Chapter 582: Bloodlust Consciousness

Several days later, on the outskirts of the Lesteron Star System, the Amethyst Fleet had already blockaded the entire Star System.

At the same time, Warp Interception Devices and Space Blocking Devices were deployed nearby to prevent sudden arrivals of outsiders and avoid any unexpected situations.

Among them, the Core Commercial Planet had basically been covered by Black Mist. The churning Black Mist almost replaced its Atmosphere.

A large number of Research and Exploration Vessels traveled above the planet, carefully observing environmental variables. From time to time, they extended Mechanical Arms to quickly retrieve samples from the Atmosphere.

And outside the blockade line, several fleets seemed to be in a standoff.

"Unknown fleet, we will warn you again. This place has been designated as a military blockade zone. No one is allowed to approach."

"If you still do not retreat after this warning, we will launch an attack!" Jonas shouted sternly on the broadcast channel.

"You..." But before he could finish his words, he was interrupted. A projection appeared with a solemn expression, saying: "Commander Jonas, you may leave now. I have taken over this place."

"General Lanto!" Jonas's expression changed, but he didn't hesitate. He turned around and left with his people.

They were all sent by various factions to collect samples. The Amethyst Civilization couldn't afford to offend these people, so they could only Turn a Blind Eye and allow them to enter.

This fleet was allowed to pass. Within it, Anthony looked relaxed as he walked down the Metal Corridor, surrounded by Fully Armed Transformers.

He walked to the bottom deck of the warship and turned the handle of a heavy Confinement Hatch. It slowly opened, and a noisy barrage of curses accompanied by foul air immediately wafted out.

"Damned Bastards, let us go immediately!"

"Do you know who I am? I'm with Blood Bone!"

"Our Boss will peel your snake skin off and use it as a decoration!"

"..."

Behind the simple iron Cages were ragged prisoners in Confinement Shackles. Seeing someone enter, they immediately cursed endlessly.

The Translator automatically filtered out most of the unbearable curses; what he could hear were only some of the milder ones.

Anthony didn't mind, speaking to himself:

"Everyone, the Destination is almost here. Next, it's time to fulfill your mission. Whether you live or die will entirely depend on your luck."

"Please, let me go."

"I can give you Star Coins, a lot of Star Coins."

"..."

These prisoners faintly sensed something was wrong, and immediately began pleading desperately.

Of course, some people were still cursing. Anthony Flicked his snake-like tongue, and a strange light flashed in his Snake pupils.

He liked this kind of environment filled with chaos and fear.

"We're here. Stop enjoying yourself, Boss..." The person at the door said in a bad mood.

The two of them were originally sworn enemies. Now having to work under the other party, there was bound to be some resentment.

"First let Lord Sisko send people down to collect samples..." Anthony ordered.

"Alright..." That person closed the door and left.

The fleet had already traveled to the upper atmosphere of the planet. Exploration Vessels from other factions were also secretly observing this newly arrived fleet.

"Another faction has arrived..."

"Yeah, and there are no markings either. I wonder which faction they're from..."

"Anyone who can get through Amethyst's channels right now definitely has a formidable background."

No one underestimated this fleet. Instead, they wanted to see what methods the other party had that they could learn from.

They saw the Large Transport Ship in the center hovering above the Atmosphere. Subsequently, the metal plates below unfolded layer by layer.

The Deployment Bay opened, and several White Flying Vehicles dropped, rapidly descending towards the planet below.

This was a routine procedure—using flying vehicles to scout the way, likely equipped with various auxiliary devices.

But what surprised everyone was that after breaking through the Atmosphere, these White Flying Vehicles rapidly transformed, unexpectedly turning into Humanoid Machines.

"It's the Transformation Legion? Li Yu's people?"

Someone exclaimed on a nearby Exploration Vessel, their expression changing involuntarily.

After all, the ability of that person to Stir up trouble was extremely terrifying.

"He wants to use Transforming Mechanical Bodies to explore? Good idea, but unfortunately, this kind of Black Mist can even corrode electronics and machinery..." On a warship, a Commander sneered. He was clearly from a faction at odds with Li Yu.

Sure enough, before those Transformers even landed on the Ground, Electric Arcs erupted all over their bodies, and they began to twitch uncontrollably.

