Chapter 167: A Leisurely Century, Astounding Returns (Part 2)

A century passed by in the blink of an eye.

Inside the base outside the Ruins of the Ancient Gods, Jiang Chen lay on a bed, appearing to be fast asleep.

In reality, Jiang Chen’s consciousness was currently residing within the System Library.

Another book was finished.

Jiang Chen placed the volume titled *Destruction: The Ultimate Boundary Between Order and Chaos* back onto the bookshelf.

"The Laws of Destruction have also been completely read. The Law District on the fifth floor of the library has now been entirely mastered."

"Calculated by time, the century-long deadline is almost up."

"My improvements over this past century have been quite substantial. Pity that the speed of progression is still a bit too slow."

Jiang Chen stretched lazily. Although he was merely a body of consciousness within the System Library, he always felt as though he possessed a physical form here.

His gaze swept across the rows of bookshelves. Without lingering, Jiang Chen withdrew his consciousness directly from the System Library and returned to reality.

This century in the Blood Rock World was the longest period Jiang Chen had ever spent staying in a single place in his entire life.

It was prolonged to the point where it gave Jiang Chen a sense of "the world remaining the same while the people have changed."

The only thing Jiang Chen felt slightly regrettable about was that his clone had taken the wrong direction in researching blueprints. Although it had successfully developed numerous new blueprints recognized by the system, they held little overall value for the mechanical legion. The sole harvest was merely specialty points.

Over the course of a century, he had barely managed to scrape together twenty thousand specialty points, redeeming the [Creator of Mechanical Life].

Taking a wrong turn in research was a completely normal occurrence within the technological field. Though somewhat regrettable, acquiring a new specialty meant it was not a total loss.

---

Decades ago, Luo Feng had already fused with three "Blood Rock Crystals" to become a "Blood Warrior," after which he directly left the Blood Rock World to train in other mission worlds.

Under Jiang Chen's guidance, Luo Feng had also traveled to the "Demon Mountain" world and obtained the inheritance of the "Demon Sound God General."

Perhaps due to the butterfly effect brought about by Jiang Chen, Hong and Ji Qing never ended up together. Naturally, the Phantom Spirit King did not seek trouble with Hong, and Luo Feng therefore did not leave the cosmic secret realm ahead of schedule to return to the Ganwu Universe Country.

Instead, he remained continually within the secret region, venturing forth and training across various mission worlds while awaiting the opening of the new round of "Qualifying Battles."

The universe-level qualifying battles occurred once every century.

During the previous qualifying battle, because of Jiang Chen's appearance, the competition for slots in the Primeval Secret Region had become even more intense. Luo Feng failed in the competition and did not manage to break into the Primeval Secret Region.

After a century of arduous cultivation, Luo Feng believed his personal growth had been immense. Determined to force his way into the Primeval Secret Region and even challenge the "Primeval Sky Mountain," he naturally had no desire to break through too early.

However, these matters had little to do with Jiang Chen.

According to Jiang Chen's plan, once the resource development of the Blood Rock World was completed, he would execute his final training mission. After passing the trial set by the Chaotic Source Lord of the Axe, it would be time to break through to the Domain Lord level and leave the Primeval Secret Region.

It was not that Jiang Chen lacked the desire to continue scavenging for resources within the mission worlds; rather, the upper echelons of the Virtual Universe Company simply refused to allow him to do so.

Turning a mission world completely upside down every single time he visited, causing massive disruptions to the training and adventures of other geniuses—who could possibly endure such a thing?

The Blood Rock World would also be the final world Jiang Chen plundered for resources.

The next "Desperation-class" mission world was chosen for two reasons. Firstly, to complete the trial of the Chaotic Source Lord of the Axe.

Secondly, to seek out certain special "fortuitous encounters."

As for the choice of the world, Jiang Chen had already made up his mind long ago.

It was not the top-ranked "Purgatory Abyss," but rather a Desperation-class mission world located within the "Glory Secret Region" of the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance: the "Death Star."

According to the data provided by the Phantom Spirit King, Jiang Chen believed that the "fortuitous encounter" in this mission world was the most suitable for him.

When it came to fortuitous encounters, while the tier and grade were certainly important, the one that suited you best was always superior.

Fortuitous encounters like the God General inheritances held zero appeal for Jiang Chen.

Not to mention the immense difficulty of seizing them, even if he obtained them, they would not bring about any significant enhancement to his strength.

He might as well go to some ordinary mission worlds to scavenge more resources instead.

After letting his thoughts wander for a moment, Jiang Chen pulled back his straying attention and called out to Jarvis.

"Jarvis, how many resources have been collected?" Jiang Chen asked.

Jarvis immediately reported, "Currently, our mechanical legion controls approximately eighteen percent of the entire Blood Rock Continent. However, due to time constraints, the extraction rate has not reached its maximum. The various resources accumulated so far have a total value of approximately 188.7 billion Huanyuan units. This figure is the remainder after deducting the consumption for manufacturing production modules, engineering machinery, and other mechanical units. The detailed inventory is right here."

