Embers Ad Infinitum

Chapter 817 Belief

Under the slightly dark sky, green buildings crept along the cracked path into the distance like silent tombstones in a dead cemetery.

Shang Jianyao and Genava–who were wearing a military exoskeleton and the Chameleon bionic artificial intelligence armor respectively-walked alongside each other while distanced apart. There was only the sound of the wind.

Shang Jianyao turned his head and looked around through the helmet visor. He excitedly said, “Dark sky, abandoned buildings, empty roads, a human and a robot walking into the unknown together… This does remind me of doomsday scenes in the Old World entertainment shows…”

After two days of traveling, the Old Task Force arrived at Ceningmis. They then sent Shang Jianyao—who was carrying the Life Angel necklace—and Genava into the area according to the plan to carry out advanced reconnaissance. They hoped to figure out the root cause of the Heartless virus here.

Genava–who appeared in the form of a large Chameleon—said, “We’re missing a dog.”

“That’s true. Without a dog, a lonesome man and robot still feels a little lacking. It feels like a wasteland.” Shang Jianyao admitted his mistake. He then fell into deep thought. “But we won’t be able to find a dog for the time being…”

After 20 to 30 seconds, Shang Jianyao barked, “Woof, woof, woof!”

“We’ve got them all now!” he said in satisfaction.

Genava had long established Shang Jianyao’s behavior database and had some predictions regarding this development. He was more confused about another question. “Why did you decide to play the dog after so long? I thought you didn’t care about so-called face in such relationships at all and could make a decision on the spot.”

Shang Jianyao smiled. “We were carrying out a democratic negotiation and vote to determine who will play the role. This takes some time.”

“Understood.” Genava augmented his Shang Jianyao behavior database.

Shang Jianyao looked up at the sky and completely forgot what topic they had been discussing. “Old Ge, don’t you think the closer we are to Ceningmis City, the darker the sky becomes?”

Ceningmis was surrounded by mountains on three sides, and the cold draft heading south was thus blocked. The climate was much warmer than elsewhere in Icefield. In this season, the snow had long melted and pooled into streams. The ground also grew a faint green, a vibrant scene of new life.

This should’ve been a very beautiful scene, but for some reason, this place remained gloomy. There was no sunlight, making one feel stifled as if doomsday was looming once again.

Genava moved his metal neck up and down. “Yes.”

At the edge of Ceningmis, where the Old Task Force camped, the darkness was only equivalent to a gloomy sky. When they approached the main city, they felt as though the city was blanketed in dark clouds.

“It seems like it’s not my illusion. This darkness is related to the New World.” Shang Jianyao had one hand lowered, wrapped around the Life Angel necklace, and the other covered the metal skeleton as he held the Berserker assault rifle.

He happily said, “The rest is easy; we just need to find the darkest spot. That’s definitely the source of the problem!”

“Your inference is too hypothetical and lacks the necessary conditions,” the honest Genava replied. “Maybe it’s about to rain, or the entire city might share the same environment.”

Shang Jianyao taught his companion in a righteous manner, “Old Ge, have you forgotten our team’s motto? Make bold assumptions and carefully verify them!”

“That’s Big White’s mantra, not the team’s motto.” Genava remembered it very clearly.

Shang Jianyao—who failed to fool himchuckled. “Big White is my role model!”

“Then, there’s no problem.” Compared to the past, Genava already knew when to stop.

He looked at the main city buildings approaching and seriously warned, “Hey, you have to be careful. The Heartless disease might infect you at any moment. Why didn’t you let me come in first to reconnoiter? We could wait till then to decide if we wanted to find the root cause of the problem after we roughly understood the situation.”

Smart bots weren’t afraid of the Heartless disease.

“Because I’ll come in regardless of whether you discover anything useful.” Shang Jianyao’s answer seemed to imply that this season was suitable for holding spring outings.

Without waiting for Genava to say that Shang Jianyao could enter Ceningmis after a preliminary reconnaissance was conducted, Shang Jianyao smiled and added, “Besides, I’m not worried about being infected.”

Genava—who was wearing the Chameleon bionic artificial intelligence armor-turned his head to look at the fellow.

Shang Jianyao raised his right hand that was holding the Berserker assault rifle and said in a deep voice, “The night is long; the Arbiter of Fate blesses thee!”

