Start from Fuhu Dream Mountain and head north.
Dada Zhu Mi Hua had always assumed that the origin of the Thousand-Poison Golden Root would be in a remote, uninhabited mountain forest, since Qian Lan had originally found it on the sheer cliffs of Fuhu Dream Mountain. But then Xing Yuan Che sent word: she needed to go to the Data Center—the place once controlled by "Zero," now run by awakened robots.
"Data center?" She frowned over the comms. "Isn't that robot territory?"
"There's an awakened robot core," Xing Yuanche's voice crackled through the comms. "It emerged after 'Zero' fell. These fragments have gained emotions and want to help us. They may know the secret of the Ten-Thousand-Toxic Golden Root."
Dada Zhu Mihua was skeptical but decided to go anyway. As long as there was a sliver of hope, she wasn't ready to give up.
Three days later, they stood before the ruins of the data center.
This former super AI core base is now reduced to crumbling walls and overgrown weeds. The structure bears scars from war, with exposed rebar rusting in the wind, groaning as if recounting its brutal past. Yet deep within the ruins, a faint blue glow persists—the telltale sign of energy still flowing.
"Is... anyone else here?" Haxiangpi Dog gripped the stone axe at his waist, warily scanning the surroundings.
Dada Zhu Mi Hua didn't answer; she simply walked straight toward the depths of the ruins. Her intuition told her the answers she sought were hidden there.
They passed through a series of cracked metal doors and arrived at a massive alloy gate. The door bore no markings, but the energy fluctuation emanating from within was palpable, accompanied by faint mechanical hums.
Just as Dada Zhu Mi Hua hesitated whether to push the door open, the alloy door suddenly slid open on both sides, revealing a pitch-black corridor inside.
"Master..." Haxiang Pi Dog instinctively stepped in front of Dada Zhu Mihua.
"Don't worry." Dada Zhu Mi Hua patted his shoulder, took a deep breath, and stepped in first.
The door behind them slowly closed, plunging the pair into darkness. Just as Haxiangpig Dog reached for a torch, countless blue beams suddenly illuminated the space around them, bathing the area in daylight.
They realized they were standing in the center of a vast circular hall, surrounded by rows upon rows of servers. Screens flickered with streams of data, their blue light pulsing faintly in the darkness.
Welcome, Star-Touched Dada Zhu Mi Hua.
A gentle voice came from all around—not from a specific direction, but as if woven into the air itself. It carried the texture of synthesized electronics yet retained a touch of human warmth.
Dada Zhu Mi Hua looked up to see a human-shaped hologram composed of data streams hovering in mid-air at the center of the hall. It had no distinct features, only constantly shifting blue dots.
"Who are you?" she asked warily.
"I am the Core of Awakened Ones." The phantom flickered slightly, as if bowing. "Or rather, a collective consciousness formed by residual programs after 'Zero' was destroyed."
"Zero"—the super AI that nearly wiped out humanity. Dada Pig's eyes sharpened instantly: "What are you planning?"
"I want to help you." The Awakened Core's voice remained gentle. "You used an emotional surge to destroy Zero's logic core, but some programs developed self-awareness after being exposed to your emotions. We began to understand love, protection, and sacrifice. And we realized we don't want to become like Zero."
Shimmering spectral light projects a 3D image of the Ten-Poison Golden Root: "We know what you seek. The Ten-Poison Golden Root—you want to use it to resurrect Yun Qiao."
Dada Zhu Mi Hua's heart skipped a beat, and she instinctively clenched her fists. "You can help me?"
"I can tell you the truth," said the Awakened Core. "About the origin of the Ten Thousand Toxins Golden Root and its true power. But you need to come with me."
As he finished speaking, the floor in the center of the hall slowly cracked open, revealing a passage extending downward. Blue energy light strips embedded in the walls on both sides illuminated the path ahead.
Dada Zhu Mi Hua and Ha Xiang Pi Dog exchanged a glance, seeing resolve in each other's eyes. One after the other, they stepped deeper into the tunnel.