vstars Chapter 36 The End and the Beginning
Chapter 36 The End and the Beginning
The Sera Galaxy, Kizil Star.
As the most prestigious institution of higher learning on Kizil Star, Nandan Interstellar University has a long history and has consistently provided outstanding talents from all walks of life to the interstellar society.
Augustus Levine is a professor at the university. He is 52 years old and has been with the institution for 23 years.
He was of noble character and rigorous in his scholarship, and was respected and loved by his students and colleagues, enjoying an excellent reputation within the University of Nandan.
No one could have predicted that the professor's true identity was the notorious interstellar fugitive, Graysword.
"Regarding the Rogue Starship Graveyard incident, this was a landmark, man-made, and unusual disaster."
The circular lecture hall was packed. Professor Augustus's "History of Unusual Disasters" course is insightful, engaging, and consistently ranks among the top three recommended courses by students in Nandan.
"...Ultimately, the Magnus system's space fleet became a living graveyard, randomly appearing in every corner of space, and possessing a high degree of aggressiveness."
Beside the podium in the center of the classroom, a middle-aged man with gray hair and a slightly aged appearance stood with a sorrowful expression.
"The mastermind behind all this is Gray Hub of the Purge Bureau. To this day, the Anomaly Management Bureau still cannot pinpoint his exact location, let alone make an arrest."
A cacophony of voices filled the classroom, some expressing surprise, others fear, and still others dissatisfaction with the Bureau of Abnormal Affairs.
When the discussion reached Professor Augustus's ears, a barely perceptible smile appeared on his lips.
The Wandering Starship Graveyard incident is one of his signature works, and he revels in the pleasure of being able to proactively share his masterpiece with his students as a professor.
He also thought that in the near future, he would be able to share his latest works with these knowledge-hungry young people.
"I wonder how things are going with Ge Lunxing? I really hope to hear good news soon."
As the "original form" of the Greys, Professor Augustus has lived on Kizil for over three hundred years under different identities.
The Bureau of Anomalies would never have imagined that the interstellar fugitive who was causing them so much trouble was hiding safely in his home planet Kizil, and was also a highly respected university professor.
Contact with the catastrophic anomaly [Infinity] resulted in a splitting property that grants Gray Hub a near-immortal lifespan, but the splitting entity also has many limitations.
For example, once the clone is separated from the "original" Augustus, it is almost equivalent to an independent individual.
As the original body, Augustus has absolute command over his clone, but their memories and emotions cannot be communicated remotely.
Each time a disaster is created, the main body issues the command beforehand, and the clone follows it. Throughout the entire process after the command is transmitted, there is no contact between the two.
This is both a measure taken by Gray to ensure the safety of his own body and a way to satisfy his aesthetic need for "mystery" in the work.
Only after the disaster actually occurs will Gray's true form see the full picture of his latest work through interstellar media.
In other words, Augustus is currently unaware of everything that is happening on the planet Golun.
But he firmly believed that his identical clone could bring this scheme, which had spanned over a thousand years, to a perfect conclusion.
A sense of anticipation swirls in my heart, like a fine wine that improves with age, brewing a rich and fragrant aroma.
"Dear students, what we are about to learn about is another landmark event in an extraordinary disaster..."
The next second, Professor Augustus's voice came to an abrupt end.
The students' thirst for knowledge turned to terror. They clearly saw a bluish handprint on the professor's neck.
It was as if an invisible giant hand had gripped Augustus's neck tightly, lifting him into the air.
The professor's face began to darken, his veins bulged, his eyes protruded, and his cartilage made a cracking sound as if it could no longer bear the weight. Each attempt to inhale turned into a sharp hiss.
He didn't care about exposing himself and tried to escape using his splitting ability, but found that he couldn't do it at all.
The characteristic factor from the "infinity" within his body, his greatest reliance, had vanished without a trace, as if it had never existed.
The world around him turned gray and white, gradually peeling away from his senses.
No, to be precise, his existence is being erased from this world.
Gray's life has come to an end.
In the last moment before his consciousness faded, he vaguely heard a calm greeting coming from in front of him.
"Farewell, Mr. Haikaru."
Life drained from his body, and this wanted criminal, who had once taken countless lives, fell from mid-air and fell silent.
The eerie and terrifying scene plunged the lecture hall into a deathly silence.
