Chapter 712: Veritas Mechanica

Chapter 712: Veritas Mechanica

It was certain that the Eighth-Rank Shadow Devourer King did not possess any high-tier spatial artifacts. Otherwise, it wouldn't have given the Lu family so much time to prepare.

This fact undoubtedly boosted Song Chi's confidence. He had already activated the Bodhimanda Samadhi Seal and reset the Frost Void Prison's "Frost Void Cage" feature, all to temporarily control the Eighth-Rank Shadow Devourer King.

If the Shadow Devourer King had high-tier teleportation or evasion artifacts, there might have been a chance for the plan to go awry. However, this possibility was now largely ruled out.

The golden-quality Frost Void Prison created a sealed space with multiple effects. Without corresponding high-tier spatial components, the difficulty of escaping would be extremely high.

Compared to the natural flight speed of a star beast, the two Annihilator Ships' jump components were far superior, capable of leaping over ten thousand light-years in a single jump. If the ship used its special abilities, it could leap over a hundred thousand, or even several hundred thousand light-years.

Of course, this referred to ordinary red or silver jump components. The Crimson Sky Warp Device was a different story, as its "Crimson Sky Leap" feature allowed the Skygale of Tianxu to leap over six million light-years in a single jump, making it the pinnacle among silver jump devices.

Thanks to this, Song Chi and Lu Qifeng quickly arrived near the Eighth-Rank Shadow Devourer King, which was rapidly traversing the starry sky.

"Recall your ship first..."

After issuing the order, Song Chi didn't bother with the faint confusion in Lu Qifeng's eyes. The hatch of the Skygale of Tianxu slowly opened, and it immediately began recharging for another jump.

Before long, Lu Qifeng, with a respectful expression, darted out of the Eternal Ice Dragon. Once he had recalled his ship into the Ancestral Fire Nucleus, he entered the Skygale of Tianxu without hesitation.

Under the influence of the Master-Servant Pact, his previous cautious attitude had long since vanished, replaced by heartfelt respect and trust for Song Chi.

Soon, intense spatial fluctuations emerged in the dark starry sky, and a massive jump tunnel appeared directly in front of the Skygale of Tianxu.

A few minutes later, tens of thousands of light-years away, the Skygale of Tianxu emerged from its spatial jumper state in a new expanse of the starry sky.

"This..."

In the main control room of the ship, Lu Qifeng, standing behind Song Chi, was filled with surprise. His eyes were fixed on the radar display in front of him.

On the radar, he saw something that left him utterly stunned.

The Skygale of Tianxu had landed within one hundred million kilometers of the Shadow Devourer King.

Given the terrifying perception of an Eighth-Rank Overlord, a distance of one hundred million kilometers was negligible, measured in light-years.

At this moment, one hundred million kilometers was practically within arm's reach to an Eighth-Rank Overlord. Yet, the Shadow Devourer King in front of them showed no reaction, as if the Skygale of Tianxu didn't exist.

The possibility of a terrifying Eighth-Rank star beast making such a low-level mistake was virtually zero. Therefore, the only conclusion Lu Qifeng could draw was that the concealment priority of the Annihilator Ship completely surpassed the perception range of an Eighth-Rank star beast.

What did this mean?

In an instant, his already respectful attitude began to shift towards fervent admiration.

Song Chi ignored this, seeing that the Skygale of Tianxu, in its Mirage state, had not been detected. He then activated the Frost Void Prison, which had just reset its cooldown.

...

Roar!

The moment the frost void barrier appeared, the Shadow Devourer King immediately sensed the change in the surrounding starry sky. With a roar, its nearly two-million-kilometer-long black body lunged upward.

The tangible Devouring Law swirled around it, quickly forming a devouring sphere in its mouth, filled with sharp fangs.

The dark energy sphere condensed rapidly, containing an incredibly terrifying amount of energy.

However, Song Chi, inside the Skygale of Tianxu, showed no panic. Instead, a hint of joy appeared on his face.

'An experienced Eighth-Rank Shadow Devourer King, excellent...'

He was secretly pleased, but his actions were swift. In the blink of an eye, he issued multiple commands.

Mythic Pulse Energy Shield · "Mythic pulse wave", activate!

The "Silent" pulse of this mythic energy shield truly never fails. Whether facing an eighth-rank or ninth-rank opponent, it always catches the enemy off guard, delivering astonishing results.

This time, the eighth-rank Shadow Devourer King was no exception. Under the intangible pulse of energy, the devouring energy sphere it was about to form completely dissipated. Seizing the moment of confusion, Asura Emperor was brought into close range.

