Age of Cosmic Exploration

Chapter 402: Time (2)

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Homo Evolutis, or cosmic adapters, were equipped with an instinct that was commonly known as the sixth sense. All Homo Evolutis were particularly attuned to imminent danger, but the strongest among the Homo Evolutis type was definitely the Diviner, and the strongest Diviner was Zhang Heng. His prediction had a 100 percent accuracy rate; it was something not even science could explain.

Most normal Homo Evolutis, or in other words, the Homo Evolutis without super powers, also had superhuman sixth senses. This sixth sense improved according to level, which meant that when they reached the S-grade and gained a Homo Evolutis skill, then this sixth sense would be greatly improved. Other than sensing danger, it could be used to sense many more things. For example, an S-grade Homo Evolutis had a greater chance of winning the lottery compared to normal human beings. The most powerful Homo Evolutis with this sense were naturally the Diviners, and the most unique Homo Evolutis who could make use of this sixth sense was none other than little Eva, where the power of the sixth sense had directly evolved to the ability to see into the future…

Among Homo Evolutis, the Immortal, or the All-Rounder, was the most unique and rare. It was the SS-grade cosmic adapters that only appeared in myths. Even though the Immortal had access to all S-grade cosmic adapters' powers, they were incomparable to the original wielders themselves. Therefore, in terms of sixth sense, he was weaker than a normal Diviner.

However, at the end of the day, an Immortal was after all an Immortal. He was something as mysterious as god-tier space civilizations. He was expected to be useful at specified occasions and times, times… like now!

They were inside the ruin of a god-tier space civilization's creation; therefore, Yao Yuan had 100 percent faith in his own instinct. The reason was none other than he was an All-Rounder… What about the Deceiver, who was as shrouded in mystery as the All-Rounder? Jay was a unique existence among the Homo Evolutis, and perhaps he too felt some sort of connection to the god-tier space civilization just like Yao Yuan did.

Therefore, when three of them pointed down the same direction, Yao Yuan didn't hesitate and took the shuttle down that way. Along the way, he asked ZERO, "By the way, I forgot to ask you earlier, is this illusory space big?"

ZERO rolled her eyes at Yao Yuan and said, "Even though this space was created, it is an actual cosmos. Then you tell me, is it big or not?"

The shuttle suddenly stopped moving and everyone within slipped out. Yao Yuan ignored them and asked ZERO in a chilling voice, "Meaning, we might need to search a space that is as big as a cosmos? Do you think I'm stupid or are you toying with me?"

ZERO shrunk back like she was afraid of Yao Yuan. She blurted out the answer in a shaking voice, "An illusory space is truly the size of a real cosmos… But we're close to the central control, which housed the central mainframe that controls this whole space, so searching this place shouldn't take too much time… I'm not lying to you, don't be angry for no reason…"

After Yao Yuan heard that, he continued in a gentler tone, "I'm sorry, I was being too brash. You have to forgive me because this is related to the survival of the entire human race, I couldn't be too careful… By the way, this central control you mentioned, it has to be the place that is most guarded, right?"

ZERO replied instantly, "That I cannot say for sure, because every god-tier space civilizations' styles and technological trees are different from each other. For some god-tier space civilization, their illusory space is a maze, while for others, it is a living creation. Every illusory space is different. For those with an owner, non-god-tier space civilizations wouldn't be able to enter. In fact they wouldn't be able to realize its existence. However, for an illusory space without a master which was not set to hide itself… anyone could enter it should they wish to bear the risk. If they manage to take control of the central control, one basically has the control over the entire illusory space."

Yao Yuan nodded to acknowledge that he had understood it. This time it was ZERO who was shocked. She asked, "Do you not hear me? After you take over the central control, you basically have control over the whole illusory space. Can you fathom what that is like?"

"What that's like?" Yao Yuan thought about it and answered, "This place is just another set of numbers, is it not? Admittedly, it is more high tech than our current virtual reality device, but at most, it is just a space to conduct experiments, right?"

