Wasteland Echoer

The roar of machinery and the sparks of steam complement each other in Area A of Jiuyuan Factory. Luo Nie is holding a wrench to repair a "little guy" mechanical car.

He is one of the workers of the Tool Factory and a reserve member of the Socra army. As a city established in the wasteland, the policy of all citizens in Socra being a soldier has been implemented for almost four to five hundred years since the beginning of the New Yuan Dynasty.

No matter who they are, no matter what their status is, except for the Socra Committee group, they need to rush to the battlefield at any time to fight against the unintentional and the lost.

Of course, the poor who are struggling at the bottom are no exception, although most of the time they are just cannon fodder.

"Luo Nie, can you do it? If not, I will do it by myself. I think back then I was the strongest repairman in the Mechanical Yuan Factory, and the fat men on the committee even knelt down and begged me. But now it's like this, and we still have to rely on Hold on to you kid."

The speaker was an uncle named Bude. He is in his fifties, lean and somewhat frail.

There is a thin, pure black scar on his face, which runs from his forehead through his brown eyeballs, like a canyon across the continent, extending straight to his chin.

He and Luo Nie beside him were wearing similar cheap linen tops and factory-issued blue-black overalls. They were covered in dark, twisted things that looked like engine oil or gasoline.

But there are no biological traces on his right hand, replaced by a steel machine that is not very flexible.

He leaned near the door of the mechanical car and observed the young man in front of him who was about sixteen or seventeen years old and looked immature.

"Master, your car is a bit complicated. Tell me, did you take it to Route 65? The unintentional people there haven't been completely eliminated yet. Your car has traces of scalding liquid everywhere. It's difficult to deal with. It’s too corrosive.”

The young man named Luo Nie stood up with a wrench, knocked on it, and said in a young and slightly feminine voice.

"I don't care. You have to repair it today, and you have to repair it if it doesn't work. Otherwise, don't get the news from me. I heard about the ruins from the guard captain. They got a piece of it in the outer area. Ruins, I heard there are ruins over there in Silent Highlands." The uncle said casually, but his eyes secretly glanced at Luo Zhen a few times, trying to observe his reaction.

Of course, this small move cannot escape the detection of Luo Nie's precise triggering of the "spiritual formation" of the magic source power.

Since the first era, the Dragon Age, when humans came into contact with the power of magic, any act of surging the power of magic through the spirit is called "spirit formation".

"Jie" means connection, "Ling" means soul, and "Jie Ling" means "the power of connection that goes deep into the soul."

Most "spiritual formations" of magic power require spells, but there are some exceptions.

Through the "spiritual formation" detection of the magic source power, Luo Nie can detect all humans, sounds, actions within fifty meters around him, and even the inner activities of specific groups of people.

But he doesn't want to use this power on humans.

"Relics?" Luo became interested, stood up and took Bude's arm and said:

"I want to know, of course I want to know. In fact, your car is not that complicated. It can be used normally after being cleaned with special chemicals. Really, I care about the ruins. Please tell me the information."

"Repair it. When the factory closes in the evening, I will go to the living area to find you." Bude ignored Luo Nie's innocent eyes and pleading tone, pulled his hand away and said.

The two of them are both teachers and friends in the Jiuyuan Factory. Moreover, under the Socra Committee's policy of attaching great importance to talents, the factory's skilled mechanical workers do have a certain degree of personal freedom.

Seeing Luo Nie's somewhat disappointed eyes, Bude had no sympathy at all.

Human beings in the wasteland have long forgotten what sympathy and pity are. Only interests are the eternal topic for all human beings.

Luo Nie continued to squat down and use the medicine to wash away the burning liquid, while Bude took out a cigarette made of a mixture of rolled flower petals and other materials from his jacket pocket with his left hand, slowly lit it with a match, and smelled it.

"Luo Nie, do you know? In order to find the way to the highlands, I followed a few old friends to escape from the surveillance of the security team. If they weren't a bunch of people who are greedy for life and afraid of death, I wouldn't be able to help you. Got the information. There are burning liquid everywhere on that road now, and there are also broken arms, legs and so on. Oh, by the way, there are some black plants growing there now. If you go there and take risks, you can Be careful."

After saying that, he walked towards A's door without looking back, leaving Luo Nie covered in sweat.

The working system of Jiuyuan Factory is based on eight hours. This is stipulated in the "Work Act" passed by the Socra Committee. This is generally used as a guideline in industrial areas related to the committee, but they have no control over how it is implemented in other areas. arrive.

After sending away the proud "scholar" Peter, who was surrounded by people on both sides, the dome above the Sogra Industrial Zone slowly closed with the sound of huge gears.

Dark and dim tones once again occupy every corner of the industrial area, as if the old gods in the night are looking down on all things and creatures. As time goes by, when the last light in the factory production area goes out, there seems to be a wild beast in the silent and silent realm, with its mouth wide open, waiting for lost humans to fall into its trap.

After finishing the repairs, Luo Nie returned to the quiet factory dormitory. Due to the night curfew system in Sogra city, as long as darkness falls, except for the patrolling and vigilant troops, no sound can be heard at all.

After putting on clean and tidy clothes, Luo Nie dragged his slightly tired body towards the work area deep in his room.

There were piles of all kinds of unknown machinery, as well as many parts that had been "smoothly" taken from the factory. The room was barely brightened by a few dimly lit kerosene lamps, but there was always a lingering sense of depression.

