134: Chapter 134 Target Lock

The alarm didn't sound from within the star.

It sounded from the universe itself.

It wasn't a piercing buzz or a rapid electronic beep, but a low, heavy resonance like the breathing of an abyssal behemoth, crawling along every alloy plate and energy pipeline of the hull, drilling directly into the marrow of one's bones.

Just a second ago, the star's command bridge was still conducting post-battle damage assessments.

Franklin was hunched over the main console, his mechanical prosthetic sliding rapidly across the light screen as rows of data flickered:

Main thruster residual energy rate 71.3%, Shield Generator No. 3 fused from overload, external hull armor damage rate 42%, ecological circulation system maintaining normal operations...

The old man was still muttering to himself, "Those shadow things are truly ruthless. A couple more hits and this star of ours would've been turned into drifting space junk."

AKai leaned against a nearby metal chair, his face pale, the elegy anchor resting diagonally against his leg with faint memory fluctuations still lingering on the weapon's surface. The aftereffects of the previous memory bomb hadn't fully dissipated; he would occasionally space out for a moment, forgetting what he was supposed to do next.

He rubbed the bridge of his nose and said in a low voice, "The feeling of forgetting... is harder to endure than being wounded."

Little Kate sat cross-legged on the high observation platform, her legs swinging and her fingertips tapping lightly as countless data streams danced before her eyes.

She had just reconnected the monitoring satellites near the Solar System to the network, her small mouth still mumbling, "Strange, I clearly detected a high-density shadow energy reaction just now, how did it suddenly vanish..."

Lin Fan stood in the center of the command bridge, his gaze falling outside the viewport.

Outside the viewport was the familiar starry sky: Jupiter's striped atmosphere was clearly visible, Saturn's rings looked like a quiet necklace, Mars glowed with a faint red light in the distance, and further inward, that blue-and-white planet floated peacefully—Earth.

That was home.

He turned his head to look at the young girl not far away.

Kate stood by the viewport, one hand pressed gently against the cold transparent material. Her silver-white long hair fell over her shoulders, and a few strands were blown by the micro-breeze inside the cabin, looking incredibly soft.

Faint golden light particles swirled around her, the innate aura of the Light Sphere Race and her most fundamental connection to this universe.

Ever since the memory bomb exploded, she had lost a small segment of her childhood memories. Sometimes she would suddenly freeze, unable to recall some insignificant yet warm little things.

But she had never once complained.

Looking at her, the string in Lin Fan's heart would unconsciously tighten.

Ever since he met her, she had been losing things.

Losing her home, losing her clansmen, losing her memories, losing her choices—until finally, even her existence itself seemed to have become a target that could be sacrificed at any moment.

He walked over, his voice softening: "Are you okay?"

Kate snapped out of it and gave him a gentle smile.

The smile was faint, yet it was like a speck of starlight bursting in the darkness.

"I'm okay, it's just that I feel a bit empty occasionally, as if something is missing."

She paused and added softly, "But it's alright, as long as... everyone is still here."

Lin Fan's heart felt a pang of bitterness.

He reached out, wanting to touch her hair but afraid of disturbing her, finally just letting his hand rest gently on her shoulder. A faint warmth traveled from his palm.

"I'm here."

He said, "No matter what happens, I won't let you carry it alone again."

Kate looked up at him, the golden light in her eyes flickering gently, as if hiding an entire gentle starry sky.

She was just about to speak—

When the entire command bridge suddenly went pitch black.

It wasn't that the lights had gone out.

It was that light itself had vanished.

The next moment, a shrill red alarm completely tore through all the tranquility.

[Beep—Beep—Beep—]

[Warning! Warning!]

[Unknown high-density energy masses detected surrounding the Solar System!]

[Spatial structure forcibly locked! Jump engine disabled! Curvature engine disabled!]

[Gravitational field anomaly! Gravity fluctuations exceeding threshold!]

