This is not mechanical ascension...

Chapter 312: It turns out that I got involved in a misunderstanding
Divide the Xingyuan Empire?

To be honest, Li Ming was also shocked by the weight of these words.

Even as a veteran actor, he couldn't help but pause slightly, with quite a stir in his heart.

But at the same time, he was alert. Although his words might sound like bragging, he must have some confidence to drop such a bombshell right at the start.

He quickly calmed down and did not continue the other person's conversation. Instead, he remained calm and unbuttoned his clothes.

He sat down casually and pointed to the chair on the other side: "Please take a seat, sir. What's your name?"

Blackbeard was slightly surprised, but he didn't say much. He walked to the chair, sat down, rubbed his chin, and pulled up his beard, "You can call me Blackbeard."

As the words "divide the Xingyuan Empire" were spoken, there was an imminent might, which was easily resolved by Qinglong.

Obviously, this Forging-star-level mechanic did not like the feeling of being suppressed.

Seeing the other party's actions, Li Ming was slightly stunned. It was as if a bolt of lightning flashed through his mind, and he suddenly remembered the guide that Old Wu had mentioned.

"He is not tall, half hunched over, with a face full of stubble, and he likes to stroke his beard when he has nothing to do..."

The driving force behind this?
Realizing this, Li Ming became more alert. Based on the known information currently at hand, the power of the driving force behind the scenes must be quite strong.

He even had the urge to put on the tank suit directly, but he was not sure about the other party's purpose yet, and doing so would be tantamount to showing his cowardice.

At the same time, the words "divide the Xingyuan Empire" also shone brightly in his mind. This is the ultimate goal of this guy, or this group of people.

At this moment, he thought of a lot of things. As an old empire, the Xingyuan Empire can definitely be called the overlord of the stars.

The strength, heritage and influence are unparalleled.

Dividing up this empire is not a matter of just one sentence. This attempt to sow discord is probably only a small part of the whole plan.

Even so, it took decades or even longer.

Li Ming was not tempted by this illusory big cake. He was surprised that the other party actually invited him to join the whole big plan.

He himself felt very surprised. After all, he had ruined the other party's plan and emptied out the core ruins.

It would be fine if he wasn't angry, but he even offered an olive branch. For such a big project, is recruiting so casually?

After all kinds of thoughts flashed through his mind and he confirmed the other party's identity, the amount of information derived was too much. Li Ming had to sort it out a little, but his face remained calm and he said calmly:
"I thought I would not see you this time."

"Haha..." Blackbeard laughed. In his opinion, Qinglong had completely seen through their plan, so he spoke casually:
"Your Excellency has resorted to such means. If I don't show up, it would be too arrogant. Arrogance is not a good thing."

What did they think I did?
Li Ming remained calm and said with a smile: "I am not up to the standard, how can I compare with you guys."

"You are being modest."

Blackbeard shook his head. After a brief greeting, he said directly, "You have demonstrated your strength and means, and handed in your pledge of allegiance. We welcome the joining of a Forging Star Mechanic."

Li Ming's eyes moved slightly. He could understand showing his strength and means, but when would he surrender...

Hmm... could it be Gabriel?
Li Ming's heart skipped a beat. This guy directly concluded that it was me who killed Gabriel, and thought that I killed Gabriel as a token of my allegiance?
The thoughts in his mind flashed like lightning. If he inferred the answer, it would mean that the other party thought that I had known about their existence for a long time and had been planning to join them, so I pledged my allegiance.

Otherwise the idea doesn't make sense at all.

So why does he think so?

Li Ming himself was a little confused. He had indeed known for a long time that someone was behind this and had found many clues.

But that's all. At most, I took advantage of the situation to push it a little bit. It shouldn't give the other party such an illusion, right?

No, I think I got it wrong.

Li Ming's eyes narrowed slightly as he pondered secretly. Everything he did was in accordance with his own plan and he changed according to the situation.

At the beginning, he was not strong enough so he lay dormant for a while, trying every way to improve his strength. He traveled to the Land of the Stars, the Torch Organization, and then came here.

As an executor, I certainly don’t feel anything, but it may not be the case in the eyes of others.

