The destruction of the Imperial Tax Ministry's vanguard was more than a victory; it was a declaration of independence. But as the debris of Harl's golden ships settled into the "Star-Silt" of the Dust Sector, Lin Feng knew his biggest problem wasn't the Empire's rage—it was his own resource cap.
"Lord Captain," Vanya reported, her fingers blurring across the console. "Soul Energy levels have dropped to 12% following the mass-refraction of the Ares units. We can maintain the current fleet, but if we encounter a second wave, we won't be able to multiply."
Lin Feng tapped the edge of his command chair. The Mirror Locket was warm against his chest, pulsing like a living heart. "We need a higher grade of 'Origin Data.' The Ares units are good, but they're basic templates. We need something from the Old War."
"If it's the Old War you want," Kara said, stepping onto the bridge while wiping grease from her green forehead, "then you want the Sargasso Void. It's an asteroid cluster on the edge of your territory. My people have legends about it. They call it the graveyard of the Mecha-Gods."
Into the Silence
The Mirror Sovereign made a short-range warp jump. When they emerged, the bridge grew silent.
Before them lay a field of frozen history. Thousands of colossal machines, some the size of small skyscrapers, floated in a permanent dance of death. These weren't the sleek, mass-produced mecha of the modern Empire. These were jagged, brutal machines of war—monsters of steel and forbidden "Void-Cores" that had been silent for five centuries.
"Scan everything," Lin Feng commanded.
[Scanning... Multiple High-Density Signatures Detected.]
[Warning: Ancient Security Protocols Active.]
[Target Identified: 'God-Slayer' Experimental Unit – Designation: NIHIL.]
At the center of the cluster sat a mecha unlike any other. It was obsidian black, its surface absorbing the light of the distant stars. It didn't have wings or thrusters; instead, it was surrounded by eight floating, blade-like funnels. Even in its dormant state, it radiated a sense of absolute malice.
"That's it," Lin Feng whispered. "If we mirror that, no Imperial Dreadnought will ever touch this sector again."
The Guardian of Dust
As the Mirror Sovereign moved closer, the "Silt" around the black mecha began to swirl.
"Energy spike!" Vanya shouted. "Lord Captain, the graveyard is waking up!"
It wasn't the black mecha that moved first. It was the hundreds of "Scrap-Drones" that had built nests inside the larger husks. Thousands of spider-like machines swarmed toward the Sovereign, their eyes glowing with a toxic green light.
"Kara, take the Ares squad," Lin Feng ordered. "Protect the hull. Don't let them breach the engines. Lilith, prepare the Locket. I'm going to attempt a Long-Range Sync."
The battle in the vacuum was a chaotic ballet of laser fire and clashing metal. Kara, piloting her custom-mirrored Ares unit, swung a massive energy-cleaver, bisecting three drones in a single arc.
"They're like locusts!" she yelled over the comms. "Boss, if you're going to do something, do it now!"
The Mirroring of Nihil
Lin Feng closed his eyes, mentally reaching out through the Locket. The interface flooded his mind with ancient, jagged code.
I see you, Lin Feng thought, focusing on the obsidian giant. You were built to kill kings. I am the king of nothing. Let's work together.
[Syncing with 'NIHIL'... 10%... 40%...]
[Error: Soul Energy Insufficient for Physical Refraction.]
[Alternative Initialized: Data Ghost Projection.]
Lin Feng's eyes flew open, glowing with a fierce violet light. "I don't need to build you yet," he growled. "I just need your shadow."
From the Locket, a wave of dark energy erupted. It didn't create a solid ship. Instead, it projected a massive, transparent "Ghost" of the NIHIL mecha that towered over the Mirror Sovereign.
The Ghost Mecha raised one of its floating blades. The movement was silent, but the effect was devastating. A ripple of "Void-Pressure" washed over the drone swarm.
In an instant, the green lights went out. Thousands of drones didn't just stop; they collapsed into fine dust, their internal circuits erased by the mere presence of the NIHIL's shadow.
The Prize
The graveyard fell silent once more. The black mecha at the center remained dormant, but its data was now stored within Lin Feng's Locket.
"Soul Energy replenished by 30% from the drone cores," Vanya reported, her voice trembling slightly. "Lord Captain... that projection. It didn't just destroy the drones. It erased their existence from the local space-time."
"That's the power of the Old War," Lin Feng said, his face pale but his gaze firm. "Kara, get the salvage teams out there. I want every 'Void-Core' from these wrecks brought back to the Steel Reef. We have the blueprints. Now we need the fuel."
As the salvage ships began their work, Lilith leaned over Lin Feng's shoulder, her tail twitching in thought.
"Master," she whispered. "The Imperial Tax Ministry was a fly. But when news of the 'Sargasso Void' being tamed reaches the Capital, they won't send tax collectors. They'll send the High Inquisitor."
Lin Feng looked at the obsidian mecha on his screen. "Let them send whoever they want. By the time they arrive, my maids won't be piloting Ares units. They'll be piloting Gods."