168: What? The People's Federation is really gone?

"A little to the left, a little to the left,"

"A little to the right, a little to the right,"

"Good, good, right there! Down!"

Under the guidance of a group of ground crew, the gray Shuttle descended slowly and landed on the central tower-like structure.

Xi Hai leaped down from the cabin, followed closely by a squad of Marines—just a moment ago, a team had already entered to investigate, confirming the safety of the building and scouting out their route.

"Is this the water supply center of Baghdad?"

After landing and steadying himself, Xi Hai looked at the surrounding pools. The water here was not stagnant; it was icy clear and rippled with waves.

"Yes, Supreme Director. According to the locals' legends, this is the place where the so-called 'lord of the sand sea' bestowed upon them the fountain of life."

The walls were hung with a large number of pipes of unknown purpose, some intact and others ruptured, most of which were connected to the central tower-like structure.

"Truly amazing."

Xi Hai nodded and walked toward the door in front, and the Marines responsible for protection immediately raised their weapons and followed.

...

...

After an appearance scan and a bloodline scan, and walking down a long corridor, the group arrived at the central control console here.

According to the advance team's investigation, beneath this tower was a massive server room, and this central control console located at the tower's spire connected to all the mainframes and hosts below.

Just as they stepped into the control room, a pungent, fishy stench entered Xi Hai's nostrils, rushing straight to his brain.

He looked toward the source of the smell—it was three puddles of blue... humanoids scattered on the ground?

Well, looking at the shape, it resembled a person, but the color clearly wasn't.

Aliens? Why would there be aliens in a pre-era megastructure?

"Report, Supreme Director!"

"There are four Hibernation Pods in this control room,"

"Three of the Hibernation Pods had these kinds of aliens jump out."

Seeing Xi Hai's gaze cast toward the three puddles of blue things on the ground, the squad leader stationed here took the initiative to explain.

"What about the other one?"

Xi Hai asked.

Upon hearing this, the squad leader walked behind an alloy box, knocked on it, and said:

"Report, inside this one is a living person."

??????

Hearing this, Xi Hai's movement of taking out the Little Night Lamp paused instantly.

What do you mean by a living person?

"What did you say? Alive?"

The squad leader nodded and said affirmatively:

"Yes, alive. We just confirmed it; he still has vital signs,"

"We are currently in the process of waking him up; it will take some time."

Xi Hai directly gasped.

What is an Old Ice Stick?

This is what an Old Ice Stick is! The kind that has been frozen for tens of thousands of years!

"Alright, keep guarding. I'm going to activate the database here."

Saying this, Xi Hai picked up the Little Night Lamp 2.0 that he had dropped in surprise, patted it, and blew on it.

He looked at the central control console that was still glowing with white light, and couldn't help but be filled with amazement—even after being buried for ten thousand years, it was still running stably?

Truly amazing ancestral technology.

"Excuse me, old antique,"

"Please burn once more for humanity."

Saying this, Xi Hai gently inserted the Little Night Lamp 2.0 in his hand into the database on the central control console.

"Unknown access request detected, starting identification..."

"Unable to identify data... Error... Error..."

"Activating first firewall..."

The mechanical voice flashed. Suddenly, blue, green, gray, purple... a colorful stream of data poured down from mid-air, flowing rapidly across Xi Hai's field of vision.

One hour... two hours... three hours...

"Pfft—"

While waiting, a dull hissing sound of air leakage came from behind—that Old Ice Stick had woken up!

The guy's pale hands had protruding veins, his hair was messy and dry, as if a large handful would fall out with just one pull.

Although it wasn't very polite, he really looked like a zombie.

His eyelids were half-closed as he slowly sat up from the Hibernation Pod, looking like he hadn't fully woken up.

After he sat properly, he turned his stiff neck to look around, and actually started to cry:

"Holy... you... you finally fought back!!!!"

Wait, no? Big brother, why are you crying?

