Chapter 61: Spring Will Arrive
Beichen was carried on Dongfang Qingdi’s back.
He walked slowly; originally Dongfang Qingdi carried him by hand, but Xiang Nanli felt that was too rough, so it changed from hand-carrying to a piggyback ride.
Beichen had endured many beatings in prison. He had weak offensive capabilities and was placed in a special cell block housing death row and heavy-sentence inmates. If he weren’t a robot, he would have been beaten to death long ago.
Later, some prison guards took special care of him, making his days in prison easier.
Beichen had stayed in prison for a long time, and that kind of life was incredibly boring.
Death would be far too easy for him. By simply severing the IV tube in his head, his brain would atrophy in a very short time, and he would lose consciousness entirely.
But he didn’t want to die. A voice constantly murmured in his mind, “You must atone for your sins.”
What sins? What was he taking responsibility for?
He didn’t remember.
Beichen could feel that Xiang Nanli liked him quite a bit, and even held some expectations of him.
What exactly was their relationship? They probably weren’t family; he was much older than Xiang Nanli.
Very few heavy-sentence inmates in Gusu City were ever bailed out. Most died of old age.
Beichen still remembered one of his cellmates, a hacker. He claimed to be from some World Tree organization… His hands had been chopped off, so Beichen usually helped feed him. The hacker explained that they weren’t chopped off; his mechanical prosthetics had simply been dismantled.
Three years later, he left the prison, laughing as he said he had no idea what price the organization had paid to bail him out. That hacker also promised to help look into his identity when he had the time.
“Goodbye then, GS719! Oh, by the way, my name is IV.”
To say he wasn’t envious would be a lie.
Beichen once thought he would never leave that prison in his lifetime, forever doomed to look up at the cone-shaped high walls to catch a glimpse of the sky doled out as charity.
He looked a bit sluggish, but he was actually always thinking.
Xiang Nanli must have paid a massive price to rescue him.
Beichen had nothing to offer in return.
He thought he would receive some directive or command, or perhaps a chip that would restore his lost memories, but there was nothing.
In this house, he was treated just like a child being taken care of.
…But still, by bringing him out, Xiang Nanli mostly hoped he could be somewhat useful, right?
Beichen extended his mechanical hand.
He tilted his head back and caught a handful of pink spores.
Beichen took a light sniff. Compared to the mushroom scent he had smelled a few days ago, they had evolved; the mushroom smell had grown slightly stronger. The color had also shifted from light pink to deep pink.
Previously, it could only infect ordinary people with weaker constitutions, but now it could probably infect strong, healthy humans.
The iteration speed was very fast—how interesting. Or was there a transmission source nearby?
He used a piece of cotton to dab the spore powder from his hand, then carefully sealed it inside a plastic bag.
This procedure was obviously not very standard, but pink spores possessed strong vitality and wouldn’t die easily.
He was as proficient as if he had done it thousands of times before.
…
Gusu City, the Surface. Warehouse District.
Xiang Nanli wore a protective suit in an earthy yellow color that didn’t stand out much. He was fully armed, his face hidden behind a gas mask.
Behind him stood the imposing figure of Dongfang Qingdi.
Xiao Qing had changed into a handsome combat suit—bought with the very last of Xiang Nanli’s emptied savings. The lower half of his face was concealed by a menacing metallic mask, and his exposed eyes glowed with icy silver pupil rings.
In the Underground City, exposing oneself as a Synth was not a good thing; it meant you were a second-class citizen in human society and inevitably subjected to unfriendly gazes from normal humans.
But on the surface, this was a form of silent deterrence.
Not a single high-grade Synth was ever created to be a love doll. They were a group of flesh-and-blood Bio-Soldiers, monsters locked by genetic limiters; they mastered combat systems that most people could neither access nor comprehend.
The warehouse district was a mixed bag, filled with rows of low, flat-roofed buildings. No one knew what was being sold inside.
Not far away was a legitimately operating arcade center that had everything: underground technicians, love doll experience parlors, pharmacies, boxing rings, and fugitives.
Boom. The sound of an explosion echoed from nearby.
Bang, bang, bang. Gunfire.
The warehouse clerk calmly explained while checking the inventory list: “Apologies, the guys next door are probably killing and robbing again. It’s a bit noisy, I’ll tell them to keep it down.”
He added, “Don’t worry. They were lured here by low prices online. You two were introduced by acquaintances, so we won’t do anything to break the rules of the underworld.”
After speaking, he smiled, revealing a row of electronic teeth fitted with explosives.
