Chapter 21: Rise Up, Section 3

The voice was loud, like a thunderclap. Unfortunately, it didn’t change anything for the pirates at all.
It was like a patient with long-suppressed depression suddenly unleashing terrifying energy. In just one sentence, the pirates’ artillery fire drowned out all the exits behind them. The rumbling sounds continued wave after wave, seemingly endless. Countless rocks bounced around, hitting the mechs with a pingping sound. Even more terrifying was that, at some point, the monkey had a small sphere in his hand. After fiddling with it casually, he prepared to throw it.
“Wait!… Monkey, do you really want to collapse this cave?” Looking at the sphere, even Blackhair’s gaze narrowed sharply, his tone slightly tense.
Others might not know, but he knew very well what that sphere was. It was one of the results from Black Prison Planet—a bomb that utilized subspace energy to exert power in normal space. Though small in size, its power was likely on par with a small nuclear bomb. What was even more alarming was that using such a weapon would inevitably cause cracks in the surrounding space, with consequences that could never be repaired.
Space cracks were a force more terrifying than radiation. Blackhair certainly didn’t want his body to suddenly split into two halves due to these cracks.
Obviously, the monkey didn’t understand the power of this small object in his backpack. He simply thought that if he was going to play, he might as well go all out. Although the bomb didn’t look impressive, its label displayed a highly dangerous red color—perfect, of course. Hearing Blackhair’s words suddenly, he froze, weighing the sphere in his hand, his face full of confusion.
“What, it’s not good? Boss, you’re too stingy. Don’t be afraid to spend some ammo.”
“I’m worried about you, you idiot,” Blackhair said, his face darkening. “Put that thing back in your backpack right now. Do you want everyone to die with you?”
“Huh?” Only then did the monkey realize the severity of the situation. In just a few words, almost all the pirates stopped what they were doing and turned to look at him. The feeling of being the center of attention was unfamiliar to him. He quickly and sheepishly put the sphere back in his backpack.
However, with this interruption, everyone noticed that loud voice. They looked around, but couldn’t see a single person anywhere.

“No need to look. You can’t see me. If it weren’t for your excessive movements, I wouldn’t want to communicate with you so early. Humans—I must say, wherever you go, you’re the most detestable, the most destructive race!!” The loud voice rang out again, causing the rock walls to tremble slightly. Anyone could easily hear the anger hidden in it.
But Black Hair wasn’t paying attention to that.
“Humans? Have you seen other humans?” Suddenly reaching out to turn on the external speakers, Black Hair asked abruptly. This question made everyone pause and think.
Yes, if this mysterious master had seen humans before, then things got serious. After all, the Thirty-One Star Regions were a wilderness—a place that had never been explored. Where could he have seen humans?
“Of course. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to understand your language. It’s just that that place isn’t in a straight line from here, so it’s impossible for you to make contact.” The loud voice seemed unaware of the meaning behind Black Hair’s words but still answered honestly.
“What nonsense? What do you mean it’s not in a straight line and can’t be contacted?” This time, it was Monkey who spoke. Clearly, he wasn’t impressed by this mysterious master.
“This question is indeed a bit complex for humans here. But since you asked, I can explain it to you. A straight line refers to this spacetime—that is, it’s not the same universe as yours. Has your technology not advanced enough to detect different dimensions? Or do you not know about the Third Element?”
“The Third Element…” Black Hair’s fingers trembled as he almost jumped up from the control panel. “Are you saying, besides time and space, there’s a third element!? The fundamental rule that constitutes the world?”
It was tense—really tense. Black Hair had never imagined he’d be able to discuss this topic so closely.
Although he wasn’t a scientist, he knew that, aside from the discovery of anti-space and sub-space, the greatest discovery in space science was the so-called Third Element. It was a very peculiar hypothesis, somewhat similar to the fantasy novels of Earth’s past. It suggested that the world wasn’t singular but consisted of countless parallel worlds. Each world had its own universe, its own time. And what separated these worlds was the so-called Third Element. (Pure nonsense—don’t take it seriously.)
Simply put, the Third Element is the concept of parallel worlds.

