Endless Debt

"Brogo, you look a little nervous."

"If it were you lying here, you would be as nervous as me."

"Huh? I do this all the time, haha, relax, don't tense your muscles, stretch them out."

"..."

"I said relax."

"I try my best."

The light hit his face, occupying almost all of Boluogo's field of vision. Several familiar faces wandered around the edge of his field of vision, but due to the existence of the light, their faces turned into dark silhouettes, making it difficult to see clearly.

"It's just a promotion ceremony, don't be afraid."

Concerned voices sounded from the side, and she picked up the gauze with tweezers, professionally like a surgeon, and wiped the sweat from Boluogo's forehead.

"Just? Just a promotion ceremony?" Boluogo tried to look at the other party, but his head was already fixed and his vision was limited. "Are you serious? Aimu."

Bologg's voice gradually became louder, and the only response to him was bursts of laughter from Aimu. Bologg still tried to move his body, but now his whole body was completely fixed, like a little boy on the operating table. White rats can only be slaughtered by others.

After a few days of rest, the promotion ceremony for the power bearer still arrived, but the ceremony had not yet completely started. Boluogo had become a little flustered under Amu's bursts of laughter.

Boluogo's promotion was just incidental. The real purpose this time was to explore the unknown ether world and find the secret of the rising ether concentration and the secret source.

"This is a scientific expedition."

Mamo explained it this way.

There was a tinkling sound in the surrounding darkness, and as the perspective climbed upward, one could see that a huge metal structure completely covered Boluogo. It was like an interlaced ribbed cage, completely wrapping the entire site, densely packed. The cables were exposed directly to the ground without any cover, like thick blood vessels extending from the internal organs.

In order to save time, the alchemists only briefly set up the ceremony site. Everywhere was filled with an angular industrial style. It was about to start, and Boluogo could still hear the noise of angle grinders, and it was dim. There were more sparks in it.

Compared with the previous two extremely rigorous ceremonies, Boluogo always felt that his seemingly important promotion ceremony this time was more like an impromptu and improvised ceremony.

Now Boluogo is seriously lacking a sense of security.

"Check the power!"

"Watch the aether concentration."

Bailey's voice sounded on the radio, directing others to conduct pre-ceremony tests.

"Take it easy."

Aimu brought a holder filled with medicine bottles, picked up cotton and wiped Boluogo's wrist, and buried the needle into his blood vessel. Boluogo's chest was covered with detection electrodes. He felt like a patient. A critically ill patient.

"From the design blueprint to the construction and erection, our time is very tight, and we can only pile up such things."

Aimu raised his head as he spoke, and there was a strange-looking helmet hanging directly above Bologg. It was completely made of pitch-black metal, with protruding iron pillars extending from the surface. Bologg guessed that this should be Some kind of skull locking device.

"Do you like those flowers?"

Boluogo tried to find something to talk about to share the mental pressure at the moment.

"Not bad," Aimu said, "quite surprising."

Boluogo didn't say much, he entrusted Afia to choose it for him.

"Afia helped you choose it, right?"

As soon as the idea emerged, Aimu caught it, and Boluogo asked, "Who told you?"

"Guess." Aimu turned the handle and the angle of the operating table began to shrink. "You don't seem to be someone who knows how to choose flowers. These colorful things are all the same in your eyes."

"Okay, you guessed it."

Boluogo couldn't deny this. He didn't understand flowers or the so-called language of flowers. His only contact with flowers was the burning sea of ​​fire.

Later, Boluogo realized that the flower language of daisies was the love hidden in his heart.

Boluogo sometimes wonders whether he should go back to Daisy Castle to take a look. It has become the property of the Bureau of Order and is completely enclosed. It is like a museum that records time.

"It's amazing."

Every time he thought about this, Boluoge felt an indescribable feeling in his heart.

Afia taught Boluogo a lot about flowers, but because the knowledge was not important, and Boluogo wanted to relax his mind, he didn't remember much in the end, but at least he had a rough understanding.

"It's not bad," Aimu repeated again, "It's not bad, Boluogo."

"Just think of it as an apology gift." Boluogo still remembered that he had forgotten Amu.

Aimu wasn't going to let Boluogo go yet, "Then this gift is not enough."

Borrogo asked, "What do you want?"

"Hmm... I haven't thought about it yet."

"I didn't think about it. This wish sounds really grand," Boluogo murmured. "I feel like you can say whatever you want."

"Then you want to reject me?"

Aimu must be laughing. Although he couldn't see her face clearly, Boluogo could hear the familiar laughter. In this cold and depressing environment, this was a rare comfort.

"No," said Borogo. "I'm a man of my word."

"Okay."

As Aimu spoke, he placed more equipment on Boluogo's body. His lower body seemed to be swallowed by a steel monster. The brackets tightly bound his legs. As the machine pressed down, Boluogo's lower body seemed to be swallowed by a steel monster. Luo Ge felt a stinging pain as several needles pierced under his skin.

