People in Terra, governing a bizarre little country

"Your Excellency! The western passage has fallen! They...they are too many! Ah—!"

Another howl, filled with anger and fear, rang out; it was the voice of the captain of the third defense squad in the main tower's defensive zone.

The signal abruptly stopped, leaving only a chilling hissing sound. Clementine closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and tried to suppress the bitterness in her throat. The air circulation system was still running, but the air emanating from the command platform was an inescapable stench of blood and gunpowder, and a… uniquely Haisi-esque, nauseatingly sweet and metallic scent.

The Third Defense Squad was stationed at the last line of defense in the main tower's defensive zone. The squad leader's death meant that Hai Si had broken through all the defenses outside the main tower and was officially approaching it.

Today may be the last day.

"Attention all units!"

Clementa's voice was amplified throughout the platform via the loudspeaker system. With the signal completely jammed, this most primitive method of communication became the easiest to repair.

She tried her best to remain calm, even though her fingertips were trembling slightly as she pressed the makeshift loudspeaker.

"Attention all units! Immediately consolidate the defensive line to Tower B! Abandon the outer platforms! All firepower units, prioritize eliminating [Crawlers] and [Founders]. If you encounter elite enemy units, do not engage them head-on; call for heavy artillery cover. Heavy artillery, calibrate targets, aim at [First Speaker] units, and unleash micro-collapse bombs! Saturation bombardment!"

As soon as she finished speaking, an ominous red light flashed throughout the tower, and a piercing alarm sounded like the death knell:

"Warning! Power to the restricted area is about to be restored. Access control will be disabled after the power is restored. All security personnel are requested to remain on high alert!"

The command tower has an independent power supply system, and Clementine had arranged for two squads to protect it, but this sound was clearly a signal of a power system failure.

The enemy has evolved.

Not only in terms of physical strength and environmental adaptability, but also in terms of intelligence, they have evolved.

Hai Si did not just approach the main tower; while attacking the main tower's defense zone, they had already dispatched some troops to raid the energy system!

Clementine felt her heart skip a beat, and her breathing became heavy. She then realized that this was not her imagination, but rather the deathly silence of the command room, where only the sound of everyone's breathing could be heard.

"Sikunda, how long can the emergency energy system last?"

Clementa asked in a voice that had become somewhat hoarse from shouting over the past few days.

Xikunda suddenly came to her senses and replied:

"Your Excellency, if we maintain this state of energy shield overload, we can only hold out for a maximum of two hours!"

"However, although activating the emergency energy system allows for a seamless switch, there is a five-minute time lag before the energy shield can be overloaded."

"Then let's fill those five minutes with our bodies!"

Clementine spoke sharply, drawing her high-frequency sword from her waist. The blade hummed and emitted a ghostly blue light.

Her gaze swept over the last group of guards in the command center. These were her personal guards, who had always protected her safety, but now, they were all going to die either way!

"We can't back down any further!"

"Agor is right behind us!"

She turned around to face the entrance to Area B. Sikunda had already executed the order to switch the emergency energy system, and the energy shield surrounding the main tower immediately dimmed slightly, a sign of insufficient power supply before the overload.

The sea creatures seemed to sense this as well, and a heavy thud resounded from the glass dome, instantly creating a massive crack that spread outwards. A huge tentacle, covered in suckers and a hard, calloused shell, greedily pounded at the glass, trying to find a way in. More smaller sea creatures clung to the tower's exterior like maggots, their pale, lifeless compound eyes peering greedily through the glass at their "prey" inside.

The sharp screech of Hai Si and the explosions of energy weapons could already be heard from the entrance to Sector B. The guards raised their weapons, their faces filled with fear, but also burning with the same determination.

In a war there are cowards, but there are also heroes.

The unification process in Agor was also accompanied by bloodshed. The Agorians living in modern times may have forgotten the hardships of their ancestors, but they still yearn for the achievements of those heroes.

If civilization does not exist in the future, Clementa hopes that she will die as the last hero of civilization!

