The Discovery of the Fourth End?
Written by Herta?
As they watched the scene unfolding within the screen Aha had constructed, people across the galaxy could not help but be drawn in.
And this "Fourth End" Herta spoke of—
What was it?
Why would it matter so much to Herta of the Genius Society?
Very soon, those questions were answered.
Because the Herta in the projection began moving again.
Like a storyteller narrating a tale, she calmly began describing her research.
"There was once a past in this galaxy that had been forgotten because of Enigmata."
"One of Nous's creations, the second seat of the Genius Society, the Emanator of Erudition—Theresa."
"And on the Xianzhou Alliance's Yuanqiao, the strongest general of The Hunt—General Red Kite, Fu Hua."
"According to what that woman Cecilia said, among all the existences in the current galaxy, the disappearances of these two were the strangest of all."
"In order to uncover the Enigmata described by little Kiana, I once personally sought an audience with an Aeon and posed my question."
"I desperately wanted to know what exactly had happened in that past buried by Enigmata—and what had been concealed."
The scene shifted at once.
What appeared on the screen was now a space wrapped in Imaginary energy.
Inside it stood two figures.
One of them was Herta, who now stood before the entire galaxy.
The other gradually revealed its true form—
A mechanical being.
Nous, the Aeon of Erudition.
The moment that Aeon appeared, everyone—whether inside the Divination Commission or elsewhere across the galaxy—was captivated.
Clearly, this was the very moment Herta had spoken of, when she had sought an audience with an Aeon.
Then Nous's voice rang out.
"Go study the End. Within the past of that End, you will find the answers you seek."
That was Nous's answer to Herta.
And Herta had evidently done exactly that.
The image shifted again.
Countless scenes flashed before the audience.
Herta reappeared in a study, her fingertips brushing over mountains of documents as her eyes skimmed through line after line of text.
"...The End... the Theory of the Four Ends?"
She murmured to herself, her pen racing across her notebook.
Ancient tomes, scattered records, even certain legends long forgotten by the world—she dug through all of them, one by one.
Then the pace accelerated, and Herta's storyteller-like narration resumed.
"I've solved many, many difficult problems. Because I like doing it."
"But they never remain difficult for long. Before long, they become answers."
"And based on the mechanical head's hint, once I returned to the space station, I began researching the End."
"Very quickly, I found something very interesting—a prophecy known as the Theory of the Four Ends."
"Among the Vanguard of Omens, there exists a prophecy called the 'Theory of the Four Ends.' It says that four Paths will push the galaxy toward the ending known as 'the End.'"
"Unfortunately, almost no one took this prophecy seriously, because it never even said which four Paths those were."
"But my intuition told me that within the Theory of the Four Ends, I would find the answer."
"And then, I did."
"I found the truth behind the Theory of the Four Ends."
Herta's voice came from beyond the screen, calm enough that it hardly sounded like she was announcing a discovery capable of shaking the entire galaxy.
The scene shifted again.
This time, it was a vast laboratory, even larger than any room aboard Herta Space Station.
The long table was covered with star charts, data sheets, and dense stacks of calculation drafts.
Seated around it were four figures—
Or rather, three people and one mechanical lifeform.
Ruan Mei sat furthest left, slender fingers holding a jade chess piece while her gaze rested on the yellowed copy of the prophecy at the center of the table. Her expression was placid, unreadable.
Screwllum sat across from her, metallic fingers tapping lightly on the tabletop while his electronic eyes flickered rapidly, clearly processing calculations at astonishing speed.
Stephen, meanwhile, sprawled half across the table, chin resting on a pile of books, looking caught somewhere between confusion and despair.
It was Herta's little "Genius" circle.
At last, Stephen spoke weakly.
"So... the reason we've spent the last few months doing this is to prove a prophecy that doesn't even explain itself clearly?"
Ruan Mei set down her chess piece and replied in her usual calm tone, "To be precise, we are verifying whether this prophecy is real."
"Verifying?" Stephen's voice jumped several octaves.
"We've combed through all eighteen known Paths, screened over three million possible combinations, and burned enough computation power to turn a star into a white dwarf... all to verify a prophecy whose source isn't even reliable?"
At that, Screwllum finally stopped tapping the table and turned to Stephen.
