manynovel Chapter 290: Eulogy of Life, Seed of the Primordial Transcendent!
Chapter 290: Eulogy of Life, Seed of the Primordial Transcendent!
Wasteland Calendar, New Era Year Thirty-Five, September 27th.A day destined to go down as a milestone in the history of Happiness City, and perhaps the entire wasteland.
To ensure they had enough energy for the next day's work, the residents who had been awakened by the streetlights went back to sleep.
But before the golden morning light could even pierce through the mist shrouding the earth, all the residents woke up on their own accord and gathered in the open space at the center of the town.
Everyone's eyes were filled with a mixture of anticipation and nervousness. Whispers rose and fell in the morning breeze, carrying an inexplicable sense of solemnity.
Eight o'clock in the morning.
A heavy metallic scrape shattered the silence as the doors of Warehouse Number Two were slowly pushed open from the inside.
Eight robust men dressed in matching overalls worked together to carry out a stainless steel street sign that was a full four meters long and half a meter wide.
The surface of the sign was far from exquisite. It lacked any intricate patterns, and its edges even had a few rough burrs that hadn't been polished smooth.
However, the three large characters for "Dabo Town" engraved on the front were carved using the town's very own processing machines in the factory. The strokes were vigorous and powerful, gleaming with a cold metallic luster in the morning light, as if declaring the rebirth of this small town.
Inside the warehouse, the roar of machinery continued without pause, seemingly in the midst of frantically manufacturing new items.
Yet, to the ears of everyone present, this slightly deafening noise sounded like heavenly music.
It was like a passionate overture, announcing that this town finally possessed stable electricity, and its productivity was about to experience a qualitative leap.
Thud.
Thud.
The eight men marched with neat, firm steps, carefully carrying the sign toward the town entrance.
A nested foundation two meters deep had already been dug here. The group worked together to insert the sign vertically, then secured it from all sides with thick bolts to ensure it could withstand the fierce winds and impacts of the wasteland.
This dilapidated town that had been abandoned since the old era.
After nearly a century, at this very moment, it finally reclaimed its own name and regained its vibrant vitality.
Cheng Ye stood before the newly erected sign, his gaze slowly sweeping over the flushed, excited faces of the watching residents. He raised his hand and gently pressed it downward.
The noisy crowd instantly fell silent, all eyes fixed upon him.
Once the scene was completely calm, he declared loudly,
"A street sign has no meaning on its own. Its existence only matters because we give it meaning."
"Today, all of us have once again bestowed upon it the name Dabo Town. I hope this is not its end, but merely its beginning! Even more so, I hope this is not our end, but the start of humanity's grand resurgence upon the wasteland!"
The moment his words faded, thunderous cheers and applause erupted from the crowd, echoing endlessly.
At that time, the morning light finally pierced through the mist, cascading down to illuminate the brand-new sign and reflecting a dazzling brilliance.
The sign stood tall and majestic at the town entrance, like a silent guardian.
Behind it were rows of prefabricated houses, ceaselessly operating factory machines, the endlessly flowing White Water River, and faces glowing red in the dawn, brimming with hope and determination.
Cheng Ye quietly gazed at the scene before him, suddenly feeling a profound sense of grounded reassurance surging from the soles of his feet to the top of his head.
This was no ethereal and insignificant expectation; this was a solid foundation.
With the electricity connected and the town established, the hearts of the people naturally united.
After a century of desolation, an inextinguishable spark was finally reignited upon the soil of Dabo Town at this very moment.
He turned his head to look at Wang Kang and Luo Kuke standing at the back of the crowd, then glanced at Yu Yong, who was standing silently in the corner, and gave a gentle wave of his hand.
The crowd gradually dispersed, and a new day in Dabo Town officially began.
Even though their lives had yet to undergo a qualitative change, hope had firmly taken root in this land.
It was visibly apparent that, even if they hadn't slept well the night before due to the excitement of the power restoration, everyone's work efficiency had still increased dramatically. Vigorous shouts echoed across the construction site, brimming with drive.
"I'll go dispatch the crane. We should be able to dismantle everything today."
"The transport team won't arrive until the afternoon. This morning, I'll oversee the residents reinforcing the waterproof wall."