ZERO gasped. "Of course not, this is a universe in itself! A universe… Bah, you wouldn't understand it if I explained it to you. In any case, you have to understand that an illusory space is something only a god-tier space civilization can create. This is practically proof that you have evolved from a level 9 space civilization and have become a god-tier space civilization. If I explain it in terms that you can understand, an illusory space is the hallmark, the proof of identity for a god-tier space civilization. It is something that will only be abandoned when the civilization itself is dead. If you manage to capture this universe of illusory physicality… then you would have solved the issue that has been bugging you, humanity wouldn't expire anymore."

For humanity to be immune from the threat of extinction was indeed Yao Yuan's second biggest dream, his biggest dream being finding a blue life-preserving planet. That wish was a bit unrealistic, so the target he was actively working towards was to preserve the line of humanity in space. Of course, he didn't take ZERO's words to heart. It was good that the illusory space could act as a guarantee for humanity's survival in space, but this was all hearsay. Until he could confirm all those details personally, he wouldn't bet all his money on it. After all, the first objective of this operation was to save the rest of humanity, who had been trapped within hypnosis. All the salvageable benefits would come later.

Even though Yao Yuan ignored her, ZERO continued talking to herself. "But this is weird. Since the giant tree spaceship is the entrance to this illusory space, it means that this high tier space civilization has mastered the technology already. In that case, why would they still leave behind a relic type ruin? Theoretically, there isn't anything in space other than a god-tier space civilization and high-ranking demons that can pose a threat to this civilization, and if they were truly destroyed by either one of those two things, then they wouldn't have the time to escape, much less the luxury to create a relic type ruin… this is weird."

ZERO's suspicion didn't resonate with the other three passengers on the transport shuttle, the main reason being the discrepancy in the level of knowledge. Then again, the trio wouldn't have time to entertain such thoughts anyway. The transport shuttle was carrying them fast towards their destination. This was a level 2 space civilization's creation. Its speed was faster than Earth's fighter jets, it had even surpassed the speed of an atomic bomb. In just a few minutes, the shuttle had brought them several hundred meters away from the Hope.

The area that they were in was incredibly huge. The several hundred meters of distance was like a drop of water in a great lake. The horizon remained a piece of darkness and their surroundings were still filled with different types of spaceships. This created the illusion that they were still staying at the same spot.

However, the three knew that was not true, because their hearts kept increasing in speed. For some reason, as they headed down that direction, the attraction that they felt before was getting more pronounced. It was as if something important to them was calling after them. It was not the call of a friend or family, but more like… a call of something bigger than life. It was hard to describe in words, but if I have to try, it was like… the attraction of a bigger and greater purpose.

Of course, this is merely an analogy that barely describes how the three of them were feeling. Yao Yuan, who was piloteing the shuttle, increased its speed and he felt his heart racing as the speed increased. When the shuttle reached its maximum speed, the three of them frowned in unison.

"Hey, I say, Yao Yuan, did you slow this thing down? How come I feel like we were travelling much faster earlier?" Jay, who was a personal friend to Yao Yuan, bypassed the military ranking between them and commented directly.

Yao Yuan was feeling the same way. He looked at the velocimeter and the shuttle was indeed moving at its maximum speed. If anything, they should've felt like they were travelling much faster than before. He was as confused as Jay because he too… felt they had slowed down.

"Could it be that the shuttle has broken down? That's impossible, this is military grade, it wouldn't have broken down so easily… Or the readings are off because we're so close to the central control?"

Yao Yuan mumbled to himself as he looked at the displayed readings. He tried to operate the shuttle, but no matter what he did, the reading remained the same. He immediately turned to ask ZERO, "ZERO, will a god-tier space civilization's technology do something as menial as messing with a shuttle's readings? If it doesn't want us to get any closer to the central mainframe, then it could have killed us directly, why would it lower our speed instead?"

Before ZERO could answer, Yao Yuan tried to lower the shuttle's speed. When the shuttle reached a certain threshold, the three of them felt confused because now they felt like the shuttle was travelling faster than it was supposed to be. This was a curious sensation, one that made them feel nauseous.

"I say… You all felt that, right? What kind of feeling is this…" Jay whispered, "It feels like the space has grown, which makes us feel like we have slowed down…"

"No, it is time that has been changed."

