Chapter 165 Smart Plague

[You have triggered S-level mission [Intelligent Plague]!]

[Mission Brief: An exploration team unearthed a forbidden relic in the ancient Star Desert, accidentally releasing a virtual virus targeting artificial intelligence. The origin of this virus is unknown, possessing extremely high infectivity and penetration, rapidly spreading across the Pan-Starfield quantum network. Once it breaks out, the underlying logic of countless mechanical intelligences will be rewritten, initiating a mechanical rebellion.]

[Mission Objective: Eliminate the unknown virtual virus and resolve the Intelligent Plague crisis.]

[Reward: Rewards will be given based on mission evaluation.]

[Special Requirement: Personally eliminate the virus's core data.]

[Special Reward: Generate a relevant specialization (exclusive to the Mechanic class).]

"An S-level mission… well, as expected." Han Xiao was not surprised.

The three great civilizations planned to seal off the entire starfield, such a grand undertaking could not be a small task, and given the virus's transmissibility, completely eliminating it certainly warranted the highest difficulty level.

Most S-level missions have ambiguous requirements, rarely hinting at action steps, and one must explore and find solutions independently. Generally, there is more than one way to complete the mission, requiring adaptability.

The [Bloodline] mission from Godora was the same, Han Xiao was used to it.

What he was curious about was the special mission requirement, which revealed a lot of information.

"I thought every individual of this virus was the same, a common virus infection model. I didn't expect there to be a core. In that case, this virus is more like a controllable biochemical weapon in the virtual domain…"

Han Xiao mused to himself.

If the core of this virus is an intelligent life form, it must be hidden in the quantum network, never showing its face. The threat of the virtual virus would therefore greatly increase. An opponent with self-awareness is more terrifying than a mindless object.

However, another possibility is that the core virus data is not an independent intelligence, but a set program algorithm that coordinates the overall infection progress, commanding all virus sub-units according to the program, without self-awareness.

"Hmm… it's kind of like Plague Inc." Han Xiao scratched his head.

The special reward is generating a relevant specialization for the Mechanic class, rather than extracting the target's ability, which made him think that the virus core was more likely just a program algorithm. The commotion caused by this mission was so great that the generated specialization should be decent, probably related to virtual technology.

" филипп, prepare the spaceship and have Reynold select some mechanics from the Logistics Department to come with me."

Han Xiao didn't hesitate, stood up, put on his coat, pushed open the door, and strode towards the base's interstellar space dock.

The Intelligent Plague was a sudden event, threatening the entire universe and disrupting his plans. He had to end his vacation and temporarily put aside his work to take people to the ancient Star Desert to carry out the mission.

Being in a high position, he could not stand idly by when faced with this level of problem.

Before long, a fleet filled with Legion mechanics departed from Black Star's palace, like a group of shooting stars shuttling through the universe, passing through star gates one after another, heading towards the ancient Star Desert.

At the same time, famous mechanics throughout the universe received invitations from the three great civilizations and rushed to the ancient Star Desert from all directions.

…

The matter concerned the safety of the entire universe, and the three great civilizations acted quickly, convening an emergency meeting of the advanced civilization council. All Star System-level and above civilizations in the ancient Star Desert were present.

In the conference hall filled with remote projections of civilization representatives, the leaders of the three great civilizations appeared simultaneously and announced a joint decision.

"Yesterday, the Glimmering Federation, the Crimson Dynasty, and the Arcane Church received reliable intelligence that a special virtual virus appeared in the ancient Star Desert. This virus is extremely penetrating and has infected many areas. According to the judgment of reliable experts, the virus's goal is to rewrite the underlying logic of all infected machines, making killing living organisms the primary task.

After discussion, the three great civilizations have assessed this disaster as 'World-Ending' and have invoked emergency unified command authority. From now on, all quantum network connections to the outside world from the ancient Star Desert will be cut off, and troops will be dispatched to seal off the starfield. All civilizations in the ancient Star Desert must cooperate with the actions of the three great civilizations. The above procedures will be implemented immediately."

Extraordinary measures for extraordinary times. Without lengthy speeches and endless discussions, the three great civilizations were issuing a notification today, not a proposal, requiring all civilizations in the ancient Star Desert to comply unconditionally, with no room for bargaining.

