At this moment, a gentle broadcast sounded in his ears: “These newly unearthed ancient relics all contain a mysterious energy, and no instrument can determine the source or function of this energy...”

Unconsciously, William Carter's gaze was fixed tightly on one small bead among them.

He didn’t understand either why he had suddenly developed such an intense interest in this object. Somehow, he felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity with this bead, as if it was something that should have belonged to him all along.

However, even though his eyes were locked onto that object, his feet still moved forward instinctively with the flow of people.

Surprised exclamations kept coming from around him: “It really lives up to its reputation. You have to see them with your own eyes to feel how extraordinary they are...”

“That’s right, this must be a gift from the Lord, amen!”

Although William Carter was a thorough atheist, at this moment he found himself somewhat agreeing with that statement.

In today’s society, it was already a complete Skynet era. As long as you were within the territory of the Human Alliance, Skynet was everywhere like a spider’s web. Information had become something anyone could easily access.

When these ancient relics were first unearthed, their photos and videos had already spread widely across Skynet. However, what truly moved people was that everyone who had seen them in person unanimously said that only by seeing them with your own eyes could you sense their uniqueness.

Just as the broadcast described, there was a mysterious power on them that current human technology could not explain. Precisely because of this, the bigwigs in the federal capital had become interested in them. And for the same reason, the exhibition hall was packed to capacity.

William Carter's gaze did not stray to any other items; from beginning to end, his eyes were fixed on that small bead, as if, as long as no one disturbed him, he could stare at it forever.

However, the movement of the crowd was not centered around his will, and soon, he had no choice but to walk past the large platform at the center of the exhibition hall.

At the very moment he reluctantly tore his gaze away, a strong sense of loss surged in William Carter's heart, as if he had suddenly forgotten something extremely important, leaving him feeling empty and at a loss.

“Bang...”

A loud sound of shattering glass rang out, and then all the lights in the exhibition hall went out at once.

“Ah...”

Continuous screams erupted from the crowd, mostly high-pitched female voices mixed with a few hoarse, deep male exclamations.

At the corner, William Carter and the others were plunged into pitch darkness, unable to see their own hands. Someone immediately asked, “What’s going on?”

“Who knows, what’s wrong with this exhibition hall?”

“It’s so dark, what happened?”

“Why are the lights out? I want the lights on, I want to file a complaint.”

A moment later, a deep male voice sounded: “Dear guests, please forgive us. An unexpected accident just occurred, and the exhibition hall has lost power.” The voice was not shouted, but in the vast exhibition hall, everyone could hear it clearly.

“A power outage?”

“Who are you kidding?”

“Ah! We actually encountered the legendary power outage. Aren’t we lucky...”

Low curses and surprised exclamations continued to come from the crowd. In this era of extremely advanced technology, the words “power outage” had long been disconnected from people’s daily lives.

Except for those living on planets with extremely harsh environments, it could be said that the vast majority of people, from birth to death, had never experienced what a power outage felt like.

Yet today, the people in this exhibition hall were lucky enough to enjoy this special treatment, and from now on, they would have something to brag about.

Just as William Carter was at a loss whether to laugh or cry, he heard the sound of someone moving nearby. This person seemed completely unaffected by the darkness, deftly avoiding the crowd with every step, quickly making their way toward the exit.

William Carter hadn’t paid much attention at first, but just as that person passed by him, he suddenly sensed a familiar feeling emanating from them—the exact same feeling he’d had when he saw that small bead earlier.

His heart gave a heavy thump, and a terrifying thought flashed through his mind.

The person didn’t stop, and in the blink of an eye had walked past William Carter. At that moment, that sense of emptiness and loss returned. Instinctively, he immediately realized that the small bead was now on that person.

A strong sense of unwillingness surged in his heart. Deep in his mind, it was as if someone was shouting: This is mine, it belongs to me.

Suddenly, the small bead on that person vanished without anyone noticing. Even the mysterious person carrying it was completely unaware.

The small bead silently and soundlessly appeared in front of William Carter. No one noticed, and no instrument detected it. The small bead floated to William Carter's ear.

Chapter Two: The Legacy of the Undead