This time I chose Paladin.

Chapter 265 The Scorching Summer

June in the new world is already the height of summer, so hot and humid that you sweat profusely with the slightest movement.

Since that day, the weather has become unpredictable and erratic. The drastic temperature change caused abnormally turbulent upper-air airflow, and soon the rain belt began to expand and shift.

The sky seemed perpetually heavy with moisture, and rain would come at any moment, drizzling or pouring down, as if even the sky itself was overwhelmed and drenched in sweat.

During those brief few hours, Saturn and its magnificent rings hung prominently in the silent sky, like a silent exhibition of golden records, coldly proclaiming the insignificance of humankind.

This has led many people to develop severe megalophobia or even post-traumatic stress disorder afterward.

But this unimaginable cosmic spectacle brought an unexpected benefit: the awe of the cosmic behemoth that came from the depths of the soul extinguished the nameless fire in many people's hearts like a bucket of ice water.

The restlessness brought about by bloodline fusion, the violence accumulated from the pressure of survival, and even the trivial frictions and resentments between people all seem so insignificant in the face of the vast universe.

Even though most people understand that the universe is the universe, emotions are emotions, and everything that happens around us, however insignificant, is still a part of life for the person involved...

However, the unrest caused by the foreign bloodline was temporarily suppressed.

After all, anyone who looks up and sees a gas giant hanging almost face-to-face in the sky, feeling as insignificant as dust, would find it hard to get truly angry over trivial matters.

When humans arrived here, they had nothing left.

Those who have nothing should take a detached view of life, death, love, and hate.

In this relatively calm period following the dramatic changes in the world, or rather, the period of numbness after the shock, those in the know debated various topics.

One of the questions is: Why is this universe filled with such profound malice?
“Logically speaking,” one scholar suggested at an informal seminar, “technological advancements and leaps in productivity should lead to a corresponding rise in moral standards. Because when satisfying desires no longer requires plunder and low-level material competition…”

Before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by a middle-aged man in an old military uniform with a stern expression: "Oh? According to your theory, has the moral standard of modern people changed dramatically compared to the sages of two thousand years ago? Are they more benevolent or more just?"

The scholar who asked the question was speechless for a moment, opened his mouth, and finally let out a helpless sigh.

At the end of the discussion, Igor, a physicist known for his wildly imaginative ideas, said something that sounded quite plausible yet was full of metaphysical implications: "We need to make everyone know that learning to think is to be at odds with everything."

This is a philosophical concept, and the way he put it out at this moment makes its meaning extremely vague.

Does it refer to the sense of alienation that comes with thinking itself? Or to the inevitable conflicts and confrontations that accompany the process of understanding the world? Or perhaps, while intelligent life is trying to understand the universe, it must also realize that as long as it exists, it must obtain resources from endless strife?
No one can give a definite answer; the implications are largely subjective.

Whether it is applicable to the current predicament facing humanity is unknown.

However, one thing is certain: those star embers, those dead souls of civilizations, did so much simply because they wanted to live.

Even though parasitizing humans is not a complete resurrection, they still try their best to survive and continue their existence.

“To survive is the most primal and powerful instinct of life,” a biologist said softly. “This instinct transcends good and evil, transcends time and space, transcends life forms… In this respect, we are the same as them.”

...One day, Nie Weiyang unexpectedly saw two familiar young figures outside the newly established [Advanced Skills Training Institute] in the old city—Yang Wuji and Li Duo, who came from Langcheng.

Li Duo seems to have become a key subject of observation for the research institute, consistently cooperating with researchers in various tests and data collection. Currently, the talents and physical changes brought about by her mythical biological lineage are fascinating many biologists. Her future talent for flight will also have significant reference value for the development of human-made aircraft.

Yang Wuji, clearly because of Li Duo, also developed a strong interest in flying.

Nie Weiyang casually taught them combat skills for a few days and then asked Yang Wuji, "Why are you so obsessed with flying?"

Yang Wuji pushed up his glasses, his face slightly flushed, and said in a low voice, "I...I want to fly into the sky."

But what he truly longed for was to soar under the same sky with that fiery red-haired figure beside him.

It is worth mentioning that Yang Wuji made a new friend at the academy, He Kang's son, named He Yu.

He Yu's personality is completely different from his father's mature and steady demeanor; he is a sunny, cheerful, and energetic young man.

Because they both had a strong interest in aircraft design, the two quickly became like-minded friends and often spent time together in a makeshift laboratory, arguing endlessly about blueprints and rudimentary material models.

Shortly afterward, the weary assassin Bai Yu arrived from afar, having come specifically to find Nie Weiyang.

On his way to Nie Weiyang's residence, he happened to meet Yang Wuji and He Yu, who were discussing a problem together.

"He Yu?" Bai Yu took a second look at the sunny boy because of this name.

Later, he formally met these two young men through Nie Weiyang and learned about their project and talent. However, before Bai Yu could even explain his purpose after introducing himself, he was already being recruited by the enthusiastic He Yu and the expectant Yang Wuji—

Nie Weiyang had already told one of their teachers about Bai Yu's existence, because that teacher had proposed a concept of 'supernatural radar' and was in dire need of support from people with special tracking and perception abilities.

Bai Yu's extremely long-range tracking ability, which can always accurately lock onto targets, is, in their eyes, an excellent research target!
So, Bai Yu, who originally came to find Nie Weiyang to join his team, was inexplicably pulled into this imaginative research group, where he began contributing his tracking skills, born from shadows and intuition, to build upon humanity's cutting-edge technology. And after get off work and school, the two of them would drag Bai Yu along to play…

Although they were the same age, Bai Yu, a socially awkward person, was practically driven to despair by being dragged into this task. But when he cast a pleading look at Nie Weiyang, Nie Weiyang calmly looked away.

After some time, Bai Yu, having gotten used to this kind of life again, stopped asking for help. He felt as if he had escaped that gloomy time and returned to the past, back to normal life.

The sense of accomplishment he gained from contributing to humanity improved his mental state considerably. Even though he remained taciturn, he even learned to joke.

In addition, Fu Nian woke up, but her soul was severely damaged. She forgot what happened during that time and just continued carving while holding Ping Xingdou's stone slab.

Nie Weiyang visited her once, and he was absolutely certain that she posed no threat whatsoever; she had even forgotten about Nie Weiyang. Her thoughts were consumed by the single task of completing the stone carving… as if this were the final chapter of her life, and if she were to enter eternal sleep, she had to finish this task.

The planetary barrier has long since been activated, and rain still frequently falls in the city's skies. Everyone knows that beyond the night sky, Saturn silently overlooks everyone in the eternal night.

But beneath this damp and oppressive atmosphere, new forces are quietly gathering, and different abilities and ideas are colliding as they try to find a way to integrate and move forward.

(End of this chapter)