NOVEL NEXT Chapter 366: Victory
Listen While Reading: Kidou Sentai Iron Saga ED - N01R (feat. Tielle)
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The battle outside the Mechanical Tree halted as a wave of golden light surged from the tree, spreading to the other machines fighting nearby.
Their red lights turned gold, then blue. The Mechanical Tree forcibly pacified them, overriding the wrath and destructive tendencies injected into their data cores by the mysterious Void Ruler.
The battle ended instantly. Everyone noticed the robots stop fighting, drop their weapons, and stand silently, observing their surroundings.
Their mechanical eyes widened as they realized something profound, something they couldn't comprehend before.
The colors.
The wind.
The warmth of the sun.
The calm sea waves.
The sound of distant seabirds.
The beautiful sky.
The clouds.
Life.
"It's beautiful," a robot said, the first words spoken by machines the cultivators had always deemed slaughtering weapons of destruction.
The immortals accompanying them stood in silence, exchanging glances.
"What's beautiful?" asked one of them.
A humanoid ant-like machine turned to them, its blue eyes scanning the ground. "The dirt."
"T-The dirt?"
"The plants…"
"Plants…"
"The sky…"
"Yeah, the sky is beautiful."
The machine nodded. "Your world is beautiful."
The immortal, a large, muscular brown bear, laughed. "Hahaha, indeed, it is."
Wai Tian sighed as her transformation deactivated. She returned to normal, collapsing to the ground in relief. "Ugh, oof… Hahh… Finally over," she said. "I spent all my energy on that, ugh…"
"Well done," Yin Sheng smiled, patting her shoulder. "You fought well, Wai Tian."
"You too, fox," the tigress replied, standing slowly. "I'm alright, I'm alright… Where's Anna, though?"
"Likely inside the tree," Sara said, floating in her ghostly form before reverting to normal. "Looks like they did it. With this, only the big tree at the center of the sunken continent remains, right?"
"That's right," Wai Tian nodded. "And it might be the greatest challenge yet. We'll face the Venerables' son, his true body and soul, forcibly turned into what Anna called a Demon King. And that's not counting their massive army."
"With the Venerables healed and at our side," Yin Sheng said, "I believe we stand a good chance. But we must prepare and train hard to grow stronger."
"I agree…" Sara nodded. "I've grown to like this world and its people. So count me in. You've given me so much, and the only thing I can do is repay your kindness with help."
Sara had grown significantly since being summoned here by accident. Thanks to the Venerables' teachings, she had mastered her abilities, controlled her undead body, and improved her fighting skills while managing her emotions.
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"It's nothing. We've barely done anything," Wai Tian said. "Your growth is all you, Sara. You're a hard worker. I can tell you're from Anna's tribe of bald apes. Hard-working and strong."
"B-Bald apes…" Sara muttered, sighing. "We're called humans, Wai Tian!"
"A-Ah, right! Hu… humans! It's a strange name to remember. My apologies," the tigress giggled.
"Anyway, we should congratulate young master Anna," Yin Sheng said. "Let's go. No time to waste."
"Wait for me!" A small crane girl flew after them, catching up. "Hey, don't exclude me from the group!"
"Ah, Yu! Sorry, we were in a hurry. Are you alright?" Wai Tian asked.
"I'm fine, I'm fine~" Yu said, brushing her clothes with feathered arms. "I never thought I could fight, but I handled things pretty well!"
"How did you even fight? I didn't see you," Yin Sheng said casually.
"W-What?! You didn't see me? But I was right there and… Ugh, come on…" Yu sighed, crossing her arms. "Whatever, let's get going… My mood's already sour. Only Anna can cheer me up."
"Uh, sorry, I didn't mean to make you mad…" Yin Sheng apologized awkwardly.
As the four walked toward the Mechanical Tree, the Venerables and their son flew overhead, surveying the battlefield.
No immortals died, but many machines that joined mid-battle perished against their brethren.