As his form rapidly expanded, the blood-red longsword slashed out, leaving a terrifying wound on the thin scales at the Shadow Devourer King's neck.

The attack didn't stop there. The moment the Shadow Devourer King felt the pain, Song Chi summoned the projection of the Pantheon Market.

With a single point of the purple mist projection from the Market of All Heavens, the massive body of the Shadow Devourer King was hurled away. In just two attacks, this celestial behemoth, which had roamed the boundless starry sky for over a hundred thousand years, was severely wounded.

Seeing this result, Song Chi's expression remained calm, showing no trace of surprise.

In truth, with Asura Emperor's current strength, given some time, he would likely be able to suppress the Shadow Devourer King directly, making it unnecessary to summon the Pantheon Market projection.

However, Song Chi was not concerned. Even a lion hunting a rabbit uses its full strength. After a thousand years of the Civilization War, the number of silver-grade artifacts accumulated in the Pantheon Market had surpassed three digits. Compared to the past, when every artifact had to be used sparingly, the current abundance allowed him to be less frugal.

Subsequently, there were no more surprises. Repeatedly wounded by Asura Emperor and the Market of All Heavens projection, and subjected to over a hundred enslaving imprints from the black-grade Celestial Pivot Ring, the Shadow Devourer King was ultimately enslaved by Song Chi.

On the other side, after this display of power, Lu Qifeng quickly became as loyal as Lu Xuewu, who had been bound by contract for over a thousand years. Song Chi's authority was deeply etched into Lu Qifeng's heart, transforming his initial respect and obedience into complete fanaticism.

Before leaving, Song Chi did not take Lu Qifeng with him but left him on the Eternal Floating Land. His Guidance Technique had yet to break through completely, and he needed more time to become a true subordinate of the Annihilator Ship.

Additionally, Song Chi gave Lu Qifeng two specific orders.

First, he instructed Lu Qifeng to promote Lu Xuewu to the new head of the Lu family. This would allow Song Chi to exert maximum control over the entire Lu family.

This order was also a reward for Lu Xuewu. Being appointed as the family head by the elder of the Annihilator Ship would grant Lu Xuewu greater resources from the Lu family, significantly increasing his chances of advancing to the rank of Dreadnought.

Second, Song Chi ordered Lu Qifeng to personally take him to the Lu family's treasure vault. Given the family's seven-thousand-year legacy, there might be some unexpected treasures in the vault.

However, the result was somewhat disappointing. Although the Lu family had existed for over seven thousand years, it only produced its first Dreadnought over three thousand years ago. Furthermore, to assist Lu Qifeng's ship in Ascension, most of the valuable resources in the vault had been sold to acquire the special and additional resources needed for the Annihilator Ship's Ascension.

Currently, apart from a golden energy shield on the Eternal Ice Dragon and a few silver components, the Lu family had nothing of value.

In the end, Song Chi could only take the hearthstone return device from Lu Xuewu's ship, infusing it with a thread of red ascension fire.

After obtaining the hearthstone return device, Song Chi did not immediately install it. Instead, he entered the Pantheon Market.

After a dozen minutes, when he returned to the Dragon Spine Continent, the hearthstone return device's characteristic 2, "Hearthstone Communication", had been replaced with "Teleportation Distance Increased by 110%" using the Artifact Origin Improvement Platform.

The component was then installed on the Skygale of Tianxu and immediately upgraded to level 70.

Hearthstone Return Device Level 70

Quality: Silver

Trait: Teleportation Hearthstone

Trait 2: Teleportation Range Increased by 330%

Trait 3: Teleportation Range Doubled

Trait 4: Warship Space Resistance +800

Consumption: 30/s (Spiritual Energy Points)

Effect: When a creature holding the hearthstone activates it, they will instantly teleport back to the warship where the component is installed. The current maximum teleportation range is 30,100 (3,500 × 2 × 4.3) light-years.

...

{Teleportation Hearthstone: Consumes 50,000 Spiritual Energy Points to create a hearthstone. A maximum of 8 hearthstones can exist at one time.}

Song Chi valued the free return feature of this component. Although the Skygale of Tianxu already had a more powerful [Divine Thought Chapter], the cooldown for the divine thought imprint recall was too long. The [hearthstone return device] could effectively compensate for this.

...

In the Dragon Whale Hall, amidst the dense chaotic mist, Song Chi, Song Wujian, Song Shiyuan, and Song Yan sat on their respective starry thrones.

This was a unique mechanism of the [Dragon Whale Hall].

Fourth Tier: [Bronze Throne]

Fifth Tier: [Silver Throne]

Sixth Tier: [Golden Throne]

Now that they were Annihilator Ship commanders, they had already been upgraded to [starry thrones].

