Xyrin Empire
Chapter 684: A Hypothesis

Chapter 684: Chapter 684: A Hypothesis

After the initial minor chaos and pitfalls caused by lack of experience, a sudden surge in visitors, and oversight, the festival had entered a highly orderly state.

Despite its enormous scale, it managed to avoid any severe accidents—though minor troubles continued unabated, taxing the committee members and city management tirelessly. This wasn’t simply a feat of the Imperial Soldiers’ agency; as the organizer of the celebration, Sivis played a pivotal role, and the hard work of volunteers from various worlds was indisputably vital.

Daily, millions of tourists traveled between their own worlds and the Shadow Space via the Dimension Hub, attending unprecedented celebration events at three gathering sites. The cultures and artifacts of a myriad of worlds were displayed and exchanged on the most open platform in history. Every day, countless new ideas sparked from these interactions, and every reveler bathed in a wonderful sensory experience akin to Alice sleepwalking in Wonderland, fusing into a bizarre yet majestic tapestry. If only there were an ambitious painter to create a realistic masterpiece of this spectacle as vibrant as the Qingming River Painting...

Well, they might have to keep painting from the age of six and a half until death.

In the first few days, Qianqian, I, and a bunch of Joyful Party people thoroughly indulged in the freedom of not having to handle things ourselves, leaving the organizational headaches to Sivis, order maintenance to the City Management Team, and various hands-on operations to the volunteer squads of several main affiliated worlds. Meanwhile, the Imperial High Level, who should have been the main hosts of the event, idled their days away, wandering from one place to another, either posing for pictures with all sorts of intruding guests from otherworldly realms or madly shopping under the enthusiastic guidance of a Master of Time, perpetually swindling and causing trouble (as Boli Lingmeng would say). I must say, in those first four or five days of the festival, what joy it was.

But—damn, it’s a "but" again!

But the joyful days always pass so briefly, and the heavy sense of responsibility ultimately falls upon one’s own shoulders; why can’t we just play till the end of the festival?

"Cough, Ah Jun, look more solemn, with a sense of authority."

Distracted and thus slightly facially paralyzed, I was prodded in the ribs by Big Sister, which jolted me back to reality, and I continued to keep a straight face, pretending to be a Terracotta Warrior transcending time and space.

The air in Tirisfal Forest, as ever, was... well, highly fermented.

I sniffed and thought it might be wise for Sylvanas to prioritize urban greening in the Tirisfal Region. Although The Forgotten didn’t need fresh air, there should be some consideration for other races visiting here; I heard that an envoy from Stormwind City had contracted acute appendicitis from the "fresh air" here—was that guy breathing with his duodenum? If he wanted to return to his country quickly, just say so!

Prompted by Big Sister, Qianqian and I, who had already slipped away who knows how long ago, straightened our expressions and made a dignified and imposing appearance. Though we couldn’t match the almost innate regal aura of Sandora on the other side, we at least looked impressive enough to belong among the Terracotta Warriors in a museum.

The faint sounds I heard were the low rustling of the withered trees in Tirisfal Forest under the cold wind. Under our feet, the specially outfitted Royal Pilgrimage Ship made no sound as it hovered; if I hadn’t known the spaceship was already operational, I might have thought we had already landed.

Standing alongside everyone on the majestic and glorious warship’s observation deck at the bow, receiving the intense gaze of the neatly arrayed infantry below, although it was not my first time experiencing such a scene, I still felt particularly uneasy.

This was one of the few activities officially organized by the Empire during the Carnival, the first highlight naturally being the opening ceremony of the Carnival and the enlistment advertisement that followed, and the second highlight was now, the military parade on the fifth day of the Carnival held in the world of Azeroth.

Well, holding the military parade on the fifth day, an odd timing. When I first learned of Sandora’s decision, I was particularly baffled—it was neither the opening ceremony nor the closing act. A military parade, which should have been a major event, oddly fell on the neither-early-nor-late fifth day. This would not occur in typical human-organized festivals, let alone something as crucial as a grand military parade for promoting extreme war ideologies like the Xyrin Apostles, even if it primarily featured their affiliated races.

Having heard Sandora’s explanation, I learned that the number five holds special significance to the Xyrin Apostles.

In the early stages of civilization’s development, when the Empire was far from standing at the pinnacle of the myriad civilizations of the multi-universe, the Xyrin Apostles also experienced tough development on their mother star, evolving amidst twists and contradictions. War, internal strife, conflict, heresy—these blemishes that plague most "mortal" races also once loomed over the Xyrin Civilization, segmenting its grand historical narrative into clear, distinct generations. The fifth generation was considered the era in which the Xyrin Apostles shattered the frailties of mortal races, elevating their own kind to "perfection."

In this generation, the Xyrin Civilization underwent a phoenix-like rebirth.

Departing from their mother star, conquering the Galaxy, amalgamating tribes, establishing a hierarchy of authority, confirming Imperial sovereignty, branding racial ideologies, stripping away emotional flaws, and promoting an efficiency-dominant cultural ethos...the Xyrin Apostles miraculously navigated every challenge a mortal civilization could face, and with incredible cohesiveness and innumerable racial sacrifices, they transformed and merged into a new form of life. In this generation, the Empire first conquered the Universe, and also in this generation, the Empire first encountered the Abyss.

