He glanced at the pile of wreckage that no longer posed a threat, then at the passage ahead leading to the "X-7" area. The crisis was temporarily resolved, but at a huge cost.
He didn't dare to stop. He stood up with the help of his sword, dragged his tired and painful body, and limped towards the depths of the target area.
Passing through rows of silent steel cabinets like tombstones, the faint beams of emergency lights flickered in the darkness. The air grew colder, and the oppressive feeling of high-dimensional pollution grew stronger. The tactical armor's built-in systems continuously emitted low-pitched fault alarms.
Finally, he arrived at the location indicated by the coordinates - the core of the "X-7" area.
This seemed to be a separate control unit. Unlike the other areas filled with cabinets, it was relatively empty. In the center was a semicircular control console, covered in thick dust. Behind it stood a massive screen wall composed of countless hexagonal crystal units. Most of the screen wall was dim and riddled with spiderweb-like cracks. Only a small area in the very center flickered with an intermittent, faint blue light, like a candle in the wind.
And beneath that flickering blue light, in front of the console, on a dusty alloy seat—
There sat a figure.
A figure wearing a faded and worn scientific research uniform from an old era.
He leaned forward slightly, one hand drooping limply on the console, the other pressed tightly against his chest. His head drooped, his graying hair thick with dust. It was as if he had simply slept here for a long, long time, so long that he had completely merged with the ruins.
But Lin Mo's gaze was fixed on the figure's chest!
Beneath the palm pressing tightly against his chest, in the cracks of his worn uniform, a faint, yet incredibly familiar, faint blue light pulsed tenaciously with the rhythm of life! The shape, the frequency... were exactly the same as the light that had flashed on his chest when he had exploded in front of Shen Qingli before!
Same origin!
An indescribable electric current instantly ran through Lin Mo's body! The huge shock and absurdity almost suffocated him!
He walked step by step, as if sleepwalking, towards the silent figure. His footsteps left clear marks on the thick dust. The beam of the emergency light trembled, illuminating the lowered face.
It was a face weathered and deeply wrinkled. Even though it was covered in thick dust, even though it had lost all color of life, Lin Mo could still recognize the familiar outline, the high nose bridge, the tightly pursed corners of his mouth... This face, which he had only glimpsed briefly in a grainy photo in the base's top-secret archives, but had long been engraved in the deepest part of his soul!
Lin Zhenyuan!
His...father?!
"No... Impossible..." Lin Mo's voice was as dry as sandpaper, his body shaking uncontrollably. The immense impact made it nearly impossible for him to grip the sword. His father...his father, missing for over twenty years...was actually sitting here? Died in the heart of this abandoned relay station? And...his chest...had that damned "same origin" spot of light too?!
Just then!
Buzz——!!!
Behind the control console, a faint blue light flickered in the center of the massive screen wall, suddenly illuminating like a last ray of light! It instantly dispelled the surrounding darkness! A soft yet incredibly clear holographic projection composed of faint blue light condensed and took shape above the control console!
The figure that appeared in the projection was none other than Lin Mo's father, Lin Zhenyuan! However, he looked much younger, with sharp yet weary eyes. He wore a neat scientific research uniform, and the background appeared to be some highly modern laboratory.
"If you can activate this image and see my... remains," Lin Zhenyuan spoke in the holographic image. His voice was filled with the hum of electricity, but it reached Lin Mo's ears with incredible clarity, carrying a heaviness that spanned a long time and... a deep regret. "Then, you must be my child. Or... the one who inherited the 'spark' I left behind."
Lin Mo was struck by lightning! He stared at the familiar yet unfamiliar face!
"Time is running out, child. Listen to me." Lin Zhenyuan in the video spoke faster, his expression serious. "'Prometheus's Fire' is not just a simple technological project. It touches the essence of life, touching... a higher dimensional form of existence. We are trying to create a 'perfect life template' that can adapt to ruins and guide new life - an ultimate form that combines the toughness of flesh and blood, mechanical strength, and... the ability to perceive and adapt information beyond dimensions. We call it... 'Spark'."
"Spark?" Lin Mo muttered to himself, his heart pounding.
"But the price of taboos is enormous." Lin Zhenyuan's image revealed a pained expression. "Our research... has awakened the 'Observers,' or... 'Reapers,' who slumber in the cracks of dimensions. They see the 'Spark' as a threat, a 'variable' that could break the rules they set. They launched an attack... Operation codenamed 'Echoes of the Abyss'... is a complete trap!"
"Your mother... Su Yingxue... and I carried the original and most core prototype of the 'Spark'..." Lin Zhenyuan's gaze seemed to penetrate time and space as he looked at Lin Mo. "We failed. The base was destroyed and the passage was cut off. To preserve the last hope, and to prevent the 'Spark' from falling into the hands of the 'Reaper'... I used myself as the final barrier, forcibly closing the passage to the core of the relay station and implanting the core of the 'Spark'... into your body! Child... the mark on your chest... is the 'Spark'! It originated from my life code and is the purest life flame of the 'Prometheus Fire'!"
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