They traveled through time at the same time, but the villainous scientist

Chapter 189 The Third Impact

The sky was completely torn apart.

Centered around Lilith, who had transformed into a giant of light, nine white mass-produced EVAs unfurled their wings of light, outlining the sacred yet eerie Kabbalah Tree of Life pattern against the pitch-black sky.

Inside the UN military command center, all was deathly silent, save for the hum of the equipment.

The light reflected on the screen cast a pale, desperate glow on the faces of every high-ranking general.

"Then...what is that?"

"Attack! Order an attack immediately! Whatever it is, shoot it down!"

After the initial shock, the soldiers reacted instinctively. The supreme command was issued in an unquestionable tone.

In an instant, the fighter jets stationed in the airspace surrounding NERV headquarters changed direction, their engines spewing out scorching flames, like moths drawn to a flame, fearlessly rushing towards the sacred light and shadow in the sky.

"Missile launch!"

Dozens of missiles, trailing long plumes of white smoke, streaked across the sky, heading straight for the Giant of Light.

However, they didn't even get close to their target.

A thin orange halo spread out, and the hexagonal AT field, like an insurmountable divine barrier, blocked all incoming weapons. The sparks from the explosion bloomed on the surface of the field, but not even a ripple was stirred up.

Immediately afterwards, the seemingly indestructible AT position underwent a change in form.

It was no longer a mere barrier, but transformed into countless shimmering, iridescent wings, gracefully unfurling outwards. Breathtakingly beautiful, yet terrifyingly deadly.

The wings of light swept past silently.

The next second, the fighter squadron at the forefront, along with its aircraft and pilots, was neatly sliced ​​in two.

There was no explosion, only a smooth cut; the metal debris tumbled through the air before helplessly falling to the red-stained earth.

……

“It’s really spectacular…”

Deep within the ultimate dogma, Zhang Qi gazed up at the apocalyptic scene he had created with his own hands and uttered a heartfelt sigh.

There are three elements that constitute life: spirit, body, and soul.

Whether it's the cultivation method of "Under One Person" or the use of technological power like what we're seeing now, its essence has never changed.

These three factors are intertwined and influence each other.

When the body is exhausted, the spirit naturally weakens;

When you're feeling down, your physical condition won't be good either.

The First Men, who created Lilith and Adam, had a rather unique way of thinking.

They designed a grand experiment spanning billions of years.

First, completely separate the two major elements of life—the 'Fruit of Life' symbolizing the powerful physical body and the 'Fruit of Wisdom' symbolizing the spirit.

Transform into Lilith and Adam, and let them develop on different paths.

Finally, through a survival competition called 'Impact,' the final products of these two evolutionary paths will engage in a life-or-death battle.

The victor will devour everything of the loser, possessing both immense vitality and boundless wisdom, and become... a god.

……

The moment Zhang Qi finished speaking, as if drawn by some source, the red spiral spear in lunar orbit began to vibrate violently.

It broke free from the moon's gravity, transforming into a blood-red meteor that pierced the heavens and earth, hurtling towards Earth!
The target is the giant of light in the sky.

The spear encountered no resistance and pierced straight into the giant's core, quickly merging into it.

The return of the Spear of God is like putting the final switch on this massive machine.

Anti-AT stance, launched instantly!
An invisible wave emanated from the giant of light and spread outwards across the entire Earth.

At the same time, the chest armor of the nine mass-produced EVAs slid open, revealing the huge, pulsating cores inside.

The biological computer within the core began performing parallel calculations with unprecedented efficiency, curbing the spread of anti-AT positions.

Then, a piece of data that Zhang Qi had prepared in advance was loaded—a detailed list of all SEELE members obtained from Speaker Keel.

In a remote, secret meeting room, the members of SEELE were immersed in the ecstasy of their long-cherished wish coming true.

"We succeeded! We succeeded! Humanity will abandon these ugly bodies, merge into one, and become eternal!"

However, their ecstasy came to an abrupt end the next moment.

The anti-AT field precisely locked onto each of them. Without pain or struggle, their bodies instantly lost their form, disintegrating into an orange-yellow LCL solution that merged with the surrounding air.

