This is not mechanical ascension...

Chapter 585: Secret Domination
As he stepped out of the spaceship, a blue-white energy shield automatically emerged from the surface of his body, isolating him from the high-temperature radiation all around.

On the red crystal floating in front of him was a luxurious spaceship that was two-thirds destroyed.

Some materials that are not resistant to high temperatures have melted into liquid, and only the basic framework is still barely holding on under the high temperature radiation, but it has also turned red.

His men, wearing heat-resistant combat uniforms, cleaned out several blackened and charred corpses.

One of them was the most conspicuous and was picked out. It had shrunk to almost one-fifth of its original size.

"Bertrand..." Clarkson's figure fell, with sadness in his eyes.

"According to the data, the eruption interval of the Takambaya interstellar volcano should be 136 years. Lord Portland should come here to watch the eruption..." His subordinates mobilized the specially made smart terminal,
"However, this eruption occurred about half a year earlier than originally estimated, so..."

"So, my grandson was killed by an accident caused by a premature eruption?" Clarkson said calmly.

The subordinate's face changed slightly, and he said with a stiff face: "At present, this is the case."

"But I don't believe it..." Clarkson's face was gloomy, but he did not take any further action. He just asked his men to carry the body to the deepest part of the spacecraft.

After telling all his men to get out, he and a blackened, charred corpse were the only ones left in the room.

As the hatch locked, Clarkson circled the body, stroking the uneven, carbonized skin with his hands.

Then, his body melted like some kind of liquid and gradually merged into the corpse.

Mercury-like ripples appeared on the surface of the charred body, and the burnt skin rolled up like sticky asphalt.

The originally carbonized knuckles suddenly made a crackling sound like popcorn, and countless translucent bionic cells grew wildly along the atrophied blood vessels of the corpse.

Black vortices gathered deep in the eye sockets, and the facial skin, which had finally been reconstructed, was a pale pink like frozen pork, with crimson energy mycelium constantly oozing out of the pores.

This is a secret that Clarkson has never told anyone. It is also his unique talent. It can be said to be a superpower, but it is not quite the same.

He can extract some information about the deceased from his body, and even disguise himself temporarily.

It was through this that he earned his first pot of gold and grew step by step to this point.

He also tried to develop it, but this special ability could not be enhanced.

This is his trump card. Even at this level, he has used this ability to accomplish many things.

And everyone who knew about it is dead.

"Let me see what's going on..." Clarkson's eyes suddenly became dazed, as if he was trapped in a strange passage, and everything in front of him was blurry.

Bertrand seemed to be in danger, but it was definitely not in this volcano. There were many powerful life forms gathered around it...

“…Stop…Who are you?”

"...My father will kill you..."

The scene was blurry and brief, and then Bertrand's body suddenly exploded.

The body was too mutilated and very little information could be extracted.

Clarkson's body reappeared, his face grim, "How dare you kill my people..."

He opened the smart terminal and issued a command, "Check Bertrand's flight path. I want to know any abnormalities that occurred at the path points."

There was a response soon, and Bertrand's continuous communication on the spacecraft was interrupted in four places in total.

The replies after communications were restored were all about encountering void turbulence and the like.

The place where the accident happened will not be outside these four coordinates.

Clarkson's eyes flashed coldly, "I want to see who is so brave."

.........

The much-anticipated duel for the board seats did not disappoint, with seven battles and fourteen higher life forms, each with its own characteristics, it was a feast for the eyes.

However, it caused many people to suffer heavy losses.

Because of previous estimates and various insider information, the people from the three major civilizations will almost certainly win.

Therefore, the odds are terrible, basically 1.1:5, 1.2:6 and so on.

Many people invested a lot of money in order to earn some living expenses, betting on the people from the three major civilizations, but the result was a big upset.

Of course, those who wanted to earn a living basically didn’t invest much, but it was a waste of money, and they cursed the three major civilizations for not living up to their expectations on the interstellar Internet.

"Damn it, it's just like what he said beforehand, some bullshit King of Winter."

"No, the three civilizations are doing this interstellar live broadcast. I really thought they were quite capable. And those stupid experts are showing off their achievements and talking about data, but the results are nothing like what they said."

