After A - 001 - 04 left, the government dispatched troops and scientists to confirm the situation. After several investigations, it was confirmed that The End was dead. No escape was detected, and no energy fluctuations of The End were measured. A large amount of The End's blood and skin fragments were detected at the scene.
They searched repeatedly but couldn't find The End's corpse. Two conclusions were drawn: either The End escaped or was blown to pieces. They were more inclined to the latter, as their high - speed cameras didn't capture any creatures escaping from that area.
After all, the power of that explosion directly flattened the area of Mount Everest above 6,000 meters. The height of Everest decreased by more than 2,000 meters. With such terrifying destructive power of pure energy, even The End would hardly survive.
Humanity defeated The End. By the end of the 840th year, all parasites were eliminated. Humanity achieved victory once again. The Judges, the greatest contributors, were only a few thousand left. They became heroes, objects of people's worship, tools for politicians to curry favor, and bargaining chips at the negotiation table.
Since the battle to 讨伐 The End, A - 001 - 04 had been recuperating. He read many relevant materials to inquire about the meaning of "love", but he never got the answer he wanted. The books and materials were cold. He couldn't find the feeling he had when A - 026 - 10 died. Finally, he found a photo of A - 026 - 10.
She was very beautiful, with delicate features. The hundreds - year - long war hadn't changed her beauty at all. He put her photo in his close - fitting clothes and carried it with him. He didn't know why, but he just wanted to.
In the 845th year of the Star Calendar, the economy returned to normal, and everything was back on track. They were rarely mentioned and entered hibernation.
In the 940th year of the Star Calendar, they were sent to the Moon and awakened. They had a new mission: to represent humanity in exploring a new home more than forty light - years away. Since entering the space age, humanity's exploitation of the solar system had never stopped. Scientists calculated that at the current exploitation rate, resources would be exhausted within 500 years.
So, scientists wanted to colonize and obtain resources from other star systems for further expansion.
On this glorious day, all high - level leaders of the United Nations came to see them off. Accompanying them was a 恒星际 (stellar - class) battleship belonging to the United Nations' 直属部队 (direct - affiliated forces). However, the spaceship given to them by the United Nations was just a small scientific research vessel.
That star was four light - years away. A small scientific research vessel, with a maximum speed of 10,000 kilometers per second, no ecological circulation system, no reactive armor, no long - range weapons, only a few point - defense guns with a range of less than one million kilometers.
Accompanying them was the United Nations' direct - affiliated forces, and it was a stellar - class battleship. A stellar - class battleship had a complete ecological circulation system, a maximum speed of 100,000 kilometers per second. Its main gun could plow the entire surface of the Earth in one hour. If this battleship attacked them, with at most two or three shots, their spaceship would become a pile of scrap iron.
The Judges fell into deep thought. They had no emotions, but it didn't mean they were stupid. On the contrary, they were smarter than most humans. This scientific research vessel would have a hard time even flying beyond four light - years, let alone flying out of the solar system. Most of them guessed it, but they didn't understand why they were being sent to their deaths. They had clearly helped humanity win the war and had never harmed human society.
A - 001 - 04 stood at the front of the team. He had no expression. He had anticipated this result, but he still wanted to confirm what he thought.
"Why?" When A - 001 - 04 spoke, everyone looked at him—senior politicians, military generals, and even his companions. They had been indoctrinated with the idea of absolute obedience since birth, not asking why. Today, he became an exception. He stared directly at the Chief Councilor.
"For the future of humanity." Although very surprised, the Chief Councilor still answered his question. After all, they were in the wrong; they were about to kill the heroes who had saved all of humanity with their own hands.
"Understood. All personnel, prepare. Turn left! Board the aircraft one by one and wait for the navigation order." He closed his eyes, then lowered his head. He raised his head again, opened his eyes, and gave the order to his comrades to go to their deaths. When they were entrusted with the exploration mission, he became the highest commander of the Judges, serving as the captain.
"The pre - departure inspection of the navigation ship is completed. It can depart at any time."
"Let's set sail. Wish you success in your mission. Salute!!!" The Chief Councilor stood up straight instantly and saluted them. This was their final respect.
The navigation ship departed from Lunar Spaceport 1, and after leaving the port, it activated full power instantly, leaving a blue trail in space, a sign that they once existed.
Subsequently, the United Nations' direct - affiliated battleship also set off, following closely behind.
A month later, near the No. 2 Black Hole of Pluto.........
"Reduce speed. We're entering the 视界 (event horizon)." A - 001 - 04 sat in the captain's seat, looking at the distant black hole, not knowing what he was thinking.
"Captain, you said we're entering the event horizon? But our mission is to go to Planet GX4430 four light - years away. We can't change the course casually." The first mate reminded him. After all, for them, the mission was always the first priority. The habit ingrained in their bones was hard to change.
