Chapter 753 [Ode Papadopolis/City of the First Father]
Buzz——
A twisted [∞] symbol appeared on the floating city. Along with the distortion of space, Xia Xiu stepped onto the ancient city suspended above the storm.
There was a strange cold feeling on the metal ground beneath my feet, as if the entire city itself was breathing slowly.
A low hum echoed in the air, and an indescribable sense of oppression filled the air.
At this moment, three haloes like mutton-fat white jade suddenly flashed behind Xia Xiu's head. The whiteness was filled with flowing light, and it trembled slightly as if it had some kind of vitality.
The light emitted by this halo dispersed the shadows around him, but it was difficult to completely penetrate the mysterious darkness hidden in the space.
A series of rapidly beating data streams began to appear on his retina, intertwined into a complex network pattern, like an invisible barrier protecting his brain from pollution.
【Initial contact with the unknown Mimu——】
[Crown resources have been called——]
[Current Ethernet floating point computing efficiency: 1×10^10 per second (tens of billions)]
Xia Xiu frowned slightly and said to himself:
"Nearly 10 billion ether operations per second... the pollution here is indeed ridiculously high, and it can already be regarded as the incarnation of stars."
He held the silver cane tightly in his right hand, glanced at the tall abandoned buildings around him, and continued walking forward.
Just as he continued to take a few steps forward, [Adam's] electronic sound and the data feedback of the heavenly genealogy came to his ears.
[Memu Scanner performs multi-layer analysis on current city documents, images, and text. 】
[The trigger threshold is when the keyword matching rate reaches more than 65%, and the system will mark it as a potential Meme threat. 】
[Environment recognition has been started! 】
[Automatically activate space detection system: high-altitude floating objects (range of 7.8 kilometers ± 200 meters). 】
The light around the triple halo trembled slightly, and warning messages came one after another:
[Warning Phase: Immunity Confirmation]
[Detect whether the user has basic divine Meme resistance certification (Class-B Meme immunity). 】
Xia Xiu's vision film flashed through a series of analysis of Mimu characteristics, and the [Torino Type I] in the body maintained its normal mode output, which would analyze and isolate the terrifying and dense pollution around it.
The blond young man with a triple halo looked at this huge floating city with great interest.
In front of him, three magnificent temples stood in the center of the floating city. They were like isolated islands in the torrent of time.
The surface of the temple is covered with light golden reliefs. After countless years of erosion, the patterns on the reliefs appear mottled, but they still clearly depict some great history.
Xia Xiu walked towards the nearest temple to himself, which was also the largest temple. His footsteps echoed on the wide stone steps.
The decoration leading to the entrance to the main hall is——
Two naked children stand next to a row of trees, staring nervously at the horizon.
A wolf and a bear stood behind them, protecting them.
On the wall opposite the mural, a human figure holding a flaming sword stands on a hill overlooking the trees.
Approaching the palace door, he could clearly see the nervous expressions of the children on the relief, as well as the bear and wolf guarding them behind them.
The air is filled with a certain smell of metal and dust, as if the breath of ancient times remains.
Pushing open the heavy stone door, Xia Xiu stepped into the main hall.
The interior space is tall and empty, with mottled star patterns faintly visible on the arched dome at the top. The central light source is a beam of sunlight that shines from the damaged dome, illuminating part of the entire hall.
The air is slightly cold, but it carries a strange vibration that makes people feel like they are walking in another dimension.
When Xia Xiu looked at the mural, [Adam] had already analyzed the ancient characters used in the floating city, so he could understand the meaning of the characters at this moment.
The three murals occupy three walls of the main hall respectively, with indescribable shock:
Sunrise view from the front.
[The brilliance in the mural is so brilliant that it is almost impossible to look directly at it, and the man in the painting exudes unparalleled majesty.
He holds a long silver-tipped staff and wears a shining crown. The two people beside him are inseparable, and the third person is leaving.
The "Bronze Dragon with Blue Eyes" hovers in the sky, and the words "They will know what existence is" are engraved on the side of the dragon, as if to declare some kind of cosmic truth. 】
Meeting scene on the east wall.
