Stars See Me [Interstellar] | Chapter 261 | The Cradle of Gaia | Novela.app

Cold. Heartless. Awkward. Stubborn. Taciturn, cryptic... Excellent. With every word Evenheiler spoke, Lei Ting’s aura diminished a fraction, and his expression stiffened further. By the time the last syllable fell, Lei Ting, standing amidst the chronal storm, looked like a robot whose display screen had frozen. It took two full breaths before the Limit-Breaker—whose brain, if removed, could function as a biological supercomputer—stammered out a weak response, sounding as if his intellect had suddenly evaporated: "...Wait, wait... I’m no saint, I’m just a... forget it. I mean, ‘cute’?" "Hmm?" Evenheiler’s expression remained unchanged. "You must have misheard. Also, I am insulting you. Please provide the appropriate reaction, such as admitting your faults. Your Excellency 'Sun Star'." 'Your Excellency Sun Star.' Before Lei Ting could recover from the rapid-fire verbal assault, he was jolted again by this title. He opened his mouth, momentarily unsure of how to respond. Feeling uncharacteristically flustered, he turned his gaze toward the third planet of the New Solar System. Amidst the increasingly terrifying waves of danger surrounding them, he spotted Katrine and the others. They had been found by a superpowered search and rescue team and had boarded an intra-orbital light craft. But in the next instant, a pitch-black spatial rift, harboring a chaotic storm within, suddenly tore open, shredding the ship in two! Black mist billowed out, and the mottled, fractured form of the 'Commander' emerged halfway, looking like an armored statue growing out of the dark fog. —His ability to interfere with time and space had allowed him to determine his point of descent within the timeline. And the medium... People and debris fell from the sky. Evenheiler saw that the white-haired woman had already been torn in half. She was a B-rank superpowered individual; her vitality was far stronger than an ordinary person's. She was clearly still alive at this moment, her expression carrying a hint of dazed confusion as her dim, dark-red eyes looked up at the sky. Then she tumbled and fell, plunging into that sea of yellow sand. Lei Ting heard Evenheiler’s roar. It was like a psychic earthquake. In an instant, a shimmering silver power caught the falling survivors, and a blade flashing with silver-white starlight slashed before the Commander’s eyes. The terrifyingly sharp edge grazed past, nearly severing the Commander’s helmet-like head! The Commander seemed to have anticipated meeting an enemy at this point in time. The already turbulent chronal fluctuations exploded violently. Lei Ting had no time for further action; gold light flashed in his eyes as he lunged forward, pulling Evenheiler into a tight embrace! Manic fluctuations, like a corrupted holographic projection, drowned out everything in their vicinity. Lei Ting could feel himself being torn apart. Agonizing pain erupted from the depths of his psyche. Yet, having lost the constant mental state provided by 'Immovable,' he remained outwardly composed. The thorn-like halo behind his mental form’s head shone, finally revealing its true current state: the upper half remained solid, but the lower half was like shattered glass or crushed almond shells, shedding tiny fragments of light. The storm struck, and Evenheiler’s roar had not yet faded. Lei Ting pressed Evenheiler’s face against his chest and plummeted into the chaotic darkness. ... ... ... It was a long, drawn-out torture. The pain was so intense it made even Lei Ting want to curse, yet he lacked the strength to speak. He felt as though he had been stuffed into a super-reactor, or a giant centrifuge, or perhaps as if he had dived headfirst into the black hole at the center of the galaxy... Speaking of that black hole, it was fortunate that the thing was currently being suppressed by the power of the 'Sun Star'; otherwise, there was no guarantee the Commander wouldn't have accelerated its life cycle just to secure a victory. In this particular chronal storm, Evenheiler had missed the optimal window due to his rage and volatility. Now, neither of them could establish an effective defense—but that wasn't his fault; it was the enemy's. Amidst the chaotic, disordered upheaval, Lei Ting held Evenheiler. Both of their minds were forced into a blank state; they could no longer afford to overthink. They could only exert every ounce of energy to maintain the existence of a tiny, narrow space. As Lei Ting expected, a rift in space-time birthed at their location—the universe’s own counterattack. But simultaneously, a crimson power obscurely traversed the gaps of time and space. It landed upon them, and though it offered no help with stability, it seemed to effect some kind of change within them. After what felt like ten thousand years, Evenheiler finally managed to painstakingly re-gather the power required to simulate 'Immovable.' The long torment finally ceased, and shortly thereafter, they were finally spat out of the turbulence. This was undoubtedly a journey of immense span, and the landing point was equally intense—they were hurled into a star, their trajectory as straight as a bullet or a dart. *Bullseye,* Lei Ting thought. He coughed up a mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of internal organs. Excessive light and heat assaulted him. The star’s radiation paused for no one; it worked in tandem with a force that felt like churning blades within