Chapter 98: AI Can

「……」

「……」

「……」

After staring at each other for a long while, Feng Xue finally accepted reality and sighed:

「So basically, you just need to make sure this guy stays alive for thirty days, right? 」

「Absolutely. Provided it doesn't harm the host's health, you may do anything. 」

Though its tone remained flat, Feng Xue couldn't shake the feeling that this damn AI was nudging him to harm the host.

How to put it? It was kinda creepy.

But Feng Xue wasn't a fan of time-stop series—or rather, even if he watched them, he preferred the shock, terror, and disbelief after time resumed, not this lifeless "tuna" type with zero feedback; his little head had zero interest in it.

Fortunately, though Feina looked like a corpse, she'd obediently eat whenever food was given, so he didn't have to force-feed her.

Realizing his supplies were limited, Feng Xue pulled out his fishing gear, dissolved a few pellets of concentrated fish attractant in seawater, dipped his lure in it, and began fishing.

Though using fish attractant was unethical, Feng Xue had prepared these supplies for wilderness survival, so he'd specifically brought two packets.

Though the island seemed to have a sizable beach, Feng Xue had previously taken underwater photos by sealing his phone in a condom—he discovered this "island" was more like a peak rising straight from the deep ocean; the two-square-kilometer flat surface he stood on was merely its summit.

If you walked along the beach, beyond a platform no wider than ten meters lay an abyss; lucky for him he was cautious—if he'd slipped even once, swimming back up would've taken serious effort.

Seeing Feng Xue start fishing, Sara also guided the dog to sit beside him in a perfect squatting posture.

After brief communication, Feng Xue learned the dog's phantom beast consciousness wasn't synced with Sara's; Sara could only issue simple commands via guidance signals. Notably, according to Sara, this dog was a powerful phantom beast called "Wasteland Wolf," a rare luminous variant, and its current dumb, docile state resulted from prolonged synchronization with Feina, which had worn down its fighting instinct—it needed time to regain its wildness.

「So what's up with your master? Even phantom beasts can be reverse-contaminated? 」 In Feng Xue's eyes, immortal phantom beasts were clearly mechanical or akin to bio-armor—yet even these could be contaminated? This person was likely more than just depressed!

「Per privacy regulations, some information cannot be answered. However, the host's current condition primarily stems from side effects of excessive antidepressant use and requires approximately twenty-seven natural days to recover. 」

「So that's why your contract is only thirty days? 」 Feng Xue kept reeling in the line, making the lure swim like a small fish, chatting casually.

「Absolutely. However, considering the host's psychological issues, if possible, I hope you'll renew the contract. 」 Sara said calmly. Feng Xue's lip twitched: 「You already scammed me once—still want to keep scamming? 」

「Negative. Host Feina is a high-quality human female; the agreement is more advantageous for you. 」

「……」

Seeing the topic dead-ended by the AI, Feng Xue sighed and changed subject:

「When you scanned me earlier, you mentioned 'divine power'? What's that? 」

「Divine power is the force possessed by deities and their divine devotees. Your storage item possesses 'power-type' divine power, but no deity affiliation was detected—presumed inactive. 」

「So this world has deities? 」 Feng Xue's face lit up with interest. According to Feina's account, deities were something like Void Gods, and divine devotees were those who worshipped Void Gods to harness their wish-energy—but he didn't know whether the logic here was "exchange" or "blessing."

Though he internally doubted, Feng Xue thought of another question:

「You only detected 'divine power' on me? 」

「Affirmative. 」 Sara replied.

「What about this? 」 Feng Xue opened his palm and released a wisp of cultivation energy. Sara projected a question mark face like a soybean emoji, then replied after a pause:

「Energy signature detected. No matching records in database. Unable to identify. Estimated energy level: extremely low. Threat level: extremely low. 」

「So it can detect it, but this world doesn't have it? 」 Feng Xue nodded and tried extracting more qi.

This time, Sara reacted immediately:

「Detected high-quality biological energy overflow. Hypothesis: efficient biological energy extraction technology. Error: no related equipment detected. Error: hypothesis linked to gene compilation. 」

「Hmm, qi being identified as biological energy doesn't seem wrong. 」 Feng Xue thought a moment, then asked:

「Are there any living or non-living entities here that track or consume qi—i. e., biological energy? Like special phantom beasts or ghosts? What's their detection range? 」

「Correction: redefining special biological energy—qi—produced by Wild One. Correction complete. Qi exhibits high compatibility with phantom beasts. Most intelligent devices currently detect qi. Based on qi decay range, detection range is within 200 meters. Large-scale monitoring devices may exist, but no such records exist in database. 」

Sara's answer eased Feng Xue's mind—no evil spirits that sensed qi from kilometers away; his cultivation should be fine.

As they spoke, Feng Xue suddenly felt the fishing line tighten sharply—he immediately reeled it in like winding yarn, using his elbow and palm; the tension suggested a large fish had bitten.

Realizing this, Feng Xue's cultivation energy surged, activating the Thunder Jade Talisman's effect—his energy transformed into electricity, spreading along the line, then instantly intensified!

Boom!

With the realization he could freely replenish cultivation energy, Feng Xue unleashed it without restraint, converting it entirely into electricity. The entire sea surface seemed to freeze for an instant—then, the fishing line went slack. No, not just the line: besides the hooked fish, numerous others began floating to the surface.

"Need assistance harvesting?" Sara asked at the right moment. Feng Xue pulled his nearly thirty-centimeter fish close and gave an unhesitating affirmative.

Immediately, the white wolf leaped into the sea, snatching a fish and paddling like a dog. It repeated this over ten times, bringing all the electrocuted fish back to shore.

Most impressive: though it carried fish in its mouth, its grip was precise—only one or two fish bore clear tooth marks. This made Feng Xue question Sara's claim that "only simple commands" could be issued.

(End of Chapter)