Chapter 198: Loyalty to the Enemy (3)
"First, let's establish the premise. If we want to improve our efficiency in killing enemies, we can't just focus on quantity without considering quality. Killing a hundred immaterial points won't be as great a feat as killing a single slayer. Do you agree?"
The True Mechanical Woman nodded. "Agreed. The energy mass recovered from destroying a slayer is approximately 641.97 times that of an average life unit."
"The second premise." Chu Hengkong held up two fingers. "Due to the huge disparity in strength between adjacent particles on the path of transformation, the combat merits of low-point units cannot be converted into the combat merits of high-point units by simply stacking them in quantity.
If you kill 100 Slayers, you'll also be a Seismic 2 Legend... oh no, a War Merit. But if you kill a Three-Monster, you'll be a Seismic 3 War Merit, far superior to the True Machine who received 100 Seismic 2 War Merits. Do you agree?"
"Partially agree." The True Mechanical Woman said meticulously, "There are no legends in front of the Empire."
You really remembered what Vander said... You're not still proud of it...
Chu Hengkong cleared his throat, his expression befittingly kind, like the old man selling crutches on TV: "Then, based on the shared premise, we can conclude that, given the same resource consumption, killing high-quality outsiders is the most efficient option for achieving success."
"I totally agree." The True Mechanical Woman nodded repeatedly. "Unless there are special missions, killing high-quality outsiders should be the top priority."
"But your choice is completely irrational and inefficient." Chu Hengkong sighed, "You bring shame to the empire."
The Real Mechanical Woman froze at the table, extremely shocked: "I didn't! I will seize your body and recycle the resources as quickly as possible—"
"How many can you recover?" Chu Hengkong sneered. "In the best-case scenario, you wiped us out. You killed two Particle 3s and two Particle 2s. This is not a bad achievement, but it's acceptable.
But in the wilderness of despair there is a resurrected Sephiroth 7, and its many mixed minions!
Chu Hengkong spread his hands wide: "Can you kill them all by yourself? Use your computing circuits to think about it! Can you do it alone?!"
"I can't do that," the True Machine Girl said. This was the border of Heavenly Prison, and she couldn't apply for an upgrade.
"It's true, you can't! But we can!" Chu Hengkong looked sincerely into the machine's eyes. "Think about the battle not long ago. You, me, plus Huaisu, Qingye, and Qingxia. Together we killed a resurrected particle 6.
But if you're alone, you won't stand a chance. The Demon King's army still has several Dreadbringers, and so many high-level heretics! You'll be powerless. After you kill those Dreadbringers 2 and 3, you'll be left hiding in the desert, gnawing at the sand pitifully while you watch the Dreadbringers strut their stuff. You want so much to contribute to the Empire, but you can't even kill a single real enemy!
"I..." The Mechanical Woman panicked, "I will fight them to the end!"
"You can't win." Chu Hengkong said coldly, "You are wasting the empire's resources to satisfy yourself."
The mechanical woman leaned against the coffee table, her eyes glazed over. The calculations echoed the other party's words. Even if it completely consumed Chu Hengkong and the surrounding resources, it couldn't upgrade to point 3 without approval. No matter how much material was piled up within the existing framework, no qualitative change would occur.
It cannot defeat the Demon King's army on its own.
"Are you going to let these outsiders get away?" Chu Hengkong said aggressively, like a military training instructor, "Are you going to watch them pollute the Shendong Realm and turn the world into a fucking pile of shit?"
"I don't want it!" said the real mechanical woman anxiously.
"Then what should you do?" Chu Hengkong shook her shoulders vigorously. "Think about it! The most efficient way! What should you do!"
"I, I should..." The real mechanical woman drove the simulation verification program, and all calculations pointed to one answer, the most efficient and optimal solution.
It was unbelievable: "I should...work with you!"
"You finally understand." Chu Hengkong said admiringly, "You figured it out!"
"Don't try to deceive me!" The True Mechanical Woman was furious. "The Empire will never compromise with outsiders!"
"What do you mean by compromise?" Chu Hengkong coaxed. "You've made the decision to cooperate temporarily. What have you given up? Have you given up on killing me?"
"No." The real mechanical woman shook her head.
"Have you given up on killing the heretics?"
"No." The real mechanical woman continued to shake her head.
