Chapter 66: Actually, they're all machines

Zhang Jun suddenly thought of something, straining to raise his arm, lifting the Heaven-Man Sword: "This thing… seems to have sucked the energy out of that lump of iron."

The purple patterns on the sword blade were much clearer than before, with energy faintly flowing within, and the blade still radiated residual heat.

Clone Wang Jun stepped closer, the blue light in his mechanical eye flickering as he analyzed the data.

"Interesting, the Heaven-Man Sword absorbed and converted dimensional energy. This function isn't in the original design parameters."

As his words fell, a dull vibration suddenly came from afar, and the ground beneath them trembled slightly.

The three immediately became alert.

"What now?" Zhang Jun leaned on his sword, barely standing, his wounded leg piercing with pain, making him grit his teeth.

Clone Wang Jun's mechanical fingers flicked in the air, pulling up a holographic map of the Underground City: "The source of the vibration is in the Central Area, with extremely intense energy reaction."

Lin Xue's face darkened: "My dad… no, that fake Lin Zhen is probably there."

Zhang Jun gripped the Heaven-Man Sword tightly; the purple patterns on the blade seemed to sense his emotion, the light flickering slightly: "Come on, let's go meet him!"

"How can you fight in that condition?" Lin Xue frowned tightly.

"What else?" Zhang Jun tore off a relatively clean half-sleeve, haphazardly wrapping it around the wound a few times: "Wait for him to finish that damn cleansing plan, then we all play together?"

Clone Wang Jun suddenly said: "The Central Area has a Main Control Room. Entering there, I can link into the entire Ark System, possibly pinpointing the exact coordinates of the Energy Gate."

Lin Xue and Zhang Jun locked eyes, each seeing the same resolve in the other.

"Split up." Lin Xue said firmly: "I'll go find that fake Lin Zhen; you two go to the Main Control Room."

"No way!" Zhang Jun objected without thinking: "That impostor is too dangerous; you going alone is basically delivering yourself as a meal."

"My Ice Soul Power has just fully awakened," Lin Xue cut him off, tone leaving no room for doubt: "Besides, I know his habits and weaknesses better than you do, making it easier to find an opening."

Clone Wang Jun nodded: "From a logical and efficiency standpoint, this is currently the optimal plan."

Zhang Jun gritted his teeth: "Fine! But we must stay in contact!"

Clone Wang Jun pulled three metal pieces the size of a fingernail cap from his waist: "Quantum Entanglement Communicators, theoretically immune to any known interference."

Each of the three took one and stuck it behind their ear.

Lin Xue turned to leave.

Zhang Jun instinctively grabbed her wrist.

"Be careful, don't just brute-force it."

Lin Xue paused her movement, unusually not shaking him off, merely giving a slight nod: "You too, don't die."

She pulled her hand away, turned and swiftly vanished into the shadowed end of the corridor, ice crystals condensing beneath her feet, leaving a fleeting bright trail.

Zhang Jun watched the direction she disappeared, gripping his Heaven-Man Sword tightly.

The purple patterns on the sword blade and the ice crystal mark on his chest seemed to produce a faint resonance, emitting a soft glow.

"Let's go, old man," he turned to Clone Wang Jun, voice a little hoarse, "lead the way, let's see what this place's heart looks like."

A flicker of complex data-stream light passed through Clone Wang Jun's mechanical eye, his voice still steady: "Hope our choices won't bring irreversible consequences."

The two lingered no longer, following the direction of the vibrations toward the unknown core region of the Underground City.

Zhang Jun dragged his injured leg, moving in uneven steps down the metal corridor.

The Heaven-Man Sword planted on the ground, each tap producing a soft sound, especially piercing in this dead silence.

The purple patterns on the blade glowed faintly, barely lighting the path ahead for less than three meters; beyond lay an impenetrable darkness.

"Old man, are you sure this is the way?" Zhang Jun lowered his voice, back pressed against the cold metal wall, peeking around the corner before quickly pulling back.

A hiss of static crackled in the communicator, then Clone Wang Jun's voice came through: "The original schematics of the Ark System place the Main Control Room right at the center of the core area. But these passages…"

"Doesn't match what you've got in your head, huh?" Zhang Jun snapped irritably, "This place twists like a rat's nest!"

The communicator stalled for a few seconds: "Lin Zhen has made major changes. I can only give a rough direction."

Zhang Jun clenched his back teeth, the wound on his left shoulder feeling as if salt had been rubbed in, burning hot.

The makeshift bandage was already soaked through with blood, sticking sticky to flesh and muscle, any slight movement causing excruciating pain.

"How about Lin Xue's side? Any movement?"

"The signal's still there, but she hasn't spoken." Clone Wang Jun replied, "Not speaking is the right move."

Zhang Jun grunted, continuing to shuffle forward.

After the corridor turned, ahead was a half-open airtight door, a sickly blue light seeping from the crack.

He held his breath, crouched low against the wall, inching over to peek through the gap.

"Damn!"

The sight inside made his hairs stand on end.

It was a vast, frightening circular space, with a colossal sphere floating in midair, its diameter no less than thirty meters.

The sphere's surface was etched with incomprehensible symbols and dense circuitry, purple energy inside jumping uneasily, like the massive heart of a living creature.

From its base extended dozens of pipe-thick-as-water-buckets, spreading out like a spiderweb in all directions.

"Found it," Zhang Jun's voice a little dry, "this broken ball must be the core of that damn cleansing plan, right?"

"Scanning…" Clone Wang Jun's voice suddenly rose, edged with urgency, "Energy readings are off the charts! This isn't an ordinary dimensional gate! It's an energy converter! It's sucking the planet's geomagnetic energy and converting it to power the gate!"

"Speak plainly!"

"It's draining the Earth's blood! If this thing activates, the planet's magnetic field will be gone, no atmosphere to protect it, and every living thing on the surface will die out!"

Zhang Jun clenched the Heaven-Man Sword.

The purple patterns on the blade blazed bright, as if stimulated by the huge iron sphere, emitting a low hum.

"I gotta go check it out."

Just as he reached to push the door, the communicator burst with a screech of noise, cutting off Clone Wang Jun's voice.

At the same moment, the ground around the huge iron sphere "hummed" and lit up a ring of blue light, clearly illuminating the silhouettes of those standing beneath it.

Zhang Jun's pupils snapped to pinpricks.

Zhao Wushuang.

No, that's just Zhao Wushuang's shell.

What stood there was a mechanical monster that had been altered beyond recognition.

Originally sturdy like a bear's frame, it is now encased in heavy metallic exoskeleton; the right arm has been completely replaced by a dark energy cannon, and the head retains only a small half of a human face, while the other large half is shining purple metal and circuitry.