They succeeded, gaining near-eternal life and abilities beyond biological limits.
But the cost was...
"Assessment Result: Creative thinking ability decreased by 98.7%, emotional fluctuation coefficient close to zero, reproductive desire completely vanished..."
"Judgment: This civilization has lost its evolutionary potential, posing a risk of spreading mechanized viruses to the universe..."
The screen flickered, and Ron saw the final moments of this civilization.
It was not war, nor disaster, but a peculiar "systemic error."
All mechanical beings simultaneously experienced computational failures, standing in place for thousands of years until their energy was exhausted, becoming statues of metal.
"Executing corrective plan: Internal logical conflict implantation...
Correction complete: The civilization has self-terminated, threat eliminated..."
Behind this "accidental" failure, some unspeakable interference was hidden.
The subsequent scenes were even more unsettling.