Xiang Nanli’s voice was full of emotion: “Good brother.”
Friendly and peaceful smiles appeared on everyone’s faces.
In the previous tournament, Xiang Nanli had earned roughly three million credits. He invested all three million back into reproduction and development.
Xiang Nanli bought a batch of stolen goods at low prices, mainly consisting of mechanical parts, robots, and daily chemical supplies.
Merely taking inventory and loading the goods at the warehouse took an entire day.
The warehouse offered a delivery service for a five percent service fee based on the goods’ value, which sounded very convenient, but Xiang Nanli didn’t want to expose the base’s location.
This isn’t delivery; this is clearly casing the joint!
To this end, Xiang Nanli specifically bought a cargo truck.
As technology progressed, the capacity of trucks had expanded.
It was a pity there were no rivers near Gusu City, otherwise, water transport would have been much more convenient.
“Xiao Qing, thank goodness you’re back. Otherwise, I would have had to transport the goods back in batches, which would have been a huge waste of time,” Xiang Nanli sighed sincerely from the passenger seat.
He knew how to drive, but such a large truck was an easy target for robbery.
Encountering people in a no-man’s land was the most dangerous thing of all.
The two-story-high cargo truck drove out of the warehouse. Xiang Nanli rolled down the window slightly and glanced back.
The skyscraper of the transport station towered into the clouds. It was a massive octagonal building, and the only high-rise in the vicinity. At night, it would flash like a lighthouse, guiding the way home. During the day, its exterior walls displayed various advertisements.
And behind this tall building stood a mountain of interwoven steel, seemingly a pile of ruins, constantly guarded and patrolled.
The municipal government’s explanation was that these were leftover scraps from the construction of the underground city. But Alpha knew that these were actually the raw materials for a space elevator. If war mode were activated, the Human Alliance could build an elevator shooting straight into space from the surface within a month.
The truck sped out of the city.
Just as Xiang Nanli was about to roll up the window, an emergency notice cut across the exterior screens of the transport station tower.
“Emergency Notice: Gusu City is temporarily closing external transportation. Currently, the transport station is entry-only. Thank you, citizens, for your cooperation.”
This emergency notice broadcasted three times in a row.
Xiang Nanli, holding Xiao Fu in his arms, slightly raised an eyebrow.
His account also received a public text message.
“Recently, lawless elements from the Black Cross Inquisition have deployed biological weapons within Gusu City; the method of transmission is unknown. If you discover abnormal skin conditions on your body, please report it immediately. The Gusu City Disease Control Center will dispatch robots to distribute free medication.”
“Anyone found concealing their condition will be deducted 100 citizen points upon being reported, and fined between 1,000 to 100,000 credits.”
At the end of the text message, there was also a web video. It was a joint statement from a virology PhD at Gusu University and scholars from the Ancient God Biology Corporation. They claimed this biological virus was extremely vicious, and Gusu City was researching a genetic serum at full speed. The Divine Court’s actions were utterly devoid of conscience!
Xiang Nanli earnestly finished watching the video and couldn’t help but sigh: “…When gods fight, mortals suffer.”
He had no idea how many people would die.
Dongfang Qingdi spoke calmly: “This is an opportunity. A situation that is too stable is of no help to the base’s development.”
Conflicts had to sharpen; a new order needed to be rebuilt from the ashes of collapse.
Xiang Nanli replied slowly: “I know. It just feels heavy.”
He tightened his hold on Gospel in his arms.
The super Omnic “Apostle” had dismantled itself into four parts on the surface: Revelation (I), Apocalypse (II), Gospel (III), and Ecclesiastes (IV).
They inherited the “Apostle’s” will, and the Apostle’s will stemmed from Xiang Nanli’s will.
Yet, not a single one of these four Apostles had succeeded in restoring order to the surface.
They might possess knowledge and skills, but they didn’t understand humans well enough—just like Xiang Nanli.
But it didn’t matter.
Dongfang Qingdi thought to himself: He was the very first artificial intelligence Xiang Nanli had created. They would have a very long time to accomplish everything that had failed in the past and slowly correct the regrettable mistakes of history.
Alpha was the original Apostle in Xiang Nanli’s vision.
The cargo truck left the surveillance range of Gusu City. The sky grew dark, and the surroundings were silent and pitch-black. Traveling alone would probably be somewhat terrifying.
Gradually, Xiang Nanli grew sleepy. He rested his head on Dongfang Qingdi’s shoulder: “I’m glad you’re still here, Xiao Qing.”
