Uncle, I am not an ordinary office worker.

Roy suddenly understood why there were so many seemingly maintained living facilities outside the shelter. Those houses and spaces that were enough to form the basic elements of a city were built for the purpose of allowing the humans sleeping in the sarcophagus to live after waking up! Just like what Trevor Friston said, this place could be a paradise that no one would discover, a refuge base.

"You look surprised. Haven't you heard of the Preserver Program?"

Trevor Friston's voice rang out again, echoing in all directions of the building. Roy raised his head and looked at the huge hole in the middle of the countless sarcophagi, deep in the entire space. In the hole, Trevor Friston's huge body slowly rose up, like the final boss that made a grand appearance in a shocking game scene, full of oppression.

It has no humanoid shape, but a huge round sphere emitting metallic light. Half of the sphere is covered with eye-like paint, but if you look closely, you can find that it is not paint, but countless miniature mechanical structures that form a large camera like an eyeball.

That is the "organ" that Trevor Friston uses to obtain information from the outside world and monitor the entire shelter.

And his generators are spread throughout the facility.

Facing his question, Roy was silent for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I don't know. Maybe I should have known it before, but at least now, I have no impression of this place. I believe you can also see that some small changes have happened to me."

"Yes." Trevor Friston's voice was not lacking in emotion as he confirmed Roy's statement. "But I still need to fulfill my duties, fellow countryman. Please allow me to ask you a few simple questions."

Roy's spirit suddenly became tense. Problem? What problem?

But before he could accept or refuse, Trevor Friston's huge "eyeball" emitted a red light, enveloping Roy.

Roy only felt dizzy, and what he saw gradually became blurred and transformed into a new and unknown appearance.

After a few seconds, the chaotic colors gradually took shape, and a tall figure gradually appeared in front of Roy. It was a middle-aged man with long light blond hair and emerald green eyes. It seemed that he was intentionally hiding his face, so Roy couldn't see his exact appearance. He could only roughly judge from his skin, pupil, hair color, and clothing that he should be a white man, and a scientist or researcher.

"You look a little surprised?"

A man's voice sounded, stating simply,

"I'm Trevor Friston. This body is based on my appearance as a human. This technology should have been very mature in our time."

Roy raised his eyebrows slightly, as if he had thought of something, and replied noncommittally: "Maturity does not mean popularity."

Trevor Friston shrugged, agreeing with Roy's answer, and then asked:

"My fellow countryman, this is a place for debate. As the most intense way for human thoughts to collide since ancient times, I have preserved this tradition and improved it in this way. Of course, I invited you here not to have any kind of debate with you, but I just want to ask you a few questions."

"How is humanity now?"

He asked straight to the point, his emerald green eyes flickering with some unrealistic hope.

He really hoped to get some good news from Roy, such as that humans still existed. Even though the spark of civilization had been on the verge of extinction several times, it still survived tenaciously.

But the only answer he got was Roy shaking his head solemnly:

"Humans in the narrow sense no longer exist. The people living in this world today are [demi-humans] like me now, or, to put it in a more two-dimensional way, [Monster Girls]."

"Second dimension..." Trevor's face showed a look of nostalgia. He raised his head with some nostalgia, closed his eyes, and sighed for a while, "What a distant word. It should be more than 30,000 years ago."

I feel embarrassed when you express your serious feelings about my complaints.

Roy complained in his heart with a hot face.

Even though they had discussed the worst-case scenario, Trevor Friston still sighed for a long time before calmly accepting the result. He continued to ask, "Which plan do you belong to? Why did you become like this? As far as I know, humans should not have conducted experiments to transform their bodies into monster girls... ahem... I mean sub-human races."

Indeed, this is the problem.

Roy smacked his lips in his heart. Ever since Friston pulled him into this illusion, he had guessed that the other party would definitely have this one of his questions.

Fortunately, Roy was not unprepared. Before meeting Kelsey, Roy had been prepared to be asked this question and had prepared a thorough explanation for it.

He coughed lightly and replied:

"Just like I haven't heard of the Preserver Project, you should also be very clear that at that time, facing the threat, many of humanity's plans had already been turned into secrets, and it was normal for them not to know each other."

