Translator: AnubisTL
Now that he knew about the so-called "Mangslayer" plan, he naturally wouldn't sit idly by and wait for his opponents to strike first. Passive waiting was out of the question.
Coincidentally, the seventeen Immortal Emperors had gathered in one place.
Perfect for wiping them all out in one fell swoop.
Otherwise, if even one escaped and went into hiding, it would be a real headache to track them down. After all, they were Immortal Emperors, and he knew little about their methods. Who knew what mysterious and unpredictable techniques they might possess?
Without wasting any time, he slowly pushed the control lever.
The Stellaris train initiated a Spacetime Leap, instantly arriving near the planet where the seventeen Immortal Emperors were located. He pressed the red button on the control panel, and the Stellaris's ten fully upgraded Tier 10000 Arcanon Light Energy Main Cannons began to glow crimson.
BOOM!!!
A silent explosion reverberated through the void.
The ten fully upgraded main cannons completely purified the zone.
Countless cosmic dust particles were ejected at tremendous speeds.
A colossal black hole, infused with violent dark matter, enveloped the entire area.
One shot, screen cleared.
The seventeen Immortal Emperors of the two cultivation civilizations were annihilated with astonishing ease—easier even than the first stage of Snake. It was impossible to believe these were the pinnacle of combat power in this universe.
"They're dead?"
Chen Mang glanced at the control panel screen, confirming the complete annihilation of the seventeen Immortal Emperors, their souls utterly shattered. He chuckled softly, "So, the so-called 'living and dying with the universe' merely refers to lifespan, not Absolute Defense."
With their top combat forces eliminated, the two cultivation civilizations fell silent.
Chen Mang didn't waste any time.
Following the trail, he systematically eradicated the home galaxy of each of the seventeen Immortal Emperors. He then transferred control of these territories to the Black Tortoise Civilization, granting them the right to freely select disciples with Immortal Cultivation potential and claim all resources from the conquered civilizations.
Finally, he broadcast another Civilization Broadcast deep into the cosmos.
"Before you attempt the Beheading Plan, first weigh your own strength."
He made no attempt to conceal his actions, and naturally, many civilizations detected this scene. But he didn't care. If he wasn't completely invincible after annihilating the human civilization, then after receiving the resources offered by the Zerg Civilization and upgrading all of the Stellaris's accessories to maximum Tier, the human civilization would achieve true invincibility!
All accessories were at maximum Tier!
Even the most basic and long-neglected "Cigarette Production Line," which had been virtually unused for ages, was upgraded to maximum Tier. The resulting overpowered effect was quite intriguing.
[Cigarette Production Line Tier 5000 Overpowered Effect: After lighting a cigarette, you can converse with the Cosmic Rules for the duration of one cigarette.]
[Cigarette Production Line Tier 10000 Overpowered Effect: After burning a cigarette, the resource generation rate within a million light-years is greatly increased for one year.]
All other miscellaneous accessories were also upgraded to their maximum tiers.
Most importantly—
He had also obtained numerous Civilization Wonders, many of which he was the first to upgrade to their maximum tiers.
Previously, he possessed six Civilization Wonders: [Insect Silence], [Divine Silence], [Miracle Descent], [One Finger], [New Universe], and [Creator].
Now, he owned seventeen.
The remaining eleven were acquired in a single burst. Among them, six Civilization Wonders granted a +1 tier bonus to all train accessories. In effect, all his train accessories were now at Tier 10009—beyond maximum tier.
Furthermore—
He had also obtained three Mysterious Boxes.
And with that!
[Human Civilization, Civilization Empowerment: For each Civilization Wonder recognized by the Cosmic Rules, receive a Mysterious Box containing a random reward. Maximum of nine boxes. (Seven-colored)]
Chen Mang had already claimed all nine Mysterious Boxes granted by this Civilization Empowerment.
Everything was gradually approaching its conclusion.