Their Luminescent Blue Electronic Eyes began to constantly change colors, interwoven with blue and black, as if something was fighting for control.

"So this Transformation Legion is nothing more than this. I thought they had something special about them." He scoffed, and then opened the broadcast channel.

"To think a few Transforming Mechanical Bodies would be enough to explore here, that's just wishful thinking. Tell Li Yu to send a few more people over."

Anthony had already returned to the Command Center. He stood there with a certain Purple-black Transformer, staring at the situation below.

This sentence suddenly came silently from the broadcast channel, causing Anthony's Snake pupils to violently shrink, looking extremely chilling.

"Which faction's people are these, being so arrogant?" Anthony inquired.

"The Conquest Mercenary Legion affiliated with The Fallen City..." A subordinate had already quickly identified their origin based on the emblem on the opposing fleet.

"They are five-star Mercenaries, guarded by an A-Tier Lifeform."

"Conquest? What kind of third-rate organization is that, I've never heard of it..." Anthony shook his head, then looked at Sisko beside him.

"Your Excellency, please deal with them."

"Understood..." Sisko's Mechanical Faceplate lowered, his smooth metal shell reflecting magnificent colors, as he turned and walked out.

At the same time, the continuously twitching Mechanical Lifeforms below suddenly exploded. Fragments scattered everywhere, and flames rolled.

"Eh?" This Commander was surprised and uncertain, looking at the flames below. "Why did they suddenly explode?"

"Logically speaking, those Mechanical Bodies should have already been infected by now. Why would they suddenly explode..."

"Perhaps there's a backup program that initiated self-destruction," a subordinate whispered.

"No..." The Commander shook his head: "Do you think the scout robots sent down by other factions didn't have self-destruct programs?"

"But their control was still usurped. So why were these Transforming Mechanical Bodies able to self-destruct successfully?"

He was somewhat puzzled, but his confusion didn't last long before being interrupted by a sudden alarm.

"Warning, the Energy Barrier has been breached. Please prepare for Impact..."

"Warning, hull damage detected. Please repair promptly..."

The Commander's expression changed drastically. On the Holographic Screen, he saw a purple-black phantom flicker. Wielding a Purple Light Mechanical Sword, it effortlessly tore through their defenses.

The Holographic Screen magnified, and they saw that the figure generally resembled an Interstellar human, but was made entirely of machinery, with every piece of metal plating fitting perfectly.

The Energy Cannon on its shoulder blasted through the metal hull at an extremely fast speed.

"This is... a Transforming Mechanical Body! It's Li Yu's subordinate!"

He hadn't expected the other party's reaction to be so extreme. He had merely mocked them a couple of times, and the other party actually sent someone to kill him.

Boom! Boom!

The sound of explosions drew nearer and nearer. His eyes were filled with horror. They had only come to collect samples and weren't equipped with overwhelmingly strong military force.

The other party's attack was completely devastating, leaving them with absolutely no room for resistance.

His vision blurred, and the purple-black figure had already appeared before him. The mechanical pupils rotated, locking onto its target.

Before he could even utter words begging for mercy, he felt the world spin, and only saw a headless Corporeal Form slowly collapsing.

He widened his eyes, but his vision grew darker and darker.

Boom!

The massive warship exploded in mid-air. The surrounding Exploration Vessels instantly became Silent as a Winter Cicada, fleeing far away from this area for fear of being caught in the crossfire.

Anthony withdrew his gaze, not minding at all, and pressed a button below the screen.

Subsequently, the Deployment Bay opened again. This time, it was a group of various lifeforms tightly wrapped in Mechanical Restraints.

They stared at the planet below, constantly wailing, but unable to change their destined outcome.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Under the protection of the Mechanical Restraints, they passed through the Atmosphere, plummeting at extreme speeds and generating sparks from friction with the Atmosphere.

And upon reaching a certain altitude, the Mechanical Restraints on them automatically popped open, turning into parachutes that allowed them to descend slowly, avoiding death.

But while in mid-air, their bodies began to distort and turn hideous. Their limbs elongated, bones protruded, making them look like certain Variant Lifeforms, inspiring fear in onlookers.

Meanwhile, the machines collecting samples in the upper Atmosphere returned and were quickly sealed away to prevent leakage.

