The City of Watchfulness.
An ancient city unknown to most people, the former headquarters of the Watchers.
This ancient city with a history of over a thousand years is not hidden deep in a remote forest, nor is it located in some unexplored forbidden zone at the bottom of the sea.
It also has another name.
Castle in the Sky.
The Watcher City, floating high in the sky, is the oldest and most mysterious floating city in human history.
It is mysterious because of its existence; no one knows how such a miraculous city could have risen in that era.
However, being ancient does not mean being powerful. Over the course of thousands of years of technological advancements, the Watchtower City has long lost its former strategic value.
Now it's more of a symbolic gesture, seen as a major piece of evidence of humanity's past counterattack.
Time may pass, but glory will live on forever.
At this moment, on the top floor of the Watchful City, two figures stood by the window of the central tower.
One of them, tall and burly, was completely concealed under a black cloak. He bowed respectfully and whispered a report to the other:
"...Your Excellency, the [Observed One] project is proceeding smoothly."
His voice was old, but it sounded strong and showed no signs of fatigue.
"All the observed subjects have passed the seventh observation and have entered a short rest period. There will be no further corresponding progress in the short term."
"After such a long period of monitoring, the scope has been narrowed again, and the number of people being observed has been reduced from nineteen to fifteen. The relevant information has been handed over to the countermeasures office for analysis."
The other person stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, remaining silent until now, when they seemed to snap out of their reverie, nodded, and softly asked:
"Any noteworthy little ones this time?"
He didn't put on any airs with his hands behind his back, but his every move directly affected the atmosphere in the room.
"Yes, numbers 3, 6, 17, and 99 remain stable, while numbers 2 and 9 stand out the most in this observation."
"The bus carrying No. 2 lost control and plunged off a cliff. Of the 92 people on board, including the staff, only No. 2 survived."
"Number Nine, on the other hand, was placed under special observation for the first time. He successfully prevented a blood sacrifice when he was isolated and helpless."
The stargazer raised an eyebrow, hidden beneath his hood, somewhat surprised:
"Hmm? Is the situation unusual?"
Compared to Number Two, who survived the bus crash alone, Number Nine's story sounds a little... mundane?
The tall, elderly man was not surprised by this and explained:
"Yes, Your Excellency. Number Nine's situation is a bit special. He is not a member of any other organization, but a reserve agent in the command sequence."
"His observation this time was not arranged by us, but was an unexpected event. There happened to be a group of cultists performing a blood sacrifice at the location of the probation assessment."
"Unable to contact the outside world, the strength and number of cult members are unknown, and the blood sacrifice can begin at any time."
"Faced with such a difficult situation, he did not choose to evacuate after discovering clues about the blood sacrifice. Instead, he left behind guidance and a will and continued his investigation."
"He succeeded."
"Number Nine was not an Awakened One, yet he killed all the cultists hiding in the shadows, including a first-tier succubus."
Even the elderly couldn't help but admire him when they first heard the report, not because of Number Nine's performance, but because of the choice he made at that time.
It's easier said than done; there are still too few people who can truly put the concept of sacrifice into practice.
However, the stargazer didn't pay much attention to his explanation. He nodded thoughtfully and looked at the sea of clouds again, as if there was some secret hidden inside.
"...In addition, we discovered that the altar left by the cultists seemed to have been modified, pointing to a completely new name, and we could not figure out which incarnation it was."
After a pause, the old man looked at the figure in front of him who was looking down at the sea of clouds, but hesitated to speak.
The stargazer, concealed within his flowing robes, did not turn around. His light-colored eyes remained fixed on the ever-changing sea of clouds as he spoke softly:
"Just say what the problem is."
"Sir, this isn't the first time this has happened. Don't we really need to increase our monitoring efforts? The number of people being misled has been steadily increasing over the years, and once..."
But before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by a stargazer's light laugh:
"Impossible. If gods could be awakened so easily, they would have awakened long ago, instead of waiting until now."
"Don't forget their pets. Even if some of them have betrayed their former beliefs, the rest have never given up on waking their masters."
"Thousands of years of waiting and disappointment have not broken their faith. Heh, they truly deserve to be called the most loyal dogs."
The sarcastic words that came from the stargazers finally took on a human tone.
"What if it succeeds?"
"You said 'what if,' and even if the ritual succeeds, the connection won't be with a god. It might be some bored high-ranking being. Who knows... cough cough."
Seemingly having talked too much, the stargazer suddenly coughed at the end of his speech, the violent cough sounding particularly jarring in the pin-deep room.
Even as blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, his eyes remained unwavering. He didn't wipe it away, but let it drip onto his robes.
The old man behind him looked up, but instead of offering any advice, he said:
"There's one more thing. In his suicide note, besides saying goodbye to his family, Number Nine also left a message for the Watchers."
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