They did indeed usher in their "human completion," but what awaited them was not eternal life with God, but the purest and most complete death.

***
Sensing what had happened, Zhang Qi nodded in satisfaction.

He has thus fulfilled the wishes of SEELE and his ilk.

After doing all this

In the sky, the cores of the nine mass-produced machines that had completed their mission suddenly burst forth with blinding light, and then exploded with a deafening roar.

Under the impact of the explosion, the Giant of Light at its core—the nascent form of God formed by the brief fusion of Lilith, Adam, and the Spear of Longinus—also disintegrated, triggering a massive, unprecedented yet silent explosion in the air.

……

The aftermath of the event, however, swept across the entire world like a tsunami.

First, the deaths of a large number of high-ranking officials in various countries and elites from all walks of life who were dependent on SEELE directly led to a power vacuum and social chaos on a global scale.

Even more terrifying is that, under the influence of this brief impact, the Earth's ecosystem suffered a devastating blow, the ocean was completely dyed red, a symbol of death, and the air was filled with a strong smell of blood.

Amidst this apocalyptic scene, Zhang Qi returned and quickly took control of NERV.

He released all the classified information he had obtained from SEELE to the world, placing all the blame for the disaster on this secret organization that sought to become a god.

At the subsequent UN emergency meeting, facing a group of shaken representatives from various countries, Zhang Qi, in the guise of a savior, gave a detailed "explanation" of the entire incident.

He claimed that all of this was caused by a conspiracy between SEELE and Gendo Ikari, and that he prevented the real apocalypse at the last moment.

At the same time, he published related technical papers, claiming that through the study of Lilith's remains, humanity has the ability to reconstruct Earth's biosphere.

Although all of this is just Zhang Qi's side of the story, with all the members of Gendo Ikari and SEELE "disappearing," no one can investigate the truth behind it.

Moreover, for humanity that has survived the catastrophe, stabilizing public morale and rebuilding are far more important than the so-called truth.

Soon, all countries reached a consensus.

They blamed everything on SEELE and announced to the world that humanity would unite all forces that could be united to restore the Earth.

To demonstrate their resolve, the countries abandoned their private armed forces and jointly formed a unified "Earth Defense Force" under the command of the United Nations.

NERV was reorganized into the "Earth Ecosystem Reconstruction and Evolution Institute," aiming to reconstruct Earth's ecology through research on EVA technology. Zhang Qi was appointed as the overall head of the project.

……

With the threat of the Angels completely gone, Shinji Ikari, Rei Ayanami, and other EVA pilots were finally relieved of their heavy burdens and returned to their status as ordinary students.

Walking on the streets of the reconstructed Third New Tokyo City, Shinji Ikari always had a sense of unreality.

When he received news of his father's death, he was not even greatly affected.

To that father who was like a stranger, his death seemed to be just a news item that had little to do with him.

On the contrary, seeing Zhang Qi occasionally gave him a strange sense of peace.

However, Asuka's situation is somewhat special.

During her battle with the Angels, her mental synchronization with EVA became too high, resulting in severe mental contamination. She is currently under special observation and treatment at NERV's medical center.

The good news is that Asuka's condition has stabilized and she is now able to meet with them.

……

In the research institute's office, Zhang Qi was facing angry condemnations from Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi.

After all, he had left a mess for the two of them, so he was in the wrong.

After much effort and making numerous promises, he finally managed to calm the two angry ladies down.

After dealing with all of this, he headed to the intensive care unit at the very back of the research institute.

He needs to complete Asuka's treatment, and at the same time, he also needs to fulfill another promise.

"So... this is what it feels like to be human?"

On the hospital bed, a silver-haired boy slowly opened his eyes. He curiously raised his hands and examined them repeatedly. His ruby-like eyes were filled with novelty and a sense of unreality.

"Yes, apostles and humans are very similar, but because the physical bodies of apostles are too powerful, your spirit has to submit to your physical instincts."

Through your rebirth from Lilith, you are now a true human being.

So… from today onwards, you are free, Kaworu.

(End of this chapter)