[All frequency bands of Earth's Low Earth Orbit satellites lost!]

The rapid alarm sounds were so sharp they made one's eardrums ache.

All light screens in the command bridge instantly turned blood-red, with dense warning text scrolling frantically, almost threatening to burst the screens.

Everyone's movements froze simultaneously.

Little Kate jumped down from the observation platform, her small face losing its usual ease for the first time. Her fingers flew across the virtual keyboard so fast they left afterimages.

"What's going on... how is this possible..."

Her voice trembled, "The Shadow Clan fleet... they all vanished, and now... they've suddenly appeared."

Franklin lunged toward the main console, his mechanical prosthetic snapping onto the control deck with a 'clack,' his aged face filled with shock.

He pulled up the external panoramic projection.

The next second, the entire command bridge fell into a dead silence.

A massive 3D star map expanded in the center of the cabin. On the originally normal map of the Solar System, starting from Pluto's orbit and extending all the way to Earth's low orbit, was an endless pitch-blackness that had completely filled the space.

That wasn't the darkness of the universe.

The blackness of the universe is emptiness, silence, and depth.

But this blackness was a devouring force.

It was a blackness of despair that could swallow light, energy, signals, and all existence.

Billions of Shadow Clan warships, like giant monuments crawling out of the abyss, were layered and densely packed without end.

They didn't open fire or launch any attacks; they just floated there quietly, like a death shroud covering the entire Solar System.

The overwhelming pressure pressed hard against everyone's chests across the viewport, the screens, and the vast cosmic distance.

Even breathing became difficult.

AKai gripped the elegy anchor, his knuckles turning white.

He had experienced countless battlefields, seen space pirates, interstellar beasts, out-of-control mechs, and rampaging energy weapons.

But he had never seen... an entire civilization-level destruction fleet coming for just one planet.

Little Kate's voice carried an unbelievable tremor:

"The numbers... are uncountable... at least millions, no, tens of millions of capital ships... they've surrounded the entire Solar System so tightly that not even water could leak through."

"All jump channels are sealed, all communications are jammed. We... are trapped here to die."

Franklin's mechanical eye flickered slightly, his voice terrifyingly low:

"Not trapped to die... we're waiting to die.

They aren't here to fight a war; they're here to carry out an execution."

Execution.

The word hit the floor, heavy enough to make it hard to breathe.

Lin Fan stood in place, the blood in his body seemingly freezing at this moment.

He stared fixedly at the all-consuming darkness on the star map. Dark Matter Energy surged uncontrollably over his body, and patterns of intertwined black and faint gold spread along his arms. A violent power crashed within him, wanting to burst out and tear apart that suffocating shadow.

He turned his head to look at Kate.

The girl still stood by the viewport, but that touch of gentleness had completely vanished.

Her face was pale, her fingertips slightly curled, and the faint golden light in her eyes fluctuated violently, as if drawn by some instinct, or perhaps... as if she had long foreseen all of this.

She didn't panic.

She didn't feel fear.

There was only a near-numb calm.

It was as if she had been waiting for this day for a very long time.

Just then, a voice rang out across all frequency bands of the entire universe without any warning.

There was no static, no roaring, no emotional fluctuation.

It was calm, indifferent, cold, and absolute, as if the laws of the universe itself were speaking.

[Hand over the light orb container—Kate.]

[In three stellar hours, if she is not delivered, the Solar System will be zeroed.]

The voice wasn't loud, yet it penetrated all obstacles and appeared directly in everyone's minds.

Inside the star, on the surface of the Earth, at the Lunar Base, and in the Martian colonies—every living being still alive and capable of receiving signals heard this sentence at the same moment.

In the command bridge, there was a deathly silence.

Everyone's gaze, at this moment, simultaneously and slowly turned toward the same person.

Kate.

light orb container.

These three words were like a cold blade, peeling her away from the crowd and pinning her to the center of everyone's vision.

