Chapter Forty-Nine: Shards of the Star Pillar

Inside the Dome Hall, Ouyang Nan’s voice was low yet struck each person’s ears like a sudden thunderclap.

The exhilaration brought by stabilizing the nascent wormhole was instantly replaced by a cold, viscous cloud of doubt.

The disappearance of his parents, the haunting presence of Redeem, the strange signals, and the star gate that had just been activated—

These scattered pieces were forcibly linked by one sudden clue, sketching out a chilling possibility.

At this moment, all the clues seemed bound tightly together by an invisible thread.

Joy from the success still lingered in the Dome Hall but was overshadowed by a heavy and eerie gloom brought on by this unexpected discovery.

Xu Yan stood rooted, feeling as if the blood in his body had momentarily chilled.

His gaze fixed unwaveringly on the coordinate point on the central star map where the disturbance had just subsided, as if trying to pierce through the illusory light and shadow to uncover the harsh truth hidden in deep space.

The coveting presence within his consciousness fell into an unusual silence, with only faint data streams silently surging, seemingly analyzing this sudden correlation at high speed.

General Mu Chengzhu’s face was dark enough to drip water.

He waved his hand, his voice steady but carrying undeniable authority: “Intelligence division, follow up immediately. Conduct a thorough investigation of all historical and real-time data related to that coordinate! All details within the hall today are classified at the highest level; no one is to leak a single word! Dismissed!”

With the order given, personnel from various departments withdrew in an orderly fashion, their expressions complex, yet the heavy atmosphere and doubts lingered long after.

Xu Yan did not leave immediately.

He remained standing until the hall emptied, with only Mu Chengzhu, Jing Zhimin, and the core members of their team left.

“General,” Xu Yan finally spoke, his voice hoarse, “we need to talk. Alone.”

Mu Chengzhu’s deep eyes glanced at him and nodded. “Follow me.”

...

In the interstellar command center, a completely soundproof chamber.

Only Mu Chengzhu, Xu Yan, and the silent presence flowing within Xu Yan’s consciousness—the coveting.

“What have you discovered?” Mu Chengzhu asked directly, without any pleasantries.

Xu Yan took a deep breath, deciding to reveal the most critical part without reservation: “General, my previous report held back some details. The assistance I received in stabilizing the wormhole model and the technical ideas provided were not simply ‘inspiration’ or ‘accidentally obtained data from Lam Star.’”

He paused, as if gathering courage and confirming his resolve.

Deep within his consciousness, the coveting seemed to understand Xu Yan’s intention, approving for the first time the unilateral disclosure Xu Yan was about to make.

A calm, unruffled stream of information was transmitted: ‘Based on the current situation and the principle of maximizing ROI, limited disclosure of existence will help secure more resources, accelerate the star gate project, and address potential threats. Risks are controllable.’

Receiving the coveting’s confirmation, Xu Yan’s lips curled into a slight smile. He lifted his head and met Mu Chengzhu’s gaze directly: “The real reason is me. Within my body resides a symbiotic intelligent life form from Lam Star. His name is Coveting.”

Even with Mu Chengzhu’s composure, his pupils constricted sharply in an instant, and his hand resting on the table clenched unconsciously.

The chamber fell into a deathly silence, broken only by the faint hiss of the air circulation system.

...

“Proof.” After a long moment, Mu Chengzhu slowly uttered the word, his voice laden with extreme restraint.

Xu Yan closed his eyes.

The next moment, when he opened them again, his gaze was incomparably calm, pure, and even carried a trace of otherworldly detachment.

He spoke fluently a string of highly complex syllables rich with strange rhythms. Simultaneously, his fingers swiftly traced a perfect, cold geometric symbol on the touchpad—a pattern unknown to any system on Blue Star.

“This is a basic language fragment and corresponding spatial coordinate verification code used by Lam Star for high-level energy topology validation,” the coveting’s voice flowed smoothly without a ripple. “With Blue Star’s current computational power, brute-force decoding would take over thirty thousand years. And this originates from my core memory bank.”

Mu Chengzhu stared intently at the symbol, then at Xu Yan’s eyes, which seemed stripped of all human emotion.

As a seasoned veteran who had weathered countless storms, he trusted his instincts.

At this moment, he clearly felt that although the young man’s body remained the same, the “presence” inside was fundamentally different.

That oppressive sense of technology beyond the era was unmistakable.

After the shock came rapid contemplation.

Mu Chengzhu leaned back slowly in his chair, fingers tapping the table unconsciously. “...Incredible. So, what is your purpose in revealing this now?”

“Cooperation.” Xu Yan’s eyes, now partially regaining their own sparkle, still bore the efficiency characteristic of the coveting. “Coveting is willing to participate directly, to a limited extent, in the star gate project, providing deeper Lam Star technological support. But there is one absolute prerequisite: knowledge of his existence must be limited strictly to Blue Star’s highest decision-makers and a very small core research team. It cannot be disclosed to the public or even most members of the council. This is the bottom line.”

