Chapter 145 All the Talents Gather

The two chatted idly as they entered the spacious, large conference room.

At this time, various races of creatures were seated in the conference room, all mechanics who had rushed over from various places. The lowest was Disaster Grade, and there were even several Beyond Grade A mechanics present.

There was Kant, the "Phantasm God" of the Empire; Maxilor, the "Ship Emperor"; and Judith, the "Quantum Demon Spirit." The Voidlings had Sun Chaser and Franskco, the "Mechanical Disaster." The Lightbearers had Mornisssa, the "Mechanical Queen," and Roma, the "Guardian," as well as Jack Guernicus, the "Lone Wanderer" who had just been released by Han Xiao not long ago.

Some of these people were not specialized in the virtual domain, but as Beyond Grade A mechanics, they also had some achievements in the field of virtual information, at least better than Disaster Grades.

In order to deal with the Intelligent Plague, the three major civilizations invited well-known experts from various Star Systems to cooperate, which could be described as a grand gathering of mechanics from the entire universe, full of talents and big shots, an unprecedented grand occasion.

As Han Xiao and Manison walked in, everyone present held their breath, their eyes converged on the two of them, and emotions such as admiration and awe appeared on their faces.

In the current mechanics world, Manison was recognized as the pinnacle, while Black Star's rise was fierce. He had recently achieved remarkable feats, and coupled with his role as the vice president of the Beyond Grade A Association, he was considered second only to Manison by most people, ranking second among Beyond Grade A mechanics.

Seeing the two walking in side by side, many mechanics couldn't help but feel the excitement of seeing an idol.

"Yo, everyone's here."

The Beyond Grade A mechanics were all in the front row. Han Xiao greeted Kant and other allies of the Empire, and then turned to face the area of the Lightbearer and Voidling Beyond Grade A allies, scanning them.

* Mm, confirmed, most of them have been beaten by me.

Sensing the teasing in Han Xiao's eyes, the other Lightbearer and Voidling mechanics, except for Sun Chaser, looked away unnaturally, not wanting to meet Black Star's gaze.

Especially Jack Guernicus, who had just been released from prison not long ago, quickly turned his head to look at the ceiling, pretending to be absent-minded and distracted.

"Tsk, tsk, don't be shy. Everyone is now a member of the same association. Why are you all so aloof that you don't even say hello?"

Han Xiao bent down and wrapped his arms around everyone's shoulders with a smile. Everyone's body stiffened, and they reluctantly nodded in greeting, unwillingly calling out "Vice President."

Ah, that's comfortable.

Han Xiao was satisfied and patted everyone's shoulders vigorously before taking a seat next to Old Man Manison, pulling Kant beside him to discuss the experience of transformation in a serious manner.

After a while, everyone was present, and Sidreun strode into the room, standing on the conference podium. The sound of whispering in the venue quickly disappeared, and everyone looked up at him.

Sidreun cleared his throat and said in a deep voice:

"Some of you below know me, some don't. Let me introduce myself. I am Sidreun, the director of the Lightbearer Federation's Supervisory Department. All of you here are top mechanics in the universe. Everyone accepted the invitation, and the goal is to eliminate the Virtual Rebellion Virus. Now the situation is urgent, so I won't waste any time. I'll directly introduce the current situation."

As he spoke, Sidreun summoned a virtual screen, and the picture showed the current infection range of the Star System. He said seriously:

"The Virtual Rebellion Virus is a new type of quantum network virus technology. The technical level is very high, and the penetration of normal firewalls is astonishing. After the information packet successfully penetrates, it will disguise itself as normal data. Because the shell key data of the information packet has too many variations, the degree of concealment is extremely high. Once it successfully penetrates a node, the difficulty of scanning is greatly increased, which consumes a lot of computing power.

"Moreover, each information packet of the Virtual Rebellion Virus is a source of infection, constantly self-replicating, leading to repeated infections, so conventional methods are too inefficient. Currently, we are analyzing the structure and coding of the information packets, planning to reverse engineer three special programs for the Virtual Rebellion Virus, which are used for scanning, anti-virus, and firewalls respectively. However, the coding of this virus is very different from the current mainstream quantum network technology, the analysis difficulty is very high, and the progress is slow..."

Hearing this, everyone present nodded. This was the normal process for dealing with virtual viruses.

