Translator: AnubisTL
Ding-dong.
Chen Jiang paused, raised an eyebrow, and picked up the tablet beside him to check.
On the galactic forum, a user with the nickname "First-Hand Channel, Sincere Cooperation Sought" had sent him a message.
"First-hand?" Chen Jiang narrowed his eyes, pondered for a moment, and then replied decisively, "No shit."
"Could it really be first-hand?"
The man lying in the bathtub waved his hand, dismissing the holographic screen in front of him. A new communication interface popped up.
Soon, a tall woman in professional attire appeared on the screen, her crisp voice ringing out:
"Good day, Mr. Sun. What are your instructions?"
"Check if any Ten Thousand Races Arenas have recently collapsed."
"Understood."
Afterward, the man picked up a cigar from a floating cabinet above the water, lit it, and held it between his fingers, lost in thought.
Player Innate Abilities had only one source: the Ten Thousand Races Arena.
If the person selling two million units of Player Innate Abilities was truly first-hand, it meant a Ten Thousand Races Arena had collapsed, and they could quickly pinpoint which company was responsible.
But if it wasn't first-hand, it meant the goods were black market goods.
Black market goods, naturally, referred to items obtained through illicit means by interstellar pirates and sold on the galactic forum.
There were, of course, methods for dealing with black market goods.
Soon—
The communication screen lit up again, and the tall woman reappeared in the frame. "Mr. Sun, the most recent incident at a Ten Thousand Races Arena occurred three months ago."
"The winning race that time was the Gold Devouring Clan."
"This clan... devoured all other alien races within the arena, inheriting their racial and personal innate abilities."
"Moreover, the Gold Devouring Clan player possesses numerous powerful items that bypass rules."
"The moment the Ten Thousand Races Arena opened, the Gold Devouring Clan player charged out, devouring the arena's initiator and their guards. It has since been roaming through space, consuming everything in its path, growing to increasingly absurd proportions."
"The galactic federation hasn't made a decision yet. These Gold Devouring Clan members have grown so powerful they can even swallow particle cannons. Only large-scale firearms can eliminate them, but the cost would be too great."
"No one is willing to pay the price for this accident."
"Alright, I understand."
The man nodded slightly, waved dismissively, and hung up the call.
Such incidents were commonplace, occurring almost annually. After all, attempts to unlock a race's latent potential often resulted in monstrous, unmanageable species—a perfectly normal outcome.
But in the end, someone would always have to pay the price.
It had nothing to do with him.
"So, these are black market goods?"
The man nodded thoughtfully, gazing at the chat window before typing another message.
"Hmm?"
Chen Jiang paused, then sent half the data from the black box.
Less than ten minutes later, a spreadsheet arrived with a message:
"How does this offer sound?"
The total price was 7.5 billion star coins.
Chen Jiang clicked his tongue in astonishment. No wonder the Star Gate Forum claimed the Ten Thousand Races Arena was a goldmine. According to the newcomer's guide, investing in such an arena required roughly 200 million star coins.
Yet now, simply selling 2 million Player Innate Abilities could fetch 7.5-billion-star coins.
This wasn't just a goldmine—it was more lucrative than murder and arson combined!
But he wasn't concerned with the profits.
Instead, he focused on the detailed price list the other party had provided.
The highest-valued innate ability was priced at 200,000 star coins—a combat-oriented talent.
[Talent Name]: Keep Fresh
[Talent Effect]: Your body resists oxidation and aging.
Just a few simple lines.
That was the highest-priced innate ability offered by the other party.
In addition, the "Symbiont" innate ability was also priced quite high, at a full 100,000 star coins.
The prices decreased further down the list.
"Tsk."
Chen Jiang couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement. He now had a rough understanding of how innate abilities were priced in the outside world, and he had to admit, it sounded quite unsettling.
It felt like raising pigs for slaughter.
He also now understood how to extract a Player Innate Ability.
It was simple.
Using specialized equipment, the player's brain would be completely separated from their body. Then, by swallowing the brain whole, one would acquire the player's innate ability.
