Post-Apocalyptic Survival Modpack

Chapter 89, Section 88: The Apocalypse of Cognition

Oswald pondered for a moment and said, "I've been thinking about this too, well... or rather, I've been studying it all along."

"Wang Ji, you're back."

Before he could finish speaking, another voice came from behind him.

Wang Ji turned his head and saw that it was Ryder.

After adjusting his mindset, Wang Ji replied, "Yes, I've been quite busy these past few days, dealing with the newly emerged apocalyptic disaster."

Ryder said sincerely, "You've worked hard; these kinds of things are usually not easy."

After saying that, he looked at the two of them and asked, "What are you talking about? Is it convenient for me to stay here?"

"We're talking about the end of the world."

Wang Ji said, "There's nothing inconvenient about it, but I just feel like something's not quite right. It's hard for me to figure it out on my own. Maybe you can give me some ideas?"

"Something's not right, there really is."

Ryder thought for a moment and said, "I haven't had any sleep problems since I died."

Wang Ji was startled: "You knew everything?"

As he spoke, he couldn't help but glance at Osvid; only the two of them knew about this.

"Yes."

Ryder nodded: "I know 'I' am dead. It was my own choice, and I don't blame anyone."

"There's no need to treat the present me as a different person from the past me. I am an extension of my own consciousness, and the decisions I make will not be any different from before."

"I'm glad I wasn't kept in the dark and died in ignorance."

"And don't forget, I'm also a seeker of the path of alchemy, although I have indeed been somewhat lax in recent years."

He pointed to himself and said, "Look, here lies one of the ultimate and forbidden aspects of alchemy. In a sense, am I now also a 'homo-man'?"

Ryder smiled.

Wang Ji was unsure how to respond.

Osvid lowered his head slightly and sighed softly.

"Let's talk about what happened earlier."

Ryder broke the silence and continued, "I haven't had insomnia since I died, and I can fall asleep normally."

"I suspect this is related to my life form. Strictly speaking, I am no longer a real life recognized by the world."

"Instead, it is a soulless, sentient, moving dead thing, like those alchemical golems, only more intelligent and capable of self-renewal."

"So..." Wang Ji pondered these words and concluded, "You mean, insomnia only affects truly 'natural life'?"

Ryder agreed, "That's exactly right."

At this point, Oswald spoke up: "This concerns the nature of the world, and I have some say in this matter."

"Life arises from the soul, which gives rise to spirituality and consciousness."

"If the body dies, the soul returns to the world and fills the world with spirituality. When a new life is born, spirituality is sown again, and the tiny spiritual seed gradually grows into a new, complete soul."

"This is a healthy cycle that will make the world stronger."

"But now this loop is stuck."

Wang Ji asked, "What do you mean?"

Osvid stepped aside, looked at Ryder, and said bluntly, "Ryder's soul has not returned to the world, but has been imprisoned by something. His spirit is locked in a cage, unable to break through or awaken."

"He is now essentially a body that has been forcibly awakened and inherited the original Ryder's memories."

Wang Ji looked at Ryder, and the Hat of the Endless Abyss began to exert its power, analyzing its elements.

Soul, humanity, life, tools…

The elements representing the 'soul' are still there, so why?
He then looked at Osvid and asked, "If you can control the world, can't you forcefully intervene and revive the souls?"

Oswald said helplessly, "I told you, Wang Ji, it used to be possible, but not now. Something is blocking this."

Wang Ji suddenly froze.

A flash of insight crossed my mind, disappearing in an instant like lightning.

Wait, wait!
Wang Ji frowned and lowered his head. "Let me go through this from the beginning, let me go through this."

Based on current patterns, the doomsday occurs approximately every three days.

However, on the 'first day', two anomalies occurred simultaneously.

Zombie plague, and insomnia.

Could they be the same thing?
No, I've never heard of this thing causing insomnia. Besides, although it's called insomnia, it's not true insomnia. You can still sleep, and your body will indeed get rest. It's just that your mind or soul will become very painful.

Strictly speaking, as long as one's mental state is strong enough, it doesn't have to be an illness.

That means insomnia and the zombie plague are two different anomalies.

Is it reasonable for two anomalies to occur at the same time?
If the apocalypse can be mass-produced or accumulated, then why release them one by one? Why not just release them all at once and destroy the world in one big wave?

There's definitely something I haven't figured out...

"It's very strange."

Wang Ji said, "Strange, very strange. I always feel that the various disasters we are experiencing now and the things that are causing our insomnia are two different things."

"You mean something is blocking the soul, preventing it from returning to the world?"

Oswald: "Yes, that's true."

"That's even stranger."

Wang Ji was lost in memories, his thoughts returning to the day Auschwitz returned.

During their conversation, his awareness of the apocalypse suddenly surged, granting him a point.

After that, a zombie plague spread among the swarms.

The concept of apocalypse emerged before the zombie plague.

Previously, Wang Ji had always thought that these apocalypses were caused by him, because he hadn't used his cognition points, which caused the things inside to come out on their own and even affect his cognition in the opposite way.

But that doesn't make any sense at all.

The undead calamity that occurred some time ago did not originate from his understanding, but rather from the 'doomsday prophecy' of this world.

To be more precise, it could be said that it originated from people's general understanding of the apocalypse.

Something is turning the apocalyptic scenario that people perceive as destroying the world into reality.

A series of clues intertwined and connected.

Cognition…cognition.
Why does the apocalypse that everyone else perceives happen to happen on its own?

Could it really have appeared out of thin air?

No, that's not right. There must be some root cause, something.
Wang Ji's heart skipped a beat.

"There is something that occupies the cognition of all mankind."

Recalling the enormous black shadow he had seen in a nightmare the last time he slept, Wang Ji's mind suddenly became clear.

It all makes sense.

Everything is clear.

There is no such thing as an apocalypse every three days.

"All the disasters so far are just a derivative of the apocalypse."

"There has only ever been one doomsday, and that is the thing that resides in the cognition of all mankind. It infiltrates the world, severs the connection between living beings and the world, causes people pain, and turns the 'doomsday' that people perceive as possibly destroying the world into reality one by one, without end, until the world is truly destroyed."

"This is the root of all disasters."

I call it—the end of cognition.

No one could immediately sense the impending doom.

Except for Wang Ji.

In fact, from the very beginning, from the very first moment the apocalypse appeared, he was on guard against this apocalypse that had infiltrated the world, and he acquired the means to fight against and control it.

[Doomsday Awareness Progress 100%, Doomsday Awareness Points +1]

This is a clash between cognitions.

(End of this chapter)