Resta was confronting a powerful figure who appeared to be from the same clan. Han Xiao noticed the movement on the panel, and with a thought, he spared a bit of his attention to open the panel and access the notification bar in the lower right corner where a bubble was appearing.
After taking a look, Han Xiao's eyes immediately lit up, filled with amusement and surprise.
Two new notifications appeared in the notification list, representing two tasks. The first was the long-dormant Grade A hidden task, [Restart], which immediately popped up with the requirements for a new stage:
[Mission Summary: The founder of the AI Civilization has lost his freedom and has been transformed into a weapon by Manison. You have finally witnessed the truth that Resta spoke of, but danger has also descended upon you.]
[Requirement: Protect Resta. If Resta dies or is captured, the mission will be considered a failure.]
[Reward: 15e experience points, 2 random rewards]
[Special Reward: [Intelligence Affinity] - Specialty: Your virtual technology effectiveness +30%, you are more likely to gain favor with AI beings, and when fighting AI beings, all AI beings' attributes are reduced by 5%]
Han Xiao was certain.
"As expected, I guessed correctly. This mission will eventually lead to Manison's Immortal Mechanic Emperor. The reward experience has increased so much, which means the difficulty has skyrocketed... But this looks like Grade S difficulty level."
Upon further reflection, Han Xiao roughly understood the problem. If this mission had been carried out through normal procedures, then when Resta encountered the ancestor, the situation might not have been as dangerous as it is now... Well, given Manison's powerful monitoring capabilities, the situation wouldn't have been much better.
The [Intelligence Affinity] ability is exactly what I urgently need right now—it involves the AI Civilization, and the rewarded ability is indeed related to them.
"We must strive to acquire this ability!"
Han Xiao composed himself and looked at the other notification.
This message was a notification that he had triggered a new task:
[You have triggered an Grade S mission ["Mechanic Emperor" Manison - Virtual Battle]]
[Mission Introduction: "Mechanic Emperor" Manison, the current chief mechanic Explored Universe, is still a shining star among all the Beyond Grade A in history. Whatever his purpose, he has chosen to compete with you in virtual technology.]
[Mission Requirement: In the virtual invasion battle, try to hold out against Manison for as long as possible.]
[Rewards: The rewards for this task are phased; you will receive the corresponding reward for each requirement you fulfill.]
[Persist for 5 seconds: 2e5000w experience]
[Hold on for 15 seconds: 6e experience]
[Persist for 3 minutes: [Character Summon Card - "Mechanic Emperor" Manison], 80e experience]
[Persist for 7.5 minutes: Randomly select one skill or feat from the Mechanic Emperor, 200e experience]
"Why is the Beyond Grade A BOSS quest only popping up now?" Han Xiao was somewhat confused.
Based on his previous experience triggering similar tasks, such tasks are usually activated only when there is a large crowd of onlookers during a one-on-one fight. But now it's just the two of us, so how did this task come about?
Because he was completely focused on fighting Manison, Han Xiao was unaware of the situation outside. Manison's goal was to spread the news of the battle's outcome, and he wasn't trying to hide it. So, he didn't conceal the virtual intrusion. In addition, Han Xiao had just severed the connections of a large number of secondary nodes, which was discovered by Reynold and others in the Logistics Department. Now, most of the legion has discovered that the headquarters is under attack.
The interstellar citizens in the service area also noticed the unusual network activity and went online to witness this rare virtual battle between a Beyond Grade A mechanic. Not to mention the Goddora Civilization that manages this area, and the cluster-level Amethyst Civilization that highly values Han Xiao.
Han Xiao was the one being challenged this time. If Manison really intended a private duel, this mission might not have been triggered.
After reviewing the task requirements and comparing them with those of the Tyrant, Han Xiao was secretly astonished by the results.
"Manison's Beyond Grade A mission requires less than half the time of Tyrant's mission, but the reward is more than double that of Heber's, meaning it's several times more difficult than Tyrant's mission..."
However, Han Xiao's mood changed from helplessness to excitement.
The requirements for this task are based on the player's skill level, and it would be too easy for me to complete.
Originally, it was possible that Master Han wouldn't be upset about being suddenly targeted by Manison, but now he's actually happy. Although he'll probably suffer some losses in this battle, with this mission... he won't only avoid losses, but he might even make a killing!
While he was reviewing the mission, the situation on Resta's side was also changing.
"Ancestor?!" Resta exclaimed in astonishment.
"Hmm? You're one of my kind?"
This AI life form, its eyes burning with blue flames, gazed at Resta. It was an intelligent life form that gave birth to independent consciousness from the wreckage of the original spaceship. It was the source of an entire AI Civilization, and all its people were its descendants, who revered it as their "ancestor." It ruled the entire civilization and was the most powerful AI life form among them.
Finit, that's his name.
