Evans added,
“People always die.”
“Am I supposed to run back and activate that damned S-001 like a puppet every time someone near me dies?”
“Am I supposed to do the exact same thing over and over again, countless times?”
“To become a reset device for the world until my own memories wear away and I turn into a complete lunatic?”
Pops’ brow furrowed deeply. He didn't speak, but his bottomless eyes seemed to be re-evaluating Evans.
Meanwhile, Ren Yi was also somewhat stunned.
He realized he had made a slight mistake.
A very unfortunate cognitive bias... he had been viewing Evans a bit too much like a human.
But in reality, from the very beginning, all Evans had said was, “I want revenge on the Lord of the City” and “I want to repay my debt to the Tribal Chief.” That was it.
So, was Evans just putting on an act again?
A true Oscar-level performance.
However, Ren Yi felt that what Evans said wasn't entirely an act. There was likely a degree of sincerity in it, a venting of his true feelings.
It was just that... those feelings weren't as important as one might think.
“You see...” Evans continued slowly.
“I don't seem to care as much about the things you mentioned as you thought I did.”
“I don't think there's any need for you to use these kinds of methods to provoke me.”
Evans curled his lip. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.
“You want me to open the New Era?”
Evans’ pitch-black eyes were like a falcon staring at its prey as he questioned him directly:
“Why?”
Pops looked at the youth before him, who had inexplicably regained absolute rationality in such a short time, and let out a long sigh.
“I’m not asking you to be some savior. I’m not that noble myself.”
Pops shook his head, a flash of ferocity crossing his wrinkled face.
“My ultimate goal is to completely destroy the 【S-001 Creator】 and the 【S-003 God’s Corpse】.”
“Why?” Evans raised an eyebrow, pressing him further.
Pops slowly raised his head and spat out four words, one by one:
“For the sake of freedom.”
“Yes, true freedom.”
Pops ignored the youth’s mockery. He pushed himself up from the table, his body appearing somewhat hunched under the dim light.
“As long as those two things exist, this world will never have a future.”
Evans didn't respond, so Pops continued.
“There are two major obstacles to breaking through the City of the Sky Lake base.”
“S-003 God’s Corpse, and S-001 itself.”
Pops sighed with a touch of helplessness, glancing at Sword-man in the corner.
“Those two Anomalies possess a level of suppression over every other Anomaly in this world that is akin to a dimensional suppression.”
“Therefore, it’s impossible for us to get close to or destroy S-001.”
“Furthermore, there’s a high probability that S-001 possesses an indestructible nature, which means long-range attacks are unlikely to succeed.”
Pops rubbed his temples.
“Then why do you think I can destroy S-001?” Evans asked in return.
“I can also be harmed by S-003. Your reasoning doesn't hold up.”
Pops shook his head, rebutting his points one by one.
“First, being harmed is not the same as being suppressed. Your reaction to S-003 is different from how other Anomalies react to it.”
“And second...”
“Haven't you already destroyed S-002?”
The room fell silent once again. Sword-man watched the confrontation between the old man and the youth from the side, his hands unconsciously and repeatedly fiddling with the innocent Wu Erhun.
Evans frowned, saying somewhat helplessly, “The way you put it... I’m almost starting to believe you.”
“But S-002 will just recover in the next era anyway, according to the ‘Law of Indestructibility’ for Anomalies.”
“I already told you,” Pops interrupted him, “the reason everything in this world, including the world itself, recovers is because of S-001.”
“So, as long as we can take control of this era’s reset by S-001, none of that will be a problem.”
“According to the memory fragments left in my mind from previous eras, the previous extinctions and restarts of the world were all triggered by that ‘Lord’ of the City of the Sky Lake.”
Pops stared intently at Evans. “In short, this time, we absolutely cannot let that Lord of the City lead the restart again.”
“You open the New Era and replicate the world you want; then, you destroy S-001 and S-003. That is what I want you to do.”
“From then on, we will have freedom.”
Hearing this plan, Evans didn't show much fanaticism.
“It sounds like a nice blueprint. But, old man, at the end of the day, this is just a mutually beneficial deal, right?”
The youth let out a cold laugh, sliding smoothly into the role of a negotiator.
“Since I’ve already said that freely molding a New Era doesn't hold much appeal for me... then what do I get out of this deal?”
Pops met Evans’ gaze. Instead of getting angry, he let out a low chuckle.
“First of all, I don't believe the New Era is completely unappealing to you.”
“But even if it isn't, it doesn't matter. There is a more important point that you cannot refuse.”
Pops extended a finger and pointed toward the ceiling.
“After this, there will be no ‘Fifth Fall.’”
Pops’ voice carried a hint of temptation.
“Evans, you are a soul with an independent consciousness.”
“You surely don't want to be trapped in this damned iron cage of cyclical resurrection for this life, the next life, and for all eternity, do you?”
These words did indeed touch Evans to some extent.
“Things that are important to me...”
Evans murmured.
He fell silent for a moment. His gaze flickered as his peripheral vision seemed to catch the words Ren Yi had just left on his retina.
“I need some time to think about this on my own.”
“As you should. Anyone would need time to digest this,” Pops nodded understandingly.
He stood up, brushed the dust off his clothes, and gave a tug to Sword-man, who was still tirelessly tormenting the Wu Erhun Cross.
“You take over from here. Show Evans around and arrange a quiet place for him to stay.”
“Finally finished talking?”
Sword-man yawned and hopped up from his chair. The Wu Erhun in his hand rolled its eyes helplessly.
However.
Just as Evans stood up and took a step to follow Sword-man out of the lounge door,
The youth’s eyelids suddenly blinked inexplicably. He stared ahead for a moment, his footsteps coming to an abrupt halt.
Another line of text appeared before his eyes.
“Old man, I have one more question.”
Evans slowly turned his head.
“Speaking of which, since I returned to the Abyss, I’ve seen that you’ve used a massive amount of resources to completely seal the Mouth of the Abyss.”
“Is it because you’re afraid that Lord of the City will go crazy and start dropping nukes into the Abyss again?”
Before Pops could answer, Evans stared at him intently and threw out a second question.
“Or perhaps I should ask it more accurately.”
“In one of the previous eras... that Lord of the City of the Sky Lake actually already tried to do exactly that, didn't he?”
The atmosphere in the lounge, which had softened slightly, instantly fell back into an extremely strange and deathly silence.
Pops sat in his chair. After a full ten seconds, he let out a helpless sigh and nodded.
“Yes. That madman... did indeed do such a thing.”
Evans took a deep breath.
“And then, you had Sword-man wait for me at that passage entrance.”
The coldness in Evans’ eyes was almost overflowing.
“So, since it wasn't the first time he had acted against the Abyss, it naturally wasn't the first time he had acted against the Wilderness either.”
“You knew all along that he would destroy the Wilderness, yet you still let me go there.”
“Do you have anything you’d like to say in your defense?”
Rate on N.U.
