Disaster Simulator, global collapse begins.

……

……

The dark traces covered the high walls, and a giant eye resembling a fruit grew from the top of the black tower, so vivid it looked as if it had been forged from blood.

A team of warriors wearing power armor riddled with holes and signs of corrosion are engaged in close combat with Haisi on the high wall.

High heat, molecular vibration, rotational cutting to penetrate armor—

With the triple effects added by the Originium Engine inside the sword, this slash finally broke through the opponent's bio-energy barrier, which could even absorb laser weapons.

With a sizzling sound of burning oil and roasting meat, dark blue blood gushed out, and the huge monster was cleaved in two.

But no one in the entire team cheered.

This is just cannon fodder that drains the soldiers' stamina; two-thirds of the entire high wall has already been occupied by these cannon fodder.

The warriors with flamethrowers immediately began to disinfect the corpses; otherwise, the flesh and blood of these sea creatures would soon turn into a carpet of flesh and blood called the Netherworld Mark.

More and more cannon fodder climbed up the high wall along the ripples, carrying a foul-smelling wind, and a colossal, oppressive shadow appeared in the sky.

A whale!

Drifting in the air, if we were to use modern weaponry as a metaphor, they would be like the troop transports and aircraft carriers of the Sea Kings.

"Calling for fire support!"

With Hai Si's reinforcements, the balance of this already unfavorable battle continued to tilt.

Energy depleted, armor plates damaged, and excessively worn parts causing distorted movements during combat.

Pierced, corroded, torn apart!

Human casualties began to increase.

But they can't back down anymore.

This is the last high wall, behind which lies the city of Rome, the last human settlement.

The fallen armor stood up again, but it was no longer a human controlling its movements; instead, it was the tentacled creature inside, Hai Si.

After struggling for more than ten minutes, finally, fire support from the inner city arrived!

Rolling fire fell from the sky.

Flames ignited the entire battlefield, burning the entire high wall, and the fire spread along the carpet-like trail to the distant plains.

Initially, the Originium Engine could only convert Originium energy into kinetic energy.

Under the threat and pressure of survival, people's wisdom has continuously driven the updating and iteration of science and technology, creating circuit boards, or to put it more metaphysically, energy channels that guide Originium like magic circles.

People can now use engines to replicate various known Originium Arts!

For example, the chainsaw sword, which has the triple effects of high heat, molecular vibration, and rotating cutting to penetrate armor, is now standard equipment for all warriors.

To deal with these creatures that crawl out of the water, you need to use fire.

The special incendiary bombs launched from the inner city contain a large amount of dangerous and destructive Originium Arts related to fire.

Aside from the extremely high manufacturing cost, everything else is an advantage.

The fire outside the high walls will probably burn for several days.

"ended."

No one cheered; the soldiers simply felt deeply exhausted.

"Why?!" a young voice roared hoarsely, "The city clearly has far more advanced technology, but they won't give it to us or let us use it. They only make us fight to the death with these outdated and obsolete weapons and equipment!!"

A sigh suddenly came from a middle-aged man inside a power armored vehicle next to him:

"Young man, is this your first time on the battlefield?"

"..."

"Seeing you like this reminds me of my first battle. Back then, the Third Ring had just been breached, but the order was not to hold out to the death, but to retreat, so it wasn't this brutal."

The middle-aged man removed his mask, lit a cigarette with the undying flame burning in the sea, and took a satisfying puff.

"But I'm also furious. Why not use the city's powerful weaponry and equipment instead of giving away precious territory to Hai Si?"

Yeah, why?

His words resonated with the young people.

Uncle Liboli pressed further:

"What do you think is the most disgusting and terrifying characteristic of this group of sea crawlers?"

“There are many of them!” the boy replied.

“Wrong.” The uncle shook his head. “It’s evolutionary ability.”

He picked up the chainsaw sword and weighed it in his hand.

"For us humans, developing a new technology, weapon, or technological breakthrough... takes at least several years."

"But once a weapon is deployed on the battlefield, those sea crawlers only need seven days to adapt!"

"Evolve combat creatures similar to us, and then bring combat power back to the balance line."

"This……"

The boy was stunned.

“We have been fighting the Haisi for thousands of years. You are not the first person to have this question, nor will you be the last.”

"Upgrading our technology and weapons is just a short-sighted solution!"

"In the end, it will only nurture even more powerful sea creatures."

"The best shield is only our courage and our flesh and blood."

"Countless sacrifices were made to slow their advance."

The boy suddenly realized something: "Then... we shouldn't have used firearms against them in the first place!"

The older man handed him a cigarette.

The boy tried taking a puff, and the next moment he started coughing violently, coughing so hard that his ears became like airplane ears.

"Haha, it's normal for you to have this kind of thought."

"But... why do you think this is the first time Haisi has reached the gates of Rome?"