Boluogo began to feel grateful that he was an immortal and his psychological pressure was not so great. He felt that anyone else would have howled at this moment.

It was more like a cult execution scene than a promotion ceremony.

Not far away, you can vaguely see a team of doctors who are ready. Bottles of transparent containers are storing liquid that emits silver light. A large number of Mang Yin souls gather here to deal with possible variables.

Boluogo mentioned before that he didn't think he needed a rescue team... rescuing an undead no longer sounded like a waste of medical resources, but some kind of black joke.

The doctors also believed that rescuing the undead was meaningless, but they could prevent Bologo from being lost in the ethereal world to a certain extent, so they still stood firm and were ready.

Being lost is an ending more terrifying than death. Boluogo will not be able to sleep and will become a living corpse.

Others are worried about this, but Bologg himself doesn't care very much. He knows that if he encounters an irresistible crisis, the heavy, rusty anchor will appear again and drag Bologg back. Earthly.

He is the agent of the astronaut in this world, the chosen one who carries his will. The astronaut is weaving a grand conspiracy. He is the most important executor. Before Boluogo completely loses his value, the astronaut will not They would give up on him, as if they were threatening each other.

Bologo was looking forward to that scene. He had so many things to ask the astronaut.

"Say it, Aimu."

Boluogo called out to the hazy figure. The ceremony had not yet begun, but the ether concentration here had increased significantly. A faint golden mist surrounded Boluogo, and the air became humid and full of water vapor. Golden dewdrops condensed on the surface of the metal, and countless gold powder seemed to be floating inside.

"What's wrong?"

Aimu was making final inspections of the ceremony stage, not neglecting anything.

"Do you have time after this?" Boluogo said, "I remember that "Night Hunters" will be re-screened today. If I hurry up, maybe we can catch up."

Aimu shook his head and said, "Make sure you stay awake after it's over."

"I hope so."

Boluogo took a deep breath, his chest rose and fell slightly, footsteps were approaching, and a vague figure gradually appeared. Mamo came to Boluogo's side, and his old palms touched Boluogo's arm, and the dry skin rubbed against it. , as if a piece of dead tree bark had rubbed against Boluogo's body.

Mamo asked, "Do you remember what I said?"

"certainly."

Boluogo followed his memories and said, "My 'body' will stay here, and my 'heart' and 'spirit' will leap to the etheric realm and face the existence of the secret source."

"You must ensure the integrity of heart and soul. We are a trinity. Without any one of them, the integrity of our lives will no longer exist."

Losing the "body" means the destruction of the physical body, the annihilation of the "heart" means the death of self-consciousness, and the departure of the "spiritual" represents the loss of the soul.

Mamo continued, "Based on your last promotion experience as a believer, we have such an inference, an inference about being lost."

"Tell me."

"Perhaps those who were lost were summoned by the light of the secret source in the process of going deep into the etheric realm and touching the secret source. Their spirits are still intact, but their hearts remain there forever, and they have been unable to wake up since."

Mamo continued, "Like phototaxis."

"Demons, debtors... all people who have lost their souls, or lack souls, will have a desire for the soul and drive them forward, and we, the Sublime Ones, also seem to have a similar tendency to light."

Boluogo murmured, "What we long for is the secret source."

"It's like a fairy tale."

"The devils take our souls, and the gods try to save us," Mamo said.

Borrogo asked, "Do you think the source is like a god confronting the devil?"

"I don't know, I'm not even sure if there is a god in this world."

Mamo's voice paused, and he said to Boluogo again, "Have I mentioned it to you before? I was a believer and a pastor when I was young."

"Then what?"

Boluogo asked. The old man in front of him was from the same era as the first-generation director. In order to continue to promote the advancement of alchemy matrix technology, he did not step into the crowd in his twilight years, but continued his life with difficulty until The moment death comes.

"At that time, I naively thought that gods were real. This idea became even stronger after I saw the devil."

Mamo's voice was hoarse. He pulled off the weird helmet hanging above Bolog's head, twisted the bolts on it, and made final adjustments.

"Yes, just like what is said in the book, the abominable demons are real and the crazy demons are real, so the so-called gods must be somewhere in the world, watching over humans.

I became more and more devout, and by chance, I became a Sublime One, embarked on the path to transcendence, and in the following days, I got to know the original group of people from the Bureau of Order. "

Mamo's eyes were full of nostalgia. Most of his friends were dead, and these past events had become memories that belonged to him alone.

"I have experienced many things and witnessed a lot of pain. I have been looking forward to the arrival of gods, but as time goes by, I see more and more devils, but I can never find a trace of the so-called gods. .”

Mamo was silent for a moment, and then he connected the cable to the helmet, "One day, I suddenly thought that there might be no so-called gods at all."

"Right, Boluogo, no one has stipulated this matter. Who said that the existence of the devil must also exist the existence of gods?

Maybe gods are just the comfort we imagine and give ourselves when we face the terror of the devil? "

Mamo spoke firmly.

