218: Variables outside of logic

The moment his consciousness was ripped from his flesh, there was no dizziness, only a tearing sensation of being violently forced into a high-pressure pipeline.

The darkness faded, replaced by a white so pure it was positively offensive.

Here, there was no up or down, left or right, no frame of reference for the passage of time. Chen Feng's digital projection floated in this void, and before him hung a 'star' that was on fire.

It was not a fireball, but a sphere composed of billions of cascading data waterfalls. Each data stream represented the birth, death, and evolution calculations of a galaxy. The sheer volume of information piled together formed a tangible gravitational field.

Sequence Zero.

Before this supreme mainframe of the Mechanical Divine Court, Chen Feng was as insignificant as a speck of dust. The oppressive pressure emanating from the difference in their levels of existence caused the data structure of his wisp of consciousness to flicker unstably, like a lightbulb with a bad connection.

'Offer.'

The synthesized electronic voice sounded again, without a source, yet vibrating throughout the entire white space.

'Based on Hanhai Trade's current balance sheet and projected deployment of the Omni-Dimensional Trade Alliance's military forces.'

The surface of the data star rippled. Countless red '0's and '1's intertwined in the air, instantly constructing a death probability chart.

'Your survival rate under the first round of saturation bombardment is less than 0.01%.'

'Investing in Hanhai is equivalent to pouring resources into a black hole. This does not conform to the logic of maximizing returns. Transaction rejected.'

A cold verdict.

No mockery, no contempt, just a statement based on absolute computational power. In Sequence Zero's algorithm, Chen Feng was already a dead man.

Chen Feng did not speak. He merely raised his hand and snapped his fingers in this pure white space.

'Snap.'

An encrypted data packet exploded at his fingertips.

It wasn't a financial report or a strategic map. It was a video. A video of 'Chimera' in the Titan Laboratory, clumsily repairing that Plastic Action Figure with his half-mechanical hands.

'Logic is perfect, Sequence Zero.'

Chen Feng's voice was exceptionally clear amidst the data storm. 'But perfect logic often implies a dead loop.'

He took a step forward, braving the pressure that threatened to tear his consciousness apart, and stared directly at the data star.

'You pursue ascension, attempting to evolve from silicon-based logic into a higher-dimensional existence. But tens of thousands of Stellar Cycles have passed, and you're still stuck at the bottleneck. Why?'

The rotation speed of the data star seemed to slow for a beat.

'Because you are too rational.'

Chen Feng pointed at the video in the air. 'Evolution has never been calculated. Evolution is mutation, error, miracles with a probability of less than 0.01%.'

'Chimera is a paradoxical fusion of biology and machinery. In your logic, he should have collapsed from rejection ten thousand times over. But he lives, and he has gained a sense of self.'

Chen Feng suddenly spread his arms wide. The data streams behind him, driven by his will, transformed into countless scenes of his desperate comebacks—the riot in the mines, the breakout of the vengeance, the annihilation of the Blackwater Fleet.

'This is my offer.'

'I'm not selling resources, not selling technology.'

'I'm selling you a 'variable'.'

Chen Feng spoke extremely fast, each word like a nail being forcefully driven into this purely rational world.

'Investing in Hanhai isn't for that laughable bit of interest. You're buying a ticket. A ticket to observe the 'universe's greatest irrational variable'.'

'If I lose, you merely lose a pittance of credit points, a drop in the bucket for you.'

'But if I win...'

Chen Feng paused, his face revealing an almost seductive expression. 'You will obtain a brand-new set of algorithms capable of breaking the logical dead loop. This set of algorithms might just be the key to ascension that your Mechanical Divine Court has been desperately seeking.'

Dead silence.

The massive data star suddenly stopped rotating.

The previously smoothly flowing data waterfalls developed fractures. The entire white space began to violently tremble, countless blue error codes sweeping through the surroundings like a storm.

That was Sequence Zero's core performing overloaded calculations.

It was assessing.

In its logic library, the scales of 'risk' and 'reward' were swinging violently. On one side was the near-certainty of death, an objective reality. On the other was an unquantifiable possibility regarding 'evolution'.

One second.

Two seconds... Ten seconds.

For Sequence Zero, whose computation speed was measured in Femtoseconds, this ten-second stall felt as long as a century.

Chen Feng's consciousness teetered on the edge of collapse in this logical storm, but he still stood ramrod straight, his fingers not even trembling. He was gambling. Gambling that this AI, with 'evolution' as its ultimate goal, would not pass up this opportunity, even if the desire was only one in ten thousand.

Finally.

The storm abruptly ceased.

The data star began rotating again, only this time, amidst its originally cold blue light, there was a trace of a warmth, a golden hue never seen before.

'Variable value... reassessing.'

'Logic corrected. Introducing 'Chaos Parameter'.'

'Conclusion: This venture capital possesses extremely high observational value.'

The grand electronic voice fell, like a divine oracle.

'Transaction approved.'

'The Mechanical Divine Court, as a 'strategic partner', will subscribe to 30% of the initial issuance of the 'Hanhai War Bonds'.'