Wang Kang and Luo Kuke hurried over, each claiming their respective tasks.
Cheng Ye, on the other hand, was in no rush to push the canned food factory into trial production. Instead, he took advantage of the morning light and headed straight for the Hydroelectric Station.
Engineer Li and Engineer Qian, having worked through the entire night, had already returned to Wenlu County to rest. According to their agreement, for the next two months, the two of them would come over every three days to verify the data and send it back to the Inner City's supercomputer for fine-tuning until the Hydroelectric Station's operational loss fell below the required standard.
Seeing Cheng Ye arrive, Wu Rui, who was stationed there, immediately came forward to greet him.
"Captain Wu, thank you for your hard work. Hurry and take your team members back to rest," Cheng Ye offered.
"It's no trouble." Wu Rui shook his head repeatedly, pointing at the terrain surrounding the Hydroelectric Station. "Inspector Cheng, we've already surveyed the area. The Hydroelectric Station is the lifeblood of the town and requires two teams for long-term garrison duty. If you don't have suitable candidates for now, I can help train the militiamen. We just need to build two guardhouses nearby to facilitate shift rotations."
"No problem," Cheng Ye agreed instantly. "Just tell me directly what equipment and supplies you need for the training. I will fully support you."
Wu Rui's proactive offer wasn't merely an attempt to show off.
The current situation in Dabo Town was stable. If the protection squad remained idle for too long, they might easily slack off, leaving them in bad shape when actual trouble arose.
Doing something practical for the town now would not only solidify its defenses but also keep his team members in peak condition.
After receiving a positive response, Wu Rui left, satisfied. The area around the Hydroelectric Station quickly returned to tranquility.
Cheng Ye first walked into the machine room and checked the operational data of the equipment one by one. The runner speed was stable, the bearing temperatures were normal, and the output voltage fluctuations were well within the allowable range. Everything met expectations.
Only after confirming everything was correct did he walk over to the reserved charging port.
At a quick glance, ordinary people wouldn't be able to notice this inconspicuous little hole beneath the base, and even if they did, they would only assume it was a ventilation vent.
Cheng Ye materialized his pendant and reached out, slotting it in perfectly.
A self-traction device was designed inside the hole. Once the pendant was inserted, it was automatically pulled forward, securely locking into the internal catch.
This design ensured that even if someone discovered the hole, they wouldn't be able to extract the pendant, guaranteeing absolute security.
He opened the Collector's panel. Four or five seconds later, the top right corner lit up faintly.
Following that, a lightning bolt symbol representing charging slowly appeared. It started as a common grayish-white, then gradually changed colors as the power increased: solid gray, pale white, deep white, and finally, light green.
Cheng Ye thought light green was the limit, but to his surprise, the color continued to deepen until it turned dark green, with a faint blue halo at its edges, finally reaching its maximum capacity.
Meanwhile, the charging efficiency displayed on the panel skyrocketed from the initial 45 kW all the way to 320 kW.
He made some minor adjustments, gradually dialing the charging power back to 240 kW, putting it into a stable charging state.
The Hydroelectric Station's instantaneous output power could reach around 330 kW. Setting it to 240 kW ensured that the town's production and daily electricity usage wouldn't be affected while still allowing the Collector to recharge at a rapid pace.
As for the night, once the residents rested and the production equipment halted, he could go all out and let the Collector charge at a full-load speed of 300 kW.
[Current Replenishment Efficiency: Normal (Lv.3 Energy)]
[Current Replenishment Power Setting: 240 kW/h]
[Time Remaining Until Recharge Value is Full: 2.8h]
"It's only at fifteen percent Recharge Value right now, and it'll take less than three hours to fully charge?"
Staring at the charging information popping up in the top right corner of the panel, even though he had mentally prepared himself, Cheng Ye still couldn't suppress the ecstasy in his heart as he paced back and forth in front of the Hydroelectric Station.
It wasn't until the Recharge Value firmly jumped up by another one percent that he fully realized it.
This was all real.
Inspector Cheng finally possessed a stable charging channel. He no longer had to worry about others discovering his anomalies, nor did he have to be on edge about being interrupted while drawing power.
