As soon as the words fell.
Countless Mechatron behind the Emperor slowly rose into the air.
Everything on this planet—no, throughout this Mechanical Empire spanning several star systems, every Mechatron on every colony planet—underwent the same transformation.
Their hands separated from their bodies, followed by their feet, heads, and finally even their torsos, which broke apart into pieces. Even the massive facilities beneath their feet came apart.
Every mechanical structure underwent irreversible disassembly before rising into the air.
Then, they converged.
The scene looked like footage of shattered glass being played in reverse.
Their bodies began to gather together, their forms constantly changing.
In the end, those aggregated masses actually transformed into a grotesquely shaped, unimaginably massive starship.
A starship composed of several planets and countless Mechatron.
Just how enormous was it?
It was larger than a star!
"W-What is that?"
"Didn't it say so? It's called the Purification Protocol!"
"Bullshit, do I look blind to you? Of course I saw that! The question is, this Purification Protocol... turned an entire Mechanical Empire civilization into starships?"
"And starships so huge they're beyond anything I could imagine! Good heavens, can warships really be this large?"
A single warship was even larger than the largest celestial structure they had ever seen!
Calling it a ship was no longer accurate. It was a mechanical star!
There were six such mechanical stars in total!
"How cruel... How terrifying..."
"Cruel?"
"Of course! Think about what those things are made of. Mechatron! Living beings! If we compare them to the organic civilizations we know better, then that starship would be made of chunks of flesh stitched together..."
"Ugh! Stop talking!"
Perhaps because those were Mechatron, the feeling was not as immediate. But if they were replaced with organic lifeforms...
That image...
Was simply hair-raising!
And what was even more terrifying was their objective.
Cleanse the universe!
Exterminate all organic lifeforms and mechanical civilizations!
"This Purification Protocol... is a natural disaster!"
Only then did the intelligent lifeforms finally understand the nature of this cosmic crisis.
This Purification Protocol of unknown origin had taken control of a Mechanical Empire and transformed the entire civilization into several incomparably massive starships.
And its ultimate goal was to destroy the entire universe.
At the same time.
After the Purification Protocol descended, every civilization in the universe was affected to varying degrees.
The first to suffer were the Mechatron empires that worshipped machinery.
Within their territories, hundreds of millions of Mechatron malfunctioned, going on what resembled a collective strike, with some even shutting down entirely.
The organic civilizations fared no better either. Robots used in industry, agriculture, and mining malfunctioned as well.
Computers were infected with viruses that could neither be understood nor resolved, meaning all assembly lines and intelligent control systems had failed.
In short, every electronic device had been affected.
An invisible Tachyon Storm swept across the entire universe.
Solar System, Blue Star.
"It can affect an entire star region? How is that even possible?"
Disbelief flickered in Angel Zhi Xin's eyes. "Is this... the power of the Purification Protocol?"
"I... I don't think I really get it."
Ge Xiaolun scratched his head. "All I know is that those starships look awesome, but they haven't fought yet. Maybe they're just big lumps of metal that can't take a hit!"
"This isn't just about a few starships." Zhi Xin patiently explained it to Ge Xiaolun. "Granted, the size of those starships is beyond even my expectations, but that isn't what shocked me most."
"Not that? Oh... the robots malfunctioning."
Ge Xiaolun caught on. "Is that... a big deal?"
"A very big deal!"
Zhi Xin took a deep breath. "You can call them robots, AI, whatever you like, but fundamentally, they are all the same thing: computers."
"Even in your North Star, computers have long since become part of every aspect of life. Your phones, watches, vehicles, and even the traffic lights on the streets are all controlled by computers."
"If every traffic light in the world suddenly went out of control in an instant, what kind of consequences would that cause?"
Ge Xiaolun was somewhat stunned. "It can actually do something like that?"
"That's child's play." Zhi Xin frowned deeply. "What if its target is the fire-control system?"
"With just a flick of its fingers, your warships, the massive cannons aboard them, your swarm missiles, and your Fighter Jets would be unable even to launch. What would you use to fight them? Slingshots and crossbows? Or pistols and rifles?"
On an even deeper level.
What if the Purification Protocol possessed the ability to control the Big Clock?
Zhi Xin did not even dare to think any further.
Ge Xiaolun was a pure humanities student. His only uses for computers were gaming and browsing forums. Even after Zhi Xin explained it to him, he still had only a vague understanding.
But before long, he would fully understand what Zhi Xin had just said.
On the Light Screen.
The starships began moving almost without pause.
Their destination was the star systems and planets that harbored life.
When one starship arrived in a star system, the many ships within immediately set out.
"Unknown vessel, state your affiliation and intentions!"
The fleet commander at the head of the formation frowned. "You have already intruded into our civilization's star system!"
"Commander! Our fleet control system has suddenly failed!"
"What!?"
The commander's eyes widened, and he immediately realized something.
"Fire! Open fire now!"
This starship was an enemy vessel!
Yet no matter how anxious the commander was, the ships remained completely motionless.
"What are you doing? Fire! That's the enemy!"
"Commander... we... can't control our weapon systems!"
"What!?"
Then, several ships in the fleet turned around of their own accord and trained their main cannons on one another.
Organic civilization, destroyed
Every display aboard every ship in the fleet repeatedly played that message.
Destroyed...
"Oh no!"
That was the only thought that surfaced in the fleet commander's mind.
And what awaited him was indeed what the message displayed.
The next second, the ship he was aboard was blasted into fragments by another ship's main cannon!
Destroyed!
Boom!
Boom! Boom!
After a single volley.
The entire fleet was annihilated!