This is not mechanical ascension...

Chapter 361 Fortunately, I am not a good person
"This is the office building..." Costat said, standing in a huge pit. "The damage here is the highest, which means the enemy has already lurked in the core area before taking action."

"Who did Nicholas meet that day?" he asked.

The officer said hurriedly: "The Bloodthirsty Duke did not meet anyone that day, but he received something that was not registered in advance."

"What?" Prince Costat frowned.

"This is it..." The officer pulled up a picture of a rectangular object. "Based on the inspection, it seems to be a mechanical folding motorcycle."

"It was delivered by a soldier named Luo Er. Because it was not on record, it was intercepted. But not long after, the Security Department received an order from the Bloody Duke, asking them to deliver the item over."

"It was the secretary of the Bloodthirsty Grand Duke who personally went to get it. We have already interrogated Luo Er, and he said that it was the Bloodthirsty Grand Duke who personally ordered him to go to a certain place and get it."

"That thing has been tested at least twenty times, and no abnormalities were found. The material is just an ordinary alloy."

"But since the attack happened right after the secretary got hold of the item and delivered it to the office of the Bloody Duke, we still think there may be a connection between the item and the attack."

"At present, preparations are being made for a memory review of Rolle."

Two days have passed, and all the review and investigation procedures have been completed.

"Do we still need to check these things? No need to think, it must be Qinglong." Diaz interrupted:
"He used the coordinates to lure Nicholas into the trap, and Nicholas told us the coordinates. We went there foolishly, and then the base was raided."

After that, Diaz frowned again, "But if it was really Qinglong, why could he be sure that Nicolael would definitely stay?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he felt Prince Costat's urgent gaze: "Are you doubting me?"

Diaz remained silent. He did not doubt that Prince Costat was colluding with Qinglong.

He thought that Prince Costa might have sensed something was wrong but pretended not to know and allowed Nicholas to be attacked.

Moreover, Prince Costat's attitude was also ambiguous, and his anger about the attack on the base was not even as great as Nicholas's private use of the Stone of Terrax.

"Diaz, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't say anything you want." Jiaint stared at him coldly, "Are you accusing a prince?"

"I dare not." Diaz shook his head and whispered, "For this kind of thing, we don't need too much evidence. I suggest we report it directly to the Royal Council and issue a wanted order for Qing Long."

"It's not confirmed yet that it was him." Costat said indifferently, "The only motive is to kill Nicholas. It's too pure. What benefit does he get from making a big enemy for a small grudge?"

Diaz frowned, "Maybe it's the opposite."

Costat shook his head: "There is no rush to announce it. At least we haven't found Qinglong yet. If we can't catch him, we will be the ones who are embarrassed."

"What's more, the matter of forging the hammer master has reached a critical juncture, and this matter is even more important."

Gain nodded, leaning towards this decision.

"But this matter still needs to be investigated. We need to first determine whether Nicolael is dead or not, and the whereabouts of Qinglong. Diaz, you are responsible for this matter." Costat gave the order.

Diaz opened his mouth, but he had no choice but to do so.

.........

Two and a half days after the attack, the entire central world was under martial law. All entry and exit were subject to strict inspection, and there were more soldiers patrolling public areas.

Buzz--
The smart terminal vibrated and a message popped up on the screen: it was Blackbeard's communication request.

Li Ming suddenly opened his eyes. Since he came back, he had kept the Black Hole Network open at all times, and finally he received a contact from Blackbeard.

He didn't answer the call and let it ring. After it ended, he waited for another two or three hours before he slowly called back.

Almost instantly, Blackbeard answered the call, and from the screen came the other party's low roar of suppressed anger: "Qinglong, what... are you doing!"

"What do you mean?" Li Ming pretended to be confused.

"Didn't you attack the Imperial base?" Although Blackbeard was questioning, there was certainty in his words.

"You can't just talk about this kind of thing." Li Ming continued to deny, "How could I be so bold?"

Blackbeard panted, angry and helpless, "That's not how it works. Although Nicholas is targeting you, the threat is limited."

"Your attack is totally useless, even if you kill him, what good will it do?"

"This will only arouse the anger of the Xingyuan Empire and make them gather their scattered forces. We have been trying to avoid external conflicts that would bring them together."