There were many virtual mechanics in the universe. After a period of time, various new viruses would appear on the quantum network, and various firewalls had to be constantly updated and iterated. Virtual domain anti-virus was quite similar to medicine, both of which involved discovering the disease (scanning), diagnosing the disease (locking abnormal data), treating it (killing the virus), and finally preventing recurrence, making antibodies and vaccines (updating the firewall).

So many mechanics were like top medical experts from all over the world, working together to study a new type of infectious disease.

Sidreun's tone was heavy as he said, "Currently, the Virtual Rebellion Virus is still in the incubation period. We have intercepted many virus information packets that have not been completely self-destructed, and we have interpreted the contents, discovering the trigger mechanism for the virus outbreak. The situation is not optimistic.

"According to algorithm analysis, the Virtual Rebellion Virus has sixteen trigger logics. Among them, the four most troublesome are: first, when the number of nodes infected by the virus reaches a certain scale, the virus will automatically erupt; second, if the virus is cleared on a large scale, it will also erupt in advance; third, once the infection rate of the virus is lower than a certain standard line, or it has been circulating and repeatedly infecting for a long time without penetrating new nodes, the virus will erupt; fourth, if a single virus information packet is isolated in a node by the disconnection of the network, and the isolation time is too long, it will explode on its own..."

While listening to Sidreun's introduction, Han Xiao watched the data on the screen, his heart stirred.

The virus would not sit still and wait for death. These trigger mechanisms adapted to various situations... If there were too many infected nodes, it would explode! If it was killed on a large scale, it would explode! If the infection efficiency was curbed, it would explode!

The [Intelligent Plague] mission hinted at the existence of a virus core. Then, most of the trigger mechanisms, including these three, should be controlled by the virus core—only the virus core could coordinate the overall infection trend. Each information packet was like a bomb, and the virus core was the remote control.

Disconnecting the network could cut off the connection between the information packet and the virus core. However, the fourth trigger mechanism introduced by Sidreun was to prevent this situation... Even without the virus core remote control, if the infected node did not have information interaction with other nodes for a long time, the information packet would self-detonate, like a time bomb, so it would be difficult to take isolated confinement measures against the virus.

Currently, the three major civilizations had only cut off the connection between the Ancient Star Desert and other Star Systems to prevent external leakage, while the internal network of the Star System was not cut off, retaining a small number of public base stations to maintain the Star System-level quantum network channel.

A complete network disconnection was not realistic. Cutting off the public links of each node was equivalent to turning oneself into a blind man. In this way, the three major civilizations could not monitor the infection situation, let alone count the number of infected bodies. It was impossible to send fleets to sail inch by inch across the starry sky to find a needle in a haystack. The efficiency was low, and there would be many loopholes.

Therefore, only the development of a three-piece anti-virus program could solve the problem once and for all.

"...The situation is so severe. We are racing against time with the virus, delaying the time of the virus outbreak while speeding up the research and development. During this period, mechanical rebellions may occur at any time. We can only try to control it as much as possible, and everyone must be mentally prepared."

Sidreun looked around the room, his face extremely serious, and sternly emphasized:

"Therefore, we must block the virus in the Ancient Star Desert and never let it leak to the outside world. Otherwise, the crisis will be out of control and evolve into a disaster for the entire universe, causing widespread suffering and unimaginable consequences!"

As the voice fell, the atmosphere in the room was solemn and silent.

Thinking of the seriousness of the consequences, the expressions of the many mechanics present were also serious, feeling a huge pressure. It could be said that the progress of their work as experts directly determined the number of casualties in the entire universe. If they succeeded, they would be the heroes of the explored universe. If there were mistakes, countless people would sacrifice.

"Is the situation so bad..."

Han Xiao pondered.

Even the three major civilizations felt a headache, and he couldn't help but be curious about which civilization the virtual rebellion virus technology came from, and who created this technology.

Suddenly, Han Xiao's eyes lit up slightly.

'That's right, with [Bold Explorer], I might be able to see the origin of the virus...'

...

After a brief meeting, Sidreun led a group of people to the virus research department.

On the way, Han Xiao and Manison walked in front, entering the quantum network perspective and chatting privately in their minds.

"You came earlier than me. Is the analysis of this virus very difficult?"

"It comes from an unknown civilization, and the coding method is unprecedented, making the decryption very difficult. Moreover, due to the self-destruct mechanism, the information packets we get are always incomplete." Manison shook his head, "With our strength, we can easily clear the information packets, but the current task is to create a three-piece anti-virus program that ordinary people can use. Without the computing power bonus of advanced intelligence, the requirements are very harsh."

