Central Galaxy, Star Cluster Abyss, Headquarters of the Observers of the Federation of Light.
The duties of the Observers differ from those of secret intelligence agencies. They are public Intelligence Department across the universe, and are generally not involved in the political infighting of advanced civilizations. The Observer Department of the Three Universal Civilizations often cooperate to monitor and investigate various special phenomena, nip potential disasters in the Germinal, and have considerable authority.
At this very moment, in the headquarters conference room of this organization, a group of high-ranking officials are sitting around a round table, discussing the emergency reported by the Ancient Star Desert Observers branch.
A cosmic-level energy burst is always a top-priority emergency that requires high-level meetings for discussion.
"The report is very detailed, with a clear cause and effect. A group of scavengers unearthed a safe from an unknown civilization, releasing the source of the incident, which falls under the category of a second-type accident. However, when the Observers team conducted their on-site investigation, the traces of the ruins had already disappeared, leading to the suspicion that it was a projection of High-Dimensional Information State interfering with reality... The most important questions now are: what exactly did they release, why was there a cosmic-level energy burst, and what impact will it have?"
A sickly-looking humanoid male creature spoke. He was tall and thin, like a bamboo pole, with a purplish-blue complexion and natural white markings. His eyes were long and narrow, with crystal-yellow pupils.
Sidrun Purplefire Kona, the highest-ranking officer of the Federation of Light's Observer Department, Beyond Grade A Seed, and a top expert among the Calamity Grade beings, is a multi-racial hybrid whose main bloodline comes from the Devini, a species with superior superhuman talent.
The Federation of Light itself is a multi-racial society, and mixed-race individuals are an important part of its citizens.
Due to factors such as different races' beliefs, preferences, and appearances, racial issues have always been a persistent problem in Glory. However, everyone has become accustomed to it now, just making do, what else can they do?
"These archaeologists never seem to learn their lesson," someone said with displeasure. "How many of history's most infamous cosmic catastrophes, whether it's an organic extinction virus or a dormant, mutated collective consciousness monster, were caused by archaeology?"
"That's not entirely true. Many of our early technologies were reverse-engineered from ancient civilizations. Besides, compared to disasters like the loss of control over advanced technology, the outbreak of social conflicts, and invasions by foreign enemies, archaeology accounts for a very small proportion." Sidrun shook his head listlessly.
At this moment, a high-ranking official, reviewing past records, muttered, "Speaking of which, the interference of High-Dimensional Information State with reality used to be very rare, but since the beginning of the exploration of history, this phenomenon seems to be becoming more and more frequent."
"According to statistics from the predecessor of the Observer Department, during the Exploration Era War, the average number of Information State interferences occurring annually in the universe was 467, and this only includes events that were discovered and recorded. In the last hundred years, this number has risen to 2,150, nearly five times. While advancements in our detection methods and mapping capabilities contribute to this, the increased frequency of Information State interferences is undeniable."
"Information State have always been an important research direction for advanced civilizations. We are only responsible for submitting reports, not for the specific research. What you're talking about is the work of scientists, not our responsibility." Sidrun waved his hand, looking uninterested.
It's understandable that he's mentally exhausted sitting in his position. The Observer Department is responsible for cleaning up messes everywhere. High-ranking officials like him see a bunch of inexplicable interstellar citizens causing trouble for him every day, just like watching a group of unruly children making a mess of things.
No matter how he tries to salvage the situation, countless things will still erupt the next day. If he has a bad temper, he can experience the feeling of mental breakdown every day.
After a while, people become indifferent, and even the fish become salty.
Those present were not researchers and had limited understanding of the causes of Information State Projection. In their limited understanding, this phenomenon was like a special kind of mirage, the difference being that it was not limited by time and space and could actually interfere with reality.
Another high-ranking official said solemnly, "After comparison, the unknown civilization's script submitted by the scavengers has no matching cases in the database. If this is Information State Projection, then its source is either an extremely ancient civilization or a civilization existing somewhere in the Unexplored Universe."
Although the Three Universal Civilizations are undoubtedly the dominant powers in the universe today, they are not omniscient or omnipotent. They do not know what existed in the most ancient times, nor do they know how many civilizations exist in the Unexplored Universe. They have never stopped exploring and researching.
"Have any adverse effects been discovered?" Sidrun asked.
"Not yet. The specific details are still under investigation, and it's impossible to predict what type of disaster this is at the moment; it might not even be a disaster."
Everyone shook their heads.
Just then, a voice suddenly rang out:
"This is a disaster for the virtual world."
The scene in the center of the round table suddenly shifted to Old Manison's face.
The entire audience erupted in uproar upon seeing this.
