Chapter 517: Mysterious Crystal

The dome, walls, and floor of the entire space were composed of colorful crystals; only the area where Luo Mu and the others stood was pieced together from triangular black stone platforms of extremely sturdy texture.

The stone platforms were fixed above the crystals enveloping the entire space, seemingly to prevent anyone from touching the crystals there.

Placed in the center of the space was clearly the control hub of the "Prototype Time Machine"; although differing in details, it was largely identical to the space the game protagonist he controlled was brought into by the Future/AI Sada in the final stage of the game's first playthrough, as Luo Mu remembered it.

While pondering, Luo Mu spoke to Future and Professor Sada ahead of him before stepping out of the elevator: "If a battle occurs, should we avoid letting the aftermath spread to these shining crystals surrounding us?"

"After all, the difficulty between fighting without restraint and fighting with hands tied differs by miles."

Ordinary Paradox Pokémon from the ancient past or future were one thing, but Luo Mu was unclear about the specific combat power of the Scarlet and Violet deities; if they were comparable to Lei Guan Wang and that black Rayquaza, then even though he had grown considerably and held a type advantage, merely holding them off would be his limit.

In that case, he would likely have to activate contingency measures and notify Lei Guan Wang to come to their aid.

Therefore, within the time bought by stalling, he needed to confirm beforehand whether the venue was sufficient for Swampert to operate, avoiding any unexpected situations.

To Luo Mu's question, Professor Sada also gave her answer.

"Rest assured, the sturdiness of these crystals exceeds what you or I can imagine; even tectonic shifts from a million years ago could not shake them in the slightest."

Professor Sada spoke very tactfully, at least not bluntly stating the words, "Few methods available today could likely destroy these crystals."

Luo Mu understood and ceased pressing the matter.

It seemed these crystals, resembling Tera Crystals yet differing in certain details, possessed immense sturdiness.

Luo Mu stepped out of the elevator, while the several researchers behind him filed out one after another; under the leadership of Professor Sada and Professor Future, they gathered around the slowly rising control hub in the center and resumed their busy work.

Pulling Peony, who was curiously looking around, to his side and sighing that this child probably hadn't inherited his parents' research talents, Luo Mu instructed: "When the machine activates shortly, take your parents and stay as far away as possible, understand?"

"Why?"

Peony was slightly confused; he had roughly learned the machine's function from several researchers—could it be that Brother Luo Mu lacked full confidence even against Pokémon emerging from within? He was a Champion-level trainer after all! "Just consider it my intuition; doing this is the right move."

Luo Mu could only attribute the reason for his warning to his own intuition, his voice tinged with a trace of firmness.

"... Alright."

Peony nodded lightly, choosing to trust Luo Mu.

On the other side lay the control hub.

Since preparations had been made in advance, the debugging did not take long.

"Hoo—"

Having jointly completed the final step of adjustment, Professor Sada and Professor Future exchanged a glance and simultaneously exhaled a mouthful of stale air.

The "Treasure of Area Zero," serving as the energy source, was also without issue; now, only activation remained.

The couple slowly rose; at this moment, their state of mind was quite peculiar.

On one hand, they were finally about to touch the ancient past/future of their dreams, the day their inner fantasies would finally be realized; mere longing, hope, and excitement were entirely insufficient to describe their feelings.

On the other hand, they feared the activation of the "Prototype Time Machine."

What if it failed? What if there were omissions somewhere? With various complex emotions intertwined, Professor Sada hugged the scarlet-bound book against her chest tightly, while Professor Future gripped the violet-bound book in his right hand firmly, using these actions to divert part of their attention.

Several researchers, led by Mollie, stepped back a few paces; some set up recording camera equipment, while others ensured escape routes in case of any "what ifs."

Everyone at Area Zero Research Institute was anticipating the success of the research.

Meanwhile, Luo Mu took two Master Balls, painted purple and bearing a capital letter 'M', from his backpack and solemnly handed them to the two professors.

"Chairman Geeta entrusted me to bring these to you."

"Wonderful! With these, we can proceed with preparations for the theoretically perfect time machine!"

The couple displayed expressions of delight, each taking one Master Ball.

Currently, the Prototype Time Machine could theoretically only transmit Paradox Pokémon from a certain past/future timeline to this era, but in the two professors' vision, a perfect time machine should inherently possess capture and containment functions.

By projecting a Poké Ball through the time machine into a certain timeline, then capturing a Paradox Pokémon and sending it to the modern era, the brought-back Paradox Pokémon would theoretically even be controllable.

