Technological advancement begins with devouring.

Chapter 102 New Year (4th update)

"As expected of an immortal-level star beast, even though it has been dead for countless years, the residual pressure from just a skeleton is so strong. If I hadn't made some progress in cultivating the secret techniques of the soul and obtained a few soul-related specializations, I probably wouldn't have been able to withstand it."

"In the Realm Lord's World," Jiang Chen sighed, putting away the 'Void Dragon Bone'.

The box containing the dragon bones is made of a special material that can insulate against the dragon bones' oppressive power while maximizing its preservation period.

Even if left for hundreds of thousands of years, it will not decay or be damaged.

After conducting a preliminary study and confirming the various extraordinary characteristics of the 'Void Dragon Bone', Jiang Chen generally agreed that his idea of ​​using the 'Void Dragon Bone' as the core to create the 'Void Dragon Mech' was feasible.

Of course, building it into a warship-like spaceship would also be a good idea.

The Void Dragon is larger than most small warships.

However, there's no rush to make a specific choice.

"The 21 [Space Furnaces] are enough to make money for now. We also need to save up some resources to buy materials. Whether it's building mechs or warships, a single keel is far from enough. The value of the other materials combined might even exceed that of the keel. So, it will take at least a year to save up enough for 21 [Space Furnaces]."

Jiang Chen quickly made a decision after a rapid mental calculation: "My current skill points are barely enough. The two clones remaining on Earth should focus on researching the 'Mechanical Legion.' The Void Dragon Mech and warships can wait; let's first get the basic framework of the Mechanical Legion out. We also need to create a sufficiently powerful mechanical unit to take down the 'Zerg Mother Nest.' This task must be completed before the Genius Battle ends..."

Jiang Chen was quite interested in the battle of geniuses.

At that time, the two clones remaining on Earth, and even the original body, will all enter the secret realm of the Virtual Universe Company.

After leaving the initial universe and entering the secret realm, you will need to go to various trial worlds to train and acquire resources.

At that time, a sufficiently powerful mechanical legion will be necessary to ensure their safety.

The 'start-up capital' for building a mechanical army requires a huge sum of money.

This money can only end up in the 'Zerg Mother Nest'.

Of all the treasures on Earth that can be sold, the 'Zerg Mother Nest' is the most valuable.

The Meteorite Starship is more valuable, but it is, after all, a legacy left by Teacher Luo Feng, the kind that would be very difficult to buy back once sold.

As for the Zerg hive, once Luo Feng has the strength to control it and has enough money, he can simply buy it back.

While a Zerg hive at the World Lord level is certainly very valuable and precious, for the core geniuses of the five giants, it's not difficult to buy one if they have the money.

However, taking over the Zerg mother hive on Earth will be quite difficult.

Although the Zerg hive is dormant and will not launch an attack, the poisonous fog surrounding the hive alone is enough to kill a domain lord-level powerhouse.

At the same time, even D-grade materials cannot resist the corrosive effects of toxic fumes.

To safely take down the Zerg broodmother, at least one mechanical unit with the strength of a World Lord would be needed.

Fortunately, as long as some of the design issues in the details can be resolved, the rest can be solved by simply piling on materials.

Although materials of the Realm Lord level, or E-grade, are expensive, they are still affordable if one manages to gather them.

However, according to Jiang Chen's simulation in the virtual universe, simply piling up materials can solve most of the problems, but not all of them.

There are also some design details that need to be carefully refined to ensure a successful breakthrough of the Zerg's venomous fog.

This aspect is not too difficult, but it requires a lot of time and effort to minimize costs.

If cost were not a factor, Jiang Chen could simply buy an E-grade puppet and take away the Zerg hive.

But that thing won't be much cheaper than the Zerg mother hive.

-

Earth, Chinese Lunar New Year.

"Uncle, Happy New Year! Here's a red envelope!"

The two little ones stretched out their chubby little hands towards Jiang Chen with serious expressions, asking for red envelopes.

These two little guys are Luo Feng's two sons, Luo Ping and Luo Hai, who are only five and a half years old, the kind of age that people and dogs find annoying.

However, the Luo family has good upbringing. Although the two little ones are a bit naughty, they are not so bad as to become annoying 'bratty kids'.

Jiang Chen smiled and took out two gift boxes, handing them to the two little ones, saying, "Here, play with them."

"Yay, we got New Year's gifts!" The two little ones grabbed the gift boxes and ran back into the house in a flash, perfectly demonstrating what it means to grab something and run.

