Falling into the Abyss

"Hey, what are you sneaking around here for?" Suddenly a hand patted his back, and Ethan almost jumped up. When he turned around, he saw that it was Jin Jijun who was working with him in the pipeline maintenance department. His aged face looked cloudy and uncertain in the light of the spotlights, and looked like a ghost at first sight.

Ethan's thoughts turned in his mind, and he pointed to the crowd on the embankment who had begun to sing hymns in unison, "I heard that there is a sermon here, and I want to come and listen to it."

Jin Jijun's expression was unpredictable, and he didn't know whether he believed what he said, "Then why don't you go there?"

"...I want to hear it first."

Jin Jijun grinned suddenly, grabbed his shoulders, and pushed him out, "Blame me, I forgot to tell you about this party. I originally thought that a classy person like you should not like it." us."

Ethan was speechless, being called a "gentleman" was not a good thing in the Forbidden City.

"Mentor, we're going to have a new member!" Kim Ki-joon shouted loudly.

Chen Zeng's eyes immediately fell on Ethan, with a sincere and delighted smile on his face, "It's you, long time no see!"

Probably it was rare to see a mentor greet people so familiarly, some non-humans showed expressions of surprise, and their eyes gathered on Ethan.Ethan felt a certain pressure of distrust, so he could only smile a little cautiously, "Yeah, long time no see."

Chen Zeng jumped off the big boulder that preached, strode up to Ethan, and patted Ethan on the shoulder with the attitude of an elder, "We were able to escape from the red earth thanks to you last time. Time to thank you. How is Samuel?"

Ethan remembered that he didn't have much interaction with the cult leader last time on the red earth, and now he was suddenly so friendly that he was a little at a loss.He had no choice but to reply politely, "He's fine, thank you for your concern."

Chen Zeng patted him on the back suddenly, and turned to all the inhumans in front of him, "This Ethan Eldridge is one of the seven people who met the Great Evil God with me. It is impossible to face you He once voluntarily sacrificed himself when he was imagining the powerful evil, but his kindness and strong belief made another miracle happen to him, and successfully pushed back the great evil god temporarily, giving us a chance to escape. Such courage and belief , is what each of us should learn!"

Ethan was in a daze as he listened to the applause from the non-people, and even started to applaud.Right now, he feels like he accidentally stepped into the mud with one foot, trying to pull it out but being unable to pull it out, but at this time, he has no choice but to endure it, praying that this kind of party will end quickly.

"And I heard Jiawen say that the five-point mission you participated in recently was related to parallel universes? Why don't you tell us about the experiment process?"

Whenever the second universe is mentioned, Ethan will feel a shudder from the bottom of his heart.At this moment, facing a pair of suppressed fanatic gazes, he suddenly returned to the moment when he was standing in the sky that was gradually falling apart, and was inexplicably hated by all non-human beings.Cold sweat broke out in his palms, he hesitated for a moment, and finally described how the space station was gradually infected by the second law of the universe in a very concise description, skipping the fact that he was thrown out by other non-humans and Tanithel that paragraph.Those non-human beings showed shocked expressions during his narration, and exclamations one after another were endless.

After finally surviving the so-called "Benefactor's Meeting" gathering, Ethan left early on the pretext of feeling unwell.He walked alone along the dark and winding waterway, feeling more and more dry and itchy from the back of his neck to the junction of shoulder and neck.He reached out to touch it, but he felt a few bumps, like moss.He sighed irritably, thinking that he had never grown this kind of thing before, maybe he was infected with some kind of bacteria in this dirty sewer, right?

After climbing out of the sewer, he went to the building to return the tools. He originally planned to queue up at the clinic after the work to see what happened to the skin on the back of his neck.But the registered guard told him to report to the guard hall of the East District. It is said that someone from the Forbidden City Committee came to see him.Although the name of this committee contains the word Forbidden City, its members are like gods to non-human beings—only their names are heard, but their people are not seen.The work and rest time and relevant regulations in the Forbidden City are all formulated by them, and the score value of each atonement task and even the non-human number that can be added to the task are also determined by them.

Such a person suddenly asked to see him by name, which was naturally suspicious.

Ethan nervously came to the guard hall, the tallest and solemn rectangular building in the entire Forbidden City. After a series of careful interrogations, he was even taken to a small room and asked to strip naked for a scan before he was allowed to enter.Ethan was probably used to it, now even if he took off his clothes and stood under the mocking eyes of the guards, he would blush a little at most, and he didn't feel so ashamed.He was brought to two very old oak gates. The guard who led the way knocked on the door and said in a very respectful voice, "Eldridge has been brought."

A very majestic voice came from behind the door, "Come in."

Although the hall behind the door is exquisitely decorated, the furnishings are simple, and it seems that it is not often used by people.On the wall in the middle, there is a portrait of President Ibia as usual, but this is a real oil painting, not a digital oil painting projected on the wall.Beneath the huge oil painting was a long black wooden desk flanked by several armchairs, each with a person sitting on it.

Ethan saw Tanithel sitting on the right side of the job at a glance, and he felt that his heart missed half a beat.

Although there was not much expression on his face, it seemed that countless bubbles suddenly piled up in his mind, which seemed blurred and distorted.All his attention was instantly attracted to the priest, and he didn't notice that the chief of the guard, Schneider, and Gray Mao were also sitting on one or two chairs at the end.

At this time, the Alpha who was about seven or eighty years old sitting behind the desk lightly tapped on the desk with his knuckles.He has thinning white hair and clean-shaven cheeks. Although his face is wrinkled, there is a lot of deterrence and awe in his blue eyes. It can be seen that he is a "not to be trifled with". Role.

