Book 10: Chapter 40: The Other Side of the Wormhole

Qin Lun’s heart sank. “Large non-living matter cannot pass through?”

He had expected some restrictions on the wormhole—at the very least, a warship the size of Faith wouldn’t make it. Otherwise, the four major life forms would have sent large warships to fight on the other side, leaving Apostles like them with nothing to do. The Star Void wouldn’t have sent so many Apostles into this world.

But he never imagined Advancing couldn’t pass either. Though Advancing was coated with Jannamer biological tissue on its surface, its interior was still made of metal composites. It definitely couldn’t “trick” the wormhole.

“Everyone still on the bridge, eject all the Bingren Mecha!” Qin Lun gritted his teeth against the violent shaking and shouted into the communicator.

“Sir, our current position is right at the edge of the wormhole exit. Exposing Bingren Mecha to the spacetime storm is too dangerous!” Dean couldn’t help crying out. “Even if the Bingren escape safely, what about the people still on the warship? Ordnance Officer Sherlock and the others…”

“Don’t worry about us!” Several Gith officers still on the bridge called out through the communicator. “Sirs, please prepare. We will initiate group ejection in 10 seconds!”

“Wait! Leave it to me! I can connect with the Jannamer biological tissue on the warship’s surface and turn Advancing into particles!” Bobby suddenly shouted over the communication channel.

“No, Bobby, Advancing is too big. You can’t do it!” Robin shouted anxiously.

“Sir, the ejection hatch won’t open! The external storm pressure is too strong!” The voice from the bridge halted all arguments. The entire communication channel fell silent.

“Bobby, it’s up to you now!” A few seconds later, Qin Lun’s calm voice came through the channel.

“I can do it. I know I can!” Beads of sweat dripped from Bobby’s forehead. The boy bit his fingernails and nodded nervously. “This isn’t a game. They aren’t just historical figures. I knew it all along. I knew it…”

Bobby’s Bingren quickly turned into a cloud of smoke-like particles from the inside out. Like an angry dragon, it roared out of the mecha bay and spread through the entire warship.

Outside, Advancing’s hull began to break apart silently. Under the wormhole’s rainbow-like glow, fragments rose from the warship like fireflies, then flickered and vanished.

Bobby’s biological particle state finally reached the layer of Jannamer biological tissue on the ship’s surface. The hard hull instantly turned into a cloud of smoke. Driven by his will, Bobby displayed a talent even the Wind Element race would find hard to imagine. He truly made Advancing a part of himself.

The smoke on the warship’s surface formed Bobby’s happy face, but soon it twisted in pain.

“No…” Bobby screamed in agony. The smoke-like biological particles scattered bit by bit in the spacetime storm at the wormhole’s edge. The hull slowly repaired itself, only to disintegrate again under the colorful light.

“Ouch… Mom, it hurts…” The smoky face wept in pain but stubbornly spread back over the restored parts of the warship.

“Hold on, Bobby!” Those enveloped by the biological particles sensed Bobby’s plight. But at this point, even Qin Lun couldn’t help. Everyone could only watch Bobby’s condition nervously.

“No good. He can’t hold on until the exit!” Qin Lun instinctively felt Bobby had reached his limit.

Bobby was outstanding even by Apostle standards, but no one could expect a physically immature boy to endure the torture of “lingchi” for long.

“I have to try. Since I could simulate the Pentagram Crystal Mirror while unconscious, I believe that spell should work too!”

Qin Lun sighed. The surface of his body writhed, and countless dark green thorny vines burst out all over him, even piercing through the Bingren Mecha. They waved like tentacles in the mecha bay.

“Qin Lun! Sir…” The sight of the Seventeenth Fallen Angel’s action drew gasps from the mecha bay.

But Qin Lun had already lost consciousness and didn’t respond. The dark green vines flailed in the cabin for a moment, then seemed to realize the danger. Thump, thump, thump—as if they had a life of their own, they drilled into the cabin walls and spread throughout the warship. The interior soon turned into a miniature forest.

Wood-element ninth-tier magic—Tree World Descent!

Qin Lun was right; his combat instincts were stronger after falling unconscious. It was as if a barrier he had set in his subconscious while awake vanished after he lost consciousness.

Using the power of the Holy Thorn, the Seventeenth Fallen Angel created an effect similar to Tree World Descent. Not only did it support Advancing’s main structure, but it also stabilized the smoke-like biological particles, greatly easing Bobby’s pain.

“Thank you!” Bobby’s voice was extremely weak, tired but with a hint of relief.