"There are no gods in this world, and there will be no gods. As for the so-called secret source, it is just an unsolved mystery. When we peel off its mysterious veil and turn the unknown into the known, it is like the ether It’s the same, it’s just a certain supernatural phenomenon, like an alchemical matrix, that will become a technology for us to control.”

Mamo did not dwell on the past for too long. He warned Boluogo again.

"The power bearer is a watershed. It represents that we will embark on the path of transcendence in the true sense. Our 'body' will become etheric after this. In the subsequent promotion, our 'heart' and 'spirit' will 'is also like this.

You will be affected by the secret source during promotion and have more in-depth contact with the secret source, but you have to know that the closer we are to the secret source, while we gain strength, we will also face greater dangers. "

Mamo continued, "According to the records after promotion, when every believer was promoted to the Power Bearer, they claimed that they experienced some strange vision, but everyone's memory of this dream-like experience was unclear. Incomplete, and as time goes by, this memory will become thinner and thinner until it disappears completely.

More importantly, this weird dream will be directly related to whether you can be successfully promoted. "

"Are there any clear indicators?"

"No, no one can be sure what they will go through, and no one knows what to do to complete the promotion."

"It sounds really mysterious..."

"Yes," Mamo nodded, "It's like a weird black box technology. We only know that it can be promoted to a person with power. As for the principle, we don't know the details."

"Could it be the secret source?" Bologo said, "The alchemy matrix technology comes from the secret source. Maybe it is the secret source that drives our promotion.

It's like an automated factory. When believers come near it, it will automatically process us into persons with authority. "

Boluogo tried to look at the secret source from a rational perspective and directly compared it with industry. The more he talked, the more excited he became, as if he had found some kind of opportunity.

"From this point of view, the difficulty of debtor promotion is also obvious. We must eliminate those defective products with incomplete souls."

Mamo thought along Boluogo's train of thought, and he came up with another possibility, "Maybe it is rejecting the Sublime Ones related to the devil?"

This time, Boluogo fell silent, and Mamo also remained silent. Both of them were caught up in a brainstorm, until Bailey walked slowly towards here.

"Everyone, the preparations are complete. The first exploration of the etheric realm can begin at any time."

Bailey stopped acting. She didn't see this as a promotion ceremony for Boluogo.

"We can talk about these things later."

Mamo's sunken eyes looked at Boluogo. He liked Boluogo. Boluogo seemed to be a boring and silent guy, but after getting to know him deeply, you will find that he has many wonderful ideas. think.

Bologg nodded in response, looking upward. Aimu took the helmet and put it firmly on Bologg's head. Electricity passed through, and Bologg felt an inexplicable numbness. Then he heard the faint sound of a motor working.

The sharp thorns like steel needles were dented, pressing against Boluogo's head from all directions, fixing the skull. Bailey called out the ether, and the ether concentration further increased. In the next second, countless substantial, golden mist covered Boluogo's head. Logo was completely wrapped up.

Boluogo heard the sound of gurgling water, and in the high-concentration ether environment, the mapping of the alchemical matrix on his body also emerged.

The cumbersome light track is no longer limited to Boluogo's hands. After being promoted to a Prayer, it has spread to Boluogo's chest, covering most of his body. After being promoted to a Power Bearer, it will be completely covered. Boluogo's body caused the physical body to enter the process of etherification.

In the subsequent promotion of the Power Bearer, the alchemy matrix will deeply transform Bologo's heart and soul, which correspond to the two ranks of Basekeeper and Glorifier respectively.

As for the final outcome of the trinity after the body, mind, and spirit are all sublimated, no one knows. After all, it symbolizes the mysterious and supreme level.

The crowned one.

In the past, this level only existed in the imagination of alchemists, but as the concentration of ether continued to rise, the untouchable crowned person also changed from illusion to reality.

Boluogo believes that as long as some time passes, perhaps ten or a hundred years, when the ether concentration reaches a critical value, this level of nothingness will also come to the world.

It’s hard to imagine what kind of world that would be.

One etheric reaction rose up one after another, and the eyes of Bailie and Aimu were filled with brilliant light, but then another even more dazzling light rose up, completely covering up the two people's etheric reactions.

Without any instructions or announcements, Mamo started the machine directly and began this exploration of the etheric realm.

The indicator lights lit up one after another, and arcs jumped between the cables. After a burst of piercing noise, the machine above was overloaded and fired out a lot of sparks. The disturbing alarm sound echoed continuously, as if it was about to tear Boluogo's eardrums. , screaming at him.

Huge pressure was exerted on Boluogo's head, and he felt that his head was about to be squeezed. Many golden water droplets moved towards Boluogo, and they poured into Boluogo's mouth and nose, but did not bring them with him. To feel suffocated.

The golden, substantial ether completely blocked Bologg. He seemed to be sealed in golden amber. His consciousness began to blur and dissipate. Bologg sank towards another dimension, and soon his consciousness bottomed out. Then, condensed again.

The blazing white and noisy world comes into view.