Chapter 816 And Then, Death

As the fleet sailed further north, the surrounding temperature became colder, as if "cold" had become a certain "attribute" of the entire sea ahead. No matter how strong the fire was or how many warm clothes were worn, they could only slightly delay the invasion of the cold, but could not really bring warmth to people.

In such a cold and endless night, the ships of the Deep Sea Church delivered the last batch of documents to the Church Ark of the Firebringer - they came from the night, docked beside the Firebringer Ark for several hours, and then returned to the depths of the night.

Standing on the tall tower of the Church Ark, Frame looked at the gradually blurring silhouettes on the distant sea, and the distant whistle was still echoing in the night sky, and finally melted into the wind.

"This may be the last time we see other people from the civilized world," the tall Senjin Pope turned his head and said to the priestess standing beside him, "After this, the temple will stay in the north - the Ark is the archive, and the archive is the Ark."

"We are all ready for this," the priestess said calmly, "We will stop in the eternal ice and watch the last cluster of fire after the night until the end of this long night... It is an honor to follow you here, Your Majesty."

Frem was silent for a moment and said softly: "Yes, I am honored too."

At the end of his vision, far ahead of the Ark fleet, a vague white silhouette was quietly appearing on the sea.

That is the frozen sea area in the extreme north of the Frigid Sea, the coldest place in the world, where everything is frozen and reaches eternity in the ice - that is the destination of the Firebearer.

At the same time, in the Frost City, Tirion was standing on the high balcony of the Government Hall, quietly watching the countless lights and rows of roofs in the distant blocks.

The fragment of the sun has left the city-state. Many days ago, the tugboat took the huge luminous geometric body to a place where it was more needed. Now the whole city is lit up by artificial lights. The bright street lights and the lights of thousands of households converge into a river in the night, outlining every outline of the city and continuing the order and tranquility of the civilized world.

People seem to have gradually adapted to this long night.

The new time curfew system is implemented smoothly. After the initial tension and chaos, the factories and markets have now resumed orderly operation. Residents have reduced the number of times they leave home, but within the allowed time, everyone is still trying to maintain their daily lives as much as possible. There have been several times when rats in the gutter launched sabotage activities against the city, but they were subdued by the guards and the sheriff's forces in an instant.

Now, the "Sunshine Fleet" dragging the fragments of the sun is cruising on the vast sea between the city-states. The huge fleet of cargo ships accompanying the Sunshine Fleet travels back and forth in the night, and has restored 60% to 70% of the bulk logistics transportation between the city-states. The periodic arrival of "sunshine" has also greatly reduced the pressure on various cities when facing the night. Although the distortion and mutation events are increasing everywhere, at least the guardians now have a chance to breathe again-

They are facing more severe challenges than before, but at least it is no longer desperate and endless darkness.

Sometimes, Tirian even feels that all this can continue for a long time-a new balance has been established, and civilization has shown amazing adaptability in this long night. People are now accustomed to this long night, the city-state union, the periodic curfew system, the new night watch order, the cruising sunshine... These things seem to be enough to keep the whole world going like this, even if it is not eternal, it can last for a long, long time.

But every time he thinks of this, he will soon wake up suddenly and realize that all this is just an illusion brought to him by a short period of peace, or even an illusion brought to him by this night.

This world is sliding towards the end, and the speed of sliding is even faster than everyone imagines.

Because he knew the "corruption" of the gods, the slow and unstoppable collapse that was happening in the foundation of the world, and because of his father's influence, he knew a lot of things.

But... what would other people think? The governors of other city-states, the administrators of the church, the guards and sheriffs, and the ordinary people living in the city... Would they also have the illusion of peace and accidentally sink into the illusory peace?

"...Maybe it's not a bad thing." Tirian whispered to himself.

Aiden's voice came from the side: "Ah? What's not a bad thing?"

"Nothing, just talking to myself," Tirian retracted his gaze from the lights of the distant block, turned his head and glanced at Aiden's shining bald head, "Where were we just talking?"

"Regarding the production adjustment of several factories in the lower city," Aiden was stunned for a moment, and quickly reacted and continued, "The Coordination Committee believes that there is a slight shortage of oil production capacity now. Although it is not a big problem at present, the gap will become serious over time..."

"I know, I have read the report at noon today and told the Coordination Committee that the City Hall will give a reply before tomorrow morning," Tirian waved his hand, "Anything else?"

