Chapter 374: Ahead, There Is Hope

“Spatial rift intensity… spatial curvature parameters… Space One’s power output…” The first things Xiao Yu saw were a string of complex technical metrics. But he paid no attention to any of them. What he focused on was the final line of the intensity report.

That line was the summary of the entire report.

“No change in spatial rift intensity.”

Xiao Yu’s expression instantly tensed.

“No change… no change… no change!” A wave of overwhelming joy surged through his entire being.

“We succeeded! We succeeded!” Xiao Yu roared inwardly.

He knew exactly what this meant. Since the small universe had not detached from the main universe within an hour, it meant it could no longer detach in the future either. The main universe would now bind it tightly within itself. And if it could no longer break away, then within a month, the small universe would be completely assimilated into the main universe. The small universe would utterly vanish, just like a drop of water merging into the sea. And at that moment, Xiao Yu would be free from this prison!

Over a year of painstaking exploration, the joint research of nearly twenty thousand scientists, at this moment, all of it had finally borne fruit.

Suppressing the surge of joy in his heart, Xiao Yu quickly relayed the result to all the scientists.

Aboard Home Forty Two, Luka Three was staring blankly at a half-finished city cluster, gazing at the messy piles of building materials. The moment it heard the news, it leapt to its feet, so fast that its security robot couldn’t react in time, and smashed its head on the ceiling. The still-unfinished roof instantly split its head open, and dark red blood gushed out. But Luka Three didn’t even seem to notice. It was just wildly screaming at the top of its lungs.

“We did it! We did it! We can get out of this cursed place!”

Only then did the security robot finally react. It rushed over, grabbed medication from a portable medkit, applied it to Luka Three’s wound, and skillfully wrapped its head with bandages. Crimson blood still seeped out through the bandages. After the initial treatment, the robot picked Luka Three up under one arm and bolted away like a gust of wind, its personal spaceship had more advanced medical equipment.

Luka Three remained unaware of all this. At that moment, it was still muttering to itself.

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“We did it… we really did it…”

Back in his own garden, Luka Two had been reclining in a chair with his eyes closed. The moment he heard the news, his bloodshot eyes snapped open. His lips trembled slightly. He reached out with trembling hands, picked up the drink beside him, brought it to his lips, and immediately choked. A violent coughing fit overtook him. The maid behind him rushed forward anxiously and gently patted his back. Luka Two finally regained his composure, closed his eyes once more, and let out a long sigh.

“We succeeded. At long last, we’ve succeeded.”

“What succeeded?” asked the maid, who had no idea what was going on.

“We’ve regained our lives.” Luka Two said with a smile.

The maid didn’t understand what he meant. She just stared blankly at the overjoyed Luka Two with her wide, innocent eyes. Luka Two no longer responded. He lay back down in the chair, and a look of deep contentment spread across his aged face.

In the massive underground chamber of the biological laboratory, Luka Four, who had been drifting in thought while staring at dismembered limbs and specimens, also received the news. In that instant, it was as if a burst of light exploded before its eyes, banishing all shadows from its heart.

Senya, drifting across the small lake in his boat, shivered violently upon hearing the news, so much so that the boat rocked beneath him.

“We really succeeded? We actually succeeded? But… what about the Dwarf Race? What are they supposed to do?”

Even now, Senya couldn’t free himself from that question. The plan he had helped devise alongside Luka Three and Xiao Yu had finally succeeded. The crushing weight on his heart was finally lifted, bringing an unprecedented sense of relief. But the doubt, the lingering question, only grew stronger.

“Could there really be another method, one that allows the Dwarf Race to leave this small universe in a simpler way?”

Senya couldn’t figure it out, and neither could Xiao Yu. The Trolor Civilization had said that, after calculations, they had found a method that allowed the Dwarf Race to escape using only the technological capabilities of a Level 4 Civilization. Then… if that method wasn’t the one Xiao Yu was currently using, wouldn’t that mean his computational ability was on par with the Trolor Civilization?

