He was supposed to be at the Ring World battlefield on the edge of the Galactic Core, yet he had ended up at another battlefield on the very edge of the galaxy...
For a moment, Evenheiler wondered if he was developing early-onset dementia. This was despite the fact that he didn't even have a physical body right now, let alone a brain.
But almost immediately, he realized: this wasn't his fault.
During his spatial transit, he had captured a vast number of abstract coordinates available for transfer, all originating from somewhere within the Milky Way. He had filtered for the one with the greatest energy amplitude while simultaneously adding the condition of "possessing Yangxing’s energy signature."
There was absolutely nothing wrong with that logic... The problem was that the primary issue at the Galactic Core might have already been resolved by Lei Ting. He had no way of knowing that there was another battle raging here, on the edge of the galaxy toward the Large Magellanic Cloud.
Furthermore, because the space here was so warped and unstable, the largest energy source had become a natural jump beacon.
He had caught a fish, but it was only "correct" in a relative sense. If this had been a day ago, he certainly would have warped directly to the Ring World.
Just like in life—once a certain point in time passes, no matter how hard you try, things just don't feel right anymore!
Black celestial bodies flickered in and out of existence, and void flames roared. Evenheiler dodged through layers of peril, his ethereal features taut and his expression grim.
He didn't ask Firewine why it wasn't surprised by his presence. First things first—he could clearly sense that this battlefield was likely dominated by one S-rank at the peak of their power and one even stronger entity. The former was actively entangling the latter to buy him a chance to escape.
But... "Fall back for now, Firewine." Evenheiler’s fingers twitched as the starlight around him grew more brilliant. He called out to his old acquain—old blob of slime—through the mental link.
"I can't get to the Galactic Core right now. The environment there is extremely complex. If I lock onto the largest energy source, I might dive headfirst into the main cannon of some charging war platform."
As he spoke, he began to move through the flickering starlit sky, occasionally vanishing in a flash when danger drew near, only to reappear elsewhere.
"I don't know what happened to Yangxing; I can't sense him," he said. "That guy is either suppressed his power, or he's maintaining a spatial lock over a certain area..."
The blond man recalled his days on the Ring World; having his spatial transit cut short like that had truly been a first.
"One question: if you're here, what about the Human Union?" Firewine retreated from the Commander’s vicinity. In that brief bout of close-quarters combat, nearly a third of the matter composing its body had been torn away.
"The Radiant Paragon is still there," Evenheiler answered calmly. "Besides, the Human Union has its own people, and we have another force."
By "another force," he was referring to Shayne, the other golden-haired S-rank esper.
Beyond that, he didn't mention "The Lover" at all, yet Firewine sent back a wave of agreement. It was clear that neither of them harbored much hope for The Lover.
Even though that entity was also a Human Union super-powered entity, considering the extreme instability inherent to humanity...
...Never mind.
At a time like this, Evenheiler didn't want to see humanity self-destruct. Neither did Firewine.
"Regardless, you have to find a way to contact him!" Firewine shrieked through the mental link.
It didn't display the personality traits of "Kothares" to Evenheiler; instead, it shouted in the tone he was more accustomed to: "The one opposite us is a Double-S! We can't defeat him head-on!
"That guy Yangxing—how could he drop the ball at a time like this?!"
"...Double-S?"
His subtle suspicion confirmed, Evenheiler cursed violently in his mind. The gold-tinted silver-white stardust in his eyes swirled like two brilliant white nebular vortices.
This proved... he had regained his peak power! Although he had always been known for technique rather than raw strength, the last time he possessed such power, he had been able to completely destroy a star system with a single energy burst even while at death's door, with the impact radiation reaching far beyond the confines of a mere solar system!
But even so, he didn't dare claim he could take on a Double-S...
There were certain thresholds that made a world of difference once crossed. For instance... the concept of "running on empty" simply didn't exist in a Double-S's dictionary!
Furthermore, if he joined the fray, he would be equally constrained. If his personal spatial transit prototype, the XIV001, were destroyed, he might truly end up trapped near this sector with Firewine.
And that massive black hole in the center of this sector was the greatest death warrant in the world!
Though he didn't know the specifics, Evenheiler had recognized "Black Hole Manipulation" at a glance.
For such a terrifying ability to reappear in the world, there was definitely something fishy going on. He didn't believe for a second that the enemy was incapable of interfering with that massive black hole!
After all... that thing had been created by the previous wielder of Black Hole Manipulation!
"What a pain..." Evenheiler murmured, his face cold.
In the next second, he suddenly lunged sideways, tracing a sharp, uncanny arc through the three-dimensional space to avoid a sudden gravitational distortion.
In the distance, the Commander shook his head slightly, feeling a hint of regret.
Every powerhouse in the galaxy knew that no matter how invincible a power was, as long as the speed at which it formed a threat wasn't faster than the reaction and movement speed of the "Stellar Stream," it would be difficult to harm him.
To pose a sufficient threat to the Stellar Stream, one had to satisfy at least one of two criteria: precise, lightning-fast control, or a sufficiently large area of effect.
