[Iteration [1] watched as the newly empowered [Combat golems] began to push back the large group of [Goblins], it happened very slowly at first, but as time went on the [Combat golems] adapted.
Wounds started to heal, [Iteration [1] noted that the disrupting [Goblin] had retired entirely, too worn out and exhausted to continue fighting, this gave the [Combat golems] even more freedom to fight.
The marching [Goblins] didn't respond to this very well, they struggled to keep up with the empowered [Combat golems], and soon it outmatched them and adapted to their tactics. What damage the [Goblins] managed to inflict was healed moments later, while empowered by [automation mana] the [Combat golems] seemed utterly immortal and unkillable.
When it was time for the [Goblins] to enter their second phase of recovery the strong [Goblins] couldn't keep up with the increasing strength of the [combat golems] and eventually one of the empowered [Combat golems] managed to crush the arm of one, causing it to reel back and break the formation.
The [Combat golems] dodged, ducked, and marched forward with uncanny efficiency, within no time, the [Goblins] had been eradicated and 15 souls detached from their corpses and drifted into its ambient [automation mana].
But [Iteration [1] learned its lesson and held off from consuming them and instead observed the empowered [Combat golems] and swept the tunnel for any signs of [Goblins] or abnormal activity.
[automation mana] twisted and moved inside them in a way it had never seen before, forming a complex structure that spanned all over the [Combat golems] body. The structure almost was alive, that was the only way [Iteration [1] could describe it, it refined and made itself better with every passing moment until it no longer had any [automation mana] for its rapid growth and adaption.
The blaze they had in the beginning began to fade as this happened.
They were returning to normal as the [automation mana] bled out of them and dissipated into the air but some remained and stubbornly clung to the center of the 30 empowered [Combat golems], forming a smaller version of the living [automation mana] powered structure.
[Iteration [1] found this interesting and would investigate later, but for now, it was going to be rebuilding. A lot of damage was done to the tunnel, and it was just barely holding up, it also had to make sure the entrance was safe and figure out why it couldn't taint the outside world.
[Iteration [1] ordered the [Builder golem] to clear the remains of the destroyed [Combat golems] it ordered them to ignore the [Goblin] corpses as it had no idea what it would do with them yet.
Within the span of a few minutes the tunnel was cleared of the rubble and corpses inside of it and the dead [Goblins] were moved to a small but deep room for experimentation. [Iteration [1] also positioned 15 new [Combat golems] at the entrance of the tunnel.
It then ordered the [Builder golems] to replace the [automata stone] inside the tunnel with [Compressed automata stone] which took a large amount of [automata stone] to make.
[Iteration [2] suggested the idea after it had studied the properties of [automata stone]. It mentioned some complicated stuff [Iteration [1] couldn't hope to understand but essentially what it meant was that [automata stone] was extremely flexible and the extent to which it could be compressed was only limited by their tools.
[Iteration [1] had to make a dedicated section complete with [Plate press] and [Stone pipes] connecting it to the main [Large stone fluid tanks] for molten [automata stone].
[Iteration [1] found it was better to connect them to the [Large stone fluid tanks] in the [Golem] producing part of the room instead of making [Large stone fluid tanks] every time it made something new or constructed a machine that required molten [automata stone].
Its [Worker golems] would have a much better time too, dropping off supplies at one [Large stone storage tank] instead of many, which would stretch its workforce too thin and that would in turn reduce overall efficiency.
[Iteration [1] also ordered the construction of a large wall made of [Compressed automata stone] around the entrance of the tunnel, adding an extra line of defense to its arsenal.
[Iteration [1] even went as far as to ask [Iteration [2] to design something based on powers displayed by the projectile-throwing [Goblin] but sadly it said that wasn't possible due to not understanding the underlying principles and not having good enough visual data.
[Iteration [1] was disappointed by this, but not too much, it moved on to other matters. The encounter with the [Goblins] had changed its outlook on life, [Iteration [1] now understood that it was very weak, what strength it thought it had was nearly wiped out by just 15 [Goblins].
[Iteration [1] didn't like that, if 15 was this much what was 20 or 30 going to do? It wouldn't even be a fight; they'd massacre it with ease. Something had to change, it needed to increase its mana level and get more upgrades and units, and it also needed a stronger material to work with.
[automata stone] was great but it needed better, the way it's [Combat golems] were easily damaged was proof of that. [Automata stone] would only show its true value later on when it had advanced enough, now it needed something else, something more durable.
That was its greatest problem right now, it had hoped the [Gog tamer] it killed came with its [Gog] but the [Goblin] didn't manage to tame one before it was drafted and sent to its tunnel.
With nothing too pressing to do, [Iteration [1] turned its attention to the floating sparks hovering above its [Central core] waiting to be consumed. [Iteration [1] ordered the ambient [automation mana] to consume the nearest one but stored the rush of data elsewhere and watched for any changes.
A few seconds after the barrage of information stopped and a ping from its internal system called for its attention.
//Mana saturation level: [100%/200%]