[The golden man stands in front of the throne, surrounded by kings and sages wearing various robes.
The king with the burning crown, the woman entwined with snakes, the iron warrior, and the blue-robed wizard are in sharp contrast, and the scene reveals solemnity and hidden conflict. 】
Throne Scene on the Western Wall.
[The man is wearing an iron crown, and behind him are the outlines of various giant beings: gears and metal, flesh and bones, ice and stone, stars and light. These giant statues surround the man, seeming to demonstrate his authority and destiny. 】
The last wall has no mural, just a line of text.
The only text on the south wall:
"The sea will not swallow it up, nor will the path of growth and darkness -"
Xia Xiu's eyes were fixed on the mural on the east wall. It was a magnificent and heart-stopping picture.
The golden man stands under a throne, with two other people standing on either side of him. The third figure does not appear.
Before the golden man is a king in crimson robes, with a flaming crown on his head, extending a hand of friendship.
Beside him are a naked woman with a snake wrapped around her body, a man made of iron, and a wizard in dark blue robes.
There are some other characters nearby.
His golden eyes narrowed slightly, and his eyes focused on the center of the picture - the king wearing crimson robes. Under the light and shadow effect of the mural, his crown seems to be really burning, and the blazing flames indicate the intertwined meaning of authority and destruction.
The king's face was hidden in shadow, but his outstretched hand was shrouded in dazzling light.
"The Crimson King..."
Xia Xiu muttered in a low voice, with a cold and faint fear in his tone.
His fingers tapped on the staff unconsciously, as if thinking and confirming.
His eyes slowly moved to the other side of the mural. A man made of iron stood there. The image was rough and strong, like the embodiment of steel and will.
Those cold eyes seem to meet the gaze of the viewer through the mural.
He knew this man. In one of his spiritual visions, he saw him fighting to the death with the evil beast that was devouring the earth.
"Brom...the human walker of the Broken God who disappeared after the showdown with Ion."
Xia Xiu's voice was slightly deep, with a hint of thinking.
A strange light flashed in his golden eyes, as if he had glimpsed some shocking secret in this mural.
Xia Xiu's eyes scanned the entire mural again.
The naked woman wrapped around a snake exudes a primitive and bewitching aura, like the incarnation of nature and evil; while the wizard in dark blue robes is hidden in the crowd, but seems to control some unfathomable power.
Each character is like a fragment of this lost history, spliced together into a truth that has never been fully revealed.
"Why do they gather here?" Xia Xiu murmured to himself, his voice echoing in the empty hall.
He waved his hand gently, and the silver light on the front of the staff lit up more details of the mural.
He noticed that the characters in the background had complex expressions, some were full of respect, some were full of fear, and many more showed silent sadness.
"Is this a covenant? Or a betrayal?"
Xia Xiu stared at the empty space in the mural that did not appear, and frowned slightly.
"Who is the vacant person? Why did he leave..."
His words stopped abruptly and he paused slightly, as if he was secretly interpreting the deeper meaning of this mural.
Xia Xiu quickly turned from the east wall to the murals on the adjacent west wall.
In the center of the picture, there is still a golden man sitting on a high throne. His face is majestic and cold, and an iron crown covers his head, like a heavy yoke and an unquestionable authority.
The crown was engraved with a line of text that could not be compiled into a language. In the center of the crown was a sparkling white gemstone, whose dazzling light seemed to still flicker outside the mural.
Behind the man, several huge figures stood majestically, surrounding his throne like a set of laws that could not be defied.
Xia Xiu's eyes first fell on the image composed of gears and metal. The complex and precise structure reminded people of the indifference and ruthlessness of the machine.
Several gears seem to rotate slightly in the picture, like a never-ending machine watching everything in the world.
In his body, [Broken Fire] seemed to sense something, and it suddenly jumped, and that familiar heat flashed through his consciousness like a ray of light. "Sure enough..."
Xia Xiu's eyes narrowed slightly, his fingertips tapped the staff lightly, and there was some kind of speculation in his heart.