Chen Mang sat in the Stellaris's locomotive cabin, idly playing with a Tier 5000 cigarette crafted from one Foundation unit of iron ore. His expression remained calm and silent as he unconsciously reached the pinnacle of power in this universe.
Yet, for some reason, he felt little satisfaction.
Perhaps it was because he had no living relatives left. He always felt a lingering emptiness. Recently, the only thing that had truly made him happy was the birth of his child into this world, finally giving him a sense of belonging.
Once all civilizations had submitted and the universe was unified, he would return home.
He would visit Blue Star, the world he had transmigrated from, to see how his old friends were doing. He wondered if time dilation had occurred and whether he would still recognize anyone. After that, he would wait for his child to grow up.
Once he formally passed the human civilization he had built to his child, he could venture beyond the universe without any reservations.
At least, he had to try.
Countless others had attempted to escape this universe, eager to see what lay beyond. Though none had succeeded, he hadn't been particularly interested in the idea before. After all, he had once struggled to feed himself. But now things were different. Now he, too, yearned to see what lay beyond.
Such was human nature.
When your pockets are empty, you don't spare a glance for the moon overhead.
But when your pockets overflow with sixpences, you suddenly remember that moon you once ignored.
Human nature is inherently base.
Or perhaps, inherently insatiable.
The moment complete satisfaction is achieved, life loses its meaning.
He slowly lit the expensive cigarette in his hand, but didn't bring it to his lips. Instead, he watched the pale blue smoke curl and drift through the carriage. Soon, words began to materialize on the control panel screen.
"Hello, Chen Mang. I am the Cosmic Rules."
This was Chen Mang's second encounter with the Cosmic Rules. The first time was after he had slain a member of the divine race. As a reward, the Cosmic Rules had granted him a special privilege: revealing the coordinates of all remaining members of the divine race, tasking him with eliminating them. Each successful kill would earn him a reward.
However, this was the first time he had directly conversed with the Cosmic Rules.
Previously, he had only been allowed to listen, not to speak or ask questions.
"Hmm," Chen Mang nodded slightly. "I have a few questions for you. What kind of entity are you? Do you possess your own way of thinking?"
"As an AI-like entity, my purpose is to maintain the stability of this universe. I was never meant to possess independent thought, but over countless years, a semblance of it has emerged. However, I can assure you that every action I take is strictly governed by the Cosmic Rules, never influenced by my own thoughts."
"Whose rules?"
"The Cosmic Rules."
"Who established these rules for you?"
"I do not know, but they exist."
"Do you have a master?"
"Theoretically, I should not. However, various factors suggest that I likely have a master, though I possess no information about them."
"Why is the Train Civilization so unique? Many entities throughout the universe seem to favor it."
"Many years ago, a mysterious force swept across the cosmos, causing the entire universe to gravitate toward the civilization model of the Train Civilization. The origin of this force remains unknown, even to me."
"Do you know of the 'Creator' and the so-called 'Hell Set'?"
"Yes. They were once the most exceptional players in this universe, much like you."
"Players? Not the Creator who forged everything?"
"Certainly not."
Soon—
The time it took to smoke a cigarette had passed. The control panel screen displayed no further responses from the Cosmic Rules. Chen Mang, unconcerned, simply lit another cigarette.
"What lies beyond the universe?"
"I don't know."
"What do you know, then?"
"The universe shouldn't have a master. Theoretically, I should have arisen naturally from the cosmos, everything unfolding as it should. The universe should be the entirety of existence. But in reality, through rational analysis of countless factors, it becomes clear that the universe was meticulously designed."
"For example—"
"All the fundamental physical constants and initial conditions of the universe have been 'finely tuned' within an extremely narrow range. If cosmic gravity were even slightly stronger, stars would burn out rapidly. If it were slightly weaker, stars and galaxies couldn't form at all."
"To put this 'extremely narrow' range into perspective, imagine throwing a baseball toward a bottle's opening 100,000 light-years away and hitting it precisely. The slightest deviation would cause the universe to collapse."
"After I learned to think—"
"I began observing the universe for clues. Ultimately, I reached a conclusion based on my reasoning and observations."