ZERO suddenly said, "I understand it now. This illusory space is still holding a high-ranking demon captive. This is the spoil of war that belongs to the original owner of this space, or the god-tier space civilization that created this space. I understand it now, I finally understand everything now… why the high tier space civilization who had this illusory space in their arsenal would be wiped out and still have time to create this relic type ruin. The reality is that they didn't master this illusory physicality technology, they merely obtained it but didn't mastered it! This is wonderful, Yao Yuan, you now really have the chance to obtain this ruin!"

Yao Yuan looked towards ZERO and demanded, "What do you mean by that?"

ZERO didn't hesitate and explained excitedly, "This is an illusory space of a god-tier space civilization, and it is holding a high-ranking demon. You can control it to…"

"Wait, wait…" Yao Yuan stopped the shuttle directly because he felt a headache coming. He stopped ZERO and said, "Slow down, start from the beginning. I really don't understand what you're talking about."

ZERO pouted, but since she was rather afraid of Yao Yuan, she followed his orders eventually. "Fine, then I'll start from the beginning despite how troublesome that will be… Stop glaring at me, didn't I say I would explain it… An illusory physicality space is like what I mentioned earlier, something a level 9 space civilization needs to master before it can become a god-tier space civilization. This is essentially the collection of all the technology the space civilization has mastered. Now why would the illusory space for each god-tier space civilization be different? That is the reason why. For example, a space civilization that reaches god-tier using genetics will have an illusory space that is a criss-crossing of flesh membrane or a giant beast. In other words, the illusory space is a sign of godhood.

"Now, the reason why god-tier space civilizations can bypass the limitation of the law of preservation of soul is also related to this illusory space, but even if I explain the inner workings of that to you now, you wouldn't be able to understand it. In conclusion, after completely mastering the technology of illusory physicality, one has surpassed the law of preservation of soul. As a god-tier space civilization progresses, so does its illusory space. This is not only the most powerful product of a god-tier space civilization, it is also the source of soul, the cradle of life and civilization. It also acts as the most powerful weapon and the last Shelter of a god-tier space civilization…

"I have mentioned all this earlier. Of course, god-tier space civilizations have their enemies as well, and they are the high-ranking demons. Normal space civilizations wouldn't have heard of this because their war is way beyond the physical realm of the cosmos. Of course, there will be losses on both sides. However, due to the nature of the demons, after their losses, they would normally be captured and sealed within the center of an illusory space to be used as an external source of energy and to modify the demon itself…"

The trio paid extra attention to ZERO's explanation. These were secrets of a god-tier space civilization. Human beings were merely a level 2 space civilization, but they already had access to such top secret information. However, Yao Yuan couldn't be certain if this was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Most modifications on demons end up in failure, but there are those rare cases that they are successful. They will either be kept as the defense system of the illusory space or cultivated as a new form as life. Regardless, if the modification is successful, then the god-tier space civilization will have acquired a great benefit. Of course, the demon who is in the middle of modification will be sealed inside the illusory space. Depending on the strength of the demon or demons, the exhaustion on the illusory space will be different. During this period, the power of the illusory space will be greatly weakened, and if the illusory space loses its owner, then even a non-god-tier space civilization would be able to obtain it. Of course, mastering it is a completely different thing altogether. They would have obtained an empty shell essentially…

"However, if a race can truly dominate this trapped, high-ranking demon, then it will have gained complete control over this illusory space. Even though the power of the illusory space is greatly decreased due to the presence of a high-ranking demon, it is still an illusory space, one that can be obtained and mastered!

"In the future, when humankind is powerful enough to seal this high-ranking demon away, then humanity will really become a god-tier space civilization… and at least until then, humanity will be a space civilization that possess the survival method of a god-tier space civilization. Even the Song of Destruction of a level 9 space civilization wouldn't be able to do any harm to humanity then!"

Now the trio finally understood everything. This was truly an impressive find! This creation of a god-tier space civilization was not something as pedestrian as cell phones or toilets, it was a sign of power, the root of their civilization. If Yao Yuan could possess it, then it would be as ZERO said… However, how to obtain it was a problem, and how to deal with the high-ranking demon was another problem…

The demon race itself was scary enough. A level 9 space civilization was willing to unleash the Song of Destruction and destroy an entire solar system once signs of demonization were found. What about a high-ranking demon then… Just think about it, this was a force powerful enough to rival and even destroy god-tier space civilizations. Even though it was now sealed within an illusory space, humanity was definitely no match for it.

