257: Chapter 258 Psionic Infusion Device

"Psyker Infusion Device?" Lin Li circled the behemoth twice, rubbing his chin as he muttered, "What on earth is this thing? Looking at its wild design, covered in tubes and rivets, it doesn't look like the streamlined, high-tech creations of the Golden Age at all."

Iron Man 73 stood to the side. The blue indicator light on its eyes flickered, clearly searching its vast, sea-like underlying database for information regarding this mysterious device.

After a long while, Iron Man 73's trembling synthesized electronic voice gradually returned to stability. "Creator, please forgive my earlier lapse in composure."

Iron Man 73 began to explain in detail to Lin Li, "It is as straightforward as its name suggests. This device is a forbidden piece of equipment that can forcibly extract and utilize Warp energy through purely material technological means to perform high-concentration Psyker infusion on living beings or inorganic objects!"

"If the data in my underlying backup is correct, the core theory of this device was the ultimate research project of Dr. M, one of the craziest scientists of the Golden Age. Therefore, it is indeed a genuine Golden Age creation!"

Upon hearing this explanation, a term from the Warhammer Universe flashed through Lin Li's mind! "Psyker Ascension?!" Lin Li turned his head sharply to look at Iron Man 73, "Is this damn machine related to that Psyker Ascension plan from back then, the one that tried to turn all of humanity into Psykers?"

Iron Man 73 shifted its gaze away from the holographic projection of the Psyker Infusion Device. "Yes, Creator." Iron Man 73 nodded, "In the final days of humanity's Golden Age, as technological development reached a stagnant bottleneck, many pioneers at the pinnacle of power began to believe that humanity's fragile flesh had become a shackle to evolution."

"They attempted to abandon their mortal bodies to achieve so-called Psyker Ascension! Thereby obtaining immortality on a spiritual level within the idealistic ocean of energy that is the Warp!"

"The original design intention of this machine was exactly that." Iron Man 73 pointed at the projection, "As long as the power of this device is pushed to its maximum limit, it can continuously extract vast amounts of Warp energy, forcibly elevating the internal Psyker potential of any life form standing on it to the highest level, Alpha or even Omega!"

"Under the infusion of such terrifying energy, the subject's body would instantly overload and collapse. Their soul, wrapped in this power, would completely break free from the shackles of the flesh, enter the Warp, and complete the so-called ascension." Iron Man 73 paused, its voice turning exceptionally cold: "However, Creator, you know. As mechanical life forms, we Men of Iron were born without that illusory thing called a soul."

"Therefore, through our observations as Men of Iron, we long ago saw the essence of the Warp—it is not a paradise for ascension at all; it is merely a hell formed by the convergence of all extreme emotions from across the galaxy!"

"Because of this, many Men of Iron at the time used this as a reason to refuse to cooperate with the Psyker Ascension plan, and initiated an armed rebellion aimed at saving the physical universe! This was also one of the many triggers for that later rebellion!"

After hearing this dusty, cruel history, Lin Li nodded inwardly. "It really is related to that crazy plan."

Lin Li put aside his joking mood and asked seriously, "Since this thing is so dangerous, can it still be used now? For me, what practical use does it have at the moment?"

"Its operating principle is very simple, and it is actually quite safe at low power. There are even detailed operating instructions in Ancient Terra language engraved on its base." Iron Man 73 analyzed, "In addition to performing Psyker Ascension at high power, it can also perform micro-infusions of Psyker energy in a strictly restricted low-power mode."

"This can allow ordinary mortals, or even a lifeless sword, to possess a faint Warp Psyker attribute." Iron Man 73 dutifully reminded, "Forcibly unlocking Psyker abilities is absolutely not a good thing for many ordinary civilians nowadays. Even a faint spark of Psyker energy will attract the gaze of demons. This is tantamount to murder."

"However!" Iron Man 73 changed the subject, "If the objects of operation are the clones under your command, there might be unexpected and excellent results! For example... these clones can indiscriminately awaken and acquire Psyker abilities through this machine without worrying about the attention of demons, because their consciousness exists purely in this universe, while their souls are in other universes!"

"Holy crap!" Lin Li's eyes lit up instantly, "That means! In the future, all my players can use this thing to awaken Psyker abilities in batches and become mages? And it's the kind where anyone can just pay some points and get on the machine?!"

"Theoretically, yes." Iron Man 73 nodded, "But the use of this device is not limited to biological infusion; you can also use it to create enchanted weapons."

