's handwriting flowed through the holographic log, recording every plane they had traversed: In the "Glazed Galaxy," they used Chaos Energy and Order Runes to help the crystal lifeforms resolve the crisis of energy stagnation. The sky there is now filled with colorful energy glass, each piece marked with a symbol of balance; In the "Shadow Nebula," Lan Che used an improved order program to soothe the shadow creatures affected by the Fragment of the End. They no longer devoured the light, but instead formed a symbiotic Symbiosis Cycle of day and night with the luminous plants.

At this moment, the latest page of the log is recording the scene of the "Mist Plane". All life in this dimension lives in the flowing mist and communicates by sensing energy fluctuations. The aura of the Fragment of the End is causing the mist to begin to solidify. Once it is completely solidified, all life will lose the ability to communicate and become isolated beings.

"Their balance lies in 'flow'." Tang Nian squatted in front of a glowing mist grass, gently infusing the blades with Chaos Energy from her fingertips. The blades immediately released a soft light, melting a small patch of solidified mist around them. "The void aura of the Fragment of the End has caused the energy to lose its fluidity. We need to help them rebuild their 'energy tides'."

Lan Che was debugging a massive "Resonance Device," a device modified from the imprint of Primordial Fragment, capable of emitting fluctuations consistent with the energy frequency of the Mist Plane: "The Resonance Device requires three energy nodes to operate, infused with the energy of Chaos, Order, and the Mist itself, respectively. I've already located the nodes; I'm just waiting for you to be ready."

Tang Nian nodded and injected Chaos Energy into the first node. Lan Che simultaneously activated the resonance device, and Order Energy flowed into the second node along the device's patterns. When the primordial energy of the Mist Plane was introduced into the third node, the resonance device emitted a soft white light. The white light spread through the solidified mist, and wherever it passed, the solidified mist began to flow again. The energy fluctuations of luminous plants and shadow creatures intertwined in the mist, forming a harmonious symphony of energy.

"Success!" The wise man of the Mist Plane —an old man formed of mist—appeared before them. "You brought not only flow, but also the belief in 'connection.' The end may freeze the mist, but as long as we remember how we connected with one another, we will never truly be isolated."

The old man handed Tang Nian a crystal formed from mist, containing an energy imprint of the Mist Plane: "Take this with you. When all the imprints converge, it may unleash a light that even the end cannot devour."

Tang Nian took the crystal, which automatically merged into her Blade of Chaos. A trace of flowing misty white appeared in the blade's seven-colored light, as if adding a new color to a balanced painting.

Over the past three years, seventy-three such crystals have gathered within the Blade of Chaos. Each one represents Balance Mark of a plane, coexisting harmoniously within the blade, nourishing each other, and forming a miniature Web of Balance. Lan Che's tests show that the combined energy of these marks is already able to resist the void aura of the Fragment of the End for a short period of time.

"Urgent message from the Crystal Galaxy." Lan Che's communicator suddenly lit up, and on the screen, the crystal scholar's figure was unusually solemn. "The rate at which the Fragment of the End devouring has accelerated! It has already devoured the ' Ash Galaxy,' and all the energy imprints there have disappeared. Even the retrospective of the Primordial Fragment cannot detect a single trace!"

The news sank their hearts. The Ash Galaxy was a plane they had visited three years ago, where the inhabitants had built a unique balance system using volcanic and icy energy. Their imprint was still clearly left in the Blade of Chaos, but now, this plane, along with its imprint, had completely disappeared.

"It's afraid," Tang Nian suddenly spoke, a flash of understanding in her eyes. "The reason the Fragment of the End are consuming so quickly is because the mark we've gathered makes it feel threatened. The brighter the mark of balance, the harder it is for its nothingness to stand."

Lan Che pulled up the star map. On it, the dark shadow representing the Fragment of the End was approaching the boundary of the Crystal Galaxy. The planes along its path disappeared as if erased, leaving only a void of gray. "Crystal scientists say that at this rate, it will reach our Web of Balance in another ten years. We must speed up the process of gathering the imprints."

