The Collapse of Observer 73
The collapse of Observer 73 was like dropping a boulder into a silent deep pool—yet instead of rippling through the Demon Realm, the waves spread eerily upward, toward more distant dimensions.
In that "height" beyond measurement by distance, an abstract plane composed purely of information and logic. Countless light bands, each representing the trajectory of a different world or civilization, flowed and intertwined like a river of stars. Among them, a previously stable light band labeled "Demon Realm - Sector 73" was now trembling violently and abnormally; the node at its end, marking "Observer 73," suddenly dimmed, shattered, and turned into a spreading mass of garbled code.
An alarm rang silently—not as sound, but as a tremor in the rules.
More cold consciousnesses, like kindling stars, focused on the garbled area.
"Signal from Unit 73 lost."
"Final transmitted data: Encountered an unanalyzable variable; existential definition overwritten; logical conflict caused environmental rejection."
"Variable identifier: 'Lin Mo'. Knowledge system: Alien. Threat level reassessed: Extremely high."
"Recommendation: Activate the 'Deep Purification Protocol'."
Information raced between the cold consciousnesses—no emotion, only absolute rationality and executive logic.
"The Deep Purification Protocol requires access to 'Rule Weaver' permissions. Shall we submit a request for the Arbitration Tribunal's decision?"
"Seconded."
"Seconded."
...
A decision was reached in an instant.
A deeper, colder command crossed dimensions, locking onto the Demon Realm, locking onto the Thousand-Eyed Abyss, locking onto the gaping World Wound, and... onto Lin Mo, who stood before the Wound.
...
The Silent Corridor.
Lin Mo had just given his orders and was about to lead his team in a preliminary survey of the World Wound. But the "Space Foundation Stone" and "Source Crystal of All Things" in his sleeves suddenly trembled faintly at a high frequency—a resonance triggered by encountering a higher-order force of the same origin!
At the same time, the World Wound ahead, once a churning chaos, suddenly changed!
The roiling chaos was no longer disorderly; instead, it began to weave and assemble according to an extremely complex, extremely precise pattern! Countless threads of rules, no longer twisted and torn, moved like soldiers obeying a supreme command, building something... a structure!
A massive, three-dimensional rune made purely of rules—so complex it surpassed any known magic circle or immortal array—slowly emerged from the chaotic core of the World Wound!
Lin Mo had never seen this rune before, yet the meaning it held hit him instantly—it was "Zeroing," "Formatting," the ultimate command for a "complete reset"!
The pressure it exuded was not the might of energy, but the absoluteness of rules! It was as if the rune itself was an unchallengeable cosmic law!
"The Deep Purification Protocol..." Lin Mo's eyes sharpened. The organization behind the Observer had reacted far faster than he expected, and their methods were far more brutal! This was no longer a "correction" targeted at him personally—it was an attempt to erase him, along with this entire sector of the Demon Realm, completely from the very plane of "existence"!
"Retreat!" Lin Mo roared softly. With a sweep of his sleeve, a gentle yet irresistible force pushed the demons like Grak and Mo Shi back hundreds of feet.
He stood alone before the massive, forming "Zeroing" rune. His cyan robe fluttered violently in the invisible storm of rules.
He could not retreat, nor was there anywhere to retreat. This "purification" was locked onto this space, and all "anomalies" within it—including him and his Collective technology.
Resist head-on? This rune drew power from the fundamental rules of the world, a level even higher than the "correction" used by Observer 73. No individual force could stand against it directly.
His mind raced at an unprecedented speed. The insights accumulated over ten thousand years in the Cultivation World, the fundamental knowledge gained from the Collective's technological breakthroughs, the understanding of "existential" definition gleaned from his confrontation with Observer 73, the fragments of laws contained in the "Space Foundation Stone" and "Source Crystal of All Things"... all of it collided, merged, and deduced frantically in this moment!
The wisp of chaotic light that had coalesced during his fight against Observer 73—a symbol of the "right to define"—reappeared at his fingertips. But this time, it was no longer stable; it flickered violently, as if about to extinguish at any moment.
He was searching—searching for the logical cornerstone of the "Zeroing" rune, searching for the only possible glimmer of hope within that overwhelming, unstoppable power!
The "Zeroing" rune grew clearer, and the rule-based power it emitted grew stronger. The space around Lin Mo began to show signs of crystallization, as if it would freeze, decompose, and reduce him to raw information along with everything else.
From a distance, demons like Grak watched in terror. They could feel that area being torn away from the "world" itself!
Then, in that critical split second!
A sharp light flashed in Lin Mo's eyes!
He found it! Within the flawless logic of "Zeroing"—which represented absolute termination—he had caught a faint, discordant "ripple"! It was not a flaw, but... a trace left by some higher-level "observation" or "recording" mechanism! An "imprint" inevitably left in the rules by the Observers' own actions!
Just as even the most perfect program leaves records, consuming resources for its operation logs!
This tiny "imprint" was the variable! The lifeline!
The flickering chaotic light at his fingertip suddenly solidified! Instead of attacking the massive "Zeroing" rune, he channeled all his spirit, all his insights, all his power—along with that wisp of light—into an intangible stream of information, one that carried a new "definition." With absolute precision, he... injected it into that tiny "observation imprint" at the logical core of the "Zeroing" rune!
What he did was not resist "Zeroing."
Instead... he added a tiny "note" to the "Zeroing" command—one that defined his own existence!
The light of the "Zeroing" rune suddenly blazed to its peak!
An indescribable radiance devoured everything, and the power of the rules swept through like a tsunami!
Grak, Mo Shi, and the other demons closed their eyes in despair.
When the light faded.
The Silent Corridor remained as desolate as ever.
The World Wound still existed—but the massive "Zeroing" rune within it was gone without a trace.
And Lin Mo...
He still stood there. His cyan robe was intact, his figure solid.
He slowly raised his hand, staring at his palm as if confirming his own "existence."
He had succeeded.
He had not resisted "Zeroing." Instead, he had seized that fleeting opportunity to carve out an extremely special "state" for himself within the absolute law of "Zeroing."
He was neither erased nor fully existing in the original timeline.
He had become a "note"—an exception recorded within the "Zeroing" protocol.
He looked up at the void—the "height" where countless cold eyes seemed to watch—and a faint, almost imperceptible curve tugged at his lips.
"Deep Purification... it seems even this couldn't fully 'purify' me, the variable."
His voice was calm, yet it carried an unprecedented defiance of the rules.
"Now, it's my turn."