Abyssal Wanderer.

Chapter 453 NO01d6: Seven Heroes Battle Thebes

Thebes, or the Third New Thebes.

Because the General Artificial Intelligence Corporation is located in the United States, the Americas, like East Asia, became the region with the most super artificial intelligences after the Great Shock.

Including Nyx, there are a total of three super artificial intelligences born in the cyberspace of the Americas, and countless other twisted gods and monsters were born due to failed ascension.

The most massive and brutal of these was the "zero-sum war" between Janus and Nyx.

Although their massive war in the old internet remained unseen, the battle between these two behemoths in the underlying reality truly impacted the entire North America.

Mountains collapsed, oceans evaporated, and deserts were scorched into glass. Ever since Janus landed in San Francisco with a prototype universal printer, the battle between the two supreme gods had stretched from the west coast all the way to the east coast, and the aftershocks of the battle destroyed more than a dozen failed ascension gods along the way.

The war ended with the complete destruction of all twenty-four "Black Towers" built by Nyx—before that, tens of millions of residents in the areas covered by those towers had been transformed into tireless zombies. This zombie wave then spread globally, and hundreds of millions of humans inexplicably became mindless zombies.

Although Nyx became the first super artificial intelligence to be recorded as dying, the losses inflicted by this battle also wiped out Janus's previous first-mover advantage.

With the launch of another super AI, "Eros," which uses a general artificial intelligence technology approach, Janus, already at the end of its rope, had no choice but to abandon its plan to annex the Americas network and return to East Asia to lie low in the face of this rising star who has powerfully integrated the resources of the entire Latin American region.

Having experienced the war between two super artificial intelligences, the Americas region has been left with the most "visiting relics".

It's like how, after a war, weapons and ammunition left behind on the battlefield were picked up by local apes, and the various factions in the Americas directly acquired technological creations far exceeding those of the present era.

Adding to the threat of the intelligent zombie horde and Eros's indifferent attitude toward humanity, the people of the Americas began to use "visiting relics" with increasing impunity.

And so, the day before, humans were using chemical weapons, and the next day everyone began to be equipped with plasma weapons—this was still within the realm of what normal people could understand. Many people were even inexplicably merged with those AI creations and were transformed and alienated by them.

The exoskeleton armor begins to devour flesh and blood, merging with the user inside; the weapons held in the hands begin to communicate with the user, gradually guiding the mind of the controller; the nanomedicine originally injected into the bloodstream to treat a terminal illness begins to proliferate within the body, transforming the human body from the inside out, making it capable of scaling walls and impervious to blades and bullets...

In later generations, these people will be called the first Coordinators.

As more and more powerful adjusters emerge, order begins to be re-established.

The Coordinators have stepped onto the stage of history. Although they possess power far exceeding that of this era, they lack the corresponding social structure for competition. Therefore, they have continued the concept of the nation and, based on this concept, jointly created a global coalition government to combat this AI crisis.

In the face of crisis, this may be the most united humanity since the concept of "humanity" was first coined.

But after the super AIs completed their destined final battle and dramatically disappeared, and the "Great Impact" finally ended, the war between humans returned.

The First Cyber War, the Second Cyber War, and the Third Cyber War.

Ironically, despite the fact that four Olympus companies have emerged from the Americas, Latin America's fate remains the same as it has been for centuries: a blood bag for the behemoth in the north to bleed.

In the past they offered silver and blood, but now they offer blood and blood.

Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America are known as the three major battlefields for mercenaries.

After the Olympian Order was established, all wars were restricted to taking place only on legally designated battlefields.

These mercenary battlefields are like Troy in Greek mythology, a place where the gods vie for supremacy.

"The fact that Thebes was able to be established here is nothing short of a miracle."

As she said this, Sita's gaze became somewhat unfocused.

With less than half an hour until they docked, Jiang Zhou was organizing his equipment in the cargo compartment when, for some reason, Xita suddenly came to visit him alone.

Next, she first gave herself a brief introduction to the history of the Americas after the Great Impact, and finally turned the topic to Thebes.

