Arknights' Lock of Heaven

"Gina? Gina?" Her companion wanted to follow the others forward, but when she pulled her hand, she found that Gina was frozen in place, so she called out repeatedly.

But she still did not respond.

“Evelina Gina!” Her companion had no choice but to shout her name loudly in her ear.

"Huh? What's wrong?" She finally realized what was happening.

"Come on, let's catch up! Everyone's moving forward!" Her companion excitedly pulled her hand and squeezed into the crowd.

She herself was still in shock.

The Everlasting Flower... The Everlasting Flower... Such a treasure actually exists in the world...

A complete transformation, a resurrection... If the royal family had possessed such a treasure back then, how could things have turned out this way...?

No! We must report this to His Majesty and the Speaker immediately!

The legendary Lich King's Court was nowhere to be seen, but something even more exciting appeared!

451 The Eden Project

"Garden of Eden……"

Inside the Patriot's tent, he stared intently at Xia Yu, who seemed confident and composed.

"...That's a bit too... far-fetched."

“So I don’t need to build it in the current base,” Xia Yu said casually. “It’s right over there from where the Orville came from. Haven’t you already cleared out all the forests over there?”

"It's perfect for farming. I don't need to build a large-scale operation at first; I just need to create a fully functional eco-park."

Xia Yu pointed to the map and explained to the Patriots and Shield Guards, "The infected here don't need to take any risks. Once my ecological park is built, you will naturally understand its significance to the Ursus infected."

“No… we don’t need to wait until then,” Patriot shook his head and said slowly, “Climate change, turning the mundane into the extraordinary… every Ursus knows the significance of this technology.”

"But I still have a question."

His bloodshot eyes stared at Xia Yu. "Why us?"

"Why an infected person? Whether it's the old nobles, the emperor, or the Imperial Council, they will definitely provide you with more support than the infected person who is living hand to mouth. Is there anything you need us to do?"

"Or rather, what do you want us to do?"

"You stubborn old man..." Froststar couldn't help but exclaim. Why did she have to spell everything out? And couldn't she just be a person of noble character? What did she have to gain from you?

"Yelena, don't speak," Patriot interrupted her sternly, then continued to look at Xia Yu.

"As you probably know, I made a terrible mistake. I misjudged Talulah and almost pushed the infected of Ursus into the abyss. I don't want to go through that feeling of watching everything I swore to protect slowly fall into the abyss and being powerless to stop it."

"Therefore, I have to be extremely vigilant and scrutinize everyone I deal with."

“I am naturally very grateful that Rhodes Island has gone to such lengths to provide us with assistance, but... there are some questions that still need to be asked.”

“Alright, once bitten, twice shy, I understand your concerns,” Xia Yu nodded upon hearing this. “Let’s start from the rational point of view.”

“I need to build a barrier in the North. You are Wendigo, you know what roams the snowy plains of the far north.”

“Kal'tsit…she told me some news. The land beneath our feet is in grave danger, and the spark of civilization is about to be extinguished.”

"In Iberia, the Deep Sea Church, which worships the Sea God, continues to expand. The arrogance of the Agorians will eventually bring them annihilation. Oh, perhaps it has already come."

"After devouring the deep-sea kingdoms, it remains to be seen whether the sea creatures, which are incompatible with land civilizations, will turn their attention to the shore. However, according to reliable intelligence, their tentacles have already reached out."

"In the North, from the Ursus Guard to the Sami Snow Sacrifice, and then to the Great Yan's Mechanical Great Wall, the enemies of civilization are kept at bay outside the border."

"But unfortunately, some people are too ambitious and have opened a hole in the middle of the continent. Fortunately, they can clean up the mess themselves, so we don't need to worry about them for the time being."

"But this is only temporary; destruction is imminent, and we must prepare for the future."

Xia Yu pointed to the terminal he had handed to Patriot, which contained the entire Eden Project.

“I will build a defensive line in the North,” he said slowly. “The demons… their characteristics are indeed troublesome, corruption and collapse, reality and void…”

"Only order can combat the pollution of chaos and disorder. The [Simulated Gaia - Spiritual Particle Environment Modification System] was created for this purpose, collecting energy and creating and integrating magical fields to regulate the internal temperature environment and even the distribution of energy."

This technology was developed entirely for interstellar colonization and wasteland reconstruction. Resisting various forms of pollution, from nuclear contamination to divinity, are its basic functions. It can only be said that the Atlas Institute is truly amazing.

That's normal, though; look how amazing the seven weapons they developed are.

The black cannon used by Chaldea was a weapon created to defeat a great being (life) whose intelligence is far beyond human comprehension.

In the Olympus segment of the Greek Lostbelt, Mash destroyed the real Machine Gods Demeter, Aphrodite, and Zeus with a Barrel Replica.

In the fairy kingdom of Britain in the alternate world, a replica of the cannon destroyed the core of the cursed calamity god Cornunus.

The counterfeit's original achievements are even more astonishing; in the finale of Steel Land, it destroyed Venus's Ultimate Zero.

These achievements alone demonstrate the awesomeness of the Atlas Institute, and the [Simulated Gaia - Spiritual Particle Environment Modification System], which it developed for the purpose of rebuilding civilization or expanding beyond its domain after a disaster, is naturally no ordinary system either.

