Chapter 1052: The Author Commits a Crime in the Face of Adversity
In the spa.r.s.ely populated suburbs, sporadic low-rise buildings could still be seen along the roadside, some of them illuminated. As the group approached the city center, these small box-like buildings that brought a sense of comfort became increasingly scarce. Looking up, under the distant night sky, tall and short buildings formed various strange silhouettes, silently stretching and standing tall beneath the thick clouds and dim moonlight.
Before entering the city, Bohemia encountered her first trouble.
"Sorry," the Descartes Spirit had no human emotions but possessed human politeness. "I changed my mind, I"m not going."
Bohemia, who frequently broke promises herself, detested it when others broke promises to her.
"Why?" Her arms were sore from carrying Dr. Hu, and she had been desperately chasing after the fast-paced Lin Sanjiu all the way. She was already annoyed, and hearing these words only fueled her anger. "You don"t want the posthuman anymore? This kind of Pocket Dimension you have doesn"t seem promising at all!"
"Survival is more important than prospects," the Descartes Spirit remained unmoved. "Of course, in this case, "survival" should be interpreted as "continuation"—"
"I don"t care how you interpret it!"
"I agreed because I thought this arrangement would guarantee my safety." The Descartes Spirit became serious. "Who would have thought you would be so gullible? A Servant of the Truth said they would take you to the city, and you blindly followed? I thought you had other plans. This place is too dangerous. Let"s part ways."
It was the first time in Bohemia"s life that someone called her gullible, and hearing it made her feel insulted and offended. Her face turned red, and she wished her hair would stand on end. "Who said we would part ways? Weren"t you the one who approached me with a smug face wanting to absorb me? If it weren"t for you saying you could continue protecting us, preventing us from being infected by the spores, I wouldn"t have followed her all this way—let me finish speaking, where are you running off to?"
The Descartes Spirit, forcefully pulled back by her consciousness, resumed its disguise and transformed into a chaotic ent.i.ty floating and fluctuating beside her. From the surface of this thing, there was naturally no trace of shame. "How do you know if you don"t try?"
Since they had left the corpse behind, there were no longer any spores in the air, so it temporarily shrank into a ball, which wasn"t a big deal. However, the help that the Pocket Dimension could provide was not only in isolating potential spores but also in its understanding of the so-called "Truth" that surpa.s.sed that of Bohemia and Dr. Hu. How to pose as a Servant of the Truth and how to save a Servant of the Truth—everything now relied on it.
At this moment, the leading Lin Sanjiu suddenly turned around and glanced back.
Her intuition was so sharp that it was almost annoying. It was as if she could hear their mental communication, startling Bohemia every time. After waiting for two seconds and realizing that Lin Sanjiu hadn"t noticed the chaotic ent.i.ty on the ground, Bohemia used her consciousness to envelop her voice and cautiously asked, "You can"t leave. I still don"t know how to save her."
"I don"t know how to save her either," the Pocket Dimension only uttered half a sentence and suddenly became suspicious. "If you don"t know how to save her, why did you foolishly follow her?"
Before opening her mouth, Bohemia hesitated for a few seconds, considering whether or not to tell it the truth. Thinking about the Descartes Spirit"s good a.n.a.lytical ability, she decided to be honest. "Didn"t you say that the Truth released the spores and infected people with them? I was thinking just now, maybe if I came and set fire to the Truth, she might recover... Hey, don"t run away again!"
The Descartes Spirit, forcibly pulled back once more, was no longer a chaotic ma.s.s. Its desire to escape was so strong that it even stretched itself into a line, urgently reaching towards the distance.
Dr. Hu sighed from its nose.
"From various perspectives," the Descartes Spirit was very anxious and had no way to deal with Bohemia. It wavered as it followed her footsteps. "Your idea is almost tantamount to suicide... Ah, I wish you success. However, don"t say I didn"t warn you, in the city, you won"t be able to protect me, nor will you be able to save her. And I advise you not to harm the Truth."
