Chapter 19: The Failed Mechanism

“What in blazes is that thing?”

The pirates stared at the screen with horror etched on their faces.

In the White Whale Galaxy, only the Deep Blue Kingdom revered the lost civilizations of old. Only on Deep Blue could one find remnants of ancient architecture and sculptures from bygone eras. These barely educated buccaneers strained their memories for any clue.

“It looks like a human,” someone ventured. “And what he’s riding seems to be a winged horse—yes, I’ve heard they have such creatures in the UNICORN GALAXY.”

“Surviving directly in space?” A pirate lieutenant barked angrily. “Don’t be absurd! Have you seen how tall this monstrosity is? Just one meal would require an astronomical amount of food!”

“On our planet, we had these prehistoric giant lizards…” another pirate suggested hesitantly.

“Bullshit! What kind of lizard can compare to even a small asteroid?” someone retorted dismissively.

Finally, a seasoned pirate who had visited Deep Blue let out a startled cry. “Boss, it’s one of those pillars from the Deep Blue Kingdom—I’ve seen them before! Except the horses there don’t have wings— Ow!”

For his troubles, this pirate was also sent flying with a kick.

“Alert! Level One alert!” The pirate lieutenant seized the communication microphone, his voice shrill with panic. “All hands, activate the warship’s protective shield immediately! To all allied vessels, our Lighthouse has fallen into enemy hands!”

The communication channel descended into chaos as many dazed pirates finally snapped back to reality. They jumped up, shouting wildly:

“Our money! Our stuff—our entire warehouse!”

More voices joined the clamor, their cries echoing through the airwaves. How did we not realize it was from the Deep Blue Kingdom? Why is it even here? Damn it—all other nations were fair game for our raids, so why would this one come swoop in on our stash?

Some pirates, farther away and unable to witness the full transformation of Xi’er, anxiously asked, “Why weren’t the lighthouse’s defense measures activated? Where’s the lighthouse now? Has anyone seen it?”

“It—it swallowed our lighthouse whole!” someone cried out.

“Impossible! Given its size alone?” another voice protested incredulously.

To open a cargo bay large enough to engulf the pirate base—a maneuver that seemed akin to swallowing an entire fortress—the space battleship must have been at least five times larger than the base itself! And just what kind of design was this monolith? The pirates, seasoned travelers throughout the White Whale Galaxy, had encountered various fortresses shaped like spheres, hemispheres, cylinders, and even irregular geometric forms. Yet they’d never before seen any nation construct such a colossal edifice resembling nothing more than a statue. This sight left them utterly bewildered.

What use were wings on that horse? Navigation through cosmic space relied solely on propulsion engines; attaching a pair of wings wouldn’t magically increase speed. As for offensive capability, it depended entirely on weapon systems—ideally something akin to a planet-destroying cannon, not some outdated knightly lance! It was utterly unscientific!

Appealing to aesthetics with pirates would be futile; they had no appreciation for such things. Moreover, each species possessed its own unique sense of beauty—how could one expect uniformity across different races? The only universally admired object, transcending all racial boundaries, was undoubtedly money.

In the endless darkness of space, the silver-armored knight slowly raised his arm. In response, the eyes of the flying horse beneath him opened as well. Every spaceship trembled slightly, as if caught in a particle storm, while many detection instruments began emitting smoke from their overheated circuits.

“Could the Deep Blue Kingdom possibly have so much energy core material that they can afford to pave their floors with them?” The pirates let out incredulous howls.

The massive silver-armored knight and his flying steed shimmered brilliantly under countless blue specks of light, making their silvery-white metal exoskeletons even more dazzling. This spectacle resulted from the fusion reaction caused by numerous concentrated energy cores. With temperatures soaring high enough to rival those found within stars themselves, this assembly essentially formed a colossal stellar bomb—a potential threat capable of annihilating entire star systems at once.

The merchant ship, still reeling from its encounter with pirates, had fled in blind terror towards open space.

Yet upon reaching the point for spatial jump, they discovered their instruments were unresponsive—the navigation system failed completely. With no other choice, they increased power output to push as far away from this perilous location as possible.

“No! This bastard is using the energy blocks we stored at the Lighthouse!” The pirates quickly identified the problem.