"According to my calculations, the actual computational load was approximately equivalent to 1.7 white dwarfs."
"Conclusion: while there is some deviation in the specific figure, Mr. Stephen's analogy is directionally correct."
Stephen: "..."
He decided he no longer wished to speak.
Seeing this, Herta—who was clearly leading the research—stood up.
"Stephen, as a member of the Genius Society, what kind of face is that?"
"I know this research has been dull. The calculations are enormous. There were times even I felt it was a complete waste of effort."
"But—"
Her tone changed abruptly, and her gaze swept across the three of them.
"Don't you want the answer?"
"What answer?" Stephen asked weakly, lifting his head a little.
"All of them," Herta replied, her voice suddenly dropping.
"The Enigmata hidden in Kiana's account. The mystery surrounding Theresa. The truth behind the destruction of Yuanqiao. And..."
She tapped the table lightly with one finger.
"...everything from the past that was deliberately erased."
"These are all things hidden by Enigmata. What we're doing now is ripping away that veil."
"Aren't you curious?"
"As members of the Genius Society—can any of you tolerate a mystery you can't solve?"
A brief silence filled the room.
Ruan Mei was the first to rise.
"I'm very interested in the past described by Kiana. I also want to know the answer to the mystery surrounding Theresa."
She paused, looking toward the faded copy of the prophecy on the table.
"But Herta, have you considered one question?"
"What question?" Herta asked, arching a brow.
Ruan Mei looked up. Beneath the lamplight, her tranquil eyes seemed especially deep.
"The reason the Theory of the Four Ends has never been confirmed... may not be because no one ever tried."
"It may be because... the answer itself keeps changing."
Stephen pushed himself up from the table.
"What do you mean?"
"The Four Ends are not fixed."
Ruan Mei rolled a chess piece lightly between her fingers.
"They shift according to the Aeons' wills, according to the direction the galaxy is headed. If the contents of the prophecy can change at any time, then the last few months of our research..."
She did not finish.
But what she meant was obvious enough.
Herta fell silent for a moment, then laughed.
"If that's true, then this puzzle is even more interesting."
As Herta's words fell, the four geniuses gradually faded into transparency.
The image dissolved into blackness.
Then Herta's inner monologue returned.
"Ruan Mei was right. The Paths of the Four Ends may not have a single fixed answer. They may always be changing."
"But after the four of us geniuses carried out our joint research, we finally made a new breakthrough."
"Of the four Paths in the Theory of the Four Ends, three have already been confirmed."
As if to match Herta's declaration, three colossal shadows slowly rose from the darkness.
The first was Nanook, Aeon of Destruction.
Its body resembled a living volcano, with golden fissures running like rivers across its pitch-black frame.
Next came IX, Aeon of Nihility.
In absolute contrast to Nanook's blazing intensity, IX's very existence was "emptiness."
It had no fixed shape—only endless darkness, a chasm from which even light could not escape.
Simply gazing upon it made one feel as though their very consciousness were being swallowed, all meaning dissolving away.
Last came Xipe, Aeon of Harmony.
Its light was gentle and all-encompassing, while three faces appeared and vanished within its radiance.
The three Aeons' shadows hung above the galaxy, their respective Path powers intertwining and colliding, sending visible ripples across the starry heavens.
Herta's voice continued from outside the image, calm and absolute.
"Destruction. Nihility. Harmony."
"These three Paths are the three that I have confirmed within the Theory of the Four Ends."
Above the heavens, Herta's voice still echoed.
But inside the Divination Commission's inner hall, an eerie silence had fallen.
The Theory of the Four Ends was something every Arbiter-General present had heard of.
That Destruction and Nihility—two Paths with obvious destructive overtones—would be among them was not especially shocking.
But why would Harmony be there?
As for the Family, the Xianzhou Alliance did not have many flattering things to say about them. Still, a faction was a faction, and an Aeon was an Aeon.
Perhaps some people might judge believers by the reputation of their god.
But rarely would anyone do the reverse—judge an Aeon based on the conduct of its followers.
Preservation and the IPC were the perfect example.
So what about Harmony?
As far as the Xianzhou Alliance was concerned, they could not imagine how Harmony, and Xipe, its Aeon, could possibly be one of the existences destined to bring about the end of the galaxy.