Why is it the last one?

Because as long as she is still standing here, this city, this civilization, has not yet completely fallen!

"For Agor! For Milyarum!"

Clementa raised her sword and stepped into the passage, followed closely by her guards.

The pressure of the seawater seeped through the crumbling dome, squeezing our eardrums. Emergency lights flickered, stretching and distorting our shadows on the walls like menacing ghosts. From the depths of the city came even more violent explosions, as if something enormous had been utterly destroyed. Despair, like the chill of the deep sea, tried to seep into the very marrow of everyone.

But gradually, the sounds from ahead subsided.

The roars of the sea monsters disappeared, as did the shouts of the guards, the sizzling sounds of weapons firing and flesh exploding, and even the sounds of the giant sea monsters that roamed outside, occasionally emitting deafening buzzing noises, disappeared.

Everything seemed to freeze.

Clementa went to the front line.

She witnessed a scene that defied his comprehension.

Endless, filling the ceiling, floor, and walls—the sea within every corner of the field of vision remained stationary.

Their gazes—whether they had eyes or not—were all fixed in one direction. They made no sound at all, as if holding their breath and waiting for some command.

On the battlefield, where even breathing felt superfluous and tense, they allowed the Agorians to kill them and their brethren with their weapons without offering any resistance, like a group of fanatical fans watching intently as the superstar was about to take the stage.

Clementa's lips trembled. She didn't know what was happening, but the scene before her was so shocking that she couldn't even form a coherent sentence.

"Ho—whoosh—"

Clementine didn't know who had made that hoarse gasp. Perhaps it was a warrior whose mouth was smeared with the flesh and blood of Hai Si, or perhaps it was Hai Si who had already learned the concept of "language," or perhaps it was herself?

However, as if by an unexpected coincidence, with that soft "ho" of a breath, Hai Si receded like the tide.

Sunrise and sunset are natural phenomena, as are the ebb and flow of tides.

Her gaze followed the retreating Sea Siren, and through the giant hole the Sea Siren had carved into the main tower wall, she witnessed a scene she would never forget.

The deep, cold seabed stretched endlessly, dotted with the long-lost, faded remains of the civilization of Myrialyum, like giant skeletons scattered across the dark sands. However, this desolate backdrop was now being overwhelmed by an indescribable, living horror.

Countless sea creatures, their numbers exceeding any rational calculation, are converging from all directions, from every corner of the field of vision, towards an invisible center. They are no longer scattered individuals or small clusters, but have formed an unstoppable, living torrent. This torrent covers the seabed, obscures the abyss, and its sheer size seems to claim the entire ocean as its own.

Smaller sea creatures, like countless worms, weave through the gaps in the massive carapaces of their counterparts, forming a flowing bottom layer. Medium-sized "predators" and "piercers" form more turbulent tributaries, their bioluminescence shimmering with a sickly glow in the darkness as they merge into the main tide. The Leviathan-class sea creatures, comparable in size to mountains, are like moving dark continents, slowly but steadily pulled by the central gravitational pull. Their massive bodies form the backbone of this torrent, each movement churning up deep-sea sediment and leaving behind enormous trenches.

From high above, this enormous tide of countless life forms presents a breathtaking sight—a colossal biological black hole composed of flesh, carapace, tentacles, and endless hunger.

At the center of the vortex—the singularity of that "black hole"—what exactly exists is no longer visible to Clementa. That region is completely enveloped by the densest and most frenzied sea creatures!

That might be a coordinate, a goal, or simply the ultimate destination of their existence.

Clementine couldn't help but lean against the wall and slump down.

At this moment, as the adrenaline rush subsided, she finally understood what Agor was fighting against, and what she herself was fighting against.

Because, regardless of what lies at the center, the scene itself is an extreme, all-consuming, and overwhelming terror—

A deep-sea spectacle composed of life, infinitely collapsing and converging, a living abyss that is dragging the entire underwater world into its core.

Chapter 1086 Father, please let us become one.

