"Does Belobog not have any problem?" On the other end, Tingyun froze for a moment.
She had spent years traveling as a merchant, maintaining many routes and connections with the outside world.
Earlier, she had tried to learn through various channels what exactly this phenomenon was, only to find that machines everywhere were also malfunctioning, refusing to obey commands.
So she thought to ask whether Belobog had encountered the same issue. Now she knew, it had not.
Then how exactly did this phenomenon come about? Under normal circumstances, products that entered the market would not display obvious defects.
Even if problems did arise, they would usually be the inevitable aging after long periods of use.
After all, who knew who might end up buying your product? The Cosmos was vast, and from some remote corner, someone might suddenly appear, clutching your merchandise, eyes blazing with fury, and come knocking at your door.
"Xianzhou equipment should be good, right? And suddenly everything's breaking down… hmm, that's really not right."
With her guitar slung over her right shoulder, gently stroking her chin as she pondered, Serval spoke with seriousness.
"I think the same, but unfortunately, I can't find the culprit. All I can do is speculate."
Tingyun could not understand why Belobog had been unaffected.
Had Belobog's technological level already surpassed the Xianzhou? Don't even think about it.
In terms of combat power, Belobog at full firepower would not fear any Xianzhou ship, after all, Godzilla was stationed there.
But when it came to technology, Belobog's highest level still came from the IPC's assistance.
Given Belobog's condition back then, it had nearly lost everything leaving only one city.
Unless the culprit behind all this simply could not run wild in Belobog.
And as a world that had only just begun its development, what could possibly exist that would cause even the Xianzhou to be affected, yet stop short at the boundary of this world?
…
It could only be Godzilla.
Clearly, the unknown entity's interference with machines clashed with some intrinsic trait of Godzilla, and in that process, it failed to cross Godzilla's threshold.
"Regarding this matter, as the nominal, and potentially actual, leader of the Intellitrons, what do you think?" Herta asked lightly with a smile.
"It's rare to see you in person. As for this issue, it's also quite intriguing." Screwllum spoke, meeting Herta's gaze.
The reason Herta deployed so many puppets was simply that she could not be bothered to travel.
Moreover, using puppets allowed her to reach their locations far more quickly. Over time, aside from a small handful of people, everyone else could only ever see Herta in her puppet form.
Screwllum, on the other hand, could directly meet the real Herta. But as a gentleman, he would not disturb her without cause. Besides, with puppets around, most matters could be relayed swiftly anyway.
"According to our projections, this phenomenon may soon start affecting Intellitrons as well. You can't afford to be this relaxed." Herta chuckled softly.
Screwllum neither agreed nor disagreed.
Everything Herta said, he already knew. That data had been uncovered when the two of them investigated together after meeting in person.
It began with machines, but if something could affect machines on such a vast scale, did that mean that on sometime later, Intellitrons might also be affected?
As a member of the Genius Society, Screwllum had enough confidence that he himself would remain unmoved in any possible future.
But Screwllum Planet would not.
Moreover, this inexplicable wave of machine malfunctions stirred memories in his mind of a disaster from a distant past.
A mechanical calamity that once swept across the entire cosmos.
"It is somewhat similar, but only in terms of attributes. Using that hacker's terminology, it would be mechanical-type?"
"Rubert has already fallen," Screwllum said calmly.
Including Rupert II, Gaea the inheritor of Emperor Rubert.
Polka Kakamond personally ended it, the fall of Emperor Rubert.
"But we have to admit, this little disturbance does resemble it just a bit. Honestly, I would quite like to see Rupert live a second life." Herta laughed softly.
The emperor's rise and fall had shaken countless post-era centuries across the Cosmos.
Before that, relations between inorganic and organic life had not been entirely peaceful. Minor frictions breaking out from time to time were normal.
Until the emperor's appearance completely altered the universe's atmosphere.
Organic life became benevolent, inorganic life friendly and harmonious.