Well then, since even the power to pluck the strings of gravity couldn't catch this star...
...Then let the stars themselves flow backward!
The Commander gave a cold snort and turned, plummeting toward the massive black hole.
Though he was also suffering, he wasn't torn apart by the immense gravity. Instead, the distant black hole itself seemed to be pulled by another black hole; the light of its accretion disk began to warp slightly!
Judging by the fluctuations of its flames, Firewine was utterly aghast.
"Stop him... No, I'll stop him, you get out of here!!"
The flames spreading through the void burned fiercely as Firewine charged forward again. It practically turned the mental link into a psychic attack, but Evenheiler remained unmoved.
Setting aside the minor influence of "Stillness," this composure had its own justification.
The blond man glanced toward the distant Human Union.
"Three... two..."
He counted down in his head.
"...One," he thought.
Amidst the black hole's anomaly, spatial control fell into the Commander's hands. The stars vanished, and a starless darkness shrouded everything.
The "Bottom of the Soul" had descended.
At the same time, a silver light flashed and vanished. A planet-sized "Steel Earth" roared past, carrying seven different colors of esper light, and slammed violently into the Commander!
Those were the representative colors of the seven major categories of espers—a concept humans had forcibly attached to the Gazer during its extremely brief life (by the standards of a super-powered entity) through basic propaganda.
In that instant, the black hole's anomaly ceased. Caught off guard, the Commander took the full force of a super-powered entity's strike with his head. In the massive impact and energy explosion, his black-armored body shattered into pieces.
Simultaneously, another flash of silver light appeared!
It was a streak of silver radiance that scattered starlight. The speed at which it formed in the darkness was so fast that neither Firewine nor the dazed Commander could react.
By the time they regained their senses, Evenheiler, clad in black-gold battle armor, had already looped back around. He held a slender light-blade in one hand and something else in the other, floating nonchalantly in his original position.
All of this happened in a mere heartbeat, but when Evenheiler opened his hand, everyone knew that everything had changed.
—What he held was a living eyeball with writhing tentacles, currently playing dead in a daze.
In a wheat field in the distant starry sky, the phantom statue of the original super-soldier swayed. Its hands were empty, and cracks spread across its surface.
It quietly watched that eyeball.
That was a missing piece of its "Spirit Thought," and the reason for its fragmentation.
It had once been a member of the "Gaze" project, choosing to sacrifice itself for all of humanity in the role of a hero—no, the greatest hero...
...Now, after enduring countless hardships, it had returned to a human's hand in a corrupted, monstrous form, never to return to its original state.
"He shouldn't have been carrying you," the Gazer said softly. "Clearly, he couldn't give up on utilizing your abilities..."
—That Spirit Thought, corrupted into an eye-shaped aberration, that soul that had once fought for humanity, was the former mastermind of the "Gaze" project.
The Gazer's own ability to peer into the future originated from this very Spirit Thought. Consequently, when it was corrupted into the "Eye" representing "Observation," it had almost no resistance and was easily taken from the whole by the enemy.
And earlier, at the cost of its final stability, the Gazer had re-linked with it.
Thus, it had seen the Commander's sole weakness in the brief future!
—Since Evenheiler's transit could be drawn in by space distorted by esper power, then... who was to say a "planet" flying faster and growing larger couldn't be as well?
The Gazer raised a hand and made a light, human-like farewell gesture toward the eyeball from afar: "Even if I don't know how, you are still helping me... or rather, helping 'them' who compose me."
The Gazer chuckled.
"I know you can hear me. Think about how this all came to be..."
Evenheiler weighed the living eyeball in his hand and casually tossed it into his energy space.
Only then did millions of sharp blade-scars erupt within the dark space.
For a moment, the galaxy shimmered!
So what if he was a Double-S? As long as the conditions were utilized correctly, an S-rank's processing power was more than enough.
Forget about gathering energy to control the black hole or suppressing and threatening others as before; right now, the Commander's shattered form couldn't even reform into one.
No one knew how much data Evenheiler had processed in that split second. The blade-scars, as dense as the starry sky, proved that he had considered almost every possible development.
Starting from the very first precision strike, the moment the Commander showed any sign of congregating, new blade-scars would abruptly appear as if crossing through time and space, finely slicing the newly condensed limbs back into a cloud of black mist.
As mottled cracks spread, the Gazer's laughter grew louder.
Distorting space, are we? Thinking that because the galactic environment is chaotic, there's no long-range strike strong enough to interfere with this battle?
—The "Homeland-Hurler" from the human subconscious sends its regards!
The Human Union didn't need much to make a name for itself in this galaxy. For hundreds of years, humans had specialized in two things: going insane and holding grudges!
***
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 灵之底 | Bottom of the Soul | A conceptual dimension or state of being. |
| 扔老家者 | Homeland-Hurler | A term referring to the Gazer throwing the "Steel Earth" (humanity's home). |
| XIV001 | XIV001 | Evenheiler's personal spatial transit prototype. |
| 凝望计划 | Gaze Project | The project that created the Gazer. |
| 灵思 | Spirit Thought | A fragment of consciousness or soul-energy. |