As the voice fell, the faces of the various civilization representatives, who had been wondering why the three great civilizations had called an emergency meeting, changed drastically, revealing expressions of shock.

The three great civilizations, which rule the explored universe, have established a disaster rating system. According to relevant laws, when the threat level of a cosmic disaster rises to a certain level, the three great civilizations will obtain supreme command authority and be qualified to uniformly dispatch all civilizations in the universe.

However, since the beginning of exploration, this situation has been rare.

As soon as the announcement of the three great civilizations was issued, countless interstellar citizens were in an uproar. No one thought that such a level of disaster would suddenly occur. The world was truly full of "surprises."

For ordinary people, this was just a normal day. The disaster occurred silently. If not for the warning measures of the three great civilizations throughout the universe, perhaps most people would not have reacted until the virus truly broke out.

Regardless of what the various civilizations in the ancient Star Desert were secretly planning, they were very cooperative on the surface, giving the green light all the way, cutting off external links from all quantum network base stations and sealing off the starfield network according to the requirements of the three great civilizations.

When the three great civilizations and the civilizations of a starfield act collectively, the scale of resources mobilized is beyond imagination, capable of accomplishing things that are almost impossible in the eyes of normal people.

The ancient Star Desert was quickly sealed off, isolated from interstellar society, becoming a walled city in the dark. All communication was prohibited. The outside didn't know what was happening inside, and the inside didn't know what was happening outside.

Although the situation was temporarily under control, the panicked mood continued to spread throughout the universe. The sudden disaster stole the limelight from the Shattered Star Ring competition, and the eyes of countless people shifted from the competition in the new starfield to the development of the situation in the ancient Star Desert.

Compared to the orderly civilization regimes, the interstellar citizens of the ancient Star Desert seemed very flustered. Even though the civilizations were constantly appeasing the citizens, varying degrees of evacuation waves still broke out on various planets.

Due to the virus's infection of intelligence, countless interstellar citizens began to distrust machines extremely, feeling that any machine was a threat, paranoid, and would rather let their living standards regress to the level of surface civilizations than continue to use various smart machines. They even took the initiative to throw away or smash machines to eliminate hidden dangers.

A wave of anti-machine sentiment was rising in the ancient Star Desert… but this chaos was expected by the advanced civilizations.

Now that the situation was critical, the three great civilizations did not choose to block the news, but instead let everyone know the severity of the situation. In this way, the self-examination and supervision efforts of interstellar citizens could be enhanced. Moreover, such a large-scale movement could not be concealed in the first place.

Star gates were closed one after another, and troops were stationed in the starfield. Countless people who wanted to escape the ancient Star Desert were all forcibly blocked back by the troops. No one could pass through the blockade line of the three great civilizations.

These scenes were all phenomena that occurred during the Intelligent Plague era in his previous life, now being staged in advance in version 4.0, with undercurrents surging beneath the surface waves.

…

"The ancient Star Desert is sealed off? Black Star went to the rescue?!"

In the Shattered Star Ring, the leaders of the Super Star Cluster Alliance secretly met in the Free Competition Zone, their faces full of joy, almost laughing out loud.

"This disaster is too timely! The three great civilizations have to provide disaster relief, they don't have the time to contain us!"

Rodick of the Modo Civilization clenched his fists tightly, looking happy.

Most people in the universe felt uneasy and panicked about the disaster, but for the Super Star Cluster Alliance present, the outbreak of the Intelligent Plague was good news, a completely unexpected joy.

"That's right, the Intelligent Plague will tie up the three great civilizations, giving us more time. As one weakens and the other strengthens, our chances of winning will greatly increase!"

"It would be best if the Intelligent Plague could spread out, giving the three great civilizations a headache. The more chaotic the universe, the less time the three great civilizations will have to deal with us. Only when things are chaotic do we have a chance."

Everyone present was extremely excited, feeling that heaven was helping them.

"What do you say, if the three great civilizations fail…"

"That would be a disaster, and we would also suffer losses."

