Chapter 311: Immediately Changing Tactics

"What the hell is that thing?!" The Lan Xing merchant was so scared he plopped down on the ground, his obese body shaking like a leaf.

What emerged from the center of the vortex was not some monster, but a towering metal megastructure, like an inverted mountain peak, its surface covered in strange patterns that gave off a faint purple glow.

The spaceship finally stabilized, and only then did everyone snap out of their daze.

"Holy crap, this is way too sci-fi!

" Xingji Xiake couldn't help but marvel, "How many hundreds of millions of years old must this thing be?

"

"Enough gawking, let's figure out how to get inside first," Zhang Cheng commanded calmly. Truly worthy of being a core member—his expression didn't change even with Mount Tai collapsing before him, steady as an old dog.

The Xingling xue zhe controlled the probe, carefully approaching the metal megastructure.

Data transmitted back from the probe showed that the space around the megastructure was extremely unstable, filled with various high-energy particle streams—the slightest misstep would mean destruction of the ship and death of all aboard.

"This is simply a death trap!" Guangming Shizhe exclaimed, her gentle face full of worry.

"Scared my ass!" The Lan Xing merchant had stood back up at some point, his eyes gleaming with greed. "Fortune favors the bold, you know what I mean? There's gotta be tons of treasure inside!" He rubbed his hands together, itching to charge right in.

"Are you crazy?!" Zhang Cheng grabbed him. "This place is fraught with danger—we have to act carefully!"

"Carefully my ass! I finally found this place after all that trouble, why the hell should I listen to you?" The Lan Xing merchant shook off Zhang Cheng's hand, the flesh on his fat face quivering. "If you won't go, I'll go myself!" With that, he was about to charge out.

"You—" Zhang Cheng, fury blazing within him, grabbed the Lan Xing merchant by the collar. "If you dare act recklessly, don't blame me for being rude!"

The two were at each other's throats, on the verge of coming to blows.

Just then, Xingyun Zhizhe suddenly spoke up: "Wait..." He pointed at the image transmitted by the probe, his brow furrowed. "These energy flows... seem to..." He paused, his gaze falling on the patterns of the metal megastructure. "Seem to... have a pattern..."

Xingyun Zhizhe narrowed his eyes, his fingers darting rapidly through the air, muttering under his breath as if performing some complex calculation.

"Got it!" he suddenly shouted. "I've got it! The fluctuation frequency of these energy flows follows a pattern—as long as we fly along a specific trajectory, we can avoid them!"

Hearing this, everyone's spirits lifted immediately.

"Brilliant, Zhizhe!" Xingji Xiake gave a thumbs up. "You're truly the GOAT!"

Under Xingyun Zhizhe's guidance, the spaceship wove through the dense energy flows like a nimble fish—heart-stoppingly perilous yet smooth as flowing water, leaving the Lan Xing merchant dumbfounded.

He cursed inwardly: "Damn it, this old guy's actually got some skills..."

The spaceship successfully entered the interior of the metal megastructure.

Inside was an enormous space filled with all sorts of strange devices and flickering lights, like a futuristic city.

"Holy shit! This is way too cool!" Xingji Xiake exclaimed repeatedly, itching to go down and explore right away.

However, before they could celebrate for long, a piercing alarm suddenly sounded.

"Warning! Warning! Intruders detected! Activating defense system!" A cold mechanical voice echoed through the space.

Immediately after, countless mechanical guards surged from all directions. They came in various shapes, but all were equipped with powerful weapons that glinted with cold light.

"What the hell is this now?!" Xingji Xiake yelped, drawing his weapon. "Come on then, your boy's hands are itching for a fight!"

Xingji Xiake and the starship captain led the warriors charging forward, engaging the mechanical guards in fierce combat.

Laser beams, energy cannons, and particle beams interwove into a curtain of fire, and the entire space filled with the thunderous roar of explosions.

The battle was exceptionally fierce.

Although these mechanical guards had no intelligence, their attacks were remarkably precise and ferocious, and their numbers were vast, pouring forth endlessly.

The warriors gradually felt overwhelmed and began to take casualties.

"This won't work—at this rate we're all dead!" the starship captain shouted while dodging attacks.

"Zhizhe, is there a way?!" Zhang Cheng looked anxiously at Xingyun Zhizhe.

Xingyun Zhizhe furrowed his brow, his gaze rapidly scanning the surroundings as if searching for something.

Suddenly, his gaze settled on a massive control console... "Perhaps..." He pointed at the console. "There..."

Xingyun Zhizhe pointed at the control console, his tone urgent yet firm: "Perhaps... that is the key to controlling these guards!"

Zhang Cheng understood immediately. He dashed toward the control console in a few swift strides, and Guangming Shizhe followed close behind, providing cover for him.

Laser beams whizzed past Zhang Cheng's hair—he could even smell the singed strands—but he didn't even flinch, his eyes locked on the target, pressing forward without hesitation.

"Cover me!" Zhang Cheng roared. Xingji Xiake and the starship captain immediately led the remaining warriors to form a wall of steel, concentrating their firepower on the guards attacking Zhang Cheng.

"Brothers, grab your gear! Play support for Brother Cheng!" Xingji Xiake shouted with chuunibyou fervor, his energy cannon roaring nonstop.

Amid the fierce battle, Xingji Xiake keenly noticed that while these mechanical guards attacked ferociously, their movements seemed somewhat stiff, and before each attack, the energy core on their chest would flash.

