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墨書 Inktalez
Breathing heavily, Lin Yuan escaped back to S-5 Sub-base, feeling like a lost dog—no, more like a cornered rat that everyone wanted to catch. Panic gripped him; even though he didn't have a heart at the moment, he still felt an overwhelming sense of anxiety.
He almost thought he wouldn't make it back. As for his extraordinary performance at that moment, he found nothing strange about it. His mind was filled with terror, despair, pessimism, and lethargy. He even contemplated whether he should just hide in this Sub-base for the rest of his life, becoming a Gatekeeper like the one he had seen. It didn't seem like such a bad choice; at least it meant he wouldn't have to face death.
This time, he truly sensed the breath of death. Despite speeding past those humans on Mouse One, his Second Audio-Visual Radar clearly registered their armored suits and the weapons they wielded.
His recorded machine gun couldn't penetrate their armor at all; roughly estimating, that armor's Enhancement Level was at least above zero.
And those three Heavy Sniper Rifles—good grief! They were practically no different from rocket launchers. The thick barrels could fit a fist inside them. In comparison, Lin Yuan's prized High-Explosive Weapon Sniper Rifle felt like a child's toy!
The disparity in power between him and the enemy was immense, and there was absolutely no chance of surrender. Lin Yuan considered himself human, but in reality, he was just a steel shell. If captured by those humans, he would either fight to the end or be reduced to scrap—or worse, be torn apart!
How terrifying!
Sitting motionless in the cockpit of the smoking Mouse One, Lin Yuan appeared calm on the outside, but who could know that he was terrified to death inside?
After all, in his previous life, he was just a shut-in who was good at killing mice and stepping on ants. The idea of becoming a decisive hero was utterly impossible for him.
He didn't know how long he had been dazed in the cockpit of Mouse One when he finally let out a bitter laugh in his heart. Well, there was no need to worry too much; those rebels couldn't breach this S-5 Sub-base anyway. Besides, hadn't he made it back?
He patted the nearly deformed control stick of Mouse One and sighed again. Well then, this thrilling escape would require another major repair. Although the goal was clear, using it to escape at a critical moment felt exhilarating.
However, for now, he needed to recuperate for a while. Yes, more accurately, he needed to comfort his frightened soul.
As Mouse One jumped out, Lin Yuan was astonished to see the Gatekeeper quietly hovering nearby, looking as if it had been waiting for a long time. This was unusual!
Lin Yuan felt something strange; in the past, the Gatekeeper had always been arrogant, often mocking and ridiculing him. Why had it changed its demeanor today?
However, Lin Yuan didn't bother to dwell on it. Although he had been startled this time, he couldn't let that stop him from his usual maintenance and assembly tasks. Besides, Mouse One was still waiting for a major overhaul, and there were many things that required his personal attention!
Strangely enough, the Gatekeeper obediently followed behind him, just like Pug. After a while, the Gatekeeper finally spoke up: "Esteemed Executive, um, there is something I need to report to you. That is, I believe your flying vehicle is a bit too rudimentary. Oh, of course, I don't mean to mock you; I am just wondering if you would be interested in using a smuggling channel to upgrade your vehicle?"
"Uh?"
At first, Lin Yuan ignored it, but when the Gatekeeper mentioned smuggling at the end, he was taken aback. Smuggling? What did that mean?
The Gatekeeper continued: "I assume Esteemed Executive you are aware of this smuggling channel. It is explicitly prohibited by Mechanical City. Anyone caught smuggling faces severe punishment. However, everyone needs to make a living; relying solely on legitimate sources makes it hard to fill one's stomach. So while we can't engage in large-scale smuggling, smaller operations can still evade the anti-smuggling teams of Mechanical City. If Esteemed Executive is interested, I would be willing to assist you!"
Listening to the Gatekeeper's excessively flattering words, Lin Yuan found himself less curious about the smuggling in Mechanical City. This was quite normal; with such outrageous official purchasing prices from Mechanical City, it was surprising that anyone wasn't smuggling. What puzzled him was why the Gatekeeper had suddenly changed its tune today.
Could there be some sort of conspiracy at play?
However, what Lin Yuan didn't know was that the Gatekeeper had indeed changed its stance, but the reason lay with him.
During this time, that damned Gatekeeper, a slave of Intellect, originally waited with amusement for Lin Yuan to go bankrupt and become an Exile like itself. But as time passed, the Gatekeeper was astonished to discover that this rookie—someone who didn't even understand the rules of Mechanical City—was managing quite well. Those broken-down items that looked like trash were being reassembled by him.
Although the entire Sub-base still appeared half-dead at present, even with the Gatekeeper's experience, it couldn't be certain whether it would regain vitality after some time. After all, Lin Yuan had unexpectedly found a way to make money!
To the Gatekeeper, this was truly a nightmare. The previous Executives had toiled day in and day out, hunting various Mechanical Creatures, yet the Mechanical Coins they earned barely covered their expenses. Coupled with the chaos caused by the rebels, this Earth Colonization Star had become nothing short of a quagmire—foul-smelling and utterly disgusting.
Although the Gatekeeper was unaware of what Lin Yuan had traded, he understood the market well enough. From the various Parts replaced on Lin Yuan's Mechanical Body, he could roughly gauge how many Mechanical Coins Lin Yuan had earned. This left him astonished, as Lin Yuan was only at F4 level—a pitifully weak state. Even those Mechanical Lives rated two or three stars in danger could easily take him down, not to mention the rebels!
It was simply unbelievable!
Under such circumstances, the Gatekeeper dared not mock Lin Yuan any further and could only hide obediently to the side. Once Lin Yuan restored all Eight Major Systems of this Sub-base, he would have complete control over its life and death. At that point, Lin Yuan could request a change of Exile from Mechanical City or even create an accident to increase his charges, extending his sentence indefinitely. This was a terrifying prospect, especially since he was currently just a prisoner.
Thus, as clever as the Gatekeeper was, he wished to avoid such an outcome. The best course of action was to flatter Lin Yuan and offer benefits to improve their master-servant relationship.
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