He held back no longer.
With a slight clench of his right hand, a miniature black hole formed in the area most densely packed with the contaminated creatures.
This time, he did not hold back.
The black hole rapidly expanded, devouring the surrounding creatures along with vast swaths of the Void Filth.
But just as the black hole was about to dissipate, Dottore felt a strange ripple pass through the surrounding space.
It felt as though some slumbering presence had turned over in its sleep.
“Indeed, it’s not merely simple contamination…” he murmured.
“This world is being eroded by some force from the outside.” As he pressed deeper, the scene before him grew ever more staggering.
Enormous whirlpools began to appear in the black marsh, and at their centers, twisted shards of light and shadow were faintly visible.
Strange crystalline fragments began to drift through the air, radiating weak spatiotemporal fluctuations.
“Fragments of Temporal Resonance Ore?” Dottore caught a drifting purple crystal and examined it closely.
“The purity is several times higher than what the stronghold has collected…
The spacetime currents here are indeed anomalous.” Suddenly, a shocking sight unfolded ahead.
A massive spatial rift hung suspended in midair, its edges constantly crumbling and reforming.
More Void Filth poured out from within it.
Through the rift, Dottore saw a suffocating vision: shattered stars, a ruined earth, and the wreckage of countless worlds.
“So that’s it…” The truth finally crystallized for Dottore.
“This rift connects to the void beyond the world.
The Void Filth is merely the ‘impurities’ leaking in.” He quickly analyzed the rift’s structure.
“Stability is extremely poor, but its self-repair capability is strong.
Forcibly closing it might trigger a spatial collapse…” Just then, the spacetime pocket watch against his chest emitted a piercing alarm.
The cracks on the watch face had spread all the way to the core, and the core hourglass had begun to spin uncontrollably and wildly.
“There’s no time for a detailed study.” Dottore made a swift decision.
“This rift must be closed immediately.” He pulled out the detector and began inputting commands.
Each attempt triggered even more violent tremors.
“Warning: Spatial stability below 45%,” the detector suddenly announced in a mechanical tone.
Dottore clicked his tongue in irritation and was forced to stop his operation.
He scanned his surroundings, and his attention was suddenly caught by the crystals radiating temporal fluctuations along the rift’s edge.
“Perhaps…” A sharp glint flashed through his eyes.
“These crystals can be used to temporarily stabilize the device.” He carefully approached the rift and collected several Temporal Resonance crystals with the purest energy.
Just as he prepared to retreat, the rift suddenly shook violently, and a torrent of black energy surged out, hurtling straight toward him.
Dottore immediately deployed the force field of [Gravity Modulation], but the energy torrent was far stronger than he had anticipated.
The force field began to disintegrate the moment it made contact.
“Troublesome.” He frowned and was about to employ [Heart of the Black Hole] to directly devour the energy when he suddenly sensed an anomalous reaction from the spacetime pocket watch in his embrace.
The core hourglass abruptly stopped spinning, and a thread of pale golden particles extended forward, pointing in a specific direction.
In the void of that direction, a familiar set of coordinates faintly emerged: Teyvat, Snezhnaya.
“It automatically locked onto the return coordinates?” Dottore was somewhat surprised.
“It seems this improved spacetime pocket watch has some unexpected functions.” This unexpected discovery made him change his plan.
Since his retreat path was now secured, perhaps he could afford to take a little more risk and gather more data on this spatial rift.
He continued to devour the ceaselessly gushing energy torrent with [Heart of the Black Hole] while quickly installing the Temporal Resonance crystals, attempting to stabilize the detector.
The moment the crystals made contact with the device, a blinding light burst forth.
“Spatial stability restored to 52%,” the detector’s voice reported evenly.
“Commencing recording of spatial rift data.” A satisfied expression settled on Dottore’s face.
Though the risks had been great, the gains from this deep investigation far exceeded his expectations.
Even if spatial stability was only holding at 52%, it was sufficient for him to complete the necessary observations and data collection.
Not only had he confirmed the nature of the Void Filth, he had also discovered a fragile point in the world’s barrier.
His gaze turned profound as he looked toward the wreckage of worlds drifting along the rift’s edge.
Dottore hovered before the spatial rift, his silver hair whipping wildly in the chaotic energy currents.
“Record: Rift width 3.7 meters.
Edges exhibiting periodic collapse and regeneration.
Depth unmeasurable…
Energy spill rate 0.3 units per second…
Primary component: disordered void energy.
Spatial structure stability rating: Dangerous.” He continued recording even as his mind raced through possible solutions.
Suddenly, the detector let out a sharp alarm.
“Rift expansion detected!
Energy spill rate has risen to 0.5 units per second!” The rift’s edges began to tremble violently, and more Void Filth gushed out like a black tide.
Dottore immediately raised his hand.
[Heart of the Black Hole] formed a stable spatial barrier in front of the rift, devouring every last bit of the Void Filth that surged forth.
He also deployed the force field of [Gravity Modulation], but its effect was noticeably weaker this time.
“The frequency of energy eruptions is increasing,” he observed with a frown, studying the data.
“The spatial laws here have been severely distorted.
The rift’s stability is far worse than anticipated.” The detector gave another notification.
“Warning: Spatial stability has dropped to 39%.
Estimated time to zero point: three hours.” At the same time, the coordinate stability synchronized with the spacetime pocket watch was also slowly declining.
Dottore’s gaze hardened.
Unstable spacetime coordinates meant he could not safely return to Teyvat.
If stability fell below 50%, he risked losing his direction during transit due to unpredictable factors.
“I have to speed things up,” he muttered, and began a rapid analysis of the rift’s structure.
The detector suddenly announced, “High-purity Starlight Crystal reaction detected, located at the exact center of the rift.” Dottore’s eyes focused sharply.
In the deepest part of the rift, a massive purple Temporal Resonance crystal was slowly rotating, radiating spatiotemporal fluctuations several times more intense than the other fragments.
“So that’s it…” Understanding dawned on him.
“This core crystal is maintaining the basic structure of the rift.
If it’s removed, the rift will collapse entirely.” The discovery plunged him into thought.
Removing the crystal directly would indeed permanently close the rift, but the energy shockwave from the collapse might affect the entire world of K-127.
“It seems a gentler solution is needed,” he murmured to himself, and began swiftly calculating possible sealing protocols.
Just then, General Victor’s anxious voice crackled through the communicator.
“Mister Dottore!
The stronghold is monitoring a sharp rise in energy readings from the central zone!
What is your situation?
Do we need to initiate emergency protocols immediately?” “No.
The situation is temporarily under control,” Dottore replied, still calculating.
“I’ve discovered a method to temporarily resolve the contamination, but it will take time to prepare.” His gaze remained fixed on the crystal at the rift’s center.
“I need to set up a long-term sealing device at the rift.
Victor, dispatch drones immediately to deliver the following materials…” He quickly rattled off a list of materials, including the purest energy-conducting crystals and elemental cores from the stronghold’s stockpile.
“Those materials…
they’re our most precious strategic reserves!” General Victor’s voice was filled with hesitation.
Dottore’s tone turned cold.
“Would you rather cling to these materials and wait for death, or resolve this threat?” Silence hung on the other end of the line for a moment.
Then Victor’s resolute voice came through.
“The drones will arrive within twenty minutes.
What support do you require from us?” “Keep a safe distance,” Dottore warned.
“The energy fluctuations to come will likely be very intense.” After cutting the communication, he immediately began his preparations.