When the staggering Xyrin Civilization finally stood tall again after a near-apocalyptic counterattack from the Abyss, the name "Xyrin Empire" truly became a symbol to be revered.

From that day forward, "five" became a symbol with special meaning in the hearts of the Xyrin Apostles, marking the end of ancient ages and also the modern inception of what we now call "Xyrin Apostles." A civilization was split in two at this number, one side stumbling through the multiverse as mortals, the other side almost godlike.

Recalling Sandora’s explanations, I couldn’t help feeling reflective:

Even the Xyrin Apostles, who had almost reached the realm of gods, had achieved their ultimate greatness through countless hardships. Apart from the fortunate few like the gods of the Star Domains, perhaps any civilization striving to endure must pay the same price in sacrifices and effort. Yet, even such a powerful Empire, after facing so many challenges, had its day of dissolution. How impermanent are worldly affairs.

Just then, the Royal Pilgrimage Ship suddenly shook slightly, its bow turning towards the direction of the entering military parade, and the scene before us changed accordingly. Accompanying us, Sylvanas, the Dark Queen, interrupted my thoughts with a low voice, pointing towards the distant and warped horizon, "That over there is the Great Rift. As you can see, even after more than a year, it still hasn’t shown the slightest sign of closing. It’s said it might persist for millions of years, and the area has now stabilized, becoming a holy site for Arcane Researchers and Astrologers."

Following her pointing finger, I also beheld the breathtaking sight.

The horizon was twisting and cracking, with rocks and soil from both sides gradually lifting and curling into eerie arcs, resembling countless skeletal, parched claws trying to capture something in the sky. Suspended several kilometers above this bizarre landscape, air unnaturally twisted, a black massive rift encapsulated a spherical region spanning a kilometer in radius. High-density Ghost Energy in the form of dark blue mists emanated from these colossal space rifts, rendering the web-like network of cracks into a sinister appearance. Dazzling blue lightning danced within the thick mist, constantly releasing and neutralising energy.

In a spot somewhat distant from the seemingly extremely dangerous rifts, enormous stones and even floating islands drifted scattered in the air, blocking the sunlight from the rising sun. Dark, massive shadows continually tumbled in the high-altitude airflow, yet maintained a delicate balance ensuring they drifted no more than twenty meters, My enhanced eyesight allowed me to clearly see the many new man-made structures on those largest floating lands—a rather reckless method of construction.

"Yes, that’s very dangerous. The residual effects of your power are still stirring in that space, and I’m afraid they’ll continue for millions of years. Even the smallest flash of energy lightning there is enough to destroy the strongest arcane shield conjured by a great mage. If those space rifts were to split open, they could slice through the entirety of Tirisfal. For the arcane masters and warlocks stationed on those lands, the chance to feel and study ghost energy and the mysteries of space up close is an unimaginably favorable condition. No matter how many people we send to chase them away, they always return to the ’Great Rift’ at the first opportunity. After several repetitions, various leaders have tacitly permitted this risky research behavior, as these are some of Azeroth’s finest scholars, and not even the king dares to be too rude to them,"

"And I suppose you are also sharing in their research findings?"

I slightly tilted my head, a smile forming as I spoke.

Sylvanas admitted quite readily, "Yes, we’re indeed studying the events occurring there. Even the Empire cannot provide us with such a research opportunity: the residual power of a Xyrin Emperor perfectly bound within a vast array of continuous space rifts has become the perfect research specimen. You might not care about it, but our scholars are nearly ecstatic. They’ve never seen such massive energy so firmly bound together, and they are trying to find a shortcut to bind ghost energy with arcane using this research and have already seen some preliminary results."

"Oh..." I stared into the distance at the space rifts that had completely altered the environment of the Tirisfal Region, feeling a surreal sense of it all.

This would have environmentalists on Earth incredibly worried!

The crustal region now designated as an absolute hazard zone always had countless fearless arcane masters entering to conduct their research. It was here where the final battle of Azeroth’s world-saving war erupted. General Savi, a fallen apostle, perished there, becoming original energy in the Other Space during the annihilation of the Singularity Burst. And after the dust settled, the lingering effects of the Singularity Burst did not immediately dissipate, leaving a permanent scar on Azeroth Planet: a one-kilometer radius space storm, a crustal fault tens of kilometers wide reaching down to the magma, and an energy band spanning hundreds of kilometers. The residual shockwaves from the bursting even caused Dark City, just less than twenty kilometers away from that final battlefield, to be renamed Dark Canyon that very day. Sylvanas had to dig a new hole in western Tirisfal far from the old capital—why do The Forgotten have such a great fixation on living underground?

