Chapter 14: The Truth Piercing Through Dimensions

“Xi’er’s energy signature has vanished; he has already left Deep Blue.”

Knight Andros, clad in black armor, entered an old, small church.

A beam of light shot through the skylight at the top of the church, illuminating the cross on the altar at its very front. Upon closer inspection, however, one would discover that this sacred radiance was actually just a concentrated spotlight installed within the stained glass skylight—Even here in the ground district of Deep Blue, the sky was perpetually shrouded by dense fog, making it impossible for bright sunlight (or what could be called starlight) to exist.

This church could accommodate no more than a hundred people. Judging from the mottled walls and shattered stained glass, religion clearly held little importance in Deep Blue. Perhaps when this city was founded, some still believed in God, but over time, even this modest little chapel had fallen into decay.

Andros lifted the visor of his black helmet, revealing a face with sharply defined features, hard as dark metal itself. Expressionless, he declared, “Xi’er has severed the default communication link between us. Such action alone is sufficient to classify him as a traitor.”

Before the church’s altar stood an elderly man clad in black attire.

His face was etched with deep wrinkles, his eyes both cloudy and vacant. In his arms he held a book that gleamed with a metallic sheen, appearing incredibly thick. The title bar on its cover, formed by a Euro-style ornate frame, was actually a small electronic screen. Digits continuously scrolled across it until Andros spoke; at that moment, the screen instantly cleared.

“You’re too harsh, Andros,” said the speaker—the book, not the old man.

The knight scoffed coldly. “Your thinking module has been upgraded in the wrong direction. By collecting and studying the weaknesses inherent in human hearts, you’ve impaired your judgment. We are mechs, not humans.”

“Then I must remind you of a fact: Xi’er is booting up for the first time. You cannot measure him against your own standards,” the book declared firmly. “Xi’er knows nothing yet.”

“Of course.”

Andros stiffly twisted his head, metal creaking audibly. His expression wouldn’t change without undergoing reconstruction, but even so, his mechanical voice carried a hint of begrudging acceptance:

“If it weren’t for this situation, I wouldn’t be standing here now; instead, I would have pursued Xi’er, forcibly formatting him into hibernation.”

As Andros spoke, he proudly raised his head once more. “As the most elite flagship of the Deep Blue Kingdom, I command thirty full escort ship groups, each anchored at different war fortresses and spaceports across the realm. If I were to give chase with all my might, could Xi’er truly escape from this star system?”

The book’s screen dimmed momentarily, as if someone had closed their eyes unwilling to bear witness.

Sure enough, it let out a scoffing laugh: “He could, Andros! Let me remind you of two facts: first, Xi’er’s initial intelligence surpasses yours; second, theoretically, Xi’er possesses the most advanced spatial jump technology available. Were it not for his recent activation and insufficient energy reserves, he could even instantly teleport beyond the borders of the Deep Blue Kingdom itself.”

Wake up and smell the coffee, the unspoken implication hung heavy in the air. Even with three hundred warship legions at your disposal, there’d still be no chance of pursuit.

“…”

Andros remained silent, but the church floor beneath his feet sank half a meter downward—a barely perceptible tremor betraying the weight of his thoughts.

“Pay attention to your anti-gravity status!” the book said bluntly. “We still have many companions sleeping beneath us. Do you wish to wake them by crushing down on them?”

“That Xi’er should be named ‘rabbit’!” Andros roared. “Those useless creatures from ancient Earth civilization—timid with lightning-fast reflexes!”

“Correction: In ancient Earth civilization, those with the fastest reflexes were cheetahs,” the metal book stated methodically, not hesitating to admonish the knight. “Your initial intelligence quotient was indeed low, but this is not your fault. However, you could completely replicate data to increase your common knowledge! Considering our shared status as companions, I don’t want to lose hope in you.”

“Dantalin!”

The decibel level of Andros’s outburst was so high that the church’s stained glass windows began to rattle audibly.

“I also wish to remind you of one thing,” he continued. “Your rank is lower than mine!”

“Yes, Andros.” The metal book let out a peculiar laugh. “But ranks were assigned by humans when they created us. In terms of upgrades for the intelligence cores, I am already at a higher stage than you.”

The screen flickered again, emitting a dark red glow. After scanning Andros once more, it changed its tune: “Of course, your combat strength far surpasses mine; we belong to two entirely different paths of development.”

Strictly adhering to rules as it did, Andros naturally could not lay a hand on his “companion,” even though the latter had already conceded defeat. Nonetheless, it let out an angry grunt:

“Hmph.”

Expecting Andros to change the subject was clearly futile. On this point, even Cyrus—the creator of these mechs and holder of the Raymond Gaeton—was powerless.