The energy consumed would also be far less than directly bringing Paradox Pokémon to the modern era as they did now.

The two were able to complete the relevant theories largely thanks to the three Paradox Pokémon captured in Poké Balls that Luo Mu handed to Geeta, who subsequently delivered them.

"Come out, Swampert, Dragonite, Meng Lei Gu."

As Luo Mu pressed the button on the surface of the Poké Balls, red beams struck the ground, transforming into the figures of three Pokémon.

Meng Lei Gu was very familiar to the two professors and Mollie; Swampert had even directly defeated Meng Lei Gu in a head-on confrontation, defending Observation Station No. 4, while Dragonite was no stranger to them either.

Seeing the three major generals deployed by Luo Mu, several researchers felt considerably more at ease.

After all, there were no battle rules restraining them here; before the two professors formally activated the time machine, Luo Mu directed the three Pokémon to begin frantically boosting their stats.

Swampert used "Bulk Up," Dragonite used "Dragon Dance," and Meng Lei Gu, which did not know "Dragon Dance," employed "Calm Mind," which suited it better; afterward, the two Dragon-type Pokémon jointly used "Dragon Cheer," making the oppressive pressure emanating from the already menacing Swampert even more intense.

Immediately following—

"Swampert, Mega Evolve."

Luo Mu lightly touched the Key Stone in his hand; enveloped in brilliant light, Swampert's life hierarchy advanced another step, obtaining even more terrifying power.

The moment Mega Swampert completed its evolution, a powerful shockwave burst forth; had Mollie not pulled Peony tight, he would have nearly been blown away.

With this, preparations were thoroughly complete.

Luo Mu looked at the three high-spirited Pokémon before him and nodded to the two professors.

"This is truly... cautious beyond imagination."

The couple displayed astonished expressions, completely startled by Luo Mu's caution.

Especially that Swampert, which had once again completed its evolution; in their view, its strength probably no longer fell short of the Chairman's ace, or perhaps even surpassed it.

However, the sense of reassurance was very real.

The couple exchanged a glance, revealing a smile; they had long discussed who would go first and who second, so there was no possibility of contention.

Professor Sada walked up to the control hub first and placed the "Book of Scarlet" she had been hugging against her chest perfectly into the recessed pedestal.

Immediately after, Professor Future also stepped up and placed the "Book of Violet" in his hand into another recessed pedestal.

The Prototype Time Machine consumed enormous energy; with the Tera energy they had currently collected, it could only be activated three times. The two planned to dedicate one chance to the "Past," one chance to the "Future," and the final chance to "Fate."

Dedicating the first activation of the Prototype Time Machine to "Fate" seemed very romantic in their eyes.

The "Vermilion Book" and "Violet Book," serving as the "activation keys," were loaded with the authentication IDs of the two professors; the moment they were placed into the recessed pedestals, the pre-set program automatically initiated, and a broadcast voice echoed from the dome.

【Orin's personal ID, connection confirmed】

【Turo's personal ID, connection confirmed】

【Preparing for first operation of Time Machine: Prototype Unit One】

【Preparing.】

【Preparing.】

【Preparation complete; Time Machine: Prototype Unit One activating】

A synthetic mechanical voice, unlike any human sound, reverberated through the vast space; it did not seem to be the AI of the Paradise Protection Program.

From Luo Mu's perspective, powerful energy began to converge within the device unfolding across the dome.

The synthetic mechanical voice sounded once more.

【Commencing transmission; coordinates random】

At the center of the device, the continuous collision of immense energy ultimately triggered an unprecedented miracle.

Stable space-time began to ripple, distorting within a vortex whose essence was Terastal energy, connecting to some unknown space-time.

Approximately two million years ago.

A colossal figure, like a pillar of heaven connecting sky and earth, stood towering between heaven and earth.

Half of its body was submerged in the surging sea; clutching ropes coiled around the Deep Earth, with every step it took, the trembling earth shifted along with it, emitting a dull roar that resounded through heaven and earth.

Boundless torrential rain battered its body, yet it stood unshaken, stubbornly pressing forward.

Viewed from a grand perspective, this was undoubtedly a magnificent undertaking filled with the grandeur of an epic.

Yet, if viewed from the perspective of the creatures living on the continent, this was undoubtedly an unprecedented natural disaster crisis.

Scattered across various parts of the Deep Earth, a clan of creatures entirely deep blue and resembling land turtles was suffering such a catastrophic disaster; emitting sorrowful wails, they gazed at the giant figure on the distant horizon, their hearts filled with a sense of powerlessness.