Jarvis projected a screen displaying a lengthy inventory list.

The inventory was divided into three parts.

First was the types and quantities of various mechanical units, including production and processing modules.

Second was the types and quantities of mineral resources.

As for the third, it was the scale of energy reserves.

---

The mechanical legion had an astronomical demand for energy. A substantial portion of resources had been diverted to manufacture [Spatial Furnaces] and stockpile energy blocks.

After undergoing several upgrades, the latest generation of [Spatial Furnaces] could produce energy blocks worth over ten thousand Huanyuan units for every year of operation.

And spatial furnaces of this caliber numbered over ten thousand within Jiang Chen's world ring.

Naturally, spatial furnaces of this grade had much harsher environmental requirements and could not be activated just anywhere.

It was precisely during these years in the Blood Rock World that these tens of thousands of spatial furnaces were able to operate at full power to their absolute limit, greatly augmenting Jiang Chen's energy reserves.

Among Jiang Chen's stockpile of nearly two hundred billion Huanyuan units in resources, half consisted of various ultra-high-quality energy blocks.

The remainder consisted of resources such as various metals and ores.

"Nearly two hundred billion Huanyuan units—truly astonishing!"

Jiang Chen could not help but marvel at the richness of the Blood Rock Continent's resources.

One had to realize that over the span of a century, Jiang Chen had occupied less than one-fifth of the Blood Rock Continent, and even the "shallow mineral veins" of this region had not been fully depleted.

One could even say only a small fraction had been mined.

If the entire Blood Rock Continent were to be fully developed, the profits gained would multiply by at least several thousand times, if not more.

A world of this magnitude could simply not be measured in value by "Huanyuan units."

At the very least, it would fall into the category of "Heavy Treasure Points" or even "Supreme Treasure Points."

If one factored in the production of "Blood Rock Crystals" and "Beast God Blood," the value of the Blood Rock Continent undoubtedly demanded calculation in terms of "Supreme Treasure Points."

After making a rough inventory, if he retained about twenty percent of the one hundred billion Huanyuan units of energy, it would be enough to fight an ultra-high-intensity war.

Taking backups into consideration, keeping forty percent at most would suffice, and the rest could all be sold.

As for the remaining eighty-odd billion Huanyuan units of various ores and metals, the vast majority had to be kept.

The portion that he had no use for and could choose to sell amounted to less than one billion Huanyuan units—a very low proportion.

With the development of the mechanical legion, its types were becoming increasingly complex, and the demand for various resources was exceptionally staggering.

Even Grade-A ores could be used to synthesize higher-grade alloys, meaning there was absolutely no scenario where they would go unused.

"Let's hold onto these resources for now. Three million mechanical units will be enough for a long time. At least the 'Death Star' mission won't require a larger mechanical legion."

A thought flashed through Jiang Chen's mind, and he issued an order to Jarvis: "Jarvis, recall all mechanical units and prepare to evacuate the Blood Rock World."

"Understood, Master," Jarvis immediately replied. "It is estimated to take about twelve years to recall the entire mechanical legion."

The number of mechanical units was simply too massive, especially those satellites which were spread out over a very wide area.

Gathering them all back would still consume a considerable amount of time.

Hearing the figure of "twelve years," Jiang Chen frowned slightly, but his expression quickly returned to normal as he nodded and said, "Notify me once the recall is complete."

To save time, should he simply abandon a massive number of mechanical units in the Blood Rock World?

Such a wasteful act was something Jiang Chen could never bring himself to do.

Although the value of those engineering machinery and satellites was not as exorbitant as combat units, they were by no means cheap commodities either.

Coupled with their massive quantities, the total value remained quite high.

Leaving them behind directly would be far too wasteful.

No matter how wealthy one was, one couldn't afford to be that prodigal.

Twelve years later, Jiang Chen finally "recycled" all the mechanical units, storing them away within various world rings.

"The world rings are almost unable to hold everything." Jiang Chen wore a slightly peculiar expression.

In the past, using multiple world rings to store the mechanical legion and various supplies was done for categorization and easy organization.

Different world rings contained different items.

Doing this now, however, was purely because the capacity of the world rings was insufficient to accommodate the gargantuan scale of the mechanical legion and the vast oceans of resources.

Yet Jiang Chen only sighed with emotion for a moment. Confirming that all mechanical units had been successfully "recycled," he boarded a spacecraft and departed directly from the Blood Rock World.

Jiang Chen had already submitted an application through the virtual universe system, but he still had to wait a period of time for the Virtual Universe Company's spacecraft to come pick him up.

Within the Heavenly Eclipse Palace.

Jiang Chen once again received an audience with the "Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace."

"My Lord." Jiang Chen bowed slightly in salute.

Having gained such massive rewards over this past century, Jiang Chen naturally felt filled with gratitude toward the Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace.

Granted, had the Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace not intervened, Jiang Chen might have been able to seize even more resources and treasures by acting on his own.