Blackbeard said in a deep voice that their lifespans are long and each plan is calculated in years, increasing the pressure a little bit at a time and exploding the Xingyuan Empire a little bit at a time.

Even the important turning point of allowing the Mechanic Council to isolate the Xingyuan Empire was carefully selected.

The Mechanics Association is a non-governmental organization that has penetrated into every civilization. It has always presented itself as a very gentle and relatively loose organization to the outside world.

In the name of killing the Hammer Forger, they are trying to annoy the Xingyuan Empire and make them unable to vent their anger. It is impossible for them to regard the Mechanics Association as an enemy, as that will only lead to a greater backlash.

But once a victim has a strong enough enemy, it will inevitably force the scattered forces within the empire to work together.

Of course, Qinglong does not have such a scale, but Qinglong's impulsive behavior has caused dissatisfaction among the pioneers.

Li Ming thought about the two gene sources he had extracted, the dark matter splitting hammer he controlled, and the two Terrax stones, and said with deep conviction:

"You're right, there's no benefit, so it wasn't me."

Blackbeard's tone paused, and he said in a deep voice: "This is not a joke, the Empire has already begun to take action against you."

Li Ming pretended to be silent, and suddenly said: "Tell me, is there a possibility that this was directed and acted by Xingyuan Empire itself, and the purpose was to have a reason for external investigation."

"Did they discover the Forerunners?"

"You..." Blackbeard was suddenly confused and doubtful. As he thought about it, he felt an inexplicable chill. It was possible that this was not impossible.

But then he extinguished his thoughts and said in a deep voice: "No matter what the truth is, they have already started preparing to arrest you."

"Well, didn't they plan to arrest me before?" Li Ming asked abruptly.

Blackbeard paused again, and couldn't help but curse inwardly at his cunningness. He explained, "Before, I was only interested in you because of Li Ming's matter, but now I really want to capture you."

Li Ming seemed to be thinking: "You mean, if I had fallen into their hands before, my fate would have been better than after the attack on the Imperial Base?"

Blackbeard fell silent again. He knew that Qinglong was teasing him. No matter what the situation was, Qinglong's condition would not be good.

Before the base attack, the Empire would not kill Qinglong if they caught him.

After the base was attacked, the Empire would not kill Qinglong even if they caught him. After all, he was a Forge-level mechanic, and his value was not low. Wouldn't it be better to capture him and make him do hard labor?
"In essence, the Empire still doesn't take me seriously." Li Ming said leisurely, "Because of Li Ming's matter, and Nicholas's instigation, they just came up with the idea of ​​​​capturing me."

Blackbeard remained silent, but then he remembered that he was not here to comfort Qinglong, so his tone became more serious.

"This is unwise. We are ready to attack Nicholas. In this way, Nicholas will be awarded the title of martyr."

"Are you sure Nicolael is dead?" Li Ming was surprised, and then thought, "The enemy Grand Duke died in Prince Costat's territory, and he was not there when he died. This matter is more feasible."

Blackbeard clenched his fists silently. Qinglong is really difficult to deal with.

But he's right, some are urgently working on plans.

"No matter what, you have been regarded as their first target." Blackbeard emphasized again.

“That’s really troubling.” Li Ming changed the subject: “I don’t know what the pioneers can do for me.”

Why don’t you think about what you can do for the pioneers? Blackbeard almost cursed, gritting his teeth.

However, just as he was about to speak, his heart suddenly moved, and an incredible guess arose -
If he doesn’t know how to do it, just wait for me, right?
This speculation made him fall into a long silence, and his face became gloomy and uncertain.

Yes, the pioneers did not intend to give up Qinglong because of Li Ming's existence.

Only Li Ming could make their "isolation" plan successful, even if it was just a possibility.

Likewise, wipe out Azure Dragon from this attack, although it will cost you.

But because of some subsequent plans, the price they paid, after calculation, was actually not that much, and it could even be said that they had the benefit of killing two birds with one stone.

"You contacted me just to scold me?" Li Ming frowned and muttered to himself, wondering if his estimation was wrong.

Blackbeard sneered inexplicably, feeling more and more that Qinglong had schemed against him, and said in a deep voice:

"We can help you solve this trouble and save everyone's face. At least the Empire will not deal with you openly anymore."

"There is actually such a method." Li Ming said in surprise.