him, violently wearing him down. Evenheiler’s energy wrapped around him. It was familiar to him in every sense, but—but it couldn't help him much. Fresh flesh and blood surged continuously from Lei Ting’s mouth, only to be easily dissipated by the star’s energetic winds. The red light that brought them flickered unsteadily within his chest, repairing his body, yet it looked to be on the verge of exhaustion. Silver light flashed as Evenheiler, his eyes glowing with gold, supported Lei Ting and flew out of the star. The temperatures of the two nearest planets were also extreme, as was the asteroid belt. He could only accelerate toward the third planet. From a distance, it looked like a blue jewel cruising through the darkness—it had a cratered, rocky natural satellite, those craters being the scars of intercepted meteors. Over 70% of the primary body's surface was covered by oceans, and it possessed its own great circulatory system. White clouds flowed beneath the atmosphere, and hints of lush green forests were visible... A planet like this certainly harbored life. But life was a miracle in the universe. For an average person traveling the stars, they might go hundreds of years without discovering a planet with a naturally born ecosystem. Evenheiler was somewhat surprised, but he had no spare energy for idle thoughts. The fact that he had witnessed his kin being murdered, the terrible truth behind it, and Lei Ting’s current condition forced him to pull his thoughts together. He quickly brought Lei Ting down to the planet, landing in a forest by the sea. As they descended, he saw a city in the distance... to be honest, he was reluctant to call it a 'city.' The thing was simply too... primitive. So primitive that he didn't believe for a moment that the place would have any technology capable of helping them. Quickly, Evenheiler maintained his energy output to Lei Ting while clearing a safe zone. Lei Ting was still vomiting blood. His condition showed no sign of improvement. During this transit, they had regained biological bodies due to the power of a certain entity. For Evenheiler, this was a good thing—but only for him. For Lei Ting, this rebirth was a catastrophe: liver, kidneys, heart, lungs... an endless cycle of destruction and repair played out within his body. Two powers were deadlocked, canceling each other out, making it a state where one could neither live nor die. For the first time, Evenheiler felt truly helpless. The gold light in his eyes faded. He had tried dozens of methods but failed to alleviate Lei Ting’s pain. He had even seriously considered whether he should end Lei Ting’s life here, so that he at least wouldn't have to suffer this physical agony... But in the next moment, a light as crimson as blood touched his spirit from the depths of the soul. Then, a familiar yet strange red energy surged into Evenheiler’s body. He instinctively channeled it toward Lei Ting. This process lasted a long time—a full day and night. He could feel the environment around them darken and brighten again. It wasn't until the second dusk approached that Lei Ting finally stopped vomiting blood and trembling, instead falling into a peaceful coma. Evenheiler let out a long breath and turned his attention toward the source of that red power. To his surprise, he did not see a cracked angel statue, but rather... a goddess? She was a giant deity of shifting features, her entire form composed of brilliant red and white. She wore a vast amount of gold jewelry. In one hand, she held a stalk of plump golden wheat; in the other, she cradled a golden jar adorned with gemstones. The jar contained something unknown that radiated a strange attraction. "...'Philanthropist'? No... 'Lover of the World'?" Evenheiler murmured the name, somewhat dazed. The strange, goddess-like being heard the title and leaned down as if observing him. Then, she spoke softly: "No. At this point in time, the 'Lover of the World' you know has not yet been born." It was a language that did not exist in Evenheiler’s database. It bore no resemblance to any tongue he knew, yet he could understand its meaning. "Then who are you?" Evenheiler asked in return. "I have no name," the goddess said gently. "But those who have seen me call me 'The Deceased'." ...'The Deceased.' A title that couldn't even be described as merely 'ominous'; it wasn't even a name, it was a curse. Evenheiler felt a strange sensation. He realized that their transit this time must have landed them in an era terrifyingly far in the past. Thus, he looked up, attempting to discern their current time and location through the stellar tracks. The result left him bewildered: compared to their last jump, they seemed to have crossed a horrific length of time, yet they hadn't moved much in terms of space. Using the 'New Solar System' as a baseline, they had moved slightly further toward the edge of the galaxy... ...Then, there was only one possibility. "This place..." the interstellar human from the distant future murmured, "...is Earth...?" "In the future, it is indeed called that. But at the position where you now stand, it is known as 'γαῖα (Gaia)'." 'The Deceased' used the wheat in her hand to gently stroke Evenheiler’s blonde hair. On that massive phantom, every grain of wheat was ten times his size. This time, Evenheiler—who had dealt extensively with the 'Gaia' organization—understood: wasn't that the name for the mother planet used by a certain ancient civilization in the Mediterranean region of Old Earth?! ***