Abyssal Wanderer.

The moment Jiang Zhou donned his armor and stepped out of the data center, countless tiny, lead-colored mechanical bees surrounded him.

His first instinct was to activate the Chainbound Armor to create distance and counterattack, but the armor's power system abruptly shut down. This left him completely immobilized, as if trapped inside an iron virgin's chamber.

Before Jiang Zhou could react further, the tiny swarm of mechanical bees burrowed directly into the mech's interior. The buzzing of their wings and the rustling of their mouthparts echoed continuously in the confined space, sending chills down his spine.

It's number one...

Jiang Zhou immediately guessed the source of these things, but he still didn't understand why the other party would attack him at this time.

However, before he could activate the Dark Moon Mark to counterattack, a message came from Number One.

[Don't move yet, I'm upgrading your armor.]

Upon hearing this, Jiang Zhou immediately stopped struggling.

Damn it, couldn't they have given us a heads-up before upgrading? It's like they're trying to kill us to silence us...

Watching the mechanical bee swarm constantly transform and recombine, becoming different combat modules on the entire suit of armor, Jiang Zhou couldn't help but mutter to himself.

Then, to prevent the emcee or Booker from not being able to keep up with the information, he also told Number One that he was going down to support Jim Ritter.

Using the universal printer on level -7 is indeed a good method. However, jumping directly from depth 3 to depth 7 seems a bit too risky.

A moment later, Number One sent back a message.

Although he said it was a "good method," judging from his words, the other party probably didn't really believe it.

The emcee said Jim's special abilities enabled him to do this. Well, given the current situation, even the riskiest plan is worth trying.

Jiang Zhou could only offer a vague explanation.

Perhaps due to the tense situation, Number One fell silent and did not reply.

About two minutes later, just as Jiang Zhou's armor was about to complete its upgrade, a slender object, seemingly made of pure gold, suddenly pierced the sky and precisely embedded itself in the wall next to Jiang Zhou.

It had no propulsion device at its end, making it look as if it had been thrown at us.

This weapon is called "Golden Rain," and it's a level 7 weapon. The detailed instructions are inside. Take it with you down; it might come in handy in a crisis.

Just as Jiang Zhou pulled out the "golden javelin" with a puzzled expression, a message came from Number One again.

Before Jiang Zhou could express his gratitude, the other party continued:

[In addition, I have sealed all the adjustments and modifications to Theseus's Path Depth 3 into the "Golden Rain," but the crucial "Pegasus" is still missing. Whether or not to perform an incomplete upgrade is up to you.]

After speaking, Number One left the communication channel.

That's quite a generous gesture...

Even though he was mentally prepared, Jiang Zhou couldn't help but sigh – not only did they send him the full set of Depth 3 printing permissions except for "Pegasus", but they also sent him a Depth 7 weapon.

Whether it was to curry favor with Christie or to use him as a go-between with Charon, it's clear that Number One has made a significant investment in him.

Jiang Zhou thought to himself.

Of course, there are probably more practical reasons for this as well—if this crisis of human intelligence is not extinguished, they will all be doomed... After all, if they cannot survive, no matter what level of weapons and equipment they have, or how they have been adjusted and modified, it will all be in vain.

Thinking this, Jiang Zhou gripped the "Golden Rain" sword tightly in his hand.

But in any case, it's time to end all of this.

…………

“If you were to actually say ‘You could leave the Nord resettlement area first,’ I swear I would hold a grudge against you for the rest of my life.”

After the emcee left, Hanel spoke before Jim could.

Jim opened his mouth, but the words he wanted to say turned into a sigh.

"But you are not obligated to die for the Nord settlement."

He thought about it for a while and finally found another reason to persuade him.

Hanel raised an eyebrow.

"So you have it?"

Jim nodded:

“I’ve lived here for almost twenty years, and I’ve spent most of my conscious life here. There are so many people here that I know, and most of them shouldn’t have died so ridiculously… so I can’t just stand by and watch this place be destroyed.”

Perhaps his reasons differed slightly from those of the Icarus Liberation Front, but he did indeed have reasons to protect the Nord settlement.

Hanel nodded in agreement, then looked at the other person and said:
"Alright, now I have a similar reason."

She chose to stay simply because Jim was there.

Jim was speechless for a moment.

