Apocalypse Forecast

Chapter 430 - 370_1

Fortunately, the Eternal Titan Empire now comprised all living creatures remaining in this world; even their enemies had ceased to exist.

Perhaps this is the mercy of the Creator.

Those Owners of the Great Mob, formed from the Mutant Species, were the easiest to handle. They were merely wild beasts that were a bit stronger. The absence of any subordinates or kin armed with destructive factors made it practically like playing on EASY mode. If they had encountered a Creator with an even nastier disposition, the appearance of Remaining Evils of the World, akin to BUGs, would not have been impossible.

Now, the surviving Erosion species have fled in all directions. It won't be long before they meet their deaths amidst the desolation and vacuum, will they?

The great enemy had departed.

But when Huai Shi unintentionally looked back, he saw the faint mist that shrouded the city rapidly dispersing.

In a daze, he thought he saw a blurry silhouette, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't make it out clearly before it vanished in an instant, along with the mist.

Only a pair of eyes met his for a moment, and a hand seemed to wave vaguely at him.

The mist dissipated, along with the illusion.

Huai Shi stood there dumbfounded, for some reason finding that gaze eerily familiar.

"Stop daydreaming." Phoenix passed by his side. "Everyone, meeting time."

"How's the rescue effort?"

"We're rushing to make repairs and provide emergency aid."

"And the damage assessment?"

"It's still being drafted, but a conservative estimate suggests at least one-third of the factories and equipment need major repairs or complete rebuilding."

"That doesn't sound too bad; at least it's within an acceptable range," Phoenix nodded. "And what's the outlook now?"

"It's terrible." Fox sighed. "To be exact, it's downright dreadful. Hydra shouldn't have been so impulsive..."

Selfishly speaking, he would have gladly traded three times their current losses to prevent what happened to Hydra. But at that moment, the situation had been on the verge of complete collapse. If Hydra had chosen to stand by and watch, it's uncertain if any of them would still be here chatting.

The consequences were devastating, an unavoidable agony.

If one wanted to survive, sometimes sacrifices had to be made, even if it meant drinking poison to quench one's thirst. As long as they could cling to life for even one second longer, nothing else mattered.

"Don't we still have Alchemists to step up?"

"It's disheartening to say, but... they're not on the same level at all," Fox stated bluntly after a moment of contemplation. "The disparity in their capabilities is like the difference between the strongest Dog-headed Man in the city and Huai Shi. With their current abilities, merely taking full control of Hydra's Alchemy Matrix is already a significant challenge. Expecting them to make further progress in development and production is pure fantasy."

Phoenix was silent for a long time, his expression disappointed, yet he couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief.

Thankfully, the city's deep control instruments and sediment discharge matrix could still operate. Without Hydra, the entire city would have inevitably succumbed to the Abyss sooner or later.

At that point, the Eternal Titan Empire would likely have 'Hell' prefixed to its name.

"Is there even worse news?"

"Bad news?" Fox slapped a thick report on the table. "I've got a pile of it right here. Which piece would you like to hear?"

Phoenix shrugged. "Let's hear the worst one first."

"We're all still alive."

"And the second worst?"

"We will all die," Fox stated calmly, looking around at everyone. "It's just that some of us will perish before the others."

No one spoke.

In the silence, they all felt an indescribable, heavy burden.

The joy of victory had vanished without a trace.

This wasn't a battle settled by a single, decisive blow. It was an arduous pilgrimage with no end in sight, offering no automatic 'happy ending' simply for defeating the boss.

They could only move forward together.

They were like climbers roped together, scaling an endless, snow-capped mountain, relying on their own meager body heat to battle the harsh world.

But no matter how much they supported each other, someone would inevitably fall first.

With each person who fell, their progress would slow, until the first dislodged snowflake triggered an irretrievable avalanche, and the entire situation collapsed.

Death, like that avalanche, would bury them all.

Until extinction finally claimed them, there would be no respite.

"Perk up!" Phoenix's deep voice cut through the gloomy, unsettling atmosphere. His authoritative eyes swept around. "If you're ready to give up, then step off the field right now and go lie on your couch at home! Be a man! No, if you truly feel any responsibility toward this world at all, then wipe that look off your face—you look like a child upset about summer vacation being canceled!"

Everyone's expression sharpened, and they subconsciously straightened their postures.

Phoenix surveyed them, nodding with satisfaction. "That's more like it. It's not as if you've been working hard all day to pay off a mortgage, only to sign divorce papers with your wife at night and then go home to tutor your kids with their homework. At the end of the day, it's just death. What's there to fear?"

A wave of laughter spread among the Giant Beasts.

It seemed that, at this moment, only such grim, adult humor could warm their spirits.

Viewed this way, the Doomsday seemed gentler than the Current Circumstances.

At least here, one didn't have to wake up worrying about monthly loan payments.

"Everyone awake now?" Phoenix withdrew his gaze. "If you're all awake, then get to work! There's no time to dillydally, do you hear me? All of you, get to your posts!"

At his impatient command, the Giant Beasts scattered.

In the ensuing silence, Fox remained, tilting his head to look at Phoenix. "Why didn't you let me continue speaking?"

