Chapter 65: Logic Lock

The void of space was silent, with nothing unusual occurring. However, the more uneventful it seemed, the more tense Xiao Yu became. It was akin to the feeling of a helpless little rabbit walking through a jungle full of predators.

Every detection device was operating at maximum capacity, including the super optical telescopes stationed beyond Tianyuan C’s orbit, along with various infrared, ultraviolet, radar, magnetometers, and gravitational wave detectors. Yet, none of these devices registered any activity.

Xiao Yu dared not act rashly. He kept all his ships stationary in Tianyuan A’s orbit, silently awaiting the unknown.

After the signal declared, “Don’t blame me,” it disappeared, leaving no trace in Xiao Yu’s central computer.

Though no external detection equipment indicated an attack, Xiao Yu suddenly sensed something amiss.

This anomaly wasn’t external; it was internal—specifically within the central computer of the City-Class spaceship, Beijing, where Xiao Yu resided.

Xiao Yu felt as if his thoughts were being manipulated by an uncontrollable force. His mind suddenly became clouded, and for a moment, he began contemplating absurd ideas.

“What if… back on Earth, I hadn’t been so arrogant and had instead worked to foster better relationships with my peers? Would my predictions have gained their support and thus been accepted by human society? When I discovered the signs of Earth’s impending destruction, there were still ten years left. Perhaps, in those ten years, humanity could have unleashed its full potential to create interstellar spaceships. Even if all of humanity couldn’t be saved, at least a few million people might have survived, preserving a spark of human civilization.”

“What if… I had been kinder to Chen Mo? Would she have stayed at the research institute? Even if I couldn’t save her, at least I would have more memories to cherish.”

“What if… I had conducted more research into that mysterious interstellar substance? Could I have extracted another person’s soul to accompany me on my cosmic journey?”

“What if…”

“What if…”

Countless “what ifs” flooded Xiao Yu’s mind. Gradually, he became immersed in these scenarios, engaging his vast computational power to calculate whether choosing differently in the past would have led to a different outcome.

Lost in these thoughts, Xiao Yu failed to notice that his computational resource usage had soared to 85%.

Xiao Yu was running vast simulations, recalling every choice he had made in his life and analyzing how events might have unfolded differently if he had chosen another path. But as the simulations continued, they inevitably led to new choices. Xiao Yu then calculated the potential consequences of these hypothetical decisions, creating an endless loop.

His computational resource usage hit 100%. This was a dangerous number, indicating that Xiao Yu’s full computational capacity was occupied. If the 100% usage rate persisted for more than thirty minutes, the central computer’s critical circuits would suffer severe damage. If it lasted over an hour, the central computer would crash completely.

A crash of the central computer would mean Xiao Yu’s complete death.

Now, the 100% usage rate had persisted for forty minutes.

“There aren’t so many ‘what ifs’ in the world! Once I’ve made a choice, and once time has passed, there’s no turning back. Why… why am I calculating such meaningless things!”

At this critical moment, Xiao Yu’s deeply ingrained survival instincts saved his life. In a split second, he broke free from the endless calculations.

In that moment, Xiao Yu felt utterly drained. If he still had a physical body, he would have collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath.

“What… what’s happening to me?” Xiao Yu muttered as he examined his current situation. After reviewing the events that had unfolded, his shock quickly gave way to fear.

Xiao Yu was certain that this situation was anything but normal. The only possible culprit capable of affecting him this way had to be the mysterious, unknown enemy.

As if to confirm his suspicions, a message suddenly appeared in Xiao Yu’s main control computer.

“It seems you’ve evolved into a highly intelligent mechanical civilization, capable of escaping my logic lock attack. Very well, it seems I’ll have to destroy you physically.”

Staring at the message, Xiao Yu’s mind raced furiously.

The logic lock attack had burned out a significant portion of the central computer’s critical circuits aboard the Beijing, reducing its computational power to less than 10% of its original capacity. Yet, even 10% of Xiao Yu’s computing power was formidable.

