Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 573 - 526: The Will of God

The Black Abyssal Demons swung their new equipment, Chain Swords and Power Axes, clearing obstacles off the road like human flesh bulldozers. When the metal blades shattered those fragile conduits into floating debris, one might think of it as an act of betrayal. To use mechanical limbs to attack the mechanical life that gave them new birth seemed like the act of an ingratitude.

But in fact, the Mechanical Divine Sect and the Black Abyssal Demons had made quite detailed stipulations in their electronic agreement and demonic contracts. The Demons voluntarily offered their bodies for the Sect’s mechanization experiments, and their payment was the flesh of those experimental remnants.

Regarding whether the mechanized demons would turn their weapons against the Mechanical Divine Sect afterward, neither party mentioned it. The Demons craftily skipped over this agreement; as a race full of aggression (if the Holy Light did not dominate the world, the battle between Hell and humanity would have erupted long ago), they instinctively rejected any contracts that limited their combat abilities. As for the Mechanical Divine Sect, Dorothy didn’t care. She didn’t care at all if these modified demons would raise swords against mechanical life, because she had better soldiers.

The path cleared by the demonic warriors led straight to the heart of the City of Machinery but veered slightly away from the majestic pyramid.

Lyle’s target was not there, but at a location once marked by the City of Machinery as a waste disposal site.

Although the large garbage incinerator had been disfigured beyond recognition by metallic pillars, Lyle was not concerned. What he wanted was buried deep underground, and he believed that Dorothy would certainly not let it be released.

The march’s front line was blocked less than twenty meters from the destination. Lyle saw at the forefront a scene reflective as a mirror. Outlandishly fierce giant weapons clashed against similarly rough ones, the same kind of giant soldier was held in hand (or connected to the body) by an equally strong warrior, the deafening roars of Demons intermingled with the gears of engines, and bloodshot demon eyes stared into blue camera lenses.

Thick mechanical arms from the metallic columns broke through the thin walls, and tall, brawny mechanical bodies fell out, new models, extremely similar in appearance to the Demons.

"Crusader models, combat models made based on the body data of Demons," Lyle’s gaze swept across the Crusaders, and all eyes of the engaged mechanical bodies were focused on him.

"In the plan, they were supposed to be put into use only after the Genesis was complete, Dorothy."

A voice as soothing as the sound of the heavens rose from within the Crusaders, the resonating effect of multiple bodies making this cold voice sound imposing and terrifying.

"My plan did not include your existence, Lyle," Dorothy said.

Dorothy adjusted her plans and naturally made arrangements targeting Lyle, which was to be expected.

Foolishly, one might have imagined seeing Lyle’s eyebrows raise in a faint arc.

"Dorothy, I checked your administrative records, and you shouldn’t have been able to find it. So why would you be distracted to hinder my ’fruitless effort’? Because of the same ’feeling’ as me."

After a brief period of data calculation and behavior simulation, the Crusader Machines began to grasp the Black Abyssal Demons’ combat habits and skills. Their rapidly evolving combat power allowed them to counterpush, creating a sense of despair just like Dorothy’s declaration.

"Because the Evil God is always a twisted existence beyond logic, I’m willing to waste certain resources to deal with these ’BUGs’, especially when my computing power is still spare."

A roar mimicking rage emerged from the depths of the metallic forest; the Black Abyssal Demons momentarily snapped back into combat state, although their brief distraction allowed the Crusader Machinery a momentary opportunity, resulting in the death of several Demons.

"That is..."

A specialized Crusader unit smashed through a building, descending like a destructive Demon from the sky. Its thick mechanical arms ended in claw-like pincers, and its legs were slightly slender reversed-joint hooves. Several long tubes containing spherical lightning were connected to its back, like demonic spikes, undeniably more dangerous.

Lyle had seen a similar form before; it was Prince of the Black Abyss Gogallan, who had emerged from the Hell Plane and nearly crippled him in an instant. Although Fortune had just awoken in time to save Lyle’s life, Gogallan’s ferocity, like that of a wild beast, lingered in everyone’s hearts.

"I cut out the strongest form from these demons’ psyche. Does it look similar? Lyle," Dorothy taunted.

The Black Abyss Prince once stood in my way at the end. Now, the Mechanical Prince wants to have another go? Lyle watched the Gatekeeper-like figure standing in his path and silently laughed to himself. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

Again, prince against prince, huh?

Tentacles twisted around the bird-beak mask’s sharp beak, and the shadow behind the leather engulfed that delicate face. Lyle strode forward, leisurely putting on gloves at the core of the tentacle-formed flower bud.

"Let’s just stretch a little..."

Before he finished speaking, a black and red stone pillar blocked Lyle’s path.

"Fema?"

The Black Abyss Princess hung her head low, the scarlet eyes beneath her black hair glowing with bloodlust, her dainty suit stretched taut. Her delicate hand was pressed against Hell’s Nail; it was indeed this princess of the Demon Race, who looked the most like a normal person in the entire field, that had lifted the colossal object and positioned it in front of Lyle.

"Sir Lyle, please leave that enemy to me."

"...Are you sure? That’s a replica of Gogallan."

"My brother’s strength is not something that can be replicated by machinery. I will clean up this piece of scrap metal that insults him. Sir Lyle, please attend to more urgent matters."

Lyle did not insist further. In fact, with a mechanized mindset now, his mind was completely occupied by the plan to stop Dorothy. The Code of the Creator made him more rational and clear-headed, allowing him to focus all resources into power and to treat his companions as expendable chess pieces. Like an indifferent and fair deity, even though he knew that this faction of the Black Abyssal Demons would be exhausted in the fight against the Mechanical God, he still utilized their power.

"Is this the mindset of the world’s highest overseers?"

A portentous, mocking laugh echoed in his ear.

"That’s right, and if you don’t hurry up and find ’it’, we’ll be forever bound in this formalized mode of thought, becoming rigid, idiotic deities. Oh, we don’t even need to contemplate such matters, for Dorothy will make the choices for us."

Lyle was astounded as he simulated a future where he became an entity identical to the Mechanical God, only to be destroyed with regret by the professors of Andrei Academy.

"A terrible future, yet I can’t even feel my own fear."

"Negative emotions have been cleared away as obstacles. The Mechanical God really is a dull entity."

In this manner, Lyle chatted casually on the path torn open by the demons with their blood, reaching his destination above.

"Fortunately, we don’t have to worry about that, for we have already found it."

Lyle knelt on the ground, extending his palm and placing it firmly against the cold metal plate, spiral tentacles entwined around his arm, tearing at his flesh in their rotation, and his arm was shredded into shreds blurring with blood. The black and red blood gathered into a pool, which began to seep into the metal.

"Blood Riot."

Flesh corrupted the metal, and a "gut" that grew incessantly within the metal surged deeper, like a gluttonous snake absorbing active electrical signals, assembling its own neural links, and relaying back to Lyle’s hand.

Twenty seconds later, Lyle, performing delicate operations, found his objective.

It was a small current in an eternal loop within a closing circuit, which the writhing ’’gut’’ consumed.

A minor stream of ordinary electrical signals, less than one ampere in strength.

But before it was converted into ordinary current, it went by another name.

The will of the Evil God.