Chapter 476

“You son of a bitch!!!”

At this moment, Lin Xian stared at the frantic countdown in his vision and immediately realized he had guessed correctly—it was indeed linked to the black gear. But he didn’t understand why, when he had studied it after taking it from Chen Yanxiu, there had been no such reaction then.

48, 47, 46…

The countdown raced backward like a bomb before Lin Xian’s eyes, and his heartbeat and blood pressure surged simultaneously!

What do I do? It’s about to end.

What will happen when the countdown ends?

It’s definitely not a good sign. If this countdown is tied to the black gear, then it likely was imposed on me by Chen Yanxiu—and that can’t be anything good!

Lin Xian’s mind raced furiously, his breathing growing rapid and shallow.

44, 43, 42…

“Why is time accelerating? That makes no sense. If it could accelerate, why didn’t Chen Yanxiu activate it from the start?”

“Did I trigger something?”

Lin Xian’s mouth was dry, his tongue heavy. He picked up the black gear, held it to his eyes, forced himself to stay calm, and examined the black gear with intense precision.

The black gear wasn’t pure black—it looked more like the color left by prolonged fire-quenching inside some machine or device. Its 68 teeth carried a hue that, under steady gaze, seemed to flow strangely, evoking an uncanny sensation.

Lin Xian knew this was caused by the dark energy fluctuations, but further observation revealed no further clues.

39, 38, 37…

Seconds ticked away, and Lin Xian’s tension tightened further.

“What is it? What did I do?”

“Stay calm. There must be something you missed.”

Lin Xian took a deep breath, raised his hand, and conjured a stool to sit on, then stared at the black gear in his palm, sinking into thought.

“If Chen Yanxiu did this, what was his goal? He said killing me was the Master’s order—but that order was later revoked. So his goal wasn’t to kill me?”

“The leader of Sacred Revelation should have deep knowledge of forbidden objects. But how did he know about my Flash Bullets? Or does he have something else on him? Logically, the Flash Bullets aren’t on me—the Sacred Revelation’s forbidden object detector shouldn’t have been able to find them…”

30, 29, 28

Lin Xian closed his eyes, pinched his brow, and rapidly organized his thoughts.

“Forbidden objects, the Master’s power, related to the Great Ocean God? No.”

“Flash Bullets—I placed them with Grace using the brain-machine converter. Is this connected to Grace?”

“Wait…”

Lin Xian lifted his head, eyes scanning left and right: “Gamma-ray burst!”

“Grace said she encountered a gamma-ray burst—was it tied to forbidden objects, or to some other energy?”

“Why did I suddenly lose connection with Chu Yan?”

“Lost connection…”

Lin Xian murmured a few words, his brow slowly furrowing, then suddenly recalled a phrase Chen Yanxiu had spoken.

【It seems… you’re also deeply obsessed with the power of forbidden objects. You should know, these are all the Master’s… blessings.】

【We will meet again, Swordbearer.】

BOOM!

A thunderclap flashed through Lin Xian’s mind—he suddenly had a terrifying thought.

Chen Yanxiu’s goal wasn’t to kill him. He had a higher target than Lin Xian.

South Heaven Gate!

“Grace!”

No response.

South Heaven Gate is offline!

Lin Xian’s heart jolted, his breath turning cold.

20, 19, 18…

South Heaven Gate offline. His connection to Chu Yan severed. That meant Phoenix Society had also lost contact with South Heaven Gate.

“Damn it…”

Lin Xian had once harbored this suspicion: after all, the force he used to restrain darkness—the very means by which he became Swordbearer—depended entirely on the Flash Bullets, a forbidden object, to pierce the Celestial Veil and reach South Heaven Gate. If that power were observed, this card might lose all deterrent value entirely, for Lin Xian knew: forbidden object power does not belong to humanity.

From last night until now, he’d had no time to contact Grace. He never imagined that after just one night, he’d lost all contact with her.

“No. I can’t just wait to die.”

Lin Xian gritted his teeth, immediately gathering his mental energy at his third eye, attempting to sense the Flash Bullets.

Nothing but void.

15, 14, 13…

Lin Xian persisted in sensing. Slowly, he regained a faint connection to the Flash Bullets—a subtle sensation, as if veiled by a thin layer of gauze. But he knew: he still maintained containment of the Flash Bullets.

“Found it!”