Back to the point, Herta spoke again. "If you don't have a suspect, I can help you find one."
"Irontomb."
Screwllum was not surprised at all by the name Herta mentioned. In truth, his own suspicions aligned closely.
As for why a mere wave of machine failures had drawn his attention…
"Screwllum! The TV's broken again!"
With practiced ease, he pulled up the control panel and tapped a few commands.
"Hehe, it's fixed again." The entire process was smooth and routine.
Herta raised an eyebrow, looking at Screwllum with interest.
Screwllum remained composed as he led Herta onward toward the research chamber.
The hatch opened automatically, revealing to Herta a world brimming with Screwllum Star's technological aesthetic.
Alongside it came Screwllum's voice.
"It was a special energy shock possessing both imaginary and quantum attributes. In an instant, it swept across more than half the Cosmos. The underlying pressure, matching and condensation mechanisms…"
"That big lump of metal is an Emanator at the very least. Causing a bit of commotion isn't surprising. As for the differing energy attributes, who knows what he gained after that operation."
Who knew how much Irontomb had gained from the data he had recorded.
It was an unprecedented feat in galactic history. That stroke of fortune was truly rare.
Resting her right elbow on her left hand, slender fingers tapping lightly against her forehead, Herta spoke softly.
"Let me think. If it's Iron-based… that guy isn't trying to recreate the emperor's methods, is he?"
The endpoint of inorganic life should be the emperor.
The Aeon of Erudition, after ascending into the ranks of Aeons, no longer belonged to the category of Intellitrons.
The Emperor War once swept through every corner of the Cosmos, directly giving rise to Nanook of Destruction. If Irontomb, as a Lord Ravager, could become a third emperor and unleash a grand destruction, he would hardly refuse.
As for the matter of an Emanator personally blessed by the Aeon of Destruction, born from the ruin of his homeland, turning around to become the third emperor, that was set aside for now.
Both of them linked the recent events to Irontomb. It was not that they underestimated the remaining Intellitrons in the Cosmos.
It was simply that, when it came to identifying dangerous elements, they trusted Nous implicitly.
If another Intellitron capable of igniting an Emperor War were to emerge, Nous would certainly be the first Aeon to arrive.
While the two continued their speculation. At the tip of a certain branch of the Imaginary Tree, a figure quietly stepped in.
In an instant, massive imaginary energy surged in, overwhelming a region that was already unstable.
The intruder quickly adjusted with his own formidable control.
Irontomb slowly opened his eyes, gazing at this world he had barged into with the perfect body he had constructed.
What met his eyes was sheer shock.
Endless imaginary energy filled the space. This was a world entirely constructed of imaginary energy.
The Imaginary Tree. The name flashed through his mind immediately.
This grand existence, long confined to theoretical academia and once even doubted to exist, now stood before him as the most mysterious and magnificent presence in the universe.
"Counting carefully, I should be the third to arrive here." Surveying his surroundings, Irontomb suddenly smiled.
Smiling was a facial expression belonging to organic life. Even when inorganic beings felt pleasure, it was only reflected as data fluctuations in their cognition.
With this body, Irontomb indulged in a rare bit of human behavior cosplay.
As for why he was the third.
The intelligence Irontomb had gathered about his colleague, the newly risen Genius Society member who had captured him, indicated that the power she wielded bore attributes of the Sea of Quanta.
Imaginary energy alone would not be strange, but the presence of quantum fluctuations that could coexist harmoniously was highly unusual.
Only those who had truly reached both places could perfectly combine the two.
Clearly, Mobius was such a genius.
The first to reach the edge of the world might gain a slight advantage, but Irontomb had always believed that organic life could never be as rigorous as inorganic life.
As the third arrival, he could mobilize sufficient computational power to calculate what he could gain here, recording everything useful he encountered.
This was it.
"Boom!" Just as his emotion module began to surge, a sudden, thunderous roar interrupted his thoughts.
