Chapter 351: The Diverging Paths of Civilization

Chapter 351: The Diverging Paths of Civilization

Late at night, when most of the Observatory staff had retired for rest, Luo En arrived alone at the special ritual chamber.

The walls pulsed faintly as he entered, as if perceiving the emotions of the visitor.

Uther’s Phantom Husk projection floated like a silver star at the chamber’s center, surrounded by intricate Protective Runes forming a multi-layered defensive array. The glyphs continuously shifted patterns and colors, weaving a protective network of nested barriers.

"Luo En, are you prepared?" Uther asked solemnly, his silver eyes gleaming with profound light.

"The Wisdom Constellation’s Stargazing Ritual is relatively safe, but we must still exercise utmost caution. What you’re about to touch is the deep informational currents of the cosmos."

"I’ve completed all preparations, Professor", Luo En replied, settling cross-legged at the ritual platform’s center, his expression focused yet calm.

Before him lay three rare Starlight Crystals, corresponding to the Hermit Star, Academic Star, and Observer Star. Within the crystals, miniature stars swirled with countless glimmering points, radiating a mesmerizing beauty.

"These crystals..." Uther’s gaze lingered on the Starlight Crystals. "Each was refined by ancient mages, recording the constellations’ Memories and carrying the universe’s secrets."

"Remember, Luo En", the old professor’s voice deepened, thick with warning. "Astrology rituals aren’t merely connecting with stars—they’re perilous ventures into the universe’s essence. Even with my protection, you must maintain absolute rationality at all times."

He paused, his Phantom Husk leaning forward slightly. "Some knowledge actively seeks suitable vessels. As a primordial mage, you’re precisely their favored objective. A deep information impact could cause spirit fragmentation at best—or complete assimilation at worst."

"I understand, Professor." Luo En inhaled deeply, activating all spirit protection abilities within him. "The cultivation insights from The Murmuring of the Star Devourer have given me resistance against high-dimensional information."

He chose the most familiar Wisdom Constellation as his objective—the Hermit Star, Academic Star, and the soon-to-be-ignited Observer Star. The first two stars had formed stable spirit links through long-term cultivation of The Murmuring of the Star Devourer. Though the Observer Star still had some distance from complete connection, its familiarity was significant.

"Very well. Begin." Uther’s Phantom Husk radiated stronger silver light. The Protective Runes flared in response, fortifying the ritual space with multiple layers of defense.

Luo En closed his eyes. His consciousness extended like invisible threads into the stellar depths.

As the ritual commenced, the three Starlight Crystals emitted soft glows, achieving perfect Resonance with his spirit frequency. Unlike previous meditations, this connection was unusually smooth.

The Hermit Star’s deep purple radiance answered immediately, its familiar wisdom Perception sweeping across his consciousness like a spring breeze. The Academic Star’s silver-white light followed, bringing the calm power of rational analysis.

"Indeed, the established connections have simplified the ritual", Luo En assessed mentally. His spiritual energy expenditure was far less than anticipated.

As the connection deepened, the third star—the Observer Star—began resonating. Its amber glow carried ancient wisdom, gradually integrating into his spirit network.

This sensation was like rediscovering a long-lost puzzle piece, making his entire cognitive framework feel more complete.

Suddenly, as the three stars’ lights fully converged, an unprecedented phenomenon occurred.

Luo En’s consciousness was violently pulled into an unfathomable vortex. The surrounding reality twisted violently, dissolving time and space into ambiguity.

He felt himself ascending at unimaginable speed, transcending material constraints to reach a dimension composed purely of information.

This was an awe-inspiring space. Countless data streams surged like galaxies across the void, each carrying immeasurable informational weight. These weren’t mere words or images—they were pure concepts acting directly on consciousness.

Within this torrent, Luo En witnessed visions that shook his very soul.

Here was no matter, no mana—only pure concepts and information.

A mechanical voice echoed through the void, devoid of emotion, governed solely by cold logic:

"Civilization Code: 7749-A. Species: Mechanized Collective. Development Stage: Post-Stellar Age..."

The scene unfolded before him.

A civilization entirely composed of machines. Their cities resembled colossal gear systems, each citizen a precision-engineered construct.

Luo En observed their origins: sentient beings obsessed with perfection. To eliminate disease, aging, and death, they began replacing organs with mechanical components. Initially hearts and livers, then limbs and sensory systems, until even their brains were replaced by quantum computing cores.

They succeeded—attaining near-Eternity and transcending biological limits.

But at what cost...

"Evaluation Result: Creative cognitive abilities decreased by 98.7%. Emotional fluctuations approaching zero. Reproductive desire completely extinguished..."

"Judgment: Civilization has lost evolutionary potential and poses a risk of spreading mechanical viruses across the cosmos..."

The scene flickered. Luo En saw their final moments.

No war, no disaster—only a sinister "systemic error."

All mechanical lives simultaneously suffered processing failures, standing motionless for millennia until energy depletion turned them into metallic statues.

