Chapter 118 The Cost and Revenge of the Old Testament
In the depths of the starry sky, a silver spaceship glimmered as Qin Hong waited quietly. No unusual reports had come in; the Moon was eerily calm.
"This is the age of technology; if there are gods, they will be born from us," he mused, fire glinting in his eyes.
Recently, several major organizations had unearthed invaluable texts from ancient mysterious caves. They had gathered a multitude of scholars and professors to decode them, analyzing transcendence and uncovering astonishing secrets.
"The Celestials are gradually fading; in the end... they cannot endure. But the path beneath our feet leads to the future, toward true immortality," Qin Hong declared, standing resolute. He gazed at the vast cosmos on the large screen; the future was something to look forward to.
He felt confident, knowing that today's super battleship was just a prototype. It would evolve, and the practical tests had been remarkably successful.
"As for individual power, we have better options," he added. He believed that their controlled life research institute would continue to make breakthroughs, with the emergence of the Sun Bodhisattva soon, and ultimately, the creation of the Ultimate Bodhisattva!
"Those who fail to find their place will soon be swept into the dust of history!" His tone was icy. He thought of those in the realms of the Old Technique and the New Technique; if they were disobedient, what use were they?
His expression hardened further. It was time to negotiate with certain tycoons and large organizations, to establish rules and impose restrictions on individuals in certain fields.
Under the brilliant veneer of technological civilization, what purpose did those practitioners serve? They only needed to study the topic of "life extension." Pursuing individual destructive power was nothing but a cancer!
This was not solely his sentiment; several financial conglomerates had previously expressed this view. Modern society had no need for overly "dangerous" individuals. Though some tycoons dabbled in those "arts," hoping to seize extraordinary powers for themselves, this did not contradict their desire to set rules and limit dangerous elements, as the Qin family was also pursuing such powers through genetic enhancements.
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As the Moon Pit collapsed and sunk deeper, the forbidden land perished. The Veil vanished, along with the figure and the world behind it, fading into nothingness.
Yet, at the last moment, Wang Xuan heard the man's despairing roar: "The Old Testament! Did I wrong you, or did you wrong me? The cost is yours!"
What was this situation?
Then, Wang Xuan saw a bloody, severed hand emerge from the now dimmed surface of the Moon—a terrifying sight. The hand split in two, with four-fifths exploding into radiant light, showering down toward the base.
People gasped in shock as they witnessed the luminous "rain" merging into the protective barrier, too late to dodge. Both Zhengyi Guan and Bai Ma Si did not resist this time; the Yang Ping Zhi Du Gong Seal did not manifest, nor did the Buddhist "卍" appear.
Without hesitation, Wang Xuan drew his short sword, placing it defensively in front of him. He pulled Qin Cheng close, nervously watching the air above!
The fading Veil flickered one last time, seemingly shifting across billions of miles, completely disappearing without a trace.
The remaining fifth of the hand shot skyward, vanishing into the deep space. Ordinary people still could not see the severed hand; they only saw the peculiar light rain.
"This is both the cost and the revenge!" Wang Xuan looked up, guessing where the severed hand was headed.
The departing hand sped away, igniting into flames, leaving a trail of light rain behind it. There was no doubt—intervening in the present world required merging with the real world to harness its power.
"Block that light rain! Fire!" The super battleship detected anomalous energy, and alarms blared.
"Activate the warp drive!"
However, it seemed too late. The light rain approached rapidly; although they managed to disperse some of it, the alarms continued to blare.
They could not see the severed hand!
Panic erupted as people screamed, their minds fracturing—many died on the spot.
"Activate the shield!" someone shouted desperately. With a loud bang, just as the command was issued, his gaze dimmed, his spirit collapsing.
Finally, the severed hand split once more, half of it becoming tangible light. With a thunderous crash, it shattered the entire super battleship.
A blinding explosion erupted in deep space. This was no longer the action of a single faction but involved many, all taken aback.
What they had thought was settled now spiraled into chaos once again.
Sighs echoed in deep space, aligning with the voice of the slitted-eyed man. His severed hand could not linger in the world—it was a permanent loss, a high cost, yet still insufficient to effectively and sustainably intervene in the present; it was on the verge of dissipating.
After demolishing the super battleship and shattering the spirits of those aboard, he received a message: there was still another spaceship issuing commands in deep space.
The remaining bits of his hand flew toward the cosmos. Despite knowing it might be too late, he refused to give up.
Qin Hong received a report and, through the big screen, witnessed the final outcome, his soul almost leaving his body. He had commanded the spaceship to return, and they were now rapidly approaching the super battleship.
"It's too late! We're too close; we can see that glowing object!" someone yelled, panicking as they neared a collision with the ship.
"Escape pods!" Panic spread as people scrambled toward the escape pods.
Qin Hong reacted swiftly, being the first to climb into one of the single-person pods, activating it quickly.
Boom!
The remaining hand could no longer hold on; it couldn't linger in the present world for long. Eventually, it fully materialized, merging into reality, grotesquely bloodied, crashing into the spaceship with a thunderous roar.
