Ink-Clad Creator

Li Xian's sudden scramble and lunge toward the stone bed was so abrupt that everyone present was momentarily stunned.

The blood-red lightning in Hanbao's palm, compressed to its limit, paused slightly, a hint of suspicion flashing in his eyes—this little thief from the demonic sect didn't take the opportunity to counterattack, nor did he beg for mercy and flee. Instead, he lay down on the ground like an ostrich, and even shielded the Xiao family girl under his body.

"A mere charade!" Lord Han's heart skipped a beat, then he sneered, "They've run out of tricks and are trying to use hostages as leverage!"

Thinking of this, he suppressed his anger and shouted at Elders Peng and Cao, "Seize this scoundrel! Don't harm Ling Shan!"

"Yes, sir!"

Elder Peng moved with lightning speed, while Elder Cao moved with unpredictable steps. The two of them flanked from the left and right, their Frost and Purple Clouds in their palms ready to be unleashed.

however--

"Bang!" "Bang!"

With two muffled thuds, the two men were thrown back as if they had hit a copper wall, staggering back several steps before regaining their balance.

"What?!" Elder Peng's expression changed drastically.

Elder Cao, refusing to believe it, unleashed a torrent of Purple Cloud True Qi from both palms, transforming it into a blazing fire dragon that hurtled straight towards the void in front of Li Qian. Seeing this, Elder Peng also activated his Frosty True Qi, sending a wave of icy white mist rushing towards them.

One ice, one fire, two completely opposite yet equally domineering true energies intertwined in the air to form a strange spiral.

Just as it was about to touch that "emptiness"—

"Sizzle—!!!"

An invisible yet overwhelming energy erupted from the spot where Li Xian lay prone!

That wasn't true qi, nor internal force, nor even any power recognized by any martial artist in this world. It was pure, violent, and seemed to be the very origin of existence itself, released instantly in a radiating form!

"ah--!"

The screams of Elders Peng and Cao rang out almost simultaneously. Their true energy was like ice and snow meeting boiling oil, instantly melting and annihilating, while the invisible energy, undiminished, rebounded back along with their true energy!

The two men were struck as if by a heavy hammer in the chest, spitting out blood. They were sent flying backward, crashing heavily against the cave wall before sliding softly down, with wisps of blue smoke rising from their heads.

"Demons! It really is demonic magic!" Lord Han's pupils contracted, and a chill ran through his heart.

He had traveled the martial world for decades and had seen countless evil and demonic arts, but he had never seen such a power that completely violated the common sense of martial arts, was formless and intangible yet devastating!

Can't wait any longer!

Lord Han glanced at his son Han Yunyang, whose fate was unknown in the distance, a flash of pain crossing his eyes, which was then replaced by resolute determination.

The two blood-red "suns" between his palms were finally compressed to their limit, their light becoming more restrained, presenting a dark, dangerous color like congealed blood.

The most powerful strike of the Thunderous Might Technique—the creation of heaven and earth—is poised to be unleashed!

At this moment, Li Xian was lying on the ground, holding down the struggling Xiao Lingshan with one hand, while sticking out his foot to trip Elder Xiao, who was trying to rush over to save his daughter.

With a soft "crack" and a muffled groan from Elder Xiao, it was clear that a bone had broken.

"I'm sorry, old man!" Li Xian muttered to himself, but he showed no mercy and pressed Elder Xiao to the ground as well.

"Hurry! Now!" The command from his brain exploded in Li Xian's consciousness, with an unprecedented urgency.

With no more doubts, Lord Han pushed his palms forward with all his might!

There was no earth-shattering roar, only a dark red blade of light, condensed to the extreme, silently tearing through the air. Wherever it passed, even light seemed to be swallowed up, and it pierced straight at Li Hou's heart!

This strike contained the life's work of Lord Han and the pain of losing his son; it was powerful enough to split mountains and shatter rocks!

Just a fraction of a second before the blade touched Li Xian's back—

A wisp of "nothingness" quietly appeared in front of the tip of the blade.

It was neither light nor darkness. If I had to describe it, it was like a small piece suddenly "missing" in my field of vision, an absolute "point" where even the concept of "existence" was denied.

The moment the dark red blade touched that "point," there was no collision, no cancellation.

It means "annihilation".

A dazzling light, beyond description, burst forth from that "point"!

That was not "brightness" in the ordinary sense, but a conceptual, law-based "manifestation." The originally soft white light source in the cave appeared as small as a candle flame compared to the blazing sun under this light.

