Yu Lian knew his subconscious expression must not have been pleasant. Therefore, out of the responsibility of an emotionally intelligent, mature social person, he still quickly forced a smile onto his face.
Of course, he was indeed a little bit subtly displeased because his ritual of celebrating the enemy's defeat had been interrupted. After all, he had almost been killed by this monstrous beast over a hundred times just now, and now he had finally succeeded in a counter-kill. It was understandable to be a little excited. Moreover, from another perspective, this could also be understood as a form of respect for the enemy.
On the other hand, after the AI avatar of the Virtual Realm Lord severed the "life force", the starry sky of the fifth ring had been completely covered by pure white, leaving no empty space, and had begun to impact the boundary of the sixth ring. More importantly, three of the previously flickering star positions had been lit up.
Not one, nor the two he had previously predicted, but three.
Unlocking three extraordinary characteristics at once was an experience Yu Lian had never had even when he reached the seventh ring in his previous life. It felt like a completely ordinary person who had spent all his half-year's pocket money and still couldn't change his fate, already given up on treatment, and then used his usual ten-pull to randomly get five or six SSRs.
Yu Lian had to admit that although this virtual environment was a game created by the Enlightener, it was definitely the game with the best user experience he had ever encountered.
Gazing at the three resplendent star positions, his blood surged, and he desperately needed to sing a song to process this excitement.
One of them was the "Wheel of Life," which made Yu Lian sigh with emotion. This was a Spiritual Ability formed by the combined advancement of "Touch of Life" and "Touch of Death," and it was also the ultimate move of Wanda, his beloved friend number one, who was now serving the Cosmic Spirit in heaven.
To put it simply, when this so-called "Wheel of Life" operated normally, it was a form of group healing. Although it couldn't revive the dead or flesh out the bones, it could indeed transform psionic energy into life force and inject it into the bodies of companions, enhancing their self-healing abilities in a relatively healthy and natural way.
If it were reversed, it would strip the opponent of their life force, or even directly cause instant death. Ordinary technological armor could not withstand its attack. His beloved friend number one had used this move in Kerana City to eliminate nearly two platoons of Imperial Soldiers in one fell swoop.
It was a large-scale Hand of Death. Of course, considering its sound and light effects, it could also be understood as a power-enhanced version of a Death Cloud spell.
Of course, a psionic power user like Wanda, who was so dedicated, would probably be happy to use this ability to conduct some perverse biological experiments. It immediately gave him the feel of a research-oriented Necromancer.
Yu Lian probably wouldn't have the same specialized research spirit as his old friend Wanda in heaven, but if he had time, he could conduct some small experiments to practice. Yes, he could discuss it with Comrade Shi AA and his slug companions. There were now over three thousand of these Space Slug Worms, and the ecological fish pond beneath the Red Star Institute had expanded tenfold.
Their usable neural network had expanded to a considerable scale, with computational power comparable to the most advanced central data terminals. However, they were theoretically oviparous amphibians that could more directly perceive environmental and temperature changes, so they should also be able to more directly perceive the essence of "Life Energy."
At that time, perhaps this power could be simulated and reproduced by machines.
Regardless, the "Wheel of Life and Death" was definitely an advanced healer skill after advancement, and it had been unlocked just like that. His "balance" was not just a bucket account; it was clearly an Imperial Demeanor that benefited everyone!
The first star position made Yu Lian very happy, and he looked forward to the other two even more. It was like opening blind boxes, and high-level blind boxes where good things were guaranteed. However, before he could observe them carefully, he was woken up by Xiao Hui, making some emotional displeasure inevitable.
Xiao Hui said, "I'm very sorry to disturb your good mood, but we're not done with our business here yet. Come on, I've opened the lock on the Spirit Seeker No. 3 weapon room and removed the restricted permissions. You can manually operate the quantum light cannons there now. You still remember the ship's internal structure diagram, right?"
"Quantum? Those that this ancient ship fired just now?" Yu Lian's interest was immediately piqued. "But I can confirm that although the energy bolts and blades fired earlier were astonishing in power and speed, they were definitely not at the speed of light."
"This is a civilian research vessel after all, and its armaments are restricted, but the principle is the same."
"Then..." Yu Lian's heart began to heat up, and he couldn't even be bothered to confirm what the other two star positions were.
