Other Shore

Leaving 020's containment cell.

Zero removed all his electronic devices and went to the deepest part of the containment area. He took out his access card and opened the door.

Then he placed the access card outside.

Entering the containment cell, it was pitch black. There were no lights, no electronic devices, and the signal was completely blocked.

Zero's clone looked toward the darkness. "020, Computer. He asked me to take care of you. Any objections?"

A pair of eyes lit up in the darkness. A casual laugh echoed.

"Ha ha ha ha ha, ha ha ha ha ha, take care of me?"

"Then why didn't you come and see me yourself? Why send a clone to see me? Are you that afraid of me?"

"To tell the truth, I think you're quite interesting and smart. But have you heard the saying, too smart for your own good?"

"But, some things are better left unsaid."

"You want to find the rest of the Chaos Insurgency members. I can help you, no compensation, but are you willing to listen, Zero?"

Zero took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth. "Tell me."

The person in the darkness smirked and began a long explanation.

Time slowly passed. The number of cigarette butts under Zero's feet grew.

Until, a certain time, Zero's watch rang.

"It's time."

The person in the darkness raised his head. "012 is really obedient. I'll give you one piece of advice."

"Zero, the war never ends."

"It doesn't end now, and it won't end in the future."

"Since humans were civilized, they've never stopped killing. War and revenge have been with humanity since we were still savages."

"Even though everyone now has the appearance of a monster, we know they haven't changed. They are still human. We are still human."

"As long as we are human, we can't escape this law."

"No one can stop this war. We're already sinking in the mud. The only thing we can do is let the flames of war burn brightly or let the flames subside for a moment."

"That's all."

Zero stood up. "That moment of respite will be enough for humanity to breathe for a long time."

"Furthermore, this is not something you should care about."

Then, Zero's body instantly dissipated, transforming into a drop of blood that fell on the ground.

Seeing Zero dissipate, the person in the darkness suddenly lunged forward!

He lunged forward, but two chains pulled him back!

"Damn old man, you'd better die before I get out, otherwise, I'll make you live a miserable life!"

The chains swayed. The person in the darkness unconsciously touched his neck. "Of course, there are also my friends."

...

On the vast ocean, at night.

A strange ship, emitting a faint green glow, was sailing on the sea. It looked like a giant ghost ship.

The ghost ship constantly emitted green fog, the places it passed were illuminated like a fluorescent sea.

Countless people in black robes stood on the deck. They all had the Serpent's Hand tattoo on their arms.

"Has Adam-sama given any new orders?"

"No."

"When are we going to save the great serpent?"

"Save the great serpent?"

"Isn't that our mission?"

"It is. Saving the great serpent is our mission, and a mission is also a goal. This goal is far from achievable. If it were so easily achieved, it wouldn't be a mission."

"I'd rather call it a dream."

"A dream, you mean."

"You mean, we're not going to save the great serpent?"

"Of course, we want to save the great serpent. But the problem is, where is the Garden? Where is the great serpent? We don't know. We haven't seen it. We can't find it. How are we supposed to save it?"

Hearing this, the nearby Serpent's Hand members were stunned.

"Even so, we're not afraid of danger. We carry our faith…."

"Who said we don't have faith? Who said we're afraid of danger?"

A black-robed man walked over and casually said: "He's new. Don't tell him too much. He'll understand."

"Rescuing the great serpent is the supreme mission in each of our hearts. We are prepared to do what our ancestors have been doing for generations, to complete this mission."

"So, don't expect us to save the great serpent in our generation. Our first step is to gain a foothold in this world."

"And the first step in gaining a foothold is to collect Ancient Artifacts. As long as we possess enough Ancient Artifacts, we have capital."

"Only then can we consider how to rescue the great serpent."

Hearing this, the new Serpent's Hand member seemed to understand.

So, saving the great serpent is just a slogan, rebuilding the world is the real goal. No one has ever actually planned to save the great serpent!

It's like a collective excuse.

Everyone has a common goal, so they naturally gather together. But whether they will achieve this goal after gathering is another matter entirely.

The Serpent's Hand wasn't in an optimistic situation. They were caught between multiple forces.

The Kitsune, the vampires, the sea creatures, they all wanted to eliminate the Serpent's Hand and seize their Ancient Artifacts.

Leader Adam, to ensure the Serpent's Hand's survival, took all the Serpent's Hand officers who possessed Ancient Artifacts and drifted on the sea with the ghost ship Ancient Artifact.

On the bow of the ghost ship, Adam held a map in one hand and a compass in the other, constantly checking his position.

The map was an Ancient Artifact called the Treasure Map.

It was a Greed-type Ancient Artifact of Zaik, the King of Gold.

Its effect was to reveal all existing Ancient Artifacts within a certain range.

"Soon, it's right in front of us. An Ancient Artifact of Karen, the Golden Trident, the key to sealing the disaster."

"As long as we find the Trident, we'll have a way to force those things in the sea back into the deep, to make them go back to sleep."

Adam looked up. He saw a large island before him.

"This is the Other Shore?"

Adam returned to the cabin and spread the map on the table. Then, he picked up a goatskin book.

He flipped through the pages. It recorded various stories.

This book was also an Ancient Artifact, called the Secret of the Ocean.

It recorded the experiences of the four great pirates. The islands they encountered, the strange treasures they found, were all recorded in this goatskin book.

"Barrosa, the ruler, found the legendary Other Shore and broke the seal of the ocean, releasing those ancient, disgusting monsters."

"Hundreds of years later, one day, the explorer Karen also found the Other Shore, obtaining the key to sealing the disaster, a Golden Trident."

After a mysterious event, not only did treasures and shipwrecks appear in the sea, but many islands also appeared.

These islands appeared out of thin air. No one had ever discovered any island in these areas.

But the Serpent's Hand and other forces didn't know. They believed that the Other Shore had always existed.

As the ghost ship approached the shore, a figure underwater quickly left the ship.