Ernst bet that if someone asked him six months from now what his deepest impression of Argonaut was, he would definitely remember the day he personally set off for the ocean.

At that very moment, the life-devouring black hole, composed of endless sea creatures, did not continue to collapse or exhibit a violent destructive instinct as expected. Instead, it began to spread in a strange, almost orderly rhythm throughout the life-giving tide that covered the entire ocean.

From a macroscopic, God-like perspective, the massive herd of beasts, which had been surging haphazardly toward the center, now seemed to be guided by an invisible conductor, beginning their "dance." This was not a dance that any human or known life form could comprehend, but rather a bizarre and grand living choreography based on collective will and deep-sea physics.

The "nebula" composed of countless tiny marine organisms, after the arrival of the "black hole singularity" that attracted them, ceased its chaotic, crushing currents and began to slowly rotate and flow around the central region in extremely complex geometric paths. The bioluminescence on their surfaces was no longer a chaotic flicker, but rather a large-scale, almost synchronous movement of light and shadow, like countless brilliant breathing lights composed of billions of lives illuminating the deep sea.

Moreover, the color of the light also underwent a subtle change, gradually unifying from the previous morbid and chaotic jumble of colors into a deep, cold, and eerie blue tone, interspersed with golden specks of light like stardust. The light was soft, yet it exuded an inhuman, chilling tranquility.

Ernst suddenly understood why the survival plan created by Haisi was called the "Deep Blue Tree".

The shimmering sea creatures, now spiraling towards the center, don't they resemble the DNA double helix, the foundation of life? And don't they resemble a towering tree, its branches and leaves flourishing, its base color a deep blue?

Those pulsating miniature sea monster nebulae are its lush canopy; those medium-sized sea monster formations, stretching their limbs at an incredible synchronization rate, sometimes like giant luminous ribbons wrapping around the core of the "black hole," and sometimes spreading out like petals, revealing a breathtaking yet somewhat beautiful inhuman form, are its growing branches; and those Leviathan-class giant sea monsters with bodies as large as mountains are its indestructible trunk!

They slowly and solemnly turned their massive bodies, their chitinous shells rubbing against each other, producing a deep, resonant rumble like the movement of the earth's crust. But this rumble no longer contained any destructive intent; instead, it formed a strange resonance that permeated the entire sea.

It was with the will of the swarm that they called upon the sea creatures from far and wide to come. Their tentacles, those terrifying appendages that could easily tear apart any steel and Agor energy shield, were now waving and swaying slowly in the water in an almost elegant manner, as if paying homage to some unseen being.

For some reason, Ernst had a feeling that the person they were paying tribute to was himself.

"Kal'tsit, can you understand what these Sealings are doing?"

Ernst felt a chill run down his spine. He turned to ask, only to be met with a bewildered look from Kal'tsit, whose mouth was slightly agape.

"Lord Ernst, I... I don't know."

Kal'tsit answered frankly, a frankness that made even herself feel somewhat uncomfortable.

But remembering that this was Ernst's request, the prophet's hope, she withdrew her stubborn insistence on finding a point even when it was unreasonable, and decisively shook her head, emphasizing again:

"I do not know."

"In any known record, I have never seen Hai Si display such an attitude."

"I find it hard to describe their performance at this moment."

Kal'tsit hesitated for a moment, then answered, exhausting all her words:

“I feel as if they are extending goodwill to you, Lord Ernst.”

"bona fide?"

Ernst glanced around.

A dense swarm of sea creatures surrounded a person, maintaining a stable distance that was both a step away and yet felt like an insurmountable chasm, while simultaneously casting almost tangible "longing" glances your way. To be honest, this could hardly be called kindness.

If this happened in my previous life, it would have been considered hooliganism!

Moreover, what is most chilling is precisely the "goodwill" emanating from all these endless sea creatures.