"This defense line will completely isolate the corruption of the demons from the civilized world. Perhaps the system I have in my hand is not quite suitable for Terra today, but the nature of its stable internal field can completely suppress the pervasive corruption of the demons. We just need to continue to study the specific wavebands that target the demons."

"All of this requires manpower, money, and the full strength of the nation on the front line."

“Then you should go find a nobleman, or even the emperor,” the patriot was deeply shocked upon hearing this. To defend the line of civilization…

"Or perhaps go to Yan Kingdom, they prefer your concept. Oh, right, you're from Yan Kingdom, this lineage of thinking..."

“Neither manpower nor money can the infected provide for you,” Patriot said seriously. “Why did you still come to us?”

"Perhaps you have some misunderstanding about me?" Xia Yu smiled slightly and said, "Manpower? Money? No, I can handle all of that, as long as I'm willing to humble myself and play those power games with those people."

"To be honest, I initially wanted to turn everything upside down... but Kal'tsit persuaded me. She told me that if I had appeared even fifty years earlier, she would have done everything in her power to help me."

"But it was too late. Disaster was imminent. No matter how rotten those people were, civilization could not withstand internal strife."

"To preserve civilization, we must learn to compromise, but I don't like compromise. However, I have to admit that I can't solve all the problems by myself."

Terra's problems aren't limited to this planet...

"So, since I'm unwilling to compromise, I can only find partners who can't negotiate with me, namely infected people."

Xia Yu said bluntly, "You need me to survive on the snowfield, to gain a foothold in the world, and to escape from the siege of Ursus."

“I also need a trustworthy partner. I don’t want to waste my precious time arguing with interest groups.”

"Once the Eden Project is established, it will attract the attention of the entire world. Ursus needs this technology, and manpower, resources, and money will naturally flow in."

“The Ursus people prefer plundering,” Patriot stated bluntly, “if they…”

“There are no ifs,” Xia Yu interrupted him, looking south. “They will not be able to resist. From the Everlasting Flower to my Eden, no one can resist such a great profit.”

“So, someone will make a move,” he turned to Patriot. “It’s not just Kal’tsit and I who are working hard to defend the line. From behemoths to immortal beings, to the unpredictable Beast Lords or other beings, no one wants this land beneath our feet to collapse.”

"As the saying goes, we're all in the same boat. There are plenty of people who don't want Terra to be swallowed up in the upcoming storm. Someone will teach them a lesson they'll never forget," Xia Yu smiled. "I'll provide the technology, and they'll provide the military deterrence. How about that? Pretty reasonable, right?"

That's perfectly reasonable, absolutely reasonable.

Patriots never doubted what power that mysterious Lord Kal'tsit could gather.

But... has it really gotten this big? It seems like things are really serious.

“The wizard… I mean Merlin, is he one of you too?” Patriot asked.

“Of course,” Xia Yu sighed upon hearing this, “Although I’m very annoyed by that white-haired online scammer, Avalon is indeed our staunch ally.”

Yes, I say so, and if you don't believe me, I can conjure up an entire Knights of the Round Table to support me.

"People are all like that, they're all just cheapskates. Once you've beaten them so badly and made them afraid, but they still can't bear to give up such a huge profit, they'll naturally lower themselves and seek cooperation."

"So, what do the infected get?" Patriot continued to ask.

“First, the medicine to cure Oripathy,” Xia Yu said, taking out a box of inhibitors. “Of course, the effect isn’t as immediate as the Undying Flower, but it will definitely prevent people who take it on time from dying from Oripathy.”

"For specific details on the effects, you can ask Froststar. She was involved in the entire research and development process and knows how effective the medicine is."

Upon hearing this, Patriot and the shieldbearer leaders surrounding him all turned to look at Frostnova, who nodded affirmatively.

That would be wonderful! Joy flashed in everyone's eyes. The destruction that Xia Yu spoke of was invisible and intangible, but Oripathy was tormenting everyone here every moment.

Yelena would never lie to us; we old brothers watched her grow up!

A hint of relief flashed in the eyes of the patriot.

"So...this price..."

“The price is not fixed,” Froststar explained. “It is determined according to the local minimum wage for infected people. This is to ensure that everyone can afford it, but I can guarantee that as long as you are willing to work, everyone can afford it.”

"Each box contains four inhibitors, one of which is used per week. This is sufficient to suppress everyone's Oripathy. Rhodes Island has already established a sales network across the continent, determined to free all infected individuals from the torment of the disease."

"Of course, Project Eden brings more than just inhibitor benefits to those infected; I believe you can fully appreciate its intrinsic value."

“I’m not a manager. Once it’s established, Frostnova will be the person in charge here, and I’ll be very busy. I’ll also need to travel to countries like Iberia and Victoria for operations.”

"This is the greatest benefit I can give you. By gaining control of the resources that Ursus society urgently needs, the social status of the Snowfield Infected will rise rapidly. How far you can achieve this is entirely up to you."

452 Speaker Witte and the Emperor

Saint Jun Castle Palace

“Evelina Gina, do you know what you’re saying?”

The emperor and his minister locked eyes, then simultaneously looked at the small communication device in front of them.

It seemed quite noisy over there, with bursts of lively sounds coming from the background.