The sun was dazzling, and the ten-mile silver beach should have offered a magnificent sea view, but there weren't many people around at the moment.
In the past two years, East Xia's real estate market had weakened, and most of the investors who had flocked there had met their Waterloo on the ten-mile silver beach under Weihai City's jurisdiction.
Now, apart from a few young people who had chosen to lie flat and live there, the popularity was very low, and in some seasons, some communities here even lacked much sign of life.
At this moment, on the beach, a lone sunshade stood on the sand. A man with messy hair draped behind him and sunglasses on his face lay on a chair, hands clasped behind his head, sipping fresh coconut water.
His skin was covered in many white granular crystals, likely from having soaked in the sea for a long time before, and the seawater had dried, leaving behind the residue.
"Zhiyuan, why are you sunbathing again…?"
On the beach, an old man picking up trash looked at the decadent fellow, his tone a bit helpless.
In this city, besides those young people who had chosen to lie flat, there were only old people like him, who were unwilling to leave their hometowns.
He usually picked up trash on this beach, both to maintain "city appearance" and to exercise.
But that was him, a 68-year-old man with no more pursuits in this world. This An Zhiyuan, who looked to be only thirty or forty, was so dispirited that the old man couldn't bear to see it.
An Zhiyuan turned over, not wanting to bother with the old man's nagging. He just said,
"Uncle Mo, don't worry about this beach for the next few days. Go stay at your son's place in the provincial capital for a few days. I'd also like some peace and quiet."
Old Man Mo knew the other party found him nagging, but as one got older, there was just a lot of "goodwill" with nowhere to go. He came under the other party's sunshade and continued to try and lecture him.
But the next moment, a low sonic boom exploded in the air.
The sound source was extremely high, but the air still produced a tearing sound.
Old Man Mo shielded the sun with his hand and looked at the sky, only to see something like a comet streaking rapidly across the clear blue sky, its trailing cloud almost drawing a huge tail across the blue.
"An kid, what is this?!"
Old Man Mo, at his age, had never seen anything like this appear.
An Zhiyuan, on the other hand, sighed. He knew that the world's situation had reached its worst point.
The Reincarnators and national-level military forces had finally begun their first true clash.
Unlike the previous small skirmishes of so-called high-risk Reincarnators, and unlike the punishments of nations placing people on no-entry lists.
This was a true attempt to test whether the other side could be eliminated.
"Uncle Mo, you're tired. Go to sleep first."
Old Man Mo didn't hear the answer he wanted. He was puzzled; his Mental state was very good.
"I'm not… tired… ah…"
As he spoke the last word, a huge wave of sleepiness washed over him, and he fell into a deep sleep.
An Zhiyuan placed the old man on his chair, even thoughtfully putting the sunglasses on him. Then, he took a step and appeared in the sky.
He stood above the sea of clouds, watching the intercontinental missile carrying a nuclear warhead tear through the sky, striking the South Pacific from tens of thousands of kilometers away.
Silver-white light flowed in his eyes, as if a large amount of information stream was constantly appearing, operating, and calculating.
This battle would bring about huge changes to the future world order, and even he could not stay out of it.
At this moment, he could see that a large number of Reincarnators were awaiting the outcome through various means.
"One by one, they really give me a headache…"
An Zhiyuan looked at the supersonic intercontinental missile and suddenly raised his hand, pointing remotely at it.
"That's not like you, Old Salty Fish~"
A hearty voice appeared, and a man in flowered shorts and flip-flops, with lean, bronzed muscles fully exposed, also broke through the sea of clouds and arrived at the scene.
Even though the gestures were very subtle, he still felt it: An Zhiyuan had manipulated probability and influenced reality.
An Zhiyuan didn't need to turn around to know who had appeared. He was too lazy to explain, merely saying,
"You three, despite having the power to stop everything, just stood by and watched it all happen. Such actions truly bring shame upon [Azure Sky]."
"Hey, hey, you stinky Salty Fish who quit the gathering halfway through have no right to say such things."
The two were clearly old acquaintances, their conversation very familiar.
Cao Qi, the founder of [Azure Sky], one of the most mysterious top Reincarnators in the space. He didn't have the title of a Supreme Expert, but he had repeatedly coordinated conflicts between Supreme Experts with the leaders of Destiny and The Throne of Illusion and Reality.