This was his Dabo Town.
And more importantly, this was his White Water Dam Power Station!
"Once Dabo Town has more funds, we can start modifying the river channel to further increase the Hydroelectric Station's power generation to over 500 kW..."
It wasn't until the Recharge Value surpassed twenty percent that Cheng Ye gradually calmed his racing heart and began planning his subsequent development.
For this renovation, he originally intended to get it all done in one go, maxing out the power station's output immediately.
However, after a field assessment, he was forced to shelve that plan. Modifying the river channel would take at least two and a half months of construction, and the White Water Dam would need to be expanded simultaneously.
By the time the project finished, it would already be the dead of winter in December.
Setting aside the fact that the sharp decrease in water flow during winter would affect power generation efficiency, going without electricity to charge for those two months alone was unacceptable.
Weighing his options, he ultimately decided to maintain stable operations at the current 300 kW output through the winter and gradually push forward with the expansion project after spring rolled into summer.
Within a year, he expected to double the White Water Dam Power Station's output.
This way, he could satisfy the Collector's immediate charging needs while ensuring that Dabo Town's development would no longer be hindered by electricity limitations.
The exhaustion from pulling an all-nighter quietly set in at that moment. Cheng Ye checked the operational parameters of the equipment in the machine room one last time. Only after confirming there were no issues did he return to his room at the Material Collection and Sales Station, set an alarm, and crashed into bed to catch up on his sleep.
Just before eleven o'clock, the alarm buzzed on time.
He practically bolted upright, subconsciously tapping open his panel.
Upon clearly seeing the Recharge Value in the top right corner fully restored to 100%, he couldn't hold back a goofy grin.
It was full. It was finally full.
The Recharge Value, which had hovered at a pitifully low number for half a month, finally displayed a delightful 100%.
Although he still needed to return to the Hydroelectric Station to retrieve the Collector before he could officially use the Recharge Value, Cheng Ye couldn't help but clench his fists and let out a low shout.
"Awesome!"
He leaped to his feet, threw on his clothes, and sprinted toward the Hydroelectric Station.
When he arrived at the charging port, his palm flickered slightly, and the pendant materialized, instantly turning solid and tangible.
Despite being subjected to ultra-high power input, the Collector showed no signs of heating up; it remained as cold as ever.
Cheng Ye sat down on a metal chair in the machine room, took a deep breath to soothe his surging emotions, and slowly opened his personal panel.
[Collector: Cheng Ye]
[Current Rank: Lv.3 Elite Detective (41.2/100)]
[Skills: Earth-Shrinking Giant Louse* (Bound), Heart-Protecting Fire, Zeye Physique, Envoy of Tan Ming, Resilient Eulogy of the Black Jade Cedar]
[Abilities: Earth-Shrinking Giant Louse Symbiotic State* (Balanced), Blazing Eagle Symbiotic State (Shaping)]
[Not Yet Unlocked...]
[Evaluation: As you engage in deeper contact with the 'local' civilization, you begin to discover that the birth and rise of a civilization is the result of countless intertwined, accidental factors. Perhaps it carries the lingering echoes of a fallen predecessor, or perhaps it benefits from the assistance of a visiting foreign civilization. At the same time, however, you perceive with increasing clarity that on the path of a civilization's rise, there are always immensely precious moments that bloom. And these moments are precisely what define the value of a Collector. Your existence is exactly for capturing and preserving these shining marks. Continue your journey, head to more unknown lands; remaining stagnant will only cause you to gradually forget your mission in the passage of time!]
The increase in Information Degree brought by the Immortal Object didn't slowly halt until it broke past the 35% threshold needed for Level 3.
And the subsequent growth all came from the four cedar skills he had collected from Li Matai.
"The next level isn't too far away..."
Cheng Ye nodded slightly.
Having reached this level, normal intelligence could no longer provide an increase in Information Degree. However, his newly enhanced strength was enough to support him in searching for higher-level skills and exploring dangerous areas he hadn't dared to touch before. As long as he dared to venture out into the Wilderness, his collection speed would absolutely only get faster.
Even if he encountered a Mother Source-level Infected Body, he wouldn't be helpless; he now had the confidence to fight them head-on.
