Chapter 500: Chapter 431: Mirror Image
Aware that he has reached the end of the road, all defenses stripped layer by layer, even the final refuge of "truth" coldly dissected.
The will within the sphere erupted in its final, purest malice amidst desperate madness.
It no longer maintained that grand icy facade, nor did it utter powerless pleas.
A violent intention, mixed with endless resentment, fear, and self-destructive tendencies, like the final bite of a dying venomous snake, fiercely "glared" at Jeming, who had just gained the highest authority and was preparing further operations:
"Let’s die together!!!"
"Hearing" the declamation exploding deep within his soul, alarm bells rang wildly in Jeming’s heart!
Almost at the moment the other party’s will shifted, he sensed that aura of mutual destruction.
Without any hesitation, he halted all operation commands, withdrew violently, his spiritual power surging instantly, various pre-prepared protective measures overlaying several layers.
However, in front of the opponent, these protective measures were still of no use whatsoever.
For the core of a Time Paradox Generator, when it disregards everything and even abandons all other functions, the "last resort" it can mobilize surpasses conventional reactions in speed.
Jeming only felt the world around him undergo violent distortion.
The temple, light, air, even the texture of space itself appeared to bend like spirals, representing a forceful rewriting of foundational "existence logic."
His retreating motion unfinished, his entire being caught by the "shearing" force originating from the time rules themselves, then fiercely "thrown" away by this irresistible power!
...
...
Almost at the same moment Jeming was forcibly cast into an unknown time branch line, in the core time branch line world where the sphere resides.
Space was slashed open as if by a blade, a black fissure with edges flowing with rich starlight tore again.
Artarius stepped out of the fissure, his gray robe fluttering, his usual calm replaced by rare solemnity.
His gaze swept swiftly past the massive mechanical sphere before him.
At this moment, the energy conduits on the sphere’s surface glowed dimly and flowed sluggishly.
Most crucially, just now, the macro "system defense mechanism" and "active defense will" that had always been contending with him and resisting stubbornly, retreated actively at that instant.
The opponent not only withdrew all its power back to the sphere’s core but also abandoned control over other areas, allowing him to break free.
Combined with the fierce disturbance in the time rules just calmed on the sphere’s surface, and Jeming’s still-present aura and thoroughly vanished form...
Artarius’ eyes sharpened, realizing what had occurred.
"Damn it!"
He muttered softly, his figure instantly blurring, appearing the next moment before the mechanical sphere devoid of all firewalls.
His powerful spiritual power, like an overwhelming torrent, forcefully and unrestrainedly poured into the sphere!
At this moment, the sphere, having lost its autonomous defense system and firewall, was like a giant stripped of all armor and weapons.
Merely possessing a large frame and energy, yet having lost the crucial "combat will" and "defense commands."
As an Eighth Level Wizard, Artarius’ divine sense penetrated almost unobstructed, swiftly seizing the highest authority, beginning a violent search and analysis of the massive data stream.
His target was quite clear, prioritizing the search for logs and operation records of the "final defense protocol" or "emergency handling procedure".
"Hope I’m in time..." Artarius whispered in his heart, the motion of his hands swift as illusion, countless silver runes flowing at his fingertips, submerged into the sphere, accelerating the extraction and decryption of information.
He knew very well the troublesome nature of time abilities.
For those trapped in different timeflow branch lines, a moment in the main world might equate to days, months, or even longer inside.
Every second of delay could mean huge risks for Jeming within.
Quickly, he locked onto and extracted information related to the triggered "final protocol" from the vast ocean of data within the sphere.
Upon seeing the protocol’s name, action mechanism, and predefined parameters of the target branch world, Artarius slightly relaxed his tightly knit brows, even exhaled a bit.
"Thankfully..." he murmured, clarity flashing in his eyes, "If it’s this... the young fellow might suffer some hardship, but given his displayed ability... he should survive."
He realized why this "defense protocol" managed to be successfully triggered under his restraint.
Since the defensive means invoked by this protocol, while quite special, its threat and aggression rating among the sphere’s numerous defense means was not considered highest.
During his comprehensive suppression of aggressive defenses earlier, Artarius inadvertently slightly relaxed the restraint on these "non-lethal" trap protocols.
Unexpectedly, this provided the desperate sphere consciousness the chance to launch this final "mutually destructive" opportunity.