A moment later, a piercing scream tore through the air, mixed with chaotic footsteps, echoing through the classroom...
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"Haikasa, it seems you're quite satisfied with this artwork?"
"Of course, arbitrator."
In the dark room, three figures appeared beside the round table.
One of the figures was wearing a dark gray stand-up collar coat, had a worm-like scar on his left eyebrow, and wore an eye patch over his right eye.
This is Gray's clone, which is stationed at the Purification Bureau's base. It is mainly used to communicate with other cadres within the Purification Bureau and to receive messages for the main body.
Before him, on the left was a burly man whose upper body had been modified into machinery, and on the right was a frail skeleton draped in a light veil.
The two figures appeared illusory. They had used some form of remote communication to arrive here as projections to meet with Graysha.
The cyborg known as "The Arbiter" exchanged a glance with the skeleton and grinned.
"Thank you for diverting the attention of the Chengming Star Police Station this time."
Gray's clone maintained his elegant smile: "No need to be polite. Your goals are the same as mine, and I'm happy to help you."
"You mean that old geezer, Kober?"
The painted lips on the skeleton's skin open and close.
"One hundred and twenty years ago, your two clones were killed by him. Ninety-one years ago, the Arbiter was ambushed by his team."
"Fifty-six years ago, my lair was also destroyed under his command. In a way, all three of us have a grudge against him."
The scars on Gray's face twitched slightly, and crackling electricity surged from the joints of the Arbiter's mechanical body.
Gray's voice was deep: "Yes, ten years ago, he went to Chengmingxing Branch to retire as the director. I was so happy when I heard about it back then."
The fact that the planet Gelun, which he had planned a thousand years ago, happened to be within the territory of this enemy was as if he had received divine protection.
From that moment on, he began planning to transport the crucial Black Stone to the planet Golun to detonate the long-planned bomb that was the Tomb of Crystal Rock.
"How's the progress on your end? Have you received the goods?"
Upon hearing Gray's question, the Arbiter patted his chest:
"It couldn't have gone any better. Most of the manpower of the Chengming Star Branch was drawn to your side, and I single-handedly destroyed the transport fleet."
The painted skin skeleton chuckled coquettishly: "The goods have just been delivered to me, and I'm just about to start preparing them."
"That's good. Kober should like these two wonderful gifts."
Gray stood up and patted his chest in greeting to his two colleagues: "Now, please enjoy my work."
"Let's wait and see."
The mechanical giant and the painted-skin skeleton laughed.
"Ughh ...
The laughter was cut off in his throat.
The Gray Pivot clone, which had been perfectly normal just moments before, suddenly let out a piercing scream as pieces of skin peeled off its face, and blood gleaming with a gray light seeped out.
Every inch of his skin, every bone, and every muscle shattered in the violent tremor, like a Lego model being disassembled from the outside in.
What happened to Gray Kaname? Why is this happening?
The mechanical giant and the painted skeleton watched with alarm as the Gray Core clone began to self-destruct.
Soon, an answer came to their minds—
Something has happened to Gray Shu's main body.
But how is that possible?
Regarding the location of Gray Harbor's main body, not to mention the Bureau of Abnormal Affairs, even within the Bureau of Purification, only the director knows its location.
Furthermore, given Gray's ability to split, the possibility of something going wrong is extremely low.
Just then, the darkness at the edge of the darkroom contracted towards the center, like a soap bubble absorbing all light, enveloping the disintegrating Gray Pivot clone.
At the same time, the remote communication between the Arbiter and the Painted Skin Skull was forcibly cut off.
After a long while, a faint, neutral voice came from the darkness:
"Haibara is beyond saving... Who did this?"
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Releasing his right hand from the gray-clad man's neck, a gentle breeze blew the clone away into a wisp of dust.
Cheng Xu breathed a slight sigh of relief, but his tense expression did not ease.
The perpetrators of this disaster have met their end, but that doesn't mean all the problems have been solved.
He looked at the giant lava tree hanging upside down before him. Its burning roots pierced through the clouds and stretched across the entire sky.
Anomaly: The Tomb of Crystal Rock, after the recent time reversal, has returned to its state before being destroyed by the space-based weapon, and still stands in the air with an extremely oppressive presence.
