CH 40

A three-dimensional hologram of a shiny cloud of dust appeared before us. The scope of the projection was massive, and the dust cloud constantly spiraled like the Milky Way Galaxy. Inside the cloud, a massive clump of radiance could be vaguely seen.

Around the dust cloud, countless gigantic flying machines hovered. All the machines were directly facing the dust cloud, and below each machine was a massive cylindrical device. From each cylindrical device, six slender long tubes extended into the dust cloud. They seemed to be absorbing the energy within the cloud.

Suddenly, a fleet launched a surprise attack on these machines. The leading spaceship was none other than Nommo's spaceship, which we had seen at the black mountain. The attack was fierce, and it was clear the machines were completely unprepared. A series of massive explosions erupted, creating a mess among the mining machines.

"This is probably the surprise attack Plum mentioned. This is the Darklings' energy source," I said.

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"Based on the hologram, wasn't the attack a success?" Zhang Xingxing asked.

After the successful attack, the fleet was about to retreat when numerous fighter spacecrafts flew out of the dust cloud. There were probably over ten thousand of them, and they launched a fierce counterattack on the ambushers.

The ambushers fought back, and an intense battle erupted. Both sides suffered disastrous losses, with the hologram turning into a world of explosions. Thanks to their superior numbers, the fighters finally gained the upper hand. The ambushers were about to be defeated.

After a loud and bright explosion, the ambushers' wormhole was blown up. The scene then shifted to the cockpit of the ambushers' capital ship. There, the familiar face of Prophet Nommo could be seen. Around him was a group of leading military officials of various races.

The situation seemed to have descended into chaos. Evidently, they had not imagined that they would encounter such a level of resistance. Suddenly, the conversation shifted into the Chinese language. It would seem like the hologram had been set to accommodate the language of the prophesized warriors.

"Our retreat wormhole has been destroyed. The enemy's numbers are over a hundred times greater than ours. We can no longer retreat," said a long-nosed alien.

"Why did they hide so many fighters here? Someone must have leaked our attack," said Nommo.

"This is urgent. Since we can no longer escape, we can go all out on them," said an alien with a sturdy body and the head of an ox.

Suddenly, someone clad in black whose face was also completely covered walked up to Nommo and pointed to the window. The hologram followed the direction in which the person in black pointed. A massive black cloud could be seen beside the energy-filled dust cloud.

"Because we hadn't been able to investigate the situation within the black cloud, our escape plan did not include the black cloud. There might be uncertain dangers hidden within it," said Nommo.

The person in black whispered in Nommo's ear. We could see a look of disbelief appear on Nommo's face.

"All ships, cease combat immediately! Enter the black cloud!" Nommo commanded firmly.

Thus, the remaining dozen ships followed Nommo into the black cloud. An endless darkness was presented before everyone's eyes. The pursuers did not give chase once they escaped into the black cloud.

It appeared they had escaped, so all the aliens in the ship relaxed and even started celebrating. Meanwhile, Nommo deployed the robotic scouts and had them scan the surrounding area.

Soon, the result of the scan returned. The black cloud was unlike the regular space in the universe, which was predominantly dark matter. Apart from hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen, the cloud also contained numerous gaseous unknown metallic elements. Together, these elements came together and formed this massive black cloud.

Despite the pitch-black darkness, the cloud also felt like it was filled with life. At this time, we saw the person in black approach Nommo and whisper something to him again. While whispering, the person in black pointed to something outside the window. When he raised his finger, I noted with astonishment that it was actually the hand of a Blueling! I rubbed my eyes in disbelief, but the hand was lowered yet again, perfectly covered by the dark robe.

"Canyue, did sand get in your eyes?" Zhang Bao'er asked.

"No. I think I saw that the person in black had a human hand when he lifted his hand," I said.

"Why didn't I notice? You must be seeing things. During Nommo's age, Blue was still in the prehistoric age," said Zhang Bao'er.

"Perhaps, but a lot of things don't make sense," I said.

"What are you referring to?" Old Du suddenly asked.

