The Forger

Late at night.

Grot, who was fighting on the battlefield, received an order directly from Qin Mo, asking him to return to the fortress immediately.

Even Grey found the order confusing, but Grot obediently returned.

As he was led by guards to the prison, he saw Qin Mo testing a new device inside, with the rebel bishop he had been desperately trying to kill bound and restrained.

"Isn't that the rebel bishop? How did you capture her?" Grot asked in surprise as he walked into the cell and provocatively looked at the bishop.

The bishop glared at Grot, gritting her teeth, but she was powerless to do anything.

Qin Mo did not answer, merely raising his hand and pointing at the bishop's face. "Punch her and force her to release her psychic power."

Grot was happy to comply and punched the bishop in the face without hesitation.

When the fist, encased in a Terminator Power Armor gauntlet, hit the bishop's face, her entire face caved in, and she struggled wildly, trying to bite Grot.

"It's effective," Qin Mo nodded with satisfaction.

Grot didn't quite understand why it was effective, and Qin Mo immediately explained, "This is a psychic disruptor I've newly developed. Within its range, psychic users' minds are interfered with, and they cannot use their psychic power."

"What's the difference between this and the anti-psychic devices integrated into power armor?" Grot asked, confused.

"The interference capability is stronger; it's an advanced version. For example, it couldn't interfere with the bishop before, but now it can," Qin Mo said.

Grot looked at the device Qin Mo was tinkering with with great surprise.

The device was still a bit large, but this was the prototype stage, mainly for testing. It would definitely be miniaturized and made multi-purpose in the future.

Amidst his joy, Grot felt confused. Was he called back just to witness a new device?

"From today onwards, you will stay and guard the fortress," Qin Mo commanded.

"Yes." Grot habitually accepted the order, and then he realized what it meant.

The war was still ongoing, and staying at the fortress meant being cut off from the battlefield.

"I will obey your orders, but can you tell me why? Someone like me in Terminator Power Armor can significantly speed up the troops' advance," Grot asked.

"I have more important things for you to do," Qin Mo replied.

Grot was even more puzzled. Wasn't the war the most important thing right now? Moreover, what could he do by staying at the fortress?

But Grot noticed that Qin Mo's expression was not good at the moment, so he didn't dare to ask further. "I will obey your command, Legion Commander."

"Alright, go rest."

"Yes."

Grot turned to leave, but as he put his hand on the doorknob, he remembered something and turned back to ask, "Will I be unable to fight for a while?"

Qin Mo did not respond, focusing on research and manufacturing.

Grot wisely pushed the door open and left, closing it gently.

"How did you get captured?" Qin Mo asked the bishop his biggest question.

The bishop did not want to answer and could not answer because her entire face was severely distorted, making it impossible to speak.

But from the bishop's angry and confused eyes, Qin Mo could sense that she herself didn't know what had happened.

Qin Mo stopped dwelling on it and focused on his research and experiments.

Later that night.

Qin Mo was fast asleep, slumped over his desk in the fortress's underground cavern. However, he didn't believe he was asleep because, in his eyes, he was still awake, having arrived in a strange place.

This was a luxurious bedroom.

In the corner of the bedroom grew a lush, verdant tree. It seemed completely out of place in its surroundings.

As Qin Mo approached the tree, a ferocious face appeared on its bark, its expression quickly shifting to a grin. "Hahahaha! Scared you, didn't I?"

"You think this is funny?" Qin Mo asked the tree expressionlessly.

The tree's smile vanished instantly, seemingly finding it unamusing.

Then, its body rapidly changed, transforming into a girl.

Qin Mo remembered what this girl looked like. It was the same girl he had dreamed about before, the one who could turn into tanks and middle-aged men.

"I remember who you are," the girl said, staring at Qin Mo with an earnest expression, a maturity on her face that was uncharacteristic for her age. "You are The Forger."

"Another new word? Didn't you say I was The Watcher or Mimic last time?" Qin Mo asked.

"No, no, no, Mimic is me." The girl's body rapidly changed, and she became Grey, clad in Terminator Power Armor. "It's all because of that damn Necrophage that shattered me, so my memory is intermittent and incomplete. I am Mimic."

With that, Mimic began to change the surroundings.

The room transformed into countless stars. At the center of all the stars, a deity composed of blue energy raised its hand. In front of it, the stars converged to form the shape of a sword.

"If we talk about inherent strength alone, The Forger is the youngest and weakest of all Star Gods. But that's because it doesn't rely on its own strength to fight. The terrifying creations it forges can even mobilize the might of other Star Gods."

The stars shifted, and a purple energy mass floated in front of The Forger. No words could describe its shape.

"That is me, Mimic."

"We were the friendliest Star Gods among the stars. You were responsible for forging, and I provided inspiration through change."

"Even though you've merged with a human, you are still whole. But look at me now, I've become this mess, I've even forgotten my original form."

"This is all because you betrayed me."

Upon hearing this, Qin Mo looked at the Mimic. "What do you mean?"

"The weapon the Necrophage used to shatter me was forged by you," the Mimic said through gritted teeth. "My power isn't immense, but I am infinitely adaptable. The Necrophage couldn't have shattered me on its own."

The environment changed again.

The Forger stood behind the Necrophages, smiling as it watched the shattered Mimic, ready to devour it.

Then came many more changes.

And various other Star Gods.

"The Watcher Xilolai, the Star Painter Aphro... you've devoured many of our kind."

As it spoke, the Mimic's gaze shifted to Qin Mo, watching his reaction.

Initially, Qin Mo was deeply shocked. The events he was hearing were far beyond his imagination. He had always believed he could merely wield the power of Star Gods or had merged with a fragment of one.

Qin Mo fell into thought, not noticing the smile on the Mimic's face.

"No... something's wrong." Qin Mo suddenly felt that the story the Mimic was telling wasn't true at all.

Qin Mo frowned, pondering.

If the Forger had created weapons for the Necrophage to shatter the Mimic, and was on the same side as the Necrophage, why didn't Qin Mo know about such an important Star God as the Forger?

With this thought, Qin Mo looked up and stared at the Mimic. "You're actually... The Deceiver Mephitlan, aren't you?"

Today is still the seventh update, please leave more comments to give me motivation.