allendalepharm Page 16
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Lin Ye sensed Trunks' energy fluctuating violently, and the metal band began to emit a blinding blue light. He instinctively activated the skill borrowing function of the new system.
[Connecting to parallel universe L-792...]
[Skill time pause has been used, remaining time: 4 minutes and 59 seconds]
The world suddenly fell silent. Lin Ye saw the flying roof debris frozen in mid-air, the Time and Space Administration personnel still in their marching stances, even Bulma's surprised expression frozen in place. The only thing still moving was the metal band on Trunks' wrist, its light intensifying.
Lin Ye quickly walked to Trunks' side and found that his eyes were open again, this time with a much clearer look.
They...are tracking me...Trunks said with difficulty, "My timeline...Bulma's mother has...You must stop them from restarting the universe..."
Lin Ye felt the countdown to borrowing the skill was running out quickly: Explain it clearly!
The Time-Space Administration Bureau... is not the Maintainer... Trunks grabbed Lin Ye's wrist with astonishing strength; they are... the Reapers...
[Skill remaining time: 10 seconds]
Lin Ye felt time begin to flow, and he quickly retreated to his original position. The people from the Time and Space Administration seemed unaware of the anomaly and continued to walk towards them.
As a final warning, the leader extended his hand, handing over Trunks and the time technology you stole.
Bulma sneered: Threatening me on my turf? You think—
Her words were interrupted by a violent tremor. The laboratory floor suddenly cracked open, and a huge metal device rose from the ground, covered with metal bands similar to those on Trunks' wrists.
Oh no! Bulma's face changed. "I didn't start it!"
The center of the metal device began to rotate, forming a blue vortex. Lin Ye's system suddenly emitted a sharp alarm:
[Time rift detected!]
[Matching the energy characteristics of the final star god!]
[Immediate evacuation recommended!]
A hand covered in starlight reached out from the vortex, then a second... They gripped the edge of the vortex, seemingly trying to pry open the passage. The people from the Time and Space Administration finally showed expressions of horror.
"Retreat! Retreat immediately!" the leader shouted. "It's the Star God himself!"
But it was too late. The vortex suddenly expanded, and a figure composed of pure starlight appeared in the center of the laboratory. It had no fixed shape, sometimes resembling a human, sometimes a beast, the only constant being the enormous clock pattern on its chest.
Lin... Night... The Star God spoke in a non-human voice, a voice that sounded like a superposition of a thousand voices: Time... has come...
Trunks suddenly leaped from the medical bed, his eyes flashing with determination: No! This time, I won't let you succeed!
He ripped the metal band from his wrist and hurled it at the Star God. The band unfurled in mid-air, forming a complex array of runes. The Star God let out a painful shriek, and its form began to falter.
"Hurry!" Trunks shouted back, "This seal can only last a few minutes!"
Bulma stood still: I won't abandon you!
"Mom..." Trunks' voice suddenly softened. "In my timeline, these were the last words you said to me..."
The Star God's struggles grew increasingly violent, and the entire laboratory began to collapse. Lin Ye grabbed Bulma's arm: We must leave! Now!
The moment they rushed out of the laboratory, a deafening explosion erupted behind them. A beam of blue light shot into the sky, and then everything returned to calm.
On the ruins, only Trunks' goggles lay there silently, their lenses reflecting eerie starlight.
[System Notification: Multiverse connectivity stability has decreased to 45%]
Seven parallel universes have been detected merging at an accelerated pace.
[Estimated time for complete fusion: 72 hours]
Chapter 60: On the Eve of Trial
A spatial rift tore open silently, and twelve silver figures descended, stepping on distorted halos of light. Their boots left fiery red runes on the ground, and their liquid metal armor reflected dazzling spots of light in the sunlight. The TDA-00 badge on the chest of the lead enforcer gleamed with a cold blue light, and a holographic judgment projected from his gauntlet slowly unfolded before Lin Ye.
Number U7-9527, according to Article 4 of Chapter 17 of the "Inter-temporal and Spatial Control Regulations"—
Vegeta's fist was faster than the pronouncement of judgment. A deep blue aura tore a scorching trail through the air, only to abruptly stop three inches from the captain's face. The honeycomb-like energy barrier rippled, transforming the violent impact into countless tiny two-dimensional specks of light. The Saiyan prince stared in astonishment as his arm flattened, like a faded mural nailed to an invisible frame.
In its deep blue form, its combat power is estimated at 1.2 million units. The special agent captain's mechanical tone is flat; dimensional reduction and sealing are recommended.
A scarlet warning box exploded on Lin Ye's retina. The system scan results showed that the energy signatures of these law enforcement armors perfectly matched the mechanical core of the mirrored Lin Ye. This discovery sent a chill down his spine—the so-called Time and Space Administration Bureau was likely just a front for another conspiracy.
"If I really broke the law, why would your equipment respond to Lin Ye's commands?" Lin Ye suddenly shouted. He noticed a 0.3-second delay in the agents' movements when this name was mentioned.
