Arknights: Studying medicine can't save Terra

He never expected that Qi Yan, who had always been so carefree and jovial, would think so highly of him.

This made him feel somewhat awkward.

Ulpian habitually raised his hand to adjust the brim of his hat, then bowed slightly and said:

“I never thought about these things. I’m just an ordinary Agorian, and I’m just doing what I can.”

"As it should be."

Qi Yan turned around, opened his arms, and looked at the somewhat dark underwater toys: "Civilization is never the business of one person, but rather the result of one ordinary person after another walking their own path, finding their own place, and jointly building their own civilization."

One person falls, another steps over him; one group fails, another picks up the scraps, and continues on to the next failure.

Then…we will eventually cross all the ruins and stand in a realm never before reached by our predecessors. History cycles endlessly, and in the future, someone will surely cross all our ruins and reach even more distant places.

Ulpian swallowed hard, his grip on the anchor tightening unconsciously.

He scrutinized Qi Yan's back with unprecedented seriousness.

A question lingered in his mind.

“Qi Yan, during the battle when I killed Chu Sheng, I found an Agor creation in Chu Sheng’s lair.”

Ulpian spoke calmly, recounting an experience that belonged only to him: "It was then that I realized that the war was nothing but a conspiracy orchestrated by others, someone was deliberately using Agor's power to nourish the Sea Heirs."

The original plan was for me to kill the newborn, but I failed. In the end, my teammate Skadi took over my task and killed the newborn.

“Skadi is protected by me and the Doctor, she’ll be fine.” Qi Yan turned around and looked at her. “However, I feel that’s not what you’re trying to say.”

"Well, what I want to say is that compared to those who have fallen into despair or even madness, I may not have truly come into contact with prehistoric civilizations, and I have no right to criticize them."

Ulpian did not become complacent because of Qi Yan's previous praise.

He was very calm at that moment, just as calm as usual.

Ulpian asked solemnly, "Qi Yan, I don't know how powerful the ancient civilization was, nor do I know how it became a ruin."

Could you elaborate on exactly how far it had progressed, and how much it surpassed Agor today, that merely glimpsing the truth could cause such utter despair?

"Heh, to the ancient civilization, Agor today is nothing more than a miscellaneous bacterium that was accidentally grown in a petri dish left in the corner of a laboratory."

Qi Yan walked to the edge of the Fool's Ship, reached out and scooped up a handful of seawater from outside the waterproof membrane.

He cupped some seawater in his hands, turned back, and gave Ulpian a nonchalant smile:

"But you don't actually need to care about so-called prehistoric civilizations. Civilizations that are already dead should just lie properly in their graves."

Terra now belongs to us. Those old fogies struggling to crawl out of their coffins are nothing but wretched creatures, still not fully awake.

After saying that, Qi Yan lowered his head and began to carefully wash his eyes.

"Hey? No!"

Shuiyue and Ulpian tried to speak up to stop them, but it was too late.

"what!!!!!"

"My 24K titanium alloy dog ​​eyes!"

"I'm going blind! I'm going blind!"

Qi Yan covered his eyes and immediately knelt down, unable to get up.

Even as a mere witness, Shuiyue couldn't help but feel her eyes stinging.

Ulpian took off his hat and wiped his face with his hand.

He didn't know if Qi Yan had a split personality, but he was really being driven to one.

Just a moment ago he was all cool and confident, exuding an air of superiority, so why would he do something as stupid as washing his eyes with seawater the next second?

The two looked at each other and both saw the helplessness in each other's eyes.

"Take your hand away, let me check your eyes." Shuiyue stepped forward and tried to help Qi Yan up.

As a result, Qi Yan grabbed his arm directly from behind.

Qi Yan's eyes were tightly closed, and her wet face made it impossible to tell whether the water was seawater or tears.

"Shuiyue, I can't go on anymore. You'll have to walk this path by yourself from now on!"

Shuiyue: "...Just say you're afraid of getting lost, I won't laugh at you."

Qi Yan opened his dog eyes instantly, showing no sign of injury whatsoever: "I didn't get lost, I was just appreciating the scenery along the way."

Shuiyue was too lazy to argue about these things and resigned herself to her fate:

Where do you want to go next?

"Go to the deep sea, to find the dead new life, the spreading branches."

Chapter 1102 Civil War

The ocean is blue.

The further away from the sea, the deeper and more blurred this clear blue becomes, gradually transitioning into the deepest darkness in the world.

But in the endless, dark depths of the ocean, there is a deep blue that never fades.

A uniquely shaped sea creature emerged from the darkness and arrived at the deep blue ruins.

The granular organelles surrounding Haisi's body spread out like arms. Its body still vaguely resembles a human torso and head, but all organs have disappeared. Its entire body is wrapped in layers of twisted fin-like structures. Its head has no facial features, only a thin layer of vacuoles enveloping its biological core.

It seemed very familiar with the deep blue ruins, continuing to venture deeper along a predetermined route until it reached the outside of the core area.

"You failed."

Its nuclear tremor evaluates its two siblings outside the core region.

The butcher stared silently at his fellow human, offering no response to his assessment.

But the one that showed even greater disregard was Ital, who kept its eyes fixed on the protective measures at the core of the deep blue tree in front of it, and didn't even bother to turn around and glance at the newcomer.

