[Automata] was displeased with the failure of the first prototype. Despite the numerous advances that had gone into it, there was still a critical flaw—the barrier itself. Little work had been done to test anything other than its strength against [Frost mana]. So, [Automata] and his other minds didn't really know much else about it, which was a problem on their part. The one variable they didn't consider led to the entire thing freezing over.

This was a significant oversight, one that [Automata] hoped wouldn't be repeated. Such substantial mistakes could lead to devastating consequences in the future if it made a habit of not triple or quadruple-checking things before taking action. Although that wouldn't completely eliminate the possibility of mistakes, it would mitigate them by a large amount.

He contemplated using some golems to retrieve the body, as a considerable amount of material went into it. However, it wasn't deemed worth it; the prototype had performed poorly, and the cost of retrieval would be too high. Perhaps when he had a functioning new unit, he could send it to bring back the body for disassembling and material reuse.

Using the collected data, they collectively pooled their efforts and began working on a second prototype. This one was similar to the first prototype, with only some small adjustments for extra efficiency. The only significant change was to the system responsible for mixing [Frost Mana] into a usable form before projecting it out and over the prototype in the form of a thin barrier of [Frost Mana].

Instead of creating a full-on barrier, it would now produce a thin yet durable, skin-tight coating that acted as a second layer of protective skin around the prototype. This would allow it to move its tools along with the barrier, eliminating the risk of anything popping this time.

This upgrade took four weeks to figure out due to the nature of [Frost Mana]. It was always moving and violently freezing, and because of this, keeping it stable required a significant amount of [Mana]—[Mana] that [Automata] didn't have nor could sustain. To address this issue, he had to induce localized patches of stability with thin strings of crystals made out of his [Mana].

The entire device was delicate and could break apart from very little force. To address this vulnerability, he had to construct it with a layer of [Automata Iron] and [Frost Iron]. The first prototype hadn't received a second layer of [Frost Iron] because it never occurred to him or his other minds that the [Golem] needed one. This realization only came after the first prototype froze over, causing all internal systems to stop working instantly. With this small change, the new prototype could still send back data until it was completely destroyed.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

The only game-changing discovery he made from weeks of unending experiments was learning how to form crystals from [Mana]. This led him down the path of understanding how [Crystal lens] formed to begin with. Eventually, he deciphered the intricate process, which he was on the verge of comprehending before the first beast of [Iron] attacked. Despite the setback, he now fully understood it, so it wasn't a total loss.

Now, he could see every inch of his domain, and the sheer number of details streaming in was staggering. However, he could manage to keep up as long as he didn't dive into it directly. Instead, he opted to turn the sense into a kind of passive awareness that he was constantly conscious of, without it overwhelming the other senses he had.

[Automata] found it remarkably straightforward to achieve after securing his name. The more he contemplated it, the more things became vividly apparent to him. Post acquiring his name, his existence felt profoundly solid, grounded, and potent on a metaphysical level. This sensation mirrored the profound feeling he experienced whenever his [Golems] vanquished something. If specific conditions weren't met, the [Souls] wouldn't gravitate towards him; instead, they'd seamlessly flow into the [Golem] or [Golems] responsible for the act, enriching them both physically and mentally.

If a sufficient number of [Souls] were consumed, could they coalesce into a name, mirroring its own achievement? Was this an inherent law of the world, or was there some external meddling afoot? How did the intricate process unfold? [Automata] yearned for comprehensive answers to all these questions and more. The tantalizing promise it held, if properly understood, could enable the incorporation of the "Leveling up" process into daily operations. This would empower even the most basic and low-level troops, rendering them remarkably strong and potentially lethal.

Souls intrigued him. What exactly were they? He hesitated to label them as a type of energy, as he felt that wouldn't be entirely accurate. Although they sometimes behaved like an energy type, akin to [Mana], [Souls] weren't just energy—they seemed alive. At least, he thought so. What else would impart life to the things he killed?

The enigma of how [Souls] formed held a particular fascination for him. He was aware of its connection to the peculiar realm he traversed each time he elevated his soul, intricately tied to the eldritch beings he encountered within that mystical space. His entire existence, veiled in mystery, unfolded as a profound and intricate enigma. One that he fervently hoped to unravel one day, along with ascertaining the identity of the entity that bestowed upon him the task he awoke to, and delving into the profound mystery of what exactly constituted a "Reality plane."

[Automata] was pulled from his contemplations as a ping alerted him to the completion of the second prototype. With a quiet hiss, it gracefully descended to the ground, only to rise back up a second later. It stood motionless for a moment as its internal systems came online, checking themselves repeatedly.

When that process was completed, he issued the command, and it moved to the edge of the tunnel, the barrier of [Frost Mana] activating as it stepped into the frozen wasteland outside its domain. However, as it took its first step, it exploded, torn apart from the inside by rapidly forming ice.