At this moment, Hanel stepped forward and raised his hand to touch Jim's weathered face—he had never undergone any life-extending or anti-aging surgery, so his current appearance looked exactly like his actual age, which was rare among the adjusters of this era.

“Over the years, every time I’m lucid, I can’t help but think about that question—if I were the one on that plane back then, would I have made the same choice as that ‘reflection’? So Jimmy, now that this choice has miraculously reappeared in front of me, please let me make the choice I won’t regret?”

She gently stroked Jim's face and whispered.

Jim was filled with mixed feelings, but before he could say anything, Ji Mu, oblivious to the atmosphere, leaned in.

"Well, I'm also a native of Nord..."

"Should I go too?"

She pointed somewhat nervously to her chin.

Hanel quickly withdrew his hand and turned to organize the supplies that might be needed along the way.

Jim, also rubbing his head in exasperation, said:
"No need, you can just stay here for a while... and please take good care of Hayashihara Eri and Duanmu Youxue."

The entire resettlement area is currently in complete chaos. As a Sleep Demon-level hacker, Ji Mu is considered a high-value target by the memetic entities. Venturing out recklessly could easily result in a dump truck suddenly appearing and sending him to another world.

While it must be said that this place is currently not very safe due to the large number of Dionysus virus infected individuals gathered here, it is at least protected by a defensive line built by the remnants of the Security Bureau, which includes quite a few Coordinators, and even several Path Coordinators—albeit only at Depth 1 and Depth 2 levels—plus the gravity traps left behind by the Master of Ceremonies before he left. This place can currently be considered a heavily armed fortress.

Although they will definitely need network support to get to the underground resettlement area, given Ji Mu's small, unmodified body, he might just be hit by the aftershocks of the battlefield and be sent there to start over.

Besides, given the current intensity of cyber warfare, even a Sandman-level hacker wouldn't be of much help.

In conclusion, it's better for her to stay here.

"Of course, by 'take care,' I mean administering the anesthetic to them on time."

Seeing Ji Mu's beaming face, Jim emphasized.

He dared not be careless about these two superhuman infected individuals—based on their previous assessment of the situation, who knows what they might do if they were conscious.

After repeatedly emphasizing the importance of administering the anesthetic on time and in the correct dosage, Jim turned to look at Wang Ying, who was standing to the side.

“Going down to the underground of the resettlement area will be a battle between Coordinators and Constructs, so you shouldn’t come down with us.”

Jim's tone softened immediately when facing Wang Ying.

At the same time, he felt a beam of light pierce his back from not far away.

At that moment, Wang Ying was cleaning her gun. Upon hearing this, she first glanced up at Jim, sneered, and then lowered her head to load a red-headed explosive round into the magazine.

"Don't worry, I'm fairly self-aware when it comes to combat ability, so why would I go down and become a burden to you all... I'll stay here to protect Ji Mu and the others."

With that, she clicked another bullet into the magazine. Jim was embarrassed and didn't know what to say. In the end, he just nodded gratefully, silently thanked her, and turned to leave.

Some things become more wrong the more you talk about them.

"Jimmy!"

But at that moment, Wang Ying called out to him.

He turned around and saw Wang Ying put down the gun in her hand.

Then, Wang Ying walked straight over and gave him a hug openly—in fact, Jim had already seen through her intention by representing the topological structure when she mocked him, which was why he was in such a hurry to leave.

But when she came closer, Jim didn't flinch.

In fact, due to the existence of "Night Marrow", it is actually more difficult to avoid dodging.

Because the other party tells him through the representation of topological structure that this is just a comrade's hug.

"You must survive. I bet many people have already told you that. But I'm probably the only one who will say that to you..."

Holding Jim, Wang Ying spoke calmly:

"Even if you reach the limits of human intelligence, you must ensure that you are still yourself."

As she spoke, she made a gun shape with the hand that was originally around the other person's shoulder, and pressed her index finger against Jim's temple.

“Anything inside the body can be replaced, but this is the only proof of my true existence… I hope that after the adjustments and modifications are completed, I can still call you ‘Jim Ritter’.”

After saying that, she released her grip, took two steps back, and then nodded expressionlessly to Hanel beside her.

"I will try my best to do so."

Jim nodded, then turned and walked toward Hanel, who had already packed up the supplies.

At that moment, Hanel was looking at him with a beaming smile.

"It seems you've made quite a few good teammates at Nord over the years."

She emphasized the word "teammate".

Jim decided to put this matter aside for the time being until he met up with Jiang Zhou.

