The Ultimate Evolution

The vast, mysterious sky was densely packed with brilliantly-shining stars. The cosmic storms that swept through the universe left behind wild, aurora-like patterns….

Perhaps such a spectacle was full of greatness and wonder in the eyes of one who had just ventured into the universe.

But to Sheyan, and perhaps to anyone who had seen nothing but such a scenery for more than seventy-two hours, it only filled him with boredom.

The magnetic field interference here was strong indeed. This fact was not only reflected in the reading on the Gauss meter, but also in certain intuitive bodily reactions such as dizziness and even vomiting. They had not encountered much danger in their journey so far. Perhaps they had the Grade II carrier, Kitty Hawk, to thank for the strong protection it provided, as well as the superb flying skills of the special-grade captain, Captain Ruth.

Sheyan noticed a red light on the bulkhead had suddenly started blinking. He quickly returned to his cabin and put on a pilot’s bulky leather suit with practiced movements. He then rushed to the training ground without delay.

In the past dozens of hours, similar situations had occurred around seven or eight times. Aldaris’ speculation was correct. Their lesson mainly consisted of learning how to fly a small Empire spacecraft called the “Wasp”.

This type of simple spacecraft played a similar role among the spaceships that flew in outer space as the helicopters among the flying vehicles within the Earth’s atmosphere. It was fast, convenient, practical and, of course, complicated to maneuver.

So far, those complicated controls and maneuver operations had not caused too much trouble for Sheyan. Although he was not a piloting genius, it must be known that the cockpit of the “Wasp” was only about 1.5 square meters at most, while Sheyan was already shown the full mechanical operation of a 5,000-ton ship at the tender age of 15, when he had to learn to master the controls which filled up a whole wall.

General Mungo and General Fiji were both present in the training ground. There were twenty military policemen behind them, their posture exuding a sense of authority. However, their might in front of Sheyan and the other contestants, while not exactly weak enough to be called a joke, could only be described as extremely fragile.

The thing truly restricting all the contestants was the power in the hands of the two Generals! The contestants already had a profound understanding of the vastness of the entire human empire by now. What the contestants revered were the nearly unlimited territory of the Empire, their terrifying technology, and the suffocating amount of armed forces they possessed… Even the Nightmare Realms that gave the contestants their power were created by the Empire. The mere thought of that was enough for all the contestants to find it difficult to breathe.

General Mungo took a step forward and, in his usual iron-fisted and ruthless manner, said, “I know that you’re all geniuses. This is not just an empty compliment. I’m merely stating a fact based on what I’ve seen in the last few days.”

When some of the contestants heard General Mungo’s words, a smile appeared in their eyes, but the General’s tone took a sudden turn after that.

“However, if you don’t keep every word I say in mind, I can assure you that your genius corpses will soon rot, decompose, and stink in the bellies of other creatures, and eventually turn into a pile of dung. Captain Ruth has accomplished his mission beautifully and has brought us to our destination with the Kitty Hawk. Your journey officially starts now! ”

At this time, General Fiji, who had kept a low profile all this time, stepped forward and pointed in a direction. A star chart emerged beside him.

“This is Alps Base 7, and this is where we are now. You can call this place the Bridgehead, where the Kitty Hawk will transform into a space fortress and await your return. Your destination is 2.7 million kilometers away.”

“It’s already really fortunate for the Kitty Hawk to reach this place in such a terrible dimensional storm, so we’ll stay here, while you’ll utilise the piloting skills you’ve learned in the last few days to drive the Wasps to Uplos — and then return!”

“We’ve simulated the route to Uplos and programmed it into your computer. Sounds simple, right? But in my opinion, to get there, what you need isn’t just courage; you’ll also need luck.”

General Fiji stepped back. General Mungo had just opened a confidential document and he was now reading it. A sudden flash of surprise emerged on his face, but it was quickly concealed. However, it failed to escape Sheyan’s eyes.