In the future, as Galactic Ship commanders or even Hyperspace Admirals, they would have [silver moon thrones] and [radiant sun thrones].

The changes were not just in the color of the thrones; the enhancement of the throne owner's insight and the projection distance also saw significant improvements.

At this moment, Song Wujian, seated on the central [starry throne], spoke up:

"Xiao Chi, although everything is ready, we still believe it would be better if we all went together."

"Even if you haven't told us the exact target, which of the Ninth-Rank Sovereigns is not renowned for a reason? Although we may not be of much help, having three Annihilator Ship clones as cover is better than nothing, right?"

Song Wujian's words caused Song Shiyuan and Song Yan to nod in agreement.

Song Chi had never detailed his subsequent plans to them, which left the three of them somewhat uneasy.

In their view, as the core of the family, even if the three of them met with an accident, Song Chi must not take unnecessary risks.

Song Chi understood the concern in the words of the three elders, but it wasn't that he was deliberately being stubborn. The plan itself didn't require any additional help.

However, Song Chi was not a stubborn person. Although he didn't need the elders to assist with ship clones, he wasn't hesitant to ask for help in other areas.

"Grandfather, Big Brother, my plan really isn't suitable for a group. Unless you all accompany me in person on the Skygale of Tianxu... but there is one thing I need your help with..."

His tone suddenly shifted mid-sentence.

"Later, I will likely need the [harmony pendant] component, so I want to borrow the [Flame God Annihilation Cannon], [Black Hole Armor], [flame pact], and [flame deity sovereign skull] from your ships."

The four components Song Chi mentioned, [flame pact] and [flame deity sovereign skull], did not conflict with the components currently installed on the Skygale of Tianxu. They would be directly installed on the Skygale of Tianxu.

The [Flame God Annihilation Cannon] was also prepared for the Skygale of Tianxu. With the [Fate Compass Disk], he had one opportunity to unload a component without damage. He could use this to temporarily replace the [Flame God Annihilation Cannon] after using all the special abilities of the [Limitless Immortal Quantum Star Annihilator].

As for the [Black Hole Armor], Song Chi planned to temporarily install it on the [Snowy Gentle]. This way, he could later use the [harmony pendant] to temporarily borrow the special abilities of either one of these components.

Song Wujian and the other three did not refuse when Song Chi spoke up.

However, after a thorough discussion, Song Chi did not take immediate action. Instead, he postponed the operation by several decades.

Fifty years later, in the Dragon Spine Continent, at the Fiery Plains.

Inside the large composite illusionary space, a golden light shot from the bow of the Dinghai Longxiang, causing intense spatial fluctuations. Instead of dissipating over time, these fluctuations intensified.

Eventually, a massive space wormhole condensed above the illusionary space.

Compared to the numerous other wormhole entrances around it, this newly created wormhole was notably more stable, and its connectivity range was significantly greater.

With the Dinghai Longxiang’s Ascension golden seed and the spatial wormhole generator’s maximum connectivity distance, which was 1.2 billion light-years at the seventh rank, it now increased to 12 billion light-years. This distance far exceeded the distance between the ancient clan and the Pyre Human Civilization, and even for the vast Star Sea, it was a significant distance.

Of course, a single golden artifact alone was not enough to achieve such a terrifying effect. It was thanks to the Artifact Origin Improvement Platform in the Market of All Heavens that Song Chi could freely modify certain characteristics, thereby further extending the spatial wormhole generator’s range.

Seeing the space wormhole form, the faces of those in the illusionary space lit up with smiles.

The coordinates for the space wormhole landing point that Song Wujian had just set were exactly where Song Chi had previously obtained the coordinates for the Veritas Mechanica’s star domain.

With the space wormhole successfully formed, it meant that the space wormhole had successfully connected to the Veritas Mechanica’s star domain.

After a brief moment of joy, the four Song Family Annihilator Ship Captains quickly regained their composure.

Buzz!

The engines roared as the Skygale of Tianxu shot into the newly formed space wormhole.

Although they had successfully connected to the star domain where the Veritas Mechanica had been located hundreds of thousands of years ago, they had no idea what the current situation was on the other side or if the appearance of the space wormhole had caught the Veritas Mechanica’s attention.

To ensure the safety of the Dragon Spine Continent, Song Chi had to first investigate the situation on the other side.

Even this was not enough. As the Skygale of Tianxu traversed the wormhole tunnel and reached the unknown star domain, Song Wujian immediately destroyed the space wormhole.

Facing a powerful mechanical civilization with likely ninth-rank combat units, leaving the wormhole tunnel open would be like a ticking time bomb for the Song Family. Only by completely destroying it could they ensure their safety.

