Chapter 966 — Those Things Missed

"As for taking survivors from a planet... they seemed to have done such things more than once. They had a vast 'fleet,' and deep within it, closely guarded by Pathfinder warships, were countless peoples who had come aboard during the 'Pathfinding Expedition.' Some were refugees from other planets, some were civilizations that had joined the fleet of their own accord, and some were merely traveling along the way... It is said the oldest members of the fleet had sailed with the Pathfinders for tens of thousands of years, but unfortunately the dragons never had the chance to meet those 'passengers' from strange worlds—at the time they were stationed in space, charged with building the still-unfinished 'Vault of Heaven,' and never landed on this planet."

The Dragon God's soft, low voice went on unhurriedly, and her gaze seemed gradually to drift far away, her eyes growing utterly vacant—perhaps she had sunk into those ancient memories, perhaps she was mourning what the dragons had once missed, or perhaps she was merely pondering, in her capacity as a "god," the future of races and civilizations. Whatever the reason, Gaoyang did not interrupt her.

For Gaoyang himself had already sunk into a strange train of thought, into a stirring he had never imagined—about the sea of stars and the mysteries of the world.

This world... no, this universe, was not silent. Even with the periodic threat of the magical tides, even with the gods' regular shackles, there was still, among those glittering stars, the flame of civilization drifting onward.

The vast Pathfinder fleet, the civilizations of other planets, the expedition across the sea of stars... When he had awakened in an ancient tomb and faced a sunken magical "Middle Ages," he could never have imagined he would hear such concepts in this world—yet today these things spread out before his eyes, unfolding in the form of history.

The most incredible part was that the "person" recounting all this... was actually a "god."

This journey to Talund had been well worth it.

Amid this faint, swelling excitement, Gaoyang finally could not help breaking the silence: "Will the Pathfinders really never come back?"

"The dragons have waited more than a million years," Enya Pingxi said. "The Pathfinders never returned... The things they left among the stars are all running automatically, and in the course of running automatically they are gradually decaying. Such a thing has perhaps happened more than once on other planets—I think the Pathfinders did not leave those things behind so that one day they could return and take charge of this insignificant little ball of rock. Though I do not know why they left those installations, they most likely will truly never come back."

A sudden sense of forlorn loss came over Gaoyang.

He seemed to understand why the dragons of old had carried out that plan to cultivate the "Counter-Tide," why they had wanted to use the Pathfinders' legacy to forge another mighty mortal civilization.

Yet some things... once missed, are truly missed. Blind and futile "remedial" measures come to nothing in the end.

The Dragon God looked at him, and after a moment, a faint smile appeared: "Do you yearn for the stars, wanderer from beyond the realm?"

"For many years past, I have been among the stars," Gaoyang said with a touch of emotion. "To me, this planet... truly is not spacious enough."

"Is that so..." the Dragon God said noncommittally. Then she suddenly let out a long breath and slowly rose. "What a pleasant conversation... Let us stop here, wanderer from beyond the realm. It is getting late."

"Indeed, we seem to have talked for a long while," Gaoyang said, rising as well. He took the mechanical watch from his breast and glanced at it, then looked toward the entrance of the temple hall—but before he took a step to leave, he suddenly stopped again, his gaze returning to the Dragon God. "By the way, if you don't mind—I have one more question."

"Please ask."

"The Black Pit... the Black Pit that causes so many civilizations to suddenly go extinct after reaching their peak—what exactly is it?"

The Dragon God was silent for a few seconds, then said slowly: "Do you remember that battlefield deep within the Eternal Storm?"

Gaoyang nodded. "Of course I remember."

After a brief silence, the Dragon God's voice—gentle, yet tinged with a certain solemnity—reached Gaoyang's ears: "At the final moment, when the gods had fused into one and the shackles were utterly fixed, the dragon race chose to surrender their freedom. They bowed their heads and became my nourishment and my servants—and so they halted at the brink of the Black Pit, though one foot was already trapped within it.

"And those who would not bow faced their end.

"They stood against the invincible 'God of Gods,' and were annihilated by the faith-power their own civilization had accumulated over thousands upon thousands of years, perishing together with all the culture, legend, myth, and reverence that civilization had created. However strong the civilization, so strong was its god—and the 'civilization detonation' born of those two colliding... that is the Black Pit."

Gaoyang's eyes went wide. When the answer he had wrestled with for so long finally came rushing at him head-on, he nearly held his breath; only when his heart began to pound did he speak, unable to keep the urgency from his voice: "Wait—this 'third story' you hadn't told me before, does it mean there's still one more path..."

"You said just now that you had 'one' question left," the Dragon God cut him off. Her tone was still gentle, her expression somewhere between a smile and something else. "That makes two."

Gaoyang was left momentarily speechless. He wanted to speak again, but the deity before him shook her head in silence.

A moment later, Gaoyang let out a breath: "All right. I understand."

Then he took a step back. "Thank you for your hospitality, and for your patient answers—this has truly been a pleasant talk. I think it's time I took my leave. My friends are still waiting."

"By all means," the Dragon God said with a graceful nod. "Hragor is just outside the door. He will see you back."

Gaoyang gave a slight nod of thanks, then turned and strode toward the exit of the sanctum hall.

He could feel a gaze resting on his back—resting there all the while, never withdrawn.

At the entrance of the sanctum hall, the high dragon priest with the pale gold hair and severe face was indeed still waiting in the corridor, as though he had not moved a single step.

He had once been a leader of the dragon race.

He had once been a warrior who rose up against the gods.

He had once held in his hands the legacy left by the Pathfinders, and perhaps... he too had once yearned for the stars.

"Greetings, High Priest."

"Guest, do you need me to see you back?"

"Thank you. I appreciate it."

"Think nothing of it."