What followed was a powerful impact. Irontomb reacted instantly, anchoring himself firmly to the branch tip.
Fortunately, his position seemed relatively remote, not within the most violent region of the storm.
After it passed, faint traces of overwhelmingly powerful energy could still be glimpsed.
A natural disaster.
The term automatically surfaced in Irontomb's mind.
In that instant, he instinctively calculated the destructive power of the energy conversion.
No result.
Although he was on the Imaginary Tree and could not access his vast computational resources, as a Lord Ravager, his own processing power was already among the strongest in the Cosmos.
Even so, without massive external computation, the collision just now yielded only this conclusion.
There was no doubt, if that strike had occurred within his space-time, the devastation would have been unimaginable.
That was power beyond the reach of mortals. Without question, this operation was a success beyond calculation.
Newly arrived at the Imaginary Tree, he had personally witnessed the collision between the Imaginary Tree and the Sea of Quanta.
A clash between beings born at the dawn of the universe, pure force against pure force, the ultimate endpoint that no lifeform could ever reach.
He felt exhilarated. Despite being inorganic, he could clearly sense emotion. He understood that this was the natural hormonal response of the body he inhabited.
This body itself generated emotions, which in turn influenced him as the guiding consciousness.
"Emotions…" he murmured softly.
In the past, he too had pursued the idea of creating a body to understand organic emotions.
But even as a Lord Ravager, with access to the rarest resources and legions capable of gathering anything he required, he had never been able to create a body that satisfied him.
A vessel that could not even contain his own consciousness.
It was only after obtaining the data during the support operation for Celenova, and personally experiencing it, that he was able to create this perfect body.
No one had expected that operation's greatest beneficiary to be him.
Including himself. Thinking of this, he could not help but offer his most sincere blessing to that departed colleague of his.
…
A moment of mourning. With that concluded, it was time to act.
After a brief scan of his surroundings, Irontomb made his assessment.
"A domain adjacent to the Sea of Quanta."
Clearly, he had arrived at the tip of the Imaginary Tree, the region closest to the Sea of Quanta.
Otherwise, there was no way the Sea of Quanta's energy fluctuations could have reached him.
Two equal existences, locked in struggle across countless eras, never truly crossing into each other's domains.
That suited him just fine. Irontomb raised his head slightly, gazing farther ahead. The Galaxy Rangers had once reached that vast ocean, and he too yearned for it.
Even though the Rangers had been forcibly dragged in by Dr. Primitive, barging their way through, and only into some already-lost worlds.
Still, they had entered that unknown realm.
Just as Irontomb finished his preparations and was about to set out for the Sea of Quanta, a figure quietly watched him from behind.
"What an interesting guest we have here."
The adorable snake gazed at the newcomer entering this place for the first time, the corners of her mouth lifting into a knowing smile.
In the silent passage of time, Godzilla's dreamscape had expanded into a realm so vast that even he himself could no longer describe it.
Anything that occurred within it fell under Godzilla's perception. Just moments ago, Mobius, who was beside Godzilla, noticed him glance in this direction. Driven by curiosity, she followed his gaze.
And there she saw an old friend.
"A Lord Ravager." Cradling her cheeks with both hands, Mobius's eyes shimmered with keen interest.
Lord Ravagers, Emanators.
She had never believed that Lord Ravagers were inferior in intellect to Emanators of Erudition.
Of course, that did not mean the two were identical. Emanators of Erudition were such because their wisdom shone so brightly that even Nous could not help but take notice.
But any being capable of becoming an Emanator possessed their own exceptional qualities, an ascended body capable of supporting a sharper mind.
A Lord Ravager did not necessarily exist only to destroy, especially one who was a rational inorganic lifeform.
That meant that, even relying solely on his immense database, he could answer most questions in the Cosmos.
Now that this Lord Ravager had appeared within the bustling convergence of the Imaginary Tree and the Sea of Quanta, every one of his choices carried an air of the unknown, tinged with danger and possibility.