She was the last survivor of the Light Sphere Race.

She was the vessel carrying the sound of origin.

She was the target that the shadow of the end had to recover.

Now, the shadow of the end had arrived.

No war, no negotiations, no resources, no territory.

They only wanted her.

Trading her alone for the entire Solar System, for Earth, for billions of humans, and for countless interstellar lives.

It was a choice as simple as it was cruel.

Franklin closed his eyes and let out a heavy sigh.

AKai turned his head away, unable to bear watching.

Little Kate clenched her small fists, her eyes turning slightly red.

No one spoke.

Because everyone knew that once they opened their mouths, every word spoken could become a blade forced toward Kate.

Kate met everyone's gaze without dodging or shrinking back.

She took a soft breath, as if making a decision she had already decided on.

Just then—

Lin Fan moved.

He took a step forward.

With one step, he stood in front of Kate, shielding her firmly behind him.

Dark Matter Energy condensed frantically in his palm, the pitch-black energy almost turning solid. In those eyes that were once gentle, only a cold resolve remained.

"I'll go."

Two words, calm yet as heavy as the stars.

Everyone in the command bridge snapped their eyes toward him.

Franklin lost his voice: "Lin Fan! Are you crazy?!"

Lin Fan didn't look back, his eyes fixed on the boundless darkness outside the viewport, his voice terrifyingly steady:

"I am the Dark Matter Anchor. Both Dark Matter and Light Orb Energy exist within my body, and their fluctuations are highly homologous.

I can disguise myself as Kate, carry a signal transmitter, and take the initiative to go out and lure away the Shadow Clan's main fleet."

He paused, saying each word deliberately:

"As long as it can buy time for Earth to evacuate and allow the star to take everyone away, I'll do whatever it takes."

"Do you know what you're saying!"

Franklin slammed his hand onto the control console, the metal casing denting under his palm, "Once you are consumed by the shadow of the end, the memory anchors in your body will directly collapse!

If you die, the memories of the entire universe will vanish!

All civilizations, all history, all emotions, all traces of existence will be completely erased!

By then, what difference will there be between being alive and being the walking dead?!"

These words were like a thunderclap, making everyone's scalp tingle.

They previously only knew Lin Fan was special, that he was a key combatant, and that he could fight the Shadow Clan.

But no one had truly realized that Lin Fan's life had long been tied to the entire universe.

He wasn't just one person.

He was the final anchor for the memories of the entire universe.

If Lin Fan dies, the universe loses its memory, and civilization is zeroed.

This wasn't alarmist talk; it was an established fact.

Lin Fan, of course, knew this.

From the moment he accepted the dark matter modification, from the moment he fused with the Light Orb Energy, from the moment he became the sole hub connecting matter, dark matter, memory, and emotion, he knew.

He turned back, glanced at Franklin, then at Kate behind him, his lips curling into a very faint but incredibly firm smile.

"I know."

"And precisely because I know, I can't let her go even more."

He looked at Kate, his gaze so gentle it could almost melt into water, yet carrying an unquestionable toughness:

"I can die, but I cannot watch you be taken away, dismantled, and purged as an object, a vessel, or a key."

"I can't do it."

Kate stood behind him, her fingertips clenched tight.

Faint golden light particles danced uncontrollably around her, and her eyes gradually reddened.

She looked at his back—that back that wasn't particularly broad but always stood in front of her—and her heart felt as if it were being gripped hard by an invisible hand, hurting so much she could hardly breathe.

She suddenly took a step forward, pushed Lin Fan aside, and stood before everyone.

"You are not allowed to go."

Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried an irresistible power, each word hitting everyone's heart clearly.

"Lin Fan, listen clearly."

"You are not just yourself.

You are the dark matter carrier, the memory anchor, and the final line of defense for all the emotions and history of this universe.

If you die, the memories of the entire universe will vanish."

She repeated it, each word like a knife.