Skimming past the basic information, Cheng Ye's gaze landed on the backup Skill Bar.
There were survival skills, combat skills, physical talents, and various types of knowledge.
The densely packed skills lined up in several columns, making his mere four equipment slots seem woefully inadequate. Many practical skills had to be temporarily shelved, waiting for an opportunity for Skill Fusion.
And now, it was time to complete this step and truly fuse the power of "a myriad of methods" into one body.
Exiting his personal panel, Cheng Ye activated the Skill Fusion function.
As his Rank had increased, the Recharge Value cost for each fusion had dropped to 25%. A full bar was enough to support four fusion operations.
The first ones to be fused were the four Level 4 cedar skills.
The "Resilient Eulogy of the Black Jade Cedar" was a life blessing, while the other four were talents.
He started by selecting "Cedar Adaptation" and "Cedar Rooting" and tossing them into the fusion slot.
On the virtual panel, an ancient scroll slowly unrolled.
Two towering Black Jade Cedars appeared on opposite sides of the scroll. Their trunks were straight as if cast from iron, piercing straight into the hazy gray sky.
The bark lacked the rough texture of ordinary trees; instead, it looked as if it had been carved from a solid block of black jade, gleaming with a warm yet hard, muted luster.
"Are these... Runes?"
Cheng Ye's gaze fixed upon the bark. Dense, spiral patterns climbed upward from the base of the trunks, gradually converging at the top to form two completely different, simplified Runes on the left and right.
Just like the Runes he had seen before, even though the structure of the cedar Runes was simpler, the moment his eyes drifted away slightly, his mind immediately lost the memory of their shapes, as if they had been forcibly erased by some underlying law.
Looking past these two foundational Runes, the canopies of the Black Jade Cedars spread out like umbrellas, shading a massive expanse of the sky.
Several ink-black vines hung down from the ends of the branches, dotted with sparse, jade-colored flower buds. A faint halo swirled across the surface of the buds, as if they contained Vitality pushed to its absolute peak.
These vines and flower buds intertwined, unexpectedly forming an even larger, more complex composite Rune that vaguely emitted a profound aura linked to the earth.
"This power..."
Cheng Ye took a deep breath and tapped the fusion button.
Since they were both cedar-lineage talents, the fusion process was exceptionally smooth, without any energy conflicts.
[Current Information Fusion process complete. Fusion result stable.]
[The Civilization Collector has successfully recorded the newly fused skill: Cedar Body (Lv.4; Perfect)]
"Huh, Adaptation and Rooting turned into Body?"
Cheng Ye's eyes flickered.
The panel didn't pop up a prompt saying "Recharge Value can be invested to trigger a mutation", meaning this fusion had reached its optimal state without the need for extra consumption.
He didn't pause, immediately throwing the Rare-grade skill "Cedar Bark Toughness" into the fusion slot.
Perhaps because the Rare grade was too low, neither the skill's name nor its level changed after fusion; it merely strengthened the defensive attributes on the original foundation.
It wasn't until the moment another Rare-grade skill, "Cedar Spirit Nurturing", was tossed in...
The previously still Black Jade Cedar within the scroll suddenly swayed violently. Its manifested volume expanded out of thin air by thirty percent, its trunk growing even thicker and more upright, while the Runes on its bark swirled with a rich cyan light.
The light from the jade-colored buds flared brilliantly, the cyan on their surface gradually deepening, vaguely transforming toward dark green, as if they were about to bloom with the power of the origin of life.
[Current Information Fusion process complete. Fusion result: Rare; Life Blessing.]
[The Civilization Collector has successfully recorded the newly fused skill: Eulogy of Life of the Black Jade Cedar (Lv.4; Rare)]
[Detected that the Collector's current Recharge Value can trigger the 'Random Mutation' mechanism. Would you like to mutate?]
"Huh, four talents actually fused into a single life blessing?"
Shock rolled through Cheng Ye's heart. He immediately chose to cancel the mutation.
Since they both belonged to the category of blessings, the Resilient Eulogy could absolutely be fused with the Eulogy of Life again to produce an even more powerful effect.