However, given the unknown high-tier combat strength of the Immortal Temple, a certain degree of risk would have inevitably remained.

With the Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace stepping in and both parties reaching an agreement, Jiang Chen settled for slightly fewer resources and caused less destruction to the Blood Rock World, while the Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace guaranteed that the indigenous inhabitants of the Blood Rock World could pose no threat to Jiang Chen. From Jiang Chen's perspective, this could also be considered a favorable outcome.

"It seems your harvest has been quite good." The Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace glanced at Jiang Chen, his gaze penetrating directly through the spatial storage equipment worn on Jiang Chen's body.

"I must thank Palace Lord for your generous assistance," Jiang Chen said with genuine sincerity.

"This is due to your own capability; there is no need to thank me." The Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace shook his head, looking at Jiang Chen with a strange gaze as he sighed, "A monstrous talent like you has never appeared since the birth of the Primeval Universe."

What the Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace was referring to was not combat strength or innate talent.

Rather, it was the sheer scale of the mechanical legion under Jiang Chen's command.

One had to know that although Jiang Chen only possessed slightly over three million combat-type mechanical units, the engineering-type mechanical units responsible for logistics numbered in the tens of trillions.

Aside from the Mechanical Race, who specialized most in technology, no other intelligent race throughout the entire universe could control mechanical units on this magnitude without plunging into chaos.

Of course, the credit for this belonged mostly to Jarvis.

Throughout those hundred-odd years in the Blood Rock World, aside from his main body cultivating, the clone operating alongside the main body had one primary task: upgrading Jarvis's core code and enhancing its computational efficiency.

A considerable portion of the mined ores had also been used to manufacture optical brain calculation modules, thereby providing Jarvis with sufficient colossal computing power to manipulate this vast ocean of mechanical units.

Naturally, solely in terms of strength and innate talent, Jiang Chen's performance was still entirely worthy of being called a "monstrous talent."

And it was the kind of monstrous talent that had no precedent across endless ages.

"I noticed that during your period of cultivation in the Blood Rock World, you obtained the recognition of the origin laws?" The Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace looked toward the mark between Jiang Chen's eyebrows.

If it were a mark of a single law lineage, the color of the mark would match the "symbol" of that law lineage.

For instance, gold for the metal lineage, cyan for the wind lineage, blue-white for the lightning lineage, and so on.

However, when one obtained marks of multiple laws, under their mutual influence, the color of the law mark would shift.

Yet the mark between Jiang Chen's eyebrows was a profound, deep black.

In the long lifespan of the Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace, law marks of this particular color were rarely seen.

Even so, having witnessed them before, the Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace naturally understood what this signified, and could not help asking: "You have obtained the recognition of all eight lower laws?"

"Yes. Once again, I must thank Palace Lord for taking action and allowing me to cultivate without any worries, achieving some measure of success through sheer luck." Jiang Chen revealed a smile.

Those hundred years in the Blood Rock World were indeed the longest period of continuous secluded cultivation Jiang Chen had ever experienced.

Completely free from external interference, he could focus entirely on the various knowledge contained within the System Library.

Although the process was dry and tedious, whenever a new piece of knowledge was successfully mastered, the sense of accomplishment was incomparable to any form of entertainment or indulgence.

"It is due to your own exceptional talent; even without me, the impact would not have been all that great." The Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace shook his head.

Having reached his exalted status, he disdained padding his own reputation.

His contributions belonged to him, and no one could take them away.

Things that weren't his, the Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace also disdained to contest.

Changing the subject, the Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace continued, "The quality of this generation's genius battle is quite exceptional. Aside from you, there is also Rong Jun, who is likewise destined to become a super powerhouse of our human race. In addition, there is Bo Lan, as well as Luo Feng who hails from the same planet as you—both of them also harbor a sliver of a chance."

Hearing the words of the Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace, Jiang Chen fell briefly speechless.

The upper echelons of the human race seemed universally more optimistic about Rong Jun, while viewing Bo Lan and Luo Feng with less favor.

Jiang Chen remained unclear as to what criteria they based these judgments upon.

As for the peculiarities surrounding Rong Jun, the original text had never explicitly mentioned them, and he ultimately faded into obscurity in the end.

Conversely, Luo Feng soared into the heavens, leading the human race to transcend the reincarnation cycle, and eventually even transcending this very source world to step into a higher echelon.

"Setting others aside, let us speak only of you." The Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace looked toward Jiang Chen and asked, "You cultivate the ten laws simultaneously, spanning nineteen chaos tablets. Is there any distinction of primary and secondary among them?"

The "nineteen chaos tablets" mentioned by the Lord of Heavenly Eclipse Palace clearly referred to the "Law-class Chaos Tablets."

The ten laws, the eight beast god laws, and the *Universe Chaos Tablet* which expounded upon the laws of space and time.

To simultaneously comprehend so many law systems and achieve accomplishments in all of them was an extreme rarity throughout the history of the entire primeval universe.