novelslam Chapter 43 [The God-like Chess Player, Making His Move at the Center]
Chapter 43 [The God-like Chess Player, Making His Move at the Center]
The courtyard of an old house in the countryside is bathed in the warm autumn afternoon sun.
Xu woke up from a pleasant afternoon nap and stretched.
I raised my wrist and glanced at the body data displayed on the smartwatch.
All indicators are approaching perfection, with active cellular energy and a stable metabolic rate.
He got up and leisurely brewed himself a pot of this year's new tea.
The aroma of tea rose gently, wafting over his relaxed expression.
He leaned back in the wicker chair, picked up his teacup, and transferred his consciousness to the Heavenly Dao system through the primordial spores.
View switching.
With the courtyard in the real world gone, Xu also began to examine the recent performance of his three chosen ones.
First, I clicked on the light screen belonging to the hero Lynch.
The log flashed by quickly, then settled on a brand new forging technique report.
"Frost and Fire Forging: On the Microscopic Deconstruction of Metals and the Directed Recombination of Heterogeneous Energy"
Xu was amused by the name; it suited his taste perfectly, unlike the overpowering feasibility study report vibe he used to have.
The dwarves' craft, passed down for thousands of years, relies on experience, timing, and hard work; it's a process of adding bricks and tiles.
The deconstruction and reconstruction of the Kaz civilization is a pure subversion of physical rules, a technology of dismantling and returning to zero.
Two seemingly unrelated technological approaches were miraculously fused together in the case of Lin Qi, the time traveler.
He did not rely entirely on either side, but instead forged its form with the dwarven "fire" and reshaped its godhood with the Khaz's "frost".
"A decent technological breakthrough," Xu Ye commented, taking a sip of tea.
"I never imagined that the legacies of two eras could be linked together in this way. Its value far exceeds my expectations, adding material for the possible next era."
Next, their gaze turned to the Black Tide Monarch, either the Demon King or the Abyss faction.
He stands atop a mound of skulls, where he performs a blood sacrifice ceremony for the champion.
The whole process was extremely wasteful. Clearly, this mindless mercenary failed to achieve his goal. Instead of promoting the progress of civilization, he turned back the clock of history.
Xu frowned: "Inefficient, with a very low conversion rate, and extremely unstable."
"Individuals who receive the gift show obvious signs of collapse at the genetic level. Although they gain tremendous power in a short period of time, their lifespan is greatly shortened, making them completely expendable."
"You really treat people like livestock? Tsk, who in my Assam would you allow to slaughter like this?"
But looking at that nascent, disciplined Black Tide Legion...
However, we must also acknowledge the advantages of this model.
"The speed of expansion and the cohesion of the legion are beyond imagination. They have perfectly controlled a group of simple-minded fighting beasts with the fear of death and the desire for advancement."
Xu also gave his final assessment, not being very optimistic.
"An out-of-control cancer cell, but it's very interesting. It's just a matter of how far it can 'roll' itself up, and how it can 'roll' the world into."
"Even if it's not as good as the other two, it's still good if it can put pressure on them."
Finally, there's Thea.
The Arcane Temple operates in an orderly manner.
On the enormous crystal wall, contribution points fluctuated like a stock index.
Every member operates within this sophisticated system, working to acquire knowledge and resources.
Outside the temple, the Azure Gold Project is beginning to show results.
By exporting technology, the Arcane Council acquired an abandoned mountain range that was worthless in the eyes of others, but contained strategic resources without firing a shot.
"As expected of a professional." Xu also laughed.
"I'm operating my world like a new company, and incidentally, I've also started venture capital in another world. Efficient and precise, I've mastered the art of monetizing knowledge and leveraging resources."
But soon, his smile faded.
"But... it's too cautious. Every step is calculated in terms of gains and losses, and every step is aimed at maximizing profits. This doesn't feel like a mythical era; it's more like a naturally functioning machine. Without a story, my primordial spores would go hungry."
Xu leaned back in his rattan chair. The three storylines were like three movies playing simultaneously in different theaters.