As for Song Chi, with the Pantheon Market at his disposal, he had his own way out.

Before the space wormhole was destroyed, he had already tested it. The Market of All Heavens could not only be accessed but also allowed him to return to the Dragon Spine Continent directly.

It was only after confirming this that Song Wujian unhesitatingly ordered the space wormhole to self-destruct.

...

The moment he emerged from the space wormhole, Song Chi cautiously observed his surroundings.

While using the Heavenly Eye to continuously monitor the surrounding starry sky, he kept half his attention on the neutron star core armor, Black Hole Evolution Layer, and Market Projection Token. If he detected any hint of danger, he would not hesitate to activate these life-saving trump cards.

However, it turned out he had overestimated the threat. The space wormhole’s exit was in a desolate star region, a vast expanse of nothing but vacuum. There were no asteroid belts, let alone any stellar floating continents.

‘How can this be a vacuum star region? According to the information provided by the Lord of Truth, this should be one of the core star domains of the Veritas Mechanica, if not the most central one...’

Could it be that the Lord of Truth considered this and altered the coordinates to the True Spirit Mechanical Civilization to prevent future travelers from meeting their end directly?

After regaining his composure, Song Chi tentatively maneuvered the Skygale of Tianxu around the surrounding starfield. After about half an hour, the "Star Map Collection" feature successfully generated a new star map.

The golden Spatial Jumper's "Star Map Collector" feature, combined with the golden Heavenly Eye radar, created a star map with a diameter of over two hundred thousand light-years. Although this range was still minuscule compared to the vast Star Sea, it was enough for Song Chi to gain a detailed understanding of the surrounding star domain.

A star map with a diameter of over two hundred thousand light-years naturally provided an astonishing amount of information. Soon, Song Chi had a detailed grasp of the surrounding star domain.

It was clear that the coordinates were correct. The Skygale of Tianxu was indeed in a significant void within the Star Sea, which was most likely a deliberate move by the Lord of Truth to ensure that visitors could enter the territory of the Veritas Mechanica unnoticed.

Beyond this void, of course, lay the true domain of the Veritas Mechanica. In the star map, Song Chi saw numerous stellar floating continents. However, so far, he had not discovered any stellar floating continents of the seventh level or higher, suggesting that this region was still far from the core star domain of the Veritas Mechanica.

With this confirmation, Song Chi quickly formulated a detailed plan for his next actions.

Mirage Dragon Pearl · "Illusory Shadow", activate!

With the "Illusory Shadow" feature activated, Song Chi initiated the warship's jump.

The Spatial Jumper combined with the Crimson Sky Warp Device allowed him to jump over a hundred thousand light-years during the duration of the "Illusory Shadow."

...

Several dozen minutes later, inside a fourth-level Floating Continent.

The Skygale of Tianxu, hidden in the void, hovered high in the sky. None of the countless mechanical beings on the surface of the Floating Continent could detect its presence.

Through Song Chi's covert operations, he quickly obtained a significant amount of information.

According to the information, this star domain indeed belonged to the Veritas Mechanica. As Song Chi had suspected, over the past hundreds of thousands of years, the Veritas Mechanica had risen to become a top-tier advanced civilization.

The Patriarch of Veritas had ascended to the ninth rank over two hundred thousand years ago. Following the rapid expansion of the civilization, He created three ninth-rank truth mechanical titans: the Dominating Sky, the Chi Tiger, and the World Destroyer.

The relentless advance of these three ninth-rank truth mechanical titans allowed the Veritas Mechanica to expand from its initial two galaxies to nearly forty galaxies in just a few tens of thousands of years. However, just as these titans were making rapid progress, they encountered another top-tier advanced civilization: the Stellar Giant Ape Civilization.

The Stellar Giant Ape Civilization and the Veritas Mechanica were located in the same galactic cluster. As both civilizations expanded rapidly, they inevitably clashed.

Soon, a protracted conflict spanning tens of thousands of years ensued.

Compared to the Veritas Mechanica, the Stellar Giant Ape Civilization was even more powerful, having already occupied over a hundred galaxies. The civilization boasted five ninth-rank Star Sea Giant Apes. Throughout the tens of thousands of years of war, the Veritas Mechanica was consistently at a disadvantage.

Even three thousand years ago, one of the three ninth-rank truth mechanical titans, the World Destroyer, was destroyed by two ninth-rank Star Sea Giant Apes. Since then, the Veritas Mechanica's disadvantage grew even more pronounced. To this day, the Veritas Mechanica can only struggle to resist the advances of the Stellar Giant Ape Civilization.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end