The Blind Spot Under the Lamp

The engineer's right eye suddenly blurred, and although the blur came and went quickly, the engineer still managed to catch it.

The gaze lock has been released?

Xiao Tong smiled and looked at another figure under a parasol. It was a woman, about two meters tall, with strong thighs, bronze skin, and well-developed six-pack abs. She raised her head, and beneath her short hair was a tough-looking face.

"Xiao Ya, my cousin."

This cousin has more abs than your cousin.

Xiao Ya slowly stood up. She didn't have a broad back and thick waist; her waist was very slender, while her back had implanted muscles, and the traces of purple muscle groups wriggling could be clearly seen.

"You are of that empire's bloodline?"

Xiao Ya looked him up and down, her attitude quite impolite. This was in line with the senior engineer's impression of the citizens of the mother city. In their eyes, apart from the citizens of the mechanical city who could be considered country bumpkins, all other creatures belonged to the "ruin species".

The senior engineer smiled but didn't answer. Instead, he looked at the android loli Xiao Yi and said, "So you're one of them."

"Xiao Yi isn't human. Xiao Yi is a specially customized android, number one, designed to serve VIPs," the little girl said with a bright smile.

Xiao Ya's face darkened. She had met the descendants of the empire before, and no matter how they pretended on the surface, they were all insecure and ingratiating towards them at heart.

This is no longer the age of empires, but the age of machines. The Xiao family's descendants treat these imperial bloodlines as poor relatives begging for food.

Especially since she was at a crucial juncture in the competition for the title of "Strong Colony War God," being pulled away by her family to verify this troublesome bloodline was bound to make her unhappy.

Seeing this, Xiao Tong quickly smoothed things over, saying, "Xiao Ya, you don't know yet, do you? Engineer Gao single-handedly suppressed a beast tide. He came here this time specifically to award him a medal."

"Oh?"

In the minds of the Xiao family, strength is the only standard of beauty.

She had suppressed beast tides before, but without the help of the mechanical legion, she dared not say she could have done so.

Looking at it this way, this pretty boy isn't actually that bad-looking.

"Alright, enough talk, let's get started," Xiao Tong urged.

"Wait, right here?"

The senior engineer looked at the crowded beach and said, "This virtual beach is connected to the internet, right? Your Xiao family is powerful, aren't you worried about retaliation? If I were found to be related to 'traitors,' that Lord Frasso would probably take my life on the spot."

"Coward," Xiao Ya's initial goodwill vanished instantly.

Xiao Tong blinked and smiled, "Don't worry, everyone here is one of ours."

Our people?

A hint of doubt flashed in Gao Gong's eyes. Neither Xiao Tong nor Gao Gong himself had the authority to ask the Xiao family to mobilize too many people, so what did "we" mean?

Give me a drop of your blood.

Xiao Ya tossed over a mechanical test tube. The surface of the test tube was not glass, but more like a dozen sections of a 'metal gun barrel', several of which were rotating repeatedly.

As soon as the senior engineer had a thought, the vial of "Black Prince's Blood" hidden in the "symbiote" automatically opened and was implanted into his body.

After becoming a symbiote, these small implants no longer require implantation surgery.

Instantly, a cool sensation spread throughout my body, and all the systems in my body became more 'mechanical' and more orderly.

[You have been implanted with the 'Black Prince's Blood,' your endocrine system modification rate has increased by 3%]

[Your Mechanical Energy +3000, gained the talent 'Basic Mechanical Sense']

[Your Perception +5, Strength +5, Intelligence +5]

[You have been implanted with the Black Prince's bloodline, gaining a trace of imperial aura.]

Xiao Tong and Xiao Ya's expressions changed simultaneously. A sluggish yet majestic aura emanated from the senior engineer, making it seem as if all mechanical life had to submit to him and pay homage to him.

The entire planet's mechanical system seemed to merge with him in an instant.

This feeling was fleeting, and the next moment, the senior engineer handed over the mechanical test tube containing blood.

All thirteen joints of the "mechanical test tube" were rotating simultaneously.

This is a symbol of strong bloodline.

Xiao Tong and Xiao Ya exchanged a glance, a hint of surprise flashing in their eyes. Both of them had seen imperial bloodlines before, but this was the first time they had ever seen royal blood of such high quality that it could make all thirteen 'mechanical pipes' turn.

Could it be the bloodline of a high-ranking elector?

It couldn't possibly be a direct descendant of the emperor, could it? The lineage of the mechanical emperors died out long ago.

Xiao Ya's attitude also changed. She no longer looked down at people with her chin raised. She said somewhat solemnly, "The official test results will not be available until 8 hours later, but from the current perspective, there should be no problem."

Xiao Ya left in a hurry. Xiao Tong looked at Xiao Yi and suddenly smiled, "Xiao Yi, could you please pour us two glasses of juice?"

"Okay, you and your master wait a moment."

Xiao Tong breathed a sigh of relief after Xiao Yi skipped away.

The senior engineer also breathed a sigh of relief.

[Due to the seal on your circulatory system, the 'Black Prince's Blood' has been extracted.]

[Due to the sealing of your endocrine system, the 'Black Prince's Blood' has been released.]

[Basic mechanical sense canceled]

[Perception, Strength, and Intelligence bonuses removed]

[Mechanical rejection +100]

As expected, this top-quality 'mechanical blood' cannot be matched by a body that has not been fully unlocked.