Even with his eyes tightly closed and facing the ground, Li Xian still felt a sharp pain in his eyeballs, and a burning white spot remained in his vision. A dense "buzzing" sound, like the chirping of billions of cicadas, filled the air, as if some kind of extreme energy was frantically tearing apart the structure of reality.

He smelled a burnt odor, hurriedly touched his buzz cut, and then reached out to touch Xiao Lingshan's cascading long hair—thankfully, none of it belonged to them.

The light came quickly and went quickly.

As if it were just an illusion, the cave returned to "peace".

However, that "calmness" carried a deathly stillness. The original white light source had dimmed considerably, and the air was filled with a strange scent, similar to ozone after rain but even more crisp and unfamiliar.

Li Xian felt a few tiny, warm dust particles falling from the back of Xiao Lingshan's hand.

"Alright, you can get up now." The voice from his brain sounded, calm as ever, but Li Xian seemed to detect a very faint... weariness?

"The nuclear...nuclear radiation is gone?" Li Xian still didn't dare to open his eyes, his heart pounding wildly.

"It wasn't nuclear fission or fusion to begin with." The voice of the brain seemed to carry a hint of helplessness. "It was antimatter, an annihilation reaction that occurs when it comes into contact with matter. Unfortunately, I spent countless years searching through the vast ocean of cosmic microwave background radiation and only managed to collect a tiny fraction of it. Now... it's all gone here."

Antimatter?!

Li Xian jolted awake, jumped up, and stared wide-eyed around, trying to find any trace of the legendary "antimatter".

The sight in the cave made him gasp in shock.

The once imposing Lord Han was now lying motionless ten paces away, his face and beard covered with a layer of extremely fine gray-white dust, as if he had just been pulled out of a lime kiln.

His magnificent lord's robes had become dull and lifeless, with even tiny, irregular gaps at the edges, as if they had been quietly cut by the most precise tools.

Elders Peng and Cao were in even worse condition, slumped against the wall, with smoke rising from their heads and strange, pale red grid-like patterns covering their exposed skin, their breathing weak.

Elder Xiao, having been pinned to the ground by Li Xian, escaped the most direct impact, only breaking his leg. He was now staring in horror at the scene before him, his old face deathly pale.

"He...is dead?" Li Xian pointed at Lord Han, his voice dry.

"His internal energy was profound, protecting the foundation of his heart meridian. However, the aftershocks of the annihilation reaction scattered his true energy, causing him to faint," the brain explained. "The two elders released their true energy and came into direct contact with the marginal effect of antimatter annihilation, damaging their meridians. They need immediate treatment."

Before Li Xian could think further, his brain gave him another command: "Bring the girl here. Interference removed, experiment continue."

Li Xian took a deep breath, walked to Xiao Lingshan who was slumped on the ground with a pale face, and reached out to pull her up.

"Don't touch me!" Xiao Lingshan abruptly shook off his hand, tears streaming down her beautiful eyes, yet burning with the flames of anger and despair. "Sorcery! What...what have you done to the Lord and the elders?! Kill them if you want, I'd rather die than aid and abet evil!"

She struggled to stand up, but due to the loss of all her internal strength and her turbulent emotions, she staggered.

Looking at her sorrowful yet stubborn expression, Li Xian felt a sudden pang of tenderness, but remembering the instructions from his brain and his own predicament, he hardened his heart and whispered, "They're not dead. But if you delay any longer, there's really no hope."

Xiao Lingshan froze, her eyes blurry with tears as she looked at the distant Lord Han and her father, whose fates were unknown. Her lips trembled.

"As long as you're willing to help and cooperate in completing the experiment," Li Xian softened his tone, following the instructions of his brain, "I guarantee I'll wake them up, including treating your father's leg injury. I keep my word."

"Why...why should I believe you?" Xiao Lingshan's voice was hoarse, filled with deep suspicion.

"I could kill them right now, yet I'm here negotiating with you." Li Xian looked directly into her eyes, trying to appear sincere. "This experiment won't harm you, it might even...be beneficial. Don't you want to know why you can connect with the little pine tree?"

Xiao Lingshan's pupils contracted slightly. This matter had always been a mystery to her.

She lowered her head and remained silent for a moment. When she looked up again, her eyes still held a hint of wariness, but now held a touch of determination: "Fine... I promise you. But you must save people first!"

"Deal." Li Xian breathed a sigh of relief and turned to walk towards the stone table.

He picked up the small, exquisite globe and, following the instructions of his brain, precisely pressed his finger onto a tiny protrusion.

"Click."

With a soft sound, an oval-shaped black "particle," smaller than a sesame seed, rolled into Li Xian's palm. It wasn't actually black; it was more like a miniature black hole that absorbed all light. Staring at it for too long gave one the illusion that one's mind was being sucked in.

