reincarnation npc, but tomorrow's ark

It seems like these guys are planning something.

Bai Ye was about to say something when he suddenly stopped.

"What's wrong?" Outcast stopped too, her hand immediately resting on the pistol at her waist, ready to draw it at any moment.

Bai Ye didn't speak; he simply looked up at the sky.

Today isn't a good day; thick, dark clouds have obscured the two moons.

"It's going to rain..." Bai Ye squinted his eyes.

“The weather in Little Hills is unpredictable, that’s normal,” Oliver said.

Bai Ye, however, heard more sounds than they did.

Yes, a rumbling sound like thunder came from afar. The deep sound was very faint at first, and even Outcast did not hear it. However, the White Night, with its keen senses and connection to the wind, naturally did not miss this slightest sign.

This is not some spring thunder.

Bai Ye carefully traced the source of the booming thunder.

"The sound should be coming from... well, at this distance, it seems to be outside Xiaoqiu County. If it can be heard from this far away, then the noise must be quite loud..." Bai Ye closed his eyes and carefully sensed the surroundings.

Then, his expression changed.

"What's wrong?" Outcast had been observing Bai Ye's expression the whole time, and she had never seen him look so serious before. Bai Ye was usually so composed, as if nothing could faze him. For him to suddenly show such an expression meant something had happened that had surprised him.

"A faint rumble of thunder, a gloomy sky, but I long for the wind and rain to come, so that you may stay here..."

Bai Ye muttered strange words in Dongguo language, then pulled Jenny and Saoirse, who were still standing there in a daze, to his side.

"There's no time to find cover. Remember, never stray too far from me!"

The group was standing in an open street, and Outcast clearly saw that the sword in Bai Ye's hand had changed to another one in the blink of an eye.

As Bai Ye gripped the hilt, the blade emitted a cheerful, soft hum. At the same time, the inscriptions on the sword lit up one by one.

Bai Ye gripped his longsword, and countless translucent hexagonal scales appeared before everyone. They automatically assembled into a tortoise-shell-like hemispherical shield, enveloping everyone within it.

Oliver curiously reached out to touch it, only to find himself seemingly pressed against a wall, a semi-transparent shield isolating them from the outside world. At the same time, the sounds from the outside world also seemed to be fading away.

This isn't just a physical barrier; it can also withstand energy. In the past, Bai Ye had been developing defenses against physical attacks, leaving most of the energy defense to Originium Arts. But now, he took some time in the safe house to analyze the anti-Originium memory masks worn by the casters among these thugs, and the shield he had erected also possessed energy defense properties.

Therefore, what used to be a hemispherical gas shield is now a complete shield that can both block physical attacks and keep out energy attacks.

……

Just as Bai Ye opened her umbrella, a heavy rain began to fall.

No, that wasn't just any ordinary heavy rain.

Countless shells rained down, exploding the instant they hit the ground and walls.

The shockwave easily tore through the gel material, the high temperature fiercely melted the metal structure, and even more terrifying was the pathogen that took the opportunity to penetrate into the city's flesh and bones—incomplete combustion formed huge clusters of Originium crystals, which densely condensed in the wounds of streets and buildings, just like pure black flowers that quickly bloomed in the mud and rain.

Raindrops, shells, and debris from buildings scattered everywhere rained down on where everyone was standing. Seeing this scene that resembled a natural disaster, the operators turned pale, and Saoirse couldn't help but scream.

However, all of this was kept out by the shield erected by Bai Ye. The falling debris struck the shield like meteors, creating ripples, and the shockwaves from the exploding shells caused the shield to tremble slightly.

Unfortunately, even with their combined efforts, they couldn't break through the solid defenses erected by the White Night. Even the violent explosions and roars turned into muffled groans. This sound was nowhere near as loud as the screams of Sirsa inside the shield.

Jenny nudged Saoirse, and the girl's scream stopped abruptly.

Because she discovered that nothing had happened inside the shield at all.

After the first round of bombing, the Rhodes Island crew were unharmed under White Night's protection.

Outcast holstered her gun again, somewhat helpless. This catastrophic scene was beyond the capabilities of her pistol. Fortunately, White Night was there.

I've heard from Dr. Kal'tsit that if this guy goes all out, his destructive power is almost on par with the Cataclysm. Indeed, only the Cataclysm can fight against the Cataclysm.

Naturally, Bai Ye would not allow the bombing to continue.

The ability to conduct beyond-visual-range strikes is not exclusive to the enemy. At least in this area, he can do it too.

After a round of shelling, Bai Ye had completely pinpointed the enemy's location, and it was clear that, given this posture, they were not only preparing for one round of shelling.

Now, it's his turn.

Taking advantage of a lull in the artillery barrage, Bai Ye leaped out of the shield he had constructed and quickly flew into the sky. All that was seen by the crowd was a dazzling light, no less brilliant than the sun, shooting out from the tip of his sword.

