Cyber ​​Ghost Record

Chapter 2, Part Two: Sacrifice
The organization still exists.

Even though Socrates is two hundred years late, there are still people waiting for him.

Two caregivers appeared in the corridor, and Suger became nervous. He tried to get up, but his body went limp.

The hospital gown suddenly tightened again.

At the same time, he felt a slight stinging sensation on the outside of his thigh, as if he had been gently stung by an insect, which injected a stream of cold air into his body.

"run!"

The general left those words and disappeared, replaced by a green navigation light pointing towards the street ahead.

Suger glanced at the caregiver who was chasing after him, quickly got up, and fled along the light without looking back.

His movements were still somewhat slow, but then a surge of heat rushed into his chest and spread to his limbs with each heartbeat.

Even before hibernation, he had never felt so healthy and strong.

He started running.

At first, he also paid some attention to his surroundings. The rain was heavy, and many shadows floated in the pale blue rain mist. Colorful neon lights clung to the outlines of tall buildings and spread into the broken night sky.

Soon, his consciousness began to blur, his pupils dilated, and his heart pounded at an alarming rate, as if it were no longer his own organ but a high-powered blood pump.

Blood surged wildly, and veins bulged out on the skin.

He stepped through the puddles, splashing up neon lights and leaving countless holographic images behind him, as if he were traveling through a bizarre and fantastical dream.

As the neon lights around him gradually dimmed, he turned into the gap between two buildings, passed between the messy trash cans, and the green light that had been on his screen disappeared.

He saw an abandoned site surrounded by barbed wire, covered with clematis. In a dark corner, a silver-gray metal shell reflected the distant lights.

As Suger approached, he could see the outline of the thing. It looked a bit like a car, but the wheel hubs were enclosed by a metal shell, with only a slight protrusion.

Its base is 30 centimeters off the ground, so it floats in the air.

This technology already exists...

"Get in the car." The general was already sitting in the car, waiting.

Suger's eyes seemed to be drawn to the ground by a magnet. Even as he entered the cabin, he kept staring at the floating bottom of the car until the door closed, at which point he looked away.

With a faint hum, a feeling of lifting came from under the seat, and the wire mesh covered with plants, neon lights, and the outlines of tall buildings outside the window began to fall.

The effects of the medication were wearing off, and Suger felt palpitations and weakness.

He turned his head and saw the general staring coldly out the window, as if he were on guard against something.

Responding to Suger's gaze, the general turned half his face to the side, his eyes softening slightly.

"You've worked hard, but we can't let our guard down yet. You just had a hormone injection, so get some rest first. We'll talk about your situation once we're in a safe place."

Suger was too exhausted to speak, so he just grunted, leaned back in his chair, and wiped his sweat with his hand. He felt like his very bones had been drained, but with the aid of his hospital gown, his movements were surprisingly easy. This contrast gave him the illusion that his body no longer belonged to him.

The hovercar weaved through the skyscrapers, and in the distance, a holographic celestial clock floated by; Sog saw the time displayed on it.

2243年6月23日23点51分。

It matches the time displayed in the lower right corner of the view.

“It’s 2243…” he murmured.

The general sighed.

"We're late."

Yes, it's been more than two hundred years since then. Socrates wondered, is that "truth" still of any use?
Some flames appeared in the wind and rain ahead of the hovercraft.

Suddenly, the general sat up straight as if facing a formidable enemy.

"No matter what you see later, don't be surprised."

"We must not attract their attention!"

Before Suger could react, the general had vanished, leaving only an empty seat.

He snapped out of his daze and quickly looked out the window. He saw that the firelight in front of him was getting brighter and brighter, almost as if it had set the entire night sky ablaze.

Twelve bronze chariots flew out from the wind and rain, with sandalwood burning on them.

The charioteer, dressed in black robes and crimson skirts, raised a bronze halberd, his golden eyes gleaming with divine light. Behind him, many shadows appeared and disappeared in the wind and rain, carrying red gauze lanterns, flags, and ceremonial guards, beating gongs and drums.

Sug was stunned. Before he could ask the general what those gods and Buddhas in the sky were, he was sitting in a floating vehicle and flew into a group of gods and ghosts walking in the rain.

Sug tried to calm himself down and, as the general had instructed, leaned back in his chair and remained still.

The firelight gradually dimmed, and the twelve bronze chariots and the divine beings disappeared into the distance.

The sound of gongs and drums came from nearby, and shadowy figures of gods and ghosts passed by the window. Some were extremely tall, with only their boots visible as they strode through the air, while others looked like ordinary people, with blue faces and fangs.

Sug kept his head down, staring straight ahead at his legs. Only when the firelight outside had almost disappeared did he cautiously turn his head and carefully look out the window.

A mask that landed behind the procession of gods and demons passed by the window, adorned with armor, resembling a flying lion dance head.

As if sensing Suger's gaze, the masked figure turned its head and met his eyes.

In the wind and rain, the mask blurred his features, but Suger felt a chill run down his spine.

Fortunately, the mask turned and left the next moment.

Suger secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, he heard a soft laugh behind him.

He suddenly turned his head.

The mask appeared behind him, revealing a porcelain-white face painted with a deathly makeup, eyebrows furrowed in sorrow, and a wide, exaggerated grin that stretched to his ears, his eyes cold and cunning.

Suger felt a chill run down his spine and struggled to suppress the urge to get up and run away.

The mask circled around him a few times, its tassels brushing against his face, giving a sensation like a spider crawling across it.

Then, the mask stopped directly in front of him, staring at the blindfold as if it were thinking about something.

Just then, the sound of a gong came from afar.

The mask tilted its head, and only after the gong sounded again did it reluctantly glance at the world before flying out the window.

As the sound of gongs and drums faded into the distance, Su Ge still dared not relax. Looking at the seat beside him, he was somewhat worried that the general might not return.

"It is the Great God Fangxiang and His one hundred and twenty sinners." The general's voice rang in his ears.

Then, the general reappeared in the carriage seat, frowning and muttering, "The Great Nuo Festival isn't even here yet, why is the Divine Sparrow Festival being held earlier?"

"A ritual?" Sog asked in surprise. "Is this a religious activity?"

"You can say that."

"Are these things holographic projections?"

As he asked this question, Su Ge was also puzzled. If it was just a holographic projection, why did the general act as if he was facing a formidable enemy?
The general glanced at Sug and shook his head.

Socrates paused for a moment, then asked with difficulty, "These are...them?"

During his participation in that secret war, Suger harbored doubts.

At that time, many colleagues believed that the enemy was anti-human artificial intelligence, but Suger couldn't understand how an organization that adhered to materialism could give artificial intelligence a divine word like "He".

"That's a fair assessment," the general nodded.

"What exactly are they?"

"There's also disagreement within the organization about this. Let's talk about it once things are safer."

……

The hovercar descended.

Ahead was a cylindrical trapezoidal building, so large that it could almost be called a small city.

The building was not completed, and partially dismantled supporting structures could be seen everywhere.

Some large, open warehouses are filled with huge stone statues, including a Buddha with half his face carved and his hands clasped in prayer, a bodhisattva lying on a lotus pedestal, and a broken vase.

"We've arrived," the general said.

Following his gaze, Su Ge saw the three characters "Six Desires Heaven" floating on the outer layer of the building.

(End of this chapter)