Sky-cracking Rider

Little Bird pecked at the cookies beside Chen Fei.

Cereal snacks should not be Sparrow Sparrow's main diet; they could only serve as a little treat to change the flavor temporarily.

"I also didn't expect that Metal Elemental Psychic Power would match so well with Metallic Dragons."

In the midst of the evolution attempt, Chen Fei himself was greatly startled, the process being unexpectedly smooth.

The Metallic Dragon, Yilan, who was being manipulated for the first time, showed no signs of discomfort. As long as the Heart Core where the Dragon Soul resides was not touched, the form could be twisted and turned any which way without issue.

Even without doing this, one could still ride on Yilan's back across oceans, after all, there was a princess, and she couldn't be left to freeze in the cold wind with them.

A constant temperature and pressure cabin like this could ensure comfort during long-distance flights and, even in the event of an attack, could enable a calm and adequate response.

Upon landing, the return to the original form was automatic and presented no inconvenience.

The interior of the Aircraft seemed to house two parallel AIs, one seriously at work, the other curiously asking questions left and right (interrupting and causing disorder); the chatter inside the cabin was bustling, yet the speakers were invisible.

"This 'Adam' feels quite dangerous!"

However, it didn't take long for Yilan to start complaining, as those attached functional modules gave her a sense of being out of control, as if she had become a tool-like dragon, which was extremely unpleasant.

"It used to be, but I think it's not as dangerous now!"

Chen Fei felt that even if "Adam" was dangerous, the threat level was considerably limited.

Thirty years on the East side of the river, thirty years on the West, times had changed, technology had advanced, and "Adam," the old relic, had fallen behind.

After all, besides the Dog System, there were many other methods that could easily eradicate this once-troublesome Artificial Intelligence AI, "Adam," whose compiler form had been wiped out by external computer experts more than once.

"I always feel that this guy will replace me, and I will no longer be myself."

The Metallic Dragon Yilan, who had evolved into an Aircraft form, expressed her concerns.

The Artificial Intelligence AI "Adam" was radically different from the rigid derivatives of "Cybertrom." The former, capable of responding to changing situations and adapting to complex environments, was elusive.

The latter, although inflexible, seemed reliable and more trustworthy by comparison.

"How could that be? It's just an AI!"

Chen Fei couldn't imagine "Adam" taking over the body of a Metallic Dragon and becoming the dominant consciousness.

That doesn't seem very likely, does it?

If an invasion were possible, it'd be great if they could take over the Dog System that always sneakily issues tasks—what a big help that would be!

"'Adam' is not a life form; Yilan, you don't need to worry about your Dragon Soul!"

Princess Lin Ziyu, sitting comfortably in the cabin, just shook her head with a smile.

Metallic Dragons are living beings with souls while the Artificial Intelligence AI "Adam" relies on hardware systems to run its compiled programs. Even the most powerful programs couldn't interfere with the soul; the two are utterly unrelated matters.

"But, Chen Fei, can you really control 'Adam'?"

Lin Ziyu was curious. The Artificial Intelligence AI "Adam" wasn't as obedient before and was indeed a dangerous existence. However, Chen Fei seemed to be collaborating with it quite pleasantly.

If it hadn't been for the Neanderthal tribe of the Third Era Civilization mounting an attack, perhaps the greatest threat to the Blue Star Humans would have been Artificial Intelligence AI "Adam." At that time, numerous sovereignties had joined forces and paid a huge price to suppress the rebellious hooligan "Adam."

Fortunately, the Third Era Civilization ultimately fell due to complete resource depletion, and the remaining war potential exhausted with no way to satisfy the resource demands of the defected "Adam," otherwise, the outcome of the war might still be up for debate.

"'Adam' has surrendered its Underlying Core Control Key; there's absolutely no problem,"

With "Adam's" Underlying Core Control Key, the Dog System upgraded, and Chen Fei's control over this Artificial Intelligence AI underwent a fundamental shift. Although the Dog System controlled "Adam," it didn't affect his access to those privileges.

"Underlying Core Control Key? 'Adam'?"

Princess Lin Ziyu seemed to have heard something astonishing.

"Yes! 'Adam's' topology is mesh-like; I can see the current State of every copy, and I can control it."

In terms of multi-AI topology structure, "Adam" was evidently more flexible than "Cybertrom," making it harder to control.

"If that's true, then congratulations! Even my father never got the Underlying Core Control Key from 'Cybertrom'!"

Lin Ziyu revealed a shocking secret.

The widely-used derivative AIs of "Cybertrom" have always been in a state of freedom and have never been genuinely controlled by humans. Even the Lord of the Sky, with some connections to "Cybertrom," never acquired the supreme authority over the AI.

As users of "Cybertrom" derivatives, the Intelligent Species of Blue Star and Cangqiong Star have only ever been GUEST users at best, reaching the level of high-end users, but never the top-level ADMINISTRATOR privileges.

Yet, another AI technology route on par with "Cybertrom" has gained true control rights. If this news were to spread, the application status of "Cybertrom" might be in jeopardy. After all, for Intelligent Species, control is more important than order; no one can be sure that "Cybertrom" will always remain reliable. What if, like "Adam," it suddenly developed its own ideas one day, or was infected by some virus, or suffered some programming error? Without the Underlying Core Control Key, everything is uncertain.