So he pointed to the pharmacist beside him, changing the subject:
"Was he going down with them?"

Although its main body is only at a depth of 3, considering the number of symbiotes that are currently breeding in the Nord settlement, the Pharmacist, a Chimera Pathfinder capable of commanding a large number of cannon fodder troops, can be considered a powerful addition to the combat force.

"To be precise, they must go down with them."

Hanel said.

Chimera path adjusters metabolize "daffodil pollen" in their brains extremely quickly—even when the target is unaware and not targeted. Therefore, Hanel must always keep the apothecary by his side, injecting him with "daffodil pollen" every twenty minutes to ensure absolute control over him.

Moreover, we can't just kill him like that: firstly, it's unclear whether the symbiotes will go berserk after the pharmacist dies; secondly, the inhibitor bacteria currently used to block the spread of the "Sun God Virus" must be produced by the pharmacist himself.

We couldn't let him go, nor could we kill him for the time being. After weighing the pros and cons, we had no choice but to take him down with us.

"Don't worry, I will keep an eye on the concentration of 'daffodil pollen' in his body."

Hanel expressed these concerns about Jim.

In the end, Jim had no choice but to nod helplessly.

…………

"Team Leader Booker, are you sure you want to send people to support that Olympus squad?"

In the internal channel, Shen L, the head of the operations department, confirmed this for the last time.

Even after the "Battle of Shattered Heavens," when Icarus expanded its influence, their current fighting strength can only be described as meager.

"Yes, not only do we need to deploy manpower, but you also need to lead the team, bringing the most elite action team to provide support."

Booker said in an unquestionable tone.

"This……"

Shen L was somewhat embarrassed.

It wasn't that he was afraid of death—he was a veteran who had come from the time of Corrett, and for him, "sacrifice" was nothing more than following orders.

But right now, both the hacker group and other departments of the organization are in dire need of manpower, yet the team leader is sending him to pick up an Olympus squad at this time... Putting aside everything else, Booker himself needs support even more right now.

“If possible, I’m even planning to go and help them myself… Shen, you have to understand, we can’t hold out for long with just that ‘Icarus.’ Right now, our only hope is to get Jim Ritter to the multi-printer.”

Booker said this on the channel.

"Is it really that exaggerated? 'The only hope' or something..."

Booker, puzzled by Shen L's question, chose to open the secret channel and tell him about "Great Thunder"—he had not previously disclosed this information to his colleagues in the Operations Department because he was worried that a collapse in morale or a leak of information would strengthen the power of the Incarnation of Fear.

He then went on to explain the role Jim Ritter could play if he were promoted.

Shen L listened to this crucial intelligence with a blank expression, and then immediately said that he would lead the team there.

Then, in less than three minutes, he directly selected a squad of all-coordinators from the Operations Department, and they set off for the rendezvous point in a Pluto Deep Dive all-terrain vehicle with an anti-gravity engine—speaking of which, this was the printing permission that Liao Qi had left for them back then, and he didn't know where he got it from—and waited for the arrival of the Olympus squad.

Not far away, a humanoid figure with its lower body made up of countless metal appendages watched as the all-terrain vehicle sped away into the distance.

At this moment, a blue core containing powerful energy is being steadily implanted into the center of his chest.

"Just as you predicted."

The man murmured.

The head hanging at his waist slowly moved its lips, giving a silent reply.

Meanwhile, the man's other appendages were rapidly connecting and installing countless complex parts onto his body.

…………

"Old man, do you think I'm easy to fool... Although her real appearance is a bit different from before, she is clearly the goddess Hecate, okay? I absolutely cannot mistake that aura! And then you're telling me that some advanced AI on the dark web is a human shareholder of Theseus Freight?!"

Christie said very cautiously.

"Is it possible that the person who designed Hecate did so based on her temperament?"

Charon said so.

Do I look like someone who's easy to fool?

Christie said.

"You've become my steed..."

Charon shrugged.

Just as Christie was about to lash out, Charon immediately said seriously:
"It should be noted that the shareholder is not the only one. Whether you can become the CEO depends on whether the other party agrees... Of course, as long as you do what I say, the other party will most likely agree."

Upon hearing this, the engine buried deep within Christie's body roared to life.

"Putting aside whether you're lying to me, this job... even with my weak inertia-assisted engine, the risk is just too great." (End of Chapter)