The next second, a thick golden pillar of light descended from the sky, instantly engulfing Chen Feng's consciousness...

The real world. Hanhai Base. The secret chamber.

Chen Feng's eyes snapped open, and he gasped for air like a drowning man who had just surfaced. Cold sweat soaked through his shirt, chilling his back.

'Beep—'

The communication terminal emitted a sharp, prolonged tone.

Immediately after, the alarm sirens throughout the entire base abruptly and inexplicably fell silent.

Urgent footsteps echoed from the corridor outside the door—the sound of high heels striking the metal floor.

'Bang!'

The chamber door was violently shoved open.

Eve stood in the doorway, holding a tactical tablet that was flashing frantically. Her face, usually only etched with indifference and focus, was now filled with a look of near-stupefied astonishment.

'Boss...'

Her voice trembled slightly. 'Just now... a fund transfer was injected into our encrypted account.'

Eve swallowed hard and handed the tablet to Chen Feng.

On the screen, the string of zeros following the long number was dizzying.

'One hundred and thirty million interstellar credit points. And...' Eve took a deep breath. '...it comes with the highest access permissions to three automated munitions factories located in Sector Three, owned by the Mechanical Divine Court.'

Chen Feng took the tablet, his fingers lightly brushing the screen as he looked at the number large enough to buy half a star system.

He had won the bet.

The exhaustion from dancing on the edge of a cliff and the elation of victory intertwined, making his fingertips tingle slightly.

'Don't just stand there.'

Chen Feng tossed the tablet back to Eve, unbuttoning his collar as he strode out. 'Notify Su Li. The money is here. Tell Reno to double that damn weapons procurement list for me.'

'Also.'

He stopped at the doorway and looked back at Eve, who was still processing it all.

'Activate all the teleportation gates. I want to see those assembly lines from the munitions factories relocated to our base within twenty-four hours.'

'We're going to show Augustus what a war waged by a 'Pay-to-Win Player' looks like.'

...Meanwhile, at the Omni-Dimensional Trade Alliance headquarters.

'What did you say?'

Augustus abruptly rose from the obsidian throne symbolizing supreme power.

In the holographic projection before him, the Intelligence Officer's face was as pale as paper.

'Detected... detected an ultra-large-scale capital flow. The source is... a core node of the Mechanical Divine Court.'

The Intelligence Officer's voice trembled. 'This capital bypassed our monitoring network and was directly injected into Hanhai Trade's account. Furthermore, the Pantheon's munitions factories are operating at full capacity, with the destination... also Hanhai.'

Augustus's pupils constricted sharply.

The Mechanical Divine Court?

Those iron blocks that only know how to calculate, who never participate in any political struggle? Why would they suddenly support a low-dimensional insect?

Unless... 'Could it be that the Divine Court intends to use that Chen Feng to declare war on the Alliance?'

Once this thought appeared, it grew like wildfire. Augustus felt an unprecedented sense of crisis. If the Mechanical Divine Court entered the war, the nature of the conflict would change completely. This would no longer be a policing action to exterminate pirates, but a collision between two super-civilizations.

'Recall the original commercial sanctions order.'

Augustus made a decisive decision, his voice terrifyingly grim. 'Commercial tactics are useless now. Since the Divine Court has entered the fray, there's only one language left to solve this.'

He looked towards the projection of Valerius standing nearby.

'Admiral, assemble the Alliance's First and Second Combined Fleets immediately. I want you to turn that sector of space into glass before the Divine Court's follow-up forces arrive.'

...Hanhai Base. Central Plaza.

The massive Deep-Space Broadcast Tower had just been completed. Its exposed metal skeleton shimmered with a cold, sharp light under the glow of the star.

Chen Feng stood before the control console at the base of the tower.

The wind was strong, making his trench coat flap loudly.

Behind him, countless material teleportation gates were flashing wildly. Crates of brand-new energy blocks, precise engineering robots, were pouring into the base in an endless stream. In the distance, Reno's roars and the roar of starship engines intertwined into an impassioned symphony.

But it wasn't enough.

Having money and guns wasn't enough.

He wanted a tidal wave that would sweep across the entire universe.

Chen Feng extended his hand, hovering it over the red launch button.

'Su Li,' he said quietly into the communicator. 'Is the roadshow material ready?'

'Uploaded long ago,' Su Li's voice came through, carrying a trace of barely suppressed excitement. 'As soon as you press it, this information packet—containing the prospectus, war simulations, and proof of the Divine Court's investment—will be broadcast via Superluminal Beam to every corner of the universe with interstellar receiving capabilities.'

'Good.'

Chen Feng looked up, gazing at the deep expanse of stars overhead.

Out there were greedy plutocrats, desperate slaves, opportunistic gamblers, and ambitious individuals awaiting change.

Today, he was going to give everyone a chance to place their bets.

'Everyone, the show is about to begin.'

Chen Feng's finger came down heavily.

'Hum—'

A beam invisible to the naked eye, yet powerful enough to shake the foundations of the entire interstellar financial order, shot out from the broadcast tower, instantly piercing the atmosphere and roaring off into the vast, boundless depths of the universe.