That surge of dominance, however, was quickly suppressed, as Keon doesn't want to fuel the empty arrogance. Logic reasserted itself, colder and faster than before, as he began synthesizing the strategic implications of his new blueprints. He needed a fleet that did not just exist, but dominated... a force that could weave its way through the vast silence of the star system and claim it in his name.
'First, I will create more probes,' Keon calculated, his internal arrays already sketching out the production queues. 'Then, I will accelerate the process of analyzing, extracting, and securing the surrounding planets in this star system. The previous fleet I sent before is agonizingly slow… they are crawling at a mere 750km/s. The new probe can accelerate to almost 84% of the speed of light. Such a massive difference... it will effectively compress the timeline of the second task, arming SS1... from years down to days.'
Just as he solidified this decision, a sharp chime resonated within his consciousness... not a notification from the external system, but a direct query from the Neural Nexus subconscious. The analysis of UHS2, which he had queued in the background, was complete.
A high-fidelity projection materialized in his visual field, scrolling through the raw data with clinical precision.
[UHS2 Analysis Complete]
[UHS2 Final Planetary Analysis Report]
[Water]: (11.0%) Trapped deep as high-pressure, superheated Ice VII and Ice X blankets beneath the crust.
[Oxides & Silicates]: (32.0%) Dense iron-silicate complexes and quartz dunes forming the golden-brown continents.
[Hyper-Compressed Core]: (34.0%) A massive solid heart of degenerate Iron-Nickel alloy at the planet's center.
[Post-Perovskite Silicates]: (31.5%) Ultra-dense, hyper-conductive mantle rock rich in Magnesium and Silicon.
[Structural Metals]: (8.5%) High-yield surface concentrations of Titanium and Chromium driven up by gravity.
[Cyan Fluid Zones]: (5.5%) Supercritical methane-ammonia atmospheric reservoirs; prime hydrogen source.
[Anomalous Deep Layer]: (4.0%) [UNKNOWN] Active, oscillating material at the core-mantle boundary.
[Yellow Siphon Zones]: (3.2%) Corrosive atmospheric bands of sulfur dioxide and vaporized elemental sulfur.
[Carrier Atmosphere]: (2.3%) Heavy, highly pressurized baseline gases of inert Nitrogen and Argon.
[Precious Elements]: (0.5%) Traces of uranium and platinum-group metals pooled in low-lying basins.
…
Keon glanced at the analysis report thoughtfully standing inside the experiment room, 'Well, this planet is larger then UHS1, almost one and half size larger, but resources are less then quarter compared to UHS1, probably my luck has exhausted after few achievements recently.'
He then glanced at the iron silicate and quartz details and nodded thoughtfully, 'Anyway, the 32% iron silicate and quartz dunes, along with other metal resources are enough to synthesis required alloys and all elemental crystals.' He immediately started planning the resources distribution, then he glanced at the 4% unknown active material at the core material, Keon expression became deeper, 'What kind of material is this?'
Then thinking of something, his pupil brightened, 'I hope it's some new kind of solid element material like metal. He thought and then released the order from the neural nexus to mine this unknown material first. '
One the other hand, the planet UHS2,
The subconscious in the neural nexus, inert until that microsecond, responded to the command of Keon to mine the unknown material with absolute synchronicity.
On the surface of the planet, the drone units didn't merely hover; they reconfigured. In a blur of shifting nanostructures, their smooth, reflective hulls compressed and hardened, extruding two dense, vibrating drill-points that hummed with high-frequency kinetic energy.
Without a pause, they slammed into the iron-silicate crust below.
Bang! Bang!
Debris… shattered quartz and pressurized alloys... spewed violently into the thin atmosphere as the drones vanished beneath the surface. They were gone, leaving behind only two perfectly sealed boreholes that spiraled downward at a velocity that would have liquified any conventional machine.
Keon watched the telemetry for a few moments, his processors tracking the deepening descent. Seven thousand kilometers deeper in the crust. It was a staggering distance, a journey through the crushing, multi-layered weight of the planet. Through the neural link, he could feel the immense, suffocating pressure of the crust beginning to build against the drones' hulls. His nano-mainframes, currently scaled to micro-meter precision, were working in overdrive to maintain structural integrity, shifting their density in real-time to survive the transition from the solid crust into the viscous, hyper-heated mantle.
The logistics of the return trip already flickered in his background queues. Defying the gravitational well of such a massive planet while hauling samples would be an exponential drain on energy. Keon considered the structural stress, the potential for failure, and the inefficiency of the maneuver.
'Looks like it will be impossible for them to return to the surface defying gravity and pressure. Anyway, my nano main frame will scan its properties directly upon reaching it. If it's precious material, then I will do my best to mine it, even if I have to waste some resources. '
He paused, then nodded thoughtfully the motion fluid and precise. He didn't care about the difficulty of the ascent; he cared only about the properties of that four-percent unknown material.
He retracted his primary consciousness from the UHS2 feed, content to let the subconscious handle the drilling. It would take time for them to bridge the thousands of kilometers; he had other operations to optimize in this duration.
He shifted his focus back to his surroundings on UHS1, his gaze sweeping across the holographic projections that danced in the dim, metallic light of his experiment room.
The blueprints for his star system scale infrastructure shimmered in the air... the Astral Rune Siphon, the Helios Focal Collector, the Planetary Aegis Vault. They were the foundation of his expansion, the mechanisms by which he would transform this sector into a fortress.
Ding!
At this moment, the ambient environment shifted. A vibrant, flickering icon flared on his central system panel, cutting through the stream of production metrics.
'Trosso had sent a message?'
Keon thought to himself and immediately tapped the Universe 5757 icon in communication channel, expanding the notification. The text bloomed in front of him, glowing with a soft, pulsing light that matched the rhythm of his own internal processors.
[Universe 5757]: "Hey, I hope you are doing well. I apologize if I have disturbed you, I need more sand and quartz crystals. I am planning to leave and explore other dark continents beside this witch continent, my phase six has two missions, one is to explore and conquer the whole dark region and second is to reach level sixty. In order to complete them, I need a massive amount of resources and your help."
Keon read the message, his processors parsing the text with a thoughtful look on his face, 'Only two tasks? Level Sixty? Is it because he has to reach sixty level instead of fifty that's why he received two tasks.' He thought and then shook his head, didn't care and replied.
[Universe 8888888888] "How much sand and quartz do you need? You know the trading rules."
He closed the channel, his focus shifting back to the creation of new probes.
…
On the other side of the multiverse,
Universe 5757, the underground stronghold of the Witch race had been utterly transformed. The gloomy, oppressive atmosphere of the dark, jagged caverns had been banished, replaced by the warm, amber glow of a subterranean hive. The walls were now slick, yellowed caves, vibrant and teeming with activity. Humanoid lizard-like creatures moved with purpose, their scales catching the ambient light.
Trosso, standing at the highest point of the tallest cavern, looked down at the layout. He had utilized knowledge from his previous life, installing an intricate system of mirrors and polished surfaces throughout the tunnels. The result was a cascading network of reflected light that illuminated the depths, a sharp contrast to the suffocating darkness he had inherited upon arrival.
A square-shaped drone hovered out of the shadows, coming to a halt beside him. This was Alpha, his primary asset for logistical management.
"Master, everything has been settled according to your wishes," Alpha stated, its voice mechanical and devoid of inflection. "All assets have been successfully transferred. The remaining tribesmen who refused to migrate were dealt with accordingly."
Trosso nodded, his gaze sweeping over the scene. His tribe was flourishing; they were now the masters of this witch continent, their trade and livelihood vastly improved compared to barrenness of their previous habitat.
…