Hammer Vanguard, undoubtedly, is a team filled with heroism, where each member is as tough as iron, unafraid of power, and unswayed by money and fame.

However, their unyielding hearts were ultimately corrupted by something else.

And that is [Immortality].

Previously, when Yun You saw the word immortality, she determined that the vast majority of people in this world cannot refuse it.

And facts proved that her prediction was correct.

Even the Hammer Vanguard, who cared little for wealth and power, was eventually seduced by immortality, and with a moment's lapse, fell into the abyss.

This is a story Yun You learned from a note when she found the organ "liver" at the town's smelting factory.

The note bore both Aurora's handwriting and the ink marks of the Hammer Vanguard Squad.

[Recorder: Heavy Hammer Vanguard Captain Shen Donglin]

[Recorded Time: October 2057]

[This is the Notebook of the Hammer Vanguard Squad, I am Captain Shen Donglin]

[...]

[We failed because of greed]

[Originally, we were to destroy it all, we even found most of the organs, if we could find a way to destroy them all, everyone and everything here would be liberated]

[Hammer Vanguard was meant to do this, and we should have done it]

[However, after learning the young king's organ possessed the effect of "immortality," we hesitated, we began to have thoughts of researching and keeping it for ourselves, and were reluctant to destroy it]

[Initially, we found many respectable reasons for our actions]

[Speaking in my own words, this is to lay bricks and mortar for the future endeavors... Just imagine, if we had bodies and souls that were immortal, wouldn't we be able to keep fighting endlessly, to uphold justice for more and more suffering miners, and let fairness be realized by us...]

[We would no longer fear oppression from the Mine Boss, nor fear that so-called prison disaster, and need not fear guns and cannon]

[This was truly enticing, at least to us it was]

[Since the formation of the Hammer Vanguard Team, countless like-minded companions have died in various accidents and skirmishes]

[If they could gain the power of immortality, if we had the ability to be ageless and undying, all the tragedies wouldn't happen again]

[Even if this immortality has issues, so what? Modern biotechnology couldn't solve its problems? It certainly could]

[This was the idea we held]

[But until the day I wrote this line, when the illusions were shattered, I realized how childish and oblivious I had been then]

[What supposed fairness... what saving companions were merely excuses and reasons]

[In the end, we only sought immortality for ourselves]

[...]

[One of our companions, who had worked in the guerrilla squad in earlier years, was quite clear-headed and saw through our problems at a glance, so kindly spoke up to remind us]

[But back then, how could we listen to his words? Everyone was obsessed with immortality, with being ageless and undying, no other opinions were allowed in our minds]

[Helpless, he forcibly seized an organ and was about to destroy it by soaking it in sulfuric acid...]

[He was our senior and old buddy, normally, we wouldn't oppose him, nor would we physically clash or lay hands on him]

[However...]

[At that moment, we had already been blinded by immortality, filled with hatred towards anyone who tried to stop us from acquiring immortality]

[Thus, stupidly, we committed a heinous crime]

[In the town, we temporarily set up a guillotine, and disregarding the old buddy's cries, we placed him on it and personally decapitated him...]

[The moment his head fell and blood splattered on our faces, we were stunned]

[Once, the old buddy who personally taught us and guided us onto the right path was murdered by us, yet there was no expression of blame on his face, only sorrow]

[At that instant, I suddenly understood, he wasn't mourning for himself, but was worried about us, lamenting the future of the Hammer Vanguard]

[His death awakened us, and that was our only chance to turn back]

[But we failed to cherish it]

[Perhaps "it" was constantly influencing our minds, diluting other emotions and leaving only greed in our hearts]

[In short, guilt and remorse lasted for only a brief period. After recovering, we continued to research those few organs]

[During this period, many companions managed to wake up through sheer willpower, some wanted to leave, others wanted to secretly destroy the organs like the old buddy]

[But in the end, they all became souls under the guillotine]

[How many people did we "execute" exactly? I can't remember]

[Hammer Vanguard was once the most united team in Nest City No. 3, but now, we have personally destroyed everything, executing companions we once viewed as brothers one by one, how ironic this is...]

[Meanwhile, under our research and modification, these few organs became increasingly resilient. Even if we now regret it and want to destroy them, it's impossible...]

[As for ourselves]

[Our memory is continuously declining, and our common sense and values are being affected]

[The technological skills of the past are being abandoned one by one, our spirits are gradually returning to the primitive, starting to live like ancient people]

[Soon, Hammer Vanguard will cease to exist, leaving behind only a group of walking corpses whose memories and common sense have been altered]

[Today, the last awake companion emerged]

[She is a young lady from an affluent family in the Upper City, initially joining us merely for the novelty, thinking Hammer Vanguard was something quirky, with a "fun" mindset]

[But later, after witnessing the suffering of the people at the bottom, she rid herself of past restlessness, became a true vanguard, and was my most trusted partner]

[She could have escaped, at that time all of us were already delirious, entirely indifferent to a little runaway]

[But the sense of responsibility made her choose to stay, and then... she used her death to awaken the last bit of my consciousness]

[She said, with the situation reaching this point today, there is no room for regret, the most we can do is try to minimize "its" harm and leave more hope for future generations]

[I am the leader of Hammer Vanguard, and the only one who, in a clear state, can devise thorough plans and leave a contingency measures... thus she used her life to buy me a few moments of clarity]

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