The next instant, Lin Xian’s thoughts churned. He knew that once he teleported to South Heaven Gate, his situation would be extremely dangerous. First, he wasn’t sure if South Heaven Gate still existed—or what space the Flash Bullets might be in. Even if everything was normal, he’d face the impenetrable Celestial Veil. If he couldn’t return to the surface, he’d have to hope South Heaven Gate held supplies to keep him from starving in low Earth orbit.

But the countdown was about to hit zero. Perhaps transferring himself elsewhere might also be a way to protect his teammates?

Thinking this, Lin Xian took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and focused his third eye, preparing to execute a low Earth orbit transit.

Yet just two seconds after closing his eyes, Lin Xian slowly opened them again, frozen in place, his gaze flickering.

“Strange. I’m still containing the Flash Bullets—why can’t I reach Grace?”

Lin Xian looked down at the black gear in his hand, frowning slightly.

“Grace, can you hear me?”

No response.

10, 9, 8…

Only ten seconds remained.

Lin Xian refused to give up, intensifying his mental call.

“Grace.”

This time, he raised his voice.

【I’m here.】

A faint voice, as if wrapped in ten layers of cotton, echoed deep within Lin Xian’s mind. It wasn’t Grace’s tone—it was the connection itself, obscured by a thick fog.

Hearing Grace’s voice, Lin Xian’s heart jolted—but he felt no relief. He asked directly:

“Can you contact Chu Yan?”

【Miss Chu Yan sent a signal via consciousness link thirteen minutes ago, attempting to reach you. Phoenix Society has an urgent message to deliver.】

“What message?”

【Phoenix Society’s Star Center has suffered repeated infiltration attacks recently. The Nightwalkers and the North American United Front dispatched reconnaissance teams and discovered that the Descent Faction is specifically targeting Chu Yan for assassination, aiming to prevent Phoenix Society from controlling South Heaven Gate. But Phoenix Society’s defenses are tight, and they’ve suffered minimal impact. Miss Chu Yan instructed me to urgently relay information from Phoenix Society Commander Ye Lan: South Heaven Gate’s deterrence holds real significance—not merely in ground firepower, but in some factor that poses a greater threat to the Dark Civilization.】

“I suspected as much. But now I’m in trouble myself—probably no time left…”

【Another piece of intelligence: a Phoenix Society mole inside the Descent Faction has transmitted that the Descent Faction received an order to eliminate you and Miss Chu Yan. The latest update is that this order has been secretly revoked. But internal factions within the Descent Faction appear to have ignored this new directive—so attacks against you may still occur.】

Lin Xian’s gaze sharpened as he heard this, immediately turning his eyes to the black gear in his hand, and a sudden question arose.

“Was this forbidden object truly seized by me?”

…

On a large island in the Pacific, a massive metal base complex stood embedded in a semi-bedrock mountain, as if part of the island’s own mechanism.

Outside the metal complex, countless drones hovered like a submerged swarm of bees. Automatic gun barrels, lowered in idle posture, gleamed with cold metallic sheen, coexisting with holographic projections of gene chains flowing along the walls. Inside and out, dozens of soldiers clad in powered armor formed rigid formations—men and women alike—patrolling with disciplined precision.

A patrol squad entered one of the metal-walled buildings. Inside, the scene shifted abruptly: unlike the steel-and-rock exterior, the interior resembled a vast natural forest. Moss sprouted from metal seams, covering automated irrigation-maintained moss planters. Lush artificial vegetation and trees intertwined, turning the space into a paradise beyond the world.

In the bright, circular room, there were no desks, no windows. The entire perimeter was lined with honeycomb soundproofing material. Within this environment, no ambient noise existed—not even the sound of one’s own heartbeat or blood flow could be missed.

The door opened silently. Chen Yanxiu entered, dressed in casual outerwear. Once the door closed behind him, even his footsteps vanished. He gazed at the woman standing at the room’s center beneath the light, stopping at a distance. Only after she slowly opened her eyes from her meditative listening did he speak.

“Time is almost up.”

His voice carried urgency, yet within this room, it produced no echo—strikingly short and eerie.

The woman turned. Short hair, trench coat, face stern, eyes calm yet impenetrable.

Hua Xiaoling.

“I told you—your actions defy the Master’s will. They’re utterly foolish. They bring no benefit.”