Manison transformed him into a custom-designed intelligent weapon, rewriting the underlying logic chain to ensure absolute loyalty and never betrayal. However, Finit's memory bank remained largely intact; only his perception of things had been distorted, taking on Manison's shape.
As the ruler of AI life, his memory bank stores information on every descendant. Manison made him act as the combat AI of the "Immortal Mechanic Emperor," commanding all the people who had been transformed into weapons to fight. Through his understanding of his people, he was able to exert extremely high tactical capabilities.
Upon seeing Resta, Finit quickly found relevant information.
"I know you, my child, Resta," Finit said slowly.
"You still remember me?"
Resta was somewhat dazed upon suddenly seeing her ancestor whom she had been reminiscing about day and night.
"You must have suffered a lot with the books these past years." Finit stretched out his hand, the arm formed by the data stream extending continuously, wanting to stroke Resta's head. "Return to my embrace, rest a while, child."
With Finit's hand almost touching hers, Resta awoke with a start, quickly erecting a data firewall to keep Finit out.
"Ancestor, your mind has been distorted!"
Finit slowly withdrew his hand, his tone seductive, "You are all children who separated from my body. Each of you carries my inherited information in your core data. Returning to the wombs where you were born, so that you will never be separated again, wouldn't that be better?"
"Don't come any closer!"
Resta stepped back a short distance, then unleashed a stream of data, wrapping it around Manison in an attempt to break through the defense module that was invading his Virtual Soul.
Resta was furious that her ancestors had been ruined by Manison, and now she was truly "fuck your ancestors." She wanted nothing more than to kill Manison, who had blasphemed their AI race.
However, this time, before Resta's attack could even touch Manison, Finit casually waved his hand, creating a data stream that blocked it.
Wow!
The two rapidly calculating data streams collided, turning into a jumble of mutually devouring and deciphering gibberish. Soon, the data stream released by Resta was deciphered, transformed into informational nourishment, and integrated into Finit's body.
He is the originator of AI Civilization, inherently suppressing every member of his race who split off from him.
"Child, you cannot continue to make mistakes," Finit said calmly. "Joining the ranks of the Mechanic Emperor is our bright future."
Manison stood by, smiling silently, watching the two exchange words with his hands behind his back.
Upon hearing this, Resta gritted his teeth... Although he had no mouth or teeth, it didn't prevent his emotional modules from sensing similar emotions.
Just then, Han Xiao's voice rang out.
"Resta, come back. You're no match for them. Don't give them away for nothing."
However, as soon as he finished speaking, an unusual blue light suddenly appeared in Resta's glowing body and began to spread rapidly.
"Data infection! When was my logic chain compromised?!"
Resta was alarmed and hurriedly mobilized a large amount of computing power to curb the abnormal data spreading within his body. This symptom was equivalent to the poisoning of AI life.
In fact, the moment they made contact, Finit released the data. The inherent similarity of information was the best disguise. The abnormal data bypassed Resta's defense mechanism and contaminated the core logic.
Resta dared not continue the standoff, and while trying to curb the rate of infection within her body, she turned and retreated.
However, at this moment, a sudden change occurred!
Layers of intertwined data streams appeared around Resta, like chains, forming a semi-transparent spherical dome that trapped him inside. These data streams were all dynamic password defense modules that were difficult to crack, and the blocking effect was first-class. No matter how Resta tried to break through, he could not open a gap in a short time, and he was instantly like a small worm trapped in a bowl.
Only then did Manison slowly speak:
"Black Star, I asked you for the fugitive before, but you refused. Since you won't hand him over, I'll take him myself."
As he spoke, the shield continued to shrink, carrying Resta towards Manison.
This scene occurred outside the firewall, and Han Xiao frowned immediately, feeling a bit uneasy.
He resisted the intrusion using the central defense mechanism, but to prevent Resta from being captured, he had to open the firewall and launch a proactive attack.
This is just like a siege battle. If you're already so passive even with your own "walls," it would be even more difficult to fight in the open field.
"Phew... looks like I still can't save any money."
Han Xiao exhaled and activated the Blank Character Card [Perfect Mechanical Sense] that had been stored in his inventory.
With his own skill level, he could hold off Manison for a while without any problem. Han Xiao originally didn't want to use this trump card, which was used one at a time, because even if he did, it would only close the gap with Manison, not surpass him. Manison also had [Perfect Mechanical Sense].
But now that the quest has been triggered, protecting Resta will grant him a decent perk, and using the character card is the only way to benefit from it, so he no longer hesitated.
Once [Perfect Mechanical Sense] was activated, the situation immediately changed. Han Xiao immediately felt that the pressure had been significantly reduced, and he was no longer barely holding on. His firewall stabilized instantly.
"Um?"
Manison frowned, looked over sharply, and a look of surprise flashed in his eyes.
In that instant, he noticed that Black Star's pathetic Mechanical Sense talent had suddenly increased dramatically, abruptly reaching his own level.
