Chapter 1721: The Third Fleet
Chapter 1721: The Third Fleet
Once Lu Yin and the others met with Little R1O, they were quite close to the Third Fleet.
Half an hour later, Lu Yin saw First Edition City’s Third Fleet.
At this moment, Lu Yin was not the only one shocked, as the First Protector had the same reaction.
Spacecraft spread across space and out of sight. There were at least a million vessels, nearly 100,000 of which were battleships. The remainder were all transports or androids. There were hundreds of millions of androids. This was the Third Fleet.
It was no wonder that the Technocracy was able to contend with the Human Domain. Lu Yin had not understood this in the past, as cultivators were quite common in the Human Domain, and there were countless cultivators at just the Outerverse’s border. While there were not that many cultivators who had reached the level of an Explorer or beyond, once they were gathered from all across the Outerverse, the numbers were quite impressive. This was also not even considering the Innerverse, the Cosmic Sea, the Neoverse, or the 3,000 hidden worlds.
The Hall of Honor was able to mobilize every last human cultivator.
At this moment, Lu Yin finally realized that the Technocracy had an astonishing number of androids. In addition to the androids and the battleships, there were different kinds of technological weapons. These were not only the ones that were visible to the naked eye, but also the ones that remained hidden within the Master Brain’s manifested thoughts. All of space throughout the entire Technocracy was packed with mechanical weapons.
Lu Yin and the First Protector were also only looking at the Third Fleet. First Edition City still had two more fleets, and those forces were absolutely capable of standing up to the Human Domain.
There was a massive sphere at the center of the Third Fleet that looked like a planet, but was not. It was entirely composed of some mysterious, crystal-like material. It looked a great deal like crystal, and it refracted the light in a beautiful manner.
Lu Yin initially believed the sphere to be some kind of weapon, but Little R1O gave an explanation, and Lu Yin finally understood that the sphere was actually the commander of the Third Fleet: Chong.
The prevalent creatures living in the Technocracy were the dominant consciousness, and they were able to take control of any mechanical form that was able to house their consciousness. The sphere was actually such an object, and it was controlled by the dominant consciousness known as Chong.
"The Third Fleet’s Admiral Chong is quite powerful, though you can’t tell from outside. After reaching the battlefield, you would have realized that Admiral Chong’s body is a celestial body with a powerful gravity field due to being compressed as much as possible. Any attack from the commander will match a power level of a million." Little R1O then quietly shared that he had been assigned to a battleship. Naturally, Lu Yin and others had been assigned to the same place.
Lu Yin was surprised at Admiral Chong’s strength. "Attacks with a power level of a million?"
Little R1O nodded. "That’s right. The most powerful things in the universe are not you humans, nor us androids, cyborgs, or even the astral beasts. The celestial bodies are the most powerful, and there are some objects or phenomena that are able to shatter everything we think we know. You should already know about Stellular Tempest and the black hole that forms a barrier across the Human Domain’s Starfall Sea. Both of those are celestial bodies.
"Admiral Chong uses a type of celestial body for his body. The material that makes that sphere is compressed, and by shifting the density, he is able to unleash attacks from the sphere. Each of those attacks can reach a power level of a million. He’s one of First Edition City’s most powerful commanders, and the commanders are second only to the city master."
"What about the vice city master?" Lu Yin asked out of curiosity.
Little R1O shook his head. "I don't know. The vice city master has always stayed within the city and has never left or stepped onto the battlefield. Their precise strength is unknown."
Little R1O did not know, but Lu Yin was aware that the android that he had Possessed had been as strong as an Envoy, and yet it had been almost entirely destroyed by the vice city master simply blocking an attack from Lu Yin. The Vice City Master’s power level absolutely exceeded a million.
The higher Lu Yin climbed, the greater the powerhouses he encountered.
