Chapter 1424 - A Long Retreat
Chapter 1424: A Long Retreat
What did a century mean?
For most people, it was a time unit that usually only appeared in history books.
Few people could live that long.
And almost no one would write in their diaries, that on a certain summer one century ago, something happened to them…
If The Observers did not exist, the man named Lu Zhou, like most students who graduated from top universities, would graduate with an excellent grade, then find a decent job with a relatively generous salary, then get into an ordinary marriage and have children. He would live his life out steadily.
Even if Earth or the universe would be destroyed in hundreds of thousands or millions of years, what would this have to do with a butterfly that only lived for a week?
Live life in the moment without thinking about distant things. Perhaps this was the most logical choice.
Even Lu Zhou himself did not have the confidence that he would choose differently.
That was, to give up the missions of the system, his curiosity about the universe, and return to Earth to live out his life. To leave the troublesome things to future generations…
A mechanical arm was lightly pressed on the icy metal surface,
The sound of a gas leak was heard, as if a switch had been touched, and the metal coffin-like cube slowly opened.
Professor Leonard looked at everything in front of him in amazement. He opened his mouth. His eyes were full of shock.
“A dormant cabin… It really is a dormant cabin, the same thing Professor Vernal described in his notes!
“The dormant pods that look like tombstones are located in spacious grottoes, the texture carved into the stones is like a spell that seals an ancient memory. It has a longer history than the pyramids and terracotta warriors. The Martians hoped to enter a new era using the pods, to avoid their eventual extinction…”
His lips trembled.
Professor Leonard stared at the slowly opening metal coffin.
Suddenly, a well-known piece of history appeared in his mind.
It’s him!
He remembered the passage in Chapter 3, verse 14 of the Old Testament.
[Thousands upon thousands are waiting in the valley of decision. There the day of the LORD will soon arrive.]
The blue light shined in the cave, driving away the darkness.
The metal shell was completely opened. The oily solution inside and the man immersed in the solution were exposed.
He sat up slowly in a vaporized white mist.
Like a knight waiting for the king to ascend to the throne, the robotic man waiting at the side respectfully handed over the spare spacesuit and helped him wear it.
Lu Zhou took a deep breath of the air from the oxygen tank. He recovered from the freezing cold and adapted to the discomfort of waking up again. He grabbed the dormant cabin with his right hand and jumped down with the help of the robot.
“You… you…”
Leonard looked at Lu Zhou standing up from the dormant cabin. He stared at him with his eyes widened in disbelief and stammered, “Are you…”
Lu Zhou said, “Are you from the future?”
Lu Zhou looked at the man who was kneeling on the ground for some reason. He moved his arm and asked concisely, “Future citizen, tell me what year it is now? How long did I sleep for?”
What is the population on Earth? Is the world in harmony?
There was a wide range of questions Lu Zhou wanted to ask.
The man stared at Lu Zhou. Dumbfounded, he spoke in a trembling voice.
“It’s the year 2125 AD…”
“2125 AD…”
Lu Zhou held his breath for a while.
The memories gushed out of his mind like a flood, rushing to his forehead.
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.
After a long time, he sighed softly.
“This retreat…
“Was quite long.”
…
Human life always had an end.
Even if Lu Zhou did not follow The Observer’s guidance to Mars and go to the deepest part of the ruins, he would still get old and die eventually.
The only difference was whether he would die sooner or later.
Perhaps this was the best choice for him, who chose the “Protector” gene.
After all, according to General Reinhardt’s statement, humans were still a long way from trying to replicate those three potions with their own technology.
Even with the genetic modification level of the Calan Empire, they were far from the level that could immortalize individuals. Using his own blood to overcome a world-class problem would be impossible.
Instead of watching the people around him getting old one by one and finally saying goodbye, perhaps the best way would be to time travel to the future.
And if someone brought back his last words…
Then at least he had the chance to say goodbye.
Lu Zhou didn’t want to think too much about his fate and his feelings at this moment.
Self-pity was not his personality. It made no sense to look forward to another possibility for what had already happened.
