Extraordinary Pedigree.

Chapter 711: Echo: Wall Collapse
Terra calendar 1591.2.12.
it's clear.
New Manhattan area·Level I quarantine area.

Sunlight shines through the clear sky over the New Manhattan Level I quarantine area.

The air was filled with a long-lost tranquility. A few breezes blew by, bringing the coolness of early spring, as if foreshadowing some new beginning.

Lena stepped out of the narrow door, her eyes slightly narrowed, and she felt the bright sunshine of New Manhattan shining on her face for the first time in a long time.

She was so familiar with this quarantine area that she couldn't be more familiar with it.

Ever since the conflict over the Emancipation of Hoofbeats and the Social and Cultural Committee escalated, her father had kept her at home.

Today she finally heard the adults say that the fight seemed to be over and she could finally step out of the door.

The air was mixed with dust and a hint of tar, and in the distance one could still see some damaged buildings and streets affected by the battle.

She walked through the crowds on the street. The infected people in the quarantine area seemed a little more tired than usual.

People's faces were full of anxiety and uneasiness. Many people hurried in different directions. Some families gathered together and whispered. Lina couldn't hear clearly, but she could feel that everyone was talking about the bloody conflict - the bloody battle between the Liberation Hoofbeats and the Social and Cultural Committee.

She still remembered the noise that never stopped throughout the night in the past week - explosions, shouting, the roar of helicopters, which made her hug her pillow tightly and unable to fall asleep every night.

The adults were talking in low voices behind closed doors, and she could only sense the seriousness of the situation from the hurried footsteps of her mother and father.

She didn't see the battle herself, but the noise and the chaos were enough to terrify her.

"I heard that the people of Liberation Hoofbeats attacked the Cultural Committee's stronghold," she had secretly heard her father's friends discussing in the room, and the rough voice echoed in the room. "They said that the Blood Network was caught off guard and many people died."

"But what about the infected?" Another voice interrupted the conversation, with some concern, "Will we be dragged in too? The Hoofbeats of Liberation will not take into account the fate of ordinary infected people like us."

Lina didn't quite understand the full meaning of these words at the time.

Adults in quarantine talk about conflict every day.

Some people praised the courage of the Liberation Hoofbeats, saying that they finally dared to stand up against oppression; others said that as the battle escalated, the situation of the infected would only become more dangerous; others said that the Liberation Hoofbeats had gone crazy and no longer cared about their methods...

The depressing environment did not last long.

The struggle is over.

Who is the winner?
The sound of liberation?

Social and Cultural Committee?
No, neither of these are the ones that are taking over the new Manhattan quarantine.

But...

Lina squeezed through the crowd near the notice board in front and came to the notice board.

——【★Official Statement★】——

In view of the long-standing violent conflict between the Liberation Hoofbeats and the Social and Cultural Committee, the New Manhattan area has fallen into unprecedented chaos and disaster. The new era horse racing plan of the Eddiesi Federation cannot be carried out as scheduled. This unscrupulous, life-and-death struggle has not only seriously undermined the social order in the local area, but also brought immeasurable economic losses and public safety hazards to the entire federation.

At the end of this conflict that was completely out of control, both sides left behind an unmanageable mess in the New Manhattan area, leaving behind devastation, panic and chaos.

In order to maintain peace and security in the New Manhattan area, the Honkai Administration decided to provide strong financial support to the area and assist it in establishing a highly autonomous police security department. The agency will recruit local members to ensure that the actual security issues in the area are self-managed and self-repaired by local residents.

At the same time, the Administration will dispatch a task force and an experienced special agent to assist the Security Department in restoring order in the area.

We believe that the future New Manhattan will gradually recover its vitality under the management and self-governance of local residents and will once again become an important area for the future prosperity and development of the Federation.

The Authority will continue to provide the necessary support for New Manhattan to ensure that the area no longer becomes a hotbed of extremism and violence, but instead moves towards a new chapter of peace and harmony.

We sincerely hope that all parties concerned can draw wisdom from this painful lesson and rebuild a future of order and rule of law under the right of self-government.

This statement takes effect immediately and is hereby announced.

——{Signed: Hugh Abraham}
——{Seal of Honkai Administration/Seal of Edisi Federal Government/Seal of New Alliance}
——★★★——

Relying on the knowledge she learned in school, Lina managed to read the entire announcement. Looking at the content of the notice, she felt a little... confused.

Finally, she looked at the signature of the director of the Administration. This was the first time she knew the name of the director of the Honkai Administration.

She subconsciously spelled out the name on the signature byte by byte.

"Hugh Abraham..."

When Lina muttered the name, she inexplicably felt that something was looking at her - although there was no malice, it made her hair stand on end.

"strangeness……"

Lina murmured softly, but what she didn't know was that she was not the only one who felt the same way.

