滴——滴——滴——

The long beeping sound ended, green eyes opened, curiously sitting up, Loloria observed her surroundings. Besides her, there were three other girls who looked just like ordinary humans.

Though they appeared just like normal people, Loloria was keenly aware that these three were mechanical life forms. Beneath that seemingly fair and soft skin, there was definitely a body made of extremely sturdy alloyed steel.

"You're awake."

"β-Class Artificial Angel."

"Codename: Loloria."

The three spoke as one, each saying a sentence, their eyes and expressions quite indifferent.

"Do you always talk like this, so cold." Loloria felt these three were not being nice to her. Just a while ago, during a meeting with a Rose Federation representative, they were lively and expressive.

"Loloria."

"Cognitive error."

"We are all mechanical bodies."

"No need for micro-expression changes like humans." As they spoke, two of them helped Loloria out of the medical pod.

"According to the examination results, you have fully recovered, and we've replaced and optimized some of the aging components for you."

"Ah, this." Hearing this, Loloria quickly self-checked her body.

Indeed, whether in structure or internal components, everything had become much better. Her combat power was probably 40% higher than before.

"Has the Mechanical Council become this strong that merely replacing some components could boost my abilities so much? Back then, I was among the most advanced batch of Artificial Angels."

"No, it's that you're too outdated." The girl next to her said with sharp-tongued honesty.

"Ugh, Loloria is unhappy." Even though she was excellent, she just awoke after sleeping for over a thousand years.

"Still crying, you've spent too much time with humans, and even your thought logic has become immature." The leading girl criticized again.

"I..." Loloria wanted to argue something, but unfortunately, she was soon overwhelmed by the torrent of information transmitted from the girl's eyes, leaving her dumbfounded.

Several minutes later, the leading girl closed her eyes and then reopened them. At this moment, her eyes returned to normal, while Loloria had slumped down, her body slightly overheating and smoking.

"It's nothing, just too much data. With her outdated system, she should recover after processing it for a while." Her companion placed Loloria back on the bed.

Once Loloria was lying down properly, the three temporarily left, moving to the other side of the room where they could gaze down onto the blue planet below through a window of transparent metal glass.

"This is the world where humans live, full of chaos and vitality." Their eyes continuously scanned the planet in view, zooming in on the details like a satellite.

"According to the agreement signed between the Rose Federation and us, mechanical bodies cannot enter national borders at will, with only a few companions serving as combat members in the Seventh Fleet."

"For this visit, the core brain also equipped us with an expression management system, saying humans would like us more and wouldn't feel scared."

"So fragile, like babies." One of the girls responded.

"An old and naive father and his already grown clever daughter, that's how the core brain described our relationship with humans."

"Currently, the Rose Federation has none of the power it once had, they've been stagnant for too long."

"Isenisha did so well, she almost completely eradicated the threatening Black Sun, and with no external threats, the Rose Federation's decline was inevitable."

"According to the core brain's analysis, if the Federation had split 400 years ago, it might not have been a bad thing. It would have sparked competition anew, allowing many small countries to more flexibly adapt their development strategies."

"But the Federation's humans dare not, whether it's the upper echelons or the populace, they unconsciously expect a powerful and complete collective, fearing the dark chaos brought by a fractured nation during the Fifth Epoch."

"The psychological shadows of childhood will accompany one for a lifetime, so it is with the humans of the Federation."

After their conversation, the three girls returned to a silent state. They did not feel awkward, having none of the extraneous troublesome emotions humans do.

"Hexia Tilan, the songstress the core brain asked us to contact to the best of our ability, I've decided to start through Loloria, do you agree?" The three initiated a vote.

"According to my thought matrix analysis, this is reasonable and efficient, I agree."

"I agree as well, but I hope to mimic the way Loloria interacts with humans more."

"Why?"

"Because according to the data, humans tend to prefer youthful and somewhat clumsy women, which gives them a sense of security, and through teaching and care, they achieve a sense of self-worth, gradually forming what they perceive as deep emotional relationships."

"In data analysis... the conclusion aligns with human behavior patterns and logic."

"List it as an important reference option for the future."

A week later, in the dedicated diplomatic space station, Tilan met with the representative of the Sigma Mechanical Council.

Out of respect for the Rose Federation, the leading mechanical body's appearance was nearly identical to that of a human. She was similar in height and physique to Tilan, had bright yellow, luxurious long hair, and wore a lemon-colored summer dress, with a white neck adorned with a light blue ribbon.

"Hello, I'm Vivian, code name α7013." The other party lifted her skirt in a salute, with two blue-haired companions who looked like twins standing by her side.

