Herta: It’s time to give you a reward

Lin Shuang couldn't control herself—her mouth opened on its own, and she bit her own long tail.

Just from witnessing this, Lin Shuang could feel the power of Permanence surging.

Then, before her vision faded, she realized she had transformed into a massive egg.

...

[Ahahaha—how interesting!]

A laugh that was neither purely joyful nor sorrowful echoed, and everything before her eyes vanished.

When Lin Shuang regained awareness, she was back in human form, standing in the space station.

Herta's voice rang out again.

"What is he trying to do? I didn't expect that the semi-finished simulation would succeed before the real thing… Lin Shuang, you really became Long just now!"

There was a mix of exasperation and excitement in Herta's tone, and Lin Shuang even heard her chuckle.

But soon, she simply responded with an "Oh" and explained:

"That was Aha, the Aeon of Elation. A completely unpredictable being. It just suddenly appeared and turned you into Long. My data has been significantly upgraded!"

"This is completely incomprehensible. How could Permanence and Elation be connected? It defies all conventional logic, yet fits perfectly within that entity's logic."

Despite all her knowledge and experience, even Herta's voice carried a note of disbelief.

On one hand, Aha was an absolute troublemaker in the simulated universe, always a headache to deal with. Plus, by the time Aha was born, Long had already disappeared for who knows how many years.

But on the other hand, her very first test simulation not only caught the attention of an Aeon but even prompted the Aeon to intervene directly.

Such a result left Herta ecstatic.

"That being is noisy, dangerous, and… Never mind. If you get the chance next time, just hold your nose and try to talk to it more."

Herta had an odd suspicion.

Aha, in the simulated universe, was fully aware of the simulated nature of its existence. If that was the case, had Aha also noticed this place in reality?

Otherwise, this entire situation was far too absurd.

Aha and Long weren't even remotely connected. Long was born in the earliest days of existence and disappeared just as early.

It wasn't even a matter of familiarity—Aha had likely never even witnessed true Permanence before.

And yet, it suddenly appeared and directly enhanced the simulated data related to Permanence. That alone was suspicious enough.

Moreover…

Even if the goal was simply to refine the data, there was no need for such extreme actions. This felt more like a direct answer to the question of why Long had disappeared.

Even if the answer was incomplete.

But the real question was—where did Aha get the information about Long?

As that thought crossed Herta's mind, she cast a sharp gaze toward Lin Shuang.

Could it be… this girl had already caught Aha's attention long before this?

Then why hadn't she become a Masked Fool or a Mourning Actor instead?

For a brief moment, countless theories about Lin Shuang flashed through Herta's mind.

She even considered a bold hypothesis—was Lin Shuang somehow the vessel for Long's reincarnation?

Of course, that was nothing more than an unreliable guess.

"Speaking of which, Lin Shuang, you just became an Aeon from a first-person perspective, right? How did it feel? Tell me everything you saw!"

Herta pressed forward with the most crucial question.

The simulated universe allowed participants to take on the role of an Aeon, but it was purely a coded simulation. It created the illusion of godhood but never truly allowed someone to experience being one firsthand.

Yet just now—

Because of Aha's interference, Lin Shuang had broken through the simulated universe's underlying logic and had truly become Long within it!

Even if it was only a simulated Aeon of Permanence, the experience itself was entirely unprecedented.

Though Aha's actions were ridiculous, Herta had to admit—she was tempted to try it herself.

"Well… I don't know how to describe it. I just felt incredibly vast. Planets and galaxies seemed like mere toys to me, and…"

Lin Shuang frowned, trying to recall the sensation, but her memories of becoming an Aeon were already fading.

"The feeling of [evolution] and [ascension] was so overwhelming that I still have the illusion that I was born a dragon."

She vaguely remembered that after Long transformed into an egg, it had split into countless dragon species. But Lin Shuang hadn't experienced that process herself.

Perhaps even Aha didn't know what that felt like.

"In the end, I had the sense that the egg would give birth to thousands of dragonborn. It's a shame I couldn't experience it firsthand."

Yet, even that brief glimpse had given Lin Shuang a much deeper understanding of Permanence.

Before, she had merely wielded the system's power to steal fragments of destiny.

But now, Lin Shuang had truly stepped onto a Path.

And her power over Permanence had skyrocketed.

She even felt that, if she wished, she could take on the form of a dragon and manifest draconic traits.

"Really? That's interesting. What a shame. It seems that even Elation itself cannot uncover the secrets of Permanence."

Some information was still missing.

But for now, this much was enough. A special update could always be introduced later to further explore the mysteries surrounding Long's downfall.

As Herta pondered, her voice carried a note of regret.

"The Path of Permanence was a Path I added only today, which means you had no choice but to follow it, because I never originally designed it."

Three choices, similar to what Lin Shuang had seen before, appeared before her. Though they bore dragon-like symbols, their effects were simple stat boosts.

Lin Shuang looked over the choices and couldn't help but laugh. She picked one at random and asked:

"Your method is really makeshift. So, do you want to keep testing, or should we wait for you to finish updating?"

"Come out for now. I need to update quickly. Permanence wasn't in my plans at all. This might require a major version update."

Herta's voice carried a tinge of regret, and Lin Shuang could sense her frustration.

She wanted to keep pushing forward, but the sudden completion of immortality had disrupted her original plans.

Before Lin Shuang could respond, darkness overtook her vision.

When she came to, she was back in Herta's office.

...

Stelle was still standing there in a daze, probably because her test hadn't finished yet.

"As soon as you wake up, come over. That little devil's test isn't over. Tsk, I still haven't seen Nanook for the second time. Forget it…"

Herta seemed to be operating something in the background, then looked up at Lin Shuang.

"Interesting. After testing the [Metaverse], your power has increased significantly."

"…You're calling this project Metaverse?"

Lin Shuang, who hadn't even had time to assess her newfound strength, nearly choked at Herta's words.

"Yeah, what's the problem? It's a good name."

Herta put her hands on her hips, looking pleased with herself.

Lin Shuang's expression turned subtle, as if she'd just heard a joke that had long gone out of fashion.

"How about changing the name? This one sounds kind of over-the-top. What about 'Simulated Universe'?"

"Really? My partner said the same thing… Whatever. My space station, my rules. 'Simulated Universe' isn't bad either. Doesn't matter."

Herta brushed off the topic quickly, then added:

"Your reward is ready."