The light vanished in an instant, and Bai Ye heard a booming sound coming from afar outside the city a moment later.

“It hit the bull’s eye.”

However, it seemed that his concern wasn't enough, and Bai Ye fired two more shots at that spot.

The blazing sunlight streaked across the sky, tearing through the rain curtain. The raindrops that came into contact with the light instantly vaporized, as if the raindrops had been cut off for a short time.

After shooting out three beams of light, Bai Ye raised his longsword again, the tip of which pointed towards the sky.

In an instant, the heavy rain stopped, the dark clouds dispersed, and the bright double moon was revealed.

Sheathing his sword, "Wind Chime" disappeared from Bai Ye's hand. He slowly landed on the ground and touched the shield he had created.

The translucent shield also quietly dissipated.

The Rhodes Island operators, who had been isolated from the world, were able to breathe fresh air from the outside once again.

However, Bai Ye reached out and stopped them.

"Don't breathe yet, I haven't cleared my mind."

As he spoke, he snapped his fingers.

An invisible wave swept across the surroundings, and the air instantly became fresh.

Chapter Fifty-Nine: Artillery Barrage

"We need to hurry, this effect won't last long."

After using "Clearing the Sky," Bai Ye successfully isolated a dust-free area, but as he said, this situation could not last long.

Outcast nodded; she now understood the seriousness of the situation.

Bai Ye then took out a large number of items from his inventory.

He first opened a box, and what was inside stunned the Rhodes Island operators the moment they saw it.

Well, I don't know if they were surprised when they saw this thing, or if they found it unbelievable that Bai Ye could "conjure" so many random things out of thin air.

“You should all be familiar with these things, right? Try them on and show our little guest how to do them.” Bai Ye said, pointing to Jenny and Saoirse who were standing to the side, looking bewildered.

“This is… chemical protective gear? The last time I used this stuff was when I went to help at a mine disaster site…” Oliver took out the anti-slip equipment from the box—including a breathing filter mask and a coat made of a protective material similar to a raincoat.

“We might be facing a Level 3, no, perhaps a Level 2 emergency infection situation.” Bai Ye nodded. “Rhodes Island hasn’t intervened in emergency infection situations for some time now, which might give us enough reason to get involved…”

Then, Bai Ye turned his head and said:

"But that's not what we need to think about right now. We need to protect ourselves from this disaster first."

Even Outcast was wearing hazmat gear. She looked at her hands and chuckled to herself.

"This outfit makes them look like the infected picket line from Ursus."

"Because our protective equipment shares the same prototype design as Ursus's brutal rule over the infected. These are Dr. Kal'tsit's exact words." Bai Ye smiled.

Everyone present changed their clothes, except for Bai Ye, who remained in his original attire.

"Don't look at me, I don't need this thing." Bai Ye smiled, then put away the empty box. "Luckily, every safe house is equipped with this thing... I don't carry chemical protective equipment with me. This was taken from a safe house."

"What... happened?" Will's pupils trembled violently as he looked at the apocalyptic scene around him.

Yes, Bai Ye and Outcast seemed somewhat relaxed, but the Rhodes Island operators were still completely unaware of what had happened. They were simply protected and then, in a daze, followed Bai Ye's instructions to put on hazmat suits.

Even from the moment the white night stopped, to the moment the shield was erected and the beam was fired, only a few minutes have passed.

“Artillery fire…” Outcast looked around at the scene, his face grim.

“This isn’t just a simple shelling; you’re now at the highest level of infection risk,” Bai Ye added. “Someone used a dirty bomb.”

Just now, someone outside the city launched a full-scale saturation bombardment of Xiaoqiu County, and it wasn't with conventional shells; they directly hurled active source stones into the city.

At this moment, everyone looked around and also noticed the things growing out of the building.

This is why Bai Ye had to take out the protective suit.

Breathing masks can isolate active primitive dust in the air, preventing these Originium particles from entering the human body through the respiratory organs and causing infection.

“Although I destroyed the artillery positions after the first round of shelling, the first batch of dirty bombs still landed in the city…” Bai Ye said as he took out the detection equipment.

The trained Rhodes Island operators naturally stepped aside to test the concentration of Originium in the environment. Although they were still a little confused, dealing with emergency infection situations was one of Rhodes Island's main tasks, and the operators had received good training, so they were not completely at a loss.

"Who came up with this vicious idea to throw active source stones into a crowd? It was all done by those *Victorian foul-mouthed* thugs!!" Oliver cursed.

Bai Ye shook his head.

"To be able to bombard such a wide area in such a short time, the person who planned this attack must have deployed at least more than ten of the most advanced ground-based howitzers," Outcast said in a low voice, looking at the readings on his instruments.

“I’ve been watching the fighting over the past two days from a distance. Among those you call thugs are some very strong mages, which gives the troops a certain degree of stealth. But that’s far from enough to allow them to bring so many high-lethal weapons into the city without being detected by the garrison.”

