This is really not mechanical ascension
Chapter 364 - 196: Li Ming Takes the Initiative, Theo’s Confusion, Ulrich’s Bewilderment, Each with Their Own Scheme

Chapter 364: Chapter 196: Li Ming Takes the Initiative, Theo’s Confusion, Ulrich’s Bewilderment, Each with Their Own Scheme

As time passed, Li Ming had not returned, and Theo’s heart became increasingly uneasy, "Could this guy have really run away?"

Even if he left briefly to do some secretive things, he should have come back by now.

He could only think of the possibility that the other had fled, his expression grim, "Ulrich is such a fool, to just leave him here, leaking like a sieve."

Although that was said, if the other party were closely watched, he would have even less of a chance to act.

But now, the chance for Torch to take action on his behalf had also vanished, and Theo naturally felt angry, huffing coldly as his figure faded away.

...

Inside the Collector’s castle.

"The goods were intercepted?" Ulrich’s expression was somber as he looked toward Huo Tan, who had come to report.

"Yes, a magnetic storm covering several star systems emerged on the Poseidon Starway, and the transport ship had no choice but to reroute through the Ice Flow Starway..."

Ulrich’s face turned ugly, "The Ice Flow Starway? Isn’t that the route within the Rasos Star Cluster? The Judge Civilization will certainly not let us pass easily."

"I placed an order days ago, what’s with Susilo!?"

Huo Tan helplessly said, "There was no way, by the time the order was issued, they were already within the Ice Flow Starway, and the Judge Civilization has already intercepted our people."

"What do you think?"

Ulrich spoke coldly, "I’ve already told them that the golden-eyed individual is in the hands of the interstellar alliance; I don’t want to offend either of them."

"The Judge Civilization is grabbing onto me and not letting go, damn it!"

"Dust Bright Alloy is extremely rare, if this batch doesn’t make it, I don’t know if the materials will be sufficient," Ulrich voiced hesitantly.

"The laboratory has already been mostly set up, and the materials are gradually arriving; there’s no need to wait until everything is completely ready before inviting the Azure Dragon Great Mechanic, right?" Huo Tan suggested carefully, "How about we let him start with the preliminary preparations?"

Ulrich fell silent; of course, there was no need to have everything prepared before inviting that person over, he could even directly force the other to come.

But mechanical repair is a high-precision job; he could force the other to come, but he couldn’t force them to work.

Moreover, the current situation was not quite what he had initially envisioned; this Azure Dragon was too mysterious.

Originally, he thought the man was just a Great Mechanic who had accidentally come to the Land of Stars, which was quite exciting.

Later, it was confirmed that this person was a fugitive Great Mechanic with countless troubles and unheard-of technologies, mysterious enough that even he felt a bit of trepidation, causing him to gradually hesitate.

If he became too entangled with him, what if some powerful life form came knocking on his door? How would he explain?

And this fellow was quite arrogant, showing no fear towards him at all; in their few confrontations, most of the time he came out on the losing end.

The interactions were completely different from when he had first made contact with him, which unsettled him.

During this time, he even faintly suspected that this Azure Dragon might have learned something about his possession of the "Material Reorganization Machine," which was why he deliberately approached him.

All these factors together caused him to have many reservations in his heart, and he deliberately delayed action, but the crisis of the United Fleet loomed closer, leaving him in a dilemma.

"Master, are you having reservations?" Huo Tan had followed Ulrich for many years, and recently he had noticed some clues.

Ulrich frowned.

In a low voice, Huo Tan said, "Master, you are thinking too much; no matter what, you are still an A-level life form. When you followed the Star King, living in the days when you owned the Land of Stars alone, danger was always like a shadow that followed."

Ulrich could be overly cautious at times, thinking too much, becoming indecisive.

"Lord Azure Dragon, after all, is just a B-level life form, and he still relies on you."

"Maybe there were a few times when you had to consider other aspects and could only retreat, but when it came to repairing items, he has never refused."

Ulrich was silent, then he sighed wistfully, "Yes, having lived in comfort for too long, I’m not even as good as Sandro."

With a sharp glint in his eyes, he said, "Let’s go, I hope he knows what’s best."

After clearing his mind, Ulrich proceeded with Huo Tan nodding and following behind.

Just as they left the great hall, the Collector’s gaze flickered, and he looked up to see Theo descend from the sky.

He did not like people flying in and out; Ulrich frowned slightly but then quickly composed himself, "Did you go out?"

"Yeah, my subordinates reported a lead on Seraad, so I went out to have a look," Theo responded simply, not looking too pleased.

"What’s the situation?" Ulrich asked, interested.

"It’s of no use," Theo replied vaguely, brushing off the question before heading back.

However, as he walked past Ulrich, he seemed to think of something, "Are you going out?"

"Yes, I have some urgent matters to deal with," Ulrich replied ambiguously.

Theo’s grey pupils flickered with a hint of silver light, "Could you take me to meet Azure Dragon?"

A sharp light appeared in Ulrich’s eyes, "You want to see him?"

"I want to craft another A-level weapon and seek his opinion," Theo gave a very plausible reason.

Ulrich hesitated, his tail swishing behind him before he said, "He’s on that Floating Island; you can go over anytime, no need to ask me."

Theo shook his head, "After all, he’s under your command, it would be better to go through you."

Ulrich’s expression softened, pondering before saying, "I happen to be on my way to see him as well; we can go together."

Theo appeared slightly surprised, and without any mention of their earlier dismissive exchange, he followed Ulrich onto the flying vehicle.

"The Collector knows him better; he should be able to confirm whether the other has really run away or not," Theo was still not resigned.