"It's not just about speed, but also 'quality.'" Tang Nian stroked the Blade of Chaos, the imprint on its blade flowing in her palm. "The reason the imprints of the Ash Galaxy disappeared is because their balance wasn't 'profound' enough—they relied on environmental stability but failed to plant the seed of 'even if the environment disappears, the belief in balance still exists' in the hearts of their inhabitants. We need to find those planes that have experienced crises but still maintain their balance; their imprints are the most resilient."

For the next five years, Messenger Two's course shifted to those planes struggling to maintain balance under the shadow of the end.

In the "Shattered Lunar Surface," they witnessed inhabitants using the remaining energy to construct miniature ecosystems. Even as the moon continued to crumble, the plants and machines within each ecosystem coexisted harmoniously. In the "Dried Sea," fishermen abandoned fishing and instead cultivated salt-tolerant plants that could grow in saline-alkali soil, protecting the ocean's last vestiges of life in another way. In the "Forgotten Star Orbit," a group of homeless wanderers pieced together a temporary balance using fragments of their own planes. Between these fragments flowed a cross-species understanding and tolerance.

When these dimensional imprints merged into the Blade of Chaos, the light they emitted was brighter than any of the previous imprints. Tang Nian could sense that these imprints contained not only energy, but also "belief"—a belief that chose to protect even in despair.

When the first wisp of the void of the end touched the boundary of the Crystal Galaxy, Tang Nian and Lan Che returned to the center of the Web of Balance.

The Temple of Balance in Heaven Dou City has been expanded into the "Imprint Hub," with seventy-three marks projected onto the temple's dome, forming a dazzling star map. Representatives from the continent, the Dark Matter Nebula, and the Crystal Galaxy have gathered here, each holding a mark crystal belonging to their own plane.

"The End will arrive in three years." Blue Crystal's voice echoed in the temple, his metallic body etched with the scars of years spent protecting the balance. "But we have gathered the imprints of one hundred and thirty-seven planes; their combined energy is enough to form a ' Barrier of Belief,' temporarily halting the End's engulfment."

Xiao Wu gazed at the star map on the dome, tears welling in her eyes. At the center of the star map, the seven-colored light trail connecting the continent and the Dark Matter Nebula remained bright, and Tang San's energy imprint intertwined with the imprints of all planes, forming a warm halo.

"Barriers can only hold things off temporarily." Tang Nian stood up, the Blade of Chaos in her hand pointing towards the dome. "But faith can endure forever. We cannot stop the end from coming, but we can let it know that the mark of balance was once so shining, so resilient, so... worthy of being remembered."

She plunged the Blade of Chaos into the central pedestal of the temple, and 137 imprints flew from the blade, merging with the star map on the dome. The star map burst forth with dazzling light, piercing through the temple, soaring into the sky, spreading along the Star Orbit, and illuminating the entire Web of Balance.

The inhabitants of every plane saw this light. They looked up and infused it with their own beliefs in balance, and the light grew brighter and brighter, like countless fireflies burning in Sea of Stars, never extinguished even in the face of the darkness of the end.

The shadow of the Fragment of the End drew ever closer, its ethereal aura beginning to erode the edges of the Web of Balance, and some weak imprints began to flicker. But many more imprints grew brighter—the inhabitants of the Shattered Lunar Surface reinforced the miniature ecosystem, salt-tolerant plants in the Dried Sea blossomed with vibrant flowers, and the wanderers of Forgotten Star Orbit expanded the temporary balance system into new star belts.

"Look!" Lan Che pointed to the star map. The previously shimmering marks stabilized again under the light of his companions. "Beliefs are contagious; balanced marks will never exist in isolation."

Tang Nian smiled, recalling the words of the wise man from the Mist Plane: "The belief in connection is more resistant to nothingness than any energy."

The prelude to the end has begun, but the song of balance has not ceased. In the light of the star map, in the beliefs of every inhabitant of every plane, in the 137 imprints gathered by the Blade of Chaos, the story of balance continues in another way—it is no longer a weapon against the end, but the brightest firefly in the Sea of Stars, which, even if it is eventually swallowed by darkness, has at least illuminated the moments when we were connected.

And that's enough.