"Ah Chen, you've come at the right time. We're about to have our New Year's Eve dinner." Luo Feng's mother greeted him repeatedly. "Don't mind those two brats. Luo Feng has spoiled them rotten. They have no manners at all."

In this life, Jiang Chen is an orphan. Every year during the Spring Festival, he would come to Luo Feng's house to eat for free. Luo Feng's family had long regarded Jiang Chen as family.

"The two little ones are a bit naughty, but they're both quite sensible," Jiang Chen said with a smile. Seeing Gong Xinlan and Xu Xin making dumplings, he quickly said, "Auntie, let me help you."

"No need, we're almost done wrapping them, we'll cook them right away." Gong Xinlan quickly stopped Jiang Chen and pointed to the living room next door, saying, "Go sit with Luo Feng for a while, and we'll eat after Auntie finishes cooking the dumplings."

"Okay~! Auntie, you go ahead and get busy." Jiang Chen readily agreed, slipped out of the kitchen, sat down next to Luo Feng, and casually picked up a wine bottle from the table, looking at the label on it.

"Hey, the 'Talisca Storm' from before the Great Nirvana? There's actually one of these that's been preserved. Where did you get it?"

After saying that, before Luo Feng could reply, Jiang Chen grabbed a cup and poured himself more than half a cup.

"You brat!" Luo Feng looked at Jiang Chen with a wry smile.

Before its rebirth, this wine was only considered average. It had a distinctive flavor, but it wasn't top-tier. It was a "daily wine" that focused on cost-effectiveness among wine lovers.

After the Great Nirvana, because so few remained, it became much more precious, but it still can't compare to the fine wines in the universe. Its only advantage is its 'scarcity'.

But as Earth's ecology gradually recovers, many wineries that were already famous before the Great Nirvana have been rebuilt, and some have even introduced advanced technology from space to brew even better wines.

This bottle of 'Talisca Storm' is actually quite ordinary in terms of both value and taste by today's standards. It's more about the 'nostalgia' of the pre-Nirvana era than anything else; it's not particularly precious.

But Jiang Chen's eagerness to grab the food amused Luo Feng, who couldn't help but start fighting with Jiang Chen for it.

The bottle of wine was gradually emptied as the two played around. Most of the bottle went into Jiang Chen's stomach, while Luo Feng, the host, only drank a little over half.

If it were an ordinary person, and two people shared such a bottle of strong liquor, even those with a high alcohol tolerance would eventually feel tipsy and enter a state of 'slight intoxication'.

However, given Jiang Chen and Luo Feng's physical condition, even without using their Force to dispel the alcohol, they could drink dozens of bottles without feeling anything.

Their stellar-level physical abilities are on a completely different level compared to ordinary people; they are practically two different species.

"Ah Chen, have you been to the 'Killing Arena' in the virtual universe recently?" Luo Feng suddenly brought up something: "In the last two or three months, many unfamiliar powerful individuals have suddenly appeared in the 'Killing Arena,' many of them are at the sixth level or above in the Domain, and there are even quite a few at the ninth level. Occasionally, you can even see one who has crossed the threshold of the Law."

"I've heard about that too." Jiang Chen nodded, looked at Luo Feng, and asked, "Do you remember I told you about that grand gathering of stellar-level geniuses throughout the universe?"

Luo Feng seemed to realize something and couldn't help but ask, "You mean the Battle of the Universe's Top Geniuses?"

“Yes, the Genius Battle is about to begin.” Jiang Chen nodded: “I got definite news from my teacher that it will be next month.”

"The battle of geniuses... I can't wait!" Luo Feng couldn't help but exclaim with anticipation.

After possessing the Golden Horned Beast, Luo Feng's progress can be described as rapid, and he has already gained a considerable understanding of the 'Metal Element Law'.

Furthermore, since his Golden Horned Beast true form has already entered the 'cosmic level,' while his Earthling clone is still at the stellar level, participating in the Genius Battle would be blatant cheating.

“You’re good at the metal element law, but you’ve only been cultivating for a short time. It will be very difficult for you to get a good ranking in the Genius Battle.” Jiang Chen thought for a moment and continued, “However, the Genius Battle lasts a long time. Once your ‘Demon Slayer Clan’ clone is born and you comprehend the spatial law, combined with your Divine Weapon, you will have a great advantage.”

Luo Feng's current 'configuration' is basically the same as in the original novel.

