Chapter 563: The Mysterious Xuandu Returns Again

Yanhuang Universe turned its bow and began to withdraw from this suffocating host graveyard.

On the return journey, the core hall was utterly silent.

The impact of those tens of thousands of wrecked civilizations far surpassed the shock of a brutal war.

Everyone felt a heavy stone weighing on their heart.

They once believed they were heaven's chosen, the darlings of the universe.

Only now did they realize they were merely insects raised by some unknown entity, liable to be erased at any moment.

"Cheer up, everyone."

Qin Hao's voice broke the heavy atmosphere.

"It's not yet time for despair."

His gaze swept over each person.

"Do you see? That is our lesson. If we are not strong enough, not ruthless enough, that graveyard will be our fate."

"I don't want to become someone else's nourishment. How about you?"

"No!"

Qin Wu was the first to roar, his fists clenched tightly.

"Our Yanhuang Civilization rose from obscurity; even the Lord of End could not defeat us, let alone a hidden broken mirror!"

Qin Wu's words ignited the fire in everyone's hearts.

Exactly.

Fear and despair are useless.

Only strength is the foundation for breaking all conspiracies.

"Wife."

Qin Hao looked toward the Engineering Institute.

"How is the analysis of the mirror technology coming along?"

Qian Yin's image appeared on the big screen: "The preliminary analysis is complete; the essence of that material is a rule container that can store and release specific rules."

"The Hunter's reflective ability is simply storing the rule of rebound in advance."

"Can it be copied?"

"Before this, Qin Hao had already tried with the system and found it fundamentally impossible to copy."

"The system prompted that copying from the same source is impossible."

"It can be done!"

Qian Yin's tone was excited: "Not only can we copy it, we can also optimize it! Using our newly unlocked Rule Weaving Ability, we can fill it with any rule we want!"

A sharp light flashed in Qin Hao's eyes.

"I grant you the highest authority; mobilize all resources."

"I want every inch of the Yanhuang Universe's armor to become this mirror before we leave the Despair Corridor!"

"No problem."

A massive overhaul project sweeping the entire Yanhuang Universe unfolded in full swing amid this perilous land of death.

Countless engineering ships flew out from within the Yanhuang Universe.

They dismantled the old armor, melted and reforged it, then Qian Yin's team used Rule Weaving Ability to imbue it with new properties.

Some armor was endowed with the rule of absolute isolation, ignoring any spiritual contamination and causal probing.

Some armor was given the rule of energy devouring, converting energy strikes that hit it into usable power for itself.

As for the most critical bow and weapon arrays,

they were granted the same rule-reflecting ability as the Hunter.

The entire Yanhuang Universe was undergoing a transformation visible to the naked eye.

The original bloated, rough camouflage layer was completely stripped away.

In its place came a new armor that shimmered with a faint light and was smooth as a mirror.

No longer resembling a clumsy beast, it now resembled a delicate and deadly work of art.

Several days later.

The remodeling was complete.

The brand-new Yanhuang Universe hovered silently at the exit of the Despair Corridor.

"Status report."

"All systems have passed self-check; energy reserves are at one hundred percent."

"The new mirror armor perfectly integrates with the universe's main body, boosting defense three hundredfold."

"Good."

Qin Hao stood on the bridge, gazing at the familiar expanse of space outside.

"Let's go out now."

The Yanhuang Universe's engine emitted a low rumble.

It surged forth like a dragon leaping from the abyss, piercing the boundary of the Despair Corridor.

However, before anyone could breathe a sigh of relief,

a piercing alarm rang throughout the universe.

【Warning! Ultra-large-scale dimensional anchor detected!】

【Warning! Void has been sealed!】

Qin Si's face turned deathly pale.

"We're surrounded!"

On the main screen, the outside scene was projected.

All that could be seen was that in the Yanhuang Universe, in every direction, every spatial node,

Fleets of pure white warships appeared.

Those warships' shapes were identical to the scavengers Qin Hao had destroyed before.

But their number covered the sky and earth.

Millions of white warships formed an impenetrable spherical encirclement, trapping them at the center.

At the fleet's vanguard, three figures larger than ordinary scavengers hovered.

The authority fluctuations emanating from them made the rules of the entire cosmic sea tremble.

They were the Execution Bureau's adjudicators!

"Identity forger, K-779."

An emotionless thought swept over.

"Killing the Execution Bureau's scavenger, crime one."

"Possessing forbidden truth sequence, crime two."

"Now executing final judgment on you—"

"Logic nullified."

The four cold words "Logic nullified" echoed in the void.

The three adjudicators raised their hands simultaneously.

An indescribable, soul-shaking fluctuation began to gather.

The surrounding void began to feel unreal.

It was as if a giant eraser were about to wipe away everything in this spacetime.

"Prepare for battle!"

Qin Hao's voice trembled, not from fear but from extreme anger and resentment.

He stared at the desperate situation before him.

I can die, but the Yanhuang Civilization cannot be simply deleted like a piece of code for no reason.

"Lao San! Even if we die, we'll knock out a few of their teeth!"

"Understood!"

Qin Wu let out a fierce roar, and the mirror armor on the prow of the Yanhuang Universe ship blazed with blinding light.

All energy converged at a single point.

Even in a battle we must lose, we must unleash our strongest strike.

However, at this very moment when tensions were at breaking point and battle was imminent.

A lazy voice suddenly intruded upon this solemn battlefield.

"I say..."

"You bunch of kids, staying up late not sleeping, gathering here to hold a lighting meeting?"

"You've disturbed this old Daoist."

This voice clearly entered the consciousness of every being present.

Both Qin Hao and the three high-ranking adjudicators were stunned.

Everyone involuntarily turned their gaze toward the source of the voice.

All that could be seen was that, on the outskirts of the encirclement, a person and an ox had appeared at some point.

An old man in gray Daoist robes rode a green ox, swaying slowly over.

It was Xuan Du.

He seemed to have just happened to pass by, saw the commotion, and came over to take a look.

That green ox was outrageous, even sticking out its tongue to lick a mouthful of the blockade line fired by the Execution Bureau's fleet.

Then it wore a look of disdain, as if saying, "This stuff tastes awful."

The three adjudicators' movements stalled.

Their logic cores were frantically calculating.

【Detected unknown lifeform.】

【Authority level: unable to parse.】

【Threat level: incalculable.】

【Processing plan: ……error……error……】

For these machines that only know how to execute programs, Xuan Du's existence is an incomprehensible super‑bug.

"Senior!"

Qin Hao was both startled and delighted; he never expected to meet this mysterious old man again here.