Then, amid that solemn silence, a light chuckle suddenly sounded.
It was Yaoguang.
She stood at the edge of the Dharma Realm of Tenfold Reflected Light, while the Brilliant Solar Luminary King slowly revolved behind her.
Yet on her face appeared an expression entirely out of step with the atmosphere.
It was the look of someone enjoying a bit of schadenfreude.
"General Yaoguang?" Jing Yuan's voice came from the side, tinged with confusion. "What are you laughing at?"
Yaoguang replied lazily, "I was just wondering... what kind of expressions the Family's people must have on their faces right now."
The hall fell quiet for a beat.
Jing Yuan paused, and then understanding flickered in his eyes.
To be honest, he was a little curious too.
"That Harmony should be named one of the Four Ends... is not good news for the Family," Jing Yuan said quietly.
"Not good news?" Yaoguang picked up at once, her tone unusually sharp.
"They revere Harmony. They wave Xipe's banner across the galaxy and sing hymns to harmony itself. But now Herta's research is telling them that the Aeon they worship may well be one of the culprits destined to destroy the galaxy."
She paused, her smile deepening.
"How do you think they'll take that?"
"They'll deny it," Feixiao cut in, utterly certain. "One hundred percent. They'll say the research is flawed, that Herta misunderstood, that Harmony is supreme concord and could never stand beside Destruction and Nihility."
"And then?" Yaoguang asked.
Feixiao thought for a moment.
"And then they'll argue among themselves. They'll argue over whether to believe it or not. And once they argue long enough, cracks will begin to appear."
"The Path of Harmony is the one least able to endure division," Jing Yuan said slowly.
"The Family's long-standing position in the galaxy depends on its image of unity. But if even the foundation of their faith begins to shake..."
He did not finish.
No one needed him to.
Once harmony developed cracks, it would no longer be harmony.
"That's why I say it's funny," Yaoguang said, drawing back her gaze.
"How many years did the Family spend building its current standing in the galaxy? They sang of Harmony and praised Xipe. And now one piece of research from Herta has shoved them right up to the edge of a cliff."
"General Yaoguang," Jing Yuan interjected with a trace of helplessness, "that is outright gloating."
"I do very much want to know how they'll respond to this result," Yaoguang said frankly, shrugging with a smile.
"Will they choose belief, or denial? Will they keep singing hymns of harmony, or start hearing discord beneath the melody?"
"Well then." Jing Yuan coughed lightly, bringing the focus back. "The spectacle can wait."
"Herta's findings are indeed shocking, but I have one question."
He turned to the others.
"Do you all still remember what Nous told Herta?"
Feixiao lifted a brow. "'Go study the End. Within the past of that End, you will find the answers you seek.'"
"Exactly." Jing Yuan nodded.
"Nous said: within the past of that End. Which means that through the study of the Theory of the Four Ends, Herta ought to have found the past hidden by Enigmata—the truth behind Yuanqiao's destruction, and the mystery of Theresa."
He paused, looking around at the assembled generals.
"But now three of the four Paths have already been confirmed: Destruction, Nihility, Harmony."
"Then what is the fourth?"
The hall fell silent again.
Huaiyan's hand stopped stroking his beard, and a sharp light flashed through his aged eyes.
"General... are you suggesting...?"
Jing Yuan lowered his voice even further.
"What I mean is this."
"If Herta's line of inquiry is correct, then could the fourth Path be... Enigmata?"
Enigmata—the fourth End?
The moment he voiced it, everyone present stiffened.
To be honest, none of them had previously connected Enigmata to the Four Ends.
After all, from their current perspective, the corrective interference of Enigmata had actually saved the Xianzhou Alliance.
All of the generals still remembered clearly: in the original timeline before Enigmata altered it, it had been Nihility that devoured the Luofu.
That past may well have been the End of Nihility.
And yet now Jing Yuan was saying that Enigmata, the force that had altered that past, was itself one of the Four Ends?
Feixiao folded her arms tighter and frowned.
"General Jing Yuan, you're saying Enigmata might also be one of the Four Ends?"
Jing Yuan did not overstate it.
"It's only a hypothesis."
