Chapter 183: The Unknown

Chapter 183: The Unknown

In the timeline of his previous life, there was a part of the story of the Black Feather Spirit that Lu Heng was unaware of.

And in this life, no one would ever know about it either, for the events never transpired.

In his previous life, when Yuan Yaoyao was first summoned to the battlefield, her father, Yuan Hecheng, searched far and wide to purchase a skill crystal core for his daughter. However, he failed to obtain a high-level core and could only settle for a D-class core with limited skill functionality.

Surprisingly, Yuan Yaoyao did not die during her first foray into the abyssal battlefield.

But she met her end during the second summoning.

On her second deployment, she entered the same world.

When Xavier Matrix was captured by the military, she fought alongside the Black Feather Spirit, just as she did in this life, and destroyed all the drones.

However, she was no match for Alex Austin, and in order to cover Xavier Matrix's escape, she was destroyed by Alex Austin.

After Xavier Matrix's escape, he retrieved the fragments of the Black Feather Spirit from the military and then rebuilt the second-generation Black Feather Spirit.

Therefore, the Black Feather Spirit that Lu Heng encountered in his previous life was the second-generation model, identical in appearance to the first, but no longer the same entity.

In this life, Lu Heng's intervention blocked Alex Austin, allowing Yuan Yaoyao to survive.

Consequently, the events of the previous life never came to pass.

Lu Heng would never know about this incident from his past life, and the mysteries surrounding the Black Feather Spirit would remain locked away in his memories.

...

At this moment, Yuan Yaoyao was boasting about the capabilities of the lightbrain chip she had implanted.

She even removed her faceplate, revealing her natural face, but it was unclear whether it was biomimetic skin or an unmodified face.

Lu Heng, however, had other concerns. He pointed at her and said, "Take off your outer battle armor."

Yuan Yaoyao pouted and murmured, "No way."

Lu Heng frowned, "Why not? If you've undergone full-body modifications, I'm not sure how I'll explain this to your father when we return."

Yuan Yaoyao pouted again, "I'm not wearing any clothes... just a small vest and..."

"Never mind then," Lu Heng decided to get straight to the point. "Apart from the implanted chip, what other modifications have you undergone?"

Xavier Matrix, having analyzed the psychological burden humans often associate with mechanical modifications, explained, "You might have some misconceptions about mechanical modifications. They are not done for the sake of modification but to enhance individual operational efficiency.

"Only when the mechanical body outperforms the original body in efficiency will the original body be replaced with a mechanical one.

"The Black Feather Spirit's original body possesses the ability to alter the ductility of metallic materials.

"The strength of this ability is directly correlated with the total amount of source energy, which, in turn, is related to the total number of original cells.

"Therefore, by retaining more cellular tissue, you can achieve a more potent Fluid Metal ability while also improving the efficiency of the Mechanical Heart and Metal Ion Restoration abilities.

"Consequently, there's no need to replace the limbs at this stage. We can wait until we develop mechanical bodies that can replace the limbs and enhance efficiency before making the switch.

"Currently, my design involves gradually replacing the skeleton with metal to enhance the body's resistance to strikes..."

Lu Heng raised his hand, uninterested in hearing more about the modification plans.

As of now, it seemed that Yuan Yaoyao had not undergone any forced modifications, so there wasn't a major issue.

With only four days left until their return, they needed to complete the remaining challenge quests as soon as possible.

After two encounters and with the memories of his previous life, Lu Heng could confirm that Xavier Matrix's technological prowess had indeed reached a level that even the Sikes Civilization's official authorities couldn't handle.

Just a day after his capture by the military, Xavier Matrix had already settled into a new residence, a courtyard filled with various plants.

It seemed that his research projects hadn't been significantly disrupted.

Working with Xavier Matrix proved to be more efficient than collaborating with other factions, especially since Yuan Yaoyao's connection with him provided a natural link.

...

Lu Heng got straight to the point, asking, "Yuan Yaoyao, what's your second challenge quest?"

Yuan Yaoyao glanced at the quest panel and replied, "Find and eliminate the abyssal pollution source."

Lu Heng turned to Xavier Matrix, "We might need your help. Can you assist us?"

"Of course," Xavier Matrix agreed readily.

"Do you have any leads on the abyssal pollution source?" Lu Heng asked directly.

Given that Xavier Matrix could move freely despite being wanted by the military, his access privileges in the central system must be exceptionally high, allowing him to access information unavailable to most others.

"Multiple signs indicate that the Descension Faction's laboratory is conducting large-scale research on demons, possibly even experimenting with mechanical modifications on them. If this is connected to the abyssal pollution source, there's a high probability, over 70%, that the pollution source is within the Descension Faction's jurisdiction," Xavier Matrix concluded based on the information he had gathered.

"Are there specific targets we should investigate?" Lu Heng continued.

"Yes, after investigating these secret bases of the Descension Faction, we might find the answers we seek," Xavier Matrix replied.

He provided coordinates for several secret Descension Faction bases and offered to provide system network support, including signal jamming and disrupting the Descension Faction's communications.

Lu Heng studied the electronic map, contemplating how to approach the investigation of these secret bases.

After finalizing their plan of action, Xavier Matrix volunteered, "I can provide you with some equipment and mechanical modules. Is there anything specific you require?"