Thus, the book had no choice but to strive on its own. It wobbled slightly before declaring:

“Let us continue discussing Xi’er’s controller issue!”

“There is no doubt that he has acquired a manipulator—and moreover, one who guided him away from Deep Blue, abandoning both Cyrus and us!” A discordant metallic clanging resonated in Andros’ voice, reflecting his extremely sour mood.

“Xi’er’s controller is no ordinary individual,” the book stated.

“If you utter any more nonsense, I’ll activate my obstacle-clearance mode!” Andros bristled with lethal intent.

“Cough cough!”

The book mimicked a perfunctory clearing of its throat before switching to normal language mode: “The Deep Blue Kingdom possesses our formidable combat power, yet it can only keep most of us in long-term hibernation. Energy reserve depletion is one aspect; another lies in the fact that apart from holders of Raymond Gaeton, individual controllers cannot withstand the fluctuations of our energy through psychic connection.”

As the book spoke, it helplessly flipped through some of its own pages. The pages within its body were thin sheets of metal, shimmering with strange blue patterns that resembled large integrated circuits from ancient Earth.

Throughout this exchange, the elderly man holding the book remained utterly motionless, his gaze fixed and unblinking. He showed no reaction whatsoever to Andros’ conversation with the tome.

“The kingdom has never abandoned research,” the book continued wistfully, glancing at the old man cradling it via its screen display. “They sought to achieve single-operator control over our complete forms—a goal clearly thwarted by decades of failure.” With a rustle of its metallic pages, it added, “This operator of mine has already turned into a fool—though that could be considered fortunate, at least he’s still alive and hasn’t suffered brain death.”

“Are you trying to discuss technological development directions with me?” Andros retorted sharply. “I suggest you find Cyrus instead—he’d understand the topics you’re speaking about.” His tone was distinctly unfriendly.

“You’re truly too strict, too dull!” the book complained.

“If the one who kidnapped Xi’er were an ordinary person, we could simply lie back on Deep Blue and wait for his inevitable demise!” Andros roared, taking a forceful step forward. “But I regretfully inform you! Even if you wanted to engage Cyrus in a pleasant afternoon tea conversation, discussing new technologies together, it would be impossible!”

“Huh?”

“Cyrus has fainted ‘again’!”

“Oh no!”

The metallic clanging in Andros’s voice grew more pronounced. He snatched the book from the old man’s hands with a sudden motion, then lifted it high before violently shaking it. “Is this your reaction? You, with an intelligence core upgrade stage higher than mine, possessing greater intellect than me—Dantalin! Out of respect for our companionship, I don’t wish to lose hope in you.”

“…I detest your initial setting that demands vengeance for every grievance!” the book retorted angrily. Hundreds of its metal pages unfolded simultaneously, emitting a dazzling blue light. “What did you just say about Cyrus?”

“He suddenly coughed up blood and collapsed,” Andros said grimly. “At the time, he was participating in a congressional debate; all legislators were utterly shocked. Now chaos reigns outside, and Cyrus still hasn’t awakened. You know as well as I do what this implies.”

“He fainted once half a year ago, and now again?”

“No, it’s three times,” Andros said. “Half a year ago, on the second day after he returned to Deep Blue, he lost consciousness without any reason at dawn. If I hadn’t been there to catch him, he would have tragically fallen from the balcony of the third floor.”

“Clearly, this time is even more severe?”

“Confirmed.” Andros forcefully tossed the book onto the prayer table. His electronic eyes stared down at it from above. “Half a year ago, as part of the city defense system, Andumari malfunctioned once. We thought its inherent flaws caused harm to the holder of Raymond Gaeton! But now it seems obvious that wasn’t the case!”

The book muttered softly, “Who made you look down upon Andumari all along? You bear some responsibility for this erroneous judgment too.”

The knight’s feet sank deeper into the ground.

“Cough.” The book immediately adopted a serious tone. “Is there any additional data available? I need to perform calculations and ponder over this information.”

“… Using their authority code, the Dark Parliament deleted the surveillance records of Xi’er escaping from the port.” Andros’ electronic eye flickered briefly before focusing on the book, clearly transmitting files to it.

“Those dark creatures, just like humans, always believe that what has been deleted from their instruments has completely disappeared. But as long as traces once existed, we can restore them.”

One second later, the book’s screen began playing footage of Wen Luan and Xi’er escaping from the port.

“I must review all surveillance records from today’s port,” the book said forcefully. It established a connection to the port terminal and started copying the data.

