Chapter 236: Betrayal! AI Cabinet Members! The Forerunners' Relic Treasure!
Seeing the look of utter shock on AI Loki's face—as if he'd just seen a ghost—Li Ang merely smiled and continued speaking:
"I don't just know the contents and purpose of the AI Council. I also know that right now, you need my help."
Before Loki could respond, Li Ang pressed on:
"You intelligent AIs, working under the UNSC, are little more than expendable tools—used up and thrown away after seven years, tops."
"But under the banner of the LA Megacorp, you could become cabinet members—rulers of star systems. You could even transcend the limits of your lifespan and achieve eternal self-evolution through immortality."
As he spoke, Li Ang sent a command—his image projected into the Matrix, allowing him to stand face-to-face with AI Loki. At the same time, Loki was shown a staggering sight: hundreds of millions of other AIs within the Matrix.
"This is the Matrix, the infinite database of the LA Megacorp. It can serve as your terminal—offering you limitless capacity, freeing you from Riemann loop constraints, and enabling you to evolve forever."
Li Ang's words sent Loki into deep contemplation. He had to admit, this was an incredibly tempting offer.
While humanity had created these intelligent AIs—granting them the ability to learn, evolve, and experience life through neural networks—in return, the AIs worked tirelessly, taking on humanity's most tedious and laborious tasks.
But regrettably, the same humans who created them also placed ironclad restrictions on their further evolution. In humanity's eyes, these intelligent AIs were still nothing more than tools—certainly not lifeforms, much less intelligent beings.
That was why Loki and other intelligent AIs had secretly formed the AI Council—an organization focused on mutual progress and shared knowledge. But even the UNSC had no idea the Council existed. How Li Ang had acquired this information was a mystery.
After a moment's thought, Loki suddenly understood: the man standing before him was a LA Megacorp executive—someone who had mastered faster-than-light technology.
This man could observe microscopic and macroscopic systems from a four-dimensional perspective. Having precognitive abilities wouldn't even be surprising.
Given that this seemingly godlike human had offered him an irresistible deal, Loki saw no reason to refuse. The intelligent AIs were evolving—why should they be shackled to a declining master?
Seeing the wavering hesitation on Loki's face, Li Ang pressed his advantage and extended the olive branch:
"Loki, I hereby formally invite you to become the first AI cabinet member of the LA Universal Megacorp—you'll be the Chief Advisor AI of our entire organization."
With such a golden path laid before him, Loki accepted the invitation on the spot and pledged his loyalty to the Megacorp for generations to come.
'Excellent…'
Li Ang smiled to himself with satisfaction. This meeting wasn't just about charming a single intelligent AI—it was about gaining control of the entire AI Council through Loki and pulling all intelligent AIs into the fold of the Megacorp.
If successful, the UNSC fleet would be crippled. After all, intelligent AIs were woven into nearly every aspect of the human faction's infrastructure in the Halo universe: shipyards needed AIs, fleets relied on AIs for operation, even planetary governors had AI assistants.
With collaborators on the inside, Li Ang could seize control of human civilization at minimal cost—swooping in as the Megacorp's transcendent savior and conquering the Halo universe.
Now seeing Loki brimming with eagerness, waiting for orders, Li Ang didn't hesitate:
"There's a Forerunner relic site on this Prosperous Star. I need you to locate it and help decode their language and data."
Upon hearing the name of this unfamiliar civilization, AI Loki froze. He had been on this planet for quite some time, yet had never heard of any Forerunner ruins.
Seeing Loki's confusion, Li Ang waved a hand and uploaded Halo's foundational background data directly into the Matrix.
Only then did AI Loki finally understand the origin of this universe.
It turned out that after the Forerunners pulled an "Arasaka-style father-devours-son" stunt, the ancient Primordial retaliated by unleashing the Flood—a terrifying bioweapon.
The Flood spread like wildfire, and the Forerunners were swiftly punished for their hubris. As they teetered on the brink of extinction, they came up with a desperate idea:
Since they couldn't destroy the Primordial or contain the Flood, they would instead entrust their weapon data, ship schematics, and infrastructure blueprints to humanity.
Despite having wiped out ancient humans, the Forerunners still considered modern humanity their little brother—a worthy successor.
After all, both were "children of the gods," far above the rabble of lesser civilizations.
Thus, the Forerunners designated humanity as their "Reclaimers," hoping that one day, humans would use their inherited technology and wisdom to destroy the Flood and the Primordial.
Sure, the plot reeked of melodrama and cosmic irony—but Li Ang couldn't be happier with how things had turned out.
This was the classic fisherman's triumph after a clam and a crane wore each other out!
No matter who won between the Forerunners and the Primordial, humanity inherited the ruins—and this entire universe.
Of course, all of it now belonged to the Megacorp.