Old Da had said similar words before. It seemed that once those sprouts were harmed, they would release a large number of spores in response. Although Bohemia hadn"t seen any sprouts in the city, she needed the Descartes Spirit even more to be prepared for any eventuality.
"Why can"t I protect you?" She glanced at the slim and tall figure in front of her. "I have consciousness, special items, and Dr. Hu."
"If it"s one or two Servants of the Truth, maybe you and Dr. Hu could protect me," the Descartes Spirit refused to give up. It struggled and flapped within the confines of its consciousness cage. "But there are so many—so many!"
"So many? But I haven"t seen a single sprout!"
As they spoke, the group had already approached an area with a large number of flat buildings within a hundred meters. They didn"t really need to look at any signs; as they continued forward through the increasingly peculiar buildings, they would eventually make their way into the city. After reaching the peak of its panic, the Descartes Spirit suddenly calmed down as if the power had been cut off, shrinking into a fist-sized object and remaining still in Bohemia"s arm.
Dr. Hu uncomfortably swished its tail a few times. Anyone would feel uncomfortable with a Pocket Dimension pressed against their b.u.t.tocks.
"Hey, say something," Bohemia urged.
"We have entered a high-risk area." Although the Descartes Spirit claimed not to have human emotions, its emotions were abundantly clear—regret, complaint, and fear. "After this servant takes you to meet the Truth, your only chance of survival is to pretend to be infected. It seems that they can"t directly sense your state, which is fortunate in unfortunate circ.u.mstances..."
"The truth should be in that... lobster restaurant?"
The Descartes Spirit fell silent for a moment. In that second of utter silence in her mind, the dim night enveloped everything. The monotonous footsteps of Lin Sanjiu echoed on the road, magnified many times along with the shadows. Countless tall and short buildings with strange shapes, like prehistoric behemoths, silently watched as the group entered their midst.
Bohemia also started to panic a little. "What"s wrong?"
"It"s not a lobster restaurant. Your friend said it"s the Lobster Body Repair Center." The Descartes Spirit"s voice was slow and carried a hint of incredulity. "What do you think the Truth is?"
Just a few days ago, Bohemia thought the Truth was a summary of how humans perceive the world.
"Isn"t it those sprouts?" she asked.
The Descartes Spirit sighed deeply. It wasn"t originally capable of sighing because it didn"t even have the organs for it. However, after hearing Meowie Hu sigh all the way, it learned.
"Although I haven"t been to that Lobster Body Repair Center, I know it"s a building in this city." The Descartes Spirit spoke slowly, hiding behind Bohemia"s arm. "That also means it is the Truth itself."
Bohemia abruptly halted her steps, her heart almost leaping out of her chest. "Wait, wait a minute—"
"Yes, that"s right," the Descartes Spirit observed her suddenly pale complexion and seemed to be somewhat amused. "All the buildings in this city are the Truth. Or rather, they claim to be the Truth."
What?
These things are... alive?
"Not only are they alive, but they also allow servants to reside within a part of their bodies, providing them with various functions. If everything goes as expected, your friend was infected after entering the Lobster Body Repair Center. It"s not surprising that she naively delved into the depths of the Truth... But why did the Truth suddenly release spores at her? Did she dismantle the building?"
At this point, Bohemia finally understood. Lin Sanjiu really did dismantle the building.
When they encountered the old lady, Lin Sanjiu had thrown a tornado to fling the exploded corpse away. If she remembered correctly, that tornado had shattered a corner of a building. And it was after that building was damaged that pale faces suddenly emerged from the broken windows...
People who harm the Truth are remembered by the Truth?
When she was lost in her thoughts, she suddenly stepped into a radiant white light. The light hadn"t existed half a second ago. Startled, Bohemia snapped back to reality, and at the same time, she heard Lin Sanjiu let out a low "Huh?"
"Welcome to the Strip Game Pocket Dimension!"