Chapter 47: Fragments of Truth, the Moment of Choice

The data specks from the collapsing logic maze have not fully settled, drifting like fireflies in the false air. The Echo Squad moves through the town restored to its ruined original state, their steps on real rubble and debris making a rustling sound. Compared with the purely rational space just now, this ruin instead carries a comforting sense of "realness".

But this peace vanishes in an instant. The closer they get to the deep "Wailing Cave" entrance, the heavier the invisible pressure becomes. The air is filled with an old scent of blood and some… indescribable whisper that seems to come from antiquity. The cave entrance is no longer merely darkness, but a slowly writhing, contracting shadow like a living thing, its edges oozing a viscous, oil‑like black substance.

【Luo Ya's Heritage Mark】 burns almost to the point of igniting within Chen Mo's sea of consciousness, resonating intensely with the ancient primordial call deep in the cave.

"The thing inside… feels unsettling," Su Yu stared at the cave, her "Observation" ability being heavily interfered with here, only able to capture a chaotic, raging energy vortex, mingling Primordial Origin's purity, the system's coldness, and a… twisted will full of resentment and pain.

"The system sealed the Source Code Fragment together with some… 'Guardian'," Chen Mo said in a low voice, his 【Rule Analysis】 vaguely perceiving that the spatial rules inside the cave are extremely twisted, forming a closed, malicious domain. "Everyone be careful, the rules inside may be completely different from the outside."

He was the first to step, entering the writhing darkness.

It was like passing through a layer of cold, viscous gel; after a brief sense of suffocation, the scene before his eyes cleared, yet remained chillingly eerie.

This was not a natural cave, but an enormous underground cavity. The cavity's dome and four walls were not rock, but composed of countless twisted, entangled, constantly wailing semi‑transparent human faces! These faces included men and women, old and young, their expressions frozen in extreme fear and pain; their mouths opened and closed silently, and their eyes flowed with a residue of data mixed with souls. The entire cavity seemed built from the remnants of billions of player consciousnesses that the system had devoured and digested… a "Grudge Wall"!

The cavity's center had no floor, only a bottomless dark abyss. Above the abyss floated a shattered throne woven from pale bones and dark data chains. Seated upon the throne was a figure.

The figure was vaguely humanoid, but most of its body had merged with the throne, composed of error code constantly breaking down and reassembling, and pallid bone fragments. One half of its face was highly corrupted flesh, still hinting at a once‑determined contour; the other half was cold metal with flashing electronic eyes. Its left hand was a human palm, yet covered with scales and data streams, while its right hand was entirely a twisted bone blade coursing with black energy.

The most unsettling thing was the aura it exuded—powerful, chaotic, filled with endless pain and anger, yet strangely coexisting with this space's Primordial Origin fluctuations.

When Chen Mo and the others stepped in, the figure lifted its head, its electronic eye emitting a scarlet beam that swept over everyone, finally fixing on Chen Mo; a hoarse voice, a blend of electrical static and broken tones, echoed through the cavity:

"Another batch… of sacrifices… or… 'comrades'?"

As it spoke, the countless wailing faces on the surrounding walls simultaneously turned toward them, their silent shrieks forming a psychic horror impact!

Han Qing and the others turned pale, feeling their consciousness pricked by countless needles. Chen Mo immediately activated 【Will Barrier】, Su Yu also mobilized Observation permissions, jointly constructing a mental shield that barely repelled the all‑penetrating grudge assault.

"Who are you?" Chen Mo stared at the being on the throne, already harboring a terrifying hypothesis.

"Me?" the being replied with a wheezing, bellows‑like laugh, "I am the Failure… the Prisoner… the Guard… and also… the 'First Generation'."

First Generation!

The group felt a massive shock! In the old era's "Ark" project, the first pioneers who voluntarily merged "Primordial Blood" to try to control the system?!

"You… seek Primordial Origin… do you know the price?" The First Generation's voice was filled with endless mockery and sorrow, "Merge with it… be assimilated by it… or be devoured by it! The system… is not a lifeless thing… it learns… it evolves… using it… our flesh and souls!"

He abruptly raised the hand covered with scales and data streams, pointing at the surrounding Grudge Walls: "Look! This is the fate of rebels… of the disobedient! They become nourishment for its growth! And I…" He then gestured to his twisted body, "… am a relatively tasty… being that retains some consciousness… eternally imprisoned here… a watchdog!"

The information struck each mind like a hammer, crushing them. The tragic fate of the First Generation pioneers, and the system's horrific truth of feeding on rebels, was far darker than they had imagined.

"We didn't come to become nourishment," Chen Mo suppressed the chill in his heart, stepped forward, and the 【Primordial Origin Proof】 and 【Luo Ya's Heritage Mark】 in his sea of consciousness lit up simultaneously, emitting waves of the same source but purer, more "ordered" fluctuations, "We are here to retrieve what should belong to the essence of 'Primordial Origin'—the Source Code Fragment."

Sensing the unique fluctuation on Chen Mo, the First Generation's chaotic aura visibly stalled, its electronic eye and its flesh eye simultaneously fixed intently on Chen Mo.

"Luo Ya's… aura? And the… 'Key'… fluctuation?" his voice carried a hint of confusion, then was drowned by deeper pain and frenzy, "No! Useless! It's all too late! The system has taken root… the Devourer has awakened! The fragment… is bait! It's a trap! Taking it will only summon… true destruction!"

Before the words finished, the First Generation's twisted body leapt up from the throne! A terrifying pressure, as solid as matter, enveloped the entire cavity! Its right‑hand bone blade surged instantly, bearing soul‑rending grudge and the system's purge command, turning into a black lightning that streaked across the space, striking Chen Mo!