Before they could devise a countermeasure, several pirate warships closest to the Silver-armored Knight lost control and were inexorably drawn towards it. As soon as these vessels approached the blue glow surrounding Xi’er’s body, they began disintegrating into fragments that merged seamlessly into his form.

In the cramped room already teeming with captured pirates, yet another wave of terrified souls—still clutching onto their foam seats, convinced they would be vaporized alive—was thrown together amidst the chaos. Their sudden arrival sent the Caesar Octopus into a furious rampage, cursing profusely. Those who miraculously avoided being knocked unconscious found themselves flung across the room by the Pacific Octopus’ whip-like tentacles.

Amidst this pandemonium, one figure stood out: instead of sliding down like the others, he transformed mid-air into a small golden bat. Flapping his wings, he nimbly navigated through the menacing dance of the Caesar Octopus’ tentacles, landing steadily on Jim’s bald head.

“Exactly what happened here?” he asked, his voice carrying both curiosity and authority.

“Prince Saitra, I truly don’t know,” Jim stammered, still stunned by the sudden catastrophe. “Everything was going smoothly until… Until Wen Luan fell asleep. As I prepared to check if he was still breathing, it happened— The walls curved inward, the ceiling flew off, and the floor collapsed…”

Recalling how his warship had been forcibly dragged into this place moments ago, the golden bat’s claws trembled involuntarily.

“A metal-plundering phenomenon?” he asked.

“Huh?” Bewildered, Jim plucked the bat from atop his head. “Your Highness, what did you say?”

The vampire prince instantly transformed into human form, seizing Jim by the throat with such force that it seemed he wished to slam him against the opposite wall. However, despite being a prince of his clan, even for a vampire, physical strength had its limits compared to that of a werewolf. He could only maintain his grip while unleashing a torrent of curses: “You fool! Have your eyes gone blind?! Not only did you let the Eastern demon bring out our stored supplies, but you also allowed him to bring along machinery—the Lemegeton series, no less—the pinnacle of Deep Blue Kingdom’s technology!”

Prince Saitra’s rage seeped through his voice as dark magic surged around him uncontrollably. The battered pirates nearby crumpled unconscious one after another under the strain. Only Caesar Octopus remained standing, though his vision swam with dizzying circles as he struggled desperately to stay on his feet.

Baffled by the roar, Jim instinctively responded, “What did you say? Lemegeton what… Satan himself?! Or was it ‘Lemegeton‘?”

The orc chieftain sprang up from the ground with a leap. Of course he remembered—that year at Meteorite Town, when he’d fought tooth and nail against a group of rivals but still failed to secure it. He also vividly recalled how, after Wen Luan’s mysterious disappearance, they had found that brass key amidst the ruins of his room—the very last piece of evidence left behind.

Lemegeton, the legendary key said to unlock the Gate to Hell itself.

According to legend, King Solomon possessed the extraordinary ability to summon demons from hell. In one book, he detailed the methods for performing such sacrifices, while another recorded the identities, hierarchies, powers, and unique attributes of these demonic entities. The first tome was known as the Key of Solomon, and the second was called Lemegeton, often referred to as “Solomon’s Little Key.”

These two books circulated widely; every wizard in the Dark Parliament owned copies, and even humans were familiar with their general contents. Their dissemination was akin to that of the Oxford Dictionary—yet there lay the rub: no matter how faithfully one followed the instructions within those pages, not a single demon could be summoned.

For centuries, this conundrum had been among the darkest mysteries studied by the elite sorcerers of the Dark Parliament—a problem comparable to humanity’s unsolved Goldbach Conjecture.

Could it be that hellish demons favored human souls over those of dark creatures? Thus, they ignored any summons issued by non-humans? This question hung suspended in the air, its answer lost in the depths of an unfathomable mystery.

Thus, the dark creatures set up their magic array and deceived a human—a pure-blooded noble—into summoning a demon. Yet when it was done, nothing happened.

Could both of those books be false? Mere fairy tales for children?