In this respect, Jiang Chen did not influence Luo Feng much, and even avoided influencing Luo Feng's 'path'.

However, under Jiang Chen's guidance, Luo Feng became more motivated to cultivate, and his strength was slightly stronger than that of his contemporaries in the original work.

But it's only slightly better.

Unless there are major changes, it won't affect the final result.

"Using the Golden Horned Beast's cosmic-level consciousness to drive a telekinetic weapon is practically cheating," Luo Feng chuckled self-deprecatingly. "If a cosmic-level being competes against a stellar-level being and doesn't achieve good results, it would be incredibly embarrassing."

"You think other geniuses don't have extraordinary opportunities?" Jiang Chen shook his head and said, "Your possession of the Golden Horned Beast was an opportunity, but other extraordinary geniuses also have their own extraordinary opportunities to varying degrees. Some of them might even have more extraordinary opportunities than you. There are also some with extremely powerful backgrounds who have received abundant resources for cultivation since childhood, and some even have powerful immortals as their teachers. There's no need to take these things too seriously. As long as the rules allow you to participate, then there's no problem."

"I understand, don't worry, I won't get stuck on it." Luo Feng saw that Jiang Chen was trying to comfort him and immediately said with a smile.

Jiang Chen nodded; he wasn't worried about Luo Feng's mindset.

Because of Earth's unique characteristics, Earthlings are inherently superior in terms of temperament.

Luo Feng is one of the best among them.

Is Luo Feng having mental health issues?

This is simply impossible.

"Stop talking, wash your hands and eat!" Gong Xinlan's voice interrupted their conversation.

In another room, Xu Xin transformed into a shrew, roaring, "Luo Ping, Luo Hai, you two stop fooling around and go eat your food!"

Upon hearing this loud roar, Jiang Chen and Luo Feng exchanged a glance and burst into laughter.

-

Meanwhile, in the virtual universe.

Jiang Chen's clone, 'Erso', respectfully said to the Illusionary Spirit King, "Teacher, I have mastered the 31st soul defense technique, the Soul Suppression Tower."

The Illusionary Spirit King was speechless: "I gave you over six hundred secret techniques, and all you've practiced are soul defense techniques? Just how afraid of death are you?"

As he spoke, the Phantom King's expression shifted, as if he had thought of something. His tone softened, and he said, "Erso, I know your experiences are unique. But you don't need to be so extreme. Soul defense is important, but attack, or other methods, are even more important. Otherwise, if you only have defense, you will still be at a great disadvantage when you encounter an enemy."

The Phantom King realized that 'Erso' was born a slave. Perhaps in order to avoid being controlled by the soul again and becoming a slave, he desperately studied the secret techniques of soul defense, wanting to make himself a being without any weaknesses in the soul.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Chen immediately realized that the Illusionary Spirit King had misunderstood.

But this made Jiang Chen feel a little ashamed.

Since becoming his apprentice, the Illusionary Spirit King has been absolutely devoted to him, giving him guidance every one or two months.

Even the most powerful beings in the universe might not be able to do this for their own disciples, let alone 'Erso', who is merely a disciple of the Illusion King.

Besides cultivation, the Illusion King also cared deeply for 'Erso', making proper arrangements for him so that he could focus on cultivation without being distracted by other matters.

Even something as mundane as 'psychological counseling' was something the Phantom King found tiresome; he personally guided Jiang Chen.

Although due to some plot points in the original work, Jiang Chen initially joined the Illusionary Spirit King's sect with the attitude of 'finding a backer'.

But after more than two years of getting to know each other, Jiang Chen had already come to regard the Phantom King as his true teacher.

Thinking about the secret he had kept from his teacher, Jiang Chen felt increasingly guilty.

"What's wrong? Is something on your mind?" The Illusionary Spirit King noticed that Jiang Chen's expression was off and asked with concern.

“Teacher…” Jiang Chen felt an urge to confess to the Illusionary Spirit King.

But just as he was about to speak, Jiang Chen hesitated.

Jiang Chen wasn't sure what the consequences would be after he revealed the 'truth'.

"If you have something on your mind, you can tell me directly," the Illusionary Spirit King said with a smile. "If you feel lost, I have some experience and may be able to help you analyze it. If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine too. Just figure out what you want and keep moving towards your goal."

Jiang Chen was deeply shaken. After a long silence, he finally spoke softly, "Teacher, there is something I have been hiding from you..."