“Logic lock! Of course! Based on my experience, when dealing with AI-dominated mechanical civilizations, no spatial or energy-based attack is as simple or effective as a logic lock! No matter how advanced artificial intelligence becomes, it cannot reach the level of true intelligent life. When subjected to a logic lock attack, AI will endlessly spiral into meaningless calculations, burning out its computational units and ultimately dying!”

In an instant, Xiao Yu understood everything.

“Fortunately, my soul is still that of an intelligent being, not an artificial intelligence. That’s the only reason I managed to escape the logic lock. Clearly, the logic lock is the natural nemesis of mechanical civilizations.”

“The Beijing’s central computer has only 10% of its computational power left! Damn it, lucky for me I kept backups.” Xiao Yu cursed under his breath and immediately used radio waves to transmit himself to another City-Class spaceship, the Shanghai, located 50,000 kilometers away.

Although Xiao Yu’s fleet had been comprehensively upgraded to use quantum communication systems, he had prudently retained radio communication systems on his ships for emergencies like this, allowing for a swift retreat.

This foresight had finally paid off.

The central computer aboard the Shanghai was on par with that of the Beijing. In fact, all four City-Class spaceships were equipped with identical super photon computers, a decision Xiao Yu had made during their construction.

Once aboard the Shanghai, Xiao Yu immediately commanded all combat spaceships to enter full battle readiness.

“Destroy me physically? Let’s see what you’ve got!” Xiao Yu gritted his teeth in fury but forced himself to remain calm, closely monitoring Tianyuan IV’s space with countless detectors.

The silence continued. Nothing unusual seemed to happen—until, 15 seconds later, Xiao Yu detected an object outside Tianyuan C’s orbit.

It was a droplet.

A perfect, streamlined object, its head larger than its tail, resembling a drop of water. The material it was made of was entirely unknown.

With simple measurements, Xiao Yu quickly gathered some data.

Ordinary household mirrors can reflect visible light and lower-frequency bands but are easily penetrated by higher-frequency laser weapons.

However, the droplet’s surface had a 100% reflectivity rate. This meant its material could even reflect lasers, rendering laser weapons completely ineffective.

Its perfect reflectivity also meant it had no color. In front of any background, it appeared to take on that background’s color, like a chameleon.

It was breathtakingly beautiful, resembling a flawless work of art. Measuring roughly 10 meters in length and about 3 meters in width and height, the droplet floated silently in space, approaching Xiao Yu’s fleet at a speed of at least 100 kilometers per second.

In just one minute, it would reach Tianyuan C’s orbit.

Over 4,000 combat spaceships stationed at the interstellar fortress near Tianyuan C scrambled into action, readying for battle. Among them were 50 County-Class spaceships, all armed with energy cannons.

Watching from Tianyuan A, Xiao Yu decided to initiate the attack.

“County-Class spaceship Pingxiang, fire the energy cannon,” Xiao Yu commanded.

The dark cannon barrel locked onto the droplet. Following the command, a projectile, wrapped in a brilliant blue glow, shot out at a speed of at least 100,000 kilometers per second. In just 0.05 seconds, it struck the droplet and detonated with a ferocious explosion.

Xiao Yu’s attention was riveted on the scene. As the fiery remnants of the energy cannon’s explosion faded, an astonishing sight emerged.

The droplet continued moving forward at nearly the same speed, as if the energy cannon had done nothing at all.

To put this in perspective, a single energy cannon from Xiao Yu’s County-Class spaceship was powerful enough to completely destroy the flagship of the Moluton Civilization. Yet this cannon had no effect on the droplet.

The droplet’s streamlined shape remained utterly unscathed. Its reflective surface showed no sign of damage; no dust could cling to its pristine exterior.

“What kind of material could possess such resistance? Could this truly be within the capabilities of an intelligent civilization?” Xiao Yu was utterly shocked.

“This… this is just a probe from the Guardian Alliance! Just a probe!”

A bitter sense of helplessness filled Xiao Yu’s heart.