Blinded by a Leaf

At midnight, dark clouds gradually gathered across the night sky, allowing only the half moon above to bare its faintly visible fangs.

The struggle between machines and Law-Rulers had only truly begun. In the final third wave of attacks, Qin Su would commit the vast majority of the forces at his disposal.

And now was the interval for rest and preparation.

"Andre, have you finished your tracking work?" The scholar stepped out of the shadows, his broad red robe swaying slightly. Beneath the shadow of his hood was a sinister, sharp-featured face. The Law-Rulers all rose to their feet, straightened their backs, and offered the scholar their highest respect. Within the Law-Ruler group, exceptional combat ability earned respect, but wisdom alone stood above all else.

"Almost. It may still take half an hour, but I can definitely finish within an hour."

"Excellent!" The scholar removed his hood. The crow's feet on his somewhat aged face and his streaked white hair marked his status as an elder, while his soul-stirring crimson eyes held an evil wrapped in wisdom.

"Artificial intelligence destroying the world—what an ancient fantasy... and it is about to become reality." The scholar smiled mockingly. He had already begun considering how he should kill himself after using AI to destroy humanity. Whether in strategy or tactical deployment, the scholar surpassed the deceased Martha.

The scholar walked out of Andre's dark room. Standing in the middle of the street, he raised both hands like the high priest of a cult delivering a sermon. Firelight illuminated his body, while the warm wind slowly stirred his red robe.

At that moment, everyone turned their eyes toward him.

"We are here. You no longer need to fear the machines. Twenty compatriots have come with me. We will show these machines the power of nature."

"Compatriots, these machines' technology is no challenge to us. Do not underestimate the resources we can command. We can even manufacture Divine Keys, but Law-Rulers have factions, while Divine Keys do not."

"The First Speaker believes Andre's proposal has great value, as long as we have these captivating killing machines." The scholar crouched and patted the solid, heavy body of a T-800. Blue electrical sparks flashed across the severed stump of its neck. Then the scholar turned to the other compatriots. "We will become the last Law-Rulers to appear."

"Do not underestimate them. They can do far more than kill." The remains of the T-800 were reflected in the scholar's eyes, but what he saw was the destruction of human civilization.

Fan Cheng and his partner crouched on the balcony of a shop, their backs against the corner as they held their breath. Then they poked their heads out and carefully observed the robots constructing offensive fortifications outside the alley. A few seconds later, Fan Cheng marked a blue mechanical symbol and several brief notes on the map of Kyshtym Town before swiftly sneaking toward the next location.

Fan Cheng was a Tenth Law-Ruler similar to the Herrscher of Wind. His ability was the same as that of the cook Kevin had captured before: he could only achieve invisibility through the refraction of light and possessed none of the Herrscher of Wind's other powers. But things were different with a teammate. His partner was a Tenth Law-Ruler similar to the Herrscher of Ice, with an equally singular ability: he could only lower the temperature of nearby objects to a moderately low level.

But together, they could fool the Terminator's eyes. Fan Cheng and his partner held hands. Fan Cheng provided optical invisibility, while his partner lowered their body temperatures to match the environment. As long as they did not make any obvious noise or physically touch a Terminator's body, they would not draw attention.

It was nearing three in the morning. Most of the night sky was covered by dark clouds scattered everywhere. The moon was now completely obscured, and not the slightest trace of light could pierce the dense cloud cover.

They were somewhat exhausted now. Although Law-Rulers possessed far greater stamina than ordinary people, they were not true Law-Rulers in the end—especially Fan Cheng, who had remained in a low-temperature state for an extended period.

Fan Cheng and his partner had basically investigated every Terminator outpost that had appeared in Kyshtym Town. But the scholar and technical expert Andre believed there had to be a hidden location nearby that the robots used for communication. Naturally, that task was assigned to Fan Cheng and his partner.

Andre handed Fan Cheng a small terminal. "I can use certain methods to track locations in the surrounding area with frequent communications, and that place is most likely the enemy's communication node. So I prepared some tools for you. It is fine even if you do not know how to use them. Through the mind link, I can guide you remotely."

"Compatriot." The scholar grasped Fan Cheng's hand, his wrinkled, solemn face fixed on him. His words carried both hope and an unquestionable tone. "If you can, infiltrate the communication station and gather more intelligence for us. Only in the worst-case scenario will I permit you to destroy it."

The scholar was not in any hurry to find these robots' control center. As long as this server remained, they would definitely be able to find it. Even if Andre died, someone else would complete his work. Therefore, preserving this server was the most important thing.

They arrived in the outskirts near Kyshtym Town, where the communication station stood in a stretch of open wilderness. There were no dense forests nearby, only sparse woodland that had been almost completely felled—a lingering problem left behind by Syktyvkar City's lumber mills.