He stared at Ethan with alienated and cold eyes, and said slowly, "I am Charlie Hopkins, the chairman of the Forbidden City Committee."

Ethan nodded, lowering his eyes in order to show humility and obedience, "Mr. Hopkins."

His attitude seemed to please Hopkins very much. Although his thin lips were still tightly pressed, his body was already leaning back on the soft and wide chair back, playing with a pen in his hand, "I called you today, is it There is a long-term task for you. I think Priest Tanithel has mentioned some to you, and judging from your previous identity and the crimes you carry, you probably know more than me .” He paused slightly, and saw a bit of understanding on Ethan’s face before continuing, “Project Zero has now lowered its confidentiality level, and is jointly responsible by the Energy Bureau and Eve Ambassador Tanithel Priest. The priest declared that he needs your assistance. From now on, you will go to Mars for a few days every month to assist him in the necessary research work. Do you have any objection to this point?"

Ethan's heart was pounding in his chest, and the speed of shaking his head was a little too crisp, "No."

"Very good." Hopkins unscrewed the cap of the pen, and wrote something on a rare piece of white paper without looking up, "But before that, we want to inquire in detail about your situation before entering the Forbidden City. Especially It's the relationship between you and Roland Goering."

Suddenly hearing the name that only appeared in nightmares, Ethan froze and raised his confused eyes, "Why do you ask this?"

"Because according to your information and records of the increase and decrease of your moral value, before you met that person, you had always been an excellent assistant secretary who was self-contained and thoughtful, and your colleagues and your superiors spoke very well of you. But After this person appeared, you seemed to have abandoned all your previous values ​​and morals, and began to have impulsive behaviors such as driving a spaceship drunk, running a red light, quarreling or even fighting with others in public, which were very inconsistent with your previous behavioral characteristics. Until you finally betrayed The country. We don’t believe in traitors, but the priests of Tanithel must want you, so what we can do is to ensure that you will not have the opportunity to make the same mistake.”

"The same mistake...ha..." Ethan's trembling and cautious expression gradually faded away, "I'm not even considered a human being now, how can I have a chance to betray the country again?"

"That's not what I care about. I just need a complete record of the interaction between you and that Roland agent." Hopkins took out an information capsule, turned on the recording device, and tapped his finger on the table again , "Then, let's start talking."

Ethan hesitated.

He didn't want to talk about those memories.He just wanted to bury the past year in his subconscious and never recall it again.He shook his head, "If I don't say it, I have to quit this mission, right?"

But Hopkins smiled sarcastically, and said slowly, "Eldridge, this is not something you can choose. All we need is the blood of Tianzhengxing. If you don't cooperate, you are struggling on the verge of life and death." His mother is also a good choice."

Ethan's eyes widened suddenly, and he couldn't believe that the other party threatened him with his parents, "What do you mean? She is not inhuman!"

"Not really, but if she heard that a little blood could get you ten points, do you think she would do it?"

Ethan's lips were trembling, and his eyes glanced at Tanithel.The green eyes made Tanisel a little distracted, and it was unclear whether he was begging him to help talk.

But Tanithel still maintained a half-smile, and said nothing.

It was the expected reaction, but there was still an inexplicable grievance in his heart.Ethan bit his inner lip hard, and tasted a bloody taste on the tip of his tongue.He clenched his fists and shook his head.

Just think of it as telling a story, telling a story that has nothing to do with yourself.

"The first time I met him was to replace the director who was unable to attend that day because he was summoned by the State Council to receive several cooperative researchers in the energy field from the Third Reich. Roland Goering was one of them. I have until now I don't even know his real name..." Ethan said, sneering bitterly, as if mocking himself, "I showed them around the building of the Energy Bureau, and then accompanied them to the apartment prepared for them. When I When I said goodbye to them after completing the day's tasks, Roland asked me if I wanted to go out with him for a drink."

Only Ethan himself knew how brief and pale the language he used was.

He still clearly remembers the surprise he couldn't hide when he saw Roland for the first time.He froze for a full five seconds, and the other researchers felt a little embarrassed.

It's not once or twice that Ethan received foreign guests instead of the chief, and this was the first time he lost his composure.That man perfectly fits all the characteristics of the perfect man in Ethan's imagination, a tall and straight Alpha with an elegant and steady gait, thick and smooth black hair, a handsome face with a hint of unruly, and a pair of Violet eyes that emit electricity.

That man's voice is perfect, like a subwoofer that can directly hit people's hearts. In the words of many Omega, it is a voice that will make your ears pregnant after listening to it for a long time.

At the end of that day, Ethan seemed a little nervous in his explanations, and occasionally stuttered, which made him laugh out of embarrassment.However, Roland never made any mockery, he just followed him all the time, listening to him intently, staring at him with those piercing blue eyes.Ethan is not a young girl who has no love experience. Although he has never dated Alpha, he has never been so at a loss in his two relationships with Omega and Beta. He is just like a teenager who suddenly meets the lover of his dreams.

So it is conceivable that when he was about to leave, Roland reached out to stop him and invited him to go out at night, how excited his heart was, it was like thousands of colorful fountains bursting into the sky at the same time with the melodious music .He maintained his calm and self-possessed face, and agreed.

Looking back now, Roland probably had already planned it when he saw the amazement and fascination in his eyes that were ridiculously straightforward when they met for the first time.He will weave a beautiful web for Ethan that he can't refuse, that will make him willing to abandon everything he has held on to.