"Uh..." Aiden hesitated for a moment, and said with a slightly hesitant tone, "In addition, the Great Furnace reported a somewhat...strange thing."

"Some strange thing?" Tirian frowned slightly dissatisfied, "Don't be so hesitant, how can you report like this?"

Aiden quickly coughed twice, adjusted his posture and expression, and said, "One department reported that they have not had any homework assignments for a while. The person in charge of the department felt that... something was a little strange."

Tirian's brows furrowed even more. He suddenly felt a little uneasy and felt that some information was slipping away from his mind: "...There is a department? What does 'there is a department' mean? What department is it?" "

"I don't know. The contents of the report are a bit confusing. It was sent to my office, but I couldn't find out who sent it. Many of the words on it are unclear..."

Aiden explained. The more he explained, the more confused his expression became. His voice slowed down little by little. In the end, it was like a jammed machine doll, squeezing out almost every word: "...just... Remember... they are... responsible for... burning..."

Aiden stopped and stood there quietly, looking at Tirian with a somewhat blank expression.

After another two or three seconds, he trembled visibly as if he suddenly woke up, and then said with a normal and smooth expression: "...the production capacity of the Boiling Gold Mine has returned to the level before 'nightfall', and now The excess ore is being shipped and will be delivered on order the next time the Sunshine Fleet transits..."

Tirian seemed not to be listening to the reports about the boiling gold mine at all. The moment Aiden spoke again, he stared at him, his eyes even a little scary, so that Aiden hesitated mid-sentence. He stopped and looked uneasy in the face of the heavy and inexplicable pressure: "Um...what's wrong with what I said?"

"Aiden," Tirian was still staring at the subordinate who had followed him for a century, and his tone was particularly solemn, "Do you still remember what you were reporting just now?"

Aiden was startled and looked at Tirian cautiously: "Um... the production capacity of the Boiling Gold Mine, the production adjustments of several factories in Xiacheng District, the early warning of insufficient oil from the Coordinating Committee? Earlier we were talking about the Firebringer The matter of the fleet heading north..."

He paused hesitantly, because Tirian's expression was obviously even worse.

"The Melting Pot," Tirian said with a solemn expression, "Do you still remember the report sent to you by a department in the Melting Pot?"

Aiden's eyes were blank: "...what report?"

Tirian did not speak. He just raised his head and looked at the edge of the upper city, in the direction of... a certain cemetery.

A swirling wind passed through the night, swept through the streets, and blew into the depths of the cemetery. The wind carried gray smoke and dust, and the appearance of Agatha was condensed from the smoke.

Today she changed out of the long black dress that represented the bishop, and put on the light armor and combat coat she wore when she was a gatekeeper. The wounds on her cheeks and arms that were open like broken dolls were dancing with faint sounds. She hurried here from the Cathedral of Death in the upper city under the green light of the fire. But as soon as she entered the cemetery, what the anxious Death Priest saw was a scene she did not expect.

The tall, bandaged cemetery guard "Duncan" was standing on the path next to the morgue, helping a trembling figure climb out of a nearby coffin. The figure was obviously a corpse not long ago. Corpse - his neck was bent at a weird angle, and his head was drooped on one shoulder. He climbed down the platform stiffly and slowly, and his joints made disturbing clicking sounds from time to time.

The tall and burly gravekeeper "Duncan" who looked gloomy and scary helped the corpse climb off the platform, and warned in a very calm tone: "...Yes, some headaches are normal, maybe it will be fine if you go back...My neck hurts Fix it, insert a wooden stand or a fire tong. Just keep it in a good mood and treat it as if you went out and drank too much and got lost for a night. Your family will not complain - they will welcome you back calmly, anyway, people like you won't. few."

While talking, the sound of the coffin lid being opened was heard from another mortuary platform nearby. A white-haired old man sat up from inside and looked around blankly: "Why am I sleeping here? I feel chest tightness... …”

"Wait a minute, I'll help you down," Duncan immediately walked over there, "Don't come down by yourself, your broken leg may not heal... Breathing and chest tightness are normal, you've been holding it in for a long time... ...Yes, keep breathing, take a deep breath——"

Duncan stopped suddenly, turned his head, and looked at the gatekeeper lady who was standing on the path a little blankly.

"Oh, you're here." He greeted calmly.

"...Mr. Duncan," Agatha looked at this scene dumbfounded, "what are you doing?"

"It seems that your cognition has not been completely corrected," Duncan said calmly, and then turned back to his "work", "As you can see, I am sending my temporary 'guests' back. "