In that split second, Number 18 appeared from the shadows like a ghost. Her fingertips danced with eerie blue arcs of electricity, precisely piercing the interfaces on the back of the necks of two agents. The electromagnetic pulses exploded, and black smoke, carrying the smell of burning, billowed from the gaps in the armor. The agent captain whirled around, only to see a stream of data flowing through the android's eyes.
Sorry. Number 18's voice had a mechanical vibrato, and my access level is three orders of magnitude higher than yours.
The Supreme Kai's divine barrier deployed at the opportune moment, enveloping everyone in a pale golden sphere. The special agent captain sneered, and the giant cannon barrel in the void began to reassemble. It wasn't a conventional energy weapon, but a causality cannon woven from countless holographic images—the torn Earth's atmosphere, the afterimages of Saiyans annihilated in a time paradox, the process of Namek turning into data fragments, each image marked with a spacetime catastrophe caused by the system's loss of control.
Wait! Bulma suddenly rushed out, her scanner aimed at the corner of the hologram. These images had been edited! Magnified forty times, the same black-robed figure flashed by 0.01 seconds before each disaster. Vegeta's tail snapped straight up, its scales rubbing together with a piercing sound.
Cronus... The Saiyan prince squeezed out that name through gritted teeth. That bastard is framing me!
Suddenly, Number 18 began to tremble violently. Dazzling sparks flew from her mechanical joints, and her irises swirled wildly between amber and digital blue. Forced command...unable... The android collapsed to her knees in agony, her fingernails digging deep furrows into the ground. The agent captain's laughter, like the turning of rusty gears, echoed: "You think stolen access can fool the mainframe?"
Lin Ye lunged forward and embraced her convulsing body, the system alarm nearly piercing his eardrums. Suddenly, Number 18 grabbed his collar, the mechanical skin splitting open from his palm to reveal a blood-stained chip inside. Bulma's...firewall...her voice grew weaker and weaker, the system...was alive.
When the chip was inserted into the interface on Lin Ye's chest, the world crumbled before his eyes. He fell into an abyss of fragmented memories, seeing countless versions of himself at their end in different times and spaces: the original host turned into a statue by the system's backlash, the gene chain tunable by Rickronus in the laboratory, and—most chillingly—the image of his future self stabbing the Key of Time into the heart of the mirror image of Lin Ye.
This is not a prophecy. The voice of Number 18 came from nothingness; it is the sum of all possibilities.
A fragment suddenly glowed with a blinding red light. In the video, a dying Bulma coughed up blood: "The system is never a tool... it's choosing a host..."
The roar of artillery fire in the real world abruptly pulled Lin Ye back to reality. The special agent captain's weapon was already 98% charged, and the countdown tolled like a death knell: 5...4...3...
The moment Lin Ye opened his eyes, he saw a completely unfamiliar system interface. The originally azure screen turned blood red, and a command he had never seen before was flashing wildly:
[Will it absorb the Time and Space Administration?]
Vegeta's maniacal laughter and the shrill roar of his energy cannon tore through the air simultaneously. The Saiyan prince, burning with power, broke through the two-dimensional barrier, his deep blue flames mixed with eerie blood streaks: "That's more like it, you inferior warrior!"
In the final moment before the artillery fire engulfed his vision, Lin Ye pressed the confirm button.
Chapter 61: Hidden Conspiracy
So you think this was just an accident? The captain of the Time and Space Administration interrupted my story with a cold laugh, the silver badge on his chest gleaming ominously in the light of the Tree of Origin.
I clenched my fists, sweat trickling down my palms. Vegeta stood to my right, his muscles taut like a fully drawn bowstring. Trunks and Gohan formed a human wall to my left. I could feel the surging ki within them, ready to explode at any moment.
We've already explained it very clearly. I forced myself to remain calm; it was a spacetime rift that suddenly appeared, and we were just—
"But what?" the agent captain interrupted me, his prosthetic eye flashing red. "Just happened to appear in the wrong place? Just happened to disrupt the balance of three parallel universes?"
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Lin Ye silently retreating. His mechanical eyes gleamed with an unusual light, and his lips moved slightly, as if he were whispering something. An ominous premonition crept down my spine.
"Watch out for Lin Ye!" I shouted as I turned around abruptly.
But it was too late.
The plan was going smoothly, and those fools were still completely in the dark. Mirror Lin Ye's lips curled into a wicked smile I had never seen before. His voice was soft, but everyone present heard it clearly.
"What?!" Vegeta roared, but his words were interrupted by the sudden turn of events.
The light emanating from the Tree of Origin suddenly became chaotic, the seven-colored beams twisting and deforming as if stirred by an invisible hand. The status of the fanfiction protagonist system displayed on the leaves flickered wildly, and the code scattered like leaves in a storm.
Oh no! The Supreme Kai's expression changed drastically. He formed hand seals in an attempt to stabilize the system, but the golden runes shattered into points of light as soon as they appeared. There was an even more powerful force interfering with the system, which was probably more dangerous than Gold Cell and the Omni-King of Destruction!
