56: Anchoring the frontier and the first signs of undercurrents

The Ark of Order, like a silver pointer dropped into viscous ink, steadfastly sailed eastward through the bizarre currents of rules. The closer it got to the logic anchor, the more abnormal the external landscape became. The sky was no longer a continuous curtain, but shattered into countless 'patches' of different colors and varying physical rules. In some areas, light bent like snakes; in others, time was like solidified amber; and even more, matter existed in purely geometric forms, defying all known laws of chemistry.

The Logical Closed Loop effect field on the ark's surface continuously emitted a soft, milky white glow, like a perfectly smooth sphere, 'repelling' the chaotic external rules. Paradoxical energy and distorted information that attempted to corrode the ark, upon contact with the glow, evaporated and dissipated like water drops on a red-hot iron plate, making faint 'hissing' sounds, unable to shake it in the slightest.

Lin Mo sat upright in the pilot's seat, his information perception fully extended, like the most precise probe, constantly scanning and avoiding the most dangerous rule fault lines and energy vortices along the route. His face still carried a hint of weary paleness, but his eyes were sharp as an eagle's. The invisible 'towing line' between him and the logic anchor was stretched to its limit, guiding the final direction.

Ling Shuang stood beside him, her psionic short staff held tightly, enveloped in a silver-blue glow. Though her psionic perception was not as broad as Lin Mo's information vision, it was more sensitive in detecting life emotions and energy intentions. "Something is ahead…" she suddenly said, her voice heavy, "Many… filled with hunger and… pure malice."

Almost as soon as she finished speaking, the editor emitted a piercing alarm!

"Large-scale, high-threat units detected! Energy signature match: 'tide of delusion' derivative—'Etching Swarm'! Quantity: Unable to count precisely, estimated over one hundred thousand individuals! Distribution range: Covers all viable paths ahead!"

Outside the viewport, what was originally just a distorted airspace was suddenly covered by a 'living' darkness! It was a massive swarm composed of countless fist-sized creatures resembling deep-sea lice, their carapaces constantly flowing with foul colors! They had no eyes, only constantly opening and closing mouthparts filled with spiral teeth, emitting a spine-chilling hiss like millions of glass shards rubbing together. They did not move physically but burrowed through the sponge of rules, appearing and disappearing, and wherever they passed, even the 'integrity' of space was gnawed into temporary vacuums!

They were scavengers attracted by the scattered order energy of the logic anchor, the vanguard of the tide of delusion used to wear down the anchor's defenses!

"They're here!" Wu Yong said, his voice tight, looking at the despair-inducing numerical comparison on the screen.

Xiao Li instinctively tightened his grip on the weapon control stick, even though he knew conventional weapons had limited effect on these rule-based creatures.

"Maintain course, Logical Closed Loop field at full power," Lin Mo's voice was calm, without a ripple. "They cannot break through the closed loop defense. editor, calculate the path with the lowest swarm density."

The ark did not slow down at all; instead, its engine power slightly increased, like a red-hot blade, plunging straight into the suffocating swarm!

"Crackling..."

As if hailstones were striking a steel roof, a dense and crisp cracking sound instantly engulfed the ark! Countless etching bugs collided with the Logical Closed Loop effect field. Their own contradictory and chaotic essence of existence fiercely clashed with the absolute light of order, instantly disintegrating into rapidly dissipating dust of foul energy. They could not move an inch.

The ark traveled as if through a black sandstorm, leaving behind a temporarily existing vacuum tunnel paved with the bodies of the swarm. The swarm charged fearlessly, one after another, attempting to overwhelm this lonely Ark of Order with sheer numbers, but in the face of the Logical Closed Loop's absolute defense, all efforts were futile.

However, Lin Mo's brow furrowed slightly. He felt that maintaining the Logical Closed Loop against such high-intensity, continuous impact of rule pollution consumed far more mental and energy resources than expected. The light of the jade slip was slowly dimming at a visible rate.

"We can't drag this out," he said in a deep voice. "Ling Shuang, try to perform regional psionic purification to clear a path and reduce the pressure on the closed loop!"

Ling Shuang nodded, stepped forward, and pointed her psionic short staff at the surging swarm outside the viewport. She took a deep breath, and the silver-blue light around her flared dramatically, the fused silver source power fully activated!