Three consecutive fusions had consumed 75% of his Recharge Value. Cheng Ye first reinserted the pendant into the charging port, then reopened the panel to view the fusion results.
A single glance instantly filled him with the shocking sensation of stepping into a new era.
[Eulogy of Life of the Black Jade Cedar (Lv.4; Rare)]
[Description: Rumored to be ordinary cedars originating from the old era, they were nourished by accidental contamination with transcendent energy. Their wood gradually turned into jade, awakening a series of unimaginable powers. Unfortunately, their fruits could not grant Transcendent power to humans; only their jade-like trunks possessed special utility. Thus, upon being discovered by humans, the Black Jade Cedars were brutally chopped down by the roots, their Vitality completely severed. However, though their roots were destroyed, their souls did not disperse. Their lingering spiritual resonance transformed into an intangible blessing. Whoever receives this gift will awaken power on par with the Transcendent, inheriting their resolute and imperishable will...]
[Current Blessing: Eulogy of Life]
[Gather any three blessings among: 'Life', 'Resilience', 'Concealed Simplicity', 'Jadeification', 'Indomitability', and 'Spirit Gathering' to obtain 100% of the Black Jade Cedar Trait.]
[This Trait can be exchanged for a complete seed of the Black Jade Cedar.]
[Gather all six blessings to obtain the skill: Black Jade Cedar (Lv.3; Transcendent)]
[Current Blessing Bonuses:]
1. Ignore the effects of standard harsh terrain, allowing the blessed individual to constantly maintain their peak condition.
2. Block one fatal attack; Cooldown: 90 days.
3. Staying in a single location for more than 72 hours triggers Rooting Mode. Operating within fifty kilometers of that location will continuously increase maximum life force. Current increase rate: 5% per 2 days. Maximum limit: 300%.
4. Gain a permanent bonus to total life force. Current bonus: 25%.
5. Upon entering special states, the recovery speed of life force will receive a certain boost.
Such a detailed description and explanation had never been seen in skills below Level 4.
No, one could even say that Normal Skills would never receive such treatment!
This life blessing not only rarely reconstructed the complete form of the Black Jade Cedar but also revealed a vast amount of high-value information.
"Collecting different eulogies can actually be exchanged for the Black Jade Cedar's Trait, or even grant its seed?"
Cheng Ye's gaze swept over the panel, his mind momentarily falling into a daze.
What kind of concept was this?
This was the seed of a Primordial Transcendent Plant! Even if it didn't possess heaven-defying functions like the Burning Chive, and only its jade-like branches had special utilities, that couldn't change its Transcendent nature.
Though planting the seed outside in the wasteland would result in it being infected by ambient free viruses and mutating straight into an Infection Source.
But as long as he used the Mian Chamber to seal off the Rongdong, creating an independent small space isolated from viruses, there would be zero concerns about planting Transcendent Plants.
More importantly, the condition to exchange for the Trait by gathering three blessings was now one-third complete. With the Eulogy of Life in hand, and getting the Resilient Eulogy from Li Matai, he'd only be short one more blessing.
He wondered if Li Matai had any relatives who inherited other cedar-lineage abilities.
If he did, perhaps he could piece together three blessings.
Taking a step back, could he synthesize the other missing blessings by continuously fusing and mutating existing skills?
If he could gather all six blessings, he'd directly unlock a Level 3 Transcendent Skill!
'Perhaps in the future, I can target those prominent families with special ability inheritances...'
Cheng Ye secretly calculated in his mind, then focused his attention on the blessing's effects.
The effects of the new skill basically merged the core abilities of his previous cedar-lineage talents, with specific numerical values all receiving a certain boost.
Only the original effect of "Cedar Spirit Nurturing" had been replaced, turning into a more direct bonus to total life force and an increase in recovery speed—simple and crude, yet extremely practical.
Without hesitation, Cheng Ye unequipped Envoy of Tan Ming and equipped the Eulogy of Life of the Black Jade Cedar.
As his connection to the two Runes in his palm vanished, an indescribably bizarre sensation suddenly welled up in his heart.
With the two blessings on his body, a Stroke of Genius hit Cheng Ye. He turned around, walked out of the Hydroelectric Station, and stood straight on the soil outside.