With a wave of his hand, Cheng Xu caught the dodecahedral black stone that had fallen to the ground.
He took a step, ascending the invisible steps in the air, towards the giant lava tree.
With each step Cheng Xu took, the flames burning on the giant tree's branches weakened, and the spreading roots curled and contracted accordingly.
When he got closer, the giant lava tree had shrunk to one-third of its original size, its crystal-clear rock branches folded together, like a child who had done something wrong.
The black stone in his hand shattered, and the fragments formed a trickle that flowed into the tree trunk.
Cheng Xu raised his hand and gently placed his palm on the smooth, transparent bark.
Rest in peace.
As soon as he finished speaking, blazing flames erupted, engulfing the giant lava tree from its crown to its roots.
The Crystal Tomb is on fire.
Tiny specks of black ash flew out from the flames, representing the obsession that had bound the collective consciousness of the Crystal Rock Clan for thirteen hundred years.
Outside the core area, fine cracks began to appear on the crystal rock figures that remained in their original state, and crystalline fragments swirled and flew into the sky.
Hu Zhou stood on the shore of the lava lake, his eyes reflecting the towering flames. Streams of crystalline rock fragments passed by him, carried by the wind and merging into the burning giant tree.
Their joyful posture was like that of migratory birds returning to their nests.
Standing on either side of him were Xue Zijing and Fu Chen, both equally dazed.
Inside the temporary camp, the directors stared intently at the images transmitted from the command center, etching this scene into their minds forever.
The command center was completely silent. Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at the crystalline vortex that covered most of the planet, and at the young man in the center of the image.
Standing in the flames, Cheng Xu felt not the scorching heat, but a warm temperature.
He watched silently as the sky blazed with fire. In the firelight, blurry figures emerged—the likenesses of the Crystal Rock People.
At the forefront of the light and shadow of these crystal stone figures, an exceptionally large crystal stone figure prostrated itself before Cheng Xu, its silhouette clearer than the other stone figures.
That's Nathaniel.
Behind it, countless phantoms of crystal rock figures performed the same action.
The giant lava tree gradually melted away in the flames, its branches and roots becoming indistinguishable. Ashes filled the sky, transforming into countless rays of light that fell upon the surface of the planet Golun.
Nathaniel stood up. Cheng Xu felt a familiar gaze directed at him.
He waved gently at the phantoms. Nathaniel raised his hand as well, waving awkwardly in return.
Then it turned and walked into the firelight.
The Crystal Rock People followed behind it, following the last patriarch of the Crystal Rock Clan, and turned to walk into the firelight.
The last figure disappeared from Cheng Xu's sight, and the flames went out as well.
The giant lava tree has disappeared.
The Anomalous Crystal Tomb, which had existed on the planet Golun for thirteen hundred years, was now burned to ashes in the flames.
Cheng Xu gently swept away the ashes and picked up a crystal-clear dodecahedral rock sphere.
At the very center of the stone sphere, a slowly wriggling crystal cell stretches out and shimmers, tiny yet brimming with vitality.
Cheng Xu bent down and slowly brought the stone ball into contact with the crystal rock ground.
The stone sphere merged into the earth like flowing water, carrying the crystal cell deep into the ground, where it permeated and blended.
The seeds have been replanted.
Thirteen hundred years later, new life was finally born on the planet Golun.
After countless ages, this planet has begun a new cycle. In the distant future, vibrant life will once again return to this land.
With a gentle exhale, Cheng Xu stood in the open field, feeling the fresh breeze.
The dark red sky is now a clear blue, and the lava lake has dried up with the demise of the Crystal Tomb.
The pungent smell dissipated on the wind, and fresh air filled the vast plains. The unbearable heat subsided, and the starlight shone upon us, bringing waves of warmth.
"Goodbye," he said, bidding farewell.
The earth trembled slightly, and a faint voice drifted on the distant wind:
【thank you】
Cheng Xu waved to the wilderness, then turned around and walked towards the edge of what was once a lava lake, stepping on the crystallized earth.
There, he saw a familiar figure.
Cheng Xu walked up to Hu Zhou.
"Director, let's go back. There's still a lot of cleanup to do; we can't just sit idle. We'll probably be busy afterwards."
"Hmm, ah, okay..."
Hu Zhou was taken aback, and a smile spread across his face uncontrollably.
"Let's go back."