They attempted to transform the energy within their bodies into hard crystals in an effort to protect themselves, but due to their uneven strength, most crystals could not withstand the violent tremors brought by the crustal shifts and shattered with a crash.

There were also those with powerful strength and immense energy who, relying on endlessly regenerating crystals and at the cost of entering hibernation, managed to survive this crisis.

But the protagonist of this event was not "him," but "her."

One individual, possessing a smaller physique compared to her kin, brighter light-blue eyes, and more vivid rose-red eye markings, frantically squeezed every ounce of her potential and energy in the face of this unprecedented crisis.

Brilliant crystals formed and shattered; injuries accumulated continuously. Facing this calamity with no end in sight, she gradually began to feel despair welling up within her.

Eventually, not a shred of energy remained within her body; wishing to form crystals to protect herself again had become a mere luxury.

The earth's tremor struck once more; this time, its momentum far exceeded every previous instance. At the limit of her vision, the earth rose rumbling like clay kneaded at will by hands, transforming into waves that surged forward.

Under this shockwave, the probability of survival was zero.

Though she resembled a land turtle and inherently possessed the ability to fly, even taking flight immediately would not allow her to evade this wave, let alone that the energy within her body had long been exhausted.

Is this the end? Terapagos lifted her head toward the sky, wishing to take one last look at the blue heavens, but the sky had long been obscured by thick black clouds spreading outward and torrential rain.

Just as the rain clouds obscured the sky, and Terapagos's mind was about to be completely covered by despair—

She suddenly felt a call originating from the same source.

From some unknown origin, a tiny amount of energy, negligible under normal circumstances, spontaneously generated within Terapagos's body.

Summoning all her strength, she attempted to use this sliver of energy to draw that calling forth; before the wildly rising earth and the shockwaves mixed within it could strike, a brilliant crystalline glow timely showered down upon this remote corner of the land.

Realizing the crisis had finally moved away from her, Terapagos could no longer suppress the overwhelming fatigue surging forth; her eyelids drooped, fluttered a few times, and then closed completely.

Her consciousness sank along with it, plunging into slumber.

Within the crystalline glow enveloping her, Terapagos curled her body slightly, as if returning to her place of birth, and unknowingly transformed into an exquisite hexagonal crystal.

Wrapped in Terastal energy, the crystal traversed space-time, heading toward the future.

As for the events occurring in one corner of the endlessly trembling continent, to those grand existences, they were but a drop in the ocean, so insignificant they would not even be perceived.

Only within another space-time dimension existing independently outside the world did the deep-blue Dragon God, enduring as a diamond, slowly open her red eyes due to the fluctuations in time.

Paldea Region, Area Zero of the Great Crater of Paldea, deepest depths.

Luo Mu watched the energy ripples constantly spreading from above and silently raised his alertness.

Mega Swampert, Dragonite, and Meng Lei Gu were also standing ready; should any creature emerging from there display hostility, they would strike with full force, shoulder to shoulder, observing no code of martial honor.

As for Professor Orin and Professor Turo, after the first activation of the prototype time machine, they silently retreated to a safe distance, each holding one of Arven's hands, their gazes fixed tightly upward.

With the first operation of the prototype time machine, which era's Pokémon, which Paradox Species, would be brought back? The past, or the future?

Several researchers were also staring intently upward, their breathing quickening considerably under the tension.

The device on the dome spun rapidly without stopping, even grinding out exceedingly conspicuous electric sparks; at the moment energy reached its peak, a brilliant Bai Guang filled everyone's field of vision.

The moment their vision recovered, some object fell to the ground, emitting a crisp clattering sound.

Mega Swampert, Dragonite, and Meng Lei Gu gazed at the mysterious object lying quietly on the ground, momentarily unsure whether to unleash a move or halt their charging.

What is this...?

As a human, Luo Mu took much longer to regain his sight than Mega Swampert and the others; by the time he opened his eyes, no figure of any Paradox Species Pokémon he remembered appeared before him, nor was there any trace of the Vermilion God or the Violet God.

Not even any roars could be heard; only the Coarse and Heavy breathing of himself and the few people behind him remained.

Guided by the three Pokémon, he saw the mysterious crystal lying quietly on the ground, extremely tiny relative to this vast space.

Gazing at this crystal, Luo Mu, completely baffled, blinked and murmured in a low voice, "What is... this?"

(End of Chapter)