Chapter 273

Xing gazed into the distance at a vast expanse of barren land, the fierce wind sweeping up sand and gravel to strike her worn armor; at her feet, an abyssal beast stood tall like a mountain range, its colorful scales gleaming with a metallic cold light in the dim starlight.

"What is this…?" Xing raised her head to see the sky covered completely by a dense swarm of insects.

"You are now a wanderer on the Path of Gluttony, a beast tamer," Heita said calmly, "Possessing endless appetite, the Gluttony finally vanished in the Universal Locust Disaster. No one knows whether they are dead or alive, nor why they disappeared; I suppose… we might glimpse some clues from the followers who followed them."

No sooner had the words fallen than Xing saw the huge beast beneath her feet slowly lift its head.

Its mouth opened slowly, yet it caused the entire insect swarm's time to freeze. That huge maw was like a rift in the universe, revealing the swirling nebula and black hole inside.

The insect sea began to twist.

As if stirred by an invisible great hand, a massive vortex formed, its tip exactly the throat of the abyssal beast. Like seawater poured backward, the sky‑filling insect sea was sucked into the beast's mouth; in just a few breaths, the swarm that had blotted out the sky vanished completely.

The insect swarm quickly expanded again at a visible speed—yet this time the abyssal beast closed its jaws and refused to open them again.

An abyssal beast favored by Gluttony should not be in this state.

Xing approached the beast's feet; the colossal creature lowered its head, its golden vertical pupils reflecting her tiny figure. In that instant, Xing seemed, from those eyes forever burning with the flame of hunger, to see for the first time an unfamiliar emotion—satisfaction.

Immediately afterward, the abyssal beast let out a deep, contented burp.

""It is satisfied." Black Tower's tone sounded utterly incredulous, "Could it be that the insatiable Gluttony is also satisfied? Although before the locust plague broke out, It had never indulged so heartily, but using two-thirds of the universe's area to satisfy a star god's appetite…… is truly crazy.""

As Black Tower spoke, Xing suddenly felt her hands and feet lifted by invisible, silk-like threads, as if someone were manipulating her like a puppet.

The swarms' hisses, the abyssal beasts' low roars, the mad woman's wails…… the frenzy and unease mixed in the memories fell silent in an instant. It was as if someone plucked the strings of the universe, all noise wiped away, leaving only a pure chord resonating in the void.

This is an absolute, indisputable…… order.

""Wow——" Black Tower's eyes lit up, like discovering a diamond, "It is the Order, Supreme Unity, finally appearing. Do you remember? The feeling of being gazed upon when you were on the Moth Star? That gaze comes from Him.""

""In the era before It fell, Its radiance was as holy as gemstones! What was I saying? Right now, without Nanuk, the ancient Order's destiny suppresses countless calamities——""

——

Absolute Zone Zero

""I now have reason to believe that the existence of Order is more like a bottom‑triggered self‑protection mechanism." Yuecheng Liu adjusted their glasses, "When destruction in the universe crosses a certain red line, affecting the path of Order, this ancient and powerful star god will intervene.""

""So then… can we see a battle between the star gods……?" Asuka Yuya sat up straight with a whoosh."

""Probably, but if we follow Black Tower's words, Gluttony disappeared in the universal locust plague, so the only star gods appearing now are Order and Propagation, both of which have been confirmed fallen…… could it be mutual destruction?""

Yuecheng Liu believed that even though star gods were beyond their reach, higher‑dimensional beings, she still believed that even between star gods there exists an absolute difference in strength.

The closer one gets to the concept of the 'Primordial', the stronger the power of the ancient star gods perhaps—for example, Supreme Unity, the End, Ke Li Po…… as well as Gluttony Ao Bo Luo Si. She finds it hard to imagine that a clash between Order and Propagation would cause Order to fall; surely a third star god must have intervened, meddling in the outcome of this divine war.

""Build walls for preservation, Gluttony has vanished, information about the End is too scarce to know. Yuecheng Liu pondered a bit, feeling that only Joy could possibly influence the outcome of the great war.""

As an ancient star god, Joy Aha likewise possesses great power, but one who follows this path of Aha treats all beings in the universe as a game, with everything merely a means to please Him; such a seemingly unreliable star god—would It really personally intervene in this divine war?

Yuecheng Liu remained skeptical.

""Liu, I think…… we cannot use human thoughts and ways to speculate on the considerations of star gods; that is highly unrealistic." Yuya suddenly said, "Humans cannot stand at a higher dimension and viewpoint like star gods to survey the whole picture; thinking is often limited."

""So, the most important thing right now…… is for you, Assistant Instructor, to sit properly in your chair and enjoy this divine war with us. Star god versus star god——such a grand spectacle might not be seen even once in several lifetimes."

——

""Let me simulate His voice. Okay, here it comes!" Black Tower let out an anticipatory call——to be able to hear Order's voice here is indeed an unexpected delight."

It was as if the inscription of some mysterious rune, countless voices gathered into a stream, flowing unbidden into Xing's mind——

""Those who disturb the world shall not remain; the greedy have no right to live. The fickle, deceitful chaos is but the universe's filth and refuse."

Order is absolutely just, righteous, and beautiful. Its multi‑syllabic resonance bears the solemnity of an army, within which lie laws that cannot be ignored.

The extra syllables in His voice are the empires, city‑states, and civilizations that rose and fell in orderly succession under His control, according to fixed eras—the insignificant sighs left behind by countless corrections.