Of course, Qin Lun couldn’t hear him now. Inside the Seventeenth Fallen Angel, two points of crimson light glowed. The youth’s skinless face suddenly showed a strange and evil smile, like a demon climbing from hell to the human world.

…

“Ah!” Qin Lun bolted upright, his eyes unfocused. He waved his hands wildly, as if trying to dispel the illusions before him.

“Sir, you’re awake!” A surprised voice sounded beside him.

“Ve… Vera!” Qin Lun’s gaze slowly focused on the girl’s face as he gasped for breath.

“It’s me, sir. What happened?” Vera held Qin Lun’s shoulders, worriedly watching the pale, sweaty young man.

“Nothing, just a nightmare,” Qin Lun replied absentmindedly. “Where are we? Where are the others?”

“Everyone is fine. The officers took Alex and the others to scout the surroundings. Sherlock and the other Ordnance Officers are repairing the warship.” Vera helped Qin Lun stand and supported him as he climbed out of the medical bay.

“This is…”

Qin Lun looked around. They were no longer inside the warship. This place was an open area. The ground was hard, gray-brown rock, and it looked like a wide, flat cliff.

Qin Lun took a deep breath. The air here was fresh and suitable for humans. He turned around. Behind the cliff was a dense forest, where a huge, teardrop-shaped warship lay amid thick smoke. The area was a mess, with broken trees and scattered sparks.

“Advancing!” Qin Lun sighed in relief at the sight of the battered ship. The hull was full of holes the size of buckets, and withered thorny vines wrapped around the entire vessel, making it look desolate.

“Can it still start?” Qin Lun’s eyes flashed. “Why hasn’t everyone left the ship? It should be dangerous there.”

“Sherlock and the others won’t leave. Bobby is still on the warship.” Vera sighed and glanced worriedly at the ship.

“Officer Robin said Bobby can’t return to normal. His body collapsed, and his consciousness merged with the warship. Only when the officers leave this world can he recover. Until then, the Ordnance Officers must ensure the ship doesn’t explode again and protect the power furnace.”

…

“Qin Lun, you’re awake!” A mecha landed from the sky, its airflow forcing Qin Lun and Vera to step back.

“Robin! Is this the other side of the wormhole?” Qin Lun waved away the dust stirred by the landing mecha and approached as Robin jumped from the cockpit.

“You seem to be recovering well. Much luckier than that kid Bobby!” Robin smiled, looking Qin Lun over, then replied in the Team Channel. “Yes, this is the other side of the wormhole. You were right, Qin Lun. The Star Void sent us into the Gospel World mainly to explore this place!”

“How can you be sure…” Qin Lun’s eyes lit up with understanding. “The Main Quest has a follow-up!”

“Mm, check your Soul Sigil.” Robin grinned and tilted her chin toward the woods behind the young man. “The Seventeenth Fallen Angel is over there. I just uploaded a projection recording. After you check the quest, get in the mecha and take a look. There are many interesting things.”

Qin Lun focused his consciousness into the Death Notice, glanced briefly, and withdrew. Following Robin’s direction, he quickly found the Seventeenth Fallen Angel.

Unlike the last fight with Wolf, his exclusive Bingren wasn’t badly damaged this time. Bobby’s desperate efforts had paid off. In fact, aside from Advancing being wrecked, all Bingren Mecha and crew members survived. That was why Sherlock and the others risked their lives to repair the ship instead of leaving.

“A complete small realm!” Qin Lun raised his eyebrows in surprise as he watched the projection records from Robin and the others.

The other side of the wormhole wasn’t a planet but a small realm capable of supporting most life forms, with a complete ecological cycle.

Qin Lun had seen many small realms in Shattered Starry Sky—like the realm trading markets of several Apostle Alliances and the bases of large teams. However, most of those realms weren’t as large as this one, and their conditions were unstable, requiring regular maintenance with Shattered Crystals from the Star Void.

The recordings Robin uploaded to the mecha also included projections from when Advancing broke into the realm. Seeing the grid-like filter membrane at the wormhole exit, Qin Lun now understood what Dr. Norton had tried to warn them about.

The gaps in this grid filter were tiny, likely part of an ancient detection system. Bingren Mecha could pass through, but Advancing in its original state, before turning into biological particles, definitely couldn’t.

“This can’t be natural. It must have been created through long-term modification by the ancient civilization of the Gith Angels!” Connecting this with the Main Quest follow-up he had seen earlier, Qin Lun quickly understood.