Chapter 83
"I have no idea."
Han Fei spread his hands, "Theoretically, I should be the one to pull the switch, but since you won't allow it, I'll have to ask you to give it a try. If it works, it'll save me a lot of trouble."
The Pope gave Han Fei a deep look, then said, "Turn around. Don't look back or do anything unnecessary before I give you permission. I will be watching you, and I hope you won't betray their trust in you."
"Okay, I'll do as you say."
Han Fei obediently turned around and waited patiently.
The Pope was indeed a good man. He kept his eyes on Han Fei while reaching out and pulling the switch.
The heavy hum of machinery filled the air as the massive metal doors slowly slid open. At the same time, a short, powerful Guardian Gun silently slipped into the Pope's hand.
Evangelista XI's finger was firmly on the trigger; if Han Fei overstepped it even slightly, the deadly Originium bullet would be fired instantly.
But Han Fei remained obedient; he did nothing until the door closed again. The Pope silently put away his Guardian Gun and called out, "Alright, now you can turn back."
Han Fei turned around, his expression somewhat regretful.
On the map in his field of vision, the location representing the extraction point is still gray, indicating that it is not activated. Conversely, if it is activated, the extraction point icon will be green.
The Pope noticed Han Fei's expression and shook his head, saying, "It seems that won't work."
"Yes," Han Fei said with a wry smile, "It seems like I'll have to do it myself."
It's understandable, really. For the Pope, this is just a normal emergency stop. He doesn't have the Delta Force mechanism, so naturally, he won't trigger the evacuation mechanism.
Otherwise, if the double brakes were pulled, the Laterano would have been sent to the Special Operations Center.
Han Fei, however, is different. With his Delta Force connection, this switch has special significance for him. Only he can pull the switch to activate the evacuation point and then proceed to the Special Operations Center.
"In that case, Your Holiness, how about I give it a try?"
Han Fei pursed his lips, a hint of eagerness flashing in his eyes. "I can blindfold myself. If you're not comfortable with that, you can blindfold yourself. The effect is about the same anyway. It's the same thing, isn't it? Me pulling the switch blindfolded versus you pulling the switch with your back turned?"
The Pope remained silent for a moment, his eyes gleaming as he weighed the pros and cons.
This is a dangerous concession; if not handled carefully, the core secrets of the Law will be exposed to this young man.
However, after a brief hesitation, the Pope nodded almost imperceptibly. "Alright, I'll let you try."
How could mortals possibly peek into the truth of the Law? But this place... is deep within the cathedral!
A chill ran through the Pope's heart.
Even if Han Fei did see something, how could he possibly leave with the secret? Absolutely not.
Time may have turned Evangelista XI's hair and beard white, but it has not diminished the pope's majesty and power. His gaze remains as sharp as a hawk's, and his hand holding the gun is as steady as a rock.
Years of honing his marksmanship have honed it to perfection. Even the most outstanding young man in Laterano would find it difficult to guarantee victory against him.
If this young man dares to try to pry into the secrets behind that door... The Pope thought to himself, a cold resolve flashing deep in his eyes—he wouldn't mind letting Han Fei remain forever in the shadow of this church.
Having made up his mind, the Pope slowly walked up to Han Fei, his aged right hand outstretched. "Young man, close your eyes."
Han Fei closed his eyes as instructed, not doing anything unnecessary.
Immediately, a cool, smooth piece of silk gently covered his eyelids, with an almost sacred touch, and slowly slid down, perfectly blocking out the light.
Then, a gentle yet irresistible force came—the Pope's fingers, meticulously and firmly tying and securing the silk behind his head, as if performing some inviolable ritual.
"Alright." The Pope's voice rang out in front of Han Fei.
Upon hearing the announcement, Han Fei's eyelids twitched slightly, as if he wanted to open them.
But the Pope seemed to have anticipated this instinct, and before he could make any move, he said in a deep voice, "Don't move, young man. Although your eyes are covered, please don't try to open them. It's better for both of us."
This is an extra precaution for the Pope, and one he must take.
Han Fei immediately understood and, almost as soon as he finished speaking, replied in a deep voice, "Okay, whatever you say."
Since he can't open his eyes anyway, I might as well put the old man at ease.
Han Fei's compliance pleased the Pope somewhat, and his tense tone softened a bit. "Take my hand, child, I will lead you there."
"Okay," Han Fei replied, and tentatively extended his right hand forward as instructed.
Immediately, a warm, slightly rough hand—with calluses from years of experience—firmly grasped his right hand. The grip was firm, both a guide and an invisible affirmation.
"Come with me."
Guided silently by the Pope, Han Fei moved forward with steady steps. Those few steps, however short, seemed exceptionally long due to the unknown and the potential danger.
"Arrive."
The Pope stopped, his tone returning to its previous solemnity. He guided Han Fei's hand to slowly rise until his fingertips touched a cold, hard, angular metal object—the heavy lever.
"Drag him down, and your goal will be achieved." The Pope's voice was very close, clearly reaching Han Fei's ears.
As he spoke, the Pope's free left hand fell to his side with remarkable ease and speed, the second joint of his index finger resting almost imperceptibly on the edge of the Guardian Gun's grip.
His eyes, sharp as a hawk's, were keenly aware of every subtle change in Han Fei. His mind was taut to the extreme—if this young man showed even the slightest intention to remove the blindfold or the slightest hint of wanting to uncover secrets, he would not hesitate to draw his Guardian Gun and instantly end this blasphemous betrayal under Laterano's judgment.
However, Han Fei did not act rashly.
His movements were remarkably clean and efficient. His right hand, guided by the Pope, landed precisely on the lever and was then pulled down without hesitation—without the slightest deviation from the action itself.
Click! Buzz--
As the lever reached its limit, the familiar, heavy mechanical roar once again filled the entire underground space. Behind Han Fei, the massive metal door, accompanied by a piercing metallic scraping sound, slowly began to open.
At the very moment of this successful opening, the Pope's vigilance reached its peak, and all his senses were focused on the darkness hidden behind the silk.
But nothing happened.
He didn't make any unnecessary moves until Han Fei released the floodgates.
When that familiar male voice announced something, Han Fei breathed a sigh of relief.
Now we can finally evacuate safely without getting lost.
Thinking of this, Han Fei said, "Grandpa, I sense you're quite tense right now. Relax, I have no intention of prying into your Laterano secrets."
As he spoke, he silently added to himself, "Anyway, I already knew that, why take the risk? It's completely unnecessary!"
"Of course, if you're willing to talk to me, sir, I wouldn't mind being a dutiful listener."
Han Fei's voice clearly resonated in the space below.
Perhaps the room containing the essence of the Law was too profound, even stirring up faint echoes.
Then, Han Fei heard a cold, emotionless inquiry.
[Who are you]
"Eat?"
Han Fei was immediately startled, thinking to himself, "PCS, don't mess with me!"
However, it was not Han Fei who was more surprised, but Pope Evangelista XI.
The god of Laterano protects the Sankta; this is a consensus among the people of Terra. More precisely, He only protects the Sankta.
Even the Liberi, who lived in Laterano with the Sankta, could not be protected by him; this was specifically manifested in the fact that the Liberi could not obtain the aura and wings of light.
Even after living together for so many years, and even though these Liberi worshipped Him with utmost devotion, He never once glanced at Liberi.
Liberi could not gain empathy, nor could he possess the halo and wings of His blessing, even if they lived together and shared the same faith.
This cold, hard truth is etched into the very bones of every Laterano: no matter how devout or close the Liberi may be, their place in the hearts of God can never reach that of the Sankta.
What is happening before our eyes has completely shattered this age-old rule.
That cold, divine "Law," that absolute being that never responded to Liberi, actually cast its invisible yet tangible "gaze"—for the first time—onto a strange young man from another race who had just entered this place!
This undoubtedly shattered the Pope's expectations.
The aged pope suddenly turned his head, his hawk-like eyes, capable of piercing the heart, now burning with a flame mixed with disbelief and deep astonishment, fixed intently on Han Fei.
He spoke, his voice losing its usual authoritative and calm tone, replaced by a heavy, almost freezing, inquiry:
Who exactly are you?
Each word was like a heavy hammer blow, striking the lifeless air, containing astonishment and a chilling sense of re-examination.
"Uh, don't be nervous, Your Holiness, I didn't do anything."
After a brief moment of surprise, Han Fei shrugged, looking somewhat innocent, and said, "By the way, can I take off my blindfold now?"
Since he was already there, he might as well make the best of it. PCS had already spoken, and the matter had already happened, so what could Han Fei do but deal with it as it came?
Popes almost instinctively refuse to reveal the true nature of God to outsiders; this is a consensus among popes throughout history.
Popes throughout history have ordered the extermination of countless prying eyes who attempted to uncover the unspeakable secrets of Laterano. Among them were many talented scholars and archaeologists, but they all ultimately perished under Laterano's guns.
But Evangelista XI was more lenient than previous popes, and moreover, the "Law" took the initiative to pay attention to Han Fei.
For both emotional and rational reasons, Evangelista XI had no grounds to refuse.
Then, he slowly opened his mouth and said, "Untie it."
Han Fei then removed the silk blindfold from his eyes.
The next second.
The embodiment of Laterano's supreme will, the very essence of "Law"—the supercomputer left behind by the previous civilization, the PCS System —was finally revealed to him without reservation!
Vast, solemn, and cold.
The ring-shaped computing matrix, composed of countless pitch-black metal cubes, resembles a silent behemoth, radiating a suffocating technological pressure.
Han Fei said subconsciously, "The PCS system, as expected of a creation of that era, is indeed quite spectacular."
Upon hearing this, the Pope's pupils dilated in surprise, and he said, "You know?"
"Well."
Han Fei scratched his head. At this point, he decided to stop hiding his intentions and said, "That's right, I do know the essence of 'Law,' but, sir, I didn't intend to do anything at first. I just wanted to pull the plug and leave."
If Han Fei had revealed his true colors from the beginning, the Pope would naturally not have trusted Han Fei, but his well-behaved behavior along the way earned the Pope's trust.
Evangelista XI sighed softly and said, "So, who exactly are you?"
"Me? I'm human," Han Fei explained.
Upon hearing this, the Pope instinctively raised his snow-white eyebrows, his expression somewhat inscrutable—"Am I not?"
So Han Fei continued to explain, "No, you misunderstood. What I mean is, my race is human, not some Sankta, Sarkaz, Liberi, Lupo or anything like that. We are just humans."
"Your Holiness, you should know that your God is a machine, and the people who created Him were humans like me. However, for some reason, they all died."
The Pope astutely grasped the key information in Han Fei's words and asked, "Then how did you manage to survive?"
"Because I'm not from the same era as them," Han Fei said slowly. "I didn't experience that calamity."
The old pope frowned, even someone as wise as him was somewhat dizzy from the sheer amount of information in Han Fei's words.
However, he didn't believe it entirely, since it was only Han Fei's side of the story.
Although some of the content matched exactly what he knew.
Han Fei took a deep breath and suddenly said somewhat solemnly, "Your Holiness, as the leader of Laterano, you should know more, right?"
"Whether it's north of the Tundra or deep in the ocean, things yet unknown to the world constantly threaten this continent."
"Yes."
The old pope sighed, "Your experience is far richer than I imagined."
Han Fei simply smiled, and then he stepped towards the inner body of the Law.
This time, the old pope did not stop him; he followed behind Han Fei and accompanied him to pay homage to the gods.
Han Fei stood before the Law Mainframe, gazing up at the massive circular matrix, and asked, "PCS, do you think, with my current abilities, it's possible to continue the flame of the previous civilization?"
[Current Subject: Han Fei]
[Under evaluation plan]
[Conclusion: The probability is zero]
The cold, clear, and uncompromising answer reached their ears.
This answer was within Han Fei's expectations; how could he, alone, possibly continue the flame of the previous civilization?
Even if he were allowed to give birth, he still couldn't do it!
However, Han Fei had only asked casually, and receiving a negative answer was not enough to affect his mood.