[Psionic Bloom—Order Nova]

A pure, silver-blue halo, imbued with the intent to 'expel chaos' and 'define tranquility', suddenly spread out from the ark like a supernova explosion!

Wherever the halo passed, the foul energy structures of the Etching Swarm melted and purified rapidly, like snow thrown into boiling water! The hissing screams turned into cries of agony, and a large spherical area of the dense swarm was forcibly cleared out!

The effect was significant! The pressure on the closed loop suddenly lessened.

But Ling Shuang's face also paled, and her body swayed slightly. Such a large-scale purification was equally draining for her.

Utilizing this brief respite, the ark accelerated again, finally bursting out of the densest area of the Etching Swarm. Behind them, the endless darkness still churned, but it had been left far behind.

However, before they could breathe a sigh of relief, the sight that appeared before them made everyone's breath catch.

They had already passed through the outermost defensive perimeter of the logic anchor and reached the true 'frontier'.

There were no planets, no matter, and not even space in the conventional sense. There was only a… colossal, three-dimensional structure composed of countless constantly appearing and disappearing geometric shapes, flowing data streams, and flickering causal chains… so complex that it surpassed the limits of human comprehension.

It was like a self-rotating galaxy made of pure 'logic' and 'information', emitting ancient and vast fluctuations that maintained the world's existence. This was the true body of the logic anchor—the cornerstone of reality's rules!

But at this moment, this cornerstone was emitting a painful wail. On its massive surface, countless thick, pulsating shadow tentacles, like blood vessels, were entwined. These tentacles emitted an aura originating from the tide of delusion, yet more concentrated and malicious. They were constantly trying to bore into the anchor's internal structure, twisting the core logical chains that maintained the world, and injecting a black substance representing 'nothingness' and 'paradox' into it, like a toxin!

This was the shadow of devouring! It was not a specific creature, but a conscious rule-based erosion phenomenon specially adapted by the tide of delusion to target the logic anchor!

In the areas where these shadow tentacles were densest, the light emitted by the logic anchor had become extremely dim, and sometimes even small areas of 'black spots' where rules temporarily failed would appear!

"We… have arrived," Ling Shuang's voice trembled slightly, not just from fear, but from the instinctive awe in the face of this unimaginably grand existence.

Wu Yong and Xiao Li stared dumbfounded at the indescribable scene outside the viewport, their minds blank.

Lin Mo's gaze was fixed on the constantly writhing shadow tentacles. The data feedback from his information perception was alarming: these tentacles themselves were moving sources of rule pollution, their very existence constantly disrupting the surrounding logical stability.

"editor, analyze the energy structure and attack patterns of the shadow of devouring tentacles. Find the weak points at their connection to the logic anchor."

The jade slip's light flickered rapidly, analyzing the data in conjunction with the information-side fragment.

"Analysis complete. Tentacle structure is based on 'self-referential paradox' and 'infinite recursion'. Conventional energy attacks are ineffective, and physical attacks cannot reach them. At their connection to the anchor, there exists an 'information entanglement node', which is the optimal entry point for 'Logical Closed Loop' implantation. Warning: Any direct interference with the tentacles may trigger their 'paradoxical counterattack'—drawing the attacker into their internal logical dead loop."

They could only outsmart it, not overpower it. And there was only one chance; they had to precisely plant the 'seed' of the Logical Closed Loop at its connection to the anchor, causing it to self-collapse.

"ark, approach the southwest area where the tentacles are relatively sparse," Lin Mo commanded. "Ling Shuang, Wu Yong, Xiao Li, prepare for The Shock. I will attempt… the first 'closed loop implantation'."

The ark adjusted its direction, slowly moving towards the jungle-like writhing shadow tentacles, like a hunter cautiously approaching a beast.

The real battle was just beginning. And their first test was how to approach their target in this minefield of rules.

Just as the ark was about to enter the tentacles' attack range, the three closest giant shadow tentacles, as if sensing the aura of order, suddenly lifted from the anchor's surface and 'looked' at the uninvited guest!

A cold, silent will, filled with the negation of all existence, like a tangible shockwave, slammed into the ark's Logical Closed Loop field!

The entire ark shook violently!

Pressure ten times more intense than the previous impact from the Etching Swarm surged through!

Lin Mo grunted, and the cracks on the jade slip in his sea of consciousness seemed to widen a bit more!

The shadow of devouring had noticed them.