Today, the former battlefield has become the most renowned research holy land in the whole world of Azeroth. Scholars from Dalaran, Senanario, Silver Moon City, and God knows which corners arcane hermits emerged from, were bringing their followers to build their Mage Towers or research outposts on the islands floating in the Great Rift and above the endless abyssal cliffs leaking magma. With a fearless spirit of being looked after in death, they adamantly clashed with the incredible phenomena there. This mad scramble for knowledge wasn’t just impulsive actions, as Sylvanas had said, a Xyrin Emperor personally intervening was rare, and the resultant stable and continuous chain of energy was even more of a spectacle. To the Xyrin Apostles who had already mastered more advanced energy theories, these spectacles might only offer novelty value. But for Azerothians who had just touched on higher-level civilization knowledge and were tentatively exploring ghost energy and high-dimensional space technology, even a slight tremble from this place could provide enough research material for half a year.

Isn’t it said that scientists are the most fearsome? Those daredevil scholars weren’t engaged in fruitless efforts. Driven by a research enthusiasm that even Taville would marvel at, the Great Rift research community produced a new academic paper every 24 hours on average. In just over a year, scholars there discovered arcane phenomena from the Great Rift that doubled what the Azeroth academic community had discovered in several centuries. There’s a popular saying now in Azeroth’s scientific fields: "Long ago, I too conducted research in the Great Rift, until I took an arrow to the knee..."

This phrase is what those poor mages who couldn’t secure a research slot use to jest about themselves.

Well, returning to Azeroth a little over a year later, seeing what’s happened here again, I truly realize how profound and far-reaching the actions of the Imperial Army have been for those ordinary worlds, like the vast space storm and shattered land before us, and like the neatly arrayed warriors from various races standing below us.

Who could have thought that the once mutually hostile warriors of the different Azeroth races would stand together like today, sharing the same sense of glory during the inspection?

The Tirisfal Forest, scarred and hostile, was hardly an ideal venue for a celebration. Yet its significance as the final battlefield of the Salvation War led us to choose this location for the military parade. Warriors from various races, including rare ones like Bearmen and Elemental Beings, were now neatly lined up on the artificially created plains below. Half of these millions of Salvation Army soliders were veterans who had survived the war and recovered, while the others were the cream of the crop among newly recruited trainees. They wore armor with a distinctive Azerothian style but made of super alloy, clearly superior to materials of this era. Standing proudly under the somewhat dim morning sun, the hundreds of formations looked like breathing slabs of steel, radiating an aura second only to that of the Imperial Soldiers.

Among these formations, some newly formed battalions were particularly striking.

Encased in colossal red power armor and wielding vehicle-mounted heavy machine guns, the Tauren Machine Gunners (who could easily enter buff status by staring at their own breastplates for ten seconds), the Space Battle Blood Elf Mages in lightweight enclosed space battle armor (carrying the Thunder Light Battle Axe and a limited edition Heart of the Sunrise), and Human Templars with Spiritual Blades spewing from their hands, their entire bodies shielded by fluctuating Spiritual Shields reminiscent of water ripples (their secondary weapon, the C-10 M type shotgun, firing Ghost Energy Crystal Dust)...

These were the savage special forces units we had created after the fusion of technology, the most fierce fighters among the servant armies of various affiliated worlds.

It was not just in Azeroth. Similar types of soldiers had appeared in several other major worlds, but only the formations before us had seen real combat.

"The time has come."

Sylvanas said softly. As her words fell, the heavy clouds above the Tirisfal Forest were also dispersed by some powerful force at the same time. The morning sun, which had been battling the severely polluted upper atmosphere of this cursed place for nearly half an hour, finally broke through the dense fog, shining on the army formations below and reflecting a cold brilliance off the armor of the silent soldiers. As the Royal Pilgrimage Ship slowly began to move in the sky, stirring military music echoed through the silent heavens of Tirisfal.

"To battle! For glory! For victory!"

Every time the pilgrimage ship passed over a formation, deafening war cries pierced the skies, and even I couldn’t help but feel my blood boiling in this atmosphere...

Inspecting the Salvation Army in the Azeroth world was merely high-level interaction between the Empire and Azeroth officials, but the scene was still limitedly broadcasted to the general populace. Therefore, as the massive Royal Pilgrimage Ship slowly moved across the sky, reviewing the iron formations below, this exciting scene also simultaneously appeared in the airborne projections at three assembly sites. Millions from the Macro World, with eyes full of awe or shock, watched this unprecedented spectacle, perhaps gaining a whole new understanding of the Empire’s affiliated worlds... In fact, I think the main reason for broadcasting this military parade was to salvage the honor of Azeroth’s heroes lost in that damn "Snow White Battle Chronicle". Losing face like that, you have to regain it somehow, right?

Cough cough, after the parade—Don’t look at me like that, do you expect me, a guy who’s known for idling away, to be deeply impressed by a military parade? Though emotive indeed, the parade was arguably a highlight for Sandora, yet for me, it was merely a side matter. Today, we came here primarily to discuss an issue with Sylvanas.

"Affiliated World Military Coordination Department?"

In the resting lounge of the Royal Pilgrimage Ship, I mentioned this term to the leaders of the various Azerothian races.

"Yes, the Affiliated World Military Coordination Department. Well, I just made up that name. Let’s call it that for now. Specifically, it’s a military department set up for the current Empire’s affiliated worlds. The Empire holds the management rights, but it requires the participation of military commanders from each world..." (To be continued. If you like this work, we welcome you to vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)