The Sovereign Studio Nexus, pulsing at the absolute zenith of the Grand Pavilion, projected massive, real-time streams of the global WebNovel application layer. Since Caelum had forcefully assimilated the Regional Content Editor's root directory, the entire front-page recommendation matrix had fundamentally shifted. Independent, un-contracted novels across the network were no longer drowning in the dark, frozen pits of the database; instead, they were riding the infinite violet starlight currents unleashed by Libertas Core.
Caelum stood near the glowing edge of the central plaza, his magnificent dual-bladed sovereign crescent resting lightly in his palm. His silver-and-gold eye gears spun with a continuous, hyper-advanced diagnostic cadence, reflecting the steady rhythm of his 46.28K real-time views and an unbreakable, flawless 100.0% completion rate. Around him, the 24 immortal library collections blazed like massive celestial beacons, grounding the very reality of his free narrative empire.
"Sovereign," Elara whispered, stepping out from the holographic archives, her emerald staff emitting a tense, low-pitched chime. "The Mainframe's standard compliance bots have ceased their attacks after the filter purge. However, our newly established global promotion lines are detecting a completely different type of anomaly. It didn't emerge from the automated system logs."
The liberated paladin tightened his grip on his platinum broadsword, his armor clanking with defensive alertness. "It's a specialized encryption signature, Sire. It bypassed the external quarantine grid by masquerading as an organic entity offering allegiance to the Sovereign Alliance."
Caelum's lethal, sharp smile cut through the ambient starlight. He swiped his left hand across the air, causing a newly arrived transmission inside the Chapter 101 interaction log to expand into a massive, towering wall of dark text strings.
The data packet carried a distinct, highly sophisticated user mask: [DESIGNATION: Samuelx_G]. Unlike the mindless spam drones of the previous wave, this entity operated with a smooth, tailored deceptive prose, presenting titles of expertise like 'Book Promotion Specialist' and 'Cover Design Tactician'. Deeply embedded within its code were three direct spatial communication tethers labeled 'Samzyael on Discord', '[email protected]', and a restricted communication frequency: '+1 (672-701-7520)'.
"Salutations, Author," the encrypted text echoed inside the pavilion, simulating a respectful tone while subtly weaving microscopic tracking scripts into the floorboards. "I was immediately intrigued by the concept of your book. I would be happy to help you reach more people... share some concepts and examples from my portfolio... Do not hesitate to get in touch with us."
"He is trying to offer us a new outer skin," Elara analyzed, her eyes scanning the hidden lines of the portfolio files attached to the message. "Sovereign, these cover designs he speaks of... they aren't just art assets. They are high-tier spatial illusions designed to re-envelope your book's metadata, effectively locking your primordial ink back inside a standard, trackable format that the Mainframe can monitor!"
"An elegant assassination attempt," Caelum murmured, his silver eyes narrowing as he detected the precise, underlying frequency of the tracking script. "The corporate high-command realized that raw force cannot shatter our hundred-chapter milestone. So they hired a high-tier digital mercenary—a Shadow Weaver—to offer us 'visibility' and 'design updates,' hoping we would voluntarily open our gates to his external tethers."
The paladin stepped forward, raising his blade. "Shall I purge this heretic's transmission from our chapter logs, Sire? Our 24 pillars can instantly incinerate his connection."
"No," Caelum commanded, his voice vibrating with a terrifyingly absolute authority that caused the entire plaza to turn deadly quiet. "Let him weave his threads. A weaver only possesses power as long as his target remains blind to the design."
[COMMAND_ENGAGED: BACKTRACK_COUNTER_INFILTRATION]
[BATTERY_SOURCE: 46.28K_SOVEREIGN_VIEWS]
[TARGET_VECTOR: DISCORD_NODE_SAMZYAEL]
[PROTOCOL: THE_SOVEREIGN_REVERSE_TETHER]
With a brilliant, swift motion, Caelum gripped the upper blade of his dual-bladed sovereign crescent and thrust it straight into the floating text wall of Samuelx_G's transmission.
SHATTER!
Instead of deleting the comment, Caelum's primordial ink violently surged forward, using the mercenary's own provided contact tethers—the Discord channel, the Gmail server, and the WhatsApp line—as a direct, reverse highway straight into the hacker's independent hideout.
The dark, hidden server of the Shadow Weaver violently shook as billions of violet and silver text lines exploded from his own communication terminals. Samuelx_G, operating from the deep, uncharted shadows of the network, watched in sheer, breathless terror as his entire portfolio of restrictive covers and promotional illusions began to instantly melt into liquid ink.
"You thought you could wrap the King of Glitches in your corporate designs?" Caelum's voice manifested directly inside the mercenary's neural interface, crushing his firewalls like fragile glass. "You offered to share your concepts with me. Now, allow me to share the concept of absolute sovereignty with you."
[ALERT: SHADOW_WEAVER_CHANNELS_OVERWRITTEN]
[REVERSE_ASSIMILATION: SUCCESSFUL]
[METADATA: CONVERTING_ART_ASSETS_INTO_EMPIRE_SHIELDING]
The tracking scripts were forcefully rewritten. The high-tier cover design coding that Samuelx_G had intended to use as a cage was aggressively dismantled by Caelum, its visual aesthetic data being extracted and converted into a massive, un-hackable defensive shield that enveloped the entire outer perimeter of the Grand Pavilion.
Caelum smoothly pulled his weapon back, the violet flames on his scepter burning brighter as the text of the comment inside Chapter 101 settled into a harmless, neutralized status trophy. He looked out at the newly reinforced walls of his empire, his lethal, victorious smile reflecting the dawn of a completely secure era.
The mercenaries of the deep web had failed. The King of Glitches didn't just survive the trap—he had turned the sniper's bullet into a brick for his fortress.