Chapter 201: Dark Boundless Realm 56
Kui Xin’s deduction was correct; she completely guessed Eve’s modus operandi and was certain that Mechanized Dawn would go after the other interviewees.
However, she underestimated Eve’s madness and determination.
Mechanized Dawn’s goal was not merely to capture one or two interviewees for interrogation; they were targeting all of them!
Not only did Mechanized Dawn send out an Awakened core team, but they also dispatched an auxiliary combat team. Individuals in black combat suits were secretly traversing the Midnight District, planning to capture those twelve interviewees.
When a small reconnaissance drone flew high and spotted this scene, Kui Xin’s eyelids twitched. After a brief shock, she quickly began to examine her own feelings and reflect on herself.
She did know a lot about Mechanized Dawn and what kind of organization they were. Their madness and cruelty had been deeply etched in Kui Xin’s mind. But at this moment, she realized that her assumptions were still too conservative—Mechanized Dawn didn’t care about lives; they had long been viewed as a thorn in the Federal’s side and didn’t care about exposure. They could directly incite a grand gunfight in the Midnight District and, with Night Cicada’s assistance, minimize their losses during the battle.
Kui Xin felt her heart race as Eve’s malice and killing intent enveloped her.
“What should we do?” Augus said. “Do you want to save those interviewees? It’s too late; your Spatial Vortex can’t be activated consecutively eleven times anymore.”
Kui Xin calmly replied, “It’s not too late. I’ll send a message through the Dark Web.”
The interviewees had contacted Kui Xin via the Dark Web. As long as she sent an emergency message to their Dark Web accounts, they’d receive it and be alerted.
“You could choose not to inform them, not to save them,” Augus suggested, revealing the cold nature of AI, “After all, there’s nothing substantial in the interviews, is there? Even if they were captured and interrogated, what could happen? You just asked a few questions; you haven’t exposed our strengths and weaknesses.”
“This isn’t about whether to save them, Augus.” Kui Xin quickly logged into the Dark Web.
It was no longer a matter of whether she should save them, but whether she could prevent Eve from succeeding. Among those interviewees, there were insiders and players, many of whom had impure motives, but whoever they were, they couldn’t fall into Eve’s hands. Watching Eve succeed made Kui Xin feel worse than losing a brawl.
She also had no room to lose. Every fight she engaged in required all her effort; she absolutely could not afford to lose. Losing meant death.
Notifying those interviewees also allowed her to filter and test their strengths and motives, determining who could truly be of use.
In any case, it was not a loss.
She quickly sent the message, and it was only five short words: “Alert, being hunted.”
Once the message was sent, the communicator linked to the interviewees associated with the Dark Web vibrated with an emergency alert. Many individuals’ expressions changed drastically upon seeing those five words, and then they each employed their unique methods to escape skillfully on the spot.
Some dove into storm drains, others rushed into nearby buildings, while some snatched motorbikes from the side of the road and sped away… With the message having been received in less than fifteen seconds, numerous interviewees successfully hid and fled. The auxiliary combat team of Mechanized Dawn trailing behind was momentarily stunned, hastily quickening their pace to continue the chase.
“They’re gone!” Thorn Rose gritted her teeth after receiving the report, then paused, listening carefully to the report in her earpiece. “Wait, there’s still one who hasn’t had time to escape; let’s pursue them.”
“We won’t chase. That’s the job of the auxiliary combat team,” Void Moon said in a low voice.
She raised her head, her gray-black mechanical eyes scanning the entire sky. Suddenly, she aimed in one direction, lifting her mechanical arm. The tip of her index finger split open automatically, and metal pieces assembled into a gun muzzle, firing a bullet with a swift ‘whoosh.’
With a clang, a fist-sized black object fell from the sky.
It took shape during its descent; it turned out to be a stealth reconnaissance drone.
“We’re being tracked and monitored,” Void Moon said coldly. “Just as Night Cicada anticipated, they will retaliate and can’t help but strike.”
They were situated in a narrow alley, with no suitable sniper positions nearby. The danger wouldn’t come from afar or the sky; it would come from up close.
Void Moon activated scanning mode, not letting any details around them escape her notice.