In fact, even if the body is completely unsealed, the senior engineer doesn't think he will necessarily be able to absorb it successfully.

If obtaining the Imperial bloodline were so easy, the space pirates wouldn't have gone to such lengths to create a bio-engineered "Black Prince."

But it's enough to fool people.

"Why do you seem so afraid of this little girl?" the senior engineer asked, trying to make conversation.

Xiao Tong breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Do you know why we need her to be present when checking bloodlines? It's because we need her to personally confirm that you're one of us."

"What if they're not one of our own?"

Xiao Tong didn't answer, he just shrugged. The senior engineer licked his teeth and didn't ask any more questions.

Soon, Xiao Yi brought over two glasses of juice, brightly colored, which must be some kind of summer fruit.

The engineer lay lazily on the beach, while the android loli massaged him with her feet. The android only weighed forty pounds, which was lighter than a real loli, and the feet were just the right weight for her to massage his back.

After a moment of silence, the senior engineer spoke up, "When we met yesterday, His Excellency Frasso discussed a business deal with me. He wants the exclusive rights to the Energy Annihilation Agent."

"Are the conditions very demanding?"

"No, the conditions are very lenient."

"Then there's even less reason to talk about it. Frasso is very close to the Waltz Consortium, which has always been ruthless and merciless. Half of their partners are dead, and the other half have become their puppets, the kind with control chips installed."

The senior engineer turned to look at Xiao Yi, who gave him a sweet smile; her tiny teeth resembled seashells.

"Then what should we do?" the senior engineer asked.

Xiao Tong said confidently, "Don't worry, as long as we verify that you are a descendant of the empire, we will strive to secure suitable conditions for you."

"You?"

The senior engineer became increasingly puzzled. If the head of the Xiao family had said these words, he would naturally believe them. However, who gave him the confidence to send a member of the Xiao family to the radiation zone? Liang Jingru?

Time passed by unnoticed as the little girl kicked him with her legs. They even had lunch in the desert, which consisted of barbecue and beer. It had been a long time since the engineer had relaxed like this.

As the sun gradually rises above the sea, its rays spill onto the surface, creating countless golden scales.

Xiao Tong stood up and said, "Your awarding ceremony is here. Let's go."

Xiao Yi jumped off Gao Gong's body. His school swimsuit automatically expanded into a normal dress. At the same time, he grinned and pulled out a formal suit, similar to a black suit, without a tie, somewhat resembling Erdezi's military uniform. Gao Gong put it on, his waist was cinched and his chest was puffed out, making him look very handsome.

"Master, you're so handsome!" Xiao Yi's eyes sparkled.

"Handsome, isn't he? He's a rich woman's son," the senior engineer said with a bright smile, while simultaneously activating his "Data Brain."

The cute little girl in front of me disappeared, replaced by a data humanoid, with 90% of the data concentrated in its brain.

But a hint of surprise flashed in the senior engineer's eyes.

In the human body, the cerebral cortex is the first layer of information reception. All external data is filtered through it, then categorized and placed into different zones.

Therefore, its data flow should be comprehensive.

However, in the eyes of a senior engineer, all its data converges at one point, and then disperses from that point to different brain regions.

"Hackered? No, I didn't 'see' any sensory signals, and it doesn't seem like a chip, so... an 'AI seed'?"

The "AI seed" possesses the characteristics of both biological and electronic viruses. Its scope of action includes the electronic brain, human chip, and AI information center. Its function is to subtly change your personality, making you obey the commands of the mastermind behind the scenes, while you yourself believe that all of this is "your own will".

The reason it's called an "AI seed" is twofold: firstly, this kind of "seed" is most lethal to AI life forms, and it's no exaggeration to call it the nemesis of AI; secondly, the best "seeds" are always produced by AI itself.

The senior engineer was a skilled seed seller in the past.

Unfortunately, he was transported to another time before he could be caught.

Looking at the sweetly smiling little girl, the senior engineer had only one thought.

It's the darkest place under the lamp.

The brightly lit auditorium was filled with smiling men and women, including celebrities, executives, agents, and headhunters from various companies.

"... For his outstanding performance during the beast tide, Mr. Gao was awarded the 'First Class Security Corps Medal'. From then on, Mr. Gao will be a friend of our security corps forever."

[Your Mechanical Legion reputation +1500]

The senior engineer wore a fake, adult-like smile.

They've gone from being adversaries to neutral; the aftereffects of killing the Demon Mountain are finally resolved.

Frasso affectionately put his arm around the senior engineer's shoulder and whispered in his ear, "Have you made up your mind?"

"I'll think about it some more."

"It's alright, take your time to think it over. Spend a few more days on this sky carrier," Frasso patted the senior engineer on the shoulder and laughed.

Does this mean they won't let you leave unless you agree?

The senior engineer smiled without saying a word, and then used his hand to mark the other party as a prey.

Since learning that the senior engineer had become the new master of the oasis, all the guests became very enthusiastic.

I turned down who knows how many waves of business clients.

After stuffing a handwritten note from a cyborg celebrity into his pocket, the senior engineer strolled over to the bar.

"What would you like to drink, guests?"

"Just a drink, please."

"This is your blazing chariot."

The senior engineer looked up and exclaimed, "Holy crap, it's Sister Rose!?"

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