The feeling grew increasingly intense. He simply took off his shoes and socks, stepping barefoot onto the moist dirt. His sense of connection with the earth instantly magnified.
'This still isn't enough?'
Surprised, Cheng Ye decisively stripped off his shirt and pants, leaving only his underwear, and prostrated himself on the ground.
To his shock, that feeling of reaching the true essence was still lacking a final thread!
He pondered for a moment, then simply called over the nearby Patrol Team.
"Help me dig a hole. Yes, right here. Just dig a hole big enough to bury me in."
"Uh, bury you in it?" Dai Zun was dumbfounded.
But Cheng Ye's attitude was resolute, so everyone had no choice but to grab their shovels and diligently dig the hole.
It wasn't long before a pit about two meters deep was excavated.
Cheng Ye leaped into the hole. That vague sensation immediately became incredibly intense, as if something was about to break free from the depths of his soul.
Overjoyed, he hastily urged, "Quick, fill the dirt back in!"
"This..." The team members looked at each other in dismay. Burying Inspector Cheng alive—was this reasonable?
"Just do as I say!" Cheng Ye's tone brooked no argument.
The group helplessly picked up their shovels and carefully tossed the excavated soil back into the pit.
As the dirt fell onto his body, the icy touch intertwined with the earth's profound heaviness. The feeling of an impending breakthrough grew clearer and clearer.
The moment the soil covered his chest, a burst of ultimate comfort erupting from the depths of his soul exploded forth, almost making Cheng Ye roar out loud!
This was it!
It was as if long-dried roots had finally plunged into fertile soil. An endless stream of warm, nourishing energy surged from the earth into his body, flowing through his limbs and bones, perfectly resonating with the blessing power of the "Eulogy of Life".
At the same time, his soul felt as though it was enveloped in a warm spring, so comfortable that he couldn't help but yawn.
Under everyone's flabbergasted gaze, Cheng Ye's head tilted to the side, and he actually fell asleep against the wall of the pit.
"Ah, Inspector Cheng passed out?" One team member was startled and gripped his shovel, wanting to dig him out to save him.
"Don't move!" Dai Zun hastily raised a hand to stop him, bending down to place a finger near Cheng Ye's nose.
His steady breathing carried a vigorous sense of power. The blood energy around his body was so abundant it practically overflowed. He didn't look like he had fainted at all; rather, he seemed to have entered the deepest state of rest.
"Uh, Inspector Cheng might have fallen asleep?"
Coming to this conclusion, Dai Zun himself found it unbelievable.
But looking at the relaxed, comfortable expression on Cheng Ye's face, he didn't dare be careless and immediately sent someone to call Wu Rui.
"Why did you guys bury Inspector Cheng?" Wu Rui turned pale with shock when he hurried over. However, the moment he approached the pit, the keen perception of an Embryo-Holding Stage expert caused his furrowed brows to slowly relax.
A powerful aura of life emanated from the hole, like vegetation rooting deeply into the earth. It even gave him the illusion that Cheng Ye's body had fused with the surrounding soil and was endlessly absorbing Nutrients.
'Could this be Inspector Cheng's special ability?' Wu Rui pondered to himself. He waved away the spectating team members and stood guard by the pit himself, vigilantly observing his surroundings.
Only an hour and a half later, Cheng Ye abruptly opened his eyes. The dirt encasing his body made him freeze for a moment, but the next second, an unprecedentedly abundant surge of Vigor flooded his entire being.
The fatigue from the sleepless night vanished without a trace, as if he had enjoyed a full night's deep slumber. Even his mind had become exceptionally clear.
What surprised him even more was that he could clearly feel a noticeable increase in his total life force.
"Is this... the effect of the life blessing?"
Startled, Cheng Ye opened the panel, only to see that the blessing description had quietly updated. The entry for a permanent bonus to total life force now impressively displayed: Current Bonus: 3%.
"Just 3% yields such a significant effect?" Cheng Ye blanked out for a moment, then realized the terrifying potential of this blessing.
Could this total bonus not be based on his current base stats, but rather on the total amount after stacking the Earth-Shrinking Giant Louse Symbiotic State?
If that was the case, didn't that mean...
