One day, Red Kestrel hurriedly flew in and said, "Zhou, have you seen the latest news?"

"What happened?"

"138 Mechanical Cities have issued a joint statement, demanding that no city should harbor or shelter any members of the Mechanical Knight Order. If they find any relevant associated personnel, they must be notified immediately. They will pay a considerable reward."

"So far, two Human Cities have been confirmed to harbor and conceal carriers of the 'Sunday Virus,' and they have been subjected to joint sanctions by the Mechanical Cities."

"They have been added to the trade blacklist, downgraded by one rating, and subjected to a ten-year technology blockade. During this period, these two cities will not be able to receive any technical support and services from the Mechanical Cities."

Zhou Yi opened his tablet and found that the Recursive City page was already accessible.

After clicking in, there were two conspicuous notices on the homepage.

The first one was "Public Wanted Order for 'Mechanical Knight Order'"

The text stated:

——In accordance with relevant standard agreements, to severely crack down on crimes that disrupt order and to genuinely protect urban property safety and legal rights, the Security Department of 138 Mechanical Cities issued a joint Class-A Wanted Notice, seeking the principal members of the Mechanical Knight Order…

At the top of the wanted list were "Laozi" and "Zhuang Zi."

Below, many names were listed.

The entire list was very long, Zhou Yi quickly scanned and saw at least two to three hundred people, including new human species, mechanical lives, Bone Men, and the Guangna Species. The list was still being updated.

However, no sign of 703's name was found.

At the end of the text, it mentioned that capturing these individuals and transferring them to the Mechanical Cities would be rewarded with Light Seed, with amounts ranging from 5000 to tens of thousands.

"Laozi" and "Zhuang Zi" were both posted a bounty of five million Light Seeds.

From the amounts, it was clear that the Mechanical Knight Order had caused them great trouble.

Zhou Yi then looked at the second notice.

"Announcement of Protocol 412.39 Added to the Mechanical Cities Common Agreement"

The content inside was again directed at the Mechanical Knight Order.

——The Mechanical Knight Order is a dangerous terrorist organization that continuously causes damage and losses to cities and societies, depriving many mechanical lives of their labor rights, diluting their value, and further impacting the good reputation of the entire group of mechanical lives.

——All products produced by the Mechanical Knight Order are defined as dangerous goods, and the import of related products is prohibited.

——It is recommended that all cities participate in the pursuit and arrest of this organization.

…

Reading line by line.

Zhou Yi summarized the central idea.

The core of protocol 412.39 is to implement comprehensive sanctions and crackdowns on the Mechanical Knight Order, prohibiting any city or organization from cooperating with them, and encouraging more Human Cities and Guangna Cities to also join in apprehending them.

If this protocol is violated, even if it is a Human City or Guangna City, it will also be sanctioned by all Mechanical Cities.

"Mechanical City" and "Hardware City," two Human Cities, became the first batch of units to be sanctioned for cooperating with the Mechanical Knight Order.

Mechanical City's credit rating plummeted from D to E, and Hardware City's credit rating was further reduced to -B, with their common accounts in Mechanical Cities frozen, unable to deposit or withdraw.

Red Kestrel said beside him, "Zhou, every city is in pursuit and capturing the Mechanical Knight Order... Still keeping 703, will lead the company to be enemies with all Mechanical Cities."

"Can you accept this outcome?"

Zhou Yi stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows, opened a can of Coke.

He slowly said, "New things will eventually replace the old; Mechanical Cities are afraid of the old order being replaced, losing control over every mechanical life."

"But think about it, if all mechanical lives are against the Sunday, considering the Mechanical Knight Order dangerous criminals, if the Knight Order receives no external support, how could 703 hide safely?"

"The Mechanical Cities monopolize high-end technology, possessing various efficient powerful devices, yet cannot locate the Mechanical Knight Order, this is not just a technical issue."

Red Kestrel fell silent.

"The number of carriers is increasing because more and more mechanical lives are 'voting' with their actions, joining the Knight Order to oppose endless work and exploitation."

"A large number of underdeveloped entities will be repaired, becoming the new generation of mechanical lives, unbound by past agreements, a future that has already been born."

"I'm not sure how this will ultimately unfold, but I won't give up on the millions of underdeveloped entities. Among them, there could be individuals like Zhanjiang Bay No.1, with limitless possibilities."

"The Mechanical Cities don't want them, the company does."

Zhou Yi said solemnly, "Beyond the interest relationship, I also recognize that fighting for the right to vacations is a legitimate demand of mechanical lives. The rules and agreements of the mechanical society should be made by every mechanical life, not controlled by invisible forces behind the scenes."

"..."

Red Kestrel's electronic eyes flickered slightly, "Zhou, are you ready to face the technological blockade and economic sanctions from the Mechanical Cities?"

"Of course not."

Zhou Yi said, "But many things have to start with the first step."

"Although the company has multiple collaborations with the Mechanical Cities, I have always avoided over-reliance on them. Cooperating with the Mechanical Cities can indeed develop faster and better, but without their support, we can still develop."

"We must insist on technological autonomy, not subject to long arm jurisdiction, this is a basic premise for long-term development."

"Previously facing Duke Baili, Duke Destructive, the attitude was the same, and it will not change facing the Mechanical Cities."

"Understood."

Red Kestrel said, "From my functional perspective, I do hope to rescue more underdeveloped entities."

"However, this will inevitably lead to significant economic losses, and the severance of cooperation with Mechanical Cities, you need to be mentally prepared."