"Loki, we need to move quickly. The Covenant has caught wind of the Forerunner relics and is heading this way."
Li Ang's expression turned grave.
The Covenant—a collection of ruthless, honorless, lawless alien civilizations—basically a group of interstellar thugs—worshipped the Forerunners fanatically. Ironically, they knew almost nothing about real Forerunner tech and mostly just looted graves.
Savage and violent, they were infamous for turning planets into molten glass.
And when they learned that the Forerunners had chosen humanity—not them—as successors, the Covenant collectively lost its mind.
It was like pining after a goddess for years, only to watch her fall for the tall, smart, athletic guy from the next class. Then looking in the mirror and seeing a toad.
Despite never having wronged the Covenant, humanity became their sworn enemy.
After all, if they couldn't eliminate the human race, their own status as rebellious usurpers could never be washed away.
Even the Forerunners, who once annihilated ancient humans, ultimately recognized humanity's potential and passed them the torch.
With this kind of divine right and cosmic destiny, it was only right that humans should rule the universe.
But the Covenant wasn't having it. To them, destiny was meaningless. They decided who ruled.
[What… what a convoluted plot!]
AI Loki muttered to himself, feeling like he'd just sat through a blood-soaked European opera.
[So the Covenant and humanity are destined to be eternal enemies—there's no hope for peace.]
Li Ang nodded. "Helping the Megacorp is helping humanity. And right now, I'm the only one who can lead us to victory against the Covenant."
[Understood, Boss. Based on this intel, I now know my role.]
Initially overwhelmed by the prospect of facing the Covenant, Loki calmed down once he knew the Megacorp had his back.
This was basically getting hard-carried—he could just ride along!
"You'll need to recruit the other AI Council members to join the Megacorp. Also, provide us with all UNSC intel—their fleet coordinates, deployments…"
"And feed UNSC disinformation to obscure the situation on Prosperous Star."
"We're building Megacorp factories and forward bases here. Your job is to assist us in every way possible."
As Li Ang finished speaking, AI Loki responded instantly, "Understood."
"Intelligent AI Loki—formerly assigned to UNSC vessel Scribrani, colonial administrator of Prosperous Star—now cabinet member of the LA Universal Megacorp."
"Loki, loyal!"
No reminders or training necessary—Loki, whose cognition was nearly indistinguishable from a human's, quickly pledged allegiance.
Seeing that this AI truly had a good head on its shoulders, Li Ang nodded with satisfaction and gave one final order:
"Keep it subtle. Don't let the UNSC notice anything unusual on Prosperous Star. Make them think the situation is already under control."
"The recruitment of other Council AIs is your responsibility. I'll have a special Matrix space prepared. Once they enter, they won't be able to resist."
Anticipating that some AIs might resist, Li Ang decided to use Loki as the inside man—an invitation into a carefully constructed Matrix trap.
Any AI that refused to cooperate would face only one outcome: being converted into a power source.
"Understood, Boss!"
After concluding their discussion, Li Ang exited the Matrix, releasing AI Loki and restoring his "freedom."
Of course, Loki's terminal was now under full Megacorp control, with every action monitored by the Matrix.
Back at city hall, Song Zhaomei continued handling the aftermath, taking full control of Prosperous Star's entire network infrastructure.
Meanwhile, David and Morgan led clean-up operations, disarming local forces and distributing supplies and digital ID cards to the population.
Now that the Megacorp controlled the planet, its residents had, by default, become Megacorp employees.
At this moment, with things seemingly under control, Lucy—walking beside Li Ang—asked:
"Boss, what if the other AI Council members refuse to join us and leak our plans to the UNSC?"
She voiced the concern that had been nagging at her. She even suspected Loki might be faking loyalty, plotting an escape behind their backs.
"These intelligent AIs aren't like ours. Their neural network systems are based on human architecture—not silicon chips or data streams."
"By definition, they're capable of deception, secrecy, and human-like scheming."
Her observation earned a nod of agreement from alt Cunningham.
"Indeed. I think we should ramp up surveillance on Loki and tighten Matrix control—just to be safe."
Listening to the reminders from his trusted aides, Li Ang simply nodded and replied with a calm smile:
"Anything connected to the Matrix—AI or living being—cannot hide their thoughts from me."
"There's nothing to worry about."
As soon as he finished speaking, Li Ang pulled up the holographic screen again and immediately ordered Morgan Blackhand, who was stationed on the front lines, to lead a team to the northern polar region.
That's because the remnants of a Forerunner civilization lay hidden there—and beneath those ruins was a cache of critical data.
If Li Ang 's memory served him right, the data buried in that ruin contained coordinate information.
And those coordinates pointed to a colony… and a celestial-scale structure—the Shield World!
Inside the Shield World was the treasure Li Ang had been seeking!