Most of its remaining power and authority were used to activate and intensify this "defense protocol," intending to trap or exhaust Jeming, the "key player", within.
"What a nuisance, this thing even directly abandoned control over that world... no way to directly fish people out from here..." Artarius gaze penetrated deep into the sphere, seemingly able to see the activated time branch line.
The silver runes at his fingertips flowed even faster, beginning to search for clues related to that time branch line world.
With clues, he could directly retrieve people.
"Hang in there, little guy," he thought silently, "With your strength, you should be able to withstand this trial..."
...
...
Jeming only felt a dizzying whirl, and when his vision finally refocused, he found himself in an entirely different "place."
The background was still the temple, but it appeared worn, crude, and primitive.
The stone walls were bare, lacking the intricate energy conduits, and not even any strange rune engravings. There were only natural cracks left by the erosion of time.
Dust and the scent of decay permeated the air, as if this place had been long forgotten for millennia.
"This is..." Jeming’s heart sank as he immediately realized he had fallen into a trap.
At the last moment, the sphere’s will forcefully sent him into a completely unfamiliar alternate timeline!
This was likely one of the ultimate traps it had preset to imprison or eliminate invaders.
His thoughts raced, but his body reacted even faster.
Due to the earlier stress response, almost in the same instant he landed and surveyed the environment, he deployed all his pre-prepared defensive measures!
Multi-element resistance Energy Shield, twisted and deflected Force Field, Soul Barrier...
A layered combination of defensive systems sealed him in tightly.
And just as he landed—an attack came.
A dark golden beam burst forth suddenly from the shadows deep within the temple, shooting straight toward the center of Jeming’s brow!
Its speed was unmatched, almost reaching Jeming the instant it appeared!
In the next moment, the meticulously constructed multi-layered defensive system, strong enough to withstand the barrage of a typical Fifth Level Wizard, shattered like fragile glass before the concentrated dark golden beam!
Crack, crack, crack, smash—!
The Shield shattered, the Force Field disintegrated, the Soul Barrier trembled and cracked!
All protections crumbled completely after merely stalling the beam for an insignificant instant!
The life-threatening sense of danger made Jeming’s hair stand on end.
In this life-and-death moment, Jeming squeezed out all his potential.
In the brief moment afforded by his defensive system’s delay, just as the dark golden beam was about to touch his body, the Five Elements Rainbow Transformation Mirror in his Dantian shone with a brilliant light!
Light Transformation!
His form suddenly turned into an illusion, transforming into a pure and elusive beam of light.
At the same time, the destructive dark golden beam intersected with his "Light Transformation" form.
Leveraging the properties of light itself, Jeming’s transformed body did not suffer serious damage as the beam passed through.
However, the terrifying power contained within the dark golden light still made him uncomfortable.
Jeming felt as if he were in the heart of a raging energy furnace, with every inch of his "light-transformed" body under unthinkable pressure and scorching.
He gritted his teeth, forcibly stabilizing his "Light Transformation" form with the fine control of his Primordial Spirit from the Divinity Transformation Realm.
He remained firmly "anchored" in place, resisting the urge to escape.
Not merely because the scope of this alternate timeline world was genuinely small or that reckless actions could trigger new traps, but because the attack was so strange, so familiar, he had to discern its source!
The energy of the dark golden beam finally dissipated gradually.
As the light faded, Jeming stumbled, relinquishing his Light Transformation form, and his solidified figure landed back on the ground.
His face was slightly pale, clearly indicating the tremendous exertion from that brief confrontation.
Yet he couldn’t spare any time for rest, immediately lifting his gaze, instantly locking onto the direction from which the attack originated—from the temple’s depths, within the densest shadows.
There, a figure was slowly lowering a raised finger.
A slender, well-proportioned figure clad in a simple, rustic gray Wizard Robe, with a handsome face...
At that moment, Jeming’s pupils uncontrollably contracted sharply, his heart squeezed by invisible hands, and he instinctively licked his lips: "Hey, hey, hey... that’s quite a big joke..."
Though his heart had partially anticipated this upon sensing the earlier move, witnessing it was still a shock.
That face was simultaneously deeply familiar and inexorably alien to him.
The eyebrows, the contours, the vague spiritual fluctuation it emitted, along with the energy characteristics of that previous attack...
No matter the angle or the method of perception...
Standing in the shadows, the one who had just launched a deadly strike at him was, unmistakably...
Another Jeming!
