Beneath the ruins of the Spire, the secret passage ran deep. The air was a heavy mix of digital ozone and stellar dust; the walls were etched with archaic AI dialects, a language long forgotten by the modern galaxy.
Liam stepped into the gloom alone. Behind him, Ben's worried voice echoed, "Boss, it's too dangerous! The Oath might have rigged the place!"
"That's exactly why I have to go," Liam replied without looking back. "The Vault can lose a member, but it cannot lose its direction."
He held a Light-Sovereign Lantern looted from a guard. Its pale glow cut through the dark until he reached a circular vault. In the center, floating above a stone pedestal, was a sliver of shimmering silver metal—a fragment of the Codex of Fate.
But as he reached for it, six shadows materialized from the darkness. They wore gray robes, their masks engraved with the ∞ symbol.
"Stop, Snow Emperor," a woman's voice said, cold as frost. "The pages of destiny are not for the unworthy."
Liam narrowed his eyes. "Aria?"
"You may call me that." She stepped forward, her gray robes fluttering to reveal a strange fusion of cybernetic limbs and bio-organic tissue. "We are the Watchers of the Infinite Labyrinth. We ensure that 'possibility' is not monopolized by any single power."
"So you're helping the Oath hide this?" Liam sneered.
"No." Aria shook her head. "We monitor everyone. Including you."
She raised her hand, and the fragment drifted slowly toward Liam.
"But today, I choose to give it to you."
Liam was stunned. "Why?"
"Because you did what we lacked the courage to do," Aria said, her gaze deep and inscrutable. "The Labyrinth believes in 'observation without intervention.' But when order becomes tyranny, silence is complicity. Your Vault... has ignited the spark of rebellion."
She paused, her voice dropping to a whisper. "Furthermore, the Codex shows that in the Great Cataclysm five years from now, without a 'Snow Emperor,' the galaxy will fall into eternal darkness."
Liam's heart hammered against his ribs. She knows about the Cataclysm?!
"Who are you people, really?"
"Exiled 'Prophets' of the Galactic Overmind," Aria said simply. "Our mission is to find the one who can rewrite the ending before the timeline collapses."
She placed the fragment into Liam's hand.
[Codex of Fate: Fragment I] Effect: Once per day, predict a key event 10 seconds into the future (24-hour cooldown). Warning: Over-reliance will lead to "Temporal Anchoring," causing the loss of free will.
Just as Liam secured the fragment, Aria's expression sharpened. "Go! The Oath's All-Seeing Eye has locked onto this location!"
The ceiling of the vault exploded! A beam of concentrated golden light shot down with the weight of a divine executioner.
"Those who desecrate the relics shall face eternal judgment!" The voice of Kaelen the Pure boomed like thunder.
Liam turned to run while Aria and her companions formed a defensive array, releasing a spatial distortion field to intercept the beam.
"Remember," Aria shouted through the chaos, "there are seven pages. The second lies in the Void Colosseum—but only a Genesis-tier talent can perceive the entrance!"
Liam burst out of the tunnel as a massive explosion leveled the chamber behind him. He didn't look back until he reached a safe zone.
Returning to the Vault's temporary base, he summoned his core members.
"As of today, our objective has evolved," he said gravely. "We don't just fight the Oath. We collect the Codex of Fate and rewrite the end of the Great Cataclysm."
Ben swallowed hard. "Boss... there's only thirty of us. Isn't that a bit... ambitious?"
"Small numbers aren't the problem," Liam pulled up the guild interface. "The problem is giving the strong a reason to follow us."
He activated another privilege from the Genesis Trial: the Guild Resonance Field.
[Guild Resonance Field (Lv.1)] Effect: All Vault members within a 50-meter radius receive a +5% buff to all stats. Scaling: For every additional Genesis-tier talent recruited, the radius increases by 10m and the buff by 1%.
Though Liam was currently the only Genesis-tier talent, the 5% buff was already significant. More importantly, it was a self-optimizing system. As the Vault attracted more geniuses, the field would grow stronger, creating a perfect feedback loop.
"Tomorrow, we open recruitment," Liam announced. "Same requirement: Have a brain faster than your mouth. But I will personally interview every applicant."
That night, Liam stood alone on the highest observatory in Astralis Prime. He pulled out the Codex fragment.
"Predict," he whispered. "Willow's condition when she wakes up tomorrow."
The fragment glowed. An image appeared: Willow opening her eyes and smiling, but deep in her pupils, a faint flicker of raw data flashed—a sign that her Wellness Avatar was not yet fully synced with her real-world nerves.
"There's still a risk..." Liam frowned.
He immediately used Sculpt Flesh, remotely injecting a strand of his own life force into Willow's profile. Though it cost him 1 point of permanent Max HP, the data flicker in the vision vanished.
"Worth it."
Suddenly, a system notification popped up:
[New Mail] From: Unknown (Encryption Level: Ω) Subject: — "Snow Emperor, your actions have been noted. If you wish to stay alive, come to The Forgotten Docks alone at midnight tomorrow. — From a friend who wishes to see the Oath's monopoly broken."
Liam stared at the mail. A trap? Or a new ally?
He looked toward the horizon where the closed-eye sigil of the Celestial Oath loomed over the city.
"Whoever you are," he whispered, "The Mortal Vault never fears an invitation."