Endless Evolution: Last Star

Chapter 706 The Light is Bright

Eclipses always occurred on certain days, always once a week, but in the last year more and more Eclipses appeared much less frequently, like once a fortnight, but the military and Operators still had no trouble pinpointing the exact day when it would happen.

Yet, now Katrin, Adam, and the dozens of other Phantoms who went on the night mission, knowing that nothing unusual would happen that day, were looking at the moon, almost completely covered by a black disc.

All that remained of the moon was a bright blue ring, but it wasnʼt enough to emit even one-hundredth of the original light.

Even ordinary people, from the First Ring to slums, from children and adults knew that eclipses were not just terrifyingly beautiful but deadly.

Sure, those outside the walls of the Citadel had nothing to worry about, they were safe, not because of the strength of the walls, but because of the Phantoms who assembled every eclipse and protected the Citadel from the monsters.

However, the Citadel was not the only place that was attacked by monsters during the Eclipse.

The Bastions were under attack, one of which Adam had successfully defended a few months ago.

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And, the same applied to objects that had some value.

What the Citadel and the Bastions were valuable for was clear, apart from humans and Phantoms full of energy there were a lot of rare resources collected from all over the Dead Lands. Defeating one Bastion would lead to the evolution of thousands of monsters.

But, that never happened...

Certain monstersʼ nests, especially the Strongholds, were also valuable objects. Unlike attacking the Citadel or the Bastions, the waves of monsters had a real chance of winning and absorbing all the resources inside.

However, this rarely happened in Pacific Lands, as there were no Strongholds, and the powerful Nest were too few and strong to defend themselves against the mad waves of monsters.

In the Wild Lands, things were very different, and as in most cases with Wild Lands, it was strongly influenced by the presence of Strongholds, Irregular Energy, and External Artifacts.

In fact, the Wild Lands were very different from the Pacific Lands in one other trivial thing, and this had a strong influence on the events that took place during the Eclipse.

...

”No fucking way...” Adam muttered watching the closed moon slowly rising above the horizon line.

Silvana was silent, panicking as she tried to find some information about the Eclipse, her fingers tapping furiously on the keyboard as she checked all the various resources available to her as Operator.

ʼNo! No! No! Am I wrong?! This canʼt be happening! Iʼve checked everything hundreds of times!ʼ

A multitude of emotions came over Silvana as she tried to figure out how she could make such a mistake, but... she found nothing.

ʼWhat...? The eclipse happened off schedule...? The nearest eclipse should happen in either three days or ten days if itʼs a fortnight...ʼ

Silvanaʼs lips trembled as she looked guiltily at Adam.

Slowly, she realized that no one knew about the Eclipse, not her, not the military, and not the other Operators.

Soon, she heard Adamʼs surprisingly calm voice.

”Hey, I take it this is unexpected to more than just me, right?”

ʼYes... Iʼm sorry, I guess thereʼs no way I could prevent it. I donʼt know why it happened, but right now the Eclipse is coming...ʼ

Ding. Ding. Ding.

With a distinct ringing, a multitude of notifications appeared on the screens in front of Silvana, both from the government, the military, and all the departments involved.

It wasnʼt even five minutes before the government was aware of the events, but despite their impressive speed, it was already too late.

Soon, Adam sensed that something was wrong. This night, this Eclipse, was different from his last and so far only time.

Slowly, Adam reached forward with a baffled look, as if trying to catch something in the air.

”Hmm...? The energy, itʼs gotten a lot thicker, not enough for me to touch it directly, but... I can feel it.”

Making a smooth sweep of his hand, Adam felt a slight shiver, while the density of the energy became more and more intense with each passing second.

ʼAdam, itʼs all about how different the Pacific Lands are from the Wild Lands in their pure power.ʼ Silvana said quickly without wasting any time.

”What, what do you mean? Like, in Pacific Lands the monsters are much weaker and there arenʼt such powerful artifacts, but... what does the Eclipse have to do with it?”

ʼDuring the Eclipse, the energy density increases significantly, but it directly depends on the original value. In the Pacific Lands, even the most dangerous regions have a fairly low energy density, so even with the increase, the difference isnʼt much noticeable.ʼ

Remaining silent, Adam nodded deeply. Last time, he didnʼt pay attention to such details as he was focused on the first wave of monsters.

Back then, he had been very nervous as he didnʼt have as much experience as he had now and this was his first Eclipse where he actively participated as a Phantom.

ʼHowever, in the Wild Lands, things are quite different, here the energy density is much higher as well as the effect of the Eclipse is stronger.ʼ

”I see...”

Adamʼs eyes grew deeper as his fingertips trembled.

”Itʼs somewhat similar to how percentages work, right? Add 10% to 10 you get 11, add 10% to 1000 you get 1100. Yeah, mathematically itʼs right and you add an equal part, but the difference between 1 and 100 is just huge when it comes to practice.”

Silvana blinked a few times with her eyes wide open.

ʼI have to admit Iʼm impressed... I didnʼt realize you were so good at calculations...ʼ

There was no mockery or sneer in her voice, only sincerity and surprise.

”Hah, donʼt embarrass me, thereʼs nothing complicated about adding 10%, even a child with any number can handle it, but... more importantly...”

Adamʼs eyes narrowed as he glanced around, taking in the faint ripples in space.

”Itʼs not just that in the Pacific Lands, the energy density is low and here itʼs high, right?”

Silvana nodded deeply.

ʼYes, in the Wild Lands, there are objects trying to absorb as much of the denser energy as possible in the time allotted by the Eclipse. You are near one of those objects...ʼ

Silvana was silent for a few seconds.

ʼAnd... Itʼs going to make this place a living hell. Adam, you need to get out of here, right now. You need to call a fighter jet and get out!ʼ

Adam didnʼt immediately reply, instead, he looked down, seeing invisible energy heading deep into the depths of the fortress, towards the caverns - where the External Artifact of this majestic Stronghold was located.

”The energy... The External Artifact is going to absorb it, right?” Adam asked though he knew the answer.

ʼYes!ʼ

Silvana replied sharply:

ʼAlthough monsters can absorb energy from the environment unlike Phantoms, itʼs a long and far from efficient process.ʼ

She was about to continue, but Adam interrupted her - he already understood everything.

ʼBut... to absorb the External Artifact infused with the energy from the Eclipse... Fuck, thatʼs a real feast for which every monster in the area will be willing to sacrifice everything.ʼ

Then, Adam turned around and looked towards the bridge that was the only entrance and exit of the fortress.

”Nevertheless...”

He raised his hand, looking at the ice cross.

”Am I ready to leave now?”