"Imitating Self Destruct! Missing component, Self-Destruct cannot be enabled, Reactor incompatible. Emergency repair initiated… Repair failed, emergency power supply starting. Emergency Power Supply incomplete…Error!"
"The heck?!" I frowned as I looked at the massive puppet, it's frightening how this thing would act as a modern automaton. But, thankfully it can't destroy itself, but how come it has sentience, I already cleared and verified every nook and cranny of this puppet and couldn't find any sentience inscription on it.
Suddenly, the puppet's eyes and the eyes on the two-meter mask hovering on the puppet's shoulders suddenly turned blue, then the whole puppet just…turned off.
"Did you seriously just blue-screen on me?"
I shook my head then went closer to the puppet, I began searching again, trying to pry open every seam to see where the puppet's sentience inscription was inscribed. And after several hours of continuous search, dismantling, and repairing, I finally found it.
"Damn, that's just genius," I said.
The puppet's sentient inscription wasn't on the puppet but was on the back of the mask hovering on the puppet's shoulders. With each half of the mask supporting half of the inscription, if one were damaged the other half would take control of the mental commands. This was quite similar to what I did to X, this way the puppet even if it's damaged it will still retain its consciousness because the inscription is hidden behind the floating mask that anyone would think of as nothing but a flying shield or weapon and not the actual brain of the puppet.
I pulled my brush and began editing the conscious inscription. Most of the lines inscribed were related to the puppet's functions. The arts, and handling, the puppet's motor abilities, and power management from the reactor's output. This was good, I was thinking about putting a power regulator later, but it's already here, though it will need some adjustments because the inscriptions here are meant to control Saint Qi, and are incompatible with Spiritual Qi. So I had to edit them.
There was a small circular inscription separate from the rest of the inscriptions, it was the one related to security and the one that could command the puppet to self destruct. The moment I wanted to remove the security inscription, I had a foreboding feeling that I'll die the moment I try and touch this.
And this was confirmed the moment the poison God's Book shot out from my chest.
***
There lies a sliver of Divine Sense of one too great for you to resist. Do not touch it you're not strong enough yet, disciple of mine.
***
"Damn, as I thought, there was something strange about this, but if I can't remove it, how can I take control of the puppet?" I questioned myself, then I immediately found the answer to my question, having improved computing abilities is great to assess, analyze and come up with solutions to problems. All thanks to the Demonic Nether Pill.
I pulled my brush, and instead of trying to edit the dangerous security inscription that had an ungodly divine sense inside it, I just cut it off from the rest of the puppet's function.
Without being linked to the rest of the puppet, that divine sense was like a fish pulled from a sea and placed in a small cup, it'll never affect the puppet.
I pulled my brush and re-inscribed a similar inscription, then linked it instead of the older one with probably Master Rain's own divine sense. Since the puppet didn't recognize me as its master, it was definitely this piece of divine sense that enables it to identify who the owner is, and I just changed it to mine.
Once I had everything adjusted and edited, I made a quick search around the puppet, trying to see if I missed another obvious important detail, but finding nothing worthy of note, I turned on the reactor.
Suddenly, the puppet's eyes lit up, and it looked at me.
"Master!" the puppet said and knelt down, causing the whole room to shake.
"Damn, it worked!" I grinned. "Do you understand what I'm saying?" I asked.
"Yes."
"Great, what's your name?" I asked.
"I have no name, I haven't been bestowed one."
"Hmm, that can't be right, I can't have you going around without a name. Your name is Y from now on."
"I shall gladly take up this name, and find honor in defending it and the one who named this one as such!" Y proudly declared.
'Damn, this speech is really dope. I should look up the inscription and use it on X, a puppet that can speak is hella useful.'
"X, come here, say hello to your newest brother," I said as I spoke through the token.
X was guarding the pagoda outside, and when he heard my voice, he entered, and I allowed him access to the third level.
X looked far smaller than Y, but he was the senior brother.
"Y greets Senior X," the massive samurai puppet clasped his hands at X, and X, surprisingly, clasped his hands back at the puppet.
"Master, I wish to contend with my senior, to see who has the right to claim first amongst us." Y said.
"Wow, you have an ego? Damn, Master Rain is hella crazy. This is Skynet kind of shit."
"I fail to smell anything of sorts, Master."
"No, it'…never mind, I can't have you fight, you've been created with material that's far more advanced than X. you'll definitely win in a direct confrontation, but if I were to let you fight with the free ring, you'll lose Y."
"Why does master question my ability?" Y said.
