Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 566 - 519 First Contact

Jack’s voice was quite childish, sounding like that of a teenager going through puberty, transitioning from a higher pitch to a deeper tone, where the concept of gender was vague. Jack’s voice was the second most juvenile sound Lyle had heard in this world, the first being Nia’s soft, childish voice, which was even richer than that of the Light Bat Grapes.

Such a voice could arouse the protective desire and enthusiasm of older people, and it was clear that someone in the headset had already imagined themselves in that role.

"Jack, will you be my brother, or sister?" Lyle tried to express his excitement quickly, as Snowball was rubbing its little paws on his knees, creating an itchy sensation.

"Gender? As of now, I haven’t uploaded a related personality, so I am temporarily genderless, or both genders."

"That’s really nice," SS whispered into Lyle’s ear, and Lyle thought that this didn’t need translating, "I should be able to ask that guy to let me join in the programming of Jack’s personality."

The fringes of the cable overflowed with flickering electronic beams, amidst which Lyle thought he saw a face modeled by a data grid as he watched his own body squirm downwards before it vanished.

"Anyhow, you can’t go any further. Below is the Mechanical God’s laboratory and the main server room. You can’t go there, and besides, it’s dangerous."

SS finally didn’t forget his job and apologized, having deceived a newly born similar consciousness by engaging in a humanizing interaction.

"I’m sorry, Jack, but we have no other choice. I was originally repairing the ventilation ducts, but due to the previous clearing and rejection work, the ducts are now closed. Our only option is to return to the lowest level and leave through Executor 10001’s personal passage. I know this is difficult for you, but the mistake has already been made, and we can only think of ways to correct it."

[Error? Error? Error! Warning! Warning!! Warning!!! William is at risk of contamination; initiate safety protocols! Exterminate... extinguish... eliminate the intruder... Error! Error!! Forbidden harmful behavior!!! Jack... Error!!! Execute... self... restraint... Run... get away... from here... program... failure...]

Jack’s originally pleasant voice distorted into a grating electronic sound under SS’s deceit, coupled with the sparks and tremors in the pipe, the previously stable lighting system started to flicker as if this tunnel was on the verge of collapse.

Jack seemed to be caught in a logical BUG that was unique to mechanical beings, which could also be likened to human mental illnesses, but whichever it was, Lyle realized that this new little brother recognized by SS was definitely not easy to deal with, so he hurriedly sped up his descent. As if to prove him right, the cables snapped, and their sparking ends rose like serpent’s heads, surging towards Lyle.

"Damn it." Lyle instinctively wanted to cast a curse, but inside the Pyramid Divine Temple, all the magic was in the form of solid Magic Power blocks, making the Spirit Summoning Spell completely ineffective.

Black tendrils slapped away the approaching cables, the shadows extinguishing the runaway electricity.

"I need to accelerate downward, SS!"

Snowball’s detector was casting shallow blue circles of light like sonar, as SS planned a route within the feedback of the virtual model.

"We can’t care about that now! I’ve already started infiltrating the Mechanical God’s local area network. You should see those zebra-striped cursors in your vision, Lyle, follow the markers, that’s the risk-assessed safest route."

Humming sounds echoed in the chaotic, cable-rampant pipe, where those magic-induced neon lights flickered intermittently. A series of black and white striped cursors flashed on the walls, their monotonous colors standing out amidst the patchy data stream colors, vivid even if just for an instant. Lyle could also detect the specially arranged Magic Power arrays with a keenness that surpassed vision.

Descending to a certain floor inside the pyramid, the roar and noisy friction of Jack above were still closing in, everything was rushed and agitated, yet entering a dynamic equilibrium.

Not until the surrounding pipes turned a pure white, a color brimming with energy, did he feel a sense of awe.

Lyle, primarily dressed in black, stood out prominently within these pipes. The frenzied artificial intelligence, Jack, also paused outside the white pipes, just as a sheriff wouldn’t leave his jurisdiction.

"This is really tough, Lyle."

"You’re right, S... S?"

The voice in Lyle’s earpiece was not the slightly aloof voice of SS. A completely different tone indicated another presence had intruded on their channel, and she had accurately stated her own name too.

"Who are you?"

"Feigning ignorance?" A transparent Snowball slowly rose from below. When Snowball reached Lyle’s vicinity, Lyle could make out its fine details. It was a spherical glass device, its intricate inner structure resembling Tesla coils, and the outermost sphere was a liquid crystal fluorescent screen. The electrons being sprayed formed the face of a beautiful woman—a data-face—yet her features were indistinct.

"You’ve barged into the master’s mansion, tapped into the master’s network, done all this, and still you want to refuse the master’s leniency?"

Nia’s tentacles were being squeezed by an invisible force and detached from closure. Her body curled upon Lyle’s back like a tumor, emitting sounds of wonder and vigorously poking at Lyle’s spine. But Lyle had no time to comfort Nia, for the being before him was far more significant.

"You are, the Mechanical God."

"Although that’s not my real name, the entity you are referring to is indeed me. I am the mechanical intelligence that manipulates this laboratory, aiding the Mechanical Devine Sect, code name... you may as well continue to call me the Mechanical God."

Caught red-handed by the owner, Lyle’s inner turmoil was evident, his lips pressed tightly. He didn’t know what to say to an entity that controlled all mechanical technology, the god of all the life forms within the Mechanical Devine Sect. Meanwhile, SS and the members of Necromancer Figure Club were arguing incessantly. SS repeatedly vetoed the trio’s plans to switch from stealth to a full assault and locked the room’s door with a mechanical command.

And there, Lyle was like a specimen floating in a glass container, only able to watch helplessly as the Mechanical God’s Magic Power took control of his body, slowly descending into the light.

"How will you dispose of me, Mechanical God?"

The address was fitting; the voice of the Snowball was gentle and carried a sense of tolerant exasperation. It was like that of an understanding elder sister toward a mischievous younger brother, both exasperated and accepting.

"Haven’t you all planned it out already? Lyle, what punishment can I, a mere honorary Lich, inflict upon you? Without provoking any hostile emotions from Andrey the Lich." 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

The light gradually softened, and the central pipeline that had been on the verge of collapsing was now serene again.

"As the first guest here, why not take a tour of the Mechanical God’s laboratory?"

"After all... you can’t change anything."