Due to the severe lack of basic knowledge of thaumaturgy, many infected people are unaware of the meaning behind calling out the name "Hugh Abraham".

*
*
Isolation Zone I: The Wall of Isolation.

The sky was clear and blue, with a few white clouds floating slowly, but the area below the barrier was filled with tension and anticipation.

The morning mist gradually dissipated under the sunshine, and the air was filled with a faint moisture, revealing the breath of new life.

The isolation wall is majestic and grim, about six meters high. It is made of dark grey concrete, and its surface is covered with traces of time and erosion by wind and rain, making it look mottled.

The top of the wall is wrapped with old barbed wire, piercing the tranquility of the sky and becoming a barrier separating the infected from the outside world.

This wall not only separates the two groups of people, but also divides hope and fear into two distinct sides.

The sunlight penetrated the thin morning mist and shone onto the once unshakable isolation wall, casting mottled light and shadows, as if giving the wall a bit of its former majesty for the last time.

The shadow of the wall covered the ground beneath our feet, giving a vaguely depressing feeling.

It is the fear and powerlessness that has accumulated over the past few decades when countless infected people have lived behind this wall. It is solidified on this building and is difficult to dispel.

Hart McDowell, leader of the Infected Workers' Union, Lina's father, and one of the countless infected.

Like other people, he stood on a high mound of earth outside the separation wall, staring at the bulldozers and excavators in front of him, with emotions so complicated that they were difficult to express in words.

The high mound was crowded with people, their eyes full of expectation and anxiety, as if... the collapse of this wall was not just a physical change, but also a turning point in fate.

Hart could feel the breathing of the people around him becoming heavier, and from time to time people were whispering to each other, discussing future changes in low voices.

"Is this separation wall really going to be demolished? After so many years, I never thought that this day would come." A middle-aged man's voice was filled with suppressed excitement.

"So what if it's demolished? Will the outside world really accept us?" Another voice, slightly skeptical, came from an older woman, her tone full of worry and uncertainty.

"At least this means change, right? The Administration is better than those people. At least they won't exploit us like the previous officials did." A young man said softly, with a hint of hope in his tone. "Don't be too happy too soon. Although the Administration seems better than those people in the Cultural Committee, can they really guarantee our lives? I heard that there are not many job opportunities outside. Can we infected people find jobs outside?" Another older voice was full of worry.

"You are still worried about this? We have no choice now. We have been trapped here for so long. Now that the wall has fallen, even if life is difficult, at least we will have a chance to see the outside world." A woman took over the conversation, her tone full of anticipation.

"Yes, at least it can allow children to live a better life. I heard that the Administration will also provide educational opportunities for the infected, including basic thaumatology... the kind of knowledge that is like magic." A young mother said, looking at the child in her arms, with some hope in her eyes.

"Education? What kind of life have we been living these years? Who dares to hope that our children can have a good education?" An old man sneered, with a hint of indifference in his eyes, "I just hope they don't treat us as inferiors like before."

"I heard that the administration's policies are fair. At least they don't bully us in transactions, which is rare." The middle-aged man interrupted, with a hint of cautious optimism in his voice.

"But I'm still worried. What if their leaders change and their policies change as well? Will we be abandoned again then?" The older woman's voice was filled with deep uneasiness.

"You mean that Hugh..."

The old man was about to mention that name, but suddenly stopped.

"It's really hell, every time I mention that person's name, I feel a chill down my spine. It's like... it's like the shudder I felt when I was young and faced a tiger out of control in a circus. No, it's several times stronger than that, and I'm just mentioning his name."

"I feel the same way. It's very strange." The older woman also took over the conversation with fear. "Let's not talk about that... that person... Let's get back to what happened after the wall was demolished."

“Why bother about so many things? The wall has been demolished, and we have to go on with our lives. It’s better than being locked up here. At least there is a glimmer of hope, which is better than waiting to die.” The young man said, his tone full of desire for the future.

Hart stood on the high mound and continued to listen to the discussions of the people around him. This time, the topic was no longer about the separation wall, but turned to the changes triggered by the recent bloody battle, especially the matter of liberating the hoofbeats.

The discussion among the crowd seemed more complex and emotional.

"Are the Hoofbeats of Liberation considered heroes? Are they really doing this for the good of us infected people?"

"Heroes? Don't be naive! They don't care about us ordinary infected people at all. Look at the battles in the past few months. How many infected people have died because of their actions? We are just pawns in their fight for power."

“But they did expose a lot of darkness in the Cultural Committee. Isn’t this a victory for us?” another young man retorted with hope.

"Victory? The family next door to my house was affected by the riots here a few weeks ago, and the whole family died. You call this victory?" A woman said angrily, her voice full of resentment, "Their victory was exchanged for our lives."

