I will wait for you. When you get back, I want us to talk

Codex said, “District 95‌⁠⁠​​⁠​‌⁠​⁠‍‌‌⁠‌‍‍‌‌⁠‍⁠⁠ is indeed a magical place. Not only did it leave behind the allegory and symbolism of the mysterious descent from back then, but it also exposed Law’s destiny.”

An Yu’s heart tightened. “Destiny… why would destiny possess two cards?”

Codex flipped open the first one, depicting the cracked land.

“Because, this one is the destiny bestowed upon Law by It.”

As he spoke, he flipped open the second one, depicting the pale, piercing crucifix.

“And this one is the destiny Law bestowed upon himself.”

Codex paused for a moment. Looking at An Yu’s confused gaze, he smiled. “You are influenced most deeply by It. In fact, if Ling Qiu did not exist, and if Law did not exist, you would be a pure Order entity; you would possess no self. Eye and I are the same; we possess a self, but the entirety of our self originates from Cognition, and Cognition also comes from It. Among the four individuals, only Qin Zhilu, only he…” Codex murmured, “has consistently been struggling against the destiny imposed upon him by It.”

Before leaving, An Yu informed Codex about the matter of the crows, but Codex merely nodded and said nothing.

It was still Yan Xi who came to pick An Yu up to return. An Yu casually baited out a few sentences, learning that the Commander’s combat report regarding the swamp did not mention that the chaotic disruption reaction ultimately converged into a chaotic red light, and naturally did not report that the red light was assimilated by him, causing his already immeasurably high genetic entropy to skyrocket once more.

Yan Xi sighed. “The High Peak is currently in a very complex state of mind. On one hand, it is a good thing that a high-ranking Protector can terminate a Chaotic Reaction and even assimilate the chaos from a person who has already mutated. But every termination means we must lose a Protector. Exactly how many more Chaotic Reaction will this world face, and how many people do we have left to lose? Setting aside Flame himself, his departure has plunged Zhao Ran, and even the Protectors across the entire dual aberrant chain of flora and fauna, into deep sorrow. The Spire cannot withstand such a severe psychological setback many times, and neither can the Main City.”

Through the rearview mirror, he saw that An Yu remained silent, and assumed An Yu was still grieving for Zhao Ran and Flame, so he spoke in a half-joking tone: “Do you think there is a possibility to accumulate all of these minor Chaotic Reactions together, building them into a massive one, and find a way to wipe them completely clean all at once? If it were possible—”

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Yan Xi smiled comfortingly. “I know. Everyone’s nerves are stretched incredibly tight right now. It’s alright.”

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The cracked earth: Fracture and Absorption.

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The questions at the tip of An Yu’s tongue were instantly swallowed back down as he stared at Qin Zhilu’s grim expression. Even when introducing the details of the swamp battlefield, the man had never looked this severe.

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An Yu froze. “Commander Xi De’s sector? Didn’t they say two months ago that the Chaotic Reaction at the Pole was terminated before it could even begin? He, An, and Ning were only clearing out the remaining aberrant surges—”

“Up until the winter solstice, that was indeed the case.” Qin Zhilu frowned. “But the North Pole suddenly flared up again. A Chaotic Reaction has already begun, and we’ve lost contact with the polar region. The Black Tower received a fragmented distress signal today; after decoding it, we found it was sent yesterday.”

An Yu’s heart jolted. “We leave immediately.”

“We can’t—” Qin Zhilu took a deep breath. “The Ocean sector has also run into disaster. Satellite imagery shows that more than half of a Bait City has vanished, suddenly appearing on the ocean. It has frozen solid with the ocean currents, twisting into a massive vortex. Shen Yang has already decided to lead the entire marine-chain of Protectors there, but there aren’t many people left in that evolutionary branch. Shen Yang holds a relatively weak position among the higher-up officers; if it’s a Chaotic Reaction on the scale of the swamp, she won’t be able to handle it at all.”

“The swamp, the sky, the ocean…” A chill ran through An Yu’s chest, but his golden eyes grew increasingly focused and calm.

Qin Zhilu suddenly looked at him, scanning him from head to toe.

“You’ve grown very mature,” Qin Zhilu said. “In the swamp, despite a complete lack of communications, you were able to provide perfect backup for Lumen and Sleep through sheer prediction. You are already—”

Without waiting for him to finish, An Yu nodded. “Understood. We split up. I—” He paused for a fraction of a second. “I will go to the Vault. Xi De is my instructor, and An and Ning are my tactical support. I’ll go bring them back.”

Qin Zhilu nodded. “Alright.”

“But as for you, Commander.” An Yu pursed his lips, locking his gaze with those dark eyes. “Please, return early from the ocean as well.”

His voice softened as he whispered, “I will wait for you. When you get back, I want us to talk.”