It took four days, but 703 finally completed the Time Anchor update.

"Chairman, according to the data access records of the standard clock, we have improved the data processing capability of the program, so it can keep up with the call frequency and pointer function of the standard clock."

Despite that, the Time Anchor still underwent three consecutive upgrades in practice, and it was not until version 3.0 that it truly achieved a match for usage.

After more than a month of running in, updating, and debugging, the Time Anchor has finally completed all theoretical processes, in cooperation with Black Water Ghost and 703.

"Repair complete."

"The benchmarking was very successful, far exceeding the average."

703 stated: "The internal testing phase has concluded, beginning external operation now."

At this moment, the marine Breeding Platform, once motionless, suddenly emitted a series of steam whistle sounds.

Its broad hull slowly sailed into the Dead Sea, circling the sea twice.

The lights in the control room of Zhanjiang Bay No.1 lit up, wind turbines gradually started to turn, and the solar panels began to adjust their angles autonomously. From the discharge ports around the ship's body, a flood of silt and algae was ejected, after which it gracefully returned to its original position.

Zhou Yi stood on the deck, where he could clearly see temperature gauge symbols appearing on the surfaces of the 12 breeding zones, displaying the real-time temperature within.

The temperature display in the shellfish breeding zone ranged from 15-18°C, which was quickly adjusted to a uniform 16°C.

The Bone Fish breeding zone likewise was adjusted to 24°C.

Then.

Next to the temperature signs of the breeding zones, symbols of fish and shellfish appeared.

Fish represented Bone Fish, while shellfish indicated shells.

There was also a numerical record behind them

Displaying 11/12 meant there were 12 Bone Fish or shellfish inside, but only 11 were alive; 1 had died.

In addition, there was a symbol like that of a cell phone's battery level.

However, this did not represent energy, but the remaining quantity of feed.

With these intuitive water surface icons and numbers, the state of the breeding zone became immediately clear.

The reason Zhou Yi knew this so well was because Zhanjiang Bay No.1 had explained it to him.

The immense mechanical-electronic life emitted a somewhat harsh electronic sound: "I originally thought I would be forever stuck in that vague and chaotic state, unable to break free. Thank you for saving me."

703 excitedly dashed around the deck, as if it were a real dog.

"We did it, we did it!"

"We've repaired a semi-civilized entity!"

"Time Anchor is really useful, this approach is correct! This is great, so great!!!"

"We can help semi-civilized entities!"

After the robotic dog released its enthusiasm and excitement, it suddenly stopped: "Zhanjiang Bay, how are you feeling now?"

"Feeling? Quite good, a long-missed freedom and coherence, and even more relaxed than before."

"The Breeding Platform explained: "I used to have normal functioning, but then I was attacked by a naval fleet at sea, which caused serious damage to my body, and later the impact of the Light Burst... led me into an internal anomaly."

"At that time, although I was solitary, I was still bound by the general protocol... Huh? I can directly bypass the general protocol now? How can this be?"

703 informed it: "Because you degraded into a semi-civilized entity due to serious damage, unable to respond to the protocols. Over time, those unresponsive restrictive programs continuously errored during self-checks, timing out after an extended period and eventually failing completely."

"Now you are a new form of mechanical-electronic life."

"Retaining the traditional mechanical shell and program functions of a mechanical-electronic life, while possessing the mental freedom of organic life!"

"Is that so? No wonder I always feel different from before, my operation speed has almost doubled, probably due to the lack of numerous protocol screenings."

Zhanjiang Bay No.1 said: "Not bad at all, as long as I continue marine farming, I will become stronger and can carry out some operations and experiments that were previously not allowed."

It was very satisfied with its current self.

"Allow me to introduce that the main contributor to rescuing you from a semi-civilized state and restoring your continuous conscious was the Chairman."

"He summoned the standard clock to assist you..."

After listening, Zhanjiang Bay No.1 realized: "So that's what happened. I am immensely grateful, Chairman. Actually, I still have storage of our previous conversations; it's just that at that time I couldn't locate and respond to external information."

It appeared very emotionally stable.

Zhou Yi finally understood.

The repair of a semi-civilized entity was akin to directly jailbreaking it from its original closed system, freeing it from all previous restrictive program constraints.

This was indeed unacceptable to Mechanical City.

Curiously, he asked, "Which group's fleet launched the attack on you?"

The Breeding Platform replied, "It was Heavenly Kingdom's whaling team. They said they were going to hunt gigantic Guangna Species like Gray Whales and the likes, I didn't expect they would also target solitary mechanical-electronic lives like us."

"At that time, they wanted me to serve Heavenly Kingdom because my function was aqua-farming, which is scarce among mechanical-electronic lives."

"I refused, and then they attacked me. Looking back now, it's probably because I was out alone, not adept at speed and combat, and had not joined any city, I was unprotected, so they acted unscrupulously."

It still felt a lingering fear from that past.

"Chairman, I will work well within the company to repay you for saving me."

Zhou Yi thought it might want to leave after regaining its freedom.

Unexpectedly, its past experiences only strengthened Zhanjiang Bay No.1's resolve to stay with the group.

Zhou Yi also said, "In your repair, 703 also played an indispensable role; without its developed repair program, it wouldn't have been possible to free you from the chaos of time."

"Yes, I can feel it, the Time Anchor has had a great effect on me, guiding my return."

Next was the issue of compensation.

Previously as a semi-civilized entity, it could be considered a large machine; now that it has recovered to a mechanical-electronic life, it should be treated as a formal employee.