"Careful!"

The battle erupted in an instant!

The First Generation's attacks were wholly unlike any previous foe. It was neither a purely logical construct nor a beast‑like monster, but a terrifying entity fused with system permissions, Primordial Force, and billions of grudges. Each strike contained rule‑level distortion; where the bone blade passed, the space retained lingering black fissures, and the grudge onslaught surged like tides, continuously battering everyone's mental shield.

Chen Mo pushed 【Rule Analysis】 to its limit, only then barely capturing the complex, chaotic rule trajectory within the First Generation's attack. He attempted to use 【Basic Compilation】 to interfere, but the dense grudge and error code surrounding the First Generation formed a natural barrier, rendering the compilation effect negligible!

Han Qing's will‑arrow struck the First Generation, only stirring a small data ripple, which was nullified by the heavy grudge armor. Zhang Yang's heavy‑machine‑gun bullets were like mud poured into the sea. Wang Hu and Li Siwen's close‑range attacks could hardly breach the twisted field surrounding the First Generation.

"Its weakness lies in the core where it connects to the throne! That is where the system shackles it, and also the key node of its power source!" Su Yu, enduring the mental discomfort, eyes flashing golden light, finally located the only relatively stable "anchor point" within the First Generation's chaotic aura!

Hearing this, Chen Mo's gaze instantly locked onto the spot where the First Generation's back met the throne, where indeed a pulsating orb of system command chains forcibly fused with Primordial Origin energy swirled.

"Cover me!" Chen Mo growled low, his form becoming a after‑image; the power of 【Primordial Origin Proof】 erupted fully, no longer for defense or interference, but coalescing into an immensely concentrated "Barrier‑Breaking" force, thrusting directly at the core orb!

The First Generation let out a deafening roar, billions of grudges summoned, converging into a tangible black tidal wave that surged toward Chen Mo! Simultaneously, it swung a reverse slash, its bone blade bearing a destructive momentum, cutting across Chen Mo's inevitable path!

"No way!" Han Qing, Zhang Yang, Wang Hu, Li Siwen, Zhao Lei, Liu Qian, all unleashed their full power at that moment! Will‑arrows, metal storms, war‑axe cleaves, energy blasts, precise shots… all attacks merged into a torrent, boldly crashing into the side of that grudge wave and bone blade!

Boom——!!

The fierce collision of energy and grudges made the entire cavity shake violently, the faces on the walls emitting even more mournful silent wails.

Pooling everyone's strength finally created a fleeting gap for Chen Mo!

Chen Mo's figure was like a storm‑piercing sea‑gull, ignoring the surrounding energy turbulence, pouring all his spirit, will, and yearning for truth into this "pierce"!

Pfft!

It wasn't the sound of metal hitting flesh, but as if a bubble filled with viscous liquid had been punctured. The core orb, struck by Chen Mo imbued with Luo Ya's aura and Primordial Origin essence, halted abruptly!

The First Generation's massive body shuddered violently, its attack suddenly ceasing. On its face, a blend of flesh and metal, a highly complex expression appeared—relief, pain, a hint of bewilderment, and… a faint glimmer of restored clarity.

"…Luo Ya's… choice…?" it lowered its head, looking at Chen Mo who had pierced its 'core', its hoarse voice oddly calm, "The fragment… lies beneath the throne… take it… and go quickly!"

It abruptly lifted its head, the red light in its electronic eye flashing wildly, as if making a final struggle against the system's internal control.

"The system… core… has fixed its gaze… on this place… escape…"

Before the words finished, the entire cavity began to quake wildly! The countless wailing faces on the dome and walls started melting and collapsing! A will far more vast, colder, and filled with absolute malice than the First Generation's, like a newly awakened star, cast its gaze from the endless void onto this tiny cavity!

The system's core was truly roused!

The First Generation, with its last strength, thrust Chen Mo aside violently; at the same time, the shattered throne beneath it cracked open with a roar, revealing a fragment only palm‑sized yet exuding endless ancient and pure aura, crystal‑clear— the first Source Code Fragment!

Chen Mo did not hesitate, snatching the fragment in one hand!

The moment his fingers touched the fragment, a massive data flow surged into his consciousness like the birth of the universe! Not only knowledge of the 'World Tree' construction, but also more fragmented, terrifying snippets about the 'Devourer' essence and the truth of this universe!

Simultaneously, he felt a deeper, more fundamental connection—and confrontation—between himself, Su Yu, all teammates bearing Primordial Blood, this realm, and the ever‑present system rules.

The cavity's collapse accelerated, the system's gaze like a tangible pressure, aiming to crush them completely.

"Go!" Chen Mo roared hoarsely, clutching the Source Code Fragment tightly, pulling Su Yu, and sprinting toward the already highly unstable entrance they had come through.

Han Qing and the others followed closely, desperately racing through the collapsing Grudge Wall and the sweeping system‑will storm.

Behind them, the First Generation's twisted figure, under the system's will crushing it, finally disintegrated completely, turning into a last data speck that merged into the endless darkness and wails.

His sacrifice secured the crucial fragment and information for them, but also prematurely attracted the final hunter.

The instant they burst out of the cave entrance, Chen Mo looked back and saw the entire "Initial Land" beginning to digitize and collapse under that vast will's influence, like a painting being erased.

He clenched the Source Code Fragment in his hand, feeling its contained power and responsibility, and the cold lock in his mind from the system's core, like a festering bone ulcer.

The future path has become clearer, yet more dangerous.

They obtained a part of the key, but also awakened the giant beast behind the gate.

The real escape and counterattack is only just beginning now.