"Initiating correction protocol: Internal logic conflict implantation..."

"Correction complete: Civilization self-terminated. Threat eliminated."

Behind this "accidental" failure lurked an indescribable intervention.

The next visions grew darker.

"Civilization Code: 5621-B. Species: Dreamweavers. Development Stage: Virtual Reality Dominance..."

Luo En witnessed a civilization enthralled by virtual worlds. They perfected virtual reality technology, constructing an ideal world without pain, death, or limitations. Initially a recreational tool, more individuals gradually found reality intolerably imperfect.

Why endure disease, aging, and death when perfection was available?

Ultimately, the entire civilization migrated to virtual space. Trillions of consciousnesses abandoned physical bodies, immersing themselves in artificial paradise.

"Evaluation Result: Reality-world maintenance systems neglected. Physical infrastructure supporting virtual worlds decaying..."

Luo En saw heart-wrenching scenes:

On countless planets, giant server clusters sustaining virtual worlds failed one by one due to lack of maintenance. The immersed consciousnesses remained oblivious, continuing their perfect dream.

"Judgment: Civilization has detached from reality, posing a risk of spreading escapism viruses to other civilizations..."

"Initiating correction protocol: Accelerate foundational facility decay..."

"Correction complete: Virtual world collapse confirmed. Trillions of consciousnesses dispersed simultaneously..."

The scenes shifted faster, showcasing different civilizational extinctions:

The Soul Church attempted fusion with higher-dimensional beings, triggering chain contamination that twisted the galaxy’s lifeforms into unspeakable abominations...

The Flesh Empire pursued ultimate biological evolution, fusing all individuals into an uncontrollable super-organism devouring everything it encountered...

Each civilization followed a similar pattern:

They strayed down erroneous paths while pursuing "higher forms", judged as "futures without potential."

Then, the enigmatic "Anomaly Hunters" intervened, guiding them toward self-destruction through seemingly natural means.

Luo En felt growing dread at these interventions' cunning:

Critical technologies developed "accidental" flaws at crucial moments.

Important figures made "wrong" judgments at pivotal points.

Low-probability disasters began "coincidentally" recurring...

"They’re like the universe’s immune system", Luo En shivered inwardly. "Any developmental pattern judged as a ‘virus’ gets eradicated through seemingly natural means."

But what truly froze his heart was the next vision.

"Civilization Code: 8847-C. Species: Mageclan-fusion variant..."

He saw a version of the Abyssal Continent Cluster—both familiar and alien.

In this world’s version, the Central Lands had transformed into a colossal tower built from flesh and bone, its summit stretching into the sky with countless twisted tentacles.

The Abyss's crack was no longer merely a wound, but an integral component of some malevolent rune—this entire continent had become its vessel.

The oceans turned a deep crimson, thick and viscous like congealed blood.

Countless colossal eyeballs floated in the sky, each the size of a city, their unblinking gaze piercing down at everything below.

Most horrifying of all, every mage had lost their independent will.

They transformed into neurons of a singular, colossal consciousness, operating under a unified thought pattern. Individuality had vanished, creativity extinguished, even humanity itself erased.

Yet from a certain perspective, this truly was "evolution"—an evolution that transcended individual limitations to fuse into a collective consciousness.

"Evaluation result: This civilization has completed Abyss assimilation. It possesses the capability to spread contamination across dimensions..."

"Threat Rank: Extreme... Initiating maximum containment protocol immediately..."

In the vision, an indescribable "light" descended from the void's depths.

This was no physical illumination or radiation, but a far more fundamental "corrective force."

The corrupted Abyssal Continent Cluster melted like wax beneath this radiant beam.

All twisted creations dissolved into nothingness in an instant.

But this was not yet the end.

The Time River fractured, spawning a new branch.

From the original timeline's break, a fresh timeline began to grow—a manifestation of some transcendent will "reseeding" the same civilization's essence.

Phantom King's words echoed in his mind:

"When a timeline reaches its dead end, the great ones will restart it."

The current timeline might not be the first. Those destroyed mage civilizations were all failed attempts from previous cycles.

Now, this timeline...

Cassandra's conquest route and the fusion route from another timeline seemed diametrically opposed, yet both fundamentally sought power beyond limits.

Would this path also eventually be deemed "off course"?

"Expansion... Conquest... Devouring other civilizations..."

Luo En sensed a pattern within this information flood:

"This developmental trajectory is common among civilizations marked for 'correction'..."

A deep chill surged from his soul.

If mage civilization continued down this path, would they too be judged "off course"?

Would they face the Anomaly Hunter's "correction"? Would this timeline be "reset", all efforts and existence erased?

"No... I can't watch anymore..."

The weight of thought slowed his mind. He tried to escape this information dimension, but data streams coiled around his consciousness like bladed tentacles, forcing more knowledge into him.

Fragments flickered before his eyes: more versions of the Abyssal Continent Cluster, more "deviant" paths, more cycles of "correction" and "reset."

Luo En felt his rationality crumbling under this information bombardment.

