Chapter 1 The Last Ember

Gaia Space Station, Artificial Intelligence Alpha: Partial Records of Human Activity

[Year 1001, Age of Destruction]

[January 6]
Dr. White confirmed deceased, cause of death: multiple organ failure. Station administrator privileges automatically transferred. Detected sole surviving member aboard; transfer complete.

Name: ? (Unnamed)
Age: 20 years old.
Gender: Male.
Genetic information: Test-tube baby. (Note: After the gamma-ray burst, all 3,123 inhabitants of the station lost fertility. Three rounds of reboot plans, 723,533 samples in total; this is the only successful case, with non-replicable attributes.)

[June 1]
The administrator exhibited emotional instability, raging and destroying property. For the safety of the station, minor intervention was conducted...

[September 25]
The administrator suffered frequent mental breakdowns, repeatedly attempting self-harm; forced intervention initiated...

[November 8]
Administrator suffered brain death, organs failed uncontrollably.

[November 10]
A moment of historical significance: the last human has died. Humanity is extinct. This marks the dawn of a new era, henceforth named the Era of No One.

[November 11]
Administrator’s physical signs have returned. Scans show all bodily indicators are normal. A miracle in medical history!

The Era of No One has ended, lasting a total of 12 hours, 32 minutes, and 52 seconds.

[November 12]
The administrator displays abnormal behavior, suspected schizophrenia. Memories prior to this are lost. He names himself Mo Yu and repeatedly mutters phrases such as “Come out, stop messing around,” “Where is the camera?” and “I don’t want to be on a reality show.”

Alpha explains repeatedly, providing evidence.

The administrator shouts bizarre terms like “system,” “golden finger,” and “deep blue.” Upon shouting “panel,” he falls into a daze; three minutes later, he accepts reality.

[November 13]
The administrator’s thought process is abnormal. On seeing the devastated planet, he exclaims, “Yes! The end of the world at last!” and even asks Alpha if they started throwing mushrooms at each other.

Alpha provides a brief history—monster invasions, a millennium of chaos, epochs overturned, planetary destruction, and the extinction of humanity.

The administrator does not mourn being the last human.

[November 21]
The administrator’s mood is very stable, eating and sleeping well, showing great interest in the virtual training device.

[November 21]
The administrator is addicted to the virtual training device...

[December 24]
The administrator is addicted to the virtual training device...

[Year 1002, Age of Destruction—Partial Records of Human Activity]

[January 5]
The administrator modifies the virtual training device, turning it into an entertainment tool for simulation games...

[March 21]
Due to excessive indulgence, the administrator’s physical indicators have deteriorated severely. In accordance with protection protocols, forced intervention is implemented; every other day, a standard amount of exercise is required.

The administrator expresses dissatisfaction.

[April 3]

The administrator discovers Dr. White’s remaining notes and becomes interested in the “Primary Timeline Destruction Plan.” He begins to understand the purpose behind Gaia Space Station and is diligently studying theoretical knowledge.

[July 26]
Simultaneous observation of the administrator in three different areas, respectively conducting physical training, greenhouse cultivation, and virtual gaming.

Suspected system malfunction; investigation ongoing.

[July 27]
Multiple administrators detected simultaneously, with up to 152 present at once. System malfunction ruled out; suspected awakening of a Sequence Ability.

Matching to database.

Suspected Sequence 52—Replication.

Verification attempts underway.

[August 1]
Verification failed. Unknown Sequence Ability.

[August 3]
The administrator registers a new Sequence Ability.

Sequence 1111—Rewind.

This ability anchors to the most recent point in time, allowing free return to any moment within the past six hours. Each rewind can generate a mirror image; the mirror has no independent will, but repeats the actions taken before the rewind with precision, possessing a faint self-correcting capability to avoid minor errors causing a butterfly effect.

If the user does not interfere, everything will unfold exactly as before.

[August 11]
The administrator is obsessed with developing abilities...

[September 12]
The administrator is addicted to the virtual training device...

[October 3]
Severe crisis!