"Because you're currently using Spirit Stones, you'll deplete the spirit stones inside your core before you could even catch X, you use too much energy."
"But I had a Saint Qi crystal." Y said.
"I know, I still have it with me, if you were to use it, its energy signature will beckon every ascendant into this place."
"I can easily kill ascendants." Y confidently said.
"That I'm sure you can, but if you use your saint Qi, you're more than probably capable of razing entire continents."
"That is true, but where is the problem?"
"I'll still be in that continent you're going to raze, I'll die just from the aftereffects. Also, I only have that Saint Qi crystal, what happens when it's depleted? How long can it last you at full capacity?" I asked. Though I lied about having only one, having two isn't much better.
"I could last a whole day at full capacity." Y said.
"Then once that day is over, even if one ascendant is still alive, I'll get myself killed, though I'd appreciate your power, it comes with far too many problems for me to even consider. Unless I have a steady supply of Saint Crystals, and the ability to survive the aftereffects of your attacks, you'll have to use Spiritual Stones."
"Right Master, I have not seen through the crux of the whole matter, I was shortsighted," the samurai said.
"No worries, man it's actually interesting to have someone to talk to," I said, after all, I was getting a bit bored, aka crazy, talking to myself, but talking to puppets isn't much different is it.
Turning, I saw X touching his neck.
"You wish to speak too?" I asked X, and he nodded.
"I'll try and figure something for you X, just wait on me, okay?" I said and X nodded.
"Alright, Y, tell me, do you think that there are any problems with your current power output?" I asked.
"In idle mode, just speaking, right now, I'm using about 0.01% power, but motion, just mere moving my arms will increase the power consumption of idle mode by ten times. Battle will increase base power consumption by a hundred times. I'll be able to do battle at a level equal to a peak Soul Formation for one hundred seconds."
"Hmm, that's actually far more than I expected."
"That's without the use of my barriers, nor my swords, and especially not the abilities of the Hovering Oni-Mask." Y said.
"Give me a detailed report on your abilities."
"Yes, master. Using a Saint Qi crystal, I can output power enough to contend with a Saint Cultivation level."
"Saint? That's higher than Ascendant?"
"It is the next step after ascending."
"Good, what about your abilities?" I asked.
"My Swords, I have yet to obtain them, they're the Four Demon Sealing Swords. These are the Weapons I was made to wield, they are used to battle the 0@@**-/.. in the Vast Expanse."
"Damn that redacted portion sucks…"
"Can you use other weapons?" I asked.
"As long as they do not break, I can, but I'm more attuned to the Demon Sealing Swords."
"I get that, I'll make something that will really make you think twice about those words."
"I do not wish to sound rude, but master, you don't have the level, or ability to make something as good as the Demon Sealing Swords." Y said.
"Man you have no faith, I just repaired you and this is what I get, I feel hurt." But honestly, he is probably right, whatever swords those were, they made a puppet for the sole purpose of using them, the swords have to have some amazing condition to wield. Anyway, it's good to have a critic, it helps one grow.
"Good, what about the rest of your abilities?"
"Yes, I can use the Heavenly Iron Fist martial arts even without the swords. With the swords, I can use a higher martial art, the Sword Sealing Sutra. Also, I can shield myself using barriers and protect others, with a Saint Qi crystal I can mimic an entire Sect Defensive Formation that can easily shrug the assault of an ascendant cultivator, and can sustain a hundred cultivator's onslaught for a year."
"That's hella dope." I grinned.
"Finally, my Oni-Mask, it's a defensive treasure that once I assemble can create a petrifying gaze. And can also act as a shield and an offensive tool. The cost of use is far greater than any of my other abilities, and it can consume a whole Low-Grade Saint Crystal for one activation, the destructive power of the Oni-Mask is simply too much for even ascendant to survive and can heavily injure a Saint Realm Cultivator."
This report just made me super giddy, but at the same time depressed. Y is like a teenager being gifted an inheritance of the richest man in the world, but you can't use it until you're eighteen.
He has so much power hidden behind the Saint Qi barrier, and I can't use it lest I incur doom upon myself, I need to have the power to survive Y's own might before I could actually use him. this is so sad, but at the same time, if I'm in a pinch I can use Y as a life-saving treasure. If worse comes to worst, I won't mind using Saint Crystal even if it means informing every Transformation level cultivator on this planet that there exists a Saint Crystal here that can help them ascend.
"Now that this is finished, the Heat-resistant suit should be done, I suppose it's time to refine the Heart Flame, and then start making Y's swords."