Chapter 466

Let them continue to think that.

Qin Hao's smile grew deeper.

I want you to immediately push for the final implementation of this convention, and under the pretext of 'assisting the alliance with environmental assessment',

demand that all member civilizations provide the most detailed dimensional environmental data and energy fluctuation charts of their star domains.

Your attitude must be tough, greedy, like a thug eager to collect protection fees.

Heige was stunned for a moment; although he didn't understand why he suddenly had to act so earnestly, he still answered without hesitation:

No problem, let them think we look unsavory while eating; that will actually make them lower their guard more easily.

Exactly, what I want is for them to lower their guard.

Qin Hao hung up the communication, a sharp light flashing in his eyes.

What he needs is not those outdated technologies, but the medical records of the entire alliance's territories!

Only by mastering the most comprehensive 'condition' data can we prescribe the right medicine when the next outbreak occurs!

Several days later......

A piercing alarm echoed throughout the Yanhuang Command Center.

Warning! Detected high-intensity abnormal rule fluctuations! Source: vicinity of the Misty Corridor, K-78, K-81, K-92 star domains!

Fluctuation type determined: rule logic chain……is collapsing!

Warning! Zero phenomenon……prematurely erupting!

Qin Hao's pupils suddenly contracted.

He looked at the three scarlet-marked regions on the star map and murmured:

The illness of this cosmic brain is more urgent than I imagined.

Report to Chief Commander! In the K-78 star domain, the Nether Shadow Clan's mother star system, all physical constants fell into disordered chaos within 0.01 Planck time!

The gravitational constant dropped to zero, the Nether Shadow Clan's mother star and all its planets disintegrated! The confinement at the quark level was broken!

Report! In the K-81 star domain, the Echo Civilization's territory, the flow of time suffered massive fractures; the entire star system fell into a chaotic alternation between stasis and superluminal speed!

Report! In the K-92 star domain, the spatial dimensional structure is dissolving! Three-dimensional space shattered, all matter vanished!

Within the Heavenly Palace Command Center, alarms rose and fell one after another.

Fuxi's main brain issued a cold report,

accompanied by the three rapidly expanding scarlet 'lesions' on the holographic star map, causing the air to freeze.

Qian Bowen, Mao Xinyang, Zhou Shaoqing, and the other Yanhuang senior officials gathered behind Qin Hao, each face etched with solemnity.

They have witnessed countless grand scenes, even personally directed the destruction and rebirth of star systems,

but this scene before them is not an effect any known weapon could produce.

This is the death of the cosmic rules themselves.

It is like a computer's underlying code being deleted, causing the entire operating system to crash.

The lowly civilizations living in those three star domains had no chance to react; they were formatted amid the collapse of the rules.

Is this……the zeroing?

Zhou Shaoqing's voice sounded a little hoarse.

On the screen, he saw a fleet belonging to a sixth-level civilization, as the rule disruption arrived,

and it turned to nothing in the vacuum.

Even a few warships of the seventh-level Nether Shadow Clan civilization could not escape.

Such a death is even more bizarre and terrifying than being erased by the Overlord.

No, this is merely an acute flare-up of a local lesion.

Qin Hao's voice was unusually calm, his eyes locked on the data stream on the star map.

The system was running, analyzing the firsthand disaster data transmitted from the Heavenly Net.

【Host, the 'cosmic immune cells' of the disaster zone—that is, the violent zeroing energy—are growing geometrically.】

【Its spread pattern is not conventional spatial diffusion, but contagion based on the logic of Causality Law. Any unit attempting to flee the disaster zone via space- or dimension-jumping will have the 'fruit' of that escape act directly erased by the zeroing force, causing the jump to fail and leaving it stranded in place.】

Even the Causality Law is starting to go awry……

Qin Hao furrowed his brows.

This is more troublesome than he anticipated.

Just then, an emergency communication request from the G-37 sector of the Cosmic Alliance came through.

On the holographic screen, the previously calm face of Xixi Ling now concealed a barely concealed tremor of alarm.

Qin Hao, you must have seen it; the signs of zeroing are far earlier than our worst-case estimates—by many years.

Xixi Ling got straight to the point.

I have seen it.

Qin Hao spoke concisely.

The council has just convened an emergency meeting.

Xixi Ling's tone turned cold and ruthless: 'We have unanimously decided to activate the highest-level isolation protocol.'

Isolation protocol?

Mao Xinyang behind Qin Hao couldn't help but interject, 'What does that mean?'

Xixi Ling glanced at Mao Xinyang, ignored him, and continued staring at Qin Hao:

The isolation protocol means we will completely abandon the K-78, K-81, K-92 star domains and their surroundings, a total of 137,000 star systems.

Before the zeroing force runs completely out of control and contaminates more healthy star domains, we will perform……a surgical excision on them.

Surgical excision?

Qian Bowen's face changed, "You guys are thinking......"

"That's right."

Wo Xi Ling coldly spat out a few words.

"We will deploy the ultimate strategic weapon stationed at the G-37 Branch—the Causality Collapse Cannon—and in twelve hours carry out a blanket strike on that star sector,"

"creating a large-scale defensive zone to forcibly halt the spread of Return to Zero."

"As the words fell, the entire Heavenly Palace Command Center fell into a deathly silence."

"Everyone was stunned by Wo Xi Ling's light-hearted, casual plan."

"137,000 galaxies!"

"How many civilizations are in there? How many lives?"

"One septillion?"

"It's simply incalculable!"

"Just because of a sudden outbreak of disease, the so-called guardian Universal Alliance didn't even consider trying to treat it; their first reaction was actually to amputate outright!"

"Erase that star sector, along with all the life inside that couldn't escape in time!"

"You're crazy?!"

"Zhou Shaoqing was the first to roar, 'There are still countless lives in there! Are you just going to abandon them?!'"

"This isn't abandonment, it's damage control."

"Wo Xi Ling's expression didn't change at all."

"General Zhou, you should understand that to preserve the whole body, sacrificing a already necrotic finger is necessary and the only choice—this is experience bought with the blood of countless civilizations."

"Damn experience!"

"Mao Xin Yang also couldn't help cursing, 'I think you lot of high-and-mighty councilors have long lost your humanity!'"

"Humanity, in the face of the universe's survival, is the cheapest thing."

"Wo Xi Ling's voice remained utterly calm."

"Qin Hao, this time I contact you as the Fifth Councilor of the Alliance, issuing an official notice to the Yanhuang Civilization: please immediately withdraw all your fleets and personnel deployed in the Mist Corridor to the safe zone."

"In twelve hours, the Dimensional Rule Collapse Cannon will fire on schedule; any unit remaining in the quarantine zone will be considered part of the lesion and be eradicated together."

"Having said that, she paused and added:"

"This is for your own good; you're new members, you don't know the horror of Return to Zero, so don't make pointless sacrifices."

"Qin Hao remained silent, just listening quietly."

"Only now did he slowly speak, 'What if I say no?'"

"Wo Xi Ling's brows furrowed: 'What did you say?'"

"Qin Hao's gaze penetrated the screen, as if trying to pierce Wo Xi Ling's soul deep: 'What if the Yanhuang Civilization refuses to withdraw?'"

"Qin Hao!"

"Wo Xi Ling's tone grew stern."

"This is no joke! You have no idea what you're up against! That's not an enemy, it's a natural disaster of the universe itself!"

"It's an erasure at the level of rules! No matter how strong your fleet or how unique your technology, charging in will only get you assimilated!"