"I said enter the event horizon, Navigator. Obey my order." A - 001 - 04 shouted at the navigator. Everyone looked at him in confusion. This was the first time they saw him lose his temper, and it was at the navigator. The navigator was also wronged; he clearly hadn't said anything.
"Yes, Captain. Navigation ship, route re - planned. Path set successfully." The navigator didn't dare to say anything and executed the order silently. A - 001 - 04 was extremely nervous. He only prayed that the United Nations battleship would discover their actions later. Only if they entered the event horizon would they be safe.
If he guessed correctly, the real mission was for that battleship to carry out, and the real mission was to eliminate them. The interstellar exploration was just a side task. The journey was long, and it would be very normal if something went wrong on the way.
It was estimated that soon after passing Pluto would be their death date. It was still too close now. The nearest space city was only less than 20 astronomical units away from Pluto. If they took action here, things would likely go wrong. Once exposed, the United Nations would face great pressure.
The United Nations feared their strength. They understood the principle of "功高震主 (achievement threatening the ruler)". No matter how weak they were, their physical qualities were hundreds of times that of ordinary people. If they wanted to 暗杀 someone, it would be effortless.
They feared their opponents would strike first, and their opponents feared them too. So they reached this agreement, the Exile Agreement, exiling all Judges. At the same time, they had to consider public opinion.
The public still worshiped them. During the war, they were called Chosen Ones, representing the will of the gods. Moreover, they had long lifespans, making ordinary people more convinced of this.
Over the years, their influence among the public had not diminished but increased. And this was a democratic society, without autocratic power. Many things required public approval, so the United Nations didn't dare to take the risk. At most one month after passing Pluto, the United Nations would probably take action. At that time, they would just find a reason, erect a monument, and build a few towers, hypocritically commemorating the heroes.
This way, they could gain votes and solve this big problem, killing two birds with one stone. It could only be said that they were indeed politicians. In the past, he naturally wouldn't care about life or death. His mission had been completed, and he didn't care about life or death. But now he had a new goal. He wanted to know the meaning of that sentence and the meaning of her smile before death.
As long as they entered the event horizon, the weapons of the United Nations battleship would pose no threat to them, and they wouldn't dare to enter. Once entering the event horizon, time would be distorted, and a hundred years would pass in an instant. He wanted to use the slingshot effect of the event horizon to directly eject them, so that they might have a chance of survival.
"Captain, we've been locked by the main gun of the United Nations battleship." But the United Nations battleship obviously didn't want to give them this chance. The first mate looked at the radar information, frowning.
"Raise the shield, activate full power, and activate the point - defense guns to intercept." A - 001 - 04 made a decision quickly. It seemed he had underestimated the reaction of the United Nations.
"Bang!!!" They instantly felt a huge shock. The starship's shield failed. One shot destroyed their shield, and a large number of systems went offline.
"Report the damage situation." At this time, he had to stay calm; panic would be the end.
"The shield is offline, the oxygen supply system is damaged, Engines 1 and 4 are damaged, the external armor is severely damaged, and the left stern has completely fallen off." The first mate frowned, looking at the spaceship's holo - diagram and making a comprehensive report. The situation was more serious than he imagined. Just one shot had seriously injured their ship.
"However, there's one piece of good news. This shot hit the shield, providing us with huge thrust. Now we've entered the event horizon of Black Hole 2." At this time, the first mate hadn't realized what it meant for the spaceship to enter the event horizon in its current state.
When people around heard this, their hearts sank. They had entered the event horizon but lost 50% of their power. And because of that shot, their current speed was extremely high, reaching 4,000 kilometers per second. They couldn't stop.
Soon, the first mate also realized this problem. He fell into deep thought, then looked at A - 001 - 04. A - 001 - 04 was the first to realize it. Hopefully, he had a solution.
"Everyone, it's an honor to work with you. Our mission has been completed. All crew, abandon the ship." A - 001 - 04 stood up, looked around at everyone, bowed deeply to them, and then turned and left. He wasn't a superman. The starship was damaged to such an extent, and he couldn't turn the tide. Let nature take its course.
Heh, mission? It was just a mission to make them disappear. They couldn't get out anymore. Even if they finally crossed the black hole, were they still in the solar system? In the Milky Way? Or even in this universe? So their mission was completed.
Given the current state of the spaceship and its speed, it would definitely disintegrate the moment it entered the black hole. So he ordered to abandon the ship and leave on the shuttle, hoping the shuttle could hold on and safely reach the other side of the black hole.
Only less than a thousand people reached the hangar one after another. Many were sucked into space. He let out a deep sigh. He was the last to leave the ship. They watched the spaceship disintegrate, and then they were also sucked into the black hole.........