The Path to Lordship Begins in the North

In the small cinema filled with the rustling sound, watching the images on the screen, Lind felt as if he were quickly watching a magical apocalyptic movie, until the preset sound of the 550C started again, and Lind came back to his senses.

"The screening has ended. Please leave the venue in an orderly manner."

Linde then got up, put on his heavy hazmat suit, left his seat, turned the old doorknob, and left the small cinema.

The moment the door was closed, the clear sound of the 550C finally began to echo in Linde's mind again.

"Name?"

“Linde, Linde Roll.”

Linde answered without hesitation, and only after Linde finished speaking did 550C say, "Welcome back, citizen."

The drones began to gather around Lind, but instead of helping him remove his hazmat suit, they guided him forward.

What was the final outcome of this "movie"? The world Linde lived in has already provided the answer; at the very least, the ending was probably not so ideal.

Although people in the Golden Age not only actually developed controlled nuclear fusion, but also made great progress in materials science and biology, controlled nuclear fusion alone is not enough for interstellar travel. Energy is only a basic condition for interstellar travel; particle engines and warp drives are the hard requirements for interstellar travel. With only controlled nuclear fusion, the range of control that humanity can achieve is only the entire solar system.

However, based on the technology humans have shown on screen, they probably plan to first board the ark to escape the Earth, which has been flooded with hot water, and then slowly figure out a solution on the ark.

It's hard to imagine what kind of resolve those who boarded the ark had when they fled their homes, knowing that once they left, there was virtually no chance of them returning.

Of course, for people at that time, boarding the Ark might have been better than facing those Outer Gods on Earth.

As Linde gazed out the window at the scenery, he pondered the fate of humanity in the "movie." The Outer Gods descended suddenly, without any warning, which is why the Golden Age collapsed in an instant, even with preparations. But looking at the history of the post-Golden Age, humanity actually managed to expel those Outer Gods, which is... really absurd.

Just as you expected.

A familiar voice suddenly came from in front of Linde: "Humans in the post-Golden Age are actually different from the earliest humans. Humans have completed their evolution under constant observation, and with the development of the Consciousness Sea Project, they have been able to defeat those so-called 'Outer Gods'."

Linde looked up and saw Lena, dressed in a formal gown, standing in front of him. But Linde quickly realized what was happening, rubbed his head, and said, "Speak to me properly."

The "Lena" in front of me said, "I'm sorry, I just found that you particularly like this image in your consciousness, so I resorted to this tactic in order to get closer to you."

"But look, this space station can meet all your needs. You don't need to go back to Earth to become the emperor of that group of new humans. On this space station, you can not only become an emperor, but even a god. You can get everything you want here."

550C mimicked Lena's voice, even with a hint of seduction in its tone. From guiding Lind onto the space station at the beginning to showcasing its various functions now, 550C seemed to be doing its best to keep Lind here.

But Lind remained unmoved and said, "Tell me what happened next."

"Although the situation was quite chaotic, the Ark ultimately did not clash with the Dyson Sphere Project. The Ark successfully escaped from Earth, and the Dyson Sphere Project completely sealed off the entire planet, cutting off that line of sight. At least no new Outer Gods began to appear, and people began to use their own power to fight against the Outer Gods that still remained on Earth."

The historical information was projected directly onto Lind's retina, and Lind exclaimed, "What a bunch of lunatics!"

If those who participated in Project Ark were a group of fearless adventurers, then those who stayed on Earth to fight against the Outer Gods were a group of complete madmen. Not only did they absorb indescribable knowledge in their madness, but they even used this knowledge to fight against the Outer Gods. Linde even suspected that the essence of the new humans was probably similar to that of the Outer Gods, except that they still retained the basic physical functions and structures of humans.

In addition to fighting the Outer Gods, the humans who remained on Earth at that time also had to fight against the Adventists. The final slideshow in the movie actually hinted at this: the Adventists stormed into the biological laboratory and obtained its research results.

"The Adventists created many races that are very similar to humans, yet completely different."

While reading Lind's thoughts, 550C spoke in the form of Lena: "These races have caused great damage to the ecology of Blue Star. Although I have eliminated most of them through the old empire, some races have remained in this world, such as the demons who use the genes of Outer Gods and humans."

“There is too much uncertainty surrounding these races, and I cannot interfere excessively,”

"But for the sake of humanity, killing them all is the best option."

550C uttered the most heartless words in the coldest tone.

"And what about the dragons?"

Linde continued to ask. In fact, Linde had long been very curious about those dragons, because those dragons could completely ignore the laws of physics and change from dragon form to human form. Even demons could use so-called bloodline magic, but the changes in the form of those dragons had completely exceeded Linde's understanding. In particular, the more he studied magic, the more he felt that the changes in the form of these dragons were actually quite outrageous.

"I'm sorry, I don't know."

Linde was quite surprised by 550C's answer, after all, 550C was launched into space during the Golden Age, how could she not know?

Seemingly sensing Lind's doubts, 550C said, "At the end of the Golden Age, the Outer Gods descended, and the Dyson Sphere Closure Project was launched. To prevent the spread of pollution caused by the Outer Gods, the entire planet was divided into several regions. The dragons crossed the fog of the sealed-off region at a certain point in history and flew to this continent. As for what happened in other regions, I have no right to know."

550C continued, “This change may be related to the nature of magic, but if such changes in magic involving spatial relationships really exist, it is possible that people in other regions have already obtained technology beyond the scope of research in the Golden Age.”

Of course, it's more likely that their technology has gone astray, just like the old empires of the past. Moreover, considering that Linde observed these dragons' greatest hobby was sleeping on gold coins, and they didn't possess any particularly advanced metal smelting methods, and had to earn gold coins from humans, this possibility is very high.

Linde looked at the other space stations outside the space station, which seemed like seals anchored above the Blue Star, and asked the question that had been lingering in his mind: "What exactly is that magic?"

Before answering this question.

As 550C spoke, guided by the drone and Rena's welcoming gesture, he finally led Lind to a room.

"It has been confirmed that you have not been affected. I have another favor to ask, but please rest assured that it will not take up too much of your time."

Lena's phantom bowed slightly, its posture much more standard than Lena's: "There are some places on the space station that need manual repair. Please rest assured, it doesn't require any professional skills. I will arrange everything for you."

Looking at the completely locked room, Linde asked, "Isn't it dangerous?"

“Originally there might have been danger, but you can think of the previous recording as a test for you. If you can watch the entire recording smoothly, then this room is not dangerous for you.”

The gate on the room door began to rotate, the door opened, and Linde followed the phantom of the drone and Rena into the room.