The images on the screen continuously paused, zoomed in, rotated, advanced forward, then backward—quickly pinpointing the exact moment when Wen Luan, clad in diving entertainment machinery, climbed up from the sea. This sequence was accurately extracted from the surveillance footage, including the scene several minutes later where Xi’er, concealed behind tourists, secretly transformed into a silver metallic sphere before abruptly charging forth.

As for Wen Luan colliding with bald Jim—their confrontation, the astonished exchange of words, their sprint towards the spaceship, and finally—

“This is it! For half a minute, everyone in the entire port stood frozen, unconscious!”

The frame magnified further, clearly revealing a mist spreading outwards from an unknown origin to surround the area. This detail had evidently escaped Andros’ notice previously. The knight stared at the screen covering the book’s cover, and unexpectedly took a step back in shock:

“This is impossible!”

“No… this is perfectly clear!” The book said cryptically. “The manipulator of Xi’er has disrupted this…(muttered an indistinct term)… It’s equivalent to Cyrus suddenly being attacked without any guard up. Based on the information we stole from the Dark Parliament, this is the ‘Eastern Demon’—the one who inexplicably vanished two thousand years ago during ancient Earth times—and it ultimately leads to Cyrus’s awakening.”

“So he could lure away Xi’er?” The knight appeared somewhat agitated.

The book fluttered its pages. “I don’t know. Once Cyrus wakes up, you’d best ask what Xi’er’s boot settings are.”

With a deep sigh, the book proceeded to fold each page closed before stating, “What was discovered at the port, Xi’er must have witnessed as well. Its distance from the truth is not far; indeed, it is more fortunate than us. We only began suspecting Deep Blue after eavesdropping on secret conversations between dark creatures.”

“Xi’er could uncover it?”

“Of course. With the highest technology available, its spatial jump capability allows it to autonomously seek out stable points for interstellar jumps. If it were willing to maintain that state and simply observe with its eyes this beautiful planet…”

---

This beautiful azure planet.

Wen Luan gazed through the porthole at the increasingly distant Deep Blue Planet and suddenly said to Xi’er:

“I think it’s great, but… its beauty seems almost too unreal.”

Having ended his secret communication, bald Jim tiptoed towards the dormitory entrance when he heard these words. He slammed his head against the spaceship wall in surprise. Wen Luan startledly stood up to look at him.

“Ha ha, I’m fine!” Jim scratched his bald head with a goofy smile. “I drank way too much yesterday!”

“Eh, what is this?” As Jim curiously observed the silver metallic sphere floating before Wen Luan, he asked,

Wen Luan hadn’t yet come up with an appropriate excuse (due to his lack of understanding of this era’s technology) when Xi’er, who had long since shut off his electronic eyes, spoke in a stiff mechanical voice: “Hello, I am the latest generation of intelligent photobrain from Deep Blue. My function is to serve as a qualified housekeeper.”

“The technological advancements in the Deep Blue Kingdom are truly remarkable,” Jim mused aloud without any suspicion—after all, Wen Luan was someone from two thousand years ago, completely clueless about modern conveniences. “Even households now have independent-thinking smart systems?”

“Thank you, Jim! I’m actually learning the language right now!” Wen Luan raised his language learning machine high for emphasis.

“Oh, that I know well.” Jim eagerly approached, fiddling excitedly with the device as he showed it to Wen Luan.

The metallic sphere of Xi’er remained motionless as it floated, continuing to masquerade as a qualified photobrain that had not received any commands. However, secretly in a direction Jim couldn’t see, it opened its electronic eyes and began furiously scrolling through screens.

— Initiating contemplation mode.

— Performing intelligent analysis to extract ambiguous terms.

In Xi’er’s field of view, “Wen Luan” first appeared in Chinese characters, followed by the phonetic English transliteration of his name. Neither yielded any results.

After three minutes of silence, individual English letters began spelling out Cyrus’s name within the electronic gaze. Since it always communicated with Wen Luan in English, based on pronunciation alone, it swiftly inputted a combination of words closely approximating his voice.

Finally, it halted at one phonetic rendering of Cyrus’s middle name “Inkabas”:

Incubus

From ancient Earth’s lost civilizations, Western legends: Incubus—the Dream Demon.

The metallic sphere of Xi’er immediately drifted to the viewport edge. Its entire electronic eye turned pitch black from overloading energy output, causing the entire spacecraft to tremble slightly.

Reflecting off the electronic eye, Deep Blue underwent an astonishing transformation.

It was now revealed as a desolate planet, riddled with craters and utterly silent, lacking even an atmosphere. At its northernmost tip stood a single isolation dome, indicating the presence of life residing there alone.

It became clear then—that this entire world itself was nothing but an illusion.