Trevor Friston nodded and admitted, "That's true. At the time, our network system was no longer reliable, otherwise I wouldn't have taken the initiative to become what I am now."

The position of "Preserver" he held should have been held by a super AI created by humans, but facing the threats in the starry sky, the perfect AI became the biggest threat and was likely to be used by the enemy. Therefore, Trevor Friston, a human, took the initiative to copy and upload his consciousness, merged it with the AI, and became a cyborg Preserver.

Seeing that Friston not only agreed with his statement, but also helped to patch it and revealed a lot of information, Roy became more confident and continued:

"As for my plan, although I can no longer remember the details, it seems to be related to Originium, spirit, and the Sea of ​​Solaria."

Roy originally wanted to say Void Realm, but considering that Friston and the others might not use this name, he changed it to Sea of ​​Solaria.

Friston was obviously stunned by Roy's answer, but immediately seemed to realize something and added:

"I see. Using the Solaria Sea to store spirits, extracting them through Originium as a carrier, and then putting them into a new body, this is a really bold experiment! But how did they do it? How can a person's spirit be completely separated from the ocean of consciousness and stably put into a new container? This is like fishing a specific drop of water out of the sea, which is almost impossible to do!"

He looked at Roy, gazing him up and down with a puzzled expression as if he wanted to dig out all the secrets of Roy.

Roy, who was a little scared by being stared at, suddenly had an idea and asked back:

"So, this is why I lost my memory?"

Trevor Friston immediately showed an expression of sudden enlightenment and clapped his hands heavily!

"I see!"

Volume 1: Chapter 260 Humor

"I see!"

As Trevor Friston's sudden enlightenment and applause sounded, the entire debate illusion twisted into countless blocks of color like bubbles and began to reorganize. The whole process was very fast. Roy only felt a flash before his eyes, and the surrounding environment transformed into a brand new appearance.

The space Roy was in turned into a bright giant underground facility. Although it was slightly different from the current situation, Roy still recognized that this was the underground ruins they were in in reality. At this moment, countless sarcophagi were still open, with nothing inside, and outside the sarcophagi were human researchers coming and going, and from time to time, some people who should be the researchers' family members came to visit.

They tried to look relaxed, but Roy could still see the deep tension and panic hidden under their smiles. It was a panic about the unknown future that could not be concealed.

Just as Roy wanted to get closer to listen to what they were saying, Trevor Friston's voice sounded again, calling Roy:

"This is the scene I remember. It was the last few days before the entire shelter base fell silent."

Roy turned around and noticed that his eyes were full of nostalgia when he looked at the mother and daughter in front of a sarcophagus. He immediately understood and did not continue to approach them. Instead, he stopped and asked:

"My memory is not very clear. I only remember that the danger came from the starry sky, but I forgot its specific form. So when I woke up, I traveled across this land, trying my best to find the relics of human civilization and restore the original scene. What put us in such a situation?"

Perhaps the question was too sharp, poking at some memories that Trevor Friston didn't want to recall, or perhaps the question was worthy of his serious consideration before he could answer it seriously. In short, Trevor Friston fell into a long silence, his furrowed brows and slightly pursed lips revealed his helplessness and anxiety at the moment.

Roy did not urge him, but waited quietly. After nearly ten minutes of perceived time had passed, Trevor Friston spoke slowly, as if sighing:

"There are so many answers to this question. It could be the awakening of mechanical life, the over-modification of natural species, a sudden and horrific natural disaster, or a horrific invasion from a higher dimension."

"But no matter what, humans were not completely unable to cope with it at the beginning. In fact, we should have a greater advantage. We already have a greater advantage..."

"If I have to give a reason, as a researcher, I would attribute our failure to sentimental arrogance."

His eyes turned to Roy, as if waiting for him to say that classic line.

"Weakness and ignorance are not obstacles to survival, arrogance is."