At this moment, all major organizations were stunned by the scene unfolding before them, enveloped in a heavy silence. The bold experiment had initially shown promising results, but the final two blows left many feeling a sense of dread.
Eventually, a member of the Qin family broke the silence: "It's nothing major. The annihilation battleship will soon be operational, and those who have perished will be hard to resurrect or influence the current world significantly." Another echoed, "Exactly, and as we analyze transcendence, it's possible that one of us might become that kind of being in the future."
Silence lingered as all parties pondered the unsettling reality of the situation.
In Zhengyi Guan, Qin Cheng asked, "Old Wang, what's happening? It's raining on the Moon?"
"It's fine. Stay close to me and don't wander off," Wang Xuan replied, wielding his short sword. The light rain did not touch them, nor did it reach Qin Cheng. Inside the main hall of Zhengyi Guan, where the Yang Ping Zhi Du Gong Seal was kept, the rain did not fall, and the elder Taoists seemed unaffected.
He quickly pulled Qin Cheng away, ensuring the Taoists didn't notice any abnormalities. Once outside, they learned a chilling truth: many people had lost parts of their memories.
"What's going on? I remember there being a lot of commotion outside the protective barrier, but now everything feels hazy," one person remarked.
"Strange, I feel a bit forgetful, like I missed something important. Right, something big happened at the Moon Pit, and I almost forgot about it!" another added.
Wang Xuan realized that the Moon Pit had become a thing of the past; everything had ended, and the world behind the Veil had vanished completely. However, the impact of this event was bizarre. The final light rain that fell—was it a form of "purification"? Was it meant to make ordinary people forget about the extraordinary?
The thought was terrifying; a severed hand from the Celestials had cost them this memory loss.
What exactly was the Old Testament? The slitted-eyed man had paid such a price for it.
Qin Cheng, shaken, sighed, "I'm just an ordinary person with no ambition. Ancestors, please don't pay me any mind."
Wang Xuan didn't respond, still lost in thought. He had seen the world behind the Veil more than once, but each time it was different.
When the red-robed female demon departed, he had seen her traverse the ruins, amidst toppled statues of Bodhisattvas, yet that world brimmed with life. The realm of the female sword immortal also thrived, filled with vibrant energy as she battled foes.
"Old Wang, I feel afraid. Look at these people; they're already forgetting what happened recently. It's like they're in a trance, unable to recall anything," Qin Cheng said anxiously.
Wang Xuan looked up. The light rain above had vanished, and he sheathed his short sword. He realized that if the tycoons and major organizations learned of the situation at the base, they would surely cover up the truth to avoid mass panic and speculation.
"Let's hurry to the company and find out what happened in deep space," Wang Xuan urged. If the truth was concealed, many messages would be erased.
Dingwu was a large organization focused on security services, equipped with mercenaries, warships, and advanced surveillance technology, operating a branch on the Moon.
"The super battleship was destroyed, and another spaceship was blasted to pieces by that glowing object. It's explosive news!" Qin Cheng exclaimed, wide-eyed.
Wang Xuan sighed, "Let's keep this to ourselves. We should pretend we know nothing."
Once outside again, he looked up at the vast deep space, filled with mist. He had only begun to grasp the truth about the Old Testament… the locking of ancient truths.
He couldn't help but recall the female sword immortal's words, realizing that it locked not only the ancient sages' words but also the extraordinary truths seen by ordinary people!
"Li Kun, when are you returning my money?" Qin Cheng suddenly spotted the department head he despised.
Lost in thought and feeling something was amiss, Li Kun looked up sharply and said, "It's transferred. Check, it's already in your account."
Qin Cheng confirmed the bank notification; he had received the funds earlier but had been too preoccupied with recent terrifying events to notice.
"Old Wang, let's split the profits!" he insisted, wanting to transfer two million new star coins to Wang Xuan, keeping three million as his principal.
Wang Xuan immediately declined, "What's this? As if I'm profiting from lending you money."
"You have to accept this. You helped me recover the funds," Qin Cheng insisted, refusing to take no for an answer.
After thinking it over, Wang Xuan allowed him to transfer one million, making their profit share equal.
"Alright, stop the chatter. I don't want any more," Wang Xuan said, informing Qin Cheng that he was planning to book a ticket to New Star and would be leaving soon.
"What? Old Wang, you're leaving? Aren't you waiting for me? I'll be able to go to New Star in about half a month; no one will stop me now!" Qin Cheng replied, anxiety creeping in.
After witnessing today's lunar battle between ancient Celestials and modern warships, others might forget, but he knew he wouldn't.
He wondered what else could happen on the Moon. He felt that Wang Xuan was mysterious but reliable in critical moments.
"Don't worry, there's nothing left in the Moon Pit," Wang Xuan reassured him. "There won't be any issues anymore, so relax."
He needed to leave; having witnessed such events today filled him with urgency. The world was vast, and only a glimpse of the "truth" had been revealed to him.
He wanted to rush to New Star, to the Secret Realm, because the "real world" was daunting, and he needed to enhance himself quickly.
Moreover, three years was not a long time. What he had seen today weighed heavily on his mind, and the issues were far more serious than he had imagined!