Hui Feng felt uneasy inside.
Luckily, she was a nanomachine, able to precisely control her facial expressions. That was the only reason she didn't reveal any flaws under Zandar's scrutiny.
To be honest, she didn't want Eric to die.
But she was powerless.
How many cycles had Hui Feng gone through?
At first, she kept count of the number of cycles, but as time passed, even she began to lose track.
If Eric having a seventy percent chance of cooperating with the Aeon of "Destruction," Nanook, could be compared to the most commonly appearing three-star weapon in a gacha game, then the Xianzhou would be a five-star character.
Just the number of years Eric had worked on the Xianzhou… had to be measured in tens of thousands of years.
Hui Feng knew very clearly that as long as Eric wanted something done, there was nothing he couldn't accomplish.
A person like him was destined to succeed.
Of course, dimensional ascension was the exception. Eric was always just a little short on luck there. Fortunately, Zandar existed, and the two of them had chosen different paths.
Eric preferred to use his identity as a "higher-dimensional invader" to rewrite humanity's fate, to put an end to the Swarm Disaster and the wars started by intelligent machines.
Because of that, he didn't put his focus or time into research projects.
Across countless cycles, he always used the "Aether Phase Engine" that he and members of the Genius Society had created when he first descended into the lower-dimensional world.
If described using a computer's built-in system as an analogy, then Eric was like an old version that had never connected to the internet and had never updated its system.
In this universe, aside from Eric, there were no higher-dimensional beings. Therefore, even the old version of the "Aether Phase Engine," once activated, would create aftershocks that pushed the universe toward its end and rewound time.
Hui Feng didn't understand the specific principles behind it, nor was she interested in uncovering the truth.
She thought maybe it was a self-protection mechanism of the "Imaginary Tree" unique to this universe? Or perhaps the Aeon of "Remembrance" had played a part?
Zandar was different from Eric. He would use tokens to gather the higher-ranking geniuses of the Genius Society and have them join the dimensional ascension project together.
As for the tokens… they were stored in the system inventory.
What Zandar possessed was the first version of the system they had created together. It could cross time and space, preserving experimental data gathered across countless cycles, as well as the curios they had obtained.
Before the world reset, the geniuses would leave behind letters or items sufficient to gain their own trust, so they could join the plan in the next cycle.
By now, they had each conceived different dimensional ascension plans. Some of those ideas shocked Hui Feng deeply.
How to put it? If this group of geniuses succeeded, then they would be able to freely erase or alter the concepts of the universe.
For example, death. Or pi.
If they succeeded, they could even make pi an integer.
If concepts could be freely altered by humans, then what about Aeons?
It sounded completely unbelievable.
But when she remembered that these ideas were the result of countless cycles of repeated refinement by these geniuses, Hui Feng wasn't that surprised anymore.
Geniuses, after all. Having strange ideas was normal.
The biggest difference between them and madmen was that they were very likely to turn their ideas into reality.
Faced with this stubborn teacher and student, Hui Feng found herself caught in the middle.
She didn't want to see the two of them come into conflict, so she could only do her best to satisfy both of their requests at the same time.
With no other choice, Hui Feng could only imitate Eric and play some word games.
Zandar told her to bring Eric back.
And Eric told her to dispose of the body.
But when Eric's life signs completely disappeared, Akivili appeared.
That was the person Eric had designated as the wielder of "Tenseiga."
Hui Feng knew very well that creations from lower dimensions were very unlikely to affect a "higher-dimensional invader."
That blade, even if it could revive an Aeon, probably couldn't revive Eric.
But she still held onto the idea of giving it a try and picked up the sword.
Hui Feng didn't even have time to wipe the blood off it before she stuffed it directly into Akivili's hands.
After hurriedly saying a few words, she took Eric and avoided several Aeons, leaving the "Imaginary Tree."
What she didn't expect was that Eric, who had always been unbelievably unlucky and always hit hard pity in every gacha pull… would have a faint heartbeat again after his death.
Hui Feng was shocked.
A lower-dimensional creation had actually worked? A miracle had really happened?
Then what about the other things that Eric's close friend had given him? Could that be useful too?
Now she didn't have to worry anymore.
Zandar told her to bring Eric back, and she did.
Eric told her to dispose of the body, but Eric wasn't dead, was he?
So Hui Feng placed Eric into a medical pod.
For some reason, however, he still wouldn't wake up, and even his wounds didn't heal.
Hui Feng could only quietly wait for Zandar.
After thinking it over again and again, she hid her blood-covered hand behind her back and slowly told Zandar what had happened.
After hearing it, his pupils suddenly shrank.
Seeing this, Hui Feng quickly said, "He didn't die. He just hasn't woken up yet."
