Chapter 1334: Secret of Humanity

After seeing the content left by the Aquarius Director on the note, the eighty-plus branch chiefs present all fell into silence.

Although the content on the note was extremely short, the information conveyed was not thin, especially the ink-stained, forceful handwriting, which clearly displayed the writer's psychological state of having completely broken down.

But what was somewhat puzzling was, hadn't the Aquarius Director already achieved his wish and successfully replaced Lord Taurus to ascend to the Watchtower? Why would he write a note to curse people after getting what he wanted?

"In short, the situation is as you see it."

After putting away the note full of Aquarius's anger, the Sagittarius Director in the square said with furrowed brows:

"Aquarius doesn't seem prepared to keep his promise and continue to warn us about potential crises, so we must be mentally prepared. Before the next Palace Keeper appears, we are likely to lose some of the protection from the Watchtower."

Indeed...

After listening to the Sagittarius Director, the expressions of the branch chiefs became serious.

Besides blocking True Gods from descending at will, the Watchtower's most important function was to provide early warnings before major crises appeared. If Aquarius, the Palace Keeper, was unwilling to cooperate, then this important function was effectively scrapped.

And the Cleanup Bureau's "business" was not small. Being able to safely pass through crises time and again was largely due to the Watchtower's early warnings. Now, with the Slaughter King Society watching like a tiger, if there really were no warnings, future "work" would inevitably be stretched thin.

"You should all know what this situation represents without me saying it."

Raising his head to look around, seeing the expressions of the branch chiefs, the Sagittarius Director sighed and said:

"So, in order to deal with the situation that might arise next, Taurus and I discussed it and believe we must prepare for the worst-case scenario. It would be best to forcibly bring the Bureau Chief back from the Old Earth... What do you think?"

The Bureau Chief in the Old Earth... the Cleanup Bureau's Bureau Chief?

Hearing this, Li Ang, who had been brought to listen by the Red-haired Bureau Chief, couldn't help but raise his eyebrows curiously. However, before he could ask, a warm palm gripped his.

'The Bureau Chief is in the Old Earth, searching for things we humans lost when we fled the Old Earth. The importance of this mission is not even inferior to the Watchtower.'

Passing a soul fluctuation through her palm to explain the situation of the General Bureau Chief, the Red-haired Bureau Chief frowned and said:

'The Sagittarius Director is one thing, but if even Lord Taurus believes it's necessary to interrupt the mission and bring the Bureau Chief back, the situation in the Bureau is probably not just a little bit bad.'

'Bureau Chief.'

Hooked by the Red-haired Bureau Chief's words, Li Ang gripped her palm back and asked curiously:

'What exactly is the General Bureau Chief looking for in the Old Earth? Can that thing be more important than the safety of the Cleanup Bureau?'

'It wouldn't go so far as to be more important than the Cleanup Bureau, but it's not far off.'

After hesitating for a moment, the Red-haired Bureau Chief leaned back and instructed seriously:

'The situation regarding the General Bureau Chief is a Level 5 intelligence, and only the Zodiac Bureau Chiefs can know it. You can listen, but you absolutely cannot tell anyone, not even Emma or your sister.'

Good heavens, is this news that important?

Under Li Ang's surprised expression, the Red-haired Bureau Chief explained through soul fluctuations:

'This matter starts a long time ago. When our human ancestors fled from the ruined Old Earth, almost everything was taken away by the Supreme Four Pillar Gods. Later, although we successfully killed the Four Pillar Gods, the things they took away were never retrieved. The General Bureau Chief suspected that those things were left in the Old Earth by the Pillar Gods, so he took the three directors—Aries, Virgo, and Scorpio—and ran back while the time and space of the Old Earth were stable, wanting to find what our ancestors had had stolen.'

'What exactly were the things that were stolen? Anomalous objects more powerful than the Watchtower?'

'They might be even more important than the Watchtower. If those things can really be retrieved, our human race will definitely be able to move toward a more beautiful future.'

Speaking of this, the Red-haired Bureau Chief bit her lip, looking somewhat yearning:

'According to the description I heard from Lord Taurus, the Supreme Four Pillar Gods stole four things from our ancestors: 【Lifespan】, 【Inheritance】, 【Creation】, and the most important 【Connection】.'

"..."

Lifespan? Inheritance? Creation? Connection?

'Simply put, the maximum lifespan of our ancestors' bodies was close to the limit of our human souls, about 500 years. But after 【Lifespan】 was plundered by the 【King of the Old Days】, no matter how healthy our human bodies are, it's very difficult to survive for more than 150 years.'

?!!!!

Under Li Ang's shock, the Red-haired Bureau Chief continued to narrate:

'As for 【Inheritance】, it is the continuation of memory and knowledge. Before being plundered by the 【Crimson Dominator】, our ancestors could pass on part of the knowledge they mastered directly through bloodlines, mastering it automatically as they grew older.'

'And 【Creation】 and 【Connection】, which were stolen by 【Heavenly Cicada of All Things】 and 【Sleep of Asur】 respectively, refer to the almost endless inspiration that was always bursting forth, and the ability to communicate through spiritual connections, perfectly express one's thoughts, and perfectly grasp the other party's thoughts.'

"..."

A 500-year limit, bloodlines that can inherit knowledge, endless inspiration, efficient spiritual communication... Is this still human?

'Hard to believe, right?'

After glancing at Li Ang, who was dumbfounded behind her, the Red-haired Bureau Chief blinked and said:

'I was also shocked when Lord Taurus told me for the first time. It's just that these are very, very ancient pasts, and our human ancestors are long gone. Only in the General Bureau's archives are there some scattered records.'

'And starting from the third-generation Bureau Chief, Cleanup Bureau predecessors would occasionally return to the Old Earth during the lulls in time-space turbulence, trying to find what our ancestors had lost, but so far, the gains have been meager.'

'Meager means... those predecessors weren't completely empty-handed?'

'They can be considered to have had small gains!'

Facing Li Ang's inquiry, the Red-haired Bureau Chief nodded slightly:

'When we first settled in this world, the human lifespan was hard to exceed 70 years. It was the predecessors who retrieved some 【Lifespan】 that raised this limit to about 150 years. And the way we communicate with souls now is part of 【Connection】.'

'As for the remaining 【Creation】 and 【Inheritance】, the former has been retrieved very, very little, with only individual humans able to awaken this inspiration, while the latter has been almost completely lost, seemingly disappearing completely along with the 【Crimson Dominator】.'

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 1335 =====