Chapter 560: Guilt

This was, naturally, a tremendous opportunity.

Carolyn stirred the soup base with a spoon, her heart far from calm.

She vaguely recalled the heyday of the Ishtar, when she was young and passionate. At that time, full of ambition, she led all the Ishtar's sages, along with the fat dragon and Millivina, commanding the entire research institute to explore the void, yearning immensely for that mysterious, unknown, and boundless land.

But time had flown by, all her old friends were gone, and she had become the guardian of civilization, alone, preserving the last glory of the Ishtar, her very being a corridor of prehistoric memories.

And now, he was finally willing to truly lead them into that space-time?

But could she withstand the corresponding crisis?

After all, that mysterious universe contained terrifying formidable enemies; it was both an opportunity and a crisis.

Carolyn took a deep breath, then stood up and replied earnestly, "Logically speaking, quiet asceticism would be best, however... I refuse!"

Xu Zhi immediately smiled.

He had the Ishtar's temperament completely figured out; he had expected this.

"Even if the location is in a distant space-time and requires precise targeting..." Xu Zhi mused, then added, "You've researched spatial technology before, so you shouldn't be too bad at it..."

Xu Zhi handed over Di Qi's research data.

Carolyn's eyes lit up slightly, and she couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "Long-distance spatial portal positioning technology!"

"Precisely," Xu Zhi said.

He didn't much care for Di Qi's feelings.

After all, Di Qi spent his days secretly learning from others' research; now it was his turn to experience the pain of having his own work stolen!

"Here's a set of coordinates. Once you've pinpointed the location, do not venture there without authorization. Otherwise, you might attract terrifying and irresistible monsters," Xu Zhi warned again. It would be awkward if she went to the Ancient Wood Planet first and found herself in a face-off with Di Qi.

"Understood!" Carolyn replied with a solemn expression. "That region is indeed terrifying. There are formidable enemies capable of killing Ninth-Tier beings, and we gods are extremely weak in comparison."

She firmly believed him.

At this moment, the Super Ancient God's provision of positioning and research technology was a test for her. If she couldn't even accomplish this, how could she participate in such a plan?

Moreover, if she contributed nothing, how could she have the face to share in this immense opportunity?

This was an opportunity that would make everyone envious:

Controlling and occupying a new world.

The Super Ancient God, leading them to explore the universe back then, was probably orchestrating this entire scheme for today, having planned it for a very long time!

Realizing this, Carolyn fully understood everything that had happened years ago. She stood up, glanced around, and said, "Gods, let's go back. This vacation is more or less over... One should have periods of both tension and relaxation, but not too much relaxation."

She was truly a science fanatic.

Xu Zhi nodded. Compared to tourism, Di Qi's data was far more appealing.

Following that, Xu Zhi and Carolyn returned to the Ancient Lava Lands, careful not to disturb any life in that era. Although the plant, beast, and human forms of the Three Pillar Gods might have spread throughout the land and discovered their traces, they dared not make a move.

"Let's begin the research!"

Carolyn was always swift and decisive.

Soon, given the Ishtar's existing spatial technology foundation and the impressive learning ability of the Demon Core lineage, it was exceedingly simple to fully grasp the data. Furthermore, as a High God who had already comprehended molecular law phenomena, she completely understood it in just half a month.

Thus, she began working, directly creating a teleportation array.

"Calculating..."

"Undergoing super data computation..."

A brilliant light shone before them, coalescing into intricate, mysterious runic patterns.

The Demon Core system had a unique characteristic: its execution of Daoist techniques was almost perfect, nearly mechanical, as it was essentially a machine itself. Terrifying and immense divine power poured forth, extending into the distant space-time.

"With such terrifying precision, Carolyn is indeed the best choice for establishing spatial coordinates and locating the Ancient Wood Planet," Xu Zhi murmured in admiration from the side.

"Moreover, within the entire sandbox currently, Carolyn, and even the Three Pillar Gods of the contemporary Lava Giant era, are the beings closest to reaching the Ninth-Tier world in the future!"

Xu Zhi pondered internally.

This had nothing to do with cultivation talent.

Di Qi, Medusa, Phoenix – which of their talents wasn't stronger than Carolyn's?

Ultimately, Carolyn was a non-combat scientist and simply couldn't compare. However, the super-computing power of the Demon Core lineage was the greatest hurdle to breaking through to the Ninth-Tier! Thus, they possessed a significant breakthrough advantage at this realm, one that other races could not rival.

Of course, this was merely a theoretical racial advantage; who would truly be the first to break through remained unknown.

Boom!

A vast amount of magical power poured forth completely.

Space seemed to be torn in half, sending out ripples like folds in heavy curtains.

Swathes of chaotic turbulence were ripped open, and a spatial tunnel appeared faintly, then clearly, quickly pinpointing the other side.

Xu Zhi immediately ordered:

"Sub-brain, shield that area on the Ancient Wood Planet."

"Yes!"

The area was small, only about the size of a palm. The sub-brain quickly enveloped that patch of land, just as it shielded the outside of the Wizarding World, preventing Di Qi from discovering it.

Swish!

On the Ancient Wood Planet, amidst a lush green mountain range, birds chirped and flowers bloomed.

A mysterious teleportation array subtly appeared.

"It's a success... We finally broke through!" Xu Zhi suppressed the immense joy in his heart and quickly helped Carolyn, who was about to collapse, standing beside her. "The energy expenditure was far greater than imagined. Di Qi is flying too far away; even a High God has directly fallen into a state of weakness!"

Xu Zhi supported Carolyn, sensing her unusual state.

Her cultivation had surprisingly dropped by two realms, leaving her so exhausted that she was at the level of a Low God. The recovery period would be long, likely taking two or three centuries to barely recover.

In such a condition, it was akin to exposing one's life to outsiders, leaving oneself vulnerable to slaughter. However, there were no outsiders here.

"Rest for a bit." Xu Zhi gently put Carolyn down, feeling quite remorseful; the cost this time was far, far greater than anticipated. "I'll go over there and confirm something."

Carolyn nodded, then suddenly called out, "Be careful."

Xu Zhi nodded and turned to leave.

Carolyn watched his calmly departing back, pursed her lips, and then suddenly had a realization.

All she had done was the smallest favor: opening a spatial tunnel so the Super Ancient God could enter that unknown space at full combat strength, to face potential terrifying crises and battle unbeatable forbidden beings.

At this moment, she felt as if all her strength had been drained, utterly exhausted. Perhaps it was this moment of weakness, with no one around, that allowed her, who always strove to be strong and maintain a confident demeanor, to reveal a vulnerable side.

She sat in front of the Mychia Great Pasture, recalling many past events.

She was not skilled in combat. In the past, the fat dragon and Millivina had always stood before her. She had never truly been on the front lines. Even the later Sakura Empress did not engage in genuine battle; she never fought from beginning to end, but instead used schemes to establish her rule over the world. Now, just like in the past, she couldn't fight alongside him. She had merely opened a door for him and watched him depart.

"I am truly too weak. I've done nothing, yet I'm about to share in the dominion that the Super Ancient God painstakingly fought to establish."