"They … are all abnormal. They've all gone mad. Can you understand? They were all willing to face danger for their companions … even at the cost of their lives. But now, they've become like this … "
Somewhere in the central square of Atlan Void City, Rosalie was with Lin's mechanical octopus.
Not too long ago, Rosalie met her former scavenger … companions. Of course, these companions were the same as the other Atlan.
They were emotionless and did not show any emotion towards Rosalie's return. The only thing they cared about was Rosalie's … ability.
Because it was said that Rosalie used to be a very powerful scavenger, this group of companions wanted her to join them. However, she had to undergo an ability test first. If she did not have her previous ability, they would not need Rosalie.
Rosalie could not accept what they said, so she rejected them. However, the leader of this group of Atlan said that it had the right to force Rosalie to join them according to the current law. It said that Rosalie would have to undergo the test after about … 3000 seconds. Otherwise, it would be a violation of the law.
Lin noticed that the Atlan here seemed to be using every possibility to increase their own benefits. There was no 'mercy' to speak of.
This made Rosalie feel that she should not stay here any longer. That was why she was hesitant.
Lin wanted to know the reason for their change. Normally, capturing an Atlan to examine was the fastest way. However, it was very difficult for the mechanical octopus to examine them without being discovered.
"I will investigate the reason for this situation." After the mechanical octopus told Rosalie, it walked in another direction. Rosalie immediately said, "Wait, I want to investigate too!"
"It's better if you leave this place." Lin said, "If they were affected by a virus or parasite, then this phenomenon might be … contagious."
"I'm not afraid!" Rosalie said, "I'm wearing armor, so I'll be fine. I want to know why they became like this … I want to investigate!"
"But where should we go to investigate?" Rosalie said, "This place has changed too much … many of the facilities here did not exist before. For example, we used to share all the equipment, items, food and so on. There was no trading at all. "
"Do you know where the leader is?" Lin asked.
"The leader?" Rosalie said, "I know where it used to live, but it must have changed now. The entire space here has changed a lot."
"Rosalie."
At this moment, a voice sounded. The voice came from Atlan, one of Rosalie's teammates. The captain said, "It's time. You can go for the test. If you refuse to go, I'll execute you according to the law."
"Are you … really going to do this?" Rosalie turned to look at the captain. Its expression under the helmet was full of anger.
"You refused to provide us with your ability, so I had to use this method to get you to provide it." The captain said, "If your skills are the same as before, we will definitely not give up this opportunity. I have to use all means to strengthen my team."
"… Alright." Luo Shali looked at the captain for a while, and then she agreed. "But I may not be as strong as before."
"We'll have to conduct a test to know." The captain said, "Don't even think about hiding your abilities. You can be discovered during the test. If you hide your abilities and don't use your full strength, it's also a crime."
"…" Rosalie didn't say anything and simply left with them. But when she left, she poked at the helmet.
And so, the mechanical octopus's communicator also received a signal.
The content of the signal was … the previous map of this place?
So that's what it was. It has indeed changed a lot.
After looking at the map, Lin found that the original Void City didn't have a large square like this. It was basically made up of a large number of rooms, restaurants, and storerooms.
The largest of these rooms was only a bit over 10 meters in length and width, but they were actually quite close in size. Most of the rooms were connected by a passage that was only 2 meters wide. It felt like a small, enclosed environment.
And this place, Lin felt like it had been built up to be as lively as a city. The only difference was that it lacked the 'emotions' typical of living creatures.
Right now, Lin wanted to take a look at the leader's place. She wasn't sure if a 'foreign creature' like the mechanical octopus would be able to go there. Regardless, she wanted to run around and see where she could go.
According to the map, the leader's room was at the center of Void City. Although this place had changed a lot, she could still calculate it based on this map. Since Atlan knew how to modify Void City, the leader's room should be …
Lin looked into the distance. Under the wall in the corner of the square, there was an entrance to a passage. In fact, there were many passages under the walls of the square, and many Atlan went in and out.