Pushing the door open, Luo Nie walked to the drawing table among a pile of debris, skillfully opened one of the drawers and took out a pencil.

He patted his chest slightly with his hand and murmured "Start, confirm." in the language of the Zine Empire. The two words began to form a link.

Immediately afterwards, a faint blue light emitted from his chest, and a mechanical arm stretched out with a map.

He seemed to have been used to this for a long time. After taking the map away and spreading it on the table, the light and the mechanical arm scattered into spots and suddenly disappeared, as if they had never appeared.

Then, he picked up the pencil and added on the map based on his previous memory and the information he learned from Uncle Bude.

"Route 65 is 65% open, and there are humans stationed in the Silent Highlands. The ruins in the outer area can be marked as No. 1, which needs to be unlocked. The ruins in the highlands can be marked as No. 2, and the degree of danger is unknown. The pollution level of Sogra city is C, no pollution. Blood Night Ritual, 55 days later. Determination of danger level, currently unavailable.”

After Luo Nie mechanically added this information, he placed the pencil in the folded map, stood up slowly, and walked towards the floor in the room where there was no debris.

He sat down cross-legged skillfully, his hands glowed slightly with light green, and the magical power - the magic source power - began to surge throughout his body.

Immediately afterwards, he took out a badge engraved with mechanical gears and a screw stained with dirt from his pocket, held them in his hands, and said in the ancient language "Jie Ling":

"I pray for God's permission."

"I ask for permission from the Master of Machinery."

"I need mysterious and extraordinary power."

"I want to search for ancient relics."

"Please accept me."

"Please allow me."

“Discourage God’s realm.”

The moment Luo Nie finished reciting the spell, the badge and screws in his hands turned like a frightened mouse.

Less than a second later, a pure white fog surged around him.

Then he heard the faint sound of wind and the sound of water dripping far and near.

When he opened his eyes again, the scenery in front of him had switched to a lush territory.

The thick gray fog slowly receded as Luo Nie stood up. The crisp green scenery around him and the somewhat blurry sun above his head allowed him to "liberate" himself from the oppressive black environment.

Winding along the hard rock path in my memory, after a while, a cliff appeared in front of Luo Nie.

He looked in both directions, the cliff seemed to be a clear boundary dividing the world. On one side are trees and grasslands with a green tone, and on the other side are nothingness and stars with a dark red tone.

After waiting on the edge of the cliff for a while, Luo Nie saw a girl stepping on the dark stars, slowly walking towards him.

"Are you here again, brother Luonie?" The girl greeted Luonie in an ethereal and cute voice.

She is dressed in the costume of a goddess from the mythology of the ancient central empire, wearing a white gauze scarf embroidered with "wolf heads and snakes" patterns.

Her hands were covered with silver-white chains, and her fair skin emerged from the unshielded area. If she were a normal man, he would probably arouse the animal's protective desire from within.

But there was no fluctuation in Luo Nie's heart, as if the girl in front of him was just an object. He just moved his vision slightly, squirmed his Adam's apple and said softly: "Yes."

"Do you miss me? It's not easy for my brother to survive in the wasteland, right?" The girl greeted Luo Nie in a childish tone, looking very cute and attractive.

"Of course I miss you. However, since I followed the mysterious guidance, I must continue to explore in the wasteland. I want to explore a real god, and now, I have some information about him." Luo Nie replied.

"Oh, message?" the girl asked.

"Yes, message. I can already try to spy on their existence. It only takes one step until I have the intelligent sequence core belonging to human beings. The legend of the third era clearly stated that with seven sequence cores, whether human or mechanical , or any species in the world can become a demigod and then a god. I feel that I am close. As long as I get His guidance, I can become a real human being." Luo Nie replied with some excitement.

His hands were clenched, but his sapphire eyes showed a determined look.

"Sequence 7: Wisdom, Sequence 6: Inspiration, Sequence: 5 Pain, Sequence: 4 Hope, Sequence 3: Fighting; Sequence 2: Abandonment, Sequence 1: Confusion. My brother has to endure the seven attacks of the Creator. It takes a test to become a demigod. This is a long process, and human life will definitely not reach this level." The girl said, then, as if she remembered something, she stretched out an index finger and pointed at the sky and added :

"By the way, brother, you do not belong to human beings, you are a product of the Lord of Machinery. He accidentally created you in a dream, and you lack the wisdom unique to human beings. Human beings, human beings, they have had it from the beginning Unique power. They have been Level 7 existences since birth, and those who have been exposed to mysterious extraordinary power are even more powerful. They can even reach Level 3 and 4 existences."

"You are right," Luo Nie nodded and affirmed:

"Extraordinary people among humans and the lost ones who are not human will experience pain after gaining inspiration, but after the pain, hope will come. Then they will fight the enemy, advance to the existence of Order 3, and know how to Those who give up will be recognized by the Creator and discover the ultimate mysterious and extraordinary power. But me," Luo Nie paused, covering his chest with his right hand and said:

"I have been wandering in the human world for a century, and have been exposed to low and noble humans, dark and light beings, decayed and fresh things, and all the emotions and souls belonging to humans. Now that I can come again through the power of the spirit Getting here is enough to prove that I have wisdom. Otherwise, I will completely lose consciousness and become a monster like those careless people."

"No, it's not enough, brother. You still lack one thing, and he deserves to be engraved in the deepest part of your memory." The girl shook her head, turned to look at the crimson stars and said.

"What?" Luo Nie asked curiously.

"Sorrow."