At one point in time, Yuan Shi had been the most powerful being Lu Yin had ever seen, as the old man had a power level of a million. However, Lu Yin’s thoughts of power had recently been shattered after a corpse king he had Possessed had been destroyed by a Progenitor, and also from the scene he had witnessed on Mount Punishment in the Celestial Frost Sect’s ruins. Lu Yin had witnessed and even experienced the power of Progenitors.
The Third Fleet had received its orders, and they started towards the Sophic Rift. Their departure was truly spectacular. Many androids from First Edition City watched, and many dominant consciousnesses remained in the transport tubes to watch while chatting with each other. It was exactly like how humans would see their armies off; First Edition City was seeing the Third Fleet off.
Among the viewers, somewhere in the city, the vice city master was standing in a respectful manner.
"If you can't find anything, then just stop investigating this.” A deep voice spoke.
The vice city master felt reluctant to agree. "City master, I have never missed anyone trying to sneak into the Technocracy! Everyone has been discovered and either killed or expelled. We must find out who sneaked in this time, as to do otherwise would be neglecting our responsibilities."
"Maybe it's a human’s innate gift," the deep voice replied. It was full of majesty and grandeur, but spoke in a very casual manner.
The vice city master felt frustrated. "City Master, allow your subordinate to continue investigating! I will definitely get to the bottom of this; it must be connected to the Sixth Mainland."
"The Sixth Mainland? They’ve already lost everything, so there’s no need to worry about them. If you want, you can keep looking into this. It’s your call."
"So what about the Sixth Mainlanders?"
"Just don't worry about them. They’ve lost their Sixth Mainland, so they’re nothing more than a bunch of poor homeless bastards now."
"Yes, City Master." After speaking, the vice city master’s bear-shaped android left the room in a respectful manner.
After a bit, the deep voice continued, "They were already deceived, and then they took the wrong path with their cultivation. Now, they’ve lost their homeland. They will need to take responsibility for their own mistakes. They have not yet paid the full price due."
After that, the voice disappeared.
Not even the vice city master could determine where this deep voice came from. The city master of First Edition City had been the ruler of it for a long, long time.
…
The Technocracy was about the same size as the Human Domain’s Outerverse. First Edition City was master of half of that territory, which meant that their domain encompassed an area equivalent to more than thirty weaves.
First Edition City’s location within its territory was rather close to the Sophic Rift, but because the entire Third Fleet was moving together, their speed was much slower than moving independently, and it took them several days to reach the battlefield.
There was also a large number of cyborgs within the Third Fleet. These cyborgs were the same as Emperor Luo, as they had originally been human or some other biological creature that had then been adapted and modified. The most important thing about the cyborgs was that they lacked a dominant consciousness and that the bodies had their original minds.
It seemed that it would make sense for the cyborgs to be the vanguard of the war of attrition that First Edition City waged with Sky Creation Academy, but that was not actually the situation. No matter if it was the battles with the Human Domain or Sky Creation Academy, few cyborgs entered the fighting. Most of them lived throughout the Technocracy, and they rarely joined in the fighting.
Lu Yin found this quite strange.
Of the Great Eastern Alliance’s militaries, the Redemption Army he intended to create would be made up of his former enemies. The Redemption Army would be sent to the most dangerous battlefields, as it would keep the Lu Elite Troops and the colossal giants from being the tip of the spear. Lu Yin’s secret wish was to see all wars fought with androids instead of living humans.
The Technocracy was truly an odd place.
With all of the oddities piquing his curiosity, Lu Yin led Emperor Luo as the two of them followed Little R1O on a tour of the Third Fleet.
"There are no fewer than ten research teams here with the Third Fleet. Some of them are here to maintain and repair the spaceships, others are here to repair the androids, while others are supposed to find the enemy’s flaws and weaknesses on the battlefield. War here in the Technocracy is quite different from how you wage your wars in the Human Domain. There’s nothing here like regional tactics, as our fight is through technology and invention," Little R1O explained as they approached a vessel that held a research team.
The research team they were approaching was called the Boom Boom Team, and their focus was the last thing that Little R1O had mentioned: finding the enemy’s weakness. At the moment, they were studying the battlefield before arriving on it, as the Fourth Fleet had sent back data that could be studied. The research team was studying the most recent androids and weaponry that Sky Creation Academy had fielded.
There were several people, but Lu Yin and the others did not disturb them.
Little R1O was not familiar with most of the other research teams, and they passed by one, crossing a tether that connected one vessel to another in order to continue their exploration.
One by one, Lu Yin saw several of the research teams. Some of them were friendly and greeted the three people and even invited them to visit, while others vanished behind closed doors.
In addition to the research teams, they also stumbled upon the armory, and they were allowed to enter and examine some of the weapons.
Lu Yin found a bit of material that seemed similar to what made up the surface of Admiral Chong’s massive body. Lu Yin picked it up and exerted a good bit of his strength, but the substance showed no reaction at all.
"Over there is the ship with the cyborgs, but there’s no reason to meet with them. They’re narrow-minded, and no one likes them," Little R1O spat in disgust.
Lu Yin nodded in agreement. He had no interest in seeing the cyborgs.
Two days passed as Lu Yin wandered about the Third Fleet. If he had been an outsider visiting the Great Eastern Alliance’s militaries, would he ever have been allowed such freedom while exploring? He had even visited the Third Fleet’s armory and handled their weapons.
Just when they were about to return, Lu Yin paused and turned to look towards the cyborgs’ ship. He sensed eyes locked onto him that held surprise and disbelief.
Lu Yin frowned; someone was staring at them. Given the emotions behind the eyes that were looking at them, was it possible that they had been recognized? That should be impossible, as they had not been discovered even in First Edition City.
The next moment, a woman emerged from the cyborgs’ vessel. Her face was half-mechanical and half-human. The human features were beautiful, but the mechanical aspects were a bit depressing, especially the eyes. One of her eyes was a normal person's, while the other was green.
The woman picked up a foot and entered the true universe. She tore through the void to reappear in outer space in front of Lu Yin and the others. She opened the hatch of the spacecraft they were in and instantly appeared less than a meter away from Lu Yin and the others.
Neither Lu Yin nor Emperor Luo moved, but Little R1O shouted, "What do you want?"
The woman’s eyes were staring past Lu Yin at Emperor Luo. "How dare you come back here!"
Lu Yin's eyes twitched, and he remembered the video that Emperor Luo had shared before. He had been attacked by a woman; could this be her?
"I don't want to. I’m just following orders," Emperor Luo replied stiffly.
The woman stared at Emperor Luo, completely unconcerned by Lu Yin. "Give me everything and I’ll forget what happened."
Emperor Luo stood in place, silent and unmoving.
The woman’s mechanical side of her body moved, and she suddenly attacked. She grabbed for Emperor Luo, but he simply raised a hand. The beam attack that the hand was capable of releasing made the woman feel danger, and she reflexively retreated.
Emperor Luo made no further moves, and Lu Yin pushed the man’s hand down.
Lu Yin looked at the woman. "He belongs to me now."
The biological half of the woman's face frowned, and she continued staring at Emperor Luo. "The strength of an Envoy? You definitely have the power of an Envoy."
Emperor Luo lowered his hand and quietly moved to stand behind Lu Yin.
The woman finally turned to look at Lu Yin. "Who are you?"
Before Lu Yin could even reply, Little R1O burst out in anger, "Who are you? You dare treat my friends like this? These are my Little R1O's friends!"
The woman was shocked. "The Sixth Mainland?"
"Yes, he’s taken refuge with my Sixth Mainland. He’s responsible for protecting us on our trip to First Edition City to negotiate with the vice city master. What is it that you want?" Lu Yin spoke slowly, and he deliberately made it clear that he was upset.
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