However, there were no Atlan going in or out of that passage. Only an Atlan who looked like a guard was standing there. So, Lin walked towards that passage.
"What is this place? Can I go in? "
Lin asked the guard Atlan. The guard then replied, "This passage leads to the old district. There are no rules prohibiting foreign creatures from entering. You may enter."
"Old district?" Lin asked in confusion, "What kind of place is this?"
"Trying to get a more detailed reply? Please pay the fee, "the guard said." 10 Void Coins and I will explain the situation here to you. "
"…" The mechanical octopus raised its tentacle and placed 10 Void Coins on its hand.
Void Coins were the currency used in this place. They were made from a type of metal. Lin had obtained these coins when she was moving through Atlan's group. Because moving in a place like this, it was better to have some coins.
"This passage leads to an area that has not been modified yet," Atlan said. "There are residences and other spaces left behind from the old days here."
"If you want to know more, please pay the fee."
"…" Lin did not pay the fee. Instead, she walked straight in.
After the mechanical octopus entered the passage, Lin noticed that this place was indeed very old. The walls of the passage had not been maintained for a long time.
Furthermore, the passage was very wide. It was the same as what Lin saw on the map. It seemed that this was the living space of Rosalie before she left.
At this time, Lin walked past a room. The door of this room was wide open, and there were scattered furniture inside. After taking a closer look, this place was very similar to Rosalie's room, both in terms of size and furniture. The only difference was that there were no … small statues here.
However, there was a sign on the ground, which read: 'Taking any item here is illegal.'
Lin did not care about the sign. Instead, she walked straight in. After looking around, Lin found the remote control for the video screen.
She picked up the remote control and turned on the screen. What she saw was darkness.
Normally, this kind of video screen was used for entertainment. The Atlan here did not have their usual emotions, so there was no need for entertainment.
However, they were still pursuing many things, such as more resources, higher status, and so on. Lin had already noticed this while listening to the conversations of the Atlan here.
It could be said that they were pursuing only one thing now, and that was … to become stronger.
The main thing was to become stronger than their peers around them.
Therefore, they would not do 'unnecessary' things like watching movies. Instead, they were moving all day long. But in that case, what was the meaning of this video screen?
Lin could also click on a screen showing a gravitational sphere. This image was indeed very special. Perhaps it was related to the Atlan's current state?
With that in mind, Lin clicked on another screen.
This was …
When Lin clicked on the next screen, it was not darkness. Instead, it was a constantly flashing white light. After flashing for about ten seconds, it disappeared.
Bam! At that moment, the door of the room closed automatically, and an Atlan's face appeared on the screen.
"I don't care who you are. If you see this, it means that you are not with those lunatics … So, let me introduce myself here. I am the leader of this place. If no one is watching, just treat it as if I'm talking to myself."
It was the leader? Lin looked at the Atlan's face, which was very … 'haggard'. It seemed like it had not been resting or eating well.
"Those lunatics outside … They have completely lost their emotions. This is mainly caused by me."
"This was a long time ago. I remember that at first, it was a mutant creature … that came to us."
"At that time, we were still normal. We all had emotions. Once, a scavenger team brought back a creature. This creature was very small, but it understood our language and could communicate with us."
"It told us that their population lived nearby. Although I was very skeptical at the time, it said that it had a lot of very useful resources and could trade with us. Because … at that time, we were indeed lacking resources, so we traded with them."
"After the initial trade, we obtained many things. Moreover, they asked for things that we did not need. Therefore, we quickly formed a deeper relationship and often met and traded with them."
"But later, we discovered that this group of creatures had some … evil intentions. They had always been in contact with us to understand us and control our thoughts!"
"They had a special way to control us, and we were unable to resist at all …"
PS: Thank you ~ Stone Bamboo ~ for the tip ~
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