Bai Ye added:

"Besides, they wouldn't be so stupid as to point their cannons at the city they've finally captured and blow up the local residents and their own people to pieces, would they?"

"Could it be..." A somewhat outrageous answer popped into everyone's minds.

"Yes, it's a garrison," Bai Ye said coldly.

Outcast nodded:

"The garrison knew they couldn't win this battle because the people of Tara were all on the other side. Since they couldn't distinguish who the spies were, they decided to wipe out the enemy along with the civilians. The use of dirty bombs was precisely to eliminate any future trouble. Moreover, all Oripathy patients would be centrally managed, which gave the garrison an excuse to later clean up the Tara people openly."

Jenny, a member of the honor guard stationed in Victoria, knelt down somewhat forcefully, her faith crumbling, and murmured:

"Is this... treating human lives as a means to victory? Shouldn't the Victorian army protect the Victorians?"

Bai Ye reached out and helped her up.

Outcast then offered words of comfort:

"This is precisely because you possess a compassionate heart that many soldiers lack. Over the past few centuries, the Victorian army has swept across countless nations and peoples across this land, never relying on compassion."

“From their perspective, it’s indeed a good tactic. I think these dirty bombs probably didn’t appear out of nowhere; they’ve probably been preparing for a while, but the sudden attack by the thugs changed their plans.” Bai Ye recorded the readings and then put away the messy testing equipment.

“I’ve received a signal from the rescue team. They’ve entered Victoria and are on their way. Our mission is to get to the evacuation point as quickly as possible and rendezvous with them,” Bai Ye said, glancing around.

After just one round of shelling, the artillery position was directly destroyed by his solar wind rays, but this round of shelling still caused damage to the entire city.

Fortunately, the enemy mainly focused their bombing on the tenth district of Little Hill County, which was the hardest hit area; his side was just incidental.

Chapter Sixty: Anti-humanity

Rhodes Island operators helped Jenny and Saoirse put on their protective gear, and White Night snapped his fingers again, at which point the "clear air" around them finally dissipated.

In other words, although this guy said he couldn't maintain this state for long, he was actually quite relaxed.

The so-called "unable to maintain" is merely to raise the awareness of Rhodes Island operators and make them quickly realize the current situation they are in.

Although Bai Ye hasn't leveled up recently, and naturally hasn't allocated any free attribute points to his mental attribute, he feels that his understanding and application of mental power has also improved as his swordsmanship skill level has increased and broken through.

In terms of authority, this naturally means that Bai Ye has developed more skills, and now he can easily create new abilities directly based on actual needs. Unlike in the past, when Bai Ye's developed skills required the assistance of Rhodes Island's sorcerer department, and the spell structure was arranged by them, whether it was the initial nitrogen armor or the later solar wind, Bai Ye proposed the concepts, and then the sorcerer department explored the feasibility and how to implement them.

Bai Ye simply assisted the scholars in conducting tests and continuously adjusted the structure of the technique to the most suitable degree.

While this might not seem like much progress, and for some people developing their own skills would be commonplace, it was a significant breakthrough for someone like Bai Ye.

After all, Bai Ye was just a level 9 Intelligence Warrior in the past, and he knew absolutely nothing about Originium Arts. Although he made up for this deficiency after transmigrating, he only systematically learned how to cast spells, but did not delve into the more fundamental and underlying principles.

Bai Ye didn't want to become a master of magic; he merely treated Originium Arts as a tool to be used, lacking any academic spirit or spirit of exploration. He only cared about how to do it, not why.

Now that he has learned to develop some more complex skills, it is only to better adapt to unexpected situations. Bai Ye will not feel joy because of some breakthroughs that may involve theory.

Yes, he has no idea that his new skills might involve a breakthrough in new Originium Arts theory.

Bai Ye naturally understood the indignant attitude of the Rhodes Island operators. However, he also understood those who had chosen to throw dirty bombs into the city. After all, this was war, and when the goal was to destroy the enemy, any losses incurred were justifiable. The enemy had chosen the path most advantageous to themselves. However—

Bai Ye could understand, but he couldn't forgive. He also couldn't accept the other side's inhumane behavior. Especially the use of dirty bombs on the Terra battlefield—it was truly an "efficient" and outrageous tactic.

Even players wouldn't intentionally resort to such inhumane tactics. Yes, given players' notoriously flexible moral compass, comparable to Paradox Interactive's, they would actively resist such behavior. In the past, a guild used similar tactics against the native inhabitants of Terra during a PvE war; afterwards, all members were hunted down by players until the last guild member apologized and quit the game.

That was an unprecedented level of unity among players. Everyone was united in their hatred of the enemy, issuing wanted notices in the Adventurers' Guild, and even abandoning other quests and leveling up to hunt down members of that guild. Even the leaders of major guilds and clubs personally got involved.

Although most of the criticism is based on morality, Bai Ye knows that fundamentally, the players don't want the individual actions of a certain guild to affect the overall evaluation of the players by the natives of Terra.