The special Hai Si didn't mind this and slowly said:

"This is the core area of ​​the Deep Blue Tree. Except for special individuals, it is absolutely impossible for outsiders to break through."

Your plans are too naive; the only answers the horde can provide are from the next generation.

The butcher impatiently rubbed his toes against the ground twice.

Unfortunately, even now, it is unable to leave any trace here.

"Isamara's creation, can you provide the answer?" the Butcher asked.

“Only the next generation,” the unique Haizi responded.

The Butcher looked at Ital, who remained unresponsive, silently staring at the seemingly impenetrable heavy metal gate before him.

Seeing Ital's attitude, the Butcher didn't want to say anything more. He lay down on the spot, curled up, and prepared to rest.

The special sea creature slowly stepped forward, looking down at the tiny Ital from its elevated position:

"The answer you seek is meaningless; the new generation will eventually lead the masses into the deepest darkness."

He and His offspring will eventually devour all living beings, disintegrate the stars and the moon, and the living and the dead will become His nourishment. He will murmur in the darkness at the end of time... to continue.

Symbiosis is meaningless; only the next generation truly ensures survival.

Ital's tail swung wildly twice.

The Butcher, lying on the ground, noticed Ital's movements and knew that it was a sign that Ital was getting impatient.

“Go and do your own thing, my fellow countrymen,” the Butcher urged.

“Someone is plotting against the Great Folk, and the Great Folk does not know what his purpose is,” the special Sealing replied. “So I have decided to temporarily abandon that city. Their resistance and struggle are meaningless in the long existence of the Great Folk, no different from the waves of the ocean that are constantly surging and dissipating.”

The butcher knew what this fellow countryman meant.

Compared to the vast and endless horde of their kind, the number of people near that human settlement was negligible, and even if those people in that sea chose to coexist with humans, it would have no impact on the larger group.

What truly concerned this fellow countryman was Ital.

As long as Ital continues its quest for its own answers, the horde will never lack a voice hoping to coexist with humanity.

“Fellow countryman, something’s wrong with you.” The Butcher sensed something was off. “The Great Horde never refuses any attempt, even if it requires the individual lives and sustenance of its fellow countrymen. Your thinking is different from that of the Great Horde.”

“Only the next generation,” the unique Haizi responded.

"What are you avoiding?" It stood up, approaching the other step by step. "Are you trying to represent Isamara?"

"...the generation is not the only one."

After a brief silence, the special Sea Heir chose to distance itself from the Slaughterer.

The butcher became even more determined to approach the other side.

The group never shies away from exchanging information, and this fellow member was also in the group, but the Butcher discovered that the other party did not tell the group everything.

Ital finally turned his head and carefully examined this fellow countryman who had intricate connections with Isamara.

There are no secrets in a large group.

It knew the origin of this special fellow citizen, an Agorian who chose to join the large herd after coming into contact with Isamara.

But soon, Ital's gaze moved past this special fellow countryman in front of him.

It saw another... fellow countryman who was not a fellow countryman, appearing behind it.

“You’re being followed…or perhaps you deliberately lured Him here,” Ital said softly.

"Kill...the sea..."

The knight walked step by step from afar, his lance seemingly excited, his body throbbing, and his soul screaming.

He chose to heed Ulpian's recommendation and wandered near Milliuam, where he discovered a special sea creature and, through it, discovered more special sea creatures.

The butcher's muscles gradually tensed, and all the fine scales stood on end.

The special sea creature drifted silently on the ground, offering no response to Ital's questioning.

The battle is about to break out.

The knight roared and charged, but the special Hai Si twisted his body to dodge, using the knight's indiscriminate attacks to deal with the Butcher.

Without the slightest hesitation, Ital turned and ran away.

The special sea creature followed Ital at a leisurely pace.

After Carmen finished her daily inspection of the construction work at the Judgment Army's base, she strolled back alone to the central square of Gran Farrow.

He had received communications informing him that a Rhodes Island support team had successfully arrived in Granfalo.

When Carmen arrived at the central square, it was already filled with envoys from various countries, all of whom had come spontaneously to meet Rhodes Island's support team.

Carmen silently walked to the Pope's side, glanced around at the Rhodes Island contingent surrounded by envoys from various countries, and raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"Why is Miss Qi Lin in this group?" he asked the Pope beside him.

"Do you want to hear good news or bad news?" the Pope asked with a chuckle.

Carmen: "...Let's talk about it together."

"Well, something must have happened in the sea. Qi Yan seems to be ready to make his move. This will definitely be a rare and epic battle."

The Pope clasped his hands together, his expression unusually solemn and dignified: "And you and I, and this town on the coast, will have the honor of being witnesses."

Carmen sighed but did not respond.

This time, it was the Pope who showed surprise.

He asked curiously, "You seem to have anticipated this?"

Carmen remained expressionless and said softly:

"I just want to know whether this battle will bring a period of relative stability to Iberia."

"Are you ready?"

"I was prepared for this sixty years ago."

"Heh... Your Excellency Saint, I admire your will and determination." The Pope turned and looked directly into Carmen's eyes. "May the law protect you."

“If the law can truly protect those outside of Sakota, I hope it will protect Iberia.”

"Sorry, it was a slip of the tongue... I meant to say, may Sakta protect you."