Chapter 616

A few hours ago——

In the Slum on the ground, shacks made of hastily assembled iron sheets were packed tightly together, and the blond youth stood on a low wall at the outermost edge of the Slum.

"Qi Hengyu leads people up there, takes care of those Aberrant Species in the south lane, and Luo Jinyou will come help after dealing with the ones in front of him."

His voice wasn't loud, yet it carried clearly into everyone's ears.

Qi Hengyu's face had fully matured, with two scars at the corners of his mouth, giving him a more masculine air.

These two years have been enough for them to develop sufficient rapport; the moment Shen Zexi gave the order, he was already rushing toward the destination.

"Lao Si, take a few quick-footed people to meet that group of refugees; although Qi Hengyu can handle the Aberrant Species, there are wounded among them, moving slowly, so send a few people to help."

A young man with a headscarf nodded, waved his hand, and a troop followed him disappearing behind the low wall.

"Besides," Shen Zexi paused, his gaze withdrawing from the distance and falling on a woman nearby holding a child: "Luyi, are the preparations at the Teleportation Array ready?"

The woman called Luyi was about forty years old, with lines etched by wind and frost on her face, yet her gaze was very steady.

"The Church side had already agreed; the array eyes were laid, we were just waiting for the last batch to arrive, but......"

She hesitated for a moment, then said: "Those above say this might be the last Teleportation Array run; the barrier of Tianmian City can no longer hold, fragments are raining down from the entire lower level, and if we don't leave now, we truly won't be able to leave."

Shen Zexi fell silent for a moment.

Tianmian City, once spoken of as a synonym for safety, prosperity, and peace, revealed its true nature as a weapon of war when crisis struck.

The artillery hidden in the foundations of the Floating City was fully activated, continuously bombarding the high-threat Aberrant Species, but it seemed ineffective; as soon as a gap was cleared, other Aberrant Species would immediately fill it.

He turned around, facing the slum behind the low wall, now completely reduced to ruins.

Time can bring about many changes, especially for those living through war.

Only when the true apocalypse arrived could one understand how difficult the peace previously crafted by the Church had been.

Among this final batch of refugees they had taken in were elders, children, young couples carrying bundles, and disabled men leaning on crutches.

They were all looking at him.

"Let's go," Shen Zexi said.

"Everyone proceeds to the Church in the previously arranged order: elders and children enter the Teleportation Array first, then the wounded, then women, and finally men—no one may be left behind."

Although the Aberrant Species' offensive looked fierce, in fact the reception of this final wave of refugees went unusually smoothly.

One simply does not know whether it is mercy of fate or someone secretly giving a push.

Luyi noticed Shen Zexi still standing there and asked, "What about you?"

Shen Zexi turned his head, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly as he revealed his usual gentle expression.

"I am waiting for my companion."

Since that incident, the whole world has been constantly rushing toward mutation.

This is no different from self-destruction.

The Church and the Dome reached an agreement; within the Church there was no longer any distinction between the Heresy Tribunal and the Supervision Bureau, and anyone still able to fight was recalled to clash head-on with those monsters.

In this process, the joint front of the Church and the Dome kept shrinking, forcing many to leave their former homelands and seek refuge elsewhere.

Often, they would just arrive at a new city without having time to rest, only for that city to be on the verge of collapse—this is how the people of this world are constantly worn out from fleeing.

When war truly erupted, there was no doubt that the civilians at the very bottom of society suffered the most.

And about half a month ago, the Church issued a new order, essentially urging them to do their utmost to rescue refugees and escort them as best they could to the safe points the Church had planned.

Now, this is the final batch they have taken charge of.

Because the Supervision Bureau and the Heresy Tribunal had been disrupted and reorganized, Shen Zexi, Qi Hengyu, and the others had reassembled with their former teammates into a squad; the current "Version Answer" is also a fairly well-known squad within the safe zone.

Just...... one person is missing.

Shen Zexi believes Ying Duo must still be alive, but is that living one truly Ying Duo?

Or is it a monster that has taken over his body?

"Version Answer" has been gathering news about Ying Duo all along, but according to intelligence, some people have indeed spotted Ying Duo's movements and successfully captured them on film.

Ying Duo has turned into a monster, but his body occasionally appears amidst the ruins of Heavenly Dome City, like a bodiless ghost.

But he does not attack anyone.

Although people regard him as the embodiment of disaster, and the phosphorescent green that entwines those monsters is seen as Ying Duo's buff to them, Shen Zexi does not think so.

That Ying Duo is merely an empty shell.

After gathering as many civilians as possible in one place, what does the authorities plan to do next?

He does not know.

When facing monsters that seem to cover mountains and plains, he can only feel despair.

The world has reached its end.

After Qi Hengyu and Luo Jinyou returned, they also went to the Teleportation Array, met up with Chen Mo Zhi and Meng Kexin, and escorted the final batch of refugees to Tianmian City.

Tianmian City had never been so crowded; it was originally a city floating high above, aloof and attracting much attention.

Between the spire and the dome there was enough gap for the wind to pass through, for birds to circle, and for those living on the upper levels to at any time behold the distant horizon.

But now, every gap is packed with people.

The square was covered with grass mats and thin blankets; under the arcades, children and elders wrapped in single garments were squeezed together; simple sheds were erected along both sides of the long street, and cooking smoke rose from every corner.

"Version Answer" had just returned, not even having time to catch its breath, when it was redeployed to deal with the Aberrant Species of the air raid.

Although there was a barrier, facing the fierce onslaught of the Aberrant Species, they also had to hurry to deal with those monsters.

No one knew how long the battle had lasted; everyone had grown accustomed to such days, even numb.

The church bell rang, signaling that their battle had reached midnight exactly; this time, the player who should have awakened after a moment's dazed pause did not wake up, but fell into a deep sleep.

The broadcast sounded.

That voice was presumably a woman's, amplified by the city-wide rune formation, pressing down on everyone's heads; it sounded somewhat hollow and ethereal, yet unusually resolute.

"All personnel, attention: spatial leap is about to begin, countdown ten, nine, eight......"

Everyone's movements stopped in unison, the refugees poked their heads out from the shelters, and the Special Ability Practitioners, while maintaining a wary stance, involuntarily twitched their ears.

Shen Zexi looked up at the sky; the faintly blue‑glowing barrier above Tianmian City was undergoing some unknown change.

...... three, two, one.

The barrier shuddered violently, the rails hummed, the rubble jumped, someone stumbled and grabbed the wall beside them, and then——

Nothing happened.

They raised their heads, only to find that the Aberrant Species outside the barrier had become illusory, as if suffering from poor contact.

Even if only for an instant, they were fortunate enough to see a clean gray sky—the view visible before the Aberrant Species took over the heavens.