The Ultimate Evolution

“The pyramids are actually bases built by an ancient civilization from Earth that has long perished. Although the original versions they built have disappeared in the flow of time, the Egyptians imitated these “miraculous works” and passed it down. The only reason for the popularity of this architectural structure in the Empire is that the pyramid-shaped buildings have the power to gather positive energy from the universe, and most importantly, these energies have a positive effect on the human body.”

Major General Fiji smiled and took a sip of water before he continued, “It sounds amazing, but the theory is actually really simple. If you want to make a whirlpool, just poke a hole under a basin full of water — similarly, if you imagine the positive energy in the universe as water, then the pyramid is the broken basin. It’s just a tool that conforms to the special law of the positive energy in the universe.”

“And the reason you would have a mysterious feeling is that you don’t know anything about the energy of the universe. A man from a primitive era would feel the same if he suddenly saw a lion being killed by a gun; he would also feel that the gun is really mysterious.”

Sheyan’s eyes narrowed slightly. Major General Fiji was truly a talkative person and had been friendly enough to him, but when Sheyan heard the metaphor the Major General made in the end, he could feel a slight sense of ridicule in it for some reason. He immediately became a bit more vigilant.

By this time, Major General Fiji’s spacecraft had passed the identity scanning and had flown into the pyramid. There were, of course, no huge stones, spider webs, dark rooms and infiltrating yellow sands inside the huge pyramid. Instead, the interior was neat, bright and orderly. After getting off the spacecraft, they went through a routine inspection. Then, the military police led the way to the depths of the base.

Surrounding the parking apron was a maze of criss-crossing corridors. The floor of the corridors was so clean that they were shining. If no one was there to show Sheyan the way, getting lost was inevitable.

Every now and then, they would pass by some civilian staff in uniforms walking nervously along the corridors. When the civilian staff saw the group, they would stop to salute. Every few meters in the corridors were placed green potted plants that had thick green leaves and looked full of vitality. A fresh fragrance permeated through the air.

After about five minutes’ walk, they reached an elevator under the lead of the military police. Sheyan noticed that the destination selected was the 27th floor. Evidently, the higher up in the pyramid, the smaller the useable area, but the larger the amount of “positive cosmic energy” that could be gathered.

The 27th floor was not that high up, but it was absolutely not low either. From this, Sheyan could tell that the higher-ups had attached quite some importance to the operation this time. At least, they were not being sent out to be cannon fodders.

After reaching the 27th floor, Major General Fiji led Sheyan to the door of room 501.

“I’m really sorry, Lieutenant Colonel, but please understand that the resources of Alps Base 7 are limited. This is already the best accomodation we can provide. From now until the end of the mission, you will be sharing a room with another contestant,” the Major General told Sheyan.

Sheyan smiled and replied, “That’s not a problem at all, sir.”

Sheyan then received some things from the military police stationed nearby. It seemed that the training would take a few days at least, so Sheyan was allocated a temporary access card. This card would not only be his ID, it also contained a certain amount of credit (similar to currency) according to Sheyan’s military rank. Naturally, it also afforded Sheyan the additional privileges of a Lieutenant Colonel of the Empire.

After Sheyan opened the door, he saw that the room was already occupied by another contestant. He was sitting beside the bed and he was wearing a white headgear which covered his whole body, giving him a vibe of mysterious aloofness. He turned his head when he heard the door open.

The eyes of the two men met, and an exclamation of surprise escaped their mouths at the same time.

“It’s you?”

The person in front Sheyan right now was none other than Reef’s acquaintance and Zi’s former subordinate, Aldaris!

To meet an acquaintance from the same Nightmare Realm in this distant land was truly a pleasant surprise — not so pleasant that they would cry out with joy, of course, but enough for them to forget any minor ill feelings between them. Besides, there was no conflict between Sheyan and Aldaris before, was there?

This was also the first time Aldaris was performing this kind of mission, so the two had a deep discussion. Aldaris was a reserve-duty Lieutenant General, so he was not directly notified like Sheyan was. He only managed to obtain the opportunity through a lottery draw after completing a difficult military rank mission.

Sheyan recalled the series of treatment he suffered on his way here, so he could not help but look towards Aldaris’ lower body as he asked, “Weren’t you harassed by that Major called Ryckley when you came here?”

