Chapter 444: The Time Paradox Experiments

Translator: AnubisTL

“A spacetime continuity paradox,” the old wizard, an expert in time law theory, pushed up his glasses, his voice trembling slightly with excitement. “An object cannot exist in two states simultaneously. If the time rewind forces it to ‘reset,’ but your space prevents it from ‘disappearing’… a contradiction arises. The disappearance of your Black Giant earlier was a manifestation of this very conflict, resulting in it being ‘canceled out’ by the paradox.”

“In that case, the number of experiments we can design is practically limitless,” another young wizard proposed excitedly. “For example, in this cycle, we could cut a small, insignificant piece of tissue from a Scythe-Skull and immediately store it in Jieming’s space. Then, we see if an ‘unhealable wound’ appears on that same Scythe-Skull in the next cycle. Or, would the tissue sample simply vanish from our storage space and return to its body?”

“Taking it a step further,” someone else added, their mind racing with possibilities, “what if we store an item from this plane in the space during this cycle, and then retrieve it in the next cycle to use? Then, when time reverses again… will that item appear in our hands, or will it not appear because it has already been stored in this cycle? Or perhaps, will it be erased directly by the time paradox?”

The atmosphere in the laboratory instantly turned fervent.

For a group of knowledge-seeking wizards, there was no challenge more captivating than this.

Once the plan for the laboratory was finalized, action was swiftly taken.

As the holder of this unique space, Jieming became the most critical “executor.” Under the wizards’ guidance, he leveraged the time-reincarnation-independent nature of his internal grotto-heaven to begin a series of “markings” and “samplings.”

First, they tested matter.

He ventured to the edge of the battlefield, excavating a large chunk of native planar ore and storing it within the grotto-heaven. Next, he carefully cut out a section of soil marked with energy patterns, preserving the vegetation above it intact before stowing it away.

Then came energy.

With the help of several wizards specializing in elemental and psionic transformation, they forcibly stripped and sealed a stable cluster of “Earth Core Pulse Energy” from an active ley line node. This, too, was entrusted to Jieming for storage in the grotto-heaven.

The most complex part was the biological experiments.

They selected several representative creatures from this plane: from the lowest-tier “Worker Bee Larvae” of the Scythe-Skull Race to various adult variants. Some were sealed alive and stored whole, while others had specific tissues carefully excised for preservation. All this was done to monitor how different organisms would react to the time reversal under varying conditions.

Each specimen had been meticulously selected, ensuring the wizards could immediately assess the situation after the reincarnation.

They needed to know what would happen to these fragments “cut” from the current timeline once time reversed.

The preliminary preparations were complete, but the most crucial test subjects had yet to arrive.

“We need high-tier Scythe-Skull Race specimens, preferably eighth-tier,” Jieming reported the research team’s request to Frost in the tactical conference room, explaining the comparative experimental design of “whole-body storage” versus “partial-tissue storage” in detail.

“Alive or dead doesn’t matter. Actually, considering the difficulty of capture and the convenience of subsequent processing, two complete eighth-tier corpses would be ideal.”

Frost stood with his hands clasped behind his back, facing the tactical map displaying the overall battlefield situation.

He understood the necessity of these experiments, but at this moment, a rare trace of helplessness appeared on his resolute face.

“I understand your requirements, Wizard Jieming. Data from high-tier specimens, especially eighth-tier individuals, is crucial for analyzing the reincarnation mechanism,” Frost’s voice remained steady, yet it revealed the grim reality. “But the problem is… in this round, I’m afraid we will have a hard time obtaining such specimens.”

He turned, his gaze sweeping over Jieming and the two sixth-tier logistics wizards who had accompanied him.

“In the previous round, I managed to capture two eighth-tier Scythe-Skull Race chiefs by exploiting their initial unfamiliarity with our ‘extreme pressure’ tactical pattern, as well as their own ‘confident’ predictions regarding the reincarnation critical point. I set a targeted Law Trap and caught them completely off guard.”

“But clearly,” Frost pointed to the vast shadows on the star map representing the “Scythe-Skull Race Inactivity Zones,” “they have learned their lesson from that failure. Not just the eighth-tier individuals—this round, the activity patterns of all high-rank individuals have fundamentally changed.”

“They have completely abandoned direct confrontations with me on the main battlefield or in preset engagement zones, and they no longer reveal their presence so easily. The relocation frequency and stealth of their command hubs also far exceed anything we’ve seen before. They… are avoiding me. Or rather, they are avoiding any risk that might lead to their capture or death.”

A research wizard frowned. “They’ve realized the danger of being captured alive for study? But time rewinds…”

“That’s exactly the point,” Frost interrupted him. “Time reversal can restore matter, but it can’t completely erase ‘cognition’ for the Scythe-Skull Race. Especially for level 8 existences, they might have retained more ‘lessons’ through the cycles. Now, they’re playing an extremely conservative game of survival, prioritizing ‘avoiding the trigger of reincarnation’ and ‘preventing significant losses to themselves’ above all else.”

A brief silence fell over the conference room.

“Is there really no other way?” another wizard asked reluctantly. “What if we concentrate our forces and forcibly sweep a few suspected nests?”

“The cost is too high, and success cannot be guaranteed,” Frost shook his head. “When level 8 existences are determined to hide, there are too many blind spots we cannot monitor in this plane they have cultivated over countless cycles. A forced, large-scale purge would only disrupt our overall strategy of ‘extending the research window’ and might even drive them to launch unpredictable, extreme measures prematurely.”

He looked at Jieming. “The sample acquisition must be postponed. We need to wait for the right moment—or… create a new one. Perhaps when the war reaches a certain stage and they are forced to make a choice.”

“For now,” he continued, “you can focus on refining the paradox experiments at other tiers and accumulating data.”

Jieming nodded in understanding.

It was a common occurrence in any world for scientific ideals to clash with the harsh realities of war.

“I understand, Commander. We will prioritize monitoring the samples we’ve already acquired and refine the experimental protocols for high-tier samples.” He paused, then proposed a compromise. “Also, could we increase the capture efforts for severely injured or near-death sixth- or seventh-tier Scythe-Skull individuals on the battlefield? Although they are lower-tier, we might still observe some paradox effects, which would help us gain experience for future experiments.”

“That’s a viable plan,” Frost agreed. “I’ll notify the frontline units to keep a lookout and assign a few Quick Response Squads to assist you.”

(End of the Chapter)