Chapter 1 The Clash of Mechanical Gods

The aftershocks of the clash between the two mechanical gods stirred the planet's atmosphere, forming gigantic vortices. The silver lightning that erupted from the weapons meeting distorted the sense of space for onlookers.

Mechlaterial power was like a neural network, spreading throughout the mechanical gods' bodies, allowing the massive mechanical constructs to be controlled as easily as one's own body.

The Planet Slaying Blade, like a guandao, collided with the Trident of the Mech Kingdom again and again, setting off visible energy shockwaves that swept across the planet's sky, stirring up endless gales.

The earth was swept by sand and stones, cracking inch by inch. The Mechanical Church settlements covered by shields seemed to be on the verge of collapse.

The mechanical gods' bodies were too huge to fully deploy on the planet. The two ascended, locked in combat, leaving Cloud Magnet Star's atmosphere and turning outer space into a battlefield. Their sub-dimensional troop barracks were still continuously deploying troops, with countless carrier fleet formations of mechanical units slaughtering each other, the scale of the battle constantly expanding.

Clang!

The silver-purple Trident thrust straight forward, and Han Xiao blocked it with his blade. The majestic psionic energy shockwaves wrapped around the spear and halberd stimulated his shield, causing large areas of arcs of electricity to flicker incessantly.

"Planet Slaying Blade? This is a weapon I eliminated long ago." Manison's voice echoed in the wide-area channel.

"That depends on who wields the weapon."

Han Xiao's eyes were deep, and he gripped the blade tightly, twisting it. A flash of energy erupted as he forcefully bounced the Trident away.

However, the Trident suddenly vibrated, shaking out a phantom. Aided by the force field tractor, the force that bounced back was converted into propulsive force. The halberd blade stopped halfway, and immediately changed direction, slashing over again with greater speed and power, impossible to shake off.

Han Xiao adopted a defensive stance, resisting Manison's dense attacks while his mind raced, analyzing the current situation.

'My Planet Slaying Blade design comes from the Radiant Federation. The Mech Kingdom must be very familiar with this weapon's characteristics, while I have limited knowledge of the weapons in his hands. I need to defend for now and probe further...'

Cosmic Treasure-grade weapons had far greater destructive power than ordinary equipment. At this time, the two mechanical gods tacitly adopted close combat, as this was the most effective way to break through the opponent's thick shields.

Old Manison was rich. Han Xiao didn't know if he had any Cosmic Wonder-class treasures, but he certainly wouldn't lack Cosmic Treasure-grade mechanical weapons. His equipment was definitely more luxurious than his own.

This Trident, as well as the cloak armor on his body, were clearly Cosmic Treasure-grade equipment, and there were unknown numbers of weapons that Old Manison hadn't yet revealed.

Unleashing the mechanical god meant that Manison was finally going all out. Han Xiao had no doubt about his endurance. If he couldn't use the mechanical god for a long time, he wouldn't have unleashed his ultimate move right away.

'Both the Mech Kingdom and I are here as avatars, and both sides have mechanical gods, so it's impossible to easily destroy each other's avatars. It will turn into a war of attrition, grinding the other side down over time...'

With that in mind, Han Xiao glanced at the panel.

Just as the two were rolling up their sleeves and getting ready to brawl, a new mission was triggered on the panel—[“Mech Kingdom” Manison - Mechanical God Battle]!

The mode was the same as other challenge Beyond Grade A missions. As long as he persisted for a certain period, he could complete the mission. The rewards were the same as before, a character card and the chance to draw one ability.

This was within Han Xiao's expectations. With the three major civilizations and so many Beyond Grade As watching, the influence of this battle would definitely not be small. There was an eighty percent chance of triggering a mission, and the two sides wouldn't be able to decide the outcome in a short time, so completing the mission was basically guaranteed.

'Last time was just a virtual battle. This time, I'm clashing with him in reality. I can finally see what Manison looks like when he's going all out...'

