1.24 The Way of Survival: A Thirteen-Day Cycle

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Returning to the shelter, Day 5.

Wu Chen rose early and enjoyed a steam sauna before stepping out of his single living quarters. In the structure of an interstellar starship, this would be called a single-occupancy cabin—compact and functional. It was separated by only one wall from the U-shaped multi-purpose hall. Wu Chen occupied the center, with Cotelle Vertice and Lin Baiyu to his left and right.

"Master?" the AI intelligence asked softly.

"Hmm?" Wu Chen was dining in the company of his beauties.

"Your germ cells overflowed last night," the AI reminded him.

"Hmm... all right." Wu Chen was well aware of his own condition.

"Vertice's biochemical organs are highly compatible and show no rejection," the AI offered the most intimate suggestion.

"Fine, I understand." Wu Chen’s face was a portrait of intense embarrassment. Fortunately, his smartwatch used directional audio transmission, so his conversation with the AI remained entirely private; even those sitting right next to him could hear nothing.

As the base administrator, the AI had to have a solution for everything regarding Wu Chen. "Would you like me to arrange it?"

"No," Wu Chen said, his tone sharp and leaving no room for argument.

"Understood." The AI could not defy him.

After breakfast, good news followed. In the nano-medical pod, the Onmyoji had awakened and was emerging from her cocoon, reborn.

Considering standard technological lines, once an ordinary person dies, both somatic and reproductive cells rapidly lose activity, irreversibly. The reason the Onmyoji could be revived after being torn apart and turned into a dried corpse was, beyond her heaven-defying super-regeneration cell ability, the inherent mystical attributes she possessed—the key to her survival. Players were already familiar with "immortal, indestructible" beings like thousand-year-old demons. Even though Wu Chen came from a near-future sci-fi background, he was unfazed.

He just didn't know if the ability for plot characters to change their attributes upon switching allegiances was exclusive to the City of Broken Dreams, a privilege of high-level players, or a combination of both. Ultimately, whether players or plot characters, they were all "a fragment of memory" belonging to the Guardian. Whether this "Guardian's memory," composed of all players, could be altered depended on whether it was the true experience of all players or a collective "Mandela Effect." Especially under the high-dimensional attributes of the shelter, as proof of existence extended from countless shattered plot worlds, the memory blocks were undoubtedly a mix of pieced-together fragments and derivatives.

Before he could even get close to the AE86, a powerful psychic force rushed directly into Wu Chen’s mind.

The slightly recovered Omega Brainwave Screen reacted instinctively, revealing a glimpse of the vast microcosm of Plot Lord 0326.

The two brightest stars in the microcosm were Vertice and Lin Baiyu, who had just been networked into the City of Broken Dreams. Under a dim starry sky in the distance, a massive divine power surged forth. It caused this abruptly intruding psychic force to collapse instantly. As the force tried to escape before being devoured, it was captured by the divine power, encountering something akin to a black hole from which even light could not escape. The "intruder's" wishful efforts turned to nothing. After a momentary flare, it solidified into the third star.

This was what Architect Zero had been longing for: "Becoming a star." The mental core of every female companion would solidify into a star within Wu Chen’s microcosm.

At the same time, the newly awakened Onmyoji found that all perceptions in her worldview that contradicted Wu Chen had been annihilated. After the chaff was sifted away, the remaining fire of her spirit solidified and networked within Wu Chen’s microcosm, becoming a node.

Successfully transformed from a mystical-type Onmyoji into a sci-fi-type female esper, she knelt and bowed deeply to Wu Chen, who had walked up to her. "Greetings, Master."

"Get up. There is no need for such grand gestures in the future." As his demi-god microcosm received the constant spiritual nourishment of the female esper, Wu Chen seemed to be radiating light himself.

Thus, the "Omega Brainwave Screen" was indeed the Lord's most powerful shelter capability.

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"I beg Master for a name," the female esper said, prostrating herself once more.