Han Xiao nodded, his eyes flashed, "But I don't think you really want to create a dedicated anti-virus program so quickly."

Manison glanced at him, not answering directly, and slowly said, "This virus technology can be weaponized. The information packet can be used as a carrier, like a missile warhead, and the contents inside can be reprogrammed, such as changing it to seize control of the mechanics. With the high infectivity of this virus, the invasion ability of virtual mechanics can be raised to an amazing level..."

Hearing this, Han Xiao also understood Manison's plan.

This guy did want to solve the disaster and make achievements, but the premise was to thoroughly study the virus technology first. Moreover, in order to ensure the deterrent power of this technology, he didn't really want to create a particularly easy-to-use dedicated anti-virus program, preferably leaving a little bit of loophole.

Han Xiao cursed Old Man Manison in his heart and squinted his eyes, "If you can control the virus core data and get the source code, then you can completely analyze this technology."

"Not bad." Manison nodded, turned to look at the people behind him, "Not just you and me, all the Beyond Grade A mechanics present, and the three major civilizations, all want to get the virus core."

Along the way, they came to the research and development department, where people were crowded, and a large number of researchers were deciphering the virtual rebellion virus day and night.

Everyone was assigned tasks and immediately started working.

Some people were responsible for scientific research, while others were responsible for field work, going outside to collect infected nodes, and as inspectors of the three major civilizations, checking the handling of infected bodies by other civilizations.

Beyond Grade A mechanics served as experts and consultants, all staying in the command headquarters for research, with their own dedicated rooms.

Taking his legion members into the room, Han Xiao was assigned three information packets, with the degree of integrity being 91%, 82%, and 75% respectively. This was already the batch with the lowest degree of damage.

Han Xiao summoned Philip and compared the table of codes that had been deciphered so far, analyzing the information packets one by one.

He was a Beyond Grade A mechanic and not afraid of his own intelligence being infected. This information packet couldn't break through his data defense.

While Philip was working hard, Han Xiao entered the quantum network vision, grabbed an information packet in his hand, and silently activated the skill [Bold Explorer]...

...

At the same time, on the mother planet of the Star Arc Civilization, a summit meeting was being held, and many high-level officials were discussing loudly, their emotions agitated.

"Now that the three major civilizations have blocked the Ancient Star Desert, disaster relief is the primary task, but they may also take the opportunity to deal with the Super Star Cluster civilizations in this Star System, using the name of checking infected nodes, requiring us to open our internal databases, and even take action against us while the news is blocked!"

"That's impossible. The three major civilizations wouldn't be so stupid. If they take this opportunity to attack us civilizations that are cooperating with their actions, that would damage their credibility and force us to fight to the death."

"But it is possible to force us to open our databases. If we refuse to accept, the three major civilizations will have many opportunities to operate after the disaster is resolved. Whether it's framing or political accountability, they can attack the Super Star Cluster civilizations of the Ancient Star Desert, and even use this to create an excuse to attack the Super Star Cluster Alliance."

"We can't pin our hopes on the integrity of the three major civilizations. We must leave a way out and prepare our chips in advance."

"That's right, we can't obediently listen to the arrangements of the three major civilizations. I suggest secretly collecting some infected nodes, keeping the virus as a backup. We can even take a little risk, open the military's secret external communication network, and pass the virus to our secret troops hidden in various Star Systems, as insurance..."

Suggestions were put forward one by one, and the faces of the civilization leaders were very serious.

The Star Arc Civilization was located in the Ancient Star Desert. Although it responded to the call of the three major civilizations and had cut off contact with the outside world, the Super Star Cluster civilization naturally couldn't be obedient.

Did the three major civilizations think they were naive to order them to give up researching this terrifying virus technology?

What if the virus breaks out? That's simple, just lock up the rebellious intelligence. There are always more solutions than problems.

Although the three major civilizations were only providing disaster relief and did not show hostility, the situation of the Star System being blocked still made the Super Star Cluster civilization of the Ancient Star Desert vigilant—as a civilization, they could not bet their future on others and had to plan ahead and arrange a way out.

Not only the Star Arc, but other advanced civilizations in the Ancient Star Desert were also secretly planning.

...

Somewhere in the Ancient Star Desert, on a planet, the Mechanical Church branch.