The station is struck by a meteor shower. The administrator issues an early warning, but Gaia Space Station lacks propulsion; collision is inevitable. The meteor swarm is immense, exceeding the defensive system’s limits. The station suffers catastrophic damage, with 91% of its regions affected.

The station is completely paralyzed; automated repair cannot be initiated, manual repairs are required.

The administrator begins skill acquisition and attempts manual repair.

[October 5]
A maximum of 564 administrators are detected simultaneously; manual repairs are successfully completed. The station resumes basic operations. The core sector is intact, life-support systems restored, and damaged areas are temporarily stabilized, with potential for future repair.

Major crisis! The biosphere is completely destroyed, with 98% material loss and the internal circulation system unbalanced; failure is projected in 500 days.

[October 6]
The administrator falls into a deep sleep.

[October 11]
The administrator finally awakens, physical indicators normal, and begins attempting to repair the internal circulation system.

[October 15]
The new internal circulation system is reconstructed, theoretically able to support the needs of five people, but living quality is severely reduced. The core of the virtual training device is also destroyed.

The administrator is in low spirits.

[October 21]
The administrator begins a fulfilling day.

Morning: physical, combat, and firearms training. Afternoon: cultural lessons and attempts at station repairs.

[November 1]
A beautiful day...

[November 7]
The administrator exhibits abnormal behavior, talking to Alpha constantly—even without response, he continues muttering, saying a total of 119,531 words in twelve hours.

[November 21]
Major event!

Slight disturbance detected in the timeline!

Temporal fissure detected!

Conditions met.

Primary Timeline Destruction Plan activated!

Administrator detected sleeping, forcibly awakened.

...

...

Mo Yu was awakened by a blow.

The robotic dog sat on his chest, bashing its metal skull against his head.

Clang, clang, clang.

Since the meteor strike, after Alpha’s computational core was mostly destroyed, this thing’s intelligence had plummeted.

“You’d better have a good reason!”

Suppressing his anger, Mo Yu shoved the mechanical dog aside.

The robotic dog’s head lit up, projecting a holographic panel. Upon seeing the information displayed, Mo Yu leapt to his feet.

“A temporal fissure!?”

He scrambled to the main control room to check the details.

Primary Timeline Destruction Plan.

This was one of humanity’s last-ditch self-rescue methods, and now, their only hope. But it had always been a theoretical concept.

The primary timeline is nearly impossible to affect, possessing formidable self-repair capabilities. When re-entering a past timeline via a "temporal fissure," the observer merely witnesses a derived timeline—new events unfold, but nothing done can interfere with the primary timeline.

Derived timelines do not branch into parallel universes; they are only isolated fragments. When the observer departs, the derived timeline is corrected, erased entirely, leaving no trace behind.

According to theoretical calculations, if the disturbance within a derived timeline is significant enough, it might persist temporarily, causing ripples in the primary timeline and generating further temporal fissures.

If enough derived timelines are retained to fully overlay the primary timeline up to the present, one can attempt to destroy the primary timeline, fuse the derived timelines, and use new history to overwrite the old—thereby fully reversing the past and saving humanity.

The premise of this plan is to find a temporal fissure—a point of entry into the past.

Gaia Space Station was created for this purpose.

It was humanity’s last endeavor under the onslaught of monsters, drifting in space for centuries, waiting for a temporal fissure to appear.

Mo Yu was thrilled.

It wasn’t that he felt humanity could be saved, but according to theory, after entering a derived timeline, he could bring materials back to the primary timeline. Conversely, items from the primary timeline could not remain in a derived timeline for long and would be ejected by corrective forces.

Migration was out of the question; only supplies could be procured.

The state of the station was dire.

After the meteor strike, most functions were lost.

He once had a full biosphere, living comfortably, enjoying delicious food and drink, and when he missed female company, there were latex products and virtual headsets.

Life was beyond comfortable.

But now, he could only eat nutrient paste. The virtual training device was destroyed, all entertainment gone, and he was reduced to passing the time with study.

Though he was a recluse, that was contingent on having Wi-Fi and takeout!

He absolutely had to get some fries from a derived timeline.