Shi Tiexin stroked the Integrated Machine, the skin of his palm touching metal, unable to feel any warmth belonging to humanity.
So cold.
Cold as her gaze had been during their previous battle.
But when he opened the Guanlan Sky Eye and loaded it with vast amounts of knowledge in Physics, information science, and mechanics, he instantly saw through the entire structure of the massive Integrated Machine.
Sao Ye had not told the whole truth, because Fang Qingjue's mental signal was not inside this Integrated Machine. That was only natural. As the Technology Core of Hongliu, and with no ability whatsoever to protect herself, Fang Qingjue's location naturally could not be found so easily.
Yet none of it could escape Shi Tiexin's detection.
His gaze followed the circuits onward, and he followed the circuits all the way, rounded three bends, and arrived at an inconspicuous warehouse. He opened the warehouse door, hypnotized the two guards, opened a hidden door, and descended the stairs until he reached an underground hangar.
It resembled the most traditional kind of server room. Rows upon rows of steel racks held countless mainframes, and countless cables linked those mainframes together. The pitch-black surroundings were like the Eastern netherworld, while the dim crimson glow resembled Western hell. It was no place for people to stay.
But Shi Tiexin found her. He found that mental signal.
He came before a somewhat unusual machine and stared deeply into its interior. There was a brain within, already deeply fused with the machine. Countless data signals radiated outward from the brain as their core, connecting to mainframes in every direction. The mainframes processed, calculated, fed back, and accepted the brain's complete command.
That brain was Hongliu's Technology Core.
That brain was her.
Shi Tiexin sighed, found a data cable, and connected