The Bigger Picture

"What just happened to me?" Grey's voice crackled over the comms, thick with confusion as he had no idea what he'd just encountered.

"Just Psychic Power stuff, what else could it be." Qin Mo didn't elaborate, turning instead to engage the other Rebels on the battlefield.

Regaining his senses, Grey leaped to Qin Mo's side and fought alongside him.

The two of them quickly slaughtered the thousand Rebels across the entire position.

"Compared to your ability to unleash a sea of fire, this Power Armor really is pathetically weak." Grey sat on the ground to rest.

Qin Mo didn't reply, standing still with his head lowered.

"What's wrong?" Grey asked.

"The Rebels have their eyes on me." Qin Mo answered.

Hearing this, Grey immediately stood up, staring at Qin Mo with a grave expression, realizing things might be about to take a bad turn.

Throughout the war so far, nearly ten thousand men across two positions had relied on Qin Mo's protection, and countless more were still locked in desperate battles awaiting reinforcements.

Being targeted by the Rebels meant they would stop at nothing, using any means to eliminate Qin Mo.

After a moment of thought, Grey couldn't come up with any constructive ideas. He simply spoke softly, calling out: "Qin Mo."

"What?" Qin Mo looked up at Grey.

Grey removed his faceplate, locking eyes with Qin Mo, his tone resolute: "In my view, every life has a completely different value. Yours is worth more than all of us combined. If you need me to give my life, just say the word..."

Qin Mo smiled faintly, turning to walk away as he said, "You're already giving your life."

"Should you hide? Somewhere the Rebels can't find you?" Grey quickened his pace to follow, offering the suggestion.

Qin Mo shook his head without hesitation: "I don't need to hide, and I won't. The Rebels can set whatever traps they want, use every method they can think of to assassinate me. Ideally, wherever I show up, a sea of Rebels will swarm me. But I have plenty of ways to deal with it."

"Besides, if all the Rebels' attention is on me, then the other allied forces will face fewer enemies. By the time we rush to reinforce them, they'll have a better chance of holding their positions."

"..."

Grey looked up at Qin Mo's back, listening quietly to his words.

Until Qin Mo suddenly turned around and announced his next move: "We go back to those four, grab them, and return to the 47th Regiment's base."

"Aren't we going to keep searching for other positions?" Grey asked.

"I originally planned to find them quickly and establish contact, but now it's clear that's not the right strategy." Qin Mo walked as he shared the lessons he'd learned. "First, we need to set up a solid logistics system, produce enough weapons, and then build reconnaissance equipment."

"We can't just stumble around like headless flies, going wherever we please. We also need to establish an intelligence network to know exactly where our allies are in the Hive City and their situation. Then we assess their status and go directly to support the ones in the most trouble."

"We also need to upgrade our current gear."

Most of what Qin Mo said went over Grey's head. The only thing he understood was upgrading their equipment: "Our current weapons and gear aren't strong enough?"

"Not enough." Qin Mo turned back to look at Grey. "Think bigger. These toys we're wearing now are nothing."

"Since you made them, if you say they're toys, then they're toys." Grey felt Qin Mo was being too modest, but he had absolute authority to judge his own creations. He could call them toys, even if they were anything but.

This set of Power Armor alone was priceless across the entire galaxy, with no market to be found. Even just the Gravity Shield, if stripped out, could buy a hereditary noble title.

"Trust me, brother." Qin Mo stopped and lightly patted Grey on the shoulder. "Once I finish my proudest masterpiece and show it to you, you'll realize how fragile and inefficient the gear you're wearing now really is."

"Hahaha." Grey suddenly laughed, thinking Qin Mo was cracking a joke to lighten the mood.

But Qin Mo's expression was dead serious, nothing like a joke.

Grey's smile vanished: "You're serious?"

Over the next week, Qin Mo didn't rush around. He returned to the Fortress of the 47th Regiment's base, dug out a massive cavern underground, and locked himself inside it.

During the period from Qin Mo's departure to his return, the Rebels hadn't attacked. But once he was back, they not only launched an assault on the Fortress but did so with overwhelming ferocity.

No matter how fierce the assault, the Fortress could hold. Qin Mo didn't need to be distracted by the fighting; he could immerse himself fully in research and manufacturing within the cavern.

First came logistics.

To save time, Qin Mo decided to build a Universal Logistics Machine.

They were black spherical constructs, ten meters in radius, equipped with Anti-Gravity Engines and mechanical arms, capable of searching for any usable supplies in any environment.

These logistics machines were controlled by a Master Control Intelligence integrated with AI. It would allocate search plans based on collected information, have the machines self-modify into production equipment to manufacture weapons and gear for the army, or increase or decrease the number of logistics machines as needed.

The Imperials called AI an Abominable Intelligence and strictly forbade its development and use.

Qin Mo had no intention of following that rule. Not because he was asking for trouble, but because he could ensure that any intelligence he built would always remain under his control.

This was because the Master Control Intelligence was designed based on physical laws twisted by the power of a Star God. Under normal physical laws, it couldn't even function properly.

And if anyone tried to corrupt the Master Control Intelligence controlling the logistics machines—using evil forces from the Warp or Chaos junk code, for example—then a very inspiring saying would be born in the galaxy:

If you think you're utterly stupid and love asking for trouble, remember that someone tried to corrupt a Master Control Intelligence based on a Star God's power.

In Qin Mo's vision and his deductions from multiple factors, the logistics machines controlled by the Master Control Intelligence could meet all logistical needs. As long as he designed them properly and built the Master Control Intelligence along with the first logistics machine, the logistics system would be established automatically.

The Master Control Intelligence could handle more than just logistics—it could also manage intelligence. Qin Mo designed a large number of intelligence-gathering tools for it, such as drones, detectors, and Psychic Power detectors.

These could directly scan terrain, personnel, supplies, and more within a certain range...

After finishing the designs for logistics and intelligence, Qin Mo moved on to the work that excited him most.

Designing new weapons and gear, and a new tactical system based on them.