Chapter 1428: 472.0000
“The disguising abilities of Extraterrestrial Eternity are truly astonishing. Even with my perception enhanced by the ‘Heart of Magic’, I failed to detect something was amiss immediately…”
“Hysteric Brain is proficient in perception manipulation, the Chaos Faction fears no energy, and the Void Faction can borrow power from the future. How could I, a mere mortal, possibly contend with these ancient existences of the Extraterrestrial Eternity…”
“No wonder the Star God chose to hand over the Sacred Fire to the Extraterrestrial Eternity under the influence of enchantment. Faced with such enemies, any rational being would consider retreating…”
All sorts of thoughts echoed in Noland Lee’s mind.
Although he had never died and did not know what dying felt like, Noland guessed that it must be similar to a state where thoughts solidify.
He waited for death to come amid his repeated contemplation, searching for a way out in the darkness.
...
But he had no idea how much time had passed, and the anticipated death had yet to arrive.
“Wait, something’s not right… How can I still think…”
Noland instinctively commanded his body to open his eyes, and unexpectedly, brightness flooded his vision.
A vast and tranquil starry sky came into view, deep and serene.
Noland stared in dumbfounded silence for a few seconds, then looked down and felt around his body, examining the place that had been pierced by the black spears.
No injuries!
No bloodstains!
No pain!
It was as if everything that happened before was an illusion! noveldrama
Noland was completely stupefied!
This abnormality was even more bizarre than all the happenings he had encountered over the past several days!
Could it be a conspiracy by the Void Spears?!
Was this place an Extraordinary Container meant to store his consciousness?
The reason he was unharmed, was it because he currently existed in the form of a soul or consciousness?
Noland stood up from the ground and suddenly recognized the scene in front of him.
There was no ground beneath his feet!
It was an empty expanse of space!
Yet, he could stand up and move freely!
“Isn’t this the illusion created by the cortex of my Angel of Heart?! How did I get here?!”
Noland’s eyes widened as he looked towards the “Stone Structure” that was incongruous with the surrounding space environment.
Wasn’t that the temporary dwelling he had built in the illusion for a brief respite?!
Damned be!
Truly damned be!
The world after death turned out to be the illusion created by the cortex of the Angel of Heart!
Noland stood still for a full half minute before he ran towards the Magic Hut he had created with magic.
Halfway there, an idea struck him, and in his mind, he sketched out the Magic Array Blueprint.
He could still cast magic, and with a turn, he transformed into a gaseous state!
Now Noland was even more confused…
He landed near the Small Cottage as if in a spiritual daze.
Looking at the Magic Building he had constructed with his own hands, Noland’s mind felt like mush.
Killed by the Void Spears…
But he hadn’t died…
Instead, he had arrived inside the illusion created by the Angel of Heart’s cortex.
Illusion… Illusion…
The word “illusion” repeated over and over in Noland’s mind until his eyes suddenly brightened, regaining their luster.
His gaze swiftly traversed the sea of stars, locking onto a small cluster of densely packed star points before he cast a teleportation spell that spanned star regions and leapt towards it.
If he remembered correctly, and this space was indeed the illusion he had visited before, then there should be a flame and a huge number “0” within that cluster of lights!
“Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!”
Noland flashed repeatedly, stars in the reflected in his eyes rapidly flying past.
Eventually, he arrived at the Cane Tip Seat and saw the palm-sized fire once more.
Next to the fire, the number “0” was still hovering there, unchanged.
Noland numbly reached out with his right hand to touch the number but immediately regained his senses and stopped the action.
What would happen if he touched the number?
Noland fell into recollection.
After touching the number the last time, he returned to his starting point at a speed much faster than before, right next to the Magic Hut he had built.
And then?
Then…
The stars around him shook violently, he awoke from the illusion, and the presence of the Assassin Angel and the Order Plane’s Core in front of him indicated that he had fallen into an illusion created by the cortex of the Angel of Heart.