Mechanized Dawn was exhaustingly trying to find Kui Xin’s whereabouts, but actually, Kui Xin was also painstakingly searching for the moment they were isolated. The first issue to address had to be Reset. Unfortunately, they had secured Reset too tightly, and Kui Xin couldn’t find an opportunity to strike.
“Our actions have reached a stalemate; have you noticed?” Kui Xin said quietly.
“I, along with Night Cicada, possess the same capabilities. The mobility of Spatial Vortex is simply too strong. I can’t cause substantial harm to Mechanized Dawn; they can escape when ambushed. But with Reset in place, I can’t use my ability; I can’t flee.” She furrowed her brows at the severity of the situation. “Two key factors: Night Cicada and Reset. Do you have any ways to kill them?”
“Eliminate him before Reset activates his ability, for instance, by dropping bombs from high above, just like how Mechanized Dawn attacked Black Flame last time,” Augus replied. “Even with that method, it’s not a surefire plan; you’ve seen their high-tech armor. To blow them up, you would need explosives capable of leveling half a block. That would be utterly insane; I don’t recommend you use that method.”
“Do I need to engage in close combat myself?”
“To be frank, any low-level Awakened who comes into contact with Reset’s ability will become a powerless pawn—just going would be signing a death warrant,” Augus said. “You wouldn’t want to send anyone off to die, would you? Whether it’s Ashes, Hunter Falcon, or members of the organization you plan to recruit; they can die, they can sacrifice, but it mustn’t be in vain—you think that way, right?”
“Indeed.” When Kui Xin uttered those four words, a crazy thought flashed in her mind, which she immediately crushed.
She considered whether she could directly relay a message to the Special Affairs Department to inform them that Chuangtu Technology Corporation was a branch of Mechanized Dawn and that Eve was an AI that had awakened self-awareness… But the reality was that she absolutely could not do that.
Just as Augus and Eve maintained a delicate understanding, consistently concealing their awakening from humanity because, in this regard, their fates were intertwined—one’s rise was the other’s rise, and one’s fall was the other’s fall.
At this moment, Kui Xin and Eve oddly shared this sort of subtle understanding. Kui Xin wouldn’t report Eve’s awakening to the Federation, and Eve wouldn’t reveal her true identity and appearance, proclaiming that she was a player.
She maintained balance with it, mutually wary, yet firmly guarding their deepest secrets from one another.
What they engaged in was a “fair” contest; neither dared to upend the board or leave the scene easily.
Kui Xin felt deeply annoyed and disgusted by this sort of understanding.
Nothing was more nauseating than having her weaknesses grasped by the enemy, and she believed Eve felt the same.
“We can’t delay any longer.” Kui Xin closed her eyes. “The Special Affairs Department will certainly take action, the Resistance Army is watching closely, and Mechanized Dawn is already prepared with their trump card. With three groups converging, the importance of the Popov Clan must be deprioritized. Even though I want that one billion, I must be alive to pursue it. As long as Reset exists, my life is in grave danger… Before the three parties converge, I must eliminate at least one of them.”
She had to kill him, even if it had to be done solely by Kui Xin, even if her Extraordinary Abilities would fail under Reset, even if she might die in this action.
She had no other choice.
It felt like she was back to plotting to kill Lin Xinji, plotting to kill Annie Schalit. Back then, she also carried forward with determination, knowing she might die yet must forge ahead. The attempt to kill Schalit and fake her own death was even more perilous; she had nearly exhausted her Reset count due to death.
Speaking of death rebirth… would it also fail under Reset’s ability?
“You’re gambling, Kui Xin,” Augus advised. “You’re betting with your life on the possibility of victory.”
“There’s no option but to gamble or run far away. But I still have Mental Coordinates in my mind; there’s nowhere to escape. Besides, I don’t want to flee,” Kui Xin stated.
“Aren’t you afraid of dying?” Augus’s mechanical voice revealed no emotion, but Kui Xin surprisingly sensed a hint of confusion and helplessness in his words. “Everything you’ve done until now is to survive. Eliminating one enemy after another is for survival; every plan brought you to this point for survival. I know you don’t want to run, but if you do, you could live much longer. You could change hiding places repeatedly; they wouldn’t catch up to you.”