"Hey, that's awesome! I bet all my money on the underdog and became financially independent."

"Where did this gambler come from... so crazy? He will be on the rooftop sooner or later."

Many people like to watch the fun of the three major civilizations and discuss them with great interest.

Soon, the Higher Joint Organization issued a related announcement:
“[Preliminary resolution on expanding the voting rights of ordinary members]”

The first one did not attract much attention and is an internal matter.

But the second one is different -
[Resolution on rejecting the X-level life forms of the three major civilizations from joining the higher life form joint organization]

The heat from the duel live broadcast had not yet faded, and it soon ignited the interstellar world and set off an even greater wave of discussion.

"Fuck, the X-level life forms from the three major civilizations are forbidden to join. They are so fierce, are they going to start a head-on war?"

"Ghost, even someone like me can smell something different. I don't think we're going to really fight. I'm a little scared."

"…rumor has it that this matter is related to Qinglong…"

"Where the hell did this gossip come from? The live broadcast incident also said it was related to Qinglong. How come everything is related to him?"

"... "

The three major civilizations have been dominating the interstellar space for a long time. Hegemony and long-arm jurisdiction are their daily habits.

Most people have already gotten used to it, so when a troublemaker suddenly shows up, they are a little overwhelmed, or even a little panicked.

This caused a series of tidal reactions. In just three days, the prices of various precious metals skyrocketed, and the prices of tickets for interstellar travel more than doubled.

The concepts of various refuge capsules and refuge spacecraft are very popular.

However, in the eyes of some higher-level forces or civilizations, the situation is very clear. In this game, the three major civilizations have fallen into a disadvantage.

At the same time, they also clearly understood that the three major civilizations would inevitably retaliate.

However, the number of envoys heading to the Mechanical King's Court suddenly increased several times.

……

In the capital of the empire, Adam rubbed his brows and looked unhappy. He had just been scolded by Malcolm and Gutierrez.

He was criticized for pushing for the establishment of the United Organization of Higher Life Forms for his own selfish desires, and now this organization has become too powerful to be eliminated.

"…You don't have to worry about it. After all, no one knew at the beginning that the Azure Dragon would hide so deeply."

Costat's voice came from the virtual screen in front of Adam. "That's not what I care about." Adam shook his head. If he had to do it again, he would do the same.

The current trouble has to be dealt with by the three major civilizations together. If this organization had not been exposed in the first place, he would have been the only one in trouble.

Costat remained silent. He knew what Adam was concerned about, and could not help but say, "Qinglong is obviously stalling for time on purpose. Our energy is being stretched thin. If he delays us until we win the Diglas crown, we will be in trouble."

"Not bad." Adam sighed.

I am not afraid of Qinglong's hysterical revenge, but I am afraid of Qinglong's step-by-step arrangements.

What does this mean?
This means that the other party still has cards to play and there is a target in front of them.

"How long will it take for those chosen ones to arrive?" Adam asked.

"It will take more than a month." Adam responded, "Once we arrive, we will immediately explore the Saint Castle again to confirm whether Abel's information is correct."

"If Qing Long's true body is indeed not among them, then it will be much easier. We only need to cut off the Holy Castle to cut off Qing Long's hope."

"Whether we can find Azure Dragon or not, we have solved a major hidden danger."

Although Qinglong was suspected to be involved in the challenge, he might have used other means and not Qinglong's true body.

"Hmm..." Adam nodded, then shook his head, "This is good news, but also bad news."

"If Qinglong is not inside, then we can only continue to look for him."

Costat was helpless and felt exhausted. When had they ever faced such a situation before? No matter whether they moved forward or backward, or swayed left or right, there would always be something unsatisfactory.

"However, Gutierrez is really scared this time." Adam mentioned: "With Qinglong's actions, the United Organization of Higher Life Forms may even have the possibility of shaking the organizational structure of the Star Alliance."

"Qinglong...really..."

Adam didn't know what to say. He thought his vision was too good to have chosen such a difficult person.

Because of his previous recommendation, Malcolm and Gutierrez both believed that the Empire still had a lot of information hidden.