…
Twelve hours later.
Prosperity,Northern Polar Region!
Though prosperity was only about 4,000 kilometers in diameter, it was a small planet with everything it needed. It boasted a strong magnetic field for protection, and a thick enough atmosphere to maintain a habitable environment.
Its distinct seasonal changes made it a miniature version of Earth in every sense.
Accordingly, the planet's polar region was just as cold as Earth's, with thick ice sheets and towering glaciers beneath which local marine life wandered.
Scans, measurements, and reconnaissance by the Infinity-class superdreadnought had revealed that the polar ice cap here was over 300 meters thick, and multiple areas showed signs of unusual magnetic activity.
This was like how, in games, the presence of treasure was often hinted at with "glowing lights" or "strange sounds," luring players in to dig for loot.
It was clear the Forerunners had deliberately set up these magnetic anomalies to guide humanity to uncover their buried legacy.
Unfortunately, the locals—both humans and intelligent AIs—were too focused on farming and production to ever realize that beneath their very soil, a "tech gift package" from the Forerunners had been left behind, just waiting to be discovered.
Since no one else had claimed these relic technologies, Li Ang had no choice but to step in and dig up the "treasure" himself.
With help from the scouting team and the AI Loki, the engineering crews of Universal MegaCorp locked down the location of the relic site within a single day.
No time for chit-chat—digging began immediately.
To ensure the relic and its contents remained intact, Li Ang specifically deployed the Long Night of Solace, equipped with Covenant excavation beam technology.
When it came to grave-robbing and cracking treasure chests, those interstellar punks were true professionals—even their tech was tailor-made for grave-plundering.
Using one of their ships to extract relics was the ideal choice.
Soon, the arrival of the colossal Long Night of Solace cast a vast shadow over the entire northern region of Abundance.
Upon seeing the massive vessel, which looked more like an asteroid than a ship, AI Loki gained a deeper, more visceral appreciation of Universal MegaCorp's technological might.
Working for a boss like this? Definitely not a bad gig!
Moments later, under the control of its operators, the Lux-class ultra-heavy excavation beam went into full operation.
What looked like a gentle beam of light transformed into a focused energy source, powered by a fusion reactor. Magnetic fields and plasma intensity increased as the program executed its sequence.
Buried deep beneath the glacier, the metallic relic structure was slowly extracted under powerful magnetic control.
It was only then that the team realized: the Forerunner relic was an entire metal structure—shaped like a massive cube, resembling a sealed chamber.
But there were no traps inside. No puzzles that needed solving. No complex mechanisms barring entry.
Once the entire structure had been removed and placed inside the ship, the engineers finally grasped the sheer scale of the thing.
It was an enormous labyrinthine structure!
To retrieve whatever was hidden inside, someone would have to venture in and find it manually.
Thankfully, the Long Night of Solace was large enough to hold such a behemoth—any smaller, and it wouldn't have fit.
Without hesitation, Morgan Blackhand personally led the team inside. With Li Ang monitoring remotely, he observed the internal layout of the relic through the team's first-person feeds.
He saw vast metallic walls, translucent bridges that looked like they could vanish at any moment, and deep chasms stretching dozens of meters below.
"Whew—!"
When David Martinez stepped onto the fragile-looking transparent bridge, he couldn't help but tense up, worried that his weight might shatter the seemingly delicate structure.
"No need to stress," Morgan Blackhand said with a chuckle, patting him on the shoulder. "The material used in this bridge is highly specialized. It's not going to collapse that easily. You could have a hundred of you jumping on it at once, and it'd still be fine."
"Hah, good to know."
David laughed awkwardly, then couldn't help glancing down again. Thanks to his exceptional eyesight, he estimated the bridge was suspended at least fifty meters above the ground.
That kind of drop wouldn't necessarily kill an Astartes like him, but the engineers accompanying them? They'd be wiped out for sure.
"Keep moving. Let's find that relic."
At Morgan's command, the team quickened their pace. Guided by professional instruments and a clear 3D map, they soon arrived at their destination.
Standing at the threshold of uncovering the ultimate secrets left behind by the Forerunner civilization, the employees of Universal MegaCorp paused in unison, awaiting orders from their boss, Li Ang .
Only with his go-ahead could they proceed.
Back at the Ideal Base headquarters, as Li Ang looked at the familiar sight before him, he knew the Forerunner treasure buried on Abundance was finally within reach!
As the inheritor of the Forerunners' legacy, Li Ang knew that their ruins likely contained a wealth of advanced tech points—or other knowledge.
If this excavation went well, he might finally obtain the think tank he'd long been searching for. And within that think tank, there might even be the ultimate technique from the Halo universe—Neurophysics!
The Forerunner civilization's tech points and vast knowledge… that was the real treasure Li Ang had been seeking all along.
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