"Same thing." Blackbeard said indifferently, "You need to agree to our conditions, let Li Ming participate in the review, and do your best to obtain the recognition of the Holy Elephant of Domination. As the successor, you need to explain that the death of the Hammer Godsmith is inextricably linked to the Empire."

"You are taking advantage of the situation." Li Ming said in shock and anger.

Blackbeard was furious. Who was robbing whom?

"This is a disaster that has nothing to do with me." Li Ming gritted his teeth and said, but then he changed his tone: "Forget it, the disaster is inevitable, but your plan is too dangerous. You still have to send me ten standard weight "Ether Crystals"."

The pioneer had always wanted him to take risks, but Li Ming had no psychological burden at all when it came to cheating the other party.

"Impossible!" Blackbeard's eyelids jumped suddenly, and he said angrily: "Don't go too far!"

Ether crystals are extremely precious special materials that can only be synthesized by empire-level civilizations. They are not available for sale on the black hole network. Occasionally, there will be one or two pieces, and the price basically starts at tens of billions of star coins.

It basically serves as an energy core, bearing high loads and providing energy for S-class weapons or mechanical creations.

"Five dollars." Li Ming took a step back.

"Two pieces!" Blackbeard said coldly.

"Three pieces, otherwise I will take Li Ming and hide him, and no one else can play." Li Ming stated his bottom line.

After a long time, Blackbeard's voice, suppressing his anger, came from the screen: "Okay!"

In order to avoid cursing out loud, Blackbeard quickly moved on to the next topic, "Half a month later, that's the time they set for the review."

"Li Ming's development potential is slightly lower, but he is taught by you, so his level of mechanics should be quite high. In addition, I will pass you a document about the life of the Forging Hammer Master. A more detailed life story will help Li Ming get closer to the Forging Hammer Master..."

Li Ming's eyes flickered: "Well, I need to remind you that this is not 100% successful. What if it fails?"

Blackbeard said in a cold voice: "We have already paid you in advance. If you fail to complete this task, there will definitely be another task. With your ability, you can't fail to complete everything."

The pioneers were not so easy to fool, and Li Ming also cooperated. "You are right. If we fail this time, there will be next time."

He reminded again: "By the way, the things I want must be delivered within half a month."

"Where to send it?" asked Blackbeard.

"The central world, I will take Li Ming there as soon as possible." Li Ming was ambiguous.

And you still say it’s not you!?

“…Got it!” Blackbeard said the last sentence and ended the call. He stroked his beard and cursed inwardly.

He was almost certain that Qinglong attacked the Imperial base just because he relied on Li Ming's presence and knew that the Pioneers would help him clean up his mess.

"Tsk tsk..." Li Ming was quite surprised after ending the call, "It was so easy for him to agree to help me eliminate some of the troubles, and I can also get a few ether crystals."

"When a great duke disappears, there must be an explanation. Even if we find someone to take the blame, it must at least be an S-class life form to satisfy all parties."

"They are not easy to deal with..." Li Ming sighed, "Fortunately, I am not a good person either."

It would be a lie to say that he was not tempted by the legacy of the Hammer Forger. He also wanted to participate with the help of the pioneers.

But cooperating with the pioneers to complete their plan is also risky. Li Ming has no intention of being slaughtered. If they want to use him, he will use him first.

Nicholas's ghost is still around, and the pioneers are hiding in the dark, so they naturally say high-sounding things like there's no rush, take your time and so on.

Kill Nicholas, let the pioneers clean up the mess, and then use their power to allow himself to participate in the review and get a few ether crystals, killing two birds with one stone.

As for risks...there is no such thing as all benefits without risks.

Stretching his body, Li Ming closed his eyes, feeling the extremely active cells in his body, which almost made him groan.

He has already consumed the S gene essence extracted from Nicholas and Albert.

The evolution system has added two more S-level evolution sources, which has increased the development potential by 64 times, and the overall blessing has reached 352 times.

During his time in the central world, he has not been idle. The development progress has reached 25%, and after this surge, the development speed will be even faster.

The pioneers were extremely efficient. Four days after the attack, a piece of news quickly spread wildly on the interstellar network:
[The Holy Revolutionary Army claimed responsibility for the attack on the Central World and the Imperial Base, and said that this was revenge for the Boskanya massacre.]

(End of this chapter)