Chu Hengkong patted its shoulder vigorously. "You haven't given up anything. You just changed the order in which you eliminated the enemies, and you gained more military merits—this is wisdom! And it is your unique advantage! If you calculate, you may even be able to kill Fansalar. You can eliminate a great threat to the empire.
Do other real machines have this condition? Can other real machines do it?!"
The Mechanical Woman hesitated for a moment, her expression growing increasingly focused. She muttered to herself, "Only I... Only we can...!"
"You've found the right direction." Chu Hengkong took a sip of tea. "Now tell me, for the greater good, what should you do?"
"First, I'll perform repairs on the mecha to prepare for a long-term battle... Then, I'll modify it based on its current condition, optimizing energy efficiency as much as possible to ensure the feasibility of the upgrade." The Mechanical Woman began to deduce, her speech becoming increasingly fluent. "And you, on the other hand, will need targeted training on your heart module. We need to ensure you upgrade to Sephiroth 3 Xulie Heart as quickly as possible. That way, we'll have a better chance of victory in the decisive battle with the Outer Path."
"What about other threats?" Chu Hengkong said seriously, "Those knights... the remnants... are a potential danger waiting to happen!"
"It depends on the specific situation." The True Mechanical Woman said carefully, "If they still have strength after the decisive battle, then we will start to eliminate them. - Denied. If they survive after the decisive battle, they will need to be rescued by other life forms. - If they survive after the decisive battle and have more than 50% combat power, then we will start to eliminate them. -"
"There are too many loopholes." Chu Hengkong interrupted, "What if one of them ascends? Can we win with two scarred Sephiroth 3s against one Path Sephiroth 4?"
"You will lose." The real mechanical woman judged.
"So this premise needs to be revised." Chu Hengkong added considerately, "We must win, I survive, there are no Daoists with higher points than mine around, and there are no outsiders who need to be killed urgently. Only then will the battle be feasible."
"You're right." Zhenjimei nodded repeatedly, "Thank you for your calculation assistance."
"You're welcome. We're in this together." Chu Hengkong smiled. "But you see, this is a negotiation. I've been making concessions from the beginning to the end—correcting your mistakes, offering you advice—and I also require certain permissions, otherwise the negotiation won't work."
"You tell me, and I'll judge."
"I have no expectations for your ability to adapt to changing circumstances. I believe your presumptuous actions will ruin the originally smooth progress of the battle and waste the Empire's resources." Chu Hengkong said, "Therefore, from now on, I will decide whether to summon Imperial reinforcements."
The real mechanical woman slammed the table and stood up: "I don't agree--"
"Think about my battle record." Chu Hengkong said firmly, "Have I ever lost a fight so far?"
"You lost to Qingxia."
"It's you! You started the fight on your own initiative, and you lost." Chu Hengkong began to let his feelings get into the story. "If it were me, I would definitely win!"
"I can't possibly transfer authority to you. I'm the Ultimate True Machine, not you!"
"You are me." Chu Hengkong said calmly, "You are a real machine, so I am a real machine. Just as I am a martial artist, so you are a martial artist. We can continue to argue that you are a fallen one, a centaur, or a tentacle monster, but the conclusion that is set in stone will not change, that is..."
The Real Mechanical Woman's eyes began to swirl. Reason told her the other party was talking nonsense. Calculations proved Chu Hengkong's words were true. Ultimately, they were one and the same. She quickly waved her hand, halting her obsession. "Stop! Stop talking! You only acquired this authority to avoid being annihilated by the Imperial Army. You'll only use it when you're near death, destroying yourself and the enemy."
"When will I die?" Chu Heng was calm.
"You have friendly relations with multiple forces. The most likely scenario for your death is when you are besieged by multiple outsiders whose particle points are higher than your current level..." said the True Mechanical Woman.
"Don't you understand clearly? I will only summon the Imperial reinforcements when I am about to die. When they arrive, they will surely wipe out a considerable number of powerful heretics. The Empire will not lose out anyway!" Chu Hengkong laughed. "But if we follow your original idea and send a signal at Longquan Township, Shura Island, or other righteous bases... even if the Imperial reinforcements arrive, they will hardly be able to win. Isn't that a pure waste of resources?"
"This..." The Real Mechanical Woman couldn't find a reason to refute, "This... is indeed... but..."
The real mechanical girl was pacing around the room, blinking her eyes faster than a hummingbird's wings, and the humming sound of machinery filled the tea room.
