At this moment, Jacob was within the Mechanized Sovereign Tower’s 1st floor, the control hub of the entire tower.
The dim obsidian light that shrouded the chamber flickered in alternating patterns of black and gold as each pulse synced with the resonance of the two beings locked in confrontation.
Witnessing this confrontation, Jacob’s hollow sockets were fixed at the center of the control hub where the Black Octahedron—Black Mechanic’s actual body—rotated steadily, its surfaces glowing with intricate runes that represented the Spirit Mechanic’s evolved consciousness.
Suspended before it, entangled in thousands of strands of shadow-like data threads, was the Crimson Pentahedron, the captured Machina Core of the Dark Rose.
Its glow dimmed and brightened intermittently, like a heart struggling between life and dissolution.
The black strings binding it weren’t physical. They were woven from pure mechanical will, every strand a line of code written in the mystical runic language.
At this moment, Black Mechanic’s static voice sounded from the floor, "Sir, I’m ready to take over. Required your permission to activate the innate aspect!"
Jacob’s Eyes of Judge flickered with a hint of anticipation as he already knew what the Black Mechanic was about to do, and nodded, "Proceed!"
The next moment, the black octahedron lit up, and a mystic aura spread before Black Mechanic’s voice sounded, "Permission received from the Owner!
"First try at turning the Red Rank Spirit Mechanic, the Machina Unit of Dark Rose, into the Machina Unit of Black Mechanic!
"Activating Innate Aspect...
"Code Devour: Program Dominance!"
Code Devour was another innate aspect of the SNIM Race, just like the Network Domain Aspect, and a Spirit Mechanic can only awaken it when they reach the Blue Rank. Yet, there was only 1% chance of awakening this aspect, making it extremely precious and rare.
The innate aspect ’Code Devour’ allows high-ranking Spirit Mechanics to overwrite the consciousness of weaker Spirit Mechanics or any spiritually intelligent-derived systems.
This helps them instantly take control over any artificial systems within range if their rank is lower or unprotected.
The only flaw of this innate aspect was that against equivalent rank Spirit Mechanics, there was a chance that it wouldn’t work, raising the risk of backlash or superior rank Spirit Mechanics.
Last but not least, if the enemy Spirit Mechanic also has Code Devour Innate Aspect, the other party can retaliate. Then it all turns into an all-out battle of superior mechanical skills, and only one of the Spirit Mechanics battling in this battle would live, while the other would be taken over.
As for using it against superior rank Spirit Mechanics with Code Devour innate aspect, it was akin to committing virtual suicide.
Jacob, who was watching the Code Devour at work for the first time, couldn’t help but think about what Black Mechanic had told him before, ’Black Mechanic said that after it mutated into Black Spirit Mechanic, all his racial aspects had undergone mysterious changes that it had no information about.
’The Network Domain has become more powerful, which also made the Nightmare Plan possible, which was impossible for Black Mechanic when it was within the Timeless City. Now, let’s see about this code devour.
’Can it turn the Red Spirit Mechanic under Dark Rose control into his Machina Unit, a superior Spirit Mechanic? Within the infinite space, there shouldn’t be any connection with Dark Rose, so it should be easy...’
The moment Black Mechanic activated the Code Devour, at once, the black octahedron’s surface rippled, and thousands of data runes ignited across its planes.
These runes then detached as floating off like motes of black flame before converging toward the crimson pentahedron.
When they touched, the crimson surface hissed with resistance, sending shockwaves of powerful energy through the air.
Inside the space, Jacob observed quietly, his skeletal frame unmoving, his hollow sockets glowing faintly. His aura was calm and cold, yet the surrounding frost thickened unconsciously with anticipation.
The Code Devour process has begun!
Within the digital overlay visible only to Spirit Mechanics, reality dissolved into a storm of glyphs, algorithms, and code streams. It was a realm of pure consciousness, where matter, energy, and thought all existed as one unified equation.
Two spirits of code faced one another, where Black Mechanic, dark, efficient, silent, and Dark Rose, a collapsing lattice of crimson consciousness struggling to maintain coherence.
Thousands of black sigils unfurled from Black Mechanic’s side, each one shaped like a spinning cube of runic light. They surged forward like a mechanical tide, devouring the crimson glyphs one after another.
Every time one black glyph latched onto a crimson one, the red symbol flickered violently before dissolving, replaced by a black rune etched with new commands, overwriting the very soul of the Spirit Mechanic.
Jacob’s voice whispered faintly, a soundless murmur in the echoing chamber, "So, this is... the Code Devour. The rewriting of a soul through mechanical law!"
His empty sockets glimmered with detached curiosity. To him, this was not a battle; it was like gazing on the mystery of laws!
As time on the first floor became meaningless. Minutes, hours, or perhaps days, slipped by in that endless exchange of light and shadow, data and law.
The crimson glyphs were steadily being consumed. The consciousness of Dark Rose screamed voicelessly within her own Machina Core as her existence was stripped layer by layer, overwritten by the superior will of Black Mechanic.
"Dominance rate: 23%... 45%... 73%... 92%...
"Resistance weakening. Proceeding with total conversion of cognitive lattice..."
Black Mechanic’s tone remained mechanical, but within it, there was an undercurrent of grim determination.
Finally, the crimson glow had dimmed to embers. Only a faint, flickering cluster of glyphs remained at the very center of the pentahedron.
However, they were unlike the others, as these final glyphs were not just crimson; there was a deep violet hue, glowing with shifting layers of impossible geometry. Every curve, every symbol carried a pulse that wasn’t just mechanical but beyond it.
Even the mechanical threads binding the core trembled slightly as if reacting to a higher order of logic.
Black Mechanic’s voice wavered for the first time,
"Sir... these final glyphs are not part of Dark Rose’s original structure. They appear to be...foreign. I’m detecting signatures of the possibility Violet Rank Spirit Mechanic ...data compression layered beyond Blue Rank parsing parameters!"