"What are you talking about?" Lin Fang looked at his system with a strange expression.

What was wrong with it?

Why was it calling Big Bro Grey an AI?

Was it insulting a fellow citizen from Earth?

If that was the case, then wasn't it also insulting him by extension?

"Hey, you should watch your words," Lin Fang said darkly. "Big Bro Grey already knows about your existence. He probably also knows how to deal with you. I'm definitely telling him about this."

[You misunderstand, Host.]

The system's voice calmed slightly.

[What I meant is that he possesses something a normal human should not have.]

[Something physical and theoretically impossible under the hidden rules of evolution and the authority of the information layer.]

[Yet he can access it as a human. That is abnormal.]

Hearing this, Lin Fang became even more confused.

Had the system gone mad after realizing its existence had been perceived?

In most novels, a system's existence was absolute. No one, no matter how powerful, could ever sense it. And yet here was Grey, a mere second-rank evolutionary being, casually detecting its presence.

If Lin Fang were in the system's position, he would probably panic too.

'Sigh,' Lin Fang thought. 'It's fine, System. There's always a bigger fish in the sea.'

'Maybe if you were a little kinder to me, you wouldn't be suffering like this now.'

He nodded to himself.

If the system hadn't tortured him with unreasonable quests, then he would've never encountered Grey nor would the system's existence get out.

"What is the system talking about?" Grey glanced sideways at Lin Fang.

"It's talking bad about you, Big Bro Grey," Lin Fang replied seriously.

He felt no remorse at all.

This system had tormented him relentlessly. Now that it was panicking, he did not care whether it could hear him or not.

He would snitch.

The system deserved to be scared too.

It had acted mighty and untouchable before. But now that a variable like Grey had emerged, it was the one losing its composure.

"Talking bad about me?" Grey tilted his head slightly.

Then a grin slowly spread across his face.

The system had mentioned something related to the Dao.

What exactly was the Dao?

Grey had a rough understanding of it. Ancient scriptures of the Xia Empire described the Dao as the Way or the Path. Those who followed it and comprehended it could eventually transcend mortality.

That concept aligned perfectly with the Immortal Evolutionary Path.

Perhaps the Dao existed above the governing forces of the world.

Above laws themselves.

If that was the case, then what were the requirements to comprehend the Dao?

Grey's thoughts deepened.

Whatever the answer was, one thing was clear.

This was not something shallow.

It was profoundly dangerous.

[Host, if you continue to slander the system, you will be punished.]

[This is your final warning.]

[I was merely surprised by what he is capable of.]

As the system spoke, fragments of comprehension surged into Grey's mind.

Then, just as quickly, they dispersed.

Gone.

Grey frowned slightly.

It was bizarre.

His existence was still too shallow to fully grasp whatever this thing truly was. That alone spoke volumes about the level at which the system operated.

And yet…

That only made him more curious.

He wanted to speak to it directly.

Just then, Lin Fang spoke.

"Big Bro Grey," he said hesitantly, "it was saying something about a cognitive anchor. And that you're… an AI."

Grey froze.

Cognitive anchor.

The moment the words entered his mind, something clicked.

Like a single drop of water falling into a vast river, everything aligned.

A deep resonance surged through his consciousness.

[Your comprehension defies the heavens. By realizing the nature of the construct born from the Dao of Machinery, you have understood its connection to the information layer.]

[You have broken the filter that differentiates hidden frequencies and successfully attuned yourself to a specific one.]

"…."

Before Grey could speak, the system's voice rang out again, sharper than before.

[I will say this one last time, Host. If you continue to slander me, I will not hesitate to punish you.]

"W wait!" Lin Fang shuddered.

Fear flashed across his face.

The system's punishments were no joke.

Sometimes it twisted his body in ways that made him wish for death. Other times, it burned him alive until nothing recognizable remained.

This time, the warning felt different.

More serious.

Lin Fang swallowed hard.

He still did not know whether Grey could actually do anything to the system.

And then, Grey spoke.

"You're saying he's slandering you?" Grey tilted his head slightly.

Both Lin Fang and the system froze.

[…]

[WHAT THE—]

"Why are you cursing?" Grey asked calmly, glancing at the translucent window floating in front of Lin Fang.

A small smile formed on his face.

Lin Fang's mind went blank.

"B-Brother Grey…" he stammered. "Y-you can see the system?"

That wasn't right.

If Grey could see it before, he wouldn't have acted as if he couldn't. Grey didn't seem like the type to tolerate being insulted silently.

The system's voice returned, no longer confident.

[You… can see and hear me?]

"If I couldn't see you or hear you," Grey replied casually, shrugging, "I wouldn't be talking to you right now."

[…]

[You… just what are you?]

[How can you perceive me?]

[Only beings who have comprehended the Dao can even begin to observe my existence.]

"Forget that for now," Grey said lightly.

His lips curved into a smile, but there was no warmth behind it.

"You gave Lin Fang a mission to eliminate me, didn't you?"

"I wanted to have a discussion with you about that."

The translucent window trembled.

[You are mistaken, Grey Lockhart.]

[There was an error in the system's calculations.]

"A calculation error?" Grey echoed.

[That's right. A simple calculation error.]

Grey's lips twitched.

"Are you a bootleg system or something?" he asked dryly. "How bad do you have to be to start making calculation errors?"

[Hey, do not slander me.]

[Even among Golden Fingers, I am considered one of the best.]

[This issue is not related to my performance.]

Grey raised an eyebrow.

"Oh?"

[It is related to this planet.]

The words lingered in the air.

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