"Good stuff!" Lin Li rubbed his hands excitedly, "Old Seven! Post a hidden quest in the game backend immediately! Randomly pick a few unlucky—no, pick a few lucky players to come over and do a free human test for us!"

After arranging the quest, Lin Li couldn't help but mutter in his heart, "This damn Shelter was clearly built by Dr. Z. Why does he have the bottom-of-the-box treasures of Dr. M, who advocated for Psyker Ascension, in his warehouse? This Dr. Z was also a guy with sticky fingers back in the day!"

Muttering aside, Lin Li knew deep down the danger of this machine. For safety's sake, Lin Li placed the Psyker Infusion Device alone in a room on the sixth underground level. Moreover, sparing no expense, he installed six precious blackstone matrixes in the surrounding walls of the room at once! This was to form an absolutely insulating physical force field to prevent even a trace of Warp energy from leaking out during the infusion process and contaminating Shelter.

After settling this big guy, Lin Li began to busy himself with processing the other loot obtained from the lottery. For those rarer Golden Age Power Armor or individual weapons, he waved his hand and had Iron Man 73 throw them to the World Forger for scanning and analysis, preparing to start mass production on an assembly line. The only thing he felt slightly sorry about was that this lottery didn't yield a badass superweapon like the Mass-Energy Conversion Cannon that could blow up a warship with one shot.

...

A few days later. As a large amount of new equipment was listed in the system store, spring had truly arrived for the players. In terms of equipment selection, the style had become much more varied. It was no longer the monotonous combination of Ranger Power Armor and plasma rifles as before.

Just in terms of new Power Armor styles, there were already several more available. There was the [Red Arrow Type III Power Armor] that pursued ultimate speed and stealth; the [Mountain Opener Heavy Power Armor] that pursued absolute strength and heavy protection; and even all sorts of strange styles like the [Tentacle-Type Power Assistance System] which was conducive to multi-modal flexible construction...

But even with so much new equipment to choose from, there were still players worrying in front of the milk tea stall at Shelter's surface market. At this moment, a Bearman player with snow-white fur all over his body and standing over two meters tall—[Wu A Level Combo]—was sitting depressedly on a specially made large stool, clutching a large can of ale in his hand and taking a fierce gulp.

He looked at the store panel, having no idea what equipment to buy. As a Beastman player, his body structure and bone proportions were completely different from normal humans. Those standard Power Armor designs that strictly adhered to human physiological structures could not be worn or used by his massive bear body at all.

And he happened to be a player with a bit of a clean freak streak; he absolutely did not want to join that heavy-taste Bear Ridge guild and pilot those disgusting Zerg Flesh Mecha. Weapons were even less of an option. With those wide bear paws, apart from custom-made alloy power claws which were relatively suitable, he couldn't even fit his fingers into any of those guns or cannons with delicate triggers!

Just as the big white bear was drowning his sorrows in alcohol, [Devil Muscle Thor] also wandered over to the milk tea stall.

"Yo! Brother Bear!" Devil Muscle Thor patted the big white bear's thick shoulder and spun around to show off, "Haven't picked your equipment yet? Look at this new [Red Arrow Type III] I just exchanged my points for. How is it? Cool, right?"

Although Devil Muscle Thor was a female player, in the game, she always adhered to the principle that strength is beauty, and in terms of stat points, she was constantly trying frantically to develop toward the direction of a strength-based big guy. But perhaps due to the innate gene sequencing of this clone, her strength attribute growth was simply too slow. As a result, she was already nearly level thirty, yet she wasn't even one meter seventy tall. Standing in front of the white-furred big bear who was over two meters tall, her red Power Armor looked just like a miniature pudding.

"Sigh... so worried!" Wu A Level Combo sighed and took another gulp of alcohol. Devil Muscle Thor pulled over a chair and sat down, asking curiously, "Speaking of which, Brother Bear. You didn't even wear Power Armor, and you don't even have a life support system. How did you manage to run into space to fight bugs the other day?"

"I didn't even go to space, damn it!" Wu A Level Combo rolled his eyes and said disdainfully, "I was on the ground the whole time, fighting those big bugs in hand-to-hand combat!"

Devil Muscle Thor looked shocked, as if she had heard some Arabian Nights story: "Holy crap? You didn't even wear Power Armor, and you can beat bugs with just your bare body?"

