Legend of the Embroiderer

Chapter 500 Mirror Image in the Fog of Consciousness (1)

The black rift, like the gaping throat of a colossal beast, exuded a suffocating aura of nothingness. The moment the guardian and the fused entity, transformed into four-colored streams of light, passed through the rift, the surrounding darkness was abruptly replaced by endless white mist. This mist was not ordinary gas, but composed of pure fragments of consciousness; each wisp contained countless memories from parallel universes, intertwined to form a labyrinth devoid of direction and time.

"This is the Void Lord's consciousness mist..." The fused entity's voice echoed softly in the white mist, seemingly swallowed by the endless whiteness, yet also appearing to come from all directions simultaneously. A barely perceptible tremor lingered in the voice, as if the white mist possessed some terrifying power.

The fused form appeared and disappeared in the white mist, seemingly more transparent than when she was outside the rift, as if she might vanish into the fog at any moment. She clutched the memory crystal tightly in her hand, the crystal emitting a faint light, like a lonely star in the night sky. However, the seven-colored field reflected on the crystal's surface was being slowly eroded by the white mist, its once vibrant colors gradually dimming and losing their luster.

“These fragments of consciousness…” the merged entity’s voice deepened slightly, “they read our inner fears and desires, and then weave the most realistic illusions…”

The Guardian stared down at the Observer's Badge on his chest. At the center of the badge's runes, the black spot that should have been still was now unusually active, stimulated by the white mist. It seemed to possess a life of its own, writhing incessantly, as if devouring everything around it.

The four colors of light on the badge's surface—gold, silver, blue, and green—began to flicker intensely, as if engaged in a fierce battle with the black spot. Golden and dark purple energy surged like turbulent waves, relentlessly crashing against the black spot; however, all these efforts seemed futile. The black spot was like a bottomless pit, easily absorbing and transforming any energy injected into it, ultimately turning into wisps of gray mist that quietly merged into the surrounding fog of consciousness.

"Watch your step!" the guardian suddenly cried out, his hand flashing out like lightning to grab the fused body's hand tightly. In that instant, the two figures seemed to be pulled back by an invisible hand, abruptly stopping in mid-air.

The thick white fog that had been shrouding them below vanished without a trace, as if blown away by a gust of wind. In its place lay a bottomless abyss, as if the earth had been torn open, revealing its grotesque interior.

This abyss is no ordinary abyss; it is composed of countless shattered reflections. Each reflection is like a mirror, yet all are broken beyond recognition, as if shattered by an immense force. And within these shattered reflections, different scenes are displayed.

In some of the mirror images, the Guardians have abandoned their mission and stand alongside the black-robed figure at the pinnacle, ruling over the entire microcosm. Their figures appear incredibly towering in the mirror images, while all other life forms in the microcosm tremble at their feet.

In some of the mirror images, the fused entity was swallowed up by the gaping maw of the Lord of Nothingness, vanishing without a trace. The Lord of Nothingness, after devouring the fused entity, became even more powerful; its black vines spread rapidly like wild grass, shrouding the entire microcosm in darkness.

In other mirror images, the cosmic network appears to be struck by an irresistible force, collapsing completely. In that instant, all life loses its connection to the outside world; their consciousness, like kites with broken strings, drifts towards the endless ocean of chaotic energy, ultimately being completely swallowed up.

The merged being's breathing suddenly quickened, her gaze fixed on one of the mirrored images. It was a scene from the Mirror City; her consciousness was trapped within the mirror, unable to escape. Outside the mirror, the Guardian's figure receded into the distance, eventually disappearing from her sight. As time passed, the Guardian seemed to gradually forget her existence; her cries for help sounded so weak, so helpless, in the silent mirror world.

The fused form in the mirror image reached out her hand, her eyes filled with despair and sorrow, slowly overlapping with her real self.

"Don't be fooled." The Guardian channeled the four powers into his palm and gently patted the fused body's shoulder. A four-colored light pattern spread across the fused body, severing her connection with the mirror image. The fused body in the mirror image let out a shrill scream, turning into countless fragments and dissipating into the abyss. "These are all fragments of the Void Lord's remaining consciousness; they are using our memories to attack us."

The merged entity took a deep breath, and the confusion in her eyes gradually gave way to determination. The memory crystal in her hand shone brightly, projecting a path composed of seven-colored light spots into the white mist: "The direction of the primordial power has not changed, but this path has been distorted by the mist. What we see as a straight line may be a loop; what we think is an uphill slope is actually a downhill slope."