No one thought that his mecha was built overnight, and no one thought that his forging-level mechanic could be achieved in a short period of time. It all requires a long period of accumulation.

In other words, the means and strength he has now revealed have already made those in the know equate him with the original Qinglong.

Ever since he emerged in the Land of Stars, he has been an extremely powerful Casting-star level mechanic, but he has been hiding.

This raises a derivative question: since Qinglong is so powerful, why was he so low-key at the beginning?

There must be some other agenda, a big plan!

Coupled with some coincidences, the person in front of him would think that he wanted to join in.

Li Ming felt that his speculation was probably pretty accurate, and he also realized that what he had done might have puzzled many people.

Blackbeard could come up with a reasonable motive, but others who didn't know the inside story couldn't figure it out no matter how hard they tried.

What on earth does Qinglong want to do by hiding for so long?

But this misunderstanding seemed to be quite good. Blackbeard didn't care about Qinglong's silence. He just asked, "Are you surprised?"

Li Ming smiled and continued speaking along with the other party's words: "It is indeed a bit unexpected. It seems... a little too simple."

"Haha..." Blackbeard grinned, "Is it easy? Fighting against two S-class life forms, taking Dark Night into account, and still being able to escape unscathed, is that easy?"

"If I want to ask An Ye to help me, the price I have to pay is not small. You are just getting it for free."

"If you say this is so simple, then even I am a little ashamed."

Li Ming tapped the table and maintained a polite smile. "Yes, I put in a lot of effort, but in the end only you came, and you only said this. Aren't you looking down on me a little too much?"

Blackbeard's face froze slightly, as if he didn't expect the other party to say that. He quickly restrained himself and shook his head to explain:

"At present, I am responsible for the phased plan of the core ruins. If you want to interfere in this matter, it is naturally me who will come."

At the end, he added a meaningful sentence: "It's not that I don't care, but there are too many people coming, and I'm afraid of scaring you."

"Oh?" Li Ming raised his eyebrows slightly and said, "I'm really curious. How many participants are there in such a big plan?"

"There are more than I can imagine." Blackbeard said darkly, "There are more interstellar giants among them, the kind that even you and I have to look up to." "Even you and I have to look up to them?" Li Ming was not scared. For the time being, this guy was the only one who said that, so he just took it as bragging.

“There shouldn’t be many people like this.”

"Not much indeed." Blackbeard was ambiguous, then he said in a deep voice: "Your Excellency has gone to great lengths and spent more than a year on this. Isn't this the moment you are aiming for? Why are you hesitating?"

"Yes, I do have this idea." Li Ming nodded, "But you should also understand that I didn't join to be a volunteer."

Upon hearing this, Blackbeard couldn't help but smile and said, "Of course it is so. With the size of the Xingyuan Empire, once it falls, it will definitely be a bonanza for all of us."

"You also have the opportunity to go further and become a master mechanic, standing at the top of the universe."

There are very few master-level mechanics, and they need to reach the end of a certain branch of mechanics, and even innovate and create powerful technological creations.

"That's too far away. I don't know when it can be completed." Li Ming shook his head and refused to accept any empty promises.

Blackbeard heard this, but he was not angry. He nodded and said, "You are right. As for the immediate benefits, there are also some. Don't you need A-level gene seeds? We will help you."

"An Ye himself can make this happen, but the waiting time may be longer than you think."

Li Ming nodded. An Ye had told him about this matter at the beginning of the cooperation. He might not be able to handle it alone, and he, a forging-star-level mechanic, would need to show his face.

"I need another planet as my base." Li Ming added, "In the range of the chaotic star gap."

"A planet?" Blackbeard raised his eyebrows and agreed easily, "No problem, but it's impossible in the central area."

"I also need your channels to help me accomplish some things." Li Ming further said.

Blackbeard frowned slightly. It felt like he was begging the other party to join, but Qinglong's request was not too excessive.

He nodded and said, "Okay, the channels are shared, but if you want to enjoy the convenience, you also have to help others."

Li Ming looked at the other party's expression and did not continue to propose conditions. Instead, he extended his hand and said, "Happy cooperation."