"This is a high-density condensation of life energy, a byproduct of the annihilation of certain special stars, which I call 'stardust'," the brain explained. "There are six of these in the globe, which can quickly repair damage to living organisms and replenish their vitality."

Li carefully broke a grain of "stardust" in half—this substance, though seemingly tiny, was exceptionally tough and required considerable strength.

He put half a pill into Han Baozhu's mouth and gave the other half to the unconscious Elder Feng. The pale faces of the two men regained a rosy hue at a visible speed, and their breathing became steady and long.

When it was Han Yunyang's turn, the young master of the fortress, Li Xian hesitated. Looking at the other's handsome face, which was still striking even in his unconscious state, yet carried an arrogance that made him uncomfortable, that inexplicable aversion in his heart resurfaced.

"Why did you stop?" Xiao Lingshan, who had been watching his movements closely, asked urgently, "We must save the young master too! Otherwise, the agreement is null and void!"

Li Xian frowned, about to say something—

suddenly!

The entire cave, no, the entire space, shook without warning.

It wasn't the physical shaking of an earthquake, but a deeper kind of tremor, as if space itself had been grazed by some enormous object.

The stone table hummed, and tiny pebbles on the ground bounced slightly as if defying gravity. The lingering, cool, and strange aura in the air suddenly became thicker and more restless.

Li Xian's hair stood on end!

"Buzz—"

A deep, majestic, and seemingly infinitely distant yet intimately resonant sound resounded directly in the depths of his mind, shaking him to the point of shattering his soul!

"It's here..." For the first time, the voice of the brain lost its absolute calm, taking on a complex, almost sighing tone, "Synchronous fluctuation... the detection of another 'me,' or rather, another 'Boltzmann brain'... has been attracted by the characteristics of the antimatter annihilation energy just now."

"What?!" Li Xian's scalp tingled. "Another you?!"

"Low-entropy consciousnesses generated by random fluctuations in the universe are not unique. We are both the same kind of beings and... the most direct 'nourishment' for each other." The brain's speech quickened. "Devouring to each other and integrating their information and energy is the fastest path to evolution. This is the manifestation of the Dark Forest Law at the level of consciousness."

Li Xianru felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave: "Then... what should we do?"

"This place has been exposed; we cannot linger." The brain's command was clear and swift. "Take Xiao Lingshan immediately and leave through the third passage on the right. I have activated the cave's pre-programmed concealment system, which can interfere with the enemy's precise positioning, but it won't last long."

"And what about you?!"

"I need to concentrate computing power, build defenses, and try to reverse-engineer the opponent's information characteristics. If that fails..." His mind paused for a barely perceptible moment, "I will try to compress and send the core data to you. Now, leave immediately!"

"But these energy orbs, these machines..."

"Five general-purpose intelligent agents have been registered with your and Xiao Lingshan's biometrics and basic permissions. You can command them with your thoughts. As for 'Stardust' and the data..." The brain's voice seemed to carry a hint of determination, "I will now transfer a portion of my intelligence reserves to you. The receiving process may be somewhat... uncomfortable."

"wait--"

Before Li Xian could even utter the word "a moment," an indescribable, tsunami-like torrent of information violently rushed into his consciousness!

That's not language, not images, and not sounds. That's laws, formulas, billions of decimal places of the cosmological constant, probability clouds of particle collisions, simulated trajectories of galaxy birth, the infinite possibilities of life's encoding... it's the violent infusion of pure "knowledge"!

"Ugh—!"

Li let out a short, sharp scream, his eyes rolled back instantly, and blood seeped from all seven orifices! He felt like his head was a balloon that had been stretched to its limit, about to burst at any moment!

His vision was overwhelmed by endless flashing symbols and streaks of light, his hearing filled with a humming of billions of frequencies. His last, hazy perception was Xiao Lingshan's terrified scream, his own body falling backward, and the rapidly plunging, cold, dark, silent...

The abyss of consciousness.

The cave hall returned to deathly silence.

Only the restless energy dust in the air silently recounts the breathtaking explosion that just occurred.

On the stone table, the five small metal spheres simultaneously emitted a faint blue light, aimed at Li Xian, who had collapsed unconscious, and Xiao Lingshan, who was in a panic.

In the infinitely distant dimensional realm, two vast, cold, and inhuman consciousnesses, like two colossal cosmic beasts that have discovered each other, are slowly adjusting their "postures," their invisible "tentacles" beginning their first tentative exploration in the ocean of information—

contact.