Chu Hengkong knocked his teacup and said sarcastically, "A soldier of the Empire, in order to fight for power with his master, he is unwilling to give up the little power he has! He is truly loyal and brave, with a strong will. I can't believe that the vast territory of the Empire is actually supported by such a scoundrel."
"Shut up first." The real mechanical woman's words began to become personal.
Chu Hengkong sighed deeply and slumped down on the coffee table. "Alas! Seeing the imperial soldiers coming, I realize they've made another wasted trip. I'm filled with grief and sorrow. Your death and mine are minor, but the waste of resources is major. If there are any changes in the future, I hope Your Majesty will be able to see through this and forgive me!"
The Real Machine Woman suddenly lifted up the coffee table and smashed it to the ground. Angrily, she stomped on the wood chips a few times. "Alright then! But if your judgment causes a loss of Imperial resources, I will forcibly shut down the machine!"
"Deal." Chu Hengkong snapped his fingers, "Let's confirm the terms one last time.
1. You and I work together to kill the outsiders first. In order to achieve this goal, you are allowed to join forces with the surrounding friendly units.
2. When there are no Dao units with higher particles than mine on the current Dust Island, and no external Dao units that need to be killed urgently, you can show murderous intent to the surrounding creatures.
3. To maximize resource utilization efficiency, I will decide whether to send out a distress signal after negotiations are concluded."
"Any other questions?"
"It exists." Zhenjimei said, "How do Qingxia, Fander and other units judge it?"
"Considered as a friendly force."
"Request that Article 2 be changed to allow for the active elimination of surrounding life reactions."
"Negative. Any Dust Island carries the possibility of invasion by outsiders. The second clause could be converted to the first clause at any time before it is implemented."
"You're deceiving me." The True Mechanical Woman frowned. "You can just find a safe island and do nothing. Just survive without contributing anything to the Empire."
"Absolutely impossible." Chu Heng was confident. "I went out to look for a stone and was swept into the wilderness of despair. The tide of fate will never let me go."
The real mechanical woman suddenly realized.
"Agreed with the judgment. Through negotiation, no opinion."
Chu Hengkong stretched out his hand towards it, his expression becoming serious: "The truth of the empire will last forever."
The mechanical girl shook hands vigorously and responded meticulously: "The imperial truth will live forever."
It turned into a white data stream and merged into Chu Hengkong's back.
Chu Hengkong remained calm, took a sip of the cold tea, and waited for thirty seconds to make sure there was no further movement before he fell to the ground with a thud.
“Finally…!”
Chu Hengkong actually had no confidence at all. Because in the final analysis...
He had no confidence at all in defeating the opponent.
The idea that winning in reality meant winning in his mind was pure bravado, a "conjecture" he'd spouted while exploiting his inability to lie. Not to mention that back in Yingshi Town, the ideal situation was one of many versus one. This inner "real machine woman" not only retained her previous abilities but also used all of Chu Hengkong's techniques. Nearly half of their past 48 defeats had been instantly defeated by a single volley. It was a miracle he could actually win a one-on-one fight.
If we could really beat them, why bother talking? We would have chopped them up one by one and sent them to meet the King of Hell!
That's why he decided to negotiate. Not only would he talk, but he would also deceive, using every trick in his power to exploit the other party's flaws in their thinking and ruthlessly deceive them. If the other party was truly an Immortal Machine, then this plan would be completely useless. However, with the experience of the previous two times, he knew very well that this so-called humanoid Immortal Machine was essentially just another "Chu Hengkong" intensified by the real machine.
The ultimate true machine originally had no flaws, but Chu Hengkong's true machine was definitely an accident. Because machines have always had a rigid way of thinking, and Chu Hengkong was not a smart guy, this created a flaw that should not have existed for the enemy.
——After merging with his self, this mechanical woman has obviously become stupid!
If the other party isn't as smart as you are, you can cheat. Since you can cheat, you have the possibility of gaining more benefits. After all this trickery, the most dangerous opponent has at least been fooled. As for what happens next...
"Let's take it one step at a time." Chu Hengkong muttered softly, "Anyway, we're bound to fight with outsiders wherever we go."
The imagined teahouse vanished, leaving only a silver door. Chu Hengkong pushed open the door, feeling remarkably relieved. There was only one person left to negotiate with, a power that could never harm him.
He opened the door and smelled the sea breeze.
(End of this chapter)
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