"A lot of what we saw does not make any sense," I replied. "If Blue was really so primitive during Nommo's era, why can Nommo speak ancient Chinese?"

"Yes, I have the same doubts. Plum had been secluded on Terror Island. How did he meet Bluelings?" Old Du also voiced his questions.

"That's simple. Plum might have met some on Blue," said Zhang Bao'er.

Sure, that explanation was acceptable, but I kept having a feeling that there was an even more complicated puzzle here. After listening to the person in black, Nommo commanded the fleet to travel at sublight speed. At that time, the recording ended. But immediately after, a different hologram formed, showing a completely different scene.

Countless clumps of shining dust had appeared within the black cloud. The clumps looked like they were actually growing stars. They were madly absorbing the energy within the black cloud, obtaining what they needed to grow.

"The black cloud is actually the birthplace of stars? This explains why this place is such a massive source of energy. After all, this place is also the birthplace of energy," said Dodo.

The recording continued, and as they passed by countless dust clumps, we eventually started to see fully formed stars and their orbiting planets.

"This black cloud can actually give birth to so many fixed stars. I wonder where it gets its energy from," Dodo said.

"The Big Bang. All energy originated from that point in time," said Zhang Bao'er teasingly.

Suddenly, I noticed that Zhang Xingxing had been silent. When I looked at her, I saw her staring at the person in black, an odd expression on her face. Suddenly, the hologram changed again, revealing three massive fixed stars to us.

The three stars were respectively red, yellow, and blue. The yellow star was devouring the red star's energy, the blue star was devouring the yellow star's energy, and the red star was devouring the blue star's energy. Together, the three formed a cycle.

It was too bizarre a sight, to the point all of us were stunned. Truly, the universe was so vast that we couldn't even begin to imagine what could exist out there. 

Nine massive planets were orbiting the three stars. The closer the planet was to the stars, the bigger it would be.

I found with astonishment that the nine planets were almost akin to nine glossy metallic balls of nine different colors. They were so perfect they almost looked manufactured. Even Nommo and the others in the recording appeared to be in disbelief.

Nommo said to the person in black, "Is this our final destination?"

The person in black nodded.

"Lower our speed. Activate our shields. Approach the outermost planet," Nommo commanded.

The fleet slowed down and approached the red-orange planet, the smallest of the bunch. Through the hologram, we could see the planet's sleek surface. It was perfectly round, and it was untainted by even a speck of dust. On its glossy surface, one could see the projection of the three stars.

"Look for a landing site," Nommo commanded.

In truth, there was no need for that. With how smooth the planet’s surface was, they could land anywhere. The fleet penetrated the red-orange planet's thin atmosphere and landed on its surface.

"Surface temperature, 30 degrees," reported the long-nosed alien.

'A surface temperature of 30 degrees? This is quite a livable planet,' I thought.

The ships landed in succession beneath the three stars which hung overhead forming a perfect painting in the sky. After scanning the air's composition, everyone left the ships and stepped onto the planet's surface.

"The surface looks smooth, but there also seems to be an attractive force coming underground, allowing us to stabilize ourselves," remarked the sturdy ox-headed person.

"Scan the planet with our probes. I keep having a feeling that the planet is unstable. It's so peaceful that it feels wrong," said Nommo to a Brightling guard beside him.

The Brightling returned to the ship. Shortly after, over a dozen mechanical spiders were released. These spider probes ran toward every corner of the planet and started performing a detailed scan. While everyone was feeling relieved after surviving a great battle, something unexpected happened.

A small ship suddenly lifted into the air and flew far away. About ten kilometers away, an opening appeared on the glossy ground. The ship flew into the tunnel and vanished underground before anyone could react.

"That's not good. Incoming danger! Everyone, return to your ships!" Nommo commanded loudly. Everyone hurriedly retreated, but it was already too late.

Suddenly, numerous holes opened up across the planet, and countless worms with giant paws swarmed out. Each worm group was also led by an incomparably large worm.

"My god. Aren't those the same giant paw monsters and worms we encountered before?" Zhang Bao'er exclaimed in alarm.