The first meeting of the Advanced Technology Community had just ended, and the many Tech-priests had already scattered. Some went to retrieve the technological relics they had hidden away, while others sought somewhere quieter to slowly commune with the Cogitator.
Some Tech-priests who had secretly dabbled in the field of Abominable Intelligence seized this rare opportunity to interact with the Cogitator, a true artificial intelligence, and gather precious sample data.
Opportunities to legally research artificial intelligence were few and far between. Some Tech-priests even had to use things like automated combat units as an excuse to conceal their activities.
After all, they did not have the Emperor's endorsement. If others discovered their forbidden conduct, they would likely violate the Crimson Covenant at once and be purged and punished by the Mechanicum.
"Wise Lox, may the Machine God bless you."
As Lox passed through the crowd, a wave of blessings immediately rose around him. The oil-stained men performed the Cogwheel Salute with heartfelt reverence, offering their respect to the creator of the Advanced Technology Community.
Lox smiled and nodded in acknowledgment. The crowd parted before him like a tide, saving Barabas Dantioch the trouble of clearing a path.
Within Ganymede's planetary control center, every registered user was entitled to apply for a completely confidential room to serve as his own storage space.
As the great sage of the Mechanicum, Arkhan Land naturally received treatment superior to that of others. Ganymede possessed nearly every kind of high-end laboratory, though using them likewise required the payment of a certain number of contribution points.
The high-energy colliders used to study microscopic fields consumed enormous resources every time they were activated and caused subtle damage to the machinery, so charging contribution points was necessary.
Accompanied by Barabas Dantioch, Lox arrived at the biological laboratory currently