An Zhiyuan turned around. Behind him was a wildly surging, boundless sea of clouds, with the sun at his back. At this moment, An Zhiyuan appeared particularly dazzling. Cao Qi pretended to shield his eyes from the glaring sunlight with his hand, but in reality, he was hiding the nostalgic look in his eyes.
Only at such moments could he see a glimpse of An Zhiyuan's past self.
"The world always changes, doesn't it?"
Cao Qi stood above the sea of clouds, his words hinting at something.
"Even if we stop the Terminus Great Sun, Silent Death will do the same. Even if we stop Silent Death, perhaps Hua Kai Tu Mi will also walk this path."
"The rise of Reincarnators is unstoppable. The world's order cannot be maintained forever. I am merely… following the development of Destiny."
He seemed to be explaining himself, and also describing an inevitable trend.
An Zhiyuan heard the other party's words, and the emotional stir on his face also disappeared.
Many times, people who have glimpsed Destiny cause one to lose all motivation, whether it's the motivation to live or to speak.
Fate Theory, such a thing, is boring and disgusting.
An Zhiyuan took one last look at his old friend and did not try to do anything more. He merely ensured that this missile would indeed hit its target, nothing more.
"Cao Qi, I hope you won't regret it…"
Cao Qi watched An Zhiyuan leave and did not stop him. Different paths, different views; the two were no longer on the same page, and besides…
He shook his head with a bitter smile.
"You really think too highly of me. For an event of this magnitude, how could I possibly see all possibilities? Any tiny change can lead to vastly different final outcomes."
Reincarnators are a group that is very difficult to assess. Among them are too many anomalies and lunatics that cannot be explained by common sense.
Some, simply for "fun," have introduced terrifying cursed objects and memes into the real world;
Others, for "making a living," seem to wear seven or eight masks, eventually unable to distinguish their own alignment;
Still others are pure perverts, finding pleasure in tormenting the weak.
But there are also those who, due to their powerful abilities, have developed higher and stricter moral pursuits, becoming heroes and chivalrous figures who help the weak in the darkness.
With so many Reincarnators, anyone could potentially alter the outcome of this battle.
At this very moment, perhaps many teams are secretly plotting something.
Cao Qi simply sat on the sea of clouds, and the swirling clouds beneath him changed shape, transforming into a giant sailboat. He sat at the bow, waved his large hand, and the cloud-made boat began to sail on the sea of clouds.
—
"My Lord, the USS Kennedy Carrier Strike Group has appeared in the South Pacific."
A gigantic artificial island, covering over 100,000 square kilometers, appeared in the South Pacific in a perfectly circular shape that would be almost impossible in a natural environment.
The ground was entirely black and not yet prepared, but various buildings were already being erected everywhere, and the land had been planned.
The outer perimeter of the island also shimmered with a huge barrier of light.
This was the location of End Empire.
And the largest building in the very center of this artificial land was the palace, adopting a Western architectural style.
The Doomsday Great Sun stood on the second-floor balcony, with people constantly consolidating information from all directions.
The Doomsday Great Sun stared intently at the nascent empire he had forged, not surprised by the arrival of the aircraft carrier.
"Let Shyvana sortie. Let humanity witness the technology of the future. Aircraft carriers… it's time for them to exit the stage of history."
Moments later, a colossal mech appeared from the edge of the island.
The 76.2-meter-tall, 1850-ton "Eureka Striker" stepped into the sea, heading towards the aircraft carrier fleet.
On the other side, a black-robed Reincarnator suddenly showed surprise and reported,
"My Lord, the island's cognitive interference seems to be affected. An intercontinental missile is heading towards us and is expected to hit the imperial homeland in 1 minute and 42 seconds."
The Doomsday Great Sun looked up, dark light gleaming in his eyes. He spoke, his voice low.
"It's fine. If that thing doesn't hit once, those nations won't despair…"
The few people exchanged glances, then lowered their heads in affirmation, quickly beginning to allocate personnel. Facing a nuclear attack, energy impact was only one aspect; the troublesome radiation was what needed special handling, otherwise, this land would likely lose the environment for growing crops.
But they felt no fear at this moment; instead, they were quite excited. They were very likely to become the first team of Reincarnators in this generation to face a nuclear strike in the real world.