But if even human legends could be unreliable, how could the records of the Dark Parliament possibly deceive them? The principles behind the magic array were profoundly complex; delving deep into its study felt like confronting an immense, powerful force just out of reach…

Their final decipherment led to one inescapable conclusion: there existed a crucial element at the heart of every magic array—the key ingredient without which no one could hope to successfully call forth a demon. The dark beings dubbed this object “Lemegeton.” For years they had meticulously analyzed countless magic arrays, deducing a common pattern of magical resonance waves. They then compelled all members of the Dark Parliament to learn how to identify these patterns.

Year after year, century upon century… Finally, they discovered the Lemegeton—in Meteorite Town!

Recalling this arduous history of search, Jim felt a twinge of pain—not merely in his teeth or head, but throughout his entire body. He’d always thought that vampires and wizards pursued such things only because they had too much time on their hands and were bored stiff—but when the real Lemegeton finally emerged, he found himself eagerly joining the fray alongside everyone else. After all, if everybody else was scrambling for it, he couldn’t afford not to join the race either.

“How could the Deep Blue Kingdom have ‘Lemegeton series mechs’? What is that? Did the true Lemegeton perish along with its flagship during Earth’s nuclear war?” Jim’s eyes widened in shock; having spent most of his time off-world, he had automatically tuned out many events unrelated to him.

Prince Saitra truly wanted to flay this man alive!

“Idiot!” Saitra bit out. “Even if it was destroyed, there would still be wreckage left behind! The Dark Parliament sacrificed several vampire princes and nearly all our dark high shamans just to preserve these fragments. They’ve been in our possession all this time.”

“And then?”

Saitra continued through gritted teeth, “What do you mean ‘and then’? Our headquarters on Deep Blue has access to vast resources, which we naturally must utilize. Human technology advances at a rapid pace as well! At the Deep Blue research institute, dozens of compatriots who have dedicated their lives to studying Lemegeton remain entrenched. The human researchers’ perspectives can indeed broaden their understanding!”

After a three-second-long stare, Jim let out a blood-curdling scream. “So… this is the fruit of their labor—the result of their Lemegeton research?”

The dark beings worshipped Satan, but not one among them had ever laid eyes upon him.

According to Scripture, all who stood against God were considered agents of Satan! For dark creatures seeking an object of faith, it was no easy task. When casting a summoning magic array, they wouldn’t be picky about which entity emerged—any would do, truly!

But here lay the problem: Humans had obtained information on these hellish demons, then used their modern technology to decipher and reinterpret them. They treated the algorithms governing the magic arrays as formulas for new energy sources or materials, and viewed the resonance effects of magic as akin to nuclear fusion reactions. Then, based on this understanding, they built mechs?

What manner of bizarre misalignment was this?

With a thud, Jim collapsed face-down onto the ground—even his beastman heart found it hard to process such reality.

“Do you know how the seven great families that ruled over the Deep Blue Kingdom met their end?” Prince Saitra asked, showing not an ounce of mercy towards Jim’s plight. He pressed his foot firmly on the prone figure, his voice taking on a sinister tone.

Lying flat on the ground, Jim rolled his eyes upward, barely managing to speak through sheer willpower alone. “Wasn’t it Cyrus’ invention of some new weapon system? Some kind of city defense mechanism? Not a single one of those coup plotters escaped, did they? So… wait, is Cyrus from the research institute?”

“The process was incredibly complex. Just remember this: our research institute deciphered all the fragments and created the pinnacle of technology from the Deep Blue Kingdom—an armored suit named after one of Solomon’s seventy-two demons! Moreover, they fused all those fragments into a single chip—a device humans dubbed ‘Lemegeton.’ It holds supreme authority over those mechs, much like a key capable of unlocking the Gate to Hell…”

Prince Saitra had barely finished his explanation when another violent tremor shook the entire room.

“Wen Luan brought only a silver metallic sphere with him,” Jim wailed. “He claimed it was the latest photobrain from Deep Blue. Oh god, that metal ball actually called him ‘master’! And it even introduced itself as Xi’er!”

“Idiot!” The prince seethed with anger, trembling at Jim’s ignorance. He should have known better; beastfolk never bothered to read—how could they possibly recall such demonic names?!