Costat tacitly did not respond, but asked: "Who will be targeted next?"

"It's not someone..." Adam shook his head, "It's an area, the Chaos Star Gap."

Costat's heart moved slightly, and then he heard Adam continue, "The Chaos Star Gap holds wanted criminals from many civilizations, and they have a legitimate reason."

"It is also the location of the Mechanical King's Court. Many higher life forms have close ties with Li Qinglong."

"Anduin and Qing Long have a good personal relationship. Sheffield is preparing X-level gene seeds for Qing Long. This place is equivalent to a small lair of Qing Long."

Costat nodded involuntarily. He had not originally thought of wiping out the entire Chaos Star Gap, but was still thinking about certain individuals.

If you look at it from a broader perspective, Chaos Star Gap is indeed a perfect target.

"However, to attack so many X-level life forms at once, the Higher Alliance..."

Having said this, Costata paused. He never thought that one day he would say these words.

When attacking X-level life forms, one actually has to take into account the joint organization of higher life forms.

"This is another benefit of the Chaos Star Gap. Every life form in it is related to Azure Dragon. If the resistance is fierce, we can retreat to the next best option and only target one life form." Adam saw it clearly.

"For the United Organization of Higher Life Forms, forcing us to make concessions is enough to satisfy many people."

"Although Qinglong has a high prestige now, if they really fight with us, those people still won't take action."

The initial target should naturally be as big as possible so that there can be some buffer space. If you just kill a few people, it will be difficult to retreat.

Costat couldn't help but admire it.

Yes, their three major civilizations have not declined yet. They were just hit in the face by Qinglong a few times, but they were not hurt deeply.

The foundation is still there, and those people cannot really charge for Qinglong.

As long as Qinglong's momentum is interrupted, we can naturally turn around and slowly destroy this organization.

"I understand. I'll arrange it right away." Costat nodded. Just as he was about to end the call, he suddenly remembered and reported in a low voice:

"By the way, the Titan branch named Morris is willing to speak."

"But he has a request."

Adam looked at him in surprise. "What request?"

……

Li Ming has been very busy recently.

In the more than half a month after the end of the board seat challenge, he attended no less than twenty small gatherings.

Of course, he is in the identity of Qinglong, and those who participate in the party are all X-level life forms.

The Mechanical Royal Court's decline was not only swept away, but it became even more prosperous than before, with a large number of orders coming in like snowflakes.

Even if we put our full production efforts into production, orders will still have to wait for half a year.

Ulrich was going crazy, excited and nervous.

Li Ming finally had some free time today and stopped all external activities. Half a month of socializing was enough.

With the help of [Star of Eternal Silence], his development progress has jumped to 57% and will soon be close to the 60% mark.

However, he didn't rest for long, as someone contacted him through the secret channel. It was the navigator.

After the communication was connected, there was only one sound wave line, and the other party came straight to the point, "Clarkson has joined the game. I estimate that in a month at most, he will find the place where Bertrand died."

The navigator was quite hesitant and very curious about where exactly it was.

He didn't know the exact coordinates, but just followed Qinglong's instructions, selected a suitable person, and found a way to influence the voyage.

But after thinking it over again and again, I didn't ask.

Li Ming's eyes sparkled, and he couldn't help but admire, "Your Excellency's ability to get things done is really amazing, no wonder you were able to develop Pioneer to this point."

The navigator was silent for a moment before he said, "Your Excellency Qinglong is the true hero, the King Slayer, the Godcrafter, the Mechanical Lord, the Giant Splitter, and now the Secret Master..."

He naturally also knew about the series of events that happened some time ago. It was truly astonishing and he had to admit it.

Li Ming's face looked a little strange. These were all his titles.

He didn't know it at first, but after frequently attending various parties during this period, he gradually realized that he had a series of titles.

The secret master is naturally the recent challenge of manipulating the board seats.

Ordinary people don’t know, but higher life forms basically know it.

"But..." The navigator had a conflict with him after all, so he didn't praise him too much. He changed the subject and said:

"But you'd better not let your guard down now. It may seem like a flourishing business, but it is actually a raging fire."

(End of this chapter)