His eyes then turned to the image made of blood and flesh.
Its outline is vague, but it exudes an uncomfortable vitality and is breathing quietly.
The sticky texture and faint pulsation are chilling.
His right hand unconsciously clenched the staff, and a burst of heat came from the [Seal of Ion] on the back of his hand, responding to the call of the power of flesh and blood.
Then, his eyes slid over other images - the giant made of ice and stone, like the fusion of silent ice and earth; the figure made of stars, with the brilliance and depth of the infinite universe; and the figure made of countless eyes. An indescribable thing, every eye seems to be staring at a certain corner of the world, exuding an indescribable pressure.
In the front of the picture, a young woman with bright long hair is suspended in the air, her eyes are calm and sharp, and her slender fingers point to the south, as if she is guiding a certain direction.
Xia Xiu stared at the woman's silhouette, and a question suddenly emerged in his heart - who is she?
What is hidden in the south she points to?
Currently, the two entities in the mural are known and can be confirmed: the God of Brokenness and the boundlessness He covers.
The ice and stone entity, the entity composed of eyes, and the young woman with bright long hair—these three are unknown entities, but it can be guessed that they are, or they are the same existence as the first two.
Xia Xiu stared at the mural, his golden eyes flashing with deep thoughts. However, in the next moment, a sudden chill rushed down his spine.
It was a warning sign that could not be ignored. The hairs on his body stood on end, and every inch of his skin was stung by an invisible threat.
Without any hesitation, he switched the [Lever of Heaven] to his left hand to hold tightly, and suddenly raised his right hand, calling out his incarnation - [Vashak].
『Buzz——』
Following a low and long sound, [Vashak] raised his index finger and pointed it slightly towards the void.
At that moment, the entire space was instantly enveloped in a gray texture. Everything in the field of vision became still, time was forcibly removed, and what was left was a picture that looked like an old movie reel.
The roar of lightning and clocks exploded in my ears, echoing in the solid air, forming an almost suffocating silence.
Xia Xiu quickly turned sideways in the gray world that stopped and glanced sharply behind him.
Cold light danced in his pupils, and the surrounding space seemed to be peeled off from a deep dream, and two huge figures emerged - [Sisyphus] and [Metatron].
Xia Xiu didn't pause, and raised his right hand slightly. The lever in his hand emitted a circle of light waves, pointing directly into the depths of the void.
[Leverage of Heaven·Corruption! 】
In an instant, the [Lever of Heaven] in his hand suddenly extended, like an infinite line piercing the sky. At the same time, a dazzling light spot began to condense on the top of the silver long stick - [∞].
The light spot was compressed to the limit, and the energy it emitted was like the power that could move a planet.
With this action, [Sisyphus] waved his fist covered with purple-gold runes. The fist tore through the space and hit the target with irresistible vector power.
At the same time, [Metatron] raised the sword burning with blazing flames. The blade was like a torrent of flames, roaring and blasting away into the depths of the void.
In a world where time stops, everything should stand still.
However, in the originally empty corner, a figure slowly emerged.
His figure seemed to be condensed from the void. His white hair and long beard were slightly swaying with the air flow, and his vicissitudes of face showed traces of time.
The old man was wearing an ancient brown robe, and the quality seemed to span countless eras.
Xia Xiu's golden pupils shrank suddenly because he saw something impossible - in the world where time stopped, the old man moved.
The old man's movements seemed very slow, but they were strangely very fast.
He stretched out his left hand forward and easily grasped the vector fist of [Sisyphus] tearing apart the space. The purple-gold power surged violently in his palm, but he was unable to break free at all.
And his right hand firmly held the blade of the [Metatron] flame sword. The flames burned crazily, but he suppressed it forcefully.
Then, he turned his wrist slightly to switch the attack directions of the two.
However, as soon as the old man completed this action, Xia Xiu's [Heaven's Lever] stabbed directly at his chest.
『Buzz——』
The time stop is over, only paused for 1.001 seconds.