Just as he was thinking, Han Xiao suddenly felt the force lighten. He saw Manison suddenly stop his combo and retreat, adopting a charging stance.

The Trident was placed at his side, the halberd blade spinning rapidly like a drill. Golden mechlaterial power arcs were highly compressed at the tip of the halberd, flashing with dazzling light, like a small sun. As the halberd blade rotated, circles of surging psionic energy wrapped around it, looking like swirling blue waves.

A warning bell rang in Han Xiao's heart. His mechanical troops fired at Manison, but layers of overlapping rhomboid psionic shields surfaced on the surface of the mechanical god's body. The shields were extremely thick, blocking all the concentrated fire from the mechanical troops.

Swoosh!

Manison only charged for a moment. The next moment, his figure suddenly blurred, accelerating instantly. The dazzling Trident thrust out, so fast it blurred, as if turning into a golden and blue ray of light.

Han Xiao blocked with his blade, and raised the Emperor's Robes to generate a strong shield.

Crack! The Trident was blocked by the Planet Slaying Blade's blade.

However, this beam of blue-gold light continued undiminished, shooting out from the main blade of the Trident, piercing through the Emperor's Robes' shield and striking the mechanical god's abdomen.

Whoosh!

The beam instantly penetrated the body and disappeared into the distance, leaving a huge penetrating wound in Han Xiao's mechanical god's abdomen, completely transparent. The parts of the body in that area were completely annihilated into molecular-level fragments, and the edges of the wound were scorched red.

"Such strong penetration!"

Han Xiao was shocked and quickly assessed the situation.

In terms of pure power, this Trident was stronger than the Planet Slaying Blade, not only because of the design itself, but also because the Mech Kingdom's creations were of higher quality and had stronger mechlaterial power amplification. This was suppression in multiple aspects.

With a thought, some of the mechanical warriors around him stopped fighting with the Mech Kingdom's troops and turned to fly over, turning into parts to replenish the mechanical god's gap.

The mechanical god itself was a construct composed of a large number of machines. There were no fatal wounds. As long as there was enough blue energy and enough mechanical troops, the injuries could be continuously restored.

Manison was about to take advantage of the situation to pursue, but at this moment, an unexpected change occurred.

Dense dark energy beams shot out from the side, blasting among Manison's troops, causing countless mechanical warriors' shields to flicker incessantly and rolling everywhere, instantly disrupting their formation.

The two stopped simultaneously, looking towards the source of the attack. The third-party firing was the Crimson Empire's fleet, with countless ship-borne weapons firing continuously, carpet-bombing the Mech Kingdom's troops.

The Empire came to help?

Han Xiao's heart stirred, but he wasn't surprised.

With the Mech Kingdom as an example, his destruction of the virus core was seen by the three major civilizations as a good act, and his image was immediately elevated. Although they couldn't obtain the virus technology, everyone could accept this result.

Under this premise, the Empire naturally had to state its position when it saw that he was at odds with the Mech Kingdom because of this. It couldn't sit idly by and watch an ally who had just completed a feat that benefited the peace of the universe fighting alone, so the probability of intervening in the battlefield was more than ninety percent.

The attitudes of the other two were very ambiguous. At this time, they were watching the show from the sidelines, with no intention of intervening.

The Radiant Federation's higher-ups weren't completely ignorant of Manison's position and attitude. However, openly expressing it was different in nature. After Manison had just demonstrated his intention to hoard the virus and go against the three major civilizations, the Radiant Federation couldn't provide protection at this time, so they simply sat by and watched the Empire attack their own "ally", remaining indifferent.

As for the Arcane Church, they were even more unconcerned, happily eating melon seeds on the sidelines.

The three major civilizations' troops stationed at the trap node were mainly to prevent Beyond Grade As from taking the virus away, so they naturally had combat power.

Although the spacetime stabilization anchors had now been unlocked, allowing mechanics to summon troops on a large scale, and only the Empire was taking action, Manison couldn't pretend they didn't exist, and they still had restraining power.

"Annoying fellows."

