The only flaw in the scene was her wearing a bulky silver protective suit, holding her helmet in both hands, making her look somewhat comical.
"Six minutes and forty-four seconds."
Responding to the woman was an elderly man dressed in a red robe.
He stood outside the door, holding an old leather-bound hefty book. The old man's hair was white as snow and his face full of wrinkles, yet his dark red vertical pupils were captivating.
In the next moment, lines of text appeared in Lin Lan's mind.
[A special Dungeon Card has been generated!]
[Current Dungeon Card: Historian's Destiny]
[Card Base: Red Moon (Unique)]
[Card Keywords: Quaternary Era, Elf, Giant Dragon]
[Pass this dungeon to obtain a golden quality item!]
[Please note, you cannot alter the course of history, the Dungeon Card can be cleared only once]
"A special Dungeon Card?"
Lin Lan was a bit surprised. He looked at the two people beside him and tried to greet them: "Hello?"
The old man and the woman remained oblivious to Lin Lan's presence, and Lin Lan realized he was merely a ghost touring through a dream.
Lin Lan gave up trying to communicate and began to curiously observe his surroundings.
The silver-white walls and floors revealed no material, and the room was filled with peculiar devices. As Lin Lan approached them, the system simultaneously translated the text engraved on the devices.
Biometric device... Health detector... Airlock... Pressure controller...
The more Lin Lan looked, the more confused he became. Good heavens, he was at the hatchway of a large cosmic shuttle!
Is this really the past?
He hurriedly walked out of the cabin door, and in the next moment, Lin Lan witnessed a civilization developed to its peak.
The planet's surface was a meticulously cultivated green forest, within which stood giant artistic sculptures resembling mountains. These sculptures supported the bases of cities, forming numerous ingeniously crafted super large sky islands.
But this splendid scene was slowly collapsing.
The forest gradually lost color, rivers began to dry up and die, and sky islands crashed down in flames, raising a sky-covering cloud of dust.
The heavens were ablaze!
Countless fiery meteors descended mercilessly from fissures in the depths of the sky, destroying the prosperous heavenly cities.
Lin Lan's pupils contracted.
The fissures ripping through the sky were the Celestial Calamity known as 'Reality Collapse'!
And it was a plus version, magnified countless times.
He turned back, finding the old man and the woman silently watching the apocalyptic sight before them. A frantic voice then sounded behind the woman:
"Empress Your Majesty! The Great Secret Ceremony indicates this space is nearing the final threshold!"
Lin Lan saw an elf scholar wearing round glasses and a ponytail rush over.
She too wore a bulky protective suit, her expression marked by an inescapable desolation: "Our civilization has run out of time..."
The Empress remained silent, but the old man smiled.
"Do you remember what I taught you, Ilsa?"
He said softly, "We must always learn to shoulder our own responsibilities."
Sadness finally appeared on Ilsa's face. She reached out as if wanting to embrace the old man, but upon seeing his smiling face, she resolutely turned away, disappearing into the depths of the Floating Cabin.
"Everyone! Activate the Teleportation Module immediately!"
Moments later, a cool voice echoed throughout the city, and under the Elf Empress's command, large escape pods emerged from the ground.
Only Lin Lan and the old man remained, witnessing the remnants of civilization turning into reverse meteors.
Actually, Lin Lan planned to board a spaceship to see the world, but an air wall suddenly appeared at the hatchway, preventing him from entering...
The flying dust hit Lin Lan's face, and he wiped it off, glancing at the old man beside him.
"This Dungeon Card plot feels a bit bewildering..."
He could understand the civilization leaders escaping with the residents facing a celestial calamity, but why leave the old man behind to face death?
"Because the elves are Pioneers, they must bear the heavy duty of preserving the seeds of civilization."
The old man's wise voice unexpectedly sounded.
Lin Lan was startled but noticed the man was only murmuring to himself, head down: "And I, as a Historian, am destined to witness the end of civilization firsthand."
Historian...
Insight flashed in Lin Lan's eyes. It seemed the old man was the protagonist of this Dungeon Card.
He decided to get closer to the old man and listen to his ramblings.
"Pioneers sow the seeds of civilization in the long night; they are innately favored by the Divine Spirit, the only hope in this world."
The old man opened the thick book: "By comparison, the work of a Historian is much easier."
Lin Lan curiously leaned closer, discovering the pages were filled with dense text.
It began: 'In the early fifth century, the elf tribes in the B-2 devouring star area salvaged the lost Divine Kingdom, with heavy casualties...'
Strangely, the words seemed to weigh down the soul, and a mere glance made Lin Lan dizzy, like the sensation of swaying on a swing overcoming him again.
The old man helplessly turned the book slightly away.
"As a Historian, my duty is to record the history of civilization and then bear the weight of that history."
He looked at the words in the book, his gaze holding a trace of reminiscence: "Simply put, history is the foundation of reality, the 'base' of all existence. A Historian must lay each brick correctly to ensure the towering structure of civilization doesn't collapse."