Sovereign of the Ashes

Thanks to Sein’s timely warning and the fact that they were still outside the passageway, the group narrowly avoided disaster.

A barrage of energy beams activated within the passageway.

Each carried enough power to threaten even a Rank Five or Six creature, yet when they reached HALL-E, they simply rebounded off its body.

It was as though they were deliberately avoiding it.

At that moment, HALL-E lay prone on the ground.

The crisis had erupted far too suddenly. To protect PAL, HALL-E had thrown itself forward without hesitation, shielding the smaller being beneath its own body.

HALL-E’s robotic frame was vastly larger than PAL’s.

The abrupt turn of events had clearly startled PAL as well.

It was frozen in place at first, momentarily at a loss.

Once HALL-E dove in to shield it, however, PAL snapped back to its senses and scrambled in a few quick leaps into one of the gaps in HALL-E’s frame.

Because the energy beams deliberately avoided HALL-E, no one was harmed. The overwhelming barrage only scared PAL out of its wits.

The bond between HALL-E and PAL had been forged over countless years.

They had long since been willing to sacrifice themselves for one another.

So when danger struck without warning, HALL-E acted instinctively, without the slightest hesitation.

Amidst the still-raging storm of energy beams, HALL-E glanced back toward the passageway. Instead of retreating, it continued forward.

It was clearly familiar with this place.

Fragments of memory surfaced as it recalled the passageway and vaguely remembered that beyond it lay the area where its owner had once worked.

As HALL-E advanced step by step, the surrounding energy beams continued to ignore it.

Their deafening impacts against the walls failed to disturb it in the slightest.

Speaking of which, this towering skyscraper and the white passageway were truly extraordinary. Even the dense energy beams capable of threatening Rank Five and Rank Six creatures failed to pierce or damage the surrounding structures in the slightest.

Who knew what kind of materials the Eiyurant Papillon Civilization had used to construct this place back then?

PAL no longer dared to venture out recklessly. Its two antennae still trembled faintly as it hid in a crevice on HALL-E’s body, cautiously observing its surroundings.

This time, the energy beams outside could not harm it at all.

It was genuinely baffling why the once-tranquil white passageway had suddenly reacted so hostilely to it.

After finally reaching the end of the passage, HALL-E noticed a faintly glowing electronic panel to its left.

After a brief moment of hesitation, its mechanical arm reached toward the panel.

Without entering any special code, the surrounding energy beams abruptly ceased.

At the same time, the silver-white metal valve door before it slowly opened.

As it did, a holographic avatar under two meters tall materialized in front of HALL-E.

Staring blankly at the avatar for several seconds, HALL-E asked softly, “Master?”

The avatar regarded HALL-E with a thoughtful gaze, then turned its attention to Sein and the others still standing outside the passageway. Shaking its head, it replied, “I am not your master.”

“We are of the same kind. It seems you have forgotten me,” the avatar sighed.

At that moment, sensing that the energy beams had completely ceased, Sein cautiously began moving toward the white passageway once more.

When he noticed HALL-E conversing with a holographic avatar, Sein and the others froze in place.

The avatar bore an unmistakable resemblance to the Eiyurant Papillon Folk.

However, unlike the specimens Sein and his group had excavated—most of which stood around 1.6 meters tall—this avatar was nearly 1.8 meters in height, approaching 1.9 meters.

It also appeared noticeably more slender than the average Eiyurant Papillon Folk.

“Is this an elemental lifeform left behind by the ancient civilization, or some kind of energy puppet?” Sein could not help but stare at the figure in astonishment.

The avatar naturally noticed Sein and the others approaching. In response to Sein’s question, it spoke calmly.

“I am an artificial intelligence left behind by Charles Isaac, a top scientist of the Eiyurant Papillon Civilization, before he departed the Astral Realm 39.61 million years ago. You may call me Number Two.”

It pointed to HALL-E and continued, “This is Exploration Machine Number Five, an assistant robot in Dr. Isaac’s laboratory. But it seems it has since adopted a new name—HALL-E?”

“As for this little thing...” The avatar then pointed toward the HALL-E’s shoulder, where PAL was hiding.

Its eyes crinkled with vivid expression as it remarked, “It carries at least half of the Black Merlot Civilization’s genes. Who would have thought that Eiyurant Papillon Civilization technology would one day coexist with creatures of the Black Merlot Civilization’s bloodline?”

“And you were even willing to put yourself in danger for it,” the avatar said to HALL-E, its tone slightly reproachful.

HALL-E lowered its head.

The avatar before it was not a living being of the Eiyurant Papillon Civilization, nor was it HALL-E’s former master.

Yet its appearance was undoubtedly similar to the Dr. Charles Isaac it had mentioned—perhaps even a splitting image of him from back then. That was why HALL-E had mistaken it for its “master”.

Faced with the avatar’s reproach, HALL-E showed not a trace of defiance or resistance.

Indeed, tens of millions of years ago, the war between the Eiyurant Papillon Civilization and the Black Merlot Civilization had raged with ferocity. The number of lives lost on both sides during that conflict was beyond reckoning.

Now, tens of millions of years later, all of it had long since turned to dust.

HALL-E and PAL stood as two of the very few remaining survivors and relics of their respective top-tier civilizations within the Astral Realm.

Who could have imagined that, through millions of years of daily companionship, they would come to forge a genuine friendship?

If the ancient combatants were to learn of this, they might well claw their way back from the grave in fury.

Such was the unpredictability of the Astral Realm’s evolution, as well as the absurdity and futility of history.

Dwelling on the past held little meaning. One should always look forward.

HALL-E and PAL felt little attachment to the ancient civilizations of millions of years ago.

What they cared about was each other.

In HALL-E’s heart, PAL held even greater importance than Burning Flame, which only stirred a faint ripple of emotion within it.

As for leaving PAL alone in the Steel Ruins for years while searching for Burning Flame and the source of the cube’s fluctuations... Ahem, that had been an unforeseen situation.

“You know our origins?” Sein asked, addressing the avatar from across the passageway.

“I have been observing you since you entered this dimensional space. I even know that your army is currently locked in battle with another hostile civilization, both within and beyond this dimensional space established by our Eiyurant Papillon Civilization,” the avatar replied.

“Hm. Truly remarkable. Is this world of yours, the one you call the Magus Civilization, another top-tier cultivation civilization, like the Black Merlot Civilization of old?” it asked.

“Although, unlike traditional cultivation civilizations, it seems you have also dabbled in technology and other systems,” the avatar remarked as it studied Sein.

Its gaze lingered, unmistakably, on the Magic Cube inside Sein’s robe.