Dongfang Qingdi’s body stiffened slightly.
He carefully turned his head, gazing at Xiang Nanli’s face just inches away.
Robots didn’t possess sexual impulses; after all, electronic lifeforms didn’t rely on reproductive behavior to multiply—that was an extraneous programming setting.
But in this split second, Alpha really wanted to kiss him.
If he could land the kiss, Alpha calculated that he would feel extreme pleasure.
However, there was a 27.5% probability that Xiang Nanli would be awakened by the kiss, and upon waking up, a 5.4% probability that he would throw him out of the truck… Based on comprehensive calculations, there was only a 0.07% probability that he would accept his feelings.
If he revealed that he was Alpha, that probability would plummet to 0.01%.
Forget it. We have a long future ahead.
…
…
The truck drove across the wasteland for two weeks.
Finally, Xiang Nanli was only a few hundred meters away from the red dot on the GPS.
No one had likely been to this area in a very long time; not to mention the lack of signal, there wasn’t even a road. The entire journey had been barren mountains and loose gravel.
The path entering the canyon was blocked off. Perhaps it was due to rockfalls brought about by the melting ice and snow in spring.
Dongfang Qingdi stepped out of the vehicle, and a thin layer of ice immediately crystallized on his skin.
It was early April, which under normal circumstances should be late spring, but the surface temperature was always extremely low, covered in ice and snow for half the year. Only from June to September was there a brief “spring.”
He walked forward, placed his hand against the frozen cluster of rubble, and carefully sensed the area.
Good, there was no danger behind it.
Dongfang Qingdi balled his hand into a fist and smashed it against the frozen earth.
Cracks spread outward from the center, quickly shattering the stones into pieces.
The straight-line distance from here to Gusu City was 500 kilometers. The largest human settlement nearby was the “Eternal City”. Considering that the Eternal City was currently under Andrew’s management, quietly biding their time and developing in this canyon would be extremely safe.
However, the entrance to the canyon was sandwiched between two towering mountains. Hundreds of years of geological changes had rendered the mountain structure extremely fragile.
It looked like the truck wouldn’t be able to drive in until a road was built. Nevertheless, Xiang Nanli could already see the architectural ruins below, mostly buried under ice and snow.
At this moment, a window popped up on his electronic lens.
[Device has received a transmission request. Accept Bluetooth data drop?]
Xiang Nanli paused in surprise, then selected “Accept.”
[Please approach ‘Data Transmission Device No. 1074’.]
Xiang Nanli hopped out of the truck. Wearing his thick winter clothes, he stepped over the pile of rubble and, following the prompt, found the so-called “Data Transmission Device.”
He called out: “Xiao Qing, there’s something here.”
It was a stone stele resembling a border marker, with words painted in red pigment: “Ruin No. 1074”.
Too much time had passed, and the stone stele was leaning crookedly. The sensor chip was embedded in the iron rod encased by the stele.
Once Xiang Nanli finished receiving the data, the back of a strange man appeared before his eyes, very blurry.
He heard the voice of an old man, speaking in the Human Alliance language.
“Hello, stranger. I am the team leader of the Human Alliance Investigation Group 17. This is my 67th year wandering the surface.”
“When we left Luoyang City, there were 25 of us. Now, only I remain. Some left the investigation group, some died along the way.”
“It is currently the New Calendar Year 417. I heard Gusu City is almost built?”
“There is no signal here, and my equipment is lost. I have no way to transmit the information back… I don’t know how long it will take before someone discovers this.”
“The fact that you have returned here is good news. Have we reclaimed the surface yet?”
“Please tell me, is it spring now?”
-[Appendix] Survey Report on Ruin No. 1074.
-Note: Holographic projection. Requires professional equipment for playback.
The man looked very old. Hunching over and leaning on a wooden cane, he walked further and further away, his silhouette slowly disappearing into the blizzard…
This was a holographic projection from five hundred years ago.
It wasn’t Xiang Nanli’s first time seeing a holographic projection. Previously, at the high-end sanatorium in Luoyang City, they had also extravagantly used holographic technology to broadcast the news.
Back then, Xiang Nanli had thought, Technology really is advanced. Only after returning to Gusu did he realize that holographic projections were still a privilege reserved for the extreme minority.
When would this technology ever actually be put to use? Now, Xiang Nanli knew.
Xiang Nanli took off his electronic lens, wiped away the condensation attached to it, and answered in a low voice: “Spring will arrive. I promise.”
(End of Volume 1)