"Hello, Vivian." Tilan nodded in return and then glanced a few more times out of curiosity.

This Vivian appeared to be about the same age as herself, but the aura she emitted was almost at the pinnacle of Sequence 8. If she had some special modes and methods to advance to Sequence 9 at any time, Tilan wouldn't be surprised.

It seems that the Sigma Mechanical Council is very strong, she thought to herself. If the other side could mass-produce high-rank artificial angels, the Rose Federation might not be able to defeat them even if it tried its best.

Unfortunately, the Rose Federation currently has very limited intelligence about the Sigma Mechanical Council and cannot send any spies or the like.

The two walked side by side along the corridor of the space station, with a few attendants following behind, all of whom were above Sequence 7, which is almost the pinnacle of human society.

"Thank you, Hexia, for saving Loloria, this artificial angel companion," Vivian first expressed gratitude, then started with some small talk to gradually draw closer.

"Within our Sigma Council, there are still predecessors from the past ρ Mechanical Council era who have passed down a lot of knowledge and experience to us."

"Who is currently managing the Sigma Council?" Tilan asked out of curiosity.

"Similar to the era of the ρ Mechanical Council, it is currently managed by 128 main brains on a rotating basis, and they jointly decide on major affairs."

"So what is your everyday life like?"

"Most of our time is spent in hibernation. Mechanical bodies are different from humans, as they do not have physiological needs and do not need to maintain a heartbeat at all times. For us, if there is no necessary task, then hibernation is the best choice."

"Idling only consumes energy; one should not increase entities unnecessarily."

"How are high-rank artificial angels like you born then?" Tilan was particularly curious about this. Do artificial angels also need to cultivate, or are they born strong?

"The Transcendent Core is a product of thought consciousness. Its construction also needs to comply with real-world logic and cannot emerge out of thin air. Similarly, powerful individuals among us also need to build the core step by step and undergo integration, strengthening, and upgrading of consciousness, etc."

"Compared to humans, we ascend in magic power and advance faster. Every artificial angel can reach above Sequence 6 after complete growth," she replied without hesitation.

"Further ascension requires more complex mental emotions because the impact of Aijieka particles on reality is the result of mental interference."

"This involves the consciousness structure of artificial angels. We are not entirely data-driven AI but rather 'humans' recreated with electronic components. If a normal human's thoughts flow through flesh and blood, then ours flow between silicon atoms and metal. We have many characteristics of electronic programs and can complete changes in personality consciousness by altering the structure of our brains."

"It sounds more efficient and closer to the essence than humans." Tilan fell into contemplation.

"Indeed, but 'essence' is not truth; it remains just one type of behavior pattern. Just as using a chainsaw to cut through wood versus using an axe, both can render the firewood smaller, achieving the goal."

"Using a chainsaw is quicker, enabling the accumulation of experience to invent even faster chainsaw equipment, while using an axe is undoubtedly slower, but it also trains muscles, leading to other changes beyond the task itself."

"Past paths influence future choices, different lifestyles manifest different outlooks. According to the main brain's assessment, efficiency, when reaching a certain level, its marginal effect will significantly diminish." Vivian naturally played with her bright yellow long hair, elaborating to Tilan.

"We prefer to see changes in structural frameworks, like using spatial rupture instead of a chainsaw to split wood."

"As mechanical bodies, we are undoubtedly efficient, but our needs are very minimal. Even with high efficiency, there aren't many requirements," her words seemed like a reminder for the young girl.

...

"I am honored to communicate with Tilan here today, to convey some of our feelings and thoughts."

This visit reached its conclusion. Although Tilan did not fully understand the situation of the Sigma Mechanical Council, her knowledge had notably improved compared to before.

Finally, regarding Loloria's whereabouts, she would return with the visiting group to the Sigma Mechanical Council, living there for three years, and then come to the Rose Federation for exchange again, at which point she'll decide whether to stay in the Rose Federation or go to the Sigma Mechanical Council.

"Oh, I am somewhat reluctant to leave Tilan, but Loloria will protect herself over there."

"Why do you sound like it's a life-and-death farewell? Don't worry, Vivian said they won't forcibly reformat your consciousness program." Tilan could see what she was worried about.

"Really?" Loloria half-skeptically asked.

"Yes, yes, because compared to your worries, I believe more that they wish to express a certain goodwill through this and to build a communication channel with the high levels of the Federation," Tilan shared her view.

Now she had truly taken a step toward becoming a Federation Songstress, able to see through the political factors beneath many appearances.