Lin Ye burst into laughter, a laugh filled with madness and triumph. Only now do they realize? Too late!
His body suddenly disintegrated into countless mirror-like fragments, each reflecting our astonished expressions. The fragments flew in all directions like sharp blades, their trajectories almost invisible.
"Scatter!" I roared, simultaneously unleashing a protective shield. Shards of the mirror struck the shield with a screeching sound, several pieces breaching the defenses and leaving deep, bloody gashes on my arm.
Vegeta instantly transformed into a Super Saiyan, his golden aura vaporizing the fragments that threatened to strike him. "So it was you who did this!" he roared, unleashing a ki blast towards the area where the fragments were most concentrated.
The shockwave from the explosion shook the entire space, but Lin Ye's voice came from all directions: You think you can really stop everything? How naive!
The agents of the Time and Space Administration finally realized what was happening and raised their weapons. Those devices that looked like pistols weren't firing bullets, but rather beams of energy that warped spacetime.
"Don't interfere!" Trunks yelled at the agents. "You're only making things worse!"
But the agents ignored them. The energy beam pierced through space, yet eerily passed through the fragments of the mirror image, as if it had struck only a phantom.
His movement trajectory is off! I analyzed the situation while dodging the flying debris. Mirror Lin Ye seemed to anticipate every attack, always dodging a fraction of a second in advance. This couldn't be explained by combat experience; it was more like—
"He's receiving some kind of guidance!" Son Gohan suddenly shouted, his golden aura crackling with blue arcs of electricity. Something was telling him our attack route!
The scene from the core of the Temple of Time flashed through my mind—the mysterious look in Mirror Lin Ye's eyes as he gazed at the Tree of Origin. A terrifying hypothesis took shape in my mind: there are other forces behind him! And they are related to the Tree of Origin!
The Supreme Kai was struggling to stabilize the system, sweat rolling down his forehead. "The system is being hacked!" he said with difficulty. "Someone is rewriting the core code!"
A massive shard of mirror suddenly materialized before the Supreme Kai, from which Lin Ye's upper body emerged. "Old man, don't waste your energy." He sneered, extending his hand, a ball of black energy coalescing at his fingertips. "This system was never something you could control from the start."
Stop! I teleported in front of the Supreme Kai, crossing my arms to block the black light. The energy impact plowed two deep furrows in the ground with my feet, and the pain spread from my arms throughout my body.
"Interesting." Mirror Lin Ye tilted his head, looking at me with an inhuman gleam in his eyes. "Your growth has indeed exceeded expectations." It's a pity.
He suddenly disappeared and then reappeared behind me. I felt a chill run down my spine and looked down to see a semi-transparent hand piercing through my chest.
"Lin Ye!" Trunks's roar seemed to come from a great distance.
Strangely, I felt no pain, only a cold, numb sensation spreading from the wound. Mirror Lin Ye leaned close to my ear and whispered: You think you're the protagonist? No, you're just a pawn in a plan.
He pulled his hand away, and my body lurched forward. My vision began to darken at the edges, but I forced myself to turn and grab his wrist. "Who... is controlling you?" I asked through gritted teeth.
For the first time, Lin Ye's expression flickered; his mechanical eyes flashed wildly, as if resisting something. "You...wouldn't understand..." His voice suddenly became broken, "We...are all..."
A golden beam of light suddenly struck Mirror Lin Ye's shoulder—Vegeta's Ultimate Flash. Mirror Lin Ye was forced back, and my body lost its support, collapsing to my knees.
"Healing chamber! Quickly put him in the healing chamber!" The Supreme Kai's voice seemed to come from near and far.
I felt myself being lifted up, and in my blurred vision, Lin Ye's body in the mirror image disintegrated into countless fragments once more. The agents' energy beams and the Saiyan's ki blasts intertwined into a net, yet they couldn't truly capture him.
It's no use. Mirror Lin Ye's voice echoed through the space; you cannot comprehend what is happening. When the final piece of the puzzle is in place, the entire multiverse will—
His declaration was interrupted by an even stronger surge of energy. A black crack suddenly appeared in the trunk of the Tree of Origin, and something enormous and indescribable was trying to pass through.
The Supreme Kai's face turned deathly pale: No...impossible...that's...
Lin Ye turned towards the crack, knelt on one knee, and his posture was so respectful that it was chilling: Welcome, my lord.
The crack widened by an inch, and a hand made of pure darkness reached out. Just seeing that hand sent a jolt of pain through my brain, as if a thousand needles were piercing it. Sparks flew from all the agents' equipment, and the two agents closest to the crack were instantly reduced to ashes.
Vegeta and Trunks were forced to retreat, their Super Saiyan aura as fragile as a candle flickering in the face of darkness.
I had to...stop it...I struggled to stand up, but the glass dome of the treatment chamber had already fallen, and green recovery fluid began to fill it.
In the final moments before my consciousness faded, I saw Lin Ye, as reflected in the mirror, walk towards the crack, his body beginning to assimilate with the darkness. His voice came one last time, this time not addressed to us: