“You won’t be waking up anytime soon,” Laplace sat down beside the bed, “Is there anything else you want me to help you with?”

He said this calmly and coldly, not at all like he was facing an old friend who was about to die.

Old Tom didn’t care about this at all, he just whispered:

“The descendants of the Philos family are all living well now. I don’t have any more wishes.”

“They are the backbone of the Federation, and they will naturally receive the treatment they deserve,” Laplace said. “Don’t you have anything else to say?”

The silver eyes reflected the figure of Old Tom. Laplace still expected something from this old man who used to be a teacher.

But Old Tom avoided his gaze. He looked out the window, lost in thought at the bustling city:

“Laplace, the ancient city of Dila in the east has been built. The Akihara family has completely conquered the wilderness and will soon annex the east side. The countries of the North Sea Islands are fighting the final war, and the waves colliding on the sea will soon have a common flow. And in the area north of Aston Plain, a magnificent city is being built. Their royal family is the Persipense family… Don’t you have any ideas about all this?”

Old Tom’s words were questions, but his tone was as calm as when he was Laplace’s teacher, as if he was stating an obvious truth.

“You killed all those [Archons]… That was very brave, my child. You snuffed out the leadership of the elite class, allowed the humans who were reborn on the continent to explore on their own, and expected them to become vassals of the Federation one day. However, the elites continued to emerge from the crowd… You were wrong from the beginning. It was never the elites who led the people. The elites were the people. Even if all sources were cut off, they would naturally emerge from the crowd and stand out.”

“It only takes the Federation’s army half a month to crush their civilization,” Laplace said.

“You know how much it will cost,” Old Tom sighed, “Besides, you won’t do that. The exchanges between civilizations are becoming more and more prosperous… Although the mainland island is a civilization thumbnail under the [Spark] plan, it is still a real civilization… You deprive them of their culture, and they create culture, and it will continue forever.”

“It’s all insignificant,” Laplace said.

“Insignificant? Haha… kid… it’s time to turn back…”

Old Tom finally turned around and faced Laplace. A sad smile appeared on his face, a farewell from a teacher to his student:

“Seventy-five years ago, it was not those [Consuls] who sent people to assassinate you, but me. I gave that laborer a pistol… I personally removed his tongue because of his disease and it could not be preserved… I gave him a chance, a chance to get up…”

The truth was spoken in a light tone, but Laplace still looked unconcerned.

He just listened silently to the old man’s words at the end of his life.

“Elizabeth was pregnant with two children from the beginning… I tried my best to hide the second child. I planned to secretly transfer him after the birth and keep him as a backup, but I didn’t expect you to… just cut open her belly like that… Oh… You didn’t see Edward curled up in the corner at first sight, did you? You were crazy at that time, my student, and you are crazy now.”

“I want to know the reason.” Laplace said calmly.

Extra) Tower of Babel (Part 17) -4k large chapter-

“Reason? Haha… because the Odins are arrogant…” Old Tom took a deep breath, “You are the oldest civilization, the origin of everything. You are the ones who made the first dagger, but you did not stab the dagger into nature, but into your compatriots… Look at the [Great Union], Laplace, you can say that you are also against such a bloated and inefficient organization, but you still yearn for the pleasure of ruling the world… You are not against the Union, you are against the fact that the power of the Union is not in your hands, and the things in your bones will not change… All these years of experience have proved it all, you are an Odin… the one who can’t wait to grab the dagger in his hand.”

The ripples on the instrument jumped more and more frequently with the rise and fall of Old Tom’s tone. He breathed slowly and stared at Laplace’s face, but found that this silver-eyed Odin still had no hesitation.

His face had aged prematurely over the course of time, but his silver eyes were like the hardest diamonds in the world, still sparkling as they had been seventy-five years ago.

“You are right, teacher,” Laplace whispered, “Without being shrouded in shadows, they will think that the sun is free. If the Federation becomes a shadow, they will learn to cooperate.”

“But what is this for?” Old Tom’s eyes were filled with sadness.

“For something greater,” Laplace said, “for truth.”

At this moment, the two of them almost simultaneously recalled the Judgment Day that occurred seventy-five years ago. Even though less than a hundred years had passed, the continent of Ademir was still unaware of the catastrophe that destroyed the world. They grew up in the information cocoon created by Laplace, and the edge of the world for them was the ocean.

“Your goal is the truth, but you keep them out of the truth?” Old Tom murmured.

“They only need to take shelter in the shadow of the tower,” Laplace said. “I will rule. I will build the tower.”

After saying that, Laplace turned away from Old Tom’s bed. Before leaving, he turned his head and looked at his former teacher with his silver eyes for the last time:

“The Filos family will not be extinct, but from today on, they will be controlled by the [Deep Diving Cradle] from birth. You are so outstanding, teacher.”

He closed the door, leaving Tom Fellowes alone.

……

“Civilization is such a thing. It is a seed and a diamond.”

“You can throw it into the fire, sink it into the deep sea, or bury it in the frozen soil, and it will eventually take root and sprout.”

At the dividing line between snow and land, An Ruijin, wearing leather armor, looked up at the snowy scenery of Wanren Mountain. His golden eyes became calm after being tempered by time.

He was already an old man, and was surrounded by knights in armor with the words “Grau Yad” embroidered on them.

After Anrejin waited for a while, several fireballs emerged from the snowstorm. The Thebits who came to greet Anrejin were no longer the barbarians of seventy-five years ago. Their eyes were filled with wisdom and they wore exquisitely forged iron tools on their waists.

“Are you sure you want to go back to Wanren Mountain?” The leading Thebiter walked up to Anrikin, his eyes as dark as night.

“Of course, Monarch, La Vatino has been built, the Kingdom is on fire, and I am old.”

Anrikin Ad Persipence spoke calmly, put on his cloak, and patted the shoulders of the young leader.

After An Ruijin was rescued by the mountain people, he passed on his knowledge to them and taught them a lot. During the long time of trekking in the wind and snow, An Ruijin changed a lot. He even discovered some bunkers secretly built by the Great Union in the mountains. By exploring these bunkers, An Ruijin realized that many dignitaries in the Union Parliament had already set up a way out for themselves in the face of a major disaster. Unfortunately, they never thought that the disaster would be so sudden that they died before they even had the chance to escape to the Ademir continent.

Using the technology and knowledge in the bunker, the Thebite’s civilization developed rapidly. Anrekin naturally became a pioneer among them. He led the brave mountain people out of the mountains and established a holy city called La Vatino in the central plains of the continent. He was hailed as the king, and the country was naturally named Grau Yad.

During this process, they did not encounter much interference from the Valantia family. Laplace seemed to have kept his promise and chose to let the outside civilization develop naturally. The fire of the ancestors spread everywhere, and the waves of civilization were set off in the North Sea and the East Sea. Those who walked out of the embryo warehouse merged with the civilization of the ancestors, forming new civilizations of various forms.

From Laplace’s perspective, this seemed like generosity, but Anrekin knew that this was more of an arrogance, the prince of the Odin people thought he had everything under control.

Now, with the new king taking over, the abdicated An Ruijin happily decided to return to Wanren Mountain to live out the rest of his life in the snowstorm where he had escaped death.

“You still won’t tell us where you came from,” Monarch said. “There are plains outside the mountains. Are there other worlds outside the plains?”

“It doesn’t matter. You shouldn’t know this.” An Ruijin smiled.

“Take your secrets to the grave, An Ruijin,” Monark waved his hand, “Follow me, the situation on Wanren Mountain is much more chaotic than before you left. I can’t guarantee that I can protect you.”

“It doesn’t matter. I’d rather die in the snow than in the fire.”

Before entering the mountain, An Ruijin looked back to the west for the last time. He knew that Laplace would never let him die easily in this era. That guy would fight desperately with everything he wanted to control, perhaps until the next Judgment Day.

But he no longer cared about all this. During his long career, An Ruijin gradually understood the true meaning of “Consul”. He was at ease playing the role of a guide, and he should only be a guide.

“Mountain, don’t eat me (Thebitten).” Before entering the mountain, An Ruijin murmured softly to the needle-shaped peaks in front of him, and then he started walking.

His figure, along with several Thebits, was submerged in the wind and snow and disappeared without a trace.

……

“Time is a river. You can swim upstream, but you can’t go back. It is stronger than you are. When you have exhausted your strength, it will eventually carry you to its end.”

In the cellar of the [College Building], the doors of the two hibernation chambers slowly opened, and the doctors rushed in and began to thaw the two babies.

Laplace watched this scene from afar. Through the gaps in the crowd, he saw that Hermes’ face was still confused, and Edward’s silver eyes were still looking at him coldly.

“Herames…you will become a leader, exploring the same grand proposition as your mother…”

Laplace murmured as he watched the nurses put Hermes into a crib, then he walked over and stroked the baby’s face by the bed.

The moment his hand touched Hermes’ face, the baby cried. His expression was a bit like Elizabeth’s, which made Laplace’s mouth curl up slightly:

“Shh…” he whispered, “Your mother is very obedient, you have to be obedient too.”

Heramus stopped crying immediately. He stared blankly at Laplace’s silver eyes with his mouth tightly closed.

Laplace waved his hand and asked the nurses to push the bed away.

He looked at Edward again. The little guy didn’t have Hermes’s dullness at all. As soon as he left the hibernation chamber, he slowly moved his limbs, as if he was preparing for something.

“As for you, Edward, my twenty years of time will be repaid with your twenty years of time.”

Laplace turned and left. He had already assigned the task to the retired Shelby, who would become Edward’s teacher and turn the boy into a weapon of war.

He will be a blade, a blade that can be used for at least twenty years.

……

“The tower was built, reaching up to the clouds, yet far below the stars.”

In the jungle on the border of Lavis, Laplace silently watched the man in a black suit operating the [Creator Engine], and strange light spread out in all directions.

“Tell me, Laplace,” Suleiman murmured elegantly, “was it you who built this tower or was it I who built it?”

The silver tower rose from the ground, and the Federation’s large machines processed and engraved various patterns into the tower. This tower will extend all the way to the sky, and the [Creator Engine] will be responsible for the manufacture of all load-bearing structures and frames. This is the greatest gift Laplace has received from the fall of Hafgard.

The entire project will take several years, and during these years, the civilizations outside the Federation are slowly gathering. Driven by internal and external troubles, they are about to launch an unprecedented war against the Federation, but Laplace doesn’t care.

He stared at the base of the tower silently and whispered:

“Elizabeth, I built the tower.”

……

“And the starry sky is still indescribable.”

In the command hall of the launch base, Laplace looked at the big screen tremblingly, his lips opened but he couldn’t utter anything.

In the final stage of the [Starry Sky Staircase Project], Cecilia Philos, who was riding on [Staircase No. 2], let out a crazy roar when she reached the sky. Weird nursery rhymes echoed in the hall, and blurred images slowly appeared on the big screen.

Laplace saw the thing that destroyed [Stairway 2]—a huge red barrier.

Outside the barrier, starlight shone brightly, and even through the images, the strange luster made people feel as if something was pulling at their hearts.

“No…no…no…”

Laplace fell to his knees, holding his head, tears streaming down his cheeks.

The earth is alive, and the starry sky is alive too.

The moment he saw the huge screen, Laplace suddenly understood why the strange phenomenon of “all destructive factors rising above the stratosphere” occurred in the later period of “Judgment Day”.

Because there was a certain existence that lifted all those factors into the air, forming that huge barrier.

In other words, it is not the process of forming a barrier… but the process of strengthening the barrier. The huge barrier has always existed, but no one has ever successfully observed it.

The factor cycle theory…is false…The factor energy technology tree…is false…

One day, that barrier will collapse again, and then, the things under the ground will come out again, and Judgment Day will happen again…

No… not only underground… but also the starry sky! And the things above the starry sky!

Those stars are alive! They are not dead at all! They are not beautiful at all! They are alive!

It is those things that awaken the beings under the earth… Is it an ancient god? Is it a demon? No! It doesn’t matter! What matters is that the earth is alive! The starry sky is also alive!

“Hehehe…hahahahahahahaha!!!”

Laplace suddenly burst into laughter. He ran out of the command center quickly, knocking down doors one after another.

What is this? Hahahahaha!!! The energy technology is the most powerful sword of mankind! [Babel Tower] destroys the world coalition just like destroying ants! If the disaster comes again, [Babel Tower] should be able to destroy the things under the earth!

But, even the destructive factor used by [Tower of Babel] is nothing but the shit that thing pooped out? Hahahahahahahahahaha!!!

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!

Laplace laughed loudly, knocking aside figures one after another and passing through doors one after another.

So what should we do on the next Judgment Day? Since the energy technology is gone, can we use the diesel engines that were only briefly revived in the early days of pioneering? Use those stupid working fluid thrusters to crash the backward aircraft into the demons under the earth? Hahahahahaha!!! It sounds so humorous!!!

Or run away? Hahahahahahaha!!! I can’t run away!!! The sky is a cage and the earth is a grave!!!

Laplace ran, and the ground beneath his feet and the air he breathed seemed to disappear at this moment. Laplace suddenly realized one thing, that is, he could not control anything.

He could not control the [United Nations Council] and could not keep the flames of the former civilization burning.

He couldn’t control the [Archons], so he could only kill them.

He couldn’t control Hermes and Edward! His eldest son jumped into the Black Lake and became a demon. His second son took away the girl named Perlis and kept her away from the Tower of Babel!

He couldn’t even control the ground beneath his feet, he couldn’t control the starry sky above his head! When that existence like that day pressed down, he was no different from all the other living beings, he could only watch himself turn into dust!

Ants! Ants! Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!

No…that’s not right…Laplace suddenly stopped and his face became very calm.

He can still control some things, like Elizabeth.

Ten minutes later, Laplace arrived at the basement of the College Building. He walked quickly to the freezer, looked at Elizabeth’s frozen face, and smiled:

“Elizabeth, marry me.”

Laplace smashed the freezer glass, not caring about the blood on his hands. He jumped into the freezer, not caring about the cold air, and hugged Elizabeth tightly.

Elizabeth would not refuse him, not at all.

“Please give me another chance to study you, Elizabeth.”

Laplace and Elizabeth lay together in the freezer. He kissed Elizabeth deeply, closed his eyes, let the cold air make white frost on his temples, and let his consciousness gradually become blurred.

“I love you much…”

…END…

The Story