Man in the Ark: Revitalizing Kazdel

The cool and gentle night breeze blew across his face. Holhaiya, who had calmly accepted the end of death, suddenly opened his eyes and found himself on the top deck of a land ship.

The wings and scales of the feathered serpent vanished, replaced by the familiar exoskeleton armor and a robe made of special fibers. His right hand pressed against his chest, pierced by the longsword, his heart still beating strongly.

Everything I had just experienced was an illusion concocted by the spell. Even now, I hadn't escaped the spell's control. I had simply fallen from one illusion to another.

"How does it feel to achieve what you wished for?" A familiar voice came from behind, and the figure of the Demon Lord Sarkaz slowly emerged in the darkness.

"To be honest, it's not that great." There was a hint of self-mockery in Holhaiya's answer.

"Becoming a feathered serpent is not your family's obsession for over four hundred years. You look disappointed..."

"My knowledge, my desires...did not vanish with the advent of power. Instead, they created a greater emptiness and resentment."

Holhaiya looked down at his palms, with his five fingers bent, as if he wanted to grab something.

"Family members are willing to sacrifice their precious lifespans to engrave the magnificent form of their ancestor, the Quetzalcoatl, into their memories. To us, this is more like a curse."

"Even if I become a feathered serpent for a short time, I can't completely let go of this obsession. I can only turn around temporarily."

“There are many people among the Quetzalcoatl who are looking for other ways to replace the Quetzalcoatl and liberate ourselves. However, sadly, in the end, we always return to the starting point…”

"Do you regret it now? You paid a huge price, but the final result is so disappointing."

Roy slowly walked to the deck railing, looked up at the deep and beautiful starry sky, and asked in a calm tone.

"Hehe... If regret were useful, the Quetzalcoatl curse should have been ended a hundred years ago."

"We are like an old car without brakes and steering wheel. Any attempt to slow down or change direction will cause the car to disintegrate and collapse."

"From an outsider's perspective, it must be ridiculous..."

Holhaiya showed an unprecedented vulnerability, his past denied by his own hands, his present meaningless, and his future elusive. He was caught in a vortex of nihilism.

"Unfortunately, no. I only feel pity for you, pity for a poor man who has been mocked by fate."

"Haha...compassion? You're really so high and mighty." Holhaiya sneered at this, but did not make any rebuttal.

The pride and arrogance of the Quetzalcoatl had long been cruelly exposed by reality, revealing the bloody wounds beneath. Now, it was numb.

"What were you thinking before you fell from a height of 7,000 meters?" Roy turned his head to look at Holhaiya, who was leaning on the deck railing at some point, and asked lightly.

“It’s a pity that I didn’t get to see the scenery behind the starry sky with my own eyes.”

The night wind blew Holhaiya's hair and earrings, and there was a hint of regret in her light tone.

"I know you're a famous astrologer. The starry sky holds a special allure for people like you."

"Unfortunately, I happen to have some information about the Starry Sky. Are you interested in hearing it?"

"Oh, I didn't expect your knowledge to be so extensive. Please let me hear your secrets about the starry sky."

"I hope that after learning the truth about the starry sky, you can find a goal worth studying for the rest of your life." Roy snapped his fingers again, and the dark night sky opened like a curtain before a stage.

Without the deflection of the barrier, the positions of the stars no longer fluctuated randomly, and their movements became traceable. The true appearance of the twin moons was now revealed.

Hol Haiya's originally nonchalant expression immediately turned serious. The scene before her completely changed her imagination of the starry sky.

She saw a huge, enormous moon, which was so close to the earth that she could touch it with her hand.

The starry sky displayed at this moment is the image recorded in the Friston and PRTS databases.

At that time, Terra had no barrier layer yet. The starry sky was so pure, beautiful, brilliant, and full of charm.

Countless man-made megastructures are orbiting in elliptical star orbits. Together with the dual-moon system, they will form Terra's final line of defense.

The creator of this weapon system was a man who followed tradition. Even though he knew that the enemies of civilization could not be fought with known weapons, he still forged this double-edged sword that could destroy himself.

Deep in the distant ocean, giant beasts several kilometers long stretch their bodies happily, unaware that they are shouldering the heavy mission of preserving civilization.

In the doomsday fortress deep in the earth, tens of thousands of sarcophagi preserve the last spark of a glorious civilization.

In the center of the fortress, a cloud of electrons is suspended. A stubborn neurobiologist, a husband who shoulders heavy responsibilities, and a father who loves his daughter will watch alone for thousands of years.

The Doctor and Precious stood side by side on the deck, facing the setting sun, discussing the future of Originium. Whether it was a language describing the gods, or a beacon left for those who would come after them, remained unknown.

Holhaiya was deeply immersed in it, muttering something to herself. It wasn't until the barrier layer enveloped the earth again, casting a hazy filter over the stars, that she finally came to her senses, still unsatisfied, and tried to absorb the shock of the real starry sky.

It seemed as if I had accidentally uncovered a corner of the truth of the world. Just a brief glimpse of the bright and beautiful starry sky made me immersed in it and unable to extricate myself.

Many members of the Columbia Astrological Society were vaguely aware that the starry sky above might be a deception, but no one could offer concrete evidence. The six-kilometer barrier blocked any prying eyes.

Even the feathered serpents, the gods who wield the power of wind and thunder, were unable to break through the barrier. It was inevitable that one's heart would surge with emotion at the thought of being fortunate enough to accomplish something that even one's ancestors could not.