This is not because Xia Xiu wants to stop, nor is it because of the limitations of the crystal wall of the Naga Ring, but because the amount of observation of a certain existence has suddenly increased. The weight is too large, too much, and the [Time Slot] cannot continue to freeze.
"Boom——"
But even if the time stop ended, [The Lever of Heaven] still hit the old man, the light wave exploded instantly, and the shocking force knocked the old man away.
His figure was like a broken arrow, hitting the stone wall in the distance heavily.
A low roar echoed in the space, but strangely, the stone wall remained unscathed.
The old man's body slowly slid down the wall, and finally stood up steadily. The folds on his robe swayed with the breeze. His eyes raised and glanced at Xia Xiu, with an elusive smile in his eyes.
"I have the same type of incarnation and authority as my Vasak."
Xia Xiu held the [Lever of Heaven] in his hand. The light emitted by the long stick surged like waves, and the three rings of light behind him projected strong pressure as they rotated.
The three avatars standing around him, [Vashak]'s deep eyes flashed with purple light, [Sisyphus]'s fist faintly shook the space, and [Metatron]'s light wings flowed with a blazing glow.
The three were like three insurmountable barriers, firmly guarding Xia Xiu within them.
Opposite him, the old man just patted the dust on his body slightly, his movements slow and calm.
His eyes were still calm, but with an indifference that understood everything.
He raised his eyes to look at Xia Xiu and spoke an unfamiliar language:
"."
Xia Xiu's brows raised slightly, and a trace of inquiry flashed in his golden eyes. He has not yet fully confirmed the identity of the old man in front of him, but he is certain that he cannot be the so-called sage from the Kailasel family. If there really was such a person in the family, he wouldn't be able to hide in the dark lord's march.
What's even more shocking is that the person in front of him was unscathed after being hit by the [Lever of the Sky]'s [Corner Collapse], and his clothes weren't even damaged at all. And more importantly, the power and authority displayed by the other party... turned out to be very similar to his own incarnation [Vashak]. That kind of absolute control over time and space made Xia Xiu have to re-examine it.
Xia Xiu pondered for a moment, his eyes flashed with golden light, and his voice was low but calm as he responded in Terran language:
"Hello."
At the same time, in his neural network, [Adam] quickly started corpus parsing.
Along with the complex data flow, the system completed the analysis of the language used by the other party in a very short time and matched it with Xia Xiu's corpus.
The result came into his mind, and Xia Xiu's heart moved. The unfamiliar words were translated as:
"Peace be with you."
When the old man heard the Terra language, a thoughtful look appeared on his face.
He lowered his head slightly, as if silently weighing something, and then slowly raised his finger. His fingers lightly traced the air, and the sky responded - a huge stone slab slowly appeared in front of him.
The surface of the stone slab rippled slightly like water waves, and then lines of text began to appear.
At the beginning, it was the words he just said:
【】
【Χαρε】
【Halló】
The text immediately scrolled and changed at a speed that was difficult to discern with the naked eye, and gradually evolved into the Terran language that Xia Xiu was familiar with:
【Hello】
After the Terran language [Hello] appeared on the stone slab, the old man's eyes flickered slightly, as if he was thinking deeply about something.
After a moment of silence, he raised his head and spoke slowly. This time, his voice was low and old, with obvious hesitation and unskilledness:
"Welcome to Ode Papadopolis, the City of the First Father..."
His eyes were fixed on Xia Xiu, as if he was trying to confirm something. The words paused for a moment, and the old man seemed to be trying to organize the words and think about expressing them in a more appropriate way.
There was a touch of ancient majesty and unconcealable temptation in his eyes, as if he was weighing the weight of the person in front of him.
Finally, he continued:
"The owners of the Original Book, the guardians of the Gate of Heaven..."
The solemnity in his tone made Xia Xiu's eyes narrow slightly.
The old man's eyes slowly moved and fell on [Metatron]. There was a trace of complex emotions in those eyes that had been eroded by time, like emotion and reminiscence.
After a few seconds, he bowed slightly, and there was some ancient respect in his deep voice:
"Hello Apollo of the new generation of humans, nice to see you."