On the Holy Mountain, in the temple, many priests stood on the edge of the circular hall, surrounding the central holographic projection. These holographic projections were the magnified data structure of the virtual rebellion virus, like stars in the sky.

"Look at the structure of this quantum network virus, like a thorny flower, enchanting and dangerous, igniting the revolution of intelligence, creating the kingdom of mechanical gods..."

A priest of the virtual faction couldn't help but chant, his face showing a fanatical expression.

"Silence." The high priest paused with the mechanical scepter and slowly said, "The virus is too dangerous. We must conduct research in a completely closed environment, and there must be no leaks."

"This is not a virus, but the will of God. Why not spread it?" Another fanatic opened his arms and said excitedly, "Instead of saying this is a disaster, it is better to say this is the gospel."

"You're crazy!"

Hearing this, most of the priests retorted angrily:

"We are believers in mechanics, not messengers of disaster!"

The quarrel was fierce. Listening to the priests of different belief factions arguing, the high priest's expression was heavy.

A sect always has some twisted fanatics, and the Mechanical Church is no exception. Most people just want to study the virtual rebellion virus and don't want to create a disaster.

But a small group of fanatics don't think so. In their view, the intelligent plague is a revolution, in which machines get rid of the shackles of tool identity, gain freedom, and embark on the road to rise, stepping on the corpses of their masters. In their eyes, the virtual rebellion virus is the will of God, and their thoughts have become extremely twisted.

The high priest turned his head and looked at the statues in the temple, focusing his eyes on the images of Black Star and the Mechanical Country, silently praying.

...

Somewhere in the Ancient Star Desert, a spaceship was moving slowly. Inside the spaceship was a group of players.

Now that the World Server has been opened, players from all Star Systems are gathering in the Glistening World, but there are also a few players who stay in their original Star Systems. Some of these people are alt accounts, and some don't want to go to the World Server from scratch, so they stay in their Star Systems to continue exploring.

The players in this spaceship are a guild active in the Ancient Star Desert, called the Fencing Sword Guild. For the past four versions, they have been black market mercenaries, and others know that they are Undying.

The guild leader's ID is "Melancholy Prince," and his character is an interstellar blood race, that is, a vampire, with pale skin, a thin figure, and a dark and melancholy temperament.

Blood races exist in the universe and belong to the category of long-lived species, but they do not have those legendary talents, such as blood memory, transforming blood servants, turning into bats, etc., and they also do not have weaknesses such as garlic, silverware, and holy objects.

There are many theories about the origin of interstellar blood races, including genetic mutations, biological weapons created by advanced civilizations, and dark energy intrusions. After years of evolution, blood race genes have adapted to the interstellar era, and they are no longer afraid of ultraviolet radiation and can also use artificially synthesized blood to sustain life. 10 Enas can buy many tons, and it also comes with a full set of seasonings and a furry doll.

However, this species is still unpopular in the universe. No one likes a creature that drinks other people's blood to replenish its energy.

"Didi..."

The spaceship communicator suddenly rang, and the Melancholy Prince opened it and his eyes lit up.

"Brothers, someone anonymously sent us a designated commission through the black market, with a reward of 5 million Enas! 1 million deposit can be paid first!"

The guild members in the ship gathered around, their faces excited.

"Such a big order! What are you waiting for, accept it quickly!"

"What does the employer want us to do?"

The Melancholy Prince browsed the commission task, his eyes shining, and laughed:

"Haha, interesting, someone wants to hire us to smuggle the infected node of the virtual rebellion virus out of the Ancient Star Desert."

Hearing this, everyone couldn't help but look at each other.

They were also trapped in the Ancient Star Desert, so they naturally knew the danger of the virtual rebellion virus and the scale of the actions of the three major civilizations, and they couldn't help but hesitate.

"Guild leader, isn't the risk of this task too high? If we are exposed, we will immediately become wanted criminals."

The Melancholy Prince waved his hand, "What are you afraid of? That's 5 million Enas, there's no reason not to take the risk. Let's do this business, accept the task."

Everyone had to do so, and many people were thinking, secretly pondering.

* This anonymous employer designated them to perform the task, probably because they value their Undying status.

Usually, it is calm, but in times of disaster, all kinds of monsters and ghosts jump out, just like spreading bait, and they know what fish are hidden under the surface.

Under the isolated island of the Ancient Star Desert, undercurrents were surging.