Human beings, human civilization, and the land on which human beings lived, went round and round, rising and falling. No matter how outstanding the people were, how great their achievements were, how prosperous the world was, they would all be forgotten by time.
There were no monuments that could stand forever, because they would all be pushed down eventually.
There were no stories that could be eulogized forever, because people would continue to write new great chapters.
"Old Earth", or "First Earth", was such a place that was gradually being forgotten by people …
One day in the 22nd century, on a peaceful night, astronomers were surprised to find a new bright spot in the sky through the clear lenses of the United States' Mount Xiao Er and the Arecibo telescopes in Puerto Rico. It was clearly visible in the area near Pluto. Observatories in Russia and Sweden quickly confirmed this discovery and speculated that this small meteor of unknown mass and origin was hurtling in the direction of the solar system.
Some newspapers and periodicals reported on this new star in a small section, while the news agencies only mentioned it briefly. It seemed that for most people, news about astronomy was far less attractive than some gossip and entertainment stories.
A few days later, astronomers observed the star field with a mixture of nervousness and curiosity, speculating about what was going to happen there. It turned out that … the size and brightness of the meteor was increasing at an astonishing rate. Now, it could be clearly captured with ordinary photographic plates. The closer it was to Pluto, the more uneasy astronomers became. Even in the 22nd century, a celestial collision so close to human beings was still unimaginable. However, at that time, the absolute distance between the two celestial bodies was still very far.
When the unimaginable quickly became possible, the media from all over the world began to pay attention to the incident that was unfolding in the sky. Some students even created related celestial movement charts. All the evidence showed that people could only watch helplessly as the meteor rushed towards Pluto.
Not long after, the entire world was reporting on this incident. Because the expected collision did not happen, it turned out that when the meteor passed by Pluto, it dragged the entire dwarf planet into its blazing mass …
The two celestial bodies merged into a huge, dazzling white sphere that people on Earth could see with the naked eye.
Thus, in addition to the sun and the moon, there was a new celestial body. As the earth rotated, it regularly appeared in people's sight. Every night, people would watch the rise and fall of the sphere, and people gradually realized that every time the sphere rose, it would become even bigger …
People began to be suspicious and fearful. They raised questions such as, "Why did the meteor come here when the universe is so big?" It was foolish to ask such a question. It was like asking why one was born out of billions of one's own kind.
Scientists explained some of the astrophysics related knowledge to the public on the news program and announced some of the research results. The overwhelming reports were all telling the same thing: this uninvited guest who had invaded the solar system must be moving in the direction of the sun. Only the gravitational force between the planets could cause the celestial body to deviate from its destructive orbit, but in any case, the end of Earth had arrived.
However, what happened next was completely unexpected.
For example, Earth was sentenced to death, but the death sentence was delayed.
After this fireball swallowed Pluto, its movement speed became very slow. It stopped at a relatively safe distance, like the twin brother of the sun, burning the world. The cold winter disappeared, and the coldest season in the world was like early summer.
When the first dawn ended, the second dawn lit up the sky. It was so dazzling, so hot, and the hellish heat wave burned the world like a hurricane. No one knew how long these days would last, but the melting speed of the polar ice caps reminded people that Earth was no longer a place to stay.
Optimists, skeptics, desperate people, and crazy people. People had different reactions, and Earth fell into unprecedented chaos. The end of the world finally appeared in front of people in a tangible form. It was no longer an "environmental problem", "alien invasion", or "deadly virus" that existed in movies or hypotheses that people often talked about. Instead, it appeared in the sky. Every day, it was telling the world that the end was in sight.
Who would have thought that the "reprieve" this time would unite the human race? In the next ten years, the development of human technology even exceeded the previous two hundred years.
All mankind finally abandoned the differences of skin color, race, nationality, religion, and so on. For the common goal of the continuation of the race, everyone did their best and unreservedly shared the best science and technology, scientists, resources, and everything.
Finally, twenty years later, mankind took the first step of interstellar colonization. The first "Ark-class" starship flew out of the atmosphere, carrying a population of one million. Then, the second, the third …
Later, the slim chance of escaping from Earth … finally made people reveal their true nature. A war broke out on Earth, and it ended with the death of most humans and the destruction of 93% of the man-made facilities on Earth.
Twenty-seven years later, the "end of the world" ended like a joke. Of course, no one laughed.
The meteor turned ninety degrees, accelerated again, and left the solar system. No one knew why. Maybe it was not a meteor at all, but an alien spaceship. Maybe it was a special life form, or maybe it was a test from an unknown god.
In short, when people had the ability to escape from Earth, the threat of Earth's destruction no longer existed. The most ironic thing was that this planet had been destroyed by mankind's own nuclear war and was no longer suitable for survival.
Fortunately, mankind had mastered the key warp technology, and long-distance interstellar travel was no longer a fantasy. Therefore, the survivors on the Ark found a new home in the Milky Way. It was an uninhabited planet that was very similar to the old Earth, a virgin land that had yet to be stepped on by intelligent life – "New Earth", or "Second Earth".
In the year 2386, a new technology was successfully developed. It was called "Ant". It was an extremely small nano-level robot that could be used to repair the cell tissues of living creatures.
At first, "Ant" was used to reconstruct the body of the amputated or to treat patients with spinal injuries. Even patients who had been paralyzed for a long time with severe muscle atrophy could be restored to the state of a normal person.
Later, when "Ant" revived a climber who had frozen to death on a snowy mountain for several years, this technology attracted attention and people turned their attention back to the first Earth …
Starting from the year 2401, a small number of human "ancestors" that were found on the old Earth were revived. The truth of history, the lost civilization, and many questions were answered.
