High Above

"What's wrong, Ian? Why did you suddenly attack?"

Sensing Ian's movements, Hua An took the lead and flew out of the store.

She didn't sense any enemies around her, so she was confused about Ian's abrupt attack, but she was still ready to fight.

After all, Ian's observation ability is indeed so strong that it is difficult for her to measure it. What if there is really an enemy sneaking closer?

"There are surveillance cameras there."

Ian raised his hand and pointed to the area he had just attacked: "Someone is constantly monitoring us."

Hua An took a serious look and nodded clearly: "Sure enough, there is a bird's nest hidden under the eaves. I discovered it after you broke it."

"It seems that the bird inside may also be an alchemical creature, a creature specially used for surveillance."

Ian thought so too, and he added: Just because of the mutation, all the birds are dead now, and only the nests in fixed locations can be monitored. "

But now was not the time to talk about this. He continued to lower his head and look at the 'brain-attached corpse' he was making in his hands.

Frost Butterfly flew over curiously, followed by Hua An, and the two fairies stared curiously at the bug in Ian's hand.

"Huh."

Unlike Shuangdie, who just felt a little familiar, Hua An and Mo Feng had read the "Notes on the Great Labyrinth of the South China Sea" written by Ian.

She could tell immediately that the little bug in the boy's hand was the 'brain-eating bug' that he had described emphatically many times.

Of course, as a scholar, she could also see that the brain-eating worm in Ian's hand was not as ferocious as described in his experience record, let alone turned into a giant tapeworm that could eat human brains - this thing now only has the fingernail of a person's little finger When it grows into an adult, it is at most the size of a human palm. It is a real 'brain attached'.

"This is the possessed brain, as I said, the biological auxiliary tool of the Sequoia Aboriginal ancestors, an artificially improved form of the brain-eating worm."

Ian was still thinking, and the Bird of Light suddenly appeared.

Mikael also observed the little bug carefully, and then nodded slightly: [So that's it, with the help of biotechnology and psychic transformation... This kind of brain possession, I remember that in Master Gosei's report, there is' The Psionic Network's, right? 】

[No wonder Grand Thorin would like it]

"Yes."

Ian agreed, but in fact, he was thinking about something quite rude.

——This person is really everywhere... Why don't you tell me when to leave?

Ian naturally knew that with Mikael by his side, at least he and the goblins would not have to worry about their safety.

But according to Ian's careful observation along the way, most of the creatures that can be considered threats in the entire Avak Territory have already appeared on the surface, and those threats that have not yet appeared will definitely belong to Mikael in the future. opponent.

Not to mention, the other party is obviously about to leave himself and others to confront the powerful people behind this incident.

——In other words, judging from the known information, this old guy Mikael is actually useless!

In fact, because of Mikael's almost ubiquitous bird of light, Ian was often restrained and unable to exert his full strength.

"But it's not a big problem." Ian thought: "When the time comes, Mikael will definitely have to fight against the fourth-level powerhouses behind other forces, and it is basically impossible to have any spare energy to continue to pay attention to me."

“And that’s when I acted.”

Ian believes that this moment is not far away.

Then again.

"Andor...should be alive now, right?"

Ian still remembers the elf pirate captain, who was also the first person to be traced back by the 'Retrospective Horizon'.

He is a very cooperative elf who is good at answering questions and staying alive. Although he was once an enemy of Ian and Isengard, he is a hired pirate after all, so there is no need to delve into this aspect.

Not to mention, the other party also helped Shark. Seeing this, Ian had no intention of killing him.

But later, Andor was brought back to the imperial capital by Ethan as a tainted witness that Patrick conspired with the pirates to murder him... Since then, Ian has not known his whereabouts.

"Ask Ethan then. After all, no one knows more about the shipping lanes of Canaan Moore than this group of elf pirates."

From Ruixi's body, Ian got enough clues and memories.

The story of Miles Reese, mother and son, and Aunt Lydia's family is just one of the countless tragic stories in the Azure City.

The reason why their tragic experiences are known to Ian is not because they are ordinary, but because 'Miles' is extraordinary.

Miles awakened his psychic powers and survived to leave the Azure City, so Ian was given the opportunity to "retrospect the horizon" to discover the details behind all this.