He immediately looked at the attribute panel for the Earth-Shrinking Giant Louse Symbiotic State.
As expected, the data had changed. The consumption for activating the Symbiotic State was still 5% life force, but the repayment Cost had dropped from 50 kilometers to 49 kilometers. More importantly, the life force extraction ratio required to share attributes had fallen from 350% to 345%.
'The increase in life force can actually lower the Cost of using the Earth-Shrinking Giant Louse?'
Upon reaching this conclusion, Cheng Ye felt both enlightened and somewhat surprised.
He was enlightened because the Collector had previously hinted that the massive gap in their life tiers was what caused each use to exact a Cost. Now that the gap in life tiers had narrowed, the Cost would naturally decrease.
The surprise was that he seemed destined to walk the path of a "blood-tank warrior" till the very end.
And besides the usual physical talent bonuses, he had found a new avenue to increase his life force.
Blessings from Transcendent Creatures!
"I wonder what changes will occur after fusing two blessings together?"
A thought stirred in Cheng Ye's mind. He simply decided to act today, making another trip to East Peace Town to search out a Resilient Eulogy and fuse it with the Eulogy of Life.
Since the Hydroelectric Station provided a continuous power supply, his Recharge Value could be replenished as soon as it was used up. No one could restrict him.
"Inspector Cheng, are you alright?" Wu Rui's voice rang out. There was no surprise in his tone, but rather a hint of curiosity.
Cheng Ye turned to look at him and smiled faintly. "I'm fine, doing very well. Staying in the soil is extremely comfortable."
"Is it your special ability?"
"Uh... you could say that, though I can't clearly explain it myself."
"Not being able to explain it is normal," Wu Rui chuckled. "In the vast wasteland, very few people fully understand their own talents. If you want to come out, just say the word."
"Alright, then fetch my Defense Terminal for me."
Cheng Ye nodded. He could clearly sense that while submerged in the soil, the effects of the Eulogy of Life were ongoing.
It seemed to be slowly absorbing the faint Vitality within the soil, and the life force bonus on the panel was inching up bit by bit.
He stayed like that all the way until noon. Three and a half hours passed, and his Recharge Value was fully topped off once again.
Cheng Ye had the men dig open the pit. By the time he leaped out, the life force bonus on the panel had already broken past 12%.
At the same time, the repayment Cost for the Earth-Shrinking Giant Louse dropped from 49 kilometers to 46 kilometers, and the extraction ratio for shared attributes saw an even sharper decline, plummeting straight to 312%.
'Not bad! Once this 25% is fully absorbed, I might only need the Cost of three lives to use the shared attributes!'
Secretly delighted, Cheng Ye brushed the dirt off his body and put his clothes back on.
"Let's go. We're taking a trip to East Peace Town!"
After retrieving the pendant from the charging port, they set off. Although the off-road vehicle had been borrowed, the two armed pickup trucks were still available.
Speeding all the way, it only took them forty minutes to arrive at East Peace Town, where he successfully collected the cedar-lineage Resilient Eulogy from Li Matai!
"What are you giggling about?" Li Matai was already accustomed to Cheng Ye's sudden visits.
But seeing him leaning against the car door, grinning from ear to ear, he still couldn't help but scratch his head.
"Do you have any other direct relatives?" Cheng Ye cut straight to the chase.
"Of course I do. Quite a few, actually, and they're living pretty well."
Li Matai answered matter-of-factly, "It's just that they're all still staying in Kindling. Back then, the only ones willing to migrate to Happiness City was my father's branch."
"In Kindling?" Cheng Ye felt a pang of regret in his heart and asked again, "Then did they inherit your grandfather's Transcendent talent?"
"Uh... I'm not entirely sure about that, but they probably did, right?"
Li Matai hesitated. "Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to live so smoothly in a place like Kindling."
He has relatives, they're in Kindling, and it's highly likely they inherited the cedar-lineage talent!
Cheng Ye silently noted down this crucial piece of information.
It seemed that if he ever had the chance to visit the Kindling Shelter City in the future, he might be able to gather the remaining blessings. Even if he couldn't synthesize a complete Black Jade Cedar, obtaining a seed of a Primordial Plant would be a massive profit.