A massive signal tower rose at the center of the communication station. The black walls surrounding it seemed to be made of portable lightweight metal, as was the flooring. Plasma Turrets had been installed on several raised platforms. They were not meant to deal with Law-Rulers, but wandering Honkai Beasts and Dead Soldiers. Thus, they only had simple laser targeting systems. Fan Cheng could not fool them, but as long as he did not stand directly in the path of a turret's targeting laser, there would be no problem.

Fan Cheng could have kicked down the wall with one blow, but their mission was infiltration, not a frontal break-in. No one knew whether there were any T-1000s inside, but if even one appeared, they would certainly be held up, and the secret of their stealth would be exposed. If this AI realized someone could deceive its visual sensors, it would inevitably alter its battle arrangements and plans. Their previous reconnaissance results and the scholar's strategic plan would be thrown into disarray as well.

Fan Cheng placed his hand over his partner's. "Lower my body temperature to slightly below the ambient temperature." His partner quickly understood what Fan Cheng intended.

The communication station's walls were tall, and the entrances were fitted with laser grids. Going in through the gate was absolutely impossible. But there was a way to send one person inside without passing through the main entrance.

They quietly made their way to a slope and found a blind spot beyond the Plasma Turret's view. Fan Cheng stood atop the slope, while his partner stood below it. After a series of calculations, Fan Cheng and his partner began running at different speeds. Like antelopes leaping across a gorge in an elementary school textbook, Fan Cheng landed precisely on his partner's hands in midair.

At the same time, his partner used the opportunity to launch Fan Cheng into the communication station and lower his body temperature. From here on, everything depended on Fan Cheng. Before his body temperature gradually drifted away from the ambient range, he had to steal access to the communication station.

Fan Cheng crept carefully through the communication station. He did not dare move too quickly. First, he feared his footsteps would attract attention; second, he feared exertion would raise his body temperature too fast. There were not many robots inside. So far, Fan Cheng had only seen a handful of T-800s. Their appearances were identical, so he did not know their exact number, but he was certain there were not many robots here.

Upon reaching the first basement level, Fan Cheng found the entrance to a pitch-black, narrow corridor. At the far end stood a Plasma Turret, staring unwaveringly at the corridor entrance. Fan Cheng lay flat and inched his body forward at the corridor entrance. Fortunately, the turret would not suddenly lower its gaze to inspect the floor. Otherwise, all his previous efforts would have been wasted.

As he moved, Fan Cheng seemed to hear footsteps coming from the far end of the corridor. He pressed his head against the ground, trying to hear more clearly. Sure enough! Heavy footsteps traveled through the floor. Patrol robots—and more than one.

Two T-800s approached from opposite ends of the corridor, Plasma Rifles in their hands as they patrolled routes set by their programming. One was at the corridor entrance, and the other was at the exit. If they continued walking, they would step on Fan Cheng's body. He could neither advance nor retreat.

"What do I do? What do I do?" Fan Cheng desperately searched for a solution.

Don't panic... he reminded himself. The more flustered he became, the faster his body temperature would rise.

The T-800s in the corridor walked toward one another. The sound of their alloy bodies striking the floor rang clearly in his ears. Seconds ticked by, and they finally met in the middle of the corridor without stepping on anything.

Fan Cheng watched the T-800s gradually move away, narrowly escaping danger. At that moment, his back faced the ceiling, his feet braced against one wall and his hands against the other. The walls were smooth, and Fan Cheng obviously could not cling to them through the friction of his hands and feet alone.

At such a critical moment, his dagger served as an ice axe. Fan Cheng gripped the dagger in one hand and searched the wall for a fixed point before driving it into the wall. With his other hand, he seized another gap made by the dagger. He completed this entire sequence while the T-800s entered the corridor, blocking the automated turret's targeting laser.

By then, his body temperature had almost returned to normal, but his infiltration had succeeded. Fan Cheng had climbed past the turret's targeting range. Beyond the narrow corridor, the space suddenly opened up. Twisting equipment, corners, and the vast area meant he had countless places to maneuver.

Fan Cheng then reached the communication station's mainframe without any difficulty. He took a modified portable terminal from his backpack. Andre's voice happened to come through the mind link: "Do as I say..."

More than ten minutes later.

This laptop contained a T-800 chip, and that modification provided Andre with a shortcut for his intrusion. It also lived up to Andre's expectations, relaying every important piece of information to him in full detail—especially the entities connected to this communication station nearby.

It was just that... there were rather a lot of them.

"There are roughly four hundred of them! This AI is insane. Fire Moth cannot possibly fail to notice it deploying such an enormous force!" Andre shouted through the mind link, making Fan Cheng's head ache.

The scholar soothed Andre through the mind link. "Calm down. The more panicked they are, the greater the threat we pose to them. This AI has already reached the end of its rope."

"Next, let us push it off the cliff."

PS1: 3K. The last two chapters could actually count as three chapters.

PS2: Skynet's signal antenna looks like this.