Maybe someday, if he got drunk, when he recalled the past, he might start to vent…
But now was obviously not the time to do so.
Traveling to this time period was part of The Observer’s plan. It would not take long before he would feel the guidance of the Void.
He had to figure out the surrounding situation as soon as possible…
When he walked to the side of the lifeless guy named Jim, Lu Zhou’s eyebrows couldn’t help but twitch as he looked at the blood flowing out of the brain.
Although it wasn’t the first time he had seen a dead body, this was the goriest one…
“Does he have a cell phone or something? Or a wrist-mounted computer or something?”
Professor Leonard was slightly taken aback. He immediately answered, “Phones? We don’t use them anymore… But you can look for it on his wrist to see if there is something like an electronic bracelet. An international fugitive like him probably doesn’t have a chip in his brain…”
Fugitive?
Lu Zhou raised his eyebrows.
He picked up the knife on the ground and cut the spacesuit on Jim’s right arm.
Lu Zhou resisted the nausea and took off an electronic bracelet about one millimeter thick from his hand.
“This thing? How should I use it…?”
Professor Leonard opened his mouth. He was just about to say that it might be troublesome to unlock. But he saw the robot man standing next to him take a step forward, took the bracelet from Lu Zhou’s hand, and connected it on the slot in its chest.
The dark green data stream flashed through its pupils, and soon, a holographic panel was projected in front of Lu Zhou.
[Unlocked]
“… So that’s it, the technology is so convenient now.”
Leonard: “…???”
Lu Zhou ignored the dumbfounded guy who was sitting on his knees. He reached out his right hand and swiped the screen twice with his index finger.
Thanks to this guy’s shameful past, many secret things were carried with him personally, instead of being stored in the cloud.
Through the emails stored in his mailbox, Lu Zhou learned that these people were a group of people under the guise of the Mammoth Mining Company, but they were actually fugitives engaged in murder and merchandising. Because they were being watched by Interpol, they found this guy named Leonard and obtained a certificate of clearance under the cover of archeological activities.
Not only that, but these fugitives seemed to have unclear business dealings with the air pirates active in the asteroid belt between Jupiter and Mars.
After understanding the cause and effect of the incident, Lu Zhou looked at the man next to him who seemed to be Professor Leonard with a strange expression on his face.
Poor guy, he was probably fooled by Xiao Ai to come here and was nearly shot by the criminals.
Just when Lu Zhou was about to close his mailbox, he suddenly found a special email.
That was a purchase list. Specifically, it was probably to help the air pirates active in the asteroid belt purchase supplies and deal with some tricky stolen goods.
What was special about this email was not the plain purchasing content. What really caught Lu Zhou’s attention was the sender’s code.
[The Spirit of The Universe Foundation]
Lu Zhou thought of the fiasco on the Baltic Sea a century ago, and he couldn’t help but frown.
It seemed that a lot of things had happened during his absence…
“Hey…”
A greeting came from the communication channel. Lu Zhou turned off the holographic panel and looked at Professor Leonard next to him.
Leonard was watched by the robot man that was still holding a rifle in its hands. He raised his hands tremblingly and said in a pleading tone, “Can you let me go? I am just a victim… Although it is my fault to excavate the ruins here without permission from the Pan-Asian Cooperation, but for the sake of digging you out, can you forgive me?”
Lu Zhou did not speak. He walked toward him.
Professor Leonard had a trace of despair in his eyes. He wanted to resist, but seeing the gun in the robot man’s hand, he could not muster the courage. He closed his eyes like a coward.
If only he didn’t come to Mars. This wild land was full of dirty criminals, wicked people, and unscrupulous air pirates…
When he opened his eyes, he saw Lu Zhou reaching out his right hand.
“Stand up.
“Although we are from different countries, you and I are both scholars. We should still have a common language.
“It just so happens that I need a guide… And a little money to travel home.”
Lu Zhou looked at Professor Leonard and spoke.
“Whatever currency they use on Earth, it would be nice if you could lend me a little. When I return to Earth, I will give you a generous reward.”