radicalducati Page 469
Page 469
In the center of this chaotic killing field, a giant cocoon of flesh was slowly pulsating. Its surface was connected to thousands of tendrils that resembled blood vessels, which burrowed deep into the earth, drawing energy from the planet and continuously absorbing the genes and flesh of the "winners" who had triumphed in the mutual slaughter.
“Almost…almost…”
Morgana stood at a distance, her eyes gleaming with a sickly light.
"Without the constraints of morality, without the burdens of emotion, only the purest desire for evolution. This is the most beautiful form of life. Come, let me see what my son of freedom will be like."
Suddenly, the enormous fleshy cocoon stopped pulsating.
After a second of deathly silence.
"Pfft-"
A massive claw, made of pure bone and black keratin, pierced the surface of the fleshy cocoon with an undeniable ferocity, exposed to the dark red light of the sky.
The shape of this claw is somewhat similar to that of an angel's wings, but it has no feathers, only sharp bone spikes and twisted muscles.
A brand new creation, feeding on "degeneration," is about to be born.
Merlo Heavenly Court, Yan's bedroom.
After the heated argument ended, she stood alone under the starlight, feeling a deep weariness.
Just then, a screen of light unfolded in front of her; it was He Xi.
"How do you feel, new queen?"
He Xi's tone carried a hint of teasing.
"It feels... terrible."
Yan said calmly,
"They don't trust me."
"It's not that they don't trust you, it's that they're afraid of the unknown. And you, precisely, represent the unknown."
He Xi said,
“Ling is an excellent warrior, but her glory belongs to the past. She wants to protect order, which is not wrong. But she doesn’t understand that when the flood comes, guarding the dam is useless; you have to learn to build a boat.”
"But I don't know how to build a ship."
Yan's voice revealed a sense of vulnerability.
No one is born with that skill.
He-Xi's image seemed to appear beside Yan, reaching out to pat her shoulder, but passing right through her. "Keisha's crown was forged with thirty thousand years of war and bloodshed. Your crown, too, needs to be forged in your own way. This debate is your first piece of iron. Will you choose to be shattered by it, or will you heat it red-hot and mold it into the shape you desire?"
He Xi's gaze deepened.
"Yan, remember this. A true queen is not one who never makes mistakes, but one who can bear the consequences of all her choices. Now, make your choice."
Chapter 445 The Queen's Decision and the Gaze of the Abyss
The atmosphere at the Angel Council on the second day was even more tense than the day before, as if the air itself had turned into crystals about to explode.
Angel Ling and the conservatives behind her wore solemn expressions, conveying a sense of resolute determination. Meanwhile, the young angels who supported Yan looked worried; they sensed an impending storm.
Yan ascended the throne, her steps steady, her eyes calm, revealing no emotional fluctuations.
"After a night of reflection, I believe everyone has gained a deeper understanding of the future of angels."
She surveyed the entire room, her voice clearly reaching the ears of every angel.
"Yes, my queen."
Angel Feather stepped forward, her voice loud and clear.
"We not only have ideas, but also resolutions!"
She turned to face all the attendees and unveiled a proposal signed by dozens of veteran angels.
"I hereby formally propose the trial plan!"
The moment the word "trial" was uttered, the hall erupted in uproar. This was the highest-level code name for the Angelic Civilization, last used when the final verdict was handed down against Karl's Voidism.
Ignoring the commotion around her, Ling continued, "The trial plan has two parts. First, we must dispatch an elite team, at all costs, to find and bring that teacher to the Heavenly Court of Merlo. We must confront the source of the variables head-on, rather than passively waiting for his next lesson. If God is manipulating the universe, then we will judge God!"
These words were filled with astonishing arrogance and madness, but unexpectedly stirred the fighting spirit in many veteran warriors. They were the Skyblade Guard, who had followed Keisha in battle for ten thousand years, their very bones filled with warrior pride. To ask them to revere an unknown being was more painful than killing them.
"second,"
Ling's gaze shifted to Yan, carrying a hint of pressure. "Before contacting the teacher, the source of pollution must be controlled. I propose that my First Legion take over the defense of Earth. The Super Soldier Corps, especially Ge Xiaolun of the Galactic Force, must be placed under the direct surveillance of the Merlo Heavenly Court. We need to analyze his abilities and find a way to restrain him. This is not imprisonment; it is a necessary measure for the safety of the known universe!"
"You are breaking the alliance!"
Angel Chase could no longer hold back and angrily rebuked,
"You want to turn against our allies? That's betrayal!"
"Faced with the threat of collapsing order, there are no allies, only what is controllable and what is uncontrollable!" Ling stood firm. "This is what Queen Keisha taught us: justice requires absolute order to uphold it!"
"enough."
Yan's voice wasn't loud, but it instantly silenced all the arguments.
She slowly rose from the throne, walked down the steps, and came to the center of the hall, standing before the angel Feather.
"Ling, you keep mentioning Queen Keisha, so tell me, what is the greatest thing about the Queen?"
Ling was taken aback, and subconsciously answered:
"She established the sacred treasury of knowledge and the absolute order of justice."
“Wrong.” Yan shook her head, her gaze sweeping over every angel present.