Manison pointed with his Trident, and the mechanical troops pouring out of the sub-dimensional troop barracks immediately split into two parts. One part stayed to fight with Han Xiao, and the other formed a formation to engage with the Empire's fleet.

Army-style mechanics were the most suitable supers for interstellar warfare. If it were any other class, they would definitely be restrained by the fleet, but mechanics could minimize the interference of this fleet as long as they took out a portion of their warriors to fight on their own.

To cause considerable interference to the all-out Mech Kingdom, the scale of the participating fleet would have to be increased by dozens or hundreds of times to achieve it.

Han Xiao took advantage of the brief opportunity created by the Empire to repair the damage to his mechanical god.

At this time, Manison retracted his gaze and looked at Han Xiao.

"Black Star, you seem to have improved again. I've been watching you for a long time. The more battles you experience, the faster you grow. Is this your confidence?"

"Haven't you been in battle for too long? Did you forget that trash talk gives the enemy a chance?"

Han Xiao didn't hesitate, slashing out with the Planet Slaying Blade.

Psionic energy converged into a sharp blue blade, slashing towards Manison's body. The highly compressed energy showed a solid texture, like a brilliant crescent-shaped sapphire.

Manison didn't move. The Cosmic Treasure-grade cloak armor on his body suddenly shook, popping out a spherical white shield that covered his whole body. It had a hazy texture, like a cloud of flowing white smoke, like a bubble filled with smoke.

The shockwave from the Planet Slaying Blade struck the white shield. The white smoke on the surface of the shield suddenly accelerated, turning into vortex-like patterns. The sapphire-like blade paused in mid-air, then suddenly shattered inch by inch, turning into a sky full of glittering starlight.

The next moment, these energy light spots seemed to be attracted, and were completely absorbed by the shield. The white shield was immediately stained with blue light. Then, the already discolored shield, carrying the devoured energy, suddenly retracted into the armor on the mechanical god's body. The absorbed attack was converted into nourishment, which in turn replenished the mechanical god's activity consumption.

Absorbing damage, replenishing energy?

Han Xiao's eyes narrowed.

"I've always been very interested in your Undying Body. There are many magic and supernatural abilities with the same function in the universe, but none of them can achieve the level of your Undying Body. So I specially conducted some research, deducing your battle videos, exploring the principles of your abilities, and finally created this Cosmic Treasure equipment specifically for mechanical gods, imitating some of your abilities..." Manison flicked the mechanical armor on his body and said lightly, "It seems that the actual combat effect is good."

Han Xiao felt a bit of a toothache, secretly envious.

The Mech Kingdom could develop its own Cosmic Treasures. Unlike him, before obtaining the Awakening Points, he had no clue at all.

Create whatever you lack, that's the proper style of a mechanic!

Just then, Manison said slowly:

"Black Star, you're still too young. I've seen many talented mechanics. Before they learn their lesson, they always think that the power of talent can make up for the lack of foundation. I've taught many people a lesson before, and now I'll teach you one too... Mechanics need precipitation and accumulation. Time is the source of our power!"

As his voice still echoed in the wide-area channel, a different kind of troop suddenly poured out of Manison's sub-dimensional troop barracks.

This special troop had many different individuals. Some were special mechanical warriors with luxurious equipment, and some were glowing energy lives. Each individual's combat power was extremely astonishing. They charged into the battlefield, fearless of death, and constantly swept away the mechanical troops under Han Xiao's command.

When these individuals were killed and destroyed, they didn't need to use abilities like [Abandoned Modification]. Their bodies would automatically regenerate in place and re-enter the battle, and their strength wouldn't be diminished in the slightest.

When this troop participated in the battle, it instantly turned the tide of the battle in the mechanical troops' area upside down, gaining an absolute advantage.

Han Xiao's pupils shrank, recognizing the origin of this troop.

Manison's trump card legion—the Immortal Mech Kingdom!

Before he could observe carefully, Manison's Apostle Weapons, leading the mechanical civilization's army, suddenly descended, tearing into the battlefield from another direction and causing huge casualties to Han Xiao's troops.