Zandar showed no expression. He brushed past Hui Feng, who stood frozen in place, walked through the ship's corridor, and arrived at the room where the medical pod was placed.
Hui Feng followed closely behind, arriving a step later.
Through the glass, Zandar saw his student.
His student had his eyes closed, a gentle and soft smile on his face.
If you ignored the mottled bloodstains on his cheeks, his student looked as if he had fallen into a beautiful dream.
Zandar lowered his gaze. At first glance, the fatal wound was completely covered by long-dried blood.
Only by looking carefully could one see the wound that had cut an artery and left torn flesh exposed.
Zandar subconsciously reached out his hand, but the glass cover of the medical pod blocked him, so he could only press his palm against it.
Through his notes, he learned about his past with his student.
At the very beginning, on some unknown planet, Zandar had encountered a child who didn't fit in with the natives, a child who looked only fifteen or sixteen years old.
Even Zandar couldn't understand what the other person was saying.
He was deeply puzzled.
Synesthesia beacons had long been widely used, so why wasn't this child wearing one?
Soon, Zandar formed a guess.
Perhaps he was a pitiful person who had encountered a starquake and crossed time and space.
As for why the synesthesia beacon hadn't recorded this language… his home planet's civilization had probably already been destroyed.
With a bit of sympathy, Zandar stayed by the child's side.
While waiting for the synesthesia beacon, the two drew pictures and used gestures. Eventually, the other party let down his guard.
The child looked young and easy to fool, but in truth he was extremely vigilant.
It was just that in the eyes of an adult, a minor's disguise was very obvious.
Although the other person rarely talked about himself and kept trying to guide Zandar into speaking instead, he still vaguely guessed the general situation of the child's home planet and original family.
The other party seemed to come from a peaceful country without war and had grown up in a happy family.
Zandar knew the child hadn't truly trusted him, but he didn't care.
A scholar's curiosity drove him to explore that long-destroyed civilization.
So Zandar patiently bought a synesthesia beacon for the child and also helped resolve his identity issues.
When Zandar asked for his name, the child said, "…A name? Zandar, can you give me one?"
Zandar had never had a family, much less named a child before.
He found himself at a loss for a moment and asked, "Any requirements?"
The child thought for a moment and said, "Can the surname be related to fish?"
The scholar spent a minute going through quite a few meaningful names in his mind.
"Eric Fisch. How about that? It means eternal ruler, and also carries the meaning of an authoritative and brave ruler."
After that, Zandar chose a famous school known across the stars, one with extremely strict teaching standards, and sent him there without further discussion.
The scholar then turned and went into a library. By the time he thought of Eric again, a month had already passed.
He specially boarded a ship, crossed several star systems, and arrived at the planet where the school was located to visit Eric.
The other party seemed to be adapting well.
Zandar invited Eric to a restaurant, but Eric refused, saying in a light tone that he could cook.
The two walked toward the apartment Eric was renting. When they passed a homeless man, Eric calmly greeted him.
Zandar, "…You know him?"
Eric, "Oh, on the first day he broke into my place. He only took the loose change by the door and even helped me take out the trash. How should I put it? He's actually pretty nice."
Zandar's mouth twitched slightly. "…Are you adapting well here?"
Eric rested his hand against his chin.
"It's alright, I guess. Just three robberies in one month, gunfights and explosions happening at subway stations all the time, and passengers lying on the tracks."
"Oh, and I'm not very used to the hospitals here. I waited more than ten hours in the emergency room. The doctor said it was phantom pain and told me to overcome it. In the end…"
He paused, then said calmly, "I found an intern to prescribe medicine instead. He suggested I write a will."
Zandar, "..."
He took a deep breath. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed marks on the window frame, and his expression instantly froze.
Eric glanced at it and said in a completely flat tone, "Oh, those are bullet holes."
Zandar, "..."
He finally couldn't take it anymore. "Pack your things. We're leaving."
Eric was confused. "Leaving? Where to?"
Zandar picked up his backpack without explanation.
"You're withdrawing."
However, the truth soon proved that Eric had absolutely no talent for studying.
The moment he heard Zandar wanted him to obtain more than a dozen doctoral degrees, his face immediately looked like the sky was collapsing.
"More than a dozen… PhDs?! I haven't even graduated high school!"
For the first time, Zandar found himself troubled.
Just nineteen doctoral degrees. Was it really that hard?
He didn't know what standardized exams were. He had never encountered someone like Eric who resisted studying, so he could only try to encourage him, "Didn't you attend university for a month before? Don't worry. There's actually not much difference between a bachelor's and a doctorate."
Eric, "…Zandar, didn't you want to build a stellar computer? I can help you tighten screws. How about that?"
