Zephyr arrived late, and he immediately found himself face-to-face with the White Clown.
"Phew… phew… at least I managed to get up."
After a volley of words and a tense standoff, Zephyr's Heavenly Fire Sanctum pistol ended up in the Clown's hands.
The three of them moved like a chaotic stage play. After exchanging taunts, Zephyr took a gunshot while the White Clown received a punch, both stepping back. The Clown dropped a pistol and walked away. Zephyr quickly picked up Walter, who had been lying on the ground for some time, and rushed him back to the Babylon Tower for urgent treatment.
Under the combined care of Dr. Einstein and Dr. Tesla, Walter's life was barely preserved.
Meanwhile, due to Zephyr's discretion, the Entropy team formerly part of the northern branch of Destiny was allowed to remain in the Babylon Experimental Tower.
Most importantly, the dragon-shaped Corruption Beast carried the Second Lawgiver beyond the atmosphere.
Once outside the atmosphere, Destiny had no effective means of attack.
Guided by [God], Xilin made her way toward the Moon.
"If you wish to obtain true power, come to me."
The dragon-shaped Corruption Beast flew with Xilin toward the lunar surface.
Awakening atop the beast's head, Xilin gazed at the dazzling expanse of stars stretching before her and whispered in wonder:
"Where… is this place?"
The Moon, visible to humans on every clear night, always shows only one side to the Earth. The far side the "dark side" remains hidden from ordinary view.
Destiny had explored the lunar far side before, but Otto classified the results as top secret, diverting immense resources toward lunar research.
The Entropy faction, having split from Destiny's North American branch due to ideological differences, detected these activities and joined in the exploration.
After 1969, when human-crewed lunar landings succeeded, both sides paused further exploration. They had discovered Corruption Energy on the Moon a force previously thought exclusive to Earth. The entire far side was saturated with its flow. Official reports, however, falsely claimed the far side held nothing. Humanity celebrated this fabricated victory.
Xilin now arrived in this place of deceptive calm. The dragon-shaped Corruption Beast pierced the Corruption Energy barrier and brought her into a massive white ruin a deep pit known as the Endfall Crater on the Moon's far side.
The beast, having expended all its strength to reach this place, collapsed, unable to rise again.
"The wound from that traitor still hasn't healed… damn it. You… will you leave me too?"
Xilin gently stroked the head of her companion beast, unaware that the chip she had been holding had lost its glow.
"Do not grieve. You have reached this place. True power now stands before you," [God] said.
Xilin turned and saw a golden, star-shaped structure suspended in defiance of all natural laws, tightly locked within a gray, cubic cage.
Stepping forward, Xilin noticed numerous inscriptions carved into stone pillars. Unable to decipher them, she abandoned the attempt and reached out toward the golden construct.
The world before her shifted into pure white emptiness, reminiscent of Yuebo's Stigmata Space. But this was not Yuebo it was [God].
[God] sat upon a square stone pedestal, its face indistinct, perhaps nonexistent.
"God… is that you? What is this place?" Xilin thought, and the answer instantly flooded her mind.
Fifty thousand years ago, Corruption emerged on Earth to purge the taint of human civilization.
A flood of information overwhelmed Xilin's mind, forcing her to collapse, yet [God]'s answers persisted.
Through repeated cycles, humanity grew stronger. Their weapons became capable of killing God's apostles.
A figure from the pre-civilization era seemingly uncovered the essence of Corruption. With an incomplete understanding of [Truth], she constructed monumental edifices on the Moon. Though her plan failed and God's final apostles completed their task, she succeeded in permanently sealing part of God's power there.
"God's power… I understand your will. Grant me this strength, and I will destroy those humans who have taken everything from me!" Xilin declared.
"Those filthy humans who stole all that was mine," she whispered.
[God] touched Xilin's forehead, and her power surged, crystallizing into four distinct gemstones:
Crown of the Conqueror: Thunder as bow and arrow, shattering all things.
Scepter of Desire: Command of endless storms, reaching a thousand miles.
Robe of Serenity: Elixir of death and dreamlike sweetness.
Blade of Plague: Immortal flames, raging wildfire.
Reinvigorated, Xilin approached the dragon-shaped Corruption Beast. Her overall form remained consistent but now revealed more pristine skin and, finally, shoes.
"Everything else has left me, but you remain by my side. I grant you the Thunder of Conquest, and a new name," she said.
"Bella, remain with me from now on."
The Conquest Gem transformed Bella into humanoid form, preserving her Corruption Beast traits. Her purple wings bore the lunar mark.
Kneeling on one knee, Bella attempted to respond, but the words escaped as:
"Sister Xilin?"
"Forgive me, Your Majesty!"
Xilin smiled, pleased rather than angered.
"No need. From now on, just call me 'Sister,' Bella."
"Now, we take the first step in humanity's reckoning."
Harnessing her internal power, Xilin manipulated massive stone pillars, directing immense energy and kinetic force. Flames that would never extinguish surged toward the only remaining continent on Earth, with several pillars aimed at human settlements specifically Los Angeles, North America.
"Warning! Unknown meteors approaching the Destiny Floating Island. Request immediate defense deployment!"
Destiny's headquarters, a floating island hovering above Europe for half a century, suffered severe impact. Core infrastructure was critically damaged, far exceeding the cost of Otto's "Karen Fantasy" sequel. Losses among the Valkyries were minimal, though a few were injured.
Meteors aimed at Los Angeles were deflected by the explosions of two Silver Bullets, landing in uninhabited zones.
Three Silver Bullets fired toward the Moon were nullified by Bella's lightning powers, rendered useless by the electromagnetic pulses, now drifting as debris in space. Remote detonation was impossible.
With [God]'s guidance, Xilin accessed pre-civilization archives. Despite protective mechanisms, the Conquest Thunder overwhelmed them, granting Xilin vast knowledge in mathematics, physics, chemistry, military strategy, and Lawgiver powers. She focused primarily on Stigmata and soul research.
"I must admit, Dr. Mei's wisdom is truly impressive," Xilin noted.
The essence of a Lawgiver Core is the ability to modify and control reality. Reality is composed of virtual numbers; Lawgiver powers act like administrative commands within this system. They can intervene in certain aspects of virtual space, effectively rewriting reality.
Law of Reason: Understands structure and reproduces it, like copying and pasting dangerous weapons.
Law of Space: Manipulates virtual space, allowing instant relocation of objects.
Law of Lightning: Controls electromagnetic fields, from protective barriers to molecular disruption via EMP.
Law of Wind: Controls ideal fluids, storms, ice, and water.
Law of Death: Controls cellular regeneration and decay.
Law of Fire: Controls molecular motion to ignite any matter, devastating in force.
Using powers consumes Corruption Energy, adhering to the universal law of energy conservation.
Xilin now possessed four Lawgiver Cores, and Bella had one lightning core.
"Bella, do me a favor and send a message. With your Lawgiver power, you can do it."
"Meet me on the Moon, First Lawgiver. If you do not come, I will send four meteors toward Earth every seventy-two hours."
"Yes, Sister Xilin."
"Let's hope they don't make me wait too long."