The Mech Touch novel Chapter 7134

Chapter 7134: The Ascended Giants

The first meeting between Ves and the leaders of the Phase Lord Department took place in high orbit of Jotunheim.

Although the base of the rogue department was well-protected, it had powered down its active turrets and other weapon systems as part of a pre-negotiated settlement.

The Bluejay Fleet did likewise keeping its mechs in their carriers and the weapon systems of its warships in lockdown.

Many people could feel the tension in the air as those involved in this troublesome affair realized how easily both sides could come to blows.

Any provocation could lead to escalation.

If the human phase lords were not willing to back down out of paranoia or misplaced pride, then they may decide to launch an attack, thereby starting a chain of events that would lead to massive losses to both sides!

The Yernstall was supposed to be the safest and most secure star system after Bridgehead One.

Any incident where warships, planetary bases and human phase lords started to exchange blows would definitely be detected across the central star node.

Many more people would find out about the internal irregularities, turning it into a full-blown scandal that could not be contained.

The Red Collective would suffer a huge crisis of faith!

Every leader involved in this botched affair would suffer a huge hit in reputation!

This included Ves!

He therefore needed to be very careful and avoid setting off the compromised collies.

Yet he could not allow the Red Collective to suffer too big of a disadvantage either.

The RC had its bottom lines. It could not afford to tolerate outright betrayal.

If the human phase lords did not fall in line, then the Red Collective had little choice but to call in the big guns.

This likely entailed drastic measures such as requesting the intervention of a god pilot to sort out the recalcitrant human phase lords.

Of course, it went without saying that such a move came at an enormous expense. Just the fact that the RC had to divert a god pilot from a vital responsibility was enough to affect the war effort!

Nobody wanted the situation to deteriorate up to this point. Ves carried the hopes of many RC leaders. They wanted him to try and see if he could resolve the problem quietly and without drama.

Ves personally did not have that much hope of success. He was not a professional diplomat and still felt he was lacking too much context.

However, the RC promised rich rewards if he succeeded in convincing the human phase lords to submit themselves to authority.

More importantly, if he failed, he would still come away with a generous consolation prize.

The RC had plenty of good stuff that Ves desired, from exclusive hyper materials to forbidden knowledge.

What Ves found most crucial was structural knowledge on how to convert alien phasewater organs into human-compatible versions. This was a long-standing shortcoming of the Larkinson Biotech Institute.

The Phase Lord Department conducted a huge amount of research in this field. Though much of the research data was locked inside bases such as Jotunheim, the RC’s other databases possessed a sizable quantity of early research reports, enough to satisfy Ves’ appetite.

The thought of those databases caused Ves to turn towards another important figure.

"Meow?"

Lucky raised his head and looked questionably at Ves.

"Are you ready for another infiltration mission? This isn’t like the last attempts. Jotunheim is secured with lots of modern human tech. You cannot afford to be sloppy. Retrieving vital intelligence from their data cores is important, but preventing the human phase lords from finding out that we are sneaking behind their backs is even more important. You can literally start an internal war if any phase lord, any human thrall or any electronic system has detected your traces."

The gem cat arrogantly lifted his head. "Meow!"

It was as if Lucky felt insulted that Ves would even question his infiltration capabilities!

"Hey! We got exposed while we were attempting to infiltrate the Protector of Karnak’s underwater lair, remember?!"

"Meow meow meow!"

Lucky believed he would be able to remain completely undetected if he did not have to babysit Ferrum this time!

Whatever the case, the consequences of getting caught were much more severe this time. That was why Ves did not insist on employing his infiltration-oriented mechanical cat avatar.

Compared to an amateur like Ves, Lucky was much more experienced with infiltration!

Ves turned to Zariel-775. "Are you sure Lucky will be able to find anything particularly important or incriminating? Even if these human phase lords are not the sharpest tools in the workshop, they shouldn’t be stupid enough to document their evil master plan."

"You would be surprised how negligent individuals can be." The mysterious spy responded. "Even the best can fall prey to complacency. It is still worthwhile to take the risk to send out your pet on an infiltration mission. The absence of proof also constitutes an important data point in itself. The results will at least provide more certainty to the Astral Octagon. Do not be too concerned about the possibility that your pet will get caught. We have discretely mobilized a troupe of formation masters and other cultivators that will provide various means of remote support. The human phase lord should not possess the means to detect these discrepancies."

"Are you sure about that?" Ves questioned. "They all have companion spirits, right?"

The secret keeper nodded. "That is true, but none of them excel in detection as far as I am concerned. Their companion spirits are mostly oriented towards enhancing and supporting their direct combat capabilities, which mostly comes in the form of elemental energy manipulation. They possess certain means of detection, but our experts have already taken this into account. What is much more important is that you do your best to attract their attention. We are certain that the self-styled polemarchos is broadcasting this meeting to the rest of his troops. He has no other choice given how much they look up to you as the trailblazer of their current path to power."

"Polemarchos?"

"When we found out that the human phase lords have become compromised, the department head has already taken the first step to distancing himself from our organization by adopting separate ranks for himself and his subordinates. Following the traditions of the alien phase lords, Scilo Karneon has cast off his ’mortal name’ and prefers to be known as the Oscillating Fist, the Polemarchos of the Ascended Giants."

"...That is a drastic change." Ves remarked. "He is one step away from designating human phase lords as the giant race."

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