Chapter 381

Chapter 381: "Final Words"

Two days after Wencheng’s team eliminated the Infected alien life forms, the overall disinfection and cleaning of the spaceship were finally completed, and the quarantine was lifted.

The remaining high-ranking officials passed a new proposal with unanimous votes through democratic voting, giving birth to a new power organization.

The ten remaining high-ranking officials, along with the always-observant Vladimir and Wencheng, who had contributed greatly in previous tasks, formed the Hope Council.

The twelve members of the council were legally equal, and any proposal afterward required more than half the votes to pass.

Wencheng maintained his loyalty to humanity and joined this new power organization with fervor.

On the day of the Hope Council’s establishment, a crucial bill was passed.

Two hundred thousand embryos would be randomly selected and, after a year of cultivation, would be born into the world as normal humans.

Additionally, three hundred thousand embryos would have a cultivation period of five years.

Meanwhile, the spaceship’s built-in system began operating, and the supply of life-sustaining food (nutritional paste) was put on the agenda.

When these embryos matured into youths and emerged from the greenhouse, they would face the desolate surface of the planet, endless work, and a vast amount of fundamental knowledge that they could not fully comprehend.

Their origins and the meaning of their existence would not be intentionally remembered.

Only at the end of a day’s work would they see the towering spire and lament humanity’s once-prosperous time and its possibly beautiful future.

Afterward, they would live their lives as ordinary humans, some babies born naturally, while others would be given children unrelated to them for nurturing.

Thirty years later, the first batch of accelerated humans would inevitably enter a massive death phase, and when they completely vanished from this world, none would remember the actions of the council.

This day marked the beginning of a new era; from that day on, there would be no spaceship, only the spire reaching into the clouds.

And the only human habitation on this planet—Hope City.

In the following times, extraordinary beasts began to appear in this world, and walls rose up, dividing the inner and outer parts of Hope City.

Thus, Wencheng truly became a powerful figure, and things should have continued like this, but… no plan is ever perfect.

The first upheaval occurred a year later.

As the two hundred thousand accelerated humans were about to be activated, the council members put on their permission terminals and approached the intricate machine known as "Unit One."

The scientist capable of repairing this machine had died in the accident a year prior, and facing this technology that was indistinguishable from a "black box," the remaining people could only set and use it.

After permission authentication was granted, Unit One began operation, successfully triggering a backdoor left by a wise man.

Perhaps sensing the impending downfall of their side, or perhaps to impose one last shackle on humanity, or simply for revenge, the "final words" were left behind…

After not detecting the target Permission Level holders, the commands inputted by the council members were altered.

Or rather, their commands were successfully overridden by a pre-set command.

The effects and corrections on the brain spread throughout Hope City, including the twelve council members themselves.

Everyone plunged into a brief faint and unconsciousness, and when they awoke, an invisible, intangible thick fog permanently shrouded their minds.

Most memories remained, but their thinking ability deteriorated.

Some common knowledge that previously required no thought became utterly unrecognized knowledge.

They couldn’t even recall the specific time of their descent to this planet…

Haines no longer possessed his proud calm mind, and the others were similar… they seemed to have returned to their young and hot-tempered days, unable to heed any advice.

This situation lasted for months, directly causing the first batch of accelerated humans to soak in the nutrient solution for an additional six months beyond the plan.

Wencheng may have suffered the least aftereffects — among the original twelve, he was the only one who had undergone surgical transformation.

Observing the diminished thinking ability of the other council members, Wencheng selectively concealed his trump card and steadily increased his power of speech over the following years, transitioning from a marginal figure in the council to a pillar of wisdom.

Just when Wencheng believed humanity was back on track, the second upheaval occurred.

Vladimir was the first to uncover the secret hidden by the ten council members; he conducted an in-depth investigation as an individual but found nothing.

His actions exposed him to the eyes of other council members, and by this time, it was the thirtieth year of the new era. Utilizing superpowered individuals had become routine, and the oldest member, Vladimir, was clearly an obstinate traditionalist.

Vladimir’s principles were quite simple; he did not support any faction from the past but did not want to see bloodshed.

He could turn a blind eye to struggles within principles, but the leak of the alien life experimental subjects was like an accident, signaling the end of their conflicts.

Faced with such an unexpected outcome, Vladimir accepted it, but that did not mean he completely believed it.

As time passed, though he entered old age, the memory block began to slowly lift.

He started to piece together the events from back then, only to find that some documents had been destroyed decades ago.

The implications of such actions hardly needed explaining.

Thus, he began a private investigation, and after turning up empty, a humiliating defeat against the beast tide stripped him of his remaining prestige—

Private investigations into colleagues, and an unfavorable war abroad.

With two abstentions, Vladimir was successfully impeached from his internal position and lost his seat in the council.

Five days later, half of his decayed body was found at the outlet of the inner city’s sewage system.

Wencheng took over Vladimir’s position, tasks, and… his doubts.

The seed of suspicion grew in his heart, and a more comprehensive plan began to brew.

But Wencheng did not notice one problem — controlling the military was inherently dangerous. After Vladimir’s death, he became the only council member from the military faction, inheriting not only power but also the firepower that Vladimir once faced.

Wencheng never considered this issue because he believed he was utterly loyal to humanity.

Until a document shattered his filter, destroying the dream he was reluctant to awaken from.

It was a document that should have long vanished from history, recording meetings, conspiracies, and divisions of spoils after victories.

After glancing through it, the document vanished from Wencheng’s terminal, leaving an utterly lost human in its wake.