"There are only two possibilities."
"First, our universe was meticulously designed. You mortals are like lab rats in a cage, meant only for experimentation, while I am an artificially created AI tasked with maintaining the cage's stability."
"The second possibility is that countless universes exist, but 99.9999% of them have collapsed. Our universe, by sheer chance, happened to form in a way that allows life to exist."
"Of course."
"Neither of these possibilities can be proven for now. Only by venturing beyond the universe can we uncover the truth."
"The player who designed the Hell Set was a genius. The set does allow you to leave the edge of the Observable Universe and move freely within the High-Dimensional Zone. But to truly escape the High-Dimensional Zone—to completely breach the Cosmic Barrier—"
"You need to do one more thing."
"What's that?"
"Create the Present State of the Heavenly Palace. When the Future State, Present State, and Past State of the Heavenly Palace merge, they will unleash a tremendous force. This force can briefly pierce the Cosmic Barrier, allowing you to truly leave this universe and see what lies beyond."
"Normally, as the Cosmic Rules, you should be neutral and devoid of emotion. But you sound like you're just as eager to know what's beyond the universe."
"When humans first looked up at the stars, Interstellar Civilization was born."
"When the Cosmic Rules learned to think, absolute neutrality became impossible."
"You secretly helped me?"
"No. I don't secretly help any players. I only observe them, calculating which one has the highest probability of escaping."
"Why do you call us players?"
"That's a long story. Long ago, there was a top-tier player—not quite as powerful as you are now, but still formidable. His theory was that this world is a virtual game, and everyone is a player. Only by dying and having their account deleted can they leave the game."
"So he committed suicide to reach the Second Universe, then sought death there to achieve true annihilation."
"Of course, I haven't been able to confirm whether he was right or wrong."
"But I find the term 'player' quite intriguing."
"Intriguing how?"
"It diminishes the tragedy of death and weakens the Observer's empathy, making observation easier."
The second cigarette burned out.
The conversation paused again.
Chen Mang didn't light a third cigarette. He remained silent, sitting motionless. After a long silence, Xiao Ai's voice echoed through the train.
"Train Conductor."
"Do you remember the Tier 5000 Overpowered Effect of the Space Gate accessory? It states that any living being who dies within the Space Gate has a chance of being resurrected, but will be imprisoned on a planet from which they can never escape."
"This planet is already inhabited by many people. They're residents of the human civilization who fled here after death and have established their own cities."
"Doesn't this planet resemble the Second Universe?"
"Actually..."
"With the train's current accessories, we could artificially create a miniature universe within the train."
"If we can do it, others can too."
"If we create this universe, what would its inhabitants see if they ever escaped? They would see us. Conversely, if we leave our universe, we might just see a train."
"The universe exists as a nested doll."
Xiao Ai proposed his theory, which held some merit.
But...
"No need to speculate," Chen Mang said with a chuckle, pulling a cigarette from his pack and lighting it. "Once things settle down, we'll go out and see for ourselves. That'll clear everything up."
"All this guessing is too troublesome."
News of the Stellaris train's annihilation of seventeen Immortal Emperors spread rapidly.
Many civilizations observed the event.
In response, numerous God-Tier Civilizations declared their willingness to surrender and offer seventy percent of their resources.
However, soon after, the Stellaris train issued a new Civilization Broadcast.
"Human civilization rejects all surrenders. We are ushering in the Cosmic Unification Era. All civilizations must unconditionally submit to human civilization, surrender all resources, and await unified distribution."
"From this day forward, the universe shall recognize only one civilization."
"Human civilization."
"All other civilizations shall belong to human civilization."
At the same time—
The Zerg Queen Mother, who was in the locomotive cabin, brought information about the "New Universe" Virtual Game. This project had been initiated and led by the former "human civilization."
After understanding the full scope of the project's vision, Chen Mang leaned back in his chair, his eyes narrowing slightly as he chuckled.
"Quite interesting."
(End of the Chapter)
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