"If you'd kept talking, everyone would have given up working. They might as well have packed up, bowed out, and gone home," Phoenix retorted.

"Without long-term concerns, there will be immediate worries." Fox sighed. "I just wanted to make everyone aware of the severity of the situation."

"Considering success, failure, and how to achieve either is our responsibility—yours and mine," Phoenix stated calmly. "Leading troops into battle isn't like conducting research. It may sound harsh, but soldiers charging onto the battlefield don't need to worry about next month's supplies or whether they'll have friendly artillery support. They just need to keep their heads down and charge. That's all there is to it."

"..."

After a long silence, Fox sighed softly. "Perhaps dying with hope isn't necessarily a bad thing."

"Good or bad, I'm not sure. But no one here is afraid of dying," Phoenix told him. "They aren't afraid, and neither am I. So, you shouldn't be either."

Fox gave a bitter smile. "But if it were possible, who wouldn't want to live a good life?"

"Yes," Phoenix said softly. "And it's precisely for that reason that sacrifices have meaning, isn't it?"

He said no more, soared into the sky, and flew off into the distance.

After that battle, intensive production resumed and continued unabated.

Although there was no more air outside, the Titan Empire, after erecting a barrier, still found a way to synthesize oxygen. Under the consultation and guidance of many Scholars, they once again began the evolution of their race.

Ignoring enhancements to physical abilities, the focus shifted to increasing resistance and Endurance. By reducing their intake and consumption needs, their tolerance to a wide range of negative conditions was significantly enhanced.

Once it got into full swing, the technical capabilities of the Titan Empire began to rise rapidly. Without the restrictive laws of the Current Circumstances, even the most inhumane experiments and modifications proceeded smoothly, as if everything just fell into place, yielding impressive results.

This involved extracting genes from Giant Beasts for modification and accelerating their own mechanization. After three Metamorphoses and collective surgical alterations, the inhabitants' appearances made them almost indistinguishable from their original species.

Not only their appearances but also their internal organs and ways of life gradually converged.

It was as if they were integrating into a single, unified entity, a process that proceeded with incredible smoothness.

Just as the final evolution completed, everyone observed a thin mist blanketing the city. It was undeniably denser than when Huai Shi had last seen it, seemingly growing and strengthening, emanating subtle Source Fluctuation. However, it was difficult to discern any traces of Source Substance flow or its interference with matter.

The moment that layer of mist formed, the Scholars were astonished. Huai Shi also felt a rhythm within him—it was the Souls of hundreds of thousands of Lizard Men in Deep Sleep, responding to a call from within the mist.

Huai Shi hesitated for a moment, then ceased to restrain them. Soon, wisps of white vapor rose from beneath his scales, merging into the mist accompanied by a gentle hymn, causing the mist to grow even denser.

It was hard to say whether it was a relief or a sense of loss. The departure of several hundred thousand Lizard Man Souls made Huai Shi's consciousness much more agile and unencumbered, freeing him from the clumsy sensation of bearing a great weight. However, having grown accustomed to the previous burden, Huai Shi now felt slightly uncomfortable.

So incredibly light.

The Lizard Men did not take Huai Shi's favorite RGB Halo with them. Instead, they generously bestowed upon him all their remaining Source Substance and faith. They didn't even take their memories, simply merging their most essential sparks of consciousness into that mist.

Subsequently, the mist, as if it had consumed a powerful tonic, rapidly condensed, eventually forming an illusory spring of light that flickered and vanished.

That feeling was incredibly familiar, leaving Huai Shi stunned for a long time. In disbelief, he wondered, "The Sea of Silver?"

It was indeed the same impression Huai Shi had of the Sea of Silver. This was the fount of all wisdom and mysteries in the Current Circumstances, the sea of miracles containing all Souls.

However, this spring of light was rather poor and insignificant compared to the magnificent vista Huai Shi had previously witnessed. Yet, there was no doubt that the essence of both was identical.

Not only Huai Shi but everyone else could perceive it. Soon, within the city's populace, the eyes of dozens of ordinary members began to glow with the light of Source Substance as they underwent an instantaneous Metamorphosis.

Sublimators appeared?

The Scholars gasped.

Although these new beings differed from true Sublimators in many aspects, even possessing Souls that were like uniform blank slates, the unique Soul structure characteristic of Sublimators was unmistakably present.

They had been endowed with Souls.

This immense, joyous surprise invigorated everyone. Although this newfound Power was still minuscule compared to that of the existing Giant Beasts, it was nonetheless an invaluable step forward.

It was like the first step taken by the Russian Federation cosmonaut Gagarin on The Moon.

It held significant meaning.

Setting aside the appearance of Sublimators, the moment the Sea of Silver manifested, various laws established within the city swiftly stabilized. It was as if they were firmly wedged into this space, no longer requiring the meticulous maintenance of the past. This development was akin to a large factory replacing the Scholars' small workshops; it could almost be considered a miniature version of Chalatustra's Ceremony.

This was crucial for the stability of the Eternal Titan Empire.

With such an unexpected and auspicious development, everyone's confidence in surviving the Doomsday surged.

This was, perhaps, the final glimmer of daylight before the long, cold winter night descended.

From that day on, the temperature began to drop day by day...