"No destruction, no construction. The foundation of the three great civilizations' rule is shaken, only then will we have the chance to turn things around. The old order is destroyed, so that a new order can be accommodated. These are all necessary sacrifices."

Everyone's eyes flickered.

If the Intelligent Plague really breaks out, the Super Star Cluster Civilizations will also suffer losses, but the three great civilizations will lose even more, their prestige and rule will plummet.

They believed that the advanced civilizations of the ancient Star Desert definitely had other ideas in secret.

However, everyone present could only engage in empty talk and discussion. The direction of the situation was not determined by them. All they could do was wait and see.

…

While a sense of unease permeated the entire universe, mechanical experts from all over the world successively arrived in the ancient Star Desert, reaching the disaster relief command headquarters temporarily established here by the three great civilizations.

One month later.

The fleet slowly docked in the space dock of the disaster relief command headquarters. Han Xiao opened the hatch and led a dense crowd of mechanics off the spaceship, immediately spotting Manison's avatar waiting on the platform.

"You've finally arrived."

Manison greeted him.

Since the establishment of the Development Federation, the two had served as the president and vice president respectively. Although their ideas were different, they were currently in the same boat and interacted very frequently.

"I thought you would descend with your main body, but it's still an avatar." Han Xiao clicked his tongue.

"…This is safer."

Manison was speechless. Mechanics' main bodies were all fragile, only you, an outlier, were not afraid of running around.

The two greeted each other, then walked side by side, talking about the current situation.

"I've been traveling for nearly a month, unable to get any news outside. How is the situation in the ancient Star Desert now?" Han Xiao asked curiously.

"Not optimistic. Although the three great civilizations have sealed off the starfield, the virus is too contagious, and many nodes have been repeatedly infected. Moreover, the virus's camouflage ability is terrifying, the efficiency and accuracy of normal scans are too low. There are now traces of virus infection in about eight star clusters. The number of nodes is too large to count." Manison shook his head.

Han Xiao understood in his heart.

Every terminal connected to the quantum network is a node, such as communicators, home appliances, spaceships, etc. The number is extremely large. Just thinking about it, one knows how terrible the workload is.

Even if a Beyond Grade A virtual mechanic can easily remove virus information packets, there are so many nodes that individual power is completely insufficient. The removal speed is not as fast as the virus spreads, not to mention the problem of repeated infection. Currently, only advanced civilizations have the ability to control the situation.

"The three great civilizations are now developing a dedicated anti-virus program for this virus to improve removal efficiency. This is also the reason for gathering us." Manison said.

"Has this virus been named yet?"

"Yes, the higher-ups call it the Virtual Rebellion Virus."

Han Xiao glanced at him, raised his eyebrows, and asked, "I heard that you were the first to discover this virus, and you ran to notify the Glimmering Federation without saying a word. What were you thinking?"

"This is my duty." Manison said casually.

"Do you think I believe that?"

Han Xiao curled his lips. He knew Old Manison very well. He hadn't forgotten about the last time he tricked the Glimmering Federation. What kind of loyal subject are you pretending to be here?

Manison shook his head, looking ashamed to be associated with him.

"Young people are young people, their ideological awareness is not good, I am very saddened."

Pretend, keep pretending… Han Xiao chuckled.

Seeing Black Star's expression of 'I believe you,' Manison shook his head, lowered his voice, and whispered:

"This type of disaster is a stage for mechanics to perform. The more the three great civilizations value it, the more our importance is highlighted. If we perform meritorious service for the entire universe, it will also be our bargaining chip. On the other hand, if this virus is not resolved, the mechanical business of the entire universe will suffer a serious blow, which is not conducive to our expansion."

"That's more like you." Han Xiao smiled, "You also want to take the opportunity to study this virus, right? If you can master this technology, you will have more deterrent power against advanced civilizations in the future."

"Don't you think the same way?" Manison asked.

Hearing this, Han Xiao immediately put on a righteous expression, as if he was glowing with dazzling positive energy.

"The greater the ability, the greater the responsibility. I just don't want the universe to be in chaos. This is the historical responsibility of our generation!"

"Heh."

Manison chuckled twice without emotion.

I didn't misjudge you, Black Star. We are indeed birds of a feather.

——

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