These conditions are not very demanding. If we go further, the other party is unlikely to agree.

"It's a pleasure working with you." Blackbeard also stood up, and the two clasped their hands tightly together.

Then the atmosphere became noticeably more relaxed, and Li Ming immediately asked, "Is it really feasible to divide up the Xingyuan Empire?"

"Or are we just gathering a large force for this reason?"

Blackbeard looked at him deeply and said, "Of course."

"The Xingyuan Empire is now rotten to the core. The conflicts between the three major factions have reached the point where they are incompatible. The universe has been peaceful for many years, and they cannot start an external war to divert the conflicts. They can only continue to brew until they implode."

"Not only that, the Xingyuan Empire's pie has long been divided up. Every new force needs to tear its own piece of the pie from the old generation. The struggle between the new factions and the old antiques is equally intense."

He said with a sad tone: "The life span of the Evolvers is too long, and they occupy many things and won't let go."

"Once there is an opportunity, internal and external troubles will occur simultaneously, and collapse is imminent."

Li Ming listened and thought. It sounded very reasonable, as if it was like this at the end of every civilization, even the feudal dynasty in his previous life.

But the problem is that this universe has extremely powerful individual military forces, holding on.

Then he asked, "What do you need me to do next?"

"Just wait." Blackbeard said casually, "My original plan was to use the sublimation source crystal to provoke conflicts between the two sides, but Gabriel's death can achieve the same result, or even better."

Blackbeard made it clear, "The Bloody Duke is Prince Ryan's nineteenth son and the only grandson to be given the title of Grand Duke."

"Although Prince Ryan belongs to the royal family, his lineage has been declining, so he relied on the support of the House of Lords to be granted the title of Bloody Duke."

"Grand Duke Guya's father, Prince Costat, is the younger brother of the Holy Emperor of Glory. If the two of them start fighting, it will inevitably cause friction between the two factions."

“Of course, there needs to be some push along the way.”

Li Ming was not very clear about the internal situation of Xingyuan Empire. After he roughly understood it, he thought with a slight movement, "You guys should have more than one move, right?"

"Of course, efforts are being made in many areas, and you will know later." Blackbeard did not explain too much, after all, Qinglong had just joined.

Li Ming nodded and asked, "Does our organization have a name? For example, the Anti-Star Society or something like that."

Blackbeard looked strange and shook his head, "There is no clear name."

"Are the people in the Black Hole Palace ours?" Li Ming suddenly asked again.

"No, the Black Hole Palace is the Black Hole Palace." Blackbeard denied, "Let's exchange contact information first. At present, your only contact person is me. I will inform you when there are further plans."

Blackbeard just left like that, without even being added to the group chat, which shows how loose this organization is.

In other words, he has not yet gained real trust and is a "peripheral" member. It has nothing to do with the strength he has demonstrated, it is simply a matter of trust.

It seemed like the other party had dropped a bombshell, talking about dividing up the Xingyuan Empire right away, but in fact it was not a secret at all.

These few words are probably mentioned by tens of millions, or even hundreds of millions of life forms across the interstellar space every day.

Moreover, things of this level cannot be planned secretly and hidden completely in the dark.

The situation where "after the Star Empire splits, an organization suddenly emerges, claims responsibility for the incident, and then causes interstellar shock" is simply impossible to happen.

The Xingyuan Empire is not without smart people. If it really splits, it will inevitably be an irresistible trend that is laid out in the open.

So Blackbeard doesn't mind telling this matter, but the other party has no intention of revealing the real core action plan and other secrets.

"Divide up the Xingyuan Empire...how many good things will we get?"

Li Ming's mind was full of mixed thoughts, but he couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation. Although it was just a pancake, this pancake was big and fragrant.

He originally wanted to ask the other party about the news of the Titan Stone, but after thinking about it, he gave up. This was his core need, and he didn't trust the other party very much, so he didn't want to expose it for the time being.

Li Ming gathered his thoughts and shook his head. Currently, he still had to obtain the A-grade gene seeds as soon as possible.

As for Qinglong, he currently only has a mecha to support himself and can only passively take beatings, which is far from enough.

(End of this chapter)