Wow! The item-dropping rate is really high!

The mining vein was located directly north of the city, where an expansive mountain range stretched endlessly, shielding against the Arctic chill winds from the north.

Beneath the entire mountain range lay innumerable types of mineral resources, which had been so extensively mined over the years that the shape of the mountain range had been permanently altered.

At times, a narrow gap was all that separated the towering ridges from the pitch-black abyss, with some parts of the mountain range combed into a series of neat and orderly trenches.

Finding the petty thieves who stole from the mines in such complex terrain was no easy task, but even a mission accepted on a whim needed to yield some results.

...

The off-road vehicle swayed over the gloomy terrain. Bai E sat by the window, gazing into the distance, lost in thought.

"What are you looking at?" Rose glanced from the rear-view mirror inside the car and asked curiously.

"Over there," Bai E lifted his chin slightly, "that's where we encountered Nova and the others."

Indeed, the journey from Blackwater City to the mining vein wasn't far from the last mission's objective: the signal station or the Intelligent Mechanism Base.

Both were to the north of the city, though the Intelligent Mechanism Base was a bit further to the west.

The distance that seemed minute on the map translated into something beyond sight in reality.

Although Bai E was looking in that direction, he actually couldn't see the familiar base.

Within that base, he and Rose had left behind the highest level of access privileges.

After their last mission, Bai E wondered if the military had dispatched forces to take over the place... or had it been recaptured by the Intelligent Mechanisms?

A thought flashed through his mind, and Bai E, raising an eyebrow, suddenly spoke, "Let's go have a look."

The vehicle took a sharp turn, maneuvering smoothly.

Rose immediately complied with Bai E's order without question, then asked, "What's up? Got a plan?"

At the start of their journey, they had discussed how to complete the "minor task" they had casually taken on, but according to the experience of others, it was all down to luck.

There certainly were mining thief squads, those Intelligent Mechanisms were more stubborn than anyone.

But whether they would encounter them, when they might do so, and the specific size of the group they might find all depended on luck.

If they had truly come out on this mission just for the sake of it, roaming the mountains and leaving it to chance would suffice.

But their real business was setting up their own enterprise in the town of Li Ming, and this task was just a front.

Matters unrelated to their main objective naturally should take up as little time as possible. Enjoy more content from My Virtual Library Empire

Given that Bai E had suddenly acted out of the ordinary, he must have had some idea of his own.

"Hmm..." Bai E narrowed his eyes and nodded.

A dangerous idea was brewing in his heart, growing more and more inflated.

If they were going to act, they might as well go big.

Since they were already causing trouble for the Intelligent Mechanisms, why merely settle for the hassle of finding a roaming thief vehicle?

Did he remember what he needed to obtain from the Intelligent Mechanisms?

Computing Power Resources!

With the acquisition of the virtual world, the virtual world's ability to replenish his magic during combat was truly formidable, but at the same time... the virtual world's demand for computing power resources was also essential.

Especially after the battle with the orc war boss, Bai E felt even more the suction emanating from within his soul... or rather, from the depths of his Sea of Consciousness, from the core of his Psychic Storage Space.

This suction was steadily increasing, and if he couldn't satisfy the other party's needs, Bai E did not know what the consequences would be.

Would it begin to consume his Spiritual Energy or even his soul? Or would it sever its connection with him completely, even if it meant being shattered and both suffering?

He didn't know, and Bai E certainly didn't want to wait to find out.

Moreover, he couldn't possibly reside indefinitely in the desolate area of the server ruins. Therefore, those crystal-like "Computing Power Resources" that only Intelligent Mechanisms could steadily produce were a must-have for him.

Where there were Computing Power Resources, there were bound to be Intelligent Mechanisms' constructs guarding it. When the time came, he could just take some battle footage and a few war spoils back to report, thus completing the mission and achieving two goals with one action.

So if the base from last time was once again occupied by Intelligent Mechanisms, then they would just have to take it down once more.

Even if those intelligent mechanisms hadn't reclaimed it, they could still feast on their own virtual world through that independent signal base station, easing the "hunger" that had been troubling them for so long.

After the off-road vehicle turned around, it took just over two hours to see the familiar exterior walls of the base station from a distance.

They had been in a hurry at that time and hadn't destroyed the intelligent mechanisms' infrastructure. Now upon returning, the bunker was still there.

The vehicle stopped next to a nearby rock pillar. Rose easily climbed up and, lifting the binoculars hanging in front of her chest, looked towards the bunker, "It seems no trace of intelligent mechanisms... nor of humans."

No one?

"No!"

There were people... or rather, signs of activity.

Tracks from caterpillar vehicles, fresh ones.

Bai E's pupils dilated again after contracting, and he leaped down from the several-meter-high rock pillar.

"Let's go, take it back directly."

The military clearly didn't have the spare forces to send a large guard presence here. The tracks from those caterpillars were identical to those of the intelligent mechanism transport vehicles they took out last time, indicating that the base station had once again fallen into the hands of the intelligent mechanisms.

But probably because they had suffered a heavy loss last time, the first-generation intelligent mechanisms were obviously extremely precious within their community, and thus the intelligent mechanism fortress's guard was now quite weak and had all shrunk back.

Playing a game of tug-of-war with humans was a bet on the humans being spread too thin, trying to put out fires everywhere.

This had become a traditional skill tacitly agreed upon between intelligent mechanisms and humans.

Bai E's squad, intent on recapturing the base station, charged in forcefully.

Last time, the enemy had a first-generation intelligent mechanism in command, and even their defensive force was extremely formidable. Plus, there was a traitor eager to turn on them.

Now the enemy was significantly weakened while their own strength was unimpaired, if not increased. Taking down a fortress guarded only by a few new-generation intelligent mechanisms was as easy as reaching into a bag.

They didn't even take the vehicle. Defying the intelligent mechanisms' artillery fire that signalled enemy detection, Bai E, alone with a war bug knife in hand, charged into the fortress.

Unlimited Spiritual Energy and a recently greatly enhanced set of basic attributes made Bai E like a true War God.

When the off-road vehicle caught up to Bai E, all it found were several blossoms of explosions in the air above the bunker.

Highest authority was still intact; even the intelligent mechanisms couldn't break through the technological barriers of the Golden Age from the lowest level.

Recognizing Bai E's arrival, the base station's gates opened automatically.

Inside the room... it was empty.

Only a small amount of blank crystal blocks calmly stacked in a corner.

The fresh tracks of caterpillar vehicles seen before entering the fortress flashed before his eyes, and images of the transport convoy filled with completed computing power resources leaving became as vivid as if he had witnessed them firsthand.

"A step too late..."

The finished products had already been moved out. Taking those blank crystal blocks was meaningless.

"How is it?" Rose was the first to rush into the base station, arriving behind Bai E.

Bai E narrowed his eyes, a dangerous glint flashing across his pupils.

The destination of the intelligent mechanism transport vehicles leaving was surely the Intelligent Mechanism Base they had speculated about last time.

If it was the Intelligent Mechanism Base... there would likely be even more computing power resources, right?

Bai E didn't want the hassle of dealing with these metal nuisances all the time, they were annoying enough without him seeking them out.

Moreover, he wasn't absolutely free in the city either. If he didn't store enough supplies, what would he do when the virtual world really reached the brink of "starvation"?

If he didn't act, he had to make it big!

Of course, his biggest source of confidence now was the nearly unlimited outburst of Spiritual Energy.

Bai E made a decision, "Let everyone rest for a while, and then we'll pursue!"