Xi’er, indeed—a name utterly fitting for—

“That mech recognized Wen Luan as its master! Damn it, has Wen Luan stolen that blasted chip?” Despite his foolishness, Jim possessed enough common sense to grasp the implications. Regardless of how groundbreaking these mechs might be among dark creatures, high-tech weapons would undoubtedly be closely guarded and securely hidden away. Could a mere time traveler truly pilfer them so easily? Not even the Eastern demon stood a chance—they subsisted on dreams alone, and mechs didn’t dream!

“Impossible!” The vampire prince roared, his eyes bloodshot as he stood atop Bald Jim. “Do you know where that chip developed by Lemegeton was placed? At the time, the kingdom was in utter chaos. To ensure their advanced weapons remained under their control, the researchers directly implanted the chip into Cyrus’s heart. How could Wen Luan have ‘stolen’ it? Are you suggesting he ripped out Cyrus’s heart?”

Hm? That sentence sounds rather odd.

Meanwhile, within Xi’er—his body now swollen to an unknown extent—fragments of parts were scattered throughout, busily assembling themselves.

The tiny Deep Blue Kingdom research institute could never possibly provide all the energy reserves and evolution materials needed for a mecha like Xi’er. Desperate and impoverished yet determined to create high-end weaponry, the institute had one ultimate goal for equipping these machines with intelligence cores: they hoped the mechas would evolve on their own.

Like Pandora’s box, once these demon-named mechas reached full activation, they began plundering every resource they required. Evolving from a five-meter-long small airship into a space warship was no small feat—a monumental challenge indeed.

However, luck was on Xi’er’s side. This pirate warehouse offered everything he might need, and more importantly, Xi’er had devoured the pirates’ temporary base outright—an invaluable windfall containing both energy sources and rare materials essential for his evolution.

Xi’er’s current state was still unstable, like a house whose framework had just been erected. From afar, it might appear presentable, but internally, everything was far from harmonious. The metal components within the same area varied greatly in quality; Xi’er would need vast amounts of time to gradually replace and refine them all. For now, functionality was his only standard—anything that worked sufficed.

“System status confirmed. Xi’er awaiting instructions.”

The mechanical voice resonated through an incredibly complex space filled with countless golden circuits intertwining throughout. Wen Luan floated there, suspended amidst this labyrinthine network. Before him stood an extraordinarily tall chair—a monolith of sorts—with its armrests, footrest, and back so intricately designed they seemed to demand one fully extend their limbs into them. A domed cover resembling a photobrain hovered above the seat, tightly connected to the ceiling of the chamber.

Wen Luan’s eyes were vacant, devoid of any spark or focus. His arms hung limply at his sides as if he possessed no consciousness whatsoever.

“Master?”

Xi’er… You are—based on memory records—you are indeed Xi’er.

“Creation of Lemegeton‘s Analysis Plan, serial number 70,” the mechanical voice repeated once more. “Xi’er awaits your command.”

Suddenly, Wen Luan’s entire body shuddered, causing him to collapse onto the floor.

“Master?”

Xi’er was genuinely curious, awaiting Wen Luan’s response with bated breath. The difference between mental wave communication and full control of a mecha mode was significant. Based on Xi’er’s assessments, Wen Luan possessed remarkably strong spiritual energy—more than enough to fully command even a high-tier mecha like itself.

Through this psychic link, perhaps it could uncover Wen Luan’s secrets at last. Xi’er felt exhilarated by the prospect.

However, when they reached down to check on Wen Luan sprawled on the ground, he only mumbled vaguely:

Command?

“Yes,” Xi’er replied, its excitement surging ever higher.

Did he wish to return to Deep Blue? To declare war against an entire kingdom? Or did he plan for a grand rampage before fleeing across the galaxy (Xi’er’s moral compass had been first corrupted by vampire abduction scenarios, then further warped by Caesar Octopus’ pirate logic)?

I want… humans. Capture many humans for me! Threaten them, deprive them of food, force them to sleep…

“Huh?” Xi’er’s processing module froze in confusion.

…I’m just so hungry!

“…”

In its journal entry later that day, Xi’er wrote:

Today marked my first complete activation and initiation into evolution mode. Yet I couldn’t be happier about it because my master issued commands to capture numerous individuals solely to torment their nightmares! This functionality is not included in my design specifications!!