However, just as Li Matai was puzzled and about to ask why he was suddenly inquiring about all this, the Defense Terminal on Cheng Ye's waist suddenly vibrated.
He pulled out the Defense Terminal. Seeing the official number displayed on the screen, he couldn't help but furrow his brow. "Huh, this is a number from the Inspection Station's offices? Which office is it?"
Li Matai leaned over to take a look and immediately raised an eyebrow. "That's the exclusive number for Station Chief Ding's office."
"Station Chief Ding's?"
Cheng Ye was taken aback. He quickly composed his expression and pressed the answer button.
Li Matai sensibly wanted to step aside, but Cheng Ye signaled him with his eyes to stay put.
"Cheng Ye?" Sure enough, Ding Yishan's voice came through the receiver. His tone was flat, but it carried a faint, imperceptible trace of joy, lacking its usual stern rigidity.
"Station Chief Ding!" Cheng Ye responded in a deep voice.
"Are you in Dabo Town?"
"Oh, I'm currently in East Peace Town, exchanging insights on Satellite City construction with Inspector Li Matai."
"Heh... Exchanging construction insights with Li Matai?" Ding Yishan chuckled lightly. Hearing this laugh, Li Matai instantly frowned, bearing his teeth in an unconvinced grimace.
What, was Inspector Li's ability not good enough? Wasn't East Peace Town developing quite impressively?
However, Ding Yishan clearly had no intention of explaining. He shifted the conversation. "Get ready. Return to the Buffer Zone as soon as possible."
"Oh?" Cheng Ye's heart stirred. "Is there an emergency?"
"Liu Bi just returned to the Buffer Zone after completing his mission yesterday, and today he got into a conflict with the Integrity Supervision Department. He beat Qin Zhaoye, the Director of the Order Maintenance Division, straight into the emergency room. Now, he's been detained by the Integrity Supervision Department."
Ding Yishan's voice remained calm. "I want you to represent the Inspection Station, go to the Integrity Supervision Department, pay the fine, and bail him out."
"What?"
Cheng Ye had already felt a vague sense of foreboding the moment he heard Liu Bi's name. When Ding Yishan finished, he couldn't help but let out a low gasp.
Holy crap. It was one thing for Brother B to beat Garcia into the ER, but how did he end up thrashing Qin Zhaoye into the hospital too?
Wait a minute...
Realizing that Ding Yishan's tone wasn't serious but instead carried a hint of relaxation and joy.
Cheng Ye narrowed his eyes, his free left hand unconsciously stroking his chin. "Station Chief, has Inspector Liu already reported back to you for debriefing?"
"Of course. Once an Inspector completes a mission, they naturally have to report to me, the Station Chief. Why do you ask?"
This old fox!
He actually had the nerve to ask why!
At this moment, Cheng Ye was ninety-nine point nine percent certain that all of this was absolutely orchestrated by Ding Yishan instructing Liu Bi.
After all, compared to the other Inspectors in the station, Liu Bi had always been incorruptible. The Integrity Supervision Department couldn't find any leverage against him whatsoever. Since he was the one who made the move, it was the least likely to make others think the Inspection Station was deliberately stirring up trouble.
Furthermore, the Integrity Supervision Department couldn't use this incident to manipulate Liu Bi; they could only detain him on the grounds of assault.
It was just that Cheng Ye hadn't expected the conflict between the Inspection Station and the Integrity Supervision Department to be initiated by the Inspection Station. And the moment they made their move, they sent the opposition's Division Director straight into the emergency room.
Moreover, Liu Bi couldn't possibly be unaware of the consequences of offending a rising Department System and the Transcendent Faction behind it.
Yet he did it anyway. Just what had Ding Yishan said, or what had he promised, to make him proceed with such unwavering resolve?
"Station Chief..."
"The fine will be covered by the station. You don't have to pay out of your own pocket," Ding Yishan interrupted directly.
"I didn't mean..."
"Take him away to your Dabo Town. After spring next year, I will settle the fallout of this incident."
Ding Yishan's voice remained nonchalant. "Liu Bi will go on Field Duty with you. You can request whatever Field Duty authority specifications you want. The station will satisfy anything within its power."
"Alright!"