Seeking Truth with a Sword-Chapter 650 - 589 Moon

Space... The vast starry sky, measured in light-years, is as desolate as humankind is insignificant within it.

Xing Hechou fell silent for a moment. "Will we meet again?"

"Possibly. Maybe one day, when I’ve completely made peace with Elemental Material, or maybe one day, when humankind marching into space reunites with me in the Milky Way."

Li Ang looked up at the night sky, as if to etch this piece of his homeland’s heavens deep into his memory. Caught up in the emotions, Xing Hechou and Thousand-miles Sealing Blade also fell silent and gazed up at the stars.

Humans are social animals. Even those hermits who live alone and contemplate life rarely completely sever ties with human civilization. They could hardly imagine, light-years away from Earth, the profound loneliness of being alone in the silent universe.

"Time is almost up." Li Ang stopped looking up and clapped his hands.

BUZZ!

The entire fleet, including the distant warships and submarines, promptly lit up and sailed toward them.

"These ships are yours now," Li Ang said.

Xing Hechou didn’t comprehend at first. "Ah?"

"After I leave, the strife on Earth will continue," Li Ang spoke calmly. "Apart from these aircraft carriers, the US Forces in Japan and the Japan Self-Defense Force were also wiped out. Whether to break through the island chain or to demilitarize Japan for international trusteeship, it all depends on your actions in the next few days."

As he spoke, Elemental Material churned and surged within each ship, repairing them to their original state. Then, Elemental Material collectively levitated and drifted over, reassembling at Li Ang’s feet.

Xing Hechou managed a bitter smile. "Such a substantial gift, I’m really at a loss for how to repay you." He understood the immense strategic value behind the ability to break the island blockade and push the fleet’s patrol range into the mid-Pacific Ocean, something beyond monetary measure.

"Take good care of my parents, and... convey my apologies." Li Ang sighed softly and stepped back, waving coolly at the two. "I’m off."

He turned around, stepped to the edge of the deck, and with a gentle hop, rose into the sky.

「Two thousand miles away in Tokyo City,」

The metal behemoth emitted a piercing, loud sound of metal warping. The entire structure, as if it could no longer bear its own weight, slowly collapsed and decomposed. This included the electronic chips on it, which also melted and broke down, returning to their most primitive state of dark threads.

At the foot of the great tree, several severely injured American military officers looked elated. They thought Li Ang’s injuries had erupted, preventing even the metal behemoth from maintaining its basic form.

Takagi and other Superpower Users grew increasingly pale. They faintly sensed that the World Tree-like metal tower was not collapsing due to Li Ang’s inability to support it or metal fatigue. Quite the opposite—it had completed its mission and was returning to its original state.

BOOM—

The metal behemoth finally melted down. All the Elemental Material contained within flowed into the indentation of the Magnetic Railgun, forming the outline of a cigar-shaped spacecraft. More Elemental Material, scattered throughout the city, came like a torrent, assembling the complex circuits, power systems, oxygen recycling systems, and other components inside the spacecraft. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Li Ang ascended the Telekinesis stairs and arrived in front of the ship. He pulled open the door and stepped inside.

The bridge was empty, with a steel throne quietly placed at the forefront. Beyond the throne, through the cabin window, one could see the city skyline where the first faint light of dawn was breaking. Unaware of the long night, birds flew over the ravaged city areas, landed on rooftop railings, and curiously peered down at the streetscape below.

It’s time to go. Li Ang sighed softly, walked through the quiet bridge, and sat on the throne that belonged to him alone.

HUM—HUM—HUM—

The Magnetic Railgun rapidly drained the city’s power, light coursing along the rails on either side, gaining speed with each passing moment. Li Ang closed his eyes, reliving every moment of his life in his mind.

WHOOSH!

With a flash of intense light from the Magnetic Railgun, the spacecraft vanished from its position. Only the streaked, layered cumulus clouds, torn open in the sky, traced the path of the ship’s departure.

BOOM.

As the spacecraft departed, the Magnetic Railgun also began to collapse and disintegrate. The Superpower Users lying on the ground were astonished to find they had regained their ability to move.

Everyone stood up, enduring the pain, looking towards the direction where the clouds had burst open, their emotions complex.

Why hadn’t he pursued us to the end? Was it sudden compassion, or simply indifference to the weak? This question loomed in the minds of the Superpower Users. Some sadly discovered that it was difficult to summon feelings of resentment in their hearts. The gap in power between them was so vast that any resentment seemed petty. It was as hard for humans to harbor resentment against a specific tsunami or typhoon as it was against him.

"...He’s gone." The Martial Artist clenched his fists, gazing blankly into the sky.

Takagi stood beside him and sighed deeply. "Yes, he’s gone."

HUM!

The dense roar of airplanes came from the southwest. The Superpower Users turned their heads to look, seeing a huge formation of planes with red markings approaching Tokyo City. They ignored the no-fly zone once designated by the US Forces in Japan over Hengtian. There were hundreds of various aircraft, including but not limited to super-heavy transport planes, fighter jets, bombers, and armed helicopters.

「————」

In satellite orbit, Li Ang gazed through the porthole at the stunningly beautiful planet below. The clouds were white and misty, the ocean deep blue and vast, and the mountains rolling and continuous. Scenes that were once mundane now became breathtaking landscapes he couldn’t tire of watching.

Li Ang gently placed his hand on the porthole. Every person he loved, every person he knew, lived out their lives on the blue planet before him. It was the birthplace of human civilization’s countless languages, cultures, ideologies, and theoretical discourses. It was home to all the philosophers, robbers, heroes, cowards, kings, beggars, mothers, fathers, politicians, and children. Every joy and sorrow, celebration and parting, dispute and contention of human life was conceived there.

The evolutionary history of life on this planet, which began with blue-green algae 3.5 billion years ago, had shaped his body. The civilizational history, founded on the total of one hundred billion humans who had ever lived, had formed his cognition.

Li Ang gazed, entranced, at the stars until the planet became distant in his vision, its colors fading.

The artificial intelligence spoke up at the appropriate moment, softly announcing:

"The oxygen recycling system is now online."

"The spin-generated artificial gravity system is now online."

"The superconducting electrical storage system is functioning well."

"The nuclear fission reactor is supplying power normally. The auxiliary fusion reactor construction is complete. It requires helium-3 and deuterium. The optimal route for the spacecraft has been plotted."

"Next destination: the Moon."

Music began to play on the bridge.

Fly me to the moon,

And let me play among the stars.

Let me see what Spring is like On Jupiter and Mars.

In other words, hold my hand.

In other words, darling, kiss me...