Chapter 508: Crimson World

In silent deep space, a spherical mechanical celestial body silently ejected a beam of silver-white light, which slammed into the surface of the massive dark-red planet with dense oscillation rings.

In an instant, dust tens of thousands of meters high was blasted into space, while a terrifying magnetic axis slowly rippled across the planet’s surface like a translucent tide.

Then, from within that beam, black metallic ore dust surged upward like a flood, drawn into the mechanical celestial body’s transport dome.

This grand scene resembled planetary terraforming; Lin Xian felt immense quantities of metal materials being captured and sucked in, forming beneath the mechanical body a suspended dust cloud thousands of kilometers in diameter.

Hummm!

Twelve superstring reactor phase rainbow rings suddenly ignited behind Lin Xian, who was linked to the Black Star Forge; his eyes blazed with magnetic storm beams, and the entire forge resonated with metallic vibration.

He did not know how much energy he had released, but he knew that if he were to ignite the Stardust Furnace, this might be the key.

But the problem was, Lin Xian had not yet reached the stage where he intended to ignite the Stardust Furnace…

Lin Xian ceased the resonance, hovering in the Star Dome Passage, staring in shock at his hands—it was not his conscious will, but the Black Star Forge forcibly resonating with him, as if their cores had connected; this was why his consciousness had sunk into the inner core of the mechanical celestial body, allowing him to perceive its entirety.

Yet this resonance had consumed three full months of his time; now, Lin Xian felt no exhilaration at having controlled the Black Star celestial body—his mind was filled only with anxiety and confusion.

He couldn’t help but think to himself:

“Though I accidentally solved a major problem—the Black Star celestial body automatically captured this iron-nickel planet, so I now have a source of basic materials and can begin constructing the Stardust Furnace—I’ve wasted three months with zero preparation, and I have no idea what’s happened out there… they might even think I’m dead.”

Lin Xian instinctively initiated resonance with the Black Star celestial body, attempting to reclaim his consciousness; instantly, a vast numbness spread from his central spine, flooding his surroundings—he felt his body, yet it was paralyzed like a ghost pressing down on him, unbearable, while his consciousness remained trapped within the Black Star Forge, unable to open his eyes.

“What’s happening? Did I really die? Can’t I wake up?”

He rapidly calculated possibilities, then suddenly remembered something—he looked at the floating Infinity and raised his hand with a gesture.

Hum!

The Infinity’s engine roared with power; violent energy gathered through Lin Xian’s consciousness, converging onto the body he sensed, then focusing into a single electric current at his heart meridian—he released it without hesitation.

Zzzzzt!

The violent electromagnetic oscillations caused Lin Xian’s consciousness body to erupt in blinding light, violently shaking his entire mental space.

He was using his mental space to perform cardiac resuscitation on himself!

The numbness in that body began to stir restlessly, as if something had been activated.

Lin Xian ignored everything; sensing the reaction, he discharged again.

…

February 5, 2070, Costa Rica, Haco Coast.

The sky and earth were shrouded in crimson; gales howled over the ruins of yellow sand; the coastal city had been frozen into a solitary shadow, devoid of sun, moon, dawn, or darkness—the world lay utterly silent.

In a region south of the coast, a horrific battle had clearly occurred: large spacecraft half-buried beneath the sand, a colossal interstellar vessel shattered into three massive fragments forming metallic hills stretching for kilometers; the battlefield was littered with ruined vehicles, and the flags of survivors and torn tents fluttered in the wind.

On the edge of the battlefield, aboard a crashed small transport ship, crimson winds relentlessly blew sand through the broken deck into the buried interior cabin; from a crack, a bizarre multi-legged creature crept in—its head bore three organs resembling eyes, yet actually were swirling pits like black abysses; as it writhed, it was impossible to tell whether they protruded outward or sank inward, giving a disorienting sense of dimensional distortion.

The multi-legged insect climbed swiftly over the desiccated corpses of soldiers clad in powered armor; its sharp metal limbs touched the armor, triggering dark energy flow that rapidly activated something—soon, the core battery in one powered armor’s chest slowly popped out; the insect then spat glowing filamentous tendrils from its head-pits, wrapping the core battery; minutes later, the battery decayed into a pile of crumbling soil, clattering to the ground.

Zzzz~

Just as the multi-legged insect finished its “feeding” and sought its next target, a blue glow suddenly flickered from the deepest recess of the cabin—as if emanating from a stasis pod.

The multi-legged insect instantly scrambled toward it, extending glowing tendrils onto the stasis pod’s transparent shell; sensing a stronger energy source, it enveloped the entire pod in its filaments; soon, intense energy surged forth, converting electrical and dark energy instantly into a burst of brilliant light.

The insect’s entire limbs trembled, as if relishing a blissful sensation—yet the next instant, as a second glow flashed, the stasis pod erupted with a terrifying electromagnetic shock; dozens of high-energy arcs pierced through the entire pod, vaporizing the insect and the transport ship alike; the resulting magnetic explosion generated extreme heat, sending a massive ionization wave rippling across the entire battlefield!

BOOM!!

Like a small bomb detonating, a shallow crater formed on the ground; at its center remained only a stasis pod platform, its original structure unrecognizable.

At that moment, as a powerful suction occurred, the person inside the stasis pod suddenly sat upright!

“Sssss!!”

Lin Xian opened his eyes and felt as if he were in hell.

Crimson skies, yellow sand, scorching heat, bone-eroding dust—combined with violent nerve pain at his extremities and a complete collapse of his immune system—he realized in the first second.

This was a dead zone.

Scrape! Scrape! Scrape!

Nanopowered armor swiftly extracted from the Black Star Forge, enveloping his entire body; once the life support system activated, a barrage of shrill alarms blared in his ears.

[ALERT: Dark Erosion concentration exceeds daytime value by 1360%. Evacuate immediately.]

[ALERT: Radioactive dust detected. Radiation level: 2183 mSv. Probability of radiation sickness: 86%!]

[ALERT: Body subjected to excessive Dark Impact. Dark Energy Synchronization System activated.]

[ALERT: Psychotronic fluctuation abnormal…]

[ALERT…]

Gradually, Lin Xian regained his senses; the alarms faded beneath a rising tide of shock, replaced by a piercing tinnitus.

Lin Xian scanned his surroundings: the sky churned with eerie crimson, the ground littered with yellow sand and debris.

He could not believe his eyes; he turned his head—behind him stood the stasis pod… from the Skytrain…

But where was the Skytrain?

Lin Xian looked at the watch on his wrist—shattering his last shred of hope; time had not lied him: three months and seventeen days had passed since he entered the stasis pod…

“Chen Laoshi… Kiki…”

He pressed the communicator, attempting to reach the Infinity’s internal frequency—but only silence answered him.

Lin Xian’s heart pounded violently; his mind went utterly blank.

Chen Laoshi… Kiki… Huo Ge… the building… Shu Qin… Sha Sha… Mo Nika… Qian Dele… Ding Junyi…