northernbook Chapter 277 The Shadow of the Shepherd, the Ultimate Suspense
Chapter 277 The Shadow of the Shepherd, the Ultimate Suspense
After mastering the Reaper's command protocol, Su Chen did not stop there.
He continued to delve deeper into the massive amount of data, searching for more valuable intelligence.
Soon, in the deepest part of the data ocean, he discovered an extremely brief message that had been sealed away with the highest privileges by the "Harvest Lord".
This information does not belong to any of the harvester's own agreements or databases.
It's more like an "instruction" from a higher level.
The content of the information consists of only one extremely ancient and complex symbol, and the sole meaning that this symbol represents.
"Censorship".
Su Chen had never seen this symbol before.
But the aura it exudes, that indifferent yet majestic feeling that seems to transcend the entire universe.
It sent a primal tremor through Su Chen's soul.
This is something the Reaper can never possess.
"Shepherd..."
The taboo word he had learned from the Shadow's memories instantly surfaced in Su Chen's mind.
Could this be the instruction given by the "Shepherd" to the "Reaper"?
Review?
What are you reviewing?
To examine the civilizations in this star system?
Or should we examine...the harvesters' own work?
With too little information, Su Chen was unable to make an accurate judgment.
He attempted to cross-reference this symbol with the vast legacy left by the Shadow, the countless cosmic barrages he observed, and the "Prophet's" database.
However, all of these efforts yielded no results.
Neither the memories of the Shadow nor the comments from the reborn individuals mentioned the existence of "Shepherds" or "End-of-Life Persons," but there was no description of their specific information.
It's as if the name itself is a taboo that cannot be recorded or described.
"It seems we can only ask the 'professionals'."
Su Chen's heart stirred, and through the soul contract, he contacted Ugus, who was supervising the maintenance work on the mothership.
A holographic projection appeared in the virtual space.
Oghuz's figure appeared respectfully.
"Master, you wanted to see me?"
"Ogus, take a look at this."
Without wasting words, Su Chen directly projected the ancient and complex symbol in front of Oghuz.
The moment Oghuz saw that symbol.
He was as if struck by lightning from the heavens, instantly frozen in place.
The color drained from his face in an instant, leaving it paler than a dead man.
His body began to tremble violently and uncontrollably.
It was a fear that came from the deepest part of my soul, countless times stronger than when I saw the Reaper!
"No...no...impossible..."
His teeth were chattering, and the sounds he made were choked with sobs.
"The mark of the...the mark of the final producer...is the mark of the final producer!"
"How...how did it get here?! Why is it here?!"
Oghuz seemed to see the most terrifying thing in the universe, and his mind was on the verge of collapse.
Su Chen keenly caught the key words in his words.
"The final producers? What are they?" Su Chen pressed.
"It's...it's the gardener..."
Oghuz's voice was filled with despair and trembling.
"They are... the gardeners of the universe..."
"gardener?"
"Master...you...you don't know them?"
Ogus raised his head and looked at Su Chen with the eyes of someone looking at a monster.
"You survived the Reapers, even managed to steal their essence, yet... you were unaware of the existence of the 'End Producers'?"
"Now I know," Su Chen said calmly. "Go on."
"Yes..." Ugus took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, but his voice still couldn't stay calm.
"In the oldest legends of the universe, the universe we live in was not born naturally, but was a 'garden' carefully crafted by a supreme being."
"All of us so-called civilizations, whether they are inferior or celestial powers like our Star-Eating Cult, are nothing more than 'crops' planted in a garden."
"And the 'harvesters' are not robbers or conquerors; they are... 'pests' or 'viruses.' Their presence causes 'crops' to deteriorate, producing deformed fruit."
"As for the 'final producer'..."
Ogus's voice was extremely low, as if even mentioning his name was a desecration.
"They are the gardeners of the garden. They regularly inspect the entire garden, and when they arrive, it means... the 'pruning' is about to begin."
"Trim?" Su Chen's brows furrowed tightly.
"Yes, trimming."
Oghuz's eyes were filled with endless fear.
"They will clean up all the 'pests' in the garden, such as harvesters. At the same time, they will also... prune those 'crops' that are not growing well and that they deem worthless."
"Civilizations that are 'pruned' will be completely erased from this universe, from the conceptual level, without leaving any trace, as if... it never existed at all."
Just as Oghuz was recounting these events...
In the "Prophet's" database, an ancient myth archive of unknown origin, sealed away for countless years with the highest authority, suddenly unlocked automatically.
An ancient text appeared before Su Chen.
God surveyed His garden and found it overgrown with weeds and infested with pests. So God raised His shears. Light and darkness were trimmed. Good and evil were reduced to nothingness. The garden returned to silence.
As Su Chen read the text and listened to Ogus's account, he finally pieced together all the clues.
He finally understood exactly what a cruel "farm" this universe was!
If civilization is a crop, then the harvesters are pests.
So the shepherd, or the endowment, is the "gardener" who regularly trims the garden!
They were not only cleaning up "pests", but also what they considered "crops" that were "not growing well"!
"Censorship"...
Su Chen finally understood the meaning of that symbol.
The gardener is coming to inspect his garden!
An unprecedented chill rose from the depths of Su Chen's heart.
He realized that simply evading bandits like the Star Eater Cult or even defeating "pests" like the Reapers was far from enough to lead Earth's civilization to survival.
They also have to prove their "worth" to that high and mighty "gardener" so as not to be treated as weeds and "pruned" away at will!
or……
Su Chen's gaze suddenly shifted to the star map pointing to the "Civilization Cemetery".
Or, find that legendary "key" that can restart the rules of the universe.
then……
Let's destroy this damned "garden," along with that arrogant "gardener"...
Smash it completely!
His gaze became incredibly resolute.
He knew which way to go from here.