“Now, according to military regulations, let me give you a detailed briefing of the mission. If you only had the information given on the conscription order to rely on to perform the mission, it wouldn’t be a special mission issued in conjunction with the Empire’s anniversary celebration, now would it?”

“First of all, let me re-introduce you to planet Uplos. Uplos is only the name we call it by. According to Universal Interstellar Law, the first discoverer of the planet holds the naming right. So, technically, its real name should be: Noctasaoun, which translates to “the sacred hunting ground” in the human language!”

‘What!’ Sheyan was surprised too. ‘A hunting ground! And a hunting ground at the scale of a planet at that! Now that’s grand.’

“The density of the planet, the atmosphere, and the indigenous life-forms have undergone careful alterations. Even the intense dimensional storm we’re experiencing right now isn’t a natural phenomenon. You will not be unfamiliar with the species behind all these. ”

Following Mungo’s words, a strange and ferocious figure of a head appeared on the holographic screen behind him. An exoskeleton mask shaped like the skull of a beast, the tentacle-like hair, the ruthless eyes, and the unique symbol on the forehead….

“That’s impossible!” Dardanian could not help shouting, “Isn’t that a Predator?” How could these creatures appear here when they’re supposed to exist in parallel worlds? They’re produced by human imagination!”

General Fiji said meaningfully, “Believe me, when I first read this piece of intel, I was just as surprised as you are! The gap between illusion and reality is blurry to begin with. I think you should now understand why we would ask you contestants to venture into parallel worlds to complete various kinds of missions. The bizarre appearance of the Predators in our world shows that the uncontrolled development of the parallel worlds has brought major consequences. The barrier between illusion and reality has been broken, and the parallel worlds have begun merging with, and even replacing, the main world!”

It was quiet all around. Everyone was silently digesting General Fiji’s words.

General Fiji continued, “Do you know what’s the most complex thing in the universe? It’s something every normal human has — the brain! This amazing treasure consisting of 14 billion nerve cells! Even the most intelligent person in history had only utilised 17% of the brain’s maximum capacity. So, when the brainwaves of billions of humans were affected by certain movies and start to think about the plots and characters together, that power can affect even the mysterious laws of space and time. The parallel worlds started to emerge and gain momentum.”

Hedi Curry suddenly raised his hand and asked in a serious tone, “I don’t mean to interrupt, General, but aren’t we in a hurry? Compared to these grand, magnificent things, I still think my tiny little life is more important.”

General Fiji’s face turned a bit stiff with embarrassment. To help him out of the embarrassing situation, General Mungo took over, “Now, about your mission! First, I’d like to warn you that the most dangerous creatures you may encounter are indeed the Predators. They’re a very powerful humanoid species whose lives are inseparable from fights. Whenever the Predators choose a leader, there will be extremely bloody fights. When children Predators grow up, they need to go through a coming-of-age fight. When the Predators are bored, they’ll fight to kill time. When the Predators argue, they’ll have a fight of honour to decide who’s right or wrong….”

“But according to the result of our investigation and the information the intelligence officers sent back, we can sum them up in a few words….Their weapons are primitive but advanced, their standards are cruel but merciful, and their actions are mad but rational.”

“The so-called primitive weapons, needless to say, are only primitive in appearance. The killing habit of the Predators is to cut off the head of their prey, skin it, and hang it upside down from a high place. This practice is cruel, but they will not take the initiative to attack unarmed or pregnant creatures. That is the origin of “cruel but merciful”.”

“They’re mad, because many Predators are keen to challenge fatal situations that are almost impossible to overcome; it made them feel more exhilaration than an orgasm. But in the course of battle, they’re as cool as ice, and hardly make any mistakes.”

“…….”

After telling Sheyan and the other contestants many more of information about the Predators, General Mungo finally returned to the main topic.

“After Planet Uplos….no, Planet Hunting Ground was transformed by the Predators, it could be considered a paradise for all kinds of ferocious creatures, a place where these vicious beings can thrive in. The Predators are also hunting for strange and powerful creatures everywhere, after which they’ll place the creatures on Planet Hunting Ground to breed…”