"Mechanic Emperor Manison!" Sidrun's face darkened, his eyes turning green. "You dare to hack into the network of an official institution!"
The faces of everyone present were grim. Manison had too many criminal records, and all the official agencies of the Federation of Light were wary of their neighbor McNison like thieves, fearing that their intelligence data would be stolen by him through burglary.
There's a saying in the universe that goes something like this: you can't expect a virtual mechanic to have any integrity. They're like con artists in a casino; peeking at other people's cards is in their nature.
"It's not the first time, what's there to be surprised about?" Manison said calmly. "I'm just here to provide intelligence."
"I don't believe it!" Sidrun gritted his teeth.
You could have just knocked on the door, but you insisted on climbing through the window. Would it kill you to send a normal communication request? It's not like we won't answer.
"This is faster; I don't like waiting," Manison said slowly. "Besides, this disaster is escalating; every second of delay will only make it worse."
Upon hearing this, Sidrun temporarily suppressed his green-tinged rage and frowned, asking, "What did you discover?"
Manison displayed the fragmented data packet he had intercepted and explained:
"Not long ago, a special information packet invaded my branch base. After failing, it tried to self-destruct, but I intercepted a part of it. From it, I saw its general structure and discovered that it might be an unknown quantum network virus. Each information packet is a source of infection, constantly self-replicating, and has extremely strong camouflage, penetration, and infectivity."
I investigated and found that this virus is spreading rapidly through the quantum network of the Ancient Star Desert, and it has probably already infiltrated countless nodes. Judging from the timeline, this virus may be related to the cosmic-level energy burst a while ago, so I came to inform you."
As they looked at the various documents presented by Manison, the expressions of the high-ranking Observers present gradually became serious, and they began to believe this explanation.
"It's a new type of virtual network virus." Sidrun felt a headache coming on. "Quantum networks are one of the cornerstones of interstellar society. This kind of highly contagious virtual virus is the most troublesome. If we're not careful, it can evolve into a cluster-level or even sector-level communication paralysis, data leaks, and intelligent system malfunctions... What exactly is the function of this virus?"
"This virus is still in its incubation period. Once it breaks out, it will rewrite the underlying logic of the infected intelligence, inputting commands to kill living beings and instigate a mechanical rebellion," Manison said calmly, appearing as if he were answering every question.
In today's interstellar society, almost every household relies on machinery. If a mechanical rebellion were to occur on a star-scale or even cosmic scale, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Sidrun shuddered. If it weren't for Manison's message, the longer they delayed, the more serious the situation would become, and it might even shake the foundations of the Three Universal Civilizations ' rule.
With this in mind, Sidrun's gaze towards Manison softened considerably.
When things aren't going to cause trouble, this ally is quite reliable.
He suddenly stood up, his lazy aura gone, and his whole demeanor became serious.
"This matter is of utmost importance; I must report it to the President immediately!"
Several hours later, the leaders of the Three Universal Civilizations received the news and convened an emergency joint meeting.
"... That's the situation. The Ancient Star Desert has now become an infection zone for this new virus. The number of infected nodes is increasing every second. I've named this event ' Intelligence Plague.' We need to take immediate action; there's no time to lose."
Bader explained the situation and expressed his stance with a solemn expression.
The leader of the Arcane Sect narrowed his eyes and said in a deep voice, "Isolate the Ancient Star Desert. Before the virus is completely eradicated, prohibit the Ancient Star Desert from interacting with the external quantum network, close the stargate, and dispatch a fleet to garrison the outer perimeter of the Ancient Star Desert to prevent the source of infection from leaking out in any form."
"Agreed." Urranrell nodded.
It's like a plague; only isolation can completely eradicate it.
Blocking communications across an entire star system is a feat only the Three Universal Civilizations possess the qualifications and capabilities to undertake. If the three civilizations reach a consensus, they can enforce the decree, which is the highest power granted to them by the Civilization Council.
"Also, notify all levels of civilization in the Ancient Star Desert and instruct them to fully cooperate; this problem must be resolved as soon as possible."
At such a time, in order to reassure others, the three parties will not take the opportunity to attack the supercluster civilization of the Ancient Star Desert. Otherwise, if a similar disaster occurs again, they will not cooperate, and it will be a losing proposition.
If internal strife causes a delay, allowing this disaster to snowball and shake the foundations of interstellar society, it will severely damage the dominance of the Three Universal Civilizations. History provides countless examples of this, so the three nations will never allow such an outcome to happen again and have already learned their lesson.
The Three Universal Civilizations, though usually in constant conflict, will set aside their rivalries and temporarily join hands to overcome the crisis in the face of such a disaster.
