Chapter 2739: So-called Awakening!
Translator:
Henyee Translations
Editor:
Henyee Translations
âItâs very simple. Although I havenât come of age yet, I do know a thing or two about that.â
Tang Ka said, ââLoveâ and âhappinessâ are the temptations of the extraterrestrial devils that must be strictly forbidden, but producing enough human beings as servants and warriors for the godsâ cause is a different matter. Itâs a sacred mission.
âWhen the resources are abundant and the environment is stable, the adults will carry out the reproduction mission regularly. The bottom-level farmers, workers, and soldiers are matched randomly with their numbers in a giant database.
âFor the people of special classes, such as the Purgers, the Priests, the Lurkers, or the Commanders, because we have relatively abundant feelings and advanced thinking abilities, we naturally canât be randomly matched. There is a group of specially trained staff who would analyze our genes, personality, and behaviors before they determine the most suitable matches and the best time of impregnation for us. All that we have to do is to go to a certain room at a certain time and adopt a certain posture. Then, we will produce the smartest, strongest, and most loyal offspring!â
âWellâŠâ
Li Yao thought for a long time but did not know how to comment on that, particularly when it was said by a teenage boy so matter-of-factly..
After a long time, he could only say, âSo amazing?â
âDonât you think that itâs the best way? Such a way of reproduction is the most trustworthy, clean, and effective way!â
Tang Ka said, âWeâre not idiots, and we know a thing or two about how itâs done in the Imperium. I was told that the Imperium people couldnât be matched unless they have âloveâ for each other. Sometimes, theyâre even addicted to it just for its ecstasy instead of reproduction.
âI was also told that countless Imperium people have been enslaved by this guilty pleasure. They canât live without matching their genes with someone. Some even fight each other for gene targets that are utterly unsuitable for themselves, disrupting social order. Some have no health examinations or safety measures when they match their genes, only to contract all kinds of diseases. Weâve seen a lot of repulsive pictures that our mentors told us to be the marks left by extraterrestrial devils. Itâs disgusting.
âGrandpa Yao, can you tell me if itâs true? Is reproduction really so⊠ugly, chaotic, and wasteful in the Imperium?â
âWellâŠâ
Li Yao could only speak the truth. âFine. There are indeed plenty of such people.â
âTheyâre completely unreasonable.â
Tang Ka mumbled, âHow could they corrupt the bodies that the gods gave them and waste their precious lives like that?â
âYouâre right. I agree with you in that regard. We should not indulge ourselves too much, and we should aim for something higher. If you have needs, you always have your hands!â
Li Yao said, âWell, letâs change our topic. You are a product of gene matching too? Do you know who your parents are?â
âI do. My gene providers are the most loyal servants of the gods and the most valiant warriors.â
Tang Ka declared proudly, âIâve read their files. They fulfilled all their duties for the cause of the gods.â
As he talked, he realized that he shouldnât be proud, and his soul emitted feeble ripples again.
âYouâve read their files?â
Li Yao asked, âYouâve never seen them in person? You werenât raised by them?â
âNo, Iâve never seen them. Why do I have to? My life is given by the gods. They merely carried out the will of the gods and provided genes for my physical body. Apart from that, weâre brothers and sisters and the godsâ lambs, servants, and warriors. Itâs really unnecessary to bother about things like âparentsâ.â
Tang Ka said, âI grew up in a nursery with thousands of peers. It could save more resources and help us awaken the talents that the gods gave us as soon as possible so that we could grow up to be the godsâ servants sooner.â
âWhat kind of place is this nursery?â
Li Yao asked again, âDo you remember your childhood? What did you usually do?â
âThere are different kinds of nurseries in the Covenant Alliance that are responsible for grooming different classes.â
Tang Ka said, âWhen babies are born, there will be staff who will examine the babiesâ health and potentials and distribute them to different nurseries according to their genetic features, which will decide whether they will turn into the low-level farmers and soldiers or the special classes and leaders.
âI was very lucky. The gods blessed me with sharp senses to detect feelings and abnormal brainwaves and a pair of nimble hands that allow me to dismantle and assemble complicated magic equipment. With those talents and the information on my gene providers, I was sent to a nursery that groomed Purgers.
âOf course, even if I went to the nursery, it was not guaranteed that I could go to the Holy Light Academy where the Purgers were taught. I had to train myself day after day to awaken more talents and pass more tests in order not to be eliminated and kicked back to the bottom of the starship.â
âThe bottom of the starship?â
Li Yao asked, âIs your nursery in a starship?â
âYes. Blessed by the gods, the Covenant Alliance has much more advanced starships than the Imperium does. Most of us live and work on starships.â
Tang Ka said, âFrom my earliest memories, Iâve been living on starships. All that I could see were silver cabin walls and the deep, dark pathways. We barely went to any planet, which was good. After all, planets are plagued by extraterrestrial devils and filled with darkness and evil.â
âSo, even in your earlier memories, youâve been staying in the nursery and trying to âawaken your talentsâ?â
Pondering for a moment, Li Yao asked again, âI know that training is different for your people. You attach more importance to âawakeningâ than you do to âlearningâ. Can you tell me what âawakening talentsâ is about? How do your mentors know your talents or that youâre suitable to be a Purger?â
âTalents are the gifts of the gods that cannot be learned but can be awakened.â
Tang Ka frowned, and a ripple of pain spread out of his soul, which escaped his attention. He said quickly, âThere are many ways to awaken talents. Our mentors helped us see and hear the gods when we were very little.
âSometimes, the mentors would stab thin and long needles into our acupoints and charge the needles, and then some of us would see the glory of the gods in the primeval age and awaken certain talents from the pictures we saw.
âSometimes, more⊠radical approaches would be adopted. For example, we would be pushed into a tank of icy water with a cover on the top. Some of us received enlightenments during the meditation in the cold darkness.
âSometimes, we were asked to fight ferocious beasts, try extreme pain, or bear being burned by fire. Many people, including myself, saw the gods and heard their voices.â
â⊠Is that so?â
Li Yaoâs voice was even colder than the icy water. âI donât understand. Youâre only fourteen right now. When you received such⊠awakening training, you couldnât have been older than ten, right? Wouldnât you and your peers be severely injured if your talents were not awakened?â
âItâs true that a lot of people were hurt.â
Tang Ka said casually, âIt means that they were unqualified to be Purgers. They could not bear the dual temptations of thinking ability and emotions, and they would be exiled to other nurseries at the bottom of the starships or other elementary work. But thatâs not a big deal. Whatever they do, theyâre serving the gods.â
âDid anybody die from the awakening training?â
After a long silence, Li Yao asked a question that he would rather not ask.
âYes.â
Tang Ka said, âItâs also the will of the gods. The gods gave them life at first and then took it back later. The gods have made arrangements for things as small as grains of dust and those as huge as stars. We need not worry about them.â
â⊠Got it.â
Taking a deep breath, Li Yao said, âSo, you passed all the tests and got admitted to this Holy Light Academy, and you only need to pass one final test to become a âPurgerâ? Can you tell me more about the Purgers?â
Tang Ka told Li Yao everything about the Holy Light Academy and the Purgers.
In the end, he said, âThe work of the Purgers is of paramount importance because most people in the Covenant Alliance lack the ability to think or feel. On one hand, it helps them to be more devoted to the gods, but on the other hand, theyâre so innocent that they might be allured and corrupted by the extraterrestrial devils without them realizing it.
âThe Purger is a defense line between the ordinary Covenant Alliance people and the extraterrestrial devils. Theyâre the guardians of the majority!â