‘Large-scale disclosure would cause unpredictable social turmoil, panic, and inefficient political struggles, severely depleting project resources and time,’ the coveting’s consciousness coldly added.

Mu Chengzhu was silent.

He fully understood the request.

The revelation of an extraterrestrial intelligent life symbiotically existing with a human would trigger catastrophic chain reactions once leaked.

“I agree to keep it confidential,” Mu Chengzhu finally declared. “But Xu Yan, how will you convince the few at the highest council of Coveting’s existence? With only your word and a few symbols? They need ‘visible’ evidence—a more persuasive, tangible carrier.”

This question had long been anticipated by Xu Yan and the coveting.

“Coveting’s original body is unsuitable for Blue Star’s atmospheric pressure and biological environment and was destroyed after arrival. He currently has no fixed form; his existence is based on biological information waves and energy fields,” Xu Yan explained. “But he proposed a solution: using Blue Star’s existing high-precision holographic projection technology combined with specific metallic free ions diffused in the air, precisely controlled and excited by energy fields, to construct a ‘holographic manifestation’ carrier between virtual and real. This carrier can reflect Coveting’s ‘presence’ in real-time, allowing interaction, but essentially remains a controlled energy projection whose core consciousness is still connected to me.”

A gleam flashed in Mu Chengzhu’s eyes. “So, you can create a ‘visible’ Coveting, but in reality, he still perceives and influences the world through you?”

“Yes. This satisfies the ‘visibility’ requirement while maximizing Coveting’s core safety and secrecy,” Xu Yan nodded. “But this requires top-level resources from the command center, including access to equipment and materials from the ‘Genesis’ particle laboratory.”

Mu Chengzhu stood and paced the chamber before stopping. “Very well. I will personally coordinate the resources. Xu Yan, the risks of this far exceed your imagination. Once you take this step, there is no turning back.”

“We have long since passed the point of no return, General,” Xu Yan’s gaze drifted into the void, as if seeing the coordinates of his parents’ disappearance and the shadow lurking behind Redeem. “Whether for the future of the star gate or to unveil the truth of the past.”

...

Several days later, with Mu Chengzhu’s full support, an extremely secret laboratory was activated.

After multiple failed adjustments, finally—

...

Inside the chamber, countless tiny metal ions in the air began to converge under the precise control of a specific energy field, while a high-precision projector emitted a soft glow.

Gradually, a slender, slightly blurred silver-gray humanoid outline appeared suspended in the air. It lacked detailed facial features, only two faint azure lights representing “eyes.” The overall image was simple and cold, radiating nonhuman tranquility and rationality.

“Carrier stability at 98.7%, energy consumption within expected range,” Xu Yan said, gazing at the floating “figure.”

Almost simultaneously, the silver-gray “figure” emitted a calm voice with an electronic synthesized timbre: “Perception interface is smooth, information flow transmission without delay. Manifestation successful.”

Mu Chengzhu watched this unimaginable scene, feeling deeply shaken despite his mental preparation.

He saw an “independent” Coveting, yet he understood this was a delicate bridge—the other end of which remained firmly tethered to Xu Yan.

This was the premise on which he agreed to Xu Yan and the alien being Coveting’s request.

As long as the carrier remained a Blue Star human, it was within controllable limits.

But to the outside world, Coveting’s existence must remain a secret; no one was to know he existed solely through holographic projection technology.

Mu Chengzhu produced from an inner pocket of his uniform a seemingly black, irregularly shaped fragment and handed it to Xu Yan.

“This is something I inadvertently struck during an interstellar mission in my youth, embedded on my combat suit. Because it has no magnetic field or biological information waves and originates beyond Blue Star, I kept it,” Mu Chengzhu explained, offering it like a gift.

Xu Yan immediately understood the implication.

This object was not from Blue Star; thus, Coveting’s projection carrier could be concealed by this item.

No one would know that Coveting actually shared a symbiotic existence with him.

“Thank you, General!” Xu Yan bowed deeply in gratitude.

“A small favor,” Mu Chengzhu replied calmly. “I believe you understand well our ultimate goal and hope. You should feel proud and honored to be a Blue Starer!”

“I understand!” Xu Yan held the object before his eyes. Henceforth, it would be called the “Star Pillar Fragment.”

“Good.” Mu Chengzhu sensed Xu Yan’s resolve in the name.

A flash of joy crossed his face before vanishing, his gaze sharpening intensely. “Then it is time for the few who must know to witness our ‘partner’ from Lam Star firsthand. I will immediately request a top-level closed-door meeting of the Federal Council.”

He looked at Xu Yan and then at the hovering silver-gray figure. “Prepare yourselves, Xu Yan, Coveting. What you will face is the scrutiny and questioning of Blue Star’s pinnacle of power. This dialogue will determine the future of the star gate project and, perhaps... the future of Blue Star itself.”

Xu Yan and the silver-gray figure (Coveting) exchanged a glance—though it was only between projection and core.

“Understood.”

“Agreed.”

Their voices sounded simultaneously—one carrying human resolve, the other Lam Star’s cold composure.

A dialogue toward the unknown was about to unfold at the highest level.