Zandar laughed. "Eric, that's a stellar computer. How could you possibly tighten those screws?"
Zandar didn't force him. Raising a child wouldn't cost that many credits anyway.
He sent Eric to a high school with good public safety. Not long after, he was called in by the homeroom teacher.
The reason was that Eric saw someone bullying a classmate, so he fought three people alone and won.
Eric's reason was simple.
"Because I saw it, so I helped him."
Zandar smiled. "Next time, find a place without people or cameras before you do that."
As time passed, he discovered problems with Eric's identity.
Eric had never encountered a starquake. His home planet was a distant world that he might never be able to reach in this lifetime.
Eric's body was extremely special. Special to the point that he seemed not to age or die.
Like a god. No, more accurately, he was very likely capable of achievements far beyond gods.
Then what about his flesh and blood?
The thought flashed through Zandar's mind, but he didn't continue thinking about it. Instead, he turned to studying the nature of the universe with his student and others, followed by the dimensional ascension project.
And what about Eric, with his special constitution?
Zandar knew very well that Eric didn't belong here. Therefore, he shouldn't have to sacrifice himself for this universe.
He thought he should keep this a secret.
At that time, Zandar had never imagined that the student he had raised himself, who had no talent for research, would see through the truth he had tried so hard to hide, and would even consider sacrificing himself.
Nor had he ever imagined that the two would be separated by an accident.
In Zandar's notes, when he entered a certain black hole to investigate, he encountered the "Time Worm" and was dragged into an endless time loop. The handwriting afterward also became extremely messy.
The result went without saying. He died.
Zandar knew that when someone lost the will to live, no one could stop them.
Even the most insignificant object could become a weapon that took a life.
So when he saw his student's weak breathing and heart that had stopped several times, his heart was extremely calm.
As long as he invaded the Xianzhou's system and activated the engine, the universe would rewind.
Eric's system would restart, and it would lead Eric to randomly arrive at a certain point in time, landing on some planet.
That was an existence capable of turning the virtual into reality. With the system's help, Eric could quickly blend in with the natives.
Zandar looked at the nearly flat, barely beating ECG and couldn't help sighing, "Hui Feng, can you help me get the medical kit? And bring a basin of hot water. Oh, and another shirt."
At the very least, he should change him into a clean shirt first.
As soon as he finished speaking, the ECG showed fluctuations again.
Zandar silently picked up a hot towel, avoided the wound, and wiped away the blood.
After changing the blood-soaked shirt, Zandar couldn't help asking, "Did he say anything?"
Hui Feng replied, "He said that if possible, he wanted to grow up in a peaceful place without war."
Zandar stared blankly at his student inside the medical pod.
Yes. His student had lived in a peaceful era, had grown up surrounded by love, and had never lacked love.
Unfortunately, in a universe plagued by disasters, and with Eric's almost bizarre luck, it was very difficult for him to descend onto a peaceful planet.
Hui Feng thought for a moment and decided to say a few good words for the Xianzhou.
After all, it was something Eric still cared about before he died… oh, more accurately, before he fell unconscious.
If they just reset everything like this, Eric would probably be very sad, right?
Hui Feng dug through those distant memories.
"Eric once told me that if someone had enough ability or authority, even life and death could be changed."
"He said he had to leave himself some room, the right to completely delete his account or return to the game."
Deleting the account meant death. Returning to the game meant revival.
But how were they supposed to save a higher-dimensional being?
Zandar's eyes shifted slightly. "You mean, I can save him?"
Hui Feng nodded. "The ability or authority he talked about… I think in the entire sea of stars, no one except you could do it."
Zandar looked extremely helpless. He looked at the medical pod and sighed.
"I really can't do anything about you."
"Who told you to be my student."
"I just finished a doctorate in psychology. In that case, I might as well get a few more."
"When his heart stops, then I'll activate the engine."
Hui Feng, "..."
'Eric, just by breathing, you're already saving the universe.'
'For the sake of your Xianzhou, you better hold on a little longer!'
At this moment, on the Xianzhou, countless people gathered in the streets and alleys. Under the guidance of the Divination Commission members, they maintained a safe distance.
Some held hands with their lovers. Some carried children in their arms. They laughed and chatted, counting down together. When the first firework exploded in the sky, they fell silent in unison.
Together, they looked up at the sky.
And Marty, standing alone and holding a tablet by himself, seemed less noticeable among the crowd gathered to watch the fireworks.
He said nothing. He stopped walking and, like everyone else, looked up at the sky, at the brilliant fireworks that nearly turned the night into day.
Marty couldn't help but think of the highly classified cavern of Xuling.
He thought Zandar was absolutely right.