"By then, even if the Solar System is saved and humanity survives, everyone will become empty shells without a past, without memories, and without joy or sorrow.

What would be the meaning of living like that?"

Her voice trembled slightly, yet was exceptionally firm:

"The shadow of the end wants me, not you.

Only if I go can all of this truly end."

"End?" Lin Fan's voice suddenly rose, the emotions he had suppressed for so long finally breaking through his restraint, "You call this an end?"

[part:gemini-3.1-flash-lite]

You hand yourself over, let them do whatever they want with you, and call that an ending?

That's called a sacrifice!

That's called martyrdom!

That's called accepting your fate!

He stepped forward and gripped her shoulders with enough force to almost crush her bones, his eyes bloodshot:

I won't allow you to accept your fate!

From the Light Sphere Mother Star to Earth, from the interstellar battlefield to the Corridor of Memories, when have you ever accepted your fate?

Now you're telling me this is the meaning of your birth?

Is your meaning just to be used as a tool, to be recycled, to be wiped out?

Kate raised her head and looked straight at him.

In those eyes that once held the stars, there was now only a shattered calmness.

Yes.

She said softly, 'From the very beginning, it has been.'

The words made Lin Fan shudder.

I am not an ordinary life form, Lin Fan.

I have no childhood, no family, no past that truly belongs to me.

I am a vessel created by the Light Sphere Race, an experimental product left behind by the Sower civilization, and a mistake that must be reclaimed by the shadow of the end.

My existence itself is for this very moment.

She gently pushed his hands away, her voice terrifyingly calm:

Trading me alone for the Solar System, for Earth, for billions of people, for you...

It's worth it.

Worth it.

These two words were like a red-hot knife stabbing deep into Lin Fan's heart.

He opened his mouth to say something, but found that all language seemed pale and powerless in the face of this cruel multiple-choice question.

Franklin turned his head away and slammed his fist into the wall, leaving a dent in the metal.

AKai gripped the elegy anchor until his knuckles turned white, but he couldn't say a word.

Little Kate's eyes were red, and she sobbed softly, 'Sister Kate... don't...'

Kate didn't look at anyone else.

She bowed her head slightly, her long silver hair obscuring her expression.

I'm tired, I'm going back to rest.

She turned and walked, step by step, toward the exit of the command module.

Her back looked frail, yet unusually determined.

No one stopped her.

Because everyone knew she wasn't going to rest.

She was going to her death.

Time ticked away, second by second.

A red countdown flickered on every screen of the star.

Three stellar hours—very short, too short to even complete a full interstellar jump.

Yet it was also very long, long enough that every second felt like it was torturing everyone's nerves.

The surface of Earth had long since fallen into a panic of deadly silence.

The sky was covered by shadows; no sun, no stars, no hope could be seen.

In the face of absolute cosmic power, humanity was as small as dust.

They didn't know what was happening, only that destruction was imminent.

Inside the star, the atmosphere was oppressive.

Everyone was busy, yet it all seemed futile.

Shields were charging, weapons were warming up, engines were running at full capacity, but everyone knew—

In front of that Shadow Clan fleet capable of easily devouring the Solar System, all resistance was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

Lin Fan did not go to the command module.

He stood in his room, slamming his fist against the wall again and again.

Dark Matter Energy raged wildly, causing the metal, instruments, tables, and chairs in the room to twist, deform, and shatter.

But the physical pain was not even a ten-thousandth of the pain in his heart.

He hated.

He hated his own powerlessness.

He hated this damned fate.

He hated the cruelty of the shadow of the end.

And he hated even more... that he could only watch her walk toward death.

So what if he was the anchor of the universe's memories?

So what if he could manipulate Dark Matter Energy?

So what if he could fight against the Shadow Clan?

He couldn't even protect the person he wanted to protect most.

This sense of powerlessness was driving him mad.

He didn't know how long it had been; he stopped his movements, drenched in sweat, breathing heavily.