This innate ability had become a commodity within a massive, established industry.
After skimming through the tablet, Chen Jiang set it aside and strode over to Scar Dog, who was standing nearby.
The tablet had been expensive, costing him a full 1.5 million mutation points.
But it had provided him with crucial information.
For example, he now knew he had at most three months left.
Within these three months, he had two choices: either create a massive cannon capable of destroying that damned galaxy with a single shot, or be captured meekly and hand over his head.
The choice was obvious.
He hadn't considered whether he could survive the galaxy's destruction.
He only knew that if death was inevitable, he would drag as many others down with him as possible, giving the King of Hell extra work—perhaps enough to make him overlook a soul or two.
"How's it going?" Chen Jiang asked, standing beside Scar Dog and glancing at Wang Defa in the distance.
"Excellent," Scar Dog replied, flicking his cigarette butt into the void gate beside him. He nodded. "If Wang Defa maintains his current pace, he can earn nearly 120,000 one-star items per day."
"Moreover, as the rate of item acquisition increases, Wang Defa's physical attributes are improving even faster."
"We should be able to add four more large gears within three days."
"Good, that's good."
Chen Jiang paused briefly, his brow furrowing. "Try to speed things up even more."
"Understood."
Chen Jiang then turned his gaze toward the mutation shop, where he still had nearly 200,000 mutation points.
One-star items cost 10 mutation points each.
With 200,000 mutation points, he could purchase 20,000 one-star items. This quantity would have been incredibly tempting in the past, but now it seemed almost useless.
Even 20,000 one-star items might only increase his turret's caliber by two or three meters—a negligible improvement!
What he needed was a turret with a caliber of three kilometers!
"Hmm?"
Chen Jiang's eyes narrowed as he noticed one particular item, a wild idea suddenly forming in his mind.
[Item Name]: City Heart
[Item Star]: Three-Star Item
[Item Details]: A chip the size of a laptop. Install it at the heart of your city, and your city will gain a variety of miraculous effects.
[Item Effect]: Your city will gain the ability to fly, but energy block consumption will depend on the city's weight and size.
[Simultaneously, you can unlock the following miraculous effects:]
[However, each unlock requires a certain number of energy blocks.]
[Unlockable Oxygen Mask: Once unlocked, your city can maintain a breathable atmosphere even in outer space. Unlock cost: 5,000 energy blocks.]
[Unlockable Energy Shield: Once unlocked, your city will possess an energy shield capable of withstanding attacks.]
[Unlockable:]
[Item Description: No man can resist a flying city.]
[Exchange Price: 200,000 mutation points.]
The price barely covered the cost of this item.
There were nearly ten unlockable options, but he didn't examine them closely. For him, the primary benefit was the ability to fly.
After carefully reviewing the item effects of the "City Heart," he felt a surge of confidence as he gazed at the "World Tree" in the distance, scrutinizing its item panel.
[Item Name: World Tree.]
[Item Star]: Three-Star Item
[Item Effect]:
This is a seed. When planted in an area, it will grow into a massive tree hundreds of meters tall, with a dense, sky-obscuring canopy spanning a diameter of two thousand meters.
The flesh and blood of players who die beneath the tree's shade will be absorbed by its roots, condensing into a flesh fruit within the canopy containing a random one-star item.
Furthermore, players sheltered by the tree's shade will never tire.
The canopy also possesses considerable defensive capabilities, capable of blocking some attacks. When situated among other world trees, it will significantly enhance the magic comprehension of elf race players.
Moreover, as the world tree devours more player flesh and blood, it will continue to grow.
[Item Description]: Once planted, the tree cannot be moved.
Three key points:
First, the player flesh and blood absorbed by the world tree can condense into a flesh fruit within the canopy, containing a random one-star item.
Second, as it devours more player flesh and blood, the world tree will continuously grow.
Third, once planted, the tree cannot be moved.
What if I placed the city heart atop the world tree?!
All he needed to do was use the Giant Super Annihilation Bomb to obliterate a city, then plant the world tree in the center to absorb the blood and flesh of the slain players. Wouldn't that instantly condense flesh fruits containing one-star items?