To his relief, this time, Xiao Hui didn't say "prohibited item": "I can give you this. Of course, only if absolute safety can be guaranteed."
Yu Lian really wanted to ask how "absolute safety" was guaranteed and what kind of safety it was, but Xiao Hui didn't want to continue the topic: "Hurry to weapon room number 3 and prepare for manual cannon operation! I'm letting you personally fire the Enlightener's cannon; isn't that generous enough?"
Unconsciously, Xiao Hui, like everyone else, had begun to refer to her creator as the "Enlightener."
It was indeed generous, but Yu Lian discovered a blind spot: "You can't control it remotely?"
"The armament department on the Spirit Seeker has specialized safety authority. Once the central control AI's authority is compromised, it will be mechanically locked. I need to completely absorb the ship's AI and gain full control of the ship to unlock it, which will take at least an hour," Xiao Hui said. "However, you can manually unlock it."
"Manual?"
"Yes, manual, in the physical sense."
Yu Lian immediately understood.
Xiao Hui added, "Manual cannon operation requires two people, you go first."
Yu Lian didn't ask the foolish question, "Who is the other person?" nor did he ask "Who are we going to shoot?", but eagerly prepared to depart. "Are there still enemies on the way?"
"There might be some Repair Robots left. Oh, and some synthetics, but the ones capable of fighting are on the other side," Xiao Hui said. "I hope you can reach weapon control room number 3 within ten minutes."
Yu Lian nodded again. The scenery in his vision immediately changed. The sky with falling meteor showers, the gray-black land with flowing lava, and the giant beast corpse like a collapsed mountain in front of him all vanished like shattered bubbles.
He soon felt as if he had woken up from an endless dream, taking two full seconds to finally regain a sense of reality.
Not to mention ordinary people, even extraordinary beings with slightly weaker mental strength would have a high probability of getting lost in such an illusion and even mentally rejecting the "awakening." The Enlightener used this to train students, not just their psionic abilities, but also their willpower, he thought.
Yu Lian cast a lingering glance at the statue standing before him, then clenched his fist and felt the tactile sensation of his body. Needless to say, the magnificent Level 150 Phoenix Sacred Flame Set was also gone.
He leaped into a nearby mech, projected the ship's internal structure onto the viewport, and quickly plotted the shortest path to weapon room number 3.
He was pretty sure there were no enemies left on the ship that could threaten him, so he naturally chose the shortest route.
However, this ancient ship was indeed too large. Even taking the shortest route, ten minutes was really tight.
Yu Lian suppressed the urge to curse and drove the mech at maximum speed, rushing out of the central control room and onto the Main Artery of the Ship's Mid-level. He didn't even bother to conceal himself anymore; the commotion he created was like a torch lit in the winter night, quickly attracting the attention of the remaining robots and synthetics.
But this time, he didn't even bother to dodge, maintaining a straight forward path.
While Xiao Hui continued to digest the ship's AI, she used the monitoring authority she had obtained to take a picture of Yu Lian's retreating figure and send it to Count Blackmoon.
"He has a ninety-six percent probability of arriving on time."
This renowned rogue, famous for centuries, was still hanging upside down from the ceiling, slowly retreating behind the knights. She glanced at a Star Realm Knight who was sniping from the back of the group, her expression unreadable beneath her mask.
At this moment, the positional battle between the Star Realm Knights and the all-purpose entertainment synthetic humans had finally reached a critical juncture.
After several setbacks, these young knights, no matter how reckless or brave, should have learned to play a stable game by now.
It had to be admitted that twenty-odd Star Realm Knights, clad in mechs and equipped with fire support platforms, once they adopted the correct tactics and played a stable positional game, victory was not yet certain, but at least they were not as likely to capsize.
However, it must also be admitted that although these Star Realm Knights were well-equipped and well-trained, they were, after all, just ordinary members of the Knights. Their average age was under thirty, and the strongest were only at the third ring, including Yeger Sobek, who was just making up the numbers. Their opponents, these "all-purpose entertainment synthetic humans," although weakened twice, should each have a combat power roughly equivalent to half of Yu Lian's, which was a combat power level just past the fifth ring.