"Kuki Kikuko." A flash of inspiration struck Wu Chen. The female esper came from the Nine Chrysanthemum Sect and had once been reduced to a dried corpse, looking like an evil ghost. Thus, he took "Kuki" (Nine Ghosts) as her surname and "Kikuko" (Chrysanthemum Child) as her given name.

"Thank you, Master." The female esper accepted happily.

Leaving the female esper to be comforted by Vertice and Lin Baiyu, Wu Chen walked alone into the telephone booth, removed his 1-star card, and scanned it again.

The rating had upgraded from "1-star Onmyoji" to "2.5-star esper."

A three-star card was worth a thousand coins. Two and a half stars was also a huge profit.

"Aiy, does the camp have any technology that matches Vertice and Kikuko?" Wu Chen was in a great mood.

"Yes." The AI had already performed a search last night: "T850 Terminator Power Exoskeleton Factory."

"Is that a factory built on a flat-base?" To Wu Chen's knowledge, functional facilities like factories, workshops, farms, and aquariums were mostly based on flat-bases.

"Arc-Type 3 Flat-base, used for electronic manufacturing." The AI displayed the "T850 Terminator Power Exoskeleton Factory" being sold by a player directly on his watch.

"What's the price?" Wu Chen asked.

"800 coins."

"Can't afford it," Wu Chen shook his head and smiled. "We only have two warriors now; there's no need to buy an entire factory. Ask the unit price of the T850 exoskeleton and what the minimum order is."

"I sent an inquiry in your name yesterday, Master, but the other party hasn't replied yet." Before the words faded, the AI Aiy added, "They just replied: '80 coins per set, minimum order of 10 sets.'"

"Isn't that still 800 coins? I have enough shelter coins; I might as well buy the factory," Wu Chen said, puzzled. "Ask again."

"The reply is: 'The core of the T850 exoskeleton is the control chip. The 10 chips available were obtained through shelter upgrades and cannot be replicated.'"

"So, the factory can only produce 10 sets." Wu Chen then asked, "Why are they selling it?"

The AI relayed: "The seller said the factory blueprint has been upgraded to the T1000."

Wu Chen understood.

It was like the AE86—the first level was a medical kit, and the second was a medical box. The seller’s first level was the T850 exoskeleton blueprint, and the second was the T1000. So, the 10 T850 chips obtained from the first level didn't increase in quantity. Therefore, the seller chose to bundle the T850 exoskeleton factory for sale and build a new T1000 factory instead.

The AI added that after the T1000 came the TX, and after the TX came the T3000. He wondered how many levels that seller could upgrade and if every level had an advanced robot factory blueprint.

In truth, the T1000, TX, and even T3000 all had huge flaws and were restricted by specific environments, making them suitable for infiltration, assassination, and other special operations. In terms of cost-effectiveness, they were not as good as the T850 when modified into general-purpose power exoskeletons.

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The seller was limited by their technology line, and it was unclear if the T850 chips could be replicated. For Wu Chen, however, there might be other surprises. One never knew.

It was just that the high price of 800 coins was something Wu Chen truly couldn't afford right now.

He decided to have the AI keep in touch with the seller and wait until he had accumulated enough shelter coins before making a decision.

"Master, the other party asks: 'Do you want any Moto-Terminators?'"

"What's the asking price?" Wu Chen asked casually.

"10 coins each if bought individually. A bundle of 10 is 20% off."

"10 vehicles for only 80 coins." The price was reasonable, and Wu Chen was quite tempted. "Ask him, since they come from the same Terminator series, why are the Moto-Terminators so cheap?"

"Master, the T850 is a power exoskeleton 'equipment,' while the Moto-Terminator is only a land 'vehicle.' Although it possesses intelligence and can drive automatically without needing a separate rider, its practicality is far worse than the drone swarms seen everywhere in the camp. That is why the price is low." The AI provided the answer.

"Plot characters are what count." Wu Chen was convinced