--but.

What about those people who can't even be seen by Ian's retrospective vision?

What about those people who never appear in the story, but become corpses on the street, rotting in blood just because of an unbearable day?

Ian never worries about what he cannot see, and he never tortures himself because of the pain of others. He does not think that he is the savior and helps others as a matter of course.

But Ian can't avoid his abilities.

Many times, a prophet can see.

And a prophet can change.

In this case, maybe it should be changed.

Only in this way can he change the future he sees.

"Hua An."

On the way back to the camp, Ian suddenly spoke and asked Miss Elf a question: "In the world of Terra... are there any legends about hell or Hades?"

The word Ian said does not actually exist in the common language of Terra, but is a "created word" that is a combination of the two phrases "land of the afterlife" and "land of the dead".

"Isn't that the virtual realm?"

But Hua An thought about it and understood what Ian meant: "Ah, I know, Ian, you feel sad too, right? Yes, so many people have died. If it were me, I would definitely want to let him go. They can all survive in another world - the Ten Thousand Spirits Hall and the Suming Religion also said so, and this is exactly their goal."

After saying this, the goblin shook his head regretfully: "But in fact, the virtual realm is not that powerful. Not to mention that only the second level has a 'soul' and can enter the virtual realm. Most people do not meet the conditions. .”

"Even if you enter the virtual realm, if you are not a goblin or a human like you, Ian, who does not need the 'body' as an anchor, you will be gradually consumed by the virtual realm until it disappears."

"Forty-five energy levels, because the soul is too powerful and the energy environment required is too harsh, it is difficult to preserve it completely. Even if the psychic core can be preserved, the memory will definitely be lost - there are Some of the Chosen Ones have inherited those pure psychic cores, so they are born with psychic powers."

Goblins' research on spiritual energy and souls is like humans' research on their own bodies and medicine, which is very profound and methodical.

On the way, Hua An patiently taught Ian relevant knowledge, and also wanted to comfort some young people who did not seem to be in good condition: "This is an eternal and difficult problem. The soul does not exist independently, but requires the mind and It is a part of the whole 'human' that is maintained by the body. Even fairies, in their pure spiritual form, can only exist in Fairy Country and the Void Realm. If we want to stay in the material world for a long time, we must have a body. "

"But time and virtual reality will also gradually assimilate us, making the fairies' minds become duller and duller, and even become dull and corrupt, and finally return to the natural cycle... That's why there is a fairy reincarnation system."

"But human beings... are material-based creatures after all. Their souls are born in the body and are also imprisoned in the body. If it were to come out of the body independently, the extra energy needed to exist for a long time would be very huge."

"On the continent of Terra, even in the virtual realm, there is no such high-energy area. After all, after the disaster of Skyfall, the virtual realm has become turbulent and terrifying, and can no longer be used as a refuge for souls."

"So even a strong person at the fifth energy level, if he does not have the life extension material at the fifth energy level, will not be able to exist as a soul alone and maintain his 'memory and sanity' for too long after the body collapses."

"...Thank you, Miss Hua An." After hearing this, Ian was silent for a while. Although Hua An misunderstood what he meant, the various information mentioned later were also very important.

At this moment, because of what he saw along the way and the many psychic technologies he saw along the way, Ian had a strange conjecture in his mind.

But this conjecture is too incredible, and there are still many key puzzle pieces that have not been put together, so he is just a guess.

——Is it possible... just possible.

Whether it is an artificial soul, a brain-possessed core, or an army of phantoms...these technologies combine the forces of the Academy of Spiritual Knowledge, the Land of Flying Flames, and Archduke Thorin. Their ultimate goal...will not simply destroy people' kill'.

Rather, should we regard ‘death’ as a ‘beginning’?

This was a rather incredible conjecture, but as Hua An said, there is no high-energy area on the continent of Terra where souls can exist stably, so Ian did not continue to think about it.

He just kept this possibility in his mind and returned to the camp with the goblin ladies.

Ian brought back the enemy's location and obtained the key to the Archduke's technology.

Therefore, after a brief preparation, the patrol knight team set off.

March towards the underground waterway in the north of Azure City.