In the world of extraordinary beings, this level could definitely be considered a master. Many large countries with long histories and vast territories, and advanced civilizations, had their strongest extraordinary beings at this level.
Thus, facing three ancient synthetics that had been weakened twice, the knights, even with all their might, could only maintain the battle at a fragile balance. This made Sobek and his companions somewhat dejected... In fact, if twenty-odd "rookies" who were at most third ring could hold off three Union Rangers for more than ten minutes, this feat alone would be enough for everyone present to receive a medal.
However, if any knight's stamina failed, the situation could collapse completely.
Fortunately, they were not fighting alone.
Colonel Yeger Sobek's judgment was correct. Count Blackmoon not only represented the strongest fighting force of the humans present but was also a very reliable ally. Although he remained outside the frontal combat, he consistently carried out the most stable support using various unheard-of psionic techniques.
Then, in the first minute of the positional battle, he seized an opportunity to stab a steel nail into the shadow of the most damaged synthetic, freezing it in mid-air again.
A support robot that had been prepared pounced and fired all the alchemy shells from its two drum magazines into the opponent at close range.
The synthetic's body was immediately injected with too much chaotic psionic energy, and the resulting destructive force field successfully destroyed its internal core. However, its final explosion tore apart the nearby support robot as well, and the special pulse wave that spread out incidentally caused three nearby mechs to shut down on the spot.
The knights did not falter. They had successfully eliminated a formidable enemy again; this price was insignificant in comparison.
In the third minute of the battle, Count Blackmoon made another move. He seized an opportunity and used invisible shadow chains to lock onto a synthetic, creating a killing opportunity for the knights who followed.
After a flurry of sword and blade attacks from the knights, and after paying the price of two comrades' mechs being pierced and them being wounded and forced to withdraw from the battlefield, they finally managed to cripple the synthetic.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Sobek reloaded his gun and emptied an entire Alchemical Magazine. It was unclear whether any of the projectiles hit the synthetic's core, but the luster on its torso began to dim, and its body gradually faded to a grayscale. Those lusterless bodies, like plaster statues that had been soaked in water for too long, began to crack and crumble little by little.
However, the remaining synthetic placed its hand on its comrade who was about to "perish." The fluid material that had not yet completely faded surged towards the former, as if undergoing a droplet aggregation effect.
In front of the knights' shocked eyes, the remaining enemy, both in height and build, seemed to inflate like a balloon. If it had been a nimble and agile leopard just now, it had now become a colossal bear.
The knights looked at the scene before them. Although they clearly felt that the opponent's strength and energy accumulation had increased again, they did not feel any fear.
It's just a fusion, isn't it? If this move was truly effective, why didn't they use it from the beginning? They were clearly out of tricks.
In any case, there was only one enemy left now... or rather, one and a half. And twenty of us maintained combat effectiveness. Twenty to one, the advantage is definitely ours! Not celebrating with champagne in such a sure-win situation would be showing respect to the enemy.
The knights' morale soared. The Young Lady of the Marquis Family performed exceptionally, even reviving several severely wounded comrades. She finally seemed to remember that she was a "pure" ring healer and not a warrior.
Sobek put down his spear and let out a heavy sigh. Although he was just a sniper hiding in the back, as one of the few third-ring members of the team, he had added an energy attack enhancement to all the alchemy shells, which consumed a lot of his own energy.
Of course, the bullets he had buffed had a miraculous effect. The final blow to that robot just now was also delivered by him. One way or another, Colonel Sobek also deserved the first credit.
As long as the last enemy was eliminated, even if they retreated now, he should be able to report to his master, right?
However, after eliminating the enemy, how should he deal with this temporary "ally"?
As he was contemplating this troublesome question, he saw Count Blackmoon leap slightly, descend from the ceiling, land behind the crowd, and head towards an inconspicuous fork in the passage.
Leaving at this time was indeed good for everyone! Although Count Blackmoon was a wanted criminal by the Emperor of the Empire, he was indeed a man of principle and could be trusted! Colonel Yeger Sobek felt a little touched. However, as he left, he seemed to glance at him intentionally or unintentionally, as if afraid he wouldn't notice him.
Sobek felt something was fishy and decided to ignore it.
But at this moment, he heard the Young Lady Cellu say, "You go chase him! Leave this place to me."
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