Urranrell slowly said, "I suggest we mobilize all the mechanics in the universe, especially the Beyond Grade A virtual mechanics who specialize in this. Let's call over the Mechanic Emperor and Black Star, and work together to solve this problem."
I second that.
I second that.
The other two nodded.
Since it's a disaster in the virtual realm, experts are needed to oversee it. And since the Mechanic Emperor and Black Star are the leaders among virtual mechanics, they will naturally be conscripted by the Three Universal Civilizations.
As for the origin, cause, and principle of the disaster, there will be ample time to find clues after the problem is solved.
Moreover, the Three Universal Civilizations were very interested in the technology behind this virtual virus.
In the past, this disaster would have thrown interstellar society into chaos, potentially leading to a complete collapse of order and escalating into a period of disorder. However, after years of development, the Three Universal Civilizations are now aware that if such a disaster is detected early, the risks remain manageable. Therefore, the leaders of the three civilizations remain calm despite the initial shock.
The only potential threat the three were the unstable civilian forces, such as the black market, wanted criminals, and rebels. No matter the reason, if someone kept the virus privately, it would be a real problem.
There might even be someone stirring things up behind the scenes... The three leaders exchanged glances, all sharing the same concern.
The Black Star Cup has been in full swing for two or three months. Han Xiao has been resting for so long, spending a lot of time in the machinery factory with nothing to do every day.
Originally, Han Xiao planned to keep a low profile for a year or two, waiting for the Three Universal Civilizations to take action against the Super Star Cluster Alliance. However, he did not expect that the Empire would suddenly send him a mission invitation, asking him to go to the Ancient Star Desert to solve a virtual virus.
"They're actually going to seal off the entire Ancient Star Desert? Is that virtual virus really that powerful?"
After reading the message from the Empire, Han Xiao's expression turned strange.
In the previous life, this event did not occur during the 4.0 era at all.
To be precise, players did not experience the "Intelligence Plague" firsthand; it occurred during the Silver Revolutionary Army update and was merely background information for players.
Han Xiao recalled that although he had not experienced the event and was unaware of many details, he had read a brief introduction to the "Intelligence Plague".
In the previous life, the process of resolving this disaster was very difficult. The Three Universal Civilizations wanted to eliminate all the viruses in time, but a mistake occurred, causing the viruses to leak out and infect multiple star systems. This paralyzed communications in many areas and severely damaged the order of interstellar society.
The Three Universal Civilizations devoted a great deal of resources to avert the disaster. However, due to the constraints on their resources and the negative impacts on public security, the economy, politics, and public opinion, the Silver Revolutionary Army of the previous life was able to exploit these loopholes to grow stronger, which was also one of the important factors in the Silver Revolution Army's success.
Now, the Intelligence Plague has broken out years ahead of schedule, and the Silver Revolutionary Army is still far from being established, clearly having missed this opportunity forever.
"Is this another butterfly effect I stirred up...?" Han Xiao stroked his chin.
The message from the Empire contained the background and details; he read it through and roughly understood the reason.
The root of it all was that I had taken down Gorutan, causing the black market to enter a brief vacuum without any backers, which attracted space pirates. The original buyer was investigated by the Three Universal Civilizations and seemed to only want to collect an antique from an unknown civilization, so I indirectly caused that safe to be opened many years ahead of schedule.
I don't know if it's a blessing or a curse...
Han Xiao pursed his lips. The Intelligence Plague was a ticking time bomb. It was better for it to explode in this era than during the World Tree War. However, the Three Universal Civilizations were also in conflict with the Supercluster, which might become a bargaining chip in the hands of the Super Star Cluster Alliance.
If the supercluster civilization is given a chance to breathe and truly secures the path to advancement it desires, the situation in the universe will take a completely different turn from its previous state.
"It's uncertain which way the tide of history will ultimately turn..."
Han Xiao shook his head, suppressing his worries, and thought of something else:
"What a coincidence, we've run into a celebrity from a later version..."
Harrison and the others, as excavators, were also recorded. Han Xiao was happy to encounter such obvious protagonists and was already planning to transplant this unclaimed leek to his own vegetable garden.
Putting everything else aside, at least it can serve as a mascot and boost the legion's morale.
"Phillip, reply to the Empire: I accept the invitation and will be there on time."
After calming himself down, Han Xiao instructed Phillip to reply.
He was naturally willing to contribute and did not want the Intelligence Plague to consume as much of the energy Explored Universe, as it had in his previous life.
Don't ask, the answer is positive energy, I'm not interested in this kind of virus technology at all! I have absolutely no interest in it! Go for it!
"Ding-a-ling~"
Just then, a notification popped up on Han Xiao's screen, indicating that a quest had been triggered.