Lord of the Doomsday Fortress

The fortress was a beehive of tension. Sparks flew as Granny Wen and her team welded the quantum cannon's frame, its crystalline core pulsing with otherworldly light. Shen Mu stood at the edge of the courtyard, his gaze fixed on the northern horizon. The crack in the sky had deepened overnight into a jagged scar bleeding darkness into the world.

It's watching us," Zhao Ling whispered, her voice low. She stood beside him, her sniper rifle slung over her shoulder. "Every time I look through the scope, I feel it. pressing against my mind."

Shen Mu nodded. The entity's presence was a constant weight now, a cold pressure gnawing at the edges of his thoughts. The system's interface flickered, its warnings more urgent than ever.

[Veil Instability: 68%.]

[Devourer Activity: Escalating.]

We need to test the cannon," Shen Mu said. "Before they make their move."

"And if it doesn't work?" Zhao Ling asked.

"Then we die."

The corrupted core sat in the workshop, its twisted energy humming like a trapped storm. Granny Wen circled it, her tools trembling in her hands.

"This thing. it's alive," she muttered. "I can feel it. thinking.

Luo Qi relaxed against the wall, pistons in his gauntlet hissing as he flexed his fingers. "So what's the plan? Just toss it in the cannon and see what happens?"

"No," Shen Mu said, stepping into the room. "We learn from it. Understand how it works. If the Devourers can infect our tech, we need to know how."

Granny Wen shook her head. "It's too risky. One mistake, and this thing could—

The core pulsed, its light flaring. The air grew heavy, and Shen Mu's vision blurred.

[Warning: Neural Interference Detected.]

The entity's voice slithered into his mind, colder and more resonant than before.

"You think you can understand us, Fortress Lord? We are beyond your comprehension. We are the will of the Devourer God—the Endless Maw. And I… I am its Apostle."

Shen Mu stumbled, holding his head. The workshop disappeared, and in its place was the Devourer God—a great, formless void, its maw stretching across galaxies. Surrounding it, thousands of Apostles knelt, their forms flickering between shadow and flesh.

"You are but a speck," the Apostle hissed. "A fleeting ember in the face of the storm."

The vision shattered, and Shen Mu fell to his knees.

"Shen Mu!" Zhao Ling rushed to his side, her hands gripping his shoulders. "What happened?"

He looked up, his eyes blazing with fury. "It's not just a scout. It's an Apostle. A herald for something… bigger."

The cannon's first test was a spectacle.

The survivors gathered in the courtyard, their faces a mix of hope and fear. The quantum cannon loomed atop the northern wall, its barrel crackling with energy.

"Power levels stable," Granny Wen called, her voice shaking. "Firing sequence initiated."

Shen Mu stood at the controls, his hand hovering over the trigger. The system's interface flickered, its warnings drowned out by the cannon's hum.

"Target locked," Zhao Ling said, her sniper scope trained on the horizon. "Ready when you are."

Shen Mu took a deep breath. "Fire."

The cannon roared, a beam of pure dimensional energy tearing through the sky. The horizon rippled, and the crack in the Veil shuddered under the blast. For an instant, the darkness retreated-and then the beam collapsed, its energy drawn into the void.

The cannon's core sparked, its light fading.

"What in heaven's name was that?" Luo Qi demanded, his gauntlet clenched.

"A warning," Shen Mu said, his voice grim. "The Apostle's playing with us.

That night, the fortress was tested.

Shadows boiled up from the north wastes, twisting into grotesque parodies of life. The survivors fought with desperate fury, their weapons flaring against the darkness.

Shen Mu stood atop the wall, his pistol blazing. The system's combat protocols flared, highlighting weak points in the shadowy horde.

[Target Vulnerable: Core Detected.]

"Aim for the cores!" he shouted, his voice cutting through the chaos.

Zhao Ling's rifle cracked , her shots precise. Luo Qi's gauntlet hissed, crushing shadowy forms with brutal efficiency. But for every creature that fell, two more took its place.

"We can't hold them!" Granny Wen yelled, her hands trembling as she adjusted the cannon's power flow.

Shen Mu's gaze snapped to the horizon. The crack in the sky pulsed, its edges writhing.

"They're not here to kill us," he thought. "They're here to distract us."

The Apostle's voice slithered into his mind, cold and mocking.

"You see it now, don't you? Your fortress, your weapons, your defiance… all meaningless. The Endless Maw consumes all. And I… I am its harbinger."

Shen Mu clenched his fists, his mind racing. The Apostle wasn't just a threat—it was a message. A test of their resolve.

Granny Wen!" he shouted. "Can you adjust the cannon to fire on the rift?"

She hesitated. "It's not meant for that. The energy resonance could—"

"Do it."

She nodded and began working furiously at the controls. The core of the cannon flared, its light changing from blue to a deep, ominous red.

"Firing sequence initiated," she said calmly. "Target: Veil Rift.

Shen Mu moved to the controls, his hand hovering over the trigger. The system's warnings screamed:

[Energy Feedback Risk: 89%.]

He didn't hesitate.

"Fire."

The cannon roared, its beam lancing toward the rift. The Apostle's laughter echoed in Shen Mu's mind—

—and then the beam struck.

The rift shuddered, its edges fraying. The shadows faltered, their forms flickering.

For a moment, the battlefield fell silent.

Then the Apostle screamed.

Its form materialized above the rift, a towering figure of writhing shadows and hollow light. Its single eye burned with fury.

"You dare?!"

Shen Mu met its gaze, his voice cold. "This is just the beginning."

The Apostle lunged, its claws tearing through the air and the cannon's beam shifted, its energy surging. The Apostle's form unraveled, its scream echoing across the wasteland.

The rift collapsed, the shadows dissipating.

The survivors cheered; their voices raw with relief.

But Shen Mu didn't celebrate.

The Apostle's final words echoed in his mind:

"You have only delayed the inevitable. The Endless Maw comes. And when it does… you will kneel."