What she mentioned earlier was something Jiang Zhou had never heard of before—the official records of the Great Impact were already very vague, and in the limited intelligence available, the establishment of the United Government and the Great Impact were almost simultaneous.

It's as if humanity suddenly united together.

However, it seems that the Great Shock has lasted for quite some time—at least long enough for the "Visiting Relics" to create the first generation of Coordinators, and for these people to rise to the historical stage through their own abilities or violence.

In other words, although the country still had the name of "country" at that time, most of its high-ranking officials had probably been replaced or controlled by the first generation of Coordinators.

Of course, there's also the historical account of the battle between Janus and Nyx... No wonder she didn't bring AR as usual; after all, it involves the story of the great "Father" Janus suffering a setback, and I guess the girl would be unhappy after hearing it.

Seemingly sensing what Jiang Zhou was thinking, Xita hesitated for a moment before saying:

"Just take AR's view of history with a grain of salt... Although Janus is undoubtedly in the top tier among all super artificial intelligences, the record that he was weakened by the battle with Nyx and then driven out of the Americas by Eros is information left by the third wish grantor, that much is true. Of course, AR's claim from the so-called 'prophet' that Janus actually merged with Nyx in the end and became even stronger than before the war is just pure fabrication."

What?
Jiang Zhou was startled when he heard this.

Wait a minute... this Holy Trinity Church seems to actually know something!

Even Janus knew about the information he had gathered from Nyx.

Back in the Phoenix Islands, did they actually summon that being?

At this moment, although Jiang Zhou was trying his best to conceal it, Xita still managed to discern some clues from the topological representation.

As expected...

she thought.

Previously, she had seen from Christie and Arm 045's memories that the mortician had also been inspired by that "paradox"—although the paradox ultimately did not choose him but chose Jim Ritter, he should have learned something in the process.

In that case, having morticians work with AR might actually be a good idea.

It might have a much greater impact than expected...

Thinking this through, Sita continued with a normal expression:

"Let's put aside those theological questions for now and get back to Thebes... The founding of Thebes originated from an ideal: why must mercenary wars involve living humans? Virtual reality technology is already so powerful these days. Even if the gods are worried that their battles will destroy the world and need a game board to decide who wins and loses, why can't this game board be set up online?"

As she said this, a nostalgic expression appeared on her face.

"We were originally just an interest group on the culture of the Common Era. During an exploration of the dark web, we accidentally learned about the existence of the Dionysian architecture... So we thought that perhaps by making the Dionysian architecture float up, we could allow those meme entities derived from the ideas to replace the millions of mercenaries in the war and go to the battlefield, thereby changing the current mercenary war system."

"Infecting all of humanity with the Dionysian virus, causing everyone to acquire the Iridoid brain region, forcibly causing the Dionysian architecture to surface; and constructing a sufficiently large virtual reality matrix, allowing enough people to have the same dream, thereby making the Dionysian architecture manifest... These were the two paths we initially explored. Of course, there was also a third path found later in cooperation with the Holy Trinity Church, but you know the outcome of that, so I won't mention it."

"In short, Thebes represents the second path..."

At this point, Sita sighed.

As someone who followed the Orpheus Path, she was naturally a staunch advocate of the first path back then. But only now does she understand that the iris bridge is actually a result of the Dionysian architecture rising to the surface, not a cause... And after experiencing the Type II crisis in the Nord settlement, she even suspects that the reason the Olympian Order previously prevented the Dionysian architecture from rising to the surface was likely because the iris bridge was closely related to Nyx's second will.

Now that the problem with the second will seems to have been resolved, they have chosen to relax this restriction.

Of course, all of this was just Sita's speculation. She posted these random thoughts in her backend thought cluster and then continued:

"At that time, we were just remnants of the Blissful Order and had not yet deciphered... the echo of that last wish. Back then, we truly gathered our last strength and fought our way back to our homeland, building a city in the name of an independent force on a wasteland that had experienced an apocalyptic war. It was the bones of countless like-minded comrades that laid the foundation for Thebes."