"My authority does not allow me to access higher-level matters, but there is a recognized fact that after the human race officially rose to power, it encountered a galaxy-wide natural disaster. The war burned every inch of our territory and that of our allies. War reports poured in like snowflakes every day, so that the communication terminals were almost completely filled with these messages. But fortunately, after the initial defeats due to being caught off guard, we and our allies adjusted our strategies, and in the following wars, we have been winning. Until..."

"Until what?" Roy asked.

"Until our energy supply had problems," Trevor Friston said. "I don't know the specifics, but our fleet, industry, and all the energy necessary for production and life had problems. The general consensus is that the giant structure that extracts and converts energy from the void malfunctioned and exploded, but a small number of people claim that the energy of the machine was polluted at a higher level, and some monsters were derived from the original energy, which exploded in all the directly governed star systems of the country in an instant, destroying the entire social system. Whatever it is, it is not something that humans on our planet can know."

"I have been sending signals to the outside world for 20,000 years, but have never received any response. Perhaps humanity has really reached the end."

When he said this, he seemed somewhat disheartened and closed his eyes, not looking at his wife and daughter in the memory projection.

After all, they were compatriots, even though they were not from the same Earth. However, Roy still tried to comfort them:

"That's not the case. As far as I know, besides me, there is at least one pure-blooded human alive on this planet. Moreover, aren't there so many home rehabilitation devices here? As long as we turn them all on, we still have thousands of compatriots alive. The only thing we need to consider is how to ensure that they can survive in the current Terra while trying not to attract the attention of other countries..."

"These dormant devices can no longer be turned on."

Trevor Friston interrupted Roy,

"For 30,000 years, with energy being extremely scarce, I have kept the maintenance costs of the entire base as low as possible. This is why you and the little animals were able to discover this shelter from the outside world, and the facilities in the shelter are already in ruins."

"But even so, thirty thousand years is too long."

Roy only felt his heart suddenly tighten and then suddenly stopped beating.

Trevor Friston didn't explain what he said, but this straightforward and implicit statement was enough for Roy to understand the meaning of his words. However, he still couldn't believe it and tried to ask:

"Energy exhausted, they all have?"

Chinese people don't like to talk about death. In response to Roy's question, Trevor Friston remained silent.

He once again gazed at the busy figures in the illusion, and before he knew it, the scene in the shelter had undergone some slight changes.

The busy staff, the visiting relatives and family members, and those who were fortunate enough to enter this shelter, all put away the smiles on their faces. They gathered around their own or their relatives' sarcophagi, hugged and kissed each other, and poured out what they wanted to say until now. From time to time, sobs were heard from the crowd, but they were quickly suppressed.

Finally, they returned to their sarcophagi, said their last goodbyes, and lay down inside.

Roy noticed that Trevor Friston's wife and daughter were the last to enter the sarcophagus. They looked into the depths of the shelter, where a vague figure stood.

The figure was tall and straight, with short blond hair and a prickly beard, and wore thick black-framed glasses. His emerald green eyes were filled with kindness and determination. He waved at the two people in the sarcophagus and watched them close the coffin lid. Everything returned to peace.

He remained silent, as did Trevor Friston.

But this silence is already an answer.

As time passed and energy was depleted, the sarcophagus had long been unable to maintain its most basic life-sustaining functions due to insufficient energy supply at some point in the past. What was now preserved inside were just corpses that had been frozen and preserved to look lifelike.

For the first time, Roy felt that he could not breathe due to purely mental stimulation.

"I told my daughter that her daddy would wake her up from her sleep with a kiss like the Prince Charming in a fairy tale."

"She scolded me and told me I didn't want a prince charming who was so ugly like me."

"Haha, she got what she wanted."

Trevor Friston looked at Roy, forced out a smile that was uglier than crying, and said, "I'm glad that I retained my emotions when I uploaded my consciousness. This allows me to show my sense of humor at times like this."

Volume 1: Chapter 261: The Failed Guardian Angel

"I'm not telling you this to make you sad or to ask for your comfort. In fact, over the past 30,000 years, I've already gotten used to this pain and have come to terms with it."

"Human civilization has come to this point. Reality has long taught us not to complain about our misfortunes. Roy, this is your name now, right? I am very glad that I met you when I was still sober. It allowed me to know the demise of human civilization and not die in vain in hope."