This became a wave that flourished for more than half a century, and it still didn't stop …
One day in the year 2455, a level four twin-body transport ship called Grendel arrived on the old Earth. The research team on the ship found two frozen living creatures in the Crystal Lake lab and brought them back to the spaceship. One of them was the female researcher, Rowan, and the other was Jason Voorhees, an immortal killer.
They did not know that the Grendel spaceship was not the only one that visited the Crystal Lake lab that day. There was also another team that had an ulterior motive and had followed the research team to this place. After the research team left, the group of people entered the lab …
…
"Who would have thought … we'd run into a strong enemy," Final Assault said.
"Blade Runner, one of the Laughing Blade, is indeed a troublesome opponent …" Doomsday Assault added.
The two from Zombie Blade both had a buzz cut. Their faces were pale, and their expressions were numb. Their voices were not loud, and their tone was even. They were wearing green and black outfits. The style was similar to the uniforms from Star Trek, but the color was different. On the left chest of the uniform was the badge of Zombie Blade. The design was a finely carved scimitar, and the words were naturally Zombie Blade in black.
"Is that Feng Bujue also an expert from Jiang Hu? How come I've not heard of him before?" Doomsday Assault asked. "Don't you think it's weird to run into such a combination?"
"It is indeed weird … Based on the rules of this game, the difference in power between the two teams shouldn't be that big," Final Assault replied. He paused before continuing. "I have to admit, even though Blade Runner is two levels lower than us, he is not weaker than the two of us. But that Feng Bujue is only level sixteen … "
"In other words … the system believes that the combined power of these two is about the same as two level nineteen players like us?" Doomsday Assault asked.
"Humph … Something must have gone wrong. Could it be that this Feng Bujue is an expert at the same level as Blade Runner?" Final Assault said. "If that is the case, the only explanation is … he is actually a celebrity professional player who has used a new IGN in Thriller Paradise."
"You have a point," Doomsday Assault said. Doomsday Assault continued. "It must be an expert who joined Jiang Hu from another studio and changed his in-game ID to partner up with Flashes of Sword. That would explain … why we would run into two players who are lower level than us in a 2v2. "
"Isn't that a good thing?" Final Assault said. "It is rare for us to run into opponents who are lower level than us in a Killing Game, so our chance of winning should be higher."
"Hmm …" Doomsday Assault nodded. "But even if we know we will win, we cannot be too careless. Look, our Life Points are slowly dropping. This means that there is a time limit to this scenario. If the opponent uses a stalling tactic to avoid a direct confrontation with us, then this battle will become a war of attrition between Life Points Recovery Potions and Healing Points. The Life Points in this game do not have a numerical value but are expressed in percentage. If this turns into a game of hide-and-seek, we will have no advantage at all. "
"I think so too. We'd better finish this as soon as possible," Final Assault replied. "We have the advantage in level, and we have the aid of 'that potion' … If we still lose, it will be too embarrassing."
…
On the other side, Feng Bujue led the way with the steel sword, and Blade Runner followed behind him. They moved quickly and quietly down the corridor.
Feng Bujue turned Casey Jones's Mask into a display mode. Even though it was not a gas mask, wearing it would reduce the discomfort of breathing in harmful air.
"A war of attrition is a method that is more advantageous to us," Feng Bujue said as they walked. Since the mask was on, his voice was muffled.
"What kind of attrition method?" Flashes of Sword asked. "Are you referring to using ranged weapons or traps to deal with them?"
"No, as long as we don't run into the enemy, it will be a form of attrition," Feng Bujue replied.
Blade Runner thought about it and understood what he meant. "You mean … we should make use of the indiscriminate reduction effect here?"
"Yes." Feng Bujue replied. "Their level is higher than ours, so theoretically, they should have more Life Points." He coughed again. "But the loss of Life Points caused by the environment is based on percentage. You and I have checked that earlier."
They had just discussed the situation of their Life Points a few minutes ago. They were one level apart, and their current Life Points were both at ninety-five percent. Even the timing of the drop was almost the same, down to the second. This meant that the loss of Life Points had nothing to do with their level. As long as they breathed in the air, their Life Points would drop by percentage after a fixed period of time.
"Ha …" Blade Runner laughed. "Brother Feng, do you mind if I ask, how many Life Points Recovery Potions do you have?"
"I have four (medium) bottles," Feng Bujue replied.
"Let's not talk about how many they have," Blade Runner said. "Even I have more than you." He shook his head. "Furthermore, what if one of them is a medic or a medic? Then wouldn't this' war of attrition 'be exactly what they want?"
"I said to start the war of attrition, but I didn't say it would end with attrition." Feng Bujue said. "What I mean is, for this game, it is best not to drag it into a fast paced pace."
"You think we will lose if we fight them head-on?" Flashes of Sword asked. Actually, the tone of his question made it clear that he did not think that was the case.
"Not necessarily." Feng Bujue said. "But since you have me as your teammate, you should know that with our team, the overall advantage of our strength is far greater than the advantage of fighting them in close quarters." He turned his head slightly to look over his shoulder and said to Blade Runner, "The use of strategy is also part of one's strength." He paused for a moment and looked ahead again. "If you just want to go head-to-head with your opponent, then you might as well find a pure martial arts player and team up with me."
Blade Runner said, "Okay, then …"
Roar!
Before he could finish, he was interrupted by a strange growl. Feng Bujue stopped moving at the right time.
The two of them had a tacit understanding of each other. They kept their mouths shut and very consciously split up to face two different directions to be on alert. They listened with bated breath, waiting for the growl to come again to determine its location.
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