So, could this life before us come from another world?
A surge of extreme excitement washed over the black-haired man, making his body tremble.
“You’re right—it’s the rules. It seems humans in this world have also developed quite well. They can already sense the existence of rules. But their nature remains unchanged: so violent, so fond of destruction.” The loud voice sounded appreciative yet filled with resentment. Even a fool could tell it must have suffered greatly because of this in the past.
“I see.” The black-haired man sneered. “But as for your evaluation of humans, please forgive me—I think it’s a compliment.”
“Another excuse-making tactic? In that world, you humans were just as eager to find excuses for yourselves. It seems nothing is off-limits as an excuse. Even destroying an entire race can be framed as preventing terrorism. Truly astonishing.”
“Oh, of course it’s different. I’m not like them.” The Emperor of Murder stretched out his hand and put all his weapons back in his backpack. “Because I don’t need to justify anything at all. Our human lives are but a few decades long, unlike you monsters who seem immortal. So to get what we deserve, we must use drastic measures. Is destruction bad? After we destroy, don’t more new problems arise? As for plundering, haha, please forgive my bluntness. It’s just a process of material exchange.”
“Despicable.” The loud voice was stunned by the black-haired man’s reckless words. After a long while, it spat out the word harshly.
But obviously, verbal conflicts couldn’t change anything. The black-haired man remained indifferent, waving his hand casually.
“Don’t worry. I’m not the kind of person you imagine. I don’t need to cover up what I’ve done, nor would I use boring lies like preventing terrorism. So maybe we can have a proper conversation? After all, I’m a guest from afar. And your behavior doesn’t seem very polite either. If I’m not mistaken, those attacks over the past three days were all your doing?”
“That’s the wrath of nature! You damned humans, don’t shift the blame onto me!!” The loud voice became furious and retorted loudly. But in the end, it still made a concession.
“Never mind. There’s no point in reasoning with ignorant creatures like you. But if you want something, come here.”

The cave was trembling, changing. Despite the extreme intensity, it surprisingly made no sound at all. Under everyone’s astonished gazes, the surroundings suddenly changed. It was no longer the labyrinthine cave they had entered initially, but rather a vast square. The ground of the square was entirely made of a peculiar fluorite, emitting a greenish, mesmerizing glow. Above their heads, it turned into a starry sky. The brilliant stars seemed within reach, as if one could stretch out a hand to touch them, incredibly enchanting.

Was this… a dream?

The pirates frantically rubbed their eyes, unable to believe what they saw.

The miraculous transformation had completely shattered their worldview. If they had thought it was an illusion before, the sensation of the mecha stepping on the fluorite ground snapped them out of it.

It was real—everything was real!!

This was utterly unbelievable!!

At that moment, Blackhair from the Killing Emperors wore a serious expression as he established a private channel with Monkey. He softly uttered four words:

“Material reorganization.”

“Mm,” Monkey confirmed. “That’s right, boss. This is indeed material reorganization. This master is even more powerful than we imagined.”

Monkey’s words made Blackhair shiver inwardly, but he still nodded in agreement.

After all, material reorganization was a very special technique—and an extremely powerful method. If the master here possessed such a technique, he would indeed face significant dangers. After all, this technique wasn’t only used in research and manufacturing; when applied to weapons, it was equally devastating. Due to the constraints of spatial rules, in this universe, there wasn’t a single type of armor capable of resisting the power of material reorganization.

With this mindset, Blackhair and his group gradually crossed the square, eventually stopping in front of a massive altar. From their vantage point, it was a truly magnificent altar, enormous beyond imagination. Even the size of the Killing Emperors paled in comparison, making them seem like ants. At the very top of the altar was a green light sphere, flickering on and off.

“Are you the master here?” In silence, Blackhair spoke first…