The hero is engrossed in leveling up and fighting monsters in the starting village.
The Demon King is frantically expanding his territory, snowballing his power.
Wise people build walls and store grain, focusing on internal development and scientific research.
They each live their own lives peacefully and do not interfere with each other.
This doesn't work.
To obtain the resources for evolution and to witness a truly magnificent clash of civilizations, we must bring them together and ignite the fuse.
What should I do?
Could a natural disaster, such as a flood or earthquake, suddenly descend upon the entire continent?
No, that's too crude and lacks artistry; it looks more like a game administrator reluctantly deleting a save file after discovering a bug.
From some hidden corner, an ancient demon beast that had been sealed away was released?
It's also a bit clichéd, more like the author, having run out of ideas, is forcibly pushing the plot forward.
Xu Ye's fingers tapped lightly on the armrest of the rattan chair, lost in thought...
He needs a sufficiently substantial catalyst.
A massive "vortex" that can simultaneously attract three forces, making them willingly throw themselves into it.
Since he is now the creator who can mobilize everything through the Heavenly Dao, the best approach is naturally to emulate the game designers and bring about a major version update for this world.
Introduce a limited-time global event that no one can refuse.
One of them stood up and instructed the Heavenly Dao System to pre-program this event, so that those who control the world could determine how to make it shocking enough.
Even after doing all this, Xu still felt it wasn't enough.
He meticulously designed the attributes and added various appealing patches for this world event, which he named Dragon Comet.
First, prepare an enticing offer for the hero, enough to grant them ascension.
This brings us to the [Sanctuary of Civilization], whose technology is so abundant that Xu Ye has more than enough to eat and use.
A very small amount of living metal was extracted from the sealed wise king Kars.
Then, through primordial spores, it was injected into the core region of the comet.
"When a comet strikes the Earth's surface, under extreme high temperature and pressure, the living metals combine with specific rare metals deep within the Earth's core to form unique and indestructible 'celestial iron'."
"This is a top-tier material that no blacksmith can refuse, and it is the only opportunity to forge a divine weapon."
Lynch will definitely come.
Also, a gift bestowed upon the Demon King by Heaven.
Xu also extracted a trace of the un-evolved version of the Primordial Plague from the Sanctuary of Civilization.
This spore was evenly mixed into the outer structure of the comet.
"The high temperature and radiation generated by the impact will act as a catalyst, allowing these spores to deeply integrate with the ley line energy of Ashem."
"Ultimately, a huge 'energy source' filled with pure life and death energy will form at the center of the impact crater."
"This is an unprecedented tonic for the Black Tide Power, which relies on devouring to grow stronger."
Having reached this point, Xu Ye had a thought that made him think: Now he's truly getting stronger the older he gets.
Finally, the wise man.
For a seeker of knowledge like Thea, the allure of material things and energy is not that great.
Only knowledge can ensure the eternal truth of the world.
Xu smiled and prepared a "bug".
"The comet impact will trigger violent upheavals in the laws of nature in a short period of time."
"This turbulent force will temporarily tear away the surface disguise of the Heavenly Dao Network, exposing a portion of the normally tightly hidden... underlying magical source code near the point of impact."
"For a mage who seeks to control the rules of the world, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to glimpse the truth of the world."
"You have no reason not to come."
Xu has completed all the settings and is now waiting for things to unfold.
After receiving the product bestowed by Xu Ye, the Heavenly Dao System extracted and mobilized the lava from the ancient [volcanic cauldron] used for stability testing, and then fused the materials...
In the world of Ashem, the sky suddenly darkened.
Whether it's a dwarf sweating profusely before a furnace, an orc honing their skills on the plains, or an elf deducing mysteries in a temple.
They all stopped what they were doing and looked up.
A dazzling streak of light pierced the twilight sky, trailing a long fiery tail, and plummeted toward the center of the continent before the eyes of all living beings.
"The new version 'Starfall Disaster' is now online."
"Good luck to you, Three Kings."