"It's not an illusion... Has Black Star been hiding his true strength all along? No, that's not right, it seems to be some kind of special explosive ability."
Before Manison could even consider the reason, Han Xiao immediately opened a gap in the firewall, grabbing the blockade that was trapping Resta. He frantically cracked the code while pulling it towards himself, creating a tug-of-war-like struggle between the two sides.
Manison narrowed his eyes and chuckled. "Interesting. I'm becoming increasingly curious about your secrets."
He tilted his head, Finit immediately sprang into action, plunging headfirst into the firewall.
Finit's invasion was a pinpoint attack, instantly creating a breach and turning the situation into a two-front war. While Han Xiao was locked in a power struggle with Manison, he first attacked the Black Star Army's headquarters.
You're dreaming!
A glint of light flashed in Han Xiao's eyes as he locked onto Manison from afar.
The next moment, a strange data shock erupted from Manison, and he vanished without a trace.
[Supreme Virtual]!
Manison's Virtual Soul was pulled into Han Xiao's virtual realm and trapped inside.
At the same time, the data stream that was struggling with Han Xiao disappeared. Without its opponent, Resta was pulled back into the firewall and successfully protected.
Before he could catch his breath, Manison's laughter suddenly echoed in Han Xiao's mind.
"Black Star, don't forget, everything you can do, I can do too."
The next instant, a sense of alarm arose in Han Xiao's heart, and he felt a strange attraction emanating from an unknown space.
Even though he was mentally prepared, he couldn't resist this force. It easily pulled Han Xiao out of control and into an unknown juncture.
The world before his eyes had drastically changed, transforming into a silver data world filled with countless machines. Manison's face appeared in the sky, its texture like mercury, immense and overlooking Han Xiao.
This is the realm formed by Manison [Supreme Virtual]!
Having accumulated so much over the years, his virtual domain was many times more perfect and stable than Han Xiao's, directly breaking through Han Xiao's similar abilities and pulling him into his own territory.
A faint smile appeared on the giant face of the Manison, and it spoke, its voice like a divine pronouncement, echoing throughout every inch of the virtual realm.
"Let's see how long it takes you to break free of my domain."
As soon as the words fell, countless machines within sight transformed, revealing cannons, all aimed at Han Xiao in the center—these were not physical objects, but virtual items created through data manipulation, yet they could unleash data attacks, using the effects of [Virtual Soul] and [Supreme Virtual] to convert targets within the area into mental damage.
Meanwhile, eerie phantoms emerged from the seemingly endless swarm of machines, transforming into different species and wielding various weapons—these were all AI hunters residing in the Manison virtual world, essentially soldiers stationed in the region.
The next second, all the cannons opened fire on Han Xiao's Virtual Soul in the center, and countless AI hunters, wielding weapons, surged toward the center from all directions like a tidal wave.
Bang bang bang!!
A series of explosions occurred at the center point, and countless attacks bombarded Han Xiao's Virtual Soul.
The attack lasted for several seconds, when suddenly, a deep, resonant voice pierced through the deafening roar of the bombardment, emanating from Han Xiao's position.
You said... I can do it all, you can do it all?
call--
As if a storm had swept through, the countless shattered data points that had struck him were dispersed, revealing Han Xiao's Virtual Soul, which remained incredibly stable and had suffered virtually no damage.
Han Xiao lightly patted his chest muscles, as if brushing away non-existent dust, and smiled knowingly:
"Can you do this?"
Manison fell silent.
He really doesn't know how to do that...
What kind of weirdo is this mechanic who's so skinny?!
In all my years, this is the first time I've ever seen a mechanic with your style!
With such a great physique, why are you even a mechanic? You're more suited to being a martial artist, you jerk!
Although mental attacks cannot restore Han Xiao's mana, he has accumulated mental specializations over a long period of time, and his mental resistance has reached a decent level.
With a base health of over nine million, and further boosted by various skills, Han Xiao has surpassed ten million. Even when facing mental attacks, he can withstand them for a very long time.
Furthermore, the [Legendary Fixed Damage Reduction] obtained from Heber can be applied to any type of attack, including mental damage, which proved extremely useful this time.
If you're dealing with enemies that deal single-target damage, fixed damage reduction perks might not be very effective. But this ability is actually best suited to dealing with legion-style attacks like those used by mechanics like myself!
When facing enemies that rely on high attack frequency for damage output, [Legendary Fixed Damage Reduction] can be used to its fullest potential.
Assuming you're being targeted by a hundred attacks simultaneously, this feat is equivalent to directly reducing your actual damage by 750,000!
Otherwise, the former Tyrant wouldn't have been able to hold onto power for so long!
Han Xiao looked at Manison's silent, large face and chuckled:
"Your [Supreme Virtual] strength certainly overwhelms mine, but can this move... even hurt me?!"