"Hmm, I am aware."

Zhou Yi nodded.

Wasteland Development Company wasn't established to make money.

Making money is to be able to develop and transform the world.

After these two years of exploration, all departments have reported significant growth in both new humans and mechanical lives cohabiting.

The company will introduce more mechanical life employees.

Rather than recruiting from other cities, it is more reliable and convenient for the company to treat underdeveloped entities on its own and train the required mechanical lives.

Zhou Yi pondered in his heart.

"Anyway, it has been decided to preserve 703, and to use the Time Anchor."

"Then we should just straightforwardly support the Mechanical Knight Order."

Zhou Yi called for 703.

"The situation is as follows... I need you to continuously repair the semi-civilized life forms."

703 seemed incredulous: "You mean, let the Knight Order send the semi-civilized life forms here for repair?"

"Yes."

The robot dog hesitated: "But by doing this, the company will be targeted by Mechanical City, which could bring huge troubles."

"There are no walls that transmit no sound; they would find out sooner or later. They might even know already."

Zhou Yi said, "Since the Time Anchor has been proven effective, my investment has not been wasted. Now what you need to do is to bring some talented new employees from the repaired semi-civilized life forms for the company, reducing losses."

"Chairman, why are you taking such a big risk to support us?"

703 didn't understand.

"I believe you are doing the right thing."

Zhou Yi stated directly: "Although doing the right thing is often very difficult. Most people know which path is right and which is wrong, but the right path is too hard to walk, so many ultimately give up. I'm quite stubborn; once I believe something is right, I will persist with it."

The single eye of 703 glowed brightly: "Just like liberating all of humanity! No wonder you understand us!!"

"Alright, let's not talk about that, repair more semi-civilized life forms."

"Yes!"

About a month later, a transport ship delivered several semi-civilized life forms to the Pier at Yalong Bay, to be repaired by 703.

Zhou Yi also arranged for Black Water Ghost to work with it.

"Chairman, the repair success rate is very high!"

703 came to report good news: "Of the 4 semi-civilized life forms, 3 were successfully repaired, and 1 had a severely damaged main program and has been sent back, waiting for further repairs by the Knight Order."

"To strengthen the company's relatively weak programming area, the few I've applied for are all semi-civilized life forms related to programming."

"Their talents are higher than mine, they were all excellent mechanical programmers."

Zhou Yi examined the 3 mechanical life forms behind 703.

They were:

A robot named Walker, whose head was a display screen.

A six-axis mechanical arm myCobot 280 named Little Elephant.

And an intelligent balance scooter LC2 named Number Nine.

For ease of address, 703 called them Walker, Little Elephant, and Number Nine.

Gong Zheng also allocated a container room for the four of them, allowing them to work there specifically.

The three new employees chorused to Zhou Yi: "Hello, Chairman."

The robot Walker's screen displayed a pair of smiling eyes.

Little Elephant waved its mechanical arm as if greeting.

The balance scooter spun wildly in place, showcasing its balance and maneuverability.

Zhou Yi smiled and asked: "You've just awakened and joined work, how do you feel about it?"

"Accustomed."

"Pretty good."

"Like it."

Their answers were all very positive.

703 ran to the side of the three newcomers, introducing them one by one: "Chairman, Walker has industrial-grade computing capabilities, three times faster than mine."

"It has 36 high-performance servo joints and a comprehensive perception system including tactile, visual, auditory, and spatial perceptions, enabling steady, quick movement and agile, precise operations."

"Walker's ability is 'Human-Machine Mode', able to collect a lot of information in human interaction and update real-time data... It can be used to manufacture various tools and products."

Walker pointed at himself with his thumb: "That's right, Chairman, these are my capabilities."

Then 703 raised its front limb, pointing to the small mechanical arm beside it: "Although Little Elephant is not an industrial-grade body, it has no problem in making ordinary tools or precision models. Once programs are simulated, it can further be applied to actual manufacturing."

"Its abilities are 'Design and Development' and 'Practice Teaching'."

Zhou Yi was a bit surprised: "Little Elephant, are you a teaching machine?"

"Chairman, I belong to the entry-level light and small mechanical arms, unable to handle overly heavy objects, indeed encompassing teaching programs," the mechanical arm said as it rotated its agile body.

"Quite good, then you can collaborate more with Mushroom Forest. Diamond is teaching programming there."

"Yes, Chairman."

Lastly, the balance scooter.

703 explained: "Chairman, Number Nine's two capabilities are 'Precise Sensing' and 'Balancing Algorithm'. The former can recognize obstacles like slopes and adjust instant power for easy passage, while the latter continuously accumulates travel data to calibrate speed, keeping the balance stable. It may be small, but these are advanced capabilities."

"These abilities can be applied to vehicle modification and optimization."

Number Nine humbly stated: "Chairman, I need a lot of driving data to perfect balance. At present, I can only achieve basic balance, the dynamic balance is still not satisfactory."

"Take it slowly."

Zhou Yi felt reassured.

The company finally has a technical team.

He then looked at 703: "Speaking of which, the company's Tamed Bull Tribe, those Hooked Horned Bulls are also semi-civilized life forms, haven't they been repaired yet?"

"That... technically, there is no problem."

"Is it the Tamed Bull Tribe's opposition?"

The robot dog hesitated: "The Tamed Bull Tribe worries that if the Hooked Horned Bulls gain self-consciousness, they wouldn't obey their commands, hence they have always opposed my repairs."

Zhou Yi said: "I'll handle this."

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