He tried to swing the Life Angel necklace around his left wrist, but he decided not to because his hand was paralyzed.

du

The red glow in Genava’s eyes flickered a few times before he asked, “Hey, do you think your father is still alive?”

Shang Jianyao fell silent for a moment before replying, “I’ve always believed that he wouldn’t stay away from home for no reason. He must’ve encountered something, and I need to investigate.”

Genava crossed the cracked cement ground that had been a casualty of the freezing and scorching ground over the years and changed the question. “Then, do you think we can find your father’s whereabouts or related clues in Ceningmis?”

Shang Jianyao smiled. “After joining the Old Task Force, I upheld such a belief everywhere I went.”

The red light in Genava’s eyes flickered a few more times. “Your carbon-based feelings are indeed more varied and subtle than those of us smart bots.”

He looked at the dark sky and the silent, towering buildings in front of him and asked, “Where do you think the clues are most likely?”

Shang Jianyao smiled. “The most dangerous place. Since the Eighth Research Institute’s commissioners said that the disaster in Ceningmis originated from that team’s investigation of the reason for the Old World’s destruction, the center of the disaster must be somewhere or the last place they appeared when they investigated the truth.”

“That’s an idea.” Genava first gave affirmation before asking, “But what if it’s only something the Eighth Research Institute’s commissioner cooked up?”

Shang Jianyao turned to look at his companion. “Isn’t that a good thing?”

Genava analyzed the situation and understood what Shang Jianyao was getting at. He was just about to say something when he suddenly detected a few abnormalities.

“There’s blood there—it wasn’t left more than two weeks ago.” Genava pointed at the intersection that led into Ceningmis City.

There were black marks under a cluster of weeds by the side of the road.

Clang! Clang! Clang! One of Shang Jianyao’s hands was paralyzed, and he could only use the Berserker assault rifle’s collision with the armor on his chest to create applause. “I didn’t discover it at all.” He was very honest and calm.

Even with the help of the military exoskeleton’s comprehensive warning system, he still couldn’t compare to an underground smart bot in terms of detection, even though he had always had good ears and eyes.

“There are no corpses nearby, but there are some traces of a fight. It wasn’t too intense.” Genava reported his discovery and analysis as he checked.

“Yes, yes.” Shang Jianyao nodded repeatedly. “What do you think the situation is?”

The red light in Genava’s eyes flickered twice. “Neither side used any guns during the fight. I think the greatest possibility is an internal conflict between the Heartless. A small number of Heartless should still be alive in these ruins, and it seems like there aren’t enough supplies left.”

After all, Ceningmis had hundreds of thousands of Heartless.

“Heartless…” Shang Jianyao was a little disappointed. He then pointed into the city. “Let’s go to the most dangerous place!”

At the intersection where the western mountains led to Ceningmis.

The Old Task Force’s jeep was parked in a forest, using the natural protection to conceal themselves.

Jiang Baimian stood on the hood of the car and observed the distant villages, roads, and the edge of the city with binoculars.

Ceningmis’s main city district was slightly west.

Long Yuehong and Bai Chen took one side each, guarding against any accidents.

After a while, Long Yuehong broke the silence. “Team Leader, why didn’t you stop Shang Jianyao?”

“This should be the last non-negotiable matter apart from saving all of humanity.” Jiang Baimian slowly exhaled. She paused and said, “Besides, since we’ve already painstakingly come this far, the existences behind the curtains probably won’t just watch us be killed by the Heartless disease. With the corresponding items, there’s a high chance that we can enter if the Eighth Research Institute’s people can.”

Those existences referred to the Kalendarium like Big Boss and Eidolon Nun.

Just as she said that, Jiang Baimian suddenly saw a black figure flash in an abandoned village.

She had long expected the Heartless and wild creatures in Ceningmis and wasn’t surprised. She only briefly informed Bai Chen and Long Yuehong of the situation. “I saw a relatively large black feline creature.”

“Feline creature…” Bai Chen pursed her lips and said, “I also saw one in that icy ruins, but its fur was closer to white.”

The icy ruin where they encountered the Rootless convoy.

Jiang Baimian immediately frowned and muttered to herself, “Isn’t this too much of a coincidence…”