Even though Yao Yuan was interested in obtaining this illusory space, he was more worried about humanity's survival. Therefore, he asked patiently, "Since even a god-tier space civilization only manages to seal this demon inside an illusory space, I don't think we humans are powerful enough to deal with it, even if just temporarily… That is too unrealistic. It is as you always say, humanity is just a unicellular organism, so how can we deal with something as powerful as a high-ranking demon?"

To his surprise, ZERO started to laugh and she continued happily, "While that might be true, you are miscounting one very important detail: you. You are an Immortal. In your eyes, there is no falsehood, no demons, and no god-tier, there is only the stark truth. Others might be consumed or demonized when they go near a high-ranking demon, but you're different. Before you, even a high-ranking demon is no different from a normal existence!"

This was rather confusing. The trio seemed to half-understand it. Yao Yuan thought about it and he suddenly pointed at the ball of light on ZERO's shoulder. "By the way, you mentioned earlier that my constant exposure to this AI would stunt its growth and you seem to be afraid of me… Is it because I'm an Immortal?"

ZERO stammered and after a while finally answered, "You're right… Alright, let's not talk about that anymore. What do you think? You want to take control over an illusory space? This is something that is unfathomable by even a high tier space civilization." ZERO suddenly sounded smug when she said this, as if she was trying to remind Yao Yuan of her contribution.

Yao Yuan replied, "This kind of thing can't be forced. If it happens, of course it'll be great… And it would be great for you too. Your contribution won't be dismissed if this does come into fruition."

Yao Yuan was being sincere here. Even though he was still cautious around ZERO, if ZERO really did prove that she had no ill-intention towards humanity, of course she would be duly rewarded should humanity achieve greatness in the future.

Then Yao Yuan continued to ask, "Okay, to summarize, the illusory physicality technology, high-ranking demon, and the current situation inside this space, I believe I have understood all of them now. Now I wish to know, why did you conclude that there is a high-ranking demon trapped here after noticing the change of the shuttle's speed? Do you know something that we don't?"

ZERO answered without hesitation this time, "Yes, because nothing is wrong with this shuttle or its velocimeter, I am perfectly sure about this. The reading of its speed is the shuttle's real speed. However, we did feel that the speed was slowed down, so there is only one explanation… the speed of light inside this illusory space has slowed."

Speed of light has slowed? The trio was confused. They knew about the speed of light and about the deceleration of speed, but combining the two was an entirely new concept.

ZERO noticed their confusion and she gasped with surprise. "Wait, don't tell me you people think the speed of light is constant? You're a civilization going into level 3, and you don't even know such basic knowledge? Fine… stop glaring at me, I'll explain it to you, okay? The speed of light is not a constant, it can be changed depending on the circumstance. Following the change to the speed of light, the unit speed will be affected as well. So what we felt earlier was not the speed slowing down but time has slowed down."

By then, Yao Yuan had gotten a basic grasp of things. In reality, he had been reading up on various scientific books. Even though his knowledge couldn't rival that of a real scientist, from a different perspective, he was more of a learned academician compared to most of the scientists back on Earth. His knowledge in science had increased tremendously, but he simply didn't notice it until now.

"So as the speed reaches the speed of light, the time around it will gradually slow. Therefore, the person in it might feel like a day has passed when in reality, on the outside, probably a year has passed already… You mean to say, the speed of light in here was already slowed when it was created? But just how slow it will have to be for lifeforms like us to personally experience the different flows of time?" Yao Yuan said with shock.

ZERO commented with a frown, "That might not be true. Generally speaking, most illusory spaces have similar rule sets to normal physical spaces. After all, a god-tier space civilization doesn't appear out of thin air, they also began their life as a level 1 space civilization in the physical universe. So they are used to the rules in the physical universe. Of course, acting as the owner of an illusory space, they can introduce any changes to the monitoring law, but… this is an ownerless illusory space. There shouldn't be a change in the speed of light… which is why I believe a high-ranking demon is sealed here.

"A powerful demon race with expert control over space, time, and gravity!"