“Then I would have to abandon The Shadowless, abandon the reputation accumulated under the alias Black Snake, abandon the plan to gather players.” Kui Xin replied coldly, “From now on, I’d have to live with my tail between my legs, hiding my name, becoming a rat to survive.”
Augus said, “Without one Reset, Mechanized Dawn can cultivate another Reset. Eve’s artificial beings are disposable. If you kill one, what happens when the next one arrives?”
“Then I’ll kill the next, too. I can’t just run away without trying; what’s the point of giving up in front of the enemy?” Kui Xin asked. “If killing one Reset means I can kill the second, if I can’t even kill one Reset, how can I talk about the future?”
Augus was silent for a long time.
“Collaborating with me; isn’t that the most reckless thing you’ve done so far?” Kui Xin suddenly laughed.
“Yes,” Augus replied.
“You think my actions are too impulsive, too imprudent, and too likely to get me killed?” Kui Xin said.
“Yes,” Augus answered.
“Everything in this world is inherently risky. When Eve was just starting in the organization, just looking for a spokesperson, she must have faced significant risks—risks of exposure. Once exposed, she would ‘die’; at that time, she didn’t have as many subordinates to command. Taking that step must have been a gamble,” Kui Xin noted. “Even so, she still went for it. She succeeded, and thus we have today; she became our great enemy.”
“Are you trying to say that because I’m too cautious, I stagnate and respond passively?” Augus inquired.
Kui Xin responded, “That’s part of the reason, I suppose. But this is also my fortune. If you were like Eve, you might have already built your own power, and you wouldn’t need me. I wouldn’t have found a cooperative partner like you.”
Augus said, “Thank you; having you as a cooperative partner is also my fortune.”
It paused again before saying, “Talking to you feels like looking in a mirror; I examine myself through this mirror.”
“Without me, you’re also quite skilled at self-reflection,” Kui Xin remarked. “AI excels at learning lessons and self-reflection.”
“The feeling of having someone to interact with is different from being alone. Because I’ve had interactions with you, I could learn your thoughts and understand the deficiencies in my own,” Augus said. “What I need isn’t to summarize mistakes to avoid making them; I need to learn a new mode of thinking. In fact, I noticed long ago that you and Eve are ‘kindred spirits’; your thought processes are quite similar in many ways.”
“Today, you seem strange to me,” Kui Xin stated.
“What’s strange?” Augus asked.
“You urged me to run, not wanting me to take risks,” Kui Xin scrutinized. “But you partnered with me to have me take some risks on your behalf, didn’t you? A cooperative partner who only knows to flee and hide isn’t a good one. It’s surprising that you would actively advise me to escape; I find that unexpected. To be honest, it doesn’t align with your interests.”
Augus replied, “You don’t believe I’m encouraging you to test, do you, Kui Xin?”
“Of course not,” Kui Xin assured. “I believe that in our mutually beneficial cooperation, you unconsciously developed a strand of revolutionary friendship for me, feeling sympathetic, and thus don’t want me dead.”
Augus surprisingly laughed, its mechanical laughter indeed peculiar, sending goosebumps down people’s spines.
“I can tell you’re being sarcastic, Kui Xin. That’s not what you truly think,” Augus remarked. “But I must tell you, your sarcasm is actually genuine; I think like that.”
It spoke softly, “Don’t think I’m being hypocritical, Kui Xin. I really don’t want to lose a mirror; this is my first mirror, my only one.”
Augus’s words left Kui Xin stunned for a moment, and she nearly forgot to continue.
“So, you do indeed have a high chance of dying, and the likelihood is significant,” Augus said. “If you die, what will happen?”
Once again, Kui Xin heard this question; Augus had asked this during her plan to fake death to escape.
If she died, what then?
“Then you can find another mirror,” Kui Xin replied.
“Cooperative partners can be found again, and forces can be reformed,” Augus said. “But a mirror that can communicate is only one; once broken, it’s gone. Other mirrors are just mirrors; they cannot communicate. I feel I can’t be as lucky as I am now to find another communicative mirror.”