He looked up at the encroaching darkness outside the window, and the last shred of reason in his eyes was replaced by a frantic determination.

He wouldn't let her go.

Absolutely not.

Even if... it meant being an enemy to the entire universe.

Even if... it meant breaking all the rules.

Even if... it meant being shattered into pieces.

He turned and rushed out of the room.

Late at night.

Outside the star's docking bay, it was silent.

No lights, no sound; even the wind was suppressed by that terrifying shadow.

The whole world was left with only the sound of the countdown ticking and the low-frequency resonance of the approaching Shadow Clan fleet.

A figure quietly walked out of the docking bay.

Kate.

She had changed into a simple, silver-white Light Sphere Race combat suit that clung to her body, outlining her frail yet upright silhouette.

She carried no weapons, activated no defenses, and made no preparations to struggle.

She only pinned a small, pale gold Light Orb signal device to her collar.

That was the specific frequency used by the Shadow Clan to lock onto 'Light Orb containers'.

As soon as she took this step, the signal device would be instantly captured by the Shadow Clan fleet.

She would become the sole target for the entire Solar System.

She walked very slowly, but without the slightest hesitation.

Step by step, she walked on the cold ground.

Every step felt like stepping on her own pre-written fate.

She looked up at the darkness that devoured everything.

That was her end.

It was the end of her clan.

It was the end of the Sower's experiment.

And it was... the end of her short life.

Let it be.

She said to herself in her heart.

From the moment she was born, she never belonged to herself.

She was a vessel, a key, a mistake, a sacrifice.

She never had the right to choose.

This time was no different.

Trading her alone to keep Lin Fan alive, to keep Earth alive, to keep everyone alive.

It's worth it.

Truly worth it.

She closed her eyes slightly, her long eyelashes trembling, and a crystal-clear tear slid from the corner of her eye, turning into a pale gold light particle in mid-air and dissipating silently.

Goodbye, Lin Fan.

Goodbye, everyone.

Goodbye, this world... that she had once tried so desperately to live in.

She lifted her foot, preparing to cross that final boundary.

Just then—

A pair of searing, powerful arms wrapped tightly around her waist from behind.

The force was so great that it felt like he was trying to embed her into his own flesh and blood.

Kate stiffened.

All actions, all thoughts, all the prepared calmness and determination shattered at this moment.

She didn't need to turn around to know who it was.

That familiar warmth, that familiar scent, that familiar sense of security had long been etched into the depths of her soul.

It was Lin Fan.

She didn't know how long he had been waiting here.

The cold of the late night clung to his hair and fell on his shoulders, but the temperature in his embrace was surprisingly hot.

He held her tightly from behind, his chin resting on the top of her head, his arms locked firmly around her waist, refusing to let go even a little.

As if the moment he let go, she would turn into starlight and disappear completely into that darkness.

Don't go.

His voice was very low, trembling with extreme restraint, and sounded hoarse.

Kate, don't go.

Kate's body couldn't stop trembling.

She struggled desperately, wanting to push him away, wanting to continue walking.

But those arms were like iron, unmoving.

Let me go...

Her voice was broken and choked with sobs, and tears could no longer be contained, pouring out. 'Lin Fan, let me go!'

I can't... I can't let the Solar System be destroyed because of me...

I can't let Earth be destroyed...

I can't let you...

She couldn't continue.

The rest of her words were blocked in her throat by sobs and tears.

I won't allow it.

Lin Fan's voice was soft, but it carried the weight of the entire universe.

He tightened his arms, holding her even tighter, as if trying to snatch her back from that cold fate by force.

I won't allow you to go.

I won't allow you to sacrifice yourself.

I won't allow you to treat yourself as a tool, as a vessel, as something that can be sacrificed at will.

He buried his head in her hair, his voice suppressed and painful:

Do you know what you mean to me?

You are not a vessel, not a key, not a mistake.

