Free Web NovelWithin the pages of the book, the record of that flame of faith, which burned persistently in absolute nothingness, was extracted and transformed into an incredibly resilient seal of laws, merging into the forming shield structure.
Simultaneously, the warm echoes that the Starfire Archives had guarded all along were woven into it, as if injecting endless vitality into a cold framework of laws.
This composite shield was no longer a simple defense.
It was itself a silent statement of fact: faith is born in the heart and grows through resonance; the foundation of its existence is far from something external laws can easily shake.
At the edge of the nebula, the World Government's scanning waves repeatedly struck walls within the mirror refraction labyrinth.
Occasionally, a stray wave would touch the surface of the shield, but like a pebble thrown into a deep pool, it only stirred shallow ripples before being absorbed and neutralized by the resilient seals of the inner layer.
In the center of the silver fleet, the rotating halo gradually slowed down and finally came to a halt. A new communication request, in a cold and formal manner, connected to the Archives's external resonance channel.
Bai Cheng raised an eyebrow slightly, not refusing immediately. "Connect it, and maintain mirror isolation."
On the main screen, a figure appeared wearing a silver-gray uniform, his face half-covered by a mechanical mask. His gaze was as sharp as a blade, and his voice was steady yet carried an unquestionable authority.
"Starfire Archives, this is the Special Envoy of the World Government Seventh Territory Adjudication Court."
"You have constructed a large-scale rule interference field in an unauthorized star sector, violating Infinite Realm Border Management Regulation No..."
"This place is a naturally nurtured Faith Nebula, belonging to the shared dreams of seventy-three newborn civilizations." Bai Cheng interrupted his formulaic announcement, her silver eyes looking directly at him.
"The Starfire Archives is here only to protect the freedom of existence and choice; we have never claimed ownership. Your regulations do not apply to light that grows spontaneously from the soul."
Under the envoy's mechanical mask, the red light of his electronic eye flickered slightly.
"Freedom must be exercised within a framework of order. The Infinite Realm grants the World Government the power and responsibility to govern unknown star sectors and manage high-risk origin phenomena. The energy signature of this nebula has reached the threshold for being defined as an Origin Relic; it must undergo supervision and assessment."
"And after the assessment?" Bai Cheng's voice remained calm.
"If the assessment deems it useful, it is harvested. If it is deemed unstable, it is purified. Your order is nothing more than forcing all uncontrollable existences into a controllable framework—regardless of whether that framework stifles the original form of life."
The envoy was silent for two seconds. "You are provoking the authority of the World Government."
"We are simply proving that some authorities cannot cover all existence."
Bai Cheng raised her hand, and the light of the oath of starlight flowed across the main console. "The heart tree of the Faith Nebula has already entered symbiosis with the civilizations; any forced extraction will destroy its essence. Your old data should have told you this."
"Unless you intend to repeat the experiments that the Old Observers failed to complete."
This sentence caused the envoy's pupils to contract slightly. Clearly, the World Government had indeed come into contact with some information from the Validation Field, and might even know about the deductions regarding the extraction plan.
"The legacy of the Old Observers belongs to the Infinite Realm." The envoy's voice turned a few degrees colder. "Any unauthorized research or utilization will be regarded as..."
"Regarded as a challenge to your sovereignty?" Bai Cheng shook her head.
"The Starfire Archives has no intention of challenging any sovereignty. We are merely guardians, guarding those echoes worthy of existence and the right for the soul to grow freely. If you insist on viewing guardianship as a challenge, then it is a difference in philosophy—an insoluble conflict."
She closed the communication. The mirror isolation was cut, and the envoy's figure vanished from the main screen.
A brief silence fell over the bridge.
Qingniao clicked her tongue. "The talks broke down."
"There was nothing to talk about from the start." Zi Yuan's long blade hummed. "Their goal is control; our goal is protection. Two paths that never intersect from the beginning." fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
Bai Cheng looked toward the Mirror Corridor. In the mirror of the Faith Nebula, the heart tree's light was stable, and the shield runes rotated slowly like stellar rings.
In the mirror of the World Government fleet, the silver arrays were readjusting, and that pressure of poised aggression grew heavier.
"They are gathering more forces," Leng Ningxue reported. "We've detected a second Judgment Legion in hyperspace jump, estimated arrival in six hours."
"Meanwhile, the energy readings of the enemy flagship are rising sharply; they may be preparing to launch a probing attack at the level of laws."
"How much longer until the shield is fully formed?" Bai Cheng asked.
"Four hours and thirty-two minutes," Leng Ningxue replied precisely.
A two-hour time gap.
This would be the critical window for the next round of conflict.
Bai Cheng pondered for a moment.
"Adjust the shield construction priority. Complete the outermost frequency refraction layer ahead of schedule to interfere with the locking of enemy probing attacks. The core resilience verification layer and the Archives resonance layer can be slowed slightly, but they must be in place before the enemy's main force arrives."
"Chiyan, Huang Yu, command the fleet to retreat to the inner edge of the shield to avoid direct confrontation with the enemy before the shield is complete. If the enemy launches a probe, focus on evasion and refraction; do not return fire."
"Zi Yuan, Qingniao, take the dawn to the outer edge of the shield to patrol and monitor small-scale enemy infiltrations. If you find Adjudicators attempting to bypass the shield to sneak into the nebula, intercept and drive them out."
"Lu Duo, Yu Nian, continue to stabilize the connection between the heart tree and the civilizations' dreams. Simultaneously, transmit the shield construction progress to those newborn consciousnesses, so they understand the essence of guardianship rather than just accepting protection."
The orders were delivered clearly, and everyone responded solemnly.
Bai Cheng walked alone to the viewport, looking out at the distant nebula that was gradually being tinged with gold. The heart tree shone quietly within it, like a lighthouse in the darkness, gentle yet firm.
She knew that the World Government's next move would not just be a probe. That approaching Judgment Legion and that flagship with its surging energy readings both portended that a more intense conflict was imminent.
But the Starfire Archives had never feared conflict. What they feared was only the light going out and the echoes falling silent.
The book of commonality warmed slightly in her arms. The pages turned automatically, stopping at a blank new chapter.
Bai Cheng took up the pen formed from the oath of starlight and wrote at the top:
Watching the Starlight
As the pen tip touched down, ripples rose from deep within the pages, as if countless resonances were softly responding from all over the Star Abyss, like stars silently watching in the deep of night.
She looked up, her gaze passing through the viewport toward the even more distant darkness.
The galaxy remains bright; the starlight never dies.
And watching is never a static wait.
It is gathering light in the silence, taking root in deep soil before the storm, and igniting faith in the long night.
In four hours, the shield will be built.
In two hours, the enemy will arrive.
And the Starfire Archives is ready for everything.
The journey is not over; the watch never ends.