Thousands of years of history.

Although the rapid evolution of the sea creatures requires fighting, devouring, and the pressure to survive, this evolution can only bring their combat power to parity with human armies.

But their large numbers, rapid reproduction, and the sheer will of the herd make them fearless.

They are always the ones who dominate and beat humans.

“...Every time we were driven to the gates of Rome, we would bring out some new weapons and technologies.”

"Before the sea reptiles have evolved and adapted, let's attack the outer ring and reclaim as much territory as possible!"

The older man patted the boy on the shoulder: "You can kill Hai Si as easily as mowing grass, enjoy the joy of victory, reclaim human land, and watch your children cultivate the vast land instead of being crammed into resettlement houses."

"It was the worst of times, it was the best of times!"

Thus, the cycle repeats itself.

"Clang—clang—clang—"

"Listen, the bells are ringing."

"Go and carry the bodies of our comrades into the fire. There's no time for farewells or funerals. It's time to go back and collect our new weapons."

……

Chapter 154 is not cyberpunk, it's The Matrix!

Humanity's great counterattack has begun.

The gravity manipulation device was the first technology deployed on the battlefield.

The spells that manipulate gravity are inscribed on the Originium Engine, thereby altering the local gravity coefficient.

Angelina, a six-star operator known as "Brother Jaye," possesses Originium Arts, which allows her to make various objects heavier or lighter. The flying car also uses this magic etched into its internal engine to fly.

The military version is naturally more effective than the civilian version.

One aspect is miniaturization, where it is embedded inside the power armor.

It instantly solved one of the biggest problems—the weight.

Now you can load more and thicker armor plates and weapon cases! Of course, you can also go for a lightweight option to realize your dream of personal mech flight.

Secondly, it is large-scale, increasing power and coverage area, controlling the gravity of the entire battlefield, and delivering a devastating blow to the enemy.

But regarding the latter part...

The actual results were not ideal.

All sea creatures come from the sea; just imagine how heavy the water pressure is in the deep sea!

Therefore, they are naturally highly resistant to stress damage.

Seeing that the counter-offensive was failing to achieve its intended results, Rome pulled out another piece of cutting-edge technology—

Energy-beaming lightsaber.

The previous laser gun was the precursor to this one, also made based on the mysterious principles of Originium Technology, using etching magic to control light and achieve the effect of storing high-energy beams.

Pulling the trigger will fire it out like a laser gun in a science fiction movie, but in reality it is just a staff that fires high-energy beams.

Now, with further technological advancements, several more Originium Arts with similar sequences have been analyzed, allowing unstable beams that could originally only be used as ammunition to be fixed in place!

It doesn't have to be a sword; depending on personal preference, any weapon, such as knives, spears, or clubs, will do.

While it may not have the same feel and loyalty as the chainsaw sword, this energy-binding weapon still deals more damage. The key is that Hai Si hasn't undergone any adaptive evolution, making it practically a critical hit every time it's used in the short term.

……

Outside the Fourth Ring Road.

The vast land is not an empty wilderness; instead, there are soft, undulating mountain ranges that beat like a heart.

Inside the mountain range, follicles are densely packed like pomegranate seeds, and in each follicle is a person sleeping soundly with their eyes closed.

Men, women, young and old, were all sealed naked like insects in blood-red amber, with several tentacles inserted into their excretory organs and the back of their heads.

A moment of inspiration made the Haisi group realize that there were certain problems with their evolutionary methods.

They cannot evolve proactively like other groups!

They can only devour other races, stealing their strengths from their memories and genes, or fight against a certain race, relying on the stimulation of being hurt and remote observation to make their race progress.

This is very efficient.

However, once there are no enemies, the evolution of the large group will stagnate, and without the threat to survival, the sea creatures will not evolve on their own.

Until a genius in the tribe came up with a perfect idea.

Establish a human matrix, raise a large number of humans to live in the spiritual world, and then actively observe them.

It only takes a small amount of energy to create such an evolved brain for the species.

Now that the Sealings have tasted the benefits, the size of the Matrix has increased hundreds of times from the beginning, and that spiritual world has been built to be incredibly complete, perfectly replicating everything from various physical laws and survival threats to history and culture.

Like a second Terra.

The human counter-offensive army has already reached this place.

"Break through these mountains of flesh and rescue our compatriots!"

Some people disagree:

"But...do they really want to be rescued by us?"

This argument is not unfounded. After learning of the existence of the Hysterian Matrix, Rome sent out troops to launch several surprise attacks, some to infiltrate the matrix and others to rescue people in small groups.

However, the results were not very good.

The rescued people were not grateful to their rescuers; on the contrary, they harbored some hatred towards them!

On one side is the bustling Night City, and on the other is the reality of the monotonous battles with Hai Si day after day.