The two walked along the rainbow path, the surrounding white mist constantly shifting its shape. They passed through a wasteland composed of star debris, each fragment inscribed with the script of the Observer civilization. These scripts combined to form the Observer's Oath, which the Guardians had never seen before, filled with doubt about the Creator God and a yearning for nothingness.

"This is not our history." The Guardian shattered a piece of debris that was trying to bind his feet. The debris crumbled into a wisp of white mist, from which came the voice of the First Observer, its tone seductive: "Give up. Balance is merely a lie of the Creator God; nothingness is the universe's destiny..."

The merged entity suddenly stopped, pointing to a palace at the edge of the wasteland. The palace's architectural style was exactly the same as the temple of the Goddess of Fate, and the energy crystals on the roof emitted a dark purple light. Standing in front of the palace gate was a familiar figure—it was herself, dressed in a black robe embroidered with the same black patterns as the Lord of Nothingness, holding a black longsword in her hand, the tip of which pointed directly at them.

"It seems you also harbor fear." The Guardian's voice carried a hint of gentleness; he could sense the fusion's consciousness fluctuating violently. The figure of the black-robed fusion overlapped with the real-world fusion, causing her body to flicker continuously. "She is not the real you."

The black-robed fusion let out a cold laugh, its voice identical to the fusion's: "I am her repressed side." She swung her black longsword, unleashing a dark purple sword aura. "She fears she will become the destroyer of balance, fears the void power within her will devour everything. This fear is the foundation of my existence."

The moment the sword energy struck, the fused entity suddenly closed its eyes. The four powers within her began to reverse their flow; golden and dark purple energies actively enveloped the gray and white light, forming a constantly rotating energy sphere. When the sword energy struck the energy sphere, it did not explode but was absorbed and transformed by the energy sphere, turning into a beam of four-colored light that shot back towards the black-robed fused entity.

The figure of the black-robed fusion gradually became transparent in the four-colored beams of light, and the cold smile on her face turned into a relieved smile: "It seems you finally understand." Her figure transformed into a ray of white light and merged into the fusion's body, "Fear is not a weakness, but a stepping stone to growth."

The fused form became more solid, and the light in her eyes shone brighter than before. The seven-colored path projected by the memory crystal in her hand also became clearer, with the seven-colored light spots on the path connecting to form runes identical to the Observer's Badge.

"Thank you." The fused entity looked at the guardian, and the two clasped hands again. Four-colored light flowed between them, forming an indestructible energy barrier. "Next, it's your turn."

As she spoke, the surrounding white mist suddenly churned violently, and a figure in a gray robe emerged from it. His face was exactly the same as the Guardian's, but his eyes were filled with weariness and despair. The gray longsword he held was wrapped with countless black threads, which were the very material of the Weaver's energy net.

"You've finally decided to face me." The gray-robed guardian spoke, his voice filled with endless vicissitudes. "You think you've chosen the right path, but do you know? Every time you save a universe, another collapses in a place you don't even know about." He brandished his gray longsword, the tip pointing to the badge on the guardian's chest. "This badge is not a symbol of honor, but a mark of curse. It records all the universes destroyed because of you."

The Guardian's body suddenly trembled; he felt the four powers within him become disordered. The words of the gray-robed Guardian struck at the deepest unease in his heart like a heavy hammer—in the battles against the black-robed man, the black Guardian, and the Lord of Nothingness, he had indeed sacrificed some secondary universes to protect what was important.

“These sacrifices are necessary.” The Guardian’s voice was somewhat hoarse as he raised the four-colored longsword, its tip trembling slightly. “If no choice is made, all universes will be destroyed.”

"A necessary sacrifice?" The gray-robed guardian let out a mocking laugh, brandishing his gray longsword and projecting countless images into the white mist: the struggles and cries of life in the universes sacrificed by the guardians in their final moments; the despair in the dying eyes of the guardians of those universes; and the figures of the creator gods and lords of nothingness of those universes, fighting to the last moment to protect their own. "What gives you the right to decide which universe should be sacrificed? What makes you think your choice is right?"

The Guardian's consciousness began to waver. He remembered the extinguished stars in his microcosm, the memory crystals that dissipated when the Ruins of Origin collapsed, and the parallel universes covered by energy networks at the edge of the cosmic network. The words of the gray-robed Guardian took root and sprouted in his heart like seeds, making him begin to question his long-held beliefs.