Half an hour later.
Newborn World Serpent Headquarters, virtual conference room...
With all core members now present, there was no longer any need for the remote projections they used to set up for specific individuals.
The physical distance between them had closed.
Yet the atmosphere in the conference room felt heavier than ever.
The reason for this suffocating tension was the bombshell... the utterly devastating news... that Sim Su, her appearance drastically altered, had brought back just a short while ago.
"We must formulate a detailed plan as soon as possible."
"The core of this plan will be to escape Earth, to escape the Solar System."
"There is no hope left here."
Just three simple sentences.
Yet the shock they delivered was more outrageous, more terrifying than all the previous troubles combined.
Today, within the Newborn World Serpent... no, within the Earth Human Civilization of this era, two major events had occurred.
First, Dr. Einstein had successfully developed the first prototype of the "Sea of Quanta Portal."
Its scale was relatively small... after all, it was only a prototype and had yet to undergo initial operational testing.
But this matter was now officially on the agenda.
Second...
Sim Su had become a "Self-Annihilator."
Yes, she had now embarked upon the Path of "Nihility."
This was the reason for her drastic change in appearance.
And it was precisely because Sim Su had become a Pathstrider of "Nihility" that she could state the preceding conclusions with such absolute certainty.
According to her, the moment she became a Pathstrider, she also entered the "Path Interstice."
And there, she met... another self, one without form or substance.
Earth, and indeed the entire Solar System, had no future... This crucial piece of information had been relayed to her by "another self."
Sim Su then learned that within the "Path Interstice," intelligent life forms could encounter more than just "Aeons."
Besides the Aeons, other special beings, though not as powerful, also left their "Shadows" there.
Just like "another self."
This other self explained that he no longer existed in the current dimension and couldn't directly interfere with the Proper World, but he possessed a limited ability to "observe the timeline."
Therefore, he had shared some information about the "future" with Sim Su.
Unfortunately...
"...Because of a certain special existence... most likely Mr. Ling Ke... the timeline of the Proper World has become incredibly chaotic."
"So, 'my other self' could only provide vague fragments of information."
"And in the vast majority of future possibilities, the Solar System will be reduced to 'Nihility'."
Honestly, if anyone else had made such claims, most people present would have instinctively doubted them.
But Su was different...
As "Returnees," Kevin and Fu Hua were aware of the existence of a certain "Ascendant (Su)."
Previously, it was this Ascendant who had used the "Non-existent Memories" to give them a crucial warning.
So, building on that foundation...
"The embryo of 'Nihility'!"
About ten minutes earlier, after the white-haired, red-eyed Su had completed his high-risk investigation mission—one that seemed perilous but was, in fact, extremely perilous—he immediately informed Kevin, who was nearby, to stop monitoring the eerie, purple-black Egg Cocoon.
It was pointless.
Subsequently, Sim Su used a golden-orange portal created by Prometheus's "Mimicry: Cosmic Juggernaut" to instantly return to the Newborn World Serpent Headquarters.
The first thing she did was find MEI with Kevin.
She relayed a great deal of vital intelligence about "Nihility" to MEI, emphasizing information related to the "Self-Annihilators" and the eerie, purple-black Egg Cocoon—the embryo of "Nihility."
Now, this detailed yet concise information had been synchronized and distributed to every core member.
This was the fundamental reason for the heavy atmosphere in the virtual meeting room.
Earth... the mother planet used as a petri dish by the "Cocoon of Finality," where human civilization had risen and fallen countless times...
...was doomed!!!
The embryo of "Nihility" would grow rapidly and devour everything.
It would then completely transform the entire Solar System, and even a much larger region, into "Nihility."
From the perspective of civilization's development, this process wouldn't take long.
And it could shorten abruptly at any moment.
After all...
The so-called "Paths" weren't limited to slow, steady progression.
They also allowed for sudden leaps of enlightenment, even transformative metamorphoses.
And the "Nihility" symbolized by that embryo was purer than that of any "Self-Annihilator."
Sim Su's knowledge base was extremely limited.
Though he was considered a top elite of Earth Human Civilization, his perspective was too narrow.
A soul with the potential to ascend, trapped on the third planet of the Solar System—a mere speck compared to the vast cosmos—had never seen a living star, never witnessed a celestial continent...
Therefore, even with the help of a certain Ascendant (Su), Sim Su of this era couldn't accurately describe the true nature of that bizarre, purple-black Egg Cocoon.
He had no idea it was a genuine black hole organism.
Still, calling it an embryo of "Nihility" wasn't entirely wrong.
After all, it did possess a sliver of potential for godhood—infinitesimally close to zero, yet still greater than that of most living beings.
Of course, the "godhood" mentioned here had nothing to do with something like the "Cocoon of Finality," which was utterly insignificant on a cosmic scale.
Instead, it referred to the position of an "Aeon," renowned throughout the universe today.
Who could have imagined that the leading contender for the Divine Throne of the Aeon of Nihility would emerge from such a low-level civilization?
However, considering that a certain someone was the authority who had grafted the concept of "Paths" onto the current universe, and that both "Causes" behind the Egg Cocoon's birth were closely tied to him...