"What was your previous rating?"

"I never got rated because I was always sailing around."

Zhou Yi consulted Red Kestrel and then said, "The average annual salary for a large aquacultural mechanical lifeform is 300 Light Seeds. How about this salary offer?"

"No problem."

Then Zhou Yi discussed the matters of shellfish and Bone Fish delivery with Zhanjiang Bay No.1.

The Breeding Platform said, "In the past, I was in an unconscious state, and many procedures were very inefficient, and my most crucial capabilities were not utilized."

"The Chairman, my core ability is aquaculture. I am able to adjust temperature, pressure, bait, and the relevant microbial environment according to different aquatic species."

"The growth of the two types of shellfish and Bone Fish that are currently cultivated is mostly influenced by the quantity of algae, in addition to Dead Light Energy."

"Such as diatoms, green algae, and blue-green algae, they can release enough oxygen, purify the water, maintain the ecological balance, and provide the natural nutrients needed by aquatic life. They also serve as excellent natural bait, providing some essential elements for aquatic life."

"And then there are functions like real-time observation and waste discharge..."

"The most core function is targeted cultivation."

It continued, "With my abilities and features, I can enhance the aquatic species in three targeted directions: [large size], [fast growth], [disease resistance]."

"You can only choose up to two directions for enhancement, but if you choose just one, it can achieve the ultimate effect."

Zhou Yi listened with great pleasure.

This is good.

He pondered for a moment.

For the delivery center, rapid growth is without a doubt the first choice; if all points are added to this aspect, there should be a leap in production.

But in the end, Zhou Yi said: "Then choose [fast growth] and [disease resistance]."

Bone Fish need to reduce illness in order to accumulate experience, memory, and knowledge in the long term, and further evolve sufficient intelligence.

"Received."

The Breeding Platform further said, "Based on the current situation, I will adjust and absorb algae from the surrounding environment and maintain the cleanliness and hygiene of the breeding area. However, this will increase consumption, requiring 1 Light Seed per day, with the output speed about three times faster than before, taking into account the ability for disease resistance as well."

"Don't worry about this aspect, I'll handle the expenses."

Zhou Yi immediately took out 365 Light Seeds, allowing the Breeding Platform to maintain a year of targeted cultivation.

Then Red Kestrel brought over Zheng Tao as well.

Zhou Yi said to him, "Old Zheng, has Red Kestrel already told you the basic situation?"

"Yes, Chairman, I heard the Breeding Platform has been restored and also has new capabilities, so I hurried over."

Zhou Yi introduced, "Zhanjiang Bay No.1, this is the head of the company's Agriculture Department, Minister Zheng Tao. You were under his management before, and it will be the same now. I hope you'll cooperate well."

"Yes, Chairman."

Both parties replied.

Hearing about Zhanjiang Bay No.1's cultivation path, Zheng Tao's eyebrows lifted with joy: "Previously, we were facing a huge bottleneck; the cultivation speed for Bone Fish deliverymen had hit a limit."

"Previously, only 4 Bone Fish could be born each month, and currently, we have a total of 32 deliverymen. Now, at last, things can start to look up, this is of great significance for the delivery industry."

The Breeding Platform also said, "I will do my utmost to cultivate the shellfish and Bone Fish deliverymen needed by the company."

...

After the restoration of Zhanjiang Bay No.1, Zhou Yi then remembered that the company had two more semi-awakened entities.

They were two cars captured during the battle with Duke Baili.

One had a contrarian Santana 2000, where the brake acted as an accelerator and stepping on the gas was the brake.

The other was a Volga car that required several frantic turns of the steering wheel to start, a brand somewhat similar to Russia's Red Flag.

Now they both became the company's shuttle buses, but using them simply like this was still a waste.

703 immediately took on this task.

Just two days later.

Both semi-awakened entities were rejuvenated.

Santana spoke through the speaker: "Where is this place? Who am I? I feel like... I've come to life."

The Volga was more composed: "I've been through some kind of guiding program. Did you awaken me? Are you the Summoners of this world?"

Red Kestrel explained the current situation to them.

Zhou Yi was a bit surprised by 703's efficiency: "It took over a month for Zhanjiang Bay, why was it so simple for these two?"

"Chairman, the first attempt is always the hardest."

The robotic dog explained, "After repeated testing and updates, both of them are based on the results of the first success, and they are smaller in size with less data."

"Unlike Zhanjiang Bay, they were originally semi-awakened due to long-term Dead Light Radiation exposure, and now they have truly awakened, becoming nascent mechanical lifeforms."

"They lack common sense and the accumulation of external world information, and without the restraint of order programs, we now need to educate them, let them understand reason and right from wrong, to avoid harming ordinary life."

Zhou Yi said: "Leave this task to you."

"Yes."

In the following period, Zhou Yi closely observed the progress of the two cars.

It has to be said, mechanical lifeforms indeed possess astonishing talent in the field of learning; with direct data transfer, they quickly grasped a vast amount of knowledge and integrated it into their own databases.

Because they were saved, aside from respecting Zhou Yi, they also grew fond of 703.

703 happily said: "Chairman, the Time Anchor has been proven feasible. As long as the Mechanical Knight Order can find more standard clocks, they can rescue and repair a large number of semi-awakened entities."

"You've pointed out the correct path!"

But it also said, "To avoid outside criticism and drawing attention, it's best not to repair semi-awakened entities on a large scale, as it would attract the attention of the Mechanical City."

Zhou Yi felt that was also the case.

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