Lu Heng waved his hand, summoning the Mechanical Tiger Anka, and asked, "Do you have an anti-gravity module?"

Xavier Matrix raised an eyebrow and replied, "I do have an anti-gravity module, but your Mechanical Beast is quite heavy. Even with the same model as the Black Feather Spirit, the maximum power of the anti-gravity module won't be enough to make it fly."

Lu Heng understood that different weights of mechanical bodies required different power outputs from anti-gravity modules. "It can reduce the effect of gravity and increase running speed as well."

The Black Feather Spirit's weight was estimated to be only one-tenth of the Mechanical Tiger's. Using the anti-gravity module designed for the Black Feather Spirit on the Mechanical Tiger, it was natural that it couldn't fly.

Xavier Matrix sent an electromagnetic signal to the domestic robot, instructing it to retrieve an anti-gravity module from the basement.

Lu Heng took the module, which was rectangular in shape, and upon inspection, it didn't reveal any special features from the outside.

He casually handed it to the Mechanical Tiger for fitting.

The Mechanical Tiger installed the module beneath its liquid metal shell, and after completing the fitting, it activated the anti-gravity module, reducing its weight to 36% of its original.

Only the weight was reduced, not the mass.

On Blue Planet, mass was often equated with weight, but in reality, they were different.

Xavier Matrix observed the effect and said, "If we have the opportunity to meet again, I can create a dedicated anti-gravity module for your Mechanical Beast."

Lu Heng was delighted to hear this promise.

However, manufacturing an anti-gravity module wouldn't be a quick task, so when he mentioned "the next time we meet," he was referring to the next time he was summoned.

Therefore, it was uncertain if there would be another opportunity to meet.

...

Over the next three days, Lu Heng began investigating several secret bases of the Descension Faction around City 3.

In terms of reconnaissance, Su Muyu was the most skilled.

Most of the Descension Faction's bases only required sending in the Divine Feathered Eagle in stealth mode for a quick fly-by to gather all the necessary information.

Only when the Divine Feathered Eagle couldn't enter a base would they need to devise another plan.

Usually, Lu Heng would use the Transformation Orb to transform into a member of the Descension Faction and then infiltrate the base for investigation.

Three days passed.

After investigating five secret bases of the Descension Faction, they discovered a laboratory researching Mechanical Demons, but they hadn't found the Abyssal Pollution Source.

The challenge task required finding the Abyssal Pollution Source, so discovering the Mechanical Demon lab wasn't sufficient.

However, they could hand over the investigation data to Liorana Sikes, allowing the Sikes Civilization to solve the problem themselves.

On the third night, Lu Heng, along with Yuan Yaoyao, began investigating the sixth secret base of the Descension Faction.

Xavier Matrix had provided coordinates for seven Descension Faction bases, so there were still two left to explore.

This was the sixth base, and if they couldn't find the Abyssal Pollution Source here, there would be only one target left.

Of course, it was also possible that the Descension Faction didn't possess the Abyssal Pollution Source at all.

If that were the case, this challenge task would be impossible to complete.

Time was running out, with only a day and a half left before their return.

...

Following the same plan as before, Su Muyu first released the Divine Feathered Eagle for reconnaissance.

After scouting the perimeter, Su Muyu reported, "This base has tighter security than the previous ones. I can't get in without forcing my way through, but that would alert them."

Lu Heng stood up and said, "Then I'll go."

The four of them waited outside the base for a long time, but no guards appeared. Lu Heng needed a guard to come out so he could transform into their likeness and enter the base.

However, no guards emerged.

This pyramid-shaped base was like a tomb, and after three hours of waiting, no guards entered or exited.

Moreover, being robots, they didn't need to eat, drink, or use the bathroom.

Charging could even be done wirelessly, so there was no need for the base to have any contact with the outside.

After a moment's thought, Lu Heng said, "In that case, I'll use Shadow Traverse to go in directly."

This approach was a bit risky.

Shadow Traverse was typically used as an escape method, allowing one to retreat immediately upon encountering danger.

But if he used Shadow Traverse to enter, he wouldn't have a means to escape if he encountered danger.

"Isn't this too risky?" Su Muyu was concerned.

"Don't worry, I'll just take a quick look. I'll be out in 15 seconds," Lu Heng reassured her with a confident look.

He then used Shadow Traverse to burrow underground and sprinted towards the base's underground area, silently counting the time.

With only 15 seconds for Shadow Traverse, he had to turn back after 7.5 seconds at most.

Combining Shadow Traverse with Wind Runner's acceleration, Lu Heng rushed into the base at a speed of 260 meters per second.

Using Shadow Vision, he approached the base's underground structure within 30 meters and saw the underground architecture.

A single glance revealed at least six underground levels.

This was the most underground levels they had encountered in their investigations of Descension Faction bases.

Lu Heng circled around one-third of the underground structure, observing the outer conditions. At the 8-second mark, he immediately turned back and emerged from the ground in the final second, concluding his reconnaissance.

"How was it?" Su Muyu asked eagerly.

Lu Heng exhaled and replied, "There are six underground levels. I feel this base is the one we're looking for, but I haven't found the Abyssal Pollution Source yet. I'll need to approach from another direction and try again."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end