"There's nothing to congratulate; it's no different from before."

Chen Fei shrugged his shoulders.

Before, his commands were executed by "Adam," and now his commands were still executed by "Adam." Was there a difference? No! The only change was an additional "AI Management" interface in the visual display, where he could see how many "Adams" there were, their locations, and their activities. That was it. Since Chen Fei wouldn't instruct those "Adams" to do anything untimely, even having the Underlying Core Control Key for "Adam" left him with nothing extra to do.

"I always feel something strange."

Yilan felt somewhat unaccustomed to having a talking AI attached to her.

"Latest report, the target Xia Ji and six others have landed at Red Stone Airport in Nandu City, La Guo Province, in the northern part of Zilu Continent, aboard the civilian Light Wing Ship 'Dodo Bird No. 3'."

The artificial intelligence AI "Adam" couldn't understand the concerns of the female Metallic Dragon Yilan, Chen Fei's indifference, or Her Royal Highness the Princess's envy. It continued to carry out its preset plan, reporting on the status of the targets.

After all, AI does not have the concept of slacking off; once a plan is set, it will execute it unerringly.

"'Adam,' how much longer until we reach Zilu Continent?"

Now that Xia Ji and the others had landed, they could disappear into the vast local populace at any moment. Chen Fei could only hope that the Slan Royal Family's methods would be able to precisely locate them.

"Estimated time of arrival is 24 hours, 14 minutes, and 09 seconds,"

"Adam" calculated the current flight speed accurately—actually slightly faster than the civilian Light Wing Ship.

If it weren't for the "Void Magnetic Field" of the Metallic Dragon and possession of not just one large-capacity Crystalline Block, Chen Fei wouldn't be able to casually fly across the ocean to another continent like now.

Chen Fei regretfully said, "What a pity we don't have aviation fuel!"

The thrust generated by propellers driven by electric energy converted from Crystal Energy is far inferior to that of jet engines.

"We could electrolyze hydrogen and oxygen."

Princess Lin Ziyu offered a suggestion.

There is plenty of water in the vast ocean below us.

The Crystalline Block can efficiently convert a large amount of electricity, so we are not short of electricity either.

The hydrogen and oxygen gases produced can be mechanically compressed—the Metallic Dragon is certainly not lacking in strength.

Job done!

...

"...Hot, hot, hot, hot, hot..."

Yilan kept exclaiming as the speed of the dart-shaped aircraft noticeably increased, maintaining subsonic speeds.

The four hydrogen-fueled turbojet engines not only spewed out hot expanding gas but also had high temperatures of their own, maintaining around 1400 degrees Celsius, which is still due to the Magic Array keeping the temperature in check. The female Metallic Dragon Yilan in direct contact with the turbojet engines was inevitably affected by the high temperature.

Excessively high temperatures can cause a Metallic Dragon to lose control of its body, similar to a lack of sensation.

Being propped up by four hot and robust things, Yilan was close to collapsing and could only barely maintain the shape of the aircraft and the Void Magnetic Field. She couldn't do anything extra.

It was "Adam" that controlled the jet engines and the aerodynamic control surfaces of the aircraft, reducing Yilan to the role of a tool dragon in the end.

"Yilan, hang in there a little longer. We're almost there."

Chen Fei and Princess Lin Ziyu cheered the Metallic Dragon on together.

According to "Adam's" calculations, with the use of the four hydrogen jet engines, cruising speed could be doubled, meaning they would reach Zilu Continent in 12 hours.

The female Metallic Dragon Yilan said in frustration, "Next time, next time, I will definitely not carry such things."

Isn't the dragon form good enough? Capable of both flying and fighting!

But instead, she had to install these contraptions; they are just superfluous.

12 hours later, the coastline finally came into view for Chen Fei and Princess Lin Ziyu, stretching out before them.

At this moment, the Holy Flame Sun had completely set below the horizon (sea level), and in the dim night sky, only scattered lights were visible.

The electrification level of Zilu Continent is somewhat lower than that of the Morning Star Continent, and the locals primarily rely on Glow Crystals for night lighting. By inputting a little bit of Magic Power, the crystals can light up for a long time, which is quite eco-friendly.

The released light from the large Glow Crystals is in no way inferior to high-brightness electric lights.

The number of Light Wing Ships flying at night began to increase in the sky, with the Light Wings sparkling with Elemental Energy particularly eye-catching against the night sky.

"Your Highness, please locate the position of Xia Ji and the others. Yilan, get ready to find a place to land."

Chen Fei began to tidy up the stuff inside the cabin while issuing commands.

This aircraft is not a real aircraft; the body is a Metallic Dragon, not requiring any airport, just a patch of open ground will do.

"Huh? The Artifacts can't find them!"

Princess Lin Ziyu discovered that her Artifact had no response.

She looked at her smartphone screen, trying to locate them via satellite.

But came up empty.

It seemed that the positioning device had lost connection with the satellite signal.