"But think about it. If Enigmata had nothing to do with the End, then why would Nous tell Herta to search for her answers by researching the End?"
The inner hall fell silent once more.
At the center of the formation, Mebius listened to every word of the generals' discussion.
Her expression did not change in the slightest, but inside, a storm had already risen.
These generals' minds worked far too fast.
They had barely talked for a few minutes and were already close to piecing the truth together?
Seriously?
Were all Xianzhou people like this?
...Well, no.
Fortunately, they had guessed wrong.
From what Mebius remembered, the fourth End had always been an unstable answer.
In one of Amphoreus's "what-if" branches, the fourth End had once been Remembrance.
And now—although the current future's fourth End could not yet be confirmed—she could certainly provide one from an earlier configuration of the Four Ends.
Then the projection changed again.
Everyone's attention returned to the screen.
Herta reappeared.
This time, she was no longer in a laboratory.
Instead, she stood inside a vast library.
Bookshelves stretched from the floor all the way to the ceiling, vanishing into the distance.
Herta stood before a great long table, upon which lay more than a dozen thick volumes. Her fingers moved among the pages, her eyes so focused that it seemed the rest of the world had ceased to exist.
And once more, her narration resumed.
"I searched for the fourth Path of the Four Ends for a very, very long time."
"Long enough that I almost began to believe it had not yet been born in the present age."
The camera slowly advanced, brushing past Herta's profile and settling on the notebook before her.
Its pages were filled with arrows, question marks, and crossed-out text.
Every hypothesis had been rejected.
Every possibility overturned.
Destruction, Nihility, Harmony—these three Paths stood like pillars, firmly supporting the framework of the Theory of the Four Ends.
But the fourth pillar had remained impossible to place.
"I tried every known Path."
"Remembrance? Some possibility, but no."
"Elation? Aha was suspicious too, but still no."
"Preservation? Qlipoth's reputation is fairly decent, so that was even less likely."
"Voracity? Suspicious. Temporarily reserved."
"Propagation? Also suspicious. Temporarily reserved."
"Finality itself? That would just be circular reasoning. Rejected."
As each rejected Path flashed across the screen, Herta's expression grew heavier by another degree.
"None of them," Herta said, putting down her pen and leaning back in her chair, eyes closed for a long moment.
"The fourth End felt like something that simply did not exist."
The image shifted again.
Herta was back aboard Herta Space Station, standing before an enormous observation window and gazing out at the stars.
She remained there motionless, like a statue.
"At the time, I had almost decided to temporarily abandon the research."
"And then—she came."
The screen suddenly darkened.
When the light returned, another figure stood before Herta.
A woman.
She wore a simple, elegant dress, and her silver-white hair fell to her waist.
Across the galaxy, all eyes fixed upon her.
Kallen Kaslana.
The Witch of Nihility—the Emanator of Preservation who had stood before the entire galaxy during the IPC broadcast and openly rebelled against Qlipoth.
She seemed to be conversing with Herta.
Yet strangely, the Kallen in the image made no sound at all.
Only Herta's voice continued from outside the frame, more solemn than ever before.
"I don't know why that dangerous woman knew about my research. I don't even know why she wanted to help me."
"But she brought me the answer."
"The fourth End is not fixed. It remains an empty seat."
"Perhaps today it is Remembrance, and by tomorrow it has become Propagation."
"But with that woman's help, I found the answer I had been searching for."
The image shifted again.
This time, another Aeon appeared on the screen.
Its body was a brilliant azure, half-human and half-horse, with a great bow in hand.
Lan, the Aeon of The Hunt.
Everyone recognized the Aeon and held their breath.
Then, in the image, something impossible happened.
It was as though Lan had been infected.
That originally divine blue brilliance began to stain over with a layer of gray.
And then the audience saw something even more shocking—
Standing atop Lan's head was another figure.
A woman with gray hair, holding a longbow.
The people of the Luofu knew that silhouette well.
Wasn't that General Red Kite—the very general who resembled the Marshal?
But unlike the Red Kite they had seen before, this version of her, like the gray-stained Lan beneath her feet, gave off the same unnerving sensation as staring into an abyss.
And then Herta finally declared what had once been the fourth End before Enigmata rewrote history:
"The fourth Path of the End was The Hunt."
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