But the Trolor Civilization was a Level 6 Civilization. Xiao Yu wasn’t confident enough to believe he could compare with them.

“What’s really going on here?” Xiao Yu silently pondered, but came up with nothing.

“Forget it for now. Maybe this was just a deliberate misdirection set up by the Trolor Civilization. As long as I can leave here, as long as I’ve inherited the spatial weapon, that’s enough. My goal will be complete. Why bother worrying about anything else?”

Freeing himself from the heavy burden of calculations, Xiao Yu once again looked out across the billions of stars in this small universe. Even though he knew these were all the same star, duplicated countless times, the scene was still breathtakingly spectacular.

“So beautiful.” Xiao Yu murmured to himself in awe.

Although many doubts still lingered in Xiao Yu’s heart, none of them truly mattered anymore. No matter what, his efforts had paid off. He had finally succeeded, and that was what mattered most, wasn’t it?

Xiao Yu held a grand celebration. Of course, since they hadn’t yet truly left the small universe, the celebration was limited to the circle of scientists only. All of the scientists, now numbering around 19,000, gathered in the luxurious banquet hall aboard the China to celebrate this hard-won victory.

Once one became a scientist, they were granted their own private spacecraft, with far fewer movement restrictions. As a result, the docks of the China were buzzing with small household ships arriving and departing. One by one, scientists disembarked from their ships, warmly greeting colleagues and exchanging pleasantries. The entire hall was filled with a joyous atmosphere.

After disembarking, each scientist boarded one of the internal transport vehicles Xiao Yu had prepared for them. Service-type robots ensured everything was in order and guided them to their designated seats in the banquet hall.

The feast unfolded in an atmosphere of jubilation and lasted for several hours.

During the banquet, Senya solemnly announced that he would be getting married two months later, and formally invited any scientists with time to attend the wedding celebration. As someone who was poised to receive the title of ‘Number Five.’ with boundless potential, the scientists naturally gave him face. Congratulations rang out across the hall, and the atmosphere reached its peak.

Meanwhile, Xiao Yu continued to closely monitor the stability of space. The results were exactly as he had anticipated, the space’s stability was gradually increasing with time. This was an excellent sign, it meant the integration between the small universe and the main universe was deepening. The small universe was being assimilated by the main universe.

As time passed, Xiao Yu began to occasionally observe starlight penetrating into the small universe. He was certain these rays weren’t coming from the white dwarf but were genuine starlight from the main universe.

Xiao Yu knew this was due to the small universe being absorbed to such an extent that space itself was becoming unstable. Like a solid riverbank beginning to crack under the constant erosion of water, occasional leaks were inevitable.

“This matter is coming to an end. I’ve obtained the spatial weapon. I’ve acquired the entire corpse of the Level 4 Alien Beast. I’ve recovered around one billion tons of Level 6 Civilization warship fragments. With these assets, my strength will surpass even the Molian Civilization.” Xiao Yu thought confidently. “Once I fully absorb these resources, I’ll possess more and more advanced ships. Then… it’ll be time for a real war with the Molian Civilization.”

“I want a complete Level 5 Civilization technology tree, both military and civilian. Without a full tech tree to support it, my scientific advancement will gradually stall. That’s something I cannot accept.”

This small universe now stood at the edge of life and death, and it was irreversibly declining.

When Xiao Yu finally saw that familiar, ordinary star in the distance, he knew, it was time to go.

“Then… let’s depart.” Xiao Yu issued the command, and the massive fleet slowly launched, sailing toward the main universe, full of hope.

Just as Xiao Yu’s fleet left, atop the white dwarf star, an unknown presence let out a faint sigh.

“So even after I raised the difficulty this much… you still completed the task?”

“By going against the wishes of the Trolor Civilization, I am doomed to face total annihilation. Fine, death it is. I’ve had enough of this endless silence… and loneliness.”

“This white dwarf will become a Type 1a supernova. Let the light of the supernova destroy me.”

“I am Intelligent Program One, a once-fortunate mechanical civilization. Farewell.”