Han Xiao almost gasped.

He roughly glanced at them and saw that there were about forty or fifty Apostle Weapons present!

This meant that Manison's [Apostle Creation] skill had at least broken through the upper limit and increased to forty or fifty levels!

With this wave of spawning, the scale of Manison's troops present accounted for nearly seventy percent of the total, and all of them had received mechlaterial power amplification. The Mech Kingdom was still at ease, and the scale of the mechlaterial power splash was terrifyingly large.

If Han Xiao's 1 point of mechlaterial power could amplify 10 machines, then Manison's 1 point of mechlaterial power could amplify at least 25 or more!

What caused this difference wasn't just hard power such as specializations, skills, and attributes, but also the equipment gap.

Han Xiao saw with his own eyes that Manison pulled out four more Cosmic Treasure items dedicated to mechanical gods from the sub-dimensional troop barracks. The equipment types were different, not only arming the mechanical god to the teeth and expanding his size by a circle, but also, after using these Cosmic Treasures, Manison's mechlaterial power intensity had increased significantly.

Some profession-specific Cosmic Treasure equipment had a certain amplification effect on the user themselves. For example, Han Xiao's Emperor could provide an additional mechanical affinity bonus coefficient. Manison's equipment was the same, comprehensively enhancing his mechlaterial power and his main body.

At the same time, Han Xiao sensed a surge in the virtual layer. Manison had summoned the AI civilization ancestor Feynite and had him lead a large group of AI lives to launch an invasion, engaging in a tug-of-war with Han Xiao in the virtual layer to compete for control of the mechanical troops.

"Old thing, your methods are really fancy..."

As soon as Han Xiao had this thought, his eyes suddenly blurred. He saw Manison's mechanical god with six pieces of godly equipment suddenly increase in speed, slashing down with his halberd, drawing out golden arc-shaped lightning.

He hurriedly raised his blade to block, and the shockwave penetrated his body, exploding in his ears.

Clang!

The terrifying force was transmitted along his arms, countless built-in shock absorbers were instantly scrapped, and large areas of outer armor cracked. Cracks appeared on Han Xiao's mechanical god.

If he hadn't drawn [Mechanical Control Master] from Jackniss, which had a 35% increase in equipment performance efficiency for mechs, Han Xiao suspected that the mechanical god's arms would have been shattered into several pieces by Manison's blow.

At this time, Manison's movements didn't stop. The Cosmic Treasure-grade wing-mounted star destroyer rapid-fire cannons that had just been equipped automatically aimed and spat out thick psionic energy beams with calibers of more than a hundred meters.

Boom!

Han Xiao was blasted away by a series of star destroyer cannons. His shield shattered on a large scale under the barrage. Manison followed closely, relentlessly pursuing him, the Trident spinning rapidly, the halberd blade creating rays of light, constantly slashing across the mechanical god and dismembering pieces of its shell.

The Mech Kingdom was going all out, showing its true strength, and blossoming on all fronts: mechanical gods, mechanical troops, and the virtual layer!

Seeing this scene, the many Beyond Grade A avatars watching from the surrounding area dodged the aftershocks. Feeling the Mech Kingdom's powerful presence that filled the entire field, they whispered in the channel.

"It's been a long time since I've seen the Mech Kingdom go all out. It's still so terrifying..." Kant recalled some bad memories.

"The Mech Kingdom is still the Mech Kingdom," Hunter Leader said in a low voice.

Mechanical Disaster Fransisco shook his head. "Unlike the siege of the Shattered Star Ring, this is an internal war between two peak mechanics. Black Star is completely suppressed. He's in trouble. Fortunately, only an avatar came."

Han Xiao, who was doing his old job of being a punching bag, naturally didn't know about the discussion among the crowd of melon-eaters.

He tried his best to resist Manison's狂攻, gnashing his teeth inwardly.

Damn it, the old man is really f*cking good at fighting!

You're forcing me to "go berserk"!