"The Queen's greatest quality is her unwavering commitment to learning and evolution. Facing the war of physical forms, she developed divine technology; facing the void, she embarked on an exploration of ultimate fear. She never fears the unknown; she only seeks to understand it, conquers it, and integrates it into the order. The secondary biological engine is the best proof of this!"
"what about you?"
Yan's eyes sharpened.
"Your so-called trial is not about understanding, but stems from fear. You are afraid of that teacher, so you want to challenge him in our most primitive way. You are afraid of Ge Xiaolun's power, so you want to lock him in a cage. You are not upholding order; you are merely using the noble word 'order' to cover up your arrogance and cowardice!"
"You!" Ling's face flushed red, speechless for a moment after Yan had hit the nail on the head.
"You want to judge God? With what? With your flaming sword to fight an entity that can alter the constants of physics? You want to control the Earth? Do you know what that means? It means we will completely push a civilization with limitless potential to our opposite side! It means we will become the next Taotie!"
Yan's voice grew louder and louder, filled with the majesty and power of a king.
"You say I'm gambling? Yes, I am gambling! I'm gambling that courage has a better future than plunder, and I'm gambling that trust can create true order better than control! This is my choice as the new queen!"
She gave no one a chance to object and directly issued orders to the space-based system in the air:
"Your Excellency He Xi, bring in the real-time images of the control group."
"receive."
He Xi's voice rang out. The next second, a huge holographic screen unfolded above the center of the hall.
What appeared on the screen was not the green mountains and clear waters of Earth, nor the holy glow of the Angel Nebula, but a dark red wasteland, like hell.
On the wasteland, an indescribable monster is taking shape.
It broke free from the last vestiges of its fleshy cocoon, revealing its full form. It was a colossal creation, twisted and pieced together from the remains of countless creatures. Its main body resembled a ferocious beetle, yet it possessed several pairs of limbs like the skeletal wings of a corrupted angel, its body covered in pulsating blood vessels and crimson compound eyes. With each breath, it pulsated the surrounding sand into dust. It opened its mandibles, filled with sharp teeth, and let out a silent roar, distorting the surrounding space.
All the angels, including Ling, felt a chill run down their spines. What that thing emanated was pure, undisguised malice, existing solely for devouring and evolving.
"This is……"
Ling's voice was dry.
"Planet T-897, the work of the Demon Queen Morgana." He Xi's icy voice explained this hellish scroll.
"From the division of the primordial cell to the formation of this rudimentary planetary predator, it took thirty-seven hours. It absorbed eighty percent of the biomass on that planet and has begun to analyze and assimilate inorganic matter. Its rate of evolution is billions of times faster than any civilization we know."
On the screen, the monster took a step, and the earth cracked beneath its feet. It set its sights on a massive metal mountain, a relic of a previous civilization. It pounced, its enormous maw opening wide, and began to devour the hard alloy like it was gnawing on a biscuit. Its body visibly grew larger with each bite, and its carapace gleamed with a metallic sheen.
"This... is Morgana's answer to the Honkai. She chose depravity and freedom, and thus, this monster, which combines devouring, plundering, and infinite evolution, was born."
He Xi paused, giving everyone time to process this horrifying scene.
“Now, Ling, tell me, who is our true enemy? Is it that Earth boy who is still struggling with how to control his power, or this… abyssal creation that will soon possess the ability to destroy galaxies within days?”
The entire hall was deathly silent.
Angel Feather stared blankly at the ever-growing monster on the screen. The arrogance and determination on her face were replaced by a deeper fear. Her proud "judgment" plan seemed so naive and ridiculous in the face of this monster.
Asking for flowers
She finally understood Yan's intentions and the gap between herself and the new queen.
Yan saw the true enemy of the future. Meanwhile, she remained complacent, clinging to past glories.
She slowly knelt on one knee and lowered her proud head.
"I... retract my proposal."
Her voice was hoarse, yet filled with an unprecedented reverence.
"Your Majesty, please give your orders."
As Ling knelt down, the elder angels behind her also knelt down on one knee.
"Please give the order, Your Majesty!"
A sound like a mountain roaring and a tsunami echoed throughout the heavens of Merlo.
At this moment, Yan's royal power was truly acknowledged by everyone from the bottom of their hearts. She was no longer Keisha's successor; she was herself, the new queen of the angelic civilization, Yan.
"Command!" Yan's voice was firm and resolute.
"The First and Second Legions will maintain the Kuiper Belt defense line. Their strategic objective has shifted from monitoring Earth to protecting it! Simultaneously, they will establish a top-level long-range monitoring network for planet T-897, codenamed Abyss. We will not interfere, but we must know its every change!"
"All research departments, under the unified leadership of Tianji Wang Hexi, must immediately begin defensive research against Honkai energy and theoretical exploration of logic-defined level capabilities! We must not only learn how to build ships, but also how to draw nautical charts!"
"The order of justice needs to be redefined! Its core is no longer control, but guidance! Guiding all benevolent civilizations in the known universe to face the ultimate test of collapse together! This is our new mission as angels!"
"Yes, my queen!"
Villa with sea view.
On the screen in front of Zhou Ye, the scene was divided in two. On the left was the solemn and dignified court assembly of the Heavenly Court of Merlo; on the right was the chaotic evolutionary feast of planet T-897.
Feng Shayan stared palely at the monster that was gnawing on the mountain peak, her stomach churning.
"Sir... what... what is that? It's terrifying..."