Ailei was exhausted.
Literally, she was in a state of complete lethargy.
After successfully developing the ion engine, Ailei's mechanical body lost power, and she collapsed onto Xu Xi with practiced ease.
Only after Xu Xi inquired did he learn the truth.
Over the years, Ailei's rapid progress in research and development, achieving an efficiency that far surpassed that of conventional civilizations, was not only due to her vastly increased computational power but also her frequent use of a special ability.
This observational ability was not limited to the cosmos; it could also be applied to scientific experiments.
Replication.
Stacking.
Exhaustive enumeration.
With the power of a single machine, she observed countless outcomes.
Every second, Ailei was performing overloaded computations. Even though the fleet was constantly manufacturing new computers, they were still insufficient to handle the immense computational tasks.
Naturally, this burden fell entirely on Ailei.
"Master, I'm out of power again," the mechanical servant said dully as Xu Xi supported her, her hair cascading down and brushing against his arm.
"Take a rest for now," Xu Xi sighed helplessly.
...
[The successful development of the ion engine made you happy.]
[But Ailei's reckless actions made you unhappy.]
[Frowning, you observed the weakened mechanical servant for a long time before lightly flicking her forehead, forbidding her from using her special ability without permission in the future.]
[The loyal mechanical servant obeyed your command, promising never to use it without authorization again.]
[You nodded in satisfaction, while hiding your trembling fingers behind your back.]
[The mechanical humanoid body was indeed a bit too hard. When you flicked Ailei's forehead, your fingers also felt a tingling sensation.]
[You sternly warned Ailei again, forbidding her from using her special ability without permission to prevent further weakening of her mechanical soul.]
[Afterward, you stood on the bridge of the ecological starship.]
[Gazing out at the starry sky and the endless darkness beyond.]
[The starry sea was as dazzling as a dream, with countless stars shining upon you. With an engine capable of one-third the speed of light, you finally felt a sense of hope for the future, rather than the dread of dying in the void.]
...
[In the second week after the successful development of the ion engine, Ailei's weakness had not subsided.]
[The side effects of her special ability continued to deeply affect her mechanical soul.]
[You often stayed by Ailei's side, using the resonance of mechanical pleasure and energy to alleviate the side effects for your loyal servant.]
[Ailei was happy, Ailei was joyful, Ailei was delighted.]
[With your help, the loyal mechanical servant remained weak, but she was now able to command the fleet and unleash the traditional aesthetics of the Mechanical Calamity.]
[The self-replicating swarm strategy.]
[Under Ailei's control, an overwhelming number of warships gathered in a star system, setting up colossal devices that spanned the cosmos, harvesting resources from countless celestial bodies, and voraciously consuming everything in their path.]
[Main battleship manufacturing plants, ion engine assembly yards, particle colliders, and hundreds of thousands of medium and small transport ships.]
[The loyal Ailei always remembered you, caring for your daily life. Thus, she carried out a massive upgrade to the ecological starship.]
[You acquired a reinforced version of the silver ecological starship.]
...
The full deployment of the ion engine, along with resource collection and technological advancements, took a considerable amount of time.
But the effort was undoubtedly worth it. To ensure Xu Xi's safety, Ailei had poured all her energy into these endeavors.
Years passed in the blink of an eye.
Ailei once asked Xu Xi if he ever felt bored.
The vastness of space, the boundless universe, was ultimately too empty and desolate. Although the ecological starship had a simulated environment, a sense of loneliness still lingered.
Xu Xi simply smiled and finished the hot soup Ailei had brought him.
"If I said I wasn't bored, I'd be lying."
"But it's not that bad either."
Xu Xi glanced out the porthole.
On the pockmarked rocky planet, countless newly produced starships rose into the sky, joining Ailei's computational array and becoming part of the Mechanical Calamity.
Magnificent, grand, and filled with an overwhelming sense of epicness.
The charm of machinery and steel.
A power no less awe-inspiring than the extraordinary feats of the previous three simulations.
"Ailei, I like this feeling. Watching technology grow and flourish gives me a deep sense of satisfaction."
"And it's not just me here. There's you too, isn't there?"
Hearing Xu Xi's words, the mechanical servant seemed to ponder.
Her calm face.
Her flat lips.
Curved slightly upward.
But soon, Xu Xi's words interrupted the servant's joy.
"Ailei, can I ask you for a favor?"
"Of course, Master. Please give me your command."
"Don't worry, it's nothing major. I just want to ask... could you change the soup recipe from now on?"
Xu Xi finished the soup and looked at the empty bowl in his hand, suspiciously saying, "I feel like the soup is getting stranger. Lately, I've been having trouble sleeping."
"Please rest assured, I will modify the soup's recipe."
Ailei replied earnestly.
She took Xu Xi's request to heart.
...
[Simulation Year 33, you are 52 years old, and Ailei has been by your side for 31 years.]
[Your fleet is thriving.]
[Setting sail, embarking on an expedition across the starry sea.]
[At your command, the entire fleet equipped with ion engines burst into dazzling light, like sacred spears piercing through the cosmos.]
[From the time you left the Federation planet, you had spent a long time in the universe.]
[Were you bored? Lonely? Empty?]
[You thought you might have been, but Ailei's companionship and the development of science and technology often left you feeling satisfied.]
[Moreover, you dug up the old virtual network technology from the past, turning this method of escapism from the old Federation into a leisure game for entertainment.]
[Ailei was your best teammate, but her involvement often made the games end too quickly.]
[The starry sea was dazzling, and the universe was silent.]
[Occasionally, you chose to enter low-temperature hibernation, spending the long and monotonous interstellar voyages in an unconscious state.]
...
[Simulation Year 37, you are 56 years old, and Ailei has been by your side for 35 years.]
[Researching technology, playing virtual games, and undergoing low-temperature hibernation.]
[The combination of these methods made the passage of time feel like a fleeting moment.]
[You underwent a physical examination and, looking at the results of your hibernation, felt that with the help of Ailei's gene therapy, you might be able to live even longer under ideal conditions.]
[Of course, there were drawbacks.]
[An overly long lifespan could erode one's memories, turning a person into something no longer human.]
[But you were resolute, diligent, and hardworking. Having gone through multiple simulations, you were no longer concerned about such things.]
With the help of Ailei's special ability, Xu Xi had briefly glimpsed the terrifying scenes hidden in the distant universe.
It was the cruel reality concealed within the shattered starry sea.
A graveyard of celestial bodies and civilizations in the deep void.
And now, after years of space travel, Xu Xi finally reached the fringes of that reality, approaching the nearest civilized planet to the Federation's homeworld.
Or rather, what was once a civilized planet.
Like the fallen Human Federation, this place had long since become a wasteland.
"Boom——!!"
In the vast cosmos, several main battleships escorted the ecological starship, roaring as they hovered in the planet's atmosphere.
"Master, please be careful. Ailei will protect your safety."