"Holy shit, could that be their weakness?" A flash of insight struck Xingji Xiake, and he immediately relayed his discovery to the starship captain and the other warriors.

"Brothers, focus fire on their energy cores!" The starship captain was a ruthless one too, and immediately changed tactics.

The warriors coordinated seamlessly, concentrating their fire on the guards' energy cores. Sure enough, the guards' movements began to slow, and then they crashed to the ground.

"Badass! Xiake, you kid are a genius!" The starship captain excitedly slapped Xingji Xiake on the shoulder. "We've got this in the bag now!"

The control console was within reach. Zhang Cheng slid under the final wave of attacks and successfully arrived at the console.

He took a deep breath, his hands flying rapidly across the console.

Code cascaded like a waterfall, leaving the Lan Xing merchant beside him dazzled.

"This kid's actually got something..." he thought to himself, but his greedy gaze never left the control console.

As Zhang Cheng worked, the mechanical guards' attacks gradually ceased, and they all ultimately collapsed on the ground, paralyzed.

Only then did everyone let out a breath of relief, slumping to the ground and gasping for air.

"We actually... survived..." Xingji Xiake wiped the sweat from his face, still shaken.

The group continued deeper into the ruins, navigating through a labyrinth of corridors, until finally they arrived at the core area of the ruins.

A massive spherical device floated in the air, radiating brilliant light, surrounded by complex energy flows—it was this device that controlled the energy of the entire star system!

The Lan Xing merchant's eyes went wide, his greed entirely undisguised.

While no one was paying attention, he sneaked toward the device, wanting to claim it for himself.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Zhang Cheng barked sharply.

The Lan Xing merchant was startled, but quickly regained his composure. He smiled sinisterly: "Hehe, of course... to take back what belongs to me!" As soon as the words left his mouth, he reached out to touch the device.

However, just as his hand was about to touch the device, a powerful energy barrier suddenly appeared, trapping him inside.

The Lan Xing merchant struggled desperately, but could not budge the barrier in the slightest, and could only watch helplessly as everyone moved further and further away from him.

"Serves you right!" Xingji Xiake said with schadenfreude, "That'll teach you to be greedy!"

Zhang Cheng walked up to the device and reached out his hand...

"Wait!" Xingling xue zhe suddenly spoke up.

Zhang Cheng's hand hovered in front of the device. Xingling xue zhe hurried forward, his expression grave: "This device contains enormous energy. Recklessly touching it may trigger unpredictable consequences!" He pointed at the runes flickering around the device, "These runes—I have seen them in ancient texts before. They are an ancient seal, protecting the device's core and imprisoning the powerful energy within. If we forcefully break it, it could very well release a devastating power!"

"Damn, seriously? That exaggerated?" Xingji Xiake couldn't help but quip.

Xingling xue zhe pushed up his glasses, a flash of light glinting off the lenses: "Based on my deduction, the core of this device is a super-intelligent entity. It controls the entire interstellar energy supply and also guards the safety of this device. If we want to take control of it, we must first defeat this super-intelligent entity."

"Defeat a super-intelligent entity? That sounds even more thrilling than fighting a boss in a game!" Xingji Xiake rubbed his fists and palms, eager to try.

Zhang Cheng pondered for a moment, his gaze firm: "In that case, let's do it! Brothers, prepare for battle!"

Xingyun Zhizhe immediately began analyzing the device's energy flow, searching for the super-intelligent entity's weakness; Guangming Shizhe cast shields on everyone, boosting their defense; Xingji Xiake and the starship captain led the warriors into an attack formation, ready to launch an attack at any moment.

As Zhang Cheng activated the device, a massive energy body emerged from it, letting out an ear-splitting roar.

The super-intelligent entity revealed itself!

"Brothers, charge!" At Xingji Xiake's command, everyone surged forward, all kinds of energy weapons firing at once, and the entire space filled with the thunderous roar of explosions.

The super-intelligent entity's attacks were equally fierce, energy beams sweeping across everything, and everyone could only scramble to dodge.

The battle was extraordinarily intense, and the situation fell into a stalemate at one point.

"This won't do, we can't keep going like this!" Zhang Cheng's brow furrowed tightly, "We must find its weakness!"

Xingyun Zhizhe suddenly had a flash of inspiration: "Its energy core! Attack its energy core!"

Zhang Cheng understood instantly and immediately directed everyone to fuse their respective powers together, forming a super energy, aimed straight at the super-intelligent entity's energy core, and blasted it with full force!

"Boom!" With a tremendous crash, the super-intelligent entity's energy core was struck, emitting a blinding light, and the entire device began to shake violently.

The super-intelligent entity let out a painful wail, and finally dissolved into specks of starlight, dissipating into the air.

Victory!

Guangming Shizhe excitedly threw herself into Zhang Cheng's arms, her eyes filled with adoration: "You're so amazing!"

Zhang Cheng gently held her, feeling the joy of victory and the ambiguous atmosphere.

However, before everyone could even catch their breath, the device suddenly emitted an even more dazzling light, and a powerful energy fluctuation swept through the entire space.

"What's going on?" the starship captain exclaimed in alarm.

Xingyun Zhizhe's expression was grave: "It seems the real challenge has only just begun..."

Everyone gazed at this device that could control the entire interstellar energy supply...

"I... sensed something..." Xingling xue zhe murmured to himself, reaching out and pointing toward the distance.