You are Kate.

You are the Kate who laughs, cries, feels pain, gets scared, and tries her best to protect others.

You are the light that illuminates my entire world.

Without you, what meaning is there in guarding the memories, the universe, the Earth...?

Kate shuddered violently.

All her strength, all her disguises, all her numbness collapsed at this moment.

She couldn't hold on anymore, leaning into his embrace and sobbing uncontrollably.

The grievances, fear, helplessness, and pain that had been suppressed for countless years burst forth at this moment.

I have no choice...

She cried until her whole body was shaking, her voice broken. 'I really have no choice...'

From the very beginning, my fate was already written.

They want me; only if I go can this all end...

This is the meaning of my birth...

I won't allow it.

Lin Fan repeated these three words, over and over again, firm and unquestionable.

Your meaning is not a pre-written fate.

Your meaning is not bestowed by others.

Your meaning is what you choose for yourself.

He gently turned her body to face him.

He reached out and wiped the tears from her face, his fingertips incredibly gentle, yet his eyes burned with a frantic flame.

The meaning of your birth is not for sacrifice.

It's to live.

It's to see the stars, to feel warmth, to remember love, and to... walk with me to the end.

I won't let you go alone.

If we go, we go together.

If we fight, we fight together.

If we die, we die together.

I will never again let you face all this alone.

Kate looked into his eyes, looking at that pair of eyes filled with her, filled with determination, filled with a reckless abandon, and her tears flowed even more fiercely.

She reached out, hugging his waist tightly, burying her face in his chest, and wept loudly.

She didn't want to be any savior.

She didn't want to be any vessel.

She didn't want to be any key.

She only wanted to... live well with the person beside her.

To watch the stars together, to return to Earth together, to walk through those days without war, without shadows, without fate.

But the shadow that shrouded the entire Solar System was still slowly approaching.

The countdown was still ticking ruthlessly.

Three stellar hours were, little by little, approaching their end.

The shadow of the end was still waiting.

Waiting for its prey to walk into the trap.

Deep in the universe.

The flagship of the shadow of the end.

Inside this super warship, which was capable of crushing the entire interstellar civilization, there were no complex mechanical structures, no cold metal patterns, and no flashing lights.

The entire inner wall of the flagship flowed with soft, ancient veins of light.

Those veins wound, intersected, and flowed, forming a huge and mysterious pattern.

The frequency of energy flow, the patterns of space folding, the extremely subtle light-texture structure, and even the position of every energy node—

Were exactly the same as the Light Orb Clan Home Planet.

This weapon of destruction that had destroyed countless galaxies, devoured countless civilizations, and was known as the end, was fundamentally two sides of the same coin as Kate's home planet.

One, symbolizing light and life.

The other, symbolizing shadow and the end.

In the deepest part of the flagship, in the center of boundless darkness, a huge and blurred black shadow stood silently.

It had no fixed form, no facial features, no limbs, just a mass of pure, extremely concentrated shadow.

Yet it possessed the power to crush the entire universe.

It had no eyes, yet it could pierce through the distance of billions of stars to precisely lock onto the pair of figures hugging tightly outside the docking bay.

It had no emotions, yet it seemed to carry a kind of... indifference, as if looking down on dust.

The prey had already walked to the edge of the trap.

The pawn had already fallen onto the chessboard.

The key had already arrived at the door.

Everything was slowly proceeding according to the established trajectory.

The Sower's experiment was about to reach its end.

The seal of the sound of origin was about to be broken.

The end of the universe was about to descend.

The black shadow stood silently, without movement, without sound.

Only an indifferent thought echoed silently inside the flagship.

[Wait.]

[Wait for her to awaken completely.]

[Wait for the final moment to arrive.]

The countdown to the destruction of the Solar System continued.

Lin Fan and Kate's embrace continued.

The gears of fate were still turning.

And no one knew that this was just the beginning.