Factions

The Epoch Clan elder's small vehicle appeared and landed straight on the Landing Pad of the Pot Spirit Race -style Castle. The alarm system did not react at all, so the identity of the person who came was obvious.

It seems the Castle's owner, Elder Saide of the Epoch Clan, who had been missing for a long time, has returned. The birds of prey in the sky have completed their mission; they should not get too close to the Castle, as this is not their territory.

But it doesn't matter, the area around the Castle is Rowan's key area. Apart from the Castle's interior, the area within dozens of kilometers of the Castle is under the Swarm's surveillance in an all-round, all-around way.

At this moment, all sorts of insects crawling on the ground, burrowing in the soil, and flying in the sky around the Landing Pad, along with other small birds and animals, were all deployed in place.

After the Ultra-small Warship came to a stop, the hatch opened, and a row of robotic soldiers stepped out. Rowan noticed that this Elder Saide had a great fondness for using various intelligent machines; his behavior clearly indicated that he belonged to the Foundation-Inheritance Faction within the Epoch Clan.

This Foundation-Inheritance Faction is a mainstream faction within the Epoch Clan, and its central idea is coexistence with artificial intelligence. They believe that intelligent beings should not reject artificial intelligence, especially "Ying".

"Ying" is a legacy left by the Original Epoch Clan. It has faithfully executed its own program for millions of years without ever overstepping its bounds, which is enough to prove its reliability.

In fact, no one from the Epoch Clan, including other races, could refute this point. "Ying" had never done anything outside the established rules. The reason it was feared and guarded against was because when the Original Epoch Clan perished, other races were restless and, while not intending to abide by the rules left behind by the Original Epoch Clan, were also eyeing their legacy.

"Fire," following its established design, directly took command of the fleet and annihilated several leading civilizations. It's worth noting that if those civilizations had survived to this day, they would undoubtedly be considered Inner-Ring Civilizations, yet they simply vanished into the annals of history.

While the fact that the Outer-Ring Civilizations were still underdeveloped at that time played a part, Ying's behavior was enough to make many people wary.

Some opponents believe that everyone had finally made it through, enduring the demise of the Original Epoch Clan. They thought they would finally be free from their shackles and reach the pinnacle of life, but little did they know that there was still a supervisor over them.

They dared not guarantee that they would never make a mistake in their lives. What if they violated the taboos left by the Original Epoch Clan? And "Ying" was a merciless creature, which made many people feel insecure.

Another group of opponents simply expressed concerns about the safety of "Ying" itself. The rules left by the Original Epoch Clan are the foundation for the Star Sea Alliance's stability to this day, and only in a stable environment can power be exercised to the fullest extent.

Therefore, they are willing to abide by this rule, but what if "Ying" makes a mistake one day? For example, the tragedy caused by the system being hacked by racing enthusiasts.

Although it didn't happen in the Epoch Clan, it serves as a warning that if artificial intelligence becomes unreliable, it could be a catastrophic event.

If even an AI that merely coordinates autonomous driving and plans routes can cause such huge losses when it makes a mistake, then something like "Ying" is even more likely to cause such significant damage.

They're not against artificial intelligence itself, but rather against its lack of constraints and the vast power it wields. While it has been remarkably reliable so far, what if things go wrong?

These are the three main factions of the Epoch Clan. Besides the Foundation-Inheritance Faction, the West-Exchange Faction opposes artificial intelligence, while the Loyalty-Praise Faction opposes artificial intelligence wielding enormous power.

However, this is not a formal faction, and it has no binding force. It simply represents the individual's own position and arises from the need to facilitate communication and alliances.

Judging from Saide's behavior, he is clearly a Foundation-Inheritance Faction, and quite obviously so, without any attempt to conceal it. This can be seen from the fact that after he left, the Castle was entirely left to the Omnics for maintenance, with not a single servant remaining.

After learning that the Castle's owner was Elder Saide, Rowan also researched his past through his own channels. From his previous public speeches and debates, it was clear that he was Foundation-Inheritance Faction member.

However, what puzzled Rowan was the other person who had drawn his attention here, Elder Cecil of the Epoch Clan. Judging from her past words and actions, she was not a proponent of the Foundation-Inheritance Faction.

Although factions are just a covert term, they represent an individual's viewpoint. When viewpoints differ, it can be difficult to become friends.

Why is the Biological Armor Cecil bought with Saide? Is it just a simple resale? If so, it's not good news for Rowan.

This means that everything he spent a lot of effort on here, while not entirely wasted, was certainly a waste of time.

After the mechanical guards stepped out of the warship, they skillfully performed alert maneuvers. Then, a tall and robust figure appeared. Although he was cloaked and his face was obscured, Rowan believed, based on the insects' perspective, that this person was most likely Saide.

The Black Tower Race has very distinctive features, and their appearance absolutely lives up to their racial name. It's really hard for other races to replicate that look. Therefore, their race is the first thing that matters.

Secondly, among the group that followed, the Black Tower Race, surrounded in the center, was the only living being. This was also very easy to distinguish, because although the other "people" moved very nimbly and naturally, large areas of their mechanical structures were exposed, making them easily identifiable as mechanical soldiers.

In fact, let alone the technology of the Epoch Clan, even most members of other tribes could easily put a layer of bionic skin on a robot.

However, almost no one, whether from the Epoch Clan or other races, supports this approach. The head structure, which blurs the lines between living and mechanical entities, is particularly opposed. Even the Epoch Clan's Foundation-Inheritance Faction, which supports coexistence with artificial intelligence, is largely opposed by most members.

However, there are exceptions. Among the alien races and the Epoch Clan, a very small number of people are openly enthusiastic mechanical enthusiasts. To them, the fact that androids are given bionic skins is a trivial matter and there is no need to resist it.

Indeed, compared to their beliefs, these are minor matters. And they have never hidden their beliefs, or rather, their goals; they believe that mechanical immortality is the way forward.

They believe that the body is merely a shell, while the mind and consciousness are the essence of life. They argue that we should transform into virtual life forms similar to artificial intelligence, thereby indirectly achieving immortality.

With today's advanced technology, creating a mechanical body will be a piece of cake. Even if it's damaged, it can be replaced at any time, eliminating the weaknesses and vulnerabilities of living organisms. This will make them even more powerful.