"I heard that Mikhail, the leader of Liberation Hoofbeats, really wanted to help us infected people in the beginning, but later he became more and more extreme." The middle-aged man sighed, with helplessness in his tone.

"Help us? Do you believe it? They are fighting the Cultural Committee to the death, and the lives of the infected people have become even more difficult. Do you think they care about us? They just want to overthrow the old forces and take power themselves." The woman said disdainfully, with disgust in her eyes.

“But if there is no action to liberate the hoofbeats, those people in the Cultural Committee will continue to exploit us. Are we going to be oppressed forever?” The young man questioned again.

“The sound of liberation is a double-edged sword. Their violent methods have indeed dealt a heavy blow to the Cultural Committee, but we ordinary infected people have also suffered as a result. In the final analysis, we are just tools being used.” The old man whispered, his eyes revealing deep fatigue.

"But now that the Cultural Committee has fallen and the Administration has moved in, there is finally a new beginning, right? No matter what the purpose of the Liberation Hoofbeats is, at least they have broken the original oppression."

Boom——————

Boom——————

Boom——————

The roar of the bulldozer was deafening. The huge steel arm slowly rose up, then fell heavily, hitting the wall and raising a cloud of dust.

The huge impact caused the crowd to tremble slightly. They looked ahead in shock, watching the indelible wall that remained in their hearts being easily pushed down.

The barrier in their hearts...seemed to be gradually disintegrating as the wall shook.

Hart stood on the mound, staring at the scene intently. Cracks began to appear on the isolation wall under the repeated impact of the bulldozer. The concrete on the wall began to collapse, and fragments fell like rain, making dull collision sounds.

The bulldozer slowly moved forward, its huge mechanical tires crushing the soil, leaving deep ruts.

The giant steel arms waved like ruthless warriors, carrying out orders unswervingly.

The cracks in the wall grew bigger and bigger, and finally there was a loud bang, and the whole wall collapsed, dust flew up, and a low cheer broke out in the crowd. Some people clenched their fists, and some quietly wiped away the tears from the corners of their eyes.

Hart's mood was as heavy and relieved as the collapsed wall.

He clenched his fists, took a deep breath, and the huge rock pressing on his chest was finally removed.

He turned to look at the infected people around him. Many of them were looking at the bulldozers with excitement and anxiety. They were isolated in the shadow of society by this wall. Today, the collapse of this wall meant that they could finally step out of this shadow and embrace a new life.

Just on the other side of the mechanical operation, Hart saw the Administration agents wearing black special service uniforms.

They wore red epaulettes on their shoulders, marking their identity and responsibilities.

The operators were tall and stern, holding bolt guns in their hands, ready for battle.

Unlike the oppressors of the past, these operators did not display a condescending attitude, but instead communicated with the people around them from time to time.

"The Administration...is not what I imagined." Hart muttered to himself.

A tall girl with rabbit ears stood next to the bulldozer, directing workers to evacuate the collapsed wall.

Her ears trembled slightly as she moved, revealing a hint of nervousness and concentration. A mechanical sphere with rabbit ears was hovering above her.

From time to time, the operator turned around and talked to the people around him with a kind smile on his face. He seemed to have no feelings of alienation due to their different identities.

The other operator is a man with a ponytail. He stands next to the machine with a rifle hanging on his waist and a map in his hand. He is discussing the safe range of the operation with the local infected people.

His expression was calm and determined, with a capable temperament, while the flowing ponytail added a touch of softness to him.

Hart also noticed an operator with cat ears. The man had pointed ears that turned alertly at all times. Although his task was to maintain order at the scene, he would stop from time to time to communicate with some curious children, making the children laugh with an innocent smile on his face.

He had never seen such a kind-hearted army. After entering the infected area, these agents from the Administration strictly followed the orders of their superiors, acting in a unified and coordinated manner, without any acts of encroaching on or plundering the property of the infected.

What surprised him even more was that every communication they had with the infected was full of respect and patience, without any intimidation or rude words.

The agents of the Administration not only helped the infected to evacuate safely, but also discussed with them the specific plan for rebuilding the quarantine zone. Even when trading with the infected, they strictly followed fair market prices and never used their power to exploit or force sales.

"Sophia might have made the right bet. This might... truly be a whole new era."

The rumbling sound seemed to announce the end of an old era.

Hart's searching eyes in the crowd rested on a familiar figure - Sophia Williams.

She still carried the familiar gun case, walked steadily, and had a firm gaze. Different from her past image in the struggle, Sophia now wore a neat black special agent uniform, with the same red epaulettes of the Administration as other operators, but still made her stand out.

As he watched, Sophia walked slowly towards the crowd from a distance and looked at him.

Hart knew that the other party wanted to say something to him, so he walked forward.