When you trace the cause and effect, it all seems to add up.
In any case...
"That Egg Cocoon, that embryo of 'Nihility,' is something we cannot contend with, even before it hatches."
"In fact... even the Cocoon of Finality wouldn't be a match for it, given that it unexpectedly appeared on Earth."
"And once it hatches..."
Inside the virtual conference room, Sim Su trailed off.
As usual, he kept his eyes habitually closed.
But the feeling he gave off was completely different from before.
Previously, Sim Su's presence had been far from faint. Though quiet and gentle, his mere proximity brought a sense of comfort and peace.
But now... if you weren't staring directly at him, you'd subconsciously assume he wasn't even there.
This was simply...
"Are you... all right?" Kevin asked.
At his words...
"Don't worry."
Sim Su tilted his head and gave him a faint smile. "As far as I know, although the final fate of most 'Self-Annihilators' is self-annihilation, it still takes time to reach that point."
"Raiden Mei's initial state wasn't so bad either, was it?"
"..."
Kevin fell silent.
Though his old friend acted nonchalant, those words only deepened Kevin's worry.
At the same time, another thought surfaced...
"If the strength of all 'Self-Annihilators' rapidly increases after they step onto the Path of 'Nihility,' then Raiden Mei..."
She had now reverted to being the Herrscher of Thunder.
And not just any Herrscher, but an inhuman killing machine bent on civilization's destruction.
The Path Power of 'Nihility,' combined with a Herrscher's Authority, and a murderous intent devoid of humanity...
Plus, the fact that two Herrschers had already joined forces.
Just thinking about this string of bad news was enough to give anyone a splitting headache.
Not to mention, the harsh reality lay before them.
The current situation was just as Kevin had foreseen: if they couldn't resolve the threat posed by that bizarre, purple-black Egg Cocoon, humanity would have no future, no matter how many Herrschers they defeated.
What no one had expected was that the threat was utterly unsolvable.
"Is 'Kindling Migration' our only option?" Dr. Einstein asked, her voice laced with bitterness.
Given the circumstances... with Earth Human Civilization's current technological level, 'Interstellar Migration' and 'World Bubble Migration' were their only two choices.
And the success rates for both were extremely low.
Furthermore, even if they succeeded, they couldn't save many people.
Yet, despite all this, humanity could only choose to 'flee.'
'Fighting' was impossible.
To even try would be more than just a mantis trying to stop a chariot; it would be...
"The Moths Who Chase the Flames... what a damn auspicious name," Kalpas's Sim snarled coldly.
Just then...
"If it were that person... Ling ke..."
A tentative voice spoke from a corner of the conference room.
Everyone's gaze converged on the speaker.
It was Kevin... well, the younger Kevin.
Of course, everyone present had already considered the 'plan' he had just mentioned.
After all, if 'God' were a vague, ethereal concept, people might have remained pragmatic.
But when 'God' was visible, even someone you could converse with...
"Only now do we belatedly realize what an extraordinary privilege that is," Aponia stated softly, voicing the truth.
Indeed!
If one broadened their perspective to the vast cosmos, how many tragedies unfolded every moment? How many civilizations perished?
Did those intelligent beings, trapped in their dire straits, not pray?
Ultimately, 'God' either couldn't hear them... or, to be more precise, didn't have the time to listen.
Though it sounded wrong to say it, 'God' had a life of its own.
He wouldn't, nor did he wish to become, everyone's babysitter.
But now, a tangible 'God' was right here on Earth.
Kevin and the others knew that, given Ling ke's personality, he would almost certainly refuse any of their requests.
But...
"When the survival of civilization is at stake, we must try everything," Kevin said gravely. "Of course, it's obvious we can't pin all our hopes on that person, on Ling ke."
"So..."
He looked at everyone in the room. "We need to formulate multiple viable plans, then consolidate and tally all our resources, and list the most feasible options..."
"Finally, we'll activate them sequentially, according to priority."
Clearly, The Moths Who Chase the Flames had used this approach before.
It was the same series of actions MEI had initiated as their final leader, all to secure a future for the next era of humanity.
Back then, they had Project Stigma, Project ARK, Project Kindling, Project Valuka... and many others.
And now...
"Right now, the only highly feasible plan we can immediately consider is the 'Kindling Migration' Dr. Einstein just mentioned."
MEI spoke up. "Whether we migrate to a 'World Bubble' or another star system, our current scientific and technological capabilities are simply not mature enough."
"After all, while pre-existing World Bubbles do exist, and Ether Anchor Technology is preserved within the Void Archives, neither can guarantee stable existence... At least, not for a civilization. The timeframes are too short to offer any real peace of mind."
Interstellar Migration... well, the difficulties there were even more obvious.
First, the fact that we could only take an extremely small number of people was a major problem.
Second, issues like safety during interstellar travel, resource management, and energy supply were all unsolvable at our current stage.
Therefore...
"I suggest..."
MEI presented her idea. "We find Kiana Kaslana as soon as possible."
"And initiate full cooperation with her."