This was beyond what a human consciousness could endure...

Just as he was about to be consumed, three stars blazed with radiant light.

The Hermit Star's deep purple glow severed the binding data tentacles like a blade; the Academic Star's silver-white brilliance shielded his rational core like a shield; the Observer Star's amber light shone as a lighthouse, guiding his return.

When the terrifying data streams dissipated and Luo En's consciousness returned to reality, he found himself drenched in sweat.

Though the Observer Star still hadn't fully connected with him like the other two, this Stargazing Ritual had completely fulfilled the Astrologer class advancement conditions.

[Astrologer (Three Stars) Class Advancement Conditions:
1. Astrology Skill reaches Proficient Level
2. Spiritual Energy reaches 5.5 or higher
3. Master Foundational Star-Chart Array Construction
4. Complete a Complete Stargazing Ritual under Specific Star Patterns]

[Astrologer Class Advancement Conditions Met]

[Will you advance to "Astrologer (Three Stars)"?]

Luo En confirmed.

Starlight erupted from his body, reshaping his spiritual structure and mana circuits like a cascading Milky Way.

This advancement felt completely different from previous attribute boosts—not a gentle refinement, but a fundamental metamorphosis at the spiritual level.

He felt his consciousness expanding, his mind's boundaries stretching outward, as distant stars became tactile through invisible tendrils.

[Class Advancement Successful: Astrologer (Three Stars)]

[Base Attribute Boosts:
Spiritual Energy 5.69→5.89 (+0.2)
Mana 5.0→5.5 (+0.5)
Physique 3.8→3.9 (+0.1)]

[Special Bonuses:
1. Can directly channel mana from constellations during combat to replenish mana consumption
2. Keen perception ability toward spatial distortions and dimensional anomalies
3. Divination results for personally relevant matters become clearer with higher association
4. Additional resistance against high-dimensional entities]

Most importantly, the career synergy effects:

[Detected Multilayered Career Synergy:
1.《The Murmuring of the Star Devourer》meditation efficiency increased, star ignition speed accelerated
2. Can retrospectively observe historical event truths through star patterns
3. Potion production, enchantment, and alchemy processes gain additional effects through specific star alignments]

After advancing his class, Luo En clearly felt his spiritual energy surge. At this pace, he'd reach Moonlight Rank (threshold 6.0) in about half a year.

More importantly, he gained an entirely new perspective.

Now he could observe this world from higher dimensional heights, perceiving the hidden laws beneath surface appearances.

Uther silently watched Luo En's transformation—the oppressive aura emanating from the Star Deepness left even this Archmage trembling.

"This presence..."

His Phantom Husk quivered slightly:

"This child has touched an extremely profound power. This transformation surpasses ordinary Astrologer advancement..."

He sensed an indescribable potential in Luo En, as if fate's threads wove themselves anew around him.

"It seems..."

Uther mused silently:

"This timeline might truly be different. If anyone can break free from predetermined paths, it might be him."

Yet he asked no further details.

"Some knowledge requires the proper timing to fully comprehend."

The old professor spoke meaningfully, his voice filled with deep concern:

"But I can sense you're no longer who you were before. You've undergone... a transformation—one that inspires both hope and worry."

He paused, his silver eye locking onto Luo En:

"What did you see during the ritual?"

Luo En remained silent for a long time before answering truthfully:

"I saw... mage civilizations from other timelines, and their destruction."

His voice was soft, each word striking Uther's heart like a hammer:

"There are beings that 'correct' deviant civilizations. And we... might already be under their observation."

Uther's Phantom Husk trembled violently before settling.

"Indeed... You've touched information from that level."

The old professor's voice grew heavy:

"Anomaly Hunter... Corrector of timelines..."

His phantom form began drifting slowly as surrounding protective runes dimmed:

"Now that you know, I needn't hide any longer. Yes, our civilization faces this threat. Every developmental path carries risks, and this path we walk..."

"Has already drawn their attention, right?" Luo En finished his deduction:
"Cassandra's conquest strategy fundamentally seeks rapid power accumulation. This pattern..."

"...Is common among civilizations marked for correction." Uther nodded, his phantom form growing more transparent:
"This is precisely why I support your research—we need a new direction."

Hope ignited in his eyes: "Your existence, your research, might find a longer-lasting path."

"Professor." Luo En finally broke the silence: "I need more information about those correction mechanisms."

"I will help in every way possible." Uther promised solemnly:
"But not now. This knowledge is a double-edged sword—the more you learn, the greater the risk."

He paused, voice deepening:
"And even if we find the right path, convincing others to change course will be equally challenging. Cassandra and her faction... won't easily abandon their achieved results."

"I understand." Luo En nodded:
"But one must take responsibility for the future. If everyone charges recklessly down a wrong path, destruction becomes inevitable."

Uther gave a faint nod, clearly unwilling to continue deeper discussion:

"Enough for now. Since the ritual is complete, return and rest. I can sense your mental exhaustion."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end