Trevor Friston’s words were soft, like a devout priest making a heartfelt confession.

Roy couldn't understand what he said. He brought the news that human civilization had been destroyed. What was there to be thankful for? But after hearing the second half of his sentence, he suddenly understood that feeling.

Holding on to false hopes and living in meaningless waiting is a kind of pain. For people like Trevor Friston, what he fears more than the destruction of civilization is that if civilization survives, he will be forgotten in this underground space.

At least, in the former case, he could be said to have fulfilled his responsibility, defending this refuge until the last moment. Even if he died, he would be buried with and for the great civilization he knew and loved. He would die with it.

Seeing that Roy's pale face had recovered a lot, Trevor Friston nodded slightly, stretched out his hand, and snapped his fingers. The picture in front of him began to distort again. After a dizzy spell, Roy returned to the underground space filled with dark red ominous light, and once again saw Dorothy who was waiting by his side, and Christen and Ferdinand who were observing the sarcophagus and Trevor Friston's huge alloy body that looked like an eyeball not far away.

He returned to reality.

"My compatriot, thank you for hearing my call and rushing here. Although the ending is always disappointing, I still hope that I can be of some help to you."

Trevor Friston's voice sounded from all directions as usual, and the huge alloy eyeball slowly turned, forcing Ferdinand, who was looking at him in front of him, to take several steps back.

"Where is this thing's vocal organ? How does it float? Damn it, Dorothy, why didn't you tell me earlier that you were going to bring me to a place like this? If I had known, I would have brought my energy measuring equipment!"

Ferdinand said anxiously, and the slightly offensive words made Trevor Friston's alloy eyeball deflect a small arc towards him. The nanomaterials that made up the pupil on it trembled, and it was like the protective qi in the fantasy novel that shook Ferdinand away.

Roy quickly reached out to catch him, to prevent the director of the Rhine Energy Department from falling too badly. But as soon as this guy landed safely, he immediately asked impatiently:

"What kind of technology is this? How did they do it? Damn it, can you wait a few minutes? I'll go back and get my equipment!"

"Ferdinand, this place is more than 20 kilometers away from Trimont. Even Saria can't run back and forth in a few minutes."

As if he was powerless to complain about the fanatical attitude of the head of the energy department under him, Christen finally spoke and handed over the USB flash drive he had prepared.

"That's what we agreed on. I guess everything has a first come, first served basis. You still owe me a few questions before you catch up with Mr. Roy."

"Heh..." Trevor Friston sighed half helplessly and half nostalgically, as if he saw some familiar shadows in Christen. He did not abandon Christen like Ferdinand, but agreed, "Ask."

"Who are you?" Christen asked almost immediately after Friston's next sentence, as if she had prepared a list of questions long ago.

"You have double standards, damn it, we came in together, why are you so rude to me!"

Ferdinand cursed in a low voice, somewhat unwillingly.

"Trevor Friston, a human, the manager and preserver of this shelter." Trevor naturally ignored Ferdinand's voice and answered briefly but accurately enough.

"Human...why do you call me a little animal? Are you an artificial intelligence or a real life?" Christen continued to ask.

"Is this two questions or one?" Trevor asked with a smile in his voice.

"Two," Kristen replied matter-of-factly.

"Then you have two more." Trevor paused. "The first question is, because in my opinion you are an animal, just like the animal information in the USB drive you provided me, you are no different from a tooth beast in my eyes. The only thing I don't understand is why you have grown into your current appearance, walking upright, and looking similar to humans. It's really interesting. If an zoologist like Catherine sees this, he will be surprised."

"I'll give you this question. Catherine is my wife."

"As for my life form. I am now a semi-AI that has merged with a human soul. I am both Trevor Friston and the Preserver System. The two are inseparable."

The answers were over. Not only Christen, but also Ferdinand and Dorothy's expressions were surprisingly wonderful.

No matter what, they are all top talents in various fields, with superior social status and civilized thinking habits. It is the first time that they are compared with barbaric beasts.