This was not a warm, friendly gesture of goodwill, but a cold, inhuman, and extremely alien "welcome." They no longer displayed a hunger to devour everything; their aggressive organs—claws, mouthparts, venomous stingers—were mostly retracted, or maintained a static, non-threatening posture. Their movements were precise and coordinated, carrying an almost pious quality.

Ernst tried to move forward a little.

Kal'tsit's mon3tr can swim in the sea, thanks to her, Ernst, a landlubber, doesn't need to swim to Agor by himself.

As soon as Ernst moved, as if sensing his thoughts, the density of the Sealings seemed to decrease slightly. They proactively and consciously "gave up" a spiraling path downwards. This path led directly to the ruined city on the seabed, flanked by neatly arranged, slightly bowed "honor guards"—composed of countless Sealings of various shapes, radiating azure and golden light. They silently "watched" this path, as if waiting to welcome a supreme monarch, or a new god about to be integrated into their collective will.

“Mr. Ernst, you…” Kelsey looked at the clearly abnormal sea creatures with some concern.

There is no such thing as love or hate without a reason in the world. If there is, then sometimes, love without a reason is more unsettling than hate.

When a group of different species, a large group, or an entire "collective will" all show astonishing favor toward one person, even the most mentally strong person will feel uneasy about this unusual situation.

Ernst was also panicked.

In his best-case scenario, he envisioned that once he entered the sea, no one would notice him, allowing him to sneak into Miriam, contact the Agorians, and then return without anyone noticing.

Even if things went worse, and he was suddenly captured while contacting the Agorians, and a fight broke out, he could accept it. One of the original Originium, Anana, was currently in his pouch. If a fight did break out, in terms of assimilation attacks, he wasn't afraid of her; in terms of ultimate defense, he was stronger!

Even in the worst-case scenario, where Hai Si discovers him the moment he arrives, it would simply mean fighting from beginning to end.

The current situation is the most troublesome.

Haiss seemed to have goodwill towards him, but Ernst didn't even know what the reason for this goodwill was.

Is it about my relationship with [Luo]?

However, the Deep Sea Cult had previously instructed Hai Si to assassinate him in Iberia, which shows that Hai Si did not resist being killed directly.

If there are other reasons, what are they?

This overwhelming, silent welcoming ceremony, this seemingly benevolent dance performed by the monsters, is more unsettling than their ferocious attack. For behind this "benevolence" lies the logic of the abyss, an invitation from an alien species, a chilling anticipation of "someone's" arrival. This is not submission, but rather a final salute before assimilation, a gentle yet deadly smile as the abyss opens its arms.

Ernst hesitated for a moment before making up his mind.

"What else can we do? We're already here, we can't just leave like this, can we?"

He couldn't just leave like that. Regardless of Haisi's attitude towards him, his primary purpose in coming here was to establish external ties with Agor.

Without Agor's help, the land would be a dead end for the Sea Siege. The technological gap cannot be easily reversed by a few high-level combatants, especially since the Sea Siege's high-level combatants are not inferior to those on land, and they can mass-produce them.

In this situation, avoiding a direct battle with Hai Si means exposing less of our own and our land territory. Since the other side is willingly giving us an advantage, it would be foolish not to take advantage of it!

Ernst took a deep breath, ignoring Kal'tsit's deeply furrowed brows, patted mon3tr's tailbone, and the massive Originium Beast let out a shy roar before diving deeper into the depths.

Kal'tsit stood there, somewhat bewildered.

No? Did I give the order? Mon3, 4TR, why did you just leave like that? 6, ★

what about me?

I haven't gotten in the car yet!

Cats aren't actually very good at swimming.

But seeing Ernst already diving into the deep sea along the "welcoming avenue" formed by the sea creatures, she sighed and swam towards the ocean depths, paddling through the water.

But gradually, she realized that she would soon be unable to see Ernst anymore.

The surrounding waters seemed to be resonating at some unknown frequency, and this resonance even created a downward undercurrent on this "welcoming avenue," propelling Ernst's speed faster and faster.

Kal'tsit, however, clearly did not receive this treatment.