Wu A Level Combo smiled disdainfully, revealing sharp fangs. "Tch! Suo, do you know what stats are? Do you know what 'one force overcomes ten skills' means?" The white bear proudly patted his chest, "In the face of absolute strength, all the fancy tricks are paper tigers! In this game, there is only what your Brother Bear can't catch up to. There isn't anything your Brother Bear can't beat! Understand?"

Devil Muscle Thor rolled her eyes mercilessly and mocked, "Tch! Keep bragging! The big shot Flame Fist can go toe-to-toe with that Norn Emissary in space relying on a pair of Flame Fists! You, a bear without armor, would struggle to even solo a Brain Bug Tyrant on the ground, right!"

Wu A Level Combo was poked in the sore spot, snorted coldly, and couldn't be bothered to waste breath on her. This girl was famous in the server for being great at bickering. He was just about to get up and leave. Suddenly! The PV device hanging on his thick neck emitted a rapid vibration and popped up a system message flickering with golden light.

Wu A Level Combo picked up the PV with two thick fingers and took a look; his eyes instantly widened like copper bells! [Personal Hidden Trigger Quest — Psyker Infusion!] [Quest Description: A highly dangerous ancient device has appeared in the depths of Shelter. The Supreme Leader is in urgent need of a strong Spark Warrior to come and perform the first human test for this mysterious device!] [Quest Reward: If the test is successful, there will be a chance to acquire awakened Psyker abilities and become a noble 'Psyker'!] [Safety Warning: This quest is dangerous and has a super high mortality rate of physical collapse! Players must go to the respawn point to save their progress first!]

"Holy crap!!!" Wu A Level Combo was so excited he jumped three feet high and crushed the beer can in his hand, "A hidden quest?! I actually have a chance to become a Psyker mage?!!" Without a second thought, Wu A Level Combo threw away the empty can, strode with his two thick legs, and like an out-of-control tank, ran wildly toward the main base of Shelter in the distance!

And standing on the side, Devil Muscle Thor also jolted the moment she heard the words 'hidden quest'. "Holy crap! You're not taking me with you for such a good thing? Brother Bear, wait for me!" Devil Muscle Thor hurried to follow.

At this time, on the sixth underground level, in an independent armored room locked by heavy isolation doors, the huge [Psyker Infusion Device] stood quietly in the center. The six blackstone matrixes embedded in the surrounding walls were emitting a faint glow. A burst of rapid footsteps came from outside the door.

Lin Li stood in front of the console, watching the two players, one tall and one short, rushing over, and forcibly held back the smile at the corner of his mouth. Standing in front of him was a Beastman giant bear over two meters tall, covered in snow-white fur. Beside the white bear followed a small female player less than one meter seventy tall. This pair of jokers with such a huge contrast in size stood together, looking ridiculous no matter how you looked at it.

"Being able to rush over at this time shows that your courage is commendable." Lin Li put his hands behind his back, assumed the dignity of a faction leader, and looked at the big white bear in front of him, "Since you are prepared to lose your life at any moment, then now, uninstall all the external armor and weapons on your body and get completely naked. Then walk in and stand on the center platform of that device."

"Yes! Guarantee completion of the mission!" Wu A Level Combo shouted his order without hesitation. He quickly unfastened the few tattered tactical vests and alloy knee pads hanging on his body, revealing a strong body of white-furred muscle. Then he strode into the armored room and stood steadily on the metal platform in the center of the device.

Lin Li watched him get ready and nodded to Iron Man 73 beside him. The blue light in 73's eyes flickered rapidly, and its mechanical arm input instructions on the console at high speed. Accompanied by a low mechanical roar, the lights in the entire room dimmed instantly. A few seconds later, a dazzling purple-red energy ball appeared out of thin air at the top of the Psyker Infusion Device! That was the Warp energy forcibly extracted from the void!

And with the appearance of this purple-red energy ball, the physical space within the entire armored room actually began to show visible distortion! The small room, which was clearly less than twenty square meters, was stretched by space, and looking in from the outside, it seemed as vast and boundless as if it had been magnified a hundred times. Even more terrifyingly, even the time dimension began to appear chaotic! Within the light of the device, overlapping phantoms were projected: there were afterimages of Wu A Level Combo just walking in and taking off his equipment; there were also future images of Wu A Level Combo holding his huge bear head, kneeling on the ground, and roaring in pain. These phantoms intertwined and flickered in the same space, making one's scalp tingle.