"Alright, mission accomplished. We can leave now." Anthony didn't linger here. His task was only these few items. Once completed, they could depart.

Now they just needed to send the samples back to the Jade Void Palace.

However, the space here had already been locked down, making it very difficult to open a Dimensional Rift. They could only leave this blockaded area first.

Amethyst personnel noticed the explosion here and hurried over. After asking about the specific situation, they quickly left as if nothing had happened.

Are you kidding? That big shot almost beat Amethyst into ruin last time, nearly destroying them. How could they dare hold them accountable? Do they not want to live?

………

"What exactly is Number Two brewing? After capturing Iron Man last time, there's been no movement..." Li Yu muttered while scrolling through the System page.

So many days had passed, and Number Two hadn't started acting yet. There were temporarily no gains.

"Master, the Black Mist samples have been delivered..." Claptrap popped up to remind him.

"Oh..." Hearing this, Li Yu closed the System page and met Anthony, who was carrying the Metal Crate.

"Lord, those Augmented Bodies have been deployed. This is the sample." Anthony said respectfully.

"Mm, well done..." Li Yu nodded. He took the Metal Crate and opened it. Inside was a Glass Jar. The Black Mist floated peacefully within it.

"So this is the thing..." Li Yu stared at this wisp of grey mist, based on the synchronized information from Kansa.

Lifeforms eroded by this grey mist would undergo some inexplicable mutation. The Genes in their bodies would be twisted, and moreover, twisted into the same sequence.

That is to say, whether it was an Interstellar human, Fish-Person, or beastman, they would all be twisted into the same kind of creature, just with different external manifestations.

Even Mechanical Bodies would be affected, and the affected creatures would continuously generate Black Mist.

However, the composition of this Black Mist was very ordinary. No signs of any virus were detected.

They still hadn't figured out exactly how the Black Mist achieved this.

At present, this special Black Mist temporarily couldn't affect A-Tier Lifeforms.

But according to the speculations of some research experts, it wasn't that the Black Mist couldn't do it, but simply that the Black Mist hadn't reached a certain level yet.

As long as the Black Mist continuously expanded, sooner or later it would be able to achieve this.

"By the way..." Anthony thought for a moment and recounted the explosion of the Transforming Mechanical Bodies.

"Oh?" Li Yu was somewhat surprised. The Transformers self-destructed?

Why was this?

Was it to resist the influence of the Black Mist?

These Transformers were all Enlightened using Allspark Runes, powered by Faith.

Every single program had carved a mark of absolute loyalty deep into their bodies that was difficult to betray.

And the Black Mist was exactly fighting for control of their bodies, which the individual Transformers couldn't resist.

With the absolute refusal to betray clashing against the external forced influence, under this conflict, explosion was the only result.

Li Yu nodded, his curiosity towards this Black Mist growing even stronger.

He immediately went to a sealed room in the Research Base and slowly opened the sealed jar.

These Black Mists currently couldn't even affect A-Tier Lifeforms, let alone him.

The instant the Black Mist appeared, it attached to his skin and attempted to burrow into his Corporeal Form.

Li Yu suppressed his body's self-defense mechanisms and actively accepted this Black Mist.

Then he took out the [Virtual Goggles]. After digitizing his body, he began to browse his status bar.

Sure enough, he found something wrong.

[Strike of Bloodlust: An eroding mist originating from the Bloodlust Consciousness. It will assimilate any object it touches, making it a part of the Bloodlust Consciousness from which it is difficult to escape.

Currently suppressed — Due to the massive gap between it and the Host Body, the Host Body can break free from this influence at any time.]

Strike of Bloodlust? Bloodlust Consciousness?

Li Yu raised his eyebrows slightly. That's quite a lot of information...

This means that the entirety of the Black Mist is actually a single entity, possessing its own thoughts.

No...

Li Yu frowned and shook his head. This thing is merely an extension of the Bloodlust Consciousness, not the main body itself.

Only things infected and mutated by it will become a part of the Bloodlust Consciousness.

With a slight thought, golden flames suddenly burned on his skin, incinerating those Black Mists entirely.

Li Yu's expression flickered. Right now, probably no one else knew the specific details of this Black Mist besides himself.

Although he had figured out the Black Mist's name and partial information, another question surfaced in its wake.

Where did this Bloodlust Consciousness come from?

(End of Chapter)