As she spoke, her eyes were filled with pride and a touch of sadness.

“Yes, I was there when Thebes was founded. Even after so many years, even though Thebes has been constantly renovated by the Bacchus Order, I am still familiar with the city’s structure and the secrets buried deep beneath it, including some of the geographical advantages that could kill a Depth 7 Coordinator… Therefore, the mission I have given you to assassinate Sam is definitely not a pointless suicide mission.”

After going around in circles, she finally said what she truly wanted to assure the other person.

Jiang Zhou remained noncommittal on this matter.

He wasn't afraid of going to his death... If it really was a mission that meant certain death, he would simply refuse to carry it out after restarting it a few times.

Thinking of this, he spoke:

“Ms. Theta, President Christie and I chose to support you because, compared to other Olympus corporations, we are more willing to believe that the Dionysian framework, which embodies your vision, will bring about a better world. In fact, when I heard that the memetic entity you intend to summon is Icarus, the last trace of doubt I had about your true intentions disappeared.”

Jiang Zhou is the person who knows Liao Qi better than anyone else in the world, so how could the Master who plans to summon Icarus be a bad person?

Even her earlier roundabout mention of Thebes was essentially a heartfelt statement from the other side, an attempt to clarify for herself what she was fighting for.

Perhaps all those who adjust the Orpheus path are like this... It is precisely because they cannot be trusted by anyone that they are exceptionally sincere.

Thinking this, Jiang Zhou continued:

"Of course, believing in your sincerity is one thing, but whether the battle plan is feasible is another. I will consider your plan carefully later, and I hope you will respect my wishes when the time comes whether to carry it out. Although I am by no means a coward, even if I am to die, I hope that I can die in a meaningful way."

Upon hearing Jiang Zhou's words, Xita nodded with a serious expression.

“That’s natural, so…”

Before she could finish speaking, the two of them received a message from AR on the communication channel.

[Yun Xiao just left the megastructure directly through Exit 3. Before leaving, he said he saw a multi-purpose printer in the sea!]

Jiang Zhou and Xi Ta looked up at each other at the same time.

"Could it be..."

Jiang Zhou suddenly realized something and quickly opened the map.

At this moment, they were less than twelve nautical miles from the mouth of the Río de la Plata.

Xita nodded.

"If we follow the 12-nautical-mile high seas principle, then this area is already within Thebes' territory."

In other words, the other party needs to summon its own meme entity in advance.

…………

Yun Xiao stood at the edge of Exit 3 of the megastructure. He didn't turn around or greet anyone. He simply raised his wrist and glanced at the random numbers on it.

The meaning of those numbers was something only he could understand; it meant "correct."

Without hesitation, he jumped into the sea.

The sealed enclosure kept the salty seawater out. He didn't struggle, letting himself sink. Thirty meters, fifty meters, he let himself sink. When the depth gauge showed sixty meters, he saw the dark stone slab.

The visitor was a very boring fellow; after explaining the rules of the Dionysian War to him, the voice disappeared.

So, Yun Xiao followed the other party's steps and began to recite the summoning incantation.

Boundless darkness enveloped him.

About five minutes later, Jiang Zhou and the others, still atop the giant structure, saw a dilapidated ghost ship leap out of the sea.

It looks darker than the seabed and more silent than the deep ocean.

Three masts hung with tattered sails, each covered with a frozen human face. The bow resembled a wailing sailor, his mouth agape, but no sound came out.

At the bow, Yun Xiao looked at the captain.

The other person reminded him of his former captain.

The man's hat brim covered his eyes, revealing only the lower half of his face. His lips were chapped, and his skin looked like salted leather.

"The 416th time we docked."

The captain spoke up:

"Is it a living person or a dead person this time?"

Yun Xiao looked at him and replied:

"It doesn't matter."

The captain looked down at him, his eyes, hidden under the brim of his hat, narrowed into slits.

"Then let's go ashore, we still have a long voyage ahead."

The captain said this.

On the sea, a storm descended without warning.