"I don't know why I feel sad about these machines' deaths…" the Heavenly Empress sighed. "Though they don't spill blood or perhaps have souls, they died fighting for us… That's enough to earn my respect."
"Hm…" The Heavenly Demon stayed silent, gazing at the machines. He struggled to express his thoughts.
"Papa, Mama, we should ask Zero One and Anna if they can repair them!" Song said. "I've heard machines can be rebuilt if their core is intact, even if they seem dead! So maybe not all are lost."
"I hope so," his mother nodded, patting his head. "I sure do. Let's meet them and congratulate them. The final battle is all that's left, so we must celebrate a bit and then prepare."
"Yeah," his father agreed. "Let's go now. We have to congratulate your sister after all."
"Okay!"
Song nodded cutely, singing like a canary as they descended.
As he looked down and flew toward the ground…
"It hurts…"
"Huh?"
He glanced into the distance. The boy swore he heard something.
"Mama…"
"Papa…"
"…!"
Song heard the voice again, a crying child's voice.
It came from far away.
His parents seemed undisturbed. Only he could hear it.
"Someone… anybody… before… I… lose… it all…"
Song gasped, realizing who the voice belonged to.
It was him.
"Don't worry…" he touched his chest. "We're coming for you! Hang in there… for a little longer, okay? Just a bit more… Please."
"…"
He couldn't hear the voice anymore.
.
.
.
(Anna's POV)
I gazed at the Mechanical Tree's ceiling, where hundreds of golden circuits spread everywhere, reaching the top.
The golden circuits slowly turned blue, and the entire tree transformed.
Not physically, but I could feel it.
Perhaps because I've assimilated nanomachines, I felt more connected to the machines.
I could sense their changes and emotions to some extent.
Right now, the Mechanical Tree seemed to…
It seemed to sigh in relief.
Wow.
I never expected it to be so tired!
When it gained its freedom—or rather, finally gained freedom—it felt relieved.
This entire time, it had been forced to act this way…
All because of that damned Void Ruler.
The Universal Computer.
What a strange name for a Void Ruler.
I could never have expected a computer to reach Void Ruler level. It seems… impossible.
Yet here we are. It happened. It's real.
And that thing likely led to the other Machine Constellations sponsoring the machines or choosing avatars from them.
A whole faction of machine gods existed. I had no idea until now… They never appeared in the original novel.
So much content was skipped because we only saw my brother's perspective…
It's terrifying to realize how expansive the universe is, and everything else.
Apparently, they have some alliance with the Bleeding Scream, or something.
Great, just perfect!
If not for the restrictions, the Void Rulers would've already erased me from existence, dang it.
"Haaahh…"
But we won, and that's worth celebrating.
I'll be happy, smile, and relax, even if just for one night.
This is a huge step forward.
The last step before the final trial, the last challenge.
The last Mechanical Tree, the biggest, the original one, the first built, the one that sank an entire continent into the ocean.
Zero One's "Mother" is there, the machine lifeform behind the invasion, the one that commands, creates, and controls them.
Perhaps the direct Apostle of the Universal Computer.
Void Rulers can't take Avatars. They're too powerful.
But they can choose Apostles, powerful beings blessed with their powers to spread chaos or whatever aligns with their Concept.
They usually appear in the Third Awakening, a real pain to deal with.
To think there's one here now… It's concerning.
Well, it's all speculation, so let's focus on the present!
I walked to Zero One and patted her shoulder.
"How is she doing?"
She was tending to Zero Three, who seemed exhausted and still processing everything. Some of her limbs were damaged, so Zero One and Zero Two were healing her with nanomachines and repair tools.
"She's alright," Zero One smiled. "Sister, are you alright?"
"…" Zero Three stayed silent. It wasn't an error. She seemed embarrassed, maybe frustrated. "Why was I even fighting… What was the point… of all of this…? Hahh… It feels so pointless now."
"Sister…"
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