After that, Assassin Angel met with Senati, and Noland Lee locked onto the location of Metal Creation Group Headquarters’ root server. An imminent raid on the server was about to explode, but the outcome was tragic beyond words. Assassin Angel and Senati suffered severe injuries and went missing, “Command” was captured, Scroll Angel was attacked and killed by Void Spears… Noland himself ended up in shreds…
These calamitous events had recently unfolded and replayed over and over again in Noland’s mind.
Noland took a deep breath, forcibly stopping the pointless reminiscing and self-blame.
He held his breath and focused intently on the number “0” before him.
An inspiration leapt from the bottom of his heart.
“Scroll Angel once mentioned to me that Star God used his time-traveling abilities to seek the origin of Sacred Fire, only to find that his abilities were nothing compared to it. No matter how hard Star God tried, he could only travel back in time from the current year to the year marked as ‘1’.”
Noland’s brows were tightly knotted as he focused on the number “0”, and then he looked solemnly at the flames beside the number.
“Could this fire… be the Sacred Fire…”
Noland reached out towards the flames, only to discover that his palm passed right through, feeling not even a trace of heat.
“Why can I touch the numbers, but not touch the flames…”
Noland’s right hand repeatedly dipped in and out of the flames, trying several times, before he had to give up.
His biggest question now was what would happen if he touched the number “0” again?
He was eighty percent certain that he would return the same way he came, back to where he started.
But what then?
What would happen next?
Would he wake from the illusion once more, to see Assassin Angel and the avatar of “Command” who had roused him from the illusion?
Could this…
Be possible?
Noland’s heart gave a slight twitch.
He admitted it was a bit of a wild fantasy, but with no other options, he had to try touching the number “0”.
Noland slowly raised his right hand, palm towards the number, fingers slightly bent as if to grab it.
After steadying his quivering composure, he gritted his teeth and gripped at the number.
“Bang!”
A resounding echo burst forth, propelling Noland’s body into a backward flight.
Stars shot by like arrows, leaving long shadows as they brushed past him.
As constellations spun and space shuttled, Noland had no power to resist the mysterious force flinging him backward.
Suddenly, the surrounding specks of light halted, and Noland felt a tangible sensation underfoot.
Looking around, he found himself next to the Magic Hut.
“Stars! The Moon! The Sun! Meteors! Vibrate forth!”
Noland raised his arms high, sweeping his gaze left and right, eagerly hoping to see the stars tremble, and he couldn’t help but shout:
“Start vibrating! Quick! If you can get me out of here, to see Assassin Angel and the avatar of ‘Command’ again, I will certainly delve into the matter and find out the reasons behind our complete defeat!”
“Boom…”
“Boom boom…”
The stars hanging in the profound starry sky began to shake, and Noland felt as if he was hearing the rumble of mountains collapsing.
Noland was not a sentimental person, but at that moment, his eyes couldn’t help but sparkle with an emotional surge!
“Keep vibrating! Continue! Don’t stop!”
“Don’t—stop!”
The universe tore apart, and a super massive chasm filled with white light appeared against the backdrop of the starry sky!
Bright light flooded Noland’s vision.
Apart from the white light, Noland could see nothing else.
A voice with feminine features reached his ears:
“Did the ceremony succeed?”
“It did,” replied a voice of indiscernible gender.
“Good, hand him over to me, I’ll take him away now…”
Before the owner of the feminine voice could finish her sentence, she saw Noland, who had been unconscious on the ground, suddenly open his eyes and spring up from the ground.
“Huh?” The Assassin Angel’s true form, shrouded in purple mist and speaking with a feminine voice, said:
“You recovered from the illusion much faster than I expected. I was just about to transport you to safety, and you recovered on your own.”
“I’m back… I really came back…”
Noland’s voice trembled slightly, his being filled with irrepressible excitement, as the sounds of battle came from the outer regions of Angel’s Voice Space Station.
Everything was so real.
Noland abruptly turned around to look at the two figures.
The purple one was indeed the body of Assassin Angel, and the milky white one was the avatar of “Command”!
“I really came back!!”