It truly seemed as though Shi could hear voices communicating with them.
Soon, a strange crystalline shell wrapped itself around the reverse-memetic crystal.
Shi lowered their voice in prayer.
"Memories of all beings... please carry this message."
"Tell Manas what has happened here."
"Ask her to come assist."
Shi threw the now-sealed crystal into the depths of Sanjian Heaven.
Then they resumed the pursuit of Lin Yi.
That bastard could not be allowed to cause any more destruction.
Though his attacks had never caused casualties, the material losses, repair costs, and manpower expenditure were staggering.
The Garden of Recollection might be wealthy and powerful...
But even they could not endure repeated disasters of this scale.
As the embodiment of countless memories, Shi could hear voices that ordinary beings could never perceive.
They were naturally attuned to such whispers.
Other members of the Garden called this ability:
Listening to the Voices of All Things.
Because of it, Shi was also known as the Saintess of Listening.
Shi and Manas were both old acquaintances of Lin Yi.
When he had first formally visited the Garden of Recollection, they were the ones who received him.
Later, during his many smaller acts of destruction, they were also the ones who quietly helped smooth things over afterward.
Back then, the Garden of Recollection had indeed been somewhat in the wrong.
There might even have been someone secretly pushing events from behind the scenes.
But regardless of the truth—
Lin Yi had undeniably been set up inside the Garden.
Even so, Lin Yi was the sort of person who separated grievances from relationships.
The Garden of Recollection was one matter.
Shi and Manas were another.
They could still, at the very least, be called friends.
Back to the present—
The disturbance Lin Yi had created was immense.
He had already drawn the attention of one Emanator of Remembrance.
Soon, two Emanators would be hunting him down.
And it was not only them.
The entire Garden of Recollection had been thrown into chaos.
Memokeepers rushed in every direction.
Many had been reassigned to emergency work:
Reconnecting shattered sections of the Corridor of Flowing Light.
Stabilizing violent memory tides.
Repairing structural damage.
The Garden's usually tight security had been spread thin.
Lin Yi had fulfilled every part of his role in the plan.
Now—
It was up to Herta and the others.
But the Garden of Recollection was still one of the greatest factions in the universe.
A direct organization under an Aeon.
Its foundations were unimaginably deep.
Meanwhile — Ruan Mei
Ruan Mei had already reached her destination during the earlier confusion.
Technically, she had arrived in the midst of the chaos.
In truth—
She had simply walked there step by step, utterly unconcerned with being discovered.
Seeing the many Memokeepers guarding the area, she tilted her head slightly.
"Hmm... quite a lot of people."
"That's troublesome."
Yet there was not the slightest trace of concern on her face.
"Could you help me retrieve something I want?"
"Of course."
"Of course."
"Of course."
Voices answered one after another.
Plum blossom marks were scattered throughout the area.
They were traces of Ruan Mei's interference.
Because Memokeepers lacked physical bodies, many of her biological methods worked poorly—or failed entirely.
She had never studied Memokeepers in depth.
But she had studied many lifeforms similar to them.
For beings that lacked emotion, the solution was simple:
First, give them emotion.
Then control those emotions.
"Life truly is beautiful and fascinating... isn't it?"
Ruan Mei glanced sideways at several Memokeepers who remained conscious as she slowly approached.
Strangely, they neither fled nor called for help.
Whether they were unable to move or simply too terrified was unclear.
She gently brushed one Memokeeper with her fingers.
Then another.
"No matter how many times I see it..."
"This lifeform remains fascinating."
"And your strong will is admirable."
Her praise was calm and sincere.
"In that case..."
"Why don't you assist me with a small experiment?"
"Don't worry."
"We have plenty of time."
The blank expressions of their immobilized companions filled the remaining conscious Memokeepers with overwhelming dread.
Then, before their disbelieving eyes, Ruan Mei summoned something.
Emanator of Propagation—
Star-Shattering Swarm King.
Skaracabaz. Artificially created.
Ruan Mei spoke evenly.
"I've always wondered whether experiments conducted in an environment rich in memory substance would produce different results."
Perhaps this was a change caused by Lin Yi.
Or perhaps Ruan Mei had always possessed the ability to create artificial Emanators.
Maybe what had appeared in the original story was only one experiment among many.
Whatever the truth—
She had already carried out numerous attempts to cultivate the Star-Shattering Swarm King.
All had failed.
The longest survival time so far was one minute and twenty-six seconds.
The Memokeepers stared in horror.
Their thoughts screamed:
You want us to fight a Star-Shattering Swarm King?!
Are you insane?!
Honestly—
It would have been better if they had never regained consciousness.
Now they regretted having such strong wills.
The creature shook its body.
Countless glowing spores scattered outward.
They rapidly transformed into:
True Sting Bugs.
Sub-Sting Bugs.
Thank Qlipoth.
If the Aeon of Propagation had not been suppressed, the swarm would not even need physical reproduction.
It would require only the concept of growth to multiply without end.
Ruan Mei quietly retreated from the battlefield.
The Star-Shattering Swarm King attacked everything—
Including its creator.
For the moment, she had deceived it with synthetic pheromones, allowing temporary control.
But the swarm's adaptability was terrifying.
Soon enough, the pheromones would stop working.
As Lin Yi once said:
"Geniuses are scholars."
"Not fighters."
"And they don't need to fight."
Ruan Mei fully agreed.
She wished to conduct experiments, not become one.
Calmly, she recorded her data.
"In an environment rich in memory substance..."
"The rate of bodily collapse appears significantly reduced."
"Hmm... without outside interference..."
"The specimen's projected survival time should rise to approximately five minutes and seventeen seconds."
A soft smile appeared on her face.
She seemed genuinely pleased.
"Very promising."
"With longer survival times, many previously impossible experiments can now be attempted."
"What a pleasant surprise."
So she began her experiment in earnest.
As for the original plan of gathering memories from the pools—
There were still plenty of Memokeepers nearby.
They could handle that part.
"They should recover resistance and awaken in one hour, twenty-seven minutes, and thirty-six seconds."
"Plenty of time."
Ruan Mei looked at the Memokeepers forced into the trial.
"Relax."
"You won't die."
"If something unexpected happens, I'll intervene."
"But it would still be best to be careful."
She took out her instrument.
With graceful motions, she began to play.
Soft music drifted through the air, blending with the pheromones she had released earlier.
And this was precisely why the Garden of Recollection, despite being made entirely of long-lived Memokeepers, still recruited new members every year.
Though Memokeepers possessed strong survival abilities...
Their mortality rate was shockingly high.
Most died because of their own reckless curiosity.
But accidents were hardly rare.
Meanwhile — Herta
Herta continued walking calmly.
Then she suddenly stopped and said:
"Come out."
"You've been following me for quite a while."
Author's Notes:
The perspective shifts frequently in this chapter. Hopefully it doesn't feel too chaotic.
Also, this is still part of the past-event storyline.
I trust everyone has noticed by now.