“Who’s Ryckley?” asked Aldaris, perplexed. He then said with contempt, “All the people here are acting cold and arrogant, but if I want to kill them, it’s as easy for me as pinching ants. Of course they wouldn’t dare to harrass me.”

Sheyan contemplated for a moment before he asked, “Which entrance did you enter Alps Base 7 from after you landed?”

If Sheyan were to ask an ordinary person, the person would definitely not be able to answer Sheyan’s question, but for the contestants who struggled on the edge of life and death all the time, paying attention to details was an essential skill. Aldarius instantly answered, “It should be the E-3 entrance. Why, is there a problem?”

“The bastard I told you about, I met him at the A-18 entrance. He should be glad he didn’t meet you. Otherwise, he won’t even have the chance to lie groaning in bed like he’s doing now,” said Sheyan flatly. “By the way, how long have you been here in this damned place?”

“About twelve hours. You’re one of the ones that arrived pretty late. The time now is 7:16 p.m., and if I remember correctly, the final deadline is twelve o’clock tonight. Oh right, I heard the fluctuations from several people’s breathing outside the door just now. Weren’t you brought here by a waiter?” asked Aldaris.

Sheyan shook his head. “I left a small gift for the Major who tried to take my pants off, and that inevitably caused some trouble. But a man they called the Dark General took care of everything for me. He claimed to be a member of our instructor team. He was the one who brought me here to you.”

“Please, can you not use such disgusting words as “brought me here to you”?” said Aldaris with a disgusted expression, “The only one who’s interested in your ass is that f*cking Major.”

At this point, Aldaris suddenly frowned. “What did you just say? Our instructor team? Who’s qualified to instruct me? Aren’t we just here to carry out a mission?”

Sheyan gave him a contemptuous look. “Did you spend the last twelve hours jerking off in here? Why does a newcomer like me, who’s been here for less than an hour, know more information than you do?”

Aldaris was not someone who would admit defeat so easily. He snorted and made a circle on the carpet with his toes. Sheyan noticed a little trail of static electricity flashing in the wake of Aldaris’ toes.

“You only know the things inside this circle, while I know the things outside this circle!”

Sheyan smiled and said, “Anyone can talk big.”

Aldaris snorted again. “Do you know the destination of our trip?”

“Planet Uplos, of course,” Sheyan answered with a smile.

Aldaris exclaimed proudly, “That planet’s less than five light-years away from here. If we ride the fastest spacecraft, we can get there in four hours. The problem is, the magnetic-field interference of that place is as crazy as a banshee’s cry. The electromagnetic effect will produce a very strong impact on the spacecraft. After losing thirty-seven senior pilots there one after another, the place is now considered a no-fly zone by the air force pilots.”

“Godammit, do those bastards upstairs expect us to run to that damn place?” Sheyan couldn’t help swearing out loud, but then he immediately muttered, “Could the so-called training be to teach us how to drive a spacecraft so that we’ll be the one sent to die?”

Aldarius stared at Sheyan and said nothing, but he was obviously really proud of himself. It seemed that he had not remained idle after arriving 11 hours ahead of schedule.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. When their gazes met, they could tell from each other’s expression that the one knocking had nothing to do with the other person. However, they still had to open the door.

When the door was opened, a tall man who looked like Morpheus from the Matrix stood outside. He had thick fingers, thick lips, and a pair of shiny sunglasses. His arms were folded in front of his chest. After he saw Sheyan coming out from the door, he pointed his finger at Sheyan’s face and said, “Assemble in the conference hall in ten minutes.”

After that, he simply turned around and left, but when Sheyan was about to close the door, the man suddenly turned his head around, took off his sunglasses, stared into Sheyan’s eyes, and said in a deep nasally voice, “I forgot to introduce myself. I’m Hedi Curry, a Major of the Empire and Awakener MT. I’m temporarily assigned as the leader of this team. If possible, please pass my words to your roommate.”

“I will,” replied Sheyan with a nod of his head.

Hedi Curry nodded in satisfaction, then took out a cigar, lit it, and took a deep puff. He waved at Sheyan in basic recognition of Sheyan’s obedience before he went on his way .

As Sheyan stared at Hedi Curry’s retreating back, a smile suddenly broke on his face.