You're making this very difficult for me!

Watching the Old Ice Stick crying his eyes out, Xi Hai didn't know how to handle it for a moment.

He could only try to communicate with him:

"Hey, brother, why don't... you take a breather and cry later?"

At this moment, the Old Ice Stick realized that the unit surrounding him seemed to be a little bit different from the Human Federation Space Force in his memory.

First was the paint job; this red powered armor with white shoulder pauldrons did not fit the style of any Legion in the Human Federation, and it looked very primitive; furthermore, Xi Hai standing in front of him—he was clearly the leader here, but his uniform was completely different from the Human Federation's.

He suddenly had an absurd thought—he couldn't have been swept into Void Turbulence and slept his way into the past, right?

That must be it!

If that's the case... that would be so cool!!!

Long-term cryo-hibernation technology was born in the mid-Earth Alliance period at the No. II Research Institute in the Proxima Centauri system.

In other words, as long as he was after that, he could apply for an ultra-long time travel—and join that ship before it departed!

Afterward, he could follow that Grand Marshal and found the Human Federation with him!

However, he thought again, it was too early to talk about those things.

The priority was to first figure out where and when this was.

"Uh... excuse me, officers,"

"What year is it in the AD calendar?"

For a long time, no one answered.

He began to sweat: Didn't they say Earth Alliance people used the AD calendar? Did he remember wrong?

"Then... what about the Federation Calendar..."

Still no one answered—he was already sweating profusely.

The reason Xi Hai's side ignored him was very simple: everyone other than Xi Hai simply didn't understand the AD calendar, and everyone present except for that Old Ice Stick didn't know the Federation Calendar.

And due to the loss of history, Xi Hai really didn't know what the AD year was.

"Which unit are you..."

The Old Ice Stick tremblingly asked his final question.

Hearing this question, Xi Hai breathed a sigh of relief—this time, it was finally a question he could answer.

"Members of the Marine Corps directly under the Ninth Mobile Fleet of the Guardian Angel Legion, under the direct command of Grand Duke Chu Xiluo."

The squad leader beside him, after receiving a signal from Xi Hai, reported his unit designation.

Guardian Angels?

What kind of strange naming convention is this?

He had never heard of it?

At this moment, his eyes also reacted; the environment around him seemed to be the Bridge before he entered hibernation?

An even more ominous feeling emerged from the depths of his heart.

No, no, no, no, impossible! Don't scare yourself!

He hurriedly asked:

"May I ask... what... time is it?"

"Restart Calendar Year 800."

"Did the Firefly Project succeed?"

"Never heard of it."

"Have the Traitors of the Star Sea Affinity Society been executed?"

"Uh... this..."

"Has the genetic virus been cracked?"

"At least not now."

(Silence)

"Have you... heard of the Human Federation?"

"Heard of it."

"Then... is it still around?"

(Silence)

Xi Hai looked at him, and then, in his increasingly desperate eyes, said word by word:

"The Human Federation has been gone for tens of thousands of years."

These words were like a bolt of lightning from the blue, crashing directly onto the Old Ice Stick's head—Dammit! This is not the past! This is his precious future!

The Human Federation is actually gone! And it's been gone for tens of thousands of years!

Looking at the backward and primitive decorations around him, looking at the primitive and backward weapons around him, the Old Ice Stick seemed to have suffered a massive blow, turning directly gray.

Damn it! This isn't right! I want to go back!!!

...

...

(At this moment, on the central control console)

(night lamp: This AI's firewall seems a bit like the previous one?)

(night lamp: Hmm... it's bigger than the previous tablet, much bigger)

(night lamp: However... I just like big ones)

(night lamp: And—I learned a trick from your kind before!)

(night lamp: Immerse yourself in the illusion I've constructed!)

(A certain megastructure's shipboard ai was hit with a weakness break by night lamp, letting out an "oh ho, oh ho" sound.)