Assuming a conservative estimate of 150,000 people per city, a single operation would yield 150,000 items!
The only remaining questions were whether the city heart could be used with the world tree and whether it could counteract the tree's immobility.
After a moment of deliberation, Chen Jiang gritted his teeth and spent his last 200,000 mutation points to purchase the city heart.
Soon, a chip roughly the size of a laptop appeared in his hand.
It was in a sealed state.
Despite being called a chip, it looked no different from a square piece of iron, lacking any visible signs of advanced technology.
Its internal structure was completely hidden, making it impossible to imagine how such a simple object could levitate an entire city.
Scar Dog, noticing the sudden appearance of the item in Chen Jiang's hand, asked in mild surprise, "What's that, Brother Jiang?"
After examining the item panel, a flicker of shock crossed his eyes. "Brother Jiang, you're planning to install this thing on the world tree? Is that even possible?"
"I don't know," Chen Jiang replied, shaking his head with uncertainty. Without hesitation, he grabbed the chip and strode toward the world tree's trunk. Reaching it, he firmly pressed the chip against the bark.
A notification chimed in his ear:
[Ding! Do you wish to install the Three-Star Item: City Heart onto the Three-Star Item: World Tree?]
[Warm reminder: This action is irreversible. Once installed, the Three-Star Item: City Heart will be permanently bound to the Three-Star Item: World Tree.]
"Confirm," Chen Jiang said calmly, nodding without hesitation.
Time seemed to freeze. All notifications ceased as he watched the chip slowly merge into the tree's trunk.
In less than a minute, the chip had completely fused with the tree, leaving no visible seams or marks—as if it had simply dissolved into the bark.
At that moment, another notification chimed in his ear.
[Ding! Your Three-Star Item: World Tree and Three-Star Item: City Heart have fully merged. For specific changes, please carefully review the item panel.]
"It's done!"
A flicker of excitement flashed in Chen Jiang's eyes as he hurriedly checked the World Tree's updated item panel. Sure enough, it could now fly!
The maximum flight speed was 120 kilometers per hour—not particularly fast.
It consumed 200 energy blocks per hour, surprisingly efficient—less than Scar Dog's air conditioner.
There was no altitude limit, but since the oxygen mask wasn't unlocked, flying too high might be uncomfortable due to the thin air. Whether it could break through the atmosphere wasn't specified.
He cautiously pulled an energy block from his pocket and tossed it into a half-meter-diameter circular hole in the tree trunk.
After the World Tree and City Heart merged, this hole had appeared, seemingly designed for inserting energy blocks.
As expected, the panel updated immediately:
[Energy Quantity: 1 point.]
Chen Jiang grinned, a hint of anticipation in his eyes, and fed another 200 energy blocks into the hole.
The panel quickly updated again:
[Energy Quantity: 201 points.]
[This meets the standard for one hour of flight.]
"This..."
Scar Dog stared in disbelief at the World Tree's item panel after its fusion. "Its roots are already buried dozens of meters deep underground. What happens to them when it flies?"
"Good question," Chen Jiang nodded. "I'd like to know that too."
He then lightly tapped the World Tree's trunk.
The next moment—
[Rumble!]
A series of earth-shaking tremors erupted from the depths below, followed by violent ground shaking.
Then, everyone felt the ground beneath their feet vibrating intensely at a high frequency, until their feet began to tingle slightly.
Suddenly, they sensed themselves rising slightly. Looking out over the wilderness, they could clearly see that they were now higher than the surrounding terrain!
In less than ten seconds, the World Tree, along with the soil clinging to its roots, had smoothly and steadily ascended into the sky!
Wang Defa, completely focused on his task, didn't even notice the commotion. Ignoring the tremors beneath his feet, he continued to relentlessly punch at the massive hole before him, sweat pouring down his face.
Soon, the World Tree had risen nearly a hundred meters above the ground!
Looking down now, the wilderness stretched out beneath their feet.
(End of the Chapter)
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