But Liuge's attention was not on those people.
His and Dan Heng's attention was completely drawn to the enormous manor with a plaza in the distance.
"What's over there?"
Dan Heng frowned slightly.
"That's where the boss of those little robots is."
Liuge smiled and revealed information that surprised Dan Heng.
"Before coming here, I investigated Rivet Town. There's someone called Boss Svarog here who helps the people of the Underworld, but he also has conflicts with the Wildfire organization in Rivet Town. That's why he built a settlement here on his own."
Liuge calmly spun a lie, though it was also the truth.
"Conflicts?"
Dan Heng sounded doubtful.
"Basically, Boss Svarog doesn't agree with people from the Underworld moving to the Upper District, while Wildfire is doing everything it can to open a passage between the upper and lower levels so the people below can go up and live there."
"So their ideals don't align?"
Dan Heng caught on.
"Exactly."
Character Summon Card
After getting his answer, Dan Heng instead found it strange that Liuge had come here.
"Don't look at me like that. I only came here to persuade Boss Svarog. Rather than having a whole group of us slowly work our way through the Underworld, why not try tackling both sides at once?"
"What does that have to do with finding the Stellaron?"
"Oh, that? I already know where the Stellaron is."
"What?"
Dan Heng nearly choked on a mouthful of water.
So while we'd been wanted these past few days, you found the Stellaron's location instead?
"Actually, this planet's cold wave is the result of that Stellaron."
"According to this planet's records, Jarilo-VI was a famous tourist planet with pleasant scenery seven hundred years ago. Then one day, the Antimatter Legion invaded, leading to a battle between The Architects and the Antimatter Legion."
"But that wasn't what caused the cold wave. The real cause was that Memory Stellaron."
Liuge was interrupted by Dan Heng at that point.
"You mean a Memory Stellaron?"
"That's right!"
Liuge spread out his hand and caught a falling snowflake.
"Who among the Aeons do you think has an ice attribute?"
Such a simple question made Dan Heng freeze for a moment.
Indeed, wasn't it obvious?
From the very beginning, this planet had been covered in snow, swallowed by a cold wave.
And among the Aeons, only Fuli, the Aeon of Remembrance, would be like this.
"So this cold wave is the result of Fuli taking action?"
"Wrong. It should be said... it's the result of the Stellaron scattered across this planet erupting with power."
Liuge looked at Dan Heng and continued.
"And because this planet had The Architects due to the IPC back then, and because The Architects were followers of Preservation Trailblazer, they built towering walls here to resist the cold wave."
"They've held it back for seven hundred years. Now, only Belobog in the Upper District remains—the last city on this planet."
Liuge spoke the cruelest truth in the calmest tone.
As Dan Heng listened, a trace of surprise appeared in his eyes.
How had Liuge gathered all this information in such a short time?
"Outsiders, leave this place!"
While the two chatted, four or five Automaton Beetles surrounded them.
Looking at those beetle-like automatons, irritation flashed through Liuge's eyes.
Back when he played the game, he hated these traffic-light bastards that put shields on themselves the most. And now they had shown up again.
With that thought, Liuge directly opened Aether Edit, his fingers rapidly moving across it.
When he transformed into Haxxor Bunny, Liuge had gained hacking skills. But compared to Haxxor Bunny herself at her peak hacker state, Liuge's hacking ability could only be called beginner-level.
Still, against these outdated automatons whose firewalls were as flimsy as paper, it was utter overkill. He easily seized control of their operating programs.
Dan Heng had already summoned Cloud-Piercer and was preparing to fight when he suddenly discovered that all the automatons before him had stopped moving.
"It's fine. I've already taken control of these guys."
Liuge waved a hand, dismissing Aether Edit. At the same time, the automatons parted to create a path.
At that moment, Liuge and Dan Heng saw that the gates of the grand courtyard in the distance had opened, as though welcoming them.
"Let's go. The real host is waiting for us."
Liuge spoke to Dan Heng beside him.
"Mm."
The two headed toward the grand courtyard. As they drew closer, they saw a purple-black figure with a massive frame seemingly standing within it.
"Outsiders, you..."
As Liuge and Dan Heng approached, the figure was just about to speak.
Liuge immediately cut him off.
"Don't talk, hold it in..."
"???"
For a moment, both Dan Heng and Svarog fell silent.
"Oh, no. Wrong thing to say!"
Liuge smiled and continued.
"I mean, Svarog, your calculations are wrong."
Hearing Liuge's words, Svarog turned around.
Only then did Dan Heng finally see clearly.
The mysterious person known as Boss Svarog was actually a robot.
"You say... my calculations are wrong?"
Svarog's single red eye seemed to fix on Liuge, its glow gradually intensifying.
"That's right. Your decision to protect the entire Underworld is not perfect."
"Proof?"
Svarog was clearly not as stubborn as he had been in the game. He could still be reasoned with and would not immediately unleash his ultimate after only a few words.
"Because we, the Astral Express crew from beyond the stars, have arrived."
Svarog made no sound at Liuge's words, but the red light in his eye grew brighter.
"Argument confirmed: variable exists."
Svarog seemed to have calculated something.
"But the proof you have provided is insufficient to change everything."
The moment Liuge heard that, he knew this guy really was the same Svarog from the game—utterly stubborn.
Unless they beat him flat.
Thinking this, Liuge glanced at Dan Heng beside him.
If Dan Heng were not here, Liuge wanted to try transforming into Haxxor Bunny and directly hacking into Svarog's internals to alter his programming.
With that thought, Liuge sighed.
"Then we'll show you."
As Liuge spoke, he led Dan Heng away.
Suddenly, his gaze was caught by the golden orb beneath Svarog.
Golden Legend?!
Liuge, who had been about to leave, slipped and sprawled silkily at Svarog's feet, his hand conveniently reaching out to touch the golden orb.
Self-Awareness
Quality: Gold
Effect: Capable of developing self-awareness.
Seeing this, Liuge was overjoyed.
In that instant, he realized what his previously assembled incomplete clone had been lacking.
Acting on the thought immediately, he got up and left with Dan Heng.
But Svarog behind him voiced his confusion.
Calculation result: his fall was deliberate!
But... why?
Liuge and Dan Heng had already left the grand courtyard and stood not far from the drifter camp, looking toward it.
Though he appeared to be merely looking, Liuge was already combining Clone with Self-Awareness.
The next instant, his Stat-Stick Library gained the completed stat-stick.
Clone
Quality: Gold
Effect: Can split off a clone possessing self-awareness. (Note: self-awareness will only develop into the consciousness of the Character Card itself after the clone equips a Character Card.)
Joy instantly filled his heart.
Seeing the description, Liuge understood.
Not only could he use his Character Cards himself, he could also pair them with clones—and the clones could use them even better than he could.
After all, control by the original consciousness and control by his foreign consciousness were completely different levels, weren't they?
Liuge Was in a Hurry, Truly in a Hurry
Liuge and Dan Heng walked along the road back. Liuge's constant silence made Dan Heng feel somewhat unable to speak.
How should he put it? Liuge looked as focused as a scholar deep in thought.
As someone who often immersed himself in books, Dan Heng knew how annoying it was to be disturbed while thinking something through. So in this state, he would not make a nuisance of himself by interrupting Liuge.
At the moment, Liuge did not care what Dan Heng thought of him. His attention had already been seized by the newly combined stat-stick.
Once the Clone stat-stick equipped a Character Stat-Stick Card